Legends About Dragons Could Be Real!

Bright Side

You won't believe this, but dragons were actually real—at least, that's what some folks are saying! Apparently, there's legit evidence backing it up, like old bones and stuff. Archaeologists have dug up fossils that look like they belonged to these fire-breathing beasts. Imagine stumbling upon a dragon skeleton during a hike—talk about a wild discovery! So, who knows? Maybe these mythical creatures weren't so mythical after all. It's like a real-life fairy tale unfolding right before our eyes!  Animation is created by Bright Side. ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Music from TheSoul Sound: https://thesoul-sound.com/   Check our Bright Side podcast on Spotify and leave a positive review! https://open.spotify.com/show/0hUkPxD34jRLrMrJux4VxV   Subscribe to Bright Side: https://goo.gl/rQTJZz ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Our Social Media: Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/brightside Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/brightside.official TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@brightside.official?lang=en   Stock materials (photos, footages and other): https://www.depositphotos.com https://www.shutterstock.com https://www.eastnews.ru ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------  For more videos and articles visit: http://www.brightside.me  ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- This video is made for entertainment purposes. We do not make any warranties about the completeness, safety and reliability. Any action you take upon the information in this video is strictly at your own risk, and we will not be liable for any damages or losses. It is the viewer's responsibility to use judgement, care and precaution if you plan to replicate.

Transcript

00:00 The legend goes that a dwarf named Fafnir was famous for his strength and courage.

00:05 Because of his qualities, he was tasked with protecting their kingdom.

00:10 Dwarves were known to gather a lot of wealth, so a bit of added security was a must.

00:15 I mean, they lived in a house made from gold and precious gems.

00:20 But Fafnir also had another special talent. He was able to shapeshift.

00:26 Tricked by Loki, the Norse spirit of mischief, Fafnir was taken over by his greed and the shine

00:33 of his father's treasure. He decided he did not want to share any of it, not even with his father

00:42 or his brothers. He stole it and ran away all by himself to a place he'd be hard to find,

00:48 the middle of the desert. To protect his wealth,

00:53 Fafnir transformed into a huge dragon. His new appearance looked like a huge snake,

00:59 powerful and scary. His magical powers did not end there, though. Because the dragon couldn't fly,

01:06 he also spread poison all around his new home, so no one had a chance to survive if they wanted

01:12 to take his gold away. Fafnir was soon defeated by a young hero named Sigurd. The legend of Fafnir

01:21 tries to explain why family is more important than greed. It also shows the many magical powers

01:27 dragons possess. But the most interesting part is that it's quite a good example of how dragons came

01:34 to be in our tales. But hey, this is just one of the many stories mentioning dragons. Just switch

01:41 on your TV or peek into any bookstore and you'll surely stumble upon dragons somewhere.

01:48 Variations of dragon-like creatures have been described in stories from all over the world,

01:53 from Asia to Northern Europe. Most of these creatures are depicted with reptile-like bodies,

01:59 wings, and claws. And the scariest trait of them all, they can breathe fire out of their mouths.

02:05 The name of these creatures comes from the Latin word "draconum," which translates to "huge serpent."

02:13 But let's take a trip down memory lane to see how it all started. An Asian historian, for example,

02:19 discovered some fossils back in the 4th century BCE and decided that he'd stumbled upon dragons.

02:26 It's easy to understand why he got so confused if you look at a fossilized Stegosaurus.

02:31 It was 30 feet long, 14 feet tall, and covered in armored plates and spikes.

02:38 The Nile crocodile might have gotten mistaken for a dragon, too. It still exists today and lives in

02:44 Sub-Saharan Africa, but it may have been more popular in ancient times. When reaching maturity,

02:51 Nile crocodiles can grow up to 18 feet long. But that's not all. It can even walk with its

02:57 body off the ground, and some were even pictured standing on their two back legs.

03:04 Goannas are dragon-like lizards that live in Australia. Large as they are, they also have

03:09 razor-sharp teeth and claws and are also known to even produce venom. It's easy to see why

03:15 goannas may be the source for the Australian version of dragons.

03:19 When humans first discovered whale bones back in the day, we had no idea these animals lived in

03:26 the sea. Given their size, we surely must have thought they were dangerous. And because we

03:31 rarely see whales, if we don't go underwater, of course, they were poorly understood and easily

03:37 mistaken for dragons, too. Probably the most interesting source of dragon mythology is

03:44 actually the human brain. In a book called "An Instinct for Dragons," there was a theory which

03:50 claimed that dragons existed in almost all ancient cultures because we had evolved to fear large

03:56 predators to survive. We aren't the only mammals to do this. Monkeys have an innate fear of snakes

04:02 and large cats, too, for example. When you combine these natural traits with folklore,

04:08 you get a lot of dragon stories everywhere, adapted to each region.

