Aeskotar

S T A R D U S T • T I G E R S The Tiger Constellation. Bright. Beautiful. Sparkling. Alone. The night sky of Sornieth could not reflect the immeasurable vastness of space, and the Tiger Constellation, as great and majestic as it is, was simply lost in the crowd of stars. Few dragons knew about this constellation, and scarcely any of those who knew cared much about it. And it was the unknown that often bear the most entrancing things. For indeed, the Tiger Constellation was far from the norm. Its stars, every single of them burning with blue and purple mana, bore life beneath their heated crusts, the way an egg might bear life beneath the delicate shell. For many eons, the life within the stars did not stir, and so no one noticed that anything was special about the Tiger Constellation...until the fateful day it did. Silently and gracefully, they broke free from the molten surfaces of the stars, a dim version of the constellation itself. Rock fell from their bodies to speed through the darkness of space. The first of them took a deep breath, dark blue and purple body lost in the dreamy background of the galaxy, and opened their eyes. Brilliant magenta eyes. Reflected in those eyes was the emptiness that dominated the constellation itself. The newborn entity looked blankly about, voiceless and still, until one by one, more joined it. They tested their striped wings, soaring about. Then, after a multitude of them had gathered, they left the constellation together, zipping mindlessly through the sparkling galaxy....

It did not take long for the Stardust Tigers to arrive at Sornieth, for the life flourishing upon it was like a beacon for the weary space travelers. Together they dove through the planet's fiery atmosphere, blinded by the vaporous heat as they hurtled through the air. Immediately, they saw the Starfall Isles, and slipped over to it, breathing in foreign air and absorbing the strangeness of the world around them.

Researchers from the Observatory noticed the strange group of dragons first, and invited them over so that they may do research on this strange collection of dragons. It became clear almost immediately that they were not part of the native ecosystem on the Starfall Isles, nor were they from the mysterious Starwood Strand where almost everything strange pops up from. No, the Stardust Tigers were different. For one, they were the living embodiments of the stars, and for another, they acted a lot more like cats than actual dragons.

In an attempt to learn their secrets, the researchers taught the Stardust Tigers the draconian language and told them the stories of the land. The Stardust Tigers were eventually able to tell the Arcanites of their birth and of their homeland. It didn't take long for the researchers to connect the dots and realise that this peculiar species was from the constellation they had ignored for so long. Research was immediately done into the Tiger Constellation, and an immeasurable amount of vital energy was found. News spread across the Starfall Isles like flash fire, and the Tiger Constellation became the headlines for almost every paper.

As for the Stardust Tigers, they, having no intention to leave this strange and wildly chaotic world, decided to settle down in the Crystalspine Reaches and the Starwood Strand. Sometimes they would look up at the stars, and dream of the endless exodus across the starry lunar scape. Sometimes, they would close their eyes, and see the Tiger Constellation burning bright in their minds.




Though they may look like Nocturne dragons, the Stardust Tigers definitely do not act like dragons. With speckled wings like the galaxy and stripes across their bodies, this subspecies is true to the feline nature their names hint.

The Stardust Tigers interact well with other dragons, though they are fine being off by themselves. Alone, they adopt a more feral, aggressive nature like that of their namesake the tiger, and can often be found hunting prey that unfortunately may or may not include the dragon clan living nearby.

In a clan or large group, however, the nature of the Stardust Tigers change immediately. They become more placid and playful, with a catty attitude to match. Be aware, though. Much like regular domestic cats, the Stardust Tigers should not be expected to take part in any work the clan is doing, and more often then not, will be sleeping in a patch of sunlight as the rest of the clan works itself to death.

Far more terrifying than their chameleon nature, the Stardust Tigers have the exceedingly interesting and rather horrifying ability to choke out flaming rocks known either as meteors or comets, depending on how far they go up into the sky. This would be fine if they were on the ground or near the sea, but unfortunately, the Stardust Tigers are most commonly found at the Focal Point, chasing after the strange pink lights and life there and puking up the occasional meteor to obliterate the ground far, far below.

Even for the Tigers in regular clans, their need for cuddling is great, and they turn extremely grumpy and prone to throwing a meteoric fit whenever their needs are ignored. And let me tell you, the proverbial "ignore it and it'll go away" does not work with a fireball-spitting cat dragon.

Clans who welcome Stardust Tigers have learned to capture their attention with toys and magical catnip, the former used to keep them where the damage of the occasional meteor could be reduced, and the latter used to keep the meteors inside the Tiger's stomach. The clans who use this tactic to keep their Stardust Tiger in line have also learned to buy an inexhaustible amount of toys, for everything a Stardust Tiger sees is theirs, and more often then not, they will carry off the toy to add to their rapidly growing hoard, upon which it's likely that you'll never see it again.