trans_9 | (no subject)

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Pop. Pop pop pop. Poppuhpoppoppop. KASCHUNKhiiiiiiiissssss.

There was condensation and mist spraying out from cracks in oblong glowing things that were clustered along the floors and walls of the huge, ancient-looking caverns.

For now, the ones that were cracking were the closest to the floor, but perhaps later, the figures sliding out of the pods would be sliding out onto the slimy walkways and platforms above.

Pop. Poppop. KASCHUNKhiiiiiissss.

There was light, and unconscious minds breaking through the top of the briny, harsh waters of consciousness, as their bodies did similarly and broke free from the pods, sliding to the floor, shivering in pools of slime.

Once the temporary blindness that some of them had passed, and once they were free of their sleepy stupors: somebody had some splainin' to do.

But there would be no explanations, as the only thing that could explain was only watching, silently, almost as a mother would look at their child right after it was born.

Pop. KASCHUNKhissss.

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He was in the middle of.. gawking. The place was incredibly alien, after all, and he was standing there like some yokel, mouth open and trying to make sense of it. Other people? he was not at all considering the notion, not at least until something touched him.

That was not a manly sound at all, the startled yelp that escaped him. It was a little too high-pitched. By now, his nerves were shot, and he turned to see a person, quite human, thankfully so. Sure, she was covered in .. snot, and nothing else.. wait. Oh, damnit. There was a draft in here.

She'd given him a shove, and he about slipped and fell on his ass, considering. He steadied himself, ungracefully, and he simply widened his eyes on her. "Hell, sorry! I didn't exactly strip myself.." Well, he'd jumped to the wrong conclusion. He'd forgotten about his personal reactor completely.

Hands finally went down in an attempt to cover his.. dignity, and he cleared his throat. He would attempt to keep his gaze at eye level. "Well. Uh. Hi. Don't hit me?" Still, hostile as she was, he was glad to see another person.

Cybil was not bothering covering things yet. She needed her arms up and ready for punching and they couldn't be prepared for punching if they were being used to cover her naughty bits.

It's not that easy, Tony. You're going to have to give her reasons not to hit you.

Pointing. "What. The Hell. Is in your chest?"

"Oh. Oh. " That was the lightbulb going on. He'd been more distressed about the forced nudity, considering. His little invention had more or less slipped his mind.. except that it might provide a decent headlamp in a place like this.

Was he going to have to break out pleading, puppy-dog eyes to get this chick to stop trying to whip his ass? She looked serious about it.

"You want the long story or the short one?" Oh, screw that. It was supposed to be his little project, one that only a handful of people knew he had. "It keeps me alive. Heart problems. You going to give a stranger another heart attack? I think I've had three since I woke up." No, it wasn't quite like that, and besides that wound and a few scars, he seemed quite fit.

Hopefully she'd have a little pity on him by now.

Yes.

And no.

Deep breaths. Deep breaths.

"Ah, fuck." NOW her hands quickly went to cover herself. More deep breaths. "Who are you?"

"I'm Tony. Nice to meet you. Maybe. I'd shake your hand, but I'm not too sure where mine's been." It wouldn't do to have someone he actually knew in a place like this. Then again, it would only get more surreal. If that was even possible, really. The utter disconnection from reality was probably what kept him so calm.

"So, is this a usual hangout for you? 'Cause it's pretty new to me." He was smiling, in a pinched, forced fashion. If he stopped to think about it, he'd have a tantrum of some variety.

~~Yes.~~ No, this wasn't her usual hangout.

"Cybil Bennet, Brahm's PD."

The second part always just popped out.

"Well, you know how it is, after a hard day at work, I like to let down my hair, strip naked, jump into a bubble of disgusting goo in the middle of--of what, quite frankly, looks like Satan's armpit--" She said in a terse voice, looking around. "--and relax. Because this is very relaxing."

PD. He'd never heard of Brahm's, but he didn't doubt it was generally safe with her in it. "Huh. I should have known, I guess. Though my few encounters with the police have been for public intoxication." Those were usually very quiet episodes, really. He'd run his mouth too much, and little else. "I probably shouldn't have said that, for first impression's sake." Like it was going to get any better, when he was nude and slimed.

