These types of dragons were bred for SPEED and ENDURANCE. It’s because of this that they were mostly dispatched for long distance travel, as they would be able to cover the most distance in the shortest time possible; both thanks to exceptional speed and the endurance to remain flying for longer periods. Their heads and bodies were shaped in a more slender, aerodynamic manner ( like that of a horse ), which would enable them to better traverse air currents as well as grant them enhanced agility. They were the dragons that the Freehold sent first when in need of swift action, such as to put down uprisings in its colonies, or the call for help from Volantis against the Rhoynar at the beginning of the wars ( when Valyria underestimated the strength of the Rhoynar ).
This practice became a norm since the Freehold came to its widespread power millennia ago, as it would be challenging to maintain such vast holdings over so stretched distances. And so these types of dragons ( and the families who rode them ), were a necessary commodity that granted them power and influence in the Freehold. They were dispatched for brokering trade agreements to far off lands such as YiTi, or as messengers ( especially when the intimidation factor was required ), as well as escorts for transports of important goods. As rider to a dragon of this breed, Vaedar would frequently be dispatched for such tasks on behalf of the Freehold. During combat situations, these dragons excelled in agility, which made them particularly skilled in the use of their claws as weapons.
Examples of these dragons would be Syrax, belonging to Queen Rhaenyra Targaryen, and Meleys, mount of Princess Rhaenys Targaryen.
More on this RP world building info to be found here.
Azaes is a dragon with dark crimson red scales ( that have a red-orange-gold sheen when in the sun or light ) that shift into a golden color near the areas of his sails, the half of his wings and his belly. His horns, claws and teeth are smooth black, and his eyes are a fiery, molten gold. His flame is orange with veins of dark red that turn almost black.
As for his size, I’m using the above art of Balerion the Black Dread during the Conquest ( which means he was about little over a century old ) by this artist as a reference. By the end of his life, Azaes was 30 years old and was about the size shown above ( he’s the smaller, red dragon ). For perspective, compare him to the size of the horses below ( he could take a whole horse, probably two, whole ). There are a couple of factors that influence the size of a dragon other than their age, such as how free they are to roam and how much they fly ( the more they fly, the faster they grow, and Vaedar and Azaes did not go a day without flying... unless he was physically unable to do so ). Dragons never stop growing, only until the time of their death is imminent.
𝐎𝐍 𝐀𝐙𝐀𝐄𝐒 𝐀𝐍𝐃 𝐕𝐀𝐄𝐃𝐀𝐑
Vaedar’s mount was hatched ( being the second youngest of his family’s dragons ) to him when he was a baby, and so his bond with the dragon was nurtured. It only strengthened with the passing of the years, the two being quite close. The first time he mounted the dragon, he was nine years old, using a whip, as was one of the methods for riders to make the winged creatures to obey and follow commands.
But Azaes is a very stubborn, capricious dragon and this only made him angrier, which made him shake Vaedar off, making him fall off and dislocate a shoulder. Azaes would after show his ‘apology’ by ‘inviting’ Vaedar to try again in a challenging way, which he did, even with his hurt shoulder. This was one of the more important bonding experiences for both of them, because little Vaedar understood then that Azaes is not just a mount to be subdued. Azaes also learned more of his rider’s strength, courage and worth, and saw he would indeed want to be by his side and fly with him. The transformation of mount and rider took a deeper meaning then, of companionship and kindred souls. They would become almost as one since then, feeling as the other does, so Vaedar eventually barely had to use any commands to ride Azaes. That connection was so seamless that it definitely made Vaedar a very, very skilled dragon rider, something he was quite proud of.
On more than a few times during interactions, Vaedar has explained to others that Azaes feels as he does, but how he interprets those emotions are not as complex or nuanced as a human might. For example, one occasion he explained that he would need to convey to Azaes that he was married, that he has a wife, and for his dragon to comprehend this better, he would have to feel for that woman as though she were his mate. Dragons can sense distress and fear in humans, but that of their riders they feel as if it were their own. Love, anger, sadness, pain. Those are more raw emotions, primal almost in a sense, and it’s what his dragon understands or translates his emotions into, even if what he really felt was worry or frustration. For Azaes, it might be anger and he could act out on the person that is the recipient of those emotions. This attachment also made the dragon jealous and prone to impulsive violence ( more so if hungry ).
Once, he almost tried to kill Vaedar’s brother despite knowing him his whole life, because he sensed him as a threat ( which he was not wrong ). This can lead to momentary disobedience on instances when these emotions are too overwhelming, but the strong bond between them enables the rider to subdue the dragon rather quickly ( as long as he, too, can get a hold of himself ).
When dragons outlive their riders, they would wail and weep or release powerful roars of pain during the moment of their rider’s death. This deeper bond is especially ( and very likely, only, possible ) because Azaes hatched to Vaedar as a baby ( rather than the rider claiming him later ), and they grew together… and died together. He could feel his rider’s desperation and pain when they fell from the sky ( pelted by numerous projectiles of volcanic debris ) to the raging sea. Though it was only for a short time, because the dragon died from its wounds before his rider. This means that Vaedar did feel Azaes die, and this can be a rather traumatic experience for the rider who has been bonded since infancy to the dragon. In verses where he was 'cursed' with immortality and survives the Doom, this marked him deeply to the point of considering ending his own life. So during the Doom, Vaedar experienced the emptiness of no longer feeling that bond when his dragon died, before finally drowning himself.
Another thing that the Vhagar and Arrax scene reminds me of is of how dragons can feel as their riders do... So that whole ‘accident’ can play out as the dragons feeling and acting on the more strong emotions of their riders. For Lucerys, he was scared and felt threatened so Arrax attacked. Aemond apparently has that grudge on Lucerys, to hurt him or scare him and for Vhagar, who was just flamed on by Arrax, she could’ve acted on that as well. It’s another possibility that I think could have sense, and it also goes with my headcanon for how dragons feel their rider’s emotions.
On more than a few times during interactions, Vaedar has explained to others that Azaes feels as he does but how he interprets those emotions are not as complex or nuanced as a human might. For example, one occasion I recall him explaining that he would need to convey to Azaes that he was married, that he has a wife, and for his dragon to comprehend this better, he would have to feel for that woman as though she were his mate. Love, anger, sadness, pain. Those are more raw emotions, primal almost in a sense, and it’s what his dragon understands or translates his emotions into, even if what he really felt was worry or frustration, for Azaes, it might be anger and he could act out on the person that is the recipient of those emotions.
So I already posted a thing regarding the appearance of Azaes ( Vaedar’s dragon ) over here, but I did not specify on his size. I’m using the above art of Balerion the Black Dread during the Conquest ( which means he was about little over a century old ) by this artist as a reference. By the end of his life, Azaes was 30 years old and was about the size shown above ( he’s the smaller, red dragon ). There are a couple of factors that influence the size of a dragon other than their age ( some canon--such as the more a dragon flies, the faster it grows--, some out of my own headcanons ), which I will detail in a separate headcanon post regarding dragons but I wanted to share this over here for RP reference when needed.
