Was there a Dragon in Changes?

[OxfordComma]

I was listening to Changes this morning and got to the part where Harry does his Gravity Hammer spell at the temple.  Listening to Harry's description of what the power of the Lay-Line he was using felt like, it sounded suspiciously like how Mr. Butcher described what a Dragon in his full form would be like.  So, I wondered if the source of the Lay-Line under the temple could be one of the remaining Dragons???

[Kindler]

1. Outstanding user name.
2. I don't think an entity itself could be the source of a leyline, but I could buy a dragon's demesne or hoard hanging out below Chichen Itza. Quetzalcoatl was tied very, very strongly with Itza (Chichen Itza is a temple to Quetzalcoatl/Kukulkan), and depictions of the deity as a feathered serpent sound an awful lot like dragons to me.
3. It does fit a bit with the Word of Jim on how Dragons (capital "D") are semi-divine beings in the Dresden Universe. There's one that says they're responsible for things like causing an ice age or splitting a continent with a river.

Good thought. It could be true. I have a feeling we'll find out more about Dragons and dragons later on.

[jonas]

Consider the origins of the dark ley lines radiating from DR and it's a good possibility the origin of that one could be a slumbering dragon.

[Kindler]

Consider the origins of the dark ley lines radiating from DR and it's a good possibility the origin of that one could be a slumbering dragon.

I figured the Well was the prison, and the energy was tainted by the prisoners' presence, contributing to it and twisting it, but not the source. But, eh, I could be wrong.

[peregrine]

I doubt it.  Just because something is described in a similar fashion doesn't necessarily mean they ARE the same.  Not every headache Harry has, even if it's like being stabbed in the head by icepicks, is necessarily caused by the same thing.  Sometimes he just has really bad headaches because he gets himself beat up a lot.

That said, if there IS a dragon there, I don't want to think about what all those sacrifices on its doorstep might be doing to it.

[groinkick]

Maybe...  But there was also the weight of the spell about to me used, which was an incredible amount of power.  Not to mention it was the center of power for the Red Court, and a bunch of heavy hitters were there.

[Mr. Death]

You'd think a dragon would've woken up and noticed the apocalyptic battle happening right over its head or the massive spell that went off.

[Rasins]

We also know that CI has been a nexus for power for at least 1000 years.  I got the impression that the Ley Line Harry used wasn't the only one there.

On the other hand, what would be a better place for a Dragon to sleep than on a wellspring of magic (rather than BEING the wellspring of that magic).

[OxfordComma]

These were the parts that jumped out at me:

"...and the one beneath us was an enormous current of raw earth magic...I was immediately overwhelmed with a rush of images and alien sensations, contacting a power so intense and coherent that it nearly had its own awareness.  In a single moment, I saw the ponderous dance of continents clashing against one another to form mountains, felt the slow sleepiness of the earth, its dreaming shivers felt as disasters by the ephemeral things that lived upon it's skin...gold and silver flowing hot in rivers...  I was a frail wisp of mortality beside that energy that could, quite literally, have moved mountains, leveled cities, shifted the course of rivers, and stirred oceans in their beds."   

Just sounded very much like a Dragon's job description to me.   Or I could have fallen for another of Master Jim's red herrings LOL 

[raidem]

I've guessed that the warehouse that the Red Court stored their sacrificial gear and athame at was a location of a prior Dragon's stash.  Red's used it to help preserve magical gear etc.  I further WAG'd that the Red's tripped a Dragon's death curse in using the New Mexico location and that such a curse played a minute role against them in CI battle.

There is a WOJ about Dragon's and death curses for those that rob from their hoard's.  Though same woj mentions that nobody has stolen from siriothrax horde.

1) What ever happened to Siriothrax's hoard? Did any of the magical powerups in the series we've seen so far originate there?
1) Heh, it's still right where it was. NO ONE wants to pick up anything from a Dragon's hoard. Talk about Death Curses...

So, I think somewhere the Red Court crossed a Dragon, and tripped up on it's Death Curse.
Regarding your supposition that the alien awareness may be similar to a Dragon, maybe.  It's more likely that it is similar to Demonreach in that there may be a genus loci at that spot, one sleeping.

[Mr. Death]

I honestly don't think it's a clue or a red herring at all.

He's just describing things on a geological scale. That doesn't point to dragon.

If a dragon was there, you don't think it would've been interested in a vampire nation claiming the place at its seat of power? You don't think it would've noticed all the folks making a racket on its lawn?

I imagine the general rule about Dragons in this 'verse is "Don't bother them if you don't want to get slapped down." They defend their territory.

That doesn't reconcile with the Red Court just up and claiming a site that a Dragon is on.

[OxfordComma]

If a dragon was there, you don't think it would've been interested in a vampire nation claiming the place at its seat of power? You don't think it would've noticed all the folks making a racket on its lawn?

I imagine the general rule about Dragons in this 'verse is "Don't bother them if you don't want to get slapped down." They defend their territory.

That doesn't reconcile with the Red Court just up and claiming a site that a Dragon is on.

I think that:

1) Dragons really don't care much what people / vampires do.
2) I think it may be significant that the one and only time we've seen a Dragon was at a Red Court function where they gave him a very costly gift. 

Or, as you say, it may not mean anything at all!  It just struck a chord with me this morning while listening to the Audiobook. 

What also jumped out at me this time was the Merlin's sudden change of tactics.  For years his MO against the Reds was "defense defense defense", then all of a sudden he's talking about wiping them off the face of the earth.  Hmmm, what happens in the book?  The Red's get wiped out.  Makes you wonder if Vadderung and he had a chat behind the scenes in this book.   

[Mr. Death]

I think that:

1) Dragons really don't care much what people / vampires do.

Dragons are prideful, and care enough to leave death curses on and defend their hoards. One of them cared enough that Harry sassed at him to knock him to his knees. Another cared enough to get himself some virgin sacrifices and make deals for power.

It really doesn't seem like one would just not care about a major supernatural nation setting up shop right on top of it, and claiming its site as theirs. Dragons have very definite ideas about what's theirs and what is not, and taking something of a dragon's and calling it yours is not wise.

What also jumped out at me this time was the Merlin's sudden change of tactics.  For years his MO against the Reds was "defense defense defense", then all of a sudden he's talking about wiping them off the face of the earth.  Hmmm, what happens in the book?  The Red's get wiped out.  Makes you wonder if Vadderung and he had a chat behind the scenes in this book.   

I always pinned that on the sudden lack of Peabody's influence on proceedings, plus the Merlin perhaps overcompensating in making up for that influence.

[forumghost]

Plus the Red's were so disgusting that they offended even Nicodemus's sensibilities, who wouldn't want to wipe out that kind of stain?

[RobReece]

A dragon may not mind a supernatural nation making use of the surface above his home, especially if he gets to benefit from all the sacrifices that they conduct there.  If you assume that there is a Dragon there, some of the energy that they were generating may have gone to him, even if they weren't aware of it or didn't intend for that to take place.