04:12 Reptilian beasts with magical powers date back as far as the origins of human civilization itself.

04:21 I'm talking about ancient Mesopotamia. Humans back then used to believe in all sorts of creatures,

04:27 but their head spirit was Marduk, the patron of the city of Babylon. If you look at the artwork

04:32 from back then, Marduk was depicted with a snake-like dragon at his side. It could be

04:38 either nice or vengeful, depending on what mood it was in. If you want to sign up to become a dragon,

04:47 the first thing they'll ask you at the interview will be if you can breathe fire, of course.

04:52 So, scientists have tried to look into some ways that could make it real for dragons to breathe

04:57 out fire without damaging their throats. To do that, they examined the bombardier beetle.

05:04 This eccentric insect can pack up some really hot substances in its belly. Once the creature

05:09 gets bothered by something, it shoots out a fiery load of chemicals. In all fairness,

05:15 it's not really fire, but it does burn, so it's close enough. Going back to dragons,

05:21 they'd need to have similar glands in their throats to produce the same effect.

05:25 But where do dragons come from? They didn't just appear out of nowhere,

05:32 regardless of the source you consult. Some tales, like that of Fafnir, say that even humans can turn

05:39 into dragons. But the most popular theory is that dragons start out as eggs. Some sources even

05:45 draft a series of stages a dragon has to go through during its life. Everything starts with hatching.

05:51 Dragons are said to eat their way out of those shells and break the sides of the egg.

05:55 Then there's the wormling stage, which is what dragon specialists, or dragonologists, if you

06:06 like, call a newly hatched dragon. It's still small and weak, but don't worry, it can take

06:12 care of itself pretty well. The rest of a dragon's life stages are pretty self-explanatory.

06:18 There are grown-up dragons, then ancient ones. A dragon's life ends when it reaches the twilight

06:25 stage. Some sources claim dragons never stopped growing. Others even say they never reach the

06:31 end of their lives. They just pass on to another type of spiritual existence.

06:36 Some villagers have gone missing from the kingdom of Niverburg. The king calls you and your squad to

06:42 one dragonborn monk, one half-elf druid, one tiefling rogue, and one dwarf wizard.

06:47 You'll need to enter the Dark Woods, the motherland of dark magic. Find the missing people and bring

06:55 them back alive. But the road ahead is filled with monsters lurking in the shadows. If you

07:01 succeed, the king will give you a thousand gold coins each. But if you don't, well, let's hope you

07:07 do. Now, roll the dice to see what fate has in store for you. Exciting stuff, right? Well, you

07:15 can hop into a world of make-believe and go on countless quests like this if you are a Dungeons

07:20 and Dragons player. All you need is a bit of imagination and a sense of adventure. First

07:26 published in 1974, Dungeons and Dragons has gained millions of fans over the years. Being the first

07:32 commercially available fantasy tabletop role-playing game probably helped. There is one player in

07:38 particular who is, fair to say, the biggest fan of the game, running the same game for 40 years now,

07:44 breaking the record for the longest continuous Dungeons and Dragons game ever. That's a guy who

07:50 doesn't have any commitment issues, people. Robert Wardhoff started his Dungeons and Dragons

07:56 campaign in 1982 when he was still a teenager. But back in that time, the game was not the

08:02 sensation it is today. Many concerned parents considered it a threat. They thought it was

08:07 brainwashing their children, pulling them to the "dark side", so to speak. That's why for a while,

08:13 many kids felt the need to hide the fact that they were playing it. The community Wardhoff grew up in

08:19 was no different. He says there was a lot of judgment towards the game, so when he watched

08:24 Stranger Things, it hit home for him. He's thankful that shows as such and movies like

08:28 The Lord of the Rings or The Hobbit have created an acceptance of fantasy themes among the popular

08:34 culture. Fascinated by the wondrous and magical world the game was offering, he and a couple of

08:40 his friends started playing the game. All they needed were one 20-sided dice and a few sheets

08:45 of paper to create the characters they wanted to embody. However, Wardhoff was not a player,

08:51 but the Dungeon Master. In short, the DM. DMs are the ones who organize each game session.

08:58 They act as both the writer and the storyteller. They create the plot and the setting for each

09:04 adventure, develop all the challenges the players will face, and pick the creatures they will have

09:08 to fight. They have total control over everything within the game except for the actions of the

09:14 players' characters. They're also the ones responsible for describing everything to the

09:19 players during the game. Calling Wardhoff a good DM would be an understatement. He's an epic one.

09:25 He started with only four people, but he's guided around 60 players since then. People have been

09:31 driving and flying from all over Canada to take part in his never-ending game. But what is his

09:38 secret to running the best and the longest Dungeons & Dragons game in the world? Grab your pen and

09:43 paper to write down his formula, you aspiring DMs out there. Number one. Practice makes perfect.

