KANAYA: -Kanaya has been hesitant in visiting the morgue for some time, but she's finally come to the conclusion that waiting around isn't hurting anyone but herself. So here she is, stepping up to the door of the morgue and looking around the hallway hesitantly. There was no one following her, as she had confirmed several times. All right. It was time to just... do it. She took in a breath and rapped her knuckles on the door.-
KURLOZ: *Visitors were unexpected right now, but it was as good a time as any. Kurloz was taking a break after his fifth examination that day, kicked back at his desk with his booted feet casually resting on the surface and a portable reading device within his gloved hands. The knock prompted him to look up, and with a sigh through his nose he got up and headed towards the door to coax it open and see who it was that was interrupting his coveted moment of rest.*
KANAYA: -SURPRISE, it's the head of service. And she's not entirely surprised to see him on the other side of the door. While they hadn't met in any more personal setting, she was aware of the medical examiner; it was her job to be aware of people, after all, in order to meet their needs. He was about what she expected up close, and if she were anyone other than herself, she may have felt more unsettled by his appearance.-
KANAYA: Hi
KANAYA: Im Here
KANAYA: With An Inquiry
KURLOZ: *Kurloz was also familiar with Kanaya... by sight, at least. It was hard to be ignorant of her identity when she spent so much time meddling with every aspect of the ship. Kurloz had been unmeddled with for quite a while, but he knew eventually his time would come. He raised a hand to offer a wave in response to Kanaya's greeting before stepping back from the door to allow her into the morgue. Thankfully the corpse currently laid out hadn't been opened up yet, so his workspace was far more visitor friendly than it normally was. Once he was out of the way, he tilted his head, attempting to show his curiosity as to the reason for her visit.*
KANAYA: -And at the silent invitation, Kanaya stepped inside, regarding the corpse with more vague interest than disgust.-
KANAYA: I Am Going To Take That As Indication To Continue
KANAYA: Um
KANAYA: Im Curious About Any Potential Stores Of A Certain Thing That You May Possess
KANAYA: -Man, she felt so hells of shady right now.-
KURLOZ: *The mime tilted his head in the opposite direction, both eyebrows raised as he watched Kanaya. A certain thing, huh? He raised an arm, gesturing to the cavernous confines of the morgue, his expression still reflecting his curiosity for what she sought.*
KANAYA: -Okay, that seemed like a positive reception. She wasn't certain he knew entirely what she was getting at, but... well, maybe she should just spit it out. She fidgeted with her hands for a moment.-
KANAYA: Blood
KANAYA: Is The Thing
KANAYA: I Happen To Have A Fairly ... Personal Need For It
KANAYA: -As if that would somehow make it better. Yes. Totally.-
KURLOZ: *Blood, huh? It wasn't Kurloz's place to judge the eccentricities of his fellow crew mates, but still a bit of a smirk ended up tugging at his stitched up mouth. No, the personal need for it didn't make it any better, and it only made Kurloz's mind shift through any variety of "personal" needs Kanaya intended to use it for.*
KURLOZ: *Questionable thoughts aside, Kurloz nodded slowly, gesturing for Kanaya to follow him as he walked over to one of the coolers that occupied a wall, ones not designed to house corpses but rather the odds and ends that may originate from his "patients". He pulled one open, crouching down to open a large drawer at the bottom to reveal quite a large number of chilled bags of blood that covered the entire spectrum, including human.*
KANAYA: -She wasn't certain if the smile was a more reassuring or embarrassing thing, but regardless of however slow and creepy his nod may have been, it was a nod, at least. And she was thirsty. So without further ado, she shuffled after him, watching as he pulled open the blood shelf, and her stomach nearly growled then.-
KANAYA: Oh Wow
KANAYA: Ok
KANAYA: Yes Thats Great
KANAYA: Should I Just
KANAYA: ... How Shall We Do This
