[A/N]

Hello!~

So that's Marie up there! *points to pic* Isn't she just so pretty?? I've always imagined pretty actress Kim Tae Hee as Marie. Kim Tae Hee had that mature aura around her which is unique because she looks so young.

Marie was putting a gauze on the recently completed stitches on her patient's arm when her two-way radio buzzed into life.

She sighed, knowing what was going to happen next. She hurriedly gestured to a nearby nurse to help her pack up the stitching instruments. She yanked off her bloody rubber gloves, shoved her stethescope inside her white doctor's coat and started rushing down the hallway. The small heels of her shoes clicking against the floor.

Her radio buzzed, the static echoed, disrupting the silence of the hallways. A masculine voice spoke, "Lee? ER, surgery. Code name red. Now."

Marie grabbed her two-way radio and pressed the connect button on the radio and replied, "Lee, reporting. Prepare the room."

She started running. Code name red only meant one thing. The person's life was hanging by a thread. She shoved her way past people and ran inside the emergency operating room. A male surgeon ushered her into one of the operating rooms. Her eyes widened in horror at the sight of the patient.

The patient was a muscular guy who looked to be between his 20s and 30s. He was not the big and bulky muscled kind. He had a lean body but you could cleary see the defined outline of his abs and his muscular arms. His body proportions were one that many men will kill to have to impress the ladies. He would have looked super hot if his abdomen was not gaping wide open with his guts out in the open air like raw meat in a butcher's shop.

The other surgeons in the room where rushing about, attaching machines to the bleeding patient, Marie yanked on a pair of latex rubber gloves and slipped the mask's strings around her ears. She stood next to her assistant surgeon who handed her a scalpel and nodded. Marie then announced, "The surgery will start."

---

Marie breathed out a sigh of relief. She tugged her bloody rubber gloves off, depositing it in the biohazard bin. She wiped the sweat dripping off the side of her head. The surgery had been intense and extremely risky. The man's guts were not only hanging out, but he also had a large piece of metal coated with lead near the area where his intestines were supposed to be. The patient was on the verge of lead poisoning and they nearly lost him but thanks to her assistant's quick-thinking, they were able to prevent the lead coating from spreading further.

She looked down at her clothes. Her operation gown had blood splattered everywhere. Almost like a very gruesome-looking painting. Marie sighed, untied the gown's straps and tugged the it off her body before tossing the blue gown in the biohazard bin. Luckily, only the operation gown was soaked in blood and not her clothes. If not, her clothes would have become set number five to be thrown away due blood splatters. What a waste of money it would have been.

Marie glanced at the clock on her way to her office.

10pm.

She sighed and stretched. The surgery lasted for five hours and was finished way past her work shift. But then again, doctors, especially those specialists like her who perform surgeries, never had any break from work anyway. Marie massaged her wrist, the painful cramps slowly fading away. She entered her office and grabbed her bag as she bid her tired office mates, Yang and Parker, a farewell.

---

Marie parked her car in her garage, the car beeped when she pressed the secure button on her car key. She yawned and entered her house. She was exhausted and struggled to find the key to unlock her door. Marie dumped herself on the leather sofa, her body landing on the soft pillows. Her sore muscles cried out in relief. She had originally planned to order chicken to treat herself for a risky surgery well done for dinner since her last meal was well... a solid five hours ago. But before she could even grab her phone and make a call to order, she had already fallen fast asleep on the sofa. Only her soft snores of exhaustion could be heard. It was such a serene silence that even the devil himself would hesitate to wake her up...

Only for her to be woken up by a phone call.

The phone blasted out it's ringtone. Marie jolted right up and groaned. She rubbed her bleary eyes and grabbed her phone, wincing as the bright light pierced through her veil of sleep. She glanced at the caller ID.

