Maku
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Post by Maku on Nov 1, 2009 3:04:14 GMT -6
Maku couldn't help but groan with as the APC shook. The rocking of the vehicle hadn't been so bad at first, but as he'd continued to bleed, he'd begun to grow weaker, and was now having trouble keeping his arm from bumping against the back of the bench. With every lurch of the vehicle, he'd rock back, and the rebar still lodged in his bicep was shoved through a little more.
When he felt the APC finally slow to a stop, he managed a weak smile, which faded with the color in his face just before the hatch was opened. They'd reached the hospital, yes, but now it seemed there was a bit of a question as to whether they'd reached it in time.
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Darzul
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Post by Darzul on Nov 1, 2009 3:47:57 GMT -6
Darzul looked down at Maku. He was very pale, and his bleeding had slowed. If he had looked healthier, the slower bleeding rate would be a good thing; given his sickly shade and the number of lacerations, this was a very bad thing.
“Lift that bench, men! Use it as a stretcher! Double-time it!” Darzul barked. The bench opposite Maku immediately cleared, as the soldiers lifted him up and out of the APC. Apek grabbed the bench once it was out of the vehicle, and the men carried Maku into the emergency wing at a brisk jog. Darzul and the others passed four astonished nurses and one upset-looking doctor.
“This man needs emergency medical treatment immediately,” Darzul told the attendant once they reached the proper wing of the hospital.
“Sir, I’m afraid your man will have to wait,” the attendant told him. “There are already three people waiting to be admitted.” She then gestured to the bench filled with people, among them Drixel and an old man almost totally devoid of skin and covered in bandages.
“And they will continue to wait,” Darzul told her. He then grabbed a doctor’s assistant by the arm. “Bring 2 units of whole blood to this man, stat,” he ordered.
“Mr. Vorca,” the attendant interjected, “I’m afraid you don’t have the authority-”
“The fact that we supply half of your painkillers and all of your protection gives me the authority,” Darzul interrupted. “Private Riskan receives treatment now. The angel is immediately after him. I don’t care if a man is in the middle of a heart transplant, if he’s not Vorcan Army he’s about to be put on hold.”
The attendant looked shocked, but grudgingly nodded to the orderlies, who quickly ushered Maku into the emergency room. “You realize you may cost one of these people their lives with this stunt,” she said, staring daggers at Darzul.
“These two saved the city earlier,” he told her. “I assure you, these people already owe their lives to the angel and the private. If one of them has to make good on that debt, so be it.”
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Maku
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Post by Maku on Nov 1, 2009 5:08:21 GMT -6
Maku vaguely remembered being carried into the hospital; by the time Darzul had got him through into the ER, his eyelids felt far too heavy to stay open. Before they could even wheel him into the operating room, even consciousness took too much effort.
What happened next came in flashes. Bright lights, panicked voices, glimpses of sinister-looking tools. In the middle of his foggy recollection, one nightmarish moment stood out clearly from the rest: a sharp pain in his left shoulder, himself bolting upright on the table, only to be forced back down as needle after needle was plunged into his good arm. After that, there was only black.
-- 6 hours later --
When he first opened his eyes, Maku had to squint against the light of the late afternoon sun streaming in through the windows. Thankfully, the nurse in the room at the time was quick on her feet, turning to close the blinds almost before he had time to groan in discomfort. Then she was back, pressing the back of her palm against his forehead as she glanced at the monitors near his bed.
"Can you speak, Mr. Riskan? Don't worry if you can't - you've had quite a few sedatives in the last few hours, and they can take a while to wear off sometimes."
Maku tried to talk, but his voice came out as little more than a whisper. A glass of cool water was pressed into his hand, and with a limb that felt sluggish and weak, he managed a few sips. He cleared his throat and tried again.
"I feel a little weak, but I can talk. My left arm's still numb, though. Do you think that could be from the sedatives?"
The nurse took the glass of water back, setting it aside as he spoke. When he asked about his arm, though, she said nothing, giving him only a sad, sweet smile before checking his IV one more time, and leaving the room.
