Nerthach (ˈnɛr.θɑk)
Raised in the graucous climate of Abatesh, Nerthach have monochromatic hair, blue tinted skin tones, and startlingly bright eyes characterized by the same lightning with which they coexist. This island is constantly beset by the thunderstorms of animus', which leave it drenched and inhospitable to most plant life. For miles around, thunder can be heard echoing from the swelling black clouds as lightning forks wildly out of them. This region of Eivrall is considered an uninhabitable area by many because of the constant lightning strikes and the overload of numen. The Nerthach, on the other hand, feel at home in the ferocity of these storms.
The Nerthach, a Thyselie subspecies, are graceful and highly intelligent, yet they are shorter and have larger eyes and sharper features. Even when fully armored, Nerthach can still move silently and swiftly, and they have a natural ability to blend into the shadows effortlessly. They are difficult to surprise due to their excellent night vision, and they are just as adept at spotting hidden objects as the rest of the Thyselie. They are exceptionally resistant to magic as residents of Abatesh Island, which is constantly subjected to magical storms. All of this predisposes Nerthach to espionage and assassination, both of which are highly fostered in Nerthachian society.
Origins
The Nerthach, like other Thyselie, were originally from Linve. When famine struck the Linvean Kingdom in 56 NE, not long after disease had devastated the land, the once loving and humane people were faced with something they had never known: betrayal. As their people's corpses began to pile up in the streets, the nobility and other prominent figures began to lock themselves safely away to avoid facing the public, allowing yet another outbreak of disease to plague the kingdom. A large group of people, most likely those who were better off and had more strength left than those who weren’t, agreed to leave their homeland, something that had only happened once before in Thyselie history.
Departing the southern tip of their homeland on the 28th of Qhetris, they sought to avoid the island that once comprised the horror stories told to them as children. Their lack of naval expertise and familiarity with the world outside of Linve, combined with a powerful storm unleashed by the Musai of The Glassy Deep, caused them to deviate from their course. The were pushed back inland and they landed on Abatesh Island on the 2nd of Edon, 56 NE. Abatesh became a more than welcome haven after witnessing so much death and surviving the storms on their journey. With little left, the Nerthach abandoned their Thyselian way of life and heritage and Abatesh Island became home.
Their landing on Abatesh Island triggered a fast genetic evolution. The early Nerthach's food is what enabled them to adapt to the unforgiving climate they were now facing. Abatesh does not hold much in the way of native life. The frequent storms make it difficult for foliage to take root; if any seeds do manage to germinate, they are typically destroyed by lightning or blown away by the wind. As with the island's natural small animals, some plants have adapted to the stormy weather, although they have been altered by the number of storms. Among these include the Skylight, Bleeding Nightstrike, and Sterling mushrooms.
The Nerthach depended heavily on trial and error to determine what was edible. Those who contracted the disease from their native country on the voyage and survived were quarantined away from the rest of the group. Despite being terminally ill, many of these individuals volunteered to test the food out of a genuine desire to save their people. Except for one, they all died. In fact, this individual, a female, survived the experimentation owing to the Bleeding Nightstrike. The outcome of their tests, coupled with their new diet, altered their biology.
The dark blue or black hues of the Nerthach's skin are the result of a genetic feature that confers resistance to radiation and is expressed through their black blood. This change increases their ability to metabolize radiation, including solar radiation, certain nuclear radiation, and the x-rays and gamma rays emitted by lightning during an animus. The gene transformed the Nerthach's genetic structure, making the genetic enhancement hereditary.
The inhabitants of Abatesh have no spirituality; instead, they have confidence in what can be proven and what they anticipate will succeed. Not that they do not believe in the Gods, but as a result of rejecting their Linvean heritage, they do not worship them.
Generations of adapting to and exploring their genetic evolution fostered a culture in which they swore to never be a victim of betrayal again. Instead of being on the defensive, they became the offensive, a mindset that fostered their modern assassination culture and leaves many emotionally stunted.
Culture
Shadows & the Disú Zhile
For the Nerthach, murder has become a system in which they target political opponents of their clients. They are thorough in their execution of the target, attempting to avoid any additional casualties or innocent deaths while doing so. They hide in the shadows and favor personal strikes with blades rather than bows, firearms, or other long-range weaponry. The Nerthach use a fighting style that combines magic, striking skills, grappling, and low kicks in unarmed combat. Because they reject the Gods, they will never take their own lives if caught, preferring to be tortured or killed by their captors. An agent who has been arrested and formally convicted loses the respect of the entire community and is ostracized. Assassins are rarely apprehended more than once.
While assassination is the norm for Nerthach, only a minority of them specialize in espionage. Known as Shadows, Nerthach who choose this route often kill less frequently than assassins due to their desire to collect as much information as possible about their target, which is made difficult by death. Due to the fact that espionage is a specialty, agents must often be adept in the art of assassination beforehand, making Shadows a cold and calculating entity in and of itself.
