Meanwhile, back at Groznyj Grad... [Night Search Corpus 2]

[raidenovitch.livejournal.com]

Raikov's boots struck the floor hard and fast, as he paced furiously around the central building.

He was not pleased. Not pleased at all.

Being thrown off of Ocelot was not the greatest moment, but he could grudgingly admit that Ocelot was needed elsewhere.

So, of course, as soon as they had all left, it had been just him and the Colonel, and a shared wicked grin.

And they'd just settled into the mood when Raikov had been turfed out, again.

He was too annoyed at the whole situation to say much to the Colonel, although he was not personally angry with him. Jesus motherfucking bastard christ, he couldn't concentrate on a thing.

And the worse part was he couldn't go back to his quarters to deal with it himself, not when he was supposed to be keeping tabs on absolutely everyone on-base.

Anyone who came near him right now would live to regret it.

Comments

[capt-kasya.livejournal.com]

"He said he needs a shot."

Kassian was already digging in Liadov's breast pocket.

He pulled out a pair of ID badges and a small leather case that had been worn smooth and soft by time and use.

He opened the case. Inside were two syringes and two small vials.

Kassian pulled the vials out, frowning as he examined them. They had rubber tops, he realized, and labels. One was marked “glucogen.”

"I don't know how - " he started, offering the vial and syringe to Rakitin.

"I'll talk you through it," Rakitin said, immediately.

Kassian frowned.

“I’ve only ever injected rats, actually. And, er, dead people don’t need a lot of shots.”

The MENT flashed a brief, apologetic smile. “But I understand the theory perfectly well,” he added.

Liadov's hands slipped, falling from Kassian's face to clutch onto his uniform with waning strength. There was no time to argue anymore.

“All right,” Kassian said.

"Put the needle through the top of the bottle, then press down on the plunger." The MENT mimed the action. "Then turn the bottle upside down, and pull the plunger back to fill it up."

Kassian complied, watching the syringe fill up with colorless liquid.

"Make sure there aren't any air bubbles. Good. Now inject him below the stomach," Rakitin said.

Kassin tugged Liadov's shirt up and his waistband down to expose a strip of pale flesh. Liadov's belly was trim and sleek, but not as thick with muscle as Isaev's. Still, Kassian had to work a little to find a bit of loose skin. He pinched it between his fingers, and angled the needle.

"Just like that. Go ahead," Rakitin told him.

Kassian took in a deep breath, and pushed the plunger.

[ilya-imanov.livejournal.com]

Ilya saw what was happening, but he felt frozen.

He and Liadov were in two different kinds of shock.

He might've not had much love for the man and all his associations, but he would never have just let someone...

Rakitin and Irinarhov seemed to have the situation under control. Neither of them had been so deeply affected as Ilya.

Sergei was still on the floor, ignored. Just another corpse, now.

Ilya's hazy mind wished he could just be administered a shot, like Liadov, to take away all of the shock.

[nikanor-liadov.livejournal.com]

A pin-prick. A pinch.

Nika identified that slight pain sensation with relief and renaissance by now, and he made a low noise of raw gratification at the injection.

It was a sound that might have marked him as a masochist to an objective observer, someone who had never experienced the release of righting endorphins.

And maybe, he thought vaguely, it felt not unlike orgasm- or at least like the eleventh hour reviving kiss of a passing prince.

The recovery from a hypoglycemic episode always astonished him- even as he was regaining his equilibrium and his sense of well-being, he was thinking it shouldn't be so easy.

Just a little sugar, and he was right as rain- provided of course that it didn't go too long, and as of yet it never had.

He was careful; very careful. Always.

Sometimes there were things he couldn't foresee- factors he hadn't considered. Lack of sleep, stress, having a cold- these were all things that were capable of upsetting the perfect balance he'd carved out for himself.

Nika felt the familiar sense of flooding radiation, the swelling wave that reoriented his world, and he nodded slowly, encouraging it, flexing his fingers and feeling his coordination return.

He opened his eyes, very slowly, and looked at Irinarhov with a wanly gratified smile.

"...you did that very well," he said. "I appreciate the assistance."

His attention veered toward the corpse once more, businessminded again, even though he knew better than to push his physical recovery.

"I'm sorry. The timing was terrible. I should have realized..." he paused.

His eye fell on Imanov, who looked stricken, like a pillar of ash that could be blown away at any moment, standing over the other Ocelot's body in quiet disbelief.

"Poor kid," he said, softly. "Get him out of here. Get him drunk."

[capt-kasya.livejournal.com]

Kassian let out a slow breath.

"Thank Lieutenant Rakitin."

Kassian tilted his head toward the man at his side. The pathologist was leaning over Liadov, gaze hooded with concern.

Kassian guessed that Rakitin would be able to tell if something was still seriously wrong. To Kassian, Liadov seemed much more coherent now, at least, but still looked pale and weak.

"He told me what to do," Kassian said.

Like a good spotter, he thought.

He gave Rakitin an approving nod.

Liadov's eyes could focus now, Kassian could tell. He watched the MENT look around the room.

Kassian glanced over his shoulder, following Liadov's gaze.

Imanov stood behind them, still looking sick and pale. Kassian didn't have lot of sympathy left for the squad's second, but he supposed, for Isaev's sake, he should find some.

"He doesn't want anything from me," he muttered, but then looked back at Liadov. "I'm going to call Lieutenant Isaev. Just rest for a moment, and then we'll get you to your quarters."

He paused, frowning, searching Liadov's face again for any lingering sign of weakness.

"I'll be right back," he said, both to Liadov, and Rakitin.

Kassian left Liadov under Rakitin's watchful gaze then stepped out into the hall, raising a hand to his ear as he tuned his CODEC back to Isaev's frequency.

[andrei-isaev.livejournal.com]

Andrei roused slowly, fainting aware of the chirp of his CODEC chime. He'd been facedown in his bunk, limbs sprawled across the finite real estate, but unconstrained by it. His fingertips dusted the floor.

Drowsily, he pushed himself up on his arms and tamped his finger against his ear.

"Isaev," he mumbled incoherently, through the hair that veiled his face.

[capt-kasya.livejournal.com]

Kassian could tell from the blur in Isaev's voice that he'd woken him.

He winced, regretting it now, even though he knew it was the right thing.

"It's me," he said into the CODEC, and then paused.

"I have to tell you something, Dasha, but it's not good."

Kassian took a breath, pausing again.

He hesitated, uncertain, unsure of how he was possibly supposed to break this news.

"... are you there?"

[andrei-isaev.livejournal.com]

"...Kasya," he drawled, smiling awkwardly through his groggy slept-in voice. "Don't tell me you're backing out on your promise. Lightweight."

Then he frowned, rubbing his face. Pausing, for a beat.

Even half-asleep, Andrei sensed Irinarhov's inarticulate hesitation.

"...Why do you sound so grim?" he asked suspiciously, with drawn-out reluctance.