Ronan: Corpse Preparation [NEC]

21:26] Ronan says, "Sire, I have the potion, per request -- Whenever you are ready for it."
[21:27] Despair says, "I'll accept it 'fore I begin the lesson."
[21:27] Despair says, "Nykros."
[21:27] Nykros asks, "Sir?"
[21:27] Ronan says, "Understood."
[21:27] Despair says, "This is Ronan. Ya will b learnin' wit' him."
[21:27] Nykros says, "I see. We've been acquainted before."
[21:27] Ronan says, "Hm? <*smirks*>"
[21:27] Ronan says, "Funny how fate works, kid."
[21:27] Nykros says, "Indeed. I take it you know corpse preparation as well>"
[21:27] Despair says, "They do not."
[21:27] Ronan raises brow.
(Ronan)
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[21:27] Nykros says, "I see."
[21:27] Despair says, "Ya will b runnin' 'em through the first lesson."
[21:27] Nykros says, "Yes, Lord."
[21:27] Despair says, "It is a review."
[21:28] Nykros asks, "Shall I provide the body, or will he require his own?"
[21:28] Despair says, "Then I'll teach ya both the nex' part. Either o'."
[21:28] Nykros says, "Understood, Lord."
[21:28] Nykros says, "Ronan? This way, please."
[21:29] Nykros says, "Right here..."
[21:29] Ronan asks, "Here?"
[21:33] The boy sighs, raising his hands and clapping them twice. At the sound, the snow just in front of them began to rumble, three small pillars of ice soon erupting from the earth, each containing a small or medium sized mammal. A mouse, a squirrel, and finally, the final one, being a tad larger, containing a fox with a white pelt, each one having stitches closing up holes, the fur on each of them stained with blood to highlight the wounds through the ice, vaguely staining it with a red tint.

"Take your pick from my current collection. I'd recommend the smaller ones to start."
(Nykros)
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[21:33] Nykros says, "They are easier-to-acquire corpses, and more disposable after all."
[21:34] Ronan's eyes sift across the selection, before finally settling upon the mouse. It was humorously small, but everything had to start somewhere.

" I take it, the smaller they are, they easier it should be."
Finally, he pointed at the smallest of them all.

"The mouse will do."
(Ronan)
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[21:39] A brief nod was given by the shield, sighing for a moment, the breath chilled as the crisp air around them, evident as it leaves no visible vapor. The child approaches the pillar identified, pressing their hand against it, the ice rapidly turning to water that still sustained the creature in the same position as the hand grasped around the mouse's limp, dead body, pulling it out before the pillar itself melts entirely, returning to the ground, turning to snow almost instantly upon impact, meanwhile the other two pillars retreat with a wave of the boy's other hand.

"Alright, take this, and follow me. We'll begin the actual lesson in the tower." he'd say, holding the mouse out to Ronan for him to take the mouse from him.
(Nykros)
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[21:43] Ronan reached out to accept a dead mouse within his palms. It felt grotesque, but perhaps it was a necessary for the endgame he planned for. He had to build a tolerance for it, in the end.
The sodden limp figure felt malleable within his hands, now being cupped in his possession and... Awkwardly stared at.

Literal vermin -- He could've picked -anything- else, but he chose vermin.
" Lead the way, Nykros. "
(Ronan)
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[21:43] Nykros says, "Mhmm."
[21:44] Nykros says, "Sit at the end of the table if you would, and set the rodent down before you."
[21:45] Ronan followed the instructions without a word, giving the table a good once-over. To think, he ate on this table at one point... Did they did this at some point earlier?
The limp dead rodent was laid to rest upon the wooden table, leaving Ronan to eye it with disgust... And then turn to Nykros in confusion.

"... Now what?"
(Ronan)
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[21:49] If the man were to take a closer inspection of the table, it was clear such things were commonly done here as of recent, blood staining the table's top, and the carpet around it.

The boy continued, reaching into his back and taking out a trio of surgery tools, placing them one by one before Ronan, and next to the mouse. A Scalpel. A small, metal hammer. And finally, a needle and some thread.

