Cauterize
"Argh…" Kitty muttered weakly, as she lay on the sandy ground, with her fingers partly buried in the sand, and her head tilted to the side. Dizzy at first, Kitty slowly opened her eyes and stared off into the distance, but still almost refusing to move her weak and abused body.
She struggled to breathe as she coughed up a bunch of water and spat out the awful taste of sand in her mouth as best as she could, while feeling the waves smack against her from behind. Although still disoriented, Kitty began to drag her beaten body further up the sandy path and away from the cruel water. And as she pulled herself higher and higher up the sandy beach, she stopped suddenly when she felt the sickening feeling in the pit of her stomach. After vomiting some more water that she must have swallowed during her horrific journey down the river, Kitty dragged herself a little further before stopping to rest. She moved onto her back, and stared up at the sunny and clear blue sky, her sight blurred, and her lips, hair, and parts of her face were partly covered in sand. And there she lay, unable to move, as the painful thumping of blood pumped loudly in her head, and the throbbing pain from the wound on her leg seemed to worsen by the second. As she stared up at the sky, groaning in pain, she suddenly found herself drifting off into unconsciousness once again.
When Kitty finally awoke, she awoke to the annoying sound of seagulls' squawking from high above. And as she blinked a few times, in an attempt to clear her blurry vision, she attempted to sit up. After a few lazy and painful moments, Kitty was finally able to force her tired little body up, as she attempted to discover where exactly she may be.
Where am I? Kitty thought as she licked her sandy and dry lips. Her long, wet hair was matted and full of leaves and sand, but she didn't care, she was too busy trying to figure out what the hell she was supposed to do now. Jean…Kitty thought, as she remembered the gloomy fact that her crush was in a similar predicament; marooned somewhere else, alone just as Kitty was, or even worse. Jean, please don't be dead! Kitty pleaded to herself as she let a few tears of dread help wash out the sand from her eyes. Damn it…you can't die, her thoughts continued as she studied the area around her for any signs that Jean would magically appear.
As much as Kitty wanted and needed to see Jean at that moment, the girl knew the chances that they would land in the general direction of each other were only 50/50. For all Kitty knew, Jean could be on the other side of the river, and there was no way that Kitty would dare try to cross that river, especially with the painful wound on her leg. And as much as Kitty wanted to get up and look for Jean, her head reminded her that she couldn't save Jean until she could at least find a way to stop the bleeding from her leg.
Shit…what are the chances that after all I went through…that I would get that fucking rock lodged in my leg? "Fuck me! That's just fucking great!" Kitty exclaimed out loud, her hands moving to brush back a few dirty locks of hair from her eyes. I wonder how badly I hurt my leg. I wonder how much pressure I can-- "FUCK!" Kitty screamed in agony, falling to the sandy ground and clutching her wounded leg. Ok…now I know two things; I can't put too much pressure on my leg, and I totally fucked up my leg! Not to mention that I got to stop the bleeding before more trouble comes my way…Kitty thought as she struggled to pick herself up off the sandy floor. Being careful not to apply any weight on her wounded leg, Kitty placed almost all of her weight on the other side of her body then moved towards a tall tree where she could lean against as she attempted to search the area around her for any sign of her backpack. Now then...this is a long shot, but I have to stop the bleeding and I have to do it soon. She looked down on her leg to see that her entire leg, from the knee down, was covered in blood. If I can find my backpack, I know I have my emergency med kit. If I can get that…I should be fine, her thoughts continued, her eyes searching the area around her before stopping when something caught her attention. "Bingo!" Kitty said as she looked to her left to find her backpack wedged between two large rocks. After slowly making her way towards the two large rocks, she successfully grabbed her backpack, before carefully pulling herself up the rock so she could rest on something that wasn't sand.
"OUCH!" Kitty complained when her wounded leg accidentally smacked itself against the side of the rock. Ok, that hurt…but at least I'll have a remotely clean place to clean my wound…she thought, knowing that her best chance to fight off a possible infection was to keep the wound as clean as possible for as long as possible. As she opened her backpack, she prayed a silent prayer that nothing in her backpack had broken during its harsh journey down the river. With her backpack now open, Kitty quickly removed everything that she would need at the moment, and placed it before her on the somewhat smooth surface of the rock. Ok…I have water, a lighter, a small pocketknife, left over vodka from the other night…and some gauze, Polysporin and wraps. Man am I glad Jean made us pack our own med kits! Kitty thought graciously, cringing slightly at the thought of Jean. I'll find her…I just have to take care of myself first, and then I'll go look for her, she reasoned as she pulled up the bottom of her jean to examine the wound.
The wound was deep, bloody, and dripping everywhere. And as Kitty trailed her fingers around the wound to examine it, she noticed how the wound suddenly began to ooze out more blood, much to her dismay. Jesus it's bleeding harder! I have to do something…and quick! Kitty realized, worry evident on her features as she tried to wash the wound with the water from her water bottle. After washing her wound with the water, she grabbed for the vodka and quickly poured some onto her wound, resulting in a few grunts of pain in response.