Relaxing, she said. He tried to stifle his laugh and it didn't quite work. "Well, after this, the rest of your day must be cake, right?"

"Oh sure," she said distractedly. "If you don't count the zombies."

"Oh, zombies. Right. A scrap with the living dead would be above this on my 'this is bullshit' meter. Just slightly." Unfortunately, she had him thinking, now. Aliens, or living dead? Sure, he thought she was kidding, but still. Anything could be in here.

Would either actually come running out of the shadows in this place? His attention had drifted, eyeing other pods. Some were cracked, or empty. They were not alone here.

Nothing like the threat of zombies to make him feel uneasy.

Well there was an easy way to find out what the hell was going on.

"HEY! WHAT THE HELL'S GOING ON HERE?!"

Seeing if someone answered that.

||You have been Chosen.||

No zombies ~~yet~~, no aliens ~~yet~~, just a weirdly monotone, feminine sort of voice.

Because every creepy place needs a voice that comes from nowhere.

"Is that really such a good idea? Christ. There went my left eardrum." The chick had a set of lungs on her. Tony had flinched back from her sudden bellow.

The damnable thing was that something answered, and it actually sent a little shiver down his spine.. either that, or the draft was getting to him. Either way, it was unpleasant. "Chosen for what?" That was a confused murmur, meant for himself rather than any.. audience he had gained in this place.

"How do I go about getting UN-chosen? I mean, I'm flattered, I think, but.. I mean I have a busy schedule, and I'd like to go home now." Where-ever this was, he didn't want to be here. It was weird to be yelling at nothing, too.

Chosen for...what?

~~For a great purpose.~~

"What are you?"

||Information classified.||

Apparently "mysterious voice" was all the answer that they were going to get.

Okay. A couple questions, one answer. It was an answer he didn't like, either. Tony could be a little accustomed to getting his way. This silence didn't set right with him, and his jaw set obstinately.

Still, damnit, he knew when someone had the upper hand. Or tentacle. Or whatever the fuck this thing might have.

"Okay. Thanks for sharing. Anything more cryptic you'd like to tell us?"

"Alright, fine, who are you? Let's try that one."

||My name is--||

Instead of a name, Cybil and Tony would get a burst of feelings in their heads. Maternal love, duty, and honor, all mixed up together. ||The closest approximation of my name that can be produced by human vocal chords is STA'C K'LTRRB'TXFT.|| A pause. ||You may call me Stacy, however.||

Telepathy? Oh, no. His brains were important. "Do you read thoughts, or just, you know.. force, uh, empathy?" Tony had ground his back teeth through the transmission of emotion. Yes, it was relieving that they were recognizable, human qualities, but they weren't his, and he didn't like the trespassing on his mind.

"Stacy. That's.. cute." Still, a name, and they knew nothing else.

||Information classified.||

Sorry, no information for you. Ask another question?

"Is where we can get some clothes classified?"

||No, the location of the Clothing Room is not classified. Please follow the lights.||

A line of...pustules at their feet lit up, leading away into the dim light of the pod caverns.

Clothing room.. wel, they'd have to have something for all these people. Too many pods to count, really. The room was dim and seemed to stretch forever, at least from where he was standing. And who was to say there wasn't another set of rooms? Hell, a whole planet full of them?

Then the lights went on near his feet, and he jerked backwards two steps, surprised and disgusted at the same time.

"Bioluminescence." Like a jellyfish.. or a glowfly. "Is this whole place.. alive?" What he'd give for a regular old light bulb.

It was going to be hard to tinker with anything in here, wasn't it?

||Information classified.||

Try not to think too much about that, Tony.

"Annnd it's clear that rhetorical questions are out," Cybil said.

Hmm, now how where the mechanics of this going to work?

"Get walking," she said to Tony. "You're going in front."

"I thought working with the military was bad. Jesus." Tony was groaning, then, already tired of all this. Having some sort of idea at all would be.. nice.

Then Cybil was barking orders at him, and she didn't really sound like she was going to take any shit from him at that point. He let out a long-suffering sigh. It wasn't like he could really cover both.. well, she probably knew he would look the moment her back was turned.

"Fine. Enjoy the view." No more arguing. Time to start moving.