Infirmary Visits

[majorbiotic]

CHARACTERS: Kaidan and Whoever wants to visit him
LOCATION: Infirmary
DATE: Early December
CONTENT: Kaidan fed the orb and now has to rest in the infirmary. Please visit him (and make sure he actually stays in bed until he's healed)
WARNINGS: I have no idea. Mild swearing and alcohol consumption, probably

Kaidan really did not want to go back to an infirmary. After spending so long in Huerta Memorial, he was done with hospitals for a while. But Viveca called him out on it the moment they arrived back at the station. And truth be told, he was dead tired after giving his power to the orb. He managed to drag himself to the infirmary and then collapsed onto a bed.

He had pushed himself hard before but it never felt like this. Kaidan imagined that this must be what an overheated engine would feel like. He was stripped down to a tank-top and trousers and he still felt too damn hot. For once his hair wasn't in its usual straight-edged construction, as the static charge that usually went through his body was weakened by the orb's consumption. He was on a pretty steady diet of lots of water and anything with electrolytes, carbs, anything that would give him energy back. Much like when the Cerberus robot attacked him, Kaidan was keeping his biotics "off-line" while he rested. Not that he thought he could really do much with them at the moment anyway.

He tried to send thought-to-text messages to his new students letting them know training was temporarily cancelled but couldn't focus enough to finish. Hopefully they would figure it out just from hearing Viveca say his name and that he needed to report to the infirmary.

Comments

[firstroar]

Kaidan...

While he may have been too burnt out to send messages of his own, Kaidan can still hear the mental voice of Blue. The Mu sensed a familiar swirl of frustration - one that can only come from a mind stifled by a weary body. Relatable.

So as Blue is making his slow, careful way through the halls, he slows near the infirmary to reach out in this way.

You've been injured?

[majorbiotic]

He stirred at the voice. He recognized it as Blue's and tried looking around for the Mu before remembering that Blue didn't need to be close to communicate telepathically.

Not wounded. Just drained. Kaidan let the memory of the orb taking his power replay in his mind. How it kept feeding and feeding, how Kaidan felt himself going weaker until he nearly passed out.

[firstroar]

There's no response right away. Blue listens, taking in the memory and its related feelings. He'd been witness to it, but those feelings weren't his.

It seems as though there wouldn't be a response, but after a few minutes the door to the infirmary opens, and Blue passes through it, making his careful way over.

What was taken... His expression is tight with concern. Is it something you can even get back?

[majorbiotic]

Well, the eezo nanobes were still in his body, so getting back his biotics was not really a concern. All the orb took seemed to be the power Kaidan put out when using his biotics. Which, given that he was an L2, was a hell of a lot.

I need to cool down first. Again, going to the analogy of an engine overheating. I'll be fine. Whether this was better or worse than when the Cerberus robot almost killed him was up for debate. He didn't feel in pain this time, just extremely drained and tired. And very hot, like he had a fever.

Once I'm cooled down, I'll be back to normal.

[firstroar]

Blue slowly makes his way over to where Kaidan is resting, taking a careful seat on the empty bed beside him.

"Is there...a way to help?" Blue knows the frustration of being trapped in such a state and certainly doesn't want others to feel it.

[majorbiotic]

"No." He knew this already from his last stint in a hospital: rest and listen to the doctor. As restless as he feels being stuck in bed, it truly is the best road to recovery. "But I'm grateful you stopped by," Kaidan added with a smile. "It's driving me crazy being in here."

[firstroar]

Blue's expression softens with sympathy.

"I understand. I can...keep you company for a time, then."

[flickerandfade]

What appears to be a human man who might seem vaguely familiar marches up to Kaidan's bedside, a tablet in hand and a bottle of electrolyte beverage in the other. He plops the bottle onto the bedside table and nods firmly.

"Drink that. I've been informed you require it's electrolytes and water content to aid your recovery," he says in a brief, non-nonsense voice that might be familiar from the network.

"How are you feeling? Still overheated? Are you prespiring more than usual?"

[majorbiotic]

There was something familiar about the voice and the person's cadence when they spoke. Kaidan pondered this while taking the beverage and drinking it all in almost one go.

"Thanks," he said when he finished the bottle. "It'll take a while for me to completely cool down." Kaidan frowned as he tried to work out why this person's voice was familiar. "Megatron?" he guessed at last.

[flickerandfade]

"Yes," Megatron replies smoothly, starting to make notes on his tablet.

"While I hadn't much use for a holomatter avatar before this, it certainly makes bedside visits easier when dealing with smaller patients," he replies smoothly as if to explain it all away in one simple wave of the hand.

"Remember to stay hydrated," he adds, as if a human who has lived with that squishy body of his for the entirety of his life needs reminding.

[majorbiotic]

"Sure, doc," he agreed with a little smile. "Thanks for looking out for me."

" 'Holomatter avatar'. Is that what you call that platform?" Kaidan asked with interest. The techie in him really was curious about how Megatron was going around looking human. But it also served as a good distraction so he didn't have to think about being stuck in bed. "So where are you? Your, ah... regular body?"

[flickerandfade]

"Yes. Originally they were developed so that if we had to hide in our alt-modes on an organic planet, there would be no questions about someone seeing a vehicle without an operator," Megatron explains as he begins to run a small medical scanner over Kaidan in a business-like manner. He can chat and check vitals at the same time, thanks.

"Over time they were developed from mere mannequins to more expressive pieces that represent the user's personality more directly. And my regular body is in my habsuite. It's hard to explain what it feels like, since I do have feedback when I touch things through this form--it's a bit like lucid sleepwalking, I suppose."

