#i wonder if ronan gets merch boxes?

[archadianskies]

Whumptober Day 14

Heat Exhaustion  → part of the MT-RK900

Whumptober Masterlist | 14/31 of RK900 short stories ↳ on Ao3

Tags:  Post-Pacifist Best Ending x Heat Stroke

{Character sheet + bonus art here, and here. }

“We were hoping it’d be you.” The AX700 giggles as he opens the supply box. He tips his head curiously. 

“You’re Dr Anderson aren’t you?” The human smiles through her pain as he very gently cleans the graze on her knee with water and some wadded gauze. He nods.

“Our friend is a nurse at Detroit Metro.” The AX700 explains with a grin, taking a seat on the spare chair in the humid First Aid tent. 

“She’s always talking about you.” The human rolls her eyes though her smile indicates she isn’t as annoyed as she projects. 

“Her name is Molly.” The android pipes up, opening her palm to display a photo. “She thinks you’re pretty cool.”

“It’s pretty cool you’re here, actually.” The human points out as he disinfects the graze and applies a wound dressing securely. “Didn’t think music festivals were your thing.”

“I volunteered.” He says, and both of them grin. 

“Ohhh okay your teeth are so cool.” The human laughs, clapping her hands together.

“Yeah, no wonder Molly has a crush on you!” The AX700 adds with a teasing smile. He doesn’t quite know what to say to that so he defers to his programming.

“Please be careful, and change the dressing after twenty-four hours.” Ronan instructs, and she nods attentively. “If you’re unsure, please feel free to phone the nurse hotline and initiate a video chat so they can demonstrate the correct method for you.”

“Okie-dokie!” She declares cheerfully. “Thanks doc!”

He returns their enthusiastic waves as they exit the tent. 

 WARNING

>>Core temperature UNSTABLE

 He presses his lips into a thin line, brows creasing. The RK900 was crafted for the arctic tundra, and not with Michigan summers in mind. The music festival seemed a fun idea, a break from his usual environment at Jericho and Detroit Metro and far less intense. It certainly surprised his superiors when he volunteered for the event, and in hindsight he can see why. 

The weather is beautiful, the sky cloudless and the sun shining brightly. In turn the temperature is higher than what he’s accustomed to and the tent set up to the far side of the crowd isn’t well ventilated. Ronan frowns, feeling his stress levels rise as his body attempts to redirect the building heat. He feels his chest rise and fall, ventilating his biocomponents in an effort to cool his system.

“You’re not looking so good, buddy.” Andrew, one of the EMTs from Detroit Metro and his colleague for the day, comments as he re-enters the tent. “Your hair is going white.”

Is it? Ronan’s frown deepens, knowing it’s a sign his stress levels are peaking. The human steps forward and makes to place his wrist on his brow before halting mid-action.

“Err- no that’s not quite right. What’s your core temp?” He asks instead, guiding Ronan to sit down. 

“Too high.” He grimaces, and the man shakes his head. 

“Okay strip off your top uniform layer and I’ll grab you an iced drink.” The man orders sternly before exiting the tent. Ronan clumsily unbuttons his double-breasted uniform, leaning forward to ease it from his shoulders. The vinyl apron is too long for the gesture and so he has to stand to remove it completely. He stands too quickly; his system lurches as his gyroscope fails to balance him properly and he finds himself sprawled on the ground, face pressed to the grass.

“Ronan! Shit hang on-” Andrew curses, dropping to his knees and very gently coaxing him to lie flat on his back. “You’re burning up buddy, I’m going to have to open your chest up okay?” 

Ronan manages to nod weakly as the human quickly divests him of his upper clothing and presses at the side seam to open his chest hatch. The sound of his internal fan whirring fills the tent and Andrew leaves his side briefly to pull back the entrance flaps to help more air flow inside. Androids have no gag reflex, no swallowing motions to push liquids down their throat, so Andrew simply uncaps the chilled thirium and tips it into his mouth. The effect is immediate and he feels his temperature slowly lower into something manageable.

“Never thought I’d be giving first aid to a first responder, yet here we are.” Andrew chuckles as Ronan sits up unaided, taking the second offered bottle and finishing that as well.

“I apologise.” He fights down the rising feeling of shame. “I have not experienced temperatures this high ever in my life.”

“And you were made for the North Pole.” Andrew snorts back a laugh, clapping him on the shoulder. “You can’t wear your uniform, it’s too heavy, but I can’t exactly let you just treat people half naked. I’ll get you a shirt from the merch stand.”

