</I>As Matriarch of her Teaglach, or tribe, Saygneahn (Lightning) has a lot of weight on her shoulders. She is much like most Rayghoul, however, she has a fairly uncommon trait: two separate and independently positional dorsal fans. These fans are communication tools for Rayghoul however, this trait is often seen as a sign of the divine, and according to Rayghoul legend, those with this trait may one day learn to fly. This, sadly, is impossible, though the separate fins do give her something of a winged appearance. She, like nearly all of her kind, is brightly colored except for when she is hunting, at which point the chromataphores in her skin turn the bright shades into dull earth tones.

The streaked diamond ‘tattoo’ on her chest is an indicator of her rank as matriarch, made with a staining substance (similar to henna) which needs to be renewed every few months. And the symbol on her shoulder states that she is a mother, each small circle representing a pup. Her slimmer physique being bulked up due to pregnancy, one circle on her shoulder has yet to be filled in. That being said, not all of the pups were birthed by her. One, Syoc (Snow), was found out in the plains near one of the Spystones, large rocks lugged down from the mountains to aid in the search for prey, and the legacy of their ancestors. Syoc, a nearly unheard of white Rayghoul, was taken in by Saygneahn, just after birthing a similarly rare iridescent black Rayghoul whom she named Dorchah (Darkness). </I>

In times of impending change and danger, Saygneahn has her work cut out for her. Her time taken up with trying to lead her Teaglach through the world which is changing for the first time their kind has known, which seems almost to be linked to the appearance of her unusual and almost ever-warring sons.

This is one of a group of creatures I started throwing onto my Deviantart gallery a while ago. I might post her sons here later. I loved coloring her… though the background gave me all kinds of grief, and sadly, it shows. I also apologize for a lot of anatomical screw-ups and the like… the majority of this drawing actually was done during my breaks at work. O.o

[EDIT: more info on them pulled from my Debiantart Gallery] Okay! So this girl started out with this little guy whom I drew back in middleschool. http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v.....stina/Sioc.jpg
I then later refound him when going through old things, and redrew him: http://smg.photobucket.com/albums/v333/Nashoba_Hostina/?action=view&current=Syoc.jpg&refPage=60&imgAnch=imgAnch71

That fellow happens to be this girl�s adoptive son.

That little baby has grown up quite a lot, and has been given his �adult� name, Syoc. They are given their adult names when they are sexually mature, however, they are still considered to be juveniles up to about thirty years of age. Syoc here is about twenty.

And while his race the Ray-ghoul has decidedly draconic characteristics, they are actually relatively unrelated. In fact, odds are they evolved from creatures much like therapsids.

These creatures usually range between eight to ten feet in length, not including tail, and often weigh four or five hundred pounds. Males and females vary little in size, however, the females tend to be larger. They range greatly in color and patterns, partially because they are covered in chromatophores, and can dull their colors significantly for hunting. Syoc is an unusual abnormality, and rather than the colorful patterns of the rest of his kind, he has a mostly white hide, save for his sail.

The colorful sails on their backs evolved primarily for aid in thermoregulation, and can be laid down while hunting. However, they have developed into communication tools, and usually stand erect with vibrant display colors when the creature is feeling happy or energetic. Conversely, when the animal is feeling sad, sick, or tired, they colors are often dark and dull, with the sail relaxed or folded down.

Syoc�s race is omnivorous, yet the are however, usually carnivorous. They possess quite a few fangs, but their dental structure is otherwise relatively canine.

When out in the open, they can reach a good seventy five miles per hour (But only about forty five if carrying someone), and leap incredible distances. They are adept swimmers (they even have a little webbing in between their toes), and love the water. They also have strong, prehensile tails and sharp claws, which make the young of Syoc�s race extremely good climbers, and while they still enjoy their time in trees as adults, they are often just too heavy to get into most of them.

These creatures form incredibly strong social bonds, often starting in early childhood, and after that, they mate for life. In their families, the females usually lay one soft, leathery egg at a time, which the male carries in a pouch on its abdomen until it hatches. Both parents participate equally in the raising of young, and families often stick together within a clan until the young mates.

A clan is a group of families, often all descended from a common ancestor. Usually, clans are �ruled� by a counsel of one individual from each family, and a Matriarch, who often makes the final decision. Each clan is different, however, most are peaceful, and spend much of the time when they are not hunting playing with their young and each other.

As a species, they are drawn toward stories, which is also how they keep track of their history. They have countless tales and legends, which are often passed down through word of mouth, however many of them are also written on the walls of caves, or carved into wood.

They have an incredible vocal range, and can imitate nearly any sound they come across. They also have an incredible talent for understanding various forms of language, and developing new languages is actually a common form of art for them. This is also well valued because it helps greatly in hunting tactics. It allows them to communicate using invented sounds or sounds from �harmless� animals that would not spook their prey. That being said however, they also create many other forms of art, including painting, jewelry making, and tattooing.

Tattooing is something common throughout all clans, and oftentimes, they brand themselves with a tattoo representing their clans (Syoc is an oddball and has yet to get any tattoos), whom they�re mated to, rank, accomplishment, even symbols representing interests and many other things. Some clans also include scarring in this, however, most of them see that as barbaric.

Spiritually, Syoc�s race believes that the essence of all life is destined toward becoming one with the universe, and that when they die, they (or other sentient life) does so.

However, they also believe in a form of reincarnation. They believe that many �lesser� animals such as their prey, are not capable yet of becoming one with the universe. To do so, they move up the �ladder� as you will by falling prey to other creatures. They believe that the spirits of those creatures are refined and then are formed into the spirit of that creature�s offspring, all the way up the ladder to Syoc�s race. They oftentimes associate prey of other (Non sentient) predators or of herbivorous prey that does not go easily with having already strong spirits, and often feel that such prey adds to fertility.

However, when a prey animal dies by an �unnatural� cause, such as drowning or starvation, the spirit is left alone and unrefined. Syoc�s race believes that this �loose� spiritual energy is what drives all of the activity and chaos in the world, such as wind, or lightning, or earthquakes.

And� geeze that�s a lot of info


Either way guys, thanks for reading, and for those of you who isn’t going to read all of that junk up there, thanks for looking!