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Dante Decker's Journal
mine...
JWC2
[poor Jonathan never got to be used in the RP he was made for, So here he is rewritten for use elsewhere]

Name: Jonathan William Chasseur M.D.
Gender: Male
Race: Human, Caucasian
Age: 28
Height: 6’3” (75”)
Weight: 175 lbs
Birth date: September 25th (Libra)
Residence: No. 71 Ludington Lane South
Profession: Doctor/Surgeon
Class: High (low to middle)
Alignment: The Glorious Nation of Ritsing

Appearance-
Jonathan stands only a touch over average height for man of his breeding, though he actually seems slightly taller to most people due to his fairly slim and wiry form. Broad shoulders and strong hips compliment his wiry build, an obvious athlete he is not overly muscular though obviously flexible despite his height. His well-groomed hair is ebony black and of healthy shine. When away from home for any extended period it does occasionally escape his notice and grow a tad too long for his liking and revert to its naturally curly state giving his usually meticulously cleaned visage a rough around the edges appearance. With the exception of his goatee and mustache, which he keeps well trimmed and under control, the rest of his facial hair is removed entirely exposing smooth cheeks and a subtle jaw line. His nose is broad and straight rounding out his face, a feature he inherited from his mother. His subtle jaw line and broad nose give him a gentle if somewhat ‘soft’ appearance despite his age and experience. His eyes are a lighter brown with a contrasting darker brown Iris somewhat like a tigers eye stone. His eyes are noticeably sunken into his pale face leaving subtle yet noticeable bags under his eyes. Though seemingly naturally world weary his eyes sparkle with obvious intelligence and a hidden spark of adventure that burns inside him.

Jonathan is somewhat of a finicky dresser, preferring to be overdressed than under dressed in most instances. He often wears traditional English-style clothing of the time. Preferring the longer frock coat to the more common sack or business coat along with a top hat preferred over the more casual Derby hat or bowler. He usually wears the more socially accepted solid back and white combination of black vest, and white shirt to avoid being considered a ‘dandy’. Though he does own several more colorful silk vests that match the hatband on his top hat when he feels a bit more cheerful or is celebrating an occasion. Though these social restrictions for the most part fade away when operating. Discarding his top hat and jacket, with his sleeves rolled up for their protection. Though many doctors are known to do this for sanitary reasons Jonathan does so primarily for the protection of his clothing, even to the point of charging the patient in addition to his bill for a new shirt should the patient prove particularly ‘squirty’ during an operation. This is not to say that Jonathan is squeamish or that he will shy away from any patient in any condition, it does however mean that when all is said and done he may retreat to his office and violently curse his luck that he may have soiled yet another good shirt, or vest, or pants. As such it can be expected to find the good doctor in a fine set of attire at almost all times of day, and some decent hours of night as well, regardless of the current working conditions.

When operating he will often wear a large white canvas apron over his vest and day shirt and have his shirtsleeves rolled up beyond the elbow. Though gloves are available to him they are in his opinion less than satisfactory for his use and so he relies heavily on strong disinfectants and thorough scrubbing to protect his patients from infection. This however also leaves his hands noticeably paler than the rest of his body, his hands being essentially bleached from many years of exposing his skin to such harsh chemicals. This however is not the only change that his time as a surgeon has brought, his hands and upper forearms are nearly hairless, a secondary side effect of such chemicals and exceedingly rough scrubbing of the forearms in preparation for innumerous surgeries. For these two reasons he prefers to when in non-medical company to wear his sleeves down and cuff-linked with a pair of white gloves over his hands as is the social custom of the day to prevent any uncomfortable feelings from his compatriots and companions.


Aspirations-
Jonathan is a fairly simple non-materialistic man that though highly concerned about his general appearance can sometimes get caught up with his work; as such his aspirations are simple and genuine. He seeks merely to make it through the day, to save one life per day, and to have as little as possible interaction with death as possible. As such he will often go to extremes to save a patients life, and in such tense times he has a tendency to let his passive sweet nature slip by and allow the cold aggressive controller to show through. He tends to give instructions quickly and without formality or thanks when so involved, making him sometimes hard to work with in the operating theater. Its this underlying drive to defy death that puts him at odds with most adventurers as he supports no sort of killing in a position which he may interfere. This is not to say he does not understand that an enemy may have to be subdued, or wounded in the effort to prevent their death, he merely disdains outright killing unless absolutely ‘necessary’. It is this definition of ‘necessary’ that often puts him at odds with many people, friend and foe a like. He is also somewhat at odds with himself at times as he is often eagerly fascinated with the mechanics of most machines and weapon systems. Though an outsider to such technology (and unable to duplicate such items) his minor training in engineering gives him at least the knowledge to respect and admire such items though he would most likely never use them, at least not without absolute cause.

