Flashback Morbid curiousity (Valerius Nitrozian)

[Adnaj]

Fall 13th 510AV

Adnaj's hands were steady as he held the tiny slats of skin sample and diagnostic reagents but his pupils darted back and forth from reference books to the tiny squares. A 37 year old human female had been brought into his clinic after she began to notice severe fatigue. Over the next week coughing turned into coughing up blood. Fatigue turned into fever. This test just proved that she was suffering from tuberculosis. This one could go either way but she was going to have to be strong.

He left the tiny lab and entered the patient's room. Needles were carefully and superficially placed all over the front of her body from her head to her shins. It wouldn't do much to cure the disease process but it made the symptoms infinitely more bearable. He spoke softly with her while taking her temperature once again. Still feverish, but it seemed to cease climbing.

"One last thing," he said while placing his hands over her cheekbones. With a quick thrusting impulse he pressed into them with an upward slant. After this, he gave a quick tug on the earlobe, downward and toward the patient's back.

"Doesn't seem like much now, but that's going to help clear up your breathing and congestion."

He didn't even know if she was paying attention. He understood that she was too busy fighting off a life-threatening infection to understand much of what was going on. He left a small packet of medicinal herbs by her bedside table.

"I'll be back in an hour to make sure you take your medicine." With that, Adnaj forced a convincing smile and left her to sleep.

[Valerius Nitrozian]

Valerius Nitrozian was hurt, and he hated being hurt. One of his classmates at the university hadn’t been careful, and the result was a bruise on his right forearm that was a rather interesting shade of purple. He disliked bruises, not so much because of the pain – that had faded after a few chimes – but because of their color. It clashed with his otherwise flawless, pale skin. He didn’t want to have to wait a couple of days for the ugly thing to go away, so he had decided to see a doctor. Surely there was some kind of salve that made bruises go away faster. Adnaj’s hospital was the first one he came across, and since it seemed halfway acceptable from the outside – there were no bad smells, it wasn’t too dirty, and nobody screamed as if they were being murdered – he decided to enter. Of course it couldn’t compare to the hospital he had visited when he had still been in Ravok, but nothing outside of Ravok could ever compare to Ravok. It was perfectly acceptable as far as Zeltivan hospitals were concerned. So he went to look for the doctor. Unfortunately the doctor wasn’t anywhere near the entrance and probably busy taking care of a patient in another room which annoyed the Ravokian. As far as he was concerned, he was the most important patient, even if he just had a bruise that was definitely not life threatening. „Hello?“ he called out as he went around looking for whoever was in charge of the place. „Doctor? I’m hurt. I’m in a lot of pain, and I need your help!“ He made himself sound as if he had a serious problem which was of course not true, but sometimes you had to bend the truth a little in order to get what you wanted faster. Besides, the bruise got on his nerves.

[Adnaj]

Adnaj heard the voice in his lobby and found himself taken with surprise. It was rare to have more than one patient at a time. He had up to three simultaneously but his humble little clinic didn't get much traffic.

Hearing the urgency in the voice, Adnaj entered the lobby at a swift clip.
"What's going on? How can I help?" he instinctively asked the human before him. Upon inspecting him, however, he couldn't help but get the impression that maybe they had a bit of a luxury for time.

Sure, Adnaj noticed the unsightly bruise but the patient was well colored, not sweating, standing on his own two feet and lacked any kind of open wound. In fact, the only thing that Adnaj really seemed to be reading from this new patient was a general sense of distaste for the clinic and an unimpressed demeanor.

"What seems to be the problem?" Adnaj asked, obviously looking at the bruise. He glanced back in the direction of his other patient. He wanted to make sure to check in on her. Although he immediately cared about the well being of this man in front of him, he knew that he wasn't in "a lot of pain" and needing of help while his standing patient lay, possibly dying, in the next room.

[Valerius Nitrozian]

„This is going on!“ Valerius informed Adnaj and pulled his sleeve back abruptly so that the doctor could see the bruise in all its questionable glory. He spoke to him in much the same tone he would use in front of a servant or a slave. He was a Nitrozian (even though Nitrozians probably counted less in Zeltiva), and Adnaj was just a commoner, so he was supposed to do what he said and be happy that he decided to spend his money here. „I want this gone as quickly as possible. Give me a salve or something. It’s ugly. Money is not an issue.“ He covered the bruise again because he couldn’t stand the sight of it, crossed his arms over his chest and waited impatiently. Why didn’t the man hurry up? He looked at him, no, he glared at him as if that would make him work faster. It was then that something occured to him. There was something slightly off about the man’s appearance. He didn’t look … „You aren’t normal“, he informed Adnaj (who was probably well aware that he was not a normal person without the Ravokian pointing it out). „Who are you? What’s the matter with you?“ His eyes widened. “I know what you are."

