Post by Rouxy on May 3, 2010 19:26:48 GMT -5
Whers were created as an attempt to further broaden the dragon numbers of the first Pass by Wind Blossom, daughter to Kitti Ping, the originator of the all-important dragons. She unfortunately did not have the same grasp of genetics as her mother, and the resulting creatures were referred to as 'ugly' and 'malformed dragons'. However the creatures were healthy, so the colonists decided to try and utilize them; they named them "whers."
It was discovered that whers had a similar bonding ability to their draconic cousins. Much stronger than a firelizard and not as all encompassing as a dragon’s bond, whers are not required to bond to a human for survival, but many truly enjoy and adore their human companions. Protective and usually only attached to a single person, the position of whers in Pernese society has changed quite a bit since their first creation. The two most common jobs that whers were typically used for were night guards for holds, and as aids to miners. A watch wher typically would bond to several handlers and use their sensitive infrared eyes for night guard duty, while the miner aids were able to smell when gas was leaking or hear rock shifting, warning their human companions of the danger with their powerful senses.
Now, whers are forging a place of their own beyond these sometimes limited tasks, guarding against thread and feline attacks at night with their newly rediscovered firestone chewing abilities. They are slowly becoming a force to be reckoned with, and the Weyrs are encouraging handlers to try and deepen their bonds with the smaller draconic cousins, to teach their whers the necessary skills and knowledge that will secure their brighter future for as long as Thread still falls. In the south, Whers are slowly becoming the first line of defense against night marauding felines, a problem which has plagued the entirety of the Southern Continent for Turns on end now.
Both similar and dissimilar to dragons in may ways, whers come in the usual draconic colors of gold bronze brown blue and green. The colors do not seem to be restricted to certain genders of humans like dragons, and males and females can impress any color. Gold whers can weigh as much as 1000 pounds and stand equal to a large sized runner, while the lower colors slowly grow generally smaller, down to the smallest greens at around 600 pounds, a third smaller than a medium runner but still easily of size to carry at least a single rider due to their lower stature and stronger built limbs. Whers generally cannot fly, though finding one with the wingspan to glide is not uncommon. A flyer is rare, though not impossible; whers will never be as agile or skilled as their constantly flying cousins though. Their hide is thick, strong, and does not flake, and whers do not have to be oiled like dragons, just scrubbed. However, their hide is sensitive immediately after hatching and it takes a few months before they develop a tougher second coat. Whers also have the same green ichor that dragons and firelizards have for blood.
Whers are more muscular than dragons, and do not have the prominent ridges down their spines. Their bodies are more evenly keeled, with feet that only sport two claws and a single pad for balance. This actually allows whers to move with surprising speed and agility, lending them to long, tricky Runs when the females go into estrus. Their senses of smell and hearing are keen, and they are able to effectively see in the dark. Their sight is infrared, and because of this the heat of the sun hurts their sensitive eyes and drives them to hide during the day. Other light sources that are dimmer and that do not generate as much heat, such as glows, tend not to bother whers as much. Like dragons and flitters, whers' eyes also change color depending on their mood. Whers can go between on their own, or with directions from a human, needing some distance from the ground to do so to minimize the potential danger. If unable to get off the ground with the aid of a tree or cliff to glide from, a wher can simply leap with their great strength, skilled in betweening in these airborn moments.
Whers are very vocal creatures and can make a wide range of noises, from chirps whistles and clicks to grunts and roars. While they can speak to dragons and flitters and vice versa through telepathy, they are not quite as empathic as dragons; aware of but not always feeling the emotions and or pain of their bonded. While whers are more intelligent than firelizards, they cannot speak as dragons do, but communicate telepathically through images and feelings with their handlers. They understand human speech and often vocalize in return, sometimes even managing a few words through the awkward medium of their tongue and beaked mouth. A wher and its bonded often develop a set of code noises and sounds in which they communicate easily.
On occasion, a wher will out-live its human companion and can actually re-bond with another human if the wher is agreeable to the situation. Whers have committed suicide with the death of their handler, but this varies from wher to wher.