If denied or unable save someone for reasons such as lack of time or direct danger to the group he will often mope about it for several hours afterwards, and if he has privacy available to him he may end up giving into his primary vice to assuage the mental anguish. He will also usually be that much more zealous in attempting to save the next life in peril he encounters, though this is a double edged sword as he will often pound on himself until such time as he is able to recoup the loss of that person. As such he will often not pay as much attention on smaller less life threatening surgeries due to his constant internal distraction until such time as he is able to move on, or saves another life to make him (in his mind at least) equal. However the loss of woman (any woman) can at times override a lot of his prevailing morals due to both social conditioning and his own internal emotional fire. Though such a calm and collected man will not go berserk by any means his value of their life may become heavily skewed against such mongrels. Woe be on those who commit such an unspeakable act in the doctors presence.


Vices-
Having served in the Kings forces after the great civil unrest that followed the most recent outbreak of conflicts. Jonathan endured many long ‘dirty’ field surgeries and deaths as the Kings forces took their initial battering soon after the conflict began. This was a dark time, not only for the Kings forces but also for Jonathan as the number of cases beyond his control had driven him into darker and darker parts of his mind, sapping his will to live and eventually causing him to lose control of his actions. It was during this dark time that Jonathan began self-medicating, giving himself controlled doses of morphine to control his emotions and essentially tune out his ‘failures’ as he described them.

This sadly was not that uncommon for doctors on both sides of the conflict, as the shear number of casualties easily overwhelmed surgeons and doctors on both sides. Leading to an almost unspoken understanding when a doctor was found to be under the influence of the opiate. Though Jonathan abstained from the drug when operating or in social situations, he spent many a nights putting himself nearly into an opiate induced coma just to get to sleep at night and flush the horrible images from his mind. It’s from this period of blood and darkness that Jonathan began his partial dementia of being so concerned with blood on his clothes. The constant smell of blood, urine and other bodily fluids that permeated his clothes on even a typical day of surgery was enough to make him have to changes outfits every day and order some of his shirts to be burned. Since then he has strongly detested the feeling of clotted blood against his skin and washes thoroughly after each surgery almost to the point of OCD, though this has a side effect of keeping the chances of infection down for his patients he does it more for his own sanity than their benefit.

Generally when indulging Jonathan prefers morphine injections into his thigh so as to avoid the usual signs of such abuse (needle scars) on his often-exposed forearm. Sadly this makes it so that such self medication bears little chance of becoming common knowledge, being a doctor there is rarely any questions asked as to why he would be carrying such chemicals or syringes on his person at any time of day or night, nor why he would have such items in his household. In fact it would perhaps raise more questions if he were without such items.

Notably, his other guilty pleasure is alcohol, Bourbon and Absinthe being his preferred drinks. However even strong alcoholism is tolerated in some form in this age, and even perhaps expected of someone of his stature and wealth. He is a notorious flirt while intoxicated however, but is exceedingly polite at such functions preferring the quiet wit he has honed over the years to act as his connection with the women he finds interesting that evening. Though he rarely offends the woman of his choice it does occasionally put him at odds with the courtiers and escorts. He is rarely if ever raucous or rude however, which is able to defuse such potential conflicts before they get out of hand. Though he is much more likely to act off the cuff during such liquor soaked encounters than during normal daytime encounters making him more open to suggestions and opening up his sense of adventure. Which considering his acquaintances, and Jonathan’s talents as a doctor have gotten him dragged into more than one adventure semi-willingly.

Personality-
Jonathan is a fairly quiet man preferring to smile and keep choice words to himself in most situations around people he has not known for long. It can in fact be fairly an icy encounter to have an examination by Jonathan, as he is man of few words and not one to discus medical things so casually with those lacking a degree in such a field. In private or with nurses however Jonathan is a kind and often-flirtatious man, especially with women who are comfortable with him. This is especially true he feels he can trust her to not take his compliments as indecent passes at their morality. Its not to say that he doesn’t mean them as such, but he would rather keep silent when in the presence of a woman than insult her.

In the presence of friends Jonathan prefers to listen in and add quips as the conversation goes on but he rarely has a lot to say openly. Occasionally he will get cornered into discussing certain topics and he will also occasionally discuss or explain his views at length on certain topics. This however is a rare occurrence, as he would rather close his eyes, drink his bourbon and listen than take an active role in most group discussions. As such his few friends understand his quiet nature and usually respect it, unless it’s a mater he is known to have a particular experience with. This is not to say he does not enjoy a good discussion, quite the opposite he just prefers to absorb as much information as possible before acting.

