With each devastating natural disaster, a dragon is born.
This is a simple fact, a mere association of two events. And yet, it has bred more hatred and strife than any other.
After the Yesugei war, a dark age for mankind and dragon alike, the last dragon riders—an ancient caste of people once rumoured to keep the balance in the natural order—were wiped off the face of the earth. Where man and dragon were once symbiotic, unified in a time of peace, now lies a rift between humankind and the natural elements.
Centuries later, the fate of both dragon- and humankind hangs in the balance. More and more natural disasters are beginning to ravage the earth with a divine vengeance, threatening the livelihood of the people. Among the choleric rumbling of the earth, rumours of another war glimmering on the horizon sparks a new dark age.
Khaliun Atkiray has not only trained to become a warrior since she was a child, but to someday rule in place of her father, the Great Conqueror Atkiray, Emperor of Anutuya. But the Empress has other plans for her eldest daughter. When a betrothal for the sake of a strategic alliance is thrust upon Khaliun, her first instinct is to run. On her wedding day, Khaliun flees north, abandoning her duty, her younger sisters, her beloved country, and her betrothed at the altar.
When a chance encounter brings Khaliun to save Khaltmaa, a female dragon whose nest was under attack by dragon hunters in the Border Woods, it's a shot at saving herself from a fate worse than death. Khaltmaa is a Furyborn, a species of dragon risen from the ashes of a blazing wildfire. And she has chosen Khaliun as her rider.
By some turn of fate, Khaliun meets Aleksander Kalashnik, a disgraced dragon-slayer from Vyara. Where in Anutuya, dragons are sacred, protected by divine law, in Vyara, dragons are hunted and killed out of fear. In the same vein, Anutuya and Vyara have a long history of violent strife, and the fragile armistice between both powerful nations is on the verge of shattering.
When Anutuya is overthrown by Vyaran forces, Khaliun's world is destroyed. Now under King Lothar's rule, dragons are no longer protected in Anutuya. Instead, a law has been passed to purge the land of its dragons. A new dark age is on the horizon.
Aided by two other unexpected allies—Liuna, a fisherman's daughter living in a colonised settlement, treated like a social pariah for the colour of her skin and the ways of her people; and Abbas, a blacksmith, a child of immigrants and an immigrant himself, who has never belonged anywhere—they must gather their own army of dragons and riders, setting aside their differences, and take back what they've lost.
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ATLAS
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KHALIUN ATKIRAY
the warrior princess
ALEKSANDER KALASHNIK
the dragonslayer
LIUNA
the fisherman's daughter
ABBAS SHAHBAZI
the blacksmith
KHALTMAA
furyborn
DRIFA
snowpiercer
TANARAQ
tidebringer
VESUVIUS
vulcan
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AUTHOR'S NOTE.
welcome to my high fantasy novel!!!!
So. I've been obsessed with dragons since i was a child and in my adulthood i am still obsessed and unhealthily so. anyway. IN MY BIG BRAIN MOMENT, this is a fresh take on dragons and where they come from! I think. so don't go stealing it because it's very much unique as far as I've seen. in my own mythology, i think dragons are born from natural disasters. something so earth-breaking and severely violent that it manifests in the emergence of beasts. and what better than dragons to come from the vehement forces of our planet?
Anyway. I also want to connect this as much as i can to our natural ecosystems. but i will go into that in the content. you'll have to see.
this novel discusses themes of colonisation and its cascading consequences. vyara and anutuya are both countries with huge conquering power (until vyara conquered davaa but that's besides the point). vyara is based on europe and russia, while anutuya is inspired by a mix of mongolian and chinese culture. (Khaliun is east asian coded and alex is ,, a white man).
liuna is inuit-coded, and her situation is reflective of russian colonisation of the aleut community. IM DOING AS MUCH RESEARCH AS I CAN ON INUIT CULTURE AND IF I'VE MISREPRESENTED SOMETHING PLEASE MESSAGE ME!!!! that being said if you are familiar w the culture i'd appreciate if you could discuss it with me because i want to learn as much as i can so i can handle the portrayal with as much sensitivity and accuracy as possible!!!!
abbas is middle eastern-coded, an immigrant. he represents displacement and the resulting displacement of self-identity, which is another theme i'm SUPER stoked to get into. him and liuna are my babies i love them so much. and dont worry - ik from the summary it doesnt seem like they have that big of a role to play BUT TRUST ME they are VITAL AND CENTRAL TO THIS STORY JUST AS MUCH AS KHALIUN AND ALEX ARE!!!! maybe even more ngl. they are very interesting characters.
ANYWAY. if ur confused about the dragons and their origins/species classification!!!! fear not!!!! i will explain as we go along 🤍 you'll be uncovering all the information alongside the 4 main characters.
AND OF COURSE!!!! THE CLASSIC FOUND FAMILY TROPE!!!!
also! please appreciate the map 🤍 i spent so long on it my computer started overheating and breathing super hard.