This chapter took too long... I kept becoming unsatisfied with what's there, and a lot of unnecessary details ended up being skipped. Anyway, school's starting, so expect updates to take longer. And I promise I'll cut down the number of chapters that end with fainting/sleeping- it's becoming cliche.
Just asking, in the next chapter, would you prefer speech in a different language with English footnotes or only italicized English to show thi?

Doctor's Advice

The rest of the playtime, or rather, battle, was a living nightmare for Pyro. In fact, if the day's objective was about control points, RED would already be in a losing position. When did he sign up to be in this team anyway? What were the missions even for?

The world suddenly became a wilder, more fearful place. He was surrounded by people he no longer knew, no longer had the innocence of children.

No longer his friends.

After being shot in the head, he had rushed many times back to the frontlines to try and somehow return to his paradise, only to pause, horribly entranced at the scene unfolding before him before being thwarted. In the final twenty-or-so minutes, he was bashed, blasted, blown up, stabbed, shot and slashed to death, spending more time respawning than staying alive.

In the end, he simply gave up and sat alone in the tertiary Resupply Room, grasping at his own head, too stunned to feel anything, not being able to make a move with the flamethrower that looked like someone had bothered to make by hand but was rushed and tossed aside into a pile of coals immediately afterwards.

Fire. For how long had he been a fire-playing zombie? He definitely sworn never to even light a match again, not to mention re-enacting-

"Mission ends in ten seconds."

"Hear that? Get ready ta praise me!"

He couldn't even tell who was who anymore. But why would they care?

"Five. Four. Three. Two. One. Ov-"

"Silly Scout. You should be praising me for firing zis bullet."

"VICTORY!"

There was a tremendous whoop over the intercom, followed by shouts of congratulations.

Pyro hastily switched the excess noise off. Victory didn't matter.

There was a squeak as the Resupply Room door automatically rolled open, incoming footsteps sounding to his left. He glanced past rubber fingers, curious and slightly frightened as the man he had seen before in the white lab coat stared back with an air of disdain, features less exaggerated now but still drastically recognisable.

Medic.

"Zhere you are, Herr Pyro. I'm wasting mein kill time to tell you zhat ve von't be joining zhe others for lunchtime. Ve are staying here."

After a few minutes of bench-dragging and equipment-finding from the Resupply Closet, Medic managed to turn the Resupply Room into a passable emergency hospital room. Pyro, who watched the whole process in curious amazement, was urged onto the sorry excuse of a bed as the doctor took off his gloves and drew out a filled syringe with an artist's daintiness. "Tell me zhe problem, Herr Pyro."

Pyro stared tentatively at the needle, carefully picking his words. The man who knew almost all the team's physical secrets never seemed more untrusting. "I don't want to talk about it."

"Speak clearly! I'm not Herr Engineer, so don't expect me to know every vord you're saying vith zhat mask on. In fact, why don't you take it off?"

"NO!" This was it. He would not take any more orders from this crazed-

"Calm down, Herr Pyro. You are right. I haff no right to ask zhat. I vill try und decipher your vords."

But what else could he do? What if Medic really had the answer? The doctor seemed more than a little crazy, but was the person out in the field risking his life for the sake of others after all.

Pyro reluctantly laid back down, tensing as sudden coolness pressed against his arm.

Medic's purposeful fingers dance over still slightly browned skin. "You feel very tense, ja? Everyvone knows something is wrong with you today- since zhat BLU Spy stabbed you in zhe neck and tried to shoot your face. Do you feel queer? Did zhe Spy stick something into you? Are you having ein mental breakdown?"

Pyro was already regretting his decision about giving Medic a chance. With each question, the doctor's eyes gained an extra glimmer of madness, giving the impression that any response would probably end in the use of a syringe. On the other hand, he found it rather touching that one teammate actually cared for him. And who knows? If someone cares, somebody else probably will too.

He was saved by a tinny voice laced in static from one of the nearby gloves; the doctor immediately dropped the intimidation and picked up an icy demeanour to answer the intercom call. "Don't interrupt me again, Herr Engineer. I'm just helping Herr Pyro. I may join for lunch later."

More mutters from the other end of the line.

"Pyro can't battle. I vant to fix zhis problem before she does something bad to him."

The mutters from the intercom became slightly louder, so out of curiosity, Pyro flicked his own back on, not prepared to face the deafening, angry yell. "-ell are ya anyway, Doc?!"

"Woah! Engie, Engie, calm the f-"

"How can ya expect me to keep CALM, Scout?!"

Pyro switched the intercom off again, ears still ringing with static. He knew for a fact that Engineer was the calmest guy in the world and needed a good reason to be angry. Combine that with an unfamiliar voice- he almost swore that he was actually in an alternate universe.

Medic sighed, added a curt "Please don't distract me" and threw the glove to the side before turning back towards Pyro, all insanity replaced with genuine concern. "Herr Pyro, you heard zhat, right? Zhe others are vorried about you. Now please tell me vhat's wrong."

Other teammates are worried. They care. They care and they want a reply. Pyro opened his mouth to answer, but, to his alarm, mentally smacked into a blank wall. How did that happen? He knew he lost a paradise and was involuntarily working with hired killers, but somehow, that was it. What did BLU Spy do? What condition was he in?

A few faint impressions trickled through- a fantastical land, candy, pink, rainbows.

Balloonicorn.

Something in his mind stirred. The closets in the Resupply Rooms were interconnected with a similar technology to respawn, so key items would always be there. Including something special to him…

Pyro literally jumped off the bench-bed, Medic's gasp a mere background noise as he snatched his purse out. Somehow, the texture, pattern and shape of the object never changed; in fact, it seemed even brighter in this now muted world.

He slowly unzipped the purse, dimly aware of Medic looking over his shoulder, hoping that the charm was there, that it would trigger something.

Nothing happened.

Pyro huffed disappointedly. Well, at least the little charm was safe.

"What is zhat?"

Pyro did not exactly know how it happened, but something had clicked. Before long, he had automatically poured out almost all the major details of his unexpected dimensional transfer for the doctor to interpret, not understanding half of the words himself.

Medic drank every word, stroking his cowlick thoughtfully before throwing away his syringe. "Ja, amnesia can be a side effect of certain hallucinogens… vone zhat makes a frau's heaven, zhough… zhis is a very interesting case. I vill haff to check your gear vith Herr Engineer later." The maniacal smile suddenly reappeared, sinister as ever. "Let me give you something for now so you can slowly remember. Don't fight it, or you vill feel vorse. Expect to be back on zhe train vhen you vake."

Pyro watched, paralysed with horrid fascination as the doctor grabbed bottles of medicine from the cupboards, mixed up the contents and filled an empty syringe with whatever was inside. He flinched as a cotton ball smelling of beer was rubbed over a section of his arm, gritted his teeth as a crystal sharp pain pierced his rather undamaged skin.

The Resupply Room door burst open with an abrupt crash, revealing a stout man who brushed away the sweat under his yellow helmet, a face of concern making up for his unreadable goggled eyes.

"What the hell are you doing, Doc?!"

"Oh, just a little experiment, Herr Engineer."
"Pyro? Pyro?! Don't… rift off! Can y… ear m… Can…"