[Adnaj]

Adnaj chuckled when he saw the bruise. It wasn’t mean spirited and it wasn’t taunting. It certainly wasn’t meant to belittle Valerius’ sense of suffering but it was a subtle allusion to the fact that Valerius was probably going to make it through this injury.

In fact, just as Valerius had exclaimed, Adnaj’s patient went into a miniature, but very loud, coughing fit from her treatment room back along the hallway. The Nuit was, at first, entertained by the human’s finicky and hurried manner but after seeing the look on his face and hearing the tone in his questions, he soon realized the type of person whom he was dealing with, here.

Although he didn’t go around spreading the news, Adnaj wasn’t particularly alarmed to hear that someone had realized he was a Nuit. Pllenty of people had figure it out, in the past, and rarely had he come across too much animosity. It seemed that people just didn’t really care to hassle a healer of the sick and poor.

“Then you know that I am not among the living. I am a Nuit. That is your discovery, yes? You see all of the markings and the tell-tale signs on this shell?” He quickly responded to Valerius’ charge.
“Does it matter? I’ll still heal you and I’ll do it at whatever price that you are reasonably able to pay. I still understand the interworkings of the living form and I still apply my knowledge to the greater good. More than a Nuit, I am a healer and you have walked into a Zeltivan clinic, not a Sahovan weapons factory.”

[Valerius Nitrozian]

„You don’t seem to be particularly bothered by the fact that I’ve figured your secret out“, Valerius observed. „Aren’t you worried that I’m going to run to the authorities and tell them that an undead is working as a doctor? Are you even a real doctor – or is this some kind of joke? Isn’t your body full of disease and decaying?“ Even though Valerius had asked him if it was a joke, he wasn’t smiling. In fact he frowned at the Nuit. His experience with Adnaj’s kind was rather small. He was a Nitrozian, a member of one of Ravok’s richest and most powerful families. People like him didn’t often associate with undead. All he knew was that Nuit weren’t alive in the normal sense and that they stole bodies. That in itself didn’t particularly bother him. In his opinion people were free to steal as much as they wanted to, even other people’s dead bodies, as long as they left him alone. And he found immortality rather fascinating (he wasn’t particularly keen on growing old and ugly and dying himself). What bothered him though was the fact that Adnaj might have some kind of disease inside of him. The Nuit would probably notice that Valerius kept a certain distance between them. He didn’t want to touch the doctor or be touched by him. And of course he ignored Adnaj’s comment about this being a Zeltivan clinic and instead asked, „What do you know about Sahovan weapons factories? Have you worked in one? What kind of weapons do they make here? And why in the name of the gods is a Nuit like you working as a healer in such a small clinic? You are immortal, you are undead, you could spend your time with much better things than treating people that probably aren’t even grateful half the time.“

[Adnaj]

“No, I’m not afraid. “I keep my identity hidden because of the ignorance and fear of people who won’t take the time to get to know me...not because I’ve done anything wrong. Furthermore, I know more about helping people than anyone outside of the University,” he calmly replied, soon adding “and probably a few of them as well.”

“In fact,” he continued, “I’m actually somewhat amused. See in my experience, there’s only two ways that you could have figured out my identity. As I said before, I’ve had a few others figure it out and it always comes down to simply one of two possibilities. Like all Nuits, I do a fair job of keeping my shell fresh and clean. So either you have a sharp eye for anatomy...Or you generally tend to look for the worst in people. Which is it in your case? I’m curious because you don’t exactly, seem to me, to be a physiology professor at the university...”

Adnaj’s jab was certainly sardonic and barbed but it wasn’t downright combative. He wasn’t threatened and he certainly wasn’t angry. He was still keenly focused on showing this human that he could be as dedicated and adept a healer as any living creature in Mizahar. Still, he couldn’t help but respond to Valerius’ accusatory tone by taking a few light jabs.

“I will take the time to tell you, however, that this shell harbors no hint of communicable disease. I take great care to maintain a safe and reasonably sterile body. I would wager to say I’m more hygienic than half of the population of Zeltiva!”

This point was more than a defense for Adnaj’s right to practice medicine. It was proud truth. Between his widespread knowledge of healing and his notable knowledge of embalming, Adnaj kept his body clean. It was certainly true that he was immune to death by disease and might, under normal circumstances, not realize that he carried some deadly pathology. However, Adnaj tested himself for reasonably common Zeltivan diseases on a weekly basis. Beyond this, he monitored any hint of symptoms or infection risks very carefully. Now that he was surrounded by delicate living creatures, he remained excessively vigilant over the possibility of becoming a vector (though he occasionally wondered whether he’d be more appropriately classified a fomite) for disease.

For the most part, Adnaj ignored his questions about Sahova. “There are no weapons here. I have nothing to do with the development of any weaponry. My patient in there would probably know more about the creation of artillery than I would.” His response was flat as if even he uninterested in what he was saying.

