Description (Healing Blade Lore)
Proteus mirabilis are unusual in their swift, swarming attacks. They travel synchronously through the Aqueduct, and occasionally across the land, like a tight-knit bird flock or school of fish. The effect is the amoeboid-type movement of the crowds in a large city, and the devastation they leave in their path quickly takes its toll on Soma.
Of the Gram Negative Legion, P. mirabilis can actually live harmoniously in the Aqueduct. But when they reach damaged areas of Soma’s outside wall or occasionally the Respiro Forest, they can cause significant damage. The most common site of P. mirabilis battles, however, is the Aqueduct exit into the Southern Seas, a common region of infection by the vicious E. coli troops. This is a particular risk when long-term construction projects on the Aqueduct require the insertion of a makeshift exit drain from the Southern Dam. Once there, P. mirabilis change the water chemistry of the Lower Aqueduct, breaking down urea and releasing ammonia, causing a spike in pH. Indeed, alkaline water is a strong indicator that P. mirabilis is hiding somewhere nearby. If the Lords are not banished quickly, they begin to sculpt crystals that aggregate into massive effigies, which can cause severe damage to the Aqueduct lining, or even block the waterway altogether.
The Lords can also move up the aqueduct to the water filtration plant, where they can cause severe upset to the entire Aqueduct system, generating currents that reverse the water’s flow and purging the Aqueduct’s contents out through Buccal Bay.
Fortunately, many Apothecaries are successful and reigning in Proteus mirabilis infections. Once the Lords are identified, the appropriate warrior can be sent to battle, and barring the presence of other Pestilence creatures, should be able to clear the offenders within a week.