___Had the Coatl stationed by the entrance not been there, you probably wouldn't have noticed the non-conspicuous cave nestled into the cliff side. It seemed like any other cave, perhaps even dangerous given the seemingly endless darkness just inside, but your curiosity as to what the Coatl was guarding won you over.
___Well, "guarding". On closer inspection they were more "laying by the entrance" than guarding. Their eyes flicked towards you as your talons shuffled in the sand, and with a small huff they tucked a book the were reading behind them and sat up, continuing to stare at you with a slightly bored, slightly disgruntled expression.
___The Coatl flicked their tail as you arrived near the foot of the cave entrance, but you couldn't tell if it was in greeting or annoyance. "So. Why are you here?" after a few seconds of silence, she huffed again and continued, "You know, to the Lapis clan?" Silence continued, and the Coatl rolled her eyes at your confused expression. "I suppose you were just exploring the beach and happened to notice the cave? That happens a lot, actually." She huffed again. "Well, you seem innocent enough. I'm supposed to escort new arrivals in, but I'm being left on a bit of a cliffhanger here," she pointed at her book, "and I think you can find your way. Just keep going despite the darkness, you'll be there before you know it. Look for a light blue and lavender Fae or a green and purple Fae, those are our founders. The former will be very happy to show you around. Or an iridescent white Coatl, they'll be glad to do so as well." She went back to reading, and glanced back at you when she didn't hear talonsteps. "Oh, the name's Ruby. And don't mind the stalactites or stalagmites, they've all been removed because they posed a safety hazard."
___After stepping inside, you were enveloped in darkness. Had it not been for the occasional, quiet huffs Ruby was making behind you, you might not have been sure if you were even in the cave anymore. Ruby was true to her word in that the stalactites and stalagmites were removed, as the floor and walls were all smooth as pearls. Somebody had spent a lot of work on this. After gathering your courage, you continued forward, and soon were left with only the quiet clicking of your own talons against the stone.
___It was probably only less than a minute, but it felt like so much longer, until you saw light ahead. You felt like there was wind in your step, and suddenly the tunnel spilled out into a large cave. You skid to a stop, and immediately noticed that there was a large hole in the ceiling. It was likely hidden from above due to the foliage and plant life surrounding the edges. Dragons who were flying by probably wouldn't notice the gaping hole amongst the other trees and bushes they were passing by, of which most travelling dragons probably would be doing unless they had weakened wings, but if they did they would probably be walking along the shore... You decided to defocus your attention from the skylight, and glanced around. The stone surrounding the entrance was decorated in a brilliant mural of the sea of a Thousand Currents and it's various locations, with the Spiral Keep depicted near the left and the Tsunami Flats the right; it was incredibly intricate, and looked like it had been painted by careful talons. The cave was lit up by strings of stained glass lanterns, finely crafted by careful talons. Most were in shades of blue or purple, but there were a few bright oranges and yellows here and there. Multiple dragons were scattered around the cave, talking to each other, lazing about, or wandering down the multiple tunnels spreading outwards from the entrance cave. A few tunnels had a bunch of smaller caves branching out of them, and by the blankets and trinkets scattered around most of them, they appeared to serve as sleeping chambers.
___The extra strings of lights hung in an inviting, wide tunnel caught your eye, and on closer inspection it was lined with stalls, of behind which many dragons appeared to be selling and buying items, including jewelry from a nervous pink and off-white Imperial who was accompanied by an almost eerily still silver and pink Fae, textiles from a pretty white and reddish-pink Imperial - who was knitting what appeared to be a scarf and seemed to be rather unfocused on the crowd - and desserts from a brown and red Coatl who was calling, "Strawberry truffles, strawberry truffles for sale!". One tunnel had a lot of noise coming from it and looked to have a bunch of little dragonets running