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Post by kysseh on Feb 16, 2009 21:47:32 GMT -5
A smaller body size meant that small quantities of foreign bodies were required to achieve an effect. Less medicine was necessary. Less blood loss was required to yield in death. Less poison was required to stop the heart.
Savitri knew all these facts, but it made her feel hollow inside to watch one of the infirmary staff draw the sheet up over her most recent patient's face. Even Hepaticath's comforting presence and Shadow's adoring mind-images could not calm her, and the young woman sank into a seat beside the bed, trying not to acknowledge the trembling in her hands. She had been going over the tithing records in the records room when she had been summoned to the infirmary. An emergency, they said, and given how ridiculously early it was in the morning, that made sense. She had not expected to find the unconscious and contorted body of her younger brother on an infirmary bed, the staff trying to force the charcoal down his throat to absorb the poison. He had been eating a very early breakfast when he became ill, apparently, and now she was staring at a sheet-covered corpse, a mere half-candlemark later.
When one of the staff approached her, she brushed off the comforting hand that fell on her shoulder, watching as the body of what had been her younger sibling was removed from the room. Around her ankles, an anxious feline mrowed and whined, apparently confused as to where her human-pet and his winged-things had disappeared to. Novi and Charming disappearing had tipped Savitri off before Virast's lack of breath had. "Find out what he ate. Bring it here... to the infirmary. I want to know what... what was poisoned," she managed to get out, ignoring the tremble to her own voice and bending down to scoop up the whining feline at her feet. Her eyes weren't red, no. She hadn't cried yet, and she refused to. She needed... to work, to focus. She could not afford to cry now.
"While you're at it, notify the weyrleader there has been another death," she added as the poor, abused woman nodded and scooted out behind those who carried the body. She didn't dare go try to say goodbye now. It was no use, and Fish was practically crying for reassurance, squirming herself around in the young woman's arms and flailing her little silvery paws as if waving them would return things to normal. I am sorry about your clutchbrother, Mine. Hepaticath was saying very quietly, radiating comfort as Savitri passed a reflective surface and immediately grimaced at the ragged picture she made. A haircut-gone-wrong had shortened the length of her hair to just about her chin, and the light strands framed a pale face with tear-reddened eyes that threatened to spill over at any moment. No wonder the woman hadn't questioned her and then had fled. Savitri was almost tempted to flee from her own reflected self too.
"This has to end," she said softly as she moved into the main room of the infirmary, still holding the mewing feline and looking like grief incarnate. Grief was warring with pure anger, though. Hatred... undying hatred for whatever coward had decided poisoning the weyr's folk was a good idea. Hatred for fate that had added her brother to the list of the deceased. A goldrider... a brownrider... and now an apprentice healer. What pattern was there?!
((Kind of suck, but whatever...? D: Poor Virast.))
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Post by dragon on Feb 17, 2009 15:33:28 GMT -5
Dorava had worked hard, alongside the other healers. Trying to save the young boy from the poisoning. She had noticed when Savitri had arrived, though it had taken her a while longer after that to make the connection that this was her brother. But apparently they had been too late ... or he had eaten too much poison for his system to successfully fight off, even with the absorbing properties of the wetted charcoal they had force fed him.
It hadn't been enough, soon enough, to save him. And it was utterly horrid. To watch a young boy die... and once he was gone, that was all there was to it. Putting away a few things as they covered the body, she couldn't help but notice the expression on Savitri's face. She looked like she needed a hug ... badly. However ... that was not something that Dorava felt she could give the woman ... she didn't know her that well. So she settled for the next best thing she could think of...
A touch on the shoulder. Only to be brushed off. But she had almost explected that reaction. And at the orders, she nodded and hurried away to do as bidden ... it was an answer she herself would have been seeking in due time. The easiest way would have been to ask the lad, but he hadn't survived to tell.
She sent Val off to Aonith, and had Aonith report to Corinth, who presumably in turn would tell T'rid. That done, she went to hunt up what it was that the lad had ingested to the point it had killed him. She questioned all of the cooks, thier helpers and aides, until she found someone who knew, and then she returned to the infirmary to report to Savitri and note it down in her records scroll that she had been keeping on what was possibly contaminated materials.
She hated to think that maybe to person who started this was still around, and randomly ruining this, that, or the other thing at random intervals, rather than just having poisoned a whole lot of one or two items and then fled. That instance would make life a lot harder for everyone ... but maybe they could still catch the killer.
