Seeing in the dark [Solo, Research]

[Icyferno]

Status: Healthy / Rested

~

Icyferno instinctively recoiled as he stepped into one of the empty, nondescript offices hidden in St.Pancras Station. He had expected the office to be dusty, but apparently somebody had left some food in it as well, evident by the rotting smell in the air. He quickly found the offending heap of rotting substance and picked it up, keeping it at an arm's length as he placed it outside of the office he was currently using. Perhaps it may deter people from entering as he did some work. It certainly gave off the feeling that the office was just another abandoned one in a collection of abandoned buildings. Since he did not own the office he was currently in, there was a chance that someone may just force him out on a whim or steal his work.

The first floor appeared to be a lobby, as a moth-eaten sofa and a small counter at the other end seemed to suggest. Icyferno reached the second floor of the double story building by climbing the stone staircase situated next to the counter, carefully maneuvering himself so as to avoid as many weakened areas in the stairs as he could, which was relatively easy as it basically meant avoiding all the cracks on it. As he reached the second floor, he noticed a few broken pieces of wood on the landing next to a mahogany door. The handle of the door had long rusted, but he could tell that the handle had a simple design, just a cuboid jutting out of the door. He collected some of the broken pieces and placed them in his magic bag before heading for the door.

Bracing himself for the worst, he opened the door, surprised that the handle still held even after falling into disuse. He was greeted by a rusty old table, a few rusty metal chairs and a thin mattress held up by an old wooden frame. A metal cabinet stood in the corner next to one of the chairs, with massive gaping wholes for doors. Like the other metal objects, it was rusted. Shards of glass in the cabinet suggested that the doors were made of glass and deliberately broken at some point in time. A fine layer of dust coated everything in the room, as was the case with the first floor. I guess this must have been some doctor's office in the past, he thought as he crossed the room and tested one of the chairs. It gave a squeak but didn't give under the pressure of his hand. Not exactly the best location available, but it'll do for now.

He gingerly sat down on the chair he had tested, half expecting it to give under his weight. Surprisingly, it held. Ignoring the dust on the table, he began pulling out items from his magic bag. Currently, the only Pharmacist equipment he had was a basic wooden mortar and pestle, which was only recently purchased, probably only good for grinding small amounts of herbs into paste, a few glass flasks, and a retort stand. He knew that in the real world, he'd need a Bunsen burner to heat up his concoctions, but he hadn't heard of anyone creating such a thing in this world yet. That was why he collected the pieces of rotting wood earlier, they were to be used as fuel for a fire if he needed one. The floor was made of polished stone, so there was no danger of the fire rampaging.

With his equipment set up in front of him, Icyferno began pulling out his ingredients for his experiment. He had helped a fellow Pharmacist some time before, a Druid Adventurer by the name of Ramon. Therefore, he had at least some experience when it came to making potions. However, this was his first time doing it alone, so to say that he wasn't afraid of failure would be a lie.

To be honest, he didn't really know where to start. Sure, he entered the office with an end product in mind, but how was he supposed to get to it? Would it have been better if I had invited someone along to help me out? Why am I even doing this when I could be sleeping in a secluded corner of London? Before doubt could completely cloud his mind, he picked up some dark green leaves and put it in the mortar. Gripping the crude pestle with one hand while holding the mortar in the other, he began to grind the leaves into a paste. Hmmm, this won't work. It's too much effort to do it this way. He glanced at the table. The table might give way if I slam the pestle repeatedly. A thought occurred to him and he got off the chair to sit cross-legged on the ground. Placing the mortar on the ground, he began to pound at it with the pestle, using both hands in an attempt to increase its effectiveness and stopping occasionally to readjust the mortar.

~

Word count: 838
Total word count (Pharmacist): 838
Notes: Attempting to research a basic potion of Night eye/Night vision/Whatever you call it. This scenario occurs after the events of Starting With a Bang [Open, Research], although that thread has not been completed yet as of the moment this post was made.

[Icyferno]

Status: Healthy / Rested

~

Mashing the leaves took longer than he had expected. He had wanted to grind the leaves into powder, but it didn't take long for him to realize that he couldn't do it that way, so he poured some water into the mortar. Fortunately for him, that did the trick. After a while, he had a decent amount of paste in his mortar although he began to perspire from the exertion. Wiping his brow, he set the mortar and pestle aside.

The end product he had in mind was a potion which temporarily allowed the user to see in the dark. Due to monetary constraints, the ingredients he gathered largely consisted of low quality herbs. Even if he failed this time, he would have at least set the ground for further investigation into the matter for himself. The main reason why he wanted to invest his time into making such a potion was due to the fact that it was easier for people to hide at night. It was inevitable that sooner or later he would make some enemies, who may decide to attack him at night. At the same time, it was a possibility that he may have to fight in dark places as well, so it could be said that he was attempting to make such a potion for personal gain.

Icyferno poured some water into one of his glass flasks and added some of the paste in, mixing them with a thin glass rod he had purchased at the same time he bought the mortar and pestle. He stared into the murky green solution, shaking his head slightly. This won't work, he thought to himself.

