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#Post#: 2552--------------------------------------------------
Kate's Awakening
DIR By: KateRoseTH
Date: April 1, 2015, 2:29 am
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Time warped as the universe and everything reversed until it
went back to the point where it all began for everyone…before a
certain tyrant took matters into her own hands…and sent their
world into turmoil. Indistinct voices and noises could be heard
as the pitch-black universe recollected itself, erasing
everything and creating a completely new story to take off from
a certain point. Yet, when and where will it take place now?
This particular being could not tell… All she knew was how the
muffled noises were becoming clearer now and the darkness was
fading away as she reentered the world of the existing, to face
the new day…the new world…
…the new Present.
As she dared to open her eyelids, the world pixilated into view
as her vision focused themselves to the blinding light coming
from the white ceiling of some place she did not recognize. Her
mind finally registered itself as she turned her head around,
confused of the new venue. She appeared to be currently laying
down on a thin mattress, tucked in a thin sheet in a relatively
vacant, white room with a bedside window to her left. A bird
twittered on a branch of a thick green tree in her view, but
there was nothing else but some view of a beautiful blue sky. To
her right, she saw a massive machine that twinkled with every
color of light by her bedside. Every so often, a quick but firm
beeping sound emitted from the monstrosity of a contraption,
which only enhanced her curiosity further. What the heck is it
used for…?
Propping herself up with her arms onto a upright sitting
position, Kate groaned as a sharp and throbbing pain in her
lower abdomen made itself known. Wondering what the heck was
going on, the red-orange hedgehog reached down to throw the
blanket off and lift her black shirt a bit to check, revealing a
long, ugly, stitched-up scar running below and to the right of
her bellybutton between her pelvis. Gawking at the swollen,
disgusting red thing, she attempted to reach further to feel it,
but, as she did so, a tug in her right arm prevented her from
completing her task. What now?? Looking down at her arm, the
hedgehog girl could see a gigantic needle thing stuck inside a
vein…connected to a long, thick tube trailing up…and hooked up
to something next to the terrifyingly gargantuan, beeping
machine…
Her eyes widening in fear, she turned on her arm and yelled in
fright as she frantically started yanking at the invading,
penetrating needle, not sure what was going on, what was going
into her arm, and why she was in such a place. Is this a
torturing room or something?! Hearing all the commotion and
screams coming from the room, a serious, grey, feline woman
wearing a white hat with a red cross on it came bursting into
the room with a crash cart, rushing to save whoever’s life might
have been in danger. Seeing her patient trying to yank an IV out
of her arm, instead, she darted over to put an end to it,
holding down the girl’s free arm with one hand as her other
prepared a minor sedative injection to insert into the pain
medication bag hanging next to the gigantic machine. Once she
did so, the girl’s attempts to resist the effects of the
sedative became less futile as she finally laid back down on the
bed, her eyelids lowering a bit as she breathed more calmly and
at a steadier pace.
When the lady was assured the patient was sedated enough to be
reasonable with, she pulled back and swept a loose grey hair out
of her face, her eyes lowered and staring blankly as the two
gazed at one another, studying each other’s features. To Kate,
this grey feline nurse had the white hat with the red cross on
it and a fitting, white coat on with a nametag she couldn’t see
from her angle due to the light reflecting off the gold polish.
She was tall, slender, had a short bob cut, icy blue eyes, and a
long tail that flicked occasionally as their eyes locked on one
another. To the nurse, however, the hedgehog girl was merely
another person they had to keep for the time being, and was only
continuing to make eye contact to please the other. Of course,
neither would realize that they have, in fact, met before in an
alternate timeline before they were erased from each other’s
memories forever…
…but neither one would know that now.
After a brief moment, the feline folded her arms behind her
back, professionally, and spoke, meaning to give an explanation
in her usual, as most would say, deadpan manner. “Forgive me.
You had left me with no choice but to sedate your actions
temporarily. You must be wondering where you are currently at.
My name is Jerma, and I am your temporary nurse here at the
Mobotropolis State Hospital. Seeing as you have no previous
medical records and, therefore, no medical insurance as well, it
was a wonder they even accepted to treat you at all, miss.
You’re very lucky, especially when you were brought here when
you were by your friend, considering you were in such bad shape
from the neurotoxin poison we had to pump out of you while
injecting a special berry balm.” The woman took a brief pause
here as her attention shifted from the girl’s eyes to the
revealed scar on her lower abdomen, flicking her long tail.
“It was actually an experimental procedure to replace your stem
cells with the transplant, but I was able to convince the Board
to permit me such a request to perform it on you, and there
seemed to be no major complications, even now while you’re
awake. When you move around, however, will be the final test to
see… However, after we did the procedure, we discovered a new
problem unseen before…” Peering her expressionless, icy blue
eyes back up into the silent girl’s pale rose ones, she finished
with her blunt, revealing statement.
