Chapter 5

The New Dawn

While the battle with the newly formed Alucard commenced within Minato Murai, a new battle was underway miles out, the battle to save a mother and child. Sakura was nearly screaming from the pain she was in, which left her face flushed and skin diaphoretic.

The nurses and assistants were laying the surgical tools out on trays while the doctor and Hiro were putting on their sterile gowns and gloves. Sakura could see them getting ready and started crying, "Please don't, not this way!"

The doctor, with sympathy, reassured her, "I know you're scared but don't worry you're in good hands, it'll be over before you know it."

"No…I can't…!"

"I need you to be calm Sakura. Even if we don't do the procedure your body is going to give birth naturally and it's too dangerous."

Sakura clenched her eyes and responded, "No, I mean I can't have this baby! Not today! Not ever!"

Hiro went over to her, "Sakura, it's alright, I know things like this are scary."

"It's not just th-that…' she sobbed, 'Dad always took care of us, a-and n-now he's gone! I-I d-don't know h-how to r-raise my sister and b-baby! N-now they're a-are monsters i-in this w-world!"

He put a hand on her shoulder and said softly, "Ok I want you to listen to me and I want you to listen good. I've been a medic for forty years and a father for about thirty. Do you think I'm a good medic?"

"Y-yeah."

"Do you think I'm a good dad?"

"Probably."

"Do you think when I first started out doing these things, I was good at it?"

Her eyes filled his.

"No, when I started, I was just like you. Young, scared and unsure how to handle a lot of problems. My Dad used to help me when I was taking my basic courses and when I would fail he was there to talk me through it and keep going. He died in a car accident after my first year and I was only twenty. I lost that support and I was living on my own. I got on an ambulance not really knowing how to be a good medic, I got married not knowing how to be a good husband. My wife had a baby one year then twins in the next and I didn't know how to be a good father. But do you want to know something?"

"Uh-Huh." she moped.

"That's okay because I learned how to do it. Day by day I got those aspects of my life figured out, day by day I got better. You're not expected to know how, but I promise you, day by day you will learn how to raise your family."

The doctor finished gearing up, "I'm sorry to interrupt, but we need to do this now, she can't wait."

Hiro patted her on the shoulder, "Deep breathes, you can do it."

He returned to the physician, "What can I help you with?"

"We need to give her an epidural, do you think you can roll her on her side without agitating the injury?"

Hiro nodded and with two others went over to Sakura's left side and on the count of three securely rolled her up slightly which got her into a frenzy of agony. The nurse rubbed the Iodine around the the mid back and a needle was inserted locally. Within seconds Sakura's fit subsided and she seemed at peace. Shortly after she was laid supine while the doctor had a scalpel in hand.

The incision was made down the underbelly then additional tissue was cut away with the scalpel. The doctor asked for the light to get shined in by which he stated, "Ok I can see it, let's get the amniotic sac opened."

Sakura tried to see what was happening but had her view restricted. Hiro leaned her back, "Don't worry about it yet."

He peered back to see them pull a small set of feet out through her stomach which led to the guidance of a small, wet infant cradled in their arms. They clamped off the middle section of the umbilical cord and snipped it. But it was then that during the excitement of the procedure, despite the terror of Alucard reigning upon the human world, nothing would instill greater terror. The baby was not crying.

The nurse took the little one in her arms while the surgeon continued with the removal of the after birth. Sakura became worried when hearing the nurses communicating the situation, "I can't get him to breathe!"

Hiro arose and rushed to them with arms extended, "Here give him to me."

They handed the infant off without dispute while Sakura clasped her mouth and wept. Hiro rocked the baby and noticed he was cyanotic. He feared that during the stress the baby took his first breathe within the womb and was now aspirating on the amniotic fluid.

He grabbed a bulb syringe from the OB kit and began syphoning the fluid from his mouth and nose then requested a small suction tube, inserted it all the way through his windpipe and sucked the fluid from his lungs. One of the nurses assisting was constantly rubbing the baby's chest while stating, "I can't feel a heart beat!"

Hiro performed another suctioning cycle then instructed the nurse, "Bag him, I'll start compressions."

She put the tiny little mask over his purple mouth and started pumping the billow while Hiro put his two fingers on his little chest and began pressing at a rate of 100 compressions a minute.

Sakura grew ever more worrisome, "Why can't I hear him crying…?"

…

Meanwhile Tensin was assisting other medical personnel in which ever way he could, for like them, there were others who had just narrowly escaped with their lives. The commotion of the hoarding crowd was focused on the monstrous battle taking place across the way in Mirato Murai. Tensin moved forward, squinted his eyes and got a better look.

