Avern

This is Avern, a companion I made for Ari. Avern's full name is Avernale, but he usually goes by Avern. He is mild-mannered and somewhat lazy, but he is willing to work hard if a pressing need arrises. He can be very brave when he needs to, especially to help Ari. Avernale likes to curl his tail around one of Ari's horns and drift on wind currents, which gives him the appearance of an odd kite. Avern also likes to snuggle in Ari's arms.

Ari met Avern after he was kicked out of his tribe. He was in bad shape, and Ari took him in and cared for him. Avern doesn't like to talk about why he was ousted, but he comes from a society where aggression is prized, so his mild nature may have had something to do with it.

His name is based off the Latin name of the Lampades, Nymphae Avernales, a type of torch-bearing nymph in Greek mythology. I named him after the Lampades partly because his power is fire-based, and Lampades are generally portrayed carrying torches. The other reason I named him after Lampades is that Lampades are assistants to Hekate, and I can see him assisting Ari in any way he can.

Avern is male, but you can change this if you would prefer that he be female or something else- he's your character, after all!

Stretched out, Avern is about two feet long from the tip of his nose to the tip of his tail. Each of Avern's wings measures about one and a half feet from top to bottom. His wingspan is about one foot across. Unlike, for instance, butterfly wings, Avern's wings are thick- about an inch thick at the most. Avern's wings are buoyant in air. Like all members of his species, Averns body produces a colorless, odorless gas that is lighter that air and fills a pouch in his stomach. By filling or emptying the pouch of gas, he can change his body's density, and therefore his resting height above the ground.

Avern in from a species called Chertherm. Chertherms can speak, though Avern doesn't often feel the need to talk to anyone but Ari. His species is buoyant in air, so Avern can fly. Chertherm's can also spit small balls of fire, though they are nowhere near as powerful as Ari's species. Chertherms have a highly structured society that values aggression. They have many (usually unnecessary) wars, and rank in society is based largely on a combination of prowess as a warrior and tendency towards violence.

My entry shows Avern resting on one of Ari's horns while she casts a spell. I made the picture with marker and Photoshop.

I give all rights to Avernale to Rylucius, who may profit off of this image or any others that involve this character. I also give Rylucius the right to change or alter anything about Avern in any way he or she wants.
Ari belongs to Rylucius.

Avern was inspired by Ari [link] and this contest [link] hosted by Rylucius.
Avern's name was inspired by this site: [link]
This is the reference that inspired the Chertherm's name and society:
[link]