Feskrill
A feskrill is a four-legged, carnivorous, spine-backed mammal native to the Shadowhunter Forest in Niera. They are feared by animals and man alike, with a reputation as ruthless hunters who strike without warning. They have a lifespan of between 20 and 30 years. They have three distinct stages of life: childhood (0-3 years), maturation (3-7 years), and adulthood (>7 years).
Description
Adult feskrills are two feet tall and four feet long, covered in brown fur, with long snouts and black eyes. They have lean bodies with long, slender legs and a long, muscular tail. Their long legs and tail allow them to move quickly and perform unparalleled feats of dexterity and acrobatics for their size. They have long claws and sharp fangs used for killing and consuming prey. They have tall, pointed ears, similar in appearance to a wolf's. These ears give them good hearing, which makes up for their poor sense of smell and relatively poor eyesight.
Quills
Feskrill cubs do not have quills. Starting in adolescence, feskrills develop 1.5 meter long quills protruding from their backs. These quills are five centimeters wide at the base, made primarily of keratin. At formation they taper off to a needle sharp point, but they have been known to dull or break with age. Because of this, quills are shed and regrown yearly in adult feskrills.
The quills have no natural exit point on the skin, so they must pierce the flesh to emerge, a process which is extremely painful. It begins at the start of maturation and continues for the rest of the feskrill's life. Towards the end of maturation, the quills begin to secrete a venom which paralyzes captured prey and also numbs their constant pain. This experience leads to adult feskrill having a tremendous tolerance for pain, with reports of feskrill continuing to fight at full energy after losing a limb or becoming partially disembowled.
When in danger, feskrills can launch their quills up to 10 meters with enough force to puncture leather. This can only be done with detached quills, which is a quill that has separated from the skeleton and connective tissue in preparation for being shed. Of a feskrill's 20 to 25 quills, only one or two will typically be detached at any given moment.
Hide
Feskrill fur is dark brown in color. The quills piercing their flesh leave gaping wounds on the feskrill's back. Fresh quills emerge coated in an antimicrobial secretion which prevents the wound from getting infected until it scabs over. During maturation, feskrills develop a tough plate-like armor made from the scar tissue on their back. If left long enough, these plates would fuze together and begin to heal, but a feskrill's constant movement prevents this. Because of its constant failed healing, feskrill hide is known to leak puss and blood.
Venom
Feskrill quills begin producing venom at the end of maturation. It is a thin, dark purple liquid, with a smell animal researchers have called "indescribably vile" and "beyond description in any language... an act of pure violence against the nostrils". The venom is primarily secreted from an opening a few centimeters above the tip of the quill, but is also released through a channel of porous material running down its length. The venom is a topical anesthetic and, when injected, can cause paralysis or even death.
Its anesthetic properties has caused it to be adopted in medical procedures. The venom is collected from dropped quills or slain feskrills and then diluted into a serum used to numb pain or put patients under for surgery.
Some have also tried to use the venom as a drug, mixing it with other substances and ingesting it. All attempts have been of unsuccessful, with most products having a high probability of fatal overdose or lasting negative psychological effects. Because of this, some areas treat feskrill venom as a controlled substance reserved for the medical industry. This has caused uproar from hunters and animal handlers who use the venom in sleeping darts and animal sedatives.
Behavior
Feskrills are crepuscular, typically hunting during the early morning or dusk.
Childhood (Cubs)
Feskrill cubs are surprisingly docile, open to forming extremely close bonds with any creature that will protect and raise it. Abandoned feskrill cubs have been found being raised by wolves, bears, and even bobcats. Cubs have also been raised by humans, but as with all animals, the feskrill loses all attachment to their surrogate parents after reaching maturity. Because of this, while feskrill cubs are safe to be around, raising them as pets is highly discouraged and even illegal in most areas.
Maturity (Rike)
A feskrill undergoing the process of maturity is known as a "rike feskrill", or simply a "rike". Maturity usually begins around three years of age, and officially starts when the first quill breaks the surface of skin. This process is extremely painful for the animal, and in the days leading up the cub will become visibly agitated and frantic. The quill usually breaks the skin while the rike is sleeping, awakening the creature and sending it into a blood rage. The pain will only get worse over the next year, as more quills develop and tear the flesh. Rikes cope with this pain by hunting to exhaustion and collapsing, then waking up after a few hours of rest and repeating the process. Fueled by pain and the intent of exhaustion, rikes are exceptionally dangerous and unpredictable. During this time, they will leave their pack and hunt in solitude. Near the end of the maturity, the start of venom production will being to dull a rike's violent behavior.
Adulthood (Adult)
A few months after the start of venom production, the pain will have mostly subsided, causing the feskrill to become less aggressive and tempermental. As this time coincides with sexual maturity, feskrills will join a nearby pack, in hope of finding a mate. While some adults—normally females—continue to hunt in solitude, it is rare for them to find a mate. From this point on, feskrills are pack hunters, moving in groups of between three and five. While not as vicious as rikes, their numbers, formidable pack tactics, and venom make adult feskrills a much greater threat overall.
Social behavior
Feskrill packs can get as large as 150 adults and cubs. Packs below 10 adults will typically seek to unite with others if one is available. Feskrills have a very weak social hierarchy, with the leader of a hunting team often being the strongest or oldest of the group. They mate for life but are not monogamous. Feskrills are quite infertile, with the conception rate for any given mating act being less than 10%. To combat this, female feskrills take on multiple partners, mating several times a day for the month long period of fertility. To supply this demand, males will also take on multiple partners. A female will signal she is in heat by secreting pheromones. The male will signal interest, and the female will accept by flattening her quills against her back. If she rejects, she will bristle her quills, and the male will be unable to mount her. Homosexuality has not been observed among feskrills.
Hunting patterns
Feskrill adopt a tactical, stealthy attack pattern, using their agility and speed to stalk their prey through the forest and grasslands. On smaller prey, they will catch it by surprise, pouncing from the shadows and biting open its neck with their fangs. Those that escape the initial encounter are chased down and slashed with its claws. For larger prey, the pack surrounds the target and ambushes it, performing a series of feint maneuvers to goad the target into retaliating or running away. By performing the actions as a group, the pack exhausts the target and renders it helpless.
Relationship with society
Feskrill are one of the world's most feared hunters. Though not the most deadly for armed hunters, its ferocity and cunning make it a terror for travelers and countrymen. Spotting a roaming feskrill on the tree line is often a cause for panic amongst villagers, as its pack is likely nearby. Though they tend to eat forest animals, they have been known to eat goats, sheep, and even cattle on farms. They rarely attack higher races when not provoked, though this provocation could come in the form of trespassing in their territory, which a person could do without knowing.