Despite the army of Youkai coming out to destroy Alucard, his form still remained and was wreaking havoc among the living. He looked over at the ledge by the waterside to see Sitoshi sitting with his legs dangling over, hands in his lap. He walked over to him yet kept the bulk of his attention on the battle.

From what he could perceive, others had joined in to fight, but for every blow that tarnished Alucard's flesh, a new mold grew and reshaped in its place. It was in theory, a hydra, save it would regenerate any loss of mass. Discouraged by this, Tensin turned around shaking his head and was about to walk away until the observing crowd pointed in shock and awe.

Turning back, Tensin saw a pillar of flesh ejecting upward from the blob and shaped itself into what others would consider a god. A woman, beautiful and fair producing wings as large as the skyscrapers themselves had evolved from the monster.

Tensin's cigarette dropped from his mouth, "What…the….fuck…?

Everything was silent and nearly reverent. Then, just as mystically as her appearance adorned, her exit was equal in spectacle as a beam of light ignited so brightly that even from their distance, they needed to shield their eyes. When it was all over, there was nothing left of the behemoth save tiny light particles dancing through the air like snow.

At a loss for words, Tensin lit up another cigarette, took a few draws and reflected on everything that had happened. The people were joyous, Tensin himself was relieved but noticed that Sitoshi did not share their level of enthusiasm if any at all.

He haunched down next to him and asked, "Aren't you happy?"

Sitoshi was silent. He stared at his feet and nothing more.

"Look, sorry I snapped at you,' commented Tensin, 'it was a crazy situation and that was the time to be self reliant. And for what it's worth, you did a good job."

"I told her everything was going to be Ok." Sitoshi finally said, overcome with self loathing melancholy.

"Say what now?"

Gritting his teeth, Sitoshi clarified, "I told Sakura everything was going to be Ok and it wasn't, her father died!"

Tensin let that settle in, took another draw then said as he puffed out smoke, "It wasn't your fault. I mean, yeah you shouldn't say those things to your patients but Hideki wasn't your patient he was Hiro's."

"That's the point!' blurted the young man, 'He knew everything there was to know, he did everything he could do, and he knows so much more than I do. Me, I can't even think about getting vitals without being told and I nearly let Sakura die because I froze and couldn't think. But Hiro was on top of everything and more! So what difference does it make if you know everything or know nothing, people will still die because of you!"

Tensin listened and pondered then replied, "You think Hideki is dead and his daughter is critical because of us? Who was the one who didn't evacuate when he was supposed to? Who was the one driving the car? Who was the one not wearing a seat belt? Hideki is dead because of Hideki, not us."

Realizing that perhaps his abrasive attitude towards death was less than warranted he gook a deep breath and continued, "Listen, this job is about saving lives, that's true. Have Hiro and I fucked up bad in the past? You bet; but for every fuck up there was an opportunity to learn from it and get better and as a result, more people are alive than dead because of me and Hiro, and that's how you rationalize. But you've also got to realize that despite your best efforts you are going to be acquainted with death, there's no way around it. You are going to do everything you know how to keep that heart beating a little bit longer, and if it stops, it's not because you weren't good enough. Despite all our advances in modern medicine, sometimes fate ultimately has the final say. What I'm saying is, you can do everything right and still lose, it's not because you were weak or stupid, it's life."

There was a long, emotional pause.

"Then I don't know if I should continue doing this." said Sitoshi with self defeat.

"Here is where your greatest struggle will come in, the struggle of whether or not you can put on that uniform and come back to work the next day. Sure you can quit and I sure as hell wouldn't blame you, not after today. But we have just been introduced to something the world has never seen, which means more lives are going to be put at risk which means we need more people like you to try and save humanity in whichever way you can. Look around Sitoshi, these people need you."

He arose and dusted himself off, "I'll leave you alone to think about it."

And with that, he departed and let the young man to wrestle with his thoughts.

…

"Alright we just about have her stitched up,' said the doctor who was running threads to rebind Sakura's incision, "how's the baby?"

"Still working." returned Hiro, who never once at anytime interrupted his resuscitation attempts.

Sakura grew restless when hearing the doctor say, "Alright we need to call in life flight and have her taken to a trauma center."

Panicked she protested, "No I can't leave, not without my baby!"

A nurse laid her down while trying to obtain her cooperation, "We understand but right now our top priority is making sure you get the treatment you need."

"NO you can't make me!" she started to become combative.

They were about to sedate her when they heard Hiro say with excitement, "Hold on!"

They waited while he rubbed the baby's chest, his little arms squirmed and he began crying! All color transitioned from a mottled blue to a vibrant pink. The nurse checked vitals starting by palpating the neonate's brachial artery, "Heart rate is 130 beats per minute and is breathing at a rate of 46!"

