[ Sam observes the gestures, keeps his eyes on where Tony's fingers end up. His gaze is far away for a moment, flat and dark. He remembers trying to save soldiers with blown off limbs amidst the desert sands, field amputations under the worst kinds of conditions when otherwise you couldn't have even attempted to airlift them out and bring them back.
Lips pressed together, Sam considers the position. Shifts closer, and gently lifts the bandages to look at the marks underneath. ]
Not gonna lie to you, might be too high up for transhumeral. [ Sam indicates the midpoint between elbow and shoulder without touching, where that amputation would work best - further down than Tony indicates. Risky to keep that much of the wound. ] Shoulder disarticulation would be the safer call. [ Sam gently places two fingers further up on the arm than Tony indicated, just where the upper arm bone meets the rest of the shoulder. ] If you need a comparison, the next step would be forequarter. [ He shifts his hand inward, places it diagonal over the joint towards the clavicle. ] That'd be like Bucky.
[ Sam leans back a little, but stays close enough that he can keep his voice down just between the two of them. ]
I'm not saying you gotta make that call now. Just... if we're out in the field...
[ He stops, swallows. Tony's smart enough to follow the thought. Sam's no surgeon - but he's a combat medic. His jaw clenches. ]
I'm saying you gotta tell me if you gonna make the call here, where you can recover safely, or if I'm packing a kit for you just in case next time we get sent out. 'cause in here, it's your call. Out there, I decide for you if I have to.
cw: mild flashback, mentions of amputation
Lips pressed together, Sam considers the position. Shifts closer, and gently lifts the bandages to look at the marks underneath. ]
Not gonna lie to you, might be too high up for transhumeral. [ Sam indicates the midpoint between elbow and shoulder without touching, where that amputation would work best - further down than Tony indicates. Risky to keep that much of the wound. ] Shoulder disarticulation would be the safer call. [ Sam gently places two fingers further up on the arm than Tony indicated, just where the upper arm bone meets the rest of the shoulder. ] If you need a comparison, the next step would be forequarter. [ He shifts his hand inward, places it diagonal over the joint towards the clavicle. ] That'd be like Bucky.
[ Sam leans back a little, but stays close enough that he can keep his voice down just between the two of them. ]
I'm not saying you gotta make that call now. Just... if we're out in the field...
[ He stops, swallows. Tony's smart enough to follow the thought. Sam's no surgeon - but he's a combat medic. His jaw clenches. ]
I'm saying you gotta tell me if you gonna make the call here, where you can recover safely, or if I'm packing a kit for you just in case next time we get sent out. 'cause in here, it's your call. Out there, I decide for you if I have to.