KURLOZ: *Kurloz, still in his crouched position that brought his height to a less towering and more manageable level, stared at Kanaya with that same, small smirk as he withdrew one of the bags of blood. He moved his gaze from her to look it over with idle curiosity, turning it over in his gloved hands with slow deliberation. He was making no move to give her it, though after his casual perusal he shifted his eyes back to her to stare expectantly.*
KANAYA: -His movements were careful, meaningful; without words, he was giving her a clear enough message. He didn't intend to simply hand the bags over and send her on her way. She had figured not.-
KANAYA: You Want Payment I Imagine
KURLOZ: *Kurloz shook his head, sitting back on his haunches in a more relaxed fashion as a long, bony finger pointed at the bag before sweeping upwards to point at Kanaya instead, his head tilting with the movement and shoulders rising as the pointing hand moved to the side, palm up and mirroring his shrug.*
KANAYA: -No? What else could he be asking her, then? She studied his motions, interpreting them.-
KANAYA: You Want To Know Why I Need Them
KURLOZ: *Nod, and a sweet, curious smile. :o) Look at that harmless, inquiring mime.*
KANAYA: -ADORABLE. But not even a sweet smile from a semi-disturbing mime can make this any less awkward for Kanaya. Her cheeks are a little green.-
KANAYA: I
KANAYA: Drink It
KANAYA: As A Drinker
KANAYA: Which Is What I Am
KANAYA: And Also Why The Reason Is Personal
KURLOZ: *Now /that/ was an unexpected reason. Kurloz was well aware there was all manner of strange trolls aboard the ship, but someone who drank the blood of adult trolls was... well. Perhaps she was obsessed with the romantic ideals of the fabled rainbow drinkers? Probably. Some of his surprise showed on his face before it melted back into that sweet smile as he expertly fetched a hollow cylindrical drinking device from his captchalogue to offer Kanaya both that and the bag (a nice, rich violet).*
KANAYA: -And she looks between both things for a moment before taking them, and then she realizes she's not entirely sure why she's holding them.-
KANAYA: You Want Me To Drink It
KANAYA: Now
KANAYA: Like A Demonstration
KANAYA: Is That Whats Happening
KURLOZ: *The body mime's sweet smile did not falter even a fraction of an inch as he nodded, propping an elbow up on one of his knees and resting his chin in his palm as he watched Kanaya a bit too eagerly.*
KANAYA: -Well. That answered that.-
KANAYA: Ok
KANAYA: Ill Just
KANAYA: -She maneuvered her hands carefully, face flushing a little more as she opened the bag up and started pouring the blood into the glass. It didn't sound especially appetizing chilled, but upon smelling it as it hit open air, well... her nose didn't care either way. It wasn't long before she had discarded her embarrassment in favor of tipping the glass up and swallowing it all down.-
KURLOZ: *Kurloz watched with rapt attention as Kanaya downed the glass of violet blood, the purple of his eyes not missing a single thing as he played voyeur to Kanaya's strange habits. Kurloz felt it was pretty clear this was no sudden whim for Kanaya considering how naturally she was able to guzzle the hemojuice, as even grubsauce was processed considerably so as not to taste solely like the grubs it was harvested from. Fascinating.*
KURLOZ: *He stood up once Kanaya had finished, straightening his uniform before he moved away from where Kanaya stood to fetch an empty, opaque container from a nearby corner. A stealthy storage device, quickly delivered to the refrigeration unit as Kurloz stepped back out of the way to allow Kanaya to raid it at her leisure.*
KANAYA: -She stopped to breathe once she had finally finished it, empty bag and glass in hand and she just sort of... crumpled the bag up and stuffed it in the glass, setting it down on the refrigeration unit and watching as Kurloz went about his business for a moment, glad for the brief time she wasn't being watched to regain some semblance of her composure. The blood was satisfying, but... not nearly enough. And with what appeared to be the entire drawer full of blood at her disposal, now, she had to resist not raiding the entire thing as she crouched down, looking between Kurloz and the blood and the container to make sure this was, in fact, what she was supposed to be doing. And then she started picking through colors, pretending she was being discriminate, but... she really wasn't. Not even a little bit. She was just grabbing various bags at this point and plopping them in the container. And after she had depleted his blood supply quite a bit, she cleared her throat.-
