Tak'n, The Dragon Claw

“You see, my homeland, we have many heroes. But the first one of our history, before the empire was even founded? Tak’n the Dagger Claw, and he has many stories.

But, I’d like to start on how he started on the path to becoming a hero, well before he was known as the Dagger Claw. Now, see, my people knew he was a hero when he was born, as he was marked by what our priests had said was the mark of the Great Dragon on his right claw. (At this, Set shows a small drawing, like a design of scales, forming into a dragon’s wings) And we needed a hero at the time, for this was just as the war was beginning, before the Devastation, but before anyone knew that it was really to be a war.”

Set shakes his head, and chuckles. “But that isn’t what Tak’n was about. You see, in Draconic, Tak’n means Chosen. But the problem was, Tak’n didn’t know -what- he was chosen for. When he was old enough, he asked our priests,”

At this, Set makes his voice a little higher pitched, and squeakier, imitating a child, “Priests of the Dragon, what am I to do?”

And then he pitches his voice lower, “You will see, child. Trust in the Great Dragon.”

Set returns to his normal voice. “Now, like anyone, this was somewhat frustrating for Tak’n. He didn’t understand WHAT that meant, other than trust in the Great Dragon. Of course he would, he was a kobold. But that didn’t mean he saw what he was meant to DO. And so he stayed in the village he was born in, trained with the warriors, learned to dig and mine and set traps. He was very good at it, as a kobold back in the day should be, but nothing out of the ordinary. And as the seasons passed, he grew more and more frustrated with what his name meant, and what he was supposed to do.”

“At least, until there was a raid on Tak’n’s village. He was out in the mines, and slavers came. Orcs and humans and others came and attacked our warriors, who tried and failed, as the larger species came and rounded up our surviving warriors, our miners, our hatchlings, and our eggs. As warriors fought, Tak’n also fought, and managed to kill two slavers, before his best nestmate used a blast of black powder to seal the mine, so that he could escape. It looked very bleak for them, as there were too many of them and too few of us.”

“But Tak’n for some reason, he wasn’t noticed by the slavers, for some reason after the sacrifice of his best nestmate. Even when he was sure he would be caught when he tried to hide, something had their attention that wasn’t him. As he moved from hovel and hut to try and find a way to free his people, while the terror and anger and grief was in him, he moved with surety and carefulness. He was silent as an owl’s wings as he moved to try and observe his people’s plight, his mind racing.”

Set sat back, and let the thought of people coming to steal your friends and family and only you can do anything about it sink in to the listeners. He takes a sip of his drink, and extends one claw, showing a tiny image of a man, but the proportions of the man are wildly distended, and he looks like he should be

“He saw from his hiding place in a hovel, with only a small dagger in his right claw, a large and burly, horribly stinking man the size of a house, walk up to his people, who were being bound in chains by the other slavers. And the giant of the man spoke, and said, (in a very deep voice, Set starts), ‘You will all be slaves, and sold on the market. If you’re good, you won’t be thrashed on the ship, and you’ll be sent to the mines, and work out of sight where all of your kind should be. But if you’re terrible… I’ll beat you, brand you, and make sure you all work in the sun and the shit. So don’t give me trouble!’”

“At this, Tak’n trembled with rage, from his hiding spot, and nearly burst from the hovel to slay the slaver, and kill as many as he could be before they took him down. But he was oh so afraid, as well. He did not want to die, and he knew he wasn’t as brave as his hatchmate, who died during the mine’s collapse. And so he prayed to the Great Dragon.”

“‘Great Dragon, please hear me. I do not know what to do. I am afraid, but I cannot let my friends and family down. I cannot let my people down. Please, you chose me, but what can I do? I am just one Kobold!’”

“But all the greeted Tak’n was silence. He watched his people begin to be led off by the slavers, and there was nothing! Nothing from the Great Dragon, no sign or great work. And in that moment, Tak’n had to choose. He could run from the slavers, none had seen him. He could survive in the wilderness easily enough, and find another tribe. It would be easy. He knew there were several other tribes to the south, and the west, and they would be happy to have news of slavers, to take the warning, and to prepare. All he had to do was leave.”

Set takes a drink of his water, and smiles.

“But Tak’n realized… or at least, he thought he did, that now was the moment the Dragon had Chosen for him. To see what he would do, perhaps? Instead, Tak’n followed the trail that the slavers left, quietly, and cautiously. He would not abandon his people, mark or no mark. At the very least, he had to try, he thought! Even if he was just one kobold!”

Set smiled. “Needless to say, he succeeded in freeing his people. Otherwise this wouldn’t make a very good story! Not as one kobold, no. But with the dagger in his hand, and a plan, and help from the others. The slavers died, one by one, and then two by two, and then more and more as they harried them back to their ships. It took the fifteen kobolds, and Tak’n struck the final blow with the tiny dagger he had, to slay the house sized man at the end. This took many days, and he lost more friends at the end, but his tribe was freed.”

Set holds up a hand, and in it, three tiny kobolds of differing colors and scales are cheering, silently, the illusion dancing in his hands as he takes another drink to help his throat. “And as the life blood of the man spilled into the dirt and grass, Tak’n had a vision, or… something. We may never know. A great dragon, shining in the sun and of every color, flew over head. And his perspective went with it. In the vision, he saw seven islands, and the great dragon landing in the sea, curling his body protectively over the seven islands. And in his mind, he heard a voice that was not a voice, a word that was him and was part of the seas and the air and reverberated in his very soul.”

“Choose.”

“And the vision was gone. And Tak’n realized that while the Great Dragon may have chosen him, he had to choose to follow the Dragon.”