4.

The creatures from Dimension XZ7 did indeed look very much like skeletons.  Not strictly human skeletons, but walking bones none the less by Brick's estimation.  They were bipedal and had any paleontologist been present they would have probably classified these skeletons as distant relatives to Homo Hablis.  They wore loose fitting coveralls of a thin, shiny material.  There gait was slightly shambling and had a pronounced limp, but this was due to Earth's unusual gravities and not form some need to appear sinister or threatening.  

All this was lost on Brick as the crew of the rocket ship from another dimension carried his sleeping body back inside their strange craft.  The opening closed in the hull as they stowed Brick in a drop down bed near the rear of the vessel.  One stayed to strap Brick in as the others made ready for departure.  The on board computer called out instructions and calculations that the creatures responded to with enthusiasm.  They were all in joyous spirits, under the belief that they were about to complete a successful and epoch changing mission.

As the skeletal crew continued their duties and the on board computer plowed through trans-dimensional co-ordinate mathematics, Brick dreamed of far off islands made of blue cheese.  He also dreamed he was sitting under a palm tree eating donuts.  This was most likely because those two things were exactly what the interior of the ships atmosphere smelled like.  Dazzling lights played across the view screens of the ship, coruscating across the skeletal smiles of the crew.  The crew person monitoring Brick went about adjusting dials and tightening straps as the engines of the ship began to hum.  Then just as quickly as it had appeared, it disappeared.  Leaving no trace that it had ever been there at all.  

Brick woke gently to the sound of what seemed to be waves lapping against his window.  The room was dim and his head felt fuzzy.  He made motion to get out of bed but quickly discovered that he could not move.  In that second of realization he understood that he was not dreaming.  He looked around frightened and saw in the smoky shadows the skeletal crew of the rocket ship going about their computer assigned tasks.  Brick didn't scream, though he wanted to desperately.  His mind reeled.  The crewmen responsible for monitoring his life-signs noticed Brick was conscious and came over to check on him.  Brick saw the grinning skull in shiny clothes coming toward him and faded away again in a faint.

Crewmen Schell checked the readouts on the medical instruments.  By all accounts this hu-man seemed to be a healthy specimen.  That annoying itch he had felt early in the deep recesses of his brain flared up again.  Crewmen Schell punched in a request to the on board computer to verify the data collected on Cmdr. Brick Turgid.  The computer responded, reassuring Crewmen Schell that all systems were in perfect functioning order and postulated that Cmdr. Turgid was most likely disoriented due to the trans-dimensional crossing.

The on board computer instructed Crewmen Schell to prepare the climate pod for Cmdr. Turgid.  Crewmen Schell tapped controls on a view-screen near the bed Brick was strapped to.  From underneath the bed a transparent plastic sheet emerged and wrapped itself around the dozing form of Brick Turgid.  Another series of tappings on the view-screen and the transparent sheet shrunk snug against Brick's body.  Brick was completely enveloped in the transparent plastic.  Crewmen Schell tapped once more and a two dark metal plates came from under the bed and rose to encase the bed and Brick, forming a black, shiny egg-like pod.  

Crewmen Schell reported to the on board computer that his instructions had been implemented and received another set of instructions ordering him to join the rest of the crew in preparing the vessel for landing.  As the crew went about their assigned tasks the computer reviewed again the data it had been recording since initiating contact with their objective.  Something seemed incalculable.  From all the data the Computer Network of Dimension XZ7 had amassed on Cmdr. Brick Turgid it had expected a different kind of life form and personality than what was now encased in the climate pod.  The on board computer deliberated for 1.2 seconds then compiled all it's data into a file and linked into the invisible electromagnetic network that suffused Dimension XZ7.  It had decided that whatever anomalies may be present currently were beyond the parameters of it's assignment.  It had done what it was programmed to do.  It was now up to the Alpha-Core to decide Dimension XZ7's next step.