Butterfly steed

In the lands of Edarneor those fascinated by flight won't have a hard time looking for opportunities. This one, however, is for the more materially prosperous ones.
This is because breeding (and training) the giant passenger butterflies (Papilia Metaphoreas Arcana)  is not by any means a cheap and effortless procedure. Quite the opposite: the species had required centuries of careful magickal selection by the few reclusive conclaves involved. Even then, insects can't naturally survive that big, so each grown up butterfly (and you should have seen the caterpillar, oh boy!) is a combination of organic matter, metamorphic spells and protective runes - you can think of it as constantly being on life support.

That said, a butterfly mount is usually favored by the nobility, and for the purposes of recreation, rather than war (albeit it had seen some use in stealthy operations, since its flight is virtually soundless). More of a status animal, it doesn't excel in speed or altitude, but can make an extremely faithful companion, in part due to its supernatural modifications giving way to some empathy abilities.

It still has a superb maneuverability though, and is capable of migrating extremely large distances without rest, due to excellent wing area and lift properties. So what the beau monde sees as fashion, some islanders and desert-dwellers use as a necessity for traversing the oceans or other areas where landing is simply not possible.
_____________________________________________________
Comments and favourites are very welcome! Tell me what you think
For more news and sketches, follow my Facebook Page