"Fuck…that stung! Well, at least it's going to sanitize the wound…" Kitty commented.
After applying some pressure with her hand, Kitty quickly tried to figure out the best course of action for the moment. The bleeding is still too heavy! I don't think applying pressure will do any good—I'll bleed out before I can get any real help! Kitty thought, tears threatening to spill at the thought of bleeding to death. Shit…I have to cauterize the wound! Kitty realized as she moved her hand away from her wound to see that the blood flow was not showing any sign of slowing down. So, after taking a few gulps of the leftover vodka, she took her lighter and knife, and began to heat the knife with the lighter until the blade started to turn red and was very hot to the touch. "Shit, shit, shit, shit! I'm not going to like this!" she said to herself as the alcohol began to take some effect on her.
Before Kitty even attempted to place the hot blade in the large whole in her leg, which she previously placed a clean but damp sock in, in an attempt to dry the wound a little, Kitty searched through her backpack for something to place in her mouth that would keep her from screaming too loud. After finding another pair of socks, Kitty placed one of the socks in her mouth and prepared herself for the painful attempt at sealing the wound. With the alcohol numbing her senses, Kitty quickly placed the hot blade against the wound and tried to keep her hand steady enough so that the wound was burnt enough to seal itself. She clenched her teeth and released the most horrid noises as she forced her hand to keep the blade steady until the job was done. After successfully cauterizing the wound, Kitty dropped the knife and clenched her fists as she continued to cry out in pain, despite the sock in her mouth that muffled the cry. Wanting it all to be over, Kitty quickly poured some more vodka onto the wound, before searching for the Polysporin to cover the burn.
Relax, Kitty, it's over, it's all over, you're past the worst of it…now all you have to do is dress the wound…she thought, crying uncontrollably as the pain proved to be too much for the delicate girl. "Oh fuck!" Kitty roared as the sock fell out of her mouth a moment later.
Kitty spent the next few moments crying while placing the Polysporin over the wound before wrapping it securely with gauze and then a wrap. With that done, Kitty laid back on the rock and tried to calm herself before even attempting to figure out what she should do next. She knew that she wanted to go find Jean, but also knew that it was probably best to stay in one place and wait for Jean to find her, since Jean was a telepath. How hard could it be for a telepath to find someone? And as Kitty laid there in thought, she suddenly remembered that she still had the tent she shared with Steph, which was stuffed in a small casing and tied to her backpack.
Maybe I should stay here for the night…I have the tent, which shouldn't be that wet since it was packed in a waterproof casing. And then, first thing tomorrow morning, I'll go looking for Jean, Kitty thought, but a large part of her still wanted to go out and find her beloved doctor. But her common sense reminded her that it was probably a waste of time…that Jean may be alright and already trying to find the girl with the help of her telepathy. Kitty didn't know for sure, but all she knew was that she had better make up her mind before the sun went down, which only gave her a couple more hours by the looks of things.
But no matter how hard she tried, Kitty couldn't get Jean out of her head. All she could think about was Jean laying unconscious somewhere, and needing her help. And as Kitty studied the contents of her bag, especially checking the condition of her tent, she tried to keep herself calm, as the very thought of Jean hurt brought tears to her eyes. I should stay here…Jean will be ok, Kitty tried to reassure herself as she took her tent out and studied it closely for any signs of scratches or holes or any other signs of damage. The tent looks fine…it's just a little wet--along with my other stuff, Kitty thought as she quickly put the tent back into its small casing before tying it back onto her backpack. When she finally tied the tent casing back onto the backpack, she looked to her left to find what appeared to be Jean's backpack floating in the shallows.
"Holy shit…" Kitty muttered as she carefully made her way down the rock and towards the partially floating bag. With Jean's backpack in her hands, and her backpack on her back, Kitty finally made a decision. "This is probably the dumbest thing I could ever do in a situation like this…but I've got to find Jean. I've got to find you, Jean…" Kitty said to an absent Jean, as she slowly began to make her away along the shoreline, looking from side to side in search of Jean. Finding that it was too difficult to carry both her backpack and Jean's, which was in her hand, Kitty dropped Jean's bag to the ground and continued on. Feeling bad for having to abandon Jean's belongings, Kitty kept on moving, stopping only to pick up a large stick, which she then used as a walking stick.
Tired, hurt, and slightly discouraged, Kitty was about to stop for a break when something caught her eye. "Oh, my God…" she uttered in shock, her eyes wide and mouth hung open as her eyes fell upon the unconscious form of Jean Grey, who was lying face down on the sandy surface on the other side of the river. "JEAN!" Kitty exclaimed as she quickly picked up the pace and attempted to jump into the water to swim to the other side to be with Jean. But, obviously, she knew better than that. Kitty stopped for a second to check her surroundings for any way to get across to the other side of the river without falling in. Come on! There has to be a way to the other side…Kitty thought, tearing up slightly in frustration as she searched around her for anything that could help her get across to Jean. Come on…come on…there has to be a way—I'm a fucking honor student, for Christ sakes! Kitty scolded herself, her mind racing with ideas—none of which that would logically get her safely from one side of the river to the other without falling victim to the current like before.
