The Meera largely resemble large, winged wolves or foxes. They have lean bodies, long legs, and narrow heads, usually with a thick mane of fur around their necks and down their backs. They can have anywhere from 1-9 thickly-furred, fluffy tails. Meera from a family of high stature would usually have more tails than a Meera from a lesser family.
They have feathered wings on their backs, and are fully capable of flight. Their fur is very fine and soft, and comes in a wide variety of colors.
Their eyes can also be many different colors and shades. Meera possess full-color vision that is slightly better than that of humans, with excellent night vision. They have a sense of smell as good as a wolf's. However, deafness is fairly common in Meera, and their hearing is no better than a human's.
Abilities
Meera are at least as intelligent as humans. Though they don't speak aloud, they can and do talk to humans telepathically, as well as each other. They are strong psychics. They possess mild telepathy, they can 'mind-speak', but cannot read minds or anything. They possess very strong telekinesis, however, and are able to lift very large objects several times their weight. They do not possess teleportation, but they can go between if bonded to a dragon.
Meera are also ingenius technologists. They use their powers of telekinesis to manipulate objects, as humans do with their hands. They left many puzzling ruins across Athanasia when they fled to other worlds.
Lifestyle
Meera do not 'bond' to humans, like dragons. They do, however, have very strong ties to their family. Meera live in small packs consisting of close family, usually parents and their pups, though grandparents or aunts/uncles may join them.
Compared to the rest of Athanasia, Meera had very advanced technology. They are experts with computers, though most Meera now live mostly wild, living and hunting as their ancestors did.
Meera are omnivores, and will eat a variety of plants and animals. They do not raise herds or farm, they prefer to hunt for their food themselves.
Meera mate for life, and will be devastated if something ever happens to their mate. Female Meera give birth to live young, once a year in the spring. There are usually about 3-6 pups in a litter. The pups stay with their parents for about 3 years, when they are considered adults. They may then choose to stay with their pack, or find a mate and start their own family.
The Meera live in a Matriarchal society. Packs or any large groups of Meera are usually led by the oldest female.
Religion
The Meera have three main gods, and many lesser gods.
The three main gods are Aaka (Aw-kaw), the high goddes of life, Saurii(Sow-ree), the god of death, and Imaru (Ee-mar-ru), the caretaker god of the planet.
Aaka's fur is brilliant white, and her eyes are deep blue. She is the only Meera to ever have ten tails. It is said she is the one who first created Athanasia, and also led the Meera to their safehaven of Jaurik in their exile.
Saurii's fur is pitch-black, with blood-red eyes. He has nine tails, and instead of feathered wings, he has bat-like wings. He resides in the realm of death, where dead souls go.
Imaru's fur is dusty brown, the color of the earth, and his eyes are as green as the leaves of the forest. Curiously, he has no wings, but he has nine tails. He takes the most interest in the affairs of mortals, and, being lord of the earth, he controls magic.
Lesser Gods
Lethea-Goddess of the Night
Nuro-God of Water
Selle-God of the Day
Venasar-God of the Forests
Myrune- Goddess of technology and wisdom
Past
The Meera lived on Athanasia, thousands of years ago. When humans were still wandering nomads, the Meera already had vast cities and amazing technology.
But a terrible disease swept over the entire planet, which was particularly deadly to the Meera. This magical disease affected the humans, too, but in a far different way. While some humans did die from the plague, many did not, though those who did survive never fully recovered from the effects. Mothers who had fallen ill while pregnant gave birth to half-human, half-animal creatures. The animal-like 'clansmen' were fully capable of practicing magic, which no human had ever possessed before. These half-human, half-animal people soon found themselves banished from the rest of their race. A massive war erupted between the normal humans and the magic-using 'clans', and the Meera were caught in the middle.
In desperation, they fled to another world, leaving their technology behind. They arrived on a heavily forested, mostly uninhabited world with no native sentient species. But there was enough water and prey animals to support a large population of Meera. The Meera settled, distancing themselves from their past and former technology, and began to live closer to how their ancestors lived.
It is 12 years after the Meera's exile to the planet they call Jaurik, before they learn of dragons and their riders...
Creatures of Jaurik
Kaala Beetles (Kaw-la)
Kaala beetles are tiny, six-legged insects that look almost jewel-like in their appearance. They are always very bright colors. Kaala beetles are constantly seeking out small, colorful pebbles to stash away in their underground dens. Kaala beetles can often be seen pushing around a pebble, but nobody knows just why the insects covet them so much.
Urytak (You-ree-tack)
The urytak are large, bison-like animals that travel in herds. They have thick, shaggy fur, which is especially thick around their necks and shoulders, forming a dark mane. They have no tail, but they do have to huge, curving horns on their wide heads. An angry urytak can be very dangerous when provoked. They have four very thick legs, with large, round feet that end in hooves.
Zurihauk (Zoo-ree-hawk)
Zurihauks are very large, four-winged birds. They are roughly the size of a Meera, and can be very dangerous. They are usually dark colors like brown and grey. They have sharp, curved beaks and two legs which end in sharp talons. They have two pairs of wings, one pair just in front of the other and a bit higher.