District 42-Chapter 327: Berserker’s curse
MMA began to explain to Casper about the thing that was worrying everyone in that tent. He had serious eyes and put his hands together in his lap before starting. That posture made his speech very convincing, he had the behavior that fitted his title as a genius.
"Berserker is a drug made to the warriors of District 42 to perform better in their fights. They would be the ideal warrior, using their wrath to strengthen their bodies, to not feel any pain, and assault their enemies nonstop with never-ending stamina. Their relentless pursuit and unstoppable bodies would make any win in battle a certainty... or that was what the scientists of that period believed when doing this drug.
"You know, it is an old drug, and our district was not very well developed in the field of pharmacology. They had some wrong concepts that got fixed after several years of research and struggle. However, at that time, they believed that such a drug would be a good idea, despite the collateral effects.
"Anyway, Berserker was highly used by Ridires at that time. At first, it was a good thing for our lines of defense, even though our district didn’t have too many conflicts at the time. But, it didn’t last too long before the collateral effects began to appear and show to be worst than they could ever imagine..."
Casper was getting apprehensive with that explanation. He liked the fact that he got to know more about the district’s past. Nonetheless, it still gave him anxiety for not getting in the juicy part.
’In fact, I am getting strange recently. My emotions seem to dominate me more. I am more... more in a rush as if I am always late for something. I never was so anxious before, after all. It’s safe to assure that it is one of the collateral effects.’
MMA continued to explain after a pause.
"Those collateral effects were called afterward as Berserker’s curse. Among them, the most common was dependence on the drug since it gave a feeling to someone’s body while fighting that was very similar to ecstasy. That is, the excitement when battling was almost tripled when using Berserker, particularly when receiving or delivering damage. The adrenaline and dopamine in the body increase tenfold, which also help to get someone addicted to it.
"The drug also mess with your prefrontal cortex, making you act more based on your instincts and emotions, also as making them get a higher influence in your thoughts. As you can see, this collateral effect is the one that is mostly affecting you by now, and it’s been just some days that you first used Berserker."
Casper felt his heart throbbing once he heard that.
’I can get addicted to this thing!? And only after one use? That’s nearly worst than any other drug that I saw before!’
"The berserker’s curse gets worse and worse since it begins to change the way your brain reacts to things. Soon, you become just an animal incapable to do anything else other than fight or inject this drug on you. You will get addicted to adrenaline and the excitement of fighting a strong enemy. Also, eventually, your body will feel the effects of the damage you get in battle, since you begin to prevent yourself from dodging attacks in order to feel pain.
"The final stage is when your neural system starts to degenerate until it stops completely to work."
The tent fell in silence after MMA finished his explanation. Casper had a grim expression on his face, he was clenching his fists tightly in frustration.
"I just used one time, anyway. I can overcome this."
"No, you can’t," Freygar spoke. He seemed to be saying that by experience. "Once you use it for the first time, it’s a struggle to stop. Believe in me."
"You already used it before?" Casper asked, getting agitated. He prayed for Freygar’s statement to be based on nothing at all.
"No. But Ivar used it for several months. That’s why he is this addicted to fighting nowadays. It’s a sequel from his days of addiction in Berserker. He needed to use it in order to endure the pain of the process to make him the super soldier that he is today. If he is so strong, that’s because he made a huge sacrifice in the past."
The soldier fell silent. He didn’t have anything to say now. His arguments were all destroyed. If even that stubborn Ivar had a hard time dealing with it, he wouldn’t be the one doing this alone.
"Is there any method of treatment?" He turned to MMA with hope in his eyes.
Anyway, that hope wouldn’t last too long.
"No. There is no existent treatment for a Berserker addicted. Some Ridires retired decades ago and are still struggling against it." He stated.
The other Aesirs looked at Casper with pity. MMA remained nonchalant until now.
"However, we can’t say that the same applies entirely to Casper, right?" Rurik argued, stroking his chin. "After all, he was still under the effects of Berserker when he appeared here, and he was dealing with its effects quite well."
"I need to admit that Casper seemed to be fighting consciously while on the palace. It makes things a bit confusing." Canute added.
Casper felt an idea popping up in his mind once he heard that.
"Yanke... Maybe that little robot can help me with this..." He muttered while a gleam of excitement appeared in his eyes. No one could know what he was muttering, and they didn’t pursue the matter as well.
"If what they said is true, then it is possible that you can cure yourself, or maybe you may be immune to the effects of the drug. Whatever is the technique you used, you can find your answer on it."
Casper nodded to MMA, feeling that his case wasn’t lost already. However, he had the impression that it wouldn’t be as easy as it seemed. He would need to talk further with Yanke about it, anyway. The little robot was busy coming back from the base of the Frelsis.
