Brought Down to "Normal?" [Endplot, backdated to before Rebellion]

[meat_mooks]

The crew that returned from Hendersus Villae following their rescue mission was not the same crew that had been sent there in the first place.

Well, they were. They just wouldn't look like they were for a few more hours.

Goliath, Kang, Rainbow Dash, and Crematia were all still stuck as humans, and the reassurance they'd gotten from Zarom Ghartha that their transformation would expire in roughly one day's time was surely enough to allay some of their lingering discomfort with finding themselves still in the wrong bodies, but unfortunately, no amount of reassurance could completely relieve their situation of awkwardness.

Awkward or not, though, they all needed rest and medical attention, so there was no hiding out while the curse wore off. Not unless they wanted to spend the next 12 hours still hungry, tired, and injured to various degrees.

[ooc: setting up subthreads for individual character reactions is a-go!]

Comments

Re: Goliath - in Medbay

[nerves_of_steel]

John hesitated and looked up at the man, frowning a bit. "...So humanity's not a normal thing for you then?"

He leaned over to take a look at the holographic chart next to the bed and licked his lips. No, 'human' certainly didn't this man's normal state.

"I'll treat the right hand first..." he squinted a bit at the chart. "...Goliath."

Huh, where had he heard that name? Besides the Bible, obviously, it was something else niggling at him...

[not_the_philistine]

"No," Goliath confirmed, leaning over to glance at his own chart as John did. Oh yes, he'd filled that out once.

"You will not recognize me when we meet again, but I will not forget this." He held out his battered right hand. "It is not often that I need the services of a physician."

His right wrist bore a scar that looked as though his hand had been surgically reattached before. When he DID need a physician, he needed one seriously.

[nerves_of_steel]

...Well, that was certainly an interesting-looking scar. As John set to work, cleaning the bloodied knuckles and setting the broken fingers, he idly wondered what Sherlock would be able to deduce about the 'gargoyle'-turned-man.

Oh! That's where he'd heard the name. Sherlock's complaining over the omnicom system or whatever it was called.

"Well, I imagine turning into a completely different species is pretty memorable," he said, more for the sake of polite conversation than anything else. "Will you heal the way you usually do when you return to your normal body?"

[not_the_philistine]

"I imagine so."

Sherlock would easily be able to deduce that he'd been getting into some very challenging fights. A challenge would be seeing what else Sherlock could deduce about a person while they were stuck as the wrong species.

"This has happened once before. It had no effect on my stone sleep otherwise."

He was wary about this stranger knowing about the nature of his stone sleep, but so far, John showed good signs of being trustworthy. He was a healer, after all, a profession that had no place for taking advantage of the vulnerable. As far as Goliath was concerned, it spoke volumes in his favor.

[nerves_of_steel]

"Does that happen often on missions for the ship, then?" John asked, still working on the man's hands. "Changing species? Should I prepare to find ways to open my medical kit should I lose possession of my thumbs?"

He wasn't certain what 'stone sleep' was, but he'd only skimmed Goliath's file. He'd mentioned it so casually that it must have been something natural for his species rather than an unusual talent. He nodded toward the scar around the transformed wrist. "Is stone sleep how you got your hand back on then? Seems useful, wish humans had something like that."

[not_the_philistine]

"No. Faiza accomplished that - if I had only my stone sleep to rely on, I would have lost the hand forever."

And that just reminds him, he still owes Faiza - not to mention Morgan, Billy, and Hiccup - a hearty thanks.

"Stone sleep repairs our wounds. It does not restore missing limbs. As for my change of species, the last time this happened was on my Earth, but I would not advise against preparing for the possibility. These missions have a way of defying expectations."

He added, "I have had occasion to wish others could have the benefit of stone sleep as well - I expect I will again." And wish it harder, now that he understands personally how maddening it is to wait for days with the same injury.

"I find myself in admiration of those who can save a life that is in peril from within. Even my love has rescued my daughter from an injury I had no means to respond to. I am pleased to note that the advances in human medicine have not yet ceased to impress me."

[nerves_of_steel]

"Ahh, the amazing Dr. Hussain," John said with a smile. "I've seen the results of her work before. Fantastic. Wouldn't mind being able to do that either." That it could be used to ensure Sherlock's good behaviour was just icing on the proverbial cake.

"I'm sure we'd love to take credit for it, but I don't think we could call all this--" John tilted his head to indicate the medical bay around them, "--as 'human' medicine. But it's always nice to have one's work appreciated."

[not_the_philistine]

"Your species advances quickly. I have no difficulty believing you would have reached this level of creation in time."

He states this without any particular sense of admiration, because unfortunately, humans around him have tended to make scientific advancements that hurt far more than they healed.