Arctic mer

**Fifth of Darkness-Twentieth of Darkness, the Syle ice fields. Empire's Admiral Pascal De'Moine.**

> Crew reported movement under the ice, about twenty entities. We've prepped harpoons and fire bombs if they surface.
>
>

> The rammer's dented and one of them ripped off part of it. That thing's six inches of solid steel, it cracks through ice like nothing. And one of these fucked-up arctic demons tore it apart.
>
>

> Got a glimpse of one for a bit. Bone-white and thick, nothing like the stringy ones farther south. It had a mouth full of teeth, so many more than should have fit. Its eyes were small and black, hands long and ending in thick nails that look like claws. The hands are webbed, of course. It moved up next to the ship, just looking up at us like it had never seen something like us before before diving again.
>
>

> It looks like we're being followed by a family of them. The larger three look like the parents, and the sizes go down to a tiny one the size of a child. That one seems to be fascinated by the ship and the people on it, it'll climb up the anchor before dropping back to the ocean, and when Killian threw a bottle at it, it took it as a gift and vanished into the ocean. Killian got hit in the head with a clam later that evening.
>
>

> The winds are shifting and we've lost momentum. We're stuck in the center of an ice sheet and it looks like the floes are moving around again. The family has us surrounded and are just watching. If they decided that we were their next meal, none of us could escape them. Not even with our weapons.
>
>

> Jacobs was on watch and ended up playing with the little one, hiding his face and then showing it again. The thing seemed to enjoy it, by his account. The winds still haven't picked back up. One of the larger ones surfaced, sitting on the ice and making what I can only describe as quiet inhuman screeching. It sat, watching us for hours, observing us as we observed it. As the sun set it finally dove back into the ocean.
>
>

> I believe the sea devils' presence has kept other creatures away. I watched one of the massive bears that prowl the ice approach, then turn and run. I've never seen one run away from anything before, and I have to believe that the creatures surrounding us are why it fled.
>
>

> The winds have picked up again, after the entire family surfaced and sang once more at dawn. In that moment the sails filled and we began to move through the ice once again. The devils dove again, and we haven't seen them since.
>
>

## BASIC INFORMATION

### Anatomy

The arctic variants appear as thick, pale humanoids with no body hair.

### Ecology and Habitats

The frozen ocean in the far north of the planet is where the arctic mer live. They often stay under the massive ice sheets, where they may break through to grab creatures walking over top of the ice.

### Dietary Needs and Habits

They require higher fat content in their prey than other mer as much of their body mass is fat. Because of this, they avoid eating humans and many domesticated mammals, instead going for seals, fish, bears and other native species.

### Perception and Sensory Capabilities

Small black, light-sensitive eyes designed for low light and tracking slight movements. Their ears are designed to pick up soft sounds and vibrations in the water, and can differentiate between movements of the ocean itself and passing prey.