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While historians and scientists aren’t exactly sure where Merlins originate from, most often call themselves “The Descendants of Poseidon”. Merlins have the ability to breathe underwater without difficulty, but the drawback to this is that they need to be in water for at least 6 hours a day. If they don’t reach this minimum, the skin of the Merlin will shrivel and wither until they reenter the water. Some Merlins have died or “suffocated” due to lack of water intake.
All Merlins, no matter their generation, have developed facial scales and head fins at a young age or are even born with these traits already. These characteristics can be a variety of colour (different coloured attributes are hereditary), and the colour that most Merlins have is a light grey. As the young Merlin grows, so will the pigment within their fins and scales. The facial scales trail gently under the eyes of a Merlin, but stop about two inches away from where the nose structure begins. Their head fins often take the place of “human” looking ears, but Merlins can still hear perfectly fine.
The most effective way to harm, or even torture, a Merlin is by depriving them of water. As mentioned above, a Merlin needs to be immersed in water for at least 6 hours per day. If a Merlin is in water for about 5 and a half hours, they will slowly begin to “rot” or, in simpler terms, their skin will begin to shrivel.