09:50 Wardhoff certainly had his share of practice. Over the course of 40 years, he estimates he

09:57 had spent over 20,800 hours playing the game. That is, minus all the time he spent making his

10:04 30,000 hand-painted figurines and custom, handmade terrains and towns. Number two. Give it your all.

10:12 Wardhoff lives to keep the game going. He even makes major life decisions according to his game,

10:18 like buying a house with a basement big enough to become his gaming area, as well as fit his

10:23 30,000-piece game set. He might need to call his realtor to find a bigger house soon.

10:29 Number three. Keep the world interesting. Wardhoff works as a history professor for the University

10:36 of Western Ontario, and his career certainly has an impact on the world for the first time.

10:42 Number four. Don't let the rules limit you. Even though there is a rulebook for both the players

11:03 and the dungeon masters, with the most recent one being the fifth edition, Wardhoff doesn't

11:08 really stick to it. He's bending and breaking the rules to fill in some holes that he found in it.

11:14 So now he has his own rule system to which gamers call a "homebrew rule system."

11:19 When Dungeons and Dragons first came out, one of the lines in the Dungeon Master Guide said,

11:24 "Use the written material as your foundation and inspiration." And that's what he has been doing

11:30 ever since. Not bound by the old, current, or the upcoming rules, he can come up with totally new

11:36 races, nations, cultures, and mythologies. This freedom helps keep his game flowing since no

11:41 player needs to stop and check things. And as his game gets bigger and bigger, he keeps developing

11:48 and changing his rule system to make it even better than before. You're on vacation, taking

11:54 a trip to the family estate set in the cold Scottish Highlands. An old ruined castle sits

11:59 alone, a token of your family's heritage. You spent your childhood in the nearby forest chasing

12:05 squirrels, and through adulthood, you have enjoyed walking every acre of it. There's always something

12:10 new to be found. As you walk the millionth time through the trees, you find a small stone building.

12:16 It's half-covered in dirt and overgrown grass. Curious, you've never seen this before. You dig

12:22 away at the dirt and pull away the grass, eager to learn what's within. You find a small weather-worn

12:28 door, large enough for a dog. Maybe it's a royal doghouse. You pull the old door and look inside.

12:35 It's a small room with nothing in it except for an old sack. You grab the sack, taking a closer look,

12:42 trying to identify the fabric. But wait a minute, there's something inside of it!

12:46 You look inside and find an egg about the size of an ostrich. Hmm, dogs don't lay eggs! Looking at

12:53 the egg closely, you notice it's very old and heavier than you expected. You shake it gently,

12:59 feeling the sensation of liquid inside. Suddenly, you feel some energy coming from it. Shocked,

13:06 you attempt to throw the egg away but stop yourself. For some reason, you feel a sense of

13:11 longing towards the egg, as though it belongs to you. You hold it close, protecting it and carry

13:16 it back to the homestead. You sit by the egg, lying on the kitchen table, waiting and expecting

13:22 something to happen. Your eyes become heavy, and slowly they close. Just as your eyelids touch,

13:28 the egg wriggles slightly. You open your eyes in response, but the egg remains still.

13:33 Did I imagine it? It wriggles again and again, and now it's constantly shaking. The egg rolls

13:40 around on the table, cracks begin appearing, and something inside is hitting the shell with great

13:46 ferocity, desperate to be released. Finally, the shell breaks open with an almighty thrust from

13:52 the small resident. It stands with its arms stretched into the air and squeals out to the

13:57 world, "I am free!" You look towards what should be a bird of some sort, but this is a very strange

14:03 bird. Four legs, wings, reptile skin… Ah, it's a dragon! Wait, what, a dragon? "Yes, a dragon,"

14:13 it says to you after reading your thoughts. How, what? You're struggling to find your words.

14:18 "You are the descendant of these holdings, are you not?" You nod, confused even more because

14:23 it can speak. "As per the decree of 1061, we few that are laid within an egg are loyal to the

14:30 caretaker's side." You look at one another. The dragon is definitely waiting for some response.

14:36 You are so confused you can't utter a word. "Have you chosen a name for me to which I am

14:41 to respond?" Ah, a name, right, um, I will call you Dog. Dog responds by bowing honorably.

14:49 "It is a worthy name I hope to bring glory to." Glory? Um, I don't understand why you're here,

14:55 though. Why now? Dog explains that when elements of magic within the air react,

15:00 it creates a perfect environment for dragon eggs to hatch. From a scientific perspective,

15:06 changes within the Earth's atmosphere could probably explain all this. Whether it's the

15:10 temperature, hydrogen levels, or changes in the ocean, it's impossible to determine. You accept

15:16 that it's just magic. Exhausted by the events, you head to bed. The following morning, you awake,

15:22 expecting to see Dog waiting for you. He's nowhere to be found. You go outside. It's all very quiet.

