cape_kore | Martha's 3rd - Video/Action

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Martha's 3rd - Video/Action - Day 98

[To anyone who has been to the clinic when it was still there, that's where you'll see Martha when the video opens up.]

In an attempt to be of some use around here, I'm opening up the clinic again. I have my credentials from Royal Hope Hospital in London circa 2008. I also have experience treating non-humans thanks to some travel in both time and space. Most recently, I have gained experience as a field medic.

For anyone who has been seeing Dr. Barrett as your physician while here on this island, you may keep seeing her. But more doctors are always helpful.

If you have any questions or would like to sit for a physical, you may talk to me here or come visit the clinic. If not, that's perfectly fine too.

[Of course, baseline physicals would be much better, but she's not going to push anyone. Martha wants to be trusted above anything else.]

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1923? Really. That was one of my more interesting adventures... New York in the 20s.

[Martha says it casually as though a woman from 2009 being in 1920s New York was a common occurrence. She had told everyone...]

[The collarbone wound was definitely the worse of the two. Martha keeps her face neutral as she examines it.]

More antibacterial ointment.

[She smears that one too and then adds a bandage.]

If it starts bleeding or weeping, call me right away. The last thing is your ribs. Do you have somewhere you can lie down comfortably?

You've been to New York in the 20s?

[A couple weeks ago, he'd've disbelieved that, but he's seen all kinds of things since he's arrived here that have challenged his notions of what's possible.]

Time travel?

[He's heard about that. There's no way she's old enough to have been born in the early 1900s, not unless she doesn't age. Which he supposes is also possible, given that there are people with all kinds of powers here.]

Yeah, I've got a pretty comfortable bed.

Time travel. Met someone who had a time machine. It was an fantastic journey. Lots of stories.

[She smiles as she thinks of some of the better ones.]

A bed is great if you're comfortable with me being there. I need to feel around the rib bones. Easiest done with you lying down, but I want you to feel comfortable.

You must've learned so much. Not sure I can imagine what that'd be like.

[Sure, being stuck here is almost like time travel, in a way, what with all the people from the future, but it's not the same as what she'd experienced, from the sound of it. He shrugs a little.]

Yeah. The bed's fine. Right this way.

[The bedrooms are in the back of the house, and he walks into the larger of the two, which is considerably less immaculate than the kitchen. In fact, he has to kick what looks suspiciously like an empty liquor bottle under the bed as he heads in. At least the bed's made, though.]

It's an experience I wish more people were able to take part in. It gives you perspective of a lot of things.

[Martha follows Meyer to his bedroom noting that he is injured so if she's read him completely wrong, she should be able to make an effective getaway. She doubts that'll happen though.]

[She only looks around as much as she needs to to try and catch a better idea of who this man is. The liquor bottle of course catches her notice, but she keeps herself neutral. Finally she walks up to the bed.]

This is going to be the most uncomfortable part. You're to lie down on your back and I'm going to do some poking and prodding to make sure things are where they say they are. When Bruce examined you, what did he say about the ribs?

[He lies down on his back, not bothering to disguise the slight wince as he does so. Moving around is still a bit uncomfortable, even if it's not as bad as it had been when he'd first been injured.]

He said that a couple of them were definitely broken, but there wasn't much we could do about it. He made sure the broken ones hadn't caused any other kind of internal injury, and gave me some variety of opiates to manage the pain. I've had broken ribs before -- it's never exactly pleasant.

[Martha nods as she listens.]

I wish I could find his patient records. I wouldn't have to do so many examinations then. OK... I'm going to lay my hands on your ribs and exert a small amount of pressure. I want you to tell me the pain level. One is slight discomfort, ten is you feel you're going to pass out.

[She starts on his right side and moves to the left. Then she asks him to slowly raise and lower his arms so she can feel how the area reacts to that.]

[He winces slightly, but in reality, it's more from being touched than from anything else. The ribs feel better than they had two and a half weeks before, but he can tell they're not fully healed. Still, he's not the type to carry on or complain about pain, in general, so he just answers her question matter-of-factly.]

A five, maybe.

[Martha sees how clearly uncomfortable he is. Once the exam is over, she drops her hands and steps back.]

You may sit up and put your shirt back on if you'd like. Ribs are healing quite nicely. I'd like to give you a few exercises to help strengthen the area.

[He quickly sits up and pulls his shirt back on, appreciative of the fact that she's noticed his discomfort.]

I'm glad to hear that. How quickly do you think it'll be before they stop hurting?

It'll be a couple weeks yet. For right now, make sure when you're breathing, it's coming from your diaphragm.

[Martha stood and placed her hands on her stomach before breathing in deeply.]

It'll allow you much deeper breaths without expanding the chest cavity. That in turn will help heal it. Ice is good to numb the pain. I can give you some more medicine if you run out, but you should start moving from opiates to OTC meds.

Believe me, I have no interest in forming a dependency on the opiates.

[However, he also has no interest in mentioning that there's heroin lying around the house somewhere, either. He nods at her breathing demonstration.]

Okay. I think I can do that.

[A pause, and then...]

I know money's no use, here, but how can I pay you for this exam?

I wasn't expecting payment.

[Too many people are asking her though. Food and shelter she has, and that's all she had really bargained for during the Paradox. People gave it to her usually without question anyway, so it was pretty useless.]

Call it a personal oddity, but it doesn't seem fair to accept something for nothing.

[It's more that he doesn't like feeling indebted to anyone, though he often chooses not to phrase it that way.]

You've said yourself, there is no money. The only valuable things to me are food and shelter, and I have both of those.

[She looks like she could use a good night's sleep and maybe a bit less paranoid, though that's not so obvious at the moment because she's focused on being a doctor.]

Unless you know of a way home, but since everyone keeps telling how well the last one turned out, that's clearly not an option.

I think we'd all like to find a way home, but I don't have a whole lot of optimism about that happening anytime soon.

Neither do I.

[She checks her wrist strap again.]

Well, it appears I'm needed back at the clinic. Is there anything else you need from me?

I think I'll be okay for now. Thanks for your help -- I'm glad we have a good doctor in town.

[Martha smiles a thank you.]

Call me if you need anything.

[She turns and lets herself out.]

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Martha's 3rd - Video/Action - Day 98

((Oh good. That makes it a lot easier.))

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