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A bit of the heroic facade cracked as he rubbed at the back of his neck habitually. [b][color=deepskyblue]“Yeah, and that’s why I’m not a doctor.”[/color][/b] His voice sounded a lot more sheepish than the authoritative air he had moments ago. [b][color=deepskyblue]“To be fair, you aren’t the first person I’ve had to restrain coming out of unconsciousness. Said person was a speedster and hit like a truck so uh, forgive the excessive amount of caution.”[/color][/b]

Umbri was carefully set down and the light winked out of existence, though Alex’s eyes didn’t stop glowing to indicate that he was still ready to use his powers. [b][color=deepskyblue]“Sorry if me being here makes you uncomfortable. But you are under my protection currently and I need to be ready to call in help if conventional medicine doesn’t help here.”[/color][/b]

He clenched and unclenched his fists, before shoving them into well hidden pockets. The urge to call Zolya was growing. Still this was currently his problem and he had an obligation to try and resolve it himself first.

The first thing Umbri did when settled down was wipe the tracks of tears from her cheeks in two quick, almost professional strokes. Her eyes were dry of any more to offer and had been since they’d opened. Her body tingled and stomach churned from the floating. This was insane to her. Sounded like this was Tuesday to him. And annoying. Now that she was calmer that was something she couldn’t unthink. Her distress was annoying to him.

Resigned to not bother him anymore, she kept her gaze low while she detangled the wires from her head. She winced as she unplugged the device from the tip of her chrome spine and used the bed to lift herself until she could sit up on it. She swallowed, hating that her painfully slow ascent had an audience, then shrugged towards the doctor. [b][color=#A4303F]“Well… you can… do it, now.”[/color][/b]

The doctor moved over and resumed taking her blood pressure. Umbri still looked deeply uncomfortable, unsure of how to let herself be looked after, doubly unsure of how to behave with a hero in the room. She accidentally locked eyes with him while glancing around and instantly dropped her stare to his feet. Did they always glow? He wasn’t [i]another[/i] vampire, was he?

She cleared her throat, desperate to get away from just being stared at. [b][color=#A4303F]“How has your day been?”[/color][/b] She ended with a brief pained smile.

There was a shrug from the armored rogue. [b][color=deepskyblue]“Kinda eventful so far. Had to deal with an edgy black and red costumed teen thinking he was intimidating with a cracking voice. Made him help clean up the property damage he caused.”[/color][/b] Then he held up a finger as he continued. [b][color=deepskyblue]“And then Scarhide decided it was time to test Shieldtown’s wall facing the wilds, and I’m kinda the only person here able to really challenge that freakishly huge cat without wasting dozens of rounds of munitions.”[/color][/b] There was a sudden pause as realization dawned on him. [b][color=deepskyblue]“Wait, I don't even know if you know what I’m talking about. Shit does everyone know what an Apex is? Double wait, does everyone even know what a Turbo Lion is?”[/color][/b] Umbri looked on blankly, and slowly began to shake her head. This guy’s Rogue career was [i]very[/i] different from what she knew of Temujin.

He half a hand to his helmet as if he were in thought. Just before Alex could begin to elaborate before getting an answer there was a deep gurgle growl that came from Alex. Specifically his gut. 

There was an awkward pause. 

[b][color=deepskyblue]“ . . . Shit, guess it's food time.”[/color][/b] He fiddled with some of the straps on his breastplate to make some space and slid a rather compact looking backpack that was hidden under the plating’s back shell. A motion to sit down was met with a soft glowing chair that appeared beneath him before he would have crashed onto the floor. Two lunch boxes were retrieved from the bag and sat on his lap. The first one revealed a rather stuffed sandwich cut in half. Almost picturesque with crisp lettuce, tomato, chicken and all the fixings. Kettle chips were nestled in the next tray, which didn’t look store bought. The other box held a more traditional bento meal. Rice and an assortment of tempura. Mostly seafood with some veggies. Two cups to the side were simply labelled “sauce” and “spicy”. The box it came in had to be some form of tech because it was steaming when opened. Alex was just about to crack one open before remembering that he wasn’t alone in this room.

