In part three of his bestiary, Commander Ludwig discusses the various type of drakonoid that are said to inhabit Esdaria. As one may expect, a large amount of this particular entry is drawn from folklore, and its value as a factual resource is highly questionable. It is, however, an interesting look into the mindset of the common Westernaean, and provides a glimpse into some of the stories they may have told and songs that they might have sung.
Drakonoids – Scale-Wearing Fiends
Basilisk
Some assert that basilisks are leviathans in larval forms.
This is not true, though, as basilisks are able to survive out of water. As
long as a ship and able to swallow a Man whole, a basilisk has the appearance
of a snake. It has neither arms nor legs, and moves by slithering on its belly.
The scales which cover its body are the side of a Man’s two hands put
side-by-side, and are vulnerable to fire. Steel cannot pierce them, for there
are as solid as stone and as thick as a Dwarf’s forearm.
It has three eyes in either side of its head, which are
ghostly and transparent in their appearance. Long-faced, they have a maw that
is both narrow and as long as a Man lying down, filled with hundreds of teeth
that are as sharp as razors and as tough as iron. Interestingly, the muscles
used by the basilisk to open its jaws are weak, whilst those which it uses to
bite down are strong enough to bite clean through a cow. If one should ever
find oneself facing a basilisk, try and pin its upper jaw down, as the muscles which
move it are too weak to re-open its mouth. Then, set it on fire.
This account, like
that of the gryphon, is compelling and believable. There is a level of detail
included in Ludwig’s writings which seems to be too detailed to be imagined. The
Silver Sea, which Stonesport is built beside, has long been swathed in mystery,
and the inhabitants of Westernaea – who are a seafaring folk by nature – often
tell tales of great basilisks that can slither out of the sea and onto the
land. Ludwig’s inclusion of how to defeat a basilisk is also revealing about
his past – it seems likely that Ludwig will have had to one day face off
against such a creature when defending Stonesport.
Cockatrice
There is no living creature as ferocious, nor as excessively
violent, as a cockatrice. Dwelling either in rocky hills or the branches of the
oldest trees, a cockatrice can grow to the size of a horse in body, though its
leathery wings can grow so large that they can cover entire barns with their
span. At the tip of each wing thy have a hand-like claw with a few finger-like
talons, which they use to savage their prey. They have the faces of great
cockerels, but hideously ugly and covered in pocks and lumps. Their eyes are
midnight-black and their tough, dark flesh is only partly covered by ragged,
dark feathers.
They move about resting on their winged forearms, and push
themselves forwards with the wiry, strong rear legs, which are also covered in
talons. When they charge, they rise onto their hind legs and spread their wings
wide for a few moments, making themselves as large and as fearsome as they can,
before dashing forwards with the force of twenty angry bulls.
Dragon
Existing in only the most ancient songs, dragons are, like
leviathans, thought to be the remnants of a long, forgotten race that once
inhabited Esdaria. Each song speaks of terrible, leathery wings and huge bodies
covered in scales that can flatten entire military units with their bulks. They
can come in many colours and many are able to breathe fire from their mouths.
Odr does not speak of
dragons in his letters, so here, Ludwig is drawing upon folk-stories. No-one
in living memory has ever seen a dragon, and it has long been argued that they
have died out in Esdaria – if they ever even existed in the first place.
Thunderbird
Almost as large as an ankyr, and covered in purple feathers
and scales, the thunderbird is a rare creature that inhabits the Cold North
beyond the many ranges of mountains. It is, in appearance, everything the cockatrice
aspires to be: magnificent in colour, with a hooked beak and a great halo of
dark blue and purple plumage. Clouds pour from its wings and it is said that
when they grow large enough, they are able to send great claps of thunder
crashing across the landscape with nothing more than a flap of his wings.
This is borrowed from Odr’s
first letter, in which he speaks of a thunderbird being sighted in the sky to
the north of his village on the day he left to travel. The first Men saw
thunderbirds as good omens – symbolic that, even if a great storm were to
strike them whilst they went about their business, they would achieve whatever
it was they set out to do as their fate was the will of the gods. It is possible such creatures exist, but there has
been no expedition into the Cold North for nearly one-thousand years. The lack
of detail here suggests Ludwig never actually saw a Thunderbird.
No comments:
Post a Comment