Leviathans
Leviathans are a unique species on Namkural given a few peculiar factors: they are only ever created by Sozalle, they are solely male, and they will live forever unless they are killed by violent or divine means.
Now and again, one of Nalkalos' berserkers will gain Sozalle's favor without ever having been assigned a witch. Generally, this is accomplished through sheer dumb luck: being in the right place at the right time when the Sea Goddess needs a vessel through which to channel her power, or by being a favorite plaything of one of her Chosen. Once they are killed, Sozalle "rewards" these favored berserkers by turning them into the fearsome leviathans. They then trawl the Yerenthi seas to do her bidding, devouring ships who have wronged her, protecting her other children in the water -- especially coral gardener reefs -- and dispensing violent justice upon those who irk the goddess. The soul of the berserker is still aware in this new body, retaining all memories and personality if not their original form; they are also the only beings, beyond Sozalle and Nalkalos themselves, who can freely 'swim' between Namkural's mortal plane and that of the luna sidhen afterlife.
Basic Information
Anatomy
A terrifying creature usually measuring somewhere between 40 and 42 meters, the black-skinned leviathans are as big as a ship and able to wield destructive force that is half-divine in its origin. With armored bodies and bioluminescent markings, they are roughly shaped like a shark -- but their backs, fronts, and tails are set with lethally sharp spines. Their heads almost resemble the skull of a mammalian predator, bony and armored with a frontal horn and teeth longer than a man's arm. Rather than pectoral fins, they have a pair of long, muscular arms ending in webbed 'hands' and tipped with monstrous claws. If the thrashing of their mighty tail is not enough to upset a smaller ship, they have been known to use these limbs to rip offending vessels apart.
Ecology and Habitats
Fortunately for the denizens of Namkural, leviathans are only found in the Yerenthi seas, as these are the only waterways over which Sozalle and Nalkalos hold domain.
Dietary Needs and Habits
Since they stand somewhat apart from the natural biological order of the plane, leviathans are said to eat only the bodies and souls of luna sidhe and other mortals who have angered their sea goddess. In truth, as they are only half divine, their metabolisms still require meat -- but they digest slowly enough that only rarely do they need to hunt for a meal. Generally, the sinners Sozalle sends them to devour are enough, but they have been known to eat whales, sharks, and other creatures of the sea. Any living beings considered dear or sacred to their goddess, such as coral gardeners, they will not eat.
Genetic Ancestor(s)
Lifespan
Effectively immortal
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