Synopsis

In the centuries leading up to our protagonists entrance, humans had viewed dragons as benevolent heroes, even god-like. But over those centuries, the dragon’s mysterious powers and the peoples’ mystic beliefs caused the people to increasingly resent and suspect the dragons.

Eventually, the people labeled dragons as monsters. Villagers put bounties on dragons’ heads, and dragonslayers became household heroes. This is the world in which our protagonists lived.

Rorgard is one of the greatest living dragonslayers, and he plays an important role in this story. Rorgard has extraordinary physical strength, but he also has a secret advantage: he has dragon consciousness. That is, he hears dragon voices in his head, and he can anticipate a dragon’s every move.

What Rorgard does not know is that he is a half-dragon. A shape-shifting dragon had taken human form and fell in love with Rorgard’s mother. But his mother died giving birth to Rorgard, and she took to the grave the secret of his father’s identity with her.

Rorgard did not understand why he was tortured by dragon voices as a child. All he ever wanted was to be normal. He was told by the dragon voices in his head that he is "one of them," but Rorgard rejected the dragons and grew to hate them. He is determined to rid himself of the voices by wiping the monsters off the face of the earth. Being different has caused him too much pain, already, and he associates that pain with the dragons.

One day, Rorgard visits a quiet village to kill a nearby dragon. In the village he meets and falls in love at first sight with Gloria, the daughter of the blacksmith. For the first time in his life Rorgard feels compelled to become close with someone.

Gloria is, too, drawn to Rorgard. She feels that there is something inexplicably familiar about him. Maybe it's his stare, his touch, or his presence... A romance is sparked between Rorgard and Gloria.

But what Rorgard does not know is that Gloria has a secret. Gloria’s secret is that she has a crush on the dragon that Rorgard has set out to kill. What neither one of them knows is that the dragon is Rorgard’s father.

Preorder the book to see how this story ends.

Main characters:

Rorgard the dragonslayer
Rorgard is a legendary, but solitary, dragonslayer with a curious secret. He is good at killing dragons because he has a dragon conscience. He shares his name with the dragon of our story because they have a link more intimate than they know.

Rorgard the dragonslayer has been tormented his whole life by dragon voices, and this telepathic knowledge of dragons allows him the advantage necessary to kill them. This secret power was borne of his past. His mother died in childbirth and his father was unknown. In truth, his father was a dragon. This fact would catch up to him.

On his last bounty hunt to a remote village in the mountains, Rorgard the dragonslayer spotted Gloria, the daughter of the blacksmith. Rorgard was instantly spellbound by her beauty. And she, too, was spellbound by him. Our story comes to a climax when the lives of these two lovers and the world of dragons collide.

Gloria, the daughter of the blacksmith
Gloria has hazel eyes, which shine brightly against her olive skin and long dark hair. Gloria is almost as tall as her father. Five years ago, Gloria and her widowed father came to the village from Persia with her two younger siblings. The family was passing through the village when the village blacksmith died. Gloria’s father took over the blacksmith’s work and the family stayed.

Gloria takes care of her father and her two little brothers. She has a big heart, is intuitive, and always wears a big smile. Gloria often goes to the mountains to pick herbs, mushrooms, and berries. It is on one of these trips that she meets and becomes friends with Rorgard the dragon.

Olivia, Rorgard the dragonslayer’s mother
Olivia was a young girl living in Twelfth Century Scottish Highlands. She was a rare beauty in the community. She had beautiful white skin, bright blue eyes, and silky strawberry hair that fell to her hips. Her parents were proud of her. They expected her to marry well. Word of her beauty spread beyond the highlands, and suitors came from near and far to see her.

But one day, Olivia disappeared without a trace. The entire village searched for her for almost a week, but to no avail. Her dad died from grief.

Two years later, Olivia came back to the village, pregnant and about to give birth. She seemed not well in her head because she kept talking to an imaginary lover. Olivia’s mother was furious. She demanded an explanation, but the midwives, called by the villagers, cut her off, because the baby was coming.

