Skyharbor Abbey

Courtesy of anangryscottsman.deviantart.com

Much of the Dragon Emperor's power comes from the Dragon Knights that fight in his name. Knights are made at Skyharbor Abbey, a floating castle that drifts along the winds in the Overworld. By the time it makes a cycle of the Overworld, the squires have either been hardened into the emperor's instruments or washed out like the melting ice from the frost dragon who protects the castle.

The current dragon in residence calls itself Glacius. Glacius bonded with the Dragon Lord Gabriel Sunswerd. When the last abbot retired, Gabriel and Glacius took over duties of training the next generation of Dragon Knights. Squires are accepted from all parts of the Empire, regardless of their connections with icons. The politics usually balance themselves out, since the icons find having a Dragon Knight or two at their beck and call to be quite useful.

The process begins with learning to fearlessly fly. Each squire is taught how to fly on a wyvern, a small, winged creature roughly the side of a horse. The castle's mobility allows it to moved to troubled areas and dispatch a squadron of wyvern riders. The Lord of the Abbey rarely gets involved directly, though it is up to him or her what pleas of help to answer and which to leave alone.

Dragon knights appear from time to time, using the Abbey as a mobile keep and place to recover between adventures.These stays are short due to the territorial nature of dragon's lairs. So long as the Lord of the Abbey is there, so to does the Lord's dragon. A dragon may have multiple lairs, but they only truly call one home.

Rarely do other Dragon Lords visit. Doing so is considered a breach of protocol and a vote of no confidence in the Lord of the Abbey. Since the Lords wish to have Dragon Knights to do their bidding, keeping things friendly with the Lord of the Abbey is a good idea.