Sirenia

Sirens are an aquatic race that dwell within the sea in numerous clans scattered across the world, though often explore on the surface world. While their appearance varies depending on the particular sub-species, common identifiers are their webbed hands, guills, and sharp teeth. All siren are born with a 'water spirit'. They're viewed as their own personal guardian angel, and the Sirenian takes on personal and physical traits of the animal they match. Although they can sometimes manifest representations of their spirit via their magic, communication is purely done emotionally rather then through words. It is very similar to how cosmic magi have stars and can bond with them.

As for physical traits, all Sirenia have fragile sharp teeth that are serrated. It is not uncommon for teeth to break and grow back again within a few weeks. Molars do not develop until a Sirenian enters their mid-teens, and do not grow back like the rest of their teeth if broken. A Sirenian may choose to either cut raw meat into strips or unhinge their jaws to open their throat space to swallow it whole until then in order to work around their inability to chew. They need a heavy meat diet to survive, and things such as to many vegetables or desserts can make them ill. Although their 'human' forms are all very similar, it can be easy to tell the difference as each subspecies has subtle cues.

Sirenian blood is green and thick. It has a more coppery taste to it then regular blood. Recovery rate is higher for the Sirenia, healing a quarter to a third quicker than humans. However injuries from fire and other magics they are weak to have double the recovery rate. Their skin color ranges from pale grey, to greenish yellow, to blue, to very dark. Although quite varied in color, it always has a hint of unnaturalness to those who normally live on land.

Species

Mermaid

Children of Galene.

The most common of the Sirenia. They take on aspects of any type of fish, such as sharks, flying fish, tuna, that sort of thing. Mermaids are often the most social of the species, choosing to live off of coastal cities. They have translucent skin that has a greenish quality to it. Gills along either side of the neck, and ears are either pointed or in the shape of fins. Either or both fingers and toes are webbed. Their hair often has strange but bright coloration as well, which matches the color of their tails.

Anguill

Children of Scylla.

Sirenia that usually live in the deep sea. Their aspects are varied between eels, sea snakes, and in rarer cases, sea slugs. Their tails are long and flexible rather then finned. Their eyes are sometimes a little fair apart, and their skin seems clammy, a little sticky and somewhat moist. They also have very thin lips but wide mouths, with their ears are often smaller and more rounded than a humans. They also have longer and broader noses then most as well.

Selkie

Children of Leucothea.

Nearly all Selkie live inland, in rivers and mainly the swamp. Their creatures are of aquatic mammal nature, seals, otters, walruses, manatee. Sea Selkie often have traits of orcas or dolphins, and are the rarest of all Sirenia. They're the only Sirenia who cannot breathe underwater. Their nails are colored black or a dark hue and very thick, with fur around the fingers, hands, and feet. Eye coloration tends to be pitch black, and their eyes have a glassy tone to them. Busy eyebrows and beards are also common. Those with whale spirits do not have any fur or hairy traits at all, but are prone to having annoying laughs.

Society

Water Spirit

As stated previously, the water spirit is an entity that is born and dies with the Sirenia. It is similar to a summon spirit, however it has its own mana circuitry. They often choose to be invisible, or show themselves using magics that the Sirenia is familiar with. Such as a Mermaid's spirit might be made of water, or a Selkie's made of dark magic.

The animal that is born with a Sirenia is not related to anything other then species. However the type of spirit you have can greatly affect your place in society. Those with more powerful animals like sharks are expected to take positions in the military, and those with more intelligent such as octopus are expected to be scholars. Smaller animal spirits are considered to be useless, it is not uncommon for parents to abandon children who might be weak as a result of their spirit affinity.

Water spirits play a vital roll in the coming of age ceremony for Sirenia. The Sirenian sings for their spirit and asks them for more strength. In serious cases, they may choose to attempt to strengthen their relationship further by binding their mana circuits together. However this can be a dangerous process and requires a channeling stone to help focus the spirit's energies.

Spirits are practically invulnerable to all magics except those that directly harm the soul. Using such magic to destroy the spirit will kill the Sirenian as well.

