It's shaping up to be another average day on the Transmigration 9. Crew members are going about their business as usual and all is (to most appearances, at least) about as "well" as things ever are on the ship.

Some crew members are going to be stopped out of the blue by impact with a force field.

"Attention Crewmen: You have been chosen to participate in an experiment!" GLaDOS's voice informs. They're not alone, someone else that was nearby is also caught within the same narrow radius. "Participation is mandatory. Please try to relax and enjoy the experience, as this will improve the quality of the test results."

Clearly this is going to be a wonderful day for science.

"You and your new scientific partner are now on a date," GLaDOS goes on. "As it would be detrimental to our study of the date experience if you were to be separated, you must remain close to your partner for the duration of the experiment. This will be enforced with the Transmigration 9 Crewman Containment Field. Prolonged exposure to the Transmigration 9 Crewman Containment Field may have unexpected side-effects. While any side-effects encountered will be documented and your desire to offer yourself to science is commendable, it is not a necessary part of this experiment."

"You will be informed when the test has been completed. We would like to thank you in advance for your full cooperation in the experiment and failure to attempt to foil it in any way."

"The experiment has begun, so you may begin dating."

( OOC Notes Below Cut! )

Who: CLOSED | SHORE LEAVE
Where: SPACE (Space space). Technically.
Summary: Guys & Girls in tight beesuits with no pants have adventures where good guys and bad guys are so much in their set spectrum they might have good and evil headbands.
Warnings: Bees and Wasps,

It so once happened that in a Galaxy far away in the multiverse, the B's did do battle against the Evil Giant Wa'sps. The Wa'sps have been trying to destroy the B's to take their precious planetary honey reserves, but they have always managed to keep them at bay.

Until now.

( [Previously, on Cosmic Bees and Beedog] )

The rest of the crew assembled on the Observation Deck to meet the latest editions to their numbers. After the battle with SHODAN the place looks a little worst for wear, but the crew and even Stacy are trying to be in good spirits. After the revelation that their worlds are gone, and the little stunt in trying to kill off the people in the pods, many 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. They are also told they must read information about their current situation and a survival guide with their new omnicom. New crew-mates 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 battle had raged for three days with the occasional lull, and there was still no sign of Baron Raleigh and reinforcements. There had been heavy casualties on both sides; King Demetrius's forces had been cut in half, but that still left Nasat outnumbered two to one.

Things were about to change, though.

[OOC: The Spy's Report is now open!]

The previous night, the team had learned the details of the situation. King Demetrius Fenley had once been a fair but strict ruler. Three years ago, he had acquired a new advisor, a beautiful woman named Diana Wynnthrope, who came from a small nation on the other side of the mountains. The changes were subtle at first, with the king becoming more suspicious of others’ intentions and enacting harsher laws.

Baron Archand had noticed these changes, and had spoken up about the new laws. He had always respected his king. What had happened?

Nasat was located near a mine that produced precious gems and metals for the kingdom. King Demetrius had become convinced somehow that the town was not paying its fair share of taxes, and accused the baron of hoarding said gems and metals to fund an army and take the crown. Archand had done everything in his power to refute the false claims, but to no avail. So, with word that the king was sending an army to seize the rebellious town, he had sent for aid from his friend Baron Raleigh in Pertus. Raleigh had readily agreed, also being uncomfortable with the new laws, and was further seeking the help of the bronze dragons (bronze dragons that looked exactly like Crucible) in the nearby mountains he had his own alliance with. Unfortunately, Raleigh’s troops would not reach Nasat before King Demetrius’s.

It was impossible to find a person in Nasat that wasn't helping to prepare for battle in some way. Even the children were busy, packing food and clothing for evacuation and carrying supplies to and from for the adults.

There was an entire section of the town dedicated to the creation of weapons and armor: women making arrows, blacksmiths forging blades and breastplates, and engineers building siege engines. Oil was being gathered, along with firewood, and a fire brigade was sent out to place buckets of water in strategic locations throughout the town. Mages gathered and shared their spell components with each other.

Nasat was clearly a town where everyone was used to helping their neighbors, and happy to do so.

Baron Archand was not adverse to getting a little dirty and helping out himself, either. While making his rounds, he worked the bellows for the master blacksmith for a few minutes, chatted with a group of older ladies while fletching arrows, and dug one of the holes for a wooden spike with a shovel.