Conversely when he is nervous or worried about a patient’s health, he has a tendency to babble, either to himself or who ever he is addressing. This is not so much because he wants to talk as it has a calming effect on him to not be stuck in silence. Though he does enjoy silence when he is calm, silence in tense situations tends to unnerve him visibly, the war having been a major contributor to his feelings and dementia as such.


History-
Jonathan William Chasseur was originally born Jonathan William Walker in Ritsinbourg’s Mill area, a traditionally upper middle class neighborhood to William and Michelle Walker a fairly typical merchant family that had recently moved to Ritsinbourg. Sadly this happy time for the family was short lived as William Walker died in an industrial accident in his mill on Sanhearst Street less than a month after Jonathan’s birth. Pressured by social standards and a desire to keep her family from the poorhouse, Michelle Walker quickly seduced and married a prominent upper class citizen named Marcus Chasseur. Marcus had fallen for Michelle quite quickly and with Jonathan only a year old Marcus quickly took to the boy as well. Officially changing the boys name to Jonathan William Chasseur, his stepfather kept his middle name in honor of the boy’s biological fathers memory.

Because Jonathan was so young he was lucky enough to avoid most of the emotional complications that arise with having a stepfather thrust into his life, and as such he was raised in a loving upper-class household. Like most boys of the age with the privilege and money to afford it, Jonathan was taught by private tutors till the age of ten. He made few friends during this time as his kind but conservative father felt very strongly that this was the time in a boys life when he should focus on his studies not running around in the dirt like some ‘peasant child’ in his words. Once he reached the age of ten he was enrolled in Ritsinbourg’s prestigious St Augustine School for Boys where he quickly excelled not only scholastically, but also extra circularly becoming an avid fan of fencing and by the age of twelve became the schools youngest fencing team captain in its forty year history. Though an avid fencer, and excellent student many people considered him an extreme introvert, even at one point recommending that Jonathan seek medical attention for his quiet nature. His parents sagely ignored such recommendations but kept as close eye on him regardless.

This was a fairly happy if hectic time for Jonathan, between his school work, his extracurricular activities, and his family travels and hunting adventures Jonathan became quite comfortable with roaming around the country side as his family visited this obscure relative or that barely related judge in some quiet backwater township. His skill with a Shotgun after several quail hunting outings was laudable but the noise of such pastimes put him off slightly from shooting sports, preferring the quiet and quick action of the foil or rapier. Though he continued to shoot recreationally at his father’s behest, he was much less studious in such practices than his fencing, which at times consumed his mind and his free time completely. Though this impacted his studies occasionally he kept his grades up for the majority of semesters to land him on the schools deans list upon graduation.

After eight years at St. Augustine’s Jonathan was accepted to Pembroke University School of Engineering where he spent the first year of his tenure there, perusing a degree in Mechanical Engineering. It however did not take him long to realize that he was not suited for such a role as his general distaste with the crudeness of the machines he studied lead him to distraction. This was perhaps the greatest unknown turning point in Jonathan’s life, though at the time he would have never realized it. His quiet talks with friends about the simplicity of then modern mechanics drew an onlooker, a young nurse in her second year of study overheard him talking and recommended he attend a lecture by Dr. William Stow a visiting medical doctor and futurist scheduled to take place on the campus in two days time. Had he been told this by one of his engineering compatriots he would have ignored it and continued his usual studies, but Jonathan was instantly taken by the beauty of this woman and though he did not even know her name agreed with all haste in his distracted state.

When he had realized what had just happened he realized he had promised to attend, and ignoring the topic in his mind he wanted to attend if just to see this beautiful woman again. When he arrived in his finest clothes at the day of the lecture the woman who had caught his interest so strongly was nowhere to be found and before he could leave the lecture hall to inquire as to her whereabouts Professor Stow had already begun speaking. Seeing no polite or socially acceptable means with which to excuse himself, he took a seat among a large number of medical students and listened the this strange ‘mad’ doctor talk.

Doctor Stows’ talk of the similarities of hydraulics and of the flow of blood in the human body and the other correlations to Modern medicine interested and enthused young Jonathan. This was of course in part to Professors Stows natural skills at oration but the topic itself caught Jonathans interest with a fervor his engineering professors had never even approached. He came to realize that the machines he envisioned in his head, their complexity and brilliance were in fact gods own work, what he had considered the ultimate goal of engineering was in fact the human body. Following the lecture (and sadly not finding the female who had lured him there in the first place) he left the lecture hall in a very contemplative mood and walked over to the School of Medicine campus to talk to the Dean. Both agreed he should finish his semester in engineering and then begin next semester in Pre-Medical training in the School of Medicine. The last quarter of his semester at the School of Engineering was devoted primarily to killing time till the end of the semester. He poured himself into his fencing and rowing teams taking both teams to parish championships while still maintaining a B average.

