Venka

Venka is a feral dragon, choosing to forego the comforts of a cushy home for life on the wild Charged Barrens. She's most content surrounded by her unrestrained element, far from the influence of technological advancement or domestic placidity. But Venka still likes to visit her family, the tropical beach clan Sunbeam Grotto, once in a while...she may be wild, but she's not heartless!


Venka is never unwilling to visit her family, but when she heard about the reunion, she hesitated. Wandering through a great crowd of dragons in a single, narrow beach was an experience Venka had never had - in fact, she'd actively avoided anything of the sort once she reached maturity. Eventually, her sentiment won out over her assumptions, and she headed to Sunbeam Grotto early to help prepare for the event! ...and was immediately sent out to gather supplies. Oh well, at least she was able to enjoy a little more time in solitude before the party!

During the reunion, Venka tried her best to keep to herself - she stayed with a friend deep within the Grotto's tunnels while the majority of the other guests slept in tents or lean-tos scattered across the territory. By day she would grab a bite to eat before soaring around above the busy beach below, looking over the events and the unfamiliar faces partaking in them. When the sun set, Venka would silently join her relatives on the bonfire-lit beach, observing and often even joining in on their conversations. When the firelight played across strangers' faces, the night felt not unlike the settlements Venka sometimes visited in the Charged Barrens...but, far from those transient caravans, Sunbeam Grotto and its story was deeply rooted to the land on which it lay.

There were plenty of events Venka attended, mostly from afar. She had entwined her body with a tall tree branch ahead of the storytelling event, and she slinked up to join the stargazing event when the crowd's attention was already focused. But she couldn't let herself miss the feast! While she had planned to sneak up for a stack of picked-over serving dishes, an Imperial seated at the end of his row invited Venka to sit in the spirit of merriment and togetherness. She nervously joined him, and after their tentative small talk evolved into a spirited discussion, Venka found she was glad he invited her in when she seemed content to be left out.


A rainstorm raged over the Sea of a Thousand Currents - not an uncommon occurrence since the disappearance of the Tidelord. During storms, the elder dragons of Sunbeam Grotto preferred to retreat to their dens as unease filled the air. There was no doubt that the clan would be protected by its field of magic, but no dragon liked to be reminded of that horrific hurricane. As such, the beach was nearly empty as the rainstorm thundered overhead and the shield of mist surrounding the clan stirred to life, obscuring the view of the stormy sea and skies.

It was on this particular day that not one, but two hatchlings had been swept up in a rare lightning storm escaping the Tempest Spire and charging uncontrolled over the Shifting Expanse. The babies were so young that they were unable to fly on their own, and their light bodies tumbled through the howling wind as the cloud was pushed over the mountains and out to sea.

From this point the order of events is not known, only supposed. Somehow, after the storm soared off with two tiny dragons trapped within, it churned to life the rainstorm experienced that day by the Sea of a Thousand Currents. And as the unease of Sunbeam Grotto's members activated its protective mist, the magic within the atmosphere must have sensed the fear of the hatchlings caught in the storm. Somehow, then, the field of magic reached up to the clouds and caught both dragons, depositing them safely on the beach. No other explanation could fulfill how the two were discovered along the shore, shaken but completely dry.

The two dragons were raised as sisters, the names that followed them Venka and Lanelle. The hatchlings were believed to have been rescued by the magic imbued in the land, sea, and sky of Sunbeam Grotto. As a result, they were exempt from the rule that required juvenile dragons to leave the clan. While Lanelle was content to stay behind, and create a life of her own, Venka was disappointed with the decision she had no say in. The next day, after bidding farewell to her sister and family, Venka took off to the Charged Barrens in search of her story.

After a harrowing flight across sea and stormy sky, Venka found herself ill-prepared for the fierce weather and untamed land she discovered when she reached the Shifting Expanse. It was as the stubborn juvenile forced herself to live off the land that she became truly in tune with her inborn element, satisfying a desire she'd held all her life but only recently acknowledged. Storms ripped and roared overhead, but the constant roar of thunder and crackle of static were music to Venka's ears.

It was rare she chanced across another traveler, and they always seemed eager to pass her by, rather than stick around and socialize - something Venka didn't mind at all. On one of these rare occasions, though, she had an encounter more unusual than most. The elderly Snapper trudged across the Barrens, shielded by a dusty cloak that had mostly worn away. Once she caught sight of Venka, though, she hustled toward her at a pace Venka didn't expect from an elder dragon.

The Snapper introduced herself as Spyper, but hesitated when Venka questioned her further. After a little push, though, she admitted she was searching for her daughter, who was apparently near to Venka's age. Spyper's daughter had disappeared in an instant when she was a hatchling, and her mother had never stopped searching for her since. As the elder continued to explain, Venka felt realization dawn upon her. After a few more inquiries from Venka, Spyper revealed that she lived in a clan just below the Tempest Spire. Other clans in the area had been plagued by missing hatchlings, presumed to have wandered away to the Wiretangle or, worse, to the Charged Barrens and even further...but Spyper had never given up hope.

After much deliberation, Venka asked the elder dragon if she might take her to visit her home clan. Spyper obliged, and on the journey there, Venka told her of her mysterious arrival in Sunbeam Grotto - how the two hatchlings had been delivered, dry, to the beach after a rare thunderstorm over the sea.

...

Venka still returns to Sunbeam Grotto from time to time, the path opening for her with no resistance. Upon one such return, Venka revealed the names of her parents, and it was discovered she was the great-grandchild of Sunset!