"He ate some fruit sweet breads, a redfruit, and drank what he told people was juice, but one of the drudges told me that he suspected it had been wine instead. He said he couldn't fathom how he got any wine, though, since the stores have been all but locked down." Dorava told her.
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Post by kysseh on Feb 17, 2009 20:17:23 GMT -5
Savitri was abruptly surprised when someone spoke to her, having been lost in silent contemplation as to what could have caused her brother to be poisoned. Something he ate, surely, though she doubted he had been the target. Who would want to target a teenage boy, an apprentice healer and dragonhealer? It just made no sense, and puzzling over the practicality--or lack thereof--of it made her focus less on the aching deep in her chest. That ache was all psychological, she knew, and thus, she chose to ignore it. If she acknowledged her grief now, she would melt into sobs, and there was too much to do to grieve now. Grieving could be saved for later, when she was alone and not trying to handle things.
"It could have been juice. Juice is far easier to poison than wine, but..." Savitri trailed off, her green eyes narrowed as she considered. One arm still cradled the silvery form of her late brother's pet feline, her free hand stroking the purring creature's back. Fish was finally starting to settle, though whether that was from confusion or comfort was unsure. It was something to be pondered later, surely. "... Virast... he was clever. He could've gotten some if he wanted it, though why escapes me. He knew the wine could be dangerous, so unless someone gave it to him-"
The young woman's eyes went wide at the implication, and she immediately shifted Fish's furry body to one of her arms and made for the nearest desk, snatching up writing implements to scribble down ideas. "If someone is giving it to people... someone that seems trustworthy, that they wouldn't suspect.... Virast wouldn't have suspected. He wouldn't... wouldn't have had a second thought," she said, finally forced to set the feline down on the floor so she could write. "Redfruit and sweetbreads too, you said? We need to make sure everyone cleans their fruit and vegetables properly before eating... just in case. We should get fresh fruit too. It's.... what's in... what's in season..."
Her mind was racing now, and she was almost graceful for the impersonal distraction. It did belatedly dawn on her that the poor woman hadn't offered a complaint to Savitri's orders. "I'm sorry.... Dorava, right? I just... I'm trying... not to think now. I need to figure out what happened," she said quietly, glancing briefly at the greenrider before continuing to scribble down ideas. "What else? What can they poison that we can't figure it out? Why would they target a healer apprentice?! He wasn't... wasn't even a candidate or anything. Just.... only sixteen Turns. Still a child." Her grip tightened on her writing implement, the young woman's throat working in an attempt to keep the tears at bay. "It doesn't make any sense..."
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Post by dragon on Feb 20, 2009 16:23:56 GMT -5
"It's okay. I understand." Dorava replied, quietly. "Yes ... the fruit, and bread ... I suppose it's possible that the flour has been contaminated again. But that's not been the most consistent thing. It's been drinks, more or less, that's been in common with everything else. See..." She hurried across and picked up her scrolls, and brought them over to spread out for Savitri. "I've been trying to keep track of everything that anyone has eaten when they come down sick. Some are missing ... but I do the best I can." She apoligized, ceding the documents to the goldrider.
Val returned shortly, scampering across the floor and clambering up Dorava's pant leg. He dived into her pocket just as soon as he reached it, and then curled up with his snout poking out again, watching the kitten on the floor.
((( POST CUT SHORT BY DAD >>> SORRY!!!!)))
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Post by kysseh on Feb 21, 2009 12:38:50 GMT -5
Savitri sighed softly and rubbed the back of one hand across her eyes, unwilling to acknowledge how close she was to outright tears. The hand stayed over her eyes for a brief moment, and the young woman was silent, trying to get herself under control. It's not fair, it's not fair... her mind kept chanting, and she silently recognized that no, it was not fair that Virast's life had been cruelly cut short. Crying did not change the facts. Neither did it identify the poisoned food or the culprit, two things which were a far better use of her time than crying over her deceased brother. She needed to figure this out. They needed to figure this out.
The greenrider's initiative surprised her, and she removed her hand from her eyes, arching an eyebrow at Dorava's careful records. It made her feel slightly better to not be the only one obsessing over this horrible string of events. She set down her pen and used both hands to spread out the records on the tabletop, eyes narrowing in her focus. Her fingertips drifted over the lines of script, and she nodded in understanding of the other woman's words. "The flour is easily contaminated, but... it also alters the taste. We should have picked up on that by now. Fruit bruises easily, and poison washes off of it. Same with tubers... but.."
