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Chapter 6 by Shibbar Shibbar

Open one of the pods?

Yes

{if cryo key = true}You insert the key you found earlier into the slot. Immediately the console lights up, the buttons turning from red to green one by one. You pick a pod at random. The button stays depressed once pushed, and it begins to blink. There's a whirr inside the console and a moment later there's a hiss from one of the pods as the door depressurises and swings open. You head over to investigate.

Inside is a tough looking woman, a little taller than you, wearing the standard issue black space-quality undergarments (the same type as you are wearing in fact, though for women- black boxer briefs and sports bra, though insulated and reinforced). She has one of those half shaven haircuts that spacers like to have, dyed blue with raven black roots, and on her exposed, well toned skin are several tattoos of varying quality and complexity. She groans as she regains control of her body, rolling her shoulders as though she's about to pick up a dead-weight.

"W-whoof," she exhales, "I hate this part."

She rests her hands on her knees, dry heaving, before picking herself back up and breathing deeply. She looks at you, the around the room.

"Hey, I've seen you before. What's going on? Why is it so dark?"

You explain to her everything that has happened to you so far to the best of your knowledge. She just stares and listens and nods occasionally.

"Damn. A robot rampaging around the station? Everyone seems to be missing? No ships in the dock? That's not good, not good at all," she suddenly goes into deep thought, then turns to you again, "Panther by the way, Fax Panther, deputy for hire, sometimes merc."

You introduce yourself back. She gives you a nod.

"I got frozen just like you for rowdyness- seems they don't take too kindly to that around here- though I were meant to be in there for a year. Hope I got most of my sentence served off, don't want to be erroneously labeled a criminal or anything once I blow this stand." She sits down on the edge of the cryo-pod. "I'd help you out, but I'm gonna wait out the cryo-sickness before I do anything."

You reply with a nod and leave her there.

{else}You pick a pod at random. The button does not depress once pushed, and it remains a dark red colour. You think for a second that perhaps the console is malfunctioning, though a moment later there's a hiss from one of the pods as the door depressurises and jankily swings open. You head over to investigate.

Inside is a tough looking woman wearing the standard issue black space quality undergardments (the same type as you are wearing in fact, though for women- black boxer briefs and sports bra, though insulated and reinforced.) She has one of those half shaven haircuts that spacers like to have, dyed blue with raven black roots, and on her exposed, well toned skin are several tattoos of varying quality and complexity. She groans as she regains control of her body, rolling her shoulders as though she's about to pick up a dead-weight.

"W-whoof," she exhales, "I hate this part."

Gradually she exits the pod, though at some point she must have noticed that something is off- not just about the room... but something about herself as well.

"Hey, I don't feel so... goooooghhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh-"

You look on in horror as her face droops, as though she were having a stroke- and then melts along with the rest of her body, bones and organs and all, into a gelatinous slurry puddle vaguely in the shape of a person. The gross mixture of lysed tissue splashes against the metal floor, sending chunks of jelly and bloody vitriol against your legs. The suddenness of it all is all that prevents you from retching at the sight. It stinks like frozen meat, and the remains look like a half melted human milkshake.

You beat a hasty retreat away from this horrid sight. You've heard of the cryo-stasis thawing process going wrong before, but they were rare, and you most certainly weren't expecting to experience such a mishap right before your eyes. This will certainly haunt you for some time, if not for the rest of your life.

And the worst part is you caused it.{endif}

The floor is wet from the thawed cryo-ice.

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