Trauma Center: Under the Knife Part #11 -

Part 11: - Linda Linda Linda

I'm glad people are finding this thread useful in their S-Rank endeavors!

11 - Linda Linda Linda

(Music: Emergency!)

"Vitals at 60, CS is 300! She's in shock, and losing blood fast!"

"Call the rest of the staff. We need to operate immediately! Angie, get the patient in the O.R. Derek, you'll handle surgery!"

"I'm on it!"

(Music: Patient Profile)

In the Japanese version, Linda was 14. And so in Under the Knife 2, which takes place three years later, Linda is 17 and in High School. In the US version, she remains 17 for three years.

"We've found massive bleeding in her thoracic cavity. Derek, you need to preform a lobectomy immediately! This operation has one objective: -Treat all injuries within the thoracic cavity. We'll go from there. Drain the blood first, if it's a large laceration. After that, use the forceps to close the area, then suture it. Just be sure to drain any blood before moving on with the operation. Hurry, Derek!"

(Watch this Operation: Mission 2-6, S Rank)

(Music: Code Blue)

"Blood pressure and vitals are dropping fast!

"But... there aren't any external wounds! This isn't possible! ...No, the cause doesn't matter now. We need to stop the bleeding first!"

"Understood, Doctor. Let's begin treating her. The large laceration needs attention right away. Drain the blood, first."

This operation is more for story purposes than posing any sort of challenge. I said before that I have a rule to treat big injuries first and the little ones last, but that rule can be broken in this case. It's much better to treat the small lacerations before the gaping ones for reasons that will become clear later. And so, we don't listen to Angie:

"The small lacerations have been taken care of."

"Try using the forceps to close the wounds before you suture them. Pinch one side and pull it over to form a thin slit."

Large lacerations are a real huge pain and the leading cause of S-Rank killers. This version is very picky about where you pinch the wound shut. It's usually a few pixels around the middle you have to choose. Too close or too far away to or from the wound and you get a "miss," lose your S, and the wound may start bleeding again. As well, if you flinch and stretch the wound, also a miss. Even I'm not entirely sure what they expect, the part where you're supposed to clip seems to vary with each size of gaping wound.

"Everything's been sutured. She's... going to make it! I hate to think what would have happened if she'd arrived later... Close up the patient, Doctor."

"You did well, Derek."

In the video, I S Rank the mission. You must finish the operation in less than one minute. It's one of the easiest S Ranks in the game.

In the screenshot run, I missed twice and still got the full S Bonus for some reason, I'm really confused. I guess the miss counter doesn't matter for this level.

(Music: Routine)

"I don't know... It'll probably take some time to figure out. She'll be hospitalized for a few days, so let's keep an eye on her."

"...Did you notice the cuts across the girl's wrists?"

"Yeah... They looked recent. It seems like her real illness is deeper than we expected. ..If that's the case, I don't think we're finished seeing complications."

"Hope Hospital, Room 201"

"I never asked you to save me! Leave me alone!"

"Please calm down, Miss Reid. It's alright..."

"I could feel my chest on fire when I passed out... I was finally going to be free. Why did you bring me back?! I didn't want to live!"

"Why would you want to die? You're still young.. you have your whole--"

"'Life ahead of me?' Yeah, there's something to look forward to, huh? How come everyone says that? My life sucks! I'm tired of all this pain! I'm not pretty enough to date popular guys, I'm too fat.."

You're 95 pounds! Looks like depression isn't the only disorder Linda has.

"My Mom called me a failure yesterday because I might not graduate! Is that the life YOU'D want?! I'm never going to be happy.."

"That all depends on--"

"'Depends on my attitude?' What a joke! A positive outlook won't just solve my problems."

JESUS CHRIST.

"There are patients here who have to fight just to breathe properly... Every day, someone dies after a long and futile struggle to live... I'm sorry we saved you! Go end your life, for all I care!"

"Angie!"

"I know you did your best, Doctor, but I'm afraid it was a wasted effort!"

"Stop talking like that, Angie!"

"I have other things... to attend to."

She leaves. Good riddance. I have no words for just how much Angie should be fired. Derek seems pretty happy about it, too.

"...."

"I'm sorry you had to waste your time operating on me."

"Helping someone is never a waste."

"...Just leave me alone. I don't blame that nurse for hating me. ...I would too."

"I'm not going anywhere. You're still sick."

"What kind of surgeon are you, then? I thought you fixed me."

"It's not that kind of sickness. A doctor's job is about more than just physical illnesses. Nurse Angie taught me that."

"...."

"...When I was little, I had a cat named Tama. We were playing one day, and he ran out into the street. I wasn't fast enough... A car hit him, and I blamed myself. It was my fault Tama died. I really thought I had killed my cat. It was all I could think about. I told my mother I did a terrible thing, and I wanted to die."

"...What happened then?"

"Mom told me Tama would be ashamed of me, and that she was too. But, she also said... that I'm the one who should be most ashamed of what I said.."

"..She said that to you?"

"Who'd you grow up with, Linda?"

"Huh?!"

"Do you have any siblings? Or.. what about pets?"

"Just my parents... and my friends at school, I guess.."

"Could you look those people in the eye and tell them you wanted to die?"

"No way! Of course not! That's why I want to be left alone!"

"Then, hold this."

"...A mirror?"

"Look at that girl, there, and tell her: "I want to die.""

"......I... I want.... *sob*"

"I couldn't do it, either. Now, apologize to her."

".... ...I'm... sorry... *sob* I'm... sorry... I'm so sorry!"

"Stop living for other people, and start making that girl happy. Don't work hard in school because of your Mom, do it because you'll learn more, and be a better person. Don't let other people decide if you're happy or not. Find things you enjoy, and do them. It might not make you popular, but you'll like yourself a whole lot more."

"And you aren't fat. I've seen your charts, remember?"

...Okay, it was mostly not-creepy until then.

I've also seen you naked.

"Your mother sounds wise."

"Really? She could be pretty weird sometimes... But then she'd say, 'I may be weird, but think of all the stories you'll have to tell!'"

"That's... interesting. *cough*"

"Uh... sorry, I guess that was too much information, huh? Really, though, she's great. I should let you rest, though."

"I think I'm going to take a nap."

"That's a good idea. Sorry for talking so much. Next time, I'll--"

"...Thank you..."

"..?"

"I'll go get us some coffee."

"Thanks... That's a great idea."

"I passed by Linda Reid's room on the way here, but..."

"Is something wrong?"

"Her parents were there. All three of them started crying and apologizing all at once. It seems like a lot more was going on than we thought. School, her father's job..."

No shit. You should have introduced yourself to them as the woman who told their daughter to kill herself to free up a bed, I'm sure they would have appreciated it.

"Were you eavesdropping?"

"Well, I was curious.. I didn't hear anything that was worth dying over, though."

It's like no one in this game has heard of depression. She's not even sorry, is she?

"Everyone worries about that stuff during high school, you know?"

"I think we all handle our problems in different ways. But, I'm glad her family came to visit her. Surgeons aren't really equipped to heal psychological wounds."

Please tell me you referred her to a psychiatrist or something.

"Don't sell yourself short."