Yay more revamped naga characters! :D Except Taqu here was not changed at all from my original design of him.

Taqu is a moon or pearl naga, my own species I developed when I went through the naga phase. They live on two seperate island chains far from the mainland, and have evolved differently. While nagas on the mainlands are as apt to seperate into tribes as they are to build cities, the social structure of moon nagas are much more advanced and distinct. Living on an island, rogue nagas simply do not exist; everyone belongs to the single grand capital or one of the smaller outlying cities. The cities are small, and really just more of an extension of the capital. Their monuments and buildings are grand;architectural and asthetic wonders. The culture is very different; their government is always a dual rulership- one half is a theocracy, the other is a monarchy.

Their main pantheon is as follows: Xershalin, their main deity and pictured as a silver naga- god of the moon and the stars, the master of the tides and water; Laerthe, the goddess of the underworld and death and pictured as a black naga, she is also the sender of plagues and famine; Mezicalus, the god of the harvest and wild animals and portrayed as a white naga who can shift into the forms of all the wild beasts; and Vreisoutl, goddess of the earth and architecture pictured as a white naga with gold stripes holding a scale and a stone-cutter's tool. There are also many minor gods and goddesses.

Moon nagas have higher natural body temperatures than most other nagas, allowing them to be more active at night and exist with far less sunlight and warmth. Pearly white is the natural scale color, but sometimes grey, green, and even black nagas are born. Black nagas are considered omens of death and belonging to Laerthe, the goddess of death, and are often killed at birth.

Taqu is the bastard son of the king of moon nagas. Illegitimate children (sons especially) would often be considered dangerous to the security of the royal bloodline, and were killed if discovered. His father was fond of him and wished to save his life, so he was dedicated to Xershalin and entered into the priesthood when he came of age. He was passed off as the son of a cousin who was not related to the king, but held some position within the royal family. The king made sure that Taqu lived in wealth and affluence throughout his life.
The young naga rose through the ranks of the clergy, becoming the apprentice of the Night Priest himself (the second highest position in moon naga religion). He quickly developed a fanatical devotion to his deity, Xershalin, the Moon God. Eventually he gave up his own sight to gain the favor of Xershalin, and gained remarkable illusionary powers in return. However, at the peak of his power in the clergy, it was revealed that he was the king's illegitimate son and he was stripped of all rank and sent into exile. His position in the priesthood and his father's power saved his life. He left the island, sailing across the sea in a sea with two slaves and a few small trinkets- remnants of his place in the priesthood. His life on the mainland quickly became a whirlwind of new experiences.

In supreme devotion to Xershalin, Taqu cut out his own eyes to recieve god-given magical ability that is fantastically rare and not natural. Nagas are naturally magic creatures, and about one in fifteen have magical ability which nearly always involves elemental control. Taqu's, however, is different. He is able to create illusions within the mind of a person that they believe it is real- they can touch it, smell it, and even hear sounds. He can create a whole environment for them. However, it only exists in their mind. Taqu can apply the same (or different) illusion to multiple people at the same time, but the more illusions he has to sustain, the faster it tires him. When he arrived on the mainland and realized he actually had to pay for things, he simply started using illusions to trick people into thinking he'd already compensated them.

Taqu is highly arrogant and very haughty, looking down (figuratively) on others. He has no care for materialistic ideals, and thinks that those who do are inferior. He has devoted most of his life to Xershalin and believes that he will ascend to the level of an avatar upon his death. This may or may not be true, but he insists it will be-and it's quite possible; he was looked upon as one of Xershalin's favored while he lived on the island that was his homeland. He is very quick of speech and thought, but he doesn't take well to being ordered around (or even to suggestions that he might be wrong). He is, however, quite brave and wouldn't back down from a fight (though pride factors into that) and he does believe that those with great power should protect those who have none. As such, he honestly cares for the downtrodden, but it is more out of a sense of responsibility than anything else. He believes that he is better than most other nagas, and he dislikes people who don't show what he thinks is proper respect. He has great respect for those who prove themselves above the common flock in whatever way, and he enjoys spending time with such people (even if they aren't nagas. He befriended a centaur once, and the races are notrious enemies).

Ick, sorry for the length. I get carried away when I talk about my character. Too much roleplaying... :P
Taqu is mine. Stabbity. Sketched and colored in Photoshop, inked in Flash. About three hours? Something like that.