The Doctor's Search [Open]

LUKAS

 

Late January 310
Lukas didn't have the Esper's telekinetic abilities nor the upgrades of an Augment to help with the delicate procedures in his practice. And mutating in order to be able to hold tools was always a crapshoot. He wanted a Watcher again. His first Watcher was a Chough-20, which was just too chatty. His second, and the one he had for years, was the Bowerbird-40, a huge clumsy machine that puttered behind him, but was delicate and exact when he needed it to be. A good workhorse of a Watcher without any AI to detract from his work. A perfect tool for him.

Luke's last Watcher just went kaput after years of good service. Honestly, it was a freak accident with a thrashing patient of his breaking the small, retractable pinchers as he tried to remove shrapnel from the dog's abdomen. Despite losing what was his most important partner and tool in that mess, Lukas maintained his cool and his bedside manner through it all.

The Aussie took the Northern route to Alren to avoid most of the heat of the desert and it was as the afternoon sun beat ahead that he made it to the junkyard. The wall was crumpled here, but still pretty high: A worthy challenge for the Aussie. Lukas smiled, happy to practice his jumping skills.

Like he had springs for legs, he sprung up and landed lightly on the dip of the wall. His entire rear wagged. He was so obviously proud of himself. And he hopped down to start looking on the inside of the junkyard.  Lukas would have to use his eyes, as Watchers smelled a lot like the rest of the forgotten relics of the old civilization. There was no special scent, only that they were as abandoned as the rest of the junk. And Bowerbirds weren't the type of Watcher to spontaneously sync to a dog like a Tanager could be. In fact, usually, Bowerbirds were not popular Watchers. Big, clumsy, and specialized, most dogs ignored them in lieu of the generalists or the weaponized machines. He flipped up an old tarp with his nose and then kicked it up with a hop. Just trash. Nothing under here either.

word count ||368
muse || lots of it!
tag || open
notes || Of course the purpose is to find Luke a Bowerbird. Also to make friends! Who wants to help him?

- Lukas -

---

The Ash River doctor hadn't been the only one in search of Watchers to sync with.

It seemed like only yesterday she was experiencing her darkest hour; the worst of what the winter season could do to dogs. In fact, it was a little over three months ago that she had reached her first year of age. But she didn't have the tiniest bit of time to celebrate it. She had dragged her half dead body through that milestone and wasn't looking forward to struggling that hard ever again. She had a plan for being a little bit more self-sustaining this time around, but it involved teaming up with the dragos of Watchers; an Ifrit. To avoid the chances of having yet another ability backfire on her, Jora had been practicing syncing with Watchers for minutes at a time. She found herself extracting useful information from them; knowledge that could also aid her in surviving. By this time, Jora was wise far beyond her years; she had knowledge that would make any normal dog set for life. But what good was it without the capabilities to execute the simplest of tactics? At this point, she would either die from pushing herself beyond her limits, die from failing to sustain herself with her limits, or her plan would buy her enough time only for her to have to make a new one next winter. She needed to break the cycle somehow.

As she thought all of this, she watched the strange dog scavenge through the junkyard. She was neither really hiding nor waiting to be seen; she simply found a space that her small size allowed her to crawl into and sleep that hid her well from any potential roaming somethings that could try to eat her. Even as he started to get closer, she didn't make any move to hide or introduce herself. She only blinked slowly.


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LUKAS

It was easy for Lukas to focus on a task. He could sit somewhere and just block out the miscellaneous noises, scents, sights so that he could throw his entire being into the task at hand. Today, the task at hand was searching for a Bowerbird. He was thankful that, while the midday desert sun beat down on him, it wasn't the evil heat that the summer brought. That would leave him panting and weak. Wintertime in the desert was not too bad. Warm and dry as always, but not too bad. Though, rarely, a storm would flood the lows of the desert during the Winter, filling the area with life for Spring before it all died down again.