She caught sight of movement in her peripheral vision and quickly set down her writing implement in order to pick up Fish, recognizing that the silvery feline had fixated her gaze on the blue 'mandyr. "Behave, you," she muttered at the feline, holding her awkwardly in one arm before returning her attention to the records. Fish continued to stare at the pocket, her long tail swishing back and forth. She wanted that crawling thing to come back out so she could chase it. It looked like fun. "And no, that's not food," Savitri added, though the feline probably didn't understand her. Fish was clever but not incredibly so.
"Some records are better than nothing at all. I thought I was the only one trying to make sense of this," Savitri murmured softly, nodding her head at the records on the table. "It makes sense that drinks are the most frequently poisoned. They're easier. Most poisons dissolve in liquids, so they wouldn't be easily detected. Are they being poisoned here, though, or are the tithes being poisoned? And why? This is just... if they wanted to kill Shmee, they accomplished that. Why so many others?" The healer in her hated the person who decided to dole out death with apparently no remorse. The young woman sighed and shook her head, using her free hand to brush her short hair from her face. "We must be missing something..."
((It's okay. I've got a migraine, so my posts suck today. x.x Sorry.))
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Post by dragon on Feb 21, 2009 21:28:34 GMT -5
Dorava nodded, slightly. "I have been trying to keep track of things ever since this started. It's got holes in it, like I mentioned. Mostly cause sometimes I get cut out of things ... I've been studying hard, but ... well ... I'm not a healer yet. I'm just staff, see. So ... this has been difficult at times. I am sure you can do better with it, so ... here it is?" She offered, gesturing uselessly at the files she had painstakingly accrued. Hopefully, Savitri would be able to figure it out. People rarely shoved goldriders aside, after all. Rarely told them they didn't know what they were doing.
Dorava never noticed the feline's antics, but Val definitely did. He sucked his head back into Dorava's pocket, and vibrated in terror for a moment. It was gonna eat him!!! No! Nononononono! Go 'way! Bad keep! No keep! No Val! Bad, bad! Noooooo!! He stressed, to Dorava, making her pause and look at her pocket in confusion.
"Val? What's bugging you, little guy?" She asked, covering the quivering lump that was her pet with one hand. She glanced around the room to try and see what had terrified him so, but never saw the feline cradled in Savitri's arms.
Seeing nothing, she turned her attention back to Savitri. She so looked like she needed a hug ... but Dorava didn't think one would be appreciated. Finally, she figured that it was more than likely worth the risk ... broken noses heal, after a while. Reaching out to the other, Dorava rubbed Savitri's shoulders gently ... not quite a hug, but not ignoring her pain, either.
Emotional wounds needed tending to just as did every other kind, after all.
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Post by kysseh on Feb 21, 2009 21:50:29 GMT -5
Savitri managed a bitter sort of smile. Getting cut out of things, hmm? "You're not the only one being... left out when information is dispersed," she said softly, swallowing to keep back the ire that rose at that statement. "The weyrleader needs to establish some kind of investigation to look into this. Or-"
Dorava's offer of the records cut Savitri short. Her green eyes narrowed, and she considered it, silent for a moment. Fish had ceased squirming in her arms, mrowing quietly in frustration when her quarry disappeared back into his hidey-hole. Savitri glanced over and spied the squirming lump in Dorava's pocket, immediately adjusting her grip on Fish to keep the feline safely and securely cradled in one arm. "It's Fish. She'll chase anything that moves. Don't worry; I won't let her go," she said grimly, glaring down at the unrepentant silver feline in her grasp. She needed to train the little brat to not chase salamandyrs and firelizards. Shadow would throw a hissy fit if the feline ever made a grab for him, and then he would be completely unmanageable.
She had scarcely returned her thoughts to the matter of records when hands on her shoulders startled her again. Her body instinctively flinched in surprise, shoulders rolling to avoid the physical contact. "I'm sorry. It's nothing personal. I just... I don't like to be touched," she said in quiet explanation, her gaze focusing again on the scrolls. "I appreciate your concern, though." Savitri struggled to accept comfort, and with the emotional damage as raw as it was, she simply... could not handle it. Not now. Perhaps later, she'd cry, curled up next to her mindmate. Not now, though. If she thought about it now, she would positively fall apart, and Savitri refused to fall apart. The trail was fresh now, and they needed to figure out this puzzle.
