Mertakan (mer-tah-khan)

A humanoid monster species of the arthropod family, principally descended from the scorpion lineage. They are a variant of the rachtoh, having undergone a serious divergence but not quite enough to be a separate species entirely. Most notably, they have acquired a long, segmented tail with a barbed-end, within which sits a potent neurotoxic venom. Their hip-pedipalps have bulked up, becoming larger, stronger, and acquiring a rudimentary 'finger and thumb' mechanism, turning them into pincers. Their chitinous exoskeleton is more rigid and stone-like in nature, giving them a sharp and angular appearance unlike the rachtoh.   Their color ranges are chiefly in the desert yellows, browns, blacks, and rarely, white. Their skin colors are in the browns and blacks. Their eye colors vary between gold and green, with some crimson variants. Their hair color chiefly matches their exoskeleton, but may be of a lighter or darker complexion.

In addition to the attributes they inherit from the rachtoh, the mertakan have the following differences:   Deadly Venom – Having lost their web making abilities, the mertakan tail is notable for its incredibly deadly neurotoxin. A sufficiently high dosage is enough to kill even dragons, making fighting them a fearsome prospect.   Deceptive Weapon – Their segmented tail can extend up to three times its own length, stretching out on coiled muscles with a piston-like explosion of speed. While this exposes the vulnerable musculature underneath, the sheer speed and impact of such an attack usually makes reprisal difficult.   Adaptive Camouflage – Mertakan can, to some extent, conceal their heat and visually obscure themselves somewhat partially. On its own, this ability might seem half-formed or nonfunctional, but when combined with proper camoflauge techniques or cover, they become incredibly difficult to find.

Like the rachtoh species properly, there are no true hybrids among the mertakan, and they are a hermaphrodite species.

Mertakan tend to have a power dominance relationship, but this is mostly to delegate responsibilities. The primary caretaker acquires food and other family needed resources, while the secondary tends to the family. They can even switch off on this relationship, but normally at the behest of the primary. Both parents are proactively involved with their children when they can, however.   Give the rough and tumble nature of their usual lifestyles, mertakan look for capable mates, especially those that can pose an imminent physical challenge to themselves. Play wrestling and fighting is the norm among couples, as much as a means of training as it is bonding. Those in more advanced civilizations tend to also look strongly for intellectually gifted persons, as it is another form of bonding to connect over such matters.

Mertakan are natural engineers and mathematicians, finding themselves at home in concrete and certain fields. While they can handle the abstract, they have very clear preferences, and so tend to navigate the world in a more physically minded state of mind than most others. For many, this suites their habits well, as the mertakan are also active predators.   Unlike the more defense-in-depth and trap-hunting centric methods of the rachtoh, the mertakan are active in their predations. They will roam far and wide, quickly assess terrain and enemy composition, then formulate plans of attack with frightening speed.   A lingering sentiment from their rachtoh heritage is their loose knit sense of community. Mertakan are mostly independent, even within their own families, but it bothers them to not be around others. This lands them in a perplexing social space of appearing standoffish or as a loner, when they just need a lot of comfortable room. This is much easier for them around other non-mertakan.

Named the mertakan by nebusian scholars, the 'pyramid people' are a loose collection of clan-like rachtoh descendants. Lacking in web making, they turn to natural means of construction, chiefly that of stone. It is argued who made the first great pyramids, be it the nebubis or the mertakan, but the two are intrinsically tied together nonetheless. The ways of Atenkhet blended well with their sensibilities, making the mertakan a rather painless addition to the nebusian paradigm.   Whether in Atenkhet or elsewhere, the mertakan are invariably responsible for fantastic constructions. Their hardy physiology, combined with magi-enhanced tools and rudimentary power suits, efficiently enables their rapid mining and construction desires. Mertakan cities are almost exclusively geometric in nature, varying in fanciful diamonds, pyramids, squares, spheres-within-triangles, and other mind boggling feats. The mertakan skitter across the etched stones and through the myriad tunnels with a specific purpose in mind.   Most civilizations know of the mertakan from their hunter parties, who range far and wide in search of resources. In fact, they are somewhat notorious in this regard due to their frightening effectiveness, fading in and out across the desert sands and arid earth. Banditry is, thusly, an enormous problem for others, earning them vicious monikers such as 'deathstalkers'.   Having relatively avoided the Imperium, and then the followup baarham, the mertakan are not as well versed in the on goings of the world as others. It tends to catch them by surprise when they behold the feats of others, and there is a growing imperative to acquire foreign knowledge.   For better or worse, the mertakan are ranging outside of the deserts now, hungry to see the world beyond.