Maku's brow furrowed in confusion. Had he misspoken? Had they damaged something in his arm worse than he'd managed to do on his own? Why hadn't she answered him?
When he looked down at his arm, however, the answer hit him at once. Where, in the back of his mind, he knew there must be an arm, there was nothing. Only a blank space, a gap where his limb ought to be. The sheets on that side of the bed weren't even wrinkled.
For a long moment, it seemed that time had frozen. The steady beeping of the heart monitor faded into the background, while the harsh flourescent lighting of the hospital room seemed to brighten, giving the stark white sheets an almost supernatural glow. In that long moment, he thought he could almost still see his arm, a shadow in the glowing.
Then the moment ended, and the screaming began.
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Darzul
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Post by Darzul on Nov 1, 2009 21:16:30 GMT -6
Apek sat in the waiting room, his chin in his hands. He looked at the other soldiers, also standing around, looking anxious. They had been waiting on Maku for 6 hours. Drixel had been admitted about 15 minutes after Maku, and thus far there had been no word about the condition of either of them.
He looked at the soldiers in his strike team that had remained, and then at Darzul. He looked back at the team. "Sargeant," he said, looking at a tall woman with short blond hair, "return the APC to the base and resume your assigned duties. Take the strike team and the general with you."
"Belay that, sargeant," Darzul chimed in. His gaze had not strayed from the doorway to the ER since private Riskan had been admitted. Now, after 6 long hours of statuesque vigil, Darzul finally turned and looked at Apek. "Take them back to base, Onnie," he said. "All these men with guns are making the other patients uneasy, anyway. Take everyone back to base, and have them get back into the duty rotation. Then grab an SUV and come back here. Hopefully, we'll recieve word on the condition of private Riskan or the angel by then."
Apek nodded. "Okay," he finally said. "When I come back I'll bring the medals for those two," he added. He then looked toward the strike team. "Okay, back to base," he said. "Move out. Don't forget the bench."
Darzul turned back to the doorway as Apek and the others left. A nurse finally emerged from the doors.
"We had to amputate your private's arm," he said. "His condition has stabilized, bleeding has stopped."
Darzul heard an agonizing scream from the ER, and turned to look at the nurse.
"I want you to listen to me very carefully," he said. "I want you to relieve private Riskan's pain," he said. "And I want you to have doctors Marwen and Albinnom head to the ER, and determine whether nanoreconstruction or bionic replacements is more feasible for replacing the arm." The nurse simply nodded and disappeared behind the door once more, and Darzul returned to his watch.
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Maku
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Post by Maku on Nov 2, 2009 1:50:02 GMT -6
Maku hadn't been screaming long at all before a male nurse rushed in. At the sight of his thrashing, however, the nurse turned around, returning with a number of orderlies who were instructed to hold him down. As the nurse looked at the monitors attached to Maku, he gave a shake of his head before injecting something into Maku's IV drip. Whatever it was, it silenced the screams as soon as they'd begun.
When Maku came to again, his head felt heavy. He could remember screaming, but he honestly couldn't remember why he'd started. When the doctors walked into the room, he stopped worrying about it. Obviously, if he couldn't remember, it must not have been too important.
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Darzul
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Post by Darzul on Nov 2, 2009 2:20:53 GMT -6
"Has the patient calmed down some?" a voice asked from outside the room.
"Yes, doctor," the male nurse said. "He's been sedated."
Two men in lab coats then entered the room, and stood at the foot of Maku's bed.
"Hello, Mr. Riskan," one doctor said, wearing glasses with dark hair. "I am Dr. Ferdynand Marwen, and this is Dr. Priscus Albinnom."
"We were...asked by general Vorca to give you a consultation about the potential restoration of your lost arm," Dr. Albinnom told Maku. "My field of expertise is nanotechnological regeneration," he continued. "It's a process that allows for a group of nanobots to reassemble your arm on the cellular level, creating a perfect biological replica of your arm the way it was before it was damaged."
