ROTTMNT What if?: Shell shocked scientist

Shell-Shock

Donetello: He woke up the next morning feeling extremely sore. He attempted to sit up, but it hurt bad to do so. He heard footsteps coming towards the room and tried to act as if he wasn't hurting.

Leonardo: He walked in, smiling as he spotted his brother awake. "Today's your appointment day."

Donetello: He nodded, then moved the covers aside. He attempted to stand but suddenly felt his body tense up, unable to move.

Leonardo: He quickly caught his falling brother, trying to help him stay standing. "D, you okay? What's happening—" He asked, panicked. He could tell Donnie couldn't answer and yelled out for the other two.

Michelangelo and Raphael: They ran in, raph taking Leo's place in keeping D standing. Mikey didn't know what to do.

Michelangelo: "What do we do? This hasn't happened before—" He looked up at his brothers, who were equally as worried.

Donetello: His body shook, he couldn't move at all. He was stiff as a board, tearing up. It hurt a lot worse than the previous times.

Leonardo: "We have to take him to doc, and fast—"

Raphael and Michelangelo: They nodded and followed Leo, Raph carrying a shaking Donnie.

———————

They had arrived, running into the building and to the front desk.

Raphael:  "Where's doctor Hemlock?" He asked frantically.

Worker: "She's busy with another patient right now. She will be able to get with you in—"

Michelangelo: "You don't understand dude! He's really bad!"

Leonardo: "He's in pain! He's only getting worse—"

Worker: She nodded, then mumbled something into her walkie-talkie before setting it down. "She will be here shortly. She just needs to find another nurse to take care of the patient."

Doctor Hemlock: Right on time, she walked through the doors. Then quickly waved the brothers over. She led them to her room and had them sit in the chairs beside the bed.

Raphael: He cradled Donnie carefully, noticing the softshell was able to pull his legs closer to his chest a bit. He noticed he was still shaking pretty badly.

Doctor Hemlock: "How did this happen?" She asked, looking at the brothers.

Leonardo: "This happened when he went to stand this morning— we were going to leave for the appointment but he suddenly went into a sort of shock— he can't move and is shaking bad." He said quickly.

Doctor Hemlock: She nodded, then had Raph set Donnie down on the bed. She made sure the softshell was on his side, then undid the bandages on his back. She let out a small gasp, but regained composure. "He's gotten worse. . . The wound is spreading quickly." She said calmly.

Michelangelo: "Oh no. . ." He gasped.

Leonardo: "Well what's wrong? How do we fix it? We did everything you asked!"

Doctor Hemlock: "He seems to be in what's called Shell-Shock. It is unknown how to fully fix it, sadly. We would just have to keep giving him the pain medicine, and some shots every other day, and hope for the best—"

Leonardo: "And what is Shell-Shock exactly?"

Doctor Hemlock: "An injury to the Shell to where it messes with the nerves and muscles. It makes the patient tense up when the muscles are used slightly too much. For soft-shells it is worse, as they have more muscle and skin in their shell than a normal turtle. He will have a hard time doing what would usually be everyday tasks, and would need someone by his side all the time."

PSA: (((Please do not believe this "fact" about the soft shell turtles muscles, I am not quite sure if it is true or not, but in this AU it is)))

Raphael: "Well what if that doesn't work? Would he live? How else can we help?"

Doctor Hemlock: "I'm not sure. If I were you, would help him do physical exercises to keep his strength. Like walking and holding things. Even eating he would have to have help. If we're lucky he should return to normal after a year or two."

Michelangelo: "Okay—" He was very worried, but was slightly more reassured by the hope Donnie would return to normal soon."

Donetello: Another pained whimper manages to escape him, as he shifts ever so slightly. He seemed to be slowly regaining himself from this painful prison known as his body. The shaking began to slow. He gritted his teeth a bit.

Raphael: He smiled a bit, noticing his brother started to move a bit. "Well then what do we do about his shell—? Clearly we can't leave it uncovered."

Doctor Hemlock: She nodded. Then pulled out a roll of bandages. She began to wrap Donnie's shell up. "He will have to stay in bandages for awhile, they must be changed at least once a day so as to not get any more infected. I'm unsure how to help with the spreading of the wound. It is unlike anything I have seen or dealt with. I would continue putting the ointment on it though to see if it works at all. We would have to draw some blood samples to see if it's anything to do with that, or if it's something not even we know." She replied, taking out a needle tipped syringe. She walked over, obviously she had put her cloves on. "You're gonna feel a small pinch for a second, but it will go away soon." She stuck it into D's shoulder. She felt him flinch and shut his eyes, and smiled. "It's alright, I know you hate needles, but you only have to do it once today." She cooed, finally taking the now neon green blood-filled syringe out. She set it into a bag and onto the counter. Then put a bandaid onto the spot where the shot was taken.

Michelangelo: "That was a lot of blood drawn— you sure you didn't take too much? You know he has thin blood—"

Leonardo: "It's fine Mike's, she knows what she is doing. He's just gonna feel a bit lightheaded for a while but he'll regain it. Right now let's just take him home. " He said, standing up.

Raphael: He picked Donnie up, cradling him again. That was the best way he could carry him without possibly hurting him more. He nodded to the others. They all left.