The Surgeon's Tent [complete]

[Su Tanrui]

Tanrui had only been out for a brief walk, as he was wont to do when there were no patients to oversee. Not to say that his tent wasn't comfortable, or that he didn't enjoy his study, but when sleep came with difficulty, he would soothe his restless mind by walking the edge of the camp and identifying the brighter stars.

He turned back sooner than he'd intended, however, when a sound reached his ears - it really did sound like a human shout, he decided, though why was beyond him. Well, if it didn't concern him, he would find out in the morning, certainly, and if it did happen to involve him somehow, he would find out likewise when the time was right. Returning to his tent when he decided there was little to be gleaned as things stood, he entered and was about to make up his bed and catch a few hours of sleep before morning...

... except that there was a very conspicuous figure collapsed on the sanitary sheets of cloth he'd laid out on the ground. For a moment, the young man looked quite dead, but it was only a moment before Tanrui could tell that his breathing was cautious but steady, and though his skin was quite pale, it was not the eerie pallor of death. Still, the cloth bound around his throat, slowly soaking dark blood from a point just left of the young man's larynx, signaled to Tanrui that he'd better get to work quickly if he wanted time to find out exactly why the young soldier was collapsed on his floor.

The surgeon knelt next to the soldier - he recognized him, yes, but couldn't put a name to the face - and turned him on his back before noting that he was, in fact, at least partially conscious. This combined with the amount of blood - it was much less than there would be had the wound hit one of the major jugular veins; indeed, the poor boy probably would have bled out before getting to the tent if that were the case - suggested a wound that was unlikely to be fatal. Still, he wasted no time in lighting a pair of lanterns (if he would need to stitch the wound closed, he wasn't about to do that in the dark) and fetched a generous handful of cotton gauze.

"My goodness," he said aloud, untying the existing bandage and daubing the incision with a small piece of gauze. He had a personal policy of never asking his patients how they came about their injuries - it was his job to save, not to judge. "I didn't think anyone would need my services just yet."

(Right! Xue, whenever you're ready!)

[Zhong Xue]

Xue had almost drifted completely to sleep, but at the man's voice, he forced his eyes open. He wasn't sure how long he'd been there already; he could tell it was still dark, but that was about it.

As the medic began putting pressure on his throat again, Xue concentrated on the pain, willing it to keep him awake. Then, at last, it seemed to occur to him: Sze and Naia had been facing off when Jiaming dragged him away. He wasn't afraid for Sze. As far as he was concerned, the general could do anything. But the thought of Naia - was that what he said his name was? - impaled on his sword wasn't doing wonders for his already churning stomach.

"The spy..." he murmured, hoping that the medic would know by now. "What... happened to him?"

[Su Tanrui]

"The spy?" The surgeon's voice lifted with surprise as he daubed the wound clean. As soon as he had done so, a fresh trickle of blood began to flow again, so Tanrui pressed more gauze against the puncture and bound it tightly, though not uncomfortably so. "I'm afraid I didn't know there was one, but that's the nature of a good spy, isn't it? Keep some pressure on this," he added, guiding Xue's rather limp hand up to the wound and pressing his fingers against the cloth.

Something was bothering him about the wound, and as he went to the rations he'd brought in order to fetch Xue some water, he mulled it over silently. The cut was on the left side of his trachea, but not far enough to hit the external jugular vein, through which the head's blood supply returned to the heart, nor had it severed any of the tendons running downwards from the jaw or the muscles that allowed movement and stability of the head. It was almost too perfect.

"Can you sit up?" Tanrui returned with a small teacup full of water, at the very least grateful that Xue's assailant had been so considerate, however strange that sounded.

[Zhong Xue]

"I can," Xue answered without thinking, but when he tried to push himself up with his free arm, he found it quite uncooperative. For a moment, he didn't say anything, watching as Tanrui stared at him with polite puzzlement. "... or... m-maybe you could help me a little..."

[Su Tanrui]

"Of course." Tanrui set the cup down and helped Xue into a more upright position, his hands on the young man's shoulders, being careful not to jar the wound. The gauze was going red, but not as quickly as before, and he didn't want to undo the progress. Let's see, something to prop him up with... His eyes fell on a stack of neatly-folded blankets, which he arranged behind Xue so he could relax more comfortably. He hadn't expected anything less than a life-threatening neck wound, and thus only had beds prepared for patients who needed to be lying down

If the bleeding was already beginning to slow, there wasn't anything to worry about (medically, at least). Still, it was always best to make sure. "How is your breathing?" he asked. "Constricted, noisy, any of that?" He assumed there was some pain, but that was to be expected and would fade quickly. The real concern would be swelling or fluids blocking the airway.

[Zhong Xue]

Xue sank back against the blankets, marvelling at how comfortable they were. Much better than the ones in the tents... As his eyes started to slip closed, his shook his head slightly, frowning at himself. Stay awake, idiot... you're not that bad off. You can handle it.

