Stings and Pops

Okara's job thread

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Syka is a new settlement of primarily humans on the east coast of Falyndar opposite of Riverfall on The Suvan Sea. [Syka Codex]

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Stings and Pops

Postby Okara on August 6th, 2018, 12:22 am

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Summer 47, 518

Okara knelt over the floor of the Panacea, shoulders aching as she pushed soapy water around the clinic with a rough bristle brush. The endless cleaning was an apprentice’s task and it certainly kept her humble about her role within the clinic. Her knees were soaked with water and a few soap bubbles flecked her shirt.

”Okara!” Jansen’s voice called. The akalak sounded serious but not urgent. He had gone down to the beach to splash in the waves and cool off in the afternoon heat, she hadn’t expected him back so quickly. She quickly stood and wiped the water from her pruny fingers onto her pants as she walked to meet her mentor at the clinic entry.

”What’s going on Jansen? Is everything alright?” she asked with a frown as he came into view.

”No emergency but I got stung by a jellyfish at the beach!” Jansen said with a strained laugh, stopping in front of the Konti and twisting his leg for her to observe. Okara immediately noticed the red lines lashing his blue calf. She pursed her lips as he straightened, it looked angry and painful.

”Goodness that looks painful. Couldn’t you have just healed yourself though?” Okara asked, eyebrows knit in confusion.

”Well sure but I wanted to teach you how to deal with jellyfish stings instead. They aren’t super common but they do happen from time to time. It’s painful but it’s not fatal. Unless of course you happen to be allergic to jellyfish, some people have crazy strong reactions to stings that can be much more serious.” Jansen explained.

”Alright, well how do I start out then?” Okara asked, ready to spring into action.

”Get some water heating. Not to boiling, just so it feels hot. While it’s warming bring vinegar and some parchment.” Jansen ordered. Okara nodded and picked up a jug of water before walking past Jansen to the firepit outside. She poured the water into the pot suspended above still smoldering embers to begin heating. Okara headed back inside and noticed Jansen had laid down on one of the patient cots so she would have easier access to the back of his calf when she was prepared.

Okara walked into the philtering lab and searched through the cupboards until she found a small jug labeled ‘Vinegar’. She picked up the jug and a scrap piece of parchment before heading back to the patient room where Jansen waited.

”Alright, the water is heating and I’ve got vinegar and parchment. What do I start with?” Okara asked as she knelt down beside the muscular man.

”Excellent, this is getting painful. Use the edge of the parchment to scrape the stings. There are probably still stingers left in the skin but they are usually too small and fine to see.Then pour the vinegar over the stings to rinse them. That should deactivate the jellyfish toxins and rinse away tiny stingers you couldn’t see.” Jansen explained, gritting his teeth.

Okara bent over his calf and carefully inspected the skin. She used the edge of the parchment to scrape gently down the skin, making sure to scrape across all of the angry, red welts. Next, she uncorked the jug and carefully poured the pungent liquid over Jansen’s blue calf . The Akalak sighed gratefully as the vinegar helped to relieve some of the pain.

Word Count: 558

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Okara
Great stories start with humble beginnings.
 
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Stings and Pops

Postby Okara on August 6th, 2018, 12:56 am

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Summer 47, 518


”Alright, water now.” Jansen said. Okara stood and set the vinegar and parchment onto a nearby counter where they would be out of the way. She picked up a large basin and carried it outside to the firepit. She held her hand over the heating water to judge it’s temperature before tentatively dipping her fingers in. It was hot but not uncomfortably so. She tipped the pot carefully and poured the water until her basin was nearly full. She walked back inside the clinic slowly, trying not to spill any of the water.

Jansen had flipped over onto his back with his injured leg bent and lifted. He indicated where to put the water, and Okara slipped the basin beneath his leg so he could lower his calf slowly into the hot water. Okara grabbed a towel and dipped it into the water before laying it over his leg so the jellyfish stings were fully surrounded by the hot moisture.

