Tragedy of Eradikus

Earadikus was a young, ambitious green dragon. He set out to take his place in the great game of Xorvintaal, and found that he was, in fact, exceptionally good at it. Within a few short centuries, through a combination of his own skill and misfortune befalling his opponents, he had amassed a far larger treasure horde than any dragon his age has ever held. He played deftly and aggressively, coercing enemies to destroy themselves, enticing humanoids to pay him tribute, clueing adventurers in on the whereabouts of his rivals’ hoards… Word of his success and the value of his horde started to spread amongst other dragons, and with it, so spread jealousy, hatred, and plans to destroy him and seize his treasure.

Eradikus, a greedy and jealous dragon himself, was aghast when he heard from his spies of the number and prestige of those now gunning for him; he was being plotted against by dragons of every color and age, including even some incredibly powerful and ancient ones.

Eradikus immediately began attempting to make allies, selling off portions of his hoard for promises of solidarity and security. Try as he might, though, he came to the point at which he never felt safe. He had made some progress in dealing with the other greens, the blues, and the metallic, but he knew the whites, the blacks, and especially the reds were always going to be wildcards for him. No proud red dragon would rest while a green half his or her age sat atop a larger hoard; their promises were worthless. Eradikus began devoting all of his assets into defense.

Thinking long-term, Eradikus began studying Necromancy. If he found servants that he deemed indispensable, the dragon would murder his own precious warriors, to then raise them up as undead minions that wouldn’t lose their efficiency with age, tire, or wither up and die, as humanoids so often do. Throughout his studies, Eradikus found the secret to dragonic eternal life. He noted the spell, but didn’t intend to use it until he was older and stronger.

In his rush toward protection, Eradikus lost his offensive edge; maintaining the very quality that had helped him achieve so much had become one of his lowest priorities. As a result of his mad greed and paranoia, he ended up losing everything…

With all of his servants undead, his pieces became easy for other dragons to identify. A web of lies was easily spun to entrap him. His agents came to him and informed him of news that a black dragon to the south was moving to a new lair, and its hoard would be transported via a series of caravans. Eradikus knew that the rules of Xorvintaal forbid dragon vs dragon combat, which is why dragons do not raid each other’s lairs directly. But they do allow a dragon to raid another’s lair if the other ''isn’t there, thus avoiding the forbidden combat''. If the horde was in transit, Eradikus believed the black would most likely be following the caravan, protecting its treasure.

Protection of his own lair his primary concern, he did not bother setting a safer, more convoluted offensive plan in motion. He gathered what minions could fit on his back, and flew to the supposed location of the black dragon’s lair. Upon his arrival, he was ambushed.

Flames showered down upon him, quickly destroying his minions and melting the webbing of his wings. A huge red dragon attacked from overhead, pummeling the now-grounded green. Eradikus attempted to flee, but the airborne red easily caught up with him, and continued its assault with its claws and teeth, in addition to its fire. Eradikus scrambled to the mouth of a cave too small for the red to enter, shrieking curses and accusations of cheating. As he backed further into the cave, he recalled hearing the red chuckle “you had better tell the referee” just before a concentrated jet of flames spewed into the cave and began melting his flesh.

With his last ounce of strength, and no suitable item to use as a phylactery, Eradikus attempted to enact the ritual that would transform him into a Dracolich by sealing his soul into his own charred bones. No one can say if he was successful, or if the red who murdered him paid any price for killing another dragon… but perhaps somewhere… in some dark, forgotten cavern, rests the sealed away spirit of Eradikus the green dragon… murdered by his own kind, and beaten at the game that made him great.