RE: Journal of Sociology [S!6] - [Round Two: Ryburg Ritz]
03-05-2014, 08:47 PM
(This post was last modified: 03-05-2014, 09:23 PM by Palamedes.)
"We have another one doctor!"
A body is wheeled through a set of double doors, into what is clearly the most makeshift of surgery rooms imaginable. Smoke fills the entire floor, loose curtains hang from hooks and wires to make up for the lack of any wall, and generators feed countless cords into various machines, the vast majority of which are half-broken, or even built from scratch, all held together with naught but duct tape and dreams. The table itself was no more than that - an actual table, wide enough for two bodies but not long enough to stop the legs from dangling down. The plan was to have the middle cut out and use the extra wood to lengthen it, but free time had been short and it had taken too long to find a table that didn't wobble constantly. Finally, at the head of the table and shrouded in fog was the form of Alberich von Wissenschaft, who at the sound of the shout and slammed doors slowly turns around.
"Ah, what is it this time Laura?" He slowly shambles towards the body.
The young woman looks over the notepad attached to the stretcher, or as reality liked to call it, a board on wheels. "Burning, from a fire sir. Most of her body's covered in, uh... first degree-"
"Second," Alberich corrects, now close enough to the body to take a proper look. "Remember, first degree is minor, dry, and red without blistering. Where are the Jackson boys?"
"Right, right, yes sir, and they're currently-" Laura was a reasonably intelligent girl, though lacking in any sort of proper training. Alberich supposed he couldn't have expected much better, given the situation of this world over that of the Pacific Spire's, but it was good to see that there was still enough people with brains around to help him accomplish his tasks. Speaking of brains...
Alberich growls, ever so slightly, and Laura quickly backs away. Alberich quickly composes himself and takes a step back as well.
"Sorry my dear, perhaps it'd be best to not waste time fetching them, get this done as quickly as possible. Fetch the salve?"
As Laura ducks behind one of the curtains, Alberich quickly paces back and forth. Elise's salve had continued to work wonders on his control, and the mixture for the smog that Heisenberg had come up with helped addle John even more into passivity, but the hunger was still a terrible thing, and unavoidable. Regardless, it was still more than he could have ever hoped for before he was dragged into this madness.
It had also taught him a powerful lesson, one he hadn't considered even before his tremendous failure that had turned him into the monster he was, back when he was a man of immeasurable fame and funding. He had learned, quite simply, the value of gaining allies, especially in a hostile worlds such as the ones he had found himself in so far. In the Pacific Spire, it was only thanks to the impromptu friends he found that he survived his encounter with Blake and Elise, and while the peons here were certainly less capable and well-armed than Lord Bradley's, there was something to be said for their own brand of ingenuity and loyalty. A doctor of capable skill and knowledge, never mind one as talented as him, was a hard thing to find apparently, and his talents were much appreciated by the locals - while the few hostile goons that had come to try and forcibly acquire him for their personal use failed to be much more than angry nourishment. In addition, his workspace, while very much rundown and lacking in the best staff and equipment, did its level best to make up for it by lacking the one problem his lab at the Spire did: size. Though he supposed that it had more to do with it being a two-story warehouse than his Spire office being an overglorified walk in closet.
He also still had Sir Bradley and the Spire as allies, thankfully. While the device he had with him meant that he could only communicate with Heisenberg, even that was a huge boon as their access to top of the line technology and research allowed him to work modern miracles with the garbage he had. They also had access to his blood, and thanks to his relationship with the company's leader and placement in an alternate universe curing his condition was made almost as large a priority as finding a way to get to him - though progress on both was equally slow.
"Um, doctor? What next?"
Alberich opened his eyes to see Laura washing her hands, and their patient steaming from the application of the burn cream on the man's wounds. Clearly he had once again gotten himself lost in thought, and for longer than he had thought. The time between feedings was growing shorter, slowly but still noticeably. HE supposed there was only one thing to do for it.
"Right," Alberich looks over the patient again. Still dying, though the burns were rapidly healing. "You sure there were no other injuries?"
"Not that we could tell doctor."
"Hm. No breath." Alberich weakly grabs what looks like a souped up version of a barcode scanner, courtesy again of the Pacific Spire. He holds it over the man's heart and nods, dropping the device. "Ready the defibrillator, and make sure you get that fixed after."
Laura nods and grabs another slipshod device, pulling two wires out of it and looking at Alberich.
"Now."
The patient jumps as electricity surges through him. Seconds pass, when suddenly the man starts coughing and shouting gibberish.
"Calm down sir, you were merely dying. It's no longer an issue." Alberich waves to Laura, who begins wheeling the patient back out. He stumbles behind them, half-against his will. As the doors to the warehouse open, a crowd of people can be seen, all quiet until they see the living man being wheeled out. Immediately, a soot-stained family in the front cries out in joy, running forward to see the patient. The remainder of the crowd all either join in the celebrating or nod in approval and awe.
