Chapter 11
Tales of Dragons
In a time before time—before the oldest trees, before clouds carried rain, before much more than the wind moved beneath the sun, and even before the high mountains or the vast ocean knew the hard footprints or laboring oars of common men—the Thing-which-became-the-first-dragon was still a shapeless part of the vast and endless heavens. It may have not yet been a dark thing, but at some point in a time before time, the Thing-which-became-the-first-dragon grew to be hungry. And hunger invites darkness.”
The Laird of the First Gate and the greatest among the Commissioners of the Forfeited Gates hesitated before going on. His face was troubled and his voice was dark. “To satisfy its hunger, the Thing-which-became-the-first-dragon devoured one third of all the hea