around inside (with a pink-purple Coatl seemingly trying to keep things organized, who seemed to be assisted by a Wildclaw that radiated compassion). Another, quieter, smaller tunnel led to a wooden door that looked liked it grew right from the stone walls around it, and a few small vines were snaking around it; being the only entrance you could see that had a door instead of being open, it seemed quite interesting, but you got the feeling that whoever was inside wanted to be left alone. Another led to what appeared to be a library, and a Spiral was flapping around sorting all the scrolls, but doing their best not to disturb the purple Fae, silver and green Pearlcatcher, and the gray Tundra dotted with turquoise, who were reading in a cozy corner. Actually, something seemed a bit off to you with that Fae... Was that water coming out of their eyes? You decided not to dwell on it, as they seemed occupied, and you could investigate later. Off to the side, a staircase was carved into a tunnel that was spiraling upwards. There were a few flower petals and leaves strewn about, and you could hear some birds calling to one another. You couldn't tell exactly what was up there, but as you were pondering this a Coatl in varying shades of green and brown who was holding some plants brushed passed you and padded up it, careful not to damage any of the flora. The stairs probably led to a garden or animal sanctuary of some sort.
___You cast your gaze towards the largest tunnel, although it wasn't very much so (it gave you the odd feeling that it was important, but didn't want to make itself seem like it was better than the other tunnels). You couldn't tell exactly what it led to, but you could make out what looked to be a few dragons conversing, including two Faes that looked like they fit Ruby's description of the founders.
___A few dragons waved, flicked their tails slightly, or nodded in greeting as you padded towards the tunnel containing the founders. Murmurs started to fill your hearing. It seemed like the purple and green Fae was pointing at something next to them, and on closer inspection it appeared to be a hermit crab, which a deep blue Fae adorned with small animals was freaking out about. The two Faes seemed to be incredibly happy chatting with each other about it. A third Fae, the light blue and lavender Fae which Ruby had presumably noted to be the other founder was sitting off to the side, flicking their crest in a way that indicated they were slightly annoyed but were trying to hide it. They were counting on their talons, but lost count and sighed. They looked like they had seen this happen many, many times. A purple and off-white Skydancer was conversing with a deep blue Pearlcatcher near the side of the cave, and was occasionally pointing at different locations on a map of Sorneith hung on the wall.
___When you stepped into the cave, you noticed that there were a few windows open to the seaside carved into one side of the cave, which were surrounded by foliage in a similar fashion to the skylight in the main entrance. The cave was a bit grander than the others you had seen glimpses of, with a few rugs about, as well as a cluster of pillows in one corner, on which one of had a Hydra Scorpion lying on it. A Scorchpaw Prowler was batting at the Hydra Scorpion, but the scorpion had it's stingers down and seemed largely bored instead of angry. You didn't have much time to dwell on other observations, as the founder who was sitting a bit off to the side lit up at your entrance, and immediately bounded over. "Hello there, you must be new around here! I don't believe we've met, I'm Tidewatcher, the founder of the Lapis clan." Tidewatcher's voice largely remained in monotone like most fae, however sometimes a bit of emotion squeezed through. She flicked her tail or tilted her head in a similar fashion to other dragon species, but was obviously still learning as they did so sparsely and continued to use their crest to display most of their emotions. "That Fae over there is Kelp, the co-founder." She flicked a wing towards the green and purple Fae, who was still excitedly chatting with the deep blue Fae about the hermit crab. "I don't suppose Ruby escorted you? I could show you around instead, if you'd like!" She seemed quite enthusiastic about all this, and you didn't want to turn her down. Besides, you could use a helping claw finding your way around. Before you could finish speaking, Tidewatcher was already nearly halfway down the tunnel. That Fae sure was excitable. "Great, follow me!"

