Seemingly untouched since the planets genesis, it's not truly known as to when this 'shard' of a continental shell broke off, or to which of the five continents it may have once belonged to. Named after the overall shape of the massive cluster of islands that make up the isles - how they manage to drift within a single, unified shape is yet another mystery.
What is known, is that this shard floats aimlessly upon the surface of Dracia's oceans. Entirely at the mercy of currents and weather patterns, thus resulting in the island often being difficult to navigate to and track predictably. A challenge for airships and pilots wishing to make the journey to and from, even without taking into account the dimensional tears. Which are prone to open along it's oceanic borders only during the severe storms that erupt frequently within the open ocean.
While most, if not all of the Dragonhead Isles remains largely unexplored. Survey data from Airship flights over the chain in order to map it's overall appearance, and Alyrian scouting parties have provided some vauge idea of the regions makeup.
The Old Growth Forest
Ancient, towering trees similar to those found within the Dragonian Continent of E'ildren make up the rich, dark green 'accent' colors of the Dragonhead isles overall appearance. With a thick canopy that allows for light, but heavily shaded it's bountiful with wild game, medicinal, and edible plants. The strong cedar, pine, oak, maple, and birch trees also offer a steady source of construction materials. Which makes it easy to see why one of these forests, along the inner edge of the Dragon's maw, was chosen as the founding site of Alyria.
The Bio-Luminescent Jungle
Making up the majority of land within the isles, the canopy of these jungles is so thick, and the trees so towering, that all of the land it claims appears as if locked in an eternal twilight. Only the natural bio-luminescence of the plants and animals, make up any form of light within the otherwise endless darkness. Colorful, vibrant, and bright enough to navigate by - the biology of these jungles is completely unique to the dragonhead isles, and found no where else in the world.
Yet with this eternal night comes it's own dangers, as in addition to defying all known laws of Biology, physics, and other natural sciences. The majority of the species that make up it's ecosystem are Omnivores scavengers or outright carnivores. While they remain generally contained to this region during the daylight hours, they spread out into surrounding lands at night to hunt. Which makes traveling outside protective barriers at night, practically suicide.
The Towering Fjords
Where one would expect beaches to form the islands edges, the towering straight down cliffs of black grey rock instead make up all of the coastline save for the interior of the Dragon's maw. Interrupted only by the occasional peaks and mountain ranges that line up right along the cliffs. This makes oceanic ships practically impossible to use due to a lack of docking land, and a high risk of getting smashed against the jagged rocks of the cliff's bases. Airships on the other hand, find no difficulty in places to naturally dock no matter their size.
The Emerald Highlands
Forming the 'throat' of the dragon, and much of it's chest and shoulders that is not taken over by the jungles. These rolling hills of seemingly endless green hold a variety of large grazing herbivores and pack hunters, in addition to odd formations of rock beneath the thick mosses and undergrowth. The highlands are also sometimes found along the perimeter of inland lakes and rivers, though in far smaller, thinner patches.
The Dragon's Teeth Mountains
While originally used to describe the mountain ranges along the Dragonhead isles upper and lower jaws, it has come to apply also to any of the peaks and mountain rages found elsewhere. Harsh, unforgiving, and prone to unpredictable shifts in weather and temperature. It's only native species are the massive birds, able to pluck up a horse within their talons, that hunt the more plentiful forests along the base of the ranges.
The Tainted
While not a biome in of itself, as it is often made up of the other regions of the Dragonhead isles - it is none the less unique in how the corruption of the Fendrin has twisted it's landscape. As small as mere patches, and as large as a whole 'fragment' of the island chain - the tainted is easy to identify due to it's sickened appearance of the land. Water is black, trees are withered dead and crimson, while their leaves have turned a darkened violet. Even the grass beneath one's feet as become a dark ashen grey, and leathery to the touch. The taint marks where the presence of fendrin is highest, and often indicative of a nearby nest if large enough.
Corruption, Parasite, Infection, Invasion - the ravaging of Dracia brought about by the Fendrin's arrival and subsequent spread across the entirety of the world was described as many things. Though not a single Dracian hears 'Fendrin' and does not recall the fear, suffering, panic, and lethal effectiveness of their presence.