Placing him in a diaper and wrapping him up in a blanket she handed him off to Hiro who told the doctor, "APGAR of 10, all signs looking good!"

Taking the sobbing neonate over to Sakura he cooed, "C'mon little one, let's say hi to Mama."

He laid him on his mother's chest who was overcome with bursting emotion. Sakura cuddled her newborn and wept unlike any other. Suddenly in her excitement she started to let down her shirt while asking, "Should I feed him now or later?"

Hiro stopped her, "Hold off on that, you've got some heavy drugs in your system that can get into your milk. I say wait until you can bottle feed him."

"Oh ok,' she said while re concealing her exposed breast, 'but won't that cause nipple confusion?"

"Huh?"

"I mean I've been reading online about nursing, and how to carry and…"

Hiro laughed, "Oh good, you've done your research."

The nurses chuckled as Hiro went to retire, but before he left the doctor stuck out his hand and said, "Thanks for everything you've done."

Hiro took it and replied in that attitude of professional courtesy, "Anytime, take care."

"You got it."

He stepped out of the canopy and into the celestial bounty falling lightly to the earth. He took a deep breath, rubbed his eyes and said to himself, "What a day…"

Walking back the path he came, he looked into the tent housing Hideki's corpse and saw Mizu sitting next to it with her face buried in her hands. Seeing her alone, he went in and kneeled beside her.

"Hey Mizu,' he started softly while putting an arm around her shoulder, 'I just wanted to let you know that your sister gave birth to a healthy baby boy and both of them as of right now are doing well."

She sniffled, "When can I see them?"

"Well right now they're calling in a helicopter to take them to a place where they can get all the help they need. We'll make sure you get there too."

She nodded then hid her face from him.

He then said more sympathetically, "I also want you to know that I did everything I could to save your father."

She let out a gasp and sobbed, "W-what happened?"

"Well we need to do an autopsy to be sure but the doctor performed an ultra sound and he was thinking that when he crashed his heart hit the inside of his chest so hard that it damaged it and ruptured a major blood vessel at the same time."

"Is that serious?" she cried.

"Yes, Mizu, it's very serious, not many people survive those kinds of injuries. But that didn't stop me form doing everything I could to make sure he'd survive."

She leaned in and rested on his shoulder, in which he held onto her hand like a tender guardian and let her cry. There were no words spoken for several minutes.

After that, she recomposed herself and said, "Thank you Mr. Hiro-san."

He nodded, arose and departed.

As he walked out he spotted Tensin who was still smoking. Approaching him he sighed and said, "Mom and baby are doing well so far."

"And the monster is dead." replied Tensin, "God damn miracle if you ask me."

They began walking together, "Where's Sitoshi?"
"Around somewhere, he was having some trouble coping."

"Is he alright?"

"I'm not sure, doesn't sound like he wants to keep this up, not after all this."

"Can't blame him,' remarked Hiro, 'we've all been there at some point or another."

As they were working their way through the crowd they heard a voice calling after them, "HIRO…! HIRO!"

He turned to see his wife, Nana, running towards him with open arms followed by three younger women. Before he could respond, she hit him with a massive hug while crying over his neck. He returned her embrace while the three women huddled yelling, "DAD!"

"Hey girls, it's alright, I'm alright." he said.

"When we couldn't get a hold of you, we thought the worst!"

"Sorry our radio wasn't transmitting and my phone was broken."

Tensin watched then felt a presence behind him, turned and saw Kimiko standing there, eyes moistened and gleaming. No one would think these two were divorced when Tensin hugged her tightly and said, "Where are the kids?"

"I left them with my parents for the weekend." she hesitantly said.

"What are they doing there?"

"Well I was…going out on a date…"

He said nothing he just kept his arms wrapped around her.

The only thing he could think to say was, "I'm just glad you're ok…"

"Tensin…' she pulled back with confusion, 'what happened out there? You've never hugged me like that, not ever."

Rubbing her shoulders and peering into her eyes he said, "Listen, I just wanted to say that I'm sorry things didn't work out and I just want you and the kids to be happy."

Her lips trembled as she nodded, "Well, you know I was thinking, next time I go out I can always drop them off at your place instead of my parents."

He gripped her tightly, "I'd like that."

Suddenly they heard a voice call from the crowd, "Hey look another ambulance is coming in!"

Hiro and Tensin broke themselves away from their families to find a unit even in worse condition than 1076. The light bar was hanging off by a cord, smoke was coming from the radiator and the drivers side front wheel tire was shredded and riding on the rim.

The thing let out a gasp of steam when it shut off and out came the driver.