A nervous laugh escaped him. [b][color=deepskyblue]“Uh, hungry? I got sandwiches and bento. Some other snacks too but homemade stuff is always better. I think I remembered my soup thermos . . . Oooor I left it on the counter at home. Again.”[/color][/b] His voice was sheepish again and he was rubbing the back of his neck once more.

Umbri regarded the boxes silently before pointing at the sandwich. She could definitely believe that he would’ve chowed down on these full sized meals no problem. She watched his helmet as the box was passed over, the thought obvious on her face. [i]He can’t eat without taking that off.[/i] She was openly staring at the whereabouts of his mouth, only glancing down to briefly thumb through the sandwich’s contents. [i]I guess he’s already started to take it off anyway. [/i]

As she raised the sandwich to take a bite, the doctor’s voice warned her, [b]“You shouldn’t start eating before I’ve taken your blood.”[/b]

Umbri blinked. [b][color=#A4303F]“... You’re taking what-!”[/color][/b] Her head was twisted back to facing forward and she felt something slide into the base of her neck. [color=#A4303F][b]“Ow!”[/b][/color] The doctor pulled away and Umbri caught the needle full of her blood, the red and green swirling together into a dark swampy shade. Umbri was stunned as he just walked away from her without a word.[color=#A4303F][b] “Will you tell me what you’re doing with that?” she demanded.
[/b][/color]
[b]“I’m going to isolate the venom from your blood, get a sample of what we’re dealing with. Hopefully the venom is something we already have an anti-venom on the shelf for. If we don’t have a match, the amount of blood I’ll have to extract from you to synthesise an anti-venom with will be…”[/b] he looked over at Umbri as he poured the needle’s contents into a vial and inserted it into a device that began to whir like a blender. An ‘it will kill you’ look. [b]“...Considerable. Did you get a good look at it?”[/b]

[color=#A4303F][b]“I…”[/b][/color] Her brain violently fired off their every encounter, the flood of flame that swallowed Ganta, the way it propelled itself after her and Temujin sliding down the rooftop, when it fell from the sky and melted the wall beside her and how the heat scorched her face and she felt the slow crush of its tail around her body and -  and she was looking at her chicken sandwich like it had killed her entire family.

Given his line of work, Alex was all too familiar with the look he saw cross her face. [b][color=deepskyblue]“Shit.”[/color][/b] Food and helmet were quickly put aside [b][color=deepskyblue]“I know I’m not the best person at this but bear with me ok?”[/color][/b] He had quickly moved close and dropped to a knee so he wasn’t looming, but he still easily made it to eye level. [b][color=deepskyblue]“You're gonna have to talk to me here because I can’t tell what’s running through your head. You look like you want to hit something but I can’t let you hit the doctor again and I’m pretty sure you’d break something hitting me.”[/color][/b] Fuck he really wasn’t the best at this. Genuine worry washed over Alex’s face as his eyes’ glow became softer.

Umbri reached out of the memory of being grappled on the wet ground and watching the snake come closer, her reflection rippling in the puddle beneath her. It felt like plastic wrap was pulled across her mouth. She tried breathing through it again, while her fingers made deep grooves in the bread, and focused… focus, girl, [i]focus,[/i] focus on what’s in front of you.

A face. A nice face.

[b][color=#A4303F]“I… it was… thirty feet, maybe. Looked like a snake.”[/color][/b] Her recollection was laboured. She lulled her head and swallowed. [b][color=#A4303F]“Spikes on its… no, that was the other one. Fins. And it moved on fire.”[/color][/b]

[b]“Did it glow?”[/b]

[color=#A4303F][b]“Mmh…”[/b][/color] she nodded at the doctor’s wary question, [color=#A4303F][b]“From everywhere. Everything. Ah, this is hard, actually."[/b][/color] She shuffled with a pained cringe then gazed at him through clouded eyes. [b][color=#A4303F]“You took your mask off.”[/color][/b]