The uniquely frilled wood glowed a shocking blue coloration as Longfur stood before the crowd. She had expected more people.

She deserved more people. But she would not let her disappointment stop her.

"Stories of taming a dragon only arise as a civilization advances. The Creator and the Radical are in an endless war for this reason."

"The rules and safety of machines dulls the mind. With no fear of the dark, there is no dragon to be seen.

With no fear of what might come from the skies above, there is no dragon who will grow their wings."

"When the sky dragons of the Radical fall. The dragons of the depths rise forth."

"The dragons of the Sleeper. Dragons who are spawned forth not from fear of the natural, but fears of others."

"We call them, the Royalty Manifestations. For on many planets these dragons appear near cruel emperors, and when society forgets the fears of the natural and the mind, these dragons appear near politicians, some even manifesting for whole countries."

"The Sleeper and Radical are kin of each other. Their dragons taking a niche that doesn't interfere. As always, dragons are just warnings and teachers."

"They may work with "evil" but they are working for you. For if you could kill a dragon, you could defeat your fears."

"But....this sermon is about taming dragons and that's where an issue arises. While a Radical dragon can be "tamed", a Sleeper dragon has already pledged its allegiance!"

"And I assure you, it is not towards you."

"Yet paradoxically, the rise wanted to tame dragons comes with the age of dead Radical dragons!"

"The Creator is a god, he should be respected, but do ignore his calls to kill all of the dragons with his machines. For when you kill them all, and when he pulls the machines away from you, where will you be?"

"You'll walk into deep woods! With no dragon to warn you of the dangers! You'll walk into boiling lakes that dragons would have scared you from, and you'll eat plants that dragons would have mimicked the form of to scare you!"

"The gods do not wish any harm but even they fight among themselves, and these fights can harm others accidentally. So while you should understand that dragons are the fears that lurk in your mind, always remember."

"Those without fear die careless deaths."

"Any questions?"

A hound sits silently in the crowd. An unusual sermon for one like her to be listening to, but a string touched by the words nonetheless.

"What of fears that are unfounded and wrongful? Could a dragon of these fears really help people?"

"All fears can help, even those that feel absurd. But if you meet a dragon of absurd fears you wish to end, approach it. View your dragon from afar. Watch the dragon. Listen to the way it sounds, the way it moves."

"Understand why the dragon wants you to fear it."

"Understand why the dragon wants you to fear it."

"When you realize this, you will see that either the dragon was right, or that there is no reason for you to continue your fears. Either way, killing the dragon is unnecessary."

"And, even if you believe that you no longer need to fear, say, the dragon of fires. Then just tame it instead of killing it. Let the fear you once held work for you."

"A person who once feared fire, knows more about fire than those who worked with it without any."

"You are safer with a dragon. When you kill all the dragons of fire, it doesn't matter if "you know how to bend fire to you will." You will always become comfortable. You will always believe that fire can never hurt you."

"If it were a dragon, you would know that was nonsense."

"This is why you should bow to the Radical and her mercy! She may seem harsh, but she only teaches you lessons about her element. The nature of the world and your mind. Not compliance."

Someone from the back raises their hand hoping to ask a question. They are partially hidden by the rest of the crowd so it is hard to make out who they are.

"What do you have to ask?"

"If dragons exist to make people become stronger? Then why do some fear dragons as a curse? (´◡`)"

"This is because of "Limboism" Limboism is an evil concept! It implies that all things "anomalous" are assumed evil unless proven otherwise."

"Dragons are NOT like people. When you are robbed by mortals, you are viewing evil."

"When you are robbed by a dragon. You are viewing a lesson."

"This is why dragons have hoards. They have no need for what they steal from you. They pile it up, and await you to learn to not fear them, to walk up to their hoard and reclaim what is yours!"

"But our friend says that sometimes dragons can be people? Are these "people" more than just that because they are dragons? (´◡`)"

"A mortal, who can be evil, has no mercy. It has spent your money. There is no reward or hoard in the end."

"Your friend is a fool. Dragons are dragons. They may have personality but they exist to teach you a lesson. They are teachers."

Motoro, the marsue sits in the grass, listening to the sermon. Normally he wouldn't care an iota about this sort of stuff but his delivery job has just gone up in smoke and he has nothing left on his plate. Maybe he should take up acting again.

"Ye say that the Radical and Sleeper are kin because of the whole dragon thing, right? Wouldn't the machines of the Creator lead to more dragons of the Sleeper variety though? I might not be following quite right."

"Yes you are right! The Radical is a fighter. She wars against the Creator! The Sleeper her friend is an infiltrator. He hatches within systems and walks among mortals."

"The Sleeper and the Radical do not wish to compete with each other. So while the dragons of the sky die out, the dragons of the land rise forth. A balancing act."

Artemis was never particularly religious, but she felt that this sermon may help to understand her enemy better. "Are there any distinctions between dragons that manifest from physical fears and dragons that manifest from psychological fears? For instance, a dragon representing the fear of the ocean versus one representing the fear of rejection. Or is there no distinction at all?"

"All dragons are different because all fears are different. Just look at most societies and their dragons. They might not be called dragons, but every society has their form of "great beast with powers related to what we fear."

"Even on the same planet....even when the dragons are of the same fear they often look different. Some species are scared of large lizards, so their fire dragon will have scales. Some species are scared of mammals, so their fire dragons will have fur."

"Dragons are a manifestation of those who fear, and thus of the societies that fear them. Every dragon is distinct."

A filthy insect raises his hand.
"What justifies if a dragon mangles and murderizes you, really being a dragon and all that? Dead people don't make for good students. : )"

"Learn a little respect, notail. There's nicer ways to ask such questions, such as "Why do dragons commit murder?" Or such."

"You are ignored. Next time learn manners. You should be glad I don't strike you down where you stand."

"I believe that is the end of the sermon. Please do come back next time. I thank you all for coming."