The rest of the crew assembled on the Observation Deck to meet the latest editions to their numbers.

Several people are set up near the doors to provide the new people with omnicomms and comm rings. They are also told they must read information about their current situation and a survival guide with their new omnicomm. New crewmates might see a tall dragonish guy with wings (but don't call him that), a large afro attached to a smaller girl, and talking ponies among their number. There are also several authoritative-looking figures ready to introduce themselves.

There's a lot to tell the new people. It's going to be a lot to take in. But thankfully this time, there's a system that was set up to aid the new crew members with a few more experienced ones.

[ooc: Only new characters and Command Staff can start new threads for introductions, to limit the number of threads. Everyone else, just tag in and have your guys greet the newbies. Big brother/sister, there will be a thread for you as well!]

The two women had waited until a good number of people had gathered in the sensorium next to where the Tapestry was kept. Sakura glanced toward Howard, wanting a visual reassurance that he was there with a recording device. He was someone she could count on for the paranoid sensibilities that she sometimes put aside in favor of other practicalities. With everyone gathered, they turned toward each other, and the sensorium came alive.
( Such a sight as we have seen... )... leaving everyone standing in the sensorium's blank interface as the mental replay shut down.

[ ooc: Feel free to make your own threads and discuss as your characters are want to do! You are absolutely not required to respond to either Barbara or Sakura's question threads. That is optional! ]

The Teahouse. Sakura had "officially" moved out a while back, and had maintained that outward appearance. Her personal belongings, such as most were aware, sat in a room in the crew quarters proper. What she kept here these days were necessities and strategic supplies, along with the journal she didn't want people reading casually. If they could slog through the code, it said more about what she did and thought about this place than she was comfortable having people know.

Not that it mattered. She frowned, staring off at no particular point of the house, feeling Sta'c as a suffocating presence all around her. The sensation hadn't been this bad for weeks, but in the wake of Marco's repodding, and the events happening right before it (the events leading into it), it'd been coming back strongly in waves.

She wanted to tear something down to work the frustration out. Instead she systematically familiarized herself with the aresonal available to the crew. Anything as distraction. Anything in addition to the rest of what she did.

Showing the rest of the crew what she and Barbara had seen felt like progress, if she didn't know exactly to where. It made her think, and thinking had both upsides and downsides. Right now she was exploring an avenue that might be both. Talking to Jake, who admittedly, she mostly knew through Marco and a handful of casual direct conversations of their own, was a step outside her ordinary.

Sakura breathed in deeply, eyes closing for a brief moment. The door was unlocked, the room lit by the soft artificial light of whatever time of day the city was generating. Her eyes opened. She expected he'd be here any time now.

Marco was gone.

He'd found that out when he'd returned from the rather stressful (if successful) mission on Deepstar 7. No sign of him on the comms and he hadn't shown up at Cassie's house for a while. It was as if he'd just vanished. Or been repodded. Jake figured that was the more likely event, but it was still a bit disturbing to think about the other possibilities.

His best friend was gone, just like that. Even after the war, Marco had never been all that far away. Just a phone call and a drive. Even if Jake had never really talked about what bothered him. And here it was just as disturbing. If he couldn't stop the ship from taking people away, how could he lead? How could he protect people?

Jake sighed and tried to shake the thoughts out of his head. His fingers found a smooth pebble and after a moment of turning it over and over in his fingers, he sent it skipping across the surface of the river.

He really needed to find something to do.

||Attention, Attention. The following personnel please report to the Observation Deck. Attention, Attention. The following personnel please report to the Observation Deck.

Howard Bassen
Allenby Beardsley
Jake Berenson
John Crichton
Kanoe Zouichi
Lash
Jamie McCrimmon
M'gann M'orzz
Erhart Ritter||

On the Obs Deck, the following mission information was displayed, for any who cared to see:

Planet Designation: Nereus IV
Status: Terrestrial, H-class
Non-sentient life: Extensive flora and fauna
Semi-sentient life: Yes
Sentient life: Yes
Water: 79.3% of planet's surface
Climate: Earth-like
Landscape: Variable. Much of the planet's landmasses are partially submerged.
Air: Normoxic concentration: 31% oxygen, 60% nitrogen, 2% xenon, 4% trace gases, such as hydrogen, krypton, and argon.
Air Pressure: 93.8 kPa (kilopascals) = 13.6 psi (pounds per square inch)
Sky: Blue.
Sun: Class G yellow star
Warnings: Occasional hostile or poisonous sea life.
Mission: Assist the crew of the Saratoga in investigating the communications loss with the deep oceanic station, Deepstar 7.