The Aussie nosed through a pile of trash, slowly inching his way towards Jora, but then being pulled by an interesting looking heap. It took him a few more minutes before he was upon her and then he touched her with his nose. Suddenly, the scent of dog--a scent he had been actively ignoring until that moment--filled his nostrils and he hopped up in surprise, jumping up a rather incredible height for his size. He was startled by his discovery of the small dog in the rubble. He leaned forward and his sharp eyes scanned everything about her.

He first noticed the patchy coloration of her coat. The condition of her body added to his hypothesis that she must be a Lethal White Basal. The pack had had a few of those born in the pack and studied them. Deafness, blindness and even deformity were common for Lethal Whites. He remembered a dog that was born with a mouth deformity so severe that she couldn't speak. The pack had kept her alive for their amusement, to see if they could make her world a little more comfortable, but she had eventually faded at four months from malnutrition. Sad day indeed.

But then Lukas noticed that her dark eye was metallic. Interesting. He had never seen anything like it. Could she really be an Augment? Or was there an Augment somewhere who had repaired her eye? He had never heard of another Augment upgrading any other dog. And, of course, he had seen Ash River really try. He was genuinely interested in her and decided that he'd like to get to know her.

"I'm staring, aren't I?" he said with an easy grin. "I didn't mean to. It's just I was looking for a certain kind of Watcher and I didn't expect to find a dog quite as interesting as you are." There was nothing dishonest about Lukas. Not in his expression, which was as easy to read as an open book. He wasn't a fantastic liar and so became adept at giving others bad news gently. He was a good dog who ran with a pack who often saw morals and ethics as hindrances and so abandoned them. It had forced him to twist his own to survive. Though he was born with a bleeding heart for others, he had learned to be more pragmatic and utilitarian in order to be better able to care for his patients.

"My name is Lukas, by the way. I'm from Ash River Project. What's a little lady like yourself doing out here?" He seemed rather cultured in his manners. He was both direct and polite, with an open, friendly expression that came second nature to him. Genuine. Not like the reputation which Ash River Project dogs had around Canaria: Shifty, dishonest, violent tricksters. Then again, word was that the Alpha changed recently.

word count || 598
muse || lots of it!
tag || Jora
notes || OMG, they are going to find their Watchers together.

- Lukas -

---

As the dog made its way closer, he hadn't given any indication that he had noticed her presence. Not in the sense that it was he wasn't acknowledging her; but rather he was paying very little attention. It was rather odd; she figured that he would be more cautious in this area; corners to turn, strong smells that mask the smells of organics, feeble towers of sharp and heavy objects. She immediately dived into analysis mode, her mechanical eye silently focusing and adjusting the details of its inspection. Thanks to its visual appearance, it hadn't looked any different as it was searching and probing. Her other silver eye remained calm and still.

Topline: Leveled
Frontline: Aligned straight
Backside: Aligned staight

While it is possible for a wild dog to be born without even the slightest hint of a bone imperfection, there was a high probability that this guy was bred. A purebreed at that. She couldn't see any of the farmers having the luxury of two high health purebred dogs to work with, so he had come a pretty far way from his origin point.

Joint tremors: None
Muscle spasms: None
Frothy mouth: Negative
Red eye: Negative

It seemed like he was also being well cared for. He could possibly be someone's pet. If she recalled correctly, there was a human-dense area that was not too far from here. But from what she had seen, it had been mostly gruff older humans who owned stocky short haired dogs. The strange dog managed to walk right up to Jora and sniff her paw and startled himself. When his nose touched against her paw, her ears cupped themselves forward slightly. Her nose twitched twice or three times to catch his scent more out of reflex than any curiosity before he was leaping into the air.

1.8 meteres in height.

And that was just from being startled. He could probably jump higher than that; a strong testament to his physical health. There was a moment that he was curiously observing her,

Cataracts: None
Stabismus: None

and then he began to speak to her in a rather friendly manner, introducing himself as Lukas.

