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The Land Dragons Dragons are large creatures, and all are the same size, no matter their color. Dragons range in size from 30 to 50 feet long, and their size is not color specific. Dragons feed on whatever unintelligent creature they see fit, mainly their diet consisting of four-legged hoofed animals. They need to feed once a week once reaching adult hood, in one large mass feeding, and as Fledgling they eat in small quantities every day. No matter their gender, dragons all breathe fire. However, hatchlings cannot breath fire, because their flame sacks, in their necks and upper chests, have not started producing the substance to which dragons use to create fire. When dragons mature to Fledglings the hormones in a dragon's body begin to craft the substance in the sack, and when old enough, they are taught to use it. By belching this gas-like substance, dragons are able to create fire, because the 'tube' leading up the throat from the sack is lined with phosphorus substance. The gas then mixed with the phosphor when meeting the air bursts into flame. The dragons learn how to open their mouth just so, how hard to belch, and how to get the best length of fire available from a single belch. The best dragons have been able to belch flame nearly their own length, giving the best range in which they can come in contact with an enemy. There is no worry, however, of the inside of a dragon's mouth becoming burned, because the insides of their mouths are coated, prior to belching, with a pyrophosphate substance from tiny sacks in their cheeks which acts as a flame retardant. All dragons learn to quickly rub the substance all over their mouth with their tongue before breathing fire. After done completely, with breathing fire, it's their bond's job to wash the inside of their dragon's mouth to get the substance off. Dragons come in the following colors; Black (male or female) The colors are primarily gender-specific, whites and blacks being male or female. On some islands, the dragon colors are all genders, so it's best to check with the specific island or Caer's information or Caerleaders to find out about the dragons native to those islands. The colors are not rigid colors, there will always be differences between the colors, some dragons may have tints of other colors in them. The main color they are, however, is how they are classed in the basic colors above. No color is higher ranked over another, all ranking is determined on the dragon and rider's responsibility and their loyalty to the Caer, and the loyalty they have of the rest of the Caer. Dragons will bond only with their own gender, unless the sexual preference of the human is homosexual or bisexual instead of strictly heterosexual, in which case, they will bond opposite genders. (female humans on male dragons, or male humans on female dragons) Dragons also are complete reflections of their rider's personality, a quirk or two may be different, but they find the human most like them and bond. If there is no human to bond with dragon, depending on temper, will either Bond one of their own species, or simply reject all contact and perhaps go into a mild depression. Some dragons prefer not to Bond, and will eventually Bond one of their own kind. There is no record of land dragon-sea dragon, sea dragon-gryphon, or gryphon-land dragon Bonding because of the species respect for one another, and the fact that when the creatures Bond their own kind, they usually become mates. And just as a lizard can't produce offspring with a bird, neither can a dragon and gryphon. Their internal organ systems differ, so producing any offspring is impossible. During egg-touching experiences, each candidate touches each egg until they find one that draws them most to it; the beginnings of the dragonet inside using it's T-Power. Eggs that are not chosen by candidates are quickly found candidates for, until the egg is with a candidate. If there is no candidate found for the egg, it is considered a dud, and will most likely not hatch. Dragon clutches are as large as the dragons who flew. If a particularly large female was caught by a large male, then the clutch will be large for two reasons. One being the genetic strength of the two dragons involved, their genetic DNA being able to create large and strong progeny. And the second being as there is more room for larger clutches of eggs to develop inside a larger female then in a smaller female. During mating flights, which happen whenever a dragon feels like it, normally several months apart, all male dragons take chase if they want to 'win' that female. While the riders of their bonded dragons will feel as delighted in their dragon's sexuality and the emotions of the flight, they won't be entirely affected. It's not uncommon for the female and her dragon to have a preference male, and his dragon will likely win, but if the preference of the male doesn't have a dragon, she can still take to their rooms whomever they want. Sex is fairly inevitable and not hidden as crude or something not for public eyes. The dragon rose for the purpose of it, and for the end purpose of creating more dragons, so the riders should be just as happy to join in the same act with their human choice, be it the rider of the male dragon who caught their dragon, or another. However, should the rider not want to, they can lock themselves in their rooms to be undisturbed during their dragon's flight. Male dragons who don't win may have still 'energized' their riders and, to put it simply, stand-ins in the Caer are normally always available. Some flights won't produce any progeny, so a female's flying doesn't always equal offspring. (If the female is not in heat, ie; it's not the proper time of the month in the female cycle when she decides to fly, then no offspring will be conceived and no eggs lain.) After becoming impregnated, the female dragon carries the eggs inside her, allowing them to develop for nearly a month. During this time, she is grounded when her belly starts to bulge, and is kept to the Caer grounds. And as you would think the term grounded to mean, pregnant females are not allowed to fly for their own safety as well as the eggs she carries. When clutching occurs, the female may take several days to lay her eggs, digging holes in the sand so the still soft shells can harden in the heat, much to the same degree her own body kept them at. Dragons could be capable of live-births if they had