But the next question...The next one was the fun one. His uninterested eyes lit up, quite noticeably now. “Oh but I would consider this endeavor one of great interest and reward,” Adnaj corrected the human. “I think you have me mistaken. I have no special sympathy or compassion for living creatures. I could care even less about their sense of ‘gratitude.’” Adnaj happily admitted.

“No, more to the point is the living body. I am absolutely enthralled by living tissue. See, arithmetic will always be arithmetic. But physiology and pathology, much like the other scientific pursuits, are dynamic systems subject to constant challenge, change and rediscovery! Furthermore, you can take a tool apart and put it back together...If the tool breaks, there is always a reparable flaw which can be fixed. But you can’t disrupt, even for a moment, the awareness of a man and hope to have his sentience return. Sometimes living flesh just...stops...inexplicably. Sometimes the body truly sabotages itself, tissue turns against tissue and the body betrays its very owner!

What is it about this complex machinery that has evaded scientific observation for all of these years? Take a trebuchet apart and you’ll be able to inspect each part individually. Eventually you’ll get it back together. Simply watch it function a few times and you’ll know everything about it.

Take a man apart and you’ll still be missing something...something so complex that its quite possibly intangible. Try to put him back together and you’ll be more confused than when you started. In fact, what a man for a day...for a week even and tell me if you know much of ANYTHING about him. This is why I study living creatures! Not because I cherish them like one cherishes an unfailingly loyal pet.”

[Valerius Nitrozian]

„So you claim to know as much as one of the professors and be one of the best – or the best – doctor in Zeltiva?“ Valerius asked incredulously. „Well, considering that you are a Nuit, you’ve probably had enough time to learn, but still, prove it! Explain some kind of complicated medical problem and its treatment to me, and don’t worry, I’ll understand. Just like you I know a lot, although I’m not a doctor.“ „And how do you know I’m not a physiology professor?“ he then wanted to know. „Is it my age? The way I dress? The way I talk? Maybe I’m just a very observant man. You need to be if you move in my circles.“ As Adnaj claimed to be more hygienic than half of the population of Zeltiva, the Ravokian made a face. That might very well be the case, but still, he would be careful. Adnaj was still a walking corpse. Corpses disgusted him. „I wasn’t asking whether you had any weapons here“, he pointed out. „I was more interested in the weapons in Sahova. Have you ever been to Sahova?“ As Adnaj informed him that he had no special sympathy for living creatures, the Ravokian nodded. „Maybe you aren’t a complete fool then“, he remarked. „I can respect scientific interest. I’m a bit of a scientist myself. But tell me, have you ever tried to do that? Taken a body apart to see how it works and tried to put it back together?“ He sounded very curious as he said that. In that regard the walking corpse reminded him of his aunt Amanda in Ravok, although aunt Amanda didn’t study people, but only Kelvic. He had already decided that, if he ever returned to Ravok, he would ask her if she was willing to accept him as her apprentice.

[Adnaj]

Adnaj couldn't help but notice the sneaky little comment about being "like Adnaj" in that Valerius "knew a lot even though he wasn't a doctor." Adnaj smirked wryly but largely ignored this comment.

Sahova is the earliest memory of my existence that I am able to recall. I spent years studying in the Great Library. At least thirty or so of them. It gets hard to remember after a while.

As a whole, Nuit don't really care enough about each other to consider anyone an outcast. If there had been a way to attain such a title, however, I certainly would have. No one took my work seriously. Everyone on Sahova was interested in how to most effectively destroy life. My work was literally an impediment to theirs."

"I've studied from cadavers, yes..." Adnaj began. At that moment, Adnaj began to hear distressed, labored coughing from deeper in the clinic.

"Excuse me," he said with a look of concern suddenly overtaking his demeanor. He quickly turned around and took off toward his patient within the darker halls of the clinic.

[Valerius Nitrozian]

„This Great Library you speak of“, Valerius wanted to know. “Is it bigger than the one in Zeltiva? What kind of books do they have there? Would somebody like me ever be given access?” A library in Sahova, a city full of immortal, walking corpses probably contained all manner of rare books that you couldn’t find anywhere else. He wished he could go there and get his hands on a few of them. The knowledge contained in them would probably be invaluable. But had the ‘doctor’ really said he’d spent thirty years there? Longer than he, Valerius, had been alive? The Ravokian looked at him. How old was he? “Destroying life is easier than trying to save a life”, he remarked. He was just about to ask Adnaj what he had learned from his cadavers and what exactly he had done with them when he heard the cough. He frowned, removed a handkerchief from one of his pockets and used it to cover his face before he followed the doctor. He wanted to know what the man was up to and why he had stopped talking when it had just gotten interesting, but he didn’t want to contract whatever illness Adnaj’s patient was suffering from. Besides, he had just remembered that he had come because of his bruise, and the doctor hadn’t treated it yet!