Whers who are bonded to a human have names that always end in the letters 'sk'. These names are always a variation of their human partner's name, and the more similarity between the two names, the stronger the bond. Whers do not announce their names upon Impression like dragons; instead the wher's bonded will simply 'know' the wher's name a short time after hatching. There are some whers that live in the wilderness, and if a wher hatches away from humans, or doesn’t bond, it will either return to the wild or become the Weyr or Hold’s wher.
Wherhandlers are not searched like candidates for dragon Impression. Anyone who wants to may stand for impression, assuming they don’t feel as if they are ‘settling’ for the smaller draconic cousins. Often, failed rider candidates will sometimes stand for wher impression as their last hope, and these people sometimes find it easier to impress than those who have had no contact with the larger creatures. Candidates are permitted to attend unscheduled touchings, getting to know the smaller wher eggs as rider candidates are permitted to for dragons. They must first approach and bow to the queen of the clutch, and gain her permission before coming close enough to inspect the eggs. Always, respect to the queen must be shown, and offerings of meat are often welcome. The hatching caverns are not particularly warm because of the heat sensitivity of wher eyes, so the queen must keep the nest warm with her wings and body and therefore cannot leave to hunt.
Baby whers desire food as all the draconic hatchlings do, but they are not as incessant about their need as dragon hatchlings are. They have no teeth when first hatched, and can easily choke on meat, so the best first meal is a porridge of oats and blood. They do not allow themselves to become overfed, so the newly bonded may feed as much as they will take. First and foremost, the new handler will use a small blade to create an incision in their palm to allow the wher to taste their blood. This further strengthens the bond and allows the exchange of names. They will continue to eat the blood porridge for three months until their teeth grow in and they can begin eating meat, slowly switching to the new food type over a period of about another month.
Whers are fully mature at a year old, and finish growing at a year and a half. Queens can run to mate at the year and a half mark, while greens can run at one year, with no clutches to speak of. Because of the stronger bond, when a wher Runs, especially the first time for either the wher or its bonded, the feelings are overwhelming. Much like a dragon's Flight takes control of the riders involved, wher runs can do much of the same. Experienced wherhandlers can control themselves up until the point when their wher consummates the run, if they catch or are caught. New wherhandlers will likely succumb to the urges, seeking out the object of their bonded interest. Handlers will typically meet up in the handler apartments during runs to keep the chaos down a bit.
It was discovered that whers had a similar bonding ability to their draconic cousins. Much stronger than a firelizard and not as all encompassing as a dragon’s bond, whers are not required to bond to a human for survival, but many truly enjoy and adore their human companions. Protective and usually only attached to a single person, the position of whers in Pernese society has changed quite a bit since their first creation. The two most common jobs that whers were typically used for were night guards for holds, and as aids to miners. A watch wher typically would bond to several handlers and use their sensitive infrared eyes for night guard duty, while the miner aids were able to smell when gas was leaking or hear rock shifting, warning their human companions of the danger with their powerful senses.
Now, whers are forging a place of their own beyond these sometimes limited tasks, guarding against thread and feline attacks at night with their newly rediscovered firestone chewing abilities. They are slowly becoming a force to be reckoned with, and the Weyrs are encouraging handlers to try and deepen their bonds with the smaller draconic cousins, to teach their whers the necessary skills and knowledge that will secure their brighter future for as long as Thread still falls. In the south, Whers are slowly becoming the first line of defense against night marauding felines, a problem which has plagued the entirety of the Southern Continent for Turns on end now.
Both similar and dissimilar to dragons in may ways, whers come in the usual draconic colors of gold bronze brown blue and green. The colors do not seem to be restricted to certain genders of humans like dragons, and males and females can impress any color. Gold whers can weigh as much as 1000 pounds and stand equal to a large sized runner, while the lower colors slowly grow generally smaller, down to the smallest greens at around 600 pounds, a third smaller than a medium runner but still easily of size to carry at least a single rider due to their lower stature and stronger built limbs. Whers generally cannot fly, though finding one with the wingspan to glide is not uncommon. A flyer is rare, though not impossible; whers will never be as agile or skilled as their constantly flying cousins though. Their hide is thick, strong, and does not flake, and whers do not have to be oiled like dragons, just scrubbed. However, their hide is sensitive immediately after hatching and it takes a few months before they develop a tougher second coat. Whers also have the same green ichor that dragons and firelizards have for blood.