Additional setting information for the station, including a list of available areas, is here.

[open for tagging now]

Hydroponics That was a good place to go when you wanted to get away from the rest of the ship, wasn't it? Honestly, it reminded Jake of the landscape underneath Erik's house and the Chee that tended to run around down there. The Chee. There was a group he hadn't bothered to think about in long time. Especially since it brought up painful memories of his last battle. The Pool Ship. The Blade Ship. Tom. What might have been, if the dracon beams hadn't been disabled.

That was in the past though – a very long time in the past. Something more recent was troubling him today. For once, he wasn't dwelling on his own perceived failures or what he planned to do once he and the other Animorphs found a way to start contributing to the war effort. The whole affair with SHODAN and the killer robots had rattled him and not much seemed to rattle him anymore. He'd been totally powerless for most of it, hiding out from robots, unable to strike back. No way to morph, no way to escape. Just him and his fragile human body versus robots. It hadn't led to him getting hurt, of course, but for some reason it stayed with him at the back of his mind. What would he have done if he'd had to fight? How could he have fought?

He'd been morphing for seven years and when he felt as if he'd lost the power, it had made him stop and think. His whole adult life had been defined by his ability to morph. Without it, he didn't even have the military job back home. He didn't have anything. He was just a smart (arguably) kid who had fought a war. Jake frowned and ran a hand through his hair as he stared hard at a particular tree.

Why was he spending so much time dwelling on it? He was alive. He could morph again. So why did losing that power, however briefly, still rattle him?

Maybe he would have to think a bit more. Jake sighed and then, after a brief moment of reflection, swung himself up onto the lower branch of a tree. He wasn't much of a climber, but maybe it'd help him think.

Sakura look a left turn between two disparate pieces of architecture, eyes sliding over them both without truly appreciating what they saw. An inventory of places that were problematic for being hiding spots, possible ambush zones, tactical advantages in territory ran though her mind, along with figures and numbers for things she kept track of to make sure her thoughts weren't allowed much time to wander.

As it was, they were still getting away from her, heavy with emotions and logical conclusions that played off loyalty and desire to protect all at once. It left her looking pensive as she walked through the city, making her way toward the Great Wall of a country she would never see.

Welcome to the place that's the talk of the night life amongst all of Happy Happy Fun World! Where the party starts when the sun goes down! This is Indulgence Cove, the one stop to satisfy all your needs. To reach this location you must take a boat so you can reach the small island where it is located, but from as far as the mainland you can see the lights that shine through the night and the sounds of people having fun and partying.

Indulgence Cove has the biggest boardwalk shopping center in all of HHFW, what could be better than a full night of shopping in expensive stores that carry everything you'd ever need?! Pleasure Boardwalk has rows upon rows of stores and bigger establishments! From games, to the hottest fashion, music, toys, shoes, vintage, hundreds of souvenir shops, books, food markets with the best of the best ingredients money could buy, even raw materials! cloth, ores, parts, electronics, you name it! If it could be sold, or bought? It was here. Enter the Pleasure Boardwalk, and you might be leaving with no credits to your name!

Shopping not your thing? How about entertainment?! Nightlife Bay has THE hottest in shows, concerts, dance clubs, movie theaters, and more! Looking for something more racy? Go to the Red Light Central where the more raunchy and adventurous head into for a night they'll never forget and possibly won't speak about in public!

Want to simply kick it for the night and relax? Maybe want somewhere to stay or spend a special night with a loved one, or maybe one of the people you met during your vacation? Go to Sunrise Hill and stay in the many hotels that Indulgence Cove has to offer! They come in a wide variety of themes, from fun and energetic, to soothing and relaxing! The staff will make sure you leave your worry and your money behind!

All throughout Indulgence Cove you'll be seeing street performers, merchants, surprise shows, free gift booths, show girls, party boys, and much more! The night is forever young in the Cove, won't you come and let us make your dreams come true?