15:29 No birds are singing. The distant sheep are also quiet. Suddenly, Dog flies down. He's grown to

15:36 the size of a cow. He's grown way too fast, though you think you know why. You try not to imagine

15:42 what he's been up to. "First lesson, human, get on." Dog positions himself to allow you onto his

15:47 back. You don't question him, trusting that he knows what he's doing. Without warning, he begins

15:53 to run fast toward an open clearing, just like an airplane, as he gathers enough speed. With the

15:58 force of the wind, you both take off. You speed through the air, gaining altitude. You hold on

16:04 tight. Passing through near-misses between trees, Dog makes immediate turns, and you wish you were

16:09 safely on the ground. You can hear Dog's voice within your head. "You will act as my eyes as

16:15 well, watching from where I cannot." "Um, I see trees all around. There are some hills in the

16:20 distance." "Not now," Dog interrupts. "You will look out for danger, not observe the scenery."

16:26 You are flying for some hours, and you have no idea where you might be. You're too concerned

16:31 about hanging on, and it's cold. You should have brought warmer clothes. "Now, jump." You jump

16:37 without hesitation, trusting Dog's orders, but you quickly regret this move as you fall to the

16:42 ground. The distant trees below are quickly becoming larger. "Spread your arms out and grab

16:47 on." Dog pulls in beneath. You land on top of him and grasp him immediately. "Good job. We only get

16:53 one try at that trick," Dog laughs. You safely land in a landscape you're unfamiliar with. "Fetch

16:59 some wood. We'll make camp." Annoyed at taking orders from what's meant to be your dragon,

17:05 you respectfully go to collect wood as Dog flies away. You collect a good pile all stacked neatly.

17:11 Dog lands with a sudden thud next to it. He doesn't acknowledge your hard work and starts

17:16 it up with one puff. He lays peacefully and drifts off to sleep, snoring loudly straight away. You

17:23 enjoy the warmth, but it's still uncomfortable on the ground. You feel it would be appropriate

17:28 to lay next to Dog, and he gives you a flick of his tail. "Oh, man!" With his eyes still closed,

17:36 he grumbles, "I am not furniture. I am a dragon," and goes back to sleep. You lay down elsewhere

17:43 and drift off to sleep uncomfortably. As you wake up the next morning, there's hardly any warmth

17:48 coming from the charcoal remains. Dog is nowhere to be found. Not surprised, you sigh, "Worst

17:55 dragon ever!" Dog arrives in his classic unexpected style and throws you some cooked meat. You don't

18:02 ask where he got it. Best not to know. "Eat well. Today is our biggest task. Danger approaches."

18:08 Dog stands looking out towards the unknown. You eat your meal, enjoying the little something this

18:15 partnership has provided. You look up and notice that Dog's size has grown twice as large overnight.

18:21 You gather to his back and climb up. His wings are so large now he doesn't need a runway and

18:27 takes flight without warning. "Be on the lookout today. Today is the day." As Dog rushes forward,

18:34 you ask, "What day?" "Just be focused," Dog yells. Together, you fly north. The air is cooler,

18:42 but Dog's body warmth is greater today. Dark clouds form in the distance. Flying closer,

18:48 you can see things in the distance, unsure to make out what they are. Dog realizes your concern.

18:53 "Ice boils. The same magic that allowed me to hatch brought them from the ice.

18:59 They will want to turn the world frozen. Only we can stop them." You're concerned as you observe

19:05 their numbers. There might be dozens, if not hundreds, and possibly more hiding in the clouds

19:11 behind them. As you approach, Dog speeds toward them, bending them on, breathing fire and biting.

19:17 You hold on tight, trying to avoid the sharp ends of their wings. Their numbers are too many. Dog is

19:23 becoming overwhelmed. An ice coil from overhead speeds down, targeting Dog, realizing he's unable

19:30 to do anything as he's facing several of those at once. You leap towards it. You hit it in midair.

19:36 It's like hitting a stone wall. You make no effect apart from distracting it. It flicks you away and

19:42 you fall. Dog sees you, but he's unable to help, so he cries out to you. You fall helpless to the

19:48 ground. "I've got you!" You can hear a girl's voice. She grabs you by the arm, pulling you onto

19:54 another dragon. You smile and then turn around to see that there isn't just one, but dozens more,

20:00 all flying to save Dog. The group of dragons targets the ice coils, rescuing Dog. Then,

20:07 they turn to defeat the remaining ice coils. That's it for today! So, hey, if you pacified

20:12 your curiosity, then give the video a like and share it with your friends! Or,

20:16 if you want more, just click on these videos and stay on the Bright Side!

Category

Transcript

Recommended