.:: On the limits of Albel (And others who share his land of birth) ::.
{[Regarding Foreign Substance]}
Mercurians have a slightly different composition in relation to humans, most notably of which is that they have no internal immune system. Rather, the field of awareness exuded by the bodily sensors projects a subconscious force field of sorts, taking in the registration of data gathered by those same sensors, and utilizing the analysis to discover and repel atomic structures that might be deemed harmful to the Mercurian body. Because of this, illness on Mercury is considered a rarity; quite nearly unheard of, as most contaminants are repulsed or destroyed before they can enter a Mercurian's body.
However, should a dangerous contaminant somehow manage to breach this outer shell and penetrate the skin, it will find itself with little opposition as it wreaks havok through the Mercurian body. For this reason, then, a flu shot or the common cold can and will prove lethal to a typical Mercurian. Additionally, large quantities of harmful contaminants are not so easily repelled as small ones, particularly when present for a prolonged period of time.
Of course, evolution would have been stupid to not provide these people with a last resort fallback... and thankfully, it has. Should a Mercurian eventually reach a state of health so degraded as to prove lethal, incurred by poison or no, they will immedietely become catatonic. The body will immedietely undergo an emergency sequence of locating any and all injuries and foreign objects, ejecting them through the Mercurian's body, and undergo a slow and taxing process of reperation. Any Mercurian who should enter this state will be out for many days, perhaps even weeks, and would surely die without any external help.
In short: Mercurians exude an aura that destroys most harmful substances within a short radius of their bodies, but have no internal immune system and may become comatose should anything harmful penetrate their barriers.
{[Regarding Constant Usage of Powers on a Conscious Level]}Mercurians have a very high metabolism rate, but eat surprisingly little. Part of this is due to a mindset of self deprivation for the good of nature, while the rest is due to their anomalic abilities. As it should happen, their stomach contain a very weak acid not even comparable in strength to the sulpuric variety found within muc of Earth's mammalian biology. Thus, food is digested slowly if at all, and can prove dangerous if left to fester within the body for too long a period of time.
As a Mercurian excersizes their influence over matter, a small amount of matter within their body is compromised as well. Typically, this would end up being any food within their stomach, altered conveniently to fit the needs for the nourishing of bodily cells, rather than their destruction. It should go without mention then, that utilization of influence on an empty stomach will compromise other parts of the body, such as bone structure or blood cell count, and could prove fatal if left unchecked.
Any such harm is reversed upon sleep and a full stomach, as the subconscious mind converts the food to lost body mass.
In short: Mercurians eat little, but use food to fuel their powers. Utilizing powers while on an empty stomach will compromise bodily functions and structure, and may even lead to death.
{[In Terms of Knowledge]}The body is a complicated matter, as are many chemicals and compounds. Though a Mercurian's external censors may be able to relate to them the composition of alloys and proteins and the like, it does not aid in the storage of a conscious memory of such compounds. They may be simple enough to break down, but the exchanging of protons between atoms, as well as the distributions of charges via electrons and patterns and all those little processes required for a Mercurian to act make for such a difficult and time-consuming process, that any who can master more than twelve by the end of a lifetime would be considered prodigous.
In short: Complex atomic structures are too much of a bother for Mercurians to memorize, and effectively create. Destruction, on the other hand, is a relatively simple matter.
{[In Terms of Will]}Because the alteration of matter is such a powerful tool, it is only natural that any good-hearted users would establish a moral code. The code has been around since before the beginning of common memory, and holds such a strong adherance over the wills of the people that not even the most vile of villains would dare consider breaking even one. To alter living matter; to kill through without warning or through trickery; to restore life to the dead; to torture one without the gift... all are considered forbidden, and punishable by death, or exile to a distant land.
{[Regarding Foreign Substance]}
Mercurians have a slightly different composition in relation to humans, most notably of which is that they have no internal immune system. Rather, the field of awareness exuded by the bodily sensors projects a subconscious force field of sorts, taking in the registration of data gathered by those same sensors, and utilizing the analysis to discover and repel atomic structures that might be deemed harmful to the Mercurian body. Because of this, illness on Mercury is considered a rarity; quite nearly unheard of, as most contaminants are repulsed or destroyed before they can enter a Mercurian's body.
However, should a dangerous contaminant somehow manage to breach this outer shell and penetrate the skin, it will find itself with little opposition as it wreaks havok through the Mercurian body. For this reason, then, a flu shot or the common cold can and will prove lethal to a typical Mercurian. Additionally, large quantities of harmful contaminants are not so easily repelled as small ones, particularly when present for a prolonged period of time.
Of course, evolution would have been stupid to not provide these people with a last resort fallback... and thankfully, it has. Should a Mercurian eventually reach a state of health so degraded as to prove lethal, incurred by poison or no, they will immedietely become catatonic. The body will immedietely undergo an emergency sequence of locating any and all injuries and foreign objects, ejecting them through the Mercurian's body, and undergo a slow and taxing process of reperation. Any Mercurian who should enter this state will be out for many days, perhaps even weeks, and would surely die without any external help.
In short: Mercurians exude an aura that destroys most harmful substances within a short radius of their bodies, but have no internal immune system and may become comatose should anything harmful penetrate their barriers.
{[Regarding Constant Usage of Powers on a Conscious Level]}Mercurians have a very high metabolism rate, but eat surprisingly little. Part of this is due to a mindset of self deprivation for the good of nature, while the rest is due to their anomalic abilities. As it should happen, their stomach contain a very weak acid not even comparable in strength to the sulpuric variety found within muc of Earth's mammalian biology. Thus, food is digested slowly if at all, and can prove dangerous if left to fester within the body for too long a period of time.
As a Mercurian excersizes their influence over matter, a small amount of matter within their body is compromised as well. Typically, this would end up being any food within their stomach, altered conveniently to fit the needs for the nourishing of bodily cells, rather than their destruction. It should go without mention then, that utilization of influence on an empty stomach will compromise other parts of the body, such as bone structure or blood cell count, and could prove fatal if left unchecked.
Any such harm is reversed upon sleep and a full stomach, as the subconscious mind converts the food to lost body mass.
In short: Mercurians eat little, but use food to fuel their powers. Utilizing powers while on an empty stomach will compromise bodily functions and structure, and may even lead to death.
{[In Terms of Knowledge]}The body is a complicated matter, as are many chemicals and compounds. Though a Mercurian's external censors may be able to relate to them the composition of alloys and proteins and the like, it does not aid in the storage of a conscious memory of such compounds. They may be simple enough to break down, but the exchanging of protons between atoms, as well as the distributions of charges via electrons and patterns and all those little processes required for a Mercurian to act make for such a difficult and time-consuming process, that any who can master more than twelve by the end of a lifetime would be considered prodigous.
In short: Complex atomic structures are too much of a bother for Mercurians to memorize, and effectively create. Destruction, on the other hand, is a relatively simple matter.
{[In Terms of Will]}Because the alteration of matter is such a powerful tool, it is only natural that any good-hearted users would establish a moral code. The code has been around since before the beginning of common memory, and holds such a strong adherance over the wills of the people that not even the most vile of villains would dare consider breaking even one. To alter living matter; to kill through without warning or through trickery; to restore life to the dead; to torture one without the gift... all are considered forbidden, and punishable by death, or exile to a distant land.
