Glass-eel nymph
They are tiny lights that dream they are people.
- Onda McKennah, Kelpwitch
After the disaster of 1712, most think of how the world changed in terms of ruins and strange forces that scarred the globe. Bizarre animals and near-mythical refugees like thayans, grimlings and others. Even nightmarish things, from monstrous, undead-like jellyfish creatures that stalk the sea, to mermaid-like sirens with deadly, sharp teeth. Then there were the wars fought over new continents that appeared overnight.
But not everything from the Crossing’s Fall cataclysm was destructive. Some of the most wondrous changes were small, and easily overlooked. One of those is the tiny creatures known as glass-eel nymphs. Small as a thumb and bright as a star, these creatures drift through tidebloom groves like the living memory of the sea itself.
Flickers of Dreams Given Breath
I’ve often thought these aren’t so much creatures as they are emotional barometers made flesh.
- Dr. Thaddeus Crane, Royal Institute of Otherworld Studies
Legends say they were born from the shimmer between the sea and sky. Glass-eel nymphs are tiny, luminous, fae-like creatures native to the lost Drowned Realm of Otherworld. On Earth they’re found in marshes and swamps, often in and around the tidebloom vine groves inhabited by kelpwitches. They go by as many names as there are coastlines—sea sprites, lanternlings, and to the kelpwitches? They’re called vinelings. But to scholars? They’re tiny, amphibious mysteries with wings.
These nymphs rarely grow longer than the average person’s thumb, but a swarm of them can light up a cove. Turning it into a drifting, flowing constellation of light. Wherever the nymphs gather, the air has a gentle hum, and even the surface of the water seems to flutter softly. In tidebloom groves and wetlands, kelpwitches claim glass-eel nymphs are essential caretakers. Cleaning decay from vines and even other plants, ensuring the next bloom. But for others, such as ordinary folk, they’re living proof that the world still remembers the magical wonder of the Etherwave Arcana.
A Unique Appearance
Glass-eel nymphs have a distinct appearance. Each one resembles an unusual, thumb-sized hybrid of human, salamander and dragonfly. They have a glassy, translucent skin that glows with the shimmer of pale sea glass, violet, or pale gold. Each one has a human-like body, head, and arms but a long, flexible tail like a young eel along with a salamander’s legs and feet. Those feet, like any for a salamander, allow a nymph to cling onto wet rock, bark, or tidebloom stems.
On their upper body, they also have hair on their heads and tiny, human-shaped eyes. Their hair color is often straw-yellow, green, or brown. Eyes? Those are the color of tiny gemstones, such as emeralds, amber, rubies, and more. They also have ears, which come to a delicate point, just like thayan ears.
Last, glass-eel nymphs have four gossamer dragonfly wings on their back allowing them to hover or dart through the air. Unless they are standing still, their wings are a steady blur like a hummingbird’s wings, with a glow that complements their skin. As they fly, their wings give off a soft buzz mingled with the whisper of gentle chimes. Their characteristic glow varies by diet and mood, depending on what tidebloom petal or tiny fish they’ve eaten. But when they’re ill, the glow fades until it’s barely as bright as a fading candle. Their glow is the delight of any tidebloom grove where they live, like hundreds of tiny, living lanterns flitting between the blooms.
Sunshine Flyer by Stock Art from Deposit Photos (Majorgaine)
Lifespan
rumored 15 - 20 years
Average Height
5–7 cm (2 to 2.8 inches)
Average Weight
4 to 11 grams (0.14 to 0.38 ounces)
Average Length
tail length is 2 to 3 cm (0.7 to 1.18 inches)
Predator and Prey
In the tapestry of nature, there are predators and prey. So where would an Otherworld creature such as the glass-eel nymph rest? The truth? It’s as strange as they are.
Glass-eel nymphs seem to have no natural Otherworld predators. Not that they aren’t preyed upon, however. These nymphs are a favorite snack for many birds of prey, such as ospreys, marsh harriers, and more. In the water, alligators and crocodiles find the small, glowing nymphs a light snack at best, but only when they can catch one.
I love them. I bet they are beautiful to watch when they are in swarms. I'm really curious if anyone will ever find out more about them and their social structure.
Explore Etrea | WorldEmber 2025
Thank you! And yep... once I wrote this I suddenly had so many ideas. So I'll certainly be adding more later after WorldEmber that will touch on that!