Bloody Fury and Alchemy

[Flamebird]

Blood Fury and Alchemy

[Closed to Nevin.]


~~~

A bright fedora with a green ribbon covered a teenager's head. Her brown pants, dark green shirt, and ebony jacket modestly hung over a sturdy and strong body. For someone so young, the half-human carried a powerful physical might. In a rough hand, she held a small card between her fingers. It had the shop information of an alchemist named Nevin Aimaparapoiitis.

Hopefully, he could help her get to the bottom of a dire mystery she spent almost two years on.

Her left hand fell onto a bronze nob. All fingers but one grasped the nob. The other was horrifically mangled from a bad experience long past, dead and devoid of blood. With her remaining four didgets, she turned the nob.

She opened the door. As she stepped inside, she observed her surroundings. Herbal Magick was a small, humble shop. The lab had neatly organized, narrow shelves with a diversity of potions and medications. The many colors of the liquid potions were truly the greatest of mysteries one could crack indoors. The woman was more prone to exploring the outdoors and adventuring in the dangerous wilds. However, her work as a starting alchemist interested her just as much. Labs like these felt surprisingly warm and home.

Setting neatly on the counter in pleasant glass jars, there was a selection of candies. The teenager's sweet tooth drew her to the array of honey treats and hard candies. She was never too old for candy. The floorboards moaned as she stepped across the floor, observing them all. For a moment, her mouth curved into a smile over the fantasy of eating all of them! Yet, the much more serious and urgent need that brought her here caused her grin to fall. She stuffed the card she was holding into a jacket pocket, then reached for the fedora.

She pulled the hat off, her flame colored hair slightly ruffled from wearing it. Her eyes were a darker shade of green, somewhat unnatural for the average person if they were observed incredibly close. Her more narrow forehead was the most obvious pointer towards her neanderthal DNA.

She reached up and tapped the bell on the wooden counter. She opened her mouth and nervously called. "Hello? Is anyone here?"

[Nevin]

Nevin rolled back the sleeves on his plain white shirt as he wiped some of the stinging sweat out of his eyes. He had been bent over this solution for nearly forty minutes, carefully making sure that it simmered down properly, and no uneven lumps were left in the mixture. The proximity to the flame beneath the small brass bowl had him sweating fiercely. But - the potion was done. With smooth, practiced motions he carefully lifted the bowl from the flame,
and poured the bubbling green brew into a small clay jug. A cork stopper in the top to keep it in, and he was good to go -

And just in time it seemed, as the small bell that he had strung up into his workshop chimed, indicating someone had come into the shop. The redhead brushed strands of hair out of his face and sighed, shaking his head ruefully. "Well. Back to the other side of business." He put out the flame and set the pot into the small sink, running water over it to keep it from drying up with some of the solution still in the bowl. That done, he headed over to his ladder, and set the clay jug on the small pulley system, then climbed up the ladder. He hadn't shut the trapdoor into his basement, thankfully, or it might have taken him longer to get out of there - as it was, he hurried to pull the new medicine up without spilling it.

For a moment, he hesitated at the door, wondering if he should roll back down his sleeves - but no, he was done hiding his nature here, the villagers didn't mind. A few gave the strange mash of red lines that ran across his skin a second glance,
but so far none had ever really seemed upset by it. Certainly, none of them had stopped visiting. So, he kept the sleeves pushed back, though he did dry one of his hands off on his dark brown trousers as he cradled the clay jug in the crook of his other arm. Then he pushed open the door, letting a smile fall onto his face. He had finally gotten to the point where his smiles seemed natural, crinkling the corners of his eyes properly, which he felt glad of.

"Yes, hello, sorry about that -" He paused and ran a quick eye over his guest, "Miss. I was down in my workshop, apologies for the wait." He lifted the wooden bar on one end of the counter and slipped out from the back, heading over to one of the shelves. He set his burden down next to several near identical clay jugs, and rearranged them slightly, until he stepped back and huffed, then shrugged. "It'll do." Then he spun on his heel and smiled at the girl, dipping into a shallow bow.

"Nevin, proprietor of Herbal Magick. What can I do for you today?"

[Flamebird]

