[USS Charon, Deck 8]
Shiarrael exited the lift with two security personnel in tow. When she realized that no engineers were present she grimaced, the trio was not equipped to deal with the situation but she would not let that stop her from trying. A line of curses followed her down the corridor. Small fires littered panels and Shiarrael wondered if the whole ship was in similar shape, 'stay together my friend' she thought exasperatedly and paused to lay a cold hand on the corridor wall as if to sooth the ship. Looking ahead she led the way down the corridor to the entrance of stellar cartography which was completely blocked off. Several beams had fallen into the corridor and small spots of fire burned where wiring had fallen with the beams. Pacing in front of the wreckage at least half a dozen science personnel were debating what to do, when they noticed Shiarrael they relaxed. "Captain!" one of men, who Shiarrael recognized as Ensign Vance let out a deep sigh "glad you're here sir, we don't know what to do!"
Shiarrael studied the wreckage, annoyed that no Engineers were present, and realized that there was only one real solution at the moment. "We're going to have to cut through those beams. Ensign, go grab a pair of phasers." She gestured for the two security personnel to step forward and for the crowd of science personnel to move away. She walked up to the first set of beams "cut here and here" she used her fingers to trace where she wanted them to cut and moved away. The bright orange beam burned into the metal creating an almost blinding white light at the contact point. Shiarrael looked away and pressed her commbadge "Engineering get someone down here-" her voice cut off as the computer blared loudly.
"Evacuate deck eight, life support compromised. Evacuate deck eight, life support compromised." The computer droned.
Several worried expressions were directed at Shiarrael and she threw her hands towards the turbo lift "get out now." The scientists nodded their heads and ran towards the lift. 'I'm certain it will be quite the comedy should I die here'. Shiarrael directed a vexed expression at the beams- 'this is too slow…' from the other side of the corridor Vance appeared with two hand phasers. He tossed one to Shiarrael "good work ensign- concentrate on assisting Lieutenant Rio." She aimed her phaser at the molten streak and fired "do not cross phaser beams!" she warned. Oh how she would have loved to have a disruptor this instance. The phasers tore into the metallic beams and large molten bits were melting away landing on the debris pile. A few small fires started but nothing significant. 'Still too slow' finally letting her frustration give way she lifted her hand "hold fire" and dropped her phaser to the deck. The primary metallic beam's center was a hot orange but the bottom and top still retained a dull gray color. Closing her eyes and taking in a deep breath she grabbed the top half of the beam- the first thing she noticed was that it was hot. Very hot- not molten but undoubtedly it had conducted heat very well. The others winced as they heard flesh sear and crackle. Shiarrael ignored the pain and used all her Romulan strength managing to tear apart the beam from where it had been melted and dropped the heavy thing onto the deck. The bottom end started a small fire in the corridors' carpeting but Shiarrael casually stomped it out inspecting her hands. Several large blisters were beginning to form but she continued to ignore the significant pain- she could now hear the cadet "we are working to free you" she stated and looked at the others "where are the damn Engineers?!"
Quentin was carrying a tech kit and a modified hand-held cutting laser. He also had a case with several emergency oxygen masks inside, while they wouldn't last long they would be enough to stop the wearers blacking out. As he ran down the corridor and vaulted over bulkheads he noticed the crowds of people blocking the only path towards stellar cartography. 'Dammit' he thought to himself as he diverted down a side corridor and clambered over a fallen bulkhead to a Jefferies Tube access point. Pulling the access hatch open he was immediately met by smoke. As he struggled to see he climbed in and begun crawling. Wearing an EVA suit and carrying the equipment however was a strain and he felt the searing pain begin to coarse through his body. He let out a cry of anguish as every inch he moved forward sent pain throughout his body. Eventually he clambered out just behind the Captain to hear her exclaim where the engineers were. "Just here" he said through the helmet of the EVA suit and immediately handed out the oxygen masks. "We have thirty minutes before the air decompresses to a point which will cause fatigue and blackouts" he added with a small grin as he set to work with the cutting laser.
Aayla could here Commander Calhoun's voice outside and she would have assured her self she was going to get out okay if the fact she was trapped behind a steel door with 30% oxygen. Aayla then heard a second set of cough's from behind the rubble. Small, childlike, wispy coughs that made Aayla's sensitive ears go crazy. She ignored the pain as she stood up against the wall and tried to hobble towards the rubble near her console. The coughing grew louder as Aayla hopped towards the heap of twisted metal and who knows what. "Hello?" Aayla asked.
"Yes." A tiny voice coughed.
"Are you hurt?" Aayla asked as she tried to clear the debris, which lucky for her wasnt that heavy.
"My knee hurts." The child cried.
[To be continued]
Captain Shiarrael Rehu
Commanding Officer
USS Charon
Lt. Commander Quentin Calhoun
Chief Engineering Officer
USS Charon
Cadet Aalya Bre'accoria
Stellar Cartographer
USS Charon