“Thank you Andrew. I’m sorry for the inconvenience.”

“Are you kidding me?” He laughs brightly, pausing in the entrance of the tent. “This is the most exciting thing that’s happened today.”

It’s still too warm in the tent, so after his colleague leaves, Ronan exits the tent too. The temperature outside is lower than inside, and though he’s closed his chest hatch there’s at least enough of a breeze to cool his body now he’s no longer wearing the full uniform.

“Hey um, doc?” It’s the human with the grazed knee he treated earlier, and her AX700 friend.

“Yes?” He blinks down at them, noting their flushed faces and fidgety behaviour. The heat must be getting to everyone.

“Can we get a selfie for the social?” The AX700 asks as the human waves her phone.

“We want to show our friends who helped me!” 

“Oh. Um. Sure?” Ronan blinks in surprise, a little taken aback. He’s not one for photographs, he’s still unsure of his rather sharp smile no matter how much Simon and Connor reassure him. He leans down a little to compensate for the large height difference.

“Say cheese!” He says ‘cheese’ and she presses the button rapidly to take a few photos and he hopes his sharp teeth don’t frighten whoever views the photo online.

“Thanks doc, you’re the best!” She giggles, eyeing him from head to toe. He gives them a little wave as they slip back into the crowd.

“So they only had a medium left and you’re absolutely not a medium but it’s better than nothing.” Andrew declares, tossing him the shirt. “Damn, look at you.” He grins, shaking his head as Ronan slips the shirt over his head and tries to tug it down. It pulls tightly across his chest and finishes well above his navel. “Internet’s gonna have a field day.” 

Well, no he hopes not because he’d rather no one know he fell prey to heat exhaustion though he knows Connor will find out because he cannot ever keep secrets from his brother. Connor will be kind about it, he thinks, even if he’ll fuss for a little while. 

“Tell you what.” Andrew ducks inside the tent to drag out two chairs. “We’ll sit out here and stay cool and only go inside if there’s someone to treat.”

“A capital idea.” Ronan smiles gratefully.

 *~*

North shoves the tablet close enough it almost touches his nose.

“Have you seen these?” 

“Um-” Simon blinks, his optics adjusting to the screen. He feels his cheeks heat as he finds himself looking at photos of Ronan at the music festival dressed in too small a shirt, uniform peeled down to sit low on his hips- clearly candids taken by various festival attendees. “I guess I have now?”

“Damn, do you think you could convince Ronan to do a charity calendar? We’d make bank!” North laughs as Simon squawks in protest. “Come on, look the internet’s eating him up! One charity calendar and we’d fund Jericho’s outreach programs in no time! We should get him to hold puppies! Or kittens! People love half naked men holding baby animals!”

“NORTH!”

[newagesispage]

                                                            NOVEMBER            2019

PAGE RIB

 Look for the production of Boeing Boeing at the Hyde Park Opera House in Vermont. Director Gene Heinrich will bring the story on Nov. 8-10 and again the 15th -17th. Woo Hoo!

*****

Amber Guyser was found guilty and the strange part was the hugs she got from the judge and the victim’s brother.

*****

Robot Chicken is back for season 10.

*****

Days alert: Little Arianna is out.

*****

Word is that Mike Pence is behind the scenes working on health and human services. He has hired Alex Azar to revamp title 10 by putting $ into Obria which emphasizes abstinence. It’s sort of like a global gag rule. The conscious and religious freedom division helps medical workers who don’t want to help people if said patient lives against their faith.

*****

It’s been ruled that Northern Ireland’s abortion ban is a breach of the UK’s human rights commitments.

*****

The Native American Voting Rights Coalition has conducted hearings to get the lowdown on the trouble that exists in Native American voting rights. The barriers include poverty, closeness to polls and mailing addresses that include RR#’s and post office boxes. Let’s make the process easier for everybody.  We should all be able to vote!

*****

Congresswoman Katey Hill is getting divorced and losing her position after photos of her with another woman and a bong surfaced.

*****

Tim Ryan is out!

*****

John Kelly warned Trump of impeachment.

*****

Trump’s brother Robert was awarded a $33 million government contract.

*****

Why do all the older stars want to dance their way on to a talk show?? UR hip, we get it!!

*****

What DOJ?? A criminal investigation into the origins of the Russia probe?? Seriously??