He was another redhead, appearing to be near-human. His unusually dark eyes, alongside the glowing red veins in his arms, seemed to point towards some kind of distinct kind of heritage. Whether it be a genetically varrying human tree, or another species all together, she did not know.

As he bowed and introduced himself, she smiled. The smile was genuine and tender. It came from a heart of gold, someone who was a kinder, more sensitive soul. She held her fedora between her hands, the headgear hanging over her lap.

"It's nice to meet you. I'm Felicity Rhyolite, and I was wondering... I need help."

Her head lowered, the smile faded as she gazed upon the oak floor. She fell into a state of solemn seriousness. "Um... I've recently started to work as an alchemist, and for a specific reason. Even my mentors cannot unravel it, I'm trying to find someone who can."

She lifted her fedora, placing it on the counter as she explained her situation. "Two years ago, I was injected with an untested, unpredictable serum. It was meant to give me powers, make me stronger." She looked back up to Nevin with a smirk, "And it worked."

She made the motion of a blade slicing the air with a flat hand, "Every time I bleed I get stronger." This was where the smile faded. She clenched her hand as her eyes became shadowed, "But I also get angrier. I go insane if I'm hit enough."

She stepped forward, leaning against the counter as she looked down again. "It has caused me to fight friend and foe alike. It's out of control. I'm out of control!"

Anger ever so briefly cracked through her voice, her fist tightly clenched in her confliction. As quickly as it came though, it also left. Desperate, she looked back up again, making her plea to the more experienced alchemist.

"And after all the research we made, I know almost nothing about it! I need to! I need to understand... control it... Please?"

She fell silent, turning her eyes towards the candies. Her cheeks turned red as she asked one final favor, "And I'd like to buy ten of those honey sticks, please."

[Nevin]

Nevin raised one eyebrow as the girl - Felicity - explained her situation. It sounded like - well, like she had been a victim of someone trying to work on a serum to increase physical strength. He didn't know why the experiment seemed to have stuck with her though - that was unusual, most medicines ran through in the course of a few days at most. He rubbed his chin in thought as he slowly walked around her, examining her as she tracked his movements with her eyes. Finally he came to a stop in front of her, and ran one hand across the messy ponytail on the back of his head as he stared at her before speaking.

"I - well, I am dreadfully sorry to hear that you were the victim of such an unethical experiment. I can see why you're seeking help, and I will do my best to help you. It.. well. To be honest, this is a rather interesting challenge, and one that you say you need help with, and I'm not one to turn away those in need. So then." Nevin strode back behind his counter and pulled up a notebook, flipping it open to a blank page and he picked up a pencil to start writing notes down as he spoke and she answered.

"You say this 'escalation' occurs every time you bleed. Is that a very literal statement, in that any time something breaks your skin your anger rises, or is it more limited to combat situations, where your adrenaline levels are already elevated?"
Perhaps this was in some way connected to her output of adrenaline? It didn't seem so - he didn't think adrenaline could be responsible for the loss of reasoning. But - it was a possibility, so he noted it. He also wrote down that the serum had been in her system for an extended period of time -

"Ah, a follow up question to your explanation. Has anyone been in a position where they might have been able to continually inject you with the serum over a long period of time?" There were some salts, alkali metals and the like, that could build up in the system if exposure was prolonged, but usually those required multiple injections or continual exposure. He couldn't think of any that could take such hold with just one injection. But - maybe? He chewed the inside of one cheek as he thought.

[Flamebird]

Felicity hopped onto the counter, sitting on it as the alchemist immediately threw her questions and fumed over his notebook. Somehow, Felicity always got stuck with the introverted, obsessive ones. It was both ironic and amusing. Ashla, Daisuke, Deirdre...

She immediately answered the first one, "It's literal. I've been working with wood or cutting veggies in a kitchen and I'll get cut. The results are automatic. Once again, it's initially great in competitive situations, but... I flipped over a table and broke objects around my home because of it." An embarrassed chuckle escaped her as she placed her hands on her knees.

The follow up question made her wince. She shook her head, "I was actually only injected once. Willingly. I was... younger then. I trusted those people..."

