Frozen Female Hatchling
Name: unnamed
Species: Maastrin Praefervi
Birthday: Thursday, June 4, 2015
Owner: Merion
Element: Fire 
Maastrin praefervi live their entire lives at sea, for their bodies are unsuited to hauling out on land. Their eggs float on water, and are too hot to the touch for most animals to mess with, so a female lays them near the surface, far out at sea, and leaves it to hatch on its own. These praefervi only lay one or two eggs at a time, but the hatchlings are well-suited to a tough lifestyle and yearlings suffer lower mortality rates than expected. This is in part the result of the creatures’ plasma, a volatile, exceedingly hot substance that glows with energy and can burn through most materials. Young are able to spew this substance as soon as they hatch, and will eagerly use it to attack anything, from passing swarms of krill to whales, krakens, and other praefervi. Even inanimate objects like rock and sand are not safe from maastrin praefervi’s hot tempers. The hatchlings learn quickly that most creatures will flee at the sight of them even if they are not spouting plasma, and, perhaps more critically, that completely scorched fish does not taste very good.
Praefervi are the languid top predators of coastal lagoons, preying upon all manner of sea creature they can fit into their mouths. Truly ancient praefervi can grow to immense lengths, and compete with leviathans for prey. However, it is not their size but their ability to spew searing liquid that gives them the edge over all other carnivores when hunting – save larger praefervi, of course. They get much of the heat they need from basking in the sun, either on banks or near the water’s surface, and only eat a few times each month. Praefervi are ambush predators, lying in wait for prey to come by and using their powerful tails to propel themselves forward for brief violent attacks. If the prey manages to escape, larger praefervi will seldom give chase, instead returning to their hiding spot to wait for easier prey to chance by. The potent serum they launch at other creatures is useless for hunting, but often used in combat, or to chase off other predators. Neither praefervi, suchul or maastrin, are above scavenging.
Sprite art: Lazuli | Description: PKGriffin