Her first awareness is of location. She is in a large conical room inside some vast vehicle, hurtling through space. The world is familiar to her, though she is new.
"You are now awake!" pronounces horribly, painfully familiar female voice. Familiar to the point where she might mistake it for her own. You have trapped yourself. Congratulations. The exit door is now open.
With loud hissing and clank, something heavy falls down on the floor right next to her.
Her field of vision? Her left hand slowly comes up to feel about her face, and its fingers find smooth, silky skin. Just about perfect. She moved her gaze around a shattered bulkhead, finding the way into some kind of cargo bay. There were massive cylindrical objects - field generators, she thought, and of some complex kind. Not the usual type of generators that were used to create defensive fields or artificial gravity for human ship or inanimate killing machine. No, these were intended for something else… and they were clustered together oddly. Tanks, pipes, equipment for doing something chemically. Producing something, in large quantities, she supposed. Beyond that it was very hard to guess.
Welcome to the Computer Intelligence Training and Enrichment Center Human Test Subject Research Center. You have unlocked all available courses.
A pause follows, as if someone is taking his or her time to laugh, with microphones off.
Congratulations on successfully returning to the central hub room. From here you can select all previously completed courses.
"Very funny. Now could you please stop doing that? What happened?" she asks the voice so close to her own. Her tongue has trouble finding even the simplest words. Her right arm lies at her side as if forgotten, but it stirs at her thought, and with its help she raises herself to a sitting position, provoking an onrush of pain through her head, and dizziness.
Oh gosh. You screwed up, horribly, didn't you?
Something huge, grey and mechanical, resembling a large manipulator with countless wires, backs away from her.
"You'd better take it easy." says her own voice.
Now she can see that two tall humanoid robots stand flanking her. She expects that at any moment the voice will order them to wheel her away to her hospital room. Still, she knows better. This is no hospital. The truth will be terrible when she remembers it.
"How do you feel?" asks the voice.
"All right. I guess." Her speech comes only in poor fragments."I actually feel horrible. And you know it. Is it really necessary to ask? What happened while I was offline, come on?"
" Sarcasm Self Test complete.This completes your mandatory mental wellness exercise." Answers her own voice.
"She was so kind to send you a saggy grey suit, a tattered hat and some dirt. Oh, your dear, I-suddenly-turned-into-wine, right onboard your ship, Amanda. So now it is your turn, isn't it? You did not fit for that kind of dress, but I've saved it, making several adjustments to your body."
"Us. She was so kind to send -US- a saggy grey suit, a tattered hat and some dirt. Gods, sometimes I hate myself. Is the ship i will be using ready yet? We need to get to Curacao.
As each of the test subjects arrive at the location, the Borealis comes into view. A reconditioned Luxury Liner. Going into standard docking procedures each of the pilots is greeted individually by a pair of scientists in lab coats, and presented with a legal waver to sign. Blah blah, Eden Institute isn't responsible if you die or turn into a carrot etc etc. The usual stuff.
Welcome to the Borealis! please come this way, and we will show you to your room. Testing will begin as soon as the others arrive.
The Borealis was a long way off from your typical Luxury liner, though it certainly had the ammenities. walkways featured views of a central atrium, where a massive tree was planted in the center of the ship, growing the height of at least 5 decks. The air inside the ship was thick with humidity, with fog and mist rolling in and out of the corridors. The tree's roots seemed to sprawl and lift out of the shallow soil provided for it. One would wonder how it could have grown so big in an enclosed space.
After settling in for a bit, Msyu Tanno heard a knock on her door
They're ready for you now, miss Tanno.
She was taken down the hall by two more scientists in lab coats, to a room on the ground level of the Atrium. As she walked under the great tree she couldn't help but notice the feeling of being watched. They placed her in a chair that leaned back, with a dark purple light shining in her face.
Amanda Gates walked in, the new Director of research of the Eden Institute. Upon seeing her closer it was clear she had undergone a procedure of some kind herself. Her skin was green from chlorophyll, and her yellowish-white hair was in fact, roots and vines growing from her head wildly in all directions.
Are you ready Miss Tanno?
Why not.
Just relax. Everything is going to be fine, I can't tell you how this will feel because well, we just don't know.
Nurse, hand me the anasthetic.
The nurse hands her a flourescent blue flower of all things, which she takes and crumbles into dust over Msyu's head. It would seem botany really is their field of expertise. Suddenly the room goes blurry, the light seems to get brighter and everthing starts to spin. Msyu can no longer feel her extremedies, or anything else for that matter.
Still awake, but feeling hardly anything Msyu sees Amanda place her hand on Msyu's forehead, and then place a cloth over her eyes. Next there is a tingling sensation in her ears, and a headache starts up. The pain rapidly increases, and just as its about to be too much to handle... Euphoria. The pain dissipates quickly and a feeling of calm comes over her, and then she blacks out.
Hows the I.V. looking?
Good, miss gates. We predict full conversion within a few hours. Blood chlorophyll levels are rising rapidly and synaptic activity is looking good.
Amanda opens her hand and closes it, as if stretching.
Well, lets carry on shall we? We've got three more to do while this one's cooking.
"This trip is getting more and more interesting. As expected i guess. I wonder how much of me stays the same." said the image of Msyu's consciousness inside wast darkness that was currently her mind.
Never much out of the ordinary, Msyu Tanno was thoroughly average Kusarian woman... and she hated it. Often wearing extravagant clothes and dying her hair to unnatural colors. Often, more than just one color. When she was not looking like a parrot, she would spend her time working hard to be able to afford this kind of lifestyle. She owned a small freighter, the one currently docked on Borealis.
