Mercija

*"Our duty is unending!"*

The Mercija are a small aquatic species created as a soldier race by the Telsor. ￼￼They had enacted their vengeance upon their creators, and now, their purpose in living is lost, their whole nation stuck in an eternal crisis.

## Mercija

### Special Traits

Incredible will power; Immunity against psychic attacks

## Biology

The Mercija possess extraordinary mental control as evidenced by the suits they are encased in. They are able to control these suits as if they were their own bodies. However, when outside their protective robotic shells, they appear as nearly translucent octopid creatures that are also capable of levitating in order to get around. When threatened, they can spout a cloud of blank ink in order to cover their escape. They are also resistant against psychic attacks.

They are rather long lived with a lifespan of around 250 years. They mature at age 18 and only begin to deteriorate in the last 10 years of their lives. There are multiple types depending on the marine depths they are accustomed to, but most Mercija that other races see are shallow waters types most commonly found in continental shelves.

## Background

Homeworld: Merci

Galaxy: Andromeda

Alignment: Independent; Mercija Enclave

### History

The Mercija were born in the vast seas of their homeworld. They found themselves to be the artificial creations of a weapons program of the species that was already dominant in that planet: The Telsor. The most powerful of the Telsor nation states intended to use them as a weapon in their war against their rivals, and encased the octopids in protective suits. However, when the day for war had come, they refused to fight and die for those they perceived to be inferior; the Telsor fought amongst themselves, and the apparently highly intelligent Mercija deduced this to be a sign of the Telsor’s foolishness, and the Mercija decided that they will fight and die for their brethren alone. The weapon waged war against master, and after five years of constant war, the last Telsor abandoned the planet, and the Mercija reigned supreme.

Over the next several hundreds of years, the Mercija would quickly expand beyond their solar system, seeding many worlds with their own creations as if they had forgotten their own origin. Within one thousand years, the Mercija had control over a significant swath of the Andromeda, and were constantly hunting down their erstwhile creators, the Telsor, to near extinction. As their genocidal crusade blazed across the stars, they would finally accomplish their goal of destroying their oppressors, the ones who tried to use them for their own selfish ends. But one question hung over their heads as they glassed the last Telsor planet: what now? Their purpose was finished, and they searched their minds only to find no purpose. With no purpose in mind, thousands of Mercija quickly began to slide in madness while many others left as explorers, traders, and pirates. One thing is certain, however. They need a master, no matter how much they will hate to admit it.

## Alpha Timeline

The Mercija Enclaves were initially unaffected by the events that transpired in the other side of the Andromeda, though they did begin preparations for war once Mercija explorers and archael

sts that had managed to flee the Neutral Zone before the Ragon conquest reported on what had happened. Once the Empire began its assault on the Enclaves, a grinding war of attrition would occur as the Mercija relived their old lives as living weapons. The Mercija would also bring to bear a coalition of races that they had seeded and uplifted, but many of their allies would be quickly destroyed. However, the Mercija themselves would prove the most resilient against Ragon invasion, as the underwater settlements of their homeworlds would be too deep for the Ragon to invade. However, they still are fighting a losing war.
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