Pandora Unchained - B1C87: The Role of a Physician

Sorin had always been a composed person, especially around critical patients, so he found it odd to suddenly reminisce about his childhood as Haley's situation worsened, and Stephan grew increasingly frantic.

As his hands pierced needles into her skin to guide the mana in her body around obstructions, he thought of the practical structure of Pandora's educational curriculum.

First came primary education, which lasted six years and covered general topics. Next came secondary education in the form of internships, where children learned their parent's trade or that of a relative.

It wasn't a perfect system. Many people were left behind and trained in dead-end jobs. But it was an efficient system, one that allowed humanity to survive as they reclaimed land from the Seven Evils under the banner of their savior, Hope.

Sorin's father was a physician, and his mother was an alchemist. As an only child, he'd been required to study medicine. That included after-school lessons he'd attended concurrently with primary school.

When younger children were out playing in the streets, Sorin had been studying medical theory and practicing with his hands to develop the required dexterity for his profession. Thus, the piano. He performed his first surgical procedure at the ripe old age of 12 years old. It was during this procedure that he'd lost his first patient.

"Physician Gregory and Physician Lim are inbound, along with a small group of soldiers," said Gareth, popping into the broken building they'd repurposed as an operating room.

"How's the hot water coming along?" asked Sorin.

"I just fixed the water runes destroyed by the impact, so I've got as much as you need," said Daphne.

As Daphne heated water and Stephan peeled away clothing and washed Haley's bloodied flesh, Sorin's mind returned to a critical moment in his development. "What is the role of a physician, in your opinion, Sorin?" his father had asked him.

Sorin had answered that it was saving lives and preserving the vitality in their bodies and their bodily functions. His father had disagreed. "A physician is primarily a decider and a killer. A decider in that he chooses who lives and chooses what part of the patient to save. He's also a killer. A killer of flesh. A killer of disease. A killer of poison and corruption."

Physician Gregory and Physician Lim cleansed themselves upon arriving, and ushered Stephan and Daphne to the outskirts of the room as they sealed the room against corruption and disease. Sorin refused to budge, so they could only hand him a clearmist vial. He used it to clean himself out of habit, then used his own personal poisons to further disinfect his body and key pieces of equipment.

Physician Gregory and Physician Lim then began arguing about how to proceed. Physician Lim wanted to restore blood flow, while Physician Gregory was concerned about Haley's bones. Which begged the question: why were they even having this conversation?

"Where's Physician Marcus?" Sorin asked, finally returning to the present moment.

"We don't know," said Gregory snapped. "And that's not relevant. The patient needs care, and we're all she has."

"How is that not relevant?" Sorin pressed. "She needs a two-star physician, and there's only one two-star physician in the entire outpost. Why didn't anyone go find him?"

"This…" said Gregory.

"None of us can go find him, because he told us he had something else to attend to, on order of the Governor," said Physician Lim. "Now how would you approach this problem, Sorin? I'm afraid to say that this is beyond either of us."

"What are you asking him for?" asked Gregory. "He's no physician."

His words jabbed painfully at one of Sorin's regrets.He's right, thought Sorin. I abandoned this path. I should just let them go about their work.

Yet as the two continued to talk, Sorin quickly saw problems with their logic and reasoning. Their approaches would work for a one-star cultivator, but they didn't quite apply to a two-star cultivator. What might kill a one-star cultivator wouldn't necessarily kill a two-star cultivator, and vice versa. What's worse, these two physicians were being indecisive, a cardinal sin for any doctor to make.

"Haley doesn't have the time for you both to bicker," Sorin reminded them.

"She also doesn't have time for your unqualified input," snapped Gregory.

The words bothered Sorin. "Unqualified?" muttered Sorin. "Is my input really unqualified, Physician Greogry."

"Naturally, Apothecary Sorin," said Gregory. "The Medical Association withdrew its support for your licensure for reasons we are both aware of."

"You mean politics?" said Sorin, his temper flaring. "I was qualified one-star physician at twelve years of age. I ran my own practice for three years not because the Medical Association pitied my loss of cultivation, but because my performance in their eyes warranted that I continue practicing."

"Now isn't the time for—" started Gregory.

"This is exactly the time for me to clarify this issue," said Sorin. "If I was qualified without a cultivation base, so why should I be disqualified now? Physicians use poison all the time, and I would go so far as to say that in this entire outpost, there is no more qualified person to judge my competency in using them, and any potential dangers I might pose to my patients."

"Sorin, what Gregory means is that—" said Physician Lim.

"Haley is officially my patient," said Sorin, cutting him off. "And no matter what the Medical Association says, I am the most qualified person in this room. I am a physician. If Marcus can't deign to come treat Haley, then it is my duty as a physician to attend to her."

A physician was a decider, first and foremost. He decided who lived and who died. And most importantly, he decided when and where he practiced, and where his skills were most needed.

