Yveltttyn

The yveltttyn is a wyvern type dragon native to the mountains of Anbri, with two hind-legs and wings on which they can walk. These scaled dragons prefer volcanically active areas rich in the minerals they eat to supplement their diets and keep their scales healthy. Some will make their homes in the beds of dormant volcanoes, however, if they have the necessary requirements.

Yveltttyn have evolved to match their environments, even going so far as to resemble volcanic rock in some cases. Their scales, hard and spearhead-shaped, are typically stone colored, though males can come in more exotic gem shades. These scales grow in thick and overlapped, acting as armor for the dragon. Certain scales are infused with small veins through which the dragon can flush blood when it wishes. Yveltttyn blood glows slightly, so these scales can make bright patterns that males use to attract mates and ward off competitors. Females tend to have slightly less of these types of scales. Yveltttyn only shed scales without these veins so scale health is extremely important.

This is also what causes their sclera to appear a luminescent orange, red, or yellow around a dark iris. This adaptation is useful in the dark caves which they call their homes, but it makes daytime navigation by sight difficult. To compensate, yveltttyn hearing is acute and they mostly navigate by sound. Their excellent hearing also comes in handy when listening for seismic activity in their volcanic homes or for the subsonic rumbles they use to communicate.

Appearance
Yveltttyn dragons are large dragons with distinct appearances. In general, they are said to resemble burning embers or lava flows. A large crest of horns extending from the back of the dragon's bony skull often described as resembling a frill. Yveltttyns grow a new pair of horns every ten years and each pair takes up to a hundred years to become full-fledged horns. A dragon's age can be determined by the size of their 'frill' and the amount of horns that make it up. This 'frill' can extend down the jawline of the dragon and some smaller horns can grow about their faces. These small horns are used for grooming their scales, digging out any gravel lodged in them.

Yveltttyn have powerful crushing muscles designed to break up rock and minerals. They do not have a true snout like some dragons and instead have a flattish face, slightly rounded like a spade to scrape at the rocks they wish to draw minerals from. They navigate this process, too, by way of sound. They cause the rocks to vibrate slightly with their calls, listening for the specific frequencies of the minerals they need. There is a special resonating chamber built into their skull plates amplifies their calls; yveltttyn calls can be heard for miles, telling other dragons the bounds of their territory or calling for mates. Yveltttyn pick their mates by the tone of their resonation. This amplification can also be focused into a large burst of sound, an infrasonic boom which can break up rocks and stun prey.

Due to their enormous size, this dragon is not the best flier, but their wings are uniquely adapted for gliding on volcanic thermals. They have large wings with maximized surface area. Thick, flexible struts allow the dragon to actively adjust the amount of surface area and shape the wing to best navigate from thermal to thermal. The wing itself extends from the body of the dragon, attached at the junction between the neck and torso and extending partway down the tail. The wing is made of three fingers and a secondary collapsible rod coming off the elbow. Past this elbow strut, the wing has a ridge of scales slightly larger than the others. When the wing is folded back, these scales line up with the large scales protruding from the spine of the dragon and can 'lock' in place to make running easier.

Yveltttyn have a unique way of tending to wounds they acquire, as they cannot shed a large portion of their scales. The dragon secretes a chemical from sebaceous glands which encourages the proliferation of the bacteria that make gold. Aged dragons often must scrape heavy patches of gold off their bellies so they will be able to fly.

Society
Yveltttyn are driven by an instinctual need to claim and guard a territory and often participate in displays of strength and skill such as head-butting or flying contests. Yveltttyn are slow healers and prefer not to come to blows if they can help it. Wandering dragons are unusual due to the yveltttyn's territorial nature, but their mating rituals sometimes require it. Mature dragons are driven from their parent's nests and must seek out their own mates.

More than acquiring territory, these dragons are driven by a need to bond with a mate; mature dragons often think of nothing else and can even go days without eating as they search for a suitable match. These dragons stick to volcanic ridges and mountains, calling out day and night in hopes that their chosen one will hear and call back. This is the most dangerous time in the dragon's life as it involves traveling through other dragon's territories. The gold-crusted injuries on most yveltttyn are scars of their wandering time.

These dragons choose their mates based on the compatibility of their calls, and they mate for life. A bonded pair will claim the territory in which they bonded as their own and set up a nest. If the pair is capable of producing offspring (the nature of their mating ritual does not guarantee a male-female partnership), they will lay two eggs at a time. These are always a male and a female. These dragons only mate once every hundred years.

Hatchlings are taught to stay completely still when their parents are away foraging. Like baby fawns, they rely on their coloration and scale arrangement to appear as a pile of rocks. Mature males shedding non-veined scales can gain brighter coloration; females tend to remain stone-colored no matter their shedding rate. Males are driven from the nest when their coats become brighter and females leave when they are hit with the urge to mate. Yveltttyn adolescence lasts for about three hundred years.

Yveltttyn who find their andzkin do not feel the need to mate anymore as they have found another half. Paired dragons rarely breed at all.

Abilities
They are capable of humanoid speech, but their rumbling voices and vocal patterns make the words garbled and slow. Yveltttyn are capable of a type of telepathic connection known as Communing. This is the process of sharing memories–giving the one they Commune with the experience of seeing the world through their eyes. This transfer of information includes all sensations, sights, sounds, and feelings of the dragon.

These dragons are capable of elemental magic. They are usually aligned with fire or earth or, rarely, water. There are very few cases of naturally air aligned dragons.

Yveltttyn naturally produce an electromagnetic field that allows them to locate different kinds of rock and minerals more easily. This can also make them slightly magnetic, and they may be able to draw metal objects towards them.

Diet
Yveltttyn heads are mostly devoted to their resonating chambers and thus they have hardly any olfactory capabilities. This, along with their bad day vision, ensures that these dragons hunt primarily by sound. They lie in wait, relying on their resemblance to rocks to hide them, and listen for the vibrations of prey. They eat wild mountain cats, goats, and boars. They are also known to take down smaller dragons that come too close to their territories. Yveltttyns must sometimes venture far from their cave homes to encounter prey large enough to satisfy them, even going into forests to stalk deer, elks, and bears.

These dragons also hoard minerals and gemstones, partially to build a nest and partially to have a stockpile which they can consume. If food is scarce, an yveltttyn may even eat its nest.