KANAYA: Is This Amount Reasonable
KURLOZ: *Once more Kurloz was watching creepily, making no move to assist Kanaya while she took care of some of the excess of his blood supply; honestly he had no real reason to harvest it for work related reasons, but he may have had others... His expression was mild and pleasant as he observed the procedures, and once Kanaya finished he nodded and gave her a thumbs up. Perfectly reasonable, though during the time his mind had wandered and hungry curiosity was creeping back into his countenance.*
KURLOZ: *He stepped closer to Kanaya, bading her to stand if she hadn't, and if she had to move closer instead.*
KANAYA: -Once he had given his confirmation, she stood, straightening her uniform perfunctorily before meeting his gaze again as he stepped a little closer. He wanted her... to come closer to him? An eyebrow arched somewhat, but he was helping her, and she couldn't exactly assume this wasn't relevant, so... she obeyed, stepping a bit closer.-
KURLOZ: *It was relevant in a way, and after tugging his glove off one hand, he reached out with the other spindly appendage to catch a hold of her shoulder. His grip was firm but not enough to offer any discomfort, but rather try and dissuade any pulling away as two of Kurloz's bare and chilling fingers moved to find Kanaya's jugular and check to see if the strange "customer" of his wares actually had a pulse.*
KANAYA: -She nearly flinched away when he took her shoulder in his hand, confused and clearly somewhat alarmed, but she forced herself not to. His next touch seemed to answer her unspoken question well enough; it was curiosity that bade his motions, and he didn't exactly have the means to warn her about what he was seeking, so she supposed she could forgive it somewhat. What he would find was telling enough, though; whatever moved things around in her, it didn't appear to be owed to her blood pusher, anymore.-
KURLOZ: *If a mediradicator ever needed to check Kanaya's pulse she would have promptly been declared dead despite her obvious movement. Well then. Kurloz was rather adept at finding pulses despite his profession and even then he ended up having to shift his fingers numerous times, checking every spot he knew to verify that the heartbeat that he once assumed necessary to troll life was missing. Something had her "alive" and moving, and Kurloz was now blatantly, ravenously curious as to what sort of force it was. He released her once he was done, staring at her pointedly while neither smiling or frowning.*
KANAYA: -She was grateful when he finally pulled away, blinking a few times and searching his expression.-
KANAYA: I Suppose You Believe Me Now
KANAYA: I Died On One Of Our First Missions
KURLOZ: *Kurloz rubbed his lower jaw, palm sliding against his stitches as he considered Kanaya thoughtfully. Things were already ticking in his mind and he glanced back to a closed door in the morgue that lead to a smaller room thoughtfully. Perhaps...*
KURLOZ: *He swung his attention back to Kanaya, looking at her a moment longer before walking away and towards his desk to retrieve his palm husk. He motioned for her to approach while he began to type a message.*
KURLOZ: [WHAT WAS THE MANNER OF YOUR PREMATURE TERMINATION?]
KANAYA: -She relented and followed along, and, oh, finally. Yes, she could deal with this.-
KANAYA: There Was An Explosion
KANAYA: I Had A Particularly Sizable Hole In My Middle From What I Assume Was A Chunk Of Debris
KANAYA: -gestures vaguely at the area-
KURLOZ: *The mime glanced down towards where she gestured, his eyes narrowing a bit. The cause of death was certainly normal enough, surely that wasn't the reason for her apparent refusal to die?*
KURLOZ: [DOTH THE UNCOUTH MOTHER FUCKING WOUND STILL LINGER, MY SISTER?]