"My field is bionics," Marwen continued. "I specialize in mechanical biological replacements, more commonly known as bionic implants. We do bones, muscles, even a few organs. The arm can have strength on par with your existing arm, or there is the possibility of enhacements. Physical strength enhancement limits are determined by rigidity of bone structure and resiliency of tendons and other connectice tissue. Some soldiers have chosen to have blades or even firearms built into their implants, but these are usually quite difficult to train your body to use properly."
"We'll have to run some tests to see which is more viable," Albinnom continued, "but in most cases both options are equally effective and it's up to the amputee. Which would you prefer?"
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Maku
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Post by Maku on Nov 2, 2009 2:33:27 GMT -6
Maku listened as well as he could. Some of their words took longer than others to register, but after a long moment, he got the message. Oh, that's right. My arm's gone. That should probably bug me more...oh well...
He took a minute to think it over. One the one hand, the nanotech would completely restore the arm, with no residual pain. Logically, it seemed to be the best choice.
However, on the other hand...as he'd told Captain Apek, he had a lot to answer for. If he let them simply re-grow his arm, it would be as if nothing had happened. As though he hadn't changed at all. The thought alone didn't sit well with him then; he didn't think it would sit much better with a clearer head, either.
"Unless the tests say otherwise, I'd prefer a bionic replacement. Not that I don't like the idea of having my arm good as new, but...well, I've got my reasons, I'll leave it at that."
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Darzul
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Post by Darzul on Nov 2, 2009 2:50:15 GMT -6
Dr. Marwen nodded. "Very well, private," he said, approaching with a pair of forceps. "Usually I would take a blood sample, but considering the amount of blood transfusions you recieved that wouldn't do any good. I'll take a skin sample from the back of your hand," he said. "Given the number of sedatives you're under, I'd be surprised if you feel it."
Marwen then pinched the back of Maku's hand, and with a swift slice, removed a piece of skin about a quarter-inch in diameter. "This shouldn't take long," Marwen said, leaving the room. Albinnom nodded to Maku, then followed Marwen out of the emergency room.
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Maku
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Post by Maku on Nov 2, 2009 2:58:32 GMT -6
Marwen was right - Maku didn't feel a thing. The doctor simply walked over, took his sample, and walked out, the other doctor in tow. A nurse came in and placed a small bandage on the back of his hand, and then Maku was left to himself and his sedative-muddled thoughts.
He hoped the tests showed he'd be alright with a bionic replacement. The thought of having his arm fully restored sent a shiver down his spine for reasons he couldn't immediately figure out. As the thought sunk in, however, he knew why.
The last time he'd had both arms in working order, he'd been a killer, and an unrepentant one at that. Part of him was scared that, if he didn't have some physical reminder of how he'd changed, he'd just go back to those ways. He couldn't - wouldn't let that happen.
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Darzul
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Post by Darzul on Nov 2, 2009 3:24:54 GMT -6
After about 15 minutes of testing and collaboration between himself and Albinnom, Marwen had determined the measurements of what Maku's right arm would have been, and according to the young man's build and age the hospital had access to the proper frame to give him a simplistic bionic arm without greatly affecting his stability with the weight of a metal arm. In short, he was a perfectly acceptable candidate.
Marwen and Albinnom promptly returned to Maku's room, thankful the sedatives hadn't caused him to fall asleep.
"Good news, private Riskan," Marwen said. "We've finished the tests, and you're an acceptable candidate for a bionic implant. We can give you an endoskeletal frame now, it'll take 2 or 3 hours to mount to your shoulder joint, reattach the tendons, muscles and nerves, and teach you basic bionic maintenance."
"I'm using nanotechnology to construct flexible panels to make the arm look more human," Albinnor chimed in. "They'll also make it much more resilient against contamination - and slightly stronger, but the bulk of the arm's strength will come from the frame Dr. Marwen will implant. It'll take a little while to construct the panels, in the time it takes to install the frame I can create panels for your hand and most of your forearm. Installing them will be quick once they're built."
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Maku
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Post by Maku on Nov 2, 2009 3:52:08 GMT -6
Maku listened to the news from the doctors, nodding as they explained what was going to happen. It seemed that, for the amount of work to be done, it would be done fairly quickly.
"Alright. How soon can we start? These sedatives make my head feel...I don't know, foggy. I don't like it."
