prismatica | fourth ☕✨ text (AMA! un: mercy)

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fourth ☕✨ text (AMA! un: mercy)

Hello, Lunatia! I hope this finds you all well. I'm Dr. Angela Ziegler, if we've yet to have the pleasure. The doctor who owns the Second Nature (Free) Clinic on the beach in level 2.

I have seen a lot of new faces of late and quite the number of questioning entries, as well as some other Q&As, so I thought that I would offer one a little more... medically professional? And from someone who has been here for a year, now.

I'm sure it is quite disorienting here at times and I would like to offer some peace of mind and an open venue to ask anything you'd like, whether it's about this place or its changes, pre-existing medical concerns, how to administer a massage for a partner, what goes into cybernetics, creating a swedish torch as the weather warms up for hiking, or even simply just coffee shop recommendations. Everyone is welcome to try me.

If even posting anonymously is a bit too much, you are free to contact me privately as well.

( ooc: "trauma surgeon, combat medic, former CMO of a peacekeeping organization, prosthetics/cybernetics specialist, and coffee aficionado, AMA!" time! why is blizzard like this she's so much... please feel free to private lock replies to assume messaging her on the side, remember your content warnings in subject titles for Risky Business topics, ask others' permission before threadjacking, and go wild! )

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That's good, then. I don't like to scold people the first time I meet them. And right this way.

( She tips her head for him to follow, and the same traits of the lobby continue back— warm lighting, comfortable leather furniture easy to wipe down, all done in ivories and golds and wood accents. There are throw blankets anywhere one could sit in soft knits, and it's clearly a space made to be comfortable to anyone walking through the door.

The exam table in the center of the exam room she leads him to is leather, as well, but also a massage table it the top end is anything to go by. Everything does double duty in such a small clinic. )

Wherever you're comfortable. Can you tell me where you were experiencing pain?

[It was certainly a very nice clinic, and efficient too as he picked up on the ease it would take to clean leather, and like any clinic it helped make people feel at ease unless they were in out right pain.

The trend continued to the exam room where he sits on the exam table just in case she asked him to lie down or something to examine him.]

Right at my shoulder blades. It doesn't hurt when I do normal every day things, but when I try to practice or train certain movements cause discomfort. More complicated movements do cause some pain.

( Got it in one— or two, or three, really, nailing the thought process behind various aspects of the decor and recognizing it for what it was. She gestures for him to sit and he does just so, and already he seems like a model patient. She appreciates it, truly. )

Will you mind taking your shirt off? So I can have a look and you can show me what range of motion starts to hurt. There are a few smaller muscles atop the scapula, and a stretch of larger ones between the edge and your spine, so I'll need to narrow it down a little.

( She gestures with her hands as she explains, one flattening near her own shoulder of the opposite side, fingers fanning outward to demonstrate their direction. )

Okay.

[ He removes his coat, folding it neatly before reaching for the hem of his shirt. He lifts a little bit and stops, eyes wide open then brows furrowing making him look like he's troubled by something. It doesn't last long though and he just shrugs and removes the article of clothing.

His physique is what you might expect of a soldier, lean, solid and well defined muscles. There are various scars all over but most have faded from age however on his lower back are ten scars that look like entrance wounds of a gun, five scars on either side. They're faded but still very noticeable and each roughly an inch in diameter, arranged in a strange pattern with four of them equidistant from one another with one off to the side a top his lower ribs. If you stare long enough, it starts to look like a pair of hands grabbing from the front and digging their fingers into him.

He says nothing about the scars, his earlier pause must have been indication of that, and he starts to do as she instructed. He raised one arm until his elbow was about parallel with his ear and he stops. ]

About here, it gets a little uncomfortable. Then-

[ He raises his arm further until its above his head and twitches just a bit. ]

Here where it hurts. It's not very painful, but enough to cause me some pause.

( Angela takes his coat as he folds it to set aside, then watches as he pauses in going to remove his shirt— she waits patiently, head tipping in visible curiosity and brows pinching just slightly in a touch of concern. Was it already paining him...? No, it wasn't that. Once she takes his shirt from him to fold and set atop his coat, she realizes what the likely cause had been for his hesitance. He has the build of a soldier, yes, lean and functional— but he has quite a lot of scars to show for it, as well.

Her eyes don't linger on anything in particular, mostly keeping his gaze until she's moving to sanitize her hands, then coming up behind him. The pitted round scars at his back are particularly strange, measured and mirrored... Ah, but he's moving, so she speaks gently as she offers some forewarning of her touch. )

I'm going to place my hands against your back; just a warning since my hands are often a bit cold.