"Little difficult," he said simply, trying to play the answer off as terse and annoyed rather than that of someone who couldn't catch his breath. "But it's okay."

[Su Tanrui]

Tanrui raised an eyebrow very slightly at the soldier's reply, but said nothing to indicate concern or displeasure. Instead, he handed Xue the cup of water with a smile. "Tell me if it worsens," he instructed.

For a moment, he observed with pursed lips as though pondering some difficult riddle. "Either your luck is remarkable, or your assailant purposefully avoided killing you," he said pensively after a moment, then smiled. "How strange."

[Zhong Xue]

"He didn't do me... any favors," Xue snapped, as angrily as he could manage. "He l... lied to me... pretended to be my friend... used me... and when I t-tried to help him, this happened. I'm not... feeling... all that grateful," he finished laboriously.

[Wu Xiaoszi]

It would've been more fitting if he had stormed into the medic's tent, announcing his presence loudly and furiously, barging through the curtains and demanding to see his teammate. It was what he expected himself to do, when Jiaming had reported exactly what she had stumbled across. Xiao had run off before her explanation had been finished, right after she had told him that the wound wasn't fatal.

So even he was a little surprised at himself, when his pace slowed as he approached the area until he came to a full stop at the entrance. Only then did he realize that he had dragged Shikang by the sleeve the entire way, and sheepishly he let go. "Ah, sorry," he muttered, letting his hand drop to his side. He was eerily silent even as they came to stand by Xue's bed, but his eyes were bright and angry.

[Ma Shikang]

Shikang's expression was blank when the news reported, as though he lacked compassion or concern - even anger. He was going to see Xue anyways, with or without Xiao working as an escort. When Xiao released his sleeve, he adjusted his arm to his side. He found it awkward that Xiao would apologize for something little as that. However, his attention focused on Xue. The silence was unnerving for once, and he was opted to break the void.

He knew the wound wasn't fatal and he figured Xue's spirit was already crushed under the truth of his friend. "You look tired," Shikang stated the obvious. There was an edge in the tone of his voice, sounding worried.

[Zhong Xue]

"... Xiao... Shikang..." If there was any color left in Xue's face, it was gone in that moment. He knew he'd have to face his teammates sooner or later, but he'd hoped it would be later; maybe when he'd gotten the chance to make himself look presentable, rather than death warmed over.

He knew it was too late to make excuses for overlooking Naia's suspicious behavior, and everyone's warnings. He opened his mouth, meaning to apologize, but instead, smiled weakly. "Uhm... hi."

[Wu Xiaoszi]

"Hi," he bit out, quickly and curtly. Though it was one word, he conveyed as much of his thoughts as he would've if he had said a hundred. His expression didn't change, still tight-lipped and glaring, as if his gaze alone could finish the job Naia started. Perhaps, this treatment was even worse than if he had blown in there yelling and screaming.

He couldn't hold it up for long. Rage was a short-lived emotion, fast and intense and soon fading into a slowly boiling anger instead. When he had calmed down, trusting himself enough not to explode if he said more than one syllable at a time, he took a deep breath and added a caustic, "You're looking great."

Then, he stormed out, deciding to head back to the gathering. Shikang could handle these sorts of things better than he could.

[Ma Shikang]

Shikang closed his eyes when Xiao stormed out of the tent. He figured Xue would get the silent treatment, and if spoken to, words no one wanted to hear because it was never something nice. Slowly, his eyes opened back up and he stared down at the wounded soldier. He felt sympathetic towards Xue. It had taken bravery to confront a friend and then stand up for themselves; however, that was what the military was for. Plus, it wouldn't help that one of Xue's trusted friends were angry with him.

"Give him time to come to his senses," he told Xue in a form of comfort. Although Xiao didn't have to say something so contradicting to the obvious jest of things. Shikang knew the medic had properly attended to Xue but he couldn't help folding his left hand over Xue's forehead to check for a fever.

[Zhong Xue]

"Don't blame him," Xue muttered, shrugging. He'd expected the anger from Xiao. He hadn't really expected the way it would manifest itself, or twist in the gut that accompanied his exit. He would've taken screaming, raging, even violence. Anything but that look, that tone.

But maybe that was the point.

"It's fine," he said to Shikang, gently brushing the hand off his forehead. "I don't deserve this sort of treatment from you."

[Ma Shikang]

As his hand was brushed away, a frown showed up on his face. Now Xue was acting like Xiao's anger didn't bother him and that he didn't deserve any type of treatment. "Don't blame your self either," Shikang said curtly before turning and dismissing himself from the tent. If Xue was going to behave in a way that wasn't himself, he didn't need to stand around and be concerned.

Although when he stepped out he found himself staring at Xiao. "You both disappoint me," he shook his head as he moved forward, as to walk on by.