"You and Physician Lim will assist me," said Sorin. "Physician Lim, please prepare the surgical equipment. Physician Gregory, prepare the two-star bone-mend tincture and the nerve regeneration tincture you brought, as well as the two-star health potion for layered application." He then glared at the two of them, as if daring them to disobey.

Gregory was ultimately the first to cave. "We'll follow your lead, Physician Sorin, for the good of the patient. But you should be aware that we'll need to report everything to the Association."

"I care not one whit about getting reported," said Sorin. "What's important now is Haley York's critical condition and my ability to save her.

He then fully embraced his old profession and his father's teachings as he prepared Haley for her operation by using poison mana to purge all influence of Disease and any remnant corruption on her body.

"The patient's shoulder is a terrible mess," said Sorin to the two attending physicians. "Most of her flesh is so mangled that corruption has worked its way into every inch of it. Her arteries are blocked off, and her flesh is necrotizing. What's worse, her mana flow is impeded. Her bones, where the bulk of a bone-forging cultivator's energy is stored, have splintered, sending fragments deep into her flesh, further disrupting the flow of blood and mana.

"Our course of action will be as follows: First, retrieve the bone fragments; Second, destroy and purify the contaminated tissue; Third, repair damage to the bone. Fourth: regrow and reconnect tissues as best as possible. Once we're finished, the patient's recovery will depend upon her own capabilities."

"Scalpel," said Sorin, holding out his hand. Physician Lim handed him the sterilized surgical instrument and Sorin used it to cut open her flesh. Haley had passed out, but this was fortunate, because they didn't have any two-star anesthetic on hand. "Physician Gregory, please tie off the main arteries while I retrieve the bone fragments.

Sorin used forceps to pull apart the flesh and cut deeper into the mana-powered tissue in Haley's pectoral. He reached in and pulled out a small shard the size of his pinky nail. It was covered ruby-red runes that simultaneously sealed the bones and served as a conduit for their power.

There was a total of seventeen such shards in her shoulder. Sorin retrieved them one by one and placed them in a disinfectant solution before turning his attention to the greatest problem: corruption. "I'll be removing the worst of the corrupted flesh before we re-introduce blood flow."

"Wouldn't it be wiser to ensure proper blood flow first," asked Gregory. "I mean no disrespect, sir. I just have the patient's best interest at hand. Regardless of the decision made, I will follow your lead."

"Negative," said Sorin, shaking his head. "I never properly studied two-star anatomy, but I do know that their flesh is more resilient to loss of blood and associated necrosis. Meanwhile, their tissues are highly infused with mana, making them more susceptible to high-level corruption. We're lucky the spear that stabbed her didn't splinter like her bones. Otherwise, there would be no saving her."

The dryad was a three-star entity, and her summoned weapon, the oakwood spear, was therefore a three-star weapon. The weapon clearly placed and emphasis on stability, which was why the contamination Sorin found was two-star at best.

Yet even two-star corruption was a huge problem for a one-star physician. Sorin's poisons simply couldn't fight it off and could, at best, suppress it. Concocting and activating a decontamination solution was something only a two-star physician or apothecary could do, so Sorin could only do the next best thing: amputation. Amputating her entire shoulder was out of the question, but removing corrupted flesh was not. He cut out large chunks of tissue until barely more than bones remained of her shoulder.

Fortunately, Haley was a two-star cultivator and could handle such trauma. She could even hold out while Sorin mobilized his personal poisons to seek and destroy the remaining one-star corruption and the tiny pockets of two-star corruption infecting her body. It took a half hour to fully eliminate all the corruption, at which point Sorin was thoroughly exhausted.

"We've eliminated all pathogens and corruption and can now move on to rebuilding her shoulder," said Sorin. "We'll start with the bones. Please stand by to assist with life mana as directed. Bone-mend tincture." Physician Gregory handed him a light blue vial.

The potion in question was a two-star potion that could fill in gaps in a patient's bone structure. The regenerated bone wouldn't be as effective as the original bone, however, so it was best to fuse pieces of the original bone together.

This was where the bone fragments came in. Sorin slowly assembled them like a jigsaw puzzle until only a few missing pieces were left. "The few missing pieces won't overly affect her recovery," said Sorin to the two physicians. "That being said, I doubt a bone mend potion will do her much good. Better to leave the bones incomplete and let them recover on their own."

"Assessor Haley is a hero," said Physician Gregory. "She should have access to advanced bone regeneration potions through the Hero Association."

"That is my hope as well," said Sorin. "From now on, I'll be relying on the two of you. Please make use of the healing potion and nerve regeneration tincture as I direct. You'll find it difficult to mobilize your life mana due to her own two-star mana, but it's essential to use it to catalyze growth. A potion has limitations and must be guided. Otherwise, the patient will suffer serious residual trauma."

Neither physician argued with Sorin and even seemed relieved he'd pointed this out. Sorin was a poison user, after all, and his strengths lay in killing. Killing flesh. Killing corruption. Killing disease.

