Merfolk
Merfolk (Mermaid for female, Merman for male) are a rare, aquatic based species that is half hueme, half-fish, with the lower half being some aquatic creature. Typically it may be a fish, or a marine mammalian, like whales, or even species like seals. Some species may even have their "tails" be that of a jelly fish, or a squid and octopus.
Originally, Merfolk came from the union between the Waveborn and Huemes. The resulting children then returned to the ocean with their Waveborn parents, and while they are slightly looked down upon in Waveborn culture, they're still allowed to live amongst them. However, it's very common for Mermaids to actually come onto the land and have more mermaid children with other species.
Merfolk are scattered throughout Eon and are not restricted to any region, though variants based off of their tail, magic and diet may be. Despite them originating from Hueme and Waveborn, Merfolk can actually be other species, such as Brashur , Anisu or even Goblin .
Both full blooded and hybrid mermaids can have a disguise fit for the species that they mostly look like - hybrids have to be careful though, as sometimes being hydrated with salt water or even regular water can revert them back into a mermaid and cause them to grow their attributes and tail.
Basic Information
Anatomy
Merfolk are typically extremely beautiful, with elongated facial features. Their ears are large and finlike, covered in scales that fade to the sides of their faces. They may also have a scale pattern from their hairline to their forehead, and on their chins and down their necks. This scale pattern can repeat over their shoulders, their arms, backs and if they're full-blooded, it can even show on their thighs and legs.
Outside of the half-fish anatomy that merfolk have, the skeletal structure is pretty similar to huemes with the difference in a lighter bone density, which makes it easier for them to swim in water. They may also have less bones in their merfolk form due to their tails.
As mentioned previously, merfolk can have many, different tail designs and it's not just restricted to fish The following is a list that has, but is not limited to, the types:
- White fish, like tilapia, catfish
- Clown fish
- Triggerfish
- Salmon
- Eel
- Sea Snake
- Octopus/Squids
- Jellyfish
Biological Traits
Merfolk have a very long life span, usually up to about 500 years on average. This is usually dependent on them having a water source nearby or living in water, as it's a requirement for all of them to be hydrated sufficiently. (Unless its a Brashur-Merfolk child, to which they don't have to worry about the specifics and can live on land.)
Merfolk are not restricted to any skin color unless they're taking on a more hueme color palette for their disguise. The colors can range from a deep blue, to a light pink, with the scales typically matching the color of their tails.
Their tails can grow to be really long, with the average length of the tails along being about 6 feet.
Merfolk also have gills (which are actually on their tails) when underwater or in contact with water, but are not visible when in disguise. They do need to properly keep them hydrated by applying water or "drinking" water through them in order not to dry up and wilt away.
The only sexual dimorphism that mermaids and mermen have are the breasts on the chest, which even then, it's possible on Eon to have them. They all usually look the same, or can look the same, and dress just as sexually charged as one another as well.
Genetics and Reproduction
Merfolk breed through fertilization by eggs and sperm, like mammals. Mermen can impregnate females while mermaids can be impregnated. As mentioned before, merfolk can breed with any species that allows for it, though harder species are going to be already difficult to breed with.
Gestation time for mermaids is usually 5 months after the eggs are laid after proper fertilization. After keeping the eggs warm and supplied with proper nutrients, the children hatch. Full blooded merfolk children already have their tails and know how to swim, with the parents usually teaching them how to forage for food and resources. The children are raised until they're at a sufficient adult age (with many tribes having differentiation with when adulthood starts), and they can choose to stay within the community they were raised in or leave to make their own or go on land. Most stay within their community, however.
Hybrid mermaids breed the same as mammalian species on Eon, though. The breeding, gestation time and live birth is all the same as Huemes having children, except the children are capable of switching into their merfolk forms when they hit puberty (around 10-15 years old in Hueme years, it may be later depending on the species)
The maturity of when merfolk can have children is typical of 21 years old in Hueme years, for both hybrids and full blooded.
Ecology and Habitats
The habitat and ecology can wildly vary depending on when and where the merfolk decide to live - it's known that they live pretty much anywhere with a sea, near the coastline of an ocean and even lakes, but what they may be and how they live their lives can make for interesting combination choices.
Northern merfolk (i.e the onesthat live near Helholtt, Skaalsborg, and even further possibly in the theorized lakes of Niflheim) all are based off of sea creatures with a lot of fat and insulation in order to tolerate the extreme colds. Merfolk with tails based off of pinnipeds (sea lions, walruses) and cetacea (whales, dolphins) are found there most often than not.
Merfolk that live around the "sweet spot" band, which is the equator or adjacent areas, are typically based off of sharks, jellyfish, octopus or squid and other types of fish. The warmer the waters, the more common it will be to fine the aformentioned former sea creature-based Merfolk.
Merfolk who decide to live underwater live in large communities among other merfolk and perhaps some Waveborn as well. Atlantis is the city for the Waveborn, and the Merfolk equivalent is Oceania. This large, sprawling city is located just south of Walladin and takes up a large amount of the ocean floor, being many, many depths underneath. While most mortals have not been able to see it, the very few, and very lucky, claim the city is absolutely gorgeous and has technology not too dissimilar to the advancements that Alfheim has, which leads some to believe that Merfolk may be descendants of the Elves as well. The palaces apart of the city have sprawling monuments and buildings made of coral and natural ores found in the oceans, with easy transportation made through machinery combined with mater magic for efficient travel.
