Chapter 22 - Dragons

----Characteristics----

[Presence]: 36

Dragons are ancient creatures of renowned power, wandering through the lands of Mundus ever since the planet's dawn. Their bodies consist of extremely tough scales that make them essentially invulnerable to most physical and magical attacks. Their skin tones are varied, such as red, light blue, white, black, purple, and so on. Their eyes are also varied but not to the same extent as their skins. Most of them only have two wings while the strongest ones are born with four, with even rarer cases reaching six.

The draconic population at the peak of the species was estimated to be roughly around 100 million. However, during an event that could be called The Great Draconic War, 90% of the existent dragons of that time were extinct in a conflict against individuals theorized to be Demigods. The remaining dragons that were able to survive fled into the deepest parts of Mundus in accounts of hibernating and planning what to do next, a process that would take thousands of years.

Nowadays, they live in a realm that can only be accessed by inserting specific fragments with draconic magic at a portal that guards the entrance to said place. The city, called Yzraelir, is theorized to hold roughly 10 million existing dragons even to this day. It possesses its own ecosystem and creatures worthy of a dragon's food. A place that could be considered its own dimension, created only by the most powerful dragons.

Dragons are one of the most powerful creatures on Mundus. They are strong enough to devastate small cities with a flap of their wings and vaporize entire mountains with a single breath. It is said that the most ancient elemental dragons are great enough to be world-disaster calamities and that one of them once fought and killed a god.

A dragon's food consists of raw meat provided by any living creature that has it so. They do not make ceremonies nor are too selective about it, if they are hungry, they will hunt any fleshy being that meets their sight. This, of course, also applies to dragons themselves. In extreme cases, a dragon might eat another in a battle to the death to prove its superiority, to assert dominance over a territory, or simply satiate its hunger in an attempt to survive. A dragon that kills another also has a 50% chance of getting all the characteristics and abilities of the one killed.

When it comes to reproduction, the process is done between a male and a female. The male tries to conquer the female by flying around her in circles while performing esoteric moves to bring her attention. This ranges from complex and elegant maneuvers in the sky to dances accompanied by songs performed by their roar in different tones.

----Abilities----

<>: Despite being the size of a grown human at birth, they eventually reach a height as big as 20 meters when matured.

<>: Each and every dragon is capable of flying freely, being able to reach heights as far as 10000 km and with a speed far faster than the swiftest lightning of the strongest storms.

<>: Dragons can attack with their breath, which can be either of elemental nature or simply an air attack from their lungs.

<>: A dragon's body is revested by extremely tough scales. They cannot be destroyed in any way whatsoever unless the opponent's power surpasses that of the dragon. This was the main reason why even collective efforts among cities and countries weren't enough to take even a single one down in the past.

<>: Aside from its breath, a dragon may be able to cast spells of varied nature, ranging from fireballs and lightning to even the use of darkness and light.

<>: Dragons have decent levels of regeneration. Within immediate effect, their wounds slowly get healed, while within 1 hour even limbs can regrow.

<>: A dragon's life span can stretch over thousands of years, ranging from 1200 to 10000 years.

<>: One of the dragon's most notable attributes. Even the simplest of dragons is already strong enough to decimate most armies and destroy entire cities. Theorized to be one of the most powerful species to ever walk on Mundus, their strength is notable enough that the Empire has built countermeasures in the shape of secret weapons, should the need to fight a horde of them arise, as they are unsure if their normal military power would be enough to take down even a dozen of them.

<>: It is said that a few dragons can fly around in outer space beyond the orbit of Mundus. It is possible that only the dragons of the highest caliber are able to do this, as the only factual register the Empire has of this pertains to the Flame Dragon Aztoch, one of the greatest of the species to ever exist, and the one who gave birth to what we currently call as the Sun.

<>: Dragons are detached from conventional cause and effect, standing outside causality as we know it. Their movements cannot be analyzed, predicted, or nullified. Their place in the timestream doesn't have a "when", "before", or "after", only the "here".

----Modus Operandi----

In a fight to the death, a dragon will usually start attacking with its breath while flying around the target. If the target is close enough, they may opt to attack with their claws, bites, or tail. Dragons are often seen hunting alone but they might attack in packs if the target is well known to be dangerous compared to them.