A drowsy Doc walks into the greenhouse in a meandering path, with her head down. She rubs her face as she drags her bag behind her. Doc looks up to see the table is cleared, with Lahar lying on it. Doc then looks at the clock and sees the late hour. She walks up to Arena and tugs on his pants. She points down aggressively, obviously not happy with being woken up so late.
Arena crouches down and explains the situation to Doc. She peers over at Lahar, who is waiting nervously on the table with her fists clenched tightly and beads of sweat falling from her forehead. The stars shine bright in the sky as Lahar tries to distract herself by counting them and finding constellations.
Her eyes jump from star to star, looking for a constellation she knows, but she can't find a single one—not even the Big Dipper. Lahar just thinks she hasn't looked in a while and has forgotten where they are.
Doc pulls a tall stool up to the table. She climbs her way up onto the stool and immediately starts to examine Lahar. Doc places her hands on her stomach and presses down as Lahar looks up to the sky. Doc then jumps down from the stool and pulls out chalk from her satchel.
Drawing on the floor with the chalk, Doc walks around the room. She creates a large outline of a square. She scrawls strange writing and symbols inside, in specific places.
Gold streams pour from Arena's arms as he speaks to Lahar. "Nerves must be killing you right now."
"Of course not. I am completely calm," Lahar says in the most uncomfortable fashion.
Arena walks over to a bowl of water and washes his hands. Lahar looks over at Doc putting the finishing touches on her work. Arena walks back to Lahar with surgical gloves on.
"What's with the gloves and writing?" Lahar asks nervously.
The last drop of gold pours out of Arena's arm, while Doc climbs up on the stool. On a chair, next to Arena, is the same leather bag with wooden handles that held the bandage.
"Short answer, we will get what's inside of you out," Arena says, reaching into his bag. He pulls out a scalpel.
Lahar's pupils shrink; her breathing becomes shallow. "Surgery. You mean surgery," she says with her eyes fixated on the scalpel.
"Unfortunately, yes," Arena says as he grabs the bottom of her shirt. "Don't worry; I won't pull off your shirt. I just need to lift it slightly so we can see your stomach," Arena says, placing his hand on her stomach. Lahar shivers when the cold glove touches her skin.
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Doc places her hand on top of Arena's. Red flushes in Arena's eyes as he says a spell. Doc's flame flickers with every word Arena says.
The chalk outline glows bright. A dark light shines from Lahar's stomach. It is a small circle with a branching path that leads up to where Arena bandaged up her arm.
Arena carefully removes the bandages to find the light seeping from the scratch on her arm. "It's clear to see who did this," Arena says. He looks at Doc. "What course of action do you recommend?"
Lahar turns to see Doc's flame flickering as she stares at Arena.
"Yeah, you're right. I think I have some in my bag," he says to Doc.
She lifts her hand off Lahar's stomach and holds it up to tell Arena to stop. She uses her other hand to reach into the satchel. She pulls out a vial of blue liquid and a vial of green liquid.
She hands Lahar the green one. "Take it," Arena says. "This will light up your insides so we can see well."
Lahar grabs the vial and hesitantly drinks it. True to the color, the liquid tastes of a green apple flavor.
Doc then hands her the blue liquid. "This one is a sedative. It will put you to sleep so you won't have to feel a thing," he says.
Lahar grabs the vial and quickly swallows the blueberry-flavored liquid, down to the last drop.
Her eyes feel heavy, and she starts to drift away. Doc takes the vial out of her hand and places it back in her bag. Doc nods her head at Arena, signaling they should start. "Of course," Arena replies. He snaps his fingers, and then a golden glow comes from the floor.
A larger golden symbol overlaps the chalk symbol on the ground. Both symbols complement each other, like puzzle pieces connecting. Lahar's body glows green. A silhouette of her body made from green light rises up. The silhouette is a transparent layer of skin, with her internal organs visible. The table lowers closer to the floor so that the transparent layer is within working distance for them both.
Arena pulls a piece of gum from his pocket. He carefully unwraps it and starts to chew. The mango flavor calms him. He knows this isn't good medical practice but feels it's a necessary step.
Doc pulls out surgical tools from her bag as Arena carefully moves his hand over the still-visible dark circle located in the lower stomach's wall. Doc looks up at Arena as he looks back at her. A soft gust of wind blows outside as they remain silent for a moment.
The scalpel slowly cuts the transparent green skin of the copy. Arena's eyes instantly jump to Lahar, making sure she is still asleep. Doc helps keep the cut open wide enough for them to work. No blood is spilled from the copy or Lahar's real body. No scratches are found on Lahar either, as if her body isn't being touched at all.
Arena's movements are those of a surgical master, each gesture careful and precise. His hands stay steady under the crippling pressure. Doc's movements are on par with Arena's. She truly earns her name, being just as skilled as Arena.
They carefully make it inside the stomach, making sure not to touch any other organs or veins on their way. Doc's hands change to the shape of thin tweezers. She slowly grabs the dark light. Lahar's body flinches, causing the copy to flinch. They quickly adjust so that no organ accidentally gets cut. Sweat drips down Arena's forehead as the scalpel's tip heats up and starts to slowly cut the area around the light, detaching it from the stomach wall.
Doc proceeds to slowly pull the light out of the copy. She successfully pulls it out, but what she holds in her hand is no longer a dark light. Instead, she holds a shard of a crystal—a crystal Arena recognizes.