The dragon
The dragon living near our Twelfth Century Scottish Highlands villages happens to be the oldest dragon in the world. Like the rest of the dragons, he is a loner. Dragons live alone unless they are mating, which is a rare occurrence, because it’s difficult for them to fall in love. This patriarch dragon is over a thousand years old. His name is Rorgard. Rorgard is an ancient name. The name comes from the times when humans worshipped dragons, and believed them benevolent wizards. It meant Glorious One.

In those friendlier days, humans intentionally settled next to dragons’ nests. Dragons were good omens, and protected villages from enemies. It is hard to believe now, but back then it was an honor for human women to mate with dragons when dragons used their powers to briefly change into human form. Half-dragon offspring were considered heroes for their extraordinary strength and skills on the battlefield.

Rorgard remembered those times, but they were long forgotten by humans. In fact, in recent centuries, humans turned on dragons. In the eyes of humans Dragons became the monsters, the beasts, the thieves and the murderers. But then, an unexpected thing happened.
Rorgard the dragon fell in love with a human woman. Her name was Olivia.

OUTLINE
Prologue: Rorgard the dragonslayer’s birth

Setting: Twelfth Century a.d. Scottish highlands.
In a remote village a woman is in labor, assisted by two midwives. The woman’s name is Olivia. Olivia had disappeared from her village two years earlier. She had just now returned to the village, pregnant and about to give birth. Nobody knows where she had spent all that time, or who the father of her baby was. Olivia refused to explain herself and she seemed delirious. Her reappearance and pregnancy caused a big scandal in the village. But Olivia cared only about one thing: safe delivery of her son.

Olivia’s labor is very hard. She is losing a lot of blood. The midwives are making her as comfortable as possible, but she seems to have lost her mind from all the pain. She is talking to someone, her beloved. But no one is there besides the midwives.

When the child is born, Olivia smiles a weak but happy smile. She tells her imaginary beloved that the baby is healthy and strong. On her last breath she whispers a name, Rorgard.

Midwives believe that Rorgard is the name Olivia wanted to give to the baby. They honor the dead mother’s wish. The baby Rorgard is much bigger than a usual newborn, even by highlander standards. He is at least 30 pounds, no wonder Olivia was in so much pain to deliver him.

Chapter 1: The dragon legends from the past
Centuries before our story begins, humans viewed dragons as heroes, even god-like. Humans intentionally settled by dragons’ nests in the mountains, because dragons were believed to protect humans from evil spirits. Humans sacrificed cattle to thank dragons, and everyone was happy. Dragons would occasionally transform themselves into humans, and it was considered an honor for women to mate with a transformed dragon.

But over time, humans turned against dragons. It started with the small incidents here and there. A neighbor would steal another neighbor’s sheep and blame it on the dragon. A villager would murder another and blame the dragon. … Dragons were easy scapegoats, because they were short tempered and mysterious. Occasionally, an aggravated dragon would burn a whole village, and humans would remember such incidents for generations. Eventually, dragons’ reputation solidified as monsters, of pure evil.

By the twelfth century, villagers hated dragons. More and more villages posted bounties to get rid of them.

Chapter 2. Life in seclusion (the dragon community)
About a thousand dragons were left on earth. They spread around from Europe, and lived as far away as the mountains of Asia, Africa, and the Americas.

The highly intelligent creatures lived for thousands of years. They witnessed ancient history and were the keepers of sacred knowledge. Dragons were believed to be wizards, because they could take human form and communicate telepathically.

Dragons were loners. Unless mating, they preferred to live alone. Dragons were a tight-knit community, keeping in touch with each other through their thoughts. All dragons were connected into a network, like a certain radio frequency that only dragons could access. Physical distance did not matter, they could communicate with each other even from far away.

It was difficult for dragons to fall in love, and they mated only when they were in love. The dragon population was naturally declining, and the human aggression reduced their numbers further.

Dragons underestimated the human threat. Though highly intelligent, dragons lived in their own inner world most of the time. Since their lifespan was so much longer than humans’, dragons assumed the hatred against them was a phase, that it would pass. But it did not.

Chapter 3: The patriarch dragon
The oldest dragon in the dragon world, Rorgard the dragon, was the patriarch of the dragon community.

