[Despite how much he just wants to lay there on the couch and rot, Five sits up a little to look at the bowl listlessly, his expression largely blank. It does... Smell good...
The audible growl his stomach lets out is a testament to how much he's been resisting consuming anything since he got back, but. He still seems hesitant. He glances away, ears pinned back.]
There's not... Meat in there, is there?
[His voice quavers a little on the word 'meat'. Like the mere thought of it makes him want to throw up. He's absolutely ashamed to ask it, too; he doesn't want to look weak in front of Jamil but... He can't...]
[Likewise, Five will never admit how relieved he is about that, even though his body language says it pretty clearly in the way his shoulders and ears both relax.]
Hmm.
[He sits up properly with some effort, wobbling a little in place. Stares cautiously at the bowl.
Rather than lifting it up off the table and bringing it to himself, he kinda... Slides off the couch and slumps onto the floor in front of the table? And continues to stare listlessly at it for another moment.
[Jamil doesn't respond immediately, observing Elan as he thinks; his understanding of both Elan's circumstances and what exactly happened down there are limited. What Elan did makes him dangerous, but per Kalim and, well, Elan's own behavior--he clearly regrets it very much, enough to willingly report to Patho-Gen for his "treatments", and the idea of an organized authority simply drugging someone into submission makes him uncomfortable.
He badly wants to pull at this--this is a liability in the middle of his household, after all, but unfortunately Kalim is attached, and Elan's mental state is obviously delicate. Jamil sits down deliberately across from him and makes sure to keep his tone gentle.]
How... exactly did this happen, if I may ask?
[Of course, Elan has long since seen the other side of Jamil's politeness by now, but, well, he's drugged. Maybe he'll still respond to it.]
[Five follows him with his eyes as he goes to sit down, lolling his head lazily when he needs to turn it to keep Jamil in view. That question prompts another slow blink and a slight furrowing of the brow; it clearly causes Five some consternation to be asked about it, but he's also not really capable of being overly defensive at the moment.
He really doesn't want to talk about this... Doesn't want to relive it in any capacity. But Jamil already knows what he did. It's probably more to his benefit, ultimately, to explain his side of the whole thing when he's being given a chance to.
Five quietly glances back down at his soup, heavy eyelashes casting cage bars across tired green eyes.]
...You went down in the tunnels too, right?
[He assumes he must have. If Kalim was there, there's absolutely no way Jamil wasn't also.]
Did you run into any ghost flowers while you were traversing the depths?
[Five finally shoves a teeny baby spoonful of soup in his mouth finally, just to spare himself from saying anything further for a second... Because he's not sure he wants to get any more descriptive than that, tbh! What's unexpected is that he immediately has a moment where he looks kind of low-key surprised that it's... Actually? Really good soup? What the fuck. You win this one, Jamil.
For some reason, this convinces him to elaborate a little more. He huffs a little sigh through his nose.]
...That leaves us with two possibilities: either there was more than one type of creepy transparent ghost flower down there and we both got hit with different ones, or my "enhancements" must have altered the effect somehow.
[Jamil leans in, though not too much--he is interested in this, but he doesn't want to seem too eager, either. Not that Five is likely to notice, drugged to the gills as he is.]
[Hey look, he's actually eating now. Very slowly, yes, but it's still an improvement over just staring at it.
He pauses though and gestures airily with his spoon to explain.]
Hmm. Well there are three different types of natural toxins, right? [You're a bodyguard Jamil, surely you know this.] That is, assuming those flowers used a kind of toxin and not just some magical effect... There are toxins that attack the blood, there are toxins that attack your tissue directly... And the third kind attacks the way electrical signals are passed throughout your body, AKA, your nervous system.
[He pauses to take another spoonful of soup. Slurrrrp. That drug-cooked brain of his is really churning, he's kind of figuring this out in real time? And Jamil is bearing witness to the process.]
...If it was the third type, well... Peil Technologies oh so graciously yanked out all of my major nerves and had them replaced with cutting edge artificial ones. So. You tell me how a neurotoxin is supposed to interact with that.
[If Five was a little less loopy, he might have caught how Jamil's eyes actually widen in alarm at the information. He recovers in the next second, filing that little tidbit away for later, and proceeds as if this were a perfectly normal topic of conversation. He is not here to develop empathy of any kind for Five's situation.]
You're thinking that nullified the neurotoxin? Why would it have had any kind of effect on you, then?
[He's still not convinced the problem isn't you and your Natural Soul, bud.]
