A new day was dawning.  The sunrises were spectacular, at least-- air pollution can do that.  It rose behind the shining Inner City, where the locals would never go, and through the long train tubes snaking all around.

And with the sun came a desperate pounding on the door of the clinic, before Mao was even out of bed.

Mao stifled a yawn as she threw on a bathrobe and answered the door.

It was a pair of locals-- they looked like laborers of some kind, with horse ears and tails, probably hooves under their boots.  They were supporting a smaller figure, possibly a young teen.  She was having spasms... and strange growths had burst through her pants all along one leg.

"Bring her in and place her on the examining room bed. One of you tell me what happened," Mao said as she hurried, grabbing a few tools to try and figure out what the girl was suffering from.

They did so.

"She was helping us haul some barrels of waste," said one of the men.  "That's all!  There must have been a leak somewhere, but I've never heard of something like this!"

The girl's leg had broken out in growths, tearing her pants... there had been some superficial damage to her leg from the pressure on the tearing cloth, but the growths were the real problem.  They were still growing, as well, the skin turning a strange green-blue color, and the growths extending to the point where they were almost resembling short tendrils of some kind.  She was showing signs of shock, and the sudden growth had to be draining on her body's reserves in a terrible way.

Had Mao heard of something like this before and if so, what was the treatment?

(OOC: Expertise: Medicine Roll - Mao Hojo rolled 23 using 1d20+8.)

Well, that was the problem.  She hadn't... but what was happening resembled a strange, incredibly-invasive cancer unless it was some kind parasite.  She needed to do a much closer examination to figure out which.

Mao took a quick sample of the groths and put it under the microscope.

(OOC: Treatment Check - Mao Hojo rolled 18 using 1d20+10. Gonna reroll -18:35, Today: Mao Hojo rolled 30 using 1d20+10.)

There wasn't a microorganism present that she could detect, or any parasites, either.  Instead, some strange chemical-- one she could still trace, which was odd-- was actively doing... something... to the living cells.  Mutating them, converting them to something else.  If it wasn't stopped, it might very well consume her entire leg, or even her entire body.

Mao thought hard on a way to stop, or at least, slow the mutation process.

(OOC: Expertise: Medicine - Mao Hojo rolled 11 using 1d20+8. Reroll - Mao Hojo rolled 19 using 1d20+8)

This was a bad one-- the chemical defied analysis; the process was strange.  But she could at least slow the process greatly with a cryonic coma.  It wasn't any kind of long term solution, but that might buy her time to find out more about what was happening.

Mao did so and then went to her office to get some real clothes on.

"I need you two to take me to where this happened. I need a sample of that waste."

"Uh, sure," said the worker.  "Do you have any, uh, protective clothing or something?  We don't want that happening to you..."

"I do," Mao said, getting it out and on. "What do you guys know about the waste?"

One shrugged.

The other said, "We were just paid to haul barrels into a storage building.  We're cheaper than robots out here, because nobody is going to knock us over and strip us for parts."

"Let's just go then," Mao said.

She arrived back at the clinic; her patient was still stable for now.

"Oh, thank goodness," Mao said before heading to her office to get the money.

Enrico accepted the money.

"Okay," he said.  "So I'll get some stuff together.  How soon do you want to meet here?  Or meet somewhere else?"

"How do you want to get across? I can do a ritual to teleport us across, but it'll take a while," Mao said.

"Is that safe?" Enrico asked.  "It's not great as an exit strategy... if your expenses can take it, we could try to hire a boat.  Some smugglers have ways of getting past security."

Mao went to check her money.

"I suppose I could spare up to five hundred, but I'm going to have to survive on instant ramen for a while."
This message was last edited by the player at 03:17, Thu 30 July 2020.

"That should be enough," said Enrico.  "And hey, if we're raiding for one thing, we could grab more stuff to defray expenses."

"It makes sense, but these are dangerous mutagenic chemicals," Mao said. "I'm sure there are better things we could take."

"Yeah, but aren't there, like, scientific instruments and things you could use?" said Enrico.  "If you couldn't use, say, some good quality scales yourself, I know there are people who would buy them."

"Okay, that makes sense," Mao said.

"All right," said Enrico.  "I'm gonna grab some hazmat gear.  That stuff looks nasty."

"You should. I need to see some patients and get things ready," Mao said.

Enrico departed, letting Mao prepare as she thought best.

Mao say the rest of her patients that day and there were no other major incidents. Once it was done, Mao got out the armour she would be wearing, her knife, the money to bribe the ship and decided to make a food offering at the small shrine Mao had to her dead mother,

Enrico returned a little while later.

"Okay," he said.  "I guess I'm ready as I'm gonna be for a gig like this.  You set?"

"I'm ready," Mao said as she grabbed everything and locked the clinic behind her.

Enrico wasn't in good shape at all by the time he was back at the clinic; closing his wounds was one thing, but travelling with those injuries was bad, period.

Mao helped him up on an exam table.

"Well, lucky you. Looks like I'm going to have to strip you down."

She set about treating him.

Another Treatment roll; not too hard, since you're in your clinic.

(OOC: Treatment - Mao Hojo rolled 30 using 1d20+10)

Enrico was only semiconscious, but Mao was 100% sure that he'd be fine now.  Those blades from the slug-creature were clearly dangerous, though-- they'd cut right through his body armor like it was nothing.

Mao called Flask.

"Hey, Mao," said Flask.  "What's going on?"

"I've got a sample," Mao said. "I'll bring it over."

