These enigmatic and strangely diverse creatures have rarely been seen to Jaernians, as they tend to live in the deepest parts of Jaern's oceans. They are well documented in the legends and myths of the Onivero, where they are painted as a horde of hard-to-kill, destructive enemies.

Abysslings come in a wide range of forms, each fulfilling a different role amongst their kin. They share a sort of collective consciousness - not quite a hivemind, but a single abyssling has little individuality and sees its purpose only to the betterment of their species. This collective consciousness is referred to simply as “Us” by an abyssling. The more sophisticated abysslings may have some element of personal identity, but it is always secondary to Us.

The prime directive of the abysslings is to adapt. They are always taking in new information from their environment and the other races they interact with, using it to further their species' evolution.

The most notable thing about Abyssling biology is their incredibly fast evolutionary rate. Not even a generation is required for abysslings to evolve and adapt; an individual can change its body and traits over its own lifetime to adapt to a new situation on the fly. They are known to release pheromones to communicate with their kin. Abysslings cannot tolerate saltwater - if immersed, they quickly shrivel and die, and so they pose no threat to Cahyali's oceans.

Studying abysslings is famously difficult, as a captive specimen will quickly revert its body into an inert mass of muscular and connective tissue with zero resemblance to its previous form. This makes it almost impossible to capture or study them. It's thought that this behavior is meant to assist when a colony falls upon hard times; other abysslings have been seen eating these fleshy pieces.

One of the biggest threats to other life the abysslings pose is their ability to assimilate. If even a few abyssling cells enter the body of another being - whether this is by being injected with their blood or eating their meat - this being will slowly but surely transform into an abyssling themselves, and their mind will lose all individuality as it joins the collective consciousness of its new kin.

In general, the more abyssling tissue consumed, the quicker the assimilation and transformation. It can vary on a timescale of days to years.

Left alone, a colony of abysslings will likely not spread. They stay mostly stationary, controlling a relatively small territory and adapting to their local environment. However, if this environment is disrupted by something such as a natural disaster or other races' interference, the colony will enter a “spreading” period, where they radiate out and begin to invade other places, looking for a new path forward and new place to live. These Spreads can be extremely destructive and result in many being killed or assimilated.

There are many forms abysslings have been observed to take, each with a specific role it serves for its kin. An individual can easily change form over the course of its lifetime, depending on what is most needed for the colony's survival. These forms vary in complexity, but Us sees no abyssling as inherently higher or lower than another, although more complex or intelligent forms will often take a position of leadership within their colony, guiding their kin along a new path.

The Bloom is the most archaic and “lowest” form of abyssling. They are huge mats of microscopic creatures, with a similar appearance to a slime mold or large algae bloom. They are usually a greenish-blue to bluish-purple shade. They are completely unintelligent and have only one goal: to provide food and nourishment for their kin. They are also functionally the abysslings' vanguard: the first sign of an abyssling Spread is the appearance of the Bloom.

When enough Bloom accumulates in an area, it can even begin to terraform it, making the place perfectly suitable as an abyssling nest. These locations are strikingly beautiful in an eerie way, and are referred to as bloomreefs. Bloom is said to taste wonderful, although those who eat it quickly cease to be what they were.

As the most diverse taxon of abyssling, Terrors are little more than animals. During a Spread, they are the footsoldiers of the abysslings and form the bulk of the horde. They can vary in size, but are rarely bigger than a human.

The most common type of abyssling by far. These are cnidarian-like creatures, with heads which resemble delicate flowers and tentacled bodies like a cephalopod. In the center of their heads is a single eye, and their mouth is located in the center of their tentacles. They are effective swimmers, but can also slide along the land. Swarmers will die if they are out of the water for too long, but can crawl around for a few hours before drying out.

Some Swarmers have shells, which cover their flower-like heads and leave only the eye exposed. These shells will usually be rounded in shape, with small spikes or coral-like structures protruding off them.