“…You have asthma.”
There was a long moment of silence as the red-orange hedgehog
patient blinked her wide eyes a couple times in mute shock.
Then, Kate took a gulp of air and cleared her throat before
replying to the appalling news. “But…h-how?? And what do ‘ya
mean by me having this ‘asthma’ thing? I was perfectly fine just
before I was brought here! What changed?! What is this,
anyway??” She sputtered worryingly, thinking that this disease
thing sounded dangerous, considering she did not understand what
it was exactly. Of course, that wasn’t entirely her fault. Back
at her village back in her childhood, there were no hospitals or
medicine created by fancy scientists and doctors. Instead, the
women used to have to deal with illnesses with homemade
concoctions of herbs and fruits. While it was not the best,
everyone was able to manage, including herself, considering she
never had to suffer anything morbidly serious. So, how did
something like this come about?
The nurse lightly pierced her lips, relatively showing no other
outward expression, seeing as she figured she would have to
elaborate with the textbook definition word-for-word (courtesy
of the credible Mayo Clinic). “Asthma is a condition in which
your airways narrow and swell and produce extra mucus. This can
make breathing difficult and trigger coughing, wheezing and
shortness of breath. For some people, asthma is a minor
nuisance. For others, it can be a major problem that interferes
with daily activities and may lead to a life-threatening asthma
attack. Common asthma attack triggers include: pollen, pets,
mold, and dust mites; upper respiratory infections; tobacco
smoke; gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD); inhaling cold or
dry air; and exercise. For many people, asthma symptoms get
worse with a respiratory infection such as a cold. Some people
have asthma flare-ups caused by something in their work
environment. Sometimes, asthma attacks occur with no apparent
cause…”
At the mention of the asthma attack triggers, Kate could feel
her throat being clogged up with tears threatening to come out.
She wanted to ask what she could do to get rid of it, anything
would do! She did not want this to hinder her from doing what
she loved to do, including being outside and doing all kinds of
her daring activities that would require her strength and offer
her exercise. She opened her mouth to respond, but the nurse was
not done explaining by the book, seeming to have read her mind.
“…And before you ask, asthma can't be cured, unfortunately, but
its symptoms can be controlled. Because asthma often changes
over time, it's important that you work with your doctor to
track your signs and symptoms and adjust treatment as needed—IF
you get registered and complete a medical history, PLUS get a
valid ID.” The tall woman smirked at that last remark, knowing
that her not having an ID indicated that the girl was traveling
around and here in Mobotropolis illegally. However, this little
known fact and the notion that the nurse knew did not make any
visible registration in the hedgehog girl’s depressed
expression. Instead, she was still speechless at the
disheartening information suddenly all poured out before her.
Not…c-curable…?
Not receiving an immediate response, Jerma turned away from the
other to rummage something out of her nursing bag that was
sitting on top of the crash cart. Once she had found what she
was looking for, she held up a J-shaped device with a nozzle on
it between her fingers, ready to do some more explaining,
though, this time, for something that will help. “This is an
asthma inhaler. It is a hand-held, portable device that delivers
medication to your lungs whenever you are having trouble
breathing or having a full-on attack by helping open up the air
passageways in your throat and lungs. Here you go…” Kate
followed with her eyes as the nurse placed the inhaler in her
limp hand, and then stared at the device before furrowing her
eyes at it. “So…this “thing” is gonna basically follow me for
the rest of my life as this disorder sets limits to my
fulfilling, free life of adventure forever…?” After a brief
moment, the nurse nodded, curtly. “It would have to be in your
possession for the rest of your life, yes…but it does not have
to limit your lifestyle by much, that is, as long as you don’t
push yourself too much that you go past your limit and provoke
an attack…”
Minutes went by as neither remarked on Jerma’s latest comment
and Kate’s eyes, still fixated on the wretched thing she was
going to have to get comfortable with from now on, began to
water up in angry tears. Was this really how her life was going
to be like from now on? Having to depend on this “thing” like a
crutch or handicap whenever and wherever she goes? Would she
really be able to do whatever she does just as carefree and
lively as before? Not without having to worry whether she would
be able to breathe merely moments later? Say “goodbye” to
climbing the highest of mountains, challenging the hardest treks
in the Jungle Zone, scavenging for the next great ancient
artifact in some old, dusty temple, and basically any other
daring adventures she had made her life and freedom worthwhile
since leaving that blasted village five years ago… Her crazy,
bold adventures were literally her life--at least, what’s left
of it—and now even that was being taken away from her. What
would be left of her now? An empty, useless shell of what once
used to be a girl who had dreamed of something more to this
world than pain, injustice, and suffering…?
