Pride Information

[Einaliai Thalassai]

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All general information about the pride including beliefs, traditions, and history can be found here.

 

[Einaliai Thalassai]

Location

The mermaids actually live on a fairly large tidal island of the coast of the mainland. Though the island can be seen clearly from the mainland, the swim is generally considered to be too far and dangerous, but there is a land-bridge that connects the island and the mainland, but this can only be used at low-tide and up to part-way between low- and high-tide.

The island is large and lush, populated with birds and small mammals, freshwater pools where fish can be caught if sea fishing has been poor. There is plenty of room for the pride, as it has been determined that it takes several days to go from one end of the island to another, including time spent getting food, with slightly less to walk across the middle as the island is longer than it is wide.

The island is not too far down the coast from where the Maestros Del Mar make their home, these pirates being the main interaction the lionesses have with the outside world, though it is not uncommon for the ladies to run into vikings as well. The Stormborn have an even more negative/wary view of the mermaids, so interactions are fewer/briefer than with pirates.

Outside of the Island

With the help of some allies on the mainland, as well as their actions, the sisters of the Einaliai are seen as sea nymphs that lure males away with their seductive song. They are dangerous male-eaters, some say that they have their way with a male before devouring him beneath the waves.

Any male that is seen after an encounter tells wild tales of an advanced society of females with no male in sight and being treated like a king, but with no idea of how he got wherever he had been or how he returned alive. Some call this memory-lapse the "Mermaid's Kiss". Others simply write it off as sun-sickness.

Neighboring Prides

- Maestros Del Mar:

History

The pride was founded by a small group of lionesses who had fled a patriarchal pride before they could be mated in order to find a place where they could be what they wished to be. In the roguelands, some of the females found mates and continued to travel with the group. But it soon became apparent that being with her mate and helping to raise her cubs was just as much of a distraction as anything else and those who had taken mates were left behind.

So the remaining females beseeched the gods, asking for someone to take them to a place where they could live without distractions. Now, there is no true place like that, but a passing goddess thought the idea in interesting one and set out to find such a place.
The place she found was a piece of the land, like a leaf at the end of a thin twig, in the ocean. A place where twice a day, Ocean saw fit to swallow the connecting land. It didn't fall too deep below the waves, but far enough that trying to cross it when the waters were high was much too dangerous.

The goddesses came to the females and led them to the island, a place they found to be lush and rich in food and living space, with few predators and none that were great competition.
And there they lived, crossing the bridge only to bring males back to the island when cubs needed to be born or to take male cubs elsewhere. A island of only lionesses.

Until one generation, a lioness returned with a male and begged the queen to let him stay. She cared for him as much as she cared for her sisters and wished to have cubs only with him. At first, the council refused, but the queen saw some merit in this. Firstly, the lioness maintained that he would stay near the bridge if he had to leave and that it would just be a hassle for her to go across the bridge to meet him when the pride needed more sisters. She wanted him conveniently close. Plus, the male had knowledge of writing to offer, something she thought would benefit the pride to know. And so she convinced the council and they agreed that he could stay, but that he must stay on the other side of the island and that only his lioness could come to him, not the other way around and she would go only to him.

In Recent Events...
Despite the healing and medicinal knowledge of the pride, when a plague came to the island there was nothing the lionesses could do to stop it. It was the first time that the consorts were allowed into the main pridelands for an extended period of time as the healers did their best to save the sisters and their males.

The pride was decimated and the pain was shared by all. Many sisters died, young and old both, including the former queen.

The last of the death has finally left the pride now, and the first thing on everyone's mind is to return the haven to its former glory.  

[Einaliai Thalassai]

Religion

The pride acknowledges the existence of both goddesses and gods alike and encourage their sisters and the consorts to worship who they choose. It is, however, seen as a little bit more traditional for a lioness to focus on a goddess related to her calling, such as an herbalist sending prayers or thanks to the goddess of Herb Lore.

There is no defined religion and worship is an acceptable past-time though not encouraged as worship may get in the way of the calling for anyone not a Priestess.

Gods and Goddesses that choose to visit the island are treated with the utmost respect, though the females of the pride do ask that they are given some amount of respect in return. While a goddess is welcome anywhere on the island, it is requested of gods that they remain among the priestesses, unless they intend to mate with one of the sisters. This is to prevent any confusion among the rest of the pride and to make sure everyone remains comfortable during the visit.

- Tarishi, Goddess of Messengers: Messengers found the island not long after the tsunami wrecked the coastline. While she didn't agree completely with the no-family ideals, she likes the pampering, island atmosphere, and the fact that they know what messengers are and their uses. It isn't her home, but certainly a vacation-spot and a place to give her blessings from time to time.
- NAME:

Beliefs

Males - The general purpose of males is for procreation and nothing else. Too often they get in the way of higher pursuits and females bettering themselves so when a male is brought into the pridelands, he is drugged, encouraged to mate with the female that brought him into the pridelands, and then dumped back out into the roguelands once it can be determined that the female is pregnant. The purpose of the drugging is not because he is unwilling, but to ensure that he will not completely remember where he has been or what has happened to him in order to keep the pride secret.