Her patient was still in a coma, and didn't seem to be worse.  Enrico was asleep on a cot.

Mao decided to head to bed.

...and it was morning.

Mao went to check on her patients.

Enrico was well enough to snore a bit as he slept, which was good.  The girl was still in a medical coma, but stable, and her condition hadn't worsened.

Mao then went to see if she had any messages.

One, from Flask.

"...I think I found something that could work," he said, yawning.  "Call me later."

Mao called him.

"Hey," said Flask.  "So, I think I have something that may work-- it seems to kill the mutating agent."

"Thank god. What is it?" Mao asked.

"A blend of certain rare earths with a few other things," said Flask.  "It's going to be a bit toxic, but better than the alternative."

"How much are we talking?" Mao asked.

"I don't know what the dosage is, but not cheap," said Flask.

"I don't have a lot of money to spare...is there something we can work out?" Mao asked.

"I'm sure we can," said Flask.  "I might have you see if you can do a supply run for me, for one thing."

"Okay, I'll keep that in mind," Mao said. "Do you have what it needs right now?"

"I'm really guessing about the safe dosage, but I think I can give you enough to treat a kid," said Flask.  "Just be very, very cautious about it.  This stuff is pretty toxic."

"I understand. I'm going to supplement it with my magic," Mao said.

"Probably a good idea, but I'll tell you right now that I don't know what's going to happen if you do that," said Flask.  "So be careful."

"I will be," Mao said."Thank you."

"Let me know how it works out," said Flask.  "Later."

Mao went about setting up the ritual.

Make a roll

Mao began the chant of the ritual as she applied the cure.

(OOC: Expertise: Magic roll - Mao Hojo rolled 22 using 1d20+8. Reroll - Mao Hojo rolled 28 using 1d20+8)

The girl stirred, despite the cryosleep-- in fact, something was happening, despite the cryosleep, and it shouldn't be this fast or obvious!

Mao cursed and tried to figure out what was happening.

...Her patient's vitals were improving.  But she was breaking out of the cryostasis on her own, somehow, and her metabolic activity was skyrocketing.

Mao moved to turn off the cryostasis.

She shut it off.  The girl thrashed for a moment, as if overcompensating, but then lay back, breathing hard... but began to slow down.  Calm down.

"Are you okay?" Mao asked as she watched the girl's leg and the strange growths there.

The girl didn't answer.  The leg, however, had changed quite a lot, now resembling something glistening, dark in color, with an oddly soft quality.

Did Mao have any idea what this was?

It was odd.  Like skin, but not really human skin.  It glistened... and now her legs shifted, revealing that they'd grown, as well.

The girl moaned.

"Wh-where am I?" she asked.

"In my clinic. You were in a chemical accident," Mao said.

"Uh, okay," said the girl.  "I felt really bad... I feel better now, but my legs are strange.  They don't hurt, but they're strange."

"I'm looking into it. It seems to be an effect of the treatment and my magic," Mao said.

"My legs were where most of the chemical hit me," she said.  "...I guess they got the worst of it.  Do you think I'll be able to walk again?"

"I don't know. Do you have any feeling in them?" Mao asked.

"Yeah," she said.  "They feel strange, though.  Like if I try to move them, I'm not sure what's going to actually happen."

"How about you try moving them?" Mao asked.

"Okay," she said, and she did.

They moved as one.  And revealed, uncurling, that they were much, much longer than they had been.

"I'm not sure how to explain that," Mao said.

"Uh, okay," said the girl.  She slid off the table and onto the floor... and stood there, supported on her... tail?

She was now, apparently, some kind of slug-centaur.

"Hmm. Okay, do you need help to get back up?" Mao asked.

She rose up, and tentatively... slithered... around a bit.

"I think I'm all right?" she said.  "This is really weird, and I'm two seconds away from throwing up or freaking out... but... I mean, I can move around..."

Mao took out her phone and dialled Flask.

"What's up with our patient?" Flask asked.

"There's been some weird reactions you really should see," Mao said.

"Give me an idea, so maybe I can prep something," said Flask.

"Some strange thing going on with her legs. Kinda slug like," she whispered into the phone.

There was a pause.

"...So, mutational effects?" he said.  "How bad are they?"

"Seem restricted to the legs," Mao whispered. "Between my magic and your medicine she was coming out of cryo-sleep."

"All right, but can you be more specific?" Flask asked.  "How bad is it?"

"Just in the legs, but seem fairly serious," Mao whispered.

"Seriously, tell me specifics so I have some idea of what I'm doing," said Flask.

Mao relayed everything.

"Unexpected," said Flask.  "On my way, though."

"...Okay, I think I'm getting the hand of moving around," said the girl.  "Kinda slow, though."

"I'm sure we can ind something to help you out as well," Mao said, coming over to her again.

"Like what?" said the girl.  She was actually getting up to the speed of a slow walk.  Unfortunately, she was leaving a slime trail wherever she went.

"I have several contacts of cybernetics and the like," Mao said.

"Cool," she said.  "...I'm not sure how cyberlegs would work for me now, though."

"I suppose you're right," Mao said.

"This isn't that bad, though," she continued.  "I actually feel a lot better now.  Better than I have in a while..."

"That's good," Mao said.

"Yeah, there's just this weird... thing," she said, gesturing at her tail/legs.  "And, uh, the slime issue."

"If I had to guess it's because of that chemical that spilled on you," Mao said.

"Well, yeah, duh," said the girl.  "What the heck was that stuff?"