Names

Although any Sirenian may choose to have a last name, it is not a part of their family structure. Thus any last names tend to be over the top and extravagant, not always passed on to any children they choose to have.

Instead, a name of a child is traditionally a mesh of the two parent names. Example, Zaniyah being a construct of Zabor and Galniyah. Those whose parents do not wish to pass their names on often have single or double syllable names, like Rise.

Religion

Nearly all Sirenia worship Yama as their deity, though festivals to Leucothea, Scylla, and Galene are often held by their respected tribes. Priests of Yama are known to sacrifice their enemies or volunteers to the deity. The ritual forces the victim's soul to travel to Yama where they must help him gather stones and weigh the sins of others for a hundred years before they can rejoin the lifestream. They do this to ease Yama's workload and so he is never lonely. It is a simple ritual that involves singing the song of Yama as the living heart is carved out of the body, before being swallowed whole while it still beats.

There is no strong concept of marriage for Sirenia, however birthing religious rights are considered to be very important. A thanks is made to the water spirit born with the child, and a blessing is asked of the Mother deity of the Mermaid, Anguill, or Selkie born. Burial rights are also nearly non-existent. Often it is just a song that asks for the stones Yama uses to weigh the sins of that who has passed are light in weight.

Inki and Yama

In the beginning, many primordials explored the world and shaped it to their desires.

Among them was the great whale Inki, who looked down at the flat land and saw what could be. He dug his tail into the ground and created mountains and valleys. His brother, Yama, who had been granted the same space, mocked his effort, but Inki continued until his world was shaped. But there was still nothing. Just mounds of mud and holes in the earth.

Tired and worn, Inki laid in a trench and cried. Years passed, and eventually his tears flooded over him to create riverlands. Yet he was still lonely, so he gathered the salt of his tears mixed with mud and formed life.

Yama came to mock him again. His brother had spent most of his energy to craft such useless things and still felt nothing but pain and suffering. So he in turn took the salt and the mud and crafted a creature that somewhat bared their image, the Selkie. The first of the Sirenia, named Leucothea who was gifted with an ivory porpoise tail. A creature with a beautiful voice who could sing away any worries that Inki felt.

But all he felt was jealousy.

Inki fled to the land and created the lakes and the rivers, and the creatures that live in them. Yet he was unable to create anything that sung as beautifully as Leucothea. Meanwhile, Yama created the first Anguill, Scylla, and the first Mermaid, Galene, so that Leucothea would not feel lonely. And he gifted them each with their own water spirit so that they will always know he loved them.

While Yama enjoyed his time in the seas, Inki began to grow jealous. The seas he loved had been overrun by the children of Leucothea, Scylla, and Galene, and the lands had been overtaken by other gods. Even though he had helped craft the world through his body, he found no place for himself in it.

In short, his wrath was turned on Yama, the one who mocked him and stole his place as a worshipped deity. Inki traveled to the land and convinced those there to rage war with the sea. The land creatures built boats and poisoned the waters, the Sirenia in return sunk the boats and poisoned the water on the land. Yama gifted his creations with the ability to walk on land to attack the people there. In return Inki captured Leucothea, most loved by Yama, and her children. He robbed them of their ability to breathe underwater so they could never return to their true home. Inki then altered their forms to grow fur so they more closely resembled the land creatures they had grown to hate. Leucothea blamed herself for what had come to pass. She attempted to return to the ocean to seek out Yama, but drowned in her attempts. Scylla took her Anguill and fled to the deepest parts of the ocean to hide out of fear of something similar happening to them, and only Galene with her Mermaids remained to fight at Yama's side.

Yama succeeded with negotiating with the land gods to stop the war, greatly pained by what had happened to Leucothea. He challenged Inki to one on one combat. Inki agreed, resulting in a giant storm that plagued the oceans for many years. It is said Kraus harnessed the power of the storms to create the peace barriers that lay between each continent.

In the end, Yama was triumphant. However Inki had anticipated such and destroyed himself casting a terrible curse that launched Yama into the deepest depths of the netherworld where he could only meet again with his beloved creations in death. It is said he guards the coral gates that all Sirenia must pass before they journey to the afterlife, and gathers stones for which to weigh the sins of all life with.