Sentries had reported that King Demetrius's forces would arrive the next day, and there was much more work to be done.

[OOC: Backtagging in the previous post is definitely okay and encouraged! The next post will be going up on November 26th.

Feel free to NPC the townspeople in the first subthread! You can be creative with how your characters help with preparations, too, so have fun with it!

All subthreads are open!]

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

( Personnel )

Nothing felt quite so good as to have a project on its way. If this one features slightly less graphical and arbitrary annihilation of all sense and reason to the universe so that his will and desires may stand paramount in all creation, it's no less important or relevant for all that.

Aibghalien has set aside a few of what appear to be practice areas for interviews and assessments, hoping these are large enough to use for any demonstrations necessary. If not, the courtyard outside allows plenty of space for particularly pyrotechnical displays.

[OOC: Those willing to help interview may start their own threads for people to comment on (but Abby would like to get your own lists!) If your character would have come, but you aren't able to thread it out for any reason, just put the information in the Handwaved thread for later compilation.]

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. They are also told they must read information about their current situation and a survival guide with their new omnicom. New crew-mates might see a tall dragonish guy with wings (but don't call him that) and purple 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.]

The group had gotten an opportunity to gather some information on their mission’s objective, but morning arrived swiftly. In the distance, the forest from the day before still smoldered, though by now the blaze had mostly run its course.

Neese was in attendance, along with a smattering of the villagers. At her side were two familiar faces: Orson and Shiris, the two who had rode out to meet the crew earlier. Shiris looked vaguely mutinous as she clutched a cloth-covered parcel; Orson merely stood back a few paces from Neese, tending to a group of horses the village had provided for their use. The animals seemed a little skittish, as if they knew their destination, but were otherwise well-behaved.

Neese raised the long white staff in her hand, closing her eyes as if in prayer. “Marfa, goddess of creation, bestow your divine protection on these travelers. Guide them to their destination, and shield them from harm.” In response, a soft, warm light suffused the area; the crew would find their bodies just a little lighter, their stamina restored, and their anxieties soothed.

With that, she lowered her hands, blessing completed. “May you find your journey swift and safe,” she said somberly.

And with that, they were off.

Orson helped those of the crew that were amenable onto a horse, giving them some basic instruction on how to steer the animal or tell it to halt. For the most part, however, the horses knew what they were doing. There might have been a slightly uncooperative animal in there. Or two. But you know, for the most part.

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.]

Planet Designation: Forcellia
Status: Terrestrial, H-class.
Non-sentient life: Extensive flora and fauna.
Semi-Sentient Life: Yes.
Sentient Life: Homo Sapiens.
Water: 69.5% of the planet's surface.
Climate: Earth-like
Landscape: Varied.
Air: Normoxic concentration.
Air Pressure: 101.3 kPa (kilopascals) = 14.7 psi (pounds per square inch)
Sky: Blue, with variable cloud cover.
Sun: A class G2V, yellow star.
Warnings: Wildlife and plant-life can be hazardous. Humans can be hazardous.
Mission: Negotiate for or otherwise obtain the artifact known as the Scepter of Domination.

Forcellia, or at least the part of it that contained the clearing in which the group now found themselves, wasn't exactly welcoming. The ground was little more than rocky soil, the sky violet-grey and overcast. Here, it was evidently late afternoon, edging into evening. It was slightly humid, as if from a recent rain; faint clouds of steamy mist seemed to curl off the ground, partially obscuring their view of their surroundings. Scraggly trees rose up out of this mist here and there, as if grasping towards fresher air.

The villagers in the area had supposedly been contacted ahead of time, and this had been the place they’d agreed to meet the crew. Whether or not they knew anything about this supposed Scepter of Domination, however, was not yet clear. What the Scepter even did or how it might contribute to their struggle was even less clear.

In the distance, they might hear the occasional whinny of a horse, or the lowing of a cow carrying up to them from the distance, though it was difficult, if not impossible, to tell from which direction the sound was coming from.

