#salleritt

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Ha-ha, very funny

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Curious serpents (coloured and uncoloured)

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"Would you believe me if I said this?" How curious, the way she talked. "Not everything within me is me." The door opened, or disgorged – something crawled through, several things, several human things.

"All anikiaun are capable of changing mortals. Of creating what you call graiim." If these were graiim, they were relatively unmutilated – for their kind. "Those who make too much use of me forget their lives. They lose themselves. They can only remain within me...parasites."

Was that contempt in her voice? Who had ever heard Salleritt show true emotion - judge another?

"They are of no use to me." The creatures approached; cautiously, curiously. What lives could they possibly lead now? Ticks on the hide of this timeless dream-spirit. Did they recognise themselves in me? "They have no human thought; they are mistakes."

The stink of rotten fish on their breath...some of them had gills; some of them had pulpy, useless webbed hands. One's head hung forward on an eel's neck. All parodies of their goddess, the shimmering serpent, coiling ceaselessly through the magical seas...the one they had sacrificed themselves to, with no idea they had done so. Did she hate them for it?

"Do you want them?" The closest to me rasped, head jerking upwards suddenly. It sucked in breath – its eyes, bulging and black, focused on me. It had my scent. "Is this the secret you desire? That I am not safe?" In the distance, Salleritt smiled. The new fold of skin split open her featureless face, stretched out as fangs grew into it. A stereotypical, mocking grin.

Just in time before May ends, my other Mermay picture - this one a little more unconventional!

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Quick I need to post this joke before it stops being funny

Most would not appreciate a 10pm emergency, but to Equon it was welcome - like most in his bloodline, disordered sleeping was part and parcel of his eccentricities. For this week at least, evenings were afternoons, and mornings existed only before sleep.

Still, it was fortunate the cinema was nearby – public transport in Grastel was unreliable at best.

From the outside, nothing seemed damaged, though the lack of police – or any – presence was concerning. Nobody stopped Equon as he entered through the glass sidedoor – the massive wooden doors in the middle had long been sealed off, merely historic facade now. Inside, the lobby was almost entirely filled, floor to ceiling, with turquoise coils. Reflecting iridescence from the lights above, they shimmered, seeming to move and twist subtly, changing position just out of sight. Unlike the other anikiaun known for this particular visual oddity – and Equon would be very surprised to find that one out and about – this one had an ending; she had a tail, delicately finned, and it was currently fanning a rather anxious young man mumbling standard-issue warding spells.

Equon caught the young man's eye, and he immediately span to face him, knuckles white and face red. He stopped the chanting in the process. "R-Redhand!" The man was wearing casual clothes, but had something approaching an ID badge pinned to his chest, at least. "Glad you're here, I'm, uh, Bolliger. Apprentice of the, um, occult division..." He held out a hand. Equon did not take it. "Apprentice?" "Can't really get the staff these days," he joked, raising his eyebrows in the universal symbol of begrudging agreement. "Well," said Equon, turning to the pile of vast, bright scales. "Given she's still here, clearly you weren't preventing her from leaving."

"So why are you here, Salleritt?" The coils shifted, masses of bulk settling. A head emerged from near the top – bulging, glassy fish eyes and a wide, wide mouth. It half-slithered, half-swung down to the ground, to where the two humans stood – one cowering in the face of a power he'd seen only in theoretical texts; the other vaguely curious at best. The mouth opened. Long, slender arms reached out, grabbed the lips, pulled the rest of its body out. There was the vague sense that two complete strangers should not be watching this - especially not together. Salleritt's humanoid body, emerging like a lure from the mouth of the sea serpent, was thin, delicate, hooded and faceless.

She pointed directly at Equon. "I've missed you." Her voice needed no mouth; it was stolen from the memory of the listener. "I didn't think we'd met." "Don't be coy." She spoke a name, a symbol of her native language, the language of magic – Equon's mind immediately translated it into a flurry of meanings, sensations -

You are the eyes that first saw the potential of flint, of fire, of language. The itch inherent to the human mind. Your tools failed you as you bled to death on the hillside until, revealing yourself, you shed your skin for this greatest project, these many faces, myriad existences -

Equon shook his head, freeing himself of memories that were not, in fact, his. "My name is Equon Redhand. And this is -" "Andrew Bolliger," he stage-whispered. "What did she say just then?"

"Enough pretence, cousin, help me." Salleritt's tail slapped the ground. "I come here to watch a movie and what do these creatures do? They panic! One would think we hadn't existed alongside them since they first started thinking, unless maybe that's gone out of style -" To Andrew's increasing anxiety, a smirk grew across Equon's face.

"You manifested – for the first time ever – to watch a movie?" "You of all people should understand curiosity, 'Redhand'." "Was it," Andrew offered, "the Shape of Water?" "No, silly!" For the first time Salleritt turned her eyeless face to the apprentice, and he blanched, wishing he could somehow hide in Redhand's shadow.

"It was Black Panther."

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Salleritt Lust, Dreams, Curiosity

Perhaps one of the most powerful known anikiaun, we are lucky that the Incubus is also the most benevolent. Many occultists consider Salleritt trustworthy - in part because, compared to other anikiaun, reports of ‘encounters’ are both more numerous and very effusive on the part of the mortal.

That said, Salleritt has no qualms preying on the unsuspecting. According to her, she needs to interact with the physical realm - something contradicted by the claims of most other anikiaun, that they choose to do so - fortunately, her predation occurs solely in dreams. Constructing worlds and situations straight from the mortal’s own subconscious, most never realise an outside entity controls their visions. Lucid dreamers, on the other hand, can get a nasty surprise when their dream starts manipulating them right back.

Salleritt’s ‘true’ appearance is rare to see, since she much prefers to speak from within the dreams she creates. Some claim to have summoned her from within the magical realm and witnessed a vast sea serpent, equivalent in size to Sleipnir - typically this is moments before they are swallowed up and awaken in their own beds, in a state of confusion. Still, it is all we have to go on.