u should send in "lights, cameras, action!" so i can tell you how ur muse would be introduced in their debut scene in aisling's tv show/movie series (i.e. the build-up, the hints, the music, the little easter eggs) (even if you've already sent it in on the old blog, and even if we haven't interacted yet!) ( ALWAYS ACCEPTING! )
S2 E12: MÁINLIA. ( TRANS: SURGEON. )
so this episode is brought to us by anytime fitness, who offer a 50% discount to all new members for the first twelve months. also, there's a lottery for a smoothie blender and a year's supply of free protein powder, bc we can't air these episodes without financial support, yk? and i also wanna highlight that kelly is referenced quite a bit in earlier episodes, particularly through aoife and shane, but also in magazines, talk shows, he's a very popular crush, maybe there's been a few times where aisling took someone to the hospital for a check-up for paperwork and they were like "we can tell doctor anderson you're here" and she's like "please don't disrupt him, i saw him on the morning show, he's going to be insufferable."
all of this to say, by the time we reach episode twelve, the image of kelly has been built in such a way that we understand him to be a prominent enough public figure, a very attractive man who KNOWS he's attractive, wealthy, healthy, and possessing of a huge ego and many expensive cars. we also understand that he gained this money through his work as a surgeon, but we also don't really pay much heed to that in the build-up. that's why this episode gains so many stellar reviews and award nominations, yk?
anyway! friday night, people gather in front of their television screens. maybe it's the end of november. idk. time's wild. but people are SEATED and EXCITED and GLUED TO THE SCREENS!
( BUT they also get a TW: surgery mention, blood mention, gun use, implied death mention )
so we finish the previous episode with aisling being given xavier's location and driving out to find him. she takes a gun to avoid using the stone and drawing unwanted attention, but meanwhile, xavier has sent men to the apartment to detain the squad as leverage; that is, until richard tries to get the upperhand and ends up being shot twice in the struggle.
kelly's episode begins with aisling, now holding xavier at gunpoint, staring at the cctv footage of the diner as richard collapses to the ground. xavier looks startled, and tries to limit the fallout, but aisling forces him to give her his phone, which she uses to call kelly. the scene splits between the two; aisling trying not to cry in xavier's villa, kelly pausing as he packs up his things and answering the phone call with a frown. " not exactly standard office hours, dick. "
" kelly-- "
" new cell, ais? not that I mind… is this what i think it is or-- "
" richard's been shot. "
instantly, the flirty smoulder is replaced by a focused look of alarm; not in the sense of fear, but rather the urgency. " where is he? "
" diner. "
" on it. " he grabs two bags, not the stylish leather but durable canvas, and as he sprints out and down the street, far faster than the dragging traffic, aisling puts the phone on speaker and sits down. the camera now focuses entirely on kelly; as he shoves through the diner door, the armed men move to aim at him, when we hear xavier quickly dismiss them and order them to abandon their task. kelly's already moving before they drop their weapons, and by the time he gets to richard, the men have disappeared entirely.
here's the thing. we know kelly is a flirt. we know he's very much aware of the effect his appearance has on people. we know this is a man who, by film standards, has already ticked enough boxes to be written as a fully fledged character. but in this moment, as he kneels next to richard and deftly cuts through his shirt, we see a look of profound focus and analytical knowledge take over his face. this is the best cardiothoracic surgeon the world has ever known, and likely ever will, and he's here to show us precisely why that is. knocking aside the towels that were staunching the blood, he turns to the others. aoife is assigned pressure duty. shane holds a light above richard's chest. the scalpel and tools are sterilized and assembled carefully by kate. kelly, having scrubbed in and disinfected as much as he can, gets to work on a thoracoscopic surgery.
now i'm not a doctor. but the scene is a work of art, and gains critical acclaim from the medical community. kelly proves exactly why he has the life he has, the fame, the glory, the adoration. on the diner floor, kneeling and with the tools available, kelly improvises as needed and performs a surgery with phenomenal talent. even to medical amateurs, this is a perfect process; the bleeding stops, the organs are functioning again, and richard is arguably only unconscious because of the anaesthesia. kelly leans back. shaky gratitude is extended, but the look on his face is that of a man who just feels abundant relief. and also possibly the opportunity to bring this up in a swanky event.
but then richard begins to wheeze. using the camera from the surgery, kelly can't see what's causing this to happen. terror erupts, but while everyone panics, kelly seems to withdraw into himself, trying to recall a missing detail that might save richard.