Dental structure: Scissor, aligned
Major gum or tooth disease: None

She took a moment to answer his question, of course; it was a little difficult to sort information and interact with others at the same kind.
"Jora. And I am doing the same; looking and watcher hunting." She answered flatly. Jora could conclude that this "Lukas" was a prime example of physical fitness for his breed and dogs in general. Whether or not it was the source of his reckless demeanor or both were a consequence to the life he was living was unknown. Even if he did seem a bit on the naive side, she doubted that she would be able to defensively or offensively interact with him. Though she was conceiving a plan right at that moment. And she figured it would work well.

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LUKAS

Lukas watched as her mechanical eye shifted independently from her natural eye. He saw the adjustment of the lens and the small movements as she scrutinized him, her eye probing for any hints towards his intentions, collecting data about his health, and making observations in order to assume that, once upon a time, he had been owned by humans. He was purebred and not only that, but well bred. Jora had noticed his almost perfect structure. All of the angles of his body improved endurance, stamina, efficiency of movement. If he trotted, he'd have free, open, easy movement.  

He could have been great in any position due to his innate abilities, but he chose to be a Physician. Most of the time, he was huddled over an injured dog, keeping them alive against all odds. Or he was digging up a grave or dissecting a dog. Or else he was collecting herbs. He enjoyed how busy his job allowed him to be. Job. Not just a rank because this was his passion. Today, he was scoping out for a new Watcher. As he was quite useless without it. 

His entire rear wiggled in delight when Jora shared that she was also here to search for a Watcher. "In that case, why don't we search together? Do you know what sort of Watcher you are looking for? I know a bit about them. Of course, not my area of expertise, but I've heard things, here and there. Plus I've had some training with humans." He didn't attempt to even hide his past with humans because in Ash River, it was not shameful to know something, no matter the origin of your information. He had been a member of the pack for a few years already. "So, I could be more helpful than you know, Jora." He used her name naturally and warmly, but it was a habit he had built over the years. Learning and using the name of his patients made them more comfortable and at ease. 

Earnestly, Luke added. "I'm looking for a model called a Bowerbird, by the way. I know... 'who wants a Bowerbird anyways?' But I had one and it was the best darn little, well, big Watcher ever." The Aussie chuckled.

word count || 376
muse || lots of it!
tag || Jora
notes || n/a

- Lukas -

---

Lukas-the mostly stranger- was offering to search alongside Jora-the mostly stranger to him- to search for the finite source potentially in this area called Watchers. It was quite a precarious situation. While Jora wasn't particularly cautious, she wasn't ready to purposefully put herself into a situation. Judging by the friendliness of this dog, partnering with him may also involve conversation, and that was a situation in itself. She didn't feel like conversing. And she certainly didn't feel like sharing a Watcher either, if that was possible.

But there was something that the other said that did get the gears of action to start churning within her. He said that he could help more than she knew he could. In addition to that, she had heard her name spoken by someone other than her brother for the first time. Unlike many, her name didn't have any intimate connection to her; it was nothing more than a sound made in reference to her. It hadn't struck her that it could sound so differently coming from another, and she wasn't ready to welcome the difference. So as he began to talk about bowerbirds, she abruptly turned away and buried herself deeper into the trash respite. If he truly did know what she could know, then it was better to deal with him because what she knew was all that she had left.

She placed her back against a mostly flat metal sheet and used her foot to swipe away one of the broken plastic containers it was balancing on. From there, half of its weight rested on her shoulders while the other half was supported by a large toolbox. The strain was already enough to have her legs trembling, but she pushed further and further, even beyond the low but present pop until there was a cacophony of crashing, metal scraping metal and various objects rebounding off of each other. Her head was no longer covered and clouds of dust were billowing all around her. She walked forward on top of the monument she had toppled with a gangly, dizzy gait until her shoulders rolled one by one back into their respective places. Jora's nostrils flared to force the dirt back out of her nostrils. She caught a scent of blood, but it was too soon to determine she was successful. She allowed her weaker eye to close to keep it from getting irritated; the other searching for a sign of the remains. Instead, she found herself focusing on the one object that seemed out of place in the rubbish...why, it looked remarkably similar to a Watcher. Perhaps this idea was a good one for more reasons than one.

