So the question I received yesterday really got me thinking about the drakeas species. While I did explain a lot of their attributes in the books, I feel like a little more detail might be beneficial. We see people like J.K. Rowling and George R R Martin do it, so I’m going to throw my hat into the ring.

So, let’s start out with the background from the books. Who are the drakeas?

Well… there are actually two different groupings. Let’s start with the Prime Drakeas Dragons. These are the ones that were either born on their homeworld or are the first generation Earth-born. I should also mention that when we’re talking about generation, I’m talking about a group of dragons that were born in a decade’s timeframe.

Simply put…
Generation 1: Original dragons or the dragons born in the first 10 years on Earth.
Generation 2: Dragons born in the next ten years on Earth.
Generation 3: Born a minimum of 20 years after the dragons landed on Earth.
etc.

The drakeas are a group of extraterrestrial beings from a different solar system. Their homeworld supported two sentient species. As both species matured and evolved, competition for dominance on the planet ensued. Over time, such competition turned into bitterness and resentment which eventually became an all-out war of superiority. It is generally believed that the drakeas were the aggressors.

After countless years of bloodshed and persecution, the drakeas were conquered. By this time, their numbers had dwindled to less than a hundred. In order to preserve their species, the dragon council agreed to surrender the planet if they were allowed to survive. A deal was struck and the remaining drakeas were loaded into interstellar time capsules and launched towards worlds that were comparable to their own. One of those worlds was, regrettably, Earth.

The capsule heading here drifted for thousands of years in space with the drakeas council in stasis until they reached our planet. Upon crash landing in New York, the few dragons onboard were awakened to find that the promised world was already inhabited by a primitive race that was slowing destroying the world… aka humans.

That’s where the Red War begins. Now at this point, the drakeas number less than ten, so they disappear into the mountains in both the Western United States and Siberia to replenish their numbers. Because one female drakeas can birth roughly three litters every five months, they were able to replenish their numbers very quickly. It wasn’t long before they had sufficient numbers to begin their takeover of the planet.

Because humans referred to them as dragons, the drakeas took that to mean that this was the English translation of their species’ name and adopted it as their own.

So let’s move on to their physical attributes…

Prime Drakeas Dragons are huge and extremely long-lived. Their skin is protected by solid scales that are impenetrable by almost all weaponry. Standard bullets and missiles don’t harm them. A nuclear blast could, but most world governments viewed that as a bad idea, given the collateral damage.

They have six limbs; two wings which protrude from their shoulders, two arms or forward legs, and two back legs. Some have argued that their tail is also a limb. Their spiny main runs the length of their body from head to tail. Their snouts are elongated and their faces are rigid. Their ears are sharp and run along the side of their head. Their eyes are a bright yellowish red. Their necks are elongated, allowing them a full 360-degree view.

A hatchling prime dragon will start off the size of a Great Dane and is capable of growing incredibly large. The largest one on record was the Dread Lord, Eutherys. He was recorded as being 900 ft. (275 m.) tall, including his tail. He was roughly the size of a late-Word War 2 aircraft carrier.

They are both bipedal and quadrupedal, though they ten to favor quadrupedal motion. Often dragons only use bipedal positions for eating or addressing one another as a sign of respect.

There are also various age and size groups…

Classifications: 
(These are human classifications, not Drakeas)

Dragonling- A dragon hatchling, no more than a few years old.

Wyvern-A young dragon that has just hit adolescence. They can fly and are very fast. These are typically the front line fighters, given their aggressive tendencies.

Wyrm- An adolescent dragon nearing adulthood, though still considered a child by drakeas standards. They cannot breathe fire and make up for their soft scales by being extremely fast.

Drake- A young adult class of dragon. By this age, they have mastered flight and can breathe fire, but have a harder time controlling it.

Beta– The younger adult class of dragon. Though there is little difference between Alpha and Beta class dragons, some have noted that Beta class dragons possess softer scales that can still be penetrated by conventional munitions.

Alpha- An adult class of dragon. This is a fully matured dragon, not quite at the point of elder status. By this point, a dragon’s scales would have hardened, they can breathe fire from the air, and are extremely difficult to kill.

Elder- The last stage of growth for the dragon species. Though there is no determinant size for these creatures, most are massive in scale and are roughly the size of a three-story building. Their hardened scales are almost impervious to conventional attack. During the war, they were often seen leading the Dragon Horde into combat.

