Obsidian Eel

Obsidian eels are strange lamprey-like creatures that live deep beneath the Burbling Silk Sea, occasionally peeking through to the surface just long enough to scavenge or startle sandsailors. Little is known about these crystalline serpents of the Red Depths.

Basic Information

Anatomy

Obsidian eels are eyeless, serpentine creatures comprised of a crystalline, segmented carapace capped at one end with a circular, toothy maw. The segments of an obsidian eel's body are broadly square and tapered towards the back such that the creature needs merely to strech and compress its body to pull itself through the loose crimson silt that pools in the low parts of the Red Velvet Desert. The caudal extents of each segment terminate in tetrahedral spikes to improve grip on loose surfaces and dissuade whatever predators might hunt them in the depths. Obsidian eels are observed to have four-fold radial symmetry and no particular prefference in terms of spatial orientation other than to keep their mouths towards any movement they might perceive (see Perception & Sensory/Extrasensory Capabilities).
Though most obsidian eels observed on the surface are between two and three feet in length and up to eight inches in diameter at the widest point, it is currently believed that only death can cause an obsidian eel to stop growing. 'Fish tales' of obsidian eels large enough to capsize sandsails and swallow Rostrans whole are difficult to confirm.

Genetics and Reproduction

Obsidian eel breeding habits have never been directly observed, and the creature lacks any apparent specialized reproductive organs. Some obsidian eels have shown cracks along the flatter portions of their segments where shedding has begun to take place, and small specimens have been observed 'carrying' the broken quadrants of larger obsidian eel's segments atop their 'heads' near the mouth parts. For this reason, it is believed that shedding to allow for growth may also play a role in asexual reproduction by budding.

Ecology and Habitats

Obsidian eels rarely come to the surface and have almost exclusively been observed within the Burbling Silk Sea. They are believed to spend most of their lives deep in the silt, scraping the bottom for meals of chemosynthetic bacteria and the other strange organisms that live in the dark and heat of that environment.

Dietary Needs and Habits

Obsidian eels are believed to be scavengers and detritivores, perhaps typically subsisting on microbial colonies that accumulate near the deep geothermal vents of the Burbling Silk Sea. Though thuroughly alien in appearance, obsidian eel carcasses and cast-off segments show under chemical analysis that they are 'terrestrial' in terms of amino acid chirality, meaning that they are capable of eating other terrestrial organisms and incapable of eating Distal organisms.

Additional Information

Perception and Sensory Capabilities

Obsidian eels are not observed to external eyes, though the obsidian-like material of the creature's segments might be transparent in some wavelengths and, thus, allow for concealed eyespots. Instead, obsidian eels are believed to hunt based on combination of tremor sense, hearing, and chemoreception.

Geographic Distribution

• Burbling Silk Sea