Gaurdian of Flame Pond
A crooked tree bends over a large koi pond. At the coming of each season, a magnificent Sanke Koi leaps out of the water in a dance harmonious with the coloring of the leaves and their falling. The Koi is unnaturally large, about as big as a medium-sized dog. A small teal raindrop stone resides over its eyes, and a paircing mask is wrapped by a red ribbon that holds it to the fish's body. An orange Kanji meaning Flame is delicately painted on it. A bracelet of red string that binds copper Chinese coins to each other jingles softly as the Koi leaps. Silk is wrapped around its body, holding a lantern with gossamer blue beads and pearls strung to the shining paper contraption on a silver pole. The bright light of the lantern never goes out, even underwater, though what powers this radiant light has never been seen by another creature than possibly the Koi itself. A single red butterfly is painted on the soft orangle cloth that moves in ripples and explosions in the air and water. A small Orenji Ogon Koi is always swimming by the larger fish; the closest thing to a companion the spirit can have. The Gaurdian of the Flame Pond causes the petals on the mighty tree to fall, its buds to appear, the leaves to sprout, grow, and fall, spackling the ground with warmth but leaven the thin, snaking branches withered and barren with its dance. The Koi creates the thin footsteps of ice over the pond and the frost on the tree limbs in winter. It makes the change and the whispering movements in the tree's life cycle to happen, though the fish's power is mostly centered on the fiery leaves in the autumn. The Koi spirit revels in the leaves that fall like strips of torn parchment, swirling its fins and moving faster, more gracefully in its dance when they fall. In several days they carpet the surface completely so the water cannot be seen. The speckled spirit swims carefully, arching its back and flicking its tail, creating fiery patterns in the path it clears of fallen leaves, then jumps and dives, scattering them again. A single pink tropical flower adorns its head, holding the promise of warmer days to come. A wandering artist has painted the Koi fish; the Gaurdian of Flame Pond.
A last-minute entry. i made my own lines, and though i was originally going to make a dragon. i decided it would be too hard and settled on koi. I worked with he Oriental theme you had in your likes, though it was originally going to be cherry blossom themed, i later saw you didn't want too girly designs, and the design had pink, so i changed it to the other option: the fall theme i had previously contemplated after seeing it in your likes. Also, you said you didnt really want it to have scales, but i think you understand it has tp have them since it is a koi. Basically, the oi is thge spirit of the pond, and te koi dances to make the leaves and life cycle of the tree and pond to change. when the leaves fall, it moves just under the surface, creating patterns by clearing leaves. Also, it does have a ot of accessories, and please tell me if its too much, i might remove the golden cloth or something, its just that the accessories are one of the most imporant part of the design, and the theme kindof makes you want it to have a lot of accessories. Other things Japanese/Chinese themed and their explanations:
Raindrop stone on the "forehead"
Silk wrapped around the body
All the beads
A butterfly on the mask. As Koi is technically translated into "Love fish" in Japanese, according to my friend, and butterflies also symbolize love in that culture, i added a butterfly on the cloth.
The lantern and the beads on it.
The kanji, meaning Flame in Japanese
The copper Chinese coin bracelet,
and the butterfly and the string in the bracelet are red, as it is te lucky color in China.
Things in your likes and their explanations:
The koi itself.
The companion. The "jewel:" the raindrop stone.
An exotic flower.
Fall/winter theme.
Oriental theme.
The carried mask. I tried to make it slightly creepy, and it did look like it was staring at you in the paper sketch, but that effect got a bit ruined in the oekaki version, so i added some dark shading around the eyes instead. also, it turned out disproportional.
"Arm bands:" the bracelet is as close as i could get, but i made it thinking of this.
long tail; or, at least, its supposed to be.
Well, i really hope you like my entry, it took me 3 days, and hope it is not too late. best of luck to everyone!
and for the description of the koi, which is required for all the koi, just quote the "quoted" part that i wrote here. also, that'll probably be the "basis" for the other descriptions, i think it would take too much time to write a new one for each koi.