đź–¤Nephilim Species Update: NEW LORE ADDEDđź–¤

Posted 6 years, 7 months ago (Edited 6 years, 14 days ago) by Azrael

Do you have any interest in the Nephilim Species?

6 Votes Nope!
2 Votes Yes!
11 Votes Perhaps, if the right looking one comes along!
2 Votes THIS SPECIES WAS A HORRIBLE IDEA WTF ARE YOU THINKING BOW
3 Votes IGNORE OP I'LL TAKE 10

So I've been working on this species for a while now, and I think I've finally finished off their lore in full (for now)! Therefore, I thought it would be good if I have a thread on here for people to look at them if they had any interest!

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Here are examples of what the species looks like. You can get a better look here and here! For the adopt shown above, it will be revamped to look much better. These are older art pieces of mine.

8/27 New: Clownfish Nephilim Adopt Up, She's in the sales and trades folder! Small preview below.

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Lore

Note: Your Nephilim does not have to follow the lore to the letter, and can be used for your own stories if you wish. You can outright ignore most of the lore (excluding the biology that they are known for) and do with whatever with them! All that I ask is that they have the parts that make their species known for what they are, the mouth in their abdomen, the glass hearts, and the two sets of horns please. I have also written so much of the lore that I have sectioned it off into several spoilers so that way it doesn't clutter up the entire page! Big thanks to @feather-weather for her help with editing this!   

    Section One: Origins


Note: This synopsis of the history of the Nephilim is made from artifacts found and verbal information passed from members of the species willing to talk to our researchers rather than eating them on sight. As such, this information is prone to change and update at anytime, due to finding information being rather difficult.

  

 

  Around the start of man emerging from the ocean to evolve to live on land, there were some who chose to stay in the ocean, and some who chose to stay on land. These two groups became the mer-folk and the human species. The merfolk eventually continued to evolve, stopping at a certain point along the way and retaining the main fishtail mer-folk are known for. According to artifacts found by our scientists, there once appeared to be a very large mer-family, headed by a couple of sea gods called Trident and Ceto. It was noted that each child from these parents were differently physically, appearing to even have traits that neither parent had. Each of these children are considered to be the first of their type of different mer-species, the “founder” of their species in a way. It is unknown how many children Trident and Ceto had, but it is estimated to be a very large amount, even putting Genghis Khan and his army of children to shame.

   

 One of these children was a twin, known as Kaerius. Kaerius and his twin brother Pelagius, were considered to be opposites of one another. Kaerius was known to be the evil twin, doing whatever he wanted and not caring about others, whereas Pelagius was known to be the good twin, sacrificing himself at any opportunity to assist others when needed. 

One day, the twins were sent out for hunting, and found a coral reef where fish were plenty. Kaerius pointed out a massive fish that was swimming into a cave carved into the coral reef, and wanted to follow it. It was big enough to feed their entire family for a week. 

Pelagius was hesitant, but agreed and followed him into the coral cave. By the time they went into the back of the cave, wanting to kill the fish, they were trapped. The fish was ingenious, it had lured them to the back of the cave, and had swam to the front while they were busy going the opposite way. The fish whacked its body against the coral, shattering and collapsing the coral at the front of the entrance. Both twins were trapped in the dark cave, the only light they had was illuminated seaweed that is deadly to their kind.

 It is unknown exactly how long the pair was trapped for, but we can assume it was a long time. We do however, know that the two almost starved to death in there, the only thing that saved the both of them was the corpse of a human fisherman that had passed suddenly from a stroke during fishing and fell overboard, falling into the sea below, and the weight of his corpse smashed in the ceiling above them. Both brothers, starved out of their minds, did not hesitate with this meal in front of them, regardless of it being a taboo in almost every mer-folk culture. They tore the body to shreds, engorging themselves on every piece of the fisherman, even going as so far to eat the bones, except leaving the skull in the cave. 

