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history of poisons

History of Poisons, Thursday Per 2

"Some might consider today's class to be fairly gruesome," Karla warned the class outside of the Danger Shop. "I make no apologies for that. Hopefully this will be the closest you come to seeing someone die by violence, but I'm fairly sure that hope comes too late for at least half of you. And for those of you who wish to make your living as healers, warriors, or keepers of the peace, well, this is just one in what will doubtlessly be a long line of corpses. Take comfort in knowing that these, at least, are only an illusion. Simulation. Whatever. If, however, you decide that the class is too much for you, you are excused to the library to spend the rest of the period researching a poisonous plant and writing a two-page essay about it, due in my email by the end tomorrow morning."

The inside of the Danger Shop was set up to look like a private dining room. Around the table were five people; two were dead and the remaining three were in various stages of extreme distress. "Dinner was served two hours ago," Karla said calmly. "Each man was given a different poison. Based on the reaction times and displayed symptoms, it's your job to figure out what each poison was. You may be able to talk to some of the victims, for the rest, you'll need to rely on your observations and the strength of your notes. Feel free to work alone or in pairs. When you are ready, put on your protective gear--" she gestured to several shelves to the immediate left of the door "--and begin."

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"Of course," Karla said, offering Karina a small smile. "It's why I made sure to have the option available. Do you know what poison you want to write about?"

It was a struggle for Karla to keep a straight face. "I completely understand," she gushed, matching Mara's innocence with a similar level of sympathy. "It's rough having a delicate stomach. But don't you worry, you can head right down to the library and figure something else out."

SHE WASN'T BUYING YOUR STORY HERE, MARA JADE ONE-DAY-TO-BE-SKYWALKER.

"Do you know what poison you'll be studying?"

Now, yes, Karla was her teacher. But Karla was also (to Karina, anyway) Footmot. Which meant that Karina felt comfortable enough to give her a flat 'are you kidding?' look at her question.

Okay, she probably would've anyway, even if she hadn't been comfortable with Karla. She wasn't even kidding herself.

"No," she added, in case the look hadn't gotten it across. "I was mostly thinking about the avoiding the dead bodies thing so far."

"I haven't decided yet," Mara said. "I'd love to hear your suggestions!"

Like maybe what they were studying with the fake dead bodies she can't see?

Karla would always, always be Footmot, darn it! Because Footmot was the best.

And right now she was laughing because Karina had a point. "Fair enough," she conceded. "Go on, go on. Head to the library. Try not to freeze to death on your way back to the dorm."

How ironic she was telling Blue Rose not to freeze to death.

"Curare," Karla said immediately. "Or oleander. We haven't covered either of those in class yet, but they're fun. Alternately, you can go into more detail about the poisons we covered two classes ago, as I used five of them for this class."

"Why do you say that?" Karla asked, sipping a cup of hot tea.

"Oleander's a flower, right?" Mara said. "I was studying up on this Valentine's Day thing."

"Please don't give anyone an oleander!" Karla said quickly. "Yes, it's a flower, but I'm pretty sure the only meaning it has is 'I intend to kill you quickly.'"

Which, you know, she could absolutely see Mara sending to someone, but she'd prefer it not be anyone on the island.

"If it is Belladonna, her symptoms could be much worse than they are," Cassandra pointed out. "At present, she appears to be thirsty and plagued by a headache, but she does not appear to be hallucinating or attacking."

She shrugged. "Though I could be wrong, of course," she said, "If she has anything to say to the contrary."

"What's the reaction time on belladonna?" Karla prompted. The woman stayed mostly silent, except for a bit of moaning.

And a rhythmic thumping that was growing ever louder.

Mara gave her an innocent gasp. "That would be terrible!"

She had a list of at least ten people back home to use it on already.

"...Several hours," Cassandra dragged up out of her memory, after a moment's thought. Ah. So that was Karla's point. She made a disgusted noise. "I hate death by poison. It takes entirely too long to run its course."

Chopping off someone's head was so much faster and did not involve so much pretentious subtlety.

This time Karla couldn't help but raise a skeptical eyebrow. "I'm sure," she said dryly. "Do let me know if the very idea makes you feel faint. I can program in a couch to catch you."

And a mint julep to help her recover.

"We'll be studying oleander the week we get back from break," Karla said. "Like lilies of the valley, their poison is so virulent, honey made from oleander flowers can kill."

Karla had several jars at home.

Cassandra hated subtlety, news at 11.

"Which puts a lot more distance between you and your victim," Karla pointed out. "You stab someone in the midst of their guard, you'll be fighting your way out. You poison someone in the midst of their guard, they won't even know the deed is done until you're long gone. Hell's fire, you do it right, you can get the guards, too, all without lifting a finger."

"I am aware of the applications," Cassandra said irritably, "But I would rather fight my way out, in such circumstances."

Yes, news at 11, Cass.

"Every weapon has its place," Karla pointed out. "You might not always have the option to fight. Sometimes choosing to fight is akin to choosing suicide. Sometimes, you might have to protect something too precious to risk. Either way, the sword isn't the only option you have."

"It is not the only option I have, but it is the option I choose to live by," Cassandra said. "I am here to learn how to avoid being killed by those who use more underhanded weapons, and how to prevent others from suffering their ill effects. I will not make them my own."

You were speaking to Cassandra 'I Guess My Only Option Is To Fly This Dragon Into This Other Dragon' Pentaghast, here.

Was it wrong that Karla really wanted to throw Cassandra and Lucivar together to see who could out-stubborn who?

"A laudable goal," Karla said mildly. "In that case, though, you'll want to pay more attention to reaction times, lest you reassure someone they haven't received a fatal dose of something."

Behind her, the victim pushed herself up on unsteady feet and lurched towards Cassandra, shrieking invectives.

Sigh. Yes, that lesson was clear.

Cassandra turned towards the staggering woman. "I do not suppose there is any kind of cure," she said.

She would rather not strike a dying woman, if she could at all avoid it.

"In real life...possibly," Karla said, neatly stepping aside so the woman would have a clear shot at Cassandra. "Though odds aren't in her favor without the use of magic. Here in the sim? No. The lesson is to see the symptoms as they play out so that you become familiar with them."

A harsh lesson, yes, but better the 'life' of one illusionary victim than the one of a real victim later on.

The woman's pupils were so far blown there was only the thinnest ring of blue visible. Her breathing was rapid and her steps unsteady, causing her to stagger rather than walk. The thumping noise was growing louder and more uneven as the minutes passed.

Kaylin Neya

She's certainly seen worse deaths. And caused a few.

Kaylin was here and ready to try and figure this all out ~~however her mun spent the day at her grandmother's funeral and driving 3+ hours home in a snowstorm so she's crashing~~.

Don't say "oooh," Mara.

"And the droids that check for poisons probably wouldn't recognize ones from this galaxy," she mused. "Would you like an essay comparing and contrasting some of our flower-based poisons?"

Karla's first instinct was to pretend surprise that an innocent dancer like Mara would know enough about flower-based poisons to be able to write that essay. Karla's second, far more intelligent, instinct was to leap on that offer with both hands.

"Hell yes I would!" she said. "That would be excellent!"

So professional.

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History of Poisons, Thursday Per 2

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