Weird sat down at the hard wooden chair at his desk, (for which he had taken the time to produce a small crochet cousion to make comfortable enough for long hours of sitting) and dipped the fine brass pen tip into the well of black ink recessed at the desk's back.
Peepers had immediately taken to his oversized nesting box stuffed with dry grass from the surface, fluffed out his feathers, and tucked his head under his now disproportionately small, and stubby wing. Peepers got his sleep while he himself was awake, and then stayed up all night patrolling for 4 legged gnawing intruders to snack on.
The petri dish from earlier was nowhere to be found, but little black ashen footprints shaped like little hands told all the story he needed to know. The dish would turn up stuffed into some hole in the wall later. Right now he didn't have time to go hunting for the stashed labware though.
"Observations and experimental findings concerning novel rodent cryptids: a comprehensive digest." he wrote in tiny, but fairly neat letters.
"Based upon observations from incomplete specimines, and from previous hostile engagements, the following rough anatomical charts have been provided...."
Gently shading in the inkwash drawings and cutaway view diagrams, his thoughts wandered. Hugo wanted him to do something for the winter holidays... he had never been much of a celebrant of the christmas holiday, but he realized that for some of the other refugees like himself, it could hold profound sentimental value. He scribed in a diagram of the vascular system. Hugo was a dragon, and could only eat meat, but there were still others. Eric, Ollioli, Gizogin, Lana, even the dirty kobold if he would consider comming.... somebody would probably have to invite him though...
"The cellular structures of many vital organs posess many novel adaptations, resulting from the unnaturally mixed heritage of the cryptid in general. Specifically, as shown in fig. 10, epidermal tissues contain complex assemblages of cellulose fibrils, making it exceedingly tough and resistant to a number of chemical agents...."
Hugo had specifically asked him to make the dinner... food wasn't exactly in shortage at the moment, but most of the fortress' larder was comprised of mutant mystery meats, and related animal products. Cooking a "normal", and "traditional" meal with the ingredients on hand could prove quite challenging....
"Tissues in the liver secrete a wide variety of novel enzymes, and are capable of neutralizing a wide assortment of toxic agents. Noteworthy resistances to ricin, strychnine, and reactive phosphate compounds have been observed. Detailed below is a table of known metabolic pathways with which the novel organism processes known toxicological agents......"
Maybe he could experiment with making something similar to karob from the locust beans and bean pods he had collected during the fall. Other than the brewer sisters making special orders of the notoriously potent rotgut from them, there wasn't much call for their use by the kitchens, so there was still plenty on hand. If it worked out, something passibly close to chocolate for baking and candy making might be possible... he'd have to experiment later.
"The renal system has manifold redundancies, and also features the cellulosic fibrils described earlier when regarding the composition of the epithelium. Like the liver, this tissue often manifests specific chaperone protiens and chellating enzymes for dealing with concentrated bloodborne toxins, and their metabolic byproducts. The cellulosic structures in this organ present a mystery, as these organs aren't generally exposed to direct physical trauma like the external layers of epithelial skin would be. Instead it appears as though these fibers exist as a form of protective or inert interface and as a chemically resistant scaffolding for the organs, reducing the risks of renal failure or collapse in the cryptid. The reader may find it helpful to referr back to fig. 6, highlighting the overview and cutaway views of the renal system before studying the enhanced detail and microscopic views seen below....."
So, that made the dinner itinerary: meat heavy dinner, possible exploration of candy making, like "rocknut brittle", made with roasted rocknuts and dwarven sugar with a touch of baking soda at the very end to puff it up... and something similar to a bread pudding. The spices he scored from Askak would come in handy there....
Hours passed. Page after page after page of detailed descriptions and noteworthy mechanisms about the creatures piled up on the left hand side of the desk; drawings, tables, charts, and rough empirical assays.
Then finally, in the late hours of the night, the final bits of table XXIV describing the known cytokine receptors implicated in his bioweapon research, and the binding affinities for all tested viral binding co-factors tested to date was finally complete, signalling the end of the 6 hour labor.
Shuffling the thick ream of double sided pages of dense information into the semblence of an orderly codex, he returned the brass tipped pen back to its holder, and stood up, screaching the chair legs against the cold stone floor, and rousing Mr Peepers who looked around the room furtively, expecting to see members of the 4-legged menace.
Weird stretched and popped his elbows and back. Sitting too long always made his joints creaky, and being stuffed inside a demented dwarven mockery of his original form had in no way alleviated the problem. Sucking in a deep breath before whistling at Peepers, he headed for the door.
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Topic: If Bay Forum were a Mountain Hall, continued... FULL DISCLOSURE (Read 262945 times)