After they had finished, they headed back to their worried family, greeted happily as most of the family was happy that they were alive. Kaerius and Pelagius told them of their time gone, what had happened to them, but excluded what they had done. 

This eating of the human kickstarter a dormant need for flesh, causing them to have a permanent shift in their diet. Before, they had mostly eaten vegetables, and some meat occasionally. But after tasting the human, it changed them. It turned them into predators, who desired meat over plants now. The second mouths in their stomachs that were a deformity were now their greatest weapon and ally, making it the one thing their species is known for. This now activated more flesh would pass onto future generations, having the dormant mouths in their stomachs that were once deformities now be active and fully well functioning. 

Most of the family believed the tale, yet, their father, Triton, had a feeling that something was off. How were they able to survive for such a long time without eating? It was impossible. Curious, Triton went to the coral reef, and found the cave they had been trapped in for so long. Going inside, he had found the skull of the victim the twins had eaten. Disgusted and furious, he called the entire family together, and confronted the two. 

Just as Pelagius was about to admit that he did partake in the cannibalization of the fisherman, Kaerius interrupted him and took the entirety of the blame, stating that Pelagius chose to eat the poisonous seaweed instead of the fisherman, and only he had eaten the human, not the both of them. If it were not for Pelagius’ companionship in the cave, he would have gone insane from being trapped and alone for so long. Because Pelagius was known as being the more “good” of the two, they assumed that he chose to eat the poisonous seaweed rather than the human. 

Triton then yelled at Kaerius for committing taboo, and banished him to the deepest caves in the sea, ensuring that it would never be committed again by using Kaerius as an example. Kaerius was then banished to the deepest caves in the sea, never seeing his family again, and other records do not mention Pelagius after this banishment of his twin. 

However, it is hypothesized that Pelagius did reproduce, as the Angelic subtype currently exists. It is unknown how at a such a dark depth, but it is assumed that Kaerius found a mate and reproduced offspring, future generations bound to the dark depths just as Kaerius was. In modern times, this species descended from Kaerius and Pelagius, are now called the Nephilim. 

Demonic Nephilim are now often looked down upon for being descendants of Kaerius, and for often eating humans when given the chance, and without remorse. Angelic Nephilim are tolerated more than that of the Demonic, as they are descended from the innocent Pelagius instead of the damned Kaerius. Angelic are seen as high class citizens to other mer-species, and Demonics are often downright ridiculed and mocked in public, when spotted. 

It is considered “rare” to see one in shallow waters, and it is almost impossible for one to be seen by a human without being eaten, unless the human happens to be their universal mate. Despite this side of the species being banished to the depths of the ocean, members of the group often defied the order to stay down below, and would head to the surface anyway, as the impulse to eat flesh was still there, and flesh of any sort is much harder to find in darker depths. The Angelic members of the species are guilty of this as well, going out of their way to find human spots that can easily let them take a human without much notice. Members of the Angelic half will actively work together to keep it under wraps as much as possible, fearing that they will be ridiculed and banished like the Demonic half was. Some Angelics cover up their second mouths out of embarrassment for being different, but others will proudly show off the mouths as to intimidate other mer folk and remind them of why they are considered high class. 

  


 Section Two: Biology



  

 It is noted that the Nephilim have the same lower fish half as other mer-species, but the halves can differ, an example being one Nephilim has the lower half of a tiger shark and another Nephilim can have the lower half of a whale. Some of these lower halves can even take on mythical like features, with having a whale half that is imbued with volcanic lava. 


It is noted that certain members of the Nephilim have a small organ in their brain that allows them to see the future. We are not sure how this organ allows this, but through several trials, researchers have concluded that certain members are somehow able to have foresight into the future. In rare cases, certain persons can be born with extra eyes, only found on the upper body, never found on the lower fish half of their body. 