Hell if I know. I'm just making my best guess here... But I do think it's a fairly solid guess, considering the other guy I was with who's been planted with the same exact tech as me, had a pretty similar reaction to being stung.
[His gaze grows distant for a moment, and he shivers lightly.]
It's almost like it opened up a direct line between my mind and those lilies... Which would make some amount of sense, actually? Our implants are meant to filter out the negative effects of permet while enhancing the positive ones... And what is the primary function of permet, if not to facilitate communication...?
[He looks back at Jamil suddenly, like he just remembered he's still there.]
...You're lucky YOU didn't get eaten. By those flowers, I mean. I bet that was their whole reason for stinging people in the first place.
[That's... well, okay. Jamil is learning all kinds of things about Five today. He's never heard of this 'permet' before, but from what Five is babbling about, he can kind of guess at what it is and what it does. More info to file away for later!]
That would explain why the toxin would have that effect...
[And he's not going to dwell too long on the thought of what would had happen if he'd stumbled into the flowers instead of away from them, thank you! Instead he leans back and peers at Five suspiciously.]
...but in that case, why bother with all of this?
[Surely the drugs are unnecessary, if the cause was a toxin? Though Jamil won't be the one complaining about taking extra precautions.]
[There are actually a few reasons why: part of it had been out of guilt, and a desire to take extra precautions... He never wants to go through something this horrendous again, after all. The more pressing reason, though?
He shrugs again.]
Because I literally just put all of this together right now in the course of this conversation? Not that figuring it out any sooner would have changed the outcome much... It'd be bad for the big PG's PR if it got out they're letting an Augmented with cannibalism on his record wander around unpunished.
[And, as established, not one Jamil will be arguing. It's no skin off his nose if Five wants to get drugged into uselessness. He flashes Five a polite smile; the point of this for him was to gather information, and he's certainly gotten that. Five can choose to wallow in misery about it or not.]
Food for thought, I suppose. [He stands up smoothly.] Bring the bowl into the kitchen when you're done, please.
[And you better eat it or he's gonna bitch about it.]
[Five grunts automatically and dismissively, not even looking Jamil’s way when he stands up. He’s extremely preoccupied all of a sudden: gaze distant, a furrow in his brow and a small frown on his lips. The wheels in his head are turning a lot harder and a lot faster than they have at any other point since he got back from getting his injection, so… Thanks for stoking up a few of his dormant brain cells, bro.
He will eat the rest of the soup, but he probably will NOT remember to bring the dish to the kitchen. At the very least, it’s almost certain he won’t be bringing it fast enough to satisfy Jamil’s standards.]
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no subject
The audible growl his stomach lets out is a testament to how much he's been resisting consuming anything since he got back, but. He still seems hesitant. He glances away, ears pinned back.]
There's not... Meat in there, is there?
[His voice quavers a little on the word 'meat'. Like the mere thought of it makes him want to throw up. He's absolutely ashamed to ask it, too; he doesn't want to look weak in front of Jamil but... He can't...]
no subject
No, it's a vegetable medley. We can't have meat in everything, it's expensive.
[Of course, he knows exactly why Five is asking, and why it's an issue. He didn't include meat on purpose. He'll never admit to it, though.]
no subject
Hmm.
[He sits up properly with some effort, wobbling a little in place. Stares cautiously at the bowl.
Rather than lifting it up off the table and bringing it to himself, he kinda... Slides off the couch and slumps onto the floor in front of the table? And continues to stare listlessly at it for another moment.
This must be riveting to watch, surely.]
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Just how strong are those drugs they gave you?
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Well... I don't feel like saying anything snarky to you about it, if that tells you anything.
[He turns back to his soup and picks up the spoon, staring into the broth. Trying to psyche himself up.]
...But that might just be the... [Guilt.] ...Ugh. Never mind.
no subject
He badly wants to pull at this--this is a liability in the middle of his household, after all, but unfortunately Kalim is attached, and Elan's mental state is obviously delicate. Jamil sits down deliberately across from him and makes sure to keep his tone gentle.]
How... exactly did this happen, if I may ask?
[Of course, Elan has long since seen the other side of Jamil's politeness by now, but, well, he's drugged. Maybe he'll still respond to it.]
no subject
He really doesn't want to talk about this... Doesn't want to relive it in any capacity. But Jamil already knows what he did. It's probably more to his benefit, ultimately, to explain his side of the whole thing when he's being given a chance to.
Five quietly glances back down at his soup, heavy eyelashes casting cage bars across tired green eyes.]
...You went down in the tunnels too, right?
[He assumes he must have. If Kalim was there, there's absolutely no way Jamil wasn't also.]
