Black Whale

The is a large transport ship built for Kakin's Dark Continent expedition. As its name suggests, it resembles a whale, able to carry 200,000 people.

Background
King Nasubi has declared his country will build 20 of these ships in a year. He also promised to send 100 million people to the New Continent within 5 years.

Description
The interior of these ships is simple as it was specialized for transport, but that meant it was built at low cost and in less time. The top of the ship can be reached by airships. While on the water, ferries are put to use for the general public to embark the ship.

Black Whale 1
The commemorative first ship is scheduled to carry Beyond as well as the King and 14 Princes. Civilians will be picked by lottery, and the odds of landing a seat on the first ship is 1 in 1300.

The official voyage to the Dark Continent or the pretend New Continent will last about two months. In three weeks the ship will exit humanity's normal navigation and fishing waters called the Territorial Waters. There the vessel will be refueled and a final check will be performed before venturing for five weeks in Uncharted Waters. Severe storms, waterspouts, fluctuations in the weather and the presence of flying creatures fighting over territories and struggling for survival will necessitate closing the top dome of the ship during these five weeks.



The Black Whale is layered into five tiers. Each hosts different classes of people. The throughways between tiers are guarded by the royal army since the whole ship will be under martial law. The second and third tiers are separated by a thick bulkhead which can be only opened in emergencies from the second tier side. Meaning only the Tiers 1 and 2 are considered "hunting grounds" for the Succession Battle among the Kakin princes.

The number of clinics is a fifth of what was planned. Only one out of fifteen of the planned doctors came. Cheadle had to hire more and reorganize the staff.

Tier 1


Tier 1 (1層, Is-sō) is a boat situated directly above Tier 2. It's structured to host the Kakin Royal Family, V5 politicians and industry dignitaries. It also serves as the main "hunting ground" for the Succession Battle among the Kakin Princes. The top dome of the Black Whale will be closed once the ship reaches the Uncharted Waters to ensure safety against the rough weather and the predatory flying creatures.

King's Living Quarters
The King's living quarters (王居住区, Ō kyojū-ku) is where King Nasubi resides. It's located next to the Reception Hall, thus being separated from the Princes' living quarters.

Princes' Living Quarters


The Princes' living quarters (王子居住区, Ōji kyojū-ku) can only be accessed via a entrance which lies opposite to the Banquet Hall, and is guarded by soldiers from the royal army. The collective living quarters is enclosed by a wall with seven doors on its two sides. The fourteen doors leads to the individual chambers of the fourteen Princes. The living quarters are jammed together in an array of two rows with seven chambers in each row. The individual rooms are identical, fairly big and numbered from 1001 to 1014 each respective to its Prince's birth order. Each consists of a living room, a Prince's master bedroom, a dining room, a kitchen and a bathroom. There also exists a living quarters for the Prince's servants.

VVIP Private Recreational Facilities
The VVIP private recreational facilities (ブイビップ王子専用娯楽施設, Buibippu Ōji sen'yō goraku shisetsu) are designated for the Princes and are located on the right side of the Princes' living quarters.

Soldiers/Associates' Living Quarters
The soldiers/associates' living quarters (兵士・準会員生活区, Heishi/Junkaiin seikatsu-ku) can be reached from the left side of the Princes' living quarters which is heavily guarded by soldiers. Following these quarters there's a passageway that leads to the lower tiers.

Ceremony Hall


The ceremony hall (セレモニー会場, Seremonī kaijō) is a big venue furnished with many dining tables. The Departure Ceremony celebrations were held here at the beginning of the voyage.

Reception Hall
The reception hall (迎賓館, Geihinkan) is located between the King's and Princes' living quarters.

It's unclear if this is the same place as the ceremony hall.

Banquet Hall
The banquet hall (宴会ホール, Enkai hōru) is located between the King's and Princes' living quarters. Every Sunday all Princes will attend dinner parties to which dignitaries are also invited. However, they will enter and leave the banquet hall at prescribed times and no prince will pass another in transit.

It's unclear if this is the same place as the ceremony hall.

Beyond Holding Cell


Beyond holding cell (べヨンド拘束室, Beyondo kōsoku-shitsu) is used to seize Beyond Netero during the whole voyage in accordance to his contract with V5 which states that he should be staying in a room under 24-hour watch, with chaperones accompanying him in outings, and that his whereabouts will be monitored via an anklet with a tracking device, with any future communications being managed and monitored. Currently three Zodiacs (Saccho, Saiyu and Kanzai) are watching over him from outside the cell. The cell itself is very small, only able to include a urinal and a bed for Beyond whose right arm is restrained by a manacle which is bolted into the cell's wall. Saccho plans to suggest a rotation to Mizaistom so one of them go support the royal army.

