Behemoth

The behemoth is a gargantuan creature, daemonic in spirit but bestial in morphology. This creature seems to be the only one of its kind, a unique being which is large enough to be an ecosystem in and of itself, within which live a great variety of other creatures. To date, there is no record that a behemoth has been slain. Hence, its permanent, imposing, powerful form has become a symbol of power amongst the races of Dratora. Many monarch have drawn parallels between their seat of power and the behemoth to establish the title as unique, unconquerable, eternal, and capable to changing even the ground beneath it should it wish to.

Basic Information

Anatomy

A gargantuan graviportal creature with pillar-like legs that end in disk-shaped phalanges; three on the front limbs and four on the back. The soles of its feet are padded and covered in spiny scales. Its barrel-shaped torso end in large, thick, humped shoulders that support a long, powerful neck and a heavy skull. These give it a torso similar to a paraceratherium. Its head is hourglass-shaped, resembling that of a hippopotamus, with large, auroch-like horns. Its jaw hinge allows its mouth to open at almost a 180 degree angle. Unlike a hippopotamus, its elongated snout terminates in a shovel-tusked trunk, similar to a platybelodon; its two lower incisors forming the shovel-like structure and its two upper incisors protruding out as true tusks, and its muscular snout and mouth forming a flat, wide trunk. Its tail is long, mobile, and sprucy, held stiffly outright and swaying like a tree. It uses this to spread its faeces around it territory. Its skin in hard and slate-like, maintained and cleansed by caustic sebum excretions that pool and coat its rough hide, purging the cracks and wrinkles of parasites. These secretions smell strongly of ammonia, giving the entire creature a similarly urine-like odour. Its bones have a high iron and copper content, making them feel and behave similarly to metal ore or, in some areas, metal alloys. Some metallic protrusions are evident on the surface of the skin, giving the impression of small metal tors to any creatures stood atop its back. The behemoth is known to be male by those that have seen its huge, club like phallus, which it can retract inside its genital slit. A sparse scattering of thick, reddish hairs litter the behemoth's body, clustered in specific areas such as the genital slit, the end of the tail, around its eyes, and around any open orifices such as its nostrils and earholes.

Biological Traits

Within its body, the gut flora, immune system cells, and pathogens have grown to inconceivable sizes. It is unclear whether they are multicellular beings or magically sustained oversized single-celled organisms, only that those that delve into the behemoth's body find themselves beset by alien creatures working as though part of a hive-mind, or amorphous monstrosities seeking to devour whatever they might come across.
Behemoth mucus also behaves in an unexpected way. It is thicker that ordinary mucus, enough to trap creatures like tar would, and it reflects a yellow glow when exposed to light.

Genetics and Reproduction

There is no evidence that the behemoth is fertile, but its huge, club like penis suggests that it is possible for the creature to reproduce. The behemoth's penis is often tucked within its genital slit, but seems to emerge and move independently of the rest of the creature. It has a Y-shaped urethral opening.

Ecology and Habitats

The behemoth lives in hot biomes, tropical and subtropical as well as hot deserts. It is often found around mountain ranges, though it is unclear how much of this is due to the behemoth creating uneven, hilly, and mountainous terrain as an ecological cultivator itself. Despite being a creature largely associated with the land, the behemoth regularly sticks to coastal regions and submerges its lower body in water to support its weight whilst it sleeps.
Where the behemoth goes, rivers are drunk dry; this is perhaps responsible for why the behemoth is typically found in arid environments. Consequently, the behemoth's slate-like skin is often coated in wet, muddy, sandy, saline sediment.

Dietary Needs and Habits

The behemoth has been known to consume fish, roots, and entire trees, especially those bearing fruit, though it is difficult to discern how much of this is intentional and how much is consumed by being simply too small for the behemoth to avoid eating as it drains rivers and cultivates the land.

Behaviour

The behemoth fear no natural predators, and as such has little reason to interact intentionally with other beasts besides those of equitable size, such as leviathans, krakens, and certain dragons. The behemoth is territorial, and will exhibit a threat display by opening its jaws wide and roaring loudly.
Due to the vast energy required for the behemoth to move, it will occasionally lay on a shore with its mouth cupping an estuary and its gigantic body supported by the sea. It will continue to drink as it enters a dozing slumber, until such a time as it is nourished and rested or disturbed.
Despite being a unique creature, the behemoth is extremely territorial. It marks its territory by waving its tree-like tail to spread its foul-smelling, toxic faeces around the borders of its territory. The faeces, whilst toxic to most animals, make extremely fertile soil for plants to grow in.

