I have a penchant for suddenly-inspired stories, let me see if I can do this jaw-dropping piece justice...



"There were names made up for those of us who were constantly doing sentry duty on the Grand Balcony by choice: 'airwatchers' or 'cloud-gazers' were among the least insulting. Worse words were occasionally used behind our backs. At best the others grumbled that we were somehow favored with an easy post away from the gawping masses or from safeguarding some bumbling noble from some knave with a dagger."



"Fools. The lot of them, fools beyond measure. Though I had only seen four-and-twenty winters I found myself joining with the sentiment of the grey-haired generals and mages that my generation was a pack of jabbering baboons who ignored the wisdom of the ages at their own mortal peril. Even a simpleton could gaze at the carvings of the ancients and wonder why it was that dragons were depicted coming to this place. The Balcony had not been made for the idle pleasure of a king, nor the brazier that could hold huge burning logs like twigs in a campfire. Even the spacious interior kept spotlessly clean and never used for storage could make one wonder 'what is meant to be here?'."



"Once in a while we convinced a scoffer to join us on our watch of the skies or a doubter to look at the evidence all around them. And if they were particularly fortunate...they would see why we volunteered to stand watch with such fervor when great wings in the sky heralded the arrival of a dragon. To even be close to one of these mighty beings is an experience that defies words. Their sheer size is enough to make the mightiest warrior's heart shake like the ground beneath his feet, for even when they deign to walk as we do instead of soar above the clouds they are a force of nature unto themselves. All the stories of lore of their unrivaled might and power are brought to mind as you stand beside it with a feeling not unlike that of a mouse besides a Sabre Cat. And atop all that, they radiate magical power so much that a person who never cast a spell in their lives can feel the force within their souls like ten thousand trumpets blaring as one."



"Yet even more amazing are the objects of their attention. They do not need wisdom or advice; in fact, they will sometimes bestow some of their boundless stores upon us. And rumors aside they have no treasure hoards, for they see gold and jewels as mere baubles. Far and above their most common reason for coming to the Grand Balcony is for the one thing even they hold priceless - love. It is an experience almost beyond description to see a being of such incredible power come up to a maiden as calmly as a tame ox and remark on her gentle spirit and cheerful nature toward all, then to see it sit in perfect stillness with its great wings folded while she sings a simple village song from the heart, as attentive as if it were a gentleman at the theatre."



"I have seen many things a man might call 'awesome'. Some made by man, and some the work of nature. But above them all I place the sight of a dragon coming in peace to meet with one of our own...then to sense that the faintest flicker of love is beginning to kindle between two beings so very different from each other. There is even an ancient saying about this that few know the true meaning of: 'The faintest candle and the greatest forge can still burn with the same fire.' Fortunate indeed is the one who sees this in his life."



"There are many common misconceptions about dragons, but the worst is that they kidnap humans and eat them or hold them for ransom. They actually go quite willingly."