Merida: Gulf Coast Terror

Basic Info

• Name: Merida
• Nickname: Meri
• Codename: Maneater
• Gender: Female
• Species: Human-Shark Hybrid
• Sexuality: Bisexual
• Age: 19
• Residence: Gulf Coast
• Height: 6'
• Appearance: Merida has fair but lightly scarred skin from fighting, long silver hair that she ties into a ponytail and yellow eyes with a mouth full of razor sharp shark teeth. She has a hydrodynamic build with a flat chest and slender legs that facilitate unrivaled swimming speed, and she has a bull shark tail coming out of her lower back. Merida has blue gills on her neck that allow her to breathe underwater just as easily as on land and she has sharp fingernails that she "paints" pink by using coral residue.
• Outfit: Merida wears a torn black schoolgirl uniform with torn white stockings and black Mary Jane heels.

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Personality & Backstory

• Personality: Merida is driven by two things, a need for survival and vengeance. Merida is the unchallenged Queen of the Gulf Coast and she will assert her dominance either with force or with intimidation, but she is far from mindless. She inherently hates humans, but she is also very bitter about the loss of her mother and bringing it up can sometimes trigger an aggressive response from her. Her insults hurt just as much as her bite. Whenever Merida isn't hunting or otherwise chasing foreign elements out of her waters she can often be found idly swimming or even resting in an alcove.
• Backstory: Merida was a part of Project Maneater without her knowledge, an attempt by Louisiana scientists to create the ultimate underwater guardian. She believed that she was simply born like this and never truly knew her mother, but was still very close as she learned most of her instincts from her. One day while in the Gulf Coast waters, a fisherman was out harpoon fishing and shot at Merida, only for her mother to tackle her out of the way and take the fatal blow herself. This is where Merida learned her hatred for humans and why she attacks humans for more than just survival.

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Traits

• Resting Habits: Whenever night falls or if Merida is simply tired, she will seek out an alcove to rest in. If the alcove is completely submerged underwater then Merida will wall off the entrance so she doesn't accidentally drift out of her resting place, but if the alcove is only partially submerged she will sleep on the dry parts.
• Omnivore: Merida is not picky about what she eats, as long as it keeps her full. She will eat fish, vegetation and other meats alike.
• Likes: The thrill of the hunt, fish, seafood, swimming, hunting fish that are much bigger than her.
• Dislikes: Humans, fishermen, her prey not putting up a fight, pollution, fish overpopulation

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Abilities

• Hydrodynamic adaptation: Merida was created to perform either on land or underwater. Walking comes as naturally as swimming and Merida can actually stay completely still because she doesn't rely on ram ventilation to breathe underwater. Whenever Merida has to come onto dry land, she will immediately switch to her human lungs.
• Shark Genes: Merida's DNA is mainly spliced with that of the Bull Shark, giving her increased aggression and strength, but she is not limited to what a Bull Shark can do. Merida can use her tail like a weapon, able to unleash underwater shockwaves like a Thresher Shark and perform tail whips with enough force to even catapult fish out of the water, and she has inherent sonar. If Merida breaks off or otherwise loses a tooth, a new one will grow in to replace it within a few days.
• Homefront Knowledge: Because Merida spent all her life swimming around the Gulf Coast, she has vast knowledge of the marine life that lives here and knows when certain populations of fish are starting to grow out of control. Merida feels that her duty as the Queen of the Gulf Coast includes controlling fish populations and she will hunt and eat them down to size if necessary. This knowledge also alerts Merida to any nearby humans wanting to damage the Gulf Coast's ecosystem and she will react accordingly.
• Feeding Frenzy: Merida is able to enter a feeding frenzy if she smells blood. To Merida, entering a feeding frenzy is like flipping a switch, dulling her senses to allow her to focus purely on her target, essentially entering a controlled rage.
• Mutagenic Properties: Merida's internal body is unstable, and if radioactive pollution enters the water, she can "absorb" it without harm. Merida can use stored radiation to mutate or revert parts of herself to improve her hunting capabilities, treating the whole process like preparing a perk loadout.