Alexander Maxwell

Black Powder & Dragon's Fire

There weren’t always dragons in the Valley. The Valley wasn’t always a barren wasteland. Once, it was a lush and fertile place, resplendent with fields, paddies, and arbors that fed the great cities of the Imperial provinces; an emerald expanse that gave succor to teeming thousands. It was a simpler time, before factory stacks raked the sky, poisoning the winds and waters, before the war-drum beat of the oil drills sounded the death-knell of the earth below. The Empire caged the Valley in brick and steel, and all that was green and good could no longer breathe. Hitherto came the dragons from the jagged crown of the world, aloft on wings of retribution. The Valley is a different world now; one of scorched earth and ashen winds, scoured by the vengeful tyranny of the old gods above.