you paste me in just to cut me out; hello fascination.

[i_robert_capa]

Robert Capa is drenched to the bone and smouldering. He was out walking on the streets of Chicago when he accidently burst into flames. The stress of the CLF business and his own determination to keep practicing his ability has worn him down. It was an accident. But the people on the street freaked out anyway. In the panic, someone set off a fire

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[smithnjones]

There have been stranger sights in all of Martha's time in Chicago than a man drenched and smoking who has fallen on to the floor. It's why she doesn't react with much surprise, but she does act quickly. Martha moves forward and gets down on her knees beside him.

She is scanning him for injuries though she could touch him with her hand and know right off the bat, heal him in an instant. Martha would rather not alert her guardian angel to her side every time someone is injured.

She reaches into her pocket for her medical gloves, always close at hand for situations like this one. Martha slides them on, and she places her hand on his shoulder to let him know that he isn't alone.

"Where does it hurt? Are you able to stand?"

[i_robert_capa]

Capa flinches as he feels the hand on his shoulder, the last thing he wants now is the accidently burn someone. He moves away slightly, worried for whoever's stopped to help him and shakes his head. His chest hurts, he might've winded himself in the fall - but it's his skin that hurts more than anything.

He struggles for a breath and clenches his fists, trying to stop himself bursting into flames again. "My skin," he pants after a long pause. "It's.. the water..."

He stops for a moment and bites down on his lip, his skin smouldering a little more heavily. "I'm... I'm a fire elemental. I need to get the water off,"

[smithnjones]

"I'll be fine," Martha says when she sees him move away. "I'm a doctor, and I heal. I've the ability to heal. You can't burn me for long. I promise."

She's silent then and continues in a much firmer voice than before, the authoritative one that's become second nature to her. "Don't move."

Her gaze searches the lobby for something that she could use to help dry him, and she notices a blanket there. It will do to soak up some of the moisture. She reaches for it and then returns, pressing the fabric anywhere she sees the liquid in hopes of pulling it away from his skin.

Martha works without fear of being burnt herself. The thought doesn't occur to her as she works, and if she does get burnt, she doesn't register the pain. Martha has a high threshold for it.

"Is that helping at all?"

[i_robert_capa]

She insists she'll be fine, but he's still wary. He's curious when she mentions having healing abilities and does his best to concentrate on that in order to get his mind off his current combustion issue. "I accidentally burst into flames in the middle of the street. People freaked. It was an accident.." he murmurs, squeezing his eyes tightly shut as he tries to stop himself from moving any more.

He fills his head with his usual science jargon: DNA manipulation caused by travelling through a rift in time and space similar to his own situation, cell regeneration. Yes, the trail of thought does ease him and calms down the smouldering. "Interesting," he manages to say in between pants before screwing his face up mildly in pain.

And then he feels the dry material against his skin and he immediately calms down, no longer burning or smouldering. He grabs at some of it to dry his face and slowly nods. "Yes.. thank you.."

[smithnjones]

"I'm certain that it was an accident," Martha says as she looks over him still.

It's not as if she thought that he set himself on fire on purpose. There are much easier, less painful ways to create chaos and to make the world burn.

She releases the blanket, allows him to take it and use it how ever works best for him, and remains where she is, kneeling nearby.

"Good. I'm glad that it helps. You didn't get burned on your skin at all, did you? I'm assuming if your burst into flames, your skin has some amount of protection against fire."

Or else he would be a crisp. She has seen bodies that have been burned before. What's left looks only vaguely human.

[i_robert_capa]

"I've.. I've just been doing too much," he explains with a small shake of his head, wiping at his hands with a shaking hand. He has to keep telling him to relax. "Training, mostly.. It's since the CLF video. Stress caused it, perhaps.."

Capa finally looks up, he's still panting from being winded and from running a few blocks of Chicago - but he's feeling better now. He offers a grateful smile and nods his head. "My rift abilities also don't allow me to get any kind of burn injuries anymore. Water feels like I'm having a ton of boiling water poured over me but.."

He trails off and moves ever so slowly with a grimace. He takes a few moments check himself over, peering at his skin curiously. "No, no marks.." he wraps the blanket about him, mopping the back of his neck before looking across at her, "I didn't burn you too much, did I?"

[smithnjones]

"That would make sense," Martha says and nods as she looks at his face, offering him the slightest, gentlest smile. "The various powers created by the Rift seem to often be exacerbated by intense emotions or stress in that case."

The explanation makes sense, but it also means that anyone trying to save him would only accidentally hurt him in the process. It's instinct almost to pour water on fire.

"That's useful but I would imagine it hurts when people try to help you."

She is still smiling when she holds out her hand to see. The burn that had been there is healing away. Her healing is slower than it used to be, but that's not because of him. It's from overuse. "Not anything that'll stick. I didn't notice if it hurts."

"I'm Martha." She stretches her hand out to him as she regards him thoughtfully. "Martha Jones."

[i_robert_capa]

Capa raises his eyebrows at her suggestion on riftpowers and nods his head, "Yeah, I'd agree with that. Rift abilities seem to be a merged part of someone, rather than an ability that's separate from them,"

He offers her a weak smile, "Yeah, I would guess so. It's rather ironic, huh?" He blinks and stares intently at her hand as it heals up, utterly fascinated. "That's amazing," he murmurs, uttering a low whistle. And she doesn't feel pain either?

He hesitates when she reaches out for a hand to shake, just in case he fires up again. But he tell himself he can't actually hurt her and reaches out, giving her hand a polite shake. "Robert Capa," he replies with a firm nod of her head. "Thanks again for the help.. Well, the help that actually did me some good,"

[smithnjones]

"Yes, that's exactly it. It often becomes a part of you in that sense," she says. "It's not always the case, but the most common powers created by the Rift all have that in common. Even the callings of angels and demons are often tied into their own emotions."

She smiles a bit at him. "Yes, quite ironic. I suppose it's well enough that you're in Chicago. Most people will run away from anything they can't explain before they try to help."

Martha most definitely feels pain. However, three years ago, she was tortured for a day. Every time she heals someone, she takes on the wound herself and feels the pain of it. Her pain tolerance is simply ridiculously high.

She smirks at him at that last comment.

"You're very welcome," she says. "You a wanderer then?" It's a legitimate question as supernatural humans could easily develop any power that a wanderer might have. "Have you been here long?"