KANAYA: No Not Really
KANAYA: It Began To Heal At A Rapid Pace That Appeared To Be Somewhat Related To My Blood Consumption
KANAYA: I Was Originally ... Much Thirstier
KURLOZ: *Perhaps Rainbow Drinkers were not the thing of legend he had originally assumed. Though she had healed, Kanaya was, by all definitions, a living corpse. He would take a risk. Once more the mute clown was moving, heading for the door that was nearly hidden behind a large shelf, stopping before it to look back and see if Kanaya would follow.*
KANAYA: -She had seen him glance at it once before, but what exactly he had in mind remained a mystery to her. She began to follow along, but her own curiosity couldn't stop her from asking this time.-
KANAYA: Where Are We Going
KURLOZ: [IN GRATITUDE FOR YOUR WILLINGNESS TO SPILL THINE CRYPTIC CONSTITUTION, I SHALL BESTOW UPON YOU THE SPECIAL SCIENCE OF MY OWN UNCONVENTIONAL LABORS.]
KURLOZ: *He held the palm husk out for her to read as he swept his ID card over the panel before leaning in so that the retinal scanner could verify his identity. It was higher security than most areas on this ship, and the coroner had his reason. He stepped inside, leading Kanaya into the inky blackness of the room.*
KANAYA: -Well, that wasn't ominous at all. Special science? She couldn't help but feel a little on guard as she followed him inside, gaze focused more on the man leading her than what lay inside, for the moment.-
KURLOZ: *Kurloz allowed the door to slide closed behind them before he tapped the pad upon the wall to turn on the lights; he was taking many precautions, and with the lights on it became more obvious as to /why/.*
KURLOZ: *There were many shelves, tables and workspaces in the smaller room, covered with an assortment of specimens, active experiments and other odds and ends that most certainly he should not have been in possession of, yet here they were. Keeping souvenirs of the deceased for personal reasons was strictly against protocol, yet a full skeleton stood in one corner and all manner of experiments ticked on. An arm was hooked up to a machine that made the fingers twitch, a set of human lungs artificially inflated and deflated with a recording device set up in front of them. Thin slides with numerous slices of a troll brain sat stacked on one shelf, and many heads in jars stood watch over the proceedings. That was only the tip of the iceberg, and a lot more mysterious things still filled the room.*
KURLOZ: *The one that stood out the most was the large vat on the opposite end, capable of fitting adult trolls as long as they were maneuvered into a fetal position. Tubes and other machinery were connected to it and hummed with life around it. It was that specific thing that Kurloz brought Kanaya too, resting a hand atop it.*
KANAYA: -Wow. Special science was one way to put it, but this was quite the gruesome collection. She had seen plenty of gore in her lifetime, what with her time spent in a desert rife with the undead, but this was different. Methodical. Intentional. There was plenty to see, but she tried not to look upon it all, forcing her gaze back to Kurloz and following him to the vat he led her to, brows knit, a mixture of unnerved and morbid curiosity.-
KANAYA: What Is It
KURLOZ: [THE SUPERSTITION GHOST THAT GETS ITS HAUNT ON A METAL MOTHER FUCKING CHASSIS WISHES TO RECLAIM THE LIFE AND BODY IT ONCE POSSESSED.]
KURLOZ: *He watched Kanaya's reaction carefully as he held up the palm husk for her to read.*
KANAYA: -That didn't take long to put together, and her eyes noticeably widened.-
KANAYA: Aradia
KANAYA: Wait
KANAYA: Youre Attempting To Revive Her
KANAYA: Is That What Youre Saying
KANAYA: -If that was the case... God, if it were possible... She wished she understood enough to be able to help. If she could have a second chance, why not her good friend? And then it occurred to her that that may be exactly why he was showing this to her in particular.-
KURLOZ: *The clown smiled, spreading his hands at his sides. As much as he would have loved to leave it at that and up his mysterious demeanour, there was business to discuss.*
KURLOZ: [OUR HOMIE REQUESTED UNTO ME A SHITBIT OF ASSISTANCE IN HER WICKED MOTHERFUCKIN GOAL.]