( Fond and teasing, then flattening cool palms to his shoulderblades to feel the muscle as he moves, attentive. She can feel how his body tenses as the pain sensors relay his limits, then further still— ah. There it is, a split moment before he speaks again. She felt the strain nearly quivering. The body's natural response to fighting pain, trying to tell him to slow down. )

Thank you for that, Bishop. It seems the strain was mostly the muscle stretching from the spine to the scapula, right in here. ( Her fingertips are gentle where they "sketch" in the general area on his skin, both index fingers squiggling down from top to bottom of the edges of his shoulderblades, in toward his vertebrae. ) Probably from the strain you'd explained. It limits your motions a bit more than the other muscles would be.

It seems like it could be a deeper tear since it feels quite warm to the touch, here; your body is still trying to heal, though if there was any inflammation it is mostly abated now. Have you tried taking any anti-inflammatories? Pain relief medication?

[ The cool sensation of her hands don't bother him and thankful she didn't say or make any kind of reaction to his mirror matched scars. Verbally at least.

The memory associated with it wasn't pleasant, although each scar he earned doesn't exactly have good memories as well, but those were particularly strained for him. He could still feel the pain if he thought of it, the taste of blood on his tongue if he spoke of it, and most especially the grim cold in his chest as he and his allies fought to stay alive.

He mentally follows her hand as he examines and doesn't comment how her hand feels like a small relief on his back, but it shows with how his shoulder relax a bit. ]

No I haven't. I haven't really tried any of the pharmaceutical drugs here since I came here. I was worried that they might have an adverse effect on me but, if you think I should then I will.

( She's tactful and matter-of-fact if the situation ever arose where she'd need to ask. Right now she doesn't; she can see that they're older, and they're far from the sight of his current grief, so they shouldn't be playing a part in his pain. But she notices the line of his shoulders easing as he settles his arms comfortably at his sides again and her touch smooths along his skin, so she continues her idle attentions with slow swirls and the careful ease of the heels of her hands into muscle, starting him off easy.

If she moves into a massage she's like to ease further down toward those strange scars— if he feels they're worth speaking of, she'd gladly listen, but she'll be content not to pry. )

That's quite all right; I only asked to see if it had done any good for you. Do you often experience ill effects from any medications taken? These will only help with the swelling and minor pain relief, so they shouldn't do much else to you. They're incredibly mild so long as you follow proper dosages.

( She won't force them on him; since it already feels a little inflamed, she's gathering up an ice pack to crunch and activate, then wrapping it in a thin towel to press to the affected area. This will be a start and it will do far more than the anti-inflammatories will. She can give him those to try and be sure he doesn't have a bad reaction to them before she'd likely send him off with a week's worth. )

I've never had a problem with medicine, although I'd like to avoid any that dull the mind. I was given some morphine when I got those.

[ He raises his hand and gestures with his thumb loosely towards the ten scars. ]

I didn't particularly enjoy feeling like I was orbiting Jupiter and talking to Santa's reindeer.

[ He might as well be a little forthcoming with his medical history. She is a doctor, and she can't treat him. He'll just be careful with what he reveals. If she asked that is. ]

Will you be putting me on some meds?

( The emphasis on his words makes it clear what he refers to; as it is, her fingertips trail down his spine to test for tautness, easing closer to them in acknowledgement of his words before smoothing back up and easing pressure into the muscles framing his shoulders and upper back again. )

It must have been quite severe at the time; I'm sorry to hear of it. ( They look as if they'd been deep; they're such strange injuries, though, she doesn't quite know what to make of them. ) Did they have any state secrets to give up? Santa's reindeer. But no, these won't dull the mind. They're very simple medications. The only side effects they have are only if you take far too many of them and processing the chemical structures grows to be a strain on your kidneys. But taking 6-8 per day, as needed, for a week or two won't cause you any harm at all. You don't have to take them, but I'll give you some if you get any particular flare-ups and can't make it in. They're not required.

How is this feeling?

( The massage, which she's eased into a deep-tissue amount of pressure as she goes, slow in her progress. Right now, it's slender fingers curled over his shoulders and easing along the trapezius with rhythmic kneading as her thumbs work along the stretch of muscle between spine and scapulae. )

Santa preferred it if people left coffee to be left along with the milk and cookies.

[ Kidding aside he memorizes the amount of times he needs to take the medication to get better. ]

That's quite a lot. I take it their just small doses then?

[ Medicine in his world has improved by a lot to the point taking something once every three or two days was the norm, though he still vaguely remembers the old days before magic. ]

That helps.

[ He says with a particular tone, like he's trying to suppress a sigh, yawn, or a moan. The massage is working quite well, he can feel the affected muscles already loosening and some relief in his back. ]

Hmm, that certainly makes sense. Keeps him going and keeps him warm.

( She grins for the tease, not that he can see it— perhaps he'll pick up on it in her tone. As for the medicine, she doesn't miss a beat as she elaborates, fingertips sinking into the affected area. )

You usually take two at a time, but yes; they're only about 300 milligrams each. So, a couple of times a day. Their effects wear off after six hours or so. Just enough relief to keep you from changing how you go about your typical day, so you don't over-correct and injure something else while you're healing. You do still have to take it easy.