That summer between switching to the School of Medicine; Jonathan returned home to find his stepfather preparing a surprise for him. Upon hearing of his change in professions his father prepared a two-month Safari in the western lands on the wild plains with him and his stepson. This of course was quite the shock to Jonathan who though close to his stepfather had always filled the role of children should be seen and not heard. With his stepfathers assistance the two of them purchased equipment and firearms from Ritsinbourg’s Holland & Holland outfitter. Fully supplied and armed for their hunt for the plains big game they boarded a chartered airship and headed out. The expedition in the plains was just about as close to the ideal expedition, no rain to ruin their adventures, no shortage of porters to carry their equipment and no lack of game to hunt. Though Jonathan had gone hunting with his stepfather before (mostly water fowling and quail hunting) this was his first time handling a large bore side-lock rifle. Though he had almost two weeks to adjust the heavier recoiling weapon he proved adept at it and too several of the aggressive and potentially dangerous Plains Buffalo on their first outing. By the time they had filled the airship with hides and trophies they looked back to realize how quickly time had gone by. Their ammunition spent, their time exceeded the pair headed home with happy memories and hope for the future. Sadly like all such times of great joy in Jonathan’s life it was followed by a notable tragedy.

Upon returning home they were met with a broken household, in their absence his mother had passed away due to a then unknown internal ailment. This crushing news deeply split the family. Jonathan’s stepfather obviously heartbroken put up black curtains, crawled deep inside a bottle, and separated himself from most of the world, even from Jonathan. Jonathan however was driven forward by the sudden death of his mother, forsaking his extracurricular activities for the sake of throwing himself into the medical library every day sometimes for several hours a day. He astounded his teachers with his work and skill on exams, but they worried about him fearing he was going to burn out before he completed his bachelor’s degree. In the sense they were right, his few social outings were ripe with heavy drinking and social seclusion making very few friends in his first two years at the School of Medicine. During his third year at the school, and preparing for his bachelors degree his heart finally began to heal, the experience had changed him, he was endowed with a sensitivity to the loss of life so strong he felt sick when he was presented with his first set of cadavers. Though this wasn’t seen as uncommon his professors began to fear he would be too squeamish to handle the work of a surgeon.

When he finally graduated from his pre-medical studies and was accepted fully into School of Medicine’s Doctoral studies, though due to his skimping of his fencing classes he scraped by with barely enough extra circular points to enter. Once in his doctoral study however he quickly put his former professors fears to rest, his mind having moved on somewhat from his mothers passing after three years of healing. His surgical skill and quiet caring bedside manner made him a popular tutor and teacher’s assistant. His work study placed him at a quiet office of a general practitioner, which while valuable experience it was not the surgical experience on a live human being he longed to gain experience with. Being only graduate students he was however forbidden to operate on anything but the rare cadaver. Though frustrating he was lucky that he was occasionally given the option to operate on a cadaver, as most medical schools never even taught surgical skills on cadavers referring mostly to intense book work and observing other surgeons. Though Jonathan was blessed by having such in depth study it was still almost entirely futile as a cadaver was already dead, the fire for the preservation of life did not burn as strongly in him as it might had someone’s life been on the line.

His work study at the doctors office however was exhilarating despite not being his intended study since it was both personal and felt like it served a purpose. It was his determination and drive that got him through those long years of cutting into dead people for the practice to save the living. In all that time he preserved through the long lectures, the smell of embalming fluid on his clothes and the seeming mockery that kept him from being much more than glorified nurse. He longed to operate on live humans, people that needed his help in a way in which he could make a difference, One should always be careful of what they wish for.

Experience-
Jonathan graduated from Pembroke University School of Medicine tenth in his class out of nearly a hundred students. Though he was an exceptional student he did not have the time to nor the inclination to push himself to a higher position in the class rankings having filled his little time off more with fencing practice and other stress reliving activities than additional study. He left Pembroke to begin his residency at Saint Lucia’s Royal Hospital in Ritsinbourg where he spent the majority of his time dealing with minor injuries and the occasional back alley stabbing. It was a tremendous supplement to his primarily book learned experience at Pembroke and he quickly made many friends both well established in the field and in the royal court. His time at St. Lucia however was merely a minor improvement to his experience at the general practitioners office, and though he was able to do many minor surgeries he was restricted to either only observing, or being an assistant surgeon on most major surgeries. The rumbles of war with Deslvania began to change the way life in Ritsinbourg operated, as experienced guards were pulled from the street to protect the rich or recruited into the military. General nervousness and unrest filled the streets and made even walking down the street a potentially dangerous activity.

