Storm-Serpents

Draco tempestatis / “Lightning Riders” / “Sky-Death”

“Storm-serpents are why pilots pray. Beautiful, deadly, inevitable in storms. Respect the serpent or die screaming.”
—Storm-Sailor wisdom

Quick Reference

Storm-Serpents - Lightning Riders

Description

Storm-serpents are the apex predators of the Aetherium—massive flying reptiles that ride lightning through thunderstorms, hunting anything that dares to fly through their territory. They are 20-meter serpentine bodies covered in iridescent scales that crackle with electricity, with glowing eyes that can spot prey from kilometers away, and intelligence that borders on sapience. They are beautiful, deadly, and nearly unstoppable. Every pilot fears them. Every Storm-Sailor respects them. And everyone who survives an encounter never forgets it.

The serpents are wingless—they don’t fly so much as swim through Aether-currents, their bodies undulating in sinuous waves that propel them forward at terrifying speeds. In storms, they ride the lightning itself, appearing from clouds in electrical flashes, striking with precision, and disappearing back into the tempest. Their scales generate electrical charges that can disable ship systems, their bite can crush metal, and their speed in storms is faster than any airship can achieve.

What makes storm-serpents truly terrifying is their intelligence. They learn. They remember ships and pilots. They adapt tactics. They coordinate (when multiple are present). They’re not mindless beasts—they’re calculating predators that hunt with strategy and purpose. Storm-Sailors give them names, track their territories, and navigate carefully to avoid known individuals. The relationship is one of mutual respect: the serpents tolerate humans who respect their space, and humans survive by not challenging serpents they can’t defeat.

Physical Characteristics

Appearance

Body: - Serpentine (no limbs except vestigial) - Length: 15-25 meters (average 20m) - Diameter: 2-3 meters (thick, muscular) - Covered in iridescent scales - Crackling with electricity

Scales: - Iridescent (blue, purple, green, shifting colors) - Metallic appearance - Generate electrical charge - Extremely hard (armor-like) - Shed annually (valuable)

Head: - Elongated, dragon-like - Glowing eyes (yellow, green, or blue) - Horns or crests (species variation) - Mouth: Large, filled with teeth - Sensory organs: Detect electrical fields

Teeth: - Numerous, sharp, curved - 10-20cm long - Replaceable (shark-like) - Can pierce metal

Eyes: - Glow (bioluminescent) - Excellent vision - See in darkness - Track movement from kilometers

Vestigial Limbs: - Small, clawed appendages - Near head (2-4 limbs) - Used for grasping prey - Evolutionary remnant?

Tail: - Tapered, whip-like - Used for propulsion - Can strike (weapon) - Crackling with electricity

Behavior and Ecology

Hunting

Tactics: - Ambush from storm clouds - Lightning-fast strikes - Grab prey with limbs/mouth - Swallow whole (small prey) - Tear apart (large prey)

Prey: - Aether-fish (primary) - Cloud-hoppers - Sky-rats - Airships (if hungry or territorial) - Humans (incidental)

Success Rate: - High (apex predator) - Few escape once targeted - Speed and power overwhelming

Territory

Storm Systems: - Claim specific tempests - Defend aggressively - Mark territory (electrical discharges?) - Other serpents respect boundaries (usually)

Howling Expanse: - Highest concentration - Multiple serpents - Territorial conflicts - Dangerous for humans

Behavior: - Attack intruders - Tolerate respectful passage (sometimes) - Remember ships/pilots - Grudges last years

Intelligence

Problem-Solving: - Learn from experience - Adapt tactics - Avoid traps - Coordinate (multiple serpents)

Memory: - Remember individual ships - Remember pilots who escaped - Remember those who attacked - Seek revenge (documented)

Possible Sapience: - Some Storm-Sailors claim serpents are intelligent - Communication attempts (mixed results) - Legends of serpents sparing specific pilots - Unconfirmed but persistent

Reproduction

Unknown: - Never observed mating - Never observed eggs/young - Never observed nests - How do they reproduce?

