Everyone was at a loss as Carson stood naked in the middle of the puddle that was Kim, still in a youthful version of her body.
Schultz sighed. "Really, there's no reason to expect any sort of consistency from... whatever this is we're dealing with. It's just as likely to kill you both as it is to reverse all this. While it's in a puddle though, we should try and run some tests on it... and try to get it back in a secured container."
Rogers nodded, and began digging around the sample collecting tools for something appropriate. Carson meanwhile took the opportunity to fish out the clothing the and Kim had lost upon melting, while Davis updated the logs, and O'Neil grabbed her camera to better document everything.
After making certain there were no trace globs of Kim left, Carson began pulling on her clothes, but Schultz interrupted. "You should really vacuum seal those. It's bad enough to have you walking around like this, but if there's any contaminants left on those, we don't want to risk accidental exposure. So Carson began bagging, while Rogers began scooping, and Schultz reached over with a beaker to scoop up a smaller sample.
Suddenly, it happened again. The puddle that was Kim made accidental contact with both Schultz' hand and Rogers' ankle, and began breaking them down. The hold was filled with screams as everyone watched the process unfold once more. The two men melted away on one end of the puddle, while younger versions were extruded from the other, the size of the puddle remaining essentially static. Eventually, there were simply two naked men scrambling to their feet in alarm as everyone stared at either them or the puddle.
Davis eventually broke the silence by asking, "Kim?" Both men nodded, not quite in unison, as they stared down at themselves.
After explaining the situation as best anyone was able, the entire crew agreed that unless there was an absolute emergency, no one was setting foot in the hold again unless it was a matter of life and death. Carson couldn't help but think that with the puddle they sealed inside containing most of their medical and engineering skills at the moment, they were in for it under those conditions anyway. Like himself, and whatever was in his body, the two Kims were both displaying various subtle aspects of their respective bodies' behaviors, but Carson sure didn't want to rely on that in a pinch.
Before returning to their pods, Davis made a quick announcement. "I don't want any confusion if we need to act fast in a crisis. This whole musical chairs thing is bad enough, I'm not calling both of you 'Kim.' So for now," he pointed to everyone in turn, the young Asian woman Carson had become, the youthful jewish and darker skinned versions of Kim, and for good measure, the red-haired O'Neil, still holding her camera, and the "you're Kim, you're Schultz, you're Rogers, you're still O'Neil, the thing in the pod is Carson, and that's The Puddle in the hold."
"Kim" almost objected, but it was the best way to keep track.