It was not that Jonathan was helpless, though he had not been actively practicing his swordsmanship consistently for over a year now he was still a capable and effective swordsman against single or multiple targets. The problem primarily was how to carry such an item; a man of his social standing could not just carry a sword around town, with his luck a guard would mistake him for a rioter and shoot him. It was then that it hit him; plainly put the only local response was to obfuscate the sword while being carried back and forth to the hospital. There really was only one possible answer that would satisfy his needs, and that was a sword cane. He searched the various sword makers markets for quite some time but no one was making a sword cane that would provide the proper feeling and responsiveness of a Spanish style rapier that he had spent so many years practicing with. He eventually was forced to have a custom item made to his specifications. He convinced a swordsmith from the local arsenal to produce a blade of suitable form for a Spanish rapier only four inches short than it should nominally be. A silversmith and clock maker who cast and engraved the handle to conceal the blade nearly flawlessly from a short distance produced a special cane and handle. Properly armed Jonathan now felt much more secure in his daily commute, and continued his residency with relatively little incident.

Potentially, the completion of his residency should have been a bright new beginning for Jonathan. He had been recognized by the Royal College of Surgeons for his service and experience, he was now properly trained at a true hospital, worked on live humans (not just cadavers) and saved many lives in his short time there. In truth he was more than touch naive as most new doctors are; idealistic as the way the world worked, and prepared to see this world and help all those who suffered within it. The war that surrounded him would quickly cure his idealism and plunge him into a world that he never imagined.

When he returned one night after the hostilities began from a night of drinking with other recent graduates, two military officers and a constable were waiting at his front door as he stepped out of the carriage and informed him that his talents were needed elsewhere and immediately. This however was not quite and invitation he could refuse and he was escorted down to the local recruitment office and essentially drafted into the military with very little chance to appeal. Within the week he was on the front line wearing captain’s bars along with many of his former classmates some were given the luxury of actually enlisting freely, others much like Jonathan were not. It was not that they were underpaid (they were not) or that they were over worked (they were) it was merely the lack of free choice that left many of them so bitter about their military service. However they felt though, after the first attempt by the Kings forces at a counter offensive against Deslvania’s forces their feelings were moot. The blood and pain of those days was beyond description, seemingly days of continuous surgery left them near death from exhaustion and dehydrated horribly. As doctor after doctor collapsed from exhaustion Jonathan was increasingly short handed, nurses and doctors alike were being moved to the military hospital at the rear to recover while the injured and dying continued to pour in.

Apparently filled with a preternatural fire Jonathan continued to work through the night, dozens of amputations, bowel resections, and other less desirable operations later Jonathan was relieved of duty buy a new batch of ‘fresh’ doctors from the rear. For this work he was told he was nominated for a Meritorious Service Medal, for bravery and gallantry in action, but he never received the honor for reasons that were never fully explained to him. For all his work, all the lives he saved he walked away from the evening with little more than the faint crack of dementia that would later only widen in a repeat performance in the later winter campaign. By the time His Majesties Forces were pushing into some un-named hellhole, winter was well in effect. Maladies as such frostbite, the amputation of toes and fingers, and other extremities became common to Jonathan, miserable work to do in the cold where he was little better protected from the elements as the men he was treating. When the fighting finally came Jonathan would find himself operating on other doctors, removing hands, and toes and removing them from service as they lost the ability to practice that which they had trained so long to learn. Washing in freezing water was a quick way to encourage hypothermia so many doctors went without washing up as often as they should, As such blood based illnesses, and infection grew among the patients claiming almost as many as the gunshots of the enemy at the time.

It was during this futile period of freezing cold and blood that Jonathan began to self medicate himself, the mixture of morphine and alcohol were a dangerous combo, making him think he was warmer than her really was while staving his body in the process. Eventually despite his sparkling service record he too was forced to abandon his station and was sent to a hospital at the rear to deal with hypothermia and ‘battle stress’ as they called it. The fact that the commanding officer had chosen to leave out the fact they found him attempting to overdose on morphine in his tent was graciously left out, and upon recovery and discharge after two years of service he slowly made his way back home avoid the continuing conflict.

When his part of the war came to its end Jonathan sought to return home expecting to find the great city of his youth, the astounding regal quality of Ritsinbourg. What he found however was nothing but black ashes of their former selves. His time in the campaign had changed him fundamentally, and much of the naiveté had been stripped from him. It took him some time to adjust to this new reality of dirt and pain but he made some semblance of peace with it, realizing it was his job to help cure the pain of the city, not run from it. Jonathan finally took up his current residence establishing a private practice along the ivy lined Luddington Lane south in Number 71, a fine red brick and whitewash townhouse of unremarkable structure but attractive in its form and function. Though he has occasionally worked for the guards patching up the occasional adventurer who saw fit to follow a foolish group of miscreants into some evil lair. He has tried so hard to help the world around him, but even with the truth set before the world he cannot see all the blood on his hands, merely a defense to the pain he has seen, not a confrontation of it, it seems the naiveté has never fully left him after all.