Her mind made up, she focused on the records and drew out the scroll she had been taking notes on. "... For being cut out of the loop, you've gotten quite a lot," Savitri observed without inflection, scribbling down a copy of Dorava's notes onto her own scroll. "I know you probably have quite a lot to do, but... could you do something for me?" She paused in her writing, turning her gaze over to the greenrider with a calculating, thoughtful expression. "People don't tell me things, because of my rank. I know you don't hear everything, but you probably hear... a lot more than I do." She neatly piled up the records with her free hand, retaining her own scroll of notes for her own use. "Can you... keep these records... keep your ears open? I'm going to be tracking things down, but it'd be nice to have someone else keeping an eye out too." At least... it would be nice to have some help until the weyrleader took action. Ohhh, but they were going to have words, she and the weyrleader.
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Post by dragon on Feb 22, 2009 21:04:03 GMT -5
Dorava nodded, when she learned it was Fish that was bothering Val. "Alright." Stay in your pocket, Val, and you should be safe.[/b] She informed him. Keep He replied, simply. Nodding slightly, again, she returned her hands to her work.
She pulled her hands away from Savitri, nodded once (again) and smiled slightly. Alright ... it was a good call, then to not have gone all out with a fully blown hug. She would have gotten a broken nose! Or ... worse.
"Well ... I can try. I can't gurantee the other healers won't continue to tell me I don't know what I'm doing. But ... records I can keep. I used to do that for my father, before ... well ... before. And tracking down what was toxic was also something I had done, though only for animals. And, well ... animals don't talk, see." She shrugged lightly, looking down at her own scroll, hoping the explanation made Savitri feel better about her own efforts.
People didn't tell her things, because of her rank? That was a very strange concept to run across. Dorava had assumed that people would tell Savitri anything and everything she wanted to know, before she knew she wanted to know it. So ... this was a very strange revelation to her. "People don't talk to you? Why is that? I would think ... well ... I thought you would be told anything you wanted to know." She admitted, softly.
Spreading one of the scrolls out, Dorava jotted down a few notes, on the info she had just gathered, in a neat, precice hand that filled in invisible rows of information. A date tacked on, and the update was finished. That done ... a pitiful amout of information, considering a life was lost ... and the record update was done. She blew softly on the ink until it was dry, and then rolled the scroll back up again, fastening it with a black ribbon.
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Post by kysseh on Feb 22, 2009 23:26:00 GMT -5
Dorava did not seem to be completely put off by Savitri's lack of warmth. It was reassuring to not have to fake friendliness with people. The issue was not lack of caring, it was just simple practicality. She hated wasting time on the useless elbow-rubbing that the politics of the weyr required. Dorava's explanation of her efforts elicited another nod, and the goldrider straightened her stance, gazing down at the tabletop as her mind raced. "The dead don't talk either. Not aloud. We just have to figure out a different way of listening to what they have to say."
The greenrider's surprise was reassuring, and Savitri chuckled weakly, her voice shaky at best. Ahh, she almost envied Dorava. Being in a position of rank was highly unenviable, at these times more than others. Just being bonded to Hepaticath made her feel like she had target painted on her back. "I can order people to tell me things, if I want. That doesn't mean they have to tell me anything... or tell me the truth." The young woman shook her head and brushed a stray lock of hair from her face. Shards, but she hated having rank. "Besides that, people tend to be intimidated... or disgusted... by the rank. They won't say things in front of people in charge. Afraid of getting into trouble."
Her gaze drifted over the scrolls as the greenrider continued to take notes. There were two chairs nearby, and she used her free hand to drag first one and then the other closer. "Thank you for... being patient with me right now. The kitchen's stocks will need to be looked over later... to make sure no one else suffers as a result of the same." Her voice was oddly calm now, flat. She was rapidly shutting down her emotional processes to keep from crying in distress. She took a seat, settled Fish comfortably in her lap, and took a deep breath. Her eyes closed, highlighting the dark shadows beneath them. She had not slept well in quite awhile.
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Post by dragon on Feb 25, 2009 18:46:03 GMT -5
"No ... the dead don't talk." Dorava agreed. "Not aloud. But they do talk in other ways. Unfortunately ... one of those ways is in autopsies. Now, that doesn't help much when it comes to poisonings ..." she sighed, and nodded thanks as the chairs appeared. She took a seat in one, and stared at the scrolls for a moment, before unrolling them again and running her fingers down the lists. "I really hate to make the analogies between beast and person. But I don't really have much in the way of anything else to go on. I spent most of my childhood working beasts ... and since taking up healing here, I've found many, many similarities in treatment methods. So... please don't assume I'm making like anyone here is like a beast, it's just ...." Well, now she was talking herself into a hole that she really couldn't get out of again. She she merely shut up for the time and just shrugged uselessly.
