Watch-Wher|

[Lyrikitty]

Watch-Wher - one of the self perpetuating "mistakes" produced by the settlers' attempts to produce dragons, watchwhers are the familiar guard animals of the Northern Continent, where they are also used by the Minecraft below ground Reasonably intelligent and with some minor telepathic abilities and a strong sense of loyalty to their human friends, watchwhers are low-slung ugly creatures with malformed eyes that cause them to be photophobic; they also have a strong, unpleasant odor. They show the same range of colors as the firelizards and dragons, although, as in the dragons, only the golds may breed, the greens having been engineered to be sterile. Golds are mostly kept by the Minecraft, who breed them for work in the mines, and young males are often sold to Holds who want them as guard beasts; greens are often culled at hatching as their unpredictable mating heats make them unsuitable as work or guard beasts, although the Minecraft tends to keep some to provide sexual relief for the males that work in the mines. All the "wild whers" on the Northern Continent are feral watchwhers -- although rare, it is not unknown for golds to escape and breed in the wild. These wild examples are solitary animals but can cause considerable damage to livestock and will attack humans if disturbed. The Southern Continent, on the other hand, has its own species of wild wher that is distinct from the watchwher; see below.