And good; I'm glad to hear it. You sound about ready to fall asleep. ( Usually a good sign, as far as relaxation and relief went. No one sleeps well when they're in pain. ) Did you want to lie down?

I am getting a little drowsy.

[ He's also still a little apprehensive. He's not fond of people touching his body which is why he never usually gets massages, even though hers feels quite nice, but the feeling still exists as a nagging thought. ]

Hmmm...would this take a while to do? I don't want to take up too much of your time.

[ As polite as that sounds, he forgets she's a doctor and that taking time with patients is a part of the job. Someone's clearly gotten too accustomed to quick patch-up treatments rather than thorough ones. ]

( The apprehension is clear to a trained ear, but she seems to be helping and he is still relaxed, though his question only has her stifling a little laugh in response. )

You don't need to worry about my time, honest. It's nice to have patients for a change. I like to help people. I didn't have anyone else coming in today that I'm aware of, and if I really wanted to, I could do this for hours.

But if you just want to rest without the trek back home rousing you from this drowsiness, you're welcome to sleep for a few hours too. If this is getting uncomfortable or starting to ache then I can stop.

( It's his call. She can get him a blanket to cover him up and he can lay down on the exam table he's already on, dim the lights, and let him sleep uninterrupted until she needs to leave. )

[ How does he say 'I live on the park bench right now'? Maybe he shouldn't. The offer to have a few hours of peaceful sleep however, was very hard to turn down especially with how relaxing it feels. ]

No, no, this is good.

[ Very good in fact. He understands why people get massages now. He's quiet for a couple of minutes mulling it over and eventually gives in to the natural state his body is falling into as he yawns. ]

Okay, maybe I will take your offer. A couple hours of rest would do me well.

( He would very quickly move from living on a park bench to living on her apartment's sofa (or really, just, in her apartment) seeing as she never uses it anymore. She has a home in level 1 but keeps the apartment for exactly such cases, or the occasional meet-up with people that don't like or can't afford the time to travel to another level entirely.

But he gives into the offer all the same, and she eases up on the massage just long enough to spread a blanket out over the leather table and gesture for him to lay on his stomach, arm offered to him to stabilize himself. )

Yes, I imagine it would. And I'll keeping working at this shoulder of yours. Come lie down.

Thank you.

[ Those sound nice, too bad he's tight lipped and stubborn about his private life. At least he's polite and cooperative as a patient, but now that he's resting and the ache isn't white noise in his mind his curiosity starts to poke it's head out. ]

"Ziegler". Angela, I hope you don't mind me asking but, you wouldn't happen to be from...Earth, would you? Say somewhere from...central Europe? Austria, Germany...all that?

Of course.

( She'll set back to him as he stretches out on the table, covering him with another blanket up to his waist so she can still smooth her hand along his back, soothing.

—Ah, what a question. He knew it by name by not by her accent, hmm? Interesting. )

I don't mind at all; you're correct. I take it you're not...? From "Earth" as I know it. My country borders on Germany so the naming structures and base of my language and accent are Germanic.

[ He could've taken a guess but, certain countries are on the verge of annihilation in his world and it was a sensitive thing to bring up. The way he asked was the....softer way of doing it. ]

Chances are no, I'm not from your "Earth". It's kinda strange to be talking about multiple versions of Earth, isn't it?

[ At least for him it is. He's used the line "in another life" when he used to think or speak about life, so now for all he knows there is another version of him with different life than what he's living now. ]

( It is indeed softer; she's none the wiser to imminent country destruction, and were she aware, she'd appreciate the gentleness he approaches it with. No one would want to hear of their place of birth, childhood, and home being destroyed. )

It is a little, I suppose, but I've been here for over a year now; I'm a little accustomed to people being from different worlds or times. It was the year 2076 where I'm from. No one had any sort of magic abilities such as those here. A bit of genetic modification after an extreme world war, for enhanced strength and a bit of speed, but nothing outlandish.

( Except for the talking gorillas on the moon, of course. Yikes. But for now, he settles on the exam table and she'll perch on the edge beside his hip, adding a little more contact for another dose of chroma. )

Genetic modification, huh? No kidding.

[ Also 2076? God he hopes he lives that long. ]

We had something like that too, enhanced physical capabilities, though it was temporary unless you had a prosthetic.

[ Because a person with a metal arm with the force of a jack hammer behind each punch and a shoulder mounted gun was pretty hard to stop compared to a solider who was enchanted with a spell. ]

Actually you said you did cybernetics too, is that in relation to prosthetic limbs by any chance?

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fourth ☕✨ text (AMA! un: mercy)

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