~~~

"Are you sure this will work?"

Felicity opened her eyes, confusion crossing her young face. She was surrounded by bookshelves full of old journals, novels, nature guides… Only half of them had collected dust, as the person who owned them read up frequently. This was not the only thing in this cozy, dark room however. The sound of bubbling liquids and the dripping of fluid droplets caused her to turn her head left, to the many tables and shelves of thermoses, bottles, measuring cups, and vials filled with many different liquids with rainbows of different colors and thicknesses. Steam also boiled in a large glass bowl; solid crystals and cut up and mashed leaves were laid out neatly in their wooden boxes. This was only a small laboratory though, as both the alchemist and his master were in the other room.

"Of course it will work, m'lady. We-we just don't know how…"

The girl nervously shuffled her legs. The cushioning of the laid back lab chair she was on rubbed against her brown pants. The red chair was comfortable, and two squishy holsters were at the side so one could squeeze them if-if… they were in… pain…

How nice of the manufacturer.

The girl was laying down. Looking up to the ancient stone ceiling above, she heard their voices from the other room.

"M'lady, maybe we should-"

"-No, Daisuke. My apprentice cannot grow strong if we do not inject your serum into her. This is your creation, right? Everything should be fine."

Now the girl reached for one of the stress relieving handles, shaking as she gripped it tightly. She was now visibly nervous. Looking up to the elvish lines and curves on the round dome above her, her green eyes unstably formed tears. She trusted these people completely. They would - her teacher would - never harm her! Right? Why was she so rattled? Everything would be just fine… right?

As she heard their footsteps tapping on the marble floor, entering the room, she closed her eyes. Gulping down the lump in her throat and pushing back the tears, she nervously smiled, "Masta'."

"Felicity."

She opened her eyes again. A young woman, just a few years older than she, was hanging over her. Her black hair blocked out any side vision for either of them. The young woman smiled reassuringly, her blue eyes portraying fond warmth as she spoke, "Are you ready?"

Felicity squeezed the handles again, "I guess…"

The young woman put a reassuring hand on her shoulder, "Nervous?"

"Y-yeah." Her voice shook a little.

The woman tilted her head, "Needle?"

Felicity's eyes darted away for a moment. With nothing but long, black hair with brown highlights blocking her vision, she was forced to look back to her and respond.

"Magic."

Now it was her teacher's turn to look away. Pushing her hands off the head rest, she looked towards the far left of her vision with an unreadable face, at least from down here.

Now feeling outright anxious, the child looked towards that direction. A middle aged man with long, greyish-brown hair was filling an injection needle with a clear but fizzling substance.

"Daisuke…" Felicity asked, her smile having faded, "Is it safe?"

The man's long hair blocked her vision of him. However, after a moment he disconnected the tube of the liquid, holding the rather long needle up in the air. "Of course it is, child."

Tears welding up once more, Felicity looked up to her teacher again, who extended her hand to her. The pale area where her gloves usually would be signified that she had just now removed the hand garments. The young woman smiled reassuringly, "You will be fine, Fel. It's okay. This will be worth it."

Felicity raised her good right hand to her's, squeezing it as tightly as she could as she heard Daisuke walking towards them. He lifted her sleeve, dabbing it with a cool cloth.

Felicity was vibrating, watching her trusted mentor with visible fear on her face.

"Come now," Ashla smirked, "I would never do anything to hurt you, right?"

Felicity smiled, although a tear slid slowly down her face, her expression screamed of unwavering admiration. "Nev'a."

