[Verdant] Rainbowdrinkers

RAINBOWDRINKERS are JADEBLOODS with a significant and powerful mutation.

RAINBOWDRINKERS make up roughly fifty percent of the Caverns' jade workers. The mutation is triggered when a JADEBLOOD receives a fatal wound--after this fatal wound, some JADEBLOODS will find themselves regenerating quickly and 'reviving from the dead'. This blood mutation is viewed by JADEBLOODS as a gift from ancestors past, a mystical sign of the JADEBLOODS' power and significance to the universe at large.

Their luminescence, which can be triggered on or off at will, helps to scare hungry animals or simple seekers of fortune away from the Brooding Caverns and the vulnerable grubs. Their yellow eyes act similarly as warning to predators that may intend on trespassing on their territories. Rainbowdrinkers will notice increased incisor length and sharpness. Their lifespan is prolonged indefinitely through imbibing in blood; food is also required for their sustenance. In addition, Rainbowdrinkers boast slightly heightened strength and massively heightened agility and awareness.

These developments are assumed to have occurred naturally through evolution as a defense mechanism and a means to protect vulnerable grubs from hungry predators. Incisor length and sharpness can be attributed to both the Rainbowdrinker's need to feed and, perhaps, an ancient means of gathering genetic material for the Mother Grub.

Just as Rainbowdrinkers may live forever on blood, so they will die without it. They require feeding around once a week, though some may go for up to three weeks without starving. This necessitates that Rainbowdrinkers have a source of blood at all times, which means Rainbowdrinkers are at their weakest while hunting alone. A starving Rainbowdrinker is an incredibly weak Rainbowdrinker, and they will find themselves overwhelmed in combat with ease. One who feeds regularly will notice that they are exceptionally quick-witted, strong and agile.

Though they will heal from wounds at a faster rate than normal trolls, Rainbowdrinkers are entirely cullable through simple means. Any sort of head injury will immediately kill a Rainbowdrinker--though a Rainbowdrinker might regenerate bloodpusher tissue, the reparation of a thinkpan is beyond even a Rainbowdrinker's abilities. Beheading, shooting through the head, or a very thorough staking can all kill a Rainbowdrinker. Fire is also very effective at killing Rainbowdrinkers. They aren't invulnerable, of course--it isn't as if an arm can reattach itself to a body and a new leg can grow. Starvation will also kill a Rainbowdrinker; isolation is lethal, and perhaps is why these trolls cling so ardently to the concept of a community that they can protect (and feed off of).

Citizens from Verdant are mostly ignorant of negative stereotypes regarding Rainbowdrinkers. Though Rainbowdrinkers are viewed with fear, they are also viewed with awe. Rainbowdrinkers are viewed as grubs' most ardent protectors. Religious cults often draw a connection between Rainbowdrinker lifespan and Fuchsia lifespan (though this could be seen as blasphemous and hemorebellious by many--only mystical Rust cults and Purples that are certain of their safety might make these comparisons). Rainbowdrinkers are seen as protectors and are, at times, idealized love interests. They are viewed with admiration and seldom will one of them draw suspicion; only those who abuse their power and feed on the unwilling will be cast out, and the Rainbowdrinker 'gift' is thought to come with great responsibility.

Just as the Rainbowdrinkers have a responsibility to the community, so the community has to Rainbowdrinkers. Quadrantmates are expected to offer their blood for feeding. Generally, non-drinker Jades are the main source of nourishment for drinker-Jades.