Rorgard the dragon lived in the Alps. He had just moved back after a few centuries in the Scottish Highlands. He left the Scottish Highlights after he fell in love with a woman. They had met in a remote meadow high up in the mountains. It was love at first sight. Her name was Olivia. She stayed with him in the mountains for two years, and they never parted from the moment they met until she decided to go back to her village to give birth to their son.

Olivia did not survive the labor. Rorgard stayed with her telepathically, talking to her and soothing her through the end. On her last breath she called his name. Rorgard the dragon lived and relived every moment with his beloved Olivia every day since. Heartbroken, he could not stand staying in the highlands. He came back to his native Alps. It has now been twenty-five years since he returned.

Chapter 4: The bounty
Rorgard the dragon’s village posted a bounty on his head. One small village in the Alps where the old dragon lived posted a bounty after a cattle massacre. The dragonslayers, the entourage, and numerous slayer wannabes descended on the village. The village was crowded. A town’s elder announced the bounty, the slayers went to the local pub to eat, and boast of their real and imaginary dragon slaying feats.

Chapter 5: Rorgard the Dragonslayer
One guy stood out. Very tall, of a large build, long dirty blonde hair tied in a bun, he came alone. He had good clothes and good gear. His horse was well fed. Rorgard, he introduced himself to the village elders. The elders nodded approvingly. Rorgard was a famous dragonslyaer with several dozen dragon kills under his belt.

At the pub, Rorgard kept to himself. His strategy was to wait out until the others tried their hand at killing the dragon, and then make his move. That took months. He was in no rush. The slayer settled at the widow’s house at the far end of the village. He helped the widow around the house and taught village kids to fight.

Chapter 6: Gloria
On his first day in the village, Rorgard the dragonslayer noticed a girl. She walked with a skip, singing a song. She looked different from the rest of the villagers: olive skin, dark shiny hair. She was tall and strong. Rorgard asked a kid: “who is that?” “Gloria, the blacksmith’s daughter. They are new here.” Rorgard was smitten. He never felt this way before. It was the first time he ever wished that his horse needed a visit to a blacksmith.

Gloria came to the village with her father about five years prior. They migrated all the way from Persia after her mom’s passing. Gloria was the oldest of the three surviving children. They settled in this village because the village needed a blacksmith. Her father set up shop, and Gloria managed the household, and helped out her father.

She was a beautiful, young woman. Her distinct looks and dreamy eyes made her stand out in any crowd, much more so in a village where the rest of people were blonde with blue eyes. Full of energy, she was always cheerful, and always ready to help. The villagers loved her for her personality and attitude.

Chapter 7: Blossoming love.
Rorgard finally needs to repair his horse’s horse shoe. He goes to the blacksmith and meets Gloria. Their friendship begins.

Chapter 8: Rorgard opens up to Gloria
Rorgard becomes completely and hopelessly in love with Gloria. He tells her about his childhood, how he grew up in his grandma’s house, a fatherless pariah. He told her about how he left the village, met a dragonslayer, and took up the trade.

Chapter 9: Gloria’s world
Gloria liked Rorgard the dragonslayer. She could not quite place what about him seemed so familiar. Had she seen his eyes somewhere before? Why are his mannerisms so familiar? Something about his touch was comforting. She could not help but feel drawn to him. But at the same time her entire being protested against this relationship. He was a dragonslayer, and Gloria was against slaughtering the dragons.

She felt conflicted about her attraction to Rorgard the dragonslayer. But he was there, every day, waiting to see her, always ready to lend his extraordinary strength to whatever she needed. She slowly gave into her attraction. Gloria was sure that she could turn him around and convince him that dragons were worthy to let live.

Chapter 10: Conflict
One evening, after the day’s work, Gloria and Rorgard were watching a sunset in the field. Gloria told Rorgard that he should not kill the dragon. She said that dragons had to be protected, not exterminated. Rorgard became defensive. He knew what he was dealing with when it came to dragons. “They are monsters, and that is all to it!” Rorgard shouted. “No, it’s not!”, retorted Gloria. They yelled at each other. It was their first fight. They did not talk for days.

