Harkbeast

The Pneuma-engine of the ship droned silently, the only noise aboard the vessel, despite the dozen people standing and sitting on its deck. A veil of thick mist clung to the figures aboard, hiding them from sight. But the crew of the ship knew that they needn't worry about being seen- only heard. The wood-and-metal hull creaked slightly as it bobbed back and forth in the calm waves, a rarity this far out. Normally these seas were wracked by storms, which would be tossing the ship around as the crew members tried desperately to keep it upright in the water. But any of the members currently on board would happily trade the calm seas for rough waves. In these waters, calm seas brought icy fear into the veins of all seafarers, hardened veterans and wobbly novices alike.
The reason for that fear is what currently had the crew on deck paralyzed, afraid to move a single muscle, or even breath too hard. They had all seen it breach the water a few hundred feet off the starboard side, and they'd all called for silence then. But when they felt it bump the bottom of the hull, causing the ship to bob back and forth as it brushed the keel, a total hush had fallen over the entirety of the ship.
And suddenly they all felt it again, heard a sound like a knife being sharpened as its scales brushed the metal of the hull, and watched carefully as everything around them shifted with the movement of the ship. The creature was massive, easily larger than the ship, as most of them were. Only the largest of vessels could hope to be safe from them, if the creature noticed anything living was on the ship. Sudden movement caught the eye of every single person on deck- a barrel of lingafruit with a split in its side, and a single piece ready to fall. No one could move to stop, none of them were close enough. They waited, not breathing, to see whether luck would stand proudly by them, or abandon them to the ocean depths.
The fruit fell, hitting the deck with a soft noise, like that of a drunk dropping his purse.
And all at once it happened, a maw of enormous teeth breaching the surface of the calm sea, its enormous bulk sending waves racing in all directions. The wooden planks and sheet metal of the ship splintered and crashed in its jaws, the crew torn to ribbons in seconds, devoured without issue in mere seconds. Lives ended, snuffed out because of a fruit.
The ripples subsided, and the sea once again went calm, broken only by the occasional piece of flotsam surfacing from the depths.

Basic Information

Anatomy

An enormous sea-dwelling creature, reminiscent of a whale. Reaching average lengths of 36 feet and an average weight of 12,000 kg, the Harkbeast has four fins, two on each side, and a body covered with scales as hard as steel. Their skeletal structure of their jaws is hinged in such a way to allow them to open to the same width as their body, enabling them to devour smaller creatures whole, and take sizeable chunks from anything larger than them. While not the largest creature in the Trigarius Sea west of Trael, the scales covering their body allow them to tackle much larger creatures in their attempts to find and consume prey.

Genetics and Reproduction

Records of Harkbeast reproduction are sparse, with only a few small accounts detailed in the past several centuries. The visionary ecologist and explorer, Demodon Quill, spent extensive time in his latter years attempting to seek out mating Harkbeasts. While unsubstantiated, his accounts indicate that the larger females of the species hunt down smaller males to mate with, grappling the unfortunate partner into submission, at which point the couple proceeds to mate. This process seems to happen quickly, over the course of several minutes, at which point the injured male is released by the female, and proceeds to swim away. Estimations of gestation period range from several months to a full year or more, with 3 to 4 calfs being the apparent average birth rate.

Growth Rate & Stages

Harkbeast calfs are generally between 6 to 8 feet in length, but with an unknown average weight due to the difficulty of obtaining such specimens. Born with the same scales which protect them later in life, a Harkbeast calf is threatened only by creatures large enough to swallow them whole without choking on the tough body. Calves stay with their mother for upwards of 3 years, until about half their full grown size, an unusually long amount of time for a creature so well adapted to survival. Some researchers believe this to be evidence of a higher than previously estimated intelligence among the Harkbeasts, with a penchant for familial ties, but research provides no substantiating evidence. After leaving the care of their mother, the growth of a junior harkbeast slows significantly, taking another 20 years before reaching full adult size. The lifespan of harkbeasts is ill-researched, with no evidence providing any indication as to their natural lifespan. The oldest known harkbeast, given the moniker of Terrorjaw, is believed to be at least 200 years old, as stories of encounters with the creature date back to such a time.

Ecology and Habitats

The Harkbeast is generally found only in the farthest reaches of the Trigarius Sea, the oceanic expanse located on the Western side of Olgrith, and is only encountered during calm seas, at rare moments when the almost constant storms of the region subside. Variations of the species have been known to appear further North or South, though the warmer and colder seas of each respective region seem to prevent them from traveling much further. The Harkbeast is likely an apex predator, as stories and modern accounts exist of the creatures attacking and devouring larger species without issue, their armored bodies suitably protecting them. Unfortunately, these same scales also make it nearly impossible to injure them with anything but large, high-pressure Pneumatic weapons.

Dietary Needs and Habits

Harkbeasts seem capable, and more than willing, to eat anything and everything they encounter, ranging from small fish and seaborne creatures to entire ships, empty or full. The harkbeast only hunts during calm seas, presumably so that it can better detect the vibrations of movement on the water's surface. It is believed that the harkbeast typically hunts in lower depths, where the constant storms of the Trigarius do not interfere with its method of detection, only surfacing during conditions amicable to it. During the hunt, when it moves to feed, the harkbeast uses the special skeletal structure of its jaw to open its maw as widely as its own body, before bringing the two halves back together with enough force to shear most creatures and vessels into halves. Debris and creatures swallowed in this way move through a series of "rings" of teeth lining its throat, and it uses a combination of these rings and muscular action to grind down what it swallows to digestible portions.

Additional Information

Uses, Products & Exploitation

Because of the incredible difficulties involved in hunting harkbeasts, their byproducts are not a usual part of any city-state economy. When the occasional harkbeast is slain or washes up on shore, their teeth and scales are often harvested for use as weapons and armor, though demand for both is not very high. The teeth, while sharp, are prone to breaking if bent. The scales are comparable to steel in hardness, but lack any sort of aesthetic appeal to their design or color.

Geographic Origin and Distribution

The Western reaches of Olgrith, particularly the central Trigarius Sea, with some found in the northern and southern reaches of the same area.

Average Intelligence

Very low; driven entirely by instinct.

Perception and Sensory Capabilities

Entirely blind, with no observable sensory organs, it is unclear how Harkbeasts sense the world around them. Common sailing knowledge holds it to be sound, but modern examination proves a lack of auditory organs, leading researchers to theorize they may detect minute vibrations, including those of sounds as well as movement, through the scales which line their body.

Symbiotic and Parasitic organisms

Aquatic variations of lashers have been found within the throats of slain harkbeasts, and are assumed to have anchored themselves there after being swallowed, perhaps deliberately. Once anchored to the inner throat of the beast, they feed upon sources of protein swallowed by the larger creature.

Scientific Name

Trigarius Mare Caecus

Lifespan

Unknown; upwards of 200 years

Average Height

9 feet

Average Weight

12,000 kg

Average Length

36 feet

Average Physique

Highly muscular body sheathed in a skin of hardened scales capable of resisting direct blows from other species and even metal weapons of sapient species.

Body Tint, Colouring and Marking

Often dull grey in color, making them even harder to spot in the dark waters of the Trigarius, marked only by the silver gleam present at the tips of their scales.