[majorbiotic]

He folds his hands over his chest and waits for the scan to finish. He's hoping at the very least it'll show that his body temperature is going down. Since he can't feel the electrostatic charge, he's guessing that will take more time before it's back to normal.

"It's fascinating," Kaidan awes. "Our ship AI has a humanoid platform she uses when she goes on missions with us, but she still looks like a robot. Originally the platform did have a more human appearance, but I guess she doesn't want to use that feature." He's babbling a bit and he reins it in. "I've never heard of holomatter."

[essenceofdeadlybeasts]

Zhao took a moment to take in the sight of Kaidan from the doorway before pushing off from his lean against the frame and stepping inside the room. "Yo," he called out casually as he circled around the room.

He stopped and stuffed his hands into his pockets as he gazed at Kaidan with a small smirk. If he looked tired himself he was hiding it behind his usual demeanor. He, unlike Kaidan, actually refused to stay in the infirmary for something that was just basically exhaustion. Besides, he'd had worse than this just running with Kasuga some days.

His head tilted to one side just before he struck. "So, decided to comply with the robot and stay in the infirmary, huh? Kinda lame if you ask me. It's not like you're bleeding or anything."

[majorbiotic]

Kaidan sat up a little in bed and acknowledged Zhao with a smile and nod. Always nice to see a friendly face when he was forced to lay and wait to recover.

"No," Kaidan agreed, "but my skin is hotter than it should be. Doctor McCoy wants me to stay here until that's back to normal. And this." He patted his hair self-consciously. "Never been so drained that it affected the electrostatic charge in my body."

[essenceofdeadlybeasts]

Zhao raised an eyebrow at the hair statement. He had just figured it was gel or a perm similar to Kasuga's bizarre hairstyle. Kaidan's didn't even look all that special comparatively. Zhao could have easily mimicked it with his hair gel. ...And a trim since his hair was much longer.

"Your what now? Is this another crazy biotic thing?" he asked with just as much tease as the first words out of his mouth. However, now there was the hint of actual curiosity.

[majorbiotic]

"Yeah, it is." He fidgeted a little on his bed. "Biotics build up an electrostatic charge in our bodies. But when I fed the orb, it drained me so much that the charge is... off-line, I guess? It's a really weird feeling, let me tell you. Would've been nice if the orb took away my migraines too, but I guess we can't have everything."

[essenceofdeadlybeasts]

"I mean, I've played around with electrostatic charges a bit--always good for a little amusement factor--but to permanently have that around? Sounds like that would feel weird. Especially to have enough of it to permanently style your hair. Though at least it doesn't take any effort for ya to get that hairstyle working."

Zhao shrugged. "That's what painkillers are for I suppose. Need any?"

[majorbiotic]

"I've lived with it my whole life," Kaidan shrugged. "I'm used to it by now." It was a strange thing to miss, especially since it was painful at times, but it was just part of his being. He felt wrong without it.

"Thanks, but no. I'm used to these, too. And they're not so bad all the time."

[winscenario]

Jim wasn't seriously injured, but out of habit and a desire to put Bones's worries to rest, he decided to come by the infirmary post-mission for a quick check-up. He wasn't expecting anything bad to pop up so he wasn't surprised when he got a clean bill of health, and after what he'd seen the orb do to some of the people on the team, he also wasn't surprised to find Kaidan there, stretched out on one of the beds.

He was going to send him a message anyway, so this made that much easier. He just made his way over instead, reaching out to lightly rest a hand on Kaidan's forearm. "Kaidan?"

[majorbiotic]

Kaidan's eyes lit up on seeing Jim. Though he also carefully shifted his arm away from Jim's touch. It probably wasn't hot enough to actually burn, but his skin had to feel too warm to be normal by Jim's perspective.

"Hey. What are you in for?" He said it in a joking manner, since as far as he could tell Jim looked fine.

[winscenario]

Jim's hand retreats quickly when Kaidan moves his arm away from him. Slightly disappointed but mostly worried, he can't quite manage a smile to match Kaidan's expression.

"Nothing as serious as you, I imagine," he says, having been there and seen in person what the orb did to Kaidan.

[majorbiotic]

"Ah, yeah." His own smile faded and his eyes dropped. He hoped that Jim hadn't noticed just how hot Kaidan's skin was. "I've pushed myself pretty far before but that was... I've never felt anything like that. It literally drained me. I still don't feel right."

He knew that if he was looking on the outside and, say, Shepard was the one who did this, he'd have a few choice words for the risky move.

"I know I... I could have died, but I couldn't let that thing feed on Eleven. She's just a kid."

[winscenario]

He did feel a bit of heat nearer to Kaidan, but without touching him, he couldn't tell how hot he was. That said, he wasn't necessarily worried about it. Okay, maybe he was a little worried, but he was in the hands of the doctor he trusted the most in any universe, any galaxy, any world out there, and Kaidan wouldn't just be lying on this bed unattended if he was about to keel over.

"I know. I know you had to do it," he agreed, voice quiet. No, he wasn't here to yell Kaidan's ear off about what he did. In his place, he would have done the same in a heartbeat, no question about it. "But I think I'm still allowed to be worried about you."

[majorbiotic]

Kaidan's lips quirked up in a little smile. "Thanks. You know, I've been thinking a lot about what it means that I fed that thing my power. I'm not saying this to brag, but being L2 means my power spikes high. And on top of that, I can reave, which isn't exactly an easy thing for human biotics to learn. I really hope what we did doesn't come back to bite us in the ass."