Zydras

Young, wild and strong, the Wildclaw left zir clan at an early age to seek opponents to best and wild creatures to slay. Fighting zir way across the continent from the Lightweaver's land all the way down to the Shifting Expanse - and just in time for the Carnivale too. Before coming to the great industrious burrow-city of Lightning, the Wildclaw had been seeking to increase zir fierceness, zir strength and zir power. The clan ze came from was full of strong, agile, and powerful Wildclaws; ze was descended from those prizing strength, and had been raised to be strong.

But in the city, meeting many different dragons, fighting in the ring and working the strange game called Shock Switch, Zydras found that Intelligence was just as important as fierceness. Wisdom had the same value as battle prowess, and it was more than worthwhile for the dragon to learn about the world as well as learning about magic, the beasts of the world's regions - and other dragons.

For other dragons were the very reason Zydras made the decision to change zir life, follow the Gladekeeper, and seek knowledge as well as strength to attain the perfect form. The titanic green guardian dragon named Akhtah, leader of clan Zyymurgy, and their small companion, a red Fae named Nyppa, had been the decisive influence on the blue tiger's life.

When Zydras met them on on the streets of the Lightning burrow-city, in the middle of the festival, zir challenge was met with laughter, and when ze attempted to goad them into a fight, their young charge, a Ridgeback by the name of Jigsaw, stepped forward to counter-challenge zir.

The challenge was an interesting one - a riddle, and a race beginning as soon as the riddle was finished being spoken. The winner was the one who finished either first, and Zydras was confident ze could best anyone in a race, and didn't think ze needed to bother with the riddle at all... but when the Ridgeback called the answer shortly after crossing the finish line, Zydras learned a valubale lesson.

Humbled but humiliated, the dragon snarled at the Ridgeback, swearing ze'd train more and then find him and really beat him - but Jigsaw's friendly laughter and an invitation to return to the jungle and train with Clan Zyymurgy found zir wordless with surprise and stifled fury. Flapping zir wings indignantly, the blue tiger stalked away, pulling zir hood up roughly and stomping zir powerful hindlegs. Jigsaw watched zir back as ze walked away, his face set in a smile but his dark purple gaze somehow very far away.

Zydras left the Shifting Expanse and resumed zir travels across the world, fighting shadowy beasts in the Tangled Wood and flaming monsters in the Flamecaller's lands. Ze grew stronger, and ze began to learn the ways of magic - and when ze found a scholar, ze would beg for tutelage, and study under them for a while before moving on. And when ze found a great warrior, ze would beg for training, and this led to many strange travels and quite a few brushes with death.

Months passed, and after seeing some of what seemed to be every region on the entire planet, ze found zirself on the border of the Viridian Labyrinth. Ze hadn't forgotten the event at the festival - indeed, it have driven zir through zir travels, and as ze craned zir neck upward to gaze at the giant tree that grew great and thrust its branches into the clouds, ze bared zir teeth. It would be easy enough to find the red tiger, Jigsaw, and the giant green beast that protected him.

Crossing the great river that bordered the Gladekeeper's lands, ze began to make zir way up a path that led into the dense undergrowth. Following the riverbank, using the tracking skills ze had carefully cultivated, ze crept along with zir nose close to the ground, zir mouth hanging open, smelling and tasting the air as zir bright eyes collected every bent leaf and broken twig and clawmark in the mud.

And all the while as ze stalked, ze had no idea ze had been stalked since ze entered the jungle.

The thick green underbrush was home to many beasts, and Jigsaw had spend his life since whelphood in the midst of them. He had been raised in a burrow below the roots of a great tree, and had been hunting and fishing and digging in the rich lands of the Viridian Labyrinth for years. He had scaled the trunks of mighty trees seeking insect burrows and sailed high above the canopy on his great spiny wings hunting the quick little birds that lived there. And he had spent long, long hours in the middle of the night carefully tracking the beasts that threatened the burrow he called home.

He had been flying, not hunting but simply gliding for pleasure, high above the treetops and playing with the clouds, his affinity with shadow helping him withstand the deep cold. But a blue tiger stood out against the viridian of the labyrinth, and Jigsaw's sharp eyes caught the color difference easily. As ze slipped into the woods, Jigsaw carefully made his way down across aircurrents, landing near silently, and carefully crept after zir.

As ze scented zir way through the forest, he carefully kept downwind, and so the two progressed through the jungle, one with their mind on tracking down the clan who had humiliated them, and the other focused on their game of tracking the tracker.

After about an hour of the extended game, as the sun began to sink, Zydras was beginning to panic. There had been no sign of dragons since they had entered the expanse; it was a lot more dense and large than ze had expected, and the gigantic trees looming overhead enhanced the gloom as it crept on. The Light aligned dragon felt their nerves drawing tight; being in an unfamiliar and dangerous jungle after the sun had gone down didn't have very much appeal. Ze thought back to the Tangled Wood and for the first time, felt zir newfound confidence waning.

Jigsaw, however, could sense zir dread, and carefully feeling out the wind and the static electricity in the air with his long horn, the Ridgeback carefully stepped from upwind to downwind of the hunter, and the air carried his scent to the blue tiger.

A sudden, hulking shadow emerged from the forest and Zydras could not contain their velociraptor-scream of dismay, flaring zir wings to seem larger - but the glowing purple eyes emerged first and then the bright tomato red tiger scales of the Ridgeback that ze would recognize anywhere, and Zydras snarled in anger, fierce enough to make the much larger dragon pause in his steps.

"I've been following you for miles," he opened with, a playful grin on his toothy maw, and Zydras responded by screaming and jumping at him, sickle claws ready for a strike.

The battle was explosive but short, and when the two parted from their tussle, they were both tending wounds and breathing hard. Zydras and Jigsaw had both fought with magic energy, and both had exhausted their energy reserves in the scuffle.

After a few moments, Jigsaw approached again and Zydras readied zirself, but when Jigsaw began to speak, the Wildclaw slowly relaxed.

"I see you've been training just as hard as I have. Please, come with me to my Clan's home. Our burrow is enormous and deep, and we have much room for newcomers. It's not safe out here at night, so please. Let us heal you; our leader's mate is a Fae, a great mage. And believe me when I say that Wynn can make some really damn good food."

It didn't take much to convince the Wildclaw, and so as the gloom gathered ze followed zir rival. Ze didn't speak much - zir thoughts were consumed by suspicion, and conflicting emotions, and Jigsaw allowed zir to be quiet, not pressing and simply leading. When they reached the tree that his Clan lived in and under, from the branches of the tree fluttered down a rather large Fae, and after a brief interview, they revealed themself to be Nyppa, the leader's mate. Agreeing to have Zydras stay for a while, they showed the blue newcomer down into the burrow beneath the tree.

Initially, Zydras had intended to stay for only a few days before leaving, but the clan welcomed zir so warmly that ze was persuaded to stay for a week, and then a week longer, and then a month, and then of course they would have to travel to the Flamecaller's festival together, and then plans were on for the Arcanist's celebration, and before Zydras knew it, ze had moved in permanently.

At first, ze had kept up the rivalry between zirself and the Ridgeback, but spending time together quickly took the edge off of zir anger. Ze learned that the Shadow dragon was a known joker and riddler, and new knowledge cast different light on the incident in the Shifting Expanse. Hunting together helped the two tigers grow closer, and the jungle-dweller taught the traveller the secrets of his home. The two sparred frequently, but just as often they hunted the dangerous beasts in the jungle together, fighting alongside one another.

As the two began spending more and more time together, the two moved into a single burrow - and soon afterward, the two began to tend a nest together.