Draa'ken

The Draa'ken are a species of composed as a mix of Dragon, Reptilia, and Bozhestvo blood and flesh. Originally created by Gora The Dragon King eons ago to wage his war against the inhabitants of Terra Eclipsis, they had lived quietly amongst the realms, until The WIthering brought them back underneath his control.

Basic Information

Anatomy

The Draa'ken look similar to that of the Reptilia, digitigrades standing up-right with claws at the ends of their feet, a long ambidextrous tail, and four-fingered hands. Their head is enlongated forward with a snout, and they have two rows of sharp teeth within their mouth. Horns will often stick up out of the back of their head, often taking up various shapes, sizes and forms. Their bodies are covered in slick scales that protect them from attackers, with the only exposed bits being their stomach and throat.

That is about where the similarities in, and where the oddity that comes with Dragons kick in. Draa'ken will have massive wings, sometimes just two, oftentimes four, sometimes they're not attached to the body-- yet they float close to their flesh. Their number of eyes tend to vary, from the standard two sometimes going up to sixteen on both sides of the head. Their tails can extend for a good couple of feet, acting as a whip if need be.

Genetics and Reproduction

Draa'ken are not born normally, they were created in a Flesh Pit and grown from a mix of various sources across the realms by The Dragon King. Their bodies are composed of the Dragon King's own DNA, the dark energies and flesh of various Strakhian entities, the blood of a Bozhestvo, and, concerningly of all, the living bodies of any Reptilia that were captured by The Dragon King. Their bodies are immensely warped by all of this, turning them into the beasts that The Dragon King uses in his war.

Due to the composition of their bodies, Draa'ken are not able to reproduce by themselves or with other Reptilia.

Behaviour

Ordinarily, a Draa'ken has most of the same personality, knowledge and history of the prior forms they had as a Reptilia. However, the will and might of Gora overrides that, with his control turning them into mindless, blood-thirsty beasts that he can use to slaughter all those around them.

Additional Information

Uses, Products & Exploitation

They are used as weapons by The Dragon King, often given armor to protect themselves as they're sent out to fight his enemies. Their mindless nature under his control means that even if you were to greviously injure one, they would not react as though they are in pain, which makes them perfect for being thrown at the front lines of his battles.

Perception and Sensory Capabilities

A Draa'ken's ability to smell and see is much further improved than that of ordinary Reptilia, being more comparable to that of the Dragons themselves. Alongside this, they have the ability to sense Mana in an area, allowing for them to detect anyone with magical abilities in the area.

Civilization and Culture

History

In the early days of the First Elven-Dragon War, The Dragon King needed to amass more of an army to fight alongside his Dragon compatriots. Armed with eons of magical knowledge and Arcanist ability in warping and manipulating the flesh, he began to secretly abduct Reptilia from The Sands, seeing them as the perfect base for his work.

Using the blood of a Bozhestvo that had died during the end of Strakh's Second Cycle, he infused it into the flesh of the Reptilia he'd find and held captive within his Flesh Pits. These Reptilia would have their bodies warped and distorted from the heavy magical energy that came with this blood, a process which was said to be agonizingly painful. Many Reptilia died in the first few weeks of his attempts at creating these creatures.

The process would continue even after the many deaths, with many more infusions of blood being done afterward, as well as the gafting of flesh from any creature that he had taken from Strakh. His own blood, as well, was infused into them, which would further mutate them into something akin to that of a Dragon.

By the end, he had created the Draa'ken, with the first surviving one being Gaz Alzao, the eventual Dragon Knight.

After the First War ended with the death of the Dragon King, the surviving Draa'ken were freed from his control. They would wander and hide in the realms for eons afterward, their lifespan having become greatly extended as a result of the experiments done to them. They would become reclusive, only appearing in the dark and with the best efforts made to keep themselves from being seen.

It would be this way until The Withering, where the surviving Draa'ken would all fall back under the control of The Dragon King after his revival. Although far less number of Draa'ken were being created due to the difficulties that had arosen with realm travel, this has not stopped the Dragon King from using the Draa'ken in his forces, marching them to their deaths all so that he can resume his rule over the realm once again.

Genetic Ancestor(s)

• Bozhestvo
• Reptilia

Scientific Name

Reptilia Ka' Drago

Average Height

9'4'' - 10'5''

Average Physique

A Draa'ken will tend to be rather muscular and strong in nature, it's body strong enough to sustain damage from arrows and most magical attacks for a fair amount of time.

Body Tint, Colouring and Marking

Their bodies tend to take on various different colors, from vibrant reds and greens to dark blues and even black.