"The charcoal idea, for one." She tried, by way of explanation. "I had recalled that was what we used when our sheep were bitten by serpets, or when they ate something bad for them. It worked, so I started using it here. It worked, so that was good. I am glad we have a swift and sure remedy for this ... well ... most of the time." She sent a glance toward Virast, and then an apologetic one toward Savitri. "I'm going to have to make more, here soon. We're blowing through the stuff at a phenominal rate."
Dorava resisted the urge to cringe, at the revelation that people wouldn't talk to thier leadership. But then, she had spent most of her dragonriding years at Benden ... if one didn't tell the leadership exactly what they wanted to know, when they wanted to know it ... bad things tended to happen. And the truth was always a must. Lies were too easy to be found out. "I am sorry ... I..." Dorava both realized she was speaking to a ranker, and also really didn't see the problem with it. So long as she was honest, frank, and cooperated, she expected that things would go fairly well. Also, she wondered how anyone could be expected to lead, when they were denied information? "Afraid of getting into trouble ..." she said, quietly.
"I understand what you're going through, ma'am. I know it isn't easy. And getting short with you won't help either of us." She explained. "You're quite welcome. But if we're going to get through this mess, we have to do it by working together. I already requested the kitchen staff set aside certain stocks, to be tested. With the news of the latest victem, they were more than happy to do so. I think someone has been sent for already to test those stocks. I am not sure. But..." Dorava shrugged, and pinched her bottom lip with thumb and forefinger as she stared at the lists. There was a link in there, there had to be. What was it?
A thought flashed through Dorava's mind, and it made her blanch slightly. People were suspecting Benden of this atrocity. While she wouldn't put it past those people, she couldn't help but remember that she herself was from there. And people knew that. She hoped that no one accused her of doing this. Especially since she was working so hard on these scrolls, and had so conveniently provided the semi cure...
It was all a little suspicious, even from her vantage point. And she knew she wasn't guilty. But she couldn't exactly try less. So what was she to do, to help, and yet not get herself implicated in the atrocity??
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Requiem
Weyrleader S'rei WM M?ta Rider A'nd Harper/Handler Dmitri Weyrbrat Miguel
Posts: 2,861
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Post by Requiem on Feb 27, 2009 0:35:54 GMT -5
Kalierre swept into her infirmary in a high fury. Oh, it was difficult to tell with the woman unless you knew her well - which a lot of her healers unfortunately did - for her face was about as unreadable as a stone wall. Bad enough that her quest south to find what herbals might be involved in the rash of poisonings had turned up nothing, bad enough that everything was actually worse now than it had been when she'd left, but now Phremath had reported that one of her healers had contracted the poison and died. One of hers! The dragonhealer desperately wanted to find the culprit, to have something - someone - tangible to lash out against. This rage was just as strong as the one that had consumed her at the massacre. Perhaps stronger. Virast was hers and she had failed him.
If Kalierre wasn't outwardly exhibiting any emotion aside from the swift, almost militant stride as she made her way through the infirmary, Lust was more than making up for it. He was literally bouncing up and down on her shoulder, frill at full mast, a hissing growl striking through the air in one continuous noise. Only his tail, curled half around her neck, anchored him, his claws digging into her shoulder when he wasn't in mid-leap. The woman hardly seemed to notice. In fact, she relished the pain. It made the rage slightly more manageable. Phremath lingered in the back of her mind, attempting to soothe her, but the green understood her pain and understood that this anger was its outlet...that without it Kalierre would just find a corner to curl up in and cry, sinking into a depression for days. There was a reason there, though the green couldn't remember what. A reason that Kalierre hated losing people above and beyond what was normal.
At any rate, it wouldn't be good to catch the woman's eye. Not now. And she was headed straight for the room with Virast. Of course it was true that he was dead, but some part of her had to see that for herself, had to be sure that there truly was nothing she could do. For her, and out of respect for him. The dead should have witnesses, those who remembered how they died. Her jaw clenched.