It took her a moment to realize her hand was clutching the
inhaler so tightly that she felt the knuckles underneath her
glove turn white. Then, in a fit of anger, she threw the device
across the room where it hit a white wall and bounced off onto
the floor, making the feline nurse twitch a bit at the sudden
brash reaction. Looking at the girl, she noticed her face was
red and shaking as she yelled in outrage. “No! After everything
I’ve been through to gain my freedom from escaping those
bast*rds in my old village, now this happens to me?! I won’t let
this limit my life from doing what I wanna do from now on! I am
strong enough to overcome this! I won’t have it define me!”
Even without hindsight, Jerma did expect the patient to be
furious, especially if she were to consider the fact that this
girl literally lived in the outdoors, or so they were able to
squeeze out of the hedgewolf before he had left. Not only that,
but it actually could have been worse, taking into account what
she had told the girl of how they had discovered the asthma was
actually false… Mentally shaking herself back into focus, she
sighed externally as she walked over there to bend down and
retrieve the inhaler. “Casting your troubles aside won’t make
them go away,” she stated, bluntly, as she reached down for the
device. Standing back up, the slim nurse walked back over in her
white, two-inch high-heels with a steady but faint clicking
noise with every step she took. Once at the patient’s bedside
again, she held the inhaler to her chest as she spoke again with
an oddly softer tone, her eyes losing some of her hardness,
briefly. “I can understand your frustration, but it won’t be
that bad. You will get used to it.” Then, with her hardness
restoring back into her eyes, she added what could be considered
ironically humorous to anyone else but the patient. “…Otherwise,
you might end up somewhere deep in some jungle along suffocating
to death on mere air while no one else is around to hear you
more-or-less silently die.” With that, she then held out the
inhaler to the younger woman, expecting her to take it back.
When all she got was a tear-filled glare in return, the nurse
merely tossed the inhaler onto the other’s exposed abdomen, not
caring anymore—if she ever did in the first place. Turning away
from her patient for the last time, she gave one last word of
information in her usual monotone voice. “As you might have
noticed from you now being able to throw a pricey device around
the room, the minor sedation’s effects are becoming void. You
should have fully recovery of your legs and such soon. Just take
the damn inhaler and come back for a refill when you run out.
Lucky for you, this hospital is rich enough to pay for your
costs for about a year. After that, you would have to register
into our medical insurance, but only after you get a valid
citizen ID card from anywhere you are going to live permanently.
It will be about twenty dollars per visit.” With that, she
pulled the sliding door open and promptly left with her nursing
kit and the crash cart. When she did, she left an anger-filled
patient behind to let out a desperate cry of frustration out as
she banged the wall behind her with her fist, not comprehending
how one day could truly crumble her self-worth as quickly and as
ruthlessly as today.
#Post#: 2553--------------------------------------------------
Re: Kate's Awakening
DIR By: The Corrupt Medical Team
Date: April 1, 2015, 2:35 am
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Outside the patient’s room, Jerma asked a nurse colleague to
fetch a controversial doctor named Dr. Eric Drake to meet with
her in a far-off corner of the hospital where not a lot of
bustling was going on. Once the doctor met with her in the
designated area about twenty minutes later, the first thing
Jerma did was roll up a patient magazine and hit him on the
shoulder with it. “You idiot! After you had messed up during the
operation on that one hedgehog girl, she developed asthma after
meddling with her throat. I told you to NOT touch her throat.
Now our medical licenses might be in jeopardy if she ever
decides to sue us, and they might strip us of our research
funds!” She hissed at him, truly angry at this freak of a rather
tall and handsome man in his long, white lab coat.
Having no previous reaction to the nurse’s outburst before, he
soon slowly began to grin widely in a very psychotic manner
towards his partner in crime. “My, my, Jerma. You should know by
now how I love meddling with the Mobian anatomy…~ Besides, have
you forgotten one little detail? The girl, you have said, did
not have medical insurance or even a valid citizenship ID, might
I add! She could not sue us for something she did not have
during the duration of her time in the hospital. We will still
be funded quite nicely, especially thanks to our favorite evil
doctor~” He leaned forward towards the slim woman, winking with
his same confident demeanor he had that helped develop his
reputation in the whole hospital.
Feeling a bit more relaxed, Jerma returned the knowing but small
smile, folding her arms behind her back and tipping a
high-heeled foot back. “I suppose you are right… I am getting
too worked up for nothing.” Dr. Drake smirked back at her,
wrapping a strong arm around her slender body. “That’s my girl~”
He cooed at her as he pulled her in for a quick but firm peck on
her cheek, both excited for whatever crazy, controversial
project they would soon come up with later to take on…
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