Additional Information

Uses, Products & Exploitation

Behemoth flesh is edible, and certain sapient races that know of this regularly parasitise the behemoth to harvest a small bounty from it. This is never enough to cause permanent damage to the beast; it is unknown as to whether such a feat is even possible. The parasitism does, however, aggravate the creature if done so excessively. Communities that live mutually within the behemoth often chase off intruders that try to take more flesh than they deem acceptable. Behemoth meat is a tough but sweet and gamey meat. It has a peculiar, ammonia-like aroma that many find unpleasantly close to the scent of urine.
Behemoth faeces have also been harvested and harnessed for their highly combustible nature. The stench makes the faeces ill-suited for fuel within an abode, but is very useful for undermining and ignition-powered weaponry. Behemoth faeces are also spectacularly effective fertilisers.
Behemoth tusks are made from ivory, often encrusted with salt and diamonds, and tipped with iron. Their molars have these materials in less abundant quantities, excluding the iron tips, but they are shed naturally, and hence are harvested as a source of salt, diamonds, and ivory for those lucky enough to leave the behemoth's mouth undigested.

Facial characteristics

Firsthand sights have confirmed that the behemoth has a large, metal ring through its nasal septum, similar to those used by auroch ranchers, the origin of which is unknown.

Average Intelligence

The behemoth is intelligent enough to speak Draconic, and whilst it is an animal it does have high emotional intelligence.

Perception and Sensory Capabilities

The behemoth has huge, flat, blood-rich ears which serve both to cool the creature and provide it with excellent sensitive hearing. Its eyes, which are situated on the top of its head, and nictitating membranes allow it to see whilst submerged, though its eyesight is poor. Its nostrils, located at the end of its long, flat trunk, grant the behemoth keen olfactory senses. The behemoth suffers from a muted sense of touch, due to its extreme size and thick, robust hide. As such, many other creatures are able to live atop or even within the behemoth without disturbing the beast.

Symbiotic and Parasitic organisms

A large variety of invertebrates, fish, and small mammals live atop or within the behemoth, which is itself a unique ecosystem that can sustain life. Most noteworthy amongst these are tineana and a race of mysterious piscine people that like harmoniously within the behemoth.

Though not exhaustive, below is a more complete list of the creatures that live in and upon the behemoth as either parasites or mutualistic fauna:

• Salmon
• Enenras
• Marana
• Giant octopi
• Constricting moray eels
• Common toads
• Requiem sharks
• Cockles
• Panther sharks
• Talon crabs
• White sharks
• Elementals
• Bleeding-heart monkeys
• Wolf spiders
• Fiery serpents
• Turtles
• Mosquitoes
• Coconut crabs
• Sasquatches
• Bats
• Aurochs
• Tineana
• Shovelers
• Hyraxes
• Belbasona
• Lycanthropes
• Goblins
• Orcs
• Ogres
• Dwarfs
• Hags
• Oreads
• Hobgoblins
• Manicores
• Land sharks
• Apportation spiders
• Ettins
• Perytons
• Pegasi
• Trolls
• Cyclopes
• Giants
• Horses
• Camels
• Hyenas
• Wolves
• Panthers
• Deathstalkers
• Death worms
• Nums
• Wights
• Revenants
• Skeletons
• Mummies
• Genies
• Sphinxes
• Gorgons
• Harpies
• Black shucks
• Chimeras
• Rats
• Ghouls
• Ambulanta
• Will-o'-wisps
• Kappas
• Ghasts
• Hydras
• Fungal infected
• Gnomes
• Shades
• Myrmidons
• Vampires
• Wraiths
• Svartalfar
• Nematodes and various other parasitic worms

The following flora are also known to grow in or on the behemoth:

• Coconuts
• Mammoth grass
• Sacred lotuses
• Wild rice
• Burning vines
• Bonnet mushrooms
• Coffee

Scientific Name

Daemon

Lifespan

As of yet, a behemoth death has not been confirmed

Conservation Status

The behemoth rests for long periods of time, meaning it has been thought extinct many times. To anybody's knowledge only one such creature exists.

Average Height

1250ft

Average Weight

1600 tonnes

Average Length

2000ft

Body Tint, Colouring and Marking

The behemoth has a scar across its back, upon which nothing grows. To the unknowing observer, the scar appears, feels, and acts like desert glass.

Geographic Distribution

• Feloterra

Discovered by

Noira