Sweeping into the room, she stormed past the others gathered, stopping by the covered form. Her dark eyes narrowed, something dreadful gathering in her throat. Almost surprisingly gently did she pull back the sheet, noting that already - already! - he was beginning to stiffen. Still, she ran her hand down his cheek, the back of the knuckles, pausing at the carotids. Checking, even though she already knew what she'd find. Nothing. Hand slid down his chest. Still nothing. No breath. No heartbeat. She'd known, but it still pained her indescribably. He was so young. So unbearably young to go this way, with so much potential despite his tendency to lose track of what he was doing. Kalierre bit her lip and turned toward the two healers, noting Savitri as a healer would, realizing the girl was in shock. No surprise there. Dilated pupils, a certain absentness to her expression. And Dorava yammering on while other, live patients needed attending to, overwhelming Savitri. An absolute, worthless idiot.
Then something within Kalierre snapped.
Stupid buttmunch! Lust kill dead! The salamandyr launched from her shoulder, skittering across the ground, and leapt upwards to sink his pointy teeth deep into her calf and gnaw. Idiot talk much, talk much and fleshies die. Idiot kill fleshies! Lust kill deaddeaddead!
Closing the distance, at first it seemed Kalierre was coming to reclaim Lust before he did Dorava any real harm. But that impression soon changed as she got within inches of the other dragonrider's face and pressed a finger into Dorava's chest, far more aggressively than she'd ever been in the greenrider's presence before. As soon as she began to speak, it became clear that the sentiments Lust was screaming came mostly from Kalierre. "Isn't it enough to completely destroy your own dragon's wings? Can't you limit your incompetence and sheer idiocy to your own life? What the shards are you doing here?! This girl should be allowed to be with her brother in peace, and even if that means nothing to you, because you clearly don't understand grief or shock, why aren't you out there with all the other patients who need you?! Do you see anyone in here sick? Well?! Do you?!"
Taking a deep breath, Kalierre stood back, her voice dropping several decibels in volume. "Get out of my sight. Get out of my infirmary. If I catch you in here again, I swear I'll take a knife to you, starting with those eyes of yours." Her words came out deceptively calmly, full of icy fury.
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Post by kysseh on Feb 27, 2009 1:13:31 GMT -5
So much talking. Savitri grimaced a bit and reached up to pinch the bridge of her nose with her free hand. It was taking all her energy to keep her emotions under control, to keep from screaming in absolute fury and storming down to the kitchens and ripping through everything to find the source of the poison. There were other, more positive ways to spend her time, but there was no energy in her body to go pursue one of those avenues. The young woman sat and listened to Dorava's words, hearing them as if from afar. Background noise. That's what it was. Oh, she got the gist of it, but she was resisting the urge to tell the woman to just stop. Her mind was getting overwhelmed.
"I know. I know what we need to do," Savitri murmured quietly, inhaling slowly in an effort to keep herself from breaking down. Her hand was now massaging her face, the right side of her forehead receiving slow, consistent pressure. The headache was going to drive her to insanity, possibly before the grief. "I... I know. We need to do this. I need to think first, and-"
Her attention was abruptly diverted by Kalierre's arrival, and she simply stared as the ranking healer went to investigate her brother's corpse. Savitri managed to not flinch, but she took in a ragged breath as the sheet was peeled back, turning away before the emotions could overwhelm her. The tears sparkled in her eyes, but her face tightened, tensed. She refused to melt like this. Her attention was diverted by Lust's temper tantrum, and she tightened her hold on Fish, though she need not have feared. Fish was far too interested in rubbing her silvery head against Savitri's arm to go after the bronze 'mandyr, and Savitri was saved from trying to rescue Lust from Fish's jaws.
As soon as the journeywoman healer approached, Savitri looked up to address her and then abruptly fell silent as the tirade began, recoiling in her chair at the pure venom issuing from the greenrider's mouth. Half of it floated past her ears unregistered, but she snagged the more pertinent parts of it. The threat was frightening, though, and Savitri had to take a long look at Kalierre, unsure if she liked this side of the healer's nature. It was... chilling. "She was.... helping me figure out what he ate. I was trying to make sense of it," the young woman said quietly, gesturing at the scroll on the table in front of her. "Trying to keep track of who's sick... what they ate. Trying to see a pattern."
She realized her hands were shaking again and quickly tried to mask it by stroking the feline in her arms. "We need to... make sure this information is made available to the other healers... the kitchenfolk... the people in authority. The food... has to be safe." She glanced back at the cot and was on her feet in an instant, moving over to carefully pull the sheet back over her brother's face. She was grateful for the small miracle that his eyes were closed, though it still took effort for her to turn away. "We didn't get to him in time. It'll happen again if we're not vigilant," she said quietly, moving very carefully back toward the two greenriders and still cradling Fish against her chest. Her eyes were still red and sparkled with unshed tears, and had Savitri seen herself, she would have been unbelievably embarrassed. She looked like a child, with her shoulders hunched a bit and the squirmy, sleek feline clutched in close to her torso. "Dorava... was sharing her notes with me." Kalierre was starting to frighten her, to be quite honest. Had she had enough energy to acknowledge that, she would have been angry. Now she felt strangely... numb.