One more time through the shredder, new hostilities on the horizon, his scalpel is ready, but the truth is he remains comfortably numb to the pain around him.


Personal belongings-
Clothing
-2x Silk collapsible top hats (1 pearl gray, 1 solid black. Both with a small silver rod of Asclepius pinned to the side)
-2x Black Bowler hats (1 with a maroon silk hatband, the other a navy blue silk hatband)
-2x Tailored Frock coats (1 solid black, 1 pearl gray)
-4x Tailored Business (or sack) coats (all solid black)
-2x New Formal coats (all solid black)
-6x Wool Vests (all solid black)
-4x Silk Vests (2 Navy Blue, 2 Maroon)
-2x Formal Wool Vests (all solid black)
-8x Cotton slacks (all solid black)
-4x Wool slacks (2 pearl gray, 2 solid black)
-12x White lightly starched cotton shirts (6 mandarin collar, 4 soft collar, 2 winged collar)
-12 pair x Black wool socks
-5 pair x White cotton gloves
-1 pair x Black Patent leather Oxford shoes
-2 pair x Brown leather Derby shoes
-4x Heavy white-canvas Aprons


Accessories
-Silver pocket Watch
Imported from parts unknown this silver pocket watch is fairly plain in decoration though very accurate in its time keeping role. The watch face is etched glass with silver numeral attached to the glass watch face allowing a diffused view of the watches internal movement. He has owned this watch for almost ten years now; having purchased it to make sure he was on time for his shifts as a resident at Saint Lucias Hospital. Its quiet and smooth mechanical ticking is a constant backdrop to Jonathan’s daily adventures.

-Silver cufflinks
In truth Jonathan has several of these cufflinks, which vary from style to style. Some have a diamond in the center, some have enamel between the gear spokes and others are even able to spin, but overall they are still just cufflinks in the shape of a gear. The only consistent feature (beyond them being gears) is they are all silver and thus are worth a bit, both on the market, and in sentimental value to Jonathan. When preparing to operate Jonathan usually attaches them to the buttonholes on his coat hanging nearby before rolling up his sleeves. These were purchased as a large set in his first year as an engineering student at Pembroke University; he has never really seen a need to replace them since then.

-Reading glasses
Though Jonathan’s eyesight is fairly good, even he sometimes needs to strain a touch when reading the fine print found in some books printed these days. As such he keeps reading glasses on hand when reading books or contracts or fine work on certain small tendons and bones in the body such as the fingers and feet. The frame is polished steel though it matches his silver accompaniments quite well. He acquired these shortly after his residency and though rarely used he is rarely without them just incase he may be forced to read something of fine print or examine something close up.

-Hip Flask
The duct-tape of its age, or at least for a doctor is alcohol. Though bourbon does not have quite the anti-septic qualities of rubbing alcohol its much more palatable and can serve as an anesthetic, anti-septic, a depressant, or as a fuel source depending on what role it needs to fill. As such Jonathan is almost always found with a full flask of his favorite twenty-five year old bourbon. A gift from one of the students he tutored back at the school of medicine, he treasures it for its utility more so than its material beauty. Though he has more efficient single purpose tools at his disposal at his office, for someone working alone in areas far away from proper medical facilities this multi-purpose delicious wonder is quite handy.

-Clockwork Heart Lounge Pin
Worn secretly under the lapel of his frock or sack coat, this bronze gear pin is his ticket into the invitation only Brevis club located in the back room of the Clockwork Heart Lounge. Jonathan acquired his pin from an elderly patient, in fact one of his first upon returning from the military. After removing a bullet put there by a group of ruffians from the mans shoulder the man gave him his pin and a letter of explanation for the clubs garcon, when he decided that he had had enough of the conflict and planned to move south. Though things did eventually quiet, he has retained the pin in order to enjoy a bit of quiet revelry when the usual social functions of his class begin to overwhelm him. Though this is an exclusive honor Jonathan does not put too much stock into the privilege enjoying it only sparsely due to other obligations.

