Bestiary › Aurora Drake

The Aurora Drake is one of the most awe-inspiring sights in the tundra, a rare and ethereal presence that seems more like a living fragment of the night sky than a creature of flesh and bone. Long and serpentine in form, it glides effortlessly through the frozen air, its translucent wings catching and refracting light in shifting hues of green, blue, and violet.

These wings are its most defining feature, mirroring the colours of the Northern Lights themselves. When the aurora stretches across the sky, the Aurora Drake is often not far behind, its movements blending so seamlessly with the light that it can be difficult to tell where the sky ends and the creature begins.

Unlike many draconic creatures, the Aurora Drake is not known for aggression. It little interest in terrestrial life, instead remaining high above the tundra where it drifts along unseen currents. Some believe it feeds on atmospheric energy or the aurora itself, though no one has been able to confirm this. There are stories of it burying itself in the permafront when it does land, though these are mostly regarded as folklore.

Encounters are fleeting and often accidental. Travellers who spend long nights beneath clear skies may catch sight of it moving silently overhead, its vast wingspan leaving faint trails of colour in its wake. These sightings are often accompanied by an unusual stillness, as though even the wind has paused to watch.

There are stories suggesting that the Aurora Drake can influence weather patterns, subtly shaping winds and snowfall as it passes. Whether this is intentional or simply a side effect of its presence remains unclear, but sudden shifts in the sky are often attributed to it.

To witness a Aurora Drake is considered a rare privilege. It is not a creature that can be sought out or followed - only one that reveals itself briefly, before disappearing once more into the endless northern sky.