Scales
Close-up view on the scale pattern of the twins. Took a few tries and I’m somewhat happy with these scales, but I might improve on these in the future.
Also, don’t worry. Kaya tends to exagerate. It certainly wasn’t 50 times xD
As always, if you like the comic, please consider donating on my patreon. Even one dollar goes a long way.
Don’t forget that I stream every Sunday! You are more than welcome to join in on the fun.
The stream is hold at the following hour:
UTC: 1PM
EDT: 9AM
PDT: 6AM
CEST: 3PM
Don’t forget to vote for Twin Dragons at Topwebcomics!
http://topwebcomics.com/vote/21879
Thanks for voting!
Just because your skin is needle-proof doesn’t mean you can’t be scared of needles! 😉
I actually have a similar problem, now that I think about it. Last time I had blood drawn, several nurses had to feel around 2-3 times in each arm before they found a usable vein. The entire process took almost 1/2 an hour!
What fun! 🙂 Worst I had was one nurse tried about 3 times in one arm, then started on the other arm. Finally called another nurse over, who promptly pointed out that she had a dull needle. Switched to a new needle and it slipped right in. 🙂
just prodding around your arm forever before finding a vein is NOTHING – the true horror is when the nurse (or doc!) in question is what a call a ‘golddigger’ – they shove the needle in wherever they want and then start digging with the tip until they actually hit a vein….hurts like blazes and leaves the most amazing bruises
My mother has that problem, but if they use a butterfly needle, then they never have to dig. Last nurse that dug got elbowed in the face.
Sounds a lot like my experiences in the hospital. More than once they had to call in their “Expert vein hunters” who used ultrasound to find a vein.
They never had to go THAT far with me. Guess I should count my blessings!
I was in an EMT course and made my friend go pale because I stuck the vein wrong. He started shaking and I felt really bad after.
The scale of the problem becomes apparent
in ways that no-one can really prevent,
but one thing is now ringing true;
their needles can go through you.
They’ve learned a great deal, it seems,
in the city of your young dreams;
no longer the city of your birth,
that raised you – for what it’s worth.
You’ve grown beyond their fears
and the way ahead still appears
to be full of fun and new friends.
Am I including Benji? Hmm, that depends…
Kai still has to plan a revenge…
>>”Kai still has to plan a revenge…”
Kai Romero for sure! What about ‘Kai’ Dassen though? 😉
The fear of needles can move in a slight scale when you have scales. 😉
To be fair, their old town seemed to have their mindset stuck in the 17th century
Hopefully, they’ve all killed each other by now.
Now, now. We must show patience to the unevolved. Probably.
The way I see it, just leave the willfully ignorant alone. If they want to live apart from the rest of us in their own excuse for a semblance of society then all the better, it means their brands of ignorance and stupid have fewer avenues to reach the rest of us and contaminate the minds of society that exist outside their poor excuse for a community.
You’ve got to remember that these are just simple farmers.
These are people of the land.
The common clay of the new West.
You know… morons.
Blazing Saddles
LOL – Love that movie. 🙂
well played sir well played
If this actually happened, right now, I can think of many so-called ‘enlightened’ places (New York…Chicago….London…) where the mindset would be somewhere around the 5th century BC.
But I’m just an ignorant heathen savage. Don’t mind me.
You’re right. It was probably 70 times. And it must have been hard for everyone with vaccinating two dragons and giving up with how useless their normal methods were. Also, I almost misread that as them never being vaccinated which would have lead to a lot of problems if that were to happen.
… that depends on how good their immune system is. And other differences. It would be definitely problem for human, but if their base temperature would be 70 degrees celsius, they would be immune to practically anything humans can catch. (Unfortunately, we already know that their base temperature is quite normal …)
We are assuming that they are basically modified humans. So vaccinations, however difficult, would be prudent.
We don’t have to assume; we know. 🙂 (The Great andPowerful Kai has said so.)
Okay, so no heart stopping terror at the sight of a needle. That’s a relief. Side note I may skip the next update. Nothing personal.
No terror! The dragons have no terror of the needles, and the doctors have no terror of the dragons. Win!-Win! 🙂
That’s actually really cool seeing the biological specifics of how the twins are. That whole things about the scales being woven into the skin is interesting.
Why do predict that Dr Fern will be writing a strongly worded email to the doctor that performed the twins’ vaccinations.
This looks like a job for a certain delivery mare!
?? One of the “Night Mares” from Xanth? Imbri maybe? 🙂
Ah so it was the tough scales issue! Glad to see that they don’t have a fear of needles. Come to think of it, if they did have a fear of needles then they should have been more anxious about this visit right from the start of the arc.
Neat detail on Kai’s arm, and I love the alttext on the comic! If it really did take that many tries I can’t blame them for flaming their old doc a bit!
Who wants to bet they still have issues? Constantly underestimating the twins? Oh well, they couldn’t be doctors if they didn’t act they were right all the time.
Though it would not surprise me that a doctor close to their old town would have no idea. There must have been a lot of fun in the early years of hybrids as people worked out how to apply human medicine practice to them.
Or if “-human- medicine practice” would even be the right thing for them!
“It certainly wasn’t 50 times”
True, the needle broke about half way there xD
(actually, oof…)
On less disturbing topics, I really thing the scale work is impressive.
Mwhahaha, yes, yes! It was the funnier option! =D
And then, if the first cake of funny wasn’t enough, instead of just some icing, Kaya piles on another whole cake! Hee~
Shame they weren’t afraid of needles, could of been interesting to see the doctors trying to catch kaya, 😂😂😂 but this update does raise a question, how deep are the scales? Are they layered or an intricate mesh of scales? Either way i predict even with experience with scales hybrids getting blood is gonna be difficult.