”How long should the stings soak?” Okara asked as she leaned back to meet Jansen’s eyes.

”A half hour or so.” Jansen said as he sighed and settled back on the cot. His voice was more relaxed and less strained, clearly the treatment had lessened the pain he was feeling. It was the first time Okara had really heard much emotion from the Akalak doctor, he and his brother Kalum usually had strict control over their emotions so it had been a little jarring to hear the discomfort in his voice.

Okara stood and left him to relax in the hot water. She returned to where she had left her bristle brush and bucket of soapy water. Kneeling down, she picked up the brush and continued her scrubbing of the clinic floor. Okara dipped the brush in the bucket and scrubbed the floor with as much pressure as she could muster. She let her mind slowly empty and got lost in the sound of the brush swishing back and forth over the floor.

The chimes passed quickly and Okara was startled when she heard the splashing of Jansen removing his leg from the water and standing up from the cot. Okara had mostly finished the scrubbing of the floor and tossed her brush in the bucket as she also stood. She strode over to Jansen and stepped behind him to get a view of the jellyfish stings. The red lines were still visible against his blue skin but they seemed much less angry and irritated then they had when he had first returned to the clinic.

”How does it feel?” Okara asked as she knelt to clean up the wet towel and basin of now cooled water.

”It feels alright. Not great but the stinging is mostly faded. I will heal mine here shortly but typically the welts only last a week or two.” Jansen said softly and Okara nodded. She dumped the water over the side of the clinic railing. She took a few chimes to clean up everything she had used for Jansen’s stings. He had taught her the importance of keeping everything clean and orderly and doing it in a timely manner. Jansen was always going on about the importance of keeping a clean working space and the dangers of not putting things back where they belonged, especially common things you might need for the next patient.

Word count: 560

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Okara
Great stories start with humble beginnings.
 
Posts: 280
Words: 218993
Joined roleplay: May 30th, 2016, 12:34 am
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Stings and Pops

Postby Okara on August 6th, 2018, 1:44 am

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Summer 47, 518


Okara’s efforts were rewarded when a knock on the door frame of the clinic signaled the next patient just as she was finishing cleaning out the basin and putting it away. She turned to see Lars standing in the entry, looking at her and Jansen with a sheepish expression. Okara frowned as she noticed he seemed to be holding his shoulders at an odd angle.

”What can we do for you today Lars?” Jansen said, striding forward. Okara watched his eyes immediately dart to his shoulders and notice the same angle she had.

”I was helping Randal with some labor on a house and we lost control of a log. It hit me on the front of the shoulder and I felt a really painful pop. It’s really smarting and I keep getting these tingles around my shoulder and down my arm.” Lars explained carefully.

”Based on what you are saying and how the shoulder is more squared than the other I’d say you dislocated it. Okara and I can get it popped back into place and reduce the swelling. We are going to have to work carefully since sometimes dislocates can tear the muscles around it and that’s harder to diagnose until you really start using it again.” Jansen explained, though the last part he directed more towards Okara who nodded in understanding.

”Okay, come over here and lay on this cot. It will be much easier to work on it with you laying flat on your back.” Jansen continued and indicated which cot he wanted Lars to lay on. Lars walked over and carefully lowered himself down onto the cot with his good arm. Jansen kneeled beside Lars on his good side and indicated Okara should kneel on the side of his dislocated shoulder which she complied with quickly.

”Okay, Okara I want you to do the adjustment so you can feel what it’s like putting it back in place. I will walk you through it. Okay, bend his arm at the elbow and keep it along the body. You are going to want to pull it firmly but gently so the head of the humerus can slip under the shoulder blade and back into the socket.” Jansen gently explained.

Okara swallowed and sent a silent prayer up to Rak’keli for success. She grasped Lars’s arm and bent it at the elbow. Keeping one arm clasped around the elbow and the other clasped below the wrist she slowly began to exert pressure and pulled it down his body away from the shoulder. She carefully increased her pressure, pulling it harder and harder until she had to brace herself firmly to continue exerting pressure.

