Between Fire and Water

Sick Bay

Zishi wasn't even sure how they had run afoul of a sea serpent, but things were far too chaotic for her to question it. Through a combination of burning, freezing and crushing, they had managed to convince the beast that it wasn't worth anything to go after their ship. 

Of course, there were others that hadn't picked up the memo, and more serpents rose out of the watery depths to challenge the ship. 

Zishi hadn't even gotten made it to topside to fight. Some technician nabbed her as she ran up with everyone else and demanded she come with and cool down the engines before they overheated. 

Immediately after satisfying his demands, the first serpent slunk away to nurse his wounds. The soldiers who had been hurt during the encounter had been taken to the sick bay, and Zishi found herself down with them. She worked to patch up everyone she came across, thankful none of the injuries were too bad. 

And then more serpents decided to try to feast on the boat. The young woman wasn't allowed up to fight because her healing abilities were far too valuable to risk, much to her dismay. But it could not be helped; there were precious few water bending healers, and just as few doctors and nurses. So she labored to fix soldiers as fast as possible, desperately repairing each person so that there was space if more stumbled down. 

***After the last person leaves the med bay***

Zishi flopped onto the nearest empty bed, not caring that it was dirty. The two other water bending healers were likewise exhausted, having used up every last bit of their energy a little while ago. A tired but self-satisfied smile tugged at her lips as she silently congratulated herself on having lasted the longest. The nurses tidied up, yanking anything bloody or scuffed into a large bin to wash later. The doctors cleared off, eager to step away from the idea of death. 

Boots clunked down the stairs, but the water benders made no effort to stand. Their talents had been used to the max already; whoever was left would have to make do with standard medical procedures. 

A single man entered the room, his uniform somehow pristine. Zishi blankly stared at him and was shocked to realize that it was Iroh. The man cleared his throat awkwardly.

Before he could actually open his mouth, Zishi spoke up. "We're bone dead, so unless you're reading us a menu, let us be." Out of the corner of her eye, she noticed the other water benders nod subtly. They might not agree with speaking in such a manner to a superior officer, but they agreed. They were in dire need of rest; pretty speeches could wait until later. 

Iroh shifted uncomfortably. It was evident that he had some sort of speech planned, but his big moment had been ruined. Zishi almost felt bad for him before remembering that he was just like the others. He wanted to keep her down so that she wouldn't get hurt. Frustration welled up inside her; all she wanted was to stand independently, but to no avail. The young woman shoved down the familiar feeling and tried to think of the recent events Iroh likely had knowledge of.  

"Sir," she croaked. Amber eyes snapped to her, but their owner said nothing. "May I inquire what happened topside?"

His eyes immediately darkened. "Something stirred up all the sea serpents around here. They weren't just trying to take a bite out of us; they clearly were here to attack," he stated bleakly as he walked up to the bed she was resting on. She took in his flushed face and messy hair, and realized he had been pushing himself just as much as she had been. Regret for her earlier words flooded her, but at the same time, she knew it was true. None of the water benders right now wanted to hear it, except for her. And even then, it was probably toxic for her to try to address more issues while she lacked the strength to even sit up. But she just had to keep going. 

Iroh dropped himself into the nearby chair. "How were things down here?"

Zishi let out a soft laugh. "You mean besides absolute chaos?" Her superior officer tipped his head in confusion as she continued. "The nurses run through the patients and figure out who is in the worst condition and bring them up to whoever is open. The doctors slice open anyone who might have any shrapnel in their bodies and pull it out, and then either stitch them up or pass them off to a water bender if any are currently available. For our part, we run to wherever the nurses call us and do whatever we can to patch people up. Most of the time, we healed broken bones and tried to put cuts back together, but it's so hard to keep up. . ." she trailed off, belatedly realizing she had been rambling a bit. Her listener looked uncomfortable, as if he had never realized what level of hell a medical bay could be. 

Then again, why would he? Iroh clearly was wealthy, and when he trained, it likely was private or in a small school. And when someone patched him up, it was only him and maybe a few other people. There was no way Iroh could understand what it felt like to be frantically rushing to repair a complex body before the damage could ruin it, to pour energy into someone in the hopes that their cells could recover before they died, to plunge freshly cleaned hands into bloody wound again and again to fix. To outrace death for others while steadily feeling it creep closer.  

Zishi felt a hand on her shoulder and jumped. She blinked, suddenly realizing that her eyes had filled with tears. She turned her cyan eyes up to see Iroh's face was a strange mixture of sympathy and. . .disgust? Fear?

"A-are you alright?" he tentatively asked.  

She nodded, reaching up to wipe her tears away. It was surprisingly difficult, as if her very muscles were now complaining about the sheer amount of life force she had sacrificed for others. 

The colonel hesitated, clearly unsure of what to do. "I think I'll leave you, all of you, to your rest." He awkwardly pulled his hand away and walked out the door, glancing back with every few steps.