These fish ain't magical or not'ing, but they still tough as nails and fight ya to til end. Too bad their so delicious, and we got plenty of time and harpoons. - Vilanto Deep Sea Fisherman
Biology
The Torwin are one of the large fish varieties that call the Vilanto Sea home. They can grow up to 12 feet long and weigh up to 600 pounds. They have rough blue and red striped skin that almost feels like leather to the touch. They are extremely muscular and lean with only a few strips of condensed fat on their body.
They have developed several biological features that have allowed them to survive and thrive in the often dangerous waters in the southern reaches of the Vilanto Sea. Three of which are quite unique;
Electrified Pulse
The Torwin, have developed an organ that holds an electrical charge. They use the organ in two ways, one in which they use they subtle release small amounts of electricity, which acts as a sort of small prey locator. Not much is known about the workings of this effect but some theorize that it may even attract certain small prey as well.
The secondary use is a defensive mechanism used in dire situations. The Torwin can overload the organ and cause a large emission of voltaic energy to discharge in a large circumference surrounding them. The bigger and older the Torwin the stronger and larger the effect is. Its use is to stun or kill, the attacker or large prey by completely electrifying the water nearby. And since Torwin live in saltwater, an electrical charge can be carried while submerged.
Overloading this organ does have a poor effect on the Torwin, knocking itself loopy for a short while before it can recover. Though in the wild the feature is still useful as the Torwin typically recover much faster than their attacker or prey. But fishermen have found a way to take advantage of this feature, pressuring the creature to discharge its electricity by firing off a dummy harpoon. Scaring the creature into discharging preemptively, stunning itself briefly so that the fisherman can take aim and fire a barbed harpoon into the Torwin before dragging it aboard their ship.
Inflation Bladders
The Torwin have several inflatable bladders that they use in order to push themselves through the difficult currents of the deep sea. There are two primary bladders, one that runs along the Torwin's spin, and the other which lies beneath its stomach. The Torwin are able to fill either or both with water and/or air, they do this in order to sink or rise through the strong currents more easily.
It is unknown how they know so well the exact mixture of water and air required to accomplish these feats. Large rocks and other debris have been found in these bladders, but a thin wall of cartilage holds them in a chamber before the main bladder. Allowing the Torwin to easily eject the debris, or hold on to it for extra weight where required.
Unhinged Jaws
The Torwin have two rows of sharpened teeth, one on the top of their jaws, and one on the bottom. Used to rend and tear the flesh of their prey. Along the bottom row of sharp teeth is a secondary row of flattened teeth used for grinding and cracking through the bones of hardier fish. And the occasional crustacean.
Torwin are also able to completely unhinge their jaws and suck in massive amounts of water, or air, when filling their bladders. They use several different valves and esophagus-like tubes to direct where things go. Another handy side effect of this ability is that it allows the Torwin to swallow up small schools of tiny fish in one gulp.
Discovery
The Torwin were first discovered by accident after a school of them were pulled into the shallower waters closer to the southern coast by an errant and strong current. Out of pure curiosity, one fishing vessel, that just so happened to be equipped with a large harpoon system, decided to kill and inspect one of these creatures. They discovered several things by doing so, one that the Torwin can emit an electric charge. As the speared fish discharged a ball of lightning into the waters surrounding it, stunning and killing several other fish. And the second is that this large creature turned out to be delicious.
The fisherman carved up some of the creatures whilst still aboard his ship and shared it with his crew. They found that much of the meat was bitter and tough, but that a small percentage of it was juicy and tasted naturally smoked. A new taste for certain. The crew cut up the rest of the fish and went back to their families and friends and shared the treat. After a while the tale of the smokey-tasting fish spread around town and other fishermen sailed out, catching, butchering, and selling the remaining Torwin that hand wandering into shallower water.
After this discovery and the knowledge that the Torwin's meat was delicious, fisherman tracked the Torwin back to their territorial waters. A difficult journey, as the Torwin's preferred habitat, are the deep waters on the edges of charted waters in the southern Vilanto Sea. A dangerous place for those that aren't prepared for it.
Habitat
The deep waters of the southern Vilanto sea is where the Torwin call home. The water becomes icy and difficult to navigate due to its shifting and powerful currents. The area is also prone to extreme storms and high winds, which makes sailing even more difficult for traditional sail and mast style ships. Sailors have fallen in during trips to the region, and they are not often saved as the body very quickly loses function due to the cold, and with the person unable to fight back, the strong current easily sweeps them away before rescue. Often underneath the waves, crushed by the currents and quickly drowned.
The dark waters are even a difficult area for marine life, mostly due to the strong currents that erratically shift in the upper regions of the deep water. As such, large predators are rare in this area, with the Torwin being the largest of the few predators. Surprisingly several dozen varieties of smaller fish have survived out in these depths. All of these smaller fish varieties have survived by diving deeply into the water's depths and staying well below the turbulent currents.
The Torwin in turn are one of the few large predators in the area to develop the ability to dive deeply through the difficult currents and withstand the crushing pressures of the deep sea in order to hunt. This has granted them access to the smaller varieties of fish that live in abundance deep below. And being one of the few predators of the area are easily able to snap up most of their prey with ease and grow to their large sizes.
Recent Popularity in the Fishing Industry
The Torwin have recently become a popular fish to eat in the southern coastal regions of Fyria, specifically The Jungles of Mijhail, Ithosia, and the Island Frontier of the Vilanto Sea. As previously described, the people of these areas got a taste of the Torwin when a small school of them were found and caught in more reasonably traversable waters, about eight to ten years ago. Since then the fishing industry has struggled to keep up with the growing demands for Torwin, with the Ithosia Boats and Fishery Company and their
Ithosian Longfarers becoming the leading company providing Torwin meat to the public.
About thirty percent of the meat on a torwin's body is edible, tasting somehow of naturally smoked meat. The remaining meat is bitter and tough and is typically discarded, as most other fish don't find it edible either so it is not even used for chum. Several fisheries have been trying to make this bitter meat more palatable, as the loss of such mass amounts of meat is considered a shame and a loss of possible profitability.
Questions surrounding poor practices and overfishing have recently started to circulate. Stating that the Ithosia Boats and Fishery Company, and other smaller competitors, are overfishing the Torwin and doing so in inhumane ways. Using magically enhanced weaponry and barbed hooks to stun and skewer live Torwin, before dragging them aboard their boats and killing them with large cleavers and hooks.
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