Medical Equipment
-Travel Anesthesia kit
The travel anesthesia kit is a small black leather pouch containing various anesthetic solutions. Primarily one bottle of morphine, labeled: ‘LIQUOR MORPHIAE SULPHATIS’, or morphine sulphate solution, and two metal syringes with removable needles. He usually keeps one syringe filled with 30 CCs of morphine and the small metal storage cap screwed on so he can quickly screw a needle onto the syringe and apply it with haste, either to a patient in need, or himself. The second item is a small metal vial with a ceramic and rubber stopper of Chloroform labeled ‘CHLOROFORMUM PURIFICATUM’ with a 8” x 8” wool cloth wrapped around the vial with a metal closure (like found on wrapping bandages) to allow it to be fashioned into a cone for use as a field anesthetic device.

-Hospital Surgical Set
This is a fairly large surgical kit designed for use at a single location (such as Jonathans home office) Its constructed of Maple, with Brass edges and hinges, and slide lock. Inside three separate velvet lined levels allow for easy organization and quick identification of surgical tools. Though expansive it is fairly heavy to move and thus not often taken around casually unless Jonathan happens to change to a location he intends to stay for a while. All handled tools are ebony handled and engraved with ‘JWC’ in cursive script on the handles.

Containing: 4x Scalpels, tenaculum, aneurysm needles, aneurism suture set, 3x amputation knives, catlin, metacarpal saw, 2x tissue retractors, bone brush, bone rasp, bone drill set, 3x heavy bone ronguers, bone holding forceps, pull-chain bone saw with detachable handles, 2x Galt type trephines, olive forceps, trephine, various picks & probes elevator, raspatory, cranial scalpel, spare saw blade, Hey saw, scissors, chisels, screw-set bullet remover, chisel hammer, 2x bone chisels, open frame saw, Petit's spiral tourniquet, silver wire, bone wax, silk thread, and suture needles.

-Pocket Surgical kit
Carried in a red leather tri-fold case, this pocket surgical kit is kept on Jonathan at all times in case of an emergency. Though it lacks some of the finer instruments of a proper surgical kit it allows him ample capability to stabilize most patients. This particular kit however is unique in that the majority of tools, instead of being traditional folding sets, are actually spring loaded like a switchblade allowing for quick deployment of the desired tool and solid locking upon hitting their release button. All such stools are bone handled and engraved with his Initals and the year ‘1874’. Each item is carefully sterilized by Jonathan after each use, though other than the small vial of alcohol Jonathan carries with the kit to sterilize the tools on site before their use, there is little other such sanitary capability included due to space constraints.

The kit contains: 1 scalpel, 3 bistouries, 1 tenotome, 1 gum lancet, 2 thumb lancets, 1 razor (small), 1 artery forceps, 1 dressing forceps, 1 artery needle, 6 surgeon's needles, 1 exploring needle, 1 tenaculum, small roll of bandage, 1 scissors, 1 director, 3 probes, 1 small vial of rubbing alcohol, 6 yards suture wire (iron), ¼ oz. ligature silk, and 1/8 oz. Wax.

Weapons
-.41 caliber Remington Derringer
Purchased while in the military, this little derringer is what Jonathan often refers to as a ‘violent noise maker’. It’s not to say Jonathan doesn’t like this gun, its very finely made with a set of ivory grips and some impressive scrollwork on the side but for a doctor such an item is simply that, a violent noisemaker. With its short barrel and Jonathans fairly limited experience in its use, he usually misses six out of every ten shots he fires from the thing at any range past ten paces. As such he has intentionally stopped trying to hit most targets and uses it primarily to get others attention or to scare off dangerous beasts and or ruffians. A throwback to a time when he actually did try and hit things is that the inside of the front sight is polished so as to improve its reflection and thus ability to be quickly acquired by reflection in low light. He learned this trick from a patient of his who noticed he carried it on him when working late one night at the office. The nickel-coated piece is almost always carried in his right vest pocket next to his pocket watch as well as a small leather strip that holds eight rounds of .41 caliber ammunition incase he may have to try and actually hit something.

-Holland & Holland .577 NE Double Rifle
Given to Jonathan by his Stepfather on their final hunting trip to the Wild plains area of the continent. The .577 Nitro Express chambered side-by-side double rifle is an extremely potent, accurate, and well made weapon. Though Jonathan is by no means a marksman with it, he is able to hit most animal or man-sized targets at hunting ranges (under 100 meters) with it. Its potent round is hard to come by however and the weapon spends the majority (read: all the time) stored disassembled in its travel case with twenty rounds of ammunition on a bandolier tucked into the bottom of the case. The weapon is well made but certainly not a presentation piece by any means; it is blued with a simple English style maple stock, and is engraved with an extremely detailed hunting scene of a dog bounding into the brush. An odd choice of scene for such a large hunting rifle but it was chosen simply because of the detail in the scene than any particular relevance to the sport. Double set triggers and a crisp action make it extremely accurate in the right hands, though its debatable if Jonathan is the ‘right’ hands that is of no fault of the weapon which is meticulously well made.

