Research

[Yawgmoth]

There was still plenty of time before sunrise, several hours in fact, and Dr. Ith Lazarus fully intended on making use of them. At the far end of his wing, near his office, was a small surgical laboratory that was used ages ago before the mental health community had realized there were better treatment methods than lobotomies. Dr. Lazarus, however, had kept the room in pristine condition, never letting it fall into disrepair, and always keeping it freshly stocked with new equipment that managed to "go missing" elsewhere in the asylum.

There were two surgical tables in the room, each one stainless steel with a pillow at the top and five steel restraints, one for the neck, both arms, and two legs. Right now, however, there was no need to restrain the two individuals on the tables -- these two subjects were already dead. These were the ghouls that Lazarus had kept for over a decade, the ones who had served him loyally and protected his wing from visitors ranging from inmates' loved ones to government inspections. He was almost sad to no longer have them in his service.

Their deaths will serve a greater purpose now.

Unzipping the first Ghoul's bodybag, Robert Bridgewater, Dr. Lazarus began his study by activating his Heightened Senses and taking a close look at the outside appearance of the ghoul's body. To further assist the outer body observations, Lazarus pulls down a suspended surgical light from over the table, equipped with a enhanced viewing lens. Remembering fully what Robert looked like when he was among the 'living' ((Eidetic Memory)), Lazarus looked now for outer changes in appearance no matter how small or large...

[DaevaDude]

((ST Note: Roll Wits + Medicine +2 equipment bonus +1 situational bonus [Auspex 1]. These same modifiers will apply to continued Medicine and Science rolls throughout the scene unless otherwise noted. Since the Doctor is taking time to make a careful study, you may perform this as an extended action, receiving a number of rolls equal to Dr. Lazarus' dots in Medicine. This cursory external examination receives no negative modifiers, though subsequent rolls for more detailed analysis might.))

[Yawgmoth]

Spoiler

Extended Action, 2 dots in medicine
2009-06-13 21:15:10 Dr. Lazarus rolls 8 to Autopsy (Med2 + MedSpec1 + Wits2 + Equip2 + HS1) (10 Again) 1, 4, 8, 7, 1, 2, 9, 9 3 successes
2009-06-13 21:15:10 Dr. Lazarus rolls 8 to Autopsy (Med2 + MedSpec1 + Wits2 + Equip2 + HS1) (10 Again) 1, 7, 2, 7, 5, 4, 5, 1 failure

[DaevaDude]

Narration:

The first things Dr. Lazarus notes are a variety of gross changes to the body's appearance. In life, Robert Bridgewater had been a solidly-muscled guy with a fair bit of body fat atop his slabs of muscle, but now his body looks shrunken and emaciated, with even the eyeballs shrunken into the sockets. The corpse's skin appears dry and flaky, and it is cracked in many places. Looking closer, Lazarus can see that in some spots the cracks extend deeper than the skin, revealing dried-out and torn flesh underneath. The overall effect is one not unlike mummification, suggesting a loss of most of the liquid that would normally be found in a body. Interestingly, Dr. Lazarus doesn't note any telltale signs of the sort of intense, dry heat that would normally be required to so quickly dry out human flesh without burning it.

The doctor also notices the presence of small, lumpy masses at several spots on the body: the abdomen, neck, pectoral muscles, the biceps, thighs and groin. They are subcutaneous, and not much can be determined about them without opening up the body or dissecting the masses themselves.



((ST Note: Go ahead and describe Dr Lazarus' next step, and make Medicine (Autopsy) rolls as before, with the same bonuses and no negative modifiers at this point))

[Yawgmoth]

After the full outer-body examination, Dr. Lazarus walks from the surgical table and over to a supply desk where a clipboard and notepad are sitting. Each observed change had to be noted no matter how small, it was imperative to not miss anything. Once sufficient data was gathered, copies of these notes would be made and given to the Prince and other high members of the court -- perhaps this would even gain him a potential seat in the city's kindred political system.

Subject 1: Robert Bridgewater (Ghoul)
Extreme dessication without signs of sudden heat.
Skin damaged with cracks from dessication.
Cracked skin appears to run deeper than the epidermis.
Eyeballs similarly dessicated.
Atrophy of mussel apparent, almost complete loss of muscle mass.
Beneath epidermis small masses seem to have made an appearance near areas of high muscular density.


The doctor moved to a stainless steel tray near the table and took out a scalpel which appeared to have never been used. With skill that had come from years of use with such a precise blade, Lazarus began by slicing into the corpse from the chin down to the collar bone, opening it to reveal the dry tissue which used to be Bridgewater's neck. A few of the lumpy masses were evident there, now clearly visible with the outer skin removed. Slicing two of them off, Lazarus collected them and brought both to a smaller examination table with equipment to carefully scrutinize smaller specimens.

Slicing the first mass in half to observe the innards of it, Lazarus moved it under a microscope and began to look if this affliction appeared to be biological or chemical in nature...

Spoiler

Extended action -- 2 for Medicine Dots
2009-06-14 12:33:36 Dr. Lazarus rolls 8 to Autopsy (10 Again) 1, 3, 8, 8, 6, 6, 10, 3, 3 3 successes
2009-06-14 12:33:36 Dr. Lazarus rolls 8 to Autopsy (10 Again) 8, 1, 3, 10, 10, 6, 1, 2, 6, 3 3 successes

[DaevaDude]

((ST Note: Go ahead and also roll Int + Science for the Doctor.))