The trip down revealed that Taleen was going to be of several things, none of which were pleasant. Arid, pale with a light dusting of red from the rocks, and yellow-white grass that extended in plains all the way towards far off mountains . There was a giant gash in the land near the orb landing area, which resolved itself into a massive canyon as the party drew closer. Spider webbing out across the top of the canyon were signs that a civilization had once flourished here. Traces of broken pillars and half submerged buildings, as well as what looked like a downed ship that had embedded itself in a massive building. There was no movement visible amongst the ruins now. As the dry wind blew through the stonework, it would became clear that they were walking into a mass graveyard.

Not somewhere you'd want to spend your vacation.

For some people, this was going to be a field day.

According to the scans and what little records they had, there hasn't been a sentient being around for hundreds of years. The majority of native wildlife had moved out of the area, seeking refuge. The land looked dead already. In the sky above, several specks of light twinkled in the sky, growing bigger with each passing hour. In a few days, it will be raining fire.


[Closed to Daniel, Eleventh Doctor, Sofia, Jamie, Hoshi, Howard, Billy, the Master, River Song, Cassie, Tom]

The foothills of the Khur mountains were covered by long, slightly sticky, brownish-green grass that made annoying clicking noises when the wind blew through them. That clicking noise, however, was completely covered up by the sounds of battle, as Kang faced off against a group of goblins. He turned sideways to dodge a sword with a jagged, rusty blade, and swung his battle-axe, burying it in the goblin's chest. He wasted no time in yanking it out and spinning around to cleanly behead another one that had come up behind him.

He hadn't consciously thought this particular, familiar, location up; he'd just wanted to blow off some steam. He'd had a lot on his mind since the battle had ended.

Most of that was Crucible.

Why had the bronze saved his daughter, and even let her ride on his back in battle? It made no sense to the bozak. Bronzes, like the other metallics, killed his kind.

Growling, he swung again, muttering a curse when his axe blade deflected off of the third goblin's crappy armor and swiftly bringing it back up to parry its spear. Then, he ducked and spun his tail around to knock his foe's feet from underneath him; it was dead from disembowelment before it even had a chance to get back up.

He continued without pause until all eight were corpses, and took a step back, panting from the exertion.

Satellizer had enough training, and she wasn't getting anywhere thinking about the battle. She had done what she could and she wasn't going to make any progress by just re-running the simulation over and over again. It was time to clear her head, and seeing as there was no Burger Queen on board, she'd have to settle for second choice.

The bathhouse. Of course, she'd wait till a time that there wouldn't be anyone around, or at least she thought there wasn't. Either way, she made her way into it, changing out of her clothing and draping a large towel around herself. Soon she found herself relaxing in the hot water, sinking down until only the her head was above water. The comforting warmth made her smile, it almost felt surreal, as if she was enjoying a hot spring back home... though last time she was in a hot spring, someone had sneaked up on her... "Stupid Rana...."  she mumbled as a blush rose on her cheeks.

Taking some time from other projects, Celena had once more brought down her Paired Gate device down to the park in an attempt to work on a number of issues of the operation of the device while in the Bleed. After all if a stable gate could be established, even for short periods of time, it could make for quick travel about the city and about the ship in general.

Thus in her usual draconic form she had set herself before the primary end of the gate device in the middle of a large clearing in the park, with the secondary portion of the device not a hundred feet away. After some time in pondering the problem she had decided to take a break from her work. Locking the device down she stretched herself out and padded away to wander the park for a short while before taking off to stretch her wings. Keeping her general flight path around the vicinity of the park itself.

[OOC: Feel free to run into her at any point, whether while she's working on the device, wandering the park or even flying around overhead!]

After a few days -- weeks -- however long he'd been here, Morgan had finally settled into what he considered to be an adequate training regimen, for those times when he wasn't needed in Medical.

As a general rule, he began his day in the Sensorium, shaping it in the image of the mountaintop dojo he favored. One lone building atop a peak in the midst of a mountain range, lacking walls so the cool, thin air could drift through as he ran through forms and katas. A path wound its way around the peaks, and the frigid springs that formed small lakes and streams that poured off the edges in grand waterfalls. Next to this path ran a series of poles on which he ran, or jumped, when his regimen called for that sort of exercise.

Training in a simulated environment like this was old hat.