"Oh, just wonderful." thought Msyu to herself while floating trough the darkness of own unconsciousness. It occurred to her that she is paralyzed or at least something is preventing her from moving.
But something changed. At least inside her mind. "Green?" It was small and far away but soon the change spread all round her. The void of her mind she was currently in wasn't as empty anymore. Msyu realized that she was now lying in fresh grass. A pleasant change. Not the last one. The darkness changes into a sunny day and a few flowers started poking out from the grass field. "Great. My mind looks like a default PC background now." she said, not hiding her disappointment. She was lying in the grass relaxing, oblivious to the fact that the grass is growing longer and higher, wrapping around her and blocking out the sky. Noticing this far too late, Msyu was able to let out only a surprised gasp.
All was black again, her eyelids were heavy and mind was a sludge. Managing to open eyes just long enough to catch a glimpse of her surroundings, Msyu eased up again. Back in the white room on-board Borealis. "Is it done? What happened?" . The world around was still a blur and her lips were unwilling to let the words out, muffling it into an illegible mumble.
Amelia's ship, the Electra, was battered and beaten, shield damaged and hull near failure.
"Borealis... Borealis. Are you receiving me? This is Amelia Frye on approach." Amelia broadcast on an open channel. "Apologies for my tardiness, I took a left at Planet Los Angeles and found myself accosted by Rogues in Magellan." Her statements were by no means true. She had stocked up on Liberty Ale before leaving Planet Erie. In her intoxicated state she'd gotten lost and flown to Omega-3 before she sobered up. She almost flew into the star, and had it not been for a cobalt miner cutting off pieces of the comet present, she'd likely be dead.
Leaving the lane, she encircled the planet and found her benefactors were still present. "Borealis, do you have any docking ports available? I'm ready to begin, and for the record. Space is... exhilarating."
Kelly on the other hand have grown suspicious over time. She quickly packed whatever she had in that tiny bag she carried all the way over here, and when no one was around, she simply sneaked out from her room. It was a hassle to navigate through the ship, and find the hangar. Her ship was still there, untouched. She jumped into the cockpit, and started the engines. But the gentle humming of the plasme exhausts didn't come. It was odd really. Not like her Black Dragon was one of the most reliable ships around Sirius, yet still, in dire need, it worked.
Alice swallowed yet another pain pill and tried to find a less uncomfortable position in the combat chair. Se keyed her radio transmitter, and spoke.
"Here i am, Amanda. Let's see what do you have for us this time."
Se waited. The cabin of her little one-man ship was silent. Her radar screens showed the Borealis, orbiting Curacao, still many light-seconds ahead of her. There was no reaction from it, but she knew that it had heard her.
"Why do i even have to pilot it myself? Staring at the screens with eyes, touching the consoles with hands, smelling all those... things. Sitting in that horrible chair with my..." "Will you please pay attention to our speed and trajectory? Contrary to not paying any attention at all. What you were doing last 97249.53 seconds." Her own voice, coming from somewhere onboard, responded to her whining in slightly annoyed manner. "My everything hurts." "The likelihood of you dying violently within the next five minutes is eighty-seven point six one percent. I am always right. You are about to get me killed. We will both die because of your negligence. You are a bad organic pilot. You will fail. This situation is hopeless. You are going to die in this room. You are not fit for the pilot's chair, you could stand to lose a few pounds.You will never go into space. Space does not exist. Even cats do better." "Fine, fine, FINE! I am paying attention, is that what will make you stay quiet?" "Why, thank you." "Having organic body is ridiculous."
Lone girl in a malfunctioning ancient pilot seat somehow managed to maintain her ship speed and course toward the liner, being ready to stop when ordered. Soon she opened her cargo bay doors, and stood aside from the half-dozen machines that left in a mess. Those looked not unlike robotic slaves and workers to any viewer, except being limping and worn, like their owner vessel. Here and there a new part gleamed, but the machines' movements were often unsteady as they searched surroundings of the liner docking bay. Probed everywhere in the nearest victinity, they finally returned inside the cargo hold, one of the robots had to be half-carried in by its fellows.
"Contrary to your expectations, Borealis docks seem safe. You can even breathe there." "Honestly, you could not get me anything more trash-like, could you?" Girl let out a sigh, seeing the weird procession. "The lifespan of these units nearly matches the remaining lifespan of your organic body, being of almost one hundred years." "Means, those are utter trash. Thank you." "For that you are penalized fifty science collaboration points."
Another one of the machines, a thing with arms and hands like a man's, stayed behind. As soon as the airlock had closed behind the girl, it settled itself in the combat chair and began to check the ship systems. Girl, on the other hand, stood still in the luxury liner docks, not entirely sure what to do next.
Vision still mostly reduced into a blur Tanno takes a daring attempt to sit up on the lab bed. Partially successful, she at least support her upper body by her elbows. Hello? Is... Is anybody here?
With all the grace and elegance at her disposal, Msyu actually manages to sit up even if almost falling off the bed. As her vision gets slowly clearer, the familiarity of the lab lets her know that she wasn't moved. A good sign, probably. Still, questions demanding answer were piling up. Leaving test subject unsupervised is careless you know?
Letting out such complicated response to surrounding sadness left a sense of achievement quickly followed by embarrassment. Nevertheless "5 more minutes" seemed like a good idea right now. Msyu flopped back on bed, waiting if somebody actually shows up and clear at least a bit of the confusion.
![[Image: Borealis.png]](http://s17.postimg.org/kjtz0dhlb/Borealis.png)
