Cetus

Cetuses are immense sea creatures that live in the frozen waters of the Frigid Depths.

Appearance
The mother cetus encountered by the Mighty Nein while crossing the Frigid Depths was fifteen to twenty feet from side to side and close to fifty or sixty feet front to back. It had dull gray, thick scaled hide over a humped shoulder, and three pairs of large, heavy flippers that were large at the back and slowly descended in size to the base. It had an almost Plesiosaur-type neck and head, and bright pink-red eyes. The head was about seven to ten feet from edge to edge, with bulbous eyes, two nose slits, and multiple rows of jagged, sharp teeth.

The two babies that accompanied her were of similar coloration, but no more than ten feet across and twenty-five feet in length.

Characteristics
Cetuses are an extremely rare sea creature to the point where they feature in mythical stories to scare sailors and to warn people of territorial beasts that live in the furthest-off parts of the ocean. Cetuses are territorial and at least somewhat intelligent.

The cetuses encountered by the Mighty Nein ate pastries, fish, and the balance of the party's fancy rations, indicating they are at least somewhat omnivorous. The mother creature allowed Jester to pet it on the nose while she was feeding it a dried fish. In gratitude for the food, the creatures then led the Midnight Hammer through the ice fields, allowing it to cut a day off their journey.

Trivia

 * There is a creature called a "cetus" in the Paizo Pathfinder bestiary, but the physical description and behavior are significantly different than the creature the party encountered.
 * In Ancient Greek, a cetus is any huge sea creature or sea monster. In mythology, Perseus slew Cetus to save Andromeda from being sacrificed to it, and Heracles slew Cetus to save Hesione. The word "cetus" was also used to describe the giant fish that ate Jonah in the Bible.