#perytons

“”Don’t wander alone or the peryton will catch you!” is a common phrase to scare children of the Angelic Unison to behave. But the Peryton is not just a bogeyman but an actual predator nesting on the floating island of Emuna.

The legends say Perytons were angelic creatures twisted into abominations by the Lord of Chaos or the Archdevils during the Cosmic War. Philologists of the Scriptures and natural philosophers concur with the myths in that the Perytons didn’t emerge organically from the Collapse but that some divine being meddled with them at some point.

The main sign of an external force shaping them is their ability to cast elaborate spells: their weird hand-antlers and devious intellects seem too complex not to be designed, as their repertoire of incantations is too sophisticated not to be taught.

The perytons nest on some of the high-floating islands untouched by humans. They soar looking for prey and dive to grab them with their talons. The shape of their massive wingspan would give them away, but they can change their shape with magic, blurring it to appear as a passing cloud or disguising it as an innocent sparrow flock. Contrary to predatory birds, the perytons don’t lift their victim but pin it to the ground, devouring them on the spot. They are messy eater, leaving carcasses and a pool of blood: this is because they use the rest of their feast as a signal to other perytons. The horrid spectacle of visceras is a way to mark their territory and attract mates.

In winter perytons settle for small prey, like rabbits or partridges, leaving the snow stained red. In spring, the males will look for bigger prey, usually calves or foals: they will create crude illusions and vague shadows to lure or scare their victims into the perfect position. The male perytons will then attack and kill, spreading the interiors of the poor beast as a macabre display. The females, clinging to the bottom of the floating island, assist and judge the grueling spectacle, choosing their partner based on their viciousness. Males can never be sure to have an audience, since perytons attached to the rocks can use their hand-antles to cast camouflaging spells. Perytons, both male and female, are extremely territorial and jealous, fighting for their mate or hunting spot to the death.

Peryton couple last three years, the time for their young to mature, and after that they become bitter rivals again. When a couple has cubs they take some prey alive to their nests, a way to teach their younglings the art of dismemberment. Perytons rarely target humans, but it has happened and some people have even been brought to their nests. The handful of them that survived did so throwing themselves off the floating islands, preferring a deth by fall than under the sadistic fangs of a peryton family.