"We begin with the head, make an incision first, centered along the scalp, spread the flesh, and use the hammer to -carefully- break the skull open. And Undead requires and intact head and brain. It houses the soul, as well as processes memories, thoughts, and orders given by the Necromancer."
(Nykros)
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[21:58] Surely, this was already not looking up to something he'd look forward to. This felt like borderline medical work -- But if he wanted to better understand the boundaries of the soul? He didn't have too much of a choice.

The scalpel was taken up, but with less than steady hands. They were shaking for a number of reasons...
He had never done anything like this before -- That, and it was disgusting him. He wouldn't say it, but it could be noticed by someone more seasoned.

Ronan used his opposing hand to steady the corpse, directing the body and head to ease the process.
Slowly, the scalpel's blade sliced into the base of the skull, by the neck, and dragged up to the nasal cavities.
As an extra measure (or due to lack of knowledge), he sliced perpendicular to the previous endeavor, from ear to ear. Sloppy? Perhaps, but he intended to follow the act through to the end.

The scalpel was placed down, bloodied alongside his fingers that moved the body and head to better suit his actions. Next, came the small hammer, to which -- Ronan didn't quite know how to carry out the act smoothly.

'I knew I should've gone for the fox.' He thought to himself, before taking the hammer and lightly tapping at the skull.
Nothing... A little harder? Still, nothing. Then, with a bit more vigor?

Crunch

The sickening crackle of bone under the hammer was not nearly as grotesque as it would've been on a human body. It still shown on his face though.

"I hope I didn't overdo it." He commented, moving broken skull fragment with his bloodied hands to expose -- If not slightly, de-morphed gray matter.
He picked his hands up, as though to signify that he was pausing.

"Now what?"
(Ronan)
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[22:03] The boy gave a neutral look. Damaging the grey matter was inevitable as a whole, given one must break through the skull to get to it, therefore no criticism was given in such a regard.

The initial cuts were sloppy as a whole, all things considered. And it would be a pain in the near future, if the man hadn't already figured it out from the pin and thread nearby.

"You want to make sure the brain isn't damaged too badly. Otherwise it will not be suited for resurrection. This one is... 'Okay'... But that's mostly due to the hammer's work, it'll happen most to all times with smaller beings like this. Now you're going to have to sew the incision shut. Don't want brain matter leaking out after all."

"And after your done closing that, note there are three other places you must cut open. The next being along the back, to check on the spine."
(Nykros)
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[22:17] Nykros says, "Greetings, Mistletoe."
[22:19] Mistletoe would just notice Nykros had greeted him.
(Mistletoe)
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[22:19] Mistletoe says, ".. Yes, likewise."
[22:19] Mistletoe asks, ".. Is that a corpse upon that table ..?"
[22:19] Nykros says, "Yes. I'm teaching Ronan about Corpse Preparation."
[22:20] Mistletoe says, ".. Interesting. For the 'Art', I assume, or does he have aspirations for leading into the medical field? .."
[22:20] Nykros says, "After that, Lord Ultovex agreed to teach us both the next step."
[22:20] Nykros says, "Necromancy. Nothing more."
[22:21] Mistletoe folded his arms and observed-- Being more seasoned than the both of them, he would watch the methods they utilized.
(Mistletoe)
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[22:21] Mistletoe says, ".. Interesting."
[22:21] Nykros says, "He just finished examining the brain."
[22:24] There was more?!
At least now he knew what a moderately operational brain looked like. The pin and thread was looked upon with dread. Certainly there had to be a better way -- Unfortunately, it did not appear as though such would be the case here.

The broken skull shards were, pushed off to the side, assumed to no longer be of use. Perhaps they had to be removed for direct contact unto the brain? The skin flaps were pushed back to close the head up, given some slack granted the lack of skull portions missing.
The pin and thread were taken up... And slowly, but surely, Ronan attempted to fasten the needle through the loose skin. It took time for the first piercing, but from then onward, the threading only proven sloppy.

He was -not- good at this, at all -- But he was determined, leaving the skull with lumps of skin where he fastened the thread, back to the base of the skull. The scalpel was taken to severe excess thread, leading Ronan to place both pin andthread away, off to the side.