Whers are more muscular than dragons, and do not have the prominent ridges down their spines. Their bodies are more evenly keeled, with feet that only sport two claws and a single pad for balance. This actually allows whers to move with surprising speed and agility, lending them to long, tricky Runs when the females go into estrus. Their senses of smell and hearing are keen, and they are able to effectively see in the dark. Their sight is infrared, and because of this the heat of the sun hurts their sensitive eyes and drives them to hide during the day. Other light sources that are dimmer and that do not generate as much heat, such as glows, tend not to bother whers as much. Like dragons and flitters, whers' eyes also change color depending on their mood. Whers can go between on their own, or with directions from a human, needing some distance from the ground to do so to minimize the potential danger. If unable to get off the ground with the aid of a tree or cliff to glide from, a wher can simply leap with their great strength, skilled in betweening in these airborn moments.
Whers are very vocal creatures and can make a wide range of noises, from chirps whistles and clicks to grunts and roars. While they can speak to dragons and flitters and vice versa through telepathy, they are not quite as empathic as dragons; aware of but not always feeling the emotions and or pain of their bonded. While whers are more intelligent than firelizards, they cannot speak as dragons do, but communicate telepathically through images and feelings with their handlers. They understand human speech and often vocalize in return, sometimes even managing a few words through the awkward medium of their tongue and beaked mouth. A wher and its bonded often develop a set of code noises and sounds in which they communicate easily.
On occasion, a wher will out-live its human companion and can actually re-bond with another human if the wher is agreeable to the situation. Whers have committed suicide with the death of their handler, but this varies from wher to wher.
Whers who are bonded to a human have names that always end in the letters 'sk'. These names are always a variation of their human partner's name, and the more similarity between the two names, the stronger the bond. Whers do not announce their names upon Impression like dragons; instead the wher's bonded will simply 'know' the wher's name a short time after hatching. There are some whers that live in the wilderness, and if a wher hatches away from humans, or doesn’t bond, it will either return to the wild or become the Weyr or Hold’s wher.
Wherhandlers are not searched like candidates for dragon Impression. Anyone who wants to may stand for impression, assuming they don’t feel as if they are ‘settling’ for the smaller draconic cousins. Often, failed rider candidates will sometimes stand for wher impression as their last hope, and these people sometimes find it easier to impress than those who have had no contact with the larger creatures. Candidates are permitted to attend unscheduled touchings, getting to know the smaller wher eggs as rider candidates are permitted to for dragons. They must first approach and bow to the queen of the clutch, and gain her permission before coming close enough to inspect the eggs. Always, respect to the queen must be shown, and offerings of meat are often welcome. The hatching caverns are not particularly warm because of the heat sensitivity of wher eyes, so the queen must keep the nest warm with her wings and body and therefore cannot leave to hunt.
Baby whers desire food as all the draconic hatchlings do, but they are not as incessant about their need as dragon hatchlings are. They have no teeth when first hatched, and can easily choke on meat, so the best first meal is a porridge of oats and blood. They do not allow themselves to become overfed, so the newly bonded may feed as much as they will take. First and foremost, the new handler will use a small blade to create an incision in their palm to allow the wher to taste their blood. This further strengthens the bond and allows the exchange of names. They will continue to eat the blood porridge for three months until their teeth grow in and they can begin eating meat, slowly switching to the new food type over a period of about another month.
Whers are fully mature at a year old, and finish growing at a year and a half. Queens can run to mate at the year and a half mark, while greens can run at one year, with no clutches to speak of. Because of the stronger bond, when a wher Runs, especially the first time for either the wher or its bonded, the feelings are overwhelming. Much like a dragon's Flight takes control of the riders involved, wher runs can do much of the same. Experienced wherhandlers can control themselves up until the point when their wher consummates the run, if they catch or are caught. New wherhandlers will likely succumb to the urges, seeking out the object of their bonded interest. Handlers will typically meet up in the handler apartments during runs to keep the chaos down a bit.