"You've saved him, doctor," the mother of the family cries out, stepping past the man. "His wounds are gone, you've brought him back to life, to us!"
Laura steps between the woman and Alberich. "I'm sorry, you know the doctor doesn't contact anyone directly." The woman nods, takes one last look at him, and then helps the patient get up and walk away. Before the crowd can begin dispersing, Laura closes the doors.
"Another job well done doctor? You've worked another miracle."
"There are no such things, Miss Roberts, I've told you that already."
"Well I don't know about anyone else, but I haven't even heard of anyone but the noble's doctors being able to do anything close to what you can manage."
Alberich sighs. "It's simply the application of advanced knowledge and practice, I am no magician." Though all things considered, people semi-worshiping his 'miracles' certainly was great, if ironic, boon to his efforts. "Has any progress been made on finding the others?"
"As of yet? Not really anything."
Alberich was perturbed. It had already been days since they had arrived in this hellhole, enough time for him to set up this embarrassment of a practice and establish a bit of a following - though it was of course easier for Alberich than it would be most, given that the combination of his own intellect, that of the Spire, and the lack of competition made him seem like some sort of magical healer to the locals. While it was true that many of them were relatively generic looking (or were still unknown to Alberich), it was still surprising that Blacklight, Elise, Jean, or the robot wouldn't have shown up yet. Especially given how quickly things had escalated at the Pacific Spire.
"No mentions of a Miss Blacklight or Miss Pestarztyn either-"
"Doctor Pestarztyn, if you would. Keep our eyes and ears open, they're perhaps the most vital... alive, that is." He would know what science the two women used to calm his lesser half, as in it very likely was the cure to his affliction. "So, no mentions of anything whatsoever?"
"Well... there is a Mister Blake, supposedly. Came out of nowhere a little while ago, and running with some child gang obsessed with taking down the nobility? Kind of a long shot, it's a pretty common name, and from your description he doesn't sound like the sort to stand out."
"He fits the profile though correct? Showed up out of nowhere, during or after the time I did? I doubt a child gang adopts an adult for no reason. Have some of our people look into it, especially if-"
Suddenly Alberich begins coughing, and lunges towards Laura. With a practiced grace she sidesteps him again.
"Ah, sorry Miss Roberts, it's becoming time again."
The woman shakes her head. "Don't worry about it doctor. We have another patient, waiting upstairs on your attentions. Lost her left arm and leg below the knee, still alive but won't survive much longer... we put her up in the dining room, as always."
"Ah, you are most kind. I'll taking care of it immediately."
With that, Alberich slowly ascends the stairs to the second floor. The second patient was exactly as wounded as promised. She didn't even scream.
A body is wheeled through a set of double doors, into what is clearly the most makeshift of surgery rooms imaginable. Smoke fills the entire floor, loose curtains hang from hooks and wires to make up for the lack of any wall, and generators feed countless cords into various machines, the vast majority of which are half-broken, or even built from scratch, all held together with naught but duct tape and dreams. The table itself was no more than that - an actual table, wide enough for two bodies but not long enough to stop the legs from dangling down. The plan was to have the middle cut out and use the extra wood to lengthen it, but free time had been short and it had taken too long to find a table that didn't wobble constantly. Finally, at the head of the table and shrouded in fog was the form of Alberich von Wissenschaft, who at the sound of the shout and slammed doors slowly turns around.
"Ah, what is it this time Laura?" He slowly shambles towards the body.
The young woman looks over the notepad attached to the stretcher, or as reality liked to call it, a board on wheels. "Burning, from a fire sir. Most of her body's covered in, uh... first degree-"
"Second," Alberich corrects, now close enough to the body to take a proper look. "Remember, first degree is minor, dry, and red without blistering. Where are the Jackson boys?"
"Right, right, yes sir, and they're currently-" Laura was a reasonably intelligent girl, though lacking in any sort of proper training. Alberich supposed he couldn't have expected much better, given the situation of this world over that of the Pacific Spire's, but it was good to see that there was still enough people with brains around to help him accomplish his tasks. Speaking of brains...
Alberich growls, ever so slightly, and Laura quickly backs away. Alberich quickly composes himself and takes a step back as well.
"Sorry my dear, perhaps it'd be best to not waste time fetching them, get this done as quickly as possible. Fetch the salve?"
As Laura ducks behind one of the curtains, Alberich quickly paces back and forth. Elise's salve had continued to work wonders on his control, and the mixture for the smog that Heisenberg had come up with helped addle John even more into passivity, but the hunger was still a terrible thing, and unavoidable. Regardless, it was still more than he could have ever hoped for before he was dragged into this madness.
