Dragons

Last updated Dec 21, 2024

• Fauna
• Ultra essent realms
• Infra essent realms

Dragons are a genus of amphibians native to the -1st, -3rd, and all ultra-essent realms, including the 2nd. They are omnivorous, flight-capable through the use of alucinara, and semi-aquatic, inhabiting wetlands, rivers, swamps, lakes, and oases. They are inedible and toxic, but are often hunted for use in pigments and dyes. Dragons are omnivorous, consuming algae, leaves, and mainly insects.

Dragons can vary in appearance based on species and environment, but are generally wet-skinned and long, with a body like a worm or a salamander, six short legs, and two large eyes on the top of their heads. Dragon species capable of flight lack physical wings, rather using alucinara energy, but exhibit wing-like apparitions during flight.

There are many species of Dragon which specialise into different behaviours, elements, and uses of Alucinara.

Water Dragons are almost entirely aquatic, unnable to survive out of water for long, inhabiting swamps and wetlands. This species has webbed, fin-like feet, electric organs, and exposed gills similar to axolotls, with blue skin and light counter-shading on their underside. Furthermore, this species is capable of generating electricity to stun threats, and can sense electric fields.

Fire Dragons are a flight-capable species of Dragon which inhabit steppes and deserts of the -1st realm, using alucinara energy to generate lift and flames which they breathe from their mouths. This species has rough, brown, durable skin, which protects them from the elements.

Earth Dragons are flightless, living on land in rainforests. They are effective mimickers of nature, camouflaging themselves against rock, sand, and dirt.

Leaf dragons are a subspecies of flight-capable earth dragon which inhabit the canopy. They use kleptoplasty to photosynthesise, using many small leaf-like organs on their back to catch sunlight.

Magic Dragons are flight-capable and inhabit the forests and plains of the -3rd realm. They have a greater ability to withstand the energy of alucinara, owing to their habitat. They use alucinara in order to manipulate objects, speak, and confuse predators.

Dragons lay their spawn in damp, wet, areas, such as ponds. Their eggs are mainly found in wet climates, such as rainforests, but it is not uncommon for them to migrate elsewhere later in life.

They begin life in a tadpole-like nymph phase in which they live in their ponds and feed upon plant matter, eventually maturing, growing their limbs, opening their eyes, and leaving the water for the first time.

Their adult phase is around a few years long; they travel over vast distances in search of food and a mate, eventually returning to their birthplace to lay their own eggs, before they pass away soon after.

Dragons are toxic to consume, and aren’t hunted for food. Rather, they are hunted by most minikin cultures for their use in dyes and hallucinogenic intoxicants, which are used in textiles, religious rituals, and drugs.