cue the flashback. leading medical experts gather in a conference room, studying transcripts of medical school grades and finding themselves focused on that belonging to dr. k. anderson. " well, that's just a point above yours, doctor malloy. "
" if you say so. but at least I have humility; this guy's a jerk. "
the five look up; the camera pans around to reveal a younger kelly, flirting shamelessly with a giggling cluster of medical interns when a jealous colleague scoffs from his desk. " what's this? another bet, anderson? see how many interns you can hook up with before your shift ends? don't be upset, folks, he'll do anything for the opportunity to say he won something. remember that time you memorized that medical encyclopedia just to stick it to our tutor? "
" i remember. and i can tell you just about every possible variation of sarcoidosis, too. but talking with these lovely people is much more enjoyable than doing your job for you. "
the flashback ends. amidst the rising chaos of the diner, everything becomes muted as kelly inhales slowly. opens his eyes. we have a close-up of his face, focusing on him as he focuses on his patient. " the shooter. he wore gloves? "
" yeah, blue latex. "
" epi-pen. NOW. "
" no, dad, the guy never touched him-- "
" no. " kelly agrees, uncapping the offered pen and bringing it over to richard's thigh. once administered, he dumps the pen in a blue plastic bucket filled with the rest of the waste. " but he did load his weapon. traces of latex must've transferred to the rounds. " he waits, staring at his watch as he checks richard's pulse. seconds stretch like elastic. silence reigns supreme. and then… the wheezing levels out. richard begins to breathe normally once again. stanley begins to cry, and kelly pats his arm before rising to his feet, a slow exhale pushing free. " he's in the clear, ais. "
the camera cuts. this time, it's about two hours later. the squad are upstairs with richard. aisling arrives, turns the closed sign around, and locks the door. the scene splits again; a wall divides her and kelly, aisling mopping the floor, kelly pulling on a clean sweater after hand-washing his original ensemble. aisling finishes mopping the floor, and kelly emerges, a familiar glint of wry wit in his eyes. " nailed it. "
" nice catch with the latex allergy. "
" yeah. right up there with the bullet allergy. you look exhausted. "
" what are you, a doctor? " her voice catches, and suddenly, for the first time in a while, we see aisling on the brink of tears. the camera turns to kelly. the fans will make gifsets of this moment; partly because hot doctor in a sweater, but more because of the absolute hypocrisy to say aisling looks exhausted when the evening has visibly taken so much out of him, too. he pauses. lifts his eyebrows.
" you're never gonna believe this, but… i am. come on. time for a prescribed triple shot of scotch. " he holds out a hand, which aisling accepts, and they begin to walk up to the door. the camera remains on their backs, not moving from the original spot. " honestly, that's the only reason i did all this. richard had a papercut; only needed a band-aid, but i figured the anaesthesia would help him tell me where he keeps the glenfiddich. "
as kelly turns off the lights, the diner dims, section by section until the screen goes black. the episode ends. and it's not the last we see of dr. kelly anderson.
Page 33 - Old Penelope Crash Site, 7 PM / The Lab, 10:30 PM
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If you are reading this story, are caught up to Page 31, and haven't read the previous page yet, do so first, it's important for lore.
Jess and George talk about the lab and about Gaia, and Jess decides to delve deeper than Jess managed to before. But they're interrupted... only things seem to be different than last time...
Ted seems to be trying to take matters into his own hands, and has been some level of honest with Jess and George. But what's happened may actually have just made things a lot worse. Gaia needs to be dealt with, but that would be easy - if only the best candidates to help deal with her weren't in on the deal. Jess has a theory of her own - even if they can't stop the infection, they can stop the spread of the plants by killing the 'queen' - at least, that is her theory. But there's something in town far stronger and scarier than Gaia - and that's the military. If Ted can't keep up his end of the bargain, that's millions of Simoleons down the drain...
Transcript:
Image 1
OLD PENELOPE CRASH SITE
7 PM (SAME DAY)
George: You don't seem that bothered by this infection, Jessie.
Jess: It's nothing. This voice, 'Gaia', she talks to me in my mind, but I just block her out. So many military personnel have been discharged over this. It makes me wonder if they all have voices in their head, too - and if they do, why they can't cope with them. I mean, dealing with situations that'd break other people is kind of our whole thing.
George: Eh, people have gone soft in this day and age. But not you, Jessie. You've got a good head on your shoulders.
Image 2
Jess: Gaia is hard to describe. She's kind of blunt, but she keeps trying to get me to open up emotionally - and I did with Dylan earlier, but I gotta go careful. If I open up emotionally, then I don't trust what she might try to do, you know?George: You think Gaia is a thing? Not just a voice?
Jess: Yeah. She said something about my mom before - but my mom made me like this to protect me, not to be cruel. It was hard for her - she just didn't want me to get hurt.
George: My dad was the same. He was a hardass, but he meant well.
