[ Claire laughs, but this time, she makes it clear it isn't because of him or anything he's done. She did learn from last time. ]
I should have known you would at least understand something as basic as this. Yes, it's cyanide. To anyone not with finely honed senses, it smells of almonds. Based on the things in Jocelyn's garden I wouldn't put poisoning past anyone in any faction. If it can be grown, it can be a weapon in the right—or rather, wrong—hands.
[ It would take a hell of a long time to collect enough peach or cherry stones, but if Geillis did it in the mid-18th century, anyone in Abraxas could. It's just a matter of knowing what to do and how. ]
A person poisoned this way would vomit, gasp for air, and ultimately go into cardiac arrest. It's obvious if you arrive in time based on the smell alone. But if it's dissipated by the time someone finds the victim, it looks as though a simple heart attack occurred. Cyanide isn't detectable in the blood, either. Not after a day or two.
[For his part, Michael takes the laughter in stride. The sound reassures him she isn't put out by his alternate perception throwing a wrench into what would have been a clever lesson plan for another human.]
Senses like mine have their disadvantages. I can't appreciate what it is to smell an almond.
[Not an apology, but an explanation.
Poisoning always struck Michael as a complicated and fallible way of accomplishing what a blade could guarantee with one well-placed strike—though of course, poisoning an angel is a difficult feat to achieve in the first place. Given how few angels Abraxas is home to and how limited the reach of all Summoned is thanks to the faction borders, maybe it's a possibility that deserves greater consideration. Michael considers the corpse.]
Whether cyanide poisoning or a heart attack, there was a time I could have solved this with a resurrection. Even now, I could simply clear the substance from my vessel if I were poisoned. [He looks across the examination table at Claire.] What would you do, if you suspected poisoning of this type and arrived before they died?
[ That makes her sad for some reason; she tries to imagine would it would be like to never know what it is to appreciate a favorable scent. But he already said it was a disadvantage, so she finds no reason to say anything of it. ]
We should all be so lucky, but if they aren't like our poor fellow here, and if the patient still had a pulse, I'd try to get activated charcoal into their system as soon as possible so that it could begin to absorb the toxins in the body. And if they were already having trouble breathing, then they'd need to be put on oxygen which I'd have to ask Wanda to make for us with her magic.
[ Claire pauses and turns to look at Michael, trying to determine what he feels he might need to know. ]
Tell me, what would you be most interested in learning?
[There's something a little sarcastic, a little cheeky in his tone—by Michael's standards of expression, at least. He was looking to hear what could be accomplished if their magical resources were exhausted. She's given him a complete answer, though. He guesses their poor theoretical poisoning victim is simply out of luck if they can't get their hands on the supplies she mentioned.]
Is that a general philosophical question, or in terms of what I think you could teach?
[There are so very many things he could be putting his time and effort into now that he has neither his old responsibilities nor his former goals to guide him. He assumes Claire means the latter, though.]
Abraxas has dampened my powers before. The same happened intermittently to those who were abducted. What I'm interested in learning is how to keep this body alive as long as possible, if that were to happen again—how to care for it if I break a bone, if I'm bleeding, if I'm otherwise wounded. The kind of injuries you may have seen while the Lost were recovering in Nocwich. Does that help?
[If there's a proper name for this course of study or a starting point, he thinks Claire will know it better than he.]
In this world, if I could use it to definitely save someone, yes. In my own, there's nothing of the sort, so unfortunately, if the dose is high enough someone would die within minutes. Short of being in the hospital when poisoned, it would be unlikely to save anyone. If they were being poisoned slowly over time, that may be a different matter.
[ Claire looks at Michael, standing casually as she waits for an answer. ]
I only asked because it's difficult for me to know how detailed to get in areas that you may have knowledge of. But yes, this helps tremendously. In that case, I think the better course of action is to start with the outside of the body.
[ She glances down at the table, and the Horizon obliges in giving her a dislocated shoulder to work with. Shoving thoughts of Jamie and how they met aside, she points out the joint now at an odd angle. ]
A dislocated shoulder is quite common and I saw more than one. Perhaps people falling as they ran, or someone grabbing them to be sure they didn't stumble and fall. May I take your hand?
