It never ends, does it...

[cityship]

||Pod Release Protocols Initating|| Stacy's familiar voice sounded out to all the podmates.

In the Pod Caverns, there were the sounds of: Pop. Pop pop pop. Poppuhpoppoppop. KASCHUNKhiiiiiiiissssss.

There was condensation and mist spraying out from cracks in the pods, as the people inside slid out onto the floors, covered in slime.

Pop. Poppop. KASCHUNKhiiiiiissss.

Comments

[old-country-doc.livejournal.com]

"Oh for the love of...Jim, if this is your idea of some screwed up practical joke, you're going to need a transporter lock to remove the hypospray I'm going to jam up your..."

Bones sighed. "What ship are we on?"

[halfgoddess.livejournal.com]

Cassie is already looking around. The voices in her head perplex her, but it doesn't make too much of an impact on her current state; her head is already swimming. She doesn't know what to do with herself, looking for her clothes, something to wear, showers, an exit door, anything.

She can see all the other pods and it makes her stomach twist. Why is she here, when she's supposed to be somewhere far more important?

She adds her own question. Anger bubbles up in her voice.

"Why are we here?!"

[cityship]

||I am--||

They both would suddenly feel a wave of emotion wash over them, something like a mixture of maternal love, duty, and honor.

||The closest pronunciation humanoid vocal chords would be capable of is STA'C K'LTRRB'TXFT, though many refer to me as Stacy.||

That's what ship they're on. Her.

To answer Cassie's question, she says, ||You have been Chosen. For a great Purpose.||

[halfgoddess.livejournal.com]

Those feelings are weird, and foreign, but they settle on Cassie. She takes a deep breath, takes it in, and tries to focus.

Talking, telepathic ships. Chosen for a purpose.

She takes a deep breath, squeezing her eyes closed. Purpose? What does purpose even mean right now? The world has been saved, Kon is dead, she has no idea if the rest of her friends are alive or dead, and being told she has been "chosen" hurts. She just wants to grieve.

But she suddenly has responsibility, and she grits her teeth for a second.

"What do we do next, Stacy?"

[cityship]

||Acquire clothing. Follow the lights.||

Phosphorescent lights appear in pustules along the floor, trailing through the Pod Caverns to a massive spiraling walkway that leads to the ceiling.

[halfgoddess.livejournal.com]

"Clothes sound good."

She glances over her shoulder at the man. She doesn't want to make eye-contact, but she keeps her vision set high. No need to make this more embarrassing than it already is.

"Come on."

And off Cassie goes, following the lights as ordered. What else could she do?

[old-country-doc.livejournal.com]

Bones is trying not to peek...the girl reminds him a little of his estranged daughter...but it was obvious by the glance Bones did get that she was in fine physical shape...for a minor.

Dirty old man, knock it off.

Bones sighed. Clothes were somewhat necessary. But he was still very uneasy. This looked like nothing he had ever seen before in his Starfleet career. Even with the assurance of the voice in his head, he wasn't convinced yet that this was some sort of Bourbon-induced dream.

[cityship]

The walkway led up to a large, cylindrical room with a metal circle in the center. Dangling from the ceiling was a vast number of ominous-looking, vine-like tendrils.

||Step into the circle.||

[halfgoddess.livejournal.com]

She's Wonder Girl –– being in fine physical shape is a must and practically a legacy. Cassie follows the lights, carefully, trying not to slip on the floor. Her feet are still covered in slime, and it's uncomfortable.

It's uncomfortably quiet, too.

"So who are you?" she asks him, without looking back.

And then they come to the room. Cassie doesn't see much point in delaying; she swallows her breathe, keeps her teeth together, and steps in.

[old-country-doc.livejournal.com]

"Dr. Leonard McCoy, ship's doctor for the starship 'Enterprise', miss." The way Bones speaks comes off as gruff, but not really mean. "I usually go by 'Len' or 'Dr. McCoy'. I have a nickname but only one person ever uses it. And you are?"

He follows her into the circle...this didn't look good, but at the moment he really had no choice but to go along with it.

[halfgoddess.livejournal.com]

"Wonder Girl," she replies. "Nice to meet you."

What else can they do, anyway?

[cityship]

ATTACK OF THE KILLER VINE PEOPLE!...oops, wrong game.

The tendrils hoist Cassie and Dr. McCoy into the air and proceed to clothe them in a dark green, leafy jumpsuit then sets them back down again--they even wipe off some of the excess goop from their bodies.

They might notice that the suit appears to be pulsing.

[halfgoddess.livejournal.com]

When Cassie's feet are on the floor again, she's happy to be there; getting grabbed and pulled around by things is never a happy experience. She looks up and watches the tendrils retreat and then holds out her hands in front of her, examining her arms and the weird outfit she's been given.

Could be worse.

With clothes, it's easier to turn to look at the other guy. She feels weary, and it shows in her voice.

"Ever been in a situation like this before?"

She turns her eyes back to the ceiling.

"What's next, Stacy?"

[old-country-doc.livejournal.com]

Bones looked at what he was wearing...was this thing alive?

At least a lot of the goop was cleaned off. And he was used to being in uniform.

"More often than I care to think about, Miss." McCoy said. He wished he had his communicator, he wasn't the best at this "strange new worlds" thing.

[halfgoddess.livejournal.com]

"Good. If we run into trouble, do you know how to fight?" Cassie asks. She hopes –– no, prays –– the answer is "yes". Without her powers, and without her lasso, she's little more than a civilian. A well trained civilian, but a civilian nonetheless.

She doesn't want to think about the enemy being far, far more technologically advanced than they are. Given the circumstances, she thinks they are. Cassie shudders, and feels the suit vibrate with her.

[old-country-doc.livejournal.com]

Bones snorts. "I'm a doctor, not a boxer. I only had rudimentary weapons training in Starfleet since I was on a ship to heal people, not hurt them. And I can't do much of either at the moment without my phaser and my tools."

[halfgoddess.livejournal.com]

"Okay," she says, pointedly. It was a simple question.