Ubi Mors Gaudet Succurrere Vitae
Written for the Anthropomorphosis Challenge, which was to write a short story told from the point of view of an inanimate object or place associated with NCIS and its human characters. I'm sure no one will be surprised at the one I chose ;)
Disclaimer: Still don't own any of the recognizable characters, or places, or places that are characters.
XXX
Autopsy: from the Greek word autopsia, meaning "to see for oneself". The practice of autopsy, also referred to in more modern times as 'post-mortem', is an examination of a body that takes place after death. It is an invasive, impersonal procedure, but a necessary one.
It is, interestingly enough, also the name for the facility in which such examinations are conducted.
Places like me.
A single room or a suite of rooms, normally hidden away in the nether regions of the buildings that house us. Within our walls, coroners or medical examiners and their assistants perform their duties. We may be found in hospitals, where the examinations are carried out with consent of the next of kin, or, more often, we are found associated with law enforcement agencies. Like NCIS, the Naval Criminal Investigative Service at the Navy Yard in Washington, D.C.
My home.
I have been witness to many things over the years, and not just the routine post-mortem, although at NCIS very little is "routine". Yes, there are the ubiquitous murder victims, unfortunate members of the Navy and Marines branches of the armed services, as well as suicides and those who happened to be in the wrong place at the wrong time. There have, however, been many cases which border on bizarre.
For example, dismemberments: bodies which have been torn asunder by various means, either by mechanical means, such as a bomb, or by the killers themselves. One such case was the "Meat Puzzle", an assortment of body parts found in a barrel which confounded the current M.E. for months. It never ceases to amaze me the things humans will do to each other…
But I digress. That was just one of many strange cases that have passed through my doors, each with its own extraordinary story. Those who say that dead men tell no tales obviously haven't spent much time in Autopsy. The Dead have plenty of tales to tell, it just takes someone to listen. And here, the one who listens best has plenty of his own tales to tell. This human's stories are a constant source of amusement, let me tell you. Then again, my sense of humor might be just a bit odd. Comes with the territory, I suppose.
Where was I? Oh yes, strange cases. NCIS has their fair share, to be sure, and most which bring bodies to me are investigated by the MCRT, the Major Case Response Team. They are a motley bunch, to be sure, and all pay me a visit on a regular basis, the leader in particular. He has even spent the night here, asleep on one of my cold tables.
And people think the M.E.'s assistant is odd.
Now, these bodies brought in by the MCRT are from poor souls who have suffered almost every imaginable insult: bullets, knives, poison, suffocation (with latex, of all things), blunt force trauma, and the like. And yet, no matter the cause, all have been subjected to having their secrets revealed, some more dastardly than others. I've seen it all. My existence is never a dull one, that is for certain.
I don't mean to insinuate that all I do is act as a charnel house, now. I've served other uses as well. I've been used as a meeting place, a safe place where those who are working to help a teammate wouldn't be overheard. I've been a sanctuary of sorts to those who needed to get away, or to those who have needed to come to terms with the death of a fellow teammate. I have, to my great embarrassment, been a meeting place for lovers and their all too frequent trysts.
And no, I didn't watch. Give me some credit.
My main purpose, though, has been to serve as a place where information is obtained, information that helps solve cases, or helps bring closure. Even though I am, and will always be associated with death, I am still quite useful, if I do say so myself. Really now, what would they do without me?
So that's my story, or just a small part of it, but one last thing, if I may. There is a phrase which is often associated with places like me, and is in fact displayed at least one famous medical examiner's office. It really sums me up quite well.
Taceant colloquia. Effugiat risus. Hic locus est ubi mors gaudet succurrere vitae
(Let idle talk be silenced. Let laughter be banished. Here is the place where Death delights to help the living.).
It is a noble task, to help the living. I am proud to proclaim that it is one which I have always, and will continue to host, as long as my walls are still standing.
The End