🐚Walking Reefs

Version 0.8 - Updated 2/16

As the meteor changed the world, the reefs and all its inhabitants were devastated. Yet one particular species of corals thrived. Cultivated by the omniscient local mermaids these corals became more mobile and independent in the warming waters. Guided by the grace of the now-powerful mermaids, the new corals took over the flooded islands and crumbled everything that was left. The mermaids of Light believed that nothing could go to waste and the servants of Shadows enjoyed the destruction of everything – no matter the price. And so, prompt by mutual competition, they had taught the new corals how to walk.

The corals can produce food on their own and have no interest in battling the living. As they walked through the fresh seafloor as giants of myth, they had drawn a lot of attention to themselves. Through cunning grace, the mermaids of Light found here an opening – to induce those of the Shadows and grant them false victory. The Light tribe gave up the rule over the corals to the Shadow mermaids, letting them enjoy the spread of towering creatures, which had left nothing in their wake at first glance. However, as the colossal corals walked, they attracted various forms of lives to their vibrant bodies.

The giants of the reefs produce a lot of oxygen and organic waste. They do so by growing a layer of microscopic lifeforms on their backs, which grant food in exchange for shelter. The sentient corals knew that in order to survive in these turbulent times, they had to look for perfect conditions. And so, they had continued to march, ever looking for places that were full of sunlight but not too warm. What they had produced lured the scavengers who hid below the disturbed sands. To keep up with the speed of corals, decomposers had to learn how to grapple or move at equal speed. With the help of the Light, these creatures were pushed to become bigger in size. Huge crustaceans started to live upon the giants.

Stimulated by rich nutrients offered by the corals and passing waves, colorful shrimp with thousands of feet and crabs with claws that could battle the sharks appeared. Enraged by the scenery, mermaids of Shadow influenced appearance of stingrays with prolongated tails that could unfold with alarming speed. To counter the stingrays, immense calms of predatory nature found their way into the crevices of corals. Thus, the life over the region now called the Walking Reefs prevailed again.