[Yawgmoth]

Spoiler

2009-06-14 17:46:02 Dr. Lazarus rolls 4 to Autopsy (10 Again, WillPower) 8, 9, 4, 3, 4, 9, 10, 9 5 successes

[DaevaDude]

Narration:

After nearly two hours of careful study, Dr. Lazarus notes the following in regard to the lumpy masses:
1) They are composed of muscle tissue, somehow misshapen by whatever happened.
2) He finds deposits of some reddish-black, crystalline substance within the masses.
3) He finds microtears in the blood vessels and muscle tissue making up the tissue masses.
4) The microtearing is most prominent around larger deposits of the crystalline substance, which makes sense, as the presence of these crystals would by necessity damage the surrounding tissues.
5) There is no apparent entry for the crystaline substance, and the direction of the microtears suggests in many cases they were the result of the development of the crystals. The most obvious conclusion is that the crystals formed within the tissues, damaging surrounding tissues in the process.
6) Consistent with the general dessication of the body, the Doctor observes very little in the way of internal fluid within the masses. Most cell membranes within the masses have ruptured.
7) Dr. Lazarus notices no liquid or coagulated blood within the masses, which is very unusual.
8) Strangest of all, he notices that there are small areas of emptiness within the masses. Tissues almost never have empty space, due to biological homeostasis; if internal tissue is displaced or destroyed, it quickly fills in with fluids. The empty areas are very small - he only noticed these because he examined tissue samples under a microscope - but this was a consistent finding, observed across multiple cross-sections of different masses.

((ST Note: Due to exceptional success on the Science skill roll, for the remainder of this scene Dr. Lazarus will receive a +1 bonus to all Science rolls, and will gain 1 extra roll [Skill dots + 1] on extended Science or Medicine skill checks.))

[Yawgmoth]

This all was fascinating to Dr. Lazarus, never before has he seen a single affliction do this much cellular damage in such a short time. Beneath the table is where Lazarus kept the bonesaw, his bonesaw, the one he personally brought in for personal use. Covered in rust and with a motor that would deafen most, the saw easily cut off the lower right leg of the specimen; the only thing missing was the screams that usually accompanied its use. Carefully flaying the leg open and collecting most, if not all, of the crystalline substance within into a beaker, Lazarus was now ready to see its effects. Some testing is in order...

Moments after Harold Smith, head of security at Amber Hill, receives a phone call coming from Dr. Ith Lazarus' office. To be honest, the ghoul was slightly surprised -- the doctor had instructed him that interruptions would not be tolerated and to not disturb him. The raspy voice on the other end of the line was all too familiar, "Order your staff to bring me a patient from solitary confinement. I want him restrained and gagged. You are to report to my surgical room." Without waiting for a reply Lazarus hung up the phone.

Roughly fifteen minutes later Harold arrived with two other guards, clad in white coats, who were wheeling in a man strapped into a straightjacket. The man was in a state of obvious panic and terror; he had heard the whispers of the other inmates concerning the "good" doctor. Now here he was, face to mask with him. Harold nodded to his two subordinates, and they turned and left the room with a speed suggesting that they too were terrified of Lazarus. Revving up his saw, Lazarus walked up to the restrained patient and let it run for a second just a fraction of an inch next to his ear. "Do not fret child; if you don't resist you won't run the risk of causing me to slip."

The next moment was horrifying as Lazarus ran the rotary blade down the poor soul's inner leg from the kneecap up to the buttocks. With a fresh flow of blood streaming downward, Lazarus pressed a vile to the crimson river and collected enough to fill it. He wasn't an entirely cruel individual though, if left to bleed the man would die, and then the state and perhaps family would come asking questions -- he couldn't have that. So, Lazarus spent a few minutes tying the wound off and applying antiseptic. When Lazarus was done with this evening's experiments, the man would spend the next few weeks of solitary under Lazarus' care.

The doctor placed the vile of living human blood next to another vile of thicker blood, more specifically his own blood. Then, bonesaw still in hand, Lazarus turned to Harold. "You will fill a vile of your blood, or I will fill a vile of your blood." The ghoul didn't have much choice, and fearing the doctor's hands more than his own, Harold obliged. A minute later another vile of ghoul blood had been set into the rack containing the other two samples. Lazarus took a moment to instruct Harold to label each vile, "Vampire Blood, "Ghoul Blood", "Human Blood".

Harold was dismissed to take the unwilling human donor to a more "comfortable" cell, their work here was done. There was only one more thing to do before the test; Dr. Lazarus pulled a small camcorder from a nearby storage closet and set it up pointing at the viles. Lazarus picked up the dish of the collected red/black crystalline substance and sprinkled an amount into each of the three blood samples and then observed the effects...

[DaevaDude]

Narration:

After an hour, the doctor doesn't observe any visible changes in any of the blood samples. The crystaline substance appears to partially dissolve, albeit very slowly.

((ST Note: To thoroughly analyze the samples, Dr. Lazarus needs to roll Int + Science, as discussed above and with listed bonuses. Keep in mind that when doing extended skill rolls, each failed roll applies a cumulative -1 to the subsequent ones.

Also, while the Dr. Lazarus' methodology in collecting blood samples doesn't *quite* reach the level of callous/casual crime necessary for a degeneration roll vs. Humanity 2 (torture), it does nonetheless demonstrate a disregard for human suffering that necessitates a degeneration check at his current Humanity level. Roll 3 dice (Humanity 5 threshold). No Willpower can be used on degeneration checks.))