Male Hatchling
Name: unnamed
Species: Deadwood Deer
Birthday: Sunday, October 29, 2023
Owner: Katnilb
Element: Neutral 
Deadwood deer hatchlings never leave the swamps. They are too fragile and too shy to set foot out of their territory. They spend the time instead exploring the swamp, learning it inside out, and slowly discovering how people affect nature. A cut tree here and a poached animal there do not give the right idea to the little hatchlings. They become territorial and dislike people for the most part. It would take extensive training for the deer to give up on this conception, and most of the time, people are not too keen to approach them. Even so, there are a few select magi who take an interest in these creatures and do so knowing the hatchlings will use their magic to show the magi's true intentions with them. If the magi is pure at heart, the deadwood deer will accept that it was wrong and come to tolerate the person. If not, the hatchling will have its original thoughts confirmed: that people are evil.
The swamps hide many things: trees, murky water, strange lights that appear in the dead of the night, bugs, animals, and undead creatures. The deadwood deer fall in the last category. These creatures have a strange - although uncanny - beauty. Their bodies are made of dead wood, mushrooms, and odd lights that flicker intermittently. They make no sound and would appear peaceful if it were not for the shrieking faces on the deer's body or the glowing eyes. People say the deadwood deer are an odd mix of dead trees swallowed by the water and the spirits of wandering deer trapped inside the logs, with the mushrooms growing on their bodies being the only things alive. Whichever may be the case, there are many scary stories about the deadwood deer, the conclusion always being that people should fear them. They are not as spooky as people paint them to be, but their magic is feared even by some magi. The deadwood deer have the power to reveal a person's true nature, be it good or bad. The true face of a person is shown, and people fear the consequences of the truth more than the deer themselves. Some might find the idea of asking the deadwood deer for help offensive, but there still are cases when only a deadwood deer can reveal the truth about a person.
Sprite art: Xenomorph/Lazuli (hatchling) | Description: Real