Silhouette

One hour later and the strange pitch-black humanoid was back at the clinic with a friend in tow. Doctor Drake couldn't see much with all of the bandages and the clothes over those, but it appeared her patient would be a regular human or at least something pretty close. Good, their biology and anatomy were among the most universal and understandable ones in sapients, she wouldn't have to worry about only feeling the pulse of a single heart when there should be five or something of the sort.

The duck and drake woman hybrid finished putting on her latex gloves over her scaly hands, with a custom addition of a thicker area around the tips to be sure her claws wouldn't pierce or cut through. She always made sure to keep them smooth, but it was better to be safe than sorry.

"Greetings, I'm doctor Beatrice Drake. I will be taking care of you and will help you to the best of my capacities. May I ask for a name?"

"Uh... Techlord."

"Techlord, then. I need you to describe the way you were hurt with as many details as you can while we go to the examination room. Everything matters. Do you want your companion to come with us?"

The bandaged teen turned to the shadowy one who simply shook his head.

"No, I'll be fine."

"Very well."

She began to walk, her custom palmed white shoes lightly flapping the ground as she walked. She never could get entirely rid of the sound, but she did her best. She discreetly looked over her shoulder to make sure the teen was following her and not running away, as well as to check on the black humanoid, in case he had the funny idea to try and steal anything. It wouldn't be the first time someone tried something of the sort. But... They didn't have that sort of feeling about them. She knew better than to trust something as illogical as instincts, though.

"From what your friend told me, this occurred around a week ago?"

"Uh, yeah. Just to be sure, do you have the whole secrecy thing here too?"

"Yes. Patients need to trust their doctors, especially in these parts."

"I tried to be a vigilante, built a mech, saved a couple of guys from... I think they called those things Patchees?"

"Yes, those... Abominable creatures are named after their maker, The Patcher. Were you hurt at any point in this encounter?"

"No. Well, sometime before that I had been beaten up by some weird guys wearing leather and led by some witch named Rose, but everything had healed by that point."

"No bruises?"

"They had gone away by that point. I was wearing homemade armor. Technological stuff, not plates or anything of the sort."

"Here we are."

She gestured with one of her hands to an open doorway, leading to a small room with a medical bed in the center, covered with thin white sheets.

"No door?"

"There used to be one before a patient felt trapped and needed to go out. It wasn't worth replacing."

"Oh."

He entered and she followed, and she was thankful to see he immediately went to sit on the bed without her prompting him to do so.

"First, I need to know how much of your body has been burned."

"I... I think everything? I'm not sure, it's not like I could see it."

"You didn't feel it?"

"I felt it alright, but not for long. It was so... It was too much. I lost consciousness and by the time I woke up I already got the mummy treatment."

"I need you to remove your clothes. I have to check everything."

"Everything?"

"You may keep your underwear for now, if that's what you're worried about. But everything else has to go."

The teen stayed silent for a few moments before he began to disrobe. Doctor Drake turned around and left him to it, she might have to examine his body once he was done but there was a difference in a patient's perception between being examined and removing their clothes, like the difference between being seen in underwear and swimwear. Besides, as he prepared himself she readied a few tools she might need, as well as some antibiotics and electrolytes fluids.

"So, you said you dealt with the Patchees with your mech. And after that?"

"So, apparently The Patcher had sent someone to get his things back."

"Sunburn, from what your friend told me."

"Yes. He... He offered me a job with the Angels, I refused, and I think he threw some kind of fireball at me? Everything went so fast I was already hurting all over before I realized it and blacked out."

"After that?"

"Some guy saw what happened, dragged me out of the mech, brought me to his home and... Uh... Kinda skinned me?"

What.

"Pardon me?"

"He said the plastic and metal of my armor had melted and got stuck on my skin, so he had to remove it. After that, he bandaged me up. He said he put some anti-burn gel he had bought around here before that though."

"And he did it a week ago?"

"Yes?"

"Then either the term 'skinned' is used too loosely, or you have a high regeneration. The human body is not meant to survive without skin, especially not outside of a clean and controlled environment."

"Oh."

"Are you in pain?"

"A bit? I'm mostly fine, some itches here and there, but overall nothing worse than what a bruise would do."

"Listen, burns are no laughing matter. I haven't seen anything yet, but the fact you haven't felt hurt since the initial burn is bad news."

"Really?"

"If you don't feel pain after getting burned, that means your nerves are damaged, possibly completely destroyed. This is an easy way to identify third-degree burns, which as you may guess are not good."

"I... Oh. I'm done, by the way."

The doctor turned back to him and honestly wasn't surprised. She could already see it from the places that weren't covered by his clothes, but it appeared whoever had done the bandages wasn't a professional. Not only they didn't conform to any established technique, but she could also see they were too tight, and the fact he didn't realize it only furthered her worries.

"Good. Now I must warn you, I will have to take your bandages off. It may hurt, so be prepared and focus on restraining any ability or odd organ you may have from reacting. In your case, pain is good."

"Uh, sure..."

She took out a small ball of cotton and wet it with a blue liquid from one of the flasks she had prepared before she lightly pressed it against the bandages, slowly rubbing it against the white cloth.

"Uh..."

"I'm getting your bandages ready to be removed properly. Simply pulling on it or making incisions could cause damage."

"Ok."

"For future reference, the next time someone gets burned to the same degree as you, bring them here directly. Removing clothing or items stuck on the skin is a delicate procedure, one that must be done in the right conditions. I doubt your savior used a bathtub filled with the correct products."

