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- http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gQjFHxJ9IKs
- >It’s been…you know what? Why do you still count the days?
- >You’ve been in Equestria for awhile.
- >The last thing you remembered before coming here was preparing a mare for surgery.
- >Colon torsion is a nasty thing.
- >Apparently one of your techs hadn’t properly sedated the animal…either that or the pain the horse was feeling was worse than you thought.
- >When she bucked you square in the chest, you were sent flying across the room.
- >The last thing you remember was striking something with the back of your head before you blacked out.
- >When you woke up…well, the horses were smaller.
- >And they talked.
- >Suffice to say, you…did not react well.
- >You lucked out though. The town you found yourself in, P0nyville, had a hospital.
- >Since the world was populated by magic talking animals, what had been a specialized field for you back home was a common occurrence here.
- >And so you went from being a two-bit country vet surgeon to a general surgeon.
- >Oh, if those twits who laughed at you for shirking med school to study veterinary medicine could see you now.
- >Well, back to the matter at hand.
- >You look over the chart of the little filly laying in the recovery bed. She’s sleeping soundly, her brown mane drooping over her little tan face.
- >The mother looks more pronouncedly worried.
- >If you had to bring your child in to have a lump excised, you’d be worried too.
- >….
- >You smile. You love delivering good news, especially when your patients can understand you.
- “Blueberry, the tests are back, and the growth we removed from your foal’s shoulder was benign.”
- >The relief that washes over the earth p0ny’s face warms your heart, just making you smile more.
- “We’re going to keep her overnight for observation while she comes out from the anesthesia, but I don’t expect anything less than a full recovery. She should be able to go home first thing in the morning.”
- >Blueberry sniffles and wipes away a tear, stroking the filly’s mane.
- >”Thank you, doctor…I can’t imagine what I would have done…”
- “Just happy to be of help, ma’am. Now, if you’ll excuse me, the nurse will be in shortly to check on her. Have a good day.”
- >This job got so much better when your patients became capable of talking back to you.
- >Well, that’s not entirely true. Sometimes that ability can wrench your heart, especially when things go wrong.
- >Things going wrong is inevitable. Medicine is a science, but it is not a perfect science.
- >None of that today so far, luckily.
- >You stretch as you enter your office, tossing your white coat on the hook.
- >Nothing too palatial or grandiose. Four walls, a desk, a bookshelf, a chair specially made for your primate posterior, and a window to look out of.
- >It’s not much, but it’s a great place to relax in peace and quiet.
- >You plop down in your chair, picking up the book you were reading before Blueberry’s foal’s results came in.
- >”Advanced Flight Anatomy for Pegasi.”
- >Apparently, Unicorns and Pegasi are “things” here, and that means you had some catching up to do.
- >You sigh. Medical manuals were just as boring and dry in this world as they are back in yours.
- >You sigh and lean back in your chair, looking out the window to the setting sun.
- >Your shift ends in a few hours…drinks sound nice.
- >You wonder if…
- >Your door slams open forcefully.
- >Speak of the devil. Only one p0ny you know would kick your door in without knocking first.
- “Hello AJ. Did Winona get into the chocolate again?”
- >Applejack, for what it’s worth, doesn’t respond immediately. She’s too busy catching her breath.
- >You set your book down. Something’s wrong, and it’s not a case of a dog with an upset stomach.
- >”Anon, it’s Rainbow. She’s hurt, somethin’ bad.”
- >Now, you don’t know Rainbow very well. You know she’s one of AJ’s and Fluttershy’s friends, however…
- >Something about her tone, or the pained expression on her face, it feels like a lead weight has been dropped in your gut as you stand.
- >Not such a lucky day after all.
- ----------------
- >You follow Applejack down the hallway towards the emergency room.
- >You see Horse, M.D. coming out of one of the rooms.
- >When he looks up at you, it seems like your arrival is the best news he’s had all hour.
- >”Oh, good, Dr. Anon, I was about to call for you.”
- “AJ came and got me. What happened?”
- >”Mare, pegasus. Suffered quite a fall…”
- >AJ chimes in. ”RD was out practicin’ her routine, an’ ah guess she just pulled a turn too tight, ‘cause she blacked out an’ jus’ fell from really high up!”
- >Horse M.D. clears his throat. He gets so annoyed when he gets interrupted.
- >”She came in unconscious, with two broken wings, a compound fracture of the left radius and the right metacarpal…”
- >That lead weight in your gut gets ten pounds heavier.
- >”…and we’re still waiting on x-rays, but there’s strong evidence for a punctured lung.”
- >So much for luck.
- >It must have been a fall from really high up.
- >If you were back home, all you would prescribe was a round to the braincase from a .357 Magnum.
- >But you weren’t back home. You were in Equestria, and any of these p0nies were just as much a person as you were.
- “Doctor, do me a favor and get the patient to the OR. I’ll be there in a second. Applejack…”
- >You kneel down to AJ’s level as tears well in her eyes.
