Seawyrm Pygmies are little dragons that live by the ocean, coasting on the winds above and diving down straight into the water whenever they spot a choice fish. Before their wings grow in, they spend the majority of their time in the sea, their tail fin extending over halfway up their bodies and allowing them to maneuver quickly and easily through the reefs. As they age, they give up some of their maneuverability in the water as that fin recedes into a tail fin better suited for flight. When a Seawyrm Pygmy finds a mate, they will perform synchronized dives together before burying their eggs in the shallow sands, where their eggs can hatch protected from larger predators.

Dragons are highly-intelligent reptilian creatures that—from a human perspective, at least—appear to live forever. Many different varieties of dragon exist, each with their own unique qualities, habitats, and behavior. Adolescence in dragons is usually marked by the growth of a hatchling’s wings, although not all breeds of dragons grow wings and some breeds have other traits that indicate the beginning of maturation. In Galsreim, dragons and humans coexist peacefully.

Pygmy dragons are the smallest category of dragons, being on the same scale as domesticated animals. They are often found around concentrated populations of dragons, relying on their larger brethren to ward away potential predators and leave scraps. As such, the majority of a pygmy’s diet is scavenged. Due to their tiny size, pygmies do not breed with larger varieties of dragons.

Suzushi lives in one of the clan caves close to the ocean, and flies to the shoreline every day to look for wave-smoothed seashell fragments in the assorted debris that washes up in the tide. She dries these pieces in the sun, and keeps them in a small hollow in the cave. Other pygmy dragons and hatchlings like to sleep there, as they find the feel of the softened seashells soothing. On sunny days, some of them join Suzushi as she sifts through the beach sands. Often they lose track of time talking to each other, and find so many small fragments that they need to ask an older member of the family to help them transport the shells back to the caves.