"Yeah, I don't think he did..."

"You will also need to get any future bandages done here or have your friend learn the right method. Yours are too tight."

"Alright..."

Once she was satisfied Drake began to remove them, carefully lifting and pulling at the white cloth while occasionally taking a look at Techlord's face, to see if he would have any reaction. As she removed more and more bandages, she grew more and more worried. Thankfully she had been correct, the teen hadn't actually been skinned but she could still see where parts of the dermis, the second layer of skin that housed nerves and was normally protected by the epidermis, had been removed, presumably via cuts judging by how clean the marks were around them. Luckily only a small part of the dermis was missing, but knowing its removal had been done hazardously...

Ignoring the matter of the removed skin, the burns were a terrible sight. No fourth-degree burns, nothing that went so far as to the bones or permanently ruin muscle tissue, but that was a meager consolation considering his state. His trunk, arms, and legs were the worst areas, the deep black and red of the burns contrasting with the otherwise light tone of his skin. His face had been mostly spared, his eyebrows were gone but they would grow back, whereas his scalp had been charred. He probably would never have hair again.

Between the areas where the epidermis and some dermis had been removed and those that had been burned, she'd estimate that around sixty percent of the teen's body had been damaged, way over the thirty that many doctors agreed on for things to get likely lethal.

As she began to clean out the dead cells in the burns, she talked once more.

"I need to ask again, was your savior a medical professional or any sort of healer?"

"No, I don't think so. I mean, there is this one rat that got revitalized, but I don't think he used that on me?"

"I will be honest. The fact you are walking around in your condition is a miracle."

"Ah?"

"Do you know when it is recommended for a patient to be sent to a clinic specialized in burns rather than a regular hospital?"

"No."

"When at least ten percent of the body has been burned."

"Oh. And I guess I'm over that?"

"Six times over, I'd say."

"Ah."

"Are you a Cored?"

"I think? I never took a test, but based on my life..."

"Alright, a Cored's improved metabolism explains how you've managed to survive without going to a hospital. That's still not enough to explain the rest, but I'll take what I can. I will request a test from the main city to check what you have, just to be sure. Now, I'm going to administer some balms and ointments to your damaged skin, and then I will inject you with some electrolytes. This should have been done much earlier, as in within the initial hour of the incident, but better late than never. After that you will need a diet high in protein and some fat, to replace everything that has been burned away."

"That's, uh... Kinda hard to do around here."

"I know, but it's what's best for you. Ideally, you should stay here and be under constant surveillance, but I'm guessing you don't want to and frankly, I'm not equipped for a long-term patient. Instead, you will have to come by every couple of days for a check-up and some more care, alright?"

"Uh, sure."

"Last but not least, burns don't magically heal on their own. Even with high regeneration or magic you need something, either your body's resources or some magical energy. The best thing to do would be skin drafts, ideally of your own skin, but considering the state of your body that seems ill-advised. I don't suppose you have any lost twin running around somewhere?"

"No?"

"Too bad. That means we will be limited to temporary skin drafts, and we'll need a willing donor, maybe a few of them considering how much there is to replace. Do you know any large group of persons who would be open to giving away some of their skin? Animals with high compatibility to humans work too, like pigs."

"I... Might know some people. I'll have to ask first."

"Marvellous."

Before long doctor Drake had finished, she bandaged up Techlord once more, though with the proper technique he looked less like a mummy and more like an incredibly injured teen who had just fled from the hospital. She removed her latex glove and accompanied him back to the entrance, where the black humanoid waved at them as he saw them approach.

"So? What's your diagnostic doctor?"

"It's a miracle he's even alive and the fact he can walk in this condition is the only reason why I haven't sent him to a hospital in the main city."

"Oh."

"He will need to keep coming here every few days, no excuses."

"Alright, ma'am."

"He will also need a lot of skin grafts. We'll need willing donors or lots of pigs."

"Uh.. alright? I think we can manage this one."

"Last but not least, I believe he'll need a therapist."

"Oh?"

"What? You didn't say anything about that before!"

"If you have truly been exposed to Sunburn's fire, then you'll need at least a visit. As with all Supers, his exact Aspects are unknown but there is evidence that his flames have some psychological effects."

"That's a thing?"

"You sure this isn't just regular mental scarring?"

"Maybe, but even then a visit is in order. You did go through a traumatic event, even if you may not realize it. Don't forget we'll also have to test your Aspects and whether you're Cored or not."

The black one seemed to perk up at that.

"You can do these tests?"

"I need to request them in advance, but yes. Are you interested?"

"Is everything kept secret?"

"Yes."

"Then... I think so."

"Very well, I'll add that to the list. Now, I'm afraid we have to discuss the costs..."

"How much?"

"For today? 2500 Xerins. After that? I can't tell yet. What I can tell you is that burn treatments can get incredibly expensive, so it may be more efficient to stick to the strict minimum for now and if things stay stable consider going to a magical healer, as much as it pains me to say so they might have a better chance at fixing you than a skin graft would."

"Thank you, doctor."

"Yeah, thanks, doc."

"No problem."

The two walked outside, and it took more time than she was comfortable admitting for her to realize something.

"They didn't pay."

It was at this exact moment the black one walked back in.

"Sorry, we forgot to pay. Here you go!"

He handed her a large wad of cash and left just as quickly as he had come back. She checked the amount quickly and was pleasantly surprised to find everything was there. She did quickly hold each bill in front of the window, letting the light shine through to see if they were real and, once more, she was delighted to see they were.

"Finally, paying patients."