The story came first, and with that came an entire world. At the center of the Aetherian universe is Embrix, the Dragon Princess. She flies around the kingdom with her little caterpillar friend, Toby. They enjoy many adventures, some of which have yet to be written. The first is about finding what’s wrong with her father. But before all that, before her world could be created and before the first story could be put to words, Embrix had to become.
She was a fun project in evolution. Beginning with an idea and watching it transform over time is like seeing in blurry vision and then pulling that vision into focus with each new try. What you see is the final version of the beautiful dragon with blue skin and purple wings. She came out perfect, if I can say so myself.
But let me take you back to the beginning, where you can see what she looked like years ago. This is her before her first dip into the lake with Toby hanging on for dear life. This is her before admitting to her little friend that she is down in the dumps because all the other dragons throughout the land can breathe fire, but she hasn’t learned how yet.
When she was created, I remember my first thought being, what a cute little dragon. I can have so much fun with her. Those big eyes blinking and wings flapping hard to keep her in the air. Sadly, she was vetoed by the team, and back to the drawing board I went.
Who knows? Maybe I can bring her back as the baby form of Embrix if we ever visit a story that goes back that far. These stories are going to be fun to create, and I’m not sure, but I don’t think I’ll have too much of a problem talking the team into it.
Like I said, she slowly came into focus. With each new try, the team became more inspired. We started imagining every detail, down to the various colors that would bring her to life. At this point, she was ready to go places.
Instead of being simple drawings on paper, she was prepared to see the world that had been created for her. She was coming to life, and that was the most beautiful part. We had a story to tell, and now we had the dragon we were going to tell it about.
She did go through some radical changes in the process, though. This was an idea for her long mane. Shiny purple hair that trailed all the way down her back to her tail. Somewhere in the creation process, the idea of the long flowing mane faded, and I love the way she turned out. She still has a mane back there. It just turned out a little shorter. But this was on the drawing board at one time. This was one of her many variations.
Now, Embrix is ready to fly and meet some friends along the way. Our behind-the-scenes explorations will take you around the Aetherian universe and, more specifically, the Dragon Kingdom. You’ll meet Toby and Jewel, who are the first to enter Embrix’s world. But she has an entire life to live with us following her every step of the way, from saving lives to falling in love. She even experiences loss in a most grand and unexpected way.
Those stories have yet to be written because they haven’t happened yet. This first story is the one that will set the stage for all the others yet to come. I’m excited to be a part of it and witness the beginning. I hope you enjoy it as much as I do.
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