fandomhigh | 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."

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

Using the evidence available, guess which poison was used on which person.

Victim #1 is dead. The body is several feet away from the chair and is twisted into a kind of pretzel shape. The eyes are wide and bulging, the face contorted in a frozen scream.

"He is dead, which already limits our options," Cassandra said dispassionately. "His posture also gives away much. I believe it is the strychnine our teacher mentioned that causes contortions, or do I remember incorrectly?"

"No, I think you're right about that," Anders said, sounding only slightly more bothered than Cassandra was. This was all an illusion, after all. "And it acts quickly, so that fits the timeframe."

"Indeed. This is a simple one, then," Cassandra said, and she turned to look towards the other bodies.

She wasn't a chatty woman.

Victim #2 is still seated at the table, her hands rubbing at her temples. Her cheeks are flushed and she keeps drinking a lot of water.

Compassion flickered through Anders' eyes as he approached the woman. He was always more interested in the living (if simulated) than the dead. "Thirst is black hellebore," he said, flicking back through his notes to double-check that. "But then she'd be blistering and vomiting. Much messier than what we're seeing here. Belladonna, maybe?"

"That would explain the clear headache she is experiencing, as well as the flushing," Cassandra noted. "If it is Belladonna, I doubt the quantity was deadly. She should be grateful."

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

"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.

"...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.

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.

Victim #3 is also still at the table. His head is lolling to the side and a thin line of drool pools at his collar. He's mumbling inaudibly and seems to have trouble focusing.

Victim #4 is also dead. Blisters can be seen around the mouth and the tongue is protruding slightly. Stains on the clothing and the mess on the floor suggest the victim had been violently ill before they succumbed to the poison.

Victim #5 remains in his seat, though he looks up whenever anyone approaches and doffs his hat. "Hello," he greets. "I say, you've walked into a fine mess this evening. Dreadfully sorry about all this."

History of Poisons, Thursday Per 2

Discuss & Deduce

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