Mertral

Anatomy & Morphology
Mertral males and females are around the same height, though the males are more lean while females are thicker-set and rounder at the stomach and hips area to accomodate for the carrying of eggs. They are, on average, between 1.8m to 2.2m tall and have a healthy body weight range of between 65kg to 100kg. They have large webbed feet for propelling themselves through water and hands with particularly strong claws for hunting large sea creatures.

They have a dorsal fin that rises from the top of the head down the back of their neck and which is incredibly sensitive towards movement. They have an underdeveloped sense of smell compared to Sunlings and Hael, but are able to grasp subtleties in taste much better.

Their skin is an intricate weave of scales which begin peeling after long-term exposure to dry climes. Skin colors range in hues of blue - from a light aquamarine for Mertral from more shallow waters to a dark navy for Mertral from deeper depths. They have distinct mottled markings, usually in shades just slightly lighter or darker than their overall color, all over their skin.

Mertral possess both gills and lungs, which are collapsible with little harm done to the main body. Like other species, they maintain a constant body temperature, though their resilience to cold is generally higher (especially for darker Mertral).

Life Cycle
Mertral are born from semi-permeable egg sacs about the size of a large apple that form within the mother for the first month. When they are laid, they are clustered several dozen at a time in shallow water caves watched over by Nursers (which could be male or female). The length of gestation is usually about six months, and newly born Mertral infants are born blind and without fully developed lungs. They feed on finely ground algae until they are ready to digest fishmeal (at around 6 months).

At this point in time they go through one of their first growth spurts, in which they triple in size over the course of a year. By the time they are two, they are almost a meter tall and can walk on land. This is the start of their Childhood phase.

Metral Childhood usually lasts for about ten years. After the Infancy spurt, their growth slows and they are roughly expected to only grow only a centimeter or so a year. Most of Mertral childhood is spent in shallow waters with a school of five, where they learn to hunt, manipulate water mana and are slowly introduced to society. In more recent years, Mertral children have spent more time on land acclimating to other Citizen Species.

The Adolescence growth spurt begins at around age 12 and lasts around two years. They grow to their adult height at this time, though they may still maintain a leaner muscle mass. It is usually at the beginning of Adolescence that Mertral decide on their Class.

Adulthood is typically quite long, with a peak physical age of 60 years. Fertility lasts until the 80s and most Mertral can, in times of peace and plenty, easily enjoy lifespans of 120 years.

History & Demographics
Mertral are one of the native species to Belenus.

Language
The name Mertral comes from the closest approximation of how the word for their species actually sounds in their language (Mrr'rtrr'rl). Since much of their lives are spent in water, Mertral communicate through sonic vibrations. When they began trading with Citizen Species, it was discovered that Metral do have the vocal chords to learn the Common Language, as long as they begin doing so as children.

Since becoming a Citizen Species, most Mertral children are being taught the Common Language alongside their own.

Demographic Subsets

 * Bankland Mertral: The most connected to the rest of the Citizen Species are the tribes of the Bankland Mertral. These Mertral are used to working alongside Sunlings and Hael. However, racial tensions often flare up, especially among the groups still bitter about the hundreds of years of slavery recently endured. They are better at Craft than other types, especially Cooking and Music.
 * Deepwater Mertral: Deepwater Mertral tribes spend their lives between the beaches and the depths beyond the continental shelf. Their deep sea diving makes them stronger and more resistant to cold than other Mertral, and their wanderings before reaching civilization gives them more opportunity to reach a high Warrior level before meeting with other Citizen Species.


 * Darkseas Mertral: Residing in the seas and islands next to Foundland, these Mertral weren't contacted until around the time of the Modern Age. Though they practice roughly the same traditions as the Belenus Mertral, they are particularly fond of Maegye and push the limits of their natural abilities using totems.

Political Structure
Chieftan Life

Family Structure
Mertral children are raised by the village and very few identify with their actual birth parents. When their eggs are formed, they are planted amongst safe reeds. As hatched infants, they start their lives underwater in "schools" of twenty or more "guppies." They are cared for by School-mothers (who can be both male or female), who teach them how to hunt, fish and other basic skills.

While in the schools, they are assigned into groups (usually of five), and this becomes their "family" for the rest of their lives. In most cases, these schoolmates stay intact. Sometimes, if families have lost too many members (due to war or disease), the surviving members will merge into another "family."

Very rarely, a Mertral will rebuke his or her family and go Ronin (or, as the Mertral call it, Shhhna). These Mertral are generally not trusted by other Mertral, as the "family" unit is considered a sacred thing.

This is not to say that Mertral stay in the same place forever. In fact, many spend their entire lives traveling the seas. However, their home will almost always be the place they were born and, because of that, their names usually contain the location they are from.

When Mertral do get attached to others outside their families, it is usually because of friendship. They have long memories and value loyalty very highly.

Religion
Their creation myth says that they were born when a Great Fish, desperate to reunite with all the brothers and sisters that had been washed ashore, climbed the great wall dividing the sea and the water. His weight caused the rocks to crumble, creating the first beach. Scared that the Great Fish would turn all the land to sand, the Gods of the Earth and Sky fought against him and won, carving him up into millions of pieces. His bones became the coral and his flesh, which still carried his deep wish to walk on land, became the Mertral.

There is another side to Mertral worship, which sees the oceans as The Dormant Mother and her sons as destructive forces: Storm, Typhoon and Fog. Foundland Mertral place special emphasis on this and have carved their totems in the images of Storm, Typhoon and Fog.

Education
Depends on their affiliated school

Meals
Feasts and famine

Arts
Dancing and Singing.

Building and carving, especially out of stone.

Architecture
Underwater grottos only accessible to the Mertral.