John took off his clothes.
Don't get the wrong idea.
He only took off his coat.
Thena felt a little odd about it, and so did Gilgamesh.
John tucked up her sleeve and opened a tool kit.
Inside were delicate, razor-sharp potion-making tools.
John took out a cutting tool about the size of a scalpel.
Holding the cutting tool in his left hand and his wand in his right, John asked an innocuous question.
"Can I peel the skin off this hand?"
"No!" Seeing the curiosity on John's face, Gilgamesh genuinely feared he might dissect Thena.
Since that wasn't allowed, John could only feel a little disappointed.
He used the small knife to slit the skin of Thena's right hand.
Something resembling blood seeped out.
The Eternals' tough skin could withstand bombardment from modern humanity's heavy weapons.
The fact that John's little knife could cut through it made Gilgamesh take notice.
"What kind of weapon is that?"
"A weapon?" John smiled. "A common tool for potion-makers, though mine is a limited edition."
Red blood flowed from her arm. John said in surprise, "I thought there'd be something a little more unusual inside your bodies."
"Were you expecting motor oil?" Gilgamesh quipped. "We're not robots."
John didn't answer. He had expected something golden or the like.
After collecting some, John turned his attention to Thena's energy.
Gilgamesh had it too, but he wasn't John's patient.
The Eternals' energy always manifested as gold, yet it was different for each Eternal.
Perhaps they circulated it differently.
John pressed his wand against Thena's wound. Her arm tingled, as though something was working its way out.
Golden energy was drawn out, gradually creeping up the wand.
"What are you doing?" Gilgamesh didn't think this was a normal part of treatment.
"I need to understand how