Members of this species have told our researchers that they have this foresight through their extra eyes. Human psychics have been brought in for contact with these foreseeing individuals, and both catastrophic and fascinating things have happened because of this contact. In one noted case, the human psychic that was brought in Case 7.891 had a staring contest with one of these psychic members of the Nephilim, and then promptly passed out, and went into a coma. The human psychic as of writing this report has been in a coma for two months. In another case, the human psychic that was brought into Case 7.891 had “A decent conversation with them, not too bad once you get to know them.” Through this conversation, we were able to find out a significant amount of information. More research is pending into both topics.

    

All Nephilim have their hearts place at the base of their throats, which beat like any other functioning heart. These hearts look like glass due to their shiny coat, and oftentimes come in a variety of colors and patterns, and are stronger than steel. It takes a lot to destroy one of these hearts, but it is possible. The amount of pressure required is unknown, as the current specimens we have are too valuable to end at a whim. It is estimated that a single Nephilim can live up to a thousand years, but the exact number has not been confirmed. 


All Nephilim have two sets of horns that can come in a variety of shapes and sizes, and these horns can grow in any direction, and in rare cases, the horns can sprout from the neck as well. Each Nephilim has a set of gills on the sides of their heads, and are used for breathing in both water and air. Without these, the person would die. Multiple sets of these can exist, depending on the genetics of the Nephilim itself. 


Scales are usually found on the face, and sometimes glow as a way to lure prey. Side fins on the arms are used to help keep a sense of balance when swimming. However, side fins on the lower fish half are there for show and to lure prey. All Nephilim have long claws used for tearing and slashing, and sometimes are accompanied by fins on the sides of each fingers as well. Scales can often go up the hands and forearms, and usually glow, as yet another attraction for prey. 


Razor sharp teeth line the inside of the throat, and tear apart anything that is swallowed by the person. Perhaps the most disturbing part that this merfolk-species is known for are the mouths in their abdomens. These mouths lie in the abdomen, and act as a normal mouth, taking out chunks of their prey and devouring it as the Nephilim completes their kill. There are two shapes of these mouths, that of a single line in the abdomen that acts as a normal human mouth, excluding a tongue, and the other one, two lines that are diagonal to one another that open more alien like to their prey. This second mouth is noticeably less common and like the single line mouth, does not have a tongue. Both mouths can open easily, but when are not used, they are closed, giving the appearance of an abdomen. The mouth on the face functions just as the human mouth does, often having sharp teeth coming with it. 


However, they do not just eat humans. Their mouths have the capability to take a chunk out of any fish in the ocean, humans just being another creature that is very easy trick and catch. Just like how humans are the equivalent of chicken to them, so are smaller fish. It is possible for them to get a bite out of larger fish such as the shark, but because of their size compared to the average Nephilim, they usually don’t bother with larger marine life. Unless it’s a slower and less physically dangerous creature, then they will have two to three group up and attack the creature, until it dies of exhaustion or of blood loss. 


It is hypothesized that this mer-species is the inspiration behind the sirens, as they use their beauty to lure unsuspecting humans to the edge of the water, drowning them when they get the chance. By doing this, they get their meal. Every mouth has the ability to produce a tough and stretchy mucus membrane that is able to stretch into any shape possible. This membrane is able to be used for several purposes, including the creations of bubble tubes. 


There are two types of Nephilim, the Demonics and Angelics. The Demonics have darker pallets on their fish halves, and tend to look like demons, hence the name of “Demonics”. The Angelics have lighter pallets on their fish halves, and tend to look angelic, hence the name of “Angelics.” It is hypothesized that the Angelic subtype stems from the genetics of Pelagius, and the Demonic subtype stems from the genetics of Kaerius. All of these traits create a beautiful, yet deadly mer-species that is both terrifying yet mystifying at the same time.