Michael Parker

Marie grumbled. It was her surgery assistant. A brilliant and hardworking surgeon, a wonderful best friend but an annoying assistant. She stood up, her muscles complaining at their interrupted rest time. She hastily grabbing her shoulder bag, shoved her feet into her shoes and rushed to her car. She connected her bluetooth earpiece to her phone and answered the long ringing call.

"Lee? Parker here. ER surgery. Now. ER entrance. ER surgery room 5."

Marie asked, "Lee here. Parker, patient details."

The man on the other side of the call, Parker, answered, "Male Healer. Level 3. 3 bullet wounds. Chest. Missed liver and aorta. One in stomach. Several knife wounds on arms and legs."

Marie turned the steering wheel, manoeuvring her car down the dim, empty road and replied, "Get Yang to start. She knows what to do. I'm on my way."

Parker answered, "Yes doc. Right away."

Marie hanged up and stepped on the gas pedal, her car exceeding way past the speed limit. She could barely care less about the road rules and fines especially when there is a severely injured patient for her to operate on. It is not that she did not trust the other Head Surgeon, Yang, but it is just that the patient had severe injuries and they need all the help they can get for the operation. She braced heself to turn the steering wheel to drive down the blind corner. The cat-eyes winking at her like fairy lights in Christmas.

She stepped on her brake pedal to prevent her car from slipping off the road, especially since the blind corner was pretty sharp. To her utter horror, the brake of her car was not working!

No matter how many times or how hard she step on the pedal, nothing was working. All she could do was to manouver the car and pray that she will not crash. Especially when the blind corner is directly next to a tree near the booundaries between Castacya and Acaris, a Protectors country. The Healers, their, enemies.

She turned the wheel right and left, her panic rapidly rising like a tidal wave when moving the steering wheel did not change the direction of the car. Tears pricked her eyes and her mind instantly thought of her will.

Mom, Dad, thank you for being there for me during my childhood years.Thank you Parker for being the best friend a girl could ever ask for. All those times when you forced me to go to a party, those forced blind double dates, those study sessions during hell week in medical and specialist school, thank you. To all my patients, thank you for giving me such good experience.

Her mind went on a lock down the moment her mind churned out her will. She could only watch in horror as her car sped in the direction of a large oak tree. Her car drove towards the tree at full speed. Marie screamed and shut her eyes tightly, her knuckles turning white as she gripped the steering wheel for dear life.

The car screeched to a sudden stop, smashing against the think oak tree. Half of the car was destroyed upon the impact of the collision. Its front was just a huge lump of scrap metal, the engines completely crushed and unrecognisable.

Marie shrieked in pain when she felt the stethescope tucked in the inner pocket of her white coat stabbed itself in her stomach upon the impact. While the stethoscope had no sharp ends, the smooth blunt edges was still a dangerous weapon during a car crash.

She could feel warm blood streaming out of her stomach and dripping down her clothes. Her head was bashed against the steering wheel. Marie screamed at the impact, her head bloody and throbbing. She could feel a pounding in her head and she suddenly choked, blood dripping out of her mouth. She would have been flung out of the car had she not been protected by the seat belt. She could feel blood dripping down from her head and down the side of her face. She could also feel the dozen glass shards of her shattered windshield embedded on her face.

Marie was in so much pain that she could not even form proper words. Her head was pounding and throbbing as if someone had smashed her head repeatedly with a sledgehammer. She silently did a quick prayer to the heavens for someone to find her and rescue her.

Blood dripped down face and her hair was matted with blood. Marie was tired earlier but now, she was even more tired than usual. She felt so tired. Really, really tired. Her eyelids felt like dead weights and her vision blurred at the edges. Marie willed herself to stay awake for she knew that if she closed her eyes, that will be the end of her.

But she was just so sore and exhausted. Her body was bleeding, her body in so much pain and the countless sleepless nights finally took its toll on her. Marie's vision blurred as her eyelids slowly fluttered close. Her head dropped on the steering wheel as she slowly felt herself weakening.

The last thought in Marie's head was:

Please... someone... save... me...