Theories: 1. Deep Aether breeding grounds 2. Extremely rare events 3. Asexual reproduction 4. Something impossible

Dangers to Humans

Direct Threats

Lightning: - Generate electrical discharge - Disables ship systems - Can kill humans - Range: 50-100 meters

Physical Attack: - Bite crushes metal - Tail strike breaks masts - Body slam destroys small ships - Overwhelming force

Speed: - Faster than ships in storms - Can’t outrun them - Must outmaneuver - Difficult

Size: - Massive (20m long) - Collision = ship destroyed - Even glancing blow is fatal - Avoid at all costs

Indirect Threats

Territorial Aggression: - Attack ships in their storms - No warning - No mercy - Survival: Luck

Ship Destruction: - Can sink ships - Crew dies (fall into Aether) - Cargo lost - Economic and human cost

Psychological: - Terror of encountering one - Pilots develop PTSD - Some refuse to fly storms - Career-ending fear

Storm-Sailor Relationship

Respect and Fear

Named Individuals: - Storm-Sailors name known serpents - Track territories - Share information - Avoid when possible

Examples: - “Old Lightning” (Howling Expanse, 150+ years old) - “The Blue Death” (aggressive, many kills) - “Ghost-Tail” (rarely seen, always deadly)

Navigation: - Map serpent territories - Plan routes to avoid - Timing (when are they active?) - Survival strategy

Legends of Alliance

Unconfirmed Stories: - Pilots who befriended serpents - Serpents sparing specific ships - Communication (gestures, electrical patterns) - Mutual respect

Kiera Windcaller’s Claim: - Saw serpent inside Black Tempest - It didn’t attack - “We understood each other” - Won’t elaborate

Skepticism: - Most think these are myths - Wishful thinking - Survival bias (dead don’t tell tales) - But stories persist

If Killed (Rare)

Materials

Scales: - Armor (lightning-resistant, beautiful) - Value: 500-1,000 coins per scale - Extremely rare - Status symbol

Venom: - Paralytic (powerful) - Alchemical uses - Value: 1,000+ coins per vial - Dangerous to extract

Organs: - Electrical generation mechanism - Research value - Alchemical applications - Priceless to scholars

Meat: - Edible (tough, not worth risk) - Tastes like chicken (allegedly) - Bragging rights

Trophy: - Killing storm-serpent = legendary status - Head mounted (if recoverable) - Story told for generations - Respect from all pilots

The Cost

Difficulty: - Nearly impossible to kill - Requires multiple ships - Heavy weapons - Luck - Most attempts fail (deaths result)

Ethics: - Is killing them justified? - Apex predators serve ecological role - Rare (population small) - Some say it’s wrong - Others say it’s survival

Related Topics

• Howling Expanse - Primary habitat
• Storm-Sailors - Primary encounters
• Storm-Captain Kiera Windcaller - Serpent encounter
• Aether-Storms - Habitat
• Aether-Fish - Primary prey

In-World Documents

Storm-Sailor Warning

SERPENT TERRITORIES (Howling Expanse)

Old Lightning: Northern storms (avoid)
The Blue Death: Central tempest (deadly)
Ghost-Tail: Eastern edge (unpredictable)

If you see serpent: - Don’t run (can’t outrun) - Don’t fight (can’t win) - Navigate carefully - Pray

If it attacks: - Evasive maneuvers - Disable electrical systems (prevent feedback) - Jettison cargo (distraction) - Pray harder

If you survive: - Report location - Update maps - Buy drinks for crew - Thank whatever gods you believe in

Survivor’s Account

The serpent came from the lightning.

One moment, empty storm. Next moment, 20 meters of scaled death.

Eyes glowing. Electricity crackling. Moving impossibly fast.

It hit us. Ship systems died. Mast cracked. We were falling.

Then it looked at me. Directly at me. And I swear it was deciding whether to kill us.

It chose not to. Turned away. Disappeared into the storm.

Why? I don’t know. Mercy? Respect? Whim?

I’ll never know. But I’m alive.

I’ll never fly storms again.

“Storm-serpents are the Aetherium’s reminder that we’re not apex predators anymore. In the storms, they rule. We’re just visitors, tolerated or killed at their discretion. The smart pilots respect this. The dead ones didn’t. Learn from them: respect the serpent, avoid their territory, and if you must fly through storms, pray you don’t meet one. Because if you do, your survival depends on their mood. And serpents are not known for mercy.”
—Storm-Sailor teaching