Adariel

Adariel is a Cryptic CaveGuard, born in the Shifting Expanse. Like all born with guard blood, she is very vigilant and patient. Adariel prides herself on not being like her partner, Zaja, who flaunts his colours all the time. However Adariel is a sucker for praise, because of the attention her partner always gets. She is a sweet dragon when she's off-duty, always willing to listen and play a board game with you, if not a bit self-doubting. She hesitates to join a conversation, often unsure if her input would be valued. She spends so much time with Zaja, she almost knows more about him than herself. As a very experienced guard, she has perfected staying cool in the face of danger, noticing everything, and not blowing up at irritating partners. She's more in sync with everyone than they realize- many think she's almost a recluse or a golem, watching the gates in the shadows the whole day, but not really. She knows what's currently in fashion, when the nests are due to hatch, and can bust out the sarcastic comments and occasional curse in a pinch. For some reason, she keeps to herself and focuses on her work, but when Zaja keeps trying to talk she eventually gives in.

Adariel hails from the Shifting Expanse, born to a roll of thunder. Hatched to be a caveguard, she spent much of her life in a strict schedule. This didn't bother her, as she was determined to be the best cave guard in the history of the world. She completed her training as a teenager, and set out with four other cave guard graduates to roam the continent and find a lair worth protecting. Adariel actually found her lair first, and she and her partner Taero settled there to guard a shrine of the Earthshaker. When there was no need for their protection anymore, the pair set out again. Along the way, Taero was killed in an ambush by hostile dragons. Adariel, filled with grief, fought off all but one and fled out across the ocean. She collapsed by a lair in the Snowsquall Tundra, and by sheer luck there happened to be a cave guard youngster party flying by. Zaja, a pretty-boy who liked the snow, told her of a strong developing lair in the Cloudscrapes. Adariel was the only dragon willing to stay with him there, and they flew into the mountains together. Zaja, who seemed to chatter a lot, proved his mettle very quickly in a match with a Ranu champion. They were admitted into the clan and asked to guard the front gates from the enemies in the woods.

Adariel's den is compact and bare, and right next to Zaja's. Sometimes in the depths of winter they share a den, which you may think awkward but they are almost siblings. Next to the entrance to the lair, there is a small bluff. The stone face is irregular and there are multiple stunted pine trees clinging to it. Adariel's den is in a dragon-sized niche. She built a roof for it with planks, a roof that never leaks. The front is half-walled in, with boards nailed into sturdy old pine tree and only a small gap left between the tree and the rock face. The gap can be covered by a thick beige blanket. The den is very hard to spot through the trees, and so well-camoflauged so that Adariel could jump out on you with no warning. it's quite cozy inside, with a small chest, a small fir-branch-and-blanket nest, and a woven rug on the stone floor. She has a cauldron of freshwater by the door, a fully functional medic set, and a nice stand for her weapons.