Merfolk

(Melissa Nightbreeze)

### Known For

Their Beauty, Singing sailors to their demise, Being protectors of the ocean, Fishermen

Deep beneath the waves, lies societies of Merpeople, with their own boundries, cultures, and societies.

## Origins

There are currently arguments about how these came to being. Some think it was natural selection and evolution, which has made one magical scholar on record throw up at the mere thought. Some others believe that it was a wizard that cause this, either a curse, gift or out of the magic user's own pleasure; but this one is sometimes debated heavily due to one fact...

### 1140ish BCE

It's hard to get a perfect understanding of when, however hidden documents in [REDACTED ORGANIZATION] shows that the first recordings of merfolk being that long ago. The text is hard to read between multiple documents, but they all ring the same tone. That they encountered melodies that felt hypnotising and aluring. They were dubbed sirens by a man that was driven crazy by their singing through multiple voyages, and always ringing the alarm on the ship when he heard a single peep of the water maidens.

### Sirens emerging

These beings became more known in the public eye at the time by 1000 BCE, for better or for worst. Because of the dangers of these sirens becoming more widespread as well as what they normally do, several sailors have gone out daily, often not returning. The reason for doing so was to slaughter the sirens, with some success over time, even driving them out around 600 BCE.

During the time that they were still around, they seemed to have inspired a small group of artists, merchants and bakers, usually making things that resemble what the sane sailors seem to have said about them. Though, mainly they talked about their beauty. These reports were often hidden from the public, mainly because of how dangerous the sirens because in that point in time, even if the surviving reports showed that these sirens have changed, mainly thanks to the blood tanting the waters.

### Reemerging but different

Sightings of the sirens reemerged around 300 AD/CE, but the sirens looked different, they didn't sang at all and they were seen around the british channel and the shores of northern europe. Communication soon was brought up between them and the humans on land. It was short and spratic sometimes, given how they felt the need to hide. That was until around 440 AD/CE, when the merpeople of the channel decided to open up trade negociations, something a bit more taboo at the time because of what they brought and the fact they were even trading with them. [More info to be added later]

## Types

Unlike other species, the merfolk have evolved into many different kinds of merfolk overtime. Whether they were cause through many generations, or through the use of magic. These types are scattered around the world and sometimes like to hide in on the land where you live.

### Melody-Type

Sometimes given the names Ribon mermaids or MerIdols

An evolution from the Sirens of old, though one that is not quite common. Many people suspect that a potion caused a group of them to change into who they are, given their tails. While others argue that because of the dosile nature of some of the groups that it may have evolved them to a point where they do not require the hypnotising of sailors or the need to propell themselves with ease out of the water.

Given that their tails are often given the feeling of smooth cloth, and the fins as flimsey as fabric, they are often given the title of physically weakest race when that is not the case. While it may be true in the tail, that is not true with the upper body, as they can become as strong as any other merfolk around. However, it is harder for them to do so, as they are often stuck with fin bodies, giving them the look of models than anything else.

But where they excel in the most is vocal music, no surprise where they use to come from. Their voices are sometimes compared to angels, idol singers, and even popular musical artist on the surface. Because of this, they are often given a steriotype of "the model down the runways that went platnum." Even with that said, they are still weaker to just about everything, and often not given combat related roles as a result.

There's a pretty funny story related to a mermaid-human hybrid with tail pants looking like a Melody-style tail. So many people actually thought she was a Melody-Type because of the simularities in shine and feel compared to a regular one. She only ended up geting found out because someone asked her to sing and she agreed, only for people to be shocked by how average it was. The amount of people in shock would make you laugh most likely.

### Glacemaids

   These kind are an interesting type, and how they came to being is one debated. Some say it's because of what happened with the Orcapeople (magic effecting a race dramaticly), some even saying that Yoshwang wasn't a legend or a myth, but actually happened; meaning that Locutus did shed a tear to be rid of his emotions, carrying some of his Ice Magic in the process, with it landing in the ocean and a mermaid acquiring one of the drops that split from the tear.

If the name didn't give it away, these are merpeople that specialize in naturally producing ice magic very easily. They can also survive at low temperatures most can't survive in without some kind of heating device extremely close to them. Their hair, tails, fins and usually eyes as well are shades of blue, reflecting the ice magic stored within all of them. They are given a different education, a different way of learning magic, and different rules (in some merkingdoms) compared to the others because of their inner magic. However, the majority of their magic is blocked out until they are granted "Maturity" from the god/goddess that appears.

Because of the strong differences between them and other merpeople, there are some places that do not allow Glacemaids. Some worry about them destroying the homes, others sectioning them off from the rest of the people. Some do allow them, but it's often to find them around Antartica or the North Pole. Reports by humans even suggest that they often try to help voyages with safe travel thanks to their powers.

#### Glacemaid Maturity

Once a year, on Dec. 21, a god/goddess of Snow(, Ice, etc.) comes to a location where mainly Glacemaids live & select 5 or 8 Glacemaids that have shown that they are now grown up & have matured, uses his/her magic to unlock their true potential before going to sleep to restore his/her energy. Over time, a merkingdom had turn this into more of a event as goods & food related to a winter theme are being sold, tickets being sold, hundreds & hundreds of people show up & All cheer for after the selected glacemaids become mature.

## Small shared differences

Between all these types, there are small things that do carry over from kind to kind, regardless of how different they are. Some have less of a chance than others, and the opposite is ture as well.

### Webbed Ears

Webbed ears are an interesting case. For starters, they seem to help with swiming within the oceans, mainly with helping one glide and easily move from side to side, kind of like rutters. But their most known ability is to help hear a lot better within the water. However, the better they can hear underwater, the more likely they'll be deaf when exitting the water. Because of this, most merpeople with webbed ears remain in the water.

However, over the years, there have been instances of webbed and human ear hybrids. Nothing is really known about their effects on merpeople on them as of now, but most people seem to like how they look because of how cool and different they look.

### Chordata Symptom

This symptom is due to the fish and the humanoid sides not balancing each other out. In some places, they are often considered merpeople with disabilities, monsters or even just animals like the fish in the sea. It all depends on what type one gets.

#### Type 0.5

Often not calculated in the majority of merkingoms, but some still count it for the simple fact that it doesn't allow them to change into human forms when dry. This sometimes naturally happens and are a part of the race, but some still catagorizes them under this symptom. Some see it as nessicary to help out the merperson or even to be used to help study it more. However, this has lead to many criticisms of this move, at least in Aquinous, about the ethics of even having a "Type 0.5" to begin with and some see it as a form of discrimination and purposful seperation.