It is a truth universally acknowledged that dragons and dragonslayers are mortal enemies—except when they’re not. While dragonslayer lore is rife with death and bloodshed (some more believable than others), not every story ends in the hateful execution of one or the other. Dragonheart (1996) is one beloved example of the two teaming up against a monstrous foe of another sort, and in video games like Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim, players may, at the very least, have a choice of whether to slay or spare their draconic quarry—provided the dragon in question isn’t just outright evil.

But what about soulmates? There is a decided lack of dragon and human love stories in traditional tales. According to some internet sources, there may have been a handful of myths at most, but for the most part, dragon-human love has largely been relegated to the world of Harlequin romance novels and the like.

This is probably in part because of obvious differences in size, habitat, and, well, species. But dragons with shapeshifting abilities solve that problem neatly—as long as “human” is one of the forms they can take.

(Alternately, I suppose a human could also shapeshift into the form of a dragon. Or they could both turn into something else entirely, provided they choose the same something to become. But I digress.)

In my upcoming visual novel, titled The Dragon’s Last Flight, professional dragonslayer Marius and dragon Tashka embark on an altogether different journey from the usual “dragon meets dragonslayer; one of them dies” fairy tale plot. However, whether that journey leads to a romantic destination depends on an external factor, one even I, as the writer, have no control over—the player’s choices.

Note: While I am going to do my best to avoid any spoilers for The Dragon’s Last Flight, if you want a completely “blind” experience of the game, you may want to go ahead and check out the free demo before continuing to read—and be sure to keep an eye out for the release of the full game later this year.

Dragon and Human Love Takes Many Forms

The Dragon’s Last Flight is not an otome, or dating sim, game. Romance between Marius and Tashka is optional; it is up to the player to decide whether Marius pursues such a relationship or not, and success is not guaranteed. Romancing the dragon will not automatically lead to a happily ever after—nor is romance required to achieve a “good” ending. Just as in normal human relationships (and, I suspect, normal dragon relationships), love is complicated and doesn’t always end well. Players may find that a platonic tale is more to their taste–and since romantic love isn’t the ultimate goal in the story anyway, far be it from me to force anyone into a love story they don’t want to be in.

But for those who are looking for a memorable dragon and human love story, I am doing all I can to ensure TDLF fits the bill. This is in part due to personal bias—I ship Marius and Tashka with all my heart. 🙂 I love the way they interact in romantic scenes; they are so much fun to write with. It’s been a unique and interesting challenge for me to deviate from the usual youthful couple you’d find in a more conventional romance and write from the perspective of two older, more mature characters who have loved and lost and lived full lives long before ever meeting.

But it’s not up to me whether they end up together or not—or whether their story ends in joy or sorrow. That responsibility, dear readers, is entirely your own.

Choose wisely…

The Dragon’s Last Flight demo is free and available now on itch.io. Stay tuned for the full release, which will (ideally) be out later this year!