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Post by dragon on Feb 27, 2009 23:42:16 GMT -5
Dorava watched silently, almost passively, as Kalierre investigated the most recent corpse. And then blinked only when that poisonous, hate filled gaze was turned on herself. What ...?
She didn't have long to ponder that, though, before she was being attacked by a violent mandyr, gnawing on her calf. Naturally, she yelped, and jerked her leg away. Unfortunately, what with mandyrs being so small, that wasn't a very effective defense. However, she did have a built in defender in her pocket that she didn't even see, he shot out of the hidey hole so fast.
MINE! NO BITE! BOOM BAD!! NO! BAD! BAD PEST! MINEEE!!!!! Val challenged, streaking down and around Dorava's leg in the boldest move the shy little 'mandyr had ever made in his life. But his pet was being attacked: he couldn't just sit by and do nothing! Val launched himself down onto Lust's head, aiming to bite down on the other's head, frill, or neck. Something, anything, to make him let go and leave off of his pet. Val knew he couldn't take the bronze on full tilt and win ... it was impossible. But he was certainly going to try the shock and awe factor for getting him off of Dorava.
Dorava nearly over balanced right off the seat Savitri had given her, attention yanked from Lust to Kalierre when the healer jammed her finger into her chest. She locked gazes with Kalierre, barely holding her tongue as the head healer screamed into her face.
That hurt. That hurt a lot. Dorava had been working her tail off, doing anything she could to help the Weyr. Doing things that some weren't doing. Doing what little the other healers allowed her to do. Doing her best to brush up on all her studies. Doing what she knew how to do to save those who were being poisoned already. And she got this kind of thanks?
All while Kalierre did what, exactly? Vanish off to who knew where, looking for who knew what? For all anyone knew, Kalierre had been on vacation, rather than tending to the Weyr that needed her. While people died.
But all that went unsaid, verbally. Dorava said nothing, at all, to the healer's face. Never mind everything she had been doing just then had been at Savitri's request. Not only did Savitri rank her in the healers, she also ranked her in the world of dragons. So naturally, Dorava had done as asked - up to and including telling her what she needed to know, and not messing with her emotions.
Her eyes burned fire at Kalierre, but she said nothing. Hot, they burned, barely containing the temper that Dorava had spent the better part of her life learning to corrall. She said nothing at all, staring right back at the livid greenrider that was in her face, while her pest of a pet chewed her ankle off.
Finally, Dorava moved. "As you wish, ma'am." She said, with a calmness that belied her inner fury. It sounded more like Kalierre had asked her to go fetch her a red fruit, instead of banishing her. She shot a kick from her free foot at Lust, trying to dislodge him, before limping past Kalierre, and straight out the door.
In her mind, she was diving into the warmth and security that was Aonith. The green was trying to both support her, emotionally, and at the same time praise her for her restraint. As She passed through the door, Valiant swept back up her pant leg, and dived back into her pocket, shooting venomous glares at Lust. Bad! Bad! he scolded.
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Requiem
Weyrleader S'rei WM M?ta Rider A'nd Harper/Handler Dmitri Weyrbrat Miguel
Posts: 2,861
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Post by Requiem on Mar 1, 2009 22:46:10 GMT -5
Savitri's intervention wasn't much appreciated, although that might have had more to do with the fact that it was bringing to light just how terribly Kalierre was reacting to things right now. The dragonhealer was good at not letting emotions dictate her actions. Right now, though, she was utterly failing, and the reminder didn't sit well with her. Hissing through her teeth, the woman's eyes narrowed at the goldrider's words. "That isn't something you should be doing when you're invested," the woman stated evenly. Which of course only brought her back to how she was emotionally invested and probably handling things worse than the girl she was speaking to right now. Shardit. Shardit. Shardit.
It was so hard, though, with both her and Lust worked up and feeding off each other's emotions, to try to rein in all the fury burning through her blood. She was even tempted to lay into Savitri, but, fortunately, Kalierre's mothering instinct stayed her. The rage immediately leapt up another few knotches as Lust leapt after the blue salamandyr, clearly intending to murder the creature for daring to swipe at him. The bronze's screamed invectives were almost enough to make even Kalierre flinch, and she commanded the full vulgarity of a first-response Benden dragonhealer. Her voice rose sharply. "Lust! Here, now!"