  -Please note that I am speaking from a physical breeding standpoint when I talk about reproducing, that's why I mention the word "biologically" constantly in this reproduction section. So I am not taking gender into consideration here, only the physical sexes. Your Nephilim can be whatever gender you wish. This next paragraphs regards reproduction, and does not hold back on describing how it works. I highly suggest skipping the next few paragraphs and go to daily behaviors if you are uncomfortable with this or are generally faint-hearted. 


 Reproducing is rather difficult, as it is noted that an estimated one out of every three couples will have a child. Like humans that are biologically male, biologically male Nephilim do not have the ability to carry a child in them, as they do not have the uterus needed to create a fetus, let alone a womb. Instead, this task is relegated to the biologically female Nephilim, like their biologically female human counterparts. After childbirth, the father takes care of the newborn for several months, as the mother recovers and regains her strength. However, before all of this happens of course, intercourse has to take place. Nephilim are able to produce a max of three offspring at one time, but this is very rare. The normal amount is usually one, and two being very uncommon.


 Interestingly, like other animal species, the dominant Nephilim in the relationship impresses their mate (regardless of their mate biologically male or female) by creating a “nest” of sorts. The basis of the nest is almost always a bed, then covered with a large amount of blankets and pillows. The surrounding area such as the walls is covered with shiny trinkets to impress their mate and to show that they can provide for them no matter what. The dominant Nephilim then does what looks like to be an erotic dance, showing off their all of their body, showing that they are physically fit for mating to their mate. After this, if the mate gives arousal and wants to, they then physically mate. Interestingly enough, in physical intercourse, they have the same sexual positions as humans.


Like their human counterparts, Nephilim have two sets of genitals, one male, and one female. They do not have the ability to become intersex and self produce, and can only reproduce with another person of the biologically opposite sex. Interestingly enough, they have the same sexual reproduction organs and genitals as humans. Male Nephilim have a pocket to sheath and hide their genitals in, while women do not have this pocket. Instead they use shells to often cover their area, carving it into the shape of a soft triangle and painting it to have the same pattern of their fish/human half, making it look basically invisible to the regular eye.


Children that are spawned do not come out from the genitals, rather they come out from being barfed up by the mouth, as the fetus from what we are told, is located near the mouth. During the time of pregnancy, the pregnant person in question keeps the mouth on their stomach shut, as to prevent anything going near the fetus and risk damaging it. During this time the other partner in return will then be hunting for the both of them. If the partner does not provide enough food, then the pregnant subject will proceed to try and eat their partner to nourish the fetus.

It is absolutely possible for same sex couples to produce offspring. However, rather than doing it the old fashioned way, instead they do it by magic. According to our sources, both parties must find take a pearl of any color from an oyster, and take a strand of each of their hair and wrap it around the pearl. Both partners will then concentrate almost all of their magic onto said pearl, and the hair from both parents will absorb into the pearl.  Then for the next 9 months, the pearl will grow larger and larger until it reaches no larger than the size of a newborn infant. On the ninth month, the shell of the pearl will crack and fall apart, revealing a newborn Nephilim. 


Section Three: Daily Behaviors

Perhaps the most infamous thing this species is known for is for their taste of human flesh and how they use their beauty to catch their prey. However, according to members of the Nephilim that we have interviewed, they are omnivores like any other mer-species, and human flesh just happens to be one of the things on their diet. Fish and other underwater plants are eaten as well, such as seaweed. In their world, human flesh is the equivalent of chicken, and it is commonly used in meals, usually not eaten raw unless the person is in danger or they just happen to be craving more flesh that a single school of fish cannot provide.

Nephilim prefer to stay in darker and deeper waters, only coming out to hunt and stalk prey. Like other mer-species, they have a variety of personalities, each one unique to each mer-person. It is noted that there is a murderous trait embedded in them, but this is usually overshadowed by their personality. Unlike humans that can have control over their instincts, the Nephilim often times do not. This can lead to quite a few messes if they do not eat at least at least 3 pounds worth of solid food a day. However, this isn’t too wholly common, as Nephilim will find a way to eat the amount they need, even if it's unhealthy for them. They will even go as so far to eat raw metal if necessary.


