Who is Aster?

Aster is a dragon! It is a little funny to describe Aster specifically, as Aster serves two purposes: Aster is a stand-in for myself, but is also a character in my personal project Rendezvous.

Exterior and Personality

Dragons are naturally four-legged creatures, but they are able to balance on and walk with their two hind legs, thanks to their tails acting as counterweights. When thon stands on its hinds, it is just barely 10 ft tall. The best way to describe Aster's size is about the size of a Clydesdale or other fairly large draft horse. Its build is fairly average, though its bottom half is softer and its chest more rounded, giving it an androgynous appearance. The long, wavy, unruly mane on its head is scarlet in color and silky; it has a habit of twirling and playing with its hair, especially when bored. On the right shoulder is a white star tattoo; Aster not only loves stars, the celestial bodies, but also the geometric shapes.

Aster is inquisitive and slow to open up to others; when familiar with another, though, Aster can be compassionate and takes a keen interest in the thoughts and pursuits of that person. It especially likes to help and collaborate with those it feels close to.

In Rendezvous...

Dragon Names

Dragons have notoriously long names. Aster's true and full name is Railt-Glan-Ha Snaþé-Airgid-Nišcé o Sciahan-Diné-Elé-na-Iodan-Šcælta. What a mouthful! Dragon names are in three parts: a personal name, a clan name, and then the names of their parents.

Railt-Glan-Ha means the one who watches stars, which was given to it because its parents worked on a cargo vessel and were often in space. Young Aster loved to look at the stars through the merkava embrasures as thons parents went from destination to destination. To make it easier for other Kinds to refer to it, thon decided on Aster (Latin and Greek for star) as a nickname.

Snaþé-Airgid-Nišcé is the name of the clan Aster and its parents are from, translating to silver thread in water. To dragons, history, lineage, and legacy are extremely important. Every clan's name is a reference to their founding myth; in Snaþé-Airgid-Nišcé's case, their clan's chieftainess had a dream telling her to have her nomadic group settle on the shores of a body of water if they found a thread of silver in it. The chieftain and chieftainess led their people all across the land and eventually came across a clear lake. The dragon homeworld is rich with heavy metals, and some plant species incorporate metals from subterranean ores into their exterior. Thus, the clan beheld the sight of long and thin grasses, metallic silver in color, all around the shore and invading the shallows of the lake. They settled there and eventually exploited the natural source of silver beneath their talons. Any member of this clan has an ancient memory recalling this event, though the age of the memory has made it exaggerated and dreamy.

o Sciahan-Diné-Elé-na-Iodan-Šcælta is the name of Aster's parents; together, it translates to child of the one who shields others and the one who weaves stories. Dragons only invoke the name of their parents when boasting, making oaths, or in any extremely important or formal settings. Aster's mother is Sciahan-Diné-Elé, called Tower by others for her great height (which Aster took after) and the imagery of a tower shield. She worked security for the ship she and her husband worked on. Aster's father is Iodan-Šcælta, called Weaver by others for his great talent in telling entertaining stories. He originally received the name for his habit of telling elaborate lies to his aunts and uncles. Weaver worked as the ship's jockey, teaching his child how to use and handle ofanim; Aster had an advantage in learning this trade because of some of the memories and rules it inherited genetically from its father.