Symbiotic ship

Current Operation: Walkabout

Sarah stretched as she woke up, slipping on the previous day's clothes and glancing around her room. She hadn't done much personalizing yet, though one unique feature sat in the corner. It looked like a witch's caldron, an alembic, a retort, and a small computer dock for her tablet. A bit of red liquid sat in the base of the caldron.

It's finished.

Sarah dipped her hand into the caldron, and raised a bit of the fluid to her lips. It had a bitter taste, with a hint of copper to it. Her mouth felt strange, as if her jaw had shifted to make room for something new. A moment later it shifted back. "That was, unsetteling."

It seemed like a better way than injecting it. Stomach acid would do too much damage, so I improvised. Relax, in a few hours you'll be as fireproof as Tyrosine.

"Yeah, I just have to remember not to show anyone." Sarah paused. "Will I still feel hot and cold?"

Probably, it just won't hurt to feel hot.

Without warning the door slid open. Sarah spun around to see Janet in the doorway. "Who are you talking to Sarah?" She smiled.

"Uh, no one." Sarah stammered. Janet smiled knowingly. "What are you doing here anyhow?"

"Just making sure you're up. We girls have to stick together." Janet walked from the room and towards the showers, Sarah following. "After all, there are 4 guys to every girl awake on this ship."

"What are you talking about?" Sarah asked as they reached the showers. "Has someone been bugging you? I'm sure Cleo would love to help out if we asked her."

Janet just gave a sly smile.

In the shower room Sarah quickly dumped her clothes into the laundry chute and stepped into the shower, letting the warm water wash over her. Despite the lack of emergencies, she still felt tired. She hadn't slept well the previous night.

Tired?

"Yeah, I was tossing and turning all night. I never thought this ship was so loud." Sarah paused, hearing a sound. She looked out of the shower, and quickly identified the source. "Hey Janet, what song is that?"

Janet stuck her head out, not noticing exactly how far she moved the curtain. "Just an old Earth song, can't remember the name." She pulled her head in, the humming resumed shortly.

"Don't tell me, increased hearing?"

It's part of the package, and it's not much. Get me the DNA of a bat chimera and you'll be able to see with sound. Speaking of which, I finished the night vision recently. It's not perfect, but it'll help.

Sarah nodded and quickly washed up. Hearing Janet going into a third verse of whatever tune she was humming, she decided to remain in the hot water a while longer. It was nice and warm, but not painful. After about fifteen minutes she decided it was about time to get on with the day. Just as she was about to get out a surge of steam shot forth.

"AAAH!" Janet cried out

"EEK!" Sarah jumped out of the shower and slipped on the wet tile outside. A sudden twist of the spine saving her from cracking her head on the floor.

Easy, I've got you.

"You too?" Sarah looked up to see Janet, dripping wet, standing in the shower room. She quickly snatched up a towel, and winced as the fibers touched burned skin. "Ow!"

Sarah quickly dried off, wincing at the slight burn on her back, before dressing. She left her jumpsuit unzipped, not wanting the tougher fabric pressing on her back, but kept a white shirt on so she wasn't topless. Glancing at Janet, Sarah saw her entire back was an angry red mark, with a deeper red just below her left shoulder. Janet sighted and slipped on a thin white shirt, wincing as it stuck to the burn.