Did ya see the Fallon interview with Joaquin Phoenix? It just sort of shows how wrong Jimmy can be. I think Phoenix was ready to take over the whole operation.** Joker got the biggest October opening ever.

*****

Inside the Actor’s Studio is back.

*****

Matt Lauer was accused of the rape of Brooke Nevils and NBC covered it up. Anne Curry and others have stood up for Nevils. It seems the management at NBC has themselves been charged with their own misconduct and tried hard to keep Ronan Farrow from telling us all about it. Comcast, NBC and Noah Oppenheim are in a bit of a spot.

*****

The NBA is distancing themselves from the coach who tweeted support for human rights but then they apologized. China has been pulling merch and cancelling games. Many companies including Mercedes and Tiffany are really trying to keep China happy.

*****

Drew Barrymore will debut a talk show for CBS.

*****

Thru all the crap that Kathy Griffin went through, at least she now owns all her shit. See the new movie she made:  A Hell of a Story

*****

ABC will bring us Craig Ferguson in the game show, The Hustler.

*****

If you haven’t heard Brittany Howard’s new Jaime album, do it now!! The song Stay High is so fab.

*****

Larry king is getting a divorce from Shawn Southwick King after 22 years.

*****

Zoe Kravitz is the new Catwoman.

*****

HBO is giving Sarah Silverman a late night pilot and a stand up special.

*****

Shep Smith is out at FOX. He shocked most everyone by leaving in the middle of his contract. He claims that it was his decision. Some say a WH rep visited with Fox management before the announcement.

*****

Pierre Delecto is the fake twitter account of Mitt Romney. ! ?

*****

The Nobel peace Prize was announced and will go to Ethiopian Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed Ali.

*****

The Dem debate was the best yet. I am all for keeping it civil, Mr. Booker, but it is a fucking debate. I am glad they shook it up a bit. Mayor Pete did a wonderful job of imagining the world after Trump. I think he soared above them all this time. Tulsi Gabbard really stood out in her white suit. Since then there have been some illusions to her favor in Russia but her performance that night was great. Tom Steyer talked to the camera like a robot. I am all for his enthusiasm about impeachment but Drop Out! He kept spouting statistics. Yang always jumps right into his financial speeches but he and Bernie were so right about how we need to stop talking about Trump. It would be nice if they asked him more about foreign policy and such. But Yang knows how to give real examples of automation that we can all relate to like, McDonald’s and CVS. He not only talks of the truckers affected but of those who serve them as well. Bernie also talked about the much needed infrastructure. Biden seemed angry and defensive but he was right about a number of things. When the talking heads were asked if Biden did good, one answered that, “he was coherent.” Yikes! Once again, Warren won’t give us a straight answer about taxes and it is the thing that hurts her the most.  Her “let’s be clear” is not clear enough for many. One of the things the average person has really come to hate is avoidance. She also blames more of the job loss on trade. I have to hand it to Klobachar, she was forceful and called people out. I loved her points on paper ballots, why isn’t everyone on board with this?? Castro had the best gun line of the night, “Police violence is also gun violence.” Harris and Beto held their own but did not stand out to me. If you put them altogether they would make a hell of a cabinet. What about Bernie and Buttigieg for Pres and VP. Warren to run the War dept., Yang the Treasury, Beto to run alcohol, tobacco and firearms, Harris for Sec. of State, Klobahcar for the FBI and Castro for homeland security. Just a suggestion.

*****

Former career diplomat Bill Taylor opened his inquiry questioning with a “beautifully written’ 15 page statement. Many later said the testimony was disturbing which elicited gasps. His words named names and connected the dots. Thank you Mr. Taylor for being a meticulous note taker and paper trail keeper.

*****

The State Department finally finished the internal investigation of Hil’s e -mails.  They found 38 unidentified people were “culpable” in 91 cases of sending classified info that wound up on her personal server.

*****

Republicans stormed into a secure hearing room with recording devices for a show they were filming. Some of these very republicans are included in these closed door meetings and given the same time to ask questions as anybody else. The participants do have clearance so it gives them the right to do this. This stunt happened the day after Taylor’s testimony and after Trump asked his fellow republicans to do something. They blocked testimony for over 5 hours. Thanks for wasting our money.  I guess their point was that they have no respect for our laws and traditions and they are very slimy.

*****

It was good to see Sam Donaldson back out there on the case.

*****

Hooray for the all- female spacewalk.  Thanks Christina Koch and Jessica Meir.

*****

Bernie had a huge NY rally where he was endorsed by Michael Moore and AOC.

