Accursed Mother

Drawn with mechanical pencil, done on 5th Oct 2008.

Ok, so - this is my entry to The Witcher fan art contest.

Now.. about the picture itself. (Those who know about The Witcher game should get it more what I am about to ramble.)

The scene - Geralt, the main character of the game, shifts into a typical fighting pose used by witchers (wielding a silver sword), as a large beast crawls down from the ruined walls, possibly planning on to attack him.

The creature - is not in the game (as far as I know, didn't finish it yet), an embodiment of my imagination. It has dark scales in shades of green, grey or brown; long, forward-jutting horns; two pairs of eyes (one for heat vision, one for lit conditions); a smaller pair of arms behind the front legs; and often snout-tips and several fingers lacking skin. The latter phenomenon occurs because of the acidic glands in its mouth - the hide itself isn't immune to the acidic effects, probably because the glands are not a creation of evolution of year-thousands.
It is often referred to as the Zerrikanian "Dragon" by the common people - as it does resemble the vague depictions of dragons told about in fairy tales. Long neck, vicious fangs, reptilian scales and a body that is somehow feline yet still lizard-like, along with gigantic wings on its back.
...Wait. Where are the wings, you ask?
Ah, you see, not many know how these "dragons" are born in Zerrikania (the lands they created them in). Zerrikanians are said to worship dragons as gods; the rare individuals who learn magic in this country are none but the same, of course, heeding to weird customs and even weirder superstitions. Most mages end up insane. Such a group of spellcasters, to prove their fanatic worship of dragons, experimented on creating their own draconic beings - a creature that could be a guardian, a pet, or a symbol.
How they are created, remains a secret to the common folk - but rumours abound... they say women with potential for magic are taken away at dusk, and their essence is melt with that of a basilisk, and some other monstrosity... Using alchemy and magic to enhance the results.
These poor creations end up chained, enslaved, their minds shrieking with insanity, and often, their wings cut off. Rarely, one of these encaged monsters break out and flee from their masters, if not kill them. Then they seek out places touched by civilization - ruins, abandoned villages, perhaps even sewers. Perhaps they do so to be able to hand out revenge; perhaps their human part still longs for a weird sensation of having companions.

The "dragon" on this picture is holding a child's mangled, dissolving upper body; possibly her own offspring from when she was still a human. Madness drove her to carry and protect her child from hurt, and as she never let it go, it died from hunger and thirst. By the looks of it, this happened ages ago...

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CRITIQUE APPRECIATED!
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Edit: it is DONE, finally! No longer a wip.