#wingedcreature

FLYING RAT

“I tell you, the old prophecies are being fulfilled: for this cursed blight, which the magi in their ivory towers call flying rats, is in truth the very incarnation of the Horseman of Pestilence upon his pale steed.” Words spoken by an anonymous preacher in Luminara.

The flying rats (Rattus teratopterus), sometimes called naked rats (in their juvenile stage), plague steeds, or even hell bats, are precisely what their name suggests: rats endowed with the ability to fly. This trait manifests once they reach reproductive maturity, when they finally develop functional wings.

They are strictly synanthropic creatures, nocturnal in habit and exceedingly aggressive in behavior. Their diet consists of organic refuse, carrion, and small animals such as insects, rats, pigeons, and—less commonly—domestic animals, with even reports of attacks on newborn infants.

The first accounts of these creatures date back to the year 1336 C.E., in the Erulian city of Luminara. At first, they were believed to be an unusual infestation of bats and rats, but it soon became clear that the phenomenon was of a far more sinister nature: these were, in fact, bionomically modified rats.

Characteristics

The flying rat can be described as a winged mammal that, in its juvenile stage, resembles a common brown rat but diverges drastically from that form upon reaching sexual maturity. It has little to no fur, with loose pinkish skin that renders it highly sensitive to sunlight, which it avoids at all costs. It also possesses a short tail and wings formed by a patagium, supported by the abnormal elongation of the fifth digit of the forelimb.

They exhibit large, prominent nostrils with small appendages functioning as specialized sensory structures. Their sense of smell is keen, and their hearing is highly developed, aided by bat-like ears that facilitate navigation in low light. Their incisors remain perpetually exposed and, as with all rodents, grow continuously, requiring constant gnawing.

These nasal structures, beyond olfaction, contain specialized cells with trace amounts of silver, seemingly granting the animals an additional sense that allows them to “detect magic.” This sensitivity draws them toward places where arcane practices are common, as well as toward creatures and objects imbued with magical properties. Silver naturally reacts to magical energy, functioning as an internal compass within the creature.

They do not appear sensitive to pain (or display remarkable tolerance to it) and are notably resistant to most substances employed in poisoning attempts aimed at exterminating them.

Reproduction

Reproductive age is reached at around six months, when metamorphosis is complete. These animals can reproduce year-round, and under favorable conditions, females may carry several pregnancies annually. Gestation lasts about two weeks, with litters of up to twenty pups, fostering exponential population growth.

The pups are born highly premature and underdeveloped. Females may produce small amounts of milk but rarely nurse; instead, they give birth in places where newborns can access food, such as storage sites or decaying carcasses, sometimes supplementing with additional resources. From birth, pups already possess well-formed teeth, enabling them to feed immediately on available organic matter.

Mortality rates during this stage are high, as the pups are extremely fragile, with many presenting congenital defects. Common malformations include underdeveloped limbs, incomplete skin formation, or absence of teeth—leading to starvation. Such anomalies are likely the result of their artificial nature, whose unstable bionomy produces frequent malformations. It is also not uncommon for pups to be preyed upon by rats, by other adults of the colony, or even by their own parents in times of scarcity.

Metamorphosis

At birth, pups are in a larval-like state: blind, limbless, and guided solely by smell and hearing in their search for food. Despite their overall frailty, they already possess developed incisors, allowing immediate feeding.

During the first weeks, limbs gradually develop alongside ears and other features. At this stage, the animal’s appearance approaches that of a common rat, albeit with slight differences such as ear morphology and the clear absence of fur.

Around the third month, the species’ distinctive transformations appear. The fifth digit of the forelimb elongates abnormally while the patagium extends, preparing the wing structure. The tail, initially long, shortens and fuses at the base, while the nostrils enlarge and protrude. Some individuals are already capable of rudimentary gliding during this period.