-Sword Cane
At forty-two inches long Jonathans’ Sword Cane is designed for a man of his above average height, coming comfortably up to his waist. An exceptionally unique item, though not of legendary quality it is obviously well made and when closed and held by Jonathan it is exceptionally difficult to define its martial intentions. The cane itself, or more specifically the swords sheath is octagonal in cross section and made of maple wood stained black and then covered with a matte finish. A blunted cone of burnished steel closes off the bottom sturdily but is polished to the point it resembles the silver used on the handle. The Canes shaft is reinforced internally with a steel sheath that holds the blade securely and provides additional stiffness to the cane itself to support Jonathan’s weight. The cane itself is substantial and fully able to cause many a painful bruise if one of its eight edges were brought down on the exposed bony parts of the body with a satisfying crack. Its obvious to most that to a doctor this would be preferable to inflicting a potentially life threatening stab when countering unarmed yet belligerent assailants. The silver handle of the cane extends some nine inches from the flared end cap (which acts as the pommel) to the bottom of the handle. The handle gradually shifts from a round cross-section forward of the pommel, to a matching octagonal cross-section at the decorative end of the grip in what looks like of a smokestack from a paddle-wheeler.

The actual point of separation is concealed beneath the decorative flanged end of the handle removing any obvious indication that it separates without close scrutiny. The Canes handle is engraved with a flowing knot and vine design around the handle providing both subtle decoration and grip for the hand when drawn. Two rectangular sections roughly an inch long rest on either side of the handle about two inches from the end of the handle, closed they blend in with the design the line surrounding them offering little clue as to their intention. When both rectangles are depressed however, they spring outward providing a pair of finger bars for the rapier blade hidden inside the cane, this also unlocks the blade from its sheath. With the finger bars deployed the handle can be drawn straight off the cane itself revealing the blade and thirteen three inch long A-shaped pieces of heavy gauge wire. These A-shaped pieces are spring loaded and overlap (like a vegetable steamer) so that when no longer retained in place by the sheath spring open to form a shallow ‘cup guard’ though it is more truthfully a shallow cone in profile. The overlapping pieces do not provide 100% coverage of the hand (as there are obviously some gaps) but it is certainly preferable to going without a guard. The individual guard pieces fit into the grooves of the decorative flanges providing lateral strength to the guard and holding them securely in place. These eight flanges also act as blade traps should an opponent let his blade slip too close to the handle and become pined when Jonathan toques the handle, pinning the blade between the flanges. Though most experienced fighters would not let this happen ideally should they loose focus Jonathan may be able to take advantage of them and pin the blade with enough force to potentially pull disarm the assailant or if a weaker or thinner blade, break the blade.

The blade is from a Spanish style rapier, though a tad shorter than tradition dictates due to its housing in a the cane and not a proper sheath, though Jonathan’s height and reach are usually enough to even out this disadvantage. The sword though not of traditional length is properly balanced for its dimensions, and is quite agile in the proper hands. The blade itself is sharpened along both edges, though its thin profile makes it an inefficient cutting weapon, and the sharpened edges are primarily to facilitate easier penetration. A matching set of vine and knot scrollwork as found on the handle adorns the blade around a shallow fuller, running a third of the blades length. Though potentially lethally effective Jonathan has never killed anyone, that is not to say Jonathan has never spilt blood, but merely that he has intentionally refrained from killing those who have attacked him. His preferred method of submission is a sort of penetrative submission hold, stabbing into the victims shoulder from the front notably below the ruffian’s clavicle and emerging above the shoulder blade on the other side, in this position with the rapiers broader top he can apply pressure to the victims Axillary artery and the many assorted nerves in the area with the broad flat of the blade, to either cause extreme pain or threaten the Axillary itself. Though threatening the Axillary is potentially lethal (a simple ninety-degree turn of the blade would usually be enough to sever the major artery and cause substantial blood loss, if not death) most opponents he has encountered to date know when its time to yield. Safer for Jonathan to accomplish is a shot above the clavicle to the underside of the shoulder blade allows similar tensional source to be accomplished, although without the potential threat of severing the Axillary. Though safer and easier for Jonathan to perform it depends strongly on the threat level and height of his target, obviously someone taller than him would be difficult to perform a plunging strike on.

Once the weapon is no longer needed, Jonathan needs merely to push both the finger bars back into their recess in the handle. This raises and forces the guard to collapse up against the blade to allow it to be reinserted into the canes sheath, removing any notable sign of its former martial intentions. Though an effective weapon it blends in with most social functions and due to its reinforced yet decorative nature fulfils its obvious role as both a walking cane and social symbol.





 
 
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