He moved over to his ingredients, where a meager assortment of herbs lay alongside several small glass jar filled with tablets of unknown medicinal properties. He picked up a twisted root and examined it closely, trying to recall what the merchant who sold it to him had said about it. Apparently satisfied, he drew his sword and cut off a few small chunks. He tossed those into the murky concoction and waited for any results. Nothing happened.

He realized that he should at least try to heat up his handiwork. Perhaps the roots will dissolve upon heating, he thought. He quickly arranged the broken pieces of wood on the floor in a corner before lighting it with a set of flint and steel. As the fire began to come alive, he realized that he didn't have any apparatus with which to hold his flask up. Thinking on his feet, he dragged one of the rusty metal chairs over the growing flames and plopped the flask on it. Since metal was a good conductor of heat, the mixture should heat up well, although he worried about whether or not the chair could withstand the heat. Well, there's no helping it if that happens, he thought as he sat down on another chair to watch the concoction heat up.

~

Word count: 494
Total word count (Pharmacist): 838 + 492 = 1332
Notes: Going to start a new thread to grind Pharmacist up a bit as well. This new thread will happen between Starting With a Bang [Open, Research] and this thread, and should be completed(archived) before I submit this one for the research claim.

[Icyferno]

Status: Healthy / Rested

~

As soon as Icyferno felt that the mixture had been heated for enough time, he gingerly removed the chair by the edges, which were thankfully not that hot. He pulled out what remained of the roots with a pair of tweezers and examined the solution for any physical changes. Apart from a slight change in color, there wasn't really much change. He sighed. Was this even going to work? He didn't even have any test subjects to try it on except for himself. What if it was a failure and blinded him instead? He'd need both eyes to fight in combat.

Coming to a decision, he stood up and exited the room. Hopefully, no one would accidentally discover his equipment and steal it if he got back as quickly as possible. Since this area was poorly maintained, it would stand to reason that there were some mice lurking around. He knew there would definitely be people who would hate him for it, but he felt that he had no choice but to test his creation on a mouse first. How else would he know if it was harmful to his eyes? Besides, mice were commonly used as test subjects in laboratories back on Earth despite the numerous protests made by animal activists. He hoped that by observing any mouse he had tested it on, he would find out whether or not the potion was dangerous or not.

He didn't have to walk far to find mice. As he reentered the lobby on the first floor, he spotted a small rat curiously sniffing the rubbish heap he had just thrown out by the doorway. It was at that very moment that he cursed himself for not having the 『Tracker』 subclass. How was he going to sneak up on the rat?

Then it struck him. He didn't have to sneak up to it, he could attract it over! Digging into his magic bag, he pulled out a small loaf of bread. The rat instantly smelled the food and perked up, its eyes swiveling towards him. He broke off a small piece of bread and placed it on floor while he carefully eyed the mouse. He then quickly hopped behind the counter and watched its movements. Its hungry eyes zoomed in on the bread and it began to slide over slowly, its instincts compelling it to get the food even in the face of danger. He almost felt bad for the rat, but he didn't really have a choice, unless he was willing to risk his sight for his conscious.

Icyferno waited until the mouse had reached the small piece of bread he had broken off before making his move. In one single fluid motion, he leaped over the counter and made a grab for the mouse with his free hand. The rat squeaked in surprise and nimbly slipped through his fingers as it carried the rest of the bread. However, its desire for the bread was its downfall. With the bread weighting it down, it was unable to avoid him a second time as he caught the bread between two of his fingers. It struggled to pull it out of his grasp and before it could change its mind and turn tail, his other hand closed around it. Squirming, it tried to squeeze out of his grasp, but he held it firmly since he knew that such luck may not happen again.

He quickly returned to the second floor while feeding the rat the rest of the piece of bread he had left on the floor, hoping to placate it, but to no avail. It wriggled and squirmed even as it ate the bread, attempting to take every opportunity to escape. It was hard enough trying to drip some of the potion from the flask into the small eyes of the rat, let alone do so while it was struggling to free itself. Should he try to make the rat drink it? Shouldn't he have planned for test subjects beforehand? That was the whole reason why he was stuck in this mess, after all.

~

Word count: 682
Total word count (Pharmacist): 838 + 492 + 682 = 2014
Notes: Scrapping the idea of doing a Pharmacist grinding thread first due to time constraints since I'll still get AP for this even if the research fails.

[Icyferno]

Status: Healthy / Rested

~

Fortunately, Icyferno hadn't corked the potion when he went down to look for a test subject, so he simply picked up the potion and mentally prepared himself to do the deed. The rat, as if sensing its impending doom, gave one last valiant struggle. Just as he realized that he couldn't hold the rat for much longer, he accidentally poured some of the potion directly onto the rat just as it finally broke free of his grip in his panic. The rat was unable to leap off his hand in time, the liquid drenching the rat and covering his hand.