[ If yes, then she'll guide him to feel first the normal shoulder joint and then the dislocated one. If not then she'll show him where to touch instead. ]
Can you feel that? It's essentially like a ball and socket.
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no subject
I should have known you would at least understand something as basic as this. Yes, it's cyanide. To anyone not with finely honed senses, it smells of almonds. Based on the things in Jocelyn's garden I wouldn't put poisoning past anyone in any faction. If it can be grown, it can be a weapon in the right—or rather, wrong—hands.
[ It would take a hell of a long time to collect enough peach or cherry stones, but if Geillis did it in the mid-18th century, anyone in Abraxas could. It's just a matter of knowing what to do and how. ]
A person poisoned this way would vomit, gasp for air, and ultimately go into cardiac arrest. It's obvious if you arrive in time based on the smell alone. But if it's dissipated by the time someone finds the victim, it looks as though a simple heart attack occurred. Cyanide isn't detectable in the blood, either. Not after a day or two.
no subject
Senses like mine have their disadvantages. I can't appreciate what it is to smell an almond.
[Not an apology, but an explanation.
Poisoning always struck Michael as a complicated and fallible way of accomplishing what a blade could guarantee with one well-placed strike—though of course, poisoning an angel is a difficult feat to achieve in the first place. Given how few angels Abraxas is home to and how limited the reach of all Summoned is thanks to the faction borders, maybe it's a possibility that deserves greater consideration. Michael considers the corpse.]
Whether cyanide poisoning or a heart attack, there was a time I could have solved this with a resurrection. Even now, I could simply clear the substance from my vessel if I were poisoned. [He looks across the examination table at Claire.] What would you do, if you suspected poisoning of this type and arrived before they died?
no subject
We should all be so lucky, but if they aren't like our poor fellow here, and if the patient still had a pulse, I'd try to get activated charcoal into their system as soon as possible so that it could begin to absorb the toxins in the body. And if they were already having trouble breathing, then they'd need to be put on oxygen which I'd have to ask Wanda to make for us with her magic.
[ Claire pauses and turns to look at Michael, trying to determine what he feels he might need to know. ]
Tell me, what would you be most interested in learning?
no subject
[There's something a little sarcastic, a little cheeky in his tone—by Michael's standards of expression, at least. He was looking to hear what could be accomplished if their magical resources were exhausted. She's given him a complete answer, though. He guesses their poor theoretical poisoning victim is simply out of luck if they can't get their hands on the supplies she mentioned.]
Is that a general philosophical question, or in terms of what I think you could teach?
[There are so very many things he could be putting his time and effort into now that he has neither his old responsibilities nor his former goals to guide him. He assumes Claire means the latter, though.]
Abraxas has dampened my powers before. The same happened intermittently to those who were abducted. What I'm interested in learning is how to keep this body alive as long as possible, if that were to happen again—how to care for it if I break a bone, if I'm bleeding, if I'm otherwise wounded. The kind of injuries you may have seen while the Lost were recovering in Nocwich. Does that help?
[If there's a proper name for this course of study or a starting point, he thinks Claire will know it better than he.]
no subject
[ Claire looks at Michael, standing casually as she waits for an answer. ]
I only asked because it's difficult for me to know how detailed to get in areas that you may have knowledge of. But yes, this helps tremendously. In that case, I think the better course of action is to start with the outside of the body.
[ She glances down at the table, and the Horizon obliges in giving her a dislocated shoulder to work with. Shoving thoughts of Jamie and how they met aside, she points out the joint now at an odd angle. ]
A dislocated shoulder is quite common and I saw more than one. Perhaps people falling as they ran, or someone grabbing them to be sure they didn't stumble and fall. May I take your hand?
[ If yes, then she'll guide him to feel first the normal shoulder joint and then the dislocated one. If not then she'll show him where to touch instead. ]
Can you feel that? It's essentially like a ball and socket.
[ ...essentially. ]