Lord- Though technically not a stage of growth, this is the title given to any dragon that reaches an abnormal size, which is typical of the dragon council.

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Dragon scales come in different colors, though as of yet, no one knows what causes the color differentials. These colors include brown, black, yellow, red, green, and two-toned scales (red and black, gray and silver, etc,) In the drakeas culture, having scales with two different colors is considered a sign of importance. That dragon is destined for something great.

Dragons are exceptionally long-lived. Eutherys is believed to be roughly five thousand years old, not accounting for his time in stasis. Though the exact lifespan of the drakeas was forgotten due to decades of endless warfare, it is believed that they can live up to 10,000 years.

Like their scales, their bones are nearly unbreakable and very coarse. Their mouths secret a flammable salivatic liquid in a large gland under their tongue that is somatically activated. When used, the gland will spray the liquid with the force of a firehose. A dragon will then quickly scrape their front teeth together to create a spark and throw their flame… aka breathing fire.

Their immune system is very different from that of a human. It works very similar to most Earth-bound diseases. Their white blood cells are aggressive micro-organisms that will attack any pathogen they encounter, inject their genetic material into it, and allow the pathogen to continue as a host for new white blood cells until the young cells eat the pathogen from the inside out.

This resulted in a disease amongst humans known as ‘Dragon’s Bane’. It was a rare occurrence as most humans who had blood contact with dragons, never lived to tell about it, but those that did survive, suffered a grievous fate as the dragon cells took over their bodies. This prompted human scientists to create a vaccine that would render human cells immune to the dragon attacks.

The drakeas language is almost unspeakable by humans, due to the hissing and throaty roaring that is required to get some pronunciations right. Unlike humans, the drakeas have a central language for their entire species.

The drakeas brain is far superior to that of a human. They can learn a language simply by hearing a few conjugations. It’s not perfect right off, but they pick up more as they hear it. The drakeas also possess some forms of limited telepathy, though it is not known exactly how much they are capable of doing.

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Okay, let’s move onto the Terran Drakeas.

These are Gen2/3 onward, and this is subject to change as the generations continue.

It was quickly discovered that Prime dragons had a difficult time surviving on our world, though similar, Earth’s atmosphere was far richer in Nitrogen than their’s was and our yellow sun resulted in a degree of radiation poisoning. Many eggs of Prime drakeas never hatched and it is believed that lifespans would be significantly reduced. Those that did survive turned out to be noticeably different on a biological level.

Terran Dragons have all but done away with the name ‘drakeas’. They barely speak the ancient drakeas language, if at all. Their scales are considerably softer, and they do not grow as tall. Their necks are shorter than those of their prime counterparts, and their manes are actual hair that reaches the end of their neck before becoming spikey again.  Their snouts are not as long and their features are far less rigid.

Perhaps their most noticeable feature is their eyes. While still possessing the flare of their prime ancestors, the shape and colors more closely resemble those of a human.

Unlike their prime ancestors, they are most commonly seen on their hind legs, favoring bipedal positions. The only time they drop to all four is when they go into attack mode.

Though physically inferior to Prime dragons in both size and strength, they do have some advantages. They have an easier time speaking human languages are often seen as less aggressive. Their mental abilities are far superior to the prime dragons. They can often detect feelings and emotions in other dragons and many have learned how to manipulate human and dragon senses in order to appear physically as humans.

Their lifespans at this point are unknown as none of died of old age yet, though it is believed that they will be noticeably shorter than their prime counterparts.

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So I hope that this helps give everyone a better idea of what my dragons, aka Drakeas Dragons are like. Please feel free to leave any questions or comments below. I’m interested in what everyone thinks!

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Readers,

Do you have a question about writing, publishing, my stories, etc? Please feel free to post a comment or email me.

jimthewritingwizard@gmail.com

I’ll use those comments to select my next blog post.

I have been writing for several years, have 4 published works, experience with publishing and independent work, so I can hopefully be of assistance.

Please note, I only do one of these a day and will do my best to respond to everyone, but it may take some time.

Also, feel free to check out my works of Fantasy and Historical Fiction, Available on Amazon and where ever books are sold. See the link below:

http://www.amazon.com/James-Harrington/e/B00P7FBXTU

Thanks friends!

Catch you on the flip side!

-Jim