*****

Harrison Ford made an impassioned speech about climate change.** Jane Fonda was arrested on the 11th at a climate change protest for unlawful demonstration at the U.S. Capital. She vows to keep coming back.

*****

Homeland security secretary Kevin McAleenan is out.** Mike Pompeo’s senior advisor Mike Mckinley resigned and testified on the impeachment inquiry.** Rick Perry is out.

*****

Jennifer Lawrence has married Cooke Maroney.

*****

The Viola Davis produced, In A Man’s World looks interesting.

*****

This month in sexual harassment news:  43 new women have leveled allegations against Trump.** 3 new women have come forward about Cuba Gooding Jr. Word is that there are many stories of his grab ass tactics thru the years.

*****

The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame has released the names of this year’s noms which includes Pat Benatar, Dave Matthews Band, Doobie Brothers, Depeche Mode, Whitney Houston, Judas Priest, Kraftwerk, MC5, Motorhead, Nine Inch Nails, Todd Rundgren, Soundgarden, T Rex, Thin Lizzy and Notorious B.I.G.

*****

Stumptown on ABC is a great new show with that grit of the tough 70’s detective but with a chick. Nice! The cast is fab with Michael Ealy, Camryn Manheim and the sublime Tantoo Cardinal.

*****

The Prince estate was livid that the President used Purple Rain at a rally. “We will never give permission to President Trump to use Prince’s songs,  “ a spokesperson said.** Queen has told Trump not to use “We will rock you” in his new campaign video.

*****

Where do I begin with Scary Clown 45? By the time a month has gone by all his insanity is old news. When we see his family and piers act like everything he does is normal, it shows how dysfunctional they all are. I can’t tell you how many families I have seen that would have been pretty happy groups if it weren’t for the mad man running the show. How can people act so entitled and want to help no one?  Is it the water? Do they remember how much they gave grief to the Obama’s and Clintons? Are they scared of Trump or do they just love their money that much? How can so many be filled with so much hate and why do we always let them get by with everything? But it goes on… A DC court rules congress can see Trump’s taxes. The man is using our Justice Department to block a subpoena for his tax returns?  Merrick Garland is the presiding judge over the circuit court. **The Ukraine thing started with Scary Clown giving a little quid pro quo to Zelinsky. Multiple whistleblowers have come forward and their testimony has been confirmed. He then told us to look at Pence, Rudy, Perry or anybody else he could think of.  Pence plays stupid, Kurt Volker resigns, Rick Perry resigns** Now Trump has pulled troops out of Syria and betrayed the Kurds. We destroyed our own stuff so Turkey could not get at it. After Trump said there were no more troops there, actually there were about 1000. Now there is talk of sending some back after all the backlash. ISIS militants are now back on the loose. More troops are being sent to Saudi Arabia. ** Igor and Lev were arrested. ** Marie Yovanovitch testified against the wishes of the WH. Rudy claims that she was blocking him from his Ukraine shenanigans.  Trump said that the former ambassador was”bad news.”  Yovanovitch claims that she was forced out as a direct result of pressure from the boys.** A NY judge blocked the Trump rule to limit legal status for those who use public benefits. A Texas judge ruled that Trump’s use of emergency funds to build a wall was unlawful. ** John Bolton is starting to talk.

*****

Scary Clown called Nancy Pelosi a third rate politician n what they described as a meltdown.** Pelosi pushed thru a rules package for the impeachment as October came to a close.

*****

“If you support Donald Trump, don’t be afraid to get down on your knees.” Mrs. Pence

*****

720,000 acres of California public land will now be given over to oil and gas companies for fracking leases.** In better California news:  Hooray for bill AB32 which looks to stop private, for profit prisons and immigration detention facilities. It’s about time!!

*****

The National Enquirer is threatening a libel suit against Ronan Farrow.** Trump has threatened to sue CNN.

*****

Arizona’s Joe Arpaio lost his lawsuit against CNN, the Huffington Post and Rolling Stone. Reporters called him an ex-felon but the judge cited a case which states that, ‘in the interest of free expression, there is breathing room when it comes to public figures.

*****

Professor Allan Lichtman has properly predicted the last 9 elections. He says he can’t make a decision until the impeachment predicament is worked out.

*****

R.I.P. Kim Shattuck, Diahann Carroll, Marcello Giordani, Ginger Baker, Rip Taylor, Robert Forster, Elijah Cummings, Scotty Bowers, Bill Macy and John Witherspoon.