[open/closed] I watched a change in you

[deploy]

who: John Sheppard & friends, GUEST STARRING the retrovirus, and anyone unlucky enough to cross his path
what: John's problematic transformation from a man into a manbugthing and all the drama that follows
when: Late April to early May
where: Various, inside and outside the wall
warnings: Graphic violence, sexual content, disturbing imagery, language... your typical Rated R Sci-fi movie

Day 0: John is bitten by a venomous insect in the field. Lingering traces of the Irratus bug retrovirus in his system are activated in biological defense, successfully counteracting the venom.

Day 1: No outward physical mutation. Physiological condition is optimized. All symptoms of stress, fatigue and exertion are eliminated. Near instantaneous healing of minor wounds. Strength, speed, stamina, and durability are at peak human capacity. Dopamines and hormones exceed normal levels. Positive change in mood is subsequent.

Day 2: No outward physical mutation. Instantaneous healing of minor wounds. Strength, speed, stamina, and durability are above peak human capacity. Dopamines and hormones are off the charts. Senses are enhanced. Extreme decline of mental/emotional/sexual inhibitions. Behaviour is erratic and reactive.

Day 3: Physical mutation begins, progressing rapidly. Pupils become slitted. Skin and extremities show signs of textural change, becoming rough, hardened and discoloured. Grey dermal patterning covers significant portion of body. Near instantaneous healing of major wounds. Strength, speed, stamina, and durability , as well as senses, are super-human. Shift of brain chemicals and hormones from human to Iratus bug. Loss of mental/emotional/sexual inhibitions. Behaviour is extremely erratic, reactive, and violent.

Day 4: Physical mutation advances significantly, altering facial features. Skin takes on an exoskeleton appearance. Strength, speed, stamina, and durability, as well as senses, are super-human. Complete regenerative ability. Extreme shift of brain chemicals and hormones from human to Iratus bug. Loss of mental/emotional/sexual inhibitions. Loss of identity, and some cognitive function. Behaviour is that of an apex predator. Hyper-violent, territorial, and predatory.

Day 5: Chrysalis. Complete transformation to Iratus hybrid, and loss of human consciousness. Point of no return.

Comments

[panacean]

[ One does not survive as Chief Medical Officer in a place like Atlantis without possessing a good deal of chill. That place is a wild ride from day one really, I mean there was that whole "here Carson take a look at this giant monster arm that crawled its way out of a wrecked ship thing, for starters.

Carson rubs the corner of one eye, smiling a little. John's recovery seems to be the question of the day, doesn't it? And of course it is. It should be. Once again he spares some gratitude for these people, how far they were willing to go, how much they were willing to risk. ]

It took several weeks last time. Mind came back before body. But the onset last time wasn't quite so fast, either, so ah. It's a wee bit harder to gauge. Either way, John has never been the most patient patient.

[ Badumptish. ]

[bythehand]

[ Shoutout to the severed arm that started it all. Carson gets half a grin. ]

Yeah. I wouldn't get your hopes up this time, either. [ Bond by roasting John a little bit and inevitably offering everyone's services to wrestle him back onto his dumb hospital bed. ] Never met a patient pilot.

[ He's forgetting Cassian. I have to assume by now that if he hasn't asked or been told or seen Cassian listed in the piloting roster, it's obvious even to Finn learn-no-facts-but-die-for-someone lastname that Cassian is a pilot. But Cassian is like a whole other entity. ]

[panacean]

[ Carson chuckles. ] No, they've all got somewhere to be and a mach five jet to get them there.

[ Not unlike Poe, Carson can be a very touchy person. Is this my type? Have I cracked the code? I don't know, it's 1:30am and I should be asleep, but the point is he reaches out to touch Finn's elbow in a brief gesture of friendliness and solidarity. ]

Not one yourself, then?

[bythehand]

[ I mean that's at least half your type. Is Chyler an outlier or does her unspoken desire to get hugs she's too afraid to ask for make her also a touchy person. Regardless. Finn is not not a touchy person. Even if his touch-initiating game is still in the workshopping stage.

He doesn't necessarily relax at the gesture, but he sort of... eases. ]

I do better work with my feet on the ground. That's kind of what I'm trained for. [ He doesn't sound even slightly regretful, frankly. It is what it is, and there's no point wondering how weird it would be if he'd gotten sorted into piloting or however the First Order does things. Because he likes it better with his feet on the ground, too. ]

[panacean]

Aye? A soldier, are you? Back home, that is.

[ Finn seems like a soldier, like one who was trained well before he joined the Perimeter Guard. There's a power to him, in the way he moves if not in the way he talks. It reminds Carson of other soldiers he's known. Other commanders. John has the same kind of steady force held in check, and Elizabeth has a version of that same quiet power. ]

Lots of soldiers here.