By six months, metamorphosis is complete. The animal now has fully functional wings, a body adapted for flight, and all adult features. At this stage, they are reproductively viable, closing the developmental cycle. Throughout growth, their metabolism remains extremely accelerated. Juveniles must consume nearly twice the food intake of adults to sustain the intense structural modifications of metamorphosis.

Origin

It is now widely accepted that the flying rats were conceived by the Nulduchian mage Gobaff of Fullo, though for a long time the details of their creation remained obscure, shrouded in rumors and contradictory accounts—many tied to apocalyptic portents. Recently, however, an anonymous report published in The Luminar, from a source considered reliable by the paper itself, cast new light on the events nearly ten years after their occurrence:

“It seems the flying rats were the result of an attempt to create a living weapon, capable of infiltrating enemy cities and spreading disease and plague within their walls (as if common rats did not already serve that role well enough). Gobaff of Fullo was in charge of the project, but the Coven ultimately rejected his proposal; they have grown far more cautious in recent years regarding bionomy. For years nothing was heard of these creatures, until Elinele Lavill—the same sorceress who once rained fire upon the ships of Sales—found one of the little demons gnawing at one of her grimoires. She incinerated it on the spot, for she had a true fear of rats. Soon she discovered more, and realized an entire colony had nested within her walls. That same day, Elinele brought down her own mansion, the quake felt even in the Fountain District. It is said Gobaff bore a grudge against the lady, if one may call a sorceress a ‘lady,’ and in vengeance released some of his prototype rats into her residence. If so, the spell turned against the spellcaster, for no one has ever regained control over these creatures.”

If we accept this account as true, many obscurities become clearer. The Coven, it seems, concealed most of the facts, unwilling to embroil itself in another scandal, leaving Gobaff as the scapegoat. Gobaff was no innocent—after all, he released the rats in the first place—but the question remains: if the Coven truly disapproved of the project, why did they not ensure these abominations were eradicated when they had the chance? And if the work continued despite official disapproval, where are those who carried it forward?

Embora esta edição do The Luminar tenha causado alguma comoção entre os literatos da cidade, o Coven nunca se dignou a responder. Assim, resta apenas a dúvida quanto à veracidade dessas alegações.

In the end, Gobaff was tried by the Coven and condemned by Archmage Aelianus to capital punishment less than six months after the release of the rats. He was displayed naked in the public square, bound in chains of magesteel for three days. On the third day, he was delivered to his own creation: devoured by his rats. Naturally, the chains had to be removed, as magesteel also weakened them; too feeble to call upon thaumaturgy, Gobaff perished. As for the others involved in the project, nothing is known—neither their identities nor their fates.

Yellow Plague

The first outbreak of the Yellow Plague occurred shortly after the discovery of the flying rats. Its true origin remains uncertain, though some insist the disease emerged directly from the creatures. The more accepted hypothesis is that Gobaff and his collaborators were indeed developing the illness, and that one of the already-infected rats was inadvertently released.

Whatever the case, it is a scourge that now afflicts cities and, from time to time, resurfaces in new waves, spreading through both flying rats and common ones.

Contagion occurs through direct contact with the secretions of the infected, especially those seeping from pustules, with mere touch sufficient to transmit the disease. Rats carry the rot in their teeth and claws when gnawing corpses or attacking victims, and may also develop pustules themselves. Clothes, books, utensils, and furniture impregnated with the secretion retain the venom for several days, serving as vectors of contagion.

After a brief incubation period of two to four days, symptoms appear: chills, soon followed by high fever. Then emerge the cutaneous lesions that give the plague its name: yellowish pustules that erupt and spread across the entire body. The itching is violent, leading sufferers to scratch themselves raw. When the pustules rupture, they exude a thick, viscous pus of yellow-green hue and putrid odor.

A sprite! In this version, they are a small race who look mostly like short, really skinny humans with long ears and fairy wings. They have two sets of two almost translucent wings which let them fly without needing any form of tail. Transparent digital commission for Rufus_dawg.