Kay’s expression in that last panel… It makes me just want to console her. Does she like ice cream?
As long as it’s CHOCOLATE! 🙂
So, how many times has Jackie run over her bare toes with that chair? 🙂
Well ; seeing how their old town was retarded , i think more about the doctor being frightened by them too and unable to work correctly
The possible problem here will be , maybe , to see the vein through such skin
The hospital I went to had “Expert vein hunters” who used ultrasound to find a vein.
That seems excessive for drawing blood or giving a vaccine. But hey, if they have the resources.
Sounds like a good idea. Try to avoid multiple sticks.
Oh boy, their past check-ups must have been nightmares.
Though, there’s one thing I can say for a fact. One can never get used to needles. (And I’m speaking from personal experience, here.)
Believe it or not I used to be perfectly fine with them, then my hand got… Injured, I’ll spare the details, and the pain was NOTHING compared to the needle that was supposed to NUMB it so it WOULDN’T hurt when they stitched it up.
(Probably didn’t help it that I refused to look at it and it came immediately after them washing gravel out of it with nice, cool, soothing water. My guard was down.)
I have only ever had one bad experience with needles.
This was (cough) years ago.
Giving blood for the second time, I saw the needle they were using.
It looked like a drain pipe.
Tilt.
Modern needles for giving blood are now a lot smaller.
I think that “soda straw” is the preferred term.
Unfortunately, they have to be pretty large-bore needles in order to damage as few blood cells as possible.
That is a lot of stabbing to get vaccinated o.O
Worse, the vaccinations were already completed. You know how that last town was about the so-called “demon children…” I think Kaya can be thankful for her scales (and probably a doctor who knew how to tackle an overzealous nurse…).
So many comments in a day! My how this fan base has grown from such humble beginnings. Truly only the most committed will be able to claim those precious top spaces soon. On the note of the comic, I absolutely love that scale design! It’s a similar appearance to the black scales of my own character: the strength of the chainmail-like weave of scales but the smoothness and flexibility of skin. It’s very useful, and in the twins’ case makes even more sense considering that they’re hybrids and not full on actual dragons. (Though don’t tell them I said that.) It’s amazingly well drawn and brushed, as well as simply being a beautiful design. Take pride in this panel Robin. You earned it
It also neatly explains why Robin does not need to draw scales on the twins, like he does with Cloe.
I’m wondering if it wouldn’t be easier to draw blood from their tails.
Certainly should be some VERY major blood vessels there.
I like the scale pattern 🙂 very pretty
…it was only 49 times.
“The doctor back then was flamed several times, and rightfully so,” had me thinking he had received some rather nasty reviews, and then I remembered we are talking about Dragons here…
Now she’s immunized against stabbing.
Dino like scales?
I love all the thought you’ve put in to exactly how different a society with anthropomorphic creatures would be.
It’s been awfully quiet these last few days. Did something happen to Robin’s computer again?
The -New & Improved- computer is sooo fast that Robin is now weeks ahead of schedule
and decided to take a vacation to let the COMIC catch up with HIM for a change. 🙂
…april fools… 😉
I’ve been thinking the same thing, actually. I’m sure he’ll get back to us eventually.
P. S. – Happy Valentine’s day everybody! ♥️♥️♥️♥️♥️♥️♥️
Nope, nothing happened. I was just catching up with work that I missed due to the computer problems. I’ll be replying to comments again soon xD
Happy I’m so thin most of all veins can be seen with the naked eye tho a nurse told me once that they could “rollover” on them when that close to the skin not sure what she means tho. Yes, I’m very thin naturally my hands are so thin that the veins actually raise up the overlying skin.
Oh Danu, I was foolish too, of course they would have figured out a technique, especially given they have plenty of scaly hybrids. I got an idea for their kit, if they had time to develop it.
1) Get the ultrasound probe, set for doppler, and find the vein. Use a surgical marker to trace it.
2) Clean the surface with an antiseptic like betadine or chlorhexidne gluconate. (I prefer chlorhex, less risk of an allergy.)
3) (optional…sometimes it might be necessary, but not always) If necessary, you have a lidocaine “puncher.” this is a spring-loaded injector like an epi pen, set for a shallower depth, set to deliver a topical anesthetic. The idea is to get a small poof of anesthetic into the subcutaneous fat layer (and yes, Kaya, you do have subcutaneous fat, it’s a necessary layer of tissue…you’re not overweight) and numb the site.
What you do next is based on medical judgement and histology (microscopic anatomy) of the site.
For scales, the doctor would don loupe glasses or a jewler’s loupe (it’s a magnifier that fits over the eye…the glasses are used by surgeons so they have a close-up view without leaning over the patient) so they can see the scale texture.
The doctor uses an obturated starter. This is a needle with a beveled wire in its center, forming a reinforced solid penetrator body. It resembles an angiocath kit, with a clear housing to check for flashback (blood, indicating a vascular entry). Doctor punches the first layer into the tissue, pulls the obturator wire, and sinks the needle until they find blood. Then they can hook up the vacutainer (vacuum-loaded sample vials) and draw samples.
Are you a doctor, a vet, or just a nerd? They may seem unequally likely to some, but I think it’s a reasonable question because with the size of the internet in general, it’s extremely unlikely not to meet someone at least slightly unlikely. Also I don’t mean nerd as an insult, it just seemed like the most accurate word for the question.
Doctor, actually.