She winced, clenching her teeth together in a hiss of pain, as the needle pierced her skin.

~~~

She still loved them. Daisuke was an incredible mentor, like a wise grandfather. Ashla was her closest friend, but their long and perilous history left them in a place where they were close, but trust was nonexistent. Ashla had changed drastically.

Felicity had changed too.

She let out a heavy, shaky sigh. Her posture plummeted as she spoke. "I blanked out after I was injected. Don't remember how it felt or if I was injected again. Whenever I talk with Daisuke about it, he talks like it was only used once."

[Nevin]

"Hmm. So, definitively a single injection, unless this person has lied to you, which they have no reason to do. Right. So, not a long term soluble salt meant to build up in the system. And the effect occurs any time you lose blood at all, even in situations where you most definitely do not want it to happen." He drummed the pencil against the paper for a moment, staring down at his notes. Nevin frowned and began to spin the pencil around his fingers, humming as he thought about options.

"Well. If it happens even in ordinary situations, the likelihood of it being tied to your adrenaline output it possible, but unlikely. So while it might be triggering an increase in that, that is not its cause nor its primary goal. And with a single occurence of exposure, it means that it is something that has altered your make-up, changed, well, the parts that make you who you are. I don't know how much scientific background you have yet so I won't try to use the more specific terms. But think of it like this. Human, or humanoid people, have things in them that tell their body what they're going to be. It seems like, whatever this was, put in some extra information into your bits, and changed what your body thinks it should be." But the question was, was it something that could be purged from her system?

Unfortunately, that wasn't something that he could just up and test on her. Wait, she'd been working with an alchemist before, hadn't she? "You mentioned working with an alchemist. Did they try any purging solutions, or curatives? Or did they have an idea of this situation?" If some of the ground work had already been done, that would shorten their research time considerably. It would also remove the need for - well, for something that he was hesitant about even suggesting, considering she had just told him she had torn up her own home in a fit of this rage.

Hmm. Perhaps a sedative serum, something to take that would push her into a calmer state of mind? A low level sedative perhaps, or maybe a general anaesthetic? "Has anything been tried? Numbing your skin and then trying to cut it perhaps,
or catching you unawares?" Was it something in her very blood that was reacting to an influx of air and causing the enhanced rage and strength? This was an interesting conundrum. He did note that she seemed to be a bit depressed, so as he asked his questions, the redheaded man picked up one of the honey candies and handed it to her, popping one of the strawberry ones into his own mouth.

[Flamebird]

The moment science was brought up, Felicity felt herself perk up. Felicity had never been given any lessons outside basic reading, writing, and math growing up. Her studies of herbs and potions, alongside any form of survival or science, was only after she hit the road with her former teacher when she was fourteen.

Felicity thought back to the times she experimented; as well as those funny moments at home. She scoffed, rolling her eyes, "I live with two alchemists, an ice mage, a no chill, emotion dead teenager, an accident prone housewife, and a toddler capable of controlling ice and fire." A more serious state returned to her as she continued, "I've been in Fallien, Eiskalt, the Citadel... Temperature and circumstance does nothing. I've literally been completely numb or on fire and the effects are always the same. I bleed, my abilities switch on."

Once again, the lab research entered her mind. "In the lab we took blood and DNA samples. Unfortunately, I'm part neanderthal so there's no likewise DNA to compare my structure to - and us Eiskaltian branches have an affinity for magic."

She took one of the offered honeysticks and opened it, "What we did find out is that when the ability is on, my TRPV1 is completely muted, which is why I never feel pain when it's activated. We also know there's lot's of foreign chemicals in my body just sitting there, and that comes out as this 'cloak' around my body when I'm hit enough. It outwardly behaves like fire, except it isn't. We're sure the only reason it doesn't affect me negatively is that magic affinity I apparently have. But if what you said about my entire being changing after the serum is true, I could also just have an immunity period."

She took a swig of the honey as she dug into a jacket pocket. As she slurped that delicious sweet substance, she pulled out a paper and tossed it onto the counter. The picture of small orbs orbiting a larger one was seen. They were labelled with the names of a foreign, explosive compound. Yet, the image showed this single compound split into two.

This substance splits apart only when "Beserk Rage" is turned on. It translates into raw energy, building up inside her, first as raw physical strength. After the rapidly split atoms seem to be energized enough, by the increased damage and bleeding, the Cloak becomes active. The Cloak is extra built up energy exploding. The burning effect is unaffective to Miss Rhyolite herself, surprisingly and thankfully. This is going strictly over physical results, as her emotional and mental deteriorations are still unexplained.

