ataraxion | 004; Video; Like once I tried but I bent the truth

[THE FOLLOWING IS PUBLIC... But locked AGAINST Saunders, because really, the last thing he needs is her screeching about his lack of morals and being biased when he is... legitimately trying to help. :( And hack-proof, because DAMN THOSE HACKING SKILLS OF HERS. :|]

Okay. I've held off on this long enough. Five months is a long time for a genius to just sit on his butt and do nothing but Frankenstein bits of tech into nothing I can actually use, because I don't have the parts I need without taking apart something we might actually use one day- you're welcome, BTW.

We all just suffered a massive dose of some frakked up neurotoxin. It sent a signal to the brain to release an OD of Norepinephrine and good old, reliable Epinephrine that triggered an acute stress response, so everyone affected? Already scared out of their gourd. You've got elevated heartrate, constriction of blood vessels, the shakes, and a really intense desire to get out of Dodge. The brain is primed for fear responses, so when you add an hallucinogen to that little cocktail? You get exactly what your brains don't want to see.

And how do I know all of this? I'm a neurologist. Brains are my thing. I am very good at working out the kinkies in the human brain. So if we all want to put the kibosh in this kinda chaos before it gets out of hand when the inevitable next time rolls around? You need me in the med bay with... I guess explicit permission from our fearless leaders for me to futz with whatever short bus neuroplastic equipment happens to be there. [He sounds so unsure.] I bet this ship doesn't even have an MRI. Why would it even need one? [A long-suffering sigh] Good thing I'm a genius. I can work with anything- just say the word.

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[ caroline really tried to follow what he was saying, but norepinephrine lost her. but the fact that he says he understands what's going on and can do things, she's really hoping he can fix this. ]

So, you're going to undo this? Or are you just applying for some brain doctor position?

Do you think people could be triggered like that again, then? Or that someone might try and dose us again? I wasn't... I mean, I didn't feel anything.

[ welp. that sure is a masked guy you got the attention of, yep. ]

When can you start?

It's a drug. Drugs break down in a person's system after awhile if they're not constantly exposed to it... Or OD and die. So long as whatever put it out there doesn't do it again... That's the last of it. The brunt of the damage comes from people who didn't recognize the symptoms immediately and let everyone run wild instead of putting them in holding to dry them out.

I'm offering to keep that part from happening again.

Survey says... Maybe?

[He shrugs.] I didn't either, which is great, 'cause I don't think I can handle anymore trauma right now. Next time? Might not be so lucky. There are some really sick people on this ship... Assuming it was a guy... and not the ship releasing neurotoxin for no reason.

[Headtilt. Yep.

That sure is a guy in a mask.

Topher's just... Not gonna question that right now, while he's in business mode.] Does five minutes ago work for you?

An antidote's been synthesized before, with a different strain. [ his attention flickers off screen- to uh. where he's. tracking you topher. sorry about that. ]

Blood samples are waiting for you in medical.
And I've got a mask here with your name on it. Questions?

So... I'm thinking this is not the kind of drug that just goes away after awhile, huh?

[But he's headed that way, because SCIENCE and yeah.]

[Stats was sure there was an explanation. And there it was. Someone put some toxin into the vents, and that's why Stats was hallucinating the war all over again? What on the seas was it for?

At least there was this young man trying to solve the problem.]

Thanks for the explanation; I'll help if you need it.

Maybe you should do one of those educational videos about it. People listen to those.

Do you think it was someone on the ship who released it?

Is there anything we can do so this won't happen again? Medications, treatments? Anything?

Let's just say... I really, really hope it was.

Thanks. Uh... Were you affected? I might need a control group if all goes well- and when I say control group, I mean very tightly controlled as in "not gonna snap and kill everyone in the room if this goes hinky."

Working on it. In an ideal scenario, I ought to come up with some kind of neuroleptic that'll counteract the toxin if it ever hits the system again.

I'm no genius, but if you ever need a hand I could help. I'm a fast learner.

Yes, I was. I think I'm all right now; I'm not hallucinating anything anymore. [Stats doesn't want to tell any details just yet, but he knows he might have to. But not now.]

Yeah, I can't think of which idea is less scary - that someone on the ship actually poisoned us, or that the ship itself just has that feature built in. [ sigh ] At least, if it was a person, we could try and weed them out? Do whatever we have to to make sure it doesn't happen again.

[ the corner of his mouth twitches, a hint of just how totally unimpressed he is with all of this. ]
It's the kind that goes away when people are dead.

-This strain is from a different reality than my own, which makes you our best hope.

No pressure.

A lot of places like this do... To, uh... keep it from being compromised. If someone ever tried to take it over, they'd release a gas and kill everyone.

...That wasn't reassuring at all, was it?

Oh good. My favorite kind.

[He is surprisingly calm. This is the first time in a long time he's felt capable of helping someone.] I'm gonna need at least four people affected who aren't exhibiting as many irrational behaviors. If it starts devolving or evolving depending on their brain chemistry, I wanna know first. And I need a list of everyone who was actually immune to it- I don't mean, they didn't even get near ground zero. I mean, they were right in the thick of it and didn't so much as get their heartrate up.

Given what I've heard, that might not mean much. I mean, it's probably okay, but just... Watch it. If you start exhibiting symptoms again, get to the med bay.

I am short one assistant. How do you feel about gofering?

[It's hard to convey through text, but he's... mostly joking.

Mostly.]

[ he's already on it. truth be told, tim had more or less been expecting to grapple with this on his own. having a neurologist on board- it's more than he could hope for. especially when he already has his hands full. ]

It'll be a short list.
I'll do what I can to get someone from medical to back you up. [ his gaze focuses on his own communicator, and a handful of moments later, a string of numbers appears at the top of topher's screen. ]

I'm patching you through to an emergency frequency. [ though he doesn't specify, the people with capes filter is sort of implied. ] You need anything, hail and one of us'll come running. There's no guaranteeing how long medical will be secure, but we'll give you as much time as we can.

As long as it doesn't involve small dark spaces.

If there's any complicated wiring hiding underneath something, I'll handle that much, myself. Pinky swear.

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004; Video; Like once I tried but I bent the truth

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