Did you run into any ghost flowers while you were traversing the depths?
no subject
Unfortunately, yes. I touched one by accident, and it apparently put me in a stupor long enough to lose Kalim. Why do you ask?
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It put you in a... What?
[His eyes narrow for a second; he's thinking this through, or at least trying to, as best as his drug addled brain can manage.]
I touched one by accident too, but... That's... Not the kind of effect it had on me...
no subject
And what kind of effect did it have on you?
[...Of course, he's gathering a good inkling already.]
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[Five finally shoves a teeny baby spoonful of soup in his mouth finally, just to spare himself from saying anything further for a second... Because he's not sure he wants to get any more descriptive than that, tbh! What's unexpected is that he immediately has a moment where he looks kind of low-key surprised that it's... Actually? Really good soup? What the fuck. You win this one, Jamil.
For some reason, this convinces him to elaborate a little more. He huffs a little sigh through his nose.]
...That leaves us with two possibilities: either there was more than one type of creepy transparent ghost flower down there and we both got hit with different ones, or my "enhancements" must have altered the effect somehow.
no subject
[Jamil leans in, though not too much--he is interested in this, but he doesn't want to seem too eager, either. Not that Five is likely to notice, drugged to the gills as he is.]
What makes you think that, exactly?
no subject
He pauses though and gestures airily with his spoon to explain.]
Hmm. Well there are three different types of natural toxins, right? [You're a bodyguard Jamil, surely you know this.] That is, assuming those flowers used a kind of toxin and not just some magical effect... There are toxins that attack the blood, there are toxins that attack your tissue directly... And the third kind attacks the way electrical signals are passed throughout your body, AKA, your nervous system.
[He pauses to take another spoonful of soup. Slurrrrp. That drug-cooked brain of his is really churning, he's kind of figuring this out in real time? And Jamil is bearing witness to the process.]
...If it was the third type, well... Peil Technologies oh so graciously yanked out all of my major nerves and had them replaced with cutting edge artificial ones. So. You tell me how a neurotoxin is supposed to interact with that.
[He has no filter right now, truly.]
no subject
You're thinking that nullified the neurotoxin? Why would it have had any kind of effect on you, then?
[He's still not convinced the problem isn't you and your Natural Soul, bud.]
no subject
Hell if I know. I'm just making my best guess here... But I do think it's a fairly solid guess, considering the other guy I was with who's been planted with the same exact tech as me, had a pretty similar reaction to being stung.
[His gaze grows distant for a moment, and he shivers lightly.]
It's almost like it opened up a direct line between my mind and those lilies... Which would make some amount of sense, actually? Our implants are meant to filter out the negative effects of permet while enhancing the positive ones... And what is the primary function of permet, if not to facilitate communication...?
[He looks back at Jamil suddenly, like he just remembered he's still there.]
...You're lucky YOU didn't get eaten. By those flowers, I mean. I bet that was their whole reason for stinging people in the first place.
no subject
That would explain why the toxin would have that effect...
[And he's not going to dwell too long on the thought of what would had happen if he'd stumbled into the flowers instead of away from them, thank you! Instead he leans back and peers at Five suspiciously.]
...but in that case, why bother with all of this?
[Surely the drugs are unnecessary, if the cause was a toxin? Though Jamil won't be the one complaining about taking extra precautions.]
no subject
He shrugs again.]
Because I literally just put all of this together right now in the course of this conversation? Not that figuring it out any sooner would have changed the outcome much... It'd be bad for the big PG's PR if it got out they're letting an Augmented with cannibalism on his record wander around unpunished.
no subject
[And, as established, not one Jamil will be arguing. It's no skin off his nose if Five wants to get drugged into uselessness. He flashes Five a polite smile; the point of this for him was to gather information, and he's certainly gotten that. Five can choose to wallow in misery about it or not.]
Food for thought, I suppose. [He stands up smoothly.] Bring the bowl into the kitchen when you're done, please.
[And you better eat it or he's gonna bitch about it.]
🎀
[Five grunts automatically and dismissively, not even looking Jamil’s way when he stands up. He’s extremely preoccupied all of a sudden: gaze distant, a furrow in his brow and a small frown on his lips. The wheels in his head are turning a lot harder and a lot faster than they have at any other point since he got back from getting his injection, so… Thanks for stoking up a few of his dormant brain cells, bro.
He will eat the rest of the soup, but he probably will NOT remember to bring the dish to the kitchen. At the very least, it’s almost certain he won’t be bringing it fast enough to satisfy Jamil’s standards.]