Born of Ash
Hard to believe it had been a little more than 15 years since the final showdown. It was 2035 A.D. and things were thriving. Much greenery had returned all over the earth, and surprisingly, due to all the nutrients that had been building up and put in over the years, the land was quite fertile. It was also a well-known fact, even many years before the appearance of the dragons, that volcanic soil is among the best in the world when it comes to growing things, but no one could have told that, after everything was said and done, the ground would basically have the same makeup as that type of dirt, though it's not hard to see why once you think about it.
Many, many more people than previously thought had survived the horror, a vast majority of them being Americans – not just north but south as well. When the burning plague first showed up on the island of Great Britain, a handful of other countries had at least some time to react before it reached them completely, such as China, Japan, Australia, a few South Pacific islands, and most of the countries on the Americas, and that was only because they all could afford the means to do so.
The agreed upon tactic, at first, was to use sheer power and weaponry, but after all of Europe and parts of Africa as well as Asia, were completely torched − in less than a month − it was time for 'Plan B', which was simply to go underground. Massive shelters were dug out and stocked with supplies, however, they could not hold everyone as, of course, not all of them were completed before hell's fury broke loose. Those that were, housed exactly who they were supposed to: the locals within the facility's designated coverage radius. Those that weren't lucky enough to even live within range of a halfway completed structure were left out in the 'cold' so to speak. All over the world, these abandoned individuals included ordinary citizens, rich and poor, military, high ranking and low, and government officials, politicians and just workers alike.
Special agents − called Shadows − who were trained to live on the outside in secret, were tasked to bring information back to these places and to give the 'all clear' if and when conditions lessened. Each facility had only 5 agents of its own, but it was thought to be enough as the training program was extremely rigorous and since there were not many to go around in the first place.
With the prime directive to survive at all costs, many Shadows turned out to be exceptionally ruthless, using anything, and anyone, they could to avoid being burned or eaten. Even this did not save most of them. Many were dead within the first couple of years. As the global society began rebuilding, those that survived seemingly vanished when judgment came knocking and their actions were brought into the limelight.
Entire shelters lost their contact with the outside world, and as such some opened their doors prematurely or simply did not open their doors at all, starving to death inside each and every person as the food ran out. They chose their own form of death, though in the end it was just as painful. Still though, many more people than imagined had made it through, and with the world looking completely different once they emerged, it was up to the outsiders to take the lead and help acclimate them to this new life.
Things were looking up. Contact had been reestablished around the globe so each group was in constant communication, giving hints and tips to those who needed it and just all around helping in any way they could. Dragons did still exist. Occasionally a female could be spotted skulking around, looking for her next meal. The scouting groups were stalked the most as they were only a few and easy to pick off, but farmers out in the fields and even, in extreme cases, citizens in town still fell victim every now and again.
Efforts were being made, however, to basically hunt down each and every last one and ensure more safety, but as they grew fewer this only seemed to make them more dangerous and fierce. After all, it makes sense that the toughest would survive the longest. Hunting dragons became a sort of lucrative business. At first it was more of a unified effort, but as time went on and due to the decrease in dragon population – and thus at home risk – less and less people chose to help until only a few were skilled enough or had the methods to bring them down.
Slayers, as they were roughly referred to, traveled from town to town, killing nearby 'problems' for a profit. They were unruly and disruptive, sort of like gangs that you'd see in a western style movie except not quite as outlaw in nature.
Surprisingly, London and its surrounding areas had rebuilt the fastest, though they would never look as they once had. This was impart due to the noticeable lack of dragon attacks once the male had been dispatched. It became a sort of epicenter for the new world and held the title Central Command, with other places simply being called colonies. Ironic that even after what others called the end of the world, the sun never set on the British Empire.