And while they are based off of a large number of aquatic life, it's very rare to find any that are based off of shellfish, and thus its hypothesized that that specific race must be extinct. how so,, nobody isn't sure, not even merfolk themselves.
Merfolk who live on land and decide to live by bodies of water tend to have beach houses, and can decide if that will be their permanent residence or a vacation house. By having a place to go to for water in peace effectively allows them to stay hydrated without the risk of drying up.
Dietary Needs and Habits
Any and all Merfolk have an obsession with seaweed and seamoss, having to implement one or both into many dishes that they make. Fruits from the ocean and the sea are very prevalent in their diet, even if they decide to live on land - indeed, its much more common to see merfolk living on the coast or at least very close to it.
Sea creatures like standard fish, rainbow lobster, king jupiter crab, pistol shrimp and other aquatic creatures are something that's both considered a delicacy and a necessary food in the diet (with the first two being more delicacies). Merfolk are also very good at finding unique ways of cooking them, with the techniques usually passed down from their parents or learned from others through a rite of passage as they go through puberty or adulthood.
Additional Information
Facial characteristics
Elongated but elegant faces, with almond or wide eyes with dazzling colors. They may have the same scales and markings on their face as their body does, which leads to their fin ears.
Perception and Sensory Capabilities
Merfolk are notorious for being dangerous creatures with enticing and enchanting voices, something that rivals the charm Faeries have. Their singing is full of reality magic that can warp, discombobulate or pressure someone not immune to the magic into doing things for the merfolk. A few surivor sailors from shipwrecks from hundreds of years ago document unknown, half-fish women singing and causing ships to crash with the crew (even females) taken deep underwater and never seen ever again. While this isn't as common all due to the uncommon "attacks" merfolk have against mortals, there are still stories of people disappearing and popping up several or even hundreds of years into the future and talking about a mysterious society of mermaids and merman alike.
They're also very cunning, and can use water to their advantage with their fast swimming speeds, and evasive maneuvers. Most merfolk can control water due to the inherited trait from the Waveborns, but there have been documented merfolk who can use other elements like air and earth, or in the case of their singing, reality magic.
Some merfolk that are extremely powerful in their magics ae called Sirens, and these are dangerous ones to be around. They aren't inherently evil, but its good to be weary around them.
Civilization and Culture
Naming Traditions
Merfolk name can sound either aquatic in nature or be based entirely off of Vocem (Eon's latin). There's no strict rules or guidelines to their names as they are a sub species off of an existing one, but many prefer for their children to have normal sounding names if they are to live on land. Full blooded merfolk don't have to worry about that if they don't have interest, as they usually name their children unique names. Sometimes their names may be based off of the sea creature they are, or the tribe they live in.
History
Merfolk originally came from the union of a Hueme woman who fell in love with a Waveborn that would visit her every morning. While he was shy and wished to keep himself hidden, as his tribe hard warned him, he couldn't stay away from her due to her beauty. He would yearn for the day to see her on land and be able to talk to her, which came true thanks to a very magically attuned relative gifting him the ability to shapeshift.
What came after a tremendously long lifetime of love (and love making) and union were a large dozen of children who were the first progenitors of Merfolk.
Some of these children then went to live in the sea with their father after their mother had passed, while some remained on land and continued to breed with the land species. The ones that returned to see continued to create Merfolk even with other Waveborn due to the strong magics their ancestor had been given to live on land. These magics continued to work through the bloodline, with some of it dying down and not being as prevalent. It's said that the ones with strong magicks and hypnotizing voice, called Sirens, are directly descended from the 4 children out of the 6 that left for the ocean.
As time went on, Merfolk slowly became myths and legends around areas. Some cultures of other species declared they still existed through anecdotes of meeting them through misfortunate circumstance, or happening upon them in aquatic areas. Because Waveborn tend to stay out of the public eye, no one believed they had existed and so Merfolk merely existing was nearly as up in the air.
It wasn't until the last 300 years that sightings of Merfolk had exponentially exploded, with an infamous case of one washing up, half rotted and dead on a Magnesian beach. The headlines were all over this, and it wasn't the last time this had happened. Experimentations and studies were done on the corpses using their tissues, which some citizens, also Merfolk or not, vehemently protested against because of ethical reasoning.
Thankfully, it seems like more and more of them feel comfortable coming out and as time has gone on, both Waveborn and Merfolk are now proved to be a fully functioning species that was always around, and never extinct.
Scientific Name
Homo Undynia
Origin/Ancestry
Made from breeding between Hueme and Waveborn
Lifespan
Up to 500 years
Average Weight
400 lbs plus
Average Length
9' to 12'
Body Tint, Colouring and Marking
Body tint can range from hueme looking shades, light to dark, to inhueme shades such as light purples or dark greens. Markings are indicated by scales and possibly shading that the fish they're based off has, such as tiger stripes on a tiger shark, orso.
