Back At Ground Control-

[gone_byebye]

There was, as has been noted, somewhat limited passenger space on the Enterprise. Something of an argument most likely ensued over who got to go and who didn't. Eventually, two things were pointed out

Comments

[gone_byebye]

It's not the TARDIS' fault. It's got to work with substandard human-

Oh, there we go, found them all. Belknap's got them all mapped out and controlled through his desktop terminal. Bluetooth really needs to be more securable, don't you think?

Speaking of Belknap, he gives Romana an annoyed look. "Lady, either you join in the chanting to summon the Great Old One out of Galveston bay along with all these other nice people, or you sit down and be quiet. Want me to load you up a copy of Tetris? Will that keep you out of trouble?"

[_romana_]

Actually, Romana likes it just the way it is. She gives Belknap a confused frown.
"Well, it's just that I don't know the words. There weren't many sing-alongs back home."

That's true, as far as it goes. The whole trick to bluffing is to make sure there's just enough truth in it to keep it believable.

[gone_byebye]

"Oh," says Belknap. "Well, in that case, you could do the chanting instead! That's easy. I've put the words up on all the terminals here- want me to put them on the big screen up there, where everybody can read them? I'll even add in a follow-the-bouncing-ball so you can get the rhythm right."

Lumley, still trying to pry the doors open, is staring at Romana with a you're-up-to-something, please-tell-me-you're-up-to-something expression. Belknap has forgotten the other man even exists.

[_romana_]

Romana very carefully doesn't look at Lumley. Instead, she enters a new series of code into her very handy little palmtop - search and deactivate.

"Oh, like those charming little children's videos, with the talking mouse?" That's laying it on a touch thick, she thinks, but he's starting to annoy her. Must meglomaniacs always be so horrifically condescending? She'd settle for just negligent.
"But I'm very good at chanting - that's like some of the songs at Saint Paul's!" She adds, with a mental apology to the choir of Saint Paul's. She'll have to make it up to them somehow.

[gone_byebye]

"About the size of it," says Belknap, his smile going bright and brittle. "Okay! That's great! Something we can all collaborate on! Okay, people, if the text on your screens is too small to read, it's about to no longer be a-"

The TARDIS would like to report that it has successfully deactivated all the puny human explosives, thank you very much.

"-problem!"

[_romana_]

Well, it is always nice when one's plans work. It is certainly too bad Belknap will never get the opportunity to experience that feeling. Poor Belknap.

Deciding to take her irritation out on the man in a more direct manner, she enters a new line of code, fingers blurring over the keys as she types behind her back.

A certain percentage of the words on the screen change.

But not the same words on every screen.

And none of them change on the main screen, of course.

That would be ostentatious.

"Oh no, of course not. This will be lovely!"

[gone_byebye]

It was supposed to say Ph'nglui mglw'nafh Cthulhu R'lyeh wgah'nagl fhtagn. It does say that on the big screen.

On several screens this has been replaced by the statement that in his house at R'lyeh dead Cthulhu is doing something absolutely unmentionable to a goat. On a few others the entity busy dreaming is named Chumley and is not so much dead as constipated. And on many of the rest of the screens the entire sentence except for 'fhtagn' has been replaced with selections the TARDIS has drawn from the Alternative Dictionary web site; you do not want to know about the screens that are using Arabic...

[_romana_]

Romana blithly and quite cheerfully sings along with the words on the screen directly in front of her.

The resulting cacophany is marvellous, don't you think?

[gone_byebye]

Assume that the expression in the icon is in fact the one on Belknap's face now. Also, check the keywords. Because... well, yeah.

"That's. Not. Right," he says very slowly. "That's really not- what the hell?"

He lunges for his computer.

[_romana_]

Ever hear Handel's 'Hallelujah Chorus' sung at full volume by the choir at Saint Paul's cathedral?

Ever wanted to?

The people at NASA mission control are now treated to this very special auditory treat.

It's almost as good as the previous song, really, to Romana's ears.

[gone_byebye]

"NO no no no nonoNO," mutters Belknap, furiously attempting to convince his computer to put the rest of the song back the way it had been. This does not work. "Hey! Hey!" He smacks the monitor with his hand. "What the hell are you doing? This is not how you summon dread Cthulhu!"

[_romana_]

Evidently Belknap's computer takes exception to being hit, especially during such a lovely song. Words slowly type themselves across the screen:

THE DREAD PIRATE CTHULHU TAKES NO PRISONERS

Well. Romana thinks it is funny, anyway. She is also glad the mission control center hse such a marvellous sound system. The music is rather nice.

[gone_byebye]

Once again: right expression, wrong face wearing it.

"What the hell-" he begins, and then finishes the sentence with, "Thunk."

Lumley shakes out his hand, eyeing the now-unconscious Belknap with a measure of disgust. "Frank," he says, "I hate to tell you this, but quit being a geek, okay? You're making the rest of us geeks look bad."

Kenshiro puts up a hand as the words disappear from the screens; the music, however, is still playing. "Sir? I believe you might be interested in this..."

The UNK dot has disappeared from the main screen. ANd there's static- not buzzing, but static- coming in along with the choir.

"That's the signal from the ISS," Kenshiro notes. "It's active again."

[_romana_]

The song comes to a spot where it doesn't exactly end, but it can be faded away without being too jarring. There's so little Earth music that deserves that much respect, but Romana is fond of that song.

"Is it possible to talk to anyone out there, perhaps?" She asks, quietly, as the song fades away back into the ether it came from.

[gone_byebye]

"I certainly hope so," says Kenshiro. His fingers fly over the switches and buttons of his console; lights galore are switching back on all over the place. "Come on, now, come to Papa... yeah... that's it, there we go. Good machine. Nice machine. Give Daddy a nice clear all-channels broadcast to every antenna on the Station right now, okay? Do it for Daddy?"

There are a few tense moments, and then a green light winks on. Kenshiro gestures to Romana to pick up the headset mic in front of her and use it.

[_romana_]

"Hullo? Ray, are you there?"

For the first time today, the Time Lord in residence sounds distinctly nervous.

Distracting and disarming an insane cultist is one thing. Finding out if your loved one is still alright is quite another.