Bio maybe in progress? I'm not sure if I should continue this, and how I would go about doing so.

Note to self: write about the market district out on the beach shore. Maybe an introduction from Seaside, and the rest is guided by Solstice? Ruby (the other one), and by extension the Seaspray Inn, should make an appearance...




Other things about the clan I wasn't sure how to incorporate, or were from prompts (which will be in italics):

• What's the local weather like on average? Hot or cold? Humid or dry?
  It tends to be slightly warm overall, but it cools quite a bit during the night. Since the clan is located right next to the sea of a thousand currents, it's quite humid.
• How often does it rain? Is flooding an issue?
  It rains quite frequently, though usually not in excess. Intense storms aren't common, but certainly aren't rare either. Flooding isn't usually an issue, but as the majority of the clan lives in a tunnel network there are a few precautions which I'll mention in a later prompt.
• How's the terrain? Mountainous? Flatland? Ocean? Lava?
  The entire clan is nestled next to the sea of a thousand currents. As mentioned before the majority of the clan lives in a tunnel network, of which has been carved into the cliffside of the ashfall wastes, specifically that near the magma sanctum and churnscar wharf. The clan hasn't dug nearly far enough to encounter any lava or intense heat, as the tunnels tend to stay close to the cliffside. A few wander around the beaches of the churnscar wharf, which is quite flat.
• What sorts of severe weather or natural disasters can occur? What does your clan do when they happen? Are there any defined protections/safety procedures in place (ex. taking shelter somewhere)?
  As mentioned before, intense storms happen on occasion. While flooding is rare and hasn't posed much of a danger yet, multiple dragons are at least somewhat worried about it. Earthquakes, windstorms, and collapsing tunnels need to be watched out for as well.
  There are multiple escape tunnels and "flood tunnels" made specifically to reduce the water level in case of flooding. There are multiple ships out on the water which can be used as well. The buildings placed out on the seafront are set on land that is stable and a fair bit higher than the sea level at it's highest point. There are shelters in the cave network in case of windstorms, and the local inn has a basement lined with sturdier materials which dragons can hide in if they can't get to the cave in time during emergencies. Collapsing tunnels and caves are rare and often quite small, as every one has beams set in place to try and prevent them from collapsing, but on the chance they do happen dragons are instructed to evacuate immediately - except for personal dens, almost every cave has multiple exits.
  Every dragons that joins the clan in drilled on safety procedures in case of emergencies. Usually one of the guards/fighters will drill newcomers, or the precautious librarian.
• How's the magic level in the region? Can spellcasters easily draw on ambient magic or are they forced to rely on their own reserves/other options?
  There's a fair bit of magic coursing through the area, however with the Tidelord missing it has become significantly harder to cast difficult spells without aid. Mages who have trained for a long time and/or specifically in this area often are able to ignore this, however. There is a fairly decent collection of runestones which has slowly piled up, as multiple dragons in the clan enjoy gathering - and there hasn't been much of a need for large amounts of magic at once, so nobody has been using them except for research purposes.
• What sort of flora and fauna can be found naturally? Any invasive species wreaking havoc? Which species have a use within your clan?
  There is a large amount of hermit crabs and river flights, the former partially due to one of the founder's and one of his daughter's fascination with them, and the latter simply due to location. They don't do very much, except for slowly draining the food and treasure stores... Dragons with these familiars and those who get up to similar antics have to be careful not to go near the treasury/hoard. However, it's not very much of a difference, and their presence is more often appreciated than not. One dragon who has been part of the clan for a very long time has a river flight familiar, of which is very friendly - due to this the only dragon who actively dislikes river flights is the treasurer. Most dragons tend to be a bit more resentful towards the crab population, but not many mention it due to one of the founder's and one of his daughter's fascination with them, as mentioned earlier.
  In terms of flora, there isn't really anything notable - however, one of the gardeners of the clan really likes peacevines, and has a large quantity of them in her den - though she's been very careful not to let them in any unwelcome areas. One of the other gardeners, on the other talon, is quite a bit more careless in that regard, and has had to relocate plants far too many times - it's very common to see seemingly random plants scattered in seemingly random areas around the clan.
• Does the region present any other dangers to locals and/or travelers in some way?
  Nothing in particular comes to mind... There are a few small beastclans around, but they're all kept closely in check and haven't posed much of a threat at all.
• Does clan architecture blend with the territory or starkly contrast with it? How much is "natural" vs "constructed"? Is it suited to dealing with the local weather/etc? Is it long-lasting or is there always something being built or repaired?
  There aren't really any other cave-dwelling clans nearby, so there isn't much to go off of, but the structure of it seems slightly more like something you'd find in a light clan than a water one, mainly due to the square and almost ancient-civilization-like windows and design. Other than that, well, it's a tunnel network - there isn't much to say. The buildings and settlements on the shore blend in quite nicely with those surrounding them, not appearing all that special, asides from the abundance of stained glass lanterns (a favorite of the clan's, there's always an abundance of them, and they make it quite easy to tell if an area belongs to or is allies with the clan)... Most of the buildings are made of wood, with a few having sections of stone and rock. Buildings don't often need to be replaced, but things sometimes need to be repaired due to the occasional storms - however, the buildings are generally suited to the weather, so this usually isn't disasterous.

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Flirt with a dragon Favorite Dragon of the Person Above you

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• Obtained from CopicCrusader's dragons/art sales