text; un: bortz

[abortz]

[Bortz is not a chatty person. They aren't a particularly social person, and they aren't at all eager to make new "friends". But they'll submit to this sort of socialization with complete strangers to get information they need.]

Do animals have doctors?
If there is anyone in charge of fixing those of us who break then I need to know in advance rather than waiting until they're actually needed.

[There's a pause, and then they continue, almost begrudgingly.]

I also need to know if anything be done for you people if you're damaged.
If it comes up then there won't be time to figure it out in the moment. I won't waste time trying to help if there's no point.

[They don't care. They really don't, these organics mean nothing to them and frankly, expending effort on them when they have such short, limited lifespans to begin with seems pointless. But this is the job they've been given, and they'll do it right. If that means babysitting these fleshy people then so be it.]

Comments

[digiorno]

Yes. Of course, that's what I mean.

In that case, non-human animals--or no, that's not right. Non-sentient animals have doctors, but they're called veterinarians. For sentient animals, they're just called doctors. I think that's the point of confusion here, that there are two different words.

[abortz]

If you're a doctor, can you fix inorganic beings?

[digiorno]

For starters, I'm not a doctor. I have the ability to heal, but that ability is based on magic, for lack of a better word. Doctors have training in medicine. I've figured out what I can do by trial and error, more or less, and it's more efficient than medicine in a lot of ways but less so in other ways.

As to your question, I doubt that a doctor could. For healers, it depends on what exactly they can do, I would imagine. For me, I think it would depend on the being, but probably not. My ability at its most basic level is the manipulation of living cells, so unless there's some biological loophole, it wouldn't work on inorganic matter.

[abortz]

[Well. Fuck.]

Then I'll have to take care of myself.
I need to find supplies so I can handle any damage should the situation come up.
Paste, brushes, chisels, powder. Resin would be good to have on hand, too.

[digiorno]

Is there first aid that you commonly use? If you taught a few people how to do that, it might be helpful in an emergency. Or I'd be happy to help you look for supplies, at the very least.

[He feels bad that he can't do a heal.]

[abortz]

[Ugh. They hate the idea of potentially leaving their repair in the hands of someone with absolutely no experience, but they can't pretend the situation might never arise. What if they lose both hands? Or their head? They wouldn't trust a stranger with anything that requires reshaping, but at least to slap the pieces back together enough to be functional...]

I'd still need those supplies for even the most simple fix. The paste, if nothing else.

[digiorno]

If anything, that's all the more reason for more than one person to have supplies, in case one set of supplies gets damaged.

What kind of paste is it exactly?

[abortz]

[. . .

And this is how excessive specialization comes back to bite you in the ass.]

I don't know the details. Our doctor made it from certain plants available on our island. It's strong and can hold stone together until our inclusions rejoin them naturally, but leaves no residue within afterwards.

[digiorno]

[fuck]

Is there any way you could describe the plant? Color, size, shape, time of year it blooms, anything like that . . .

[abortz]

[THEY ARE A FIGHTER OKAY, IT WAS THEIR JOB TO JUST FOCUS ON THAT...]

I think tree sap is a component. But collecting those materials was usually a task given to those with free time or who were patrolling less risky areas.
There's no kind of local paste that might get the same results?

[digiorno]

Well, I don't know. I don't know what plants grow here. Every mission we go different places, some of which might not have vegetation at all, and back on base it's just a spaceship, isn't it.

[LOUD, PAINED SIGH.]

I can't think of any plant that's that strongly adhesive from my home. How long does it take for, um, rejoining to happen?

[abortz]

A few days for it to repair entirely. But I guess I could just take it easy for that long if there isn't a paste strong enough enough.
Shouldn't a group that can gather people from different worlds at least be able to find a decent paste?

[digiorno]

You could, but honestly on a mission it's a lot to assume you'll get the chance to take it easy.

You would think so. But sometimes big groups are bad at little picture things, like making sure their recruits don't lose limbs. [ADDITIONAL, STILL MORE HEARTFELT SIGH] The paste has to be made from organic materials that will dissolve by the time the injury is completely repaired, did I understand that correctly?

[abortz]

What else would you make it out of?

[They, uh. Didn't even have electricity. Artificial ingredients are a bit more modern than they're used to.]

[digiorno]

Glue? Epoxy? This is another gap isn't it . . .

There are other things. But the point is, if the adhesive didn't dissolve in time, would it injure you?

[abortz]

[ . . . ]

I don't know.
We've used the same paste since before I was born.
It might just leave ugly marks. But I'd rather risk that if it comes down to it than be short a limb or a head.

[digiorno]

[Ugh. He hates this! It's so stupid that Hathaway hasn't considered this, it puts one of his teammates at risk in the most preventable way possible. He frowns sharply at his tek, then takes a few notes longhand. They are very irritated and spiky notes.]

Would you be willing to find a stopgap paste that's not exactly what you're used to while we look for another solution? If you do get injured and don't have anything on hand, I agree, that would be far worse than risking scars. But in the long-term I believe a solution will be found, given the collected expertise of the team.

The rest of the ingredients--brushes and chisels are simple enough, but what about the resin? Do you know what kind of resin? What kind of powder?

[abortz]

I'll do what I have to.
The resin also comes from tree sap, but I don't know if Rutile added anything else to it. It keeps the powder from washing off when in water too long and prevents salt-water damage.
The powder comes from the seeds of a plant back home. It's what makes our outsides look like yours. Like a human's.