She was about to cry out in frustration when an idea struck her. Those rocks over there…they must be the ones that I got smashed up against on my way down this river…Kitty thought as her mind quickly brought her back to the event. This is a particularly rocky part of the river…it's a long shot, but I think I might be able to hop my way from rock to rock until I get to the other side! Kitty revealed happily, her eyes wide as she quickly studied each rock that was partly submerged in the river. Looks like I can definitely make it to at least half way…but after that it looks like I'll be taking a major chance! Those last few rocks look too far apart for me to jump to—not to mention that my leg is too sore to even try jumping that far! Kitty realized, her mind working out the bugs to her plan. Unless…yes, that log over there…it looks at least twice as long as the river's width! It looks strong too. I wonder if I can use that log for an advantage, she thought as she limped towards the log she was referring to, and studied it closely. As she studied the log and the river, she silently worked out the possibility that if she were to push the log into the river, that the current would force it against the first rock closest to her, and the rock on the other side, the one closest to Jean. It might work…Kitty thought, her emotions in check, as she knew that if she wanted to save Jean, she would need to keep her focus. Yes, all I have to do is push this log into the water…and the current should force the log against those two rocks…and as I hop along the first few rocks…I'll have to get myself into the water and slowly inch myself the rest of the way until I reach the shallows…from there I should make it to Jean safely! Kitty concluded proudly, her plan seemingly full proof.
After pushing the log into the water, with great effort for someone of such small frame, Kitty watched as the current forced the log against the two parallel rocks, creating a sort of bridge between the two sides of the river. "Great! That was only extremely difficult for someone my size…" Kitty commented, panting heavily and sweating furiously as she marveled at her own work for a moment, before moving towards the first rock. Nice and easy, Kitty. I know you want to get to Jean as fast as you can…but, one wrong move and it could be your last! Kitty told herself as she painfully stepped onto the first rock. "Not to mention that this is probably going to hurt…" Kitty commented as she quickly, but carefully, hopped to the next partly submerged rock.
"OUCH!" she exclaimed as the impact from landing on her hurt leg caused a shock wave of pain up her leg. Wow that hurt… Kitty thought before forcing herself to hop to the next partly submerged rock, only to suffer the same pain as the first time she hopped. "Christ!" she exclaimed, grunting slightly before preparing herself to jump for the finale time, before moving onto the next and more dangerous part of her plan.
After taking a few deep breaths, Kitty hopped to another rock. Ok, so now that the rock hopping is over…it's time for the dangerous part! Kitty thought as she prepared herself for the next task, before a thought came to her. I don't want to inch my way across this log with my heavy backpack on. I wonder if I can throw my backpack to where Jean is from here. Oh well…I might as well give it a try…she thought as she carefully pulled her backpack off only to throw it as far as she could towards Jean. "Yes!" Kitty responded happily as she watched her backpack fall to the other side of the river, next to Jean. Ok, back to the dangerous part… Kitty reminded herself before slowly inching herself into the water. As soon as she could do so, Kitty grasped onto the log and quickly inched herself in the direction of land, where Jean awaited her. "I'm coming, Jean!" Kitty called out, determination evident in her eyes as she soon made her way towards land.
When Kitty finally made it to land, she heaved her tired body up towards Jean, who continued to lay face first in the sandy but rocky land. "Jean? Jean, are you ok?" Kitty asked as she moved towards her crush. "Answer me…" she begged, as she moved Jean onto her back. Oh my God…is she breathing? Kitty asked herself, dread now overlapping her usually cheerful face as panic destroyed her previously calm emotions. "Jean..!? Jean, are you ok?" The girl put her hand over Jean's mouth, searching for any sign that breath was coming from Jean's perfect mouth. But even if there was…it was so faint that Kitty could hardly feel it. "Jean…Jean! Jean! Wake up! Don't do this to me!" Kitty exclaimed frantically before placing her ear to Jean's chest, in the hopes to hear her beating heart…which grew fainter and fainter by the moment. "Jean, please don't die…" Kitty begged tears, streaming down her eyes as her two fingers went to monitor Jean's ever so faint pulse. "No! I can't let you go!" she confessed, her tears flowing freely from her eyes as she parted Jean's lips before performing CPR.
And even if it was a weak attempt, Kitty kept trying. Moving from blowing air into Jean's lungs, to pushing it out by placing her two hands where they were needed, as she continued to perform CPR to the best of her ability. She kept trying, over and over again, refusing to give up hope. She yelled at Jean a few times, her anger and unwillingness to let Jean go resurfacing as her fear for Jean's life deepened with each silent response on Jean's part. And as Jean's heart grew fainter…Kitty's heart promised to beat for her, as the girl refused to let death take Jean away. But can you really win a fight against death?
Authors Note: I'm not a doctor, so I don't know how realistic cauterizing a heavily bleeding wound would be…but, for the sake of this chapter lets pretend that it is lol.