Modern physicians focused on healing, as potions and poisons could be applied to make up for a life cultivator's shortcomings. But according to Sorin's late father, it had once been the opposite. Poison users were the original physicians, and they had made extensive use of healing potions, wands, and other implements to facilitate their practice.

The three built up Haley's flesh in layers, carefully regenerating small pieces of nerves as they worked. Fortunately, bone-forging cultivators could recover from most fleshly wounds using their bones as an energy source and template.

The one thing that couldn't be saved was her meridians. These were tricky to heal, and Sorin didn't have the ability to do so. Even Marcus had been helpless in healing Lady Duchenes' meridians; Sorin suspected that only three-star physicians could properly mend such injuries.

"She'll have a difficult time using her skills and cultivating going forward," Gregory commented. "Let's hope we made the right decision. Assassins are especially prone to losing their tempers once they gain consciousness."

"Haley would never do such a thing," said Stephan, who'd been watching all this time. "You have my word on it."

"I would never impact a patient's well-being on mere speculation," said Gregory as he poured the last of the healing potion onto her shoulder.

"Two-star corruption is not something any of us could underestimate," said Sorin, shaking his head. "We amputated that tissue because it was the best decision to make with the knowledge we had." A doctor was a decider, but in the end, it was the patient who would need to live with the consequences of their actions. "Will the two of you return to the clinic now?"

"We'll have the soldiers we brought along transport miss York on a stretcher and rush back to the clinic as soon as possible," said Physician Gregory.

"She's in good hands," said Physician Lim to Stephan. "But you're more than welcome to come along with us if you wish."

"No," said Stephan. "We're still needed on the battlefield. Rest up, Sorin. We'll head out once you're finished recovering."

Sorin took out a mana potion and took a sip. "If you find yourself overworked, push more onto Gabriella," Sorin said to Physician Gregory. "She's a bright girl and can stand the pressure."

"I'll do if I get a chance," said Physician Greogry. "Unfortunately, she's currently off shift, as she exhausted herself to treat a large influx of patients."

Sorin no longer paid them any mind as they left the broken building. He focused instead on replenishing his mana stores and returning to a battle-ready state. Half an hour later, he rose from his cross-legged posture and sought out his teammates, who'd moved up to the roof of the building to watch the fight as it unfolded.

"Did I miss anything important?" asked Sorin.

"Oh, just a few humble exchanges by cultivators that exceed our imagination," said Gareth. "That satyr pulled out an artifact, forcing the bishop to draw on the temple's wish fire stores. The temple was then overrun by two-star demons.

"This proved to be a trap, however; the temple had already been evacuated, and the bishop detonated something inside it, filling the battlefield with wish fire and eliminating over 30 two-star demons in the span of a few seconds."

"That's… intense," said Sorin. "And way above our pay grade."

"Definitely," agreed Gareth. "But as a result of all these things, the battlefield has stabilized. Things aren't looking good for the demons. It's going to be a bloody battle though. I'm not sure where we can best contribute."

"We should go to the most violent battlefield, obviously," said Stephan.

"You know, I was thinking the exact opposite," said Lawrence. "You know—pick the low hanging fruit? Support me on this one Daphne."

The mage snorted. "Coward."

"I prefer the non-discriminatory term cautious hero," said Lawrence. "It rolls off the tongue, don't you think?"

"How about you Sorin?" asked Stephan. "You've been oddly quiet."

"I was thinking that before hopping onto a battlefield, we could make a quick stop by the Governor's Manor," said Sorin. "I can't shake the feeling that something is going on in there."

"Whatever Marcus is doing is hardly more important than repelling the demons," countered Stephan. "Besides, what will you do once you catch him in the act? Kill him in the name of justice? Kill the only two-star physician in the outpost."

Sorin shook his head. "No. Too many lives are stake. It makes more sense to pressure him into returning to the battlefield earlier and stop whatever he's doing. There's no way he can kill and silence five heroes, right? This way, we'll have our physician back earlier and join the battle. Win-win."

"Honestly, it's not a bad idea," said Gareth. "Besides, he's a physician. A bone-forging physician, but still a physician. Our chances of intimidating him are rather high."

"Maybe," said Stephan, unconvinced. "Daphne? Lawrence?"

"Why am I last?" asked Lawrence.

"Because your opinion counts the least, obviously," said Daphne. "I also support this plan. As a bonus, we'll get to figure out exactly what Marcus is doing. Whatever it is, it seems to require a pitched battle taking place to cover up its existence."

It was now four in favor, meaning that Stephan was outnumbered either way. "Fine," said Stephan. "Let's make a quick stop at the Governor's manor. We'll peacefully make our demands to Marcus and escort him onto the battlefield. But mark my words—physicians aren't to be underestimated. Moreover, there's a big difference between each stage of the bone-forging realm."