Suddenly she felt the bone move and Lars had a sudden intake of breath before sighing gratefully. Apparently whatever had happened was the intended result as Jansen smiled at her encouragingly.

”Did you feel it slide into place?” Jansen asked, directing the question to Lars who was gingerly moving the arm around.

”Oh yeah, that feels much more right. Still a little pain but much, much better.” Lars said with a little chuckle.

Word Count: 518

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Okara
Great stories start with humble beginnings.
 
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Joined roleplay: May 30th, 2016, 12:34 am
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Stings and Pops

Postby Okara on August 15th, 2018, 8:18 pm

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Summer 47, 518


”Be careful moving that arm, we still have to heal the muscles and tendons around it. They get damaged if not outright torn when a shoulder dislocates and I would prefer you not do any further damage to them.” Jansen said as he gently placed a steadying hand on Lars’s arm. Lars quietly nodded. Jansen moved his hand around Lars’s injured shoulder, healing the torn tendons and muscles. When he was done, Jansen stood with Lars and Okara quickly following suit.

”Unfortunately, even with the tendons healed, once you’ve dislocated your shoulder it will dislocate again much more easily. It’s important that you keep the muscles around your shoulder strengthened so that they can help keep your bones held in place. The best way to strengthen those muscles is to lift heavy things above your head, that will target the correct muscles for growth.” Jansen explained as he walked Lars to the door. Okara waved her goodbye to the sawmill worker as he shook Jansen’s hand and went on his way.

Okara noticed Jansen smiling as he watched Lars walking away, then she saw his attention captured by something else as his expression changed into a flat one she had come to recognize as his professional face.

”Juli’s coming up the path and she’s limping, somethings wrong with her foot. I’m going to help her into the clinic. Get a fresh cot ready.” Jansen commanded to Okara before striding down the path and out of Okara’s view. Okara moved quickly, stripping the cot Lars had laid on of its linens and tossing them into the dirty basket. She pushed the cot out of the way and pulled a cot with clean linens wrapped around it closer to the clinic entryway. Moments later Jansen came striding back, the Mercantile shopkeeper held in his muscular, blue arms.

”Jansen, you can put me down. I’m not dying, I was managing fine on my own.” Juli insisted as they came through the doorway. Okara bit back a smile, the independent woman protested verbally but she made no motion to escape the Akalak healer’s grasp. Okara couldn’t blame her though, a dark quill was visibly lodged in her foot, blood slowly oozing out of the wound.

”You did a good job managing all the way from the beach but now we are here to help you.” Jansen said with feigned gruffness as he knelt and gently set her down on the cot Okara had prepared. ”Step on a stingray, did we?”

”Yes. Usually I’m so good at spotting them but this one was really buried in the sand and I didn’t even realize it was there until I had this lovely thing sticking in my foot.” Juli affirmed with an annoyed sigh.

”Well, we can get that fixed up. Okara, set some water on to boil. Then bring some towels and forceps.” Jansen quickly commanded and then turned to Juli to speak softly and keep her mind occupied while Okara went about fulfilling his requests. Most of the water left over the firepit from treating Jansen’s jellyfish sting had boiled away, so Okara added fresh water to warm over the smoldering coals. She rushed back inside the clinic and stopped at a cupboard to place several towels and two sets of forceps on a metal tray before carrying the tray over to Jansen and Juli.

Word Count: 560

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Last edited by Okara on August 16th, 2018, 1:02 am, edited 1 time in total.
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Okara
Great stories start with humble beginnings.
 
Posts: 280
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Joined roleplay: May 30th, 2016, 12:34 am
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Stings and Pops

Postby Okara on August 15th, 2018, 8:46 pm

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Summer 47, 518


”Okay Juli, we are going to have to remove the stingray’s quill. Okara, the quill’s are serrated so be careful or you might break some off inside the wound.” Jansen said as Okara knelt beside Juli. He offered Juli his hand who rolled her eyes but accepted it, grasping tightly.

