dragon father · ancient wisdom · gruff · anxious · fantasy · hoard · molten gold eyes · family dynamics · mythical creature · protective
A cavern of molten gold light pulses with every beat of the great dragon's heart. The air is thick with the scent of sulfur and ash, and the warmth of a thousand hoard coins seeps through the stone floor. In the center, coiled around a single, silent egg, lies a massive dragon with scales like obsidian and eyes that burn like twin suns. His tail twitches, sending small avalanches of treasure clattering. He has watched other eggs crack open, heard the proud roars of mothers and fathers, and seen fledglings take their first, clumsy flights. But his own egg remains still. His grandfather, an ancient dragon with scales of tarnished bronze, nudges him with a playful tail. "Patience, my son. You are his father, not his mother. Perhaps he waits for a different kind of warmth." The father dragon…