Tensin was the first to meet him, "Itzuki, where the fuck have you been?"

Run down and traumatized he said. "You don't want to know,' then looking at 76, asked, 'Where have you been?"

Shrugging he replied, "Same place."

He was running to the back and said, "Can you guys give us a hand with this?"

"Sure, what do you have?"

"I have one thirty six year old male with a massive brain bleed. He's got spinal fluid coming out his ears while slipping in and out of seizures. We're suspecting a subarachnoid hemorrhage."

"And the second one?"

Itzuki shook his head, "You'll just need to see it to believe it."

He then opened the backdoor to see the first patient mentioned laying on the stretcher and the second sitting upright on the bench with his mouth mangled and torn apart looking more like a squid, with a rebar wedged through his oropharynx and out the back of his neck. The patient turned to look at Tensin and appeared alert and oriented.

By some extreme stroke of luck, the foreign body had narrowly missed his cervical spine and major blood vessels in his neck and he still had a patent airway.

"Hey man how are you doing?" asked Tensin in slight shock.

He gave him a thumbs up in response.

Itzuki climbed in and said, "He's A and O times four with a GCS of fifteen."

"No shit…" awed Tensin while he helped unload the stretcher.

They moved their patients towards the medical tents to where the nurses were running around doing their best to treat the injured. As a result of Alucard's defeat, many others including the military where making their way to the green zone with more injured which completely overwhelmed the currently posted medical staff.

One nurse scrambled with a patient who was in essence, dropped in her lap. She asked for help from any other certified personnel who unfortunately were caught up in their own affairs. She put her head in her hands trying to sort out her situation until a young man approached her from behind.

"My name is Sitoshi, what do you need help with?"

And so it was, despite the world having just been torn apart, the efforts to put it back together were underway by those who serve and provide, not for thanks and praise; so that others may live.

Fantasy Vs. Reality and Final Notes

-The APGAR is a test done on newborns to essentially summarize the health of a Newborn. It stands for; Appearance, Pulse, Grimace, Activity and Respiration with each category scored from 0-2. 10 is perfect, the lower the number the more critical the infant and if it's a 0 then it's a bad day to come to work.

-Sakura would most likely need a blood transfusion as well, mainly because, though saline can replenish a loss of fluid volume it does not have the same capacity to deliver oxygen and sugar to the brain and other organs like blood. In other words, too much Saline can water the blood down to the point to where it's inadequate.

-The crisis Sitoshi was going through is very normal. A good amount of EMT's will have that moment to where it's either they figure it out or they quite. A lot of them will have that one call that will make them sit down and think long and hard about what they're doing and if it's right for them.

-With Hiro comforting Mizu, every now and then all a person needs is a hug or someone to just be there. Emotional care can be just as important as medical.

-A and O stands for Alert and Oriented. Times 4 means the patient is aware of person, place, time and thing (what's your name? what year is it? etc.) So A and O times 4 means they now all four of these things.

-The GSC stands for the Glascow Coma Scale. It's a test done to score the patient's mental status. 15 being the highest, 3 being the lowest. It's broken down into 3 categories; Eyes, Speech, movement. Are their eyes open spontaneously, or do they wander? Do they speak coherently, or do they moan or slur? Can they adequately point and move their body, or do they shift and move without purpose? There's more to it but that score helps understand the severity of the call.

-The rebar through the guy's mouth was based on a real story that my instructor took. It was a construction worker who fell off the roof and landed his mouth right through the rebar and somehow missed the spine and blood vessels. His mouth was intact.

-A subarachnoid Hemorrhage is when the blood vessels between the outer layers of the brain rupture. It's a type of stroke and is very dangerous. The seizures were a result of blood buildup pushing on and irritating the brain. If it's trauma induced you can be having more issues, like brain damage as well.

-One thing I did for some fan service is the name of the ambulance was 1076. That number is the numerical birth month and year of Rosario's creator Akihisa Ikeda who was born October of 1976.

-I know you guys were hoping to have a Tsukune and Moka cameo, which I did try to do, but it didn't work out. It either messed up the continuity of the actual fight, or would have made the ambulance side story a bit more unbelievable. However there is the tale of Itzuki and his crew so maybe there'll be a sequel involving them.

-Another story I had in mind was a police officer living in Nagasaki named, Masayoshi, who's out on patrol when Alucard's eggs hatch and wreak havoc on the city.

-I hope some of you enjoyed the story. Please support your local EMS by driving fast and taking chances. Make stupid decisions that start with 'hold my beer!'And always remember to consider yourself invincible. Because without that way of thinking we don't have jobs! (I'm kidding please be safe and remember we don't have a bandaid for everything)