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LUKAS

And Lukas kept talking, not realizing that Jora wasn't really listening to him. "...And wouldn't you know it, I actually have burned through two Watchers already. I really ought to be more careful with them. My last one was a Bowerbird and that baby was an awesome little machine. Did everyth--" The Aussie paused when he finally noticed that the little dog had disappeared into the rubble. "Ah, of course, no time to waste. Might as well get the search started," Luke said with a grin.

Now, Luke was no idiot. He knew that Jora was probably not interested in him, but, as always, the optimistic Aussie gave the dogs the benefit of the doubt. She's shy. She doesn't like to waste time. She doesn't know how to interact with others. And that last one was true of so many dogs here, in Canaria. He knew he was lucky. Bred specifically for a purpose with good health and excellently socialized. Trained to use his body and mind to its fullest potential. And he was a dog to count his blessings. He had a sister to inspire him. White, silly girl of vim, vigor, and attitude. He sighed. He better go back to the task at hand or else he'd be lost in his reminiscence. 

He nosed through the trash and then swiveled his ears when he heard a sound. "Uh, Jora?" He lifted his head and then saw the teetering tower of junk collapsing towards him. He moved quick enough to dodge the worst of it, but was cut into by a stray shard of sheet metal.

He pulled the shard out without event, without looking nervous or squeamish. He was a well-practiced Physician, after all. He was used to dismembering bodies to study their rotting guts. He was used to cutting into a dog to break their bones and stitching them back up. He knew that he'd need at least to clean it out and get it somewhat healed before he headed home. He stood up and then felt that there was something still inside. A sharp pain. He lowered his body and looked at the shard he pulled out. It was an irregular shape all around, but he saw that there was a part where it looked like a small piece of metal could have broken off from. Shit. He'd need to get that out of his leg.

Lukas peeked up at Jora, seeing her investigating the Watcher. If that's a Bowerbird, that would be awesome. He asked the little dog. "Jora, what model is that? Actually, never mind, can just you bring it here? I shouldn't be moving." He spoke without panic. As if he knew exactly what he was supposed to do in a situation like this. Blood on his coat. A cool expression on his face. Lukas was the most alive when he was working on a patient. Even if the patient was himself.

word count || 487
muse || lots of it!
tag || Jora
notes || Yay. Blood!

- Lukas -

---

Before the dust could settle, Jora was able to carefully observe the machine in front of her. It was primitive; rather large and angular compared to some of the newer models. Definitely a Bowerbird. It was useless to her; she only synced with Watchers for their information. Bowerbirds were notorious for their low memory space, and one that had been left in the junkyard in a place that was heavy for recycling resources meant it was especially useless to her.   Before she could even think the words clearly, she heard a familiar voice call her name out from the dust.

Jora was not surprised. If he had been crushed there would be a stronger scent of blood and a much bigger mess. For the most part, she was undisturbed. He wasn't taking any hostile actions in retaliation to what she had done so there would be no point. At the same time, she wasn't especially upset that he was alive regardless of his friendly demeanor; dog meat wasn't a very pleasant taste.  Her blank void of an eye pierced through the soiled air onto Lukas, however its surface did not reflect any sort of focus onto the outside world like an insect. As far as one could tell, it was like she hadn't even heard Lukas and was ready to go about her day. 

But maybe there wasn't an angle that she hadn't yet explored in her mind. Perhaps he really could be help to him alive. Even if she wasn't too comfortable with the idea of interacting with another dog. She rolled the Watcher down the slope of rubbish towards Lukas. From there, she sat and watched like an owl in the darkness.

LUKAS

Lukas saw that emptiness in her eyes. He almost feared for a second that she'd abandon him out here. Not that he'd die. He'd probably hobble over to the Watcher she had unearthed. If it wasn't a Bowerbird, he would use it to find one out in this god-forsaken junkyard. And he'd rather not have to do that because it would hurt a lot more than if she had helped him.

