I think there is more to come on this particular vein...
In the preternatural moments before sunrise, the world is hushed as a faint glow begins to illuminate the mountains. It is a sacred moment observed by every living thing, and one who listens with more than their ears can feel the reverence that even the inanimate rocks give to this special moment. A deep breath of a cool and silent wind lessens, but does not break, the silence, and the slight rustle of pine needles stirs the soul to even more awe at this magnificent moment: the birth of a new day.
Suddenly, roaring into the sky as if this moment was created expressly for this purpose, a dragon rises up. He is racing the sun, competing for a glory it has always had and that he will never achieve. His serpentine form mars the light, and his roar scatters the silence like a wolf among sheep. In his roar is the desperation of one who offers a protection he cannot give; he tries to show that the strength of sound is more solid than the peace of silence.
He looks down into the forest from the peak of the mountain and seems to see all. He climbs higher into the sky, parallel with the rays of the rising sun, and sees a woman, sitting in a clearing. He sees that her eyes are closed, her face turned up to the sun. She seems oblivious to his intrusion, and he is enraged that she seems to find peace in the simple act of sitting and listening to the trees. He wheels through the air toward her, knowing he cannot land in that clearing but somehow hoping he can ruin her peace by blotting out the sun with his mighty wings. He spreads his pinions wide, slowing his flight and casting his insubstantial shadow into the clearing. He looks into the face of the woman and sees no fear; her eyes have not opened and not a single hair on her head has been moved by his greatness.
His wounded pride feeding his rage, the dragon circles over the clearing. He does not breathe fire and he cannot truly harm the woman: all the more reason for his rage and its inefficacy. He knows, though, that if he can but find a way to distract her for a moment from the glory of the rising sun and the peace around her, he can spew forth doubt and darkness, disturbing her peace with uncertainty and despair. He vows that this woman, more than all other creatures under the sun, will feel his might and his majesty. She will worship HIM, and him only. The warmth of the rising sun may daily touch her face, but he promises to himself that once he succeeds, it will never again touch her heart. She will never again know the peace of the sunrise.
