Special Surgeons

Trained for any outcome

Don't worry. I'll be with you until the end.

— Adham Morcos, Legion Special Surgeon

It takes a very unique individual to play surgical god -- to be willing to push the boundaries of humanity, to expand potential and develop a magic user, a Catalurgist, out of an ordinary human. The individual must be a master of their craft; they must be on the cutting edge of medicine. A special surgeon must be an expert, at the top of their field, in three specific areas in order to stand any chance of remaining employed. First, they should be an adept at Catalurgical surgery, the process of implanting the Thymalladus into a Catalurgist-to-be. Second, they have to have a background in physiotherapy -- though an additional background in psychological therapy doesn't hurt either. Finally, and in some cases most importantly, the last skill a Special Surgeon needs to master in order to develop these superhuman beings is to become an expert in close ranged, deadly, hand-held weaponry. Namely, they need to know their way around a gun.

Medicalized Production

It takes an inhuman amount of care to ensure a fresh Catalurgist makes it through their recovery period; a Special Surgeon will, at most, look after 5 patients at any given time. These highly trained individuals will be with the patient during the consultation (if they're lucky enough to be granted one) before the surgery, explaining the risks (if they're allowed to know) and describing the changes they will undergo in the near future (if the surgery is voluntary). After which, the surgeon will help push the patient towards a terrifying and powerful future -- utilizing their knowledge in physiotherapy among other specializations, the next 6 months are a key period in the development of a Catalurgist, and a Special Surgeon must be available at all hours in order to provide care to the burgeoning magic-user.
Finally, these surgeons are also the ones to administer the first dose of Ichor during the new Catalurgist's First Blood. Only once the dust has settled and every involved individual has safely recovered will the Special Surgeon end their care for their patient. It's common at this point for the Special Surgeon to give a gift to their former ward; a bullet, unfired, still in its casing. A symbolic gift, a lifted threat unspoken, received in the vastly preferred method out of the two ways of giving a bullet to someone.

First Blood

Becoming a Catalurgist is a grueling process. If the patient doesn't die on the table (or worse), then it's a 6 month minimum recovery period following the implantation of the Thymalladus. Because the semi-artificial organ is wholly unnatural to human bodies, it takes months of rehabilitation and immunosuppressant medicine to ensure the body accepts the foreign organ.
At any point during this process, the body might fail and trigger a Rendling-Human Chimeric Event; unless the Special Surgeon is well trained, this usually means the death of all those involved. If they're truly unlucky, this event spells death for all those in a 1 kilometer radius, as well.

Here, this is for you. I even signed it -- I figured that'd be better than writing your name on it.

— Adham Morcos, Legion Special Surgeon

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