After he finished there, it was off to the river, where he (with some effort) persuaded his plantsuit to retract till it resembled closer to a bathing suit than anything. For what felt, at least, like an hour or two, the Akashic stood motionless in the river, submerged up to his neck. Legs spread, arms out, and hair streaming behind him in the current, he meditated. Harmony and moving in tune with the universe were key to his philosophy, after all. The currents, the flow of water around his fingers and limbs, and the silence were magnificent for that sort of understanding.

Then, off to the W.I.T.C.H. bus! Since Kaya had so kindly allowed him use of its training facilities, he made good use of that offer. This section of his training he devoted to melee weapons -- primarily his sword, of course, but he allotted time for other swords, staffs, daggers and knives, and tonfa as well.

And last, perhaps the oddest of all training exercises if one didn't know that to the mind of an Akashic, all things are martial arts: Morgan returned to the sensorium, not to fight or exercise or run, but to play. Electric guitar in hand, voice lifted in defiance of his one-held belief that he simply sounded terrible, and whatever backing was necessary conjured by environment, he rocked out, mixing up from simple guitar covers to lead guitar and vocals in full songs.

That lasted until he was exhausted, satisfied, or -- admittedly -- hit hard enough by nostalgia that continuing became prohibitive. Then it was time to clean up, relax, and see what else he had to do.

After events had settled down some after the recent pod release and the arrival of at least one other from Krynn, Crucible had needed to stretch his wings a little as it were, take a little time in his true form, time to take a good swim in the river and a flight around the city to collect his thoughts. One that had a number of secondary benefits, one being to make his presence as Crucible known aboard, after all one might wonder where as large a dragon as himself might go if gone unseen for too long. The second came when he was flying, a distance out from the final bend of the river. Ones that he had been looking for for some time now, his palace from Sanction.

High walls surrounded the grounds of the vast white stone Palace, its' main building stood four stories high and was roofed with silvery gray slate. Five huge towers stood, one at each corner and one in the center, where a tall, broad staircase climbed up to the main doorway on the second floor
Landing. Landing within the high walls the large dragon circled the building with which he was so familiar. From what he saw at the least it was intact, both within and below, indeed a number of the outbuildings that were housed within the walls still stood.

It wasn't long before once more in the air, satisfied that his home for many years was intact. Turning his course up river intent on taking a long relaxing swim through its currents. Landing near the Angkor-Wat that made itself a bridge across the river before slipping easily into the water to swim lazily downstream, letting the current pull him along its course, his long neck held high above the water as he kept an idle eye out for anyone of interest.

(OOC: Feel free to see him flying about he's kinda hard to miss at 140ft long, feel free to have your character come across him in any of the three locations, just note in the title of the reply as to which)

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.]

As night fell in the Rom village, the bustling activity began to die down. Even the energetic Rom needed to rest, and so the village soon became quiet and still as the moon rose.

Luminescent alien fungi began to glow once the sun went down, covering the village in a soft, eerie blue glow. It was easy to see why they had to wait till nightfall, now. In the dense forest, it would have been easy to get lost searching for the Tapestry. But the glowing fungi seemed to form a path leading towards edge of the valley the settlement was situated in, likely the way towards the Tapestry.

Loq'hi stood waiting near the outskirts of the town, waiting for the crew to arrive, along with a pair of his men at his side. Cargn stood nearby, having sent out a quick message to the rest of the landing party that it was time to retrieve the Tapestry.

It was time to claim their prize.

The crew had made it to the village where the Tapestry was supposedly hidden, but for now, they had to wait. According to the Rom, the path to where the Tapestry was hidden would only open once night fell.

That left them with a fairly good chunk of time on their hands, as well as a rather large Rom settlement to explore in the meantime.

It was rather hard to believe the expansive village was completely isolated from the outside world, but somehow it still thrived. Many younger Rom could be seen flying to and from the many small buildings built right into the forest. Despite the fairly advanced look of all the technology spread throughout the village, everything appeared to be rather ancient.

Still, there was quite a bit to do to pass the time. The central marketplace of the village was rather active, and the crew could always use more supplies. There were also a number of places to get food and drinks.

Most of all, it would be a good opportunity to learn more about the Tapestry and the Rom--along with their connection with the crew's destiny--by asking around. After all, if they were going through all this trouble for the damn thing, they might as well find out more about it.