Nephilims have this belief that each person has another half to complete them, also known as a forever mate. In their ideology, no matter how many times they are reincarnated, they will always have the other forever mate made by the cosmos just for them. The both of them, together for eternity. It is also very rare for a Nephilim to find a forever mate in a human. Usually a forever mate is found in their own or any other mer-species. A forever mate does not always mean a romantic partner though, as a platonic partner can be considered a forever mate as well. Do note that a forever mate cannot be found in an animal companion, as they would be considered a pet instead. 


Around the time of sexual maturity, at the age of 18 (excluding the large amount of late bloomers in the species), a gland in their abdomen will start producing a pheromone that causes them to look for a forever mate. This pheromone causes a pseudo scent that is sweet to constantly be produced, and following the pseudo scent leads to their forever mate when nearby. This pheromone effect is able to work because of their new pheromones interacting with their forever mate’s pheromones that are specifically made tailored to find theirs. During this time of trying to find their forever mate, they will see each other in dreams and during this time develop a bond towards one another if they have not already.

Section Four: Transportation

Most Nephilim do not have the ability to walk on land. Instead they would have to use a wheelchair or a bubble tube to get around. A bubble tube is a floating tube that is clear, hence the name of the bubble tube. It is filled with a combination of helium and an unidentified grounded rock powder that is only found in the deeper parts of the ocean. This gas fills a small, stretchy mucus membrane sac that is shaped like a tube. The bubble tube would be fitted around the human waist area, to balance and anchor the Nephilim swimming against the gravity pulling them down. 


Section Five: Magic

Because of the species origins being tied to Triton the sea god, all members have magic in their physical body that allows them to perform acts that usually wouldn’t be considered physically possible; i.e. having a mouth in the stomach while being able to have a child at the same time. They are very magic-oriented creatures, as without the magic that is imbued in their bodies, they would die out quite fast. Merfolk are much better at magic than their human counterparts, as humans are sadly not born with magic within their bodies, they must work for it, where as Nephilim and other merfolk species take to magic quite naturally.


They are able to enchant items with their magical items, and have produced a variety of amount of items that allow them to develop mutated forms as well as just have enchanted items in general. According to the few subjects we have, enchanted mirrors are quite popular thanks to them.




ElithianFox

I enjoyed reading the info you've written! Do you accept feedback on this? ;v;

Azrael

ElithianFox 

Sure! Suggestions for editing the lore to make it even better is appreciated greatly!

copiedcity

these guys look so cool omg

Azrael

Thank you!! <3

Azrael

A new Clownfish Nephilim adopt has been put up! I hope you all like it! <3

Since they never got bidded on, I've put them in my sale and trade folder. If you're interested in them, just comment below. I've turned them into an ota, so offer whatever you want.

ElithianFox

I know I'm very late with the feedback I promised, but I'm at last here with enough free time to reread this and type out some feedback! They're more notes reading through the text than anything else. I will preface this by saying most of my observations are from a realistic biological standpoint - if your fantasy isn't about making sure everything works keeping in mind the inner anatomy, that's completely fine, and most of my feedback will be void ;v;


Origins

The split between aquatic and land creatures happened under the form of a type of fish that had eventually grown the proper legs and lungs to temporarily get its resources from the land, and eventually stay on there. Maybe it might be a more interesting option to - instead of referring to that point of splitting the two, where it's highly unlikely the aquatic races won't turn into amphibians - move the focus to early hominid primates. Ancient human reverting back to water long before they became the intelligent human we know today could be similar to how for example seals and whales regained their aquatic roots, and would come closer to an accurate way of presenting the split without breaking suspense of disbelief.

How does a creature whose makeup is genetic turn to a non-genetic, seemingly random inheritance pattern? This can of course be linked to magic, or be something you didn't include for spoiler reasons, but the addition of sexual reproduction later in the thread seems a bit strange knowing they no longer rely on genes to multiply, as the whole idea of sexual replication is based in genetics.


