Dragon Weather by Lawrence Watt-Evens, besides being a good read, is loaded with messages that if you step back, Have much to do with society and other areas of life. They aren't forced at you so it took me six or seven times through to see the hookups. Once you see one, the rest all unravel as you peer further in.
To understand the story, some backround will be needed. In this world, dragon ruled over men for millennia, and then vanished. Most people believe them dead, and when dragon attacks occur no one is left alive. The lands that dragons once held dominion over are now called the Lands of Men. There is no real government, but the Duke, a hereditary warlord from the days of the dragons, holds some power, as do his advisors over him. In this world, dragons are thought as the enbodiment of all the fears and evils that plaugued mankind.
At age eleven, Arlian, the main character, is introduced. He lives in a small town on a semi-active volcano with his father, mother, brother, and grandfather. The town live on meager crops and the obsidian they mine and craft from the mountain. That patricular summer had been darkened by black clouds and a stifling heat. Arlian's grandfather dubs it "dragon weather", and because Arlian is so interested tells him other stories. The last story he tells is from some tales he heard on travels in his youth. It was about how dragons didn't breath fire, instead they spata venom that was highly combustable. He ended the tale with rumors that should a person drink a mixture of that venom and human blood, that person would live either for an extremely long time or would never die of old age.
After that Arlian and his grandfather went to the cellar to do inventory. Then they heard the village bell clanging. As they reached the top of the cellar, they saw the emergancy. Three dragons were razing the town. One landed and became annoyed by the grandfathers steady stream of curses. It tried to breathe flame, but the venom didn't catch. The grandfather fell on Arlian and a drip of venom fell into Arlian's mouth.
When Arlian awoke, his village was being looted. The group rescued him from the cellar, and they brought him to their leader. The man he met was called Lord Dragon by the pack, and showed as much emotion. The group sold Arlian into slavery in silver mines, and the first notions of revenge and justice were planted.
In the Lands of Men, to become a slave one of three things would have happened to you. You could be sold as loot, sold to pay off debts, or if you were on the streets slavers would capture you. To compare this to modern society, look at how we avoid the poor and the lack of concern for the people who work long dangerous hours for low pay, all so that the end price is lower. The mine in which Arlian was in futher shaped his notions of justice; he saw what hatred did magnified under an enclosed eniroment in which one didn't leave and couldn't even see sunlight. His best friend and mentor in the mine died, but left Arlian with an idea that frinedship requires some sacrifice, but you get more in return than you receive. But he promised himself, that should he be able, he would bear news of His friend, Hathlet, to his family.
Several years later, Arlian saved the taskmaster's lives. When the man asked why, Arlian responded that it didn't matter who he was because he was a human in danger and he responded as he though one should. The taskmaster freed Arlian because he felt he couldn't abuse the man that had saved his life. His parting message to Arlian was, "There's no justice in this world, Arlian, you know that?" to which Arlian replied, "I know that, not unless we make it."
Several days after his escape, Arlian made his way into a city. In the city, a young women invited him into what he percieved as an inn. Inside he finds a brothel, but the workers are slaves who have had their feet cut off to prevent them from escaping. Arlian realizes that justice must extend beyond his peersonal vengence, and promises to himself that he will avenge all of the girls some day. In the brothel, the women are treated as property. It is a reflection of the objectification of women in our society. We care less about the individual and more about her beauty. The women aid Arlian, and when he finally leaves, he looks like a wealthy lord. The brothel however is destroyed by the owners, and its inhabitants killed or taken away.
Arlian meets up with a man nicknamed Black. Nicknames in the lands of men are common because in the time of dragons, nicknames prevented squeeling to the dragons for personal safety and gain. The use of false names is sort of the idea that we protect ourselves from the world by not revealing our true self. But Black agrees to go with Arlian on a caravan. Arlian then steals money from one of the owners of the brothel as a partial revenge. With the money, he buys a sword and armor, along with goods with for trade, and signs on to the caravan as a merchant and guard in training.
Arlian travels with the caravan along the southern trade route. The caravan goes through a vast desert known as the Desolation. In the desert, he grows stronger as he travels and fights off bandits. On the other side, he learns where Hathlet's homeland is, and heads out towards it alone because no one else braved it. As he journeyed, he encountered many dangerous wild magics. When he reached the homeland, he was greatly received for travelling so far to make good on his promise. When he returned to the capital of the Lands of Men, he was a very wealthy lord.
The first task on his agenda was to seek out those who had wronged him and his friends.
The first person he found was one of the looters. THe looter showed obvious sorrow for his actions and had nothing to gain because he was on his death bed. Arlian decided that he couldn't hurt him, but he also couldn't help him. On his way back home, Black says, " There's no scheme of justice in all the world so complex that it might untangle all the innocent to the guilty, the wronged to the blessed." And Arlian responds, " It's all so complicated." I tend to agree with him that any moral delimma will be complex and any dealings of justice will be complicated.
The next vengence was on one of the brothel owners, the one Arlian stole from. Arlian's belief in fair play and honesty, when it won't mean being prevented from his vengence, are shown here. He challenges the lord to a duel and confesses to the robbery. When the lord refuses to show any remorse, Arlian fights and kills him. In the process he frees two of the prostitutes.