IC-Chapter 1-The Cygnet Committee(Richard/Christopher)

[Mr. Handy]

Richard realized that the description the woman had given him was inadequate. It could match any number of people. Perhaps Dr. Anderson would be able to provide a better one. He had time to visit the lab again, as it wasn't close to lunchtime yet.

[CrackheadC.]

Cursing under his breath, Richard returned to the lab. It had only been a few hours but the job was already irritating him, but really it was his own fault for not thinking of getting a picture.

[Mr. Handy]

When Richard returned to the lab, Anderson had some chemical apparatus set up and was conducting some tests. "Ah, you're back," he said. "I've only tested a couple of the doses so far, but they've checked out. Still have a lot to go, though. Did you have any luck?"

[CrackheadC.]

"Unfortunately the desk lady bounced me at the dorms. 'No male visitors allowed' she said, even if I was university staff." Richard examines the lab set up that Dr. Anderson has working, but doesn't get too close. "I realized I don't know anything about this girl, so it isn't likely I'll just run into her on campus. Any chance you have a picture of her and her class schedule from the interview process of the tests?"

[Mr. Handy]

"No, I don't have a picture of her," said Dr. Anderson, "and I don't know her class schedule, though she is a psychology major. In fact, she's in one of Nancy Remington's classes early this afternoon. It starts at 1:00 PM, and it's in Room 218 in this building. I can also give you a description of her, seeing as I've met her. She has long, straight blonde hair, is eighteen years old, is about 5 feet 2 inches tall, and weighs 110 pounds. She tends to dress conservatively, wearing long skirts with blouses that go up to her neck."

[CrackheadC.]

"Well I have two hours before that, is there anything I can do to help here before I meet up with her? Otherwise I'd like to take a look at any notes you have on the Morpheus drug and its experiments while I wait." Richard says

Handy,I know a typical library use/research roll takes 4 full hours, I was wondering if I could split it up and do the first 2 hours now while I wait and then head to the classroom at around 1pm. I'm just trying to keep things moving along because I know that I am a bit behind the other players.

[Mr. Handy]

"Yes, I brought what's left of my notes from the office with me in my briefcase," said Dr. Anderson. "There are full copies somewhere safe. I can get one for you this afternoon if you like. If you're a skilled chemist or pharmacologist, you might be able to help with the testing to speed this up, but otherwise I've got this well in hand." He opened up his briefcase, took out the notes, and handed them to Richard.

OOC,Yes, you can split it up. Don't worry about being behind them in time. You will catch up. I started you off earlier in the timeline on purpose. If you're just reading the notes, you won't need a Library Use roll and it probably won't take four hours. You will, however, need to roll Medicine to get a better understanding of them.

[CrackheadC.]

"Sorry Doctor, Computers and Electronics are more my speed. And unfortunately history and less applied sciences are my bag so I might not be able to get much out of this, but I hope you don't mind me asking you a question or two. It is very rare to actually have an opportunity to question an author so it wouldn't be good to squander it if it will help." Richard took the pages of notes and started to flip through them, clearly encountering a little more trouble than he expected.

Rolls,I was hoping I might be able to get around my awful medicine and pharmaceutical score. Ah well: [url=http://invisiblecastle.com/roller/view/3615602/]Medicine 5% (1d100=70)[/url] Do I learn anything?

[Mr. Handy]

The content of the papers was way over Richard's head. He knew what an electroencephalogram was and could probably fix one if it were broken, but he had no idea how to interpret its results.

"It would take years to give you the kind of education you'd need to understand my notes," said Anderson, "not to mention that my penmanship is atrocious. Goes hand in glove with being a doctor, I'm afraid. The dream accounts were all stolen, unfortunately. I'm sure you could understand those, though interpreting what dreams mean is somewhat trickier. I'll have them for you this afternoon when I retrieve a complete copy. I'm sure I can explain things in layman's terms, however. I'd be happy to answer any questions you might have. Please try to be as specific as possible."

[CrackheadC.]

"Hah, yeah I seem to be well out of my depth on this." Richard laughed, "I suppose the only questions I could think of would be this: You said that with just the notes that were stolen someone could not replicate Morpheus because you have kept part of the key to yourself, now even with the notes and a sample of Morpheus would it still be so unlikely that someone duplicate the drug? If so, how long do you think it would take someone to figure it out?" Richard keys in on some of the more impressive tools needed to create the drug, "It seems like someone would need quite a lab to make it as well - I assume there is no poor-man's version of these tools? If that is the case it seems unlikely that it would be some sort of low-level operation or just one guy who would take it."