Felicity rested her forehead against her hand, "It's all a huge mess, I know..."

...

"... Hey, this honey is incredible."

[Nevin]

That was an interesting bit of information, and it did limit some of the experiments that would have to be done. If her power - this cloak that the note theorized - activated literally any time her blood was exposed to air... He rubbed his chin in thought. That was a very interesting trait. Was this unknown substance reacting to the increase in oxygen in the vicinity? It would explain why her power ramped up each time she was struck - some of the chemical was activated, then more and more, enhancing the substance's power each time that more was exposed to the air. Nevin drummed his pencil on top of the counter and stared at her intently, as if just looking at her would let him see into the very make up of what she was.

"Well. I have some ideas on this. Most likely, your magic is bound up with this serum and its effects on you - it might indeed be part of why your body accepted the change that the serum induced, since normally repeated exposures would be necessary for more permanent effects to occur. So, your magic may have helped speed up that process, but there's no way of testing that now. Additionally." He tapped the paper she had tossed down, indicating that he had read it before he spoke.
"The researcher here states that they don't know why this physical change is also affecting your mental and emotional states. But this substance is unknown, so there are two possible culprits that I can think of." The redhead lifted his finger up as he spoke.

"The first is that the chemical that has bonded with your body activates not just this energetic cloak when you bleed, but the reaction that occurs within it releases some kind of hormone or by-product chemical that is responsible for inducing the changed state in your mind. The second possibility is that the effects on your mind are actually the result of your magic working in harmony with the 'Cloak'. Taking advantage of the increase of strength and pain mitigation to increase your aggression, so that you can fully utilize the newfound strength. As people normally have a mental inhibition against using their full strength, this might be your magic working to circumvent that." It was an interesting conundrum. Unfortunately,
neither hypothesis could really be tested now - it would need another person who had been exposed to this serum who had been affected in a different way to see if they displayed the same characteristics as Felicity did.

"Now now, Miss Felicity. There is no need to be so down. While it is a mess, those can be cleaned up. And I can think of a few possibilities in handling this, ways to help circumvent this issue. The absolute easiest, and one that may or may not require alchemical help: Find a way to toughen your skin, so that it is harder to cut, so that you do not have these exposure situations." The alchemist paused to see if that thought had come to her before. It was possible it had, but also possible that it hadn't - sometimes, being too close to the problem would keep you from seeing options. "But, as you came to an alchemist, let's see. A normal alchemist would probably be able to offer perhaps after experimentation a medicine that just deadens this chemical in your system. It might work, but it might also be deleterious to you if your body has adjusted to having this substance. I have... other options available." He coughed into his hand and looked away for a moment.

"It has not been a major concern here in Stonevale so you may not have heard from whoever directed you here, but I have a talent for working blood magic. Specifically, I work with blood based alchemy. It might be possible for me to create a solution that temporarily reduces the chemical and target it specifically to you, lessening any harmful side effects. A more potent solution might actively reduce the effect this compound has on your system, while a weakened version might, and this is all currently hypothetical, might be able to prevent accidental outbursts from everyday mishaps." The trick would be, figuring out what could actually effect this unknown substance. And without...drawing blood.... there was no way of testing.

[Flamebird]

Felicity's face twisted in frustration. This was starting the get confusing. As Nevin spoke, she slipped her shoes off and sat criss-cross applesauce on the counter. Her elbow was stuffed into her leg, palm propping up her head.

"I have no idea what's causing the anger. I doubt my magic has much to do with it though, I've never used it in my life. I know I have the potential, but even according to a medicine woman I met, I've never unlocked it."

She took another sip of honey. "So the chemical itself and what's causing my temper tantrums are unknown." Her eyes widened a little when he spoke of reducing the effects with a potion, then went onto his apparent blood magic.

"If we knew what chemical was in me, we could develop a specific substance aimed towards it. But we don't. Directly deadening the chemical would definitely be, as you said, deleterious; especially since this chemical is a part of me now. It would be like trying to remove white blood cells or stomach bacteria."

She lifted her head from her hand. She let out a long sigh before sipping the honey; thinking over how Nevin's blood alchemy could potentially help.

"This might seem a bit contradictory of me, but the power itself is helpful. If we try to target anything, I would prefer the emotional side effects itself. Of course, you just handed out two theories on that. It could possibly be some sort of hormone releasing with the chemical. It could also be my cloak and my magic affinity working together to maximize damage."

