Dragon Rider

Each pair's appearances and powers are a matched representation of geologic and geothermal material, such as lava, magma, hot springs, crystals, rock and soil, and poison gas.

The dragon half of the pair is smaller than even the smallest adult Lesser Dragon but much larger than a Minor Dragon. Their outward appearance and skeletal structure vary wildly, especially by which continent they are born on, but they always match to their power motif. If legends are true, it may depend on what sort of dream their continent's World Dragon was having. Some have wings and some do not, but they are always able to fly with the rider sitting atop their back.

The rider's form is anthropoidal, with smooth skin over their entire body having the appearance of their power motif, no visible mouth (even when communicating), dragonesque legs and talons (which may appear as though covered in scales but are still smooth in texture), reptilian eyes, and elemental flowing 'hair' issuing forth from their heads, the appearance of which matches their specific motif (for example: flaming, fluid, steamy, gleaming, crumbled, gaseous, etc.).

Both the dragon and rider are extremely difficult to kill due to their material components and quick regeneration. When one is injured, the other can sense it, not appearing to be harmed. It may then take action to help its other half survive the danger.

In rare events where one has been mortally wounded to the point of being unable to regenerate and dying, the other half was adversely affected as though feeling immense pain. At this point, it became far more aggressive and unreasonable. Without its partner, it continued to survive, exhibiting a natural, gradual aging of its body composition, and eventually became feeble in comparison while still remarkably powerful when provoked. Despite this aging process, none have ever been witnessed dying of old age.

The dragon and rider do not have genders, as they are asexual and do not reproduce. (For this story, both will be referred to as ze/zir.) What has been proven is that they emerge from their environment, formed with ancient, worldly elements as part of their genetics and are born together as a pair.

They emerge from the ground encased in a large bud. Within an hour, the bud opens and withers. Once exposed to the outside air, their bodies quickly alter from slimy and not fully-shaped to a younger version of their elemental appearance. In about three days, they will have achieved their finished form, but they are dangerous early on, already having the ability to use their powers within minutes after birth.

Despite their wide array of geological, geothermal, and other compositions, Dragon Riders are able to inhabit any environment, although their power is amplified when they are surrounded by their element.

Dragon Rider pairs do not feed in a traditional manner. They have been seen consuming small bits of their surroundings at random as though sampling the quality of it for imperfections. They do often devour their slain foes as though ritualistically ridding the world of its imperfections. Most commonly, and oddly, they have been sighted gaining nourishment by cannibalizing each other. Going in cycles on which part they will eat next, the older body parts get consumed and then grow back renewed by their fast healing process. The rider's mouth becomes visible when they open it to feed. It remains small for sampling small items, but can frighteningly expand to enormous size, revealing rows of sharp dragon teeth and a long tongue that can snake out to grasp large food, even entire beings, and pull it into its throat where the prey is rapidly dissolved and reduced for consumption.

All Dragon Riders strive to contribute to their clan and be the best possible in all endeavors, achieving the highest levels of protection for that from which they were spawned, the planet Tala'm. To their very core, they perceive that being born with such a fantastic and important task is a mighty honor in and of itself and that it is their very purpose of existence to prove that they are indeed worthy of that honor by making certain that the planet is protected from harm.

They are highly in tune with Tala'm and acutely aware of all other dragons across the world, all of whom were born with the purpose of helping the planet to prosper and not fall into disrepair. The Dragon Riders are generally trusting the World Dragons, Lesser Dragons, Minor Dragons, and Caval to all be their allies in this commitment, even though many times they have proven not to be. When they discover any who have strayed from their intended path, they attempt to forcefully educate them in their inherited duties.

Dragon Riders are present on every continent that still has a World Dragon.

They are drawn to locations of ecological harm, sometimes traveling hundreds of miles. Once they have arrived, they are ready for combat to put an end to any perceived foes. If the situation was caused by nature, they immediately begin halting further damage to the planet and repairing the damage as best they can. They can be seen flying and stalking around a disaster area for days or weeks after it has been dealt with, most probably to check that there are no regressions in the health of the region while at the same time protecting it from possible new or returning intruders.

The dragon and rider feast on one another as part of their symbiotic relationship. Their ability to recover and grow new body parts quickly helps make this possible. This keeps their strength and vitality from deteriorating over time while supplying them both with nourishment.

Their exact language is difficult to decipher as most Dragon Rider pairs seem to have their own chatter sounds between themselves and perhaps even communicate through telepathy. Communication and understanding with them is possible, but attempts at explaining the concept of names have been met with confusion or declarations of "No", leading to the conclusion that naming is not one of their traditions. It is possible to communicate that a certain word will indicate to them that they are being directly spoken to, and thus names have been designated in such a manner.

It is written in ancient texts that they are created "from the World Dragons' dreams as they slept once every hundred years".