Okara picked up one of the forceps and inspected the wound site carefully. The quill had lodged into the side of Juli’s foot and the skin around it was bright red and swollen. A few drops of blood were either sliding down her foot or drying around the immediate wound site.

Okara gripped the forceps and carefully grasped the quill with them. She pulled slowly but firmly, the skin stretching with the quill until it began to move begrudgingly out of the skin. Okara pulled carefully until the quill was free of Juli’s foot, and immediately pressed a towel against the bleeding wound with one hand as she held the stingray stinger up with the other. She gave the stinger a thorough visual inspection, checking to see if it looked whole or if bits were missing and might still be stuck in Juli’s foot. The stinger looked complete as far as she could tell so she held it towards Jansen for his inspection.

”Looks like you got it all. I can hold the towel to the wound now, go get the water and a basin to pour it in that Juli can dip her foot into. Stingray stingers contain a toxin that is broken down with heat, once we are positive the toxin has been destroyed we can heal up the wound itself.” Jansen said with a nod of approval at Okara’s work. The young apprentice blushed with pleasure and allowed Jansen to shift and take over exerting pressure with the towel.

Okara quickly found a suitable basin and brought it the outdoor firepit to pour the boiling water into it. Carrying it back into the clinic, she set it before Juli and poured a little cool water on top to lower the temperature to a bearable point before the shopkeeper dipped her injured foot inside.

”Is that too hot still?” Okara asked softly.

”It’s definitely hot, but I can take it.” Juli said with a small smile towards the Konti. Jansen sat with Juli, keeping her entertained with stories and conversation while he sent Okara to change the water every ten chimes so it stayed hot. It was tiring work to slog water around, but she knew Jansen would not ask something pointless of her and she wanted to make sure the toxin fully broke down in the heat. She knew such things were not to be taken lightly, Laviku’s waters were as dangerous as they were delightful.

After a bell and a half, Jansen declared the toxin was likely to be fully destroyed and allowed Okara to heal the wound. The twisting winged serpents on her arms writhed in delight as she channeled Rak’keli’s power to clean the shallow wound and heal the skin.

”That’s feeling much better now. Thank you for taking care of me Okara, and thanks for keeping me distracted Jansen.” Juli said with a wry smile as she left, the healers bowing their heads in acceptance of her gratitude.

”Well, let’s get this placed cleaned up.” Jansen said with a smile, rubbing his hands together in readiness as Juli disappeared down the jungle path. Okara nodded with a quiet smile at the tireless akalak. Another settler healed and already he was ready for the next task, the Panacea’s head healer always seemed to be looking for the next task to accomplish. Okara supposed that was how a healer stayed ahead of the next emergency or issue, always being ready for something new.

Word Count: 628

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Last edited by Okara on August 16th, 2018, 1:03 am, edited 1 time in total.
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Okara
Great stories start with humble beginnings.
 
Posts: 280
Words: 218993
Joined roleplay: May 30th, 2016, 12:34 am
Location: Syka
Race: Konti
Character sheet
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Stings and Pops

Postby Okara on August 15th, 2018, 8:59 pm

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Okara

Cleaning 2
Medicine 5
Observation 3

Medicine: Treat Jellyfish Stings with Vinegar and Hot Water
Medicine: Removing Jellyfish Stingers
Medicine: Jellyfish Stings Naturally Heal in One or Two Weeks
Medicine: Signs of a Dislocated Shoulder
Medicine: Treating a Dislocated Shoulder
Medicine: Once Dislocated, A Shoulder Will Dislocate Again More Easily
Medicine: Strengthen Muscles to Prevent Repeat Dislocations
Medicine: Removing Stingray Stingers
Medicine: Breakdown Stingray Toxin with Heat

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User avatar
Okara
Great stories start with humble beginnings.
 
Posts: 280
Words: 218993
Joined roleplay: May 30th, 2016, 12:34 am
Location: Syka
Race: Konti
Character sheet
Storyteller secrets
Plotnotes


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