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Darzul
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Post by Darzul on Nov 2, 2009 4:06:57 GMT -6
"Well," Marwen told him, "since you're already sedated and your condition is stable, all we really have to do is put you under again. The size of your frame is fairly common, so we already have one on hand, and that'll speed things along quite a bit."
Albinnom nodded. "I'll get started on the panels," he said, leaving the room.
"We're gonna move you to surgery now," Marwen told Maku. "We need to open up the emergency room anyway." He then pressed a button on the wall. "We need some attendants in ER 1, move patient to surgery. Dr. Iyov, please report to surgery, and have a size 4 bionic arm delivered to surgery room 5."
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Maku
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Post by Maku on Nov 2, 2009 15:41:54 GMT -6
Maku nodded, the tone in Marwen's voice making it difficult not to be optimistic. He didn't have too much time to reflect on it this time, however. Within moments, he was being moved, and by the time they'd reached the operating room, he was out again.
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Darzul
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Post by Darzul on Nov 3, 2009 0:19:00 GMT -6
"Okay, let's get started," Marwen said as he scrubbed for the operation, Dr. Iyov and the 2 nurses doing the same. They laid out the instruments on the table, brought the bionic arm frame to Maku's side, and began the procedure.
Meanwhile, Dr. Albinnom began entering parameters and measurements into the nanoregrowth apparatus. The machine, used to growing an entire organ or limb, would be able to create enough of the mechanical paneling to cover the arm in a relatively short time, considering all of the controls were included in the frame itself. All Albinnom needed to do was make a hollow metallic surface of microscopic metal plates and the corresponding braces and connective nodes needed to make them function and give them structural stability at least on par, and often far superior, to an organic arm.
----
After 2 hours and 47 minutes of surgery, Marwen nodded and smiled. "Okay," he said. "That should do it. Nurse," he said, looking at one of the nurses who had assisted himself and Dr. Iyov, "head to the nanoregrowth lab and find out Dr. Albinnom's progress on the outer shell."
"Yes, doctor," the nurse said, briskly walking out of the surgery room. A few minutes later she returned along with Dr. Albinnom, who carried a near-perfect replica of Maku's hand, wrist and forearm, save the metallic luster of the materials used. In less than 15 minutes, Albinnom had attached the shell, making Maku's arm from just below the elbow to his fingertips look more like painted flesh than a bionic replacement.
"Okay, bring him around," Marwen said. "Nurse, go bring the general up to speed," he told the nurse who had left to retrieve Albinnom earlier.
"Yes, doctor," she said, heading toward the waiting room.
Darzul sat, still keeping a watchful eye on the door to the emergency room. Apek, having returned hours ago, now paged through an old quarterly magazine. When the nurse walked out of the door, both of their gazes immediately fell on her.
"Excuse me, general Vorca?" the nurse asked timidly. "Dr. Marwen sent me out here to let you know what's happening."
"Private Riskan has been stabilized, and a bionic frame and part of an outer shell have just been implanted," she said. "The entire process took about 9 hours. Drixel, the angel, has made a full recovery from the injuries he sustained. He was in surgery for a little over 3 hours, and has been in a deep sleep ever since."
Darzul nodded. "That's good news," he said, looking at his watch. "Wow, it's already 1845 hours," he said to himself. "Halfay into second watch."
Apek nodded. "Yes, sir," he said. "Oh shit, my shift's half over," he then told Darzul. "Captain Mathias had to cover half my shift."
"It's fine, Onnie," Darzul replied. "Cover half of his tommorow, let him off a little early. For now, let's just stick around and make sure everything's fine with Riskan and the angel, Drixel, I believe she called him?" He looked at the door once more. "Mathias'll keep until you get back."
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Post by drixel on Nov 3, 2009 1:01:28 GMT -6
Drixel's eyes opened looking around he could see the ceiling . sitting up in his bed he looked around the room. placing his hand over his shoulder, seeing that it had recovered. giving it a few rotations all he could feel was a gentle numbness. he knew someone would be in to check on him so he just lied there and tried to relax
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