Chapter 11: Gloria’s secret
What Gloria was too scared to tell Rorgard was that she knew the dragon. It was her secret. She was afraid to share it even with her father, her closest friend.

One day previously, in a remote meadow up high in the mountains, the dragon protected her from a sun burn. She fell asleep in the meadow after a trying hike. Gloria woke up to find herself in the pleasant shadow, made out of the dragon’s wing. “Hello”, she heard the voice in her head. “Are you comfortable?”, said dragon. But his mouth did not move when he communicated. It was as if she heard his voice in her head.

Gloria did not get scared at all. There was something very soothing and secure about the dragon’s presence. She felt protected next to him. When she gazed into the dragon’s eyes she saw the depth she’d never seen before. Those eyes spoke louder than any words. Gloria’s world was changed forever.

Chapter 12: The fateful day
One beautiful sunny day, about seven months after his arrival at the village, Rorgard packed his gear and headed into the mountains. He went to hunt the dragon. When Gloria stopped by the house he was staying. The widow’s children told her that Rorgard left for a battle. Her heart skipped a beat. She ran towards the mountains.

Gloria saw Rorgard set up his bow. Breathless, she tried to get his attention by calling his name. Rorgard was surprised to see her there. He waved at her to go home. She approached him. Crying, she hung onto his arm, trying to convince him not to kill the dragon. Rorgard was adamant. He carefully unhooked himself from Gloria and told her to go back to the village. It was going to be dangerous here. She refused.

Continuing to beg him to abandon his mission, she cried like he’d already killed the monster. Rorgard explained to her that as soon as he slays the dragon he can ask her father for her hand in marriage. They can start a family. “You don’t understand!!” screamed Gloria through the sobs and tears.

The dragon appeared in the sky. He was still magnificent. Rorgard raised his bow. Suddenly, he felt pain in his chest. He lowered his eyes to see that Gloria stabbed him with her dagger. In disbelief he looked into her eyes. The words did not come out of his mouth. “Why?” his eyes asked her. Gloria was now absolutely hysterical. After stabbing him, she was scared, and breathless. She did not believe that she’d done it herself. Rorgard lowered his bow and slowly fell to the ground.

The dragon landed right next to them, his wings spread at least thirty feet wide. The dragon lowered his head to the dragonslayer. As Gloria lowered the dragonslayer to ground in her arms, he heard a familiar voice in his head. “Son.”

Sales arguments

• Dragon Slayer’s theme of self-acceptance is relevant and timely. Self-acceptance holds the keys to personal power. When we feel like we cannot be ourselves, because parts of us are perceived “bad” or “second rate” by society, we may suppress those “unattractive parts” to fit in. What we feel inside is shame, and guilt - for betraying ourselves. Dragon Slayer’s message of embracing who you are is necessary and empowering, particularly today.
• Dragons are the most popular fantasy creatures of all time, featured in bestselling series like Lord of the Rings, Harry Potter and Song of Ice and Fire. Dragons hold a mysterious appeal, a powerful attraction for readers of all ages. People love to read about dragons, and The End of Dragons series offers an original perspective on dragons as highly intelligent, complex, and powerful beings.

Similar titles

• A song of ice and fire by George R.R. Martin is a series of epic fantasy novels, which sold 90 million copies. While Martin’s books have enough going for them without the dragons, the dragons add mystery and thrill to the series. Its success confirms that fictiona
• The Curse of Maleficent: the Tale of Sleeping Beauty by Elizabeth Rudnik does not talk about the dragons, but has a similar take on the dark fae as Betrayal of the Dragonslayer: misunderstood, yet highly intelligent, emotionally complex creatures.
• The Last Dragonslayer by NYT bestselling author Jasper Fforde, first of his Chronicles of Kazam series. This book was so popular that it was made into a TV movie. The plot is quite different from the Betrayal, so should be considered more as a proof of interest in the dragon topic.

Audience

This book is for everyone who wants to find their personal power by embracing their human experience in its entirety. The book is targeted at readers with an interest in fantasy, alternative history, and human relationships.