Merfolk

Summary: The fae realm consists of forests, mountains, and lakes. While lakes aren’t as expansive as the forests, there are residents within them, none more common than the Merfolk. A long time ago, a group of fae that lost their wings in battle decided to purposely mutate themselves to adapt to the lakes of the fae realm. Eons passed as they adapted and changed further, soon an entirely different species. In a giant lake that breaches the realm between the Atlantic Ocean on Earth, a group of merfolk have migrated to the Earthen realm and established a society within it. These creatures are considered semi-aquatic. 

Diet: Merfolk typically dine on fish, though some do hunt in frenzies and go after aquatic mammals. Their dentition is very similar to that of sharks, as they evolved from carnivorous faeries. Merfolk don’t typically think that land animals taste any good, but it’s advised against trying your luck on that matter. 

When merfolk come on land and magic themselves some legs, they still tend to prefer seafood if available. They very rarely hunt humanoids, but it’s not unheard of. 

Realm-Walkers: Merfolk are not hybrids, however some of them can walk the realm between the Earth and Fae. Or, rather, swim. The mermaids with an established society within the Earth oceans live on the border of the Fae and Earth realm. They need to cross over every so often to restore their myst (fae magic) so that they may continue to cast their magic.

Immune System & Aging: Merfolk aren’t prone to humanoid disease, however they have yet to adapt well to underwater parasites. Their societies have established medicine for such issues, however, so it generally isn’t a major problem. 

Merfolk have shorter life spans than most other fae, likely due to forced adaptation. Rather than thousands of years, they only live hundreds. 

Notable Features: Merfolk have retained their hair, likely due to sexual selection rather than an actual advantage in the water. Merfolk are semi-aquatic and have two ‘forms’. Within the water, the lower half of them is that of a shark, and the upper half is humanoid. They have very fin-like ears, and their eyes are pure black, like those of a shark. Their hands are webbed, and at the end of their finger tips they have long, dagger-like claws. The skin of their shark halves tends to be varying shades of grey, while the skin of their humanoid halves can vary from green, to red, to dark, to light. Merfolk with greener skin colors tend to live in seaweed more than others. In this form, merfolk have gills.

Their other forms are those of which they use on land. Merfolk have legs in this form, however their skin needs upkeep in order to remain wet. If their skin dries out, it can crack easily, bleed, and become extremely uncomfortable. Lotion actually helps with this, but they need a lot of it. Their hands retain the webbing and claws, and their eyes and teeth remain shark-like. Their ears also remain rather fin-like. In these forms, merfolk use lungs to breathe. 

Magical Proficiency: Merfolk rely on Myst (fae magic) to cast spells. Most of them are centered around manipulating the water and mind, where they have natural strengths. Merfolk have sacrificed much of their ability to cast fae magic for natural talents that aid them in survival within the water. They are unnaturally fast within the water, and require a lot of energy shifting between land and aquatic forms. 

Like Faeries, Merfolk can lure unsuspecting victims into the fae realm and proceed to dispose of them. This isn’t very common, as merfolk don’t tend to eat other humanoids for prey, but there are exceptions. Other natural talents for merfolk include the ability to speak with aquatic and semi-aquatic animals, weather manipulation (only for the most powerful among them), and current manipulation. 

Common Misconceptions: 

1. To Merfolk, humans are friends, not food. The same idea doesn’t apply to fish. 

2. Merfolk have no qualms with taking on and eating sharks, and they don’t typically care that they can understand what the shark is saying. 

3. Merfolk have live birth, they don’t lay eggs. They are a humanoid mammalian species, and therefore can also provide their young with milk. Quite like dolphins.

4. Merfolk can’t breed in aquatic forms, they need to shift to their land forms in order to do so. 

5. Teenage merfolk are advised against falling in love with either human or vampire princes.

6. To a vampire, merfolk blood doesn’t taste like fish; rather, it tastes more similar to faeries.