Gardens For Guardians

Chapter 10: Storm Luna

            Calm steps away with her hands held back and looks down at Symon, who rubs his head and groans in anguish. "WHAT WERE –" he begins to shout at her then quickly evaluates his demeanor and continues in his normal volume, "- you thinking, young lady?" She gives him some space to pick himself off the floor and dust off his robe. Calm tightens up the muscles in her neck and j aw, providing him with a tense smile straight across her face. "Sorrrrrrryyy," she eeks out through clenched teeth. Back up to his feet and fully dusted of dirt and debris from his clothes and silvery hair, Symon looks at her sternly. "You are a Psyma type! You can't go around invading personal privacy like that!!" he scolds her and in response she gives him a half bow and apologizes more to her teacher. With her head down and unable to see his face, he takes the chance to wipe away sweat from his brow and relieves himself of a worried sigh.

"What is a 'Psyma type?' You said that I am one," Calm asks him with a return to a more serious and education-focused tone.

Symon finds a new place to sit on an old tree stump, lower to the ground and less dangerous if she attempts to touch him again. He claps his hands together and explains, "Yes yes yes yes yes yes, you see. The Gaijin Parasites have been largely categorized into three distinct types: Socaroma, Menous, and Psyma. You are that third one I named."

          What makes up a full person? One component must be the body, all living things must have some form to them and therefore a body. It is what grounds them; it is the shell which allows for them to survive in interaction alongside other matter. The body provides physical interaction, protection from the outside, and regulation. But if the body is a suit of armor, then what is housed within? Well, the mind, of course! If a body functions, then the mind operates. It is a person's command center, the decision maker and store of memory and knowledge. The mind gives way for mental interactions, complex understanding, and quick wittedness. So, it all comes down to mind and body? But a simple machine has a body, and provided with programming, it can also have a sort of mind. There must be more than that. People also have soul! There is passion, irrationality, and a deeper essence. A lifeforce that provides purpose to the mind and the body, that chugs along and brings meaning to a person. Those are the three components that make up a complete person.

"Socaroma. These are abilities which alter the form or physical attributes of the user. Someone with this type can take the hits and have full control over their body."

"Oh! Like Bruno? He must have that Somacroma type (or whatever)," Calm chimes in, doing her best to follow along.

"Why do you think that? What was his ability, did you see?" he leans towards her while asking, using his question as a sort of quiz for her.

She crosses her legs and sits back, with a finger up against her chin. She replies to him, "He was hard to take down. The guy could take some hits! But also, he could 'pew pew' these freaky needles from his fingertips, so that is like a physical change to his body, I figure."

Symon hums and nods, "Mhmmm, mhmmmm, I think you've got it right! Up next is Menous type. Those in this category can be quite scary. A menous user can have a change in a mental attribute, but also these powers can allow for affecting the mentality and senses of other people. Not to mention, the users also have an increase in their own senses and situational awareness."

Calm squirms a bit and runs her hands down her legs. "I don't like that. Not one bit, gives me the creeps just imagining it," she says while shivering.

"Have you not come across one of these types before? It is likely you just didn't know it because they were not using their powers aro-"

Calm cuts him off suddenly, "Wait!! I did see one... just yesterday during the emergency lockdown. In Eclipse Residence. It was this massive woman; she was like the military commander or something. She made the Others scream in agony, just by brushing them with feathers."