The rat landed on the floor with a soft thud as Icyferno took a step backwards, staring at dismay with his hand. Fortunately, his hand didn't disintegrate or anything, although that was to be expected since none of his ingredients were acidic in nature, if anything they were most likely alkaline, not that he knew about the acidity of the plants in Elder Tales. He just felt that herbs which were used to improve one's vision in the dark would most likely be alkaline in nature since it wouldn't make sense for it to harm the rest of the body.

His attention was brought to the rat, which was stumbling around in circles as it tried to clear the liquid from its eyes. As he kept an eye on the rat, he quickly washed his potion-covered hand with some water over the small fire he had built, simultaneously putting out the fire as he removed the potion spill on his hand.

In the meantime, the rat had managed to clear some of the liquid out of its eyes by itself. It gave an angry glare at Icyferno before speeding out of the open door as only a rodent could. He knew that he couldn't catch up to it, so he decided he might as well not torture it any further. What concerned him was that the rodent's eyes appeared red from all the rubbing it had to do to get the potion out of its eyes. That means that assuming his potion worked, it didn't seem like it could be used as an eye-drop, in any case.

At the very least, the rat had served its purpose. Icyferno picked up the remaining potion and swirled it around thoughtfully, thinking of a way to use it. Drinking it was a possibility, yet it seemed unlikely since he believed that it would still take time for it to work its way through his system, so it would be impossible to get immediate results from doing so. That was why he first thought that using the potion as an eye-drop was the answer. However, after watching the rat's reaction, he felt that it was either the wrong way to go about it or it doesn't work on animals.

He stood still for some time, lost in thought. Maybe he was supposed to rub it on? That could work, at least it didn't seem as bad as drinking it. But where do I rub it on? I suppose I could start near my eyes...

His mind made up, he stood over the smoldering remains of the small fire he had built earlier and cautiously poured a small amount of the potion onto the tip of his fingers. He then closed his eyes and gently smeared the potion along the side of his eyes. He took a deep breath, counted to three, and opened his eyes. Unfortunately, nothing happened.

~

Word count: 584
Total word count (Pharmacist): 838 + 492 + 682 + 584 = 2598
Notes: N/A

[Icyferno]

Status: Healthy / Rested

~

He frowned. Did I make a mistake somewhere? Was the potion ineffective? Frustrated, he rubbed the potion all over his eyelids while taking care to avoid letting any of the liquid enter his eyes, lest he end up like the rat. Once he had used up most of the remaining potion, he began to calm down. Getting angry over his failures wasn't going to change anything. In fact, now he had to thoroughly wash his face to get rid of all the potion on it-

In the moment that he opened his eyes, he froze. He seemed to be looking at something that wasn't really in the room. Time seemed to slow as a certain realization settled on him. His vision was tinted green. He bolted upright, excitement threatening to overwhelm him. As of this moment, he couldn't confirm whether it worked because he couldn't find any dark places, but when night falls he could use the remaining liquid to test his theory. Where would he apply it, though? He burst out of the room and down the lobby without a moment's delay, casting about frantically for something. His eyes lit up on a broken wooden door. As he picked his way across the room, the green tint in his vision faded. No matter. The bits of the potion that wasn't used would remain on his face, so all he had to do was look for areas where the potion wasn't smeared on based on his memory of where he had done so.

The door was barely hanging by one of its hinges, the other hinge probably having broken off a long time ago. He twisted it open carefully to avoid being impaled by any stray stakes of wood. He slipped through the opening he made and entered what appeared to be a toilet designed for a single person. Bingo, he thought.

Turning to a rusty metal sink, he was disappointed to find that most of the mirror was gone. He gingerly picked up one of the larger pieces and examined it closely. It was grimy with age, so he poured out some water from another flask in his magic bag and wiped the surface clean with his shirt, getting it dirty in the process. Not that it was important now, when he was so close to making a new discovery.

Using the small shard of the mirror, he was able to see part of his face, although the image was still unclear as he couldn't completely erase the damage age had done to the mirror. Not only was it impossible to see his entire face, it was still difficult to make out his own image. From what he could see, it appeared that the entire area around his eyes was still completely covered by the potion.

For a brief moment, he was confused, but his confusion dissipated as he realized that there was one area he had missed. Closing one of his eyes, he strained to use his other eye to see the closed eye through the mirror. There! He couldn't be absolutely sure, but he was fairly certain that the potion smeared on his eyelid had vanished. He gently set the mirror down and quickly washed his face with water from his magic bag as he didn't trust the rusty tap to give him water. Even if it did, the water might be stale.

He eagerly made his way back upstairs, as if he were a child who had just made a brand new discovery in the world. Examining the remaining amount he had left, he realized that he should only try it again when night falls as he may not have enough to try it twice.

Sighing, he felt deflated, his excitement draining out of him as quickly as it had arrived. He could make another one but at the moment he didn't feel like doing so, thus he had no choice but to sit down and wait for night to fall.

~

Word count: 665
Total word count (Pharmacist): 838 + 492 + 682 + 584 + 665 = 3263
Notes: N/A