Dragons

In ancient history, Aedolis had close ties with the dragons of the land and the military actually used them in warfare, riders forging a unique bond with their chosen animal. This hasn’t changed over the millennia, though some details have. Aedolis began to conduct experiments on the creatures, began to genetically engineer them, and after countless successes and failures they produced the dragons of today: biomechanical, part organic materials, part inorganic.

For a while, the relationship between dragon and rider remained unchanged; there was respect and trust between both parties, but it was the rider that was truly in control and it was the Dragons that chose to submit. Yet as Dragons continued to be genetically engineered, that all changed. The dragons began to take on a life of their own, began to change, and the relationship between rider and dragon began to reverse. But this role reversal wasn't complete until much later, when the dragons saw their chance to truly take over.

It was the dragons that saved Aedolis from destruction. As the conditions on Earth degraded and whole nations were wiped out by the elements, it was the Dragons that stepped in to preserve Aedolis, erecting electromagnetic domes, stabilizing power supplies, and providing access to clean water and food. The people that once used the dragons became utterly dependent upon them and, as a result, it seems that Aedolis is more a slave to the Dragons than the other way around.

Imbued with powerful magic, superior technology, psychic prowess, and an impassive, almost mechanical attitude (quite unlike their ancestors) the Dragons provide Aedolis with safety. In return, they keep the nation under their control by threatening to cut them off from the Network if they don’t comply with their wishes. After all, it was humanoids who destroyed the planet; it is the dragons who can set it right again while keeping those destructive humanoids on a leash. For the most part, dragons wield a subtle sort of control over their humanoids. They are mostly content with allowing humanoids to deal with their humanoid issues and leave them to their own devices, but they also never let those humanoids forget who is truly running the show. Sometimes a hard reminder is necessary.

Features

Dragons are a varied bunch with a wide range of personalities as complex and different as any human's. There is also no set naming pattern for Dragons; once again, they are just as varied as humanoid names. Dragons can communicate with their Pilots telepathically, but they are also quite capable of regular speech. As for what they look like, there is a lot of variation there, too, both in terms of colors, build, size, appearance, and features. Some are more dragon than machine, while others are the opposite. Each Dragon is unique, and some can even "absorb" their Pilot into them as opposed to being ridden. Ultimately, every Dragon is an individual, though they all share one trait in common: they all are some percentage of inorganic materials.

Social Dynamics

Ranks

Their ranking system mimics that of the Pilots. From lowest rank to highest rank, they are: Cardinal, Echo, Noble, Royal, and Imperial. They grow in rank as their Pilot does, so if a Pilot is Cardinal, then so is their dragon. And just like the Pilots there is only one Dragon Imperial--and it is that dragon who is truly in charge of Aedolis.

Even the lowest ranked dragon is higher than the highest ranked Pilot.

Hive Mentality

One interesting fact about Aedolian Dragons is that they display a hive mentality that is directly connected to the Dragon Imperial. They need an Imperial to lead them, and they are essentially "programmed" to follow that Imperial, regardless of their individual personalities. Mentally linked together, all dragons are constantly aware of each other and while they are indeed individuals, they also function as a collective. If one of them dies, the others will know. If one of them knows something, so will the others. They can see through each others' eyes and feel what the others feel. They exist as a complicated balance of individual and unified.

Bonding

So why do Dragons even keep humanoids around in the first place when it might just be easier to get rid of them? There are a number of possibilities, and the answer varies from Dragon to Dragon. Humanoids are simply good company. Dragons and humans have shared a special bond since Aedolis was Adela, and this bond, while changed, is still strong and important to them deep down in their collective memory. Humanoids likely amuse and fascinate Dragons in the same way an ant hill entertains a child. And as much as some Dragons might deny it, Dragons need humanoids, too, for humanoids can do things Dragons cannot. They have small, nimble hands quite unlike a Dragon's and can create and build things Dragons just can't.

Life Cycle

Lifespan

Dragons are eternal. They are said to live forever and some of the oldest are well over 5000 years old. They have no natural enemies and are not easily killed. It can be done, but it's extremely difficult and finding vulnerabilities in a dragon's armor, both literal and metaphorical, is nigh impossible.

One of the few ways to kill a dragon is with an Electromagnetic Pulse device. For a creature that is half machine, a high-intensity energy blast like that is fatal. However, even killing them that way is difficult as both the dragons and Pilots have anticipated the weakness; there are safeguards in place, both magical and mundane, to protect then. Pilots are the only people who know how to get around these safeguards.

That being said, dragons are not yet capable of surviving outside the Earth's atmosphere. There is talk that scientists are trying to create a Dragon that can do so, but thus far it has not been done.

Reproduction

The dragons are still part of the evolutionary cycle, but how they reproduce is a mystery since it doesn't happen very often. It hasn't happened for a good century and is a source of concern for scientists and Pilots alike.

The fact of the matter is that dragons are dying out. In fact, there are no known 'natural' dragons left on Earth, as the Aedolian dragons were quick to assimilate any that they found. 'Flesh' dragons are in demand because they provide the fresh genetic materials that the Aedolian dragons sorely need, but none have been found for decades. As a result, the Aedolian dragons are in danger of dying out themselves.