Jess: I'm kinda worried the other military might give into Gaia soon enough. I need her gone - then I can finally start opening up with my family. I… I haven't been good to Christie or Dylan. I've been taking out my stress on them,
Image 3
George: Eh, military life is rough sometimes - some people get to my age and still haven't found a work / life balance. It's the price you pay, dedicating your life to protecting others…
Jess: But Dylan and Christie shouldn't have to pay the price putting up with my stress…
George: So you reckon this 'Gaia' is a thing, and the thing is in the lab. Maybe it's some kind of mind-control device of some sort… I dunno. Gaia is a strange name for something like that, huh… Anyhow, are we still on for infiltrating the lab?
Jess: We are, but Erwin is unwell. I don't know when he'll get back to the curio stand and I don't know if I can trust the other guys there. He should have a hazmat suit.
Image 4
George: Ah, screw the suit. I'm an old man - if I get infected, it ain't no biggie. I don't spend enough time out and about to pass it on to anybody anyhow.
Jess: You're not expendable, George! I don't want you getting sick!
George: Not expendable? laughs My girl, we're military. We're as expendable as they get - if we wanted to live forever, we'd have gotten a desk job!
Jess: Urgh, you're so stubborn. Well, if we go to the lab, you can stand guard outside. If Gaia isn't inside your body and mind, she can't scream at you like she does with the other guards. I'd be surprised if anyone was guarding that lab tonight.
George: Well then, let's not waste any time - we'll go to the lab tonight.
Image 5
George: Hmmm…Looks like that cloud is getting bigger by the day, don't you think?
Jess: I sure hope not.
Image 6
THE LAB
10:30 PM (SAME DAY)
Image 7
George: One moment - who's that coming over… Hey! You! What are you doing here?
Image 8
Ted: I could ask the same of you, George…
Image 9
Ted: Look, I ain't gonna raise my voice at a First Contact vet - but whatever your reasoning is for being here, it ain't worth it. You don't wanna be dealing with what's down there, George. It's…something out of this world.
Image 10
George: I fucking knew it! Those damn Sixamians again! Just after I thought we could trust some of them-
Ted: Ain't nothing to do with no Sixamians, George… It's to do with myself and the military top brass.
Image 11
MEANWHILE, DOWNSTAIRS…
Jess: Ugh, why does it smell so sweet all of a sudden? This place gives me the creeps… why are scientists cultivating an invasive species?!
Image 12
Ted: What in the hell are you doing here?!
Jess: I…
Image 13
Ted: It's not you that I'm here for… You wanna know what's in here so damn badly? Then follow me.
Jess: Okay…
Image 14
Jess: So are you gonna explain the fuck is going on here?!
Ted: It's better I show you. Follow me - and watch your step.
Image 15
*in glitch purple text* WHAT ARE YOU DOING HERE - repeated 3 times
Image 16
Jess: You're a lot uglier than I expected.
Gaia: I try to open you up to your feelings, and you swear at me and try to shut me out! You are beyond ungrateful for my wisdom and my gifts! Why can't you see that I am trying to help you!?
Jess: Most people that want in on your feelings have got a pretty shitty reason for doing so. There's no way I'm letting you any further into my head than you've already gotten. I'm not falling for your-
Image 17
Sound descriptions: *sound of a gunshot* / *horrific screeching*
Image 22
BACK OUTSIDE THE LAB…
Jess: I saw Gaia, alright. She's like a giant version of all the invasive plants - uglier, too. I'd love to ask Ted why the hell he kept this from everyone.
Ted: Will you give me a break? Everything still hurts!
Jess: You know what I think? You bet she's like their queen? And a hive either disperses or dies without its queen. Maybe there isn't a scientific or medical sure to this infection - maybe we have to kill Gaia to stop further infection and stop the spread of the plants, at least.
George: Kill an alien plant? Sounds easy enough.
Jess: No, she's tough. It's gonna take a lot more people. Maybe we need the help of the military:
Ted: Yeah, that ain't gonna work.
Jess: Why not?
Ted: They're…they're in on this. I made a deal with them that would make us a lot of money…we were using Gaia to develop a bioweapon. But that has to stay between us for now, you got that?
Image 23
George: You're telling me humans are trying to develop bioweapons from weird plants? We had a treaty, didn't we? I suspected the Sixamians broke it and were doing this, but if I'm wrong, well… then why are we breaking it?
Ted: Because I made a big fucking mistake, George, that's why! And I don't think there's any going back from it now. None of this was meant to get out of the lab, and we built the lab here in the hopes that no contaminants would do harm to the townspeople… I can't close the deal now! The only option we have is to get rid of that damn plant - but her roots are spreading…They look like she might break out of containment soon enough.
I managed to temporarily forget about the horniness cos of The Awful Heat but I reminded myself by accident and now my dick is twitching and it's way too hot in here to do anything about ittttt. Someone please put me out of my misery preferably by sticking a gun down my throat and making fun of how I can't beg with my mouth full