And then, she rolled the Watcher down to him. He watched as that dead machine tumbled over the rubble and landed at his side. And he saw it was most definitely a Bowerbird. Hallelujah, I suppose for once, luck is on my side. The Physician of Ash River Project grinned as he let his mind fill the Watcher. Syncing to a Bowerbird was different. It wasn't like a Tanager or a Chough, which would meet you half-way with its own intelligence, a machine that desperately wanted to connect. Sometimes, so much so that, before you know it, you had one following you.

The Bowerbird was more like a tool than a separate entity. It made no moves to try to connect. He had to do all of the work and that made the Watcher one of the most difficult to sync with. However, he was helped with the fact that he needed this robot. Right now. He whined, he was going to hate what happened next because it was going to hurt. The machine flickered in response to his mind, feeding off of his living energy like a symbiotic parasite to summon enough strength to hover off of the trash.

Lukas glanced up at Jora. He smiled his easy grin. "Now, it's lucky that I found you and I found myself a new Bowerbird. Because now, you get to see the Gamma Physician of Ash River in action." Lukas loved his craft and always lectured as he performed in front of others. In his job, he could become extremely calm. Expertly, he could balance the needs of his patient with the needs of his pupils. Though in this case, his patient was himself and his pupil was not a pupil, but some random genetic mistake who he found absolutely fascinating. "So, in this procedure, I'm going to have to take some foreign material out of the wound in my left thigh." His Bowerbird hovered near the area. "So, a Bowerbird is an interesting Watcher. It has no AI to speak of, and, it also has small pincers which can be used for delicate procedures." With that, the Bowerbird opened and one of its metal arms came out. The robot was designed for collecting samples. A tool.

It reached into his wound delicately until Lukas felt his grip on it quaver. He didn't completely sync to it perfectly yet and so the machine dropped a quarter inch when he wanted it steady in the air. He sucked the air through his teeth in pain as he stifled a cry. He forced his mind into the Bowerbird again, as he had had practice with this model before, it wasn't as difficult as the first time. Though, he was really pushing it with this. He felt it move to a more comfortable position, grab the foreign body. And then, the Bowerbird backed up with a small shard of twisted metal in its small pincers.

Lukas looked at it and sighed, though his leg still hurt. "It should heal rather well on its own. But you see that little piece of metal? That could have killed me. Infection. Well, I might have lost a leg. And that would have killed me. As I love my leg. It's a good leg." He laughed, but was happy that the procedure was over.

word count || 599
muse || lots of it!
tag || Jora
notes || lol, Lukas.

- Lukas -

---

Jora watched the way his face brightened when the clunky machine tumbled near him only to morph into a wince of pain and maybe effort as he began to sync with it. She hadn't known the process to be painful; perhaps because she was numb to it or maybe equipped to do it more efficiently. Regardless, the task was done and the robot was being put to use. It must have been quite a sturdy thing to be trashed in the junkyard for who knows how long, crash down a mountain of trash, and still work fairly smoothly.

He was talking again. It was something he seemed to really enjoy doing. This time Jora decided against walking away this time. She wasn't in a particular rush to get to nowhere and it looked like he was about to demonstrate a medical procedure that could be highly informative. He explained the injury and the wound site as if she couldn't comprehend it better with her eye. Even at this distance, she could see it up close and clearly. If she concentrated a little harder and got closer, she would be able to see through the epidermal layer and fur into the muscle and tendons. A little more and she could see the artery and bones. And before she knew it, she was taking those steps closer so that she could do just that. Jora had recalled extracting quite a bit information from a tanager one spring so seeing such a process internally meant just as much, if not more, than hearing it and watching it from Lukas. It was a massive amount of data that eventually sorted itself into various diagrams of canine anatomy among other creatures. And while she could see it clearly and understand it in her head, she knew not the words nor had the capability to express it to the other experienced dog. What came to mind was the diagonal stripes of muscle and the thick lighter plate of muscle that covered it. She knew that between the two within the diagonal stripes was an artery, and when severed the possibility of bleeding to death was very real. While it didn't look like it was especially bleeding hard so it was likely that it remained unaffected, the metal was an abnormal shape and the diagram was two-dimensional.