- >You feel like crying too, if only because your friend is in so much pain, but you don’t have time for that.
- >”You…you can save her, right Anon?”
- >You place your hands on Applejack’s shoulders.
- “AJ…medicine and surgery is not magic, and it’s not all powerful…all I can promise you is that I will do my very best to save Rainbow Dash’s life.”
- >AJ sniffles and nods gently, those green eyes still fraught with worry.
- “Now…I need you to let Dash’s friends know what is going on. You and everyone else can wait in the surgical waiting area…”
- >You try to put on a comforting smile.
- >You were never good at faking it.
- “Run along AJ, I need to get to work now.”
- -------------
- >It’s a routine you’ve come to expect, you’ve run through it enough.
- >Scrubs. Disinfectant. Gloves.
- >You never ask just how much it costs the hospital to get specially-made latex gloves for your hands, letting the thought wander from your mind.
- >Nurse Trueheart gives them a final tug, making sure they’re on securely.
- >You walk up to the patient, the beeping and whirring of the monitors and life support equipment fading away, like they do every time you operate.
- >This time, it feels different though.
- >Horse’s description of the cyan p0ny’s injuries really do not do it justice.
- >You take a moment to brush her rainbow-colored mane as the nurses and assistants finish preparing her for surgery.
- “Don’t worry Rainbow…I hear you’re a strong mare…I’m pretty strong too, but I’m asking you to help me pull you through this, OK?”
- >You don’t know why you talk like this to an obviously unconscious patient…maybe it just makes you feel better.
- >Soothes your frazzled nerves.
- >Everything is ready, and the clock is ticking.
- >It’s time.
- “Scalpel.”
- http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zblZj5SgY4o
- >Your perception of the world around you fades to gray.
- >You have so much to do. So much you have to do.
- >Even one slip up can snuff out the flame of life.
- >This life.
- >You forget fear, you forget worry and regret, regret you never knew this p0ny better.
- >The wings can wait, life-threatening injuries first.
- >Your mind is a whirl, you don’t even hear your own commands.
- >In a way, Dash is lucky.
- >Lucky that her life is in the practiced, stable hands of Anonymous.
- >Flesh separates under your delicate touch as the blade of your scalpel meets shaved, exposed skin.
- >You call for retractors. Suction.
- >More cuts.
- >In the back of your mind, you can see Applejack and the others, waiting nervously.
- >You know Twilight would be there. Her help in finding medical books has been invaluable.
- >In a way, if Dash makes it through this, Twilight would share in the responsibility.
- >So would they all. Rarity, who custom made your clothes and scrubs.
- >Fluttershy, who discovered your abilities and helped you get this job.
- >AJ, who not only has been a great friend, but even lets you stay at her home on the farm.
- >And Pinkie…well, she can plan the recovery party.
- >Anon, focus!
- >One of the nurses, a unicorn, levitates a rag and dabs the sweat from your forehead.
- >Crazy thing, magic. You don’t think you’ll ever get used to it.
- >You don’t hear it, but you feel it in your teeth, that long tone.
- >You’re already inside her rib cage. You place your hand directly on Rainbow’s heart and start massaging.
- >One…two…three…four…five...
- >Ok, crisis averted. Her heart starts back up after some compressions.
- >Need to hurry, not much time left.
- >You glance at the legs.
- >Have to be careful setting them. If marrow escapes the fractures into the bloodstream, it could cause an MI and stop the heart again.
- >Maybe permanently.
- >You’ll probably need pins and rods for both legs.
- >Good thing there’s such things as titanium in this world.
- >But first, you need to address this lung.
- >Thusly, you carry out your craft…
- ---------------
- >Everyp0ny looks up at you when you walk into the waiting area.
- >Their faces are ones of horror and shock as you stroll in, pulling your gloves off with a snap.
- >You must be a sight, your scrubs are covered in blood.
- >Good, everyone you thought would be here is here.
- >Nobody speaks for a moment until AJ speaks up.
- >”Well, Anon? How did it go? Is Rainbow going to be alright?”
- >You do not smile. As much as you want to, you cannot give any p0ny false hope.
- “I have done all I can…where I come from, we have a saying…”
- “The rest is up to God.”
- >You can’t tell how much time you spend relaying the events of the surgery to the assembled party.
- >The true extent of Rainbow Dash’s injuries.
- >Forget flying again, she’ll be lucky to see the morning.
- >With that, you walk out.
- >It’s a short trip to the locker room to change out of your bloody clothes and into fresh ones.
- >Without a word to anyone, you walk in to the staff sleep room.
- >You couldn’t make it back home even if you wanted to, and even then, you would be bombarded with questions about Rainbow Dash.
- >You just keep telling yourself that Dash is the strongest, most fierce p0ny you know.
- >If anyone can pull through this, it’s her.
- >You cover your eyes with your arm as you lay on the bunk, clearly too small for you.
- >For reasons beyond you, you manage to fall asleep.
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