Felicity took in more of the sweet candy she was eating. Her mind whirled as she looked at the major roadblock in front of them - the mysteries of her chemical and her explosive reactions. "I think we would need to run some sort of test. Taking another blood sample... I could erupt, but..."

She kept the honey hovering over her mouth, her eyes looking away from Nevin as she focused on abstract thought. "We need to figure out what's inside me, somehow. We know that it reacts with a sort of fission, when the energy is needed. Collecting a list of the kind of compounds that react and release energy in this same way is vital."

"Daisuke knew there are certain metals, like uranium - mostly located in more desolate places like Alerar and the Tular Plains, that have the fission - the atoms splitting in two and releasing energy and stuff. But the compound in me does not match the chemical properties of his list of metals. Daisuke and I ran the tests to prove that..."

A smidgen of misunderstanding anger rose in her chest. Daisuke created this very formula and the chemical used escaped him! His serum was worked on with an alchemist team in Alerar a long time ago. He had pulled the old serum out years later, when Ashla called for it. Now, figuring out what the compound was without making her bleed would prove difficult.

If it did come to drawing blood, poor Nevin would have to hold her down or sedate her.

[Nevin]

"A fissile material that is being perpetuated inside the body - but doesn't match known reactive metals. Hmm. And - yes, if your magic is inactive then there's a good chance that one of the byproducts of this chemical in your system undergoing its fission is what is causing the change in your mental and emotional states. Possibly an increased flow of testosterone or adrenaline, tying in with the deadening of pain receptors. Or possibly a racially specific hormone agent, something that would be fine in another person but in your unique state is affecting your mind harmfully." More notes jabbed down, options scribbled down in the notebook under his hand. The fact that it was definitely something undergoing a chemical fission was worrying enough - bodies were not meant to withstand that kind of force normally, atoms being split was almost to a fault utterly destructive. That might be why her magic was 'inactive' - instead it was all focused inwards,
on keeping her body from ripping apart at the released energies.

"So, possibly an organic salt, something that has been converted from a metal into something your body can produce on its own. There are - there are a few creatures I know of that produce salts inside of their own bodies, and while I was in the reaches of Tular I did find one that...hm. It might not be the same, but what I saw there might be of help - let me see, what plant did that thing eat?" Nevin stood up abruptly and walked into the back of the shop, pushing open the doorway and leaving it hanging open as he moved over to the bookshelf that was in the small study area.

"No, that's from the Raerian region, that's from the outstretches of Corone, that's the sea forest plants - AH here it is." Soft ramblings, barely audible, came from the back, along with the sounds of books being moved around, thumping against wood. Nevin came out with a thin black book, with a light grey 'T' embossed on the front, that he sat down and began flicking through rapidly, dark red eyes scanning back and forth rapidly. "It wasn't a fern species or a mushroom, what was it -
bark? Ah, from one of the native trees. What properties did that have." A long, red-lined finger traced across the page as Nevin's brow furrowed. Suddenly he looked up, locking eyes with Felicity, the light from his lamp catching them and showing their true color, deep, almost black, red.

"I don't have any of a similar plant on hand, but the tree that this thing was eating was of a family that is known for having mild psychotropic effects. In this case, people who ingest teas or eat meat that has been smoked with wood from these trees are reported to be laxer than normal, almost an overly enforced calm. We might be able to use that as a basis for a medicine for you. However, before I make something actually for you, I ... I have to agree with your thought. We need to take a sample of your blood and see what the reaction causes, see if we can identify a released hormone or something. We might be able to use a combination of efforts to mitigate the adverse effects on you." He stood up and went to a small cabinet behind the counter, and pulled out a small satchel.

The Alchemist carefully set the bag down on the countertop, and began pulling things out from inside. First came a pair of small glass vials, which were uncorked and set to one side, then came a small, sharp scalpel. The final thing he drew out was a needle attached to a syringe - and he looked up when he heard a sharp inhalation, and saw that Felicity's verdant eyes were locked onto the needle, and she was shaking slightly. A fear - but just to needles, she didn't react to the scalpel coming out. Hm. Nevin cleared his throat and set the needle on the counter, moving his hand clearly away from it as he watched his ...patient?

"We have, well, options if necessary. If you think you need it, I do have soporifics I can offer, something to put you to sleep for a short time. Or, I do have a means of restraining you if that doesn't suit your wishes. As for taking the blood, I can either do that with a needle, or with my other talents." He raised one eyebrow slightly, and left the decision to her.