overview

Deinokolyana (meaning "hell's terrible hyena") is a demonic feliform-chimeraform mammal originating from the Underworld. It is more commonly known as the "Laughing Death" for its haunting laughing call heard just before it strikes its prey.

The species consists of two subspecies, deinokolyana imperator and deinokolyana minor. They can easily be told apart by their size, the most eye-catching difference between the two subspecies.
While d. minor generally reaches the size of a regular spotted hyena, deinokolyana imperator reaches more than double that size, easily towering over a human's head.

appearance

general

The general description applies to both d. imperator and d. minor.
Deinokolyana have a hyena-like, usually dark-coloured body with varying spotted or striped patterns and a thin furless tail with at least one bony spike at the end. They have feline front legs, ungulate hind legs with sharp dew claws, and large avian wings and tail feathers at the base of their tail.
A pair of curled horns grow above the eyes and around the long pointed ears of the creature, adorned with at least two spikes. They have large upper canine teeth and retractable, forward facing tusks in their lower jaw.
Females are generally slightly larger than male specimens.

deinokolyana minor

Deinokolyana minor is the more common subspecies, with an average shoulder height of around 80 centimeters. Their eyes have a black sclera, their irises are various shades and hues ranging between red and yellow.

deinokolyana imperator

The subspecies deinokolyana imperator is the larger of the two, reaching a shoulder height of up to 2.30 meters. They have much larger upper canines, resembling those of sabertooth cats, and longer tusks. Their horn shape is much more variable than that of d. minor, ranging from almost straight to tightly curled around the demonic creature's ears.
Their dew claws are bigger and sharper, as are the claws on their front legs. D. imperator have longer and thicker manes along the back of their necks and small spikes along the spine of their lower back. The spikes on their tail tip are generally larger than those of d. minor. Some individuals also possess a large claw on each of their wings.
The most unusual feature of this creature is the lack of eyeballs. Instead, their eye sockets each possess a small floating orb. Despite the lack of eyeballs, d. imperator seems to have better vision than d. minor.

behaviour

social

Deinokolyana minor are very social creatures, living in packs of up to 30 individuals. They exhibit pack behaviour similar to wolves and provide for each member with great care. The common subspecies is polygamous, meaning they have multiple partners throughout their life.
D. imperator on the other hand mainly live a solitary life, or in pairs as they mate for life. Rarely singular individuals are seen among packs of d. minor, able to control the entire pack at once like a hive mind.
Both subspecies court potential partners by sharing gifts like favourite prey items.

territorial

The Laughing Death is very territorial and aggressive towards other species. If necessary, multiple packs can temporarily share a territory, which sometimes leads to both packs merging together.

relationship with humans

This species is usually aggressive towards humans, but some specimens, both d. minor and d. imperator, have been seen together with humans with an established bond similar to that of early dogs.

more Images

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