enough room inside them for all the eggs, but because they don't, the lay the half-formed eggs on the sand where they can fully expand to suit the growing embryo, and mature. Eggs are oval in shape, looking like very large chicken eggs. In color, they will vary with the color of the female that laid them, but are all generally the same color. Primarily, each egg is peach in color, the color darkening as the egg shell gets harder. The embryos grow, and their shells expand somewhat to accommodate. After another month of waiting, the hatchlings will use an 'egg tooth', found on the tip of their muzzle that will fall off shortly after their hatching, to chip away at the inside of the egg. The egg after splitting reveals the gangly baby hatchling, even though gangly, they're still perfectly proportioned to what they'll look like as adults, save longer and harder claws on their feet, taller neck ridges, and smaller eyes when their muzzle elongates and their head is better proportioned to their body. The eyes of the dragons vary depending on climate and breeding. Some dragons have pupils, like humans, while others have opalescent eyes. For deeper study on opalescent eyes, read this theory written by Dee Dreslough. After a year the hatchlings are old enough and large enough to carry their dragons at the base of their neck. The humans ride on the dragon's shoulders, legs hanging before the wing arm, much like if they were riding a horse. The 'saddle' is really just a slightly bowled out pad, which will retain it's shape, strapped securely to the dragon's neck. The saddle has a waist belt strap to keep the rider secure from falling forwards, the raised back of the saddle keeping the rider from falling backwards, as well as short belt clips on either side of the human's hip so the rider can't fall upwards; sideways when the dragon takes a steep dive. None of these straps, however, impend the rider of any movement of the legs or upper body, except for leaning backward. Riders can lean forward and sideways freely, and their legs can swing free, or rest in the stirrups. Because they ride on the dragon's shoulders, they cause no strain to their dragon. Any dragons who lose their riders, or riders who lose their dragons, by either abandonment or death, will likely try to suicide if there isn't someone there to stop them. When a bond forms, the minds merge, so if one rejects another, the one rejected will feel empty, and the weaker minded individuals will not be able to handle this, and will try to be rid of the emptiness by ending their life. If there are others of their kinds (humans to comfort an alone human, or dragons to comfort an alone dragon) they may recover. If recovery goes well enough, they'll have a chance to bond again, or just live their lives in solitude. The Sea Dragons Sea dragons come in three main colors, Green Each color can vary in intensity according to the parent's color. (Eg. blue + green = aqua). All colors are equally able to lead and no one color is higher then the others or harder to come by. Colors that are intensified by breeding the three more common colors are; Aqua (Green + Blue) And the random mutations that are found among sea dragons are as follows; Red These random genetic mutations cannot be predicted, and their presence in a clutch is only known when that clutch hatches. Also depending on where the sea dragons roam, and their friendliness towards humans is how many they will find to become a bonder for their beach clutches. Some like their clutches to be full to give the humans a chance to Bond, because they like the pairings with humans. Others only allow a few to try and Bond because they dislike the pairings with humans. Unlike Caers, sea dragons rely on their own kind to lead even if there is a bonded human around. The leader of the formation or pod is chosen through week long battles. Only the strongest and smartest make it through with their pride still intact. At the end of the battles, the winner is named leader. Though, should his rule prove to be incompetent, they can easily be replaced. Sea dragons can range anywhere from 40 to 70 ft. in length. Depending on where on Alskyr they're found, sea dragons looks very different. Some have wings which they can glide for short distances out of the water, while others don't have wings at all. Most sea dragon's fingers and toes are long and webbed to help them paddle through the water. Their powerful, finned tail is used for thrust. In males, some have fins rising off the top and sides of their heads and are more decorative then anything, used to intimidate enemies and impress possible mates. The fins can either lie flat against their heads or stand straight up, fanning out to reveal the webbing between them. The dragon's powerful forearms are used to push off of looming underwater rocks and steer through swift currents. The hind legs are used more to walk on land then steer through water, and are smaller for this purpose, so they don't hinder the dragon while swimming. Their webbed toes are usually used as a "brake", and their tail for turning. Some sea dragons have lungs, while others have gills. Some even have a combination of both. Those with gills must stay underwater more often, while those with lungs can't stay under like those with gills. While lunged sea dragons can stay under for hours at a time with their large lung capacity, they can't stay under indefinitely, and must return to the surface for another breath of air. Because gills cannot get the same amount of oxygen from air that it can from the water, gilled sea dragons can only stay out of the water for short periods in time, then must return to the water. All sea dragons are salt water creatures, being far too large to try and live in any of the scattered fresh water lakes and rivers. Luckily, most of the Alskyrian oceans are saltwater. Any dragons who lose their riders, or riders who lose their dragons, by either abandonment or death, will likely try to suicide if there isn't someone there to stop them. When a bond forms, the minds merge, so if one rejects another, the one rejected will feel empty, and the weaker minded individuals will not be able to handle this, and will try to be rid of the emptiness by ending their life. If there are others of their kinds (humans to comfort an alone human, or dragons to comfort an alone dragon) they may recover. If recovery goes well enough, they'll have a chance to bond again, or just live their lives in solitude. |