Serns

geh should've uploaded this a while ago.. she is a freshwater Sern and the main character of this [link] short story.

Serns and human contact
First of all, there are two types of Sern: freshwater and salt water.
Freshwater Serns are the only Serns Realixians have any contact with as they live in the warmer waters near the surface in the Gulf of Seanna [say see-anna].
Salt water Serns live a far distance away from the coast and on the ocean floor where the water is cold and salty. They are a lot bigger than freshwater Serns and some say they can measure up to 5 metres long. The only way we know about them is through the stories the freshwater Serns tell; but since we don't know exactly how trustworthy these stories may be salt water Serns may as well not exist. Really the only secondary evidence we have of them is the stories from the Travellers who come by ships, and because they are almost identical, we have reason to believe the saltwater Serns are out there.

Freshwater Serns, although quite elusive, are by far friendlier than salt water Serns. Once they have gained the trust of a few people they will gladly come to the surface to exchange songs, treasures and stories with the native Siarrans. Because a lot of Siarra is uninhabitable, there are not many people there, which makes the Serns more comfortable.

Luring/communication and eating habits
Like mermaids of Earth folklore, both salt water and freshwater Serns are born with irresistibly beautiful voices, but they are used for different purposes.
Salt water Serns have stronger voices which can pierce the souls of humans and animals alike so they are drawn in a trance to the source. This is their main hunting method.
Freshwater Serns, however, have weaker voices which can only enchant the listener. As they only eat plankton and ocean vegetation, they have no need for a stronger voice and use their voices only to entertain one another.

Salt water Serns are carnivorous. They prey on fish, sailors who enter their domain, and even freshwater Serns if they venture too close. It is because of this and their gills that freshwater Serns don’t associate themselves with salt water Serns.
They do not have a written language that we know of, unlike the freshwater Serns, but rather communicate in whistles and different tones of song, much like earth whales.
The melodies they use for communication have minute differences that convey entirely different meanings and are frustratingly cryptic. To the human ear they have no difference, though to a salt water Sern they mean a world of difference and these Serns would think us incompetent for not being able to hear it.

Freshwater Serns, on the other hand, communicate with words like we do, but there are slight differences. On top of phonetics, vowels and consonants, freshwater Serns also have clicks and whistles that are mainly to convey different sounds of amusement; like laughter, sobbing, and everything in between but more precise.
They also speak in a sing-song, watery sounding kind of accent and this is so that they can talk underwater without having the words chopped off and mixed up in the water.
Talking underwater sounds a lot different that talking on land, but these differences are too subtle for the human ears to notice, so we cannot understand the majority of what they say underwater.

Breathing and scales
Serns are amphibious, meaning they can survive both in water and on land, but they must keep their skin wet to survive.
Freshwater Serns have two sets of two gills on their ribcage. They can go into saltier waters but not for very long as their gills are not strong enough to withstand it for too long. They have thicker scales that cover sensitive areas on the torso and then develop into a tail, called the scale set. Each scale set is different on each Sern, but they always cover the main areas. Scale sets can be removed on the torso but not on the tail.
The rest of their body is covered in tiny scales which are often mistaken for skin until one looks closely.
Freshwater Serns are lighter in colour and mainly revolve around the green, blue and yellow colour scale. Scale sets are always a darker hue of their main scales and hair is often a combination of both.

Salt water Serns have two sets of three gills on their ribcage and two more of two on their cheeks to endure the saltier, thicker, and colder waters. They can also enter fresh water, but it is too “sweet” for them and they get headaches and irritated from being there.
Their colours are darker to camouflage on the ocean floor and mainly revolve around the red, purple and deep blue colours. Not much else is known about their appearances.

Reproduction
[if you feel uncomfortable reading through this feel free to skip it because it's not important. It doesn't go into a lot of detail though so you should be alright :3]
Sern reproduction is a bit of a confusing concept. Serns do not have separate genders like humans do and though they look female and are often referred to as such, it is not an apt reference but they accept it anyway.
Once they have found a mate their brains release hormones to have their bodies adapt to take on the role of either nurturer or fertilizer. The Sern who will serve as nurturer will start to produce the necessary hormones for creating eggs and the Sern who will serve as fertilizer will start to produce the fertilizing cells [called sperm by many, but it's different to the kind found in animals and people].
The first step in Sern reproduction is to find a mate. Once the mate is chosen, the Sern who is naturally more capable of bearing the eggs will brood and lay, at most, six. The average number is four eggs per Sern. Fertilization is done outside of the body.
Both Serns will shed their gametes [ [link] ] into the surrounding water and fertilize the eggs; each Sern having the appropriate hormones released from their brains to ensure the right role is taken.
The eggs take seven weeks to mature and hatch. Both Serns take care of the hatchlings; serving mother/father purposes like humans according to their roles in the reproduction process. These roles are assigned according to whichever role best suits the Sern naturally, and both Serns will discuss it until they are certain that is what they want to go through with.
Once the eggs are hatched, the child Serns will stay with their parents for six months on average. Some take longer or shorter to mature and some never leave their parents.
And then the cycle repeats again. Serns have a lifetime of about thirty years, and the partners they choose are partners for life. They do not rush their reproduction; if they find a mate but do not reproduce because they are nearing the end of their lives or do not feel capable of doing so, they at least die happy and no other Serns will look down on them for it.
It is, however, quite lonely for a Sern if they do not find a mate, considering the rest of their lives are devoted to them once found. If a Sern does not find a mate whilst her friends do, she will live the rest of her life or until she finds a mate alone unless she socialises on the surface.

Sorry to finish on a sad note! And sorry there is quite a big wall of text.. There's a lot of info on Serns, had to squeeze 1,317 words in. This information isn't necessary unless you are interested in Serns or creating a character from Siarra.

Soup, Serns & art (c) me.