Aruska

Species - Aruska

Homeworld - Myrac

Region - Verdance

The name comes from the 'aroo' sound the creatures bellow as they swoop down and attack their prey. Aruska are massive, six-eyes, bus-sized, flying, bulletproof snakes with multiple sets of wings. They are heavily armored with stone-like scales that cover their entire body except for the joints where the wings connect to the body. Aruska scaling is heavier on the bottom, allowing them to slam into the ground when swooping without harm. This is actually a common tactic of the species, used to kill, hunt, frighten, and fights for territory or mates. Aruska have multiple rows of incredibly sharp teeth in a wide-opening mouth. They swoop out of the sky, bellowing to frighten their prey who flee in terror. When their prey is caught, Aruska barrel roll and shake their prey to bits, wolfing down what chunks remain. Aruska are colorful creatures, largely a verdant green like the sky during the day, with white streaks that act as natural camouflage when against the cloudy sky. Aruska also possess a brutal tail that they use to lash out at each other and speedy prey. This tail is naturally jagged, its scales pointing out at fearsome angles. Aruska mating rituals are loud and quick, makes fighting for dominance over a female. Aruska mating habits rarely see the same two members of the species mate, which reduces the amount of mating conflicts. This is seen as an evolutionary advantage that maximizes genetic diversity. Females birth a clutch of up to three eggs. Never any more. Because of the small number, females are incredibly protective of their eggs, so much so that they refuse to leave until a few weeks after their young have hatched. Due to this protector nature, the males hunt for the entire familial structure until the females inform them that their young are ready to leave the nest and hunt for themselves. The parents then return to their packs, later accepting their young into their hunting and living groups.

Aruska nest in clearings or high on hilltops, since Myrac has no mountains. They do not build nests, simply choosing a space where the community will feel comfortable sleeping and returning to feed their females and young during times of child-rearing. Aruska sleeping habits are advantageous; they sleep lightly and for a small amount of time. An exhausted Aruska that has fought, hunted, been wounded, and mated all in the same day will probably awake after four hours feeling very good. In addition, monitoring is easy for Aruska, since their predatory sense of smell and advanced nocturnal eyesight allow them to detect anomalies at a fair range.

Aruska have been known to hum to each other. This is a form of communication that many have documented, with meanings that convey hunger, fear, desire, locations of prey, and many others. It is known that Aruska can harmonize with each other and with Vectorii, adding their deep, resonant hum to the sounds of their young, their pack mates, or their bonded Vectorii. It is also known that Aruska will become hostile to those that attempt to sing with them that the Aruska does not respect. The hum of an Aruska appears to be at once a gesture of respect, trust, affection, and acceptance.

Aruska do not hunt alone, tending to hunt in packs of three to seven. This pack nature is seen in all groups of Aruska; it is highly unusual to see a lone Aruska with the exception of a moody male haven been beaten in a mating conflict.

Some particularly bold Vectorii called Skyriders are known to domesticate Aruska and ride them into combat, leaping off and gliding down to fight on foot while their mount flanks and attacks from the sky, bellowing warnings and drawing attention. This is an extremely rare practice, since riding an Aruska involves getting an Aruska egg, which is not easy, raising an Aruska so that it bonds with you, which is not easy, subduing it when it fights you for dominance, which is extremely not easy, and eventually getting it to trust you, which is not easy, though some Vectorii argue that the pack-hunter nature of Vectorii tends to help the species bond with other living creatures. No other species has managed to tame an Aruska, though few have tried. However, the result of a successful domestication is a fiercely loyal predatory companion that will carry you into combat, feed you if you are hungry, sing with you if you teach it to, watch over you while you sleep, carry you if you are wounded, and fight with you until the bitter end. Aruska pair for life; no Vectorii has successfully bonded with an Aruska that another Vectorii has bonded with. Some suspect there is a pheromonal change in Aruska and their bonded allies that most species cannot detect. In addition, the obvious advantages of having an obedient flying bulletproof predatory reptile are present.