Now, for the next step -- The scalpel was dragged a bit further from the neck to pierce into the backside, dragging all the way down to the base of the tail. A lot cleaner on his second time trial around -- Especially when knowing that he'd have to sew it back together.

The bloodied scalpel was placed to his opposing side, and fingers dug into the cut to pry sinew from bone for a view of the spine.
"Alright..."
He was focused, certainly Mistletoe was familiar, but this was not the time nor place to distract himself.
(Ronan)
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[22:25] Mistletoe whispers something.
[22:25] Erétria Fengari exclaims, "Oh!"
[22:25] Erétria Fengari exclaims, "That's where you went!"
[22:25] Etcetera exclaims, "Ah, there you are, weird guy. I need you to taste this fish soup!"
[22:25] Erétria Fengari exclaims, "You left me in the white I don't like the white!"
[22:25] Mistletoe asks, ".. Fish .. Soup?"
[22:25] Mistletoe would become dismayed quickly ... A fae and a fern.
(Mistletoe)
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[22:25] Mistletoe says, ".. Looks like I will observe some othertime."
[22:26] Mistletoe says, "Neries-- Come. It is best you do not stand ... here, for the moment."
[22:26] Erétria Fengari asks, "Huh?"
[22:26] Ronan says, "..."
[22:26] Mistletoe would give a side-glance to the table, a resting corpse lay upon the boards ..
(Mistletoe)
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[22:26] Etcetera says, "Y'see, it's soup from this new company I'm thinking about taking over."
[22:26] Etcetera says, "So I needa make sure people like this stuff."
[22:26] Etcetera says, "Have a taste."
[22:26] Erétria Fengari says, "I don't want to go back into the white."
[22:27] Erétria Fengari exclaims, "It's too bright!"
[22:27] Mistletoe says, ".. My appetite has been sated, thank you. Let's head upstairs."
[22:27] Erétria Fengari says, "-"
[22:27] Erétria Fengari exclaims, "He's really weird!"
[22:27] Ronan says, ". . ."
[22:27] Ronan says, "Yes. He... Is... "
[22:27] Erétria Fengari asks, "Up?"
[22:27] Ronan says, "You should go up with him."
[22:27] Erétria Fengari says, ".. Ooo steps are hard.."
[22:28] Mistletoe says, "... 'Up' .."
[22:32] A nod of approval was given for the stitching job, as the 'Ultovexian style' of Necromancy was functionality over appearance. "That will do for the patchwork on their head." he'd state.

The man's second incision was far better than the last, earning another approving nod from the boy. It was almost humiliating- Needing approval of a child nearly sixteen years younger than himself to know he's doing it right at this point. "The spine looks good. The cut you make will tend to scrape the bone, but that will rarely matter, as long as it isn't cut into itself, or broken." he'd state.

"Now. The spine is an absolutely mandatory part for creating functional undead, just like all of the four key components. It's responsible for motor functions of the body. Walking, running, arms movements, so on. Without it? It'll just be a motionless, talking cadaver."

"Now then, you need to close that incision as well, don't worry about neatness. The next incision requires immense caution. You must cut into the chest with the scalpel, and examine the state of the heart."
(Nykros)
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[22:42] Now it was starting to make sense. So far, the only thing that he managed to slightly mess up, was the skull. Though, he had managed to get this far -- Sewing it back up was far easier on the second time around, not necessarily complicated by the need to carefully work around the brain.

Alas, he'd find himself attempting to tie off his threading by the base of the tail, before cutting it with the scalpel.
A bloodied finger rolled the body to exposed the abdomen -- Apparently, this was the most vital part. It made sense, without the heart? Things couldn't live, even in undeath he surmised.

The scalpel cut was far more delicate this time around. They couldn't afford to pierce any of the vital organs if they could help it. He wasn't sure if flooded lungs, or pierced... -anything- but the heart would affect functionality, but there was no harm in avoiding it all the same.

Through the endeavor, he spoke out for Nykros, clearly getting used to this.
" So, do you think that the undead have issues with pierced lungs? " He asked the boy, stopping his cutting around the belly. There was no point in risking spilling the contents of the dead mouse's stomach, or worse, disemboweling them.