KURLOZ: *His attention was back on the vat and he pulled a lever, opening a viewport into the vat. It was filled with what appeared to be a viscous, cerulean blue, churning with purpose inside.* [INSPIRATION HATH STRUCK ON HOW THAT FEAT MIGHT BE BROUGHT INTO SWEET FRUITION, BUT A MOTHER FUCKING OBSTACLE'S GOT ITS SHIT ACTING ALL A BLOCKADE AT THIS PATH.]
KANAYA: -Kanaya leaned to peer inside, curiosity and a sense of hopefulness building.-
KANAYA: What Do You Need
KURLOZ: [STEP ONE HATH PROVED SUCCESSFUL, BUT THERE AIN'T NO PROGRESS MADE SINCE. A CORPSE PLUS THE CONCENTRATED EXTRACT OF THE HORMONE WHAT STARTS PUPATION IN GRUBS, THE PROGRESS BEGINS BUT GOES NO FURTHER.]
KURLOZ: *He pointed to the sludge within the tank.* [BROKEN DOWN TO BASE MOTHER FUCKING SLUDGE, THE CORPSE WHAT'S BEEN UTILIZED REMAINS SILENT. WHATEVER TRIGGER COAXES THE METAMORPHOSIS AIN'T REARED IT'S BITCHIN HEAD.]
KURLOZ: *He looked back to Kanaya, his chin tilting up slightly as the next message was presented.* [BUT A SICKNASTY NINJETTE WHAT'S ALREADY CHEATED MORTAL CESSATION MIGHT HOLD THE SACRED KEY. :o)]
KANAYA: -The process he was going to was fascinating in itself, but more importantly was what it could mean for Aradia, and, quite apparently, what Kanaya could possibly do to contribute.-
KANAYA: Im Willing To Help
KANAYA: -She looked to the vat again, back to Kurloz.-
KANAYA: Just Let Me Know What You Need
KURLOZ: [I LACK CERTAINTY ON WHAT IS MOTHER FUCKING NEEDED, BUT THE MOBILE YET DECEASED FLESH THOU POSSESS IS OF IMPORTANCE UTMOST.]
KURLOZ: [SAMPLES. FLESH AND BLOOD, SO THAT I MIGHT TEST AND UTILIZE SUCH TISSUE AND THE SECRETS IT HIDES TOWARDS THIS SACRILEGIOUS PURSUIT.]
KANAYA: -That sounded like it /could/ be painful, but... She could certainly cope with that. She doubted whatever he took could be much, right?-
KANAYA: I Think I Can Do That
KURLOZ: *Kurloz nodded curtly, closing the viewport on the vat and heading out of the room, turning off the light prior to opening the door and escorting Kanya out. He gestured towards one of the stools near a table with various scientific and medical equipment while he went to fetch the tools necessary to get the samples and patch her up afterwards.*
KANAYA: -She followed him out, settling down at the stool and barely even considering how savory or unsavory it might be to be touched by tools that may very well have been used on the dead.-
KURLOZ: *Thankfully Kurloz didn't need /too/ much, though poor Kanaya had to give blood, a skin sample, a small chunk of muscle tissue, saliva and some hair and a bit of horn scrapings just to be sure. Each sample Kurloz captchalogued in a special container, hoping that he might be able to alchemize further samples to give him a wide base to work from... otherwise he may have to track down Kanaya again. As for taking the samples, the mime was careful and made sure to patch Kanaya up if necessary following every bit he took. He was even polite and asked permission before he did any of it! Such a nice mime, defying the very laws of the world in an attempt to raise the dead. Once it was done he looked over some of the notes he'd scrawled out between the samples and then back to Kanaya.*
KURLOZ: [THINE DONATION WON'T SEE ITSELF ALL TOO MOTHERFUCKIN WASTE, MY SICKNASTY SISTER. :o)]
KANAYA: -She couldn't say it was anywhere close to a pleasant experience, but she bore with the process nonetheless, with the hope that his words would, in fact, be true once all was said and done. At his parting message, she simply nodded, taking a resolute breath as she moved to captchalogue her blood bin and see herself out. She had seen enough of the morgue for one day, but eventually, she felt, she would come back to see what progress was made.-