[[OOC: Feel free to add things if you'd like! Take note that the prices in the stores are higher than normal and everything in this place will try to squeeze every dime you own! But most importantly, have fun! Let loose! Get the things you need if you need someplace to restock in!]]

Let it never be said that Stacy was not benevolent toward her crew. Truth was, she loved them, to the point of risking her own life. And thus, she'd been busy for quite some time... silently she had worked, trying to get into her own archives and cross-checking references. She was going to help boost morale and give them a gift - show them people they cared about, wake them up for a single day as proof that, yes, they were there, close by. She was going to give them a day to awaken, to see their loved ones again and to go back, knowing that their time would come one day or another...

It sounded so beautiful and poetic on theory. In reality, it could become a true disaster. Spent of most of the energies doing this task, in complete secrecy to keep it as a surprise, Stacy's never-ending work was only stopped by its own Warden program, which pulled the plug on the ship's search to find everyone at least someone they cared about. That, unfortunately, left her not only spent of energy which was dangerous in itself - but it also meant that some of the crew would be deprived of seeing their close ones, no doubt leaving some of them bitter.

The road to hell has always been paved by good intentions.

Stacy's voice was decidedly more cheerful than normal as she spoke to the entire ship.

|| Transmigration Nine crew, please report to the Observation Deck. I have a gift for you. ||

She repeated the request, and waited.

Once most of the crew had made their way there, she continued.

||I have been working on a...|| she couldn't quite find the proper word and settled on the next one, || present for you. While many of your records are locked to even me, I have worked to find the pods which contain people close to you. I...apologize if some of you may end up with no one, it is not my fault I...|| suddenly Stacy's voice seemed a little less cheerful, ||The Warden stopped me before I could finish everything completely. Please do not feel like I targeted you specifically, I really did my best to get as many of your friends and companions awake as possible for today.||

Now was the hardest part to explain.

||And that is, unfortunately, all that can be given to you. Because their avia are not yet ready to be properly awakened, they'll be here for a single day. Please make the most of it, so you can feel better and continue our mission with renewed vigor . I hope that meeting those that care about you will give you a boost of energy that you all need.|| Spoken like a mother who put her children before herself. ||But if you can...look at it this way, it means that they are here, and one day I will proudly awaken them properly when they are ready.||

Her voice was becoming strange as she went on. Not static-like, but raspy, like someone who was running out of breath.

||And I am afraid that I must go offline for a few hours due to the strain this is putting on...me...|| It sounded really painful for her to speak, completely spent and only going because she wanted to at least give them a proper last word. ||I...hope...you...will...be...happy...a...lit--||

For the first time in a long while, Stacy was completely silent.

[OOC: GO FOR IT.]

As much as he hated to really admit it, Jake was settling in aboard the ship. There was a strange sense of normalcy that followed him around - he was at war, he was trying to avoid getting people killed, he was thinking about strategies, thinking about the future - and that all seemed perfectly normal to him. He had slipped back into the patterns and the habits he'd formed over the War very easily and that bothered him, in some little corner of his mind. But the rest of him? The rest of him was happy he had something to do that he was good at.

He was wary, paranoid again, watching everyone who said they were a friend with a trained suspicion. And sometimes at night, it made him sick to realize that he accepted that as a normal part of everyday life. It was 'late'. Late being relative when there was no way to really gauge what time it was or how much time had passed, so he went wandering to settle his mind. He found his way to a large hall, filled with strange and surreal sculptures and images. It was like a twisted sort of art gallery.

That was exactly what it was, he realized as he slowly drifted through the various pieces of art, staring at pieces that caught his attention. He finally paused to stare at a strange, shifting piece that stood underneath a sculpture of a head. It didn't really look like anything, though. Just inky blackness that seemed to shimmer strangely in the dim lighting.

He was about to turn away, when it finally coalesced into something he recognized. A scene he remembered very well. Probably too well. The bridge of the Pool Ship on that last, horrible day of the war. He was staring at the viewscreen, free hork-bajir and the other Animorphs standing around him. A defeated and weary-looking Visser Three. And on the view-screen, Tom.

That moment when he had condemned his brother and his cousin to death.

