User blog comment:MarasuneX/whats your take on the story of dragons dogma/@comment-5337347-20130209043944

Every Seneschal was once an Arisen, with Savan being the most recent Seneschal; and every dragon is an Arisen that failed to "ascend", with the most recent being an Arisen named "Grigori".

The Seneschal plays the role of ruler, watching over the world, never aging or dying. The only way for a Seneschal to die is for their heart to be pierced with the Godsbane blade.

An Arisen, when defeated by the Seneschal, becomes a Dragon whose task it is to seek and test new Arisen. Should the Arisen defeat the Dragon, and move on to fight the Seneschal, they will be given a choice:

They can choose to turn away from their fate, or challenge the Seneschal for control of the world.

However, should the Arisen fail in this challenge, and lose to the Seneschal, they will become the next Dragon, and a new Arisen will be chosen, continuing the endless cycle.