Biology

Most of the anatomy adds up if you add "it's fantasy" in, but there's a few things that stood out to me.

One of those are the belly mouths. As mermaids, they are secondary aquatic mammals, which means that their main way of swimming will be through a butterfly stroke - an up and down movement of the body that relies strongly on the belly muscles. You state that they eat through this mouth as well, so it's safe to assume that they have a fairly large opening connecting to the stomach. This means that their abdominal muscles are cut in half, and hence only have less than half the power to create the up and down swimming motion. Combine that with the abdominal muscles also having a huge impact on the tail - try to lift up your legs and lift an object with them whilst seated without using your abdominal muscles - that would result in them being very slow swimmers, possibly not even strong enough to reach the surface, let alone just out of the water to grab a human from the land. What happens to these mouths when a female is pregnant? I can imagine that with a gaping hole in the stomach, that might create for a Saving Private Ryan scenario when the foetus gains in size unless the mouth is closed off to prevent this from happening. It might also be a good idea to think about how the organs stay inside even when not pregnant; the human body already needs some pretty tough membranes and muscle layers to keep their organs inside, and even there a small hole can burst everything out. Even if the oesophagus is small, how it it resistant against the high internal pressure of the organs?

I was also wondering about the heart - how did it get so high up, and how have these creatures not been hunted to extinction yet with this weak spot? When swimming, they'll most likely have their body horizontal while having the head look up compared to the spine, stretching out the throat and exposing it to any threat and putting a great extra deal of pressure on the organ and its surrounding arteries and veins. A throat is very easy to cut, case in point that placing the trachea in it was already a huge flaw in mammals' survival that severely cut back the fitness of this branch of species and is still a striking point for many predators. In order for their bodies to be as flexible as would be assumed from their hunting skills, their arteries would also have to be flexible; if made out of the same material as these hearts, the body would be rigid and it would cost a great deal of energy just to move, if they could move at all. Combine the area with the pressure the organ is under, and these hearts would either rupture at the aorta or any weak point where the arteries branch into smaller elements, or the heart would be very easy to cut/bitten out if the arteries could support the high pressure.

How exactly would the gills on the side of the head work? For there to be gills, there'd most likely have to be a protective layer above it to ensure their primary means of breathing doesn't just snap off. It would go together with either a reduction of brain size, which in turn would go with a reduction of processing power, or they'd have to have slightly thicker heads with an added slab of flesh over it.


Behaviour

More of a storytelling detail, how did a species that was banished to the depths of the ocean and presumably was stopped from surfacing develop a digestive system specifically made to digest in part human flesh - which is seriously different from the salty plants and fish in the ocean that could mess with their saline balance and cause them to burst from water seeping into their bodies - and such a taste for their flesh even after it was still a taboo when their ancestor ate one? Even if it is out of principle, the Nephilim seem to have adapted wonderfully to hunting a creature that fully lives on the land for being aquatic themselves. Something doesn't add up there, but I'm once again not sure if that detail isn't added because of spoiler reasons.


That's all I got! I hope you didn't find this too harsh? I at first wanted to add all the good things about them as well, but then this would've gotten really long. Things like their general backstory, their colours, and their features are all pretty cool, but it's easier to talk about details that don't add up than about details that are perfect already! c':


Azrael

ElithianFox Oh my gosh, I don't know why toyhouse never notified me of the feedback you posted! Thank you very much for the feedback, and pointing out things I hadn't noticed before! When it comes to them physically functioning in what seems impossible for them biologically, the best way to explain it is because of their magic. It allows them to perform things that they otherwise wouldn't be able to perform~ And sorry for the super late reply ;w;

Update: The species lore has been updated, with some more paragraphs and a new magic section added! I'd like to thank @feather-weather for her help in this, it means a lot~