The pride does, however, allow for a male to stay within the pride under the condition that he has something to teach them. He is generally referred to as a Consort, as he will "belong" to the female who brought him into the pride. If he so chooses, he may remain in an area separated from the main pridelands where males live who wished to remain attached to their female and vice-versa. The males of this area are not allowed into the main pridelands and will generally only see their female when she comes to him for a new litter, but from then on she will only come to him. This is the closest the pride gets to having mates.

Consorts live on the far end of the island from the bridge to the mainland, only because it is the most separated from the females. If a male is caught coming too close to the pridelands, he could be beaten by warrior guards.

Male cubs are either left with the Consorts or among the Pirates' females in the middle of the night after they are weened.

Sexuality - This is not a lesbian pride. Yes, it is very female-dominant, but they believe that relationships outside of friendship get in the way of things. They have love and respect for their fellow pride members, but nothing more. If there is found to be any romancing outside of necessary breeding (Of any kind), the offenders will be asked to leave the pride.
Females may have a high level of caring for their consort and if they wish to have a more romantic relationship with him they may leave and take him with, with the blessings of the pride. They may not, however, return to the pride if things go sour.

The point of the pride is not to make a bunch of fem-dom, man-haters. The point is to provide a home without distractions of family or lovers where a lioness can rise to her full potential if she wishes. No one is forced to stay, not even the males. Only in times of desperation has a female forced a male onto the island, the art of seduction is much easier.

Family - Female cubs are not raised by their mothers. They are taken care of by the nannies of the pride. Only the Scribe keeps track of who begot whom, simply to avoid any inbreeding that might occur in the future.

Joining Rogues - As stated above, males have specific requirements to joining.
But rogue females are always welcome into the pride, if they understand the rules and are willing to follow them. The mermaids are very accepting of new blood and seem to favor those cast out of other prides or groups. Having different beliefs than most others, the mermaids are very welcoming to females who have suffered as they had and wish to live a similar life where they can be what they wish rather than a station forced upon them.

Non-lions - The mermaids acknowledge the existence of non-lions, but do not see them as equals. They are a minor competition and do not belong on their island.

Familiars - The only familiars that the lionesses will accept are birds of prey. Anything else risks too high a chance of being mistaken for food.

Hybrids - They do not have a concept of this, so if a lioness comes across one, they would be confused and then dismiss it as a weaker creature.

Food - Food is typically from the sea rather than the savanna. If a group of lionesses have gone out hunting for males, they may be gone for several days. So while they mostly fish at home, they are capable of hunting four-legged prey-beasts.
Because of the relatively large size of the island and its sister, there are a number of deer herds present, though the huntresses avoid hunting them as often as possible, not wanting to hunt down their only other food-source.
Turtles are a delicacy that can be eaten by the queen and council, or shared with other pride members.
A beached whale or dolphin is seen as a gift from the gods and there is a great celebration and feast. They are considered sacred by the pride, so while other foods may be consumed during festivals, whales and dolphins are the only food that spawns a celebration.
A shark is the greatest kill a huntress can make. Only she is allowed to wear its teeth and she is revered among her sisters. Shark is shared among the pride, but there is no celebration like with whales or dolphins.

Names - Simply because of a tradition that has been maintained, Roman, Greek, and Gaelic names are most preferred. Water/Sea names are popular.
The nannies of the pride name the cubs, as they are, effectively, the cubs' mothers.

Adornments & Pelts Symbols
- Pelts and Feathers: Huntresses may wear that of preybeasts and birds, Warriors may wear the pelts of larger creatures, but it is forbidden to ever wear the pelt of another lion. Warriors are, however, allowed to wear the claws of the foes they have felled.
- Pelt Bags: The only pelts allowed outside of Huntresses and Warriors, these can be worn by Herbalists, Healers, Artisans, and the Lady of the Past
- Shark teeth: Only the huntress(es) who brought down the shark may wear these symbols of honor.
- Flowers & Other Plants: Any may wear, though they are preferred by Herbalists, Healers, Artisans, and Nannies
- Pearls, Turtle Shell, and Abalone Shell: Only the Queen and Ladies are allowed to wear these
- Metal, Other Shells, Coral, Cloth, Stones: Any may wear
- Seaweed: Considered unlucky
- Bones: Forbidden

- Skull and Crossbones: Forbidden. No sister should mate with a male that bears this mark. If by some genetic fluke a male is born with this mark he is taken from the island. If a sister is born with this mark, she is encouraged to not breed when she comes of age.
- Sea Creatures: Lucky/Blessed