These are more fish-like in appearance, and mimic anglerfish to a tee. They have bioluminescent lights on their heads, which can shoot sparks of electricity to an unsuspecting target. Anglers are effective undersea hunters and are in charge of bringing the colony much of its meat, but are entirely ineffective when not in the water.

These resemble giant sea slugs, and trawl patches of Bloom cultivating and nourishing them. They are covered with a layer of mucus which is capable of defending against most physical attacks, as well as kickstarting assimilation if it enters a wound. Crawlers are large, slow, and generally docile. Some have compared them to livestock such as cows or horses.

These mostly sedentary creatures seem sometimes to be part of a bloomreef. Their only role in the colony is to eat and lay eggs, producing the next generation of abysslings. Abyssling eggs are squishy like a frog or fish's, though they are about the size of a baseball. Newly hatched abysslings are usually Swarmers, though they will quickly develop into a different form if circumstances call for it.

These creatures are far more rare than the other forms, and bear some amount of intelligence. They think for the colony and make decisions, or carry out complex tasks that the Bloom and Terrors are simply incapable of doing.

The warrior caste of the abysslings. These used to resemble sharks or other sea predators, but have more recently taken shapes which resemble humanoids. They have limbs tipped with sharp bony protrusions, which they use as weapons to cut and saw. Some also have hard shells made of chitin and bone. A rare few even have the ability to spit projectiles.

Strangely enough, chitinous soldiers rarely hunt; their role is limited to defending the colony, or attacking others during a Spread.

The most intelligent group of abysslings. They have intellect comparable to a mortal's, and are the only ones capable of speech which is understandable by other races. Many Speakers are assimilated humanoids, and bear some lingering resemblance to their previous selves - though, of course, all identity is gone. However, their memories may remain.

Sometimes, Speakers remain on land, keeping up appearances of their former selves to further a Spread and slowly manipulate their surroundings to be more habitable for their kin. Speakers used to be unheard of, but as the influence of the Bathysmal Temple grows, more and more Speakers appear.

This term is used to speak of abysslings which have “perfected” themselves, becoming incredibly large and complex. They usually do not have intelligence, being an elevated version of any of the other Forms, but are nevertheless extremely destructive.

Myths tell of a strange, primordial “god” of the abysslings, called the Ocean Mother, which lies dormant somewhere in the deepest ocean trenches. Some say this entity is simultaneously a greater abyssling and an aspect of Neptune, though this belief is widely considered heretical against the Neptunian Church.

Abysslings have no culture of their own. They do not make art, and do not understand concepts common to mortals such as morality, dishonesty, emotion, and hatred. Cultural aspects of life such as art, in fact, are so antithetical to abysslings that those attempting to fight assimilation will often hold on to art as an anchor to keep the assimilation from progressing.

Onivero have long been an enemy of the abysslings, ever since a large-scale Spread began to occur in the early 9000s. This Spread was likely initiated by several underwater volcanic eruptions, and would have been catastrophic to land-dwelling civilization if not for the Onivero's role in fending it off and suppressing it before it could leave the ocean. Ever since, Onivero have told stories about the “sea-monsters”, and developed techniques to counter their ever-adapting nature.

Land-dwelling civilization only came in contact with the abysslings recently. They occasionally wash up on the beaches of Lojem and the Great Rice Patty. Very rarely, a small group of living abysslings has made landfall around the Sunovarm.

However, during these brief periods of contact, their nature of living under one mind was studied, and an esoteric cult formed which desired to bring all of humanity under Us - believing that the abyssling collective consciousness would lead to a utopian Jaern filled with understanding and peace. This cult calls itself the Bathysmal Temple.

The Bathysmal Temple is attempting to provoke Spreads and assimilate people, believing that force is necessary to bring land-dwelling civilization into the fold of Us. Ever since they formed and made contact, the abysslings have been becoming more and more aggressive, spreading out of the deep oceans, overrunning Lizard cities in the shallows, and invading the coasts.