Tier 2


Tier 2 (2層, Ni-sō) is located at the highest level inside the Black Whale vessel itself. It's lying directly under the separate boat that acts as the first tier of the overall Black Whale. Tier 2 is structured to host celebrities and the rich, and is separated from the third tier by a thick bulkhead which can be only opened in emergencies from the second tier side. The fatal downside is that causes Tier 2 to also become a part of the "hunting grounds" for the upcoming Succession Battle among the Kakin Princes.

Theater Venue


The theatre venue (シアター会場, Shiatā kaijō) is a small auditorium room with a big projection screen and a side-way balcony. After the departure of the Black Whale 1, a presenter explains there to the audience the details of the two-month voyage.

Tier 3
Tier 3 (3層, San-sō) is in the middle portion of the vessel. It's structured to host the general passengers and is separated from the second tier by a thick bulkhead which can be only opened in emergencies from the second tier side. Mizaistom informed Kurapika that the crime rate in this tier along with tier 4 is higher than he anticipated: crimes that include ticket fraud, theft, racial conflicts, drunken brawls, identity theft, assault and plenty of false reports on top of it all. People believe if someone commits a crime, their ticket will be invalidated and someone from the wait-list gets to go in their place. There has been statements that if someone reports the crime of a ticket holder, that person will get their spot. But since Kakin's responses hasn't been consistent there could be a riot. There are three clinics on Tier 3.

First-Class Cabin


The first-class cabin (1等客室, Ittō kyakushitsu) is located in the highest tier meant for general passengers. At the beginning of the voyage, four Zodiacs (Gel, Pyon, Ginta and Cluck) alongside Sanbica and Tokarine discuss the differences between Kakin's official voyage and the actual voyage to the Dark Continent.

Central Medical Clinic


The central medical clinic (中央医療室, Chūō iryō-shitsu) is one of the three clinics located in Tier 3. It's supervised by the Hunter Association Chairman, Cheadle Yorkshire who's also a member of the Zodiacs Science Team. She orders members of her team (including Leorio) to shelf and label the various medicines, and restock rows once they're used up.

Central Courthouse


The central courthouse (中央裁判所, Chūō saibansho) is responsible for ensuring security on the Black Whale. It's headed by Botobai Gigante, a member of the Zodiacs Defense Team, who's acting as the court's judge. The room is filled with soldiers from the Kakin royal army that keep order and guide the defendants to the courtroom, a clerk to keep the records, and what appears to be lay judges.

Tier 4
Tier 4 (4層, Yon-sō) is structured to host the general passengers. Mizaistom informed Kurapika that the crime rate in this tier along with tier 3 is higher than he anticipated: crimes that include ticket fraud, theft, racial conflicts, drunken brawls, identity theft, assault and plenty of false reports on top of it all. People believe if someone commits a crime, their ticket will be invalidated and someone from the wait list gets to go in their place. There has been statements that if someone reports the crime of a ticket holder, that person will get their spot. But since Kakin's responses hasn't been consistent there could be a riot. Even though it's the largest of all tiers, there's only one clinic in Tier 4.

Kakin Royal Army Conference Room


The Kakin royal army conference room (カキン国王軍会議室, Kakin kokuō-gun kaigijitsu) is responsible for ensuring security on the Black Whale. It's the meeting point for people affiliated with the royal army and is currently headed by Mizaistom Nana who is also a part of the Zodiacs Intelligence Team. Mizaistom is performing background checks of candidates after obtaining the passenger list of the Black Whale 1. He mentioned that the crime rate in Tiers 3 and 4 are higher than he anticipated: crimes that include ticket fraud, theft, racial conflicts, drunken brawls, identity theft, assault and plenty of false reports on top of it all. People believe if someone commits a crime, their ticket will be invalidated and someone from the wait list gets to go in their place. There has been statements that if someone reports the crime of a ticket holder, that person will get their spot. But since Kakin's responses hasn't been consistent there could be a riot.

Tier 5
Tier 5 (5層, Go-sō) is located at the very bottom of the vessel; next to the propeller. It's also the smallest of the lower tiers constructed to host the general passengers. There is only one clinic in Tier 5 with no dedicated doctors.

Trivia

 * The division of classes in the Black Whale resembles that of the RMS Titanic, a British passenger ship notorious for its sinking in 1912. The classes were separated similarly, with the richer passengers being closer to the top while the poorer were nearer to the bottom.