The longer a Shadow serves, and the more kills an assassin makes, the more he is considered a hero. Courtesans, on the other hand, are regarded as the best by all genders, regardless of their level of experience. Shadows are respected for their expertise and connections, whereas courtesans, or the Disú Zhile as they come to be known as, prove their value simply by surviving their training. Disú Zhile training consists of the girl being fed a regulated diet of poison, however most girls begin in infancy, and sometimes even at birth, in the hopes of obtaining a head start.
This method was intended to render the future femme fatale immune to the poison used against their victims. This allowed the Disú Zhile to administer poison directly, even tasting it before – and after – the kill to deflect suspicion. After developing immunity to a variety of toxins, the Disú Zhile would become biological weapons as their body fluids became very toxic to others. Any interaction, particularly sexual contact, was fatal to non-Nerthach males who had the misfortune of sleeping with them. Nerthachian men, thanks to the effects the Nightstrike mushroom had on their biological evolution, have a general resistance to their poisonous secretions.
Traditionally, Disú Zhile would approach their targets by seducing them and giving them poisoned alcohol. They would normally drink from the toxic cup to gain their target's trust, and when the unwary victim drank from the same cup, he would swallow a double dosage of poison into his system. This method is no longer taught in current times, and it is assumed that women learn it as one of their first attack vectors at home as young girls. With technological advancements, a more prevalent technique is to seduce the victim into getting close enough to inject 'poison' into the central processing unit of their cybernetic augmentations, altering the logic of their systems and allowing for persistent data manipulation should they desire. The most creative artisans utilize this as an extremely efficient form of torture as well.
In Nerthach society, a career in espionage is fraught with danger, and seasoned operatives, regardless of gender, are held in high regard. The Disú Zhile's abilities are so legendary that it is widely thought that even a kiss from one of these female's is fatal.
Social
Relationships
Nerthach women are recognized as superior assassins in many towns, making them the most desirable conquests. Women often pursue each other for a number of reasons, including power, rank and pure physical desire. Because there is no cultural taboo against such interactions among the Nerthach, whether for men or women, females frequently indulge each other whenever possible. In such a culture, the ultimate demonstration of strength is when one Nerthach courtesan exercises influence over another. Male relationships are not viewed unfavorably so long as they reproduce.
It is unusual for a man to pursue a coy or uninterested woman since it puts the male in a position of authority and the female in a subservient role. For his audacity, any male who tried would be tortured. Instead, females initiate courtship and mate selection, and males are expected to comply. Choosing a mate is sometimes the beginning of a fatal competition between females for the best specimens. These males are frequently the victims of the female's lethal games, and on more than one occasion, a female has feigned to stop the pursuit of a male only to emasculate and leave him in the bed of her rival.
Like humans and other civilized species, Nerthach eat, fall in love, marry, produce children, and have a family. Due to Nerthach society's constant upheavals, familial connections are complex.
Love is viewed as a vulnerability that must be concealed and protected rather than something to be embraced. A true commitment to someone in their culture is akin to putting a bullseye on their backs. Love quickly becomes tainted in their hearts as they learn that it is both soft and deadly. Numerous Nerthach who love despise the object of their affection. More than one Nerthach has been driven insane by love, and horrifying tales are shared to remind all Nerthach that that love is an uncontrollable pain. Those who are in love must keep their affections a secret. For fear of waking up to discover them mutilated, they may meet in secret, verbally attack each other in public, or otherwise seem indifferent to each other. Love exists, but it is often brutal and irreparably tainted. Love is one of the Nerthach's best-kept secrets, even in its distorted form.
In a culture where women have nearly complete liberty, the idea of a woman legally binding herself to a single male for the rest of her life sounds ridiculous. Females select their paramours and replace them when they grow bored. Long-term partners typically live together for practical rather than romantic reasons, such as complementary jobs, physical attractiveness, a legacy of producing a large number of female heirs, or political influence.
Common Taboos
The laws of the Nerthach are unspoken but well known. These rules are instilled in Nerthach as they grow older and are reinforced by collective consensus. Those who disobey the laws are subject to punishment or death. The Nerthach are ruthlessly skilled in their interpersonal interactions; brash behavior is deemed to be in poor taste. The laws themselves are irrelevant- the goal, to achieve what they desire without being discovered, however, is.
The bulk of mainlanders believe that there are no taboos among the Nerthach and that anything is permissible, no matter how heinous. This is not entirely correct. Any sexual position in which one Nerthach turns their back completely to another instills extreme terror in the Nerthach. Such positions are thought to invite death. Being caught off guard is often deemed shameful. This drives all Nerthach to perfect their skills, which leads to the need to improve their skills even more as the threats become more complex and dangerous.
Civilization and Culture
Major Organizations
Vinebit
Thef Tíned: The Embrace
Disú Zhile: Beautiful Death
Mercenaries and spies trained by the Nerthach are among the most fearsome in the world. This is a way of life that both sexes follow, albeit in different ways. In these societies, men are held responsible for acts of mercenary violence such as espionage and assassination, while women are held accountable for acts of lethal seduction and poisoning. Women traditionally join guilds called Thef Tíned where they learn how to be both courtesans and spies, while men typically join the military or the magical arts.
Nerthachian Names
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