Darkness. Darkness was the first thing I remembered. That and being surrounded by something warm, it was kind of like water but thicker. Time passed quickly, and then it happened. I was finally ready to break free. Literally. Using my egg-tooth, I pecked my way out of the shell, and looked around slowly. As the mucus cleared out of my eyes and face, my vision cleared and I could see my surroundings a bit better. I could smell my parents, clutch-mates, ash, and fish nearby. I made my way over to my parents, trilling and cooing at them as they sniffed and chuffed back in response.

After checking out my parents, and then my hatched and unhatched clutch-mates, I made my way over to the pile of fish. Eating up as much as I wanted, I wandered around more after I was full. Checking out the area, I realized that my family's cave was in the middle of a massive volcano. I didn't really feel the heat though, my body was built for that type of environment, so to me it was just warm. I went over to my parents, curling up against my mother and dozing off for the rest of the day to rest.

The next week or so, my clutch-mates and I spent our time wandering the volcano, eating food brought to us, and playing around. We learned more about our bodies, and figured out how to move around without toppling over.

After we got the hang of walking and running, our parents started to teach us how to use our wings. They'd flap their wings, and we would copy, getting down the muscle memory of it. We started figuring out how to hover and move around a little, and when mother thought we were ready, she took us to the top of the volcano and threw us off. There were six of us, and all of us were quite strong. We maneuvered into the right positions, letting our wings catch air as we soared down the volcano, before shooting into the sky at the end. This was basically survival of the fittest. If you couldn't fly, you were as good as dead. Luckily, all six of us picked it up quite easily and had no trouble with flying at all.

Over the next few weeks, we figured out how to breathe fire, and hunt our own meals. Breathing fire came naturally to all of us. We have glands in our mouths that produce a flammable gas that lights when it comes in contact with oxygen, burning hot enough to cook a man alive. Hunting on the other hand, now that was a bit more difficult. First, we had to learn how to fly and land while making as little noise as possible. We learned to always be downwind of our prey, otherwise they could pick up our scents and have time to escape before we even had time to attack or made a move. Second, we learned that patience is helpful, but not always necessary. If you knew you could outrun or outfly your prey, you had no reason to be stealthy, since you could still catch your prey easily if it bolted.

However, since most of us weren't too fast quite yet, we learned the art of patience and stealth.

Step 1: Keep as low to the ground as possible.

Step 2: Stay out of sight, and don't make a sound.

Step 3: Stay downwind and move slowly.

Step 4: Attack with speed and precision.

Always think two steps ahead of your prey, or you've already lost your meal. Make sure your prey has as minimal chances to escape as possible before you attack, and don't go for a group unless you know you can catch one and get out of there fast. If you go for a group unprepared and not ready, they could kill you if they try hard enough or you won't get a good meal.

As soon as we had hunting down, our parents flew with us out of the volcano and into the area around our home. They showed us the land, rivers, trees, animals, and all sorts of things. They were preparing us for the world that we'd have to take on when we were 6 moons of age. We were only 3 moons right now, so it was getting closer to be time to go. Soon, we'd be out on our own in the world, with no one to guide us.

We landed by a lake to rest and get a drink, what we weren't expecting were the hunters that showed up. Luckily, my parents fried them after they took a few shots at us, and no one got hurt in our little family. They took us home after that, explaining the dangers of the world to us, since we'd soon have to face them ourselves without their protection.

Hunters and humans wanted our bones, blood, scales, and more. They used them in their armour, weapons, potions, and other such things. However, they had already hunted our kind to the brink of extinction, there were barely a thousand of us left around, and our numbers continued to dwindle.

Eventually, three more moons passed. We were ready to leave the nest. It was our time to explore the world and make it on our own. We had one final goodbye before we left, each of us going our own ways. I had no way of knowing if this was the last time I'd see them or not, but I knew that this was the start of my new life.

I ended up at a long stretch and mass of mountains, the giant beasts of stone made for good protection to my kind. The caves and caverns within the mountain range made for good lairs and nesting spots for young parents. It was a safe haven of sorts for our kind. Though, the mountains had low amounts of other animals, so we had to leave to hunt for the most part, leaving us open and vulnerable to attacks. Most humans couldn't get into the mountains though, so it was safer than other options.

I met plenty of dragons, and explored the area after finding and claiming an empty cave as my own. This was my new home.

Over the next few years, I met many dragons, but only one caught my eye. Their name was Vadul, they were amazing. They were fast, strong, compassionate, and an amazing hunter too. We became quite close.

One winter, when I was out hunting, I got attacked by a group of hunters. It ended with all of them dead, and my wings torn to pieces. Vadul found me, got me back to the mountains, and helped keep me alive. They became my wings, they helped bring me food, and we got even closer than before.

A few more years passed, and Vadul and myself decided to become mates. We spent even longer together, and eventually decided we wanted a clutch together. We spent a while trying, before we got a healthy clutch of three beautiful eggs. Taking turns sitting on them and incubating them until they were ready. We waited patiently to see our babies come out into the world. After a few more months of waiting, they were ready, and they finally hatched.