It had also taught him a powerful lesson, one he hadn't considered even before his tremendous failure that had turned him into the monster he was, back when he was a man of immeasurable fame and funding. He had learned, quite simply, the value of gaining allies, especially in a hostile worlds such as the ones he had found himself in so far. In the Pacific Spire, it was only thanks to the impromptu friends he found that he survived his encounter with Blake and Elise, and while the peons here were certainly less capable and well-armed than Lord Bradley's, there was something to be said for their own brand of ingenuity and loyalty. A doctor of capable skill and knowledge, never mind one as talented as him, was a hard thing to find apparently, and his talents were much appreciated by the locals - while the few hostile goons that had come to try and forcibly acquire him for their personal use failed to be much more than angry nourishment. In addition, his workspace, while very much rundown and lacking in the best staff and equipment, did its level best to make up for it by lacking the one problem his lab at the Spire did: size. Though he supposed that it had more to do with it being a two-story warehouse than his Spire office being an overglorified walk in closet.
He also still had Sir Bradley and the Spire as allies, thankfully. While the device he had with him meant that he could only communicate with Heisenberg, even that was a huge boon as their access to top of the line technology and research allowed him to work modern miracles with the garbage he had. They also had access to his blood, and thanks to his relationship with the company's leader and placement in an alternate universe curing his condition was made almost as large a priority as finding a way to get to him - though progress on both was equally slow.
"Um, doctor? What next?"
Alberich opened his eyes to see Laura washing her hands, and their patient steaming from the application of the burn cream on the man's wounds. Clearly he had once again gotten himself lost in thought, and for longer than he had thought. The time between feedings was growing shorter, slowly but still noticeably. HE supposed there was only one thing to do for it.
"Right," Alberich looks over the patient again. Still dying, though the burns were rapidly healing. "You sure there were no other injuries?"
"Not that we could tell doctor."
"Hm. No breath." Alberich weakly grabs what looks like a souped up version of a barcode scanner, courtesy again of the Pacific Spire. He holds it over the man's heart and nods, dropping the device. "Ready the defibrillator, and make sure you get that fixed after."
Laura nods and grabs another slipshod device, pulling two wires out of it and looking at Alberich.
"Now."
The patient jumps as electricity surges through him. Seconds pass, when suddenly the man starts coughing and shouting gibberish.
"Calm down sir, you were merely dying. It's no longer an issue." Alberich waves to Laura, who begins wheeling the patient back out. He stumbles behind them, half-against his will. As the doors to the warehouse open, a crowd of people can be seen, all quiet until they see the living man being wheeled out. Immediately, a soot-stained family in the front cries out in joy, running forward to see the patient. The remainder of the crowd all either join in the celebrating or nod in approval and awe.
"You've saved him, doctor," the mother of the family cries out, stepping past the man. "His wounds are gone, you've brought him back to life, to us!"
Laura steps between the woman and Alberich. "I'm sorry, you know the doctor doesn't contact anyone directly." The woman nods, takes one last look at him, and then helps the patient get up and walk away. Before the crowd can begin dispersing, Laura closes the doors.
"Another job well done doctor? You've worked another miracle."
"There are no such things, Miss Roberts, I've told you that already."
"Well I don't know about anyone else, but I haven't even heard of anyone but the noble's doctors being able to do anything close to what you can manage."
Alberich sighs. "It's simply the application of advanced knowledge and practice, I am no magician." Though all things considered, people semi-worshiping his 'miracles' certainly was great, if ironic, boon to his efforts. "Has any progress been made on finding the others?"
"As of yet? Not really anything."
Alberich was perturbed. It had already been days since they had arrived in this hellhole, enough time for him to set up this embarrassment of a practice and establish a bit of a following - though it was of course easier for Alberich than it would be most, given that the combination of his own intellect, that of the Spire, and the lack of competition made him seem like some sort of magical healer to the locals. While it was true that many of them were relatively generic looking (or were still unknown to Alberich), it was still surprising that Blacklight, Elise, Jean, or the robot wouldn't have shown up yet. Especially given how quickly things had escalated at the Pacific Spire.
"No mentions of a Miss Blacklight or Miss Pestarztyn either-"
"Doctor Pestarztyn, if you would. Keep our eyes and ears open, they're perhaps the most vital... alive, that is." He would know what science the two women used to calm his lesser half, as in it very likely was the cure to his affliction. "So, no mentions of anything whatsoever?"
"Well... there is a Mister Blake, supposedly. Came out of nowhere a little while ago, and running with some child gang obsessed with taking down the nobility? Kind of a long shot, it's a pretty common name, and from your description he doesn't sound like the sort to stand out."
"He fits the profile though correct? Showed up out of nowhere, during or after the time I did? I doubt a child gang adopts an adult for no reason. Have some of our people look into it, especially if-"
Suddenly Alberich begins coughing, and lunges towards Laura. With a practiced grace she sidesteps him again.
"Ah, sorry Miss Roberts, it's becoming time again."
The woman shakes her head. "Don't worry about it doctor. We have another patient, waiting upstairs on your attentions. Lost her left arm and leg below the knee, still alive but won't survive much longer... we put her up in the dining room, as always."
"Ah, you are most kind. I'll taking care of it immediately."
With that, Alberich slowly ascends the stairs to the second floor. The second patient was exactly as wounded as promised. She didn't even scream.