And yes, the salamandyr listened for once, though he took out his frustration on his bonded as he scrambled up her leg, sinking his talons in deep and biting her every few steps. Kalierre didn't so much as flinch, even as she swept forward to cut off Dorava's exit before the greenrider could get too far. Her jaw clenched slightly at the need to do anything but throw this woman out (as she wanted to do!) but Kalierre couldn't let her emotions control her like this. If the greenrider didn't deserve it (this time) then Kalierre really had only one option.
Distasteful as it was.
The glare, of course, didn't escape the dragonhealer, but she honestly could care less what Dorava felt about her. In fact, if the greenrider wanted to act on that blatant hatred, Kalierre would welcome it as an excuse to dismantle the former Benden dragonrider piece by piece. That wasn't what she needed to be thinking of right now, though. "I was already angry when I got here. You and I share no love for each other - there's no use pretending otherwise. Frankly, the sight of you is enough to annoy me on a good day. But if Savitri asked you to do what you shouldn't have, I can't hold you responsible for that. So. I'm sorry that I allowed our history and my anger to control me. If you wish, you may remain here, but I think it best that you report to R'wign or Savitri, or something like this is bound to happen again."
A little too honest? Maybe, but Kalierre honestly did think that Dorava was a complete idiot. R'wign, clearly, had gotten past Aonith's condition upon arrival, but it was unlikely Kalierre ever would. Some things simply couldn't be forgotten or forgiven...and Dorava's intelligence did anything but impress her. At least now they'd be on somewhat equal footing; Kalierre doubted her loss of control would be forgotten or forgiven, either. The thought brought a wry smile to her lips.
Lust had nestled between the curve of neck and shoulder, clearly sulking and occasionally gnawing at Kalierre. A particularly sharp bite caused the woman to flinch and direct a sharp word his direction, beneath her breath. Her eyes flicked back toward the now-covered form of Virast and she expelled a deep breath, before stepping out of Dorava's way so the woman could leave if she desired it.
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Post by kysseh on Mar 2, 2009 1:22:06 GMT -5
Savitri's ire rose, and she could feel her limbs trembling in response to the hormonal overload. Kalierre's words stung, and the goldrider would have recoiled were it not for the anger she felt at the situation as a whole. Dorava had been well-intentioned, even if her babbling had struck a nerve. Savitri herself had asked the greenrider--or someone, she hadn't really been paying attention when she snapped at someone to give her answers--to tell her what her brother had eaten to result in his demise. Virast, Virast... Her gaze flicked back over her shoulder to the cloth-covered form, and then she bent her head to bury her face in Fish's fur. There was no point in crying now... especially not in front of either of them.
Her attention was snagged by Kalierre's command to her 'mandyr. She had been largely ignoring the bronze's antics, though it did not escape her that the creature had something of a vocabulary. She stayed silent, though, just watching as Kalierre got herself under control and offered up... what sounded like an apology. Dorava had been fixing to leave, and Savitri couldn't blame her. It did grate on her nerves that the greenrider failed to acknowledge her attempt to intervene, though that was a minor annoyance, at best. Dorava had other, more dangerous things to worry about. Something about Kalierre's stance told her that the woman would not hesitate to put a knife through another. It gave Savitri chills. Savitri hated violence.
Her thoughts drifted to Kalierre's earlier words, and this time, she did flinch and purposely walked closer to the two arguing greenriders. She was not about to officiate. Outside of the infirmary, she ranked both, but inside, Kalierre was far above her head. The logistics of that were liable to give her a headache, but even feeling as though her limbs might shake themselves out of their sockets with their quivering, Savitri was intelligent enough to acknowledge that now was not a time to try rank. No... she would try logic. Logic worked...
Usually.
"If only those who aren't invested are to investigate... then no one will. Shmee, the brownrider, V-" Her voice cracked. The young woman closed her eyes, swallowed, and tried again. "-Virast... everyone in the weyr knew one or all of them. Everyone knows someone who is sick. Someone has to look into it before we end up with more dead weyrfolk than live ones. I... I need to stay busy. I had some notes from Shmee and from the brownrider, T'kal, and..." Her chin jerked, back in the direction of the still form on the bed. Her jaw tightened, her eyes reddened but dry. "... he is... was... my family. I let him down. I need to make that right. I have to."
((Really short, sorry. x.o))
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