Richard sighs, "This is proving to be quite difficult."

Handy,After these questions I'm not quite sure there is anything more I can do in the lab until Dr. Anderson finishes up his testing. I also can't think of many more productive questions for him - so I'd like to skip ahead to 1 pm and try to meet with Emily Simmons.

[Mr. Handy]

OOC,That's fine, though [b]Dr. Anderson[/b] will finish his testing shortly before you go. Maybe you'll think of other things to ask him after you meet with [b]Emily Simmons[/b].

"It's not the tools or the laboratory facilities that are the issue," said Dr. Anderson. "Anyone who knows the formula could replicate Morpheus in a decently-equipped chemistry lab. The only problem is obtaining the ingredients, most of which are quite rare and extremely valuable. The formula is not written down in the notes that were stolen, though someone clever and knowledgable might be able to deduce some of the ingredients from them. Having a sample might make it possible to eventually reverse engineer it." He finished his tests at around a quarter to one, which he had been carrying on with while Richard read the notes and asked him questions. "Well, everything looks like it's in order here. If you want to speak to Emily Simmons before her class starts, you should leave soon. I'll be leaving myself to get the complete notes, and I'll lock up the lab. If you want to get back inside before I return, Nancy Remington has a key."

[CrackheadC.]

"Hmm. So none of the Morpheus samples were replaced? That is a relief, but it doesn't make much sense for there to have been missing thermoses then..." Richard ponders this and the other information he received as the doctor locked the lab. "Thank you, Dr. Anderson. I'll be in touch later."

Richard left to go to the classroom - if a quick scan of the room itself doesn't appear to produce Miss Simmons, Richard waits outside of the classroom for her to arrive.

[Mr. Handy]

Richard waited outside the classroom for a few minutes. The professor, apparently Nancy Remington, arrived first. She was an attractive woman in her thirties. Shortly afterwards, students began filing in. One of them, walking down the hall towards the classroom, fit the description he had of Emily Simmons.

[CrackheadC.]

Richard approached Emily carefully, if she had been having hallucinations he didn't want to frighten her. "Miss Simmons?" he asked, "Could I have a moment of your time? My name is Richard Cane. I work for the university and I am assisting Dr. Anderson with his sleep experiment."

[Mr. Handy]

"Sure," said Emily, smiling brightly. "Class doesn't start for a couple minutes. What do you want to know, Mr. Cane?"

[CrackheadC.]

Richard takes Emily a few steps to the side of the classroom door to allow other students and while giving them a little bit of privacy. "Well my first question is how you are feeling? I heard you were in an accident recently."

[Mr. Handy]

"Oh, I'm fine," said Emily. "I wasn't hurt or anything."

OOC,[b]Richard[/b], you may roll Psychology.

[CrackheadC.]

Richard smiled, "I figured you weren't banged up too bad since you are at class now." His tone went from more light-hearted to a hushed concerned , "I meant what you said you saw before the accident. Can you tell me about that?"

Roll,[url=http://invisiblecastle.com/roller/view/3621671/]Psychology 5% (1d100=84)[/url] Failed, but knowing what I know I am going to assume that she is lying or just uncomfortable talking about it.

[Mr. Handy]

Emily shuffled her feet. "I...my lawyer told me I shouldn't talk about that," she said.

OOC,[b]Richard[/b], If you want to try to get her to open up, please roll Persuade.

[CrackheadC.]

Richard shows genuine concern - the girl wasn't hurt physically it seems, but the fact that she had lawyered-up meant that no one believed her. "Listen Emily, I know what you are going through. You saw something deeply disturbing, but no one believes you - you probably don't even believe it yourself. When I was in Vietnam I saw some of the worst the world had to offer - I still can't believe the cruelty and despair of that world. Even leaving it behind, knowing it is half a world away, I find myself thinking about it constantly, feeling as though at any moment I could be back there." Richard put his hand on her shoulder, "I know what happened to you was difficult and I am not just talking about the accident. Many of my friends were tested on by the government - taking drugs that they thought were helpful, using chemicals that they thought were harmless. You don't have to be alone in dealing with it."

Richard turns to leave, allowing her to go to her classroom, "Just keep me in mind if you want to talk, or need some help. I work at the library so you should be able to get in touch with me through there. And please consider talking to me - in my opinion this drug isn't safe - and with your help I might be able to keep others from being subjected to it."

Roll,All that for a crummy roll: [url=http://invisiblecastle.com/roller/view/3629863/]Persuade (15%) (1d100=83)[/url]