Her mouth did open and ears twitch and shift to express that she was thinking very hard on how she would communicate this information, but the words never did come out. He seemed like he was done talking and was laughing as if things would be fine. If things were fine then there was nothing to share. So once again,she promptly turned away, shutting her mouth shut until her lips created an unwavering line, and began to walk away. There could be other dogs in the junkyard that aren't so chatty and friendly, so it was about time she headed somewhere else.


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LUKAS

If Lukas was honest, he would say that he'd prefer it if Jora said something that said she was listening to his words. He kept his attention on his wound the entire time and expected her to have leaned in, enraptured by his words in much the same way as most of his pupils were. He was often told that he was a good teacher, though in normal conversation, he tended to prattle on and on about his favorite topics. Namely, medicine and anatomy. After the end of the procedure, when he looked up, he only saw her walking away. He sighed heavy enough that it puffed out his flews and came out in a soft huff. What should he say in this moment when his usual charisma seemed to offend her?

He looked at her small form. Like a puppy almost, but her proportions were odd. She was a rarity and her deformity made her a treasure in his eyes. Beautiful. He couldn't let her go so easily. Not without some kind of farewell. He stood up, careful about his wound. He could feel it stinging him. Flesh that was not fully healed. He would make a quick salve once he headed to a greener part of Canaria to accelerate his healing, at least somewhat. "Jora." Luke said, though the sense of good-bye in his voice was almost palpable. He was an honest dog, especially so when it was time to say so long. "I suppose this is farewell. I do want to leave you with something for listening to me blabber on." He smiled. "I'm from Ash River Project. It's a pack where the dogs seek knowledge above all else. I presume that you are looking for answers. There's a place for you there, if you want it." He had to give her something to help her along the way. It was in his good-nature to.

The Bowerbird-30 hovered erratically, still not in perfect working order. Lukas would have to get used to the new machine. He'd have to become intimate with the circuitry and quirks of it. Eventually, it would be an extension of who he was. Just like the last Bowerbird. And the Chough he had before that. He smiled. He'd probably ought to head to the Heartlands. Find some herbs and medicines to replenish his supplies.

word count || 383
muse || a lot, of course
tag || Jora
notes ||We can end the thread on this post if you'd like!

- Lukas -

---

She had expected Lukas to follow after in a futile attempt to communicate with her. If he could take a tower of trash being toppled onto him than she would need a little more than just walking away to end the conversation. It wasn't that Jora hated Lukas per se; such strong and intense feelings tended to get the heart rate going, which isn't good for her condition. She wasn't annoyed by him either; she hadn't interacted enough with other canines to know what annoyed her. She simply was not comfortable with communicating, especially after sharing her name. It seemed like she would get all she could from Lukas just short of trying to kill and eat him again, which would be too much effort now that he had a watcher. It was time to leave.

He said her name again; a sound that she had been conditioned to respond to. But the way he had said it now had a different tone. It was clear that he was speaking for her and not to her now. And maybe perhaps he was onto something. She hadn't put into perspective what exactly she wanted. Clearly it was to survive this winter, but what after that? Yes, she probably wanted to be rid of this condition and live a relatively normal life as a healthy dog. In fact, her information search had started lean more towards trying to better understand what was going on inside her. And if this pack had medics and it had answers, it possibly had an answer for her after further medical examination.

So she mulled over his words for a moment, though she still kept her steady walk forward. Even with his injured leg, her tiny gait and casual stride meant that they remained level. When she finally came to a conclusion, she finally broke her long silence.

"I will check it out. Thank you, Lukas." She spoke dryly, eyes focused ahead as she continued out of the junkyard.

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