Using an index finger from both hands after putting the scalpel away, he pulled the skin aside soft enough to avoid ripping the body open, intent on peering inside for the heart itself.
"Looks good from here." He commented, tilting his head slightly as though suspecting a cut a bit close to the cardiac tissue but... Nothing.
He actually didn't make a mistake around the hardest part? Perhaps, it was just beginner's luck.

"I suppose I'm safe to tie this one up now." He went back to the thread and needle and got to work, sewing up the chest, It was not quite the smallest incision, but certainly the riskiest, save for the skull.
(Ronan)
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[22:50] The boy jolts quite suddenly as the incision neared the stomach, he stared at the specific area where the scalpel nearly dug into the creature's gut. Perhaps it was the final vital part, as he sighed when they manages to just miss it.

The heart was not the most vital part that needed to be intact. In fact, it's one of the two easily replaceable parts when creating an Undead.

"Lungs? No. They don't matter. As said thus far, there are only four parts that truly matter. The head, the spine, the heart, and finally, the stomach. -And yes, you may close the incision now, and then begin on the incision near the stomach to check it's status as well."

He'd pause for a moment.

"The heart will never pump blood in Undeath. In it's place, it will pump mana to keep the body alive and moving. No heart? No Undeath, simple as that. But a nice thing is, the heart can be removed and replaced during corpse preparation if it's no suitable. Actually, any parts can be mismatched from any corpse, including the key parts, really. But it's ill advised to do that, given you don't really know what will happen if you do it too much"
(Nykros)
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[23:01] The chest was sewn back up, leaving only--

"Why not just cut open both stomach and chest if that was the case?" He questioned, before taking out the scalpel once more. In order to prevent from undoing his previous sewing he cut horizontally across the stomach, spilling the intestines in the process.

The fluids oozed from the corpse, now spilling over on to the table and soaking Ronan's fingers.

"This must be the messiest part. Though, if all we're concerned about is-- The brain for functionality and the heart for mana dissemination, then... What use is all of the organs within the stomach area? " He asked, pulling his hands away to examine it.

He wasn't too educated on anatomy, so this was the first, and closest he'd get to it. The most important aspects seemed simple enough to grasp as it was.
Did he make a mistake? Was it supposed to do that?
He wasn't sure, and so he waited for the teenager's word on the matter -- In this realm, he was more knowledgeable as he was.
(Ronan)
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[23:07] The boy raised an eyebrow, sighing. He thought it would be obvious after stating the purpose of the heart. The heart was meant for pumping the mana. But where would the mana go and come from?

He'd lean in and start putting the spilled guts back in without hesitation, it was important the important organs remained attached to the body, of course, bloodying his hand in the process, but it wasn't as if he cared at all.

"The stomach is meant to store mana for the corpse, or else it'd run out rather fast, and die on the spot. It's another very important part due to that. Though here's a curious little detail. Once an Undead fully rots, and there is nothing but bone left. It still functions. Isn't that interesting? You need these parts to perform Necromancy, but they just become obsolete eventually. Apparently." he'd say with a light chuckle.

"The lesson is finished now. That's all you really need to do for basic corpse preparation."
(Nykros)
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[23:07] Etcetera exclaims, "Hey! Don't wander off!"
[23:07] Erétria Fengari exclaims, "You came down as well!"
[23:07] Etcetera exclaims, "N- Not to go with!"
[23:08] Etcetera exclaims, "We gotta fix you up!"
[23:08] Erétria Fengari asks, "Fix?"
[23:08] Erétria Fengari asks, "What needs to fix?"
[23:08] Mistletoe lay a hand over his face as the surgical mask was donned ..
(Mistletoe)
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[23:08] Mistletoe says, ".. Everything-- At this point."
[23:09] Mistletoe says, ".. Come. We're peering into that little mind of yours."
[23:09] Erétria Fengari asks, "Everything?"
[23:09] Mistletoe would clap his hands .. Hopefully that didn't startle them ..
(Mistletoe)
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[23:09] Mistletoe says, "Chop-chop."
[23:09] Erétria flinched ever so slightly. Otherwise they seemed fine with that.
(Erétria Fengari)
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[23:09] Erétria Fengari asks, "Chop what?"
[23:09] Etcetera asks, "We're gonna make it so you can think in a straight line, alright?"
[23:10] Erétria Fengari exclaims, "I can think of straight lines!"
[23:10] Mistletoe would purse his lips for a moment and just think about that for a second.
(Mistletoe)
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[23:10] Mistletoe says, ". . ."
[23:11] Etcetera asks, "Yeah but can you think of curved lines that become straight?"
[23:12] Erétria Fengari asks, ".. Curved to straight things?"
[23:12] Etcetera says, "Yeah, like bananas are."
[23:12] Nykros says, "Mistletoe. Do you know why Undead continue to function after their innards rot away? Seems weird given they need the heart and stomach, and brain to be resurrected."
[23:12] Etcetera says, "They curve, an' then they have a straight stem."
[23:12] Ronan attempted to assist where he could with the mouse remains before finding himself... Oddly distracted. The Neries' presence was, visibly disturbing him. As though, an old nightmare that constantly reared back to memory -- Unveiling itself to the surface, no matter how many times he'd bury the corpse.

