Here is how I would put it. As soon as their eyes meet, the dragon swished its tail and snorted. Eric fumbled for his sword.
The dragon advanced. Eric forced his nerves steady, drew the sword from its scabbard and moved forward to meet his fate. While they circled each other, Eric search his foe for a weakness he could exploit.
This dragon had a muscular, short body with a short neck. A turtle-like shell protected its back. Bronze scales covered its head, legs, and tail.
On the end of its tail a spiked ball swished from side to side. It's not terrific, but it gets rid of some of the 'is' verbs, and it keeps the view through Eric's eyes and brain.
Describe the dragon as Obama or Hillary Clinton and you got yourself a perfect match to that dragon :).
I cant really gove you an answer,but what I can give you is a way to a solution, that is you have to find the anglde that you relate to or peaks your interest. A good paper is one that people get drawn into because it reaches them ln some way.As for me WW11 to me, I think of the holocaust and the effect it had on the survivors, their families and those who stood by and did nothing until it was too late.