But that had all changed here. They were both alive, his brother was free - but that didn't stop the memories. Or the guilt. Or the second-guessing. What if he'd been a bit faster? Or a bit more careful? Or tried a different way?

The scene changed. Now it was the Animorphs locked in combat with Hork-Bajir. And then a Howler. It changed again - the auxiliaries being shot down one after the other by the Pool Ship's dracon beams. Sharks, swimming in an alien sea. Rachel's funeral. The smoking remains of the Yeerk Pool after they'd blown it to smithereens-

He tore himself away.

He shouldn't dwell. He had the present to think about. He flexed his hands and for a moment, he stared down at them. Was this all he was going to be good at for the rest of his life? Planning for war? Fighting war?

Jake shook himself off and turned to walk deeper into the strange gallery. He didn't want to spend anymore time next to this particular piece of artwork.

Among the things that Cassie had learned about the ship where she now made her home was that there was a section of it that held a large number of alien animal and plant species. Although it had taken her longer then she thought it would to get there, she had finally found her way to Hydroponics, where the animals were supposed to reside. Her eyes twinkled happily and a smile played across her lips as she wandered through the area. The animals that she saw were incredible. Nothing like those that she was familiar with, but that didn't matter. They were all amazing in ways that were unique to them and that was wonderful.

She spotted a strange green creature out of the corner of her eye and spun to get a better look, but, to her disappointment, it vanished before she could see much more. Cassie moved towards the area where she had last seen it, hoping that it might still be lingering nearby or that there might be more like it still within range. She moved slowly and quietly so as not to startle any animals still nearby.

She continued on for a while longer, managing to get at least a glance of a number of other animals and in a few cases she did better then that, although she didn't know enough about them to put a name to any of them. She sighed contently as she walked, feeling more comfortable at that moment then she had since she arrived here. Even the house that she lived in on the ship, the one that resembled her home on Earth, still felt strangely foreign to her for some reason. But here... the animals and physical surroundings might be alien, but this feeling of being surrounded by so many wonderful creatures was not. She felt surprisingly comfortable here.

She might just have to come here more often.

They hadn't had a meeting for a while - when it was just Ax, Marco, and Rachel, there hadn't really been much point to it - but with Jake, Cassie, and Tobias all podpopping? It was definitely time for another one, if only to fill everyone in on everything.

It was almost like being back on Earth, with all of them settling into their usual spots in Cassie's barn. The only real difference was that Rachel wasn't there, still being stuck running mazes with GLaDOS.

[[ooc: Okay, so a separate thread for each topic, basically. I figure two will do for now, but we can set up others as we need them.]]

He'd asked for directions from Marco and after a little more exploring, Jake had wandered down to the city and found Cassie's house. For a long while he just stared at the familiar building and its accompanying barn. It had been years since he'd actually seen it - after the war ended and everyone went their separate ways, he hadn't had much call to visit it. But here it was, exactly as it had been the first day they'd all met to figure out what they were going to do. A bunch of frightened teenagers trying to deal with something way out of their league and with no one to turn to but each other. He flexed his fingers and swallowed thickly. And he was supposed to meet his brother here.

His real brother, not the slug pretending to be him. The brother he'd ordered killed for the sake of the war. An order that had gotten his own cousin killed. He glanced down at his feet, hoping that maybe he could find some respite from this train of thought - he knew where it lead. Just more questions and more guilt. Maybe if he'd tried harder to find another way, his brother would be alive back home. So would Rachel. Or maybe they'd all be dead.

The self-doubt and the guilt always gnawed at him, but here and now it was hitting him doubly hard. His brother was alive, which meant he was probably pulled from earlier on the timeline. Which meant that i they fixed this, everything would go back to the way it was "supposed" to be. His brother would move on and end up dead by Rachel's hand and Rachel herself would die soon after.

Fantastic. Why was it always him again?

He shoved those thoughts aside, took a deep breath and put his hand on the front door knob.

The rest of the crew assembled on the Observation Deck to meet the latest editions to their numbers. After the revelation that their worlds are gone, many of them are even more eager to see people they knew from home.

Several people are set up near the doors to provide the new people with omnicoms and comm rings. New crew-mates might see a tall man in green armor and snake girl among their number. There are also several authoritative-looking figures ready to introduce themselves.

There's a lot to tell the new people. It's going to be a lot to take in.

