i'm going to ask you a straightforward question:

[reflash]

Who: Yukio Okumura and Herbert West
When: S2; D6
Where: Medical Tent
What: Yukio doesn't sleep much, but he's noticed his boss doesn't sleep at all.
Warnings: IV stimulant drug use/addiction, underage drug use, all that Herbert Reanimator stuff

Yukio had finished up his work late last night, the sort of late that's the same as "early this morning", and then taken his bow to the training yard for an hour or so of practice before collapsing into his bed somewhere just before two in the morning. By six thirty, he's back in the medical tent, carrying a refilled thermos of coffee in one hand and a full cup of coffee in the other.

The lights are still on. They'd been on when he left, and there's no sign that West has left the tent at all since then.

Yukio doesn't particularly want to check in on the man, but he pushes aside the curtains to West's improvised office and looks in without announcing himself. If West is sleeping, he doesn't really want to disturb the man.

Comments

[scientificist]

Even with their recent disagreement over the best way to deal with patients, Herbert still finds Yukio to be, overall, the most sensible person here. Perhaps he was hired to cancel out Solas.

With the curtains closed again, Herbert looks back down again to his arm and the syringe and depresses the plunger slowly. From outside, Yukio will hear a couple of strangled noises followed by the sound of a chair shifting across the floor and then silence. Moments later, Herbert emerges looking just as calm as he had before when Yukio looked in, possibly even a bit calmer.

"Now," he says, a very faint smile at the corners of his mouth, "what did you want?"

[reflash]

He tenses at the sound, summoning his throwing knife into his hand. It's not until Herbert speaks that Yukio relaxes and puts the knife away.

"What did you just inject?"

[scientificist]

Herbert eyes the knife until it's gone and then looks up at Yukio, unblinking. "A dilution of my reanimation serum." This can be a test, he supposes.

"At its full strength, it reanimates the dead--although I am still working on its precise formulation. Injected, this specific mixture sharpens my mind...and allows me to forgo sleep. You can see how I might find that...useful. Necessary, even."

[reflash]

Like an immortality elixir. West actually has something that works.

"Absolutely," Yukio takes a step forward, expression intense and focused and hungry. He needs more information. "Does it do anything physically, or are there just mental effects?"

[scientificist]

Works better on himself than he's even aware, actually. But this--this is the kind of response he wishes he always received. At least, when it's a situation he's personally controlling.

"It contains epinephrine," he admits. That much seems safe to let someone new know about. Especially another medic who'd probably identify that effect anyway, eventually. "So it's energizing--but manageably and I've found it causes a reduction in hunger, perhaps even in the requirement for nutrient intake. Not entirely but...enough to avoid wasting time with full meals." These are all great things, right, Yukio?

[reflash]

Yukio's excitement vanishes, and he looks mildly disappointed. Just an adrenaline shot? There'd be no benefit to that over just Yukio's energy drink habit.

"That's it?"

[scientificist]

Herbert frowns at him. Obviously he's missed the point here.

"That's it?!" he complains. "Do you have any idea how much more time you have when all bodily wastes of time are eliminated, Okumura?! I don't sleep, ever, I barely eat, my mind is always sharp and I never tire. And aside from that I am mere steps away from defeating death! Is that routine to you?!"

[reflash]

"Does it enhance your healing abilities?" But Yukio is looking more interested now. Never tired. Always mentally sharp and alert. He could use that. "When you mentioned reanimation of the dead I assumed it could grant enhanced physical regeneration."

[scientificist]

Inclined to say no in irritation, Yukio overlooking the actual benefits, Herbert instead stops to think about it.

"Not. Yet." After all, if incorporating the chemicals from the Noctus works, it should include regenerative properties in its next iteration. "As it is now my reagent allows me to...ignore injuries to some extent. The dead are reanimated despite any damage that has occurred after all."

[reflash]

"What is the most severe injury that the elixir has let you ignore?" Not yet. Soon. If Yukio gets on his good side now, West will give him more information, will let him in on his research. This could be what Yukio needs.

[scientificist]

It's hard to rank things, when he ends up barely noticing them. But he does find himself wanting to boast somehow about his work. So...

"Various concussions and fairly severe asphyxiation," he decides on. "Or...I have reason to believe the incidents would have manifested as, concussion had I not been injecting my serum. Based on my previous experiments, at higher dosages a complete spinal cord does not appear to be required for normal bodily function."

[reflash]

"How high a dose?" That. He could use that. It's not regeneration, but it's almost as good. "What are the side effects?"

[scientificist]

"Hm," Herbert goes and eyes up Yukio. It's almost hard to concentrate he's so thrilled. This is wordless acceptance of his work as far as he's concerned. It could just be Yukio using him, certainly, but...

"I inject 5ccs of a 1% solution and I've informed you of all of the effects...save some fairly, severe symptoms upon abrupt discontinuation. They're not dissimilar to that of, SSRI withdrawal. I believe."

[reflash]

It's physically addictive, but that's fine, if Yukio starts taking it he'll taper off the dosage once he has what he wants.

"How severe is the withdrawal? How frequently is it administered?" Is he going to be completely incapacitated?