The lands of Avalar are divided, a war between two opposing factions rages on. The self proclaimed ruler, who came from a foreign land, leads his army of dark dragons to war against the rebelling inhabitants of Avalar. But on a quiet night, he resides in his fortress made of the very brick that once built the cities across the land. Alongside him is his mate, who lies by the nearby fire, their bodies surrounding their egg. The two were discussing what they wanted to name their soon to be child.

"I think we should name her Dawn," was the suggestion that came from the slender grey female. She thoughtfully awaited the approval of the other, a large black dragon who was covered in scars.

"I like it," he replied. His voice would normally be loud and intimidating, but his reply was soft. Concern was concealed within his tone. He studied the egg as he adjusted his position, "I think it will fit her nicely."

Outside, rain began to pour down, signaling the arrival of the approaching storm. The grey dragon shifted her gaze to the nearby window to observe the weather, "That is the first time in weeks," she said.

The black dragon was not concerned about the weather. The only thing on his mind were the worried concerns of Dawn's future, "Shadow, do you think she will be a worthy successor?" he said, finally speaking his thoughts.

Shadow looked up at him, her amber eyes displaying irritation. "Why is that so important all of a sudden?" She rolled over so she was laying on all four of her legs.

"We both know we won't be around forever, if we ever stop the rebellion, what if she can't maintain power?" He said, his eyes softened and his mouth remained open even after he finished his sentence.

Shadow could see that he was afraid. She sighed, and overlapped her tail over his. "We don't need to worry about that, Void, not anytime soon," She lowered herself to where her head rested on her front legs. "We'll worry about it when the time comes,"

The constant sound of rain and thunder blocked out the sounds that came from the floors below. The two were completely unaware of what would happen next.

The door to their quarters was blown open, creating a cloud of dust that concealed the dragon who entered. A discharge of light blinded Void and Shadow. He heard a gurgling noise nearby, followed by a thud. He suddenly felt something penetrate his lower body, the tail blade of the attacker. It tore past his scales, digging deep into the soft flesh. He hissed in pain as the blade was then yanked out of his body, leaving him to collapse to the ground.

When the dust settled, Shadow lied dead beside him, her neck slit. The egg was gone. Outside, a golden dragon was galloping away from the fortress, the egg held in one his arms, fleeing with a dozen of other rebels. Celebration broke out as they ran, they have finally rid Avalar of the enemy leader.

Void slowly and clumsily stood up. His vision was pulsing and blood seeped out from the incision in his chest. He looked down to find the egg gone and his mate dead before him, a pool of blood forming from the gash in her neck. Rage replaced his grief, blocking out the pain of his wound. Fury filled his body. He roared, splitting the silence of the night.

3 years later

In a small town called Taliry, The young dragoness, once known as Dawn, had awoken and was ready for a special day. Taliry was near the edge of a cliff that ended with water at the bottom. It had everything you would expect from a town; shops, schools, parks, and most importantly a town hall. As far as Dawn knew, this was where she was born. She thought she was normal, like all the other dragons. Although she truly was, she was seen differently

Dawn was on her way to school, it was her first day and she was excited. Today she would finally get to make some friends and learn a few things. Walking alongside her was a blue dragon that she did not know, an adult. He was escorting her for whatever reason. She didn't give it much thought. He would occasionally look at her, come to think of it, some of the other dragons they passed by glared at her, too. It really made her feel uncomfortable. I bet they like the color of my scales! She thought. She was the only dragon she knew that had black scales. She squealed with excitement when she saw that the school was just up ahead. The blue dragon finally spoke.

"Do what your teachers tell you," he instructed her in a firm voice. They continued to advance towards the school until they were near the front doors. There was a fenced in area on the side of the school, a gate acted as a door, it was open. Inside the fenced in area, other dragons her age were running around, playing all sorts of games and screaming in delight. "Go." she heard the blue dragon say.

Dawn quickly walked over to the gate and entered with a big smile on her face. She couldn't wait to play with someone for a change. Near the center, she spotted a group of five or maybe even six dragons playing tag. They look like fun! she mused. As she humbly made her way to them, she noticed some of the others around her stopped playing to stare at her. They whispered things to each other. She assumed they were good things. Among the dragons who stared was the group that she wanted to play with.

"What do you want?" Said one of them, a pale white boy dragon. His snout was blunt and he had a brown underbelly. Small spikes on the back of his head pointed out away from him.

"Can I play with you?" She asked, shaking her tail excitedly. She was shaking her tail so much it shook her entire body slightly side to side. Her amber eyes darted around to look at the other dragons next to him.

"Alright... let's play tag." He said. Dawn's smile grew and her tail began to shake so fast she thought it might just fly right off of her body.

"Yay! Who's it?" She squealed. Once again she began to look at each of the dragons, wondering who it might be.

He stood up on his back legs and shoved her, knocking her down onto the ground. She looked up at him, shocked. "Tag. Your it." Everyone started laughing. "You are an it, a thing. Nobody wants to play with you!" He sneered. She wanted to cry but she couldn't, everyone would just laugh at her more. Her eyes got wet and her face went red. He then raked her leg with his claws. Dawn shrieked in pain. The cuts started to bleed.

There was no doubt about it. Tears ran down her face as she feebly tried to back away from him. Her leg touched the ground and it made it hurt even more. She felt her back touch the fence, she was trapped. Out of the corner of her eye she saw a dragon who was not laughing, but she didn't care at all. She just wanted to escape these bullies.

Then, somewhere off to her left she heard a little bell ringing. All of the dragons looked to see the source. A teacher stood there with a small bell, ringing it to signal the end of play time. The dragons all lined up to go inside as the classes were about to begin, all except for Dawn, who was still laying up against the fence, tears staining her face.

The teacher noticed her, and after all of the other dragons went inside she stormed over to her. Angry at her, only her, for no reason. The teacher towered over her, looking down on her with a scowl. "Get inside, you pathetic little whelp!" she hissed.

Dawn tried to stand, but her cuts began to sting. The teacher grabbed her by one of her legs and yanked her off of the ground, then pushed her in the direction of the door.

For more than three hours straight Dawn was teased and laughed at. Even the teachers occasionally joined in. She had never felt so bad in her life. She would much rather be dead then to subject to this kind of torture. Then she heard herself being called upon, but by not her name. Nobody knew her name, not even herself. Instead, the teacher called her by her personal favorite, "Rat. Go outside, there is someone who wants you."

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