[ooc: Only new characters and Command Staff can start new threads for introductions, to limit the number of threads. Everyone else, just tag in and have your guys greet the newbies.]

[ooc: Newbie Helpers List | Instructions: Post your character with one post establishing them as being podpopped. Tag each other in groups of 2's, 3's, and 4's, to get some interaction to start with. If a thread doesn't already have 2 or 3 people tagged in, tag it with your character's podpop popping near the other people, rather than making a new subthread. If you would like to play out them talking to the AI, please send an email to the mods making the request--we do this only by request. Then move onto the big Newbie Meeting. Once your character has gotten the rundown from the old crew, you may start posting entrance posts and freely tagging.]


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

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

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

--

( There was nothing... )

A little way off from the Labyrinth in the City, there was an apparently normal farmhouse. Normal, except for the fact that in it's world it (and, more specifically, it's barn) had become a global landmark and it was also occupied by a bunch of teenagers, one middle-aged woman, a bird, and an Andalite.

[[ooc: Okay, so this is basically a post were we plan to stick a whole bunch of threads relating to daily live at the Animorphs house. Its not really set in any particular time, since it's mostly going to be everyday stuff and we'll probably just stick future everyday threads here so we don't spam the comm with it. The post is open though, if anyone else wants to come visit them or something - just make a note in the subject whether you're looking to thread with someone in particular, or are just happy to tag with whoever happens to answer the door]]

Hah, he'd been right. There was a barn down here.

Paco began circling the hopeful site of Team Have Some Freaking Fun's next party, looking for signs that it was some kind of house of worship or something without going inside. It sure didn't look like it from the outside, but it did seem to be related to the house nearby, and that looked lived in.

He ran his hand through his hair and stared up at the windows thoughtfully for a moment, before he went up and pressed the doorbell. Hey, it couldn't hurt to ask!

Thanks to Kang, Marco had a name for who to look for - Sam Winchester. And it hadn't taken too much digging to find out that a good place to look for him was by an Impala in the hanger.

Come to think of it, hadn't there been some guy ages back who'd called up an Impala in the sensoriums? What was his name again? Dave? Dean? Dan? Marco might be looking for a Sam, but maybe there was a connection there.

Stepping into the hanger, Marco was immediately hit with the sounds of Metallica. He grinned to himself - nice, very nice - and started heading towards the source of the music, scanning around for any Impala's as he went.

Dani had an amazing ability to focus if she needed to. Just to focus on that one thing and let everything else take the back seat. However, she needed to HAVE that something that could be the focus without it just leading right back to what she was trying to ignore.

At the moment, she didn't really have it. All of it was too heavily connected to the problem she was having; namely that Jake had ordered, at some point in his timeline, for his cousin to kill his brother to get rid of Iniss. Dani could see his thinking of why he'd done it. While she didn't know EVERYTHING, she knew enough. She didn't think it was right or reasonable, but she understood the thinking well enough.

But that didn't change the situation. Tom was freaking out because Jake had ordered him killed and she was freaking out because she'd been reminded of old wounds and it was very hard to keep a level head.

She had gotten Iniss and Tom away from the situation. Phased them right away and had a blissful few minutes until she found an isolated corridor to finally stop in, well away from Rachel and Jake and all of them.

She pulled away from Iniss then, moving her hands to rub the heal of her palms to her forehead, trying to get herself under control. She DEALT with this. The wound was OLD. Tom was the one who needed help, not her. She just had to get herself to CALM DOWN.

((Bendy-time to after this.))

Rachel was angry. Really angry.

She'd been on her way to her mission, when suddenly she was on this other ship. Pulled from one war, and into another-- it pissed her off to be just thrown around like that, used like a puppet once again. Was it Crayak, pulling her away before she could complete a vital goal? She'd barely managed to get her 'clothes' (not that it really counted as clothes-- but at least she could work with it), before she was snatched up again. And asked to run mazes, on the promise of cake.

Needless to say, it hadn't helped her mood.

Now that she was finally out (she may or may not have broken a few things on the way), she found herself in the hallways of this weird, pulsing ship. Nothing in it really looked Yeerk to her, either, which confirmed it.

Rachel stomped around the hallways, ready to morph on a second's notice. She was angry, and she wanted answers.