From the time of their discovery, to the three years it took for the Fendrin threat to become contained. 'The Fendrin war' took it's toll upon the world in a way it will never truly recover from. From the corruption of it's lands, to having dropped Dracia's worldwide population down to a mere 1/4th of what it was. It's rare to find an individual who has not been effected in one way or another.
Now however, their biology and physiology is now known. They can be killed, and they can be contained, with careful caution.
Life Cycle
While many debate on what -exactly- causes infection, it is a unified understanding that a fendrin's 'life' does not truly begin until it plants itself within the subconscious of a sentient host. There it lies dormant, feeding upon the negativity of their host as it grows and develops. While formless within a host, it is none the less an adaptable, cunning, and master manipulator. Growing only more sharper, and higher in it's intelligence the longer it remains within it's vessel.
At first, it poisons the mind and causes behaviors similar to commonly known mental illnesses within an individual. Then, the voice begins that only the host itself can hear. many infected victims describe it as the voice of their thoughts at first, until it starts not sounding like 'thoughts' at all, but another personality speaking to them in their own heads. Feeding their anxiety, their depression, their insecurities. The more it develops, the more of it's hosts brain it begins to take over, and the more of it's host it learns about to perfect it's manipulations. Eventually, the hosts are driven to insanity and consumed by the fendrin as a whole - who then takes over the hosts body completely and warps it to something made to it's own desires.
At this stage, the fendrin is then able to corrupt the land around it merely by being present for long enough periods. Even creatures caught within the taint are consumed and twisted into servants for the fendrin. Infection, is the result of slaying a fendrin as it's essence then jumps to the 'murder', and begins it's life cycle all over again. Only the highest tiers of pure fire elemental magic, has been shown to kill a fendrin and prevent it from jumping into a new host.
Ferals
These low-intelligence fendrin are described as 'beasts' with forms forged of liquid shadows that struggle and writhe to maintain the 'imitation' of an actual creature. With fangs and claws of metal like silver, eyes burning pools of sanguine, and wolf like bodies. They posses impressive strength, power, and dexterity. A single feral, is not something to trust, as they never venture far from a nest or from the main body of a pack that can number as many as a hundred. These are the 'foot soldiers' of a nest, and the lowest rank of Fendrin.
Infected
The standard for 'Fendrin' and the most common aside from Ferals. These are individuals who's bodies have been taken over -entirely- by fendrin and have lost all trace of their consciousness as a result. They exist for but one purpose, to carry out the orders of their reigning Alpha and further the cause of creating more of their kind - in any manner that they can. Be it carrying out assaults on populated areas, or kidnapping locals for a 'catch and release' once the victim has been seeded. Rarely are they seen outside of a nest, unless they are 'playing' the part of a normal member of an unknowing community.
Fendrin 'Alpha'
The most intelligent and dangerous of the Fendrin. These 'leaders' of a nest are kings among their kind and followed with unquestionable loyalty. Cruel, violent, and emotionless - they once served the purpose of feeding the souls of Dracia's most magically and creatively gifted to their fallen lord Zerith. Whom they beleive was wrongfully imprisoned within Dracia's core, and is the true ruler of the planet. Now, with his death, they seek vengeance upon the Dracians for their crimes and act entirely of their -own- will. Believing that if they consume enough souls they will become Zerith reborn, to reclaim that which is rightfully theirs.
Fendrin Hunters
Not all who become one of the 'infected' lose themselves entirely to the fendrin within them. Some, although exceptionally rare, have merged their minds with their parasites and have taken up the cause of hunting their own for the preservation of the world as a whole. The only individuals capable of killing a fendrin without precautions (due to being unable to be infected twice). They use the very twisted magic and abilities of their fendrin counterpart to track, hunt, and exterminate nests across the world. They are however, cursed. The more of their abilities they use, the more their body decays with corruption until the point where they are forced to take their own lives to prevent infecting others.
'Neutrals'
A phenomenon only recently discovered, is the existence of a rare 'sect' of the Fendrin population that seems entirely isolated from the ravenous whole. Not of the ferals, infected, or even alphas these natural-born and unable to reproduce specimens seem to serve no agenda but their own. Immortal, and none the less capable and intelligent as an alpha they are still to not be treated lightly, or without caution.
