Once upon a time there was a great kingdom known as Elbereth. Elbereth was ruled by a great king, who was well liked by his people. He was not entirely loved, as the people did not like his taxes and a few of his laws, but overall he had a high approval rating. His queen was rather lovely as most queens are, with dark eyes, a fair complexion, and light hair. The king and queen had one son, the soul heir to the kingdom, who was known as Victor. Prince Victor was a handsome young prince, with sandy colored hair, and dark eyes that reflected pride, and as well, a bit of arrogance and wisdom.

One day, Prince Victor decided to ride out on his horse Hoën, as was his normal habit to do so. As he rode, he soon came across an old man dancing in the field like a young child. He stopped and called out to the old man, 'Old man! Why do you dance and act with such youth?'�

The old man laughed and called back, 'The Dragon has cured my ailing pains!'� And with another laugh, the old man ran off before Prince Victor could question him further.

'The Dragon?'� said Prince Victor to himself, 'I was not aware there were any dragons around. I must find it!'� And with that, he rode off again, to find where the Dragon was.

After a short while, he came across another person, this time a young farm boy who wore a cloak of fine quality.

'Boy. Where did you get that cloak?'� he asked.

'The Dragon gave it to me,'� said the boy with a quick bow, for he had learned it was proper to show respect to the Prince.

'The Dragon again! Tell me boy, where can I find this Dragon?'�

The boy smiled and pointed towards the forest. 'Go down that path, until you reach a fork. There, just ask the crow which way to the Dragon.'�

Prince Victor nodded and thanked the boy, and rode off towards the forest. He rode down the path until he reached where the path split, and on an old dead tree sat a large crow.

'Crow! Tell me which way the Dragon is,'� he said in his most authoritative voice.

'Why do you seek the Dragon?'� asked the crow, his voice raspy and hoarse. 'You do not appear to be suffering from any ailments so your health must be good. You are known as the Prince of Elbereth, so you do not require any riches to survive. So why do you seek the Dragon?'�

'I do not need a reason to see the Dragon. I am the Prince of Elbereth,'� said Prince Victor, 'and you will tell me where to find him.'�

The Crow sat thoughtfully a moment, and then nodded his assent. 'Take the left fork down to the pond. The Dragon is working there now. Perhaps he can impart a small bit of wisdom to you.'�

'Thank you Crow,'� said Prince Victor, and he rode off down the path, to meet the dragon. As he rode he began to think of what the dragon would be like. 'It's probably very powerful, to have healed that old man,'� he said to himself, 'and possesses a vast fortune to have given that young farm boy such a fine cloak.'� Soon he began to fantasize a great and terrible beast he would be encountering, as big as his palace with eyes that shone of hellfire.

When he came to the end of the path, he saw the pond the Crow had spoken of, and dismounted his horse carefully. 'Dragon!'� he called out in his most authoritative voice, 'come forth and make your presence known!'�

'Who is it that desires my presence?'� the Dragon asked, his voice coming out low and gravelly.

'I am Prince Victor of Elbereth, and I wish you to come forth.'�

'Ah very well,'� said the Dragon, and he came into view of the prince. The dragon's skin was covered in silver and green scales, with two small horns curling above his golden eyes. His size was smaller than Prince Victor had expected, only the size of a very small cottage. On his back were two black leathery wings, which moved slowly as he stood before the Prince. 'What is it you wish my liege?'�

'I want you to reveal the secrets of your healing magic to me, so I may use them to avoid ever being sick.'�

The Dragon shook his head at the prince's request. 'My cures have no magic in them; they are simply herbal remedies I have learned in my years. If you wish I could teach them to you.'�

Prince Victor frowned at this; he had expected to see the Dragon possessed great power! 'Then show me your vast treasures, like the cloak you gave the young farm boy.'�

Again the Dragon shook his head at the prince. 'That cloak was a gift from a noble who gave it to me in payment for my help with his illness. I have no desire for riches and valuables.'�

Prince Victor became upset at this and he glared at the Dragon. 'What sort of Dragon are you?'�

'I am a simple Dragon my liege,'� the Dragon said calmly, 'I prefer to work at healing, and teaching people.'�

Prince Victor felt angered by this and that the Dragon had so disappointed his expectations. In his anger, he spoke to the Dragon. 'Dragon. Learn to behave like a proper dragon should. The next time I encounter you, I expect to hear you are acting like a dragon and not a monk.'�

The Dragon nodded silently to the prince. 'As you wish my liege,'� he said.

'Good,'� said Prince Victor, and he rode off heading back to his castle.

About a week had past since Prince Victor had last seen or heard from the Dragon when a knight came running into the throne room where the prince was currently lounging.

'Prince Victor! A dragon is attacking the kingdom!'� cried the knight in a panic.

'What? Quickly, call out the guards, we must rid ourselves of this threat,'� said Prince Victor jumping from his throne. He ran out of the castle to see cottages burning, people running and screaming, and a dragon circling above in the sky, a huge jet of flame coming from its mouth.

The dragon landed then and the prince gasped in surprise. It was the same he'd met a week earlier! He ran to the Dragon and stopped before it, arms held out to stop the Dragon from walking past.

'Stop Dragon!'� cried Prince Victor to the growling beast. 'Why are you destroying the kingdom?'�

The Dragon looked at the prince calmly and spoke. 'I do this because you told me to.'�

'I never told you to destroy the kingdom,'� argued Prince Victor.

'Ah, but you did,'� said the Dragon sitting up before the prince. 'You said I must act like a proper dragon, and since you are the prince, I must do as you wish. So I shall act like a proper dragon should. I will burn the kingdom. I will kidnap princesses and rip apart cattle. Any knights I encounter I will attack with ferocity, until one of them destroys me. And I shall do all this because you ordered it so.'� The Dragon spread his wings then, and looked at the prince, his eyes calm and cool. 'And now my liege, I bid you goodbye for the time.'� With that, the Dragon flew off into the charred night.

Prince Victor stood staring after the Dragon as it flew away. He grabbed the arm of a passing knight and addressed him, eyes never leaving the sky. 'Gather the knights,'� he said quietly, 'and take half of them down the forest path until you reach a fork in the path. There ask the Crow which way to the Dragon. When they reach him, they are to destroy him.'�

'What of the other knights Prince Victor?'� asked the knight.

'They are to help repair the kingdom, and later, if the first half fail, they will have to destroy the dragon.'�

The knight nodded. 'Understood your highness,'� he said and hurried off to gather the knights.

Prince Victor turned his heart heavy with guilt as he walked back to the palace. As he lay down to sleep, the Dragon's words echoed in his mind, filling his nightmares.

'I shall do all this because you ordered it so.'�

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