Stray, The Lone Wanderer

SPECIFIC PLAGUE SUBREGION: WANDERING CONTAGION

Like an expansive festering scar, the edges of the Filthy One's domain have taken on a border conquest of their own. Tendrils and membranes, thick and resilient, still creep into every pockmark and outcropping of land they can find. It will not be long until the encroachment begins to threaten foreign clans and flights. In a region made up of fleshy, organic materials, Predators have evolved to hide in plain sight with the live structures. The colors they display can be anything from earthy brown, to sickly reds and Iridescent/Current genes can trick the eye to look like moving tendrils. A dark Okapi gene gives them the appearance of bramble shadows.

GENERAL LORE

No other flight can compete against the Plague dragons’ mastery of hunt, but the Predators are the paramount of all hunters. What sets Predators apart from other dragons, aside from their superior strength and endurance, is their uncanny ability to adapt by camouflage. Most of these species are seen with hides that blend flawlessly with the Wasteland’s harsh environments. However, each generation tends to acquire colors and patterns that depend on their birthplace environment and parents’ diet. This peculiar ability to pass on genes based on environmental changes makes it very rare to see non-Plague versions of this species due to the fact that their camouflage does them little good outside of the Scarred Wastelands. Even so, there have been rare accounts of Predators dipping in and out of other flight territories, resulting in offspring that have odd color combinations or genes. These offspring usually don’t last long unfortunately, but it may be a matter of time before the Predators start encroaching and thriving on foreign lands.

HUNTING BEHAVIOR

While most Mirror hunting groups stampede an area and devour anything in its path, Predator packs prefer to stalk their prey. This stalking behavior seems to be the reason why they tend to hunt bigger game, sometimes even large dragons. Their camouflage allows them to blend in their environment, but additionally, a group of Mirrors can "add" or “build” onto the landscape in an attempt to confuse weary travelers. They can also utilize this ability to hide from other hunting packs as well, although it proves useless against dragons that have excellent sense of smell or hearing like Tundras and other Mirrors.

BREED

The majority of Predators tend to be Mirrors due to their tendency to stick with their own kind. There are other breed of Predators, but breeding between a Mirror and another species tend to produce a lot more of the former breed. Large breeds like Guardians or Imperials don’t do well as Predators as they have difficulties camouflaging. Ironically, Ridgebacks have an easier time surviving, but only in a very strange manner. They thrive in the Abiding Boneyard where they will partially bury themselves in sand to look like corpses or old bones, but never hunt for themselves because there is no seafood in the Abiding Boneyard. They will instead trade their kill for their pack’s fished goods. Spirals tend to thrive in the Wandering Contagion and Rotrock Rim as they camouflage very well as twisting tendrils. Anywhere else, they can be spotted immediately thanks to their constant twisting and spiraling. Finally, there are no Tundra Predators because they are herbivores. Any non-Mirror Predators still keep their own traits and qualities in addition to a Mirror’s grouping behavior and insatiable feeding habits.