Breathing hastened slightly, and body tensed -- Just enough to earn a small flinch, perhaps it wasn't too noticeable. He hoped it wasn't...
From Eretria, he turned to Nykros.

"Well, if that's all there is for corpse preparation, I think I can get the hang of it with practice." He claimed, I'll just need to get my own set of tools."
(Ronan)
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[23:12] Erétria Fengari says, "Bananas.."
[23:12] Erétria Fengari says, "Mm.."
[23:12] Erétria Fengari exclaims, "Bananas are good!"
[23:13] Mistletoe would turn to Nykros for a moment, answering his question ..
(Mistletoe)
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[23:13] Etcetera says, "I haven't had one in a long time."
[23:13] Mistletoe says, ".. When you perfect your abilities at mana control-- typically channeling and circulating it through the circuitry of another .."
[23:13] Mistletoe says, ".. That will become evident."
[23:14] Mistletoe says, "Think of it as puppeteering .."
[23:17] The boy finishes by nodding, waving a hand as the air becomes a tad more dry in the tower as small amounts of water are guided to the tools, washing them off with the commands of the child, returning them to their cleaned state as the moisture again returns to the air with the water's evaporation. Next, Nick simply picks up the freshly cleaned tools, and places them back in his back.

"Right. I'd advise practicing preparation a bit more before the next lesson. I won't be providing corpses past this one, given I'd like my own collection to stay private in their tombs of ice. Lord Ultovex will likely wish to only teach it once, so I would greatly appreciate it if you would wait until I return from hunting a few more creatures for the next lesson before contacting him about it. Does that sound agreeable?"
(Nykros)
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[23:18] It was perhaps a scene too strange to explain-- The Doctor approached with his surgical tools in hand.

The light cyan mask accompanied by the thin gloves would allow others to find context of an operation to be preformed-- Though for its purposes and motives, that would appear to be as good as anyone's guess.

What was not ambiguous however was the intent to see it through ..

. . .
".. Come, Neries.
We /will/ attempt to restore you--
.. Whether you understand it to be a good thing ..
.. Or not.
I've seen your stature before--
In a much more presentable light ..
.. To see something so prominent wither away ..
Well, it reminds me of a certain Kaor .."


Mistletoe approaches with his medicinal tools. He was going to get to the bottom of this.

A hint of aggression could be inferred ..
(Mistletoe)
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[23:22] "Sounds fair, I suppose I'll take time to fulfill a few... Err-...--ands..." They were obviously distracted, finding their gaze locked upon Erétria once more. How he hated that he felt so helpless -- Here he was, looking on at the results of what happened so long ago.

It haunted him, leaving him petrified where he sat.
Mistletoe seemed determined to follow through in his charge to discover the reasoning behind her status, and Ronan couldn't tell if it would be for the better or worse... For himself.

"I thought... She'd turn out better." He thought to himself, breaking into cold sweat.
Was he breathing harder? Was this what an illusion felt like?
Was this, real life? It couldn't be, things like this didn't happen in real life.

… Yet, here he was, trapped in it regardless.
It might as well have been true.
(Ronan)
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[23:23] Nykros says, "Well, until next time, Ronan."