Adelan Nightspinners
The Adelan Nightspinner is a breed of dragon native to the country of Adela. The species is now almost extinct, as they were wiped out in the dragon rider wars. The last known surviving member of the species is Veraxitoc.
Physiology
Adelan Nightspinners are an especially large species of dragon, so large that in fact they are not small enough to be ridden by humans. They sit at 20 feet on average, although the females tended to be bigger than males.
Their scales are a matte black, with vibrantly coloured scale tips. They have large wings, with all the wing digits ending in sharp talons. The talons on the end of the wings are larger, with special holes in them which, when extended, channel air like a whistle, and creates a shrieking sound. They Nightspinners amplify this effect by spinning, and, while originally used as a hunting signal, is now used as a battle cry. They can also produce an intimidating crimson fire, by breathing fire through a cavity in their nose which contains crystals that burn crimson.
Their tails end it a sharp, bony arrowhead which is capable of piercing flesh, but is never used for the purpose due to the lack of fine motor control in their tails.
They are quadruped dragons, unlike wyvern type dragons.
All albino variations of Nightspinners have crimson scales instead of black, and are almost always female.
Temperament
As a species, Nightspinners are quite proud and compassionate. They will defend each other, even if two are enemies, for the desire to kill each other, and not let someone else do it, but will always help anyone in distress if the possibility comes around, finding themselves proud to be guardians of those around them.
They do become quite aggressive during a pubertal stage, where the males will constantly fight the females to try and dominate them, although it generally ends in a loss, with several exceptions.
They are social with other races and species of dragon, and will defend their young fiercely, and are difficult to anger.
Diet
Nightspinners are large game hunters, and will gather large amounts of sheep, cows and other such livestock as food for them and the colony they belong to. They do not eat rocks as much as other dragons do because of their pride, and prefer to let their own healers work.
Special Abilities
Nightspinners are thought to be able to disappear at night but it is merely the use of their natural camouflage to hide, but they have been seen to show an exceptional magical ability, with more healers and elemental magic users than other dragons species show.
They also have their naturally created shriek from their wing tip talons, as well as their crimson fire to add to their intimidating features.
Lifespan
As with most dragon species, they can live for thousands of years, only dying if disease kills them or they are slain by mortal means. But their lives do go through stages.
The first stage is the hatchling stage, equivalent to the human toddler stage, where talking, and other basic skills are learned by a Nightspinner, taught by the mother or father, or if neither are alive or with the hatchling, a colony member, and even sometimes, other species of dragon. This stage lasts an amazingly short time, of just two human years, growing to about 400% their birth size!
The Nightspinner then enters the wingling stage, equivalent to the human years of 8-12. During this stage, the young Nightspinner is taught to fight, hunt and fly. This stage can prove lethal to some winglings, as they may fail to fly. A wingling who fails to fly is deemed as physically unfit, and, if they survived, will be left to die in the wild. If they do not survive, the body can be eaten by the parents, or cremated. This stage lasts 4 years, and the dragon doubles in size yet again.
The Nightspinner enters the third stage of life, known among Nightspinners as the challenger stage. This stage is a small stage, where a young dragon receives a burst of hormones, and becomes physically aggressive towards the larger and older females, who do not experience this stage. The young male Nightspinner challenges the females for the ability to mate with them. It is were the huge rush of hormones causes the males to overestimate their ability to fight, and there are some males who try to dominate the younger females too, although they are quickly reminded of their place. This stage lasts as long as it takes for the dragon to be put back in his place.
All the Nightspinners enter a state of teenage-hood, where they are merry, stupid and blissful, mating and eating to their hearts content, as they only become fertile during adulthood. This stage lasts about 20 years of the dragons life, and is the second longest.
Finally, the Nightspinner reaches adulthood, and gains the rights to have children, to become a colony hunter, and all adult privileges of Nightspinners, including participating in colony council meetings. This lasts until the dragon dies.
Social Structure
Nightspinners live in huge colonies of 20-30 families, and have a democratic social hierarchy. They have council meetings which all adults may attend and voice their ideas and opinions to further the colony.
Nightspinners are much like humans in that private affairs are kept private, and it is taboo to speak ill of people's business. However, they take a slightly more casual approach to sexual relations, and are more open with things like sexuality.
