Damage Done Part 2

Posted on Tue Jul 17th, 2018 @ 7:55pm by Jeassaho Kea (*)
Edited on on Tue Jul 17th, 2018 @ 7:56pm

Mission: Mission 7 - Sabotage
Location: Port Nacelle, SS Rose
Timeline: MD02 21:00
1688 words - 3.4 OF Standard Post Measure

Deacon's comeback was cut short by the sounds of the emergency klaxon sounding along with the sickly sound of metal beginning to strain. As Deacon jumped to his feet he knew without having to look at look at the control board what ha happened, another shape coil had given out. "Stay here and see if you can cut the plasma flow," he ordered and rushed back into the service tunnel, closing the half meter thick hatch behind him.

To the Rigellian's horror, the amount of smoke and steam seemed to have only increased. Making his way to the shaping coils, Deacon could easily see that one of the weakened coils had completely ruptured. He wasn't sure if the pit in his stomach was from fear or the waves of anti-quad radiation washing over him from the broken assembly. Steeling himself, he opened the service locker and grabbed four of the meter long boxes off the self. It took him only twenty minutes to replace the coils, just five minutes per coil. They weren't meant to be difficult to switch out. Every engineer knew anyone could do it really, not much harder than changing a lightbulb, Deacon reflected as he sealed the last magnetic coupling, feeling the Rosie's ride settle out.

But every engineer knew something else, more that five minutes of exposure to anti-quad radiation was fatal. As Deacon drunkenly made his way back to the service hatch he looked down seeing the puffs a black 'Smoke" coming fromhis boots with every step wondering idly if that was from the rubber coating on the floor or the soles of his boots decomposing. Almost collapsing into the door, Deacon looked through the tiny porthole at Jeassaho, and smiled, "Well that's one problem down," he croaked into the comm, glancing at the material from his glove as it started to slough off like skin from a bad sunburn. This isn't fair a voice inside him screamed, outward though he laughed, "Hey Jea, do me a favor. Hate sounding vindictive here but when you catch the SOB that screwed with our systems, kick their teeth in for me."

The Engineer in question breathed a sigh of relief as the console had stopped warning her of so many dangers. It was a welcome change to see it. Jeassaho dived up as she heard the thud against the door and saw Deacon just stood there not coming in. "You can do it yourself dear." She said moving to open the door for him as he looked so exhausted.

"Don't Jea, Look at the 'Quad Counter.'" Deacon warned looking up to where the dial would be on her side. He knew it would still be penciled out. 'Anti-Quadrillic Radiation' warp drive's dirty little secret, the odd side effect of warping spacetime, and the unspoken dread of every engineer. Without proper shielding 'Anti-Quad' can breakdown the strong forces in selective atoms. With almost grim fascination Deacon watched as he was being broken down on a subatomic level. Each proton and neutron broken down to their fundamental particles each disappearing, theoretically into some pocket of subspace. "On the upside, they didn't lie to us. It doesn't hurt."

The woman looked down at the counter and paled even more if it was possible as she knew what was happening to him. "No...." Jeassaho banged on the door as she started to watch him start to disappear. "What am I going to tell Reessem?" She demanded softly as she could feel tears start to roll down her face.

Pain registered in Deacon's face, pain and a sense of loss so profound, "Rees," he whispered, trying to ball his hand in a fist, but found he couldn't as he had no more fingers, desperately he looked at Jea, "Tell he she made my universe stand still. Tell her I wish,,,,," But that was all he could say because he no longer had a mouth, he knew Jea was screaming something, but he couldn't hear what she was saying he no longer had ears. The last thing he saw was the betazoid screaming behind the glass, but he no longer had eyes.

What's a betazoid? Deacon wondered idly as he felt himself drifting away. He was worried about hurting himself by falling to the deck, but wasn't sure why. He felt something, someone, on the edge of his rapidly fading understanding. What was her name? She was the Captain's wife, a wise secretive woman. Jeassaho,,, Yes, Jea. She was always surprised and loved that he called he that, no one else dared. How did he know that? Then there was a face, that face, her face. His mind should have faded, but she would always freeze his universe.

Questions, his mind filled with questions, and possibilities and pathways. What if? What is what? he asked himself. The shaping coil, it didn't rupture the mind without a brain insisted


With a twinkle in his eye he nodded taking the water bottle back, "I shall henceforth never refer to you as 'wise' ever again my dear Rosencrantz," He said with a wink, then with a sly smile added, "You know any lesser man might be scared you'd bypass any decision you..."

Deacon voice trailed off as his eyes took on a faraway stare, going back and forth like he was studying something ten feet beyond the bulkhead. Yes, this is how it should have happened His eyes narrowed in confusion, What? No he thought, there's something else an answer just on the edge of my,,, Deacon nodded slowly jutting out his lower jaw, "That just might work." he whispered softly.

"What might?" Jeassaho demanded a strange sense of deja vu happening as she thought they had been in this situation before.

Suddenly Deacon seemed to erupt from the floor in one move landing on his feet. Snatching a PAdd of the console he started to tap the screen with manic abandon, "Jea, you did it again!" he yelled smiling, "Don't worry I won't kiss you this time." he added not looking up for the screen, "YES! YES! YES! We have the parts." the Rigellian laughed demonically shaking his head in disbelief.

"Ok Jea, I need you to get Angus on the horn, tell him to go to stores and get these parts," Deacon continue, showing her a list of conduits and coils, "Have him bring them up here and start building this," he added showing her a diagram he slapped together. "I'll be right back up, have to get at least one more body and raid the emergency locker for some and arithrazine. We can't replace the shape coils but we just might be able to bypass them!"

"I can't take arithrazine" She commented on quickly not really listening to the rest of what he had said when that came up. It sounded a little crazy his idea as they needed to stop the ship before anything else.

"Not many people can. But we may need it if we're going to pull this off." Deacon admitted as he saw Jea studying his schematic. "We're going to bypass the system and get some control back." he explained, "We can use a tricorder, to make the bypass expand the warp bubble by say a factor of five. The energy drain will take the stress off the primary coils giving us some breathing space, and the larger warp bubble will reduce our speed by half."

"No you won't understand as a Betazoid I can't use it." The woman said looking at the schematic more and more. But the more she studied them the more the seemed to change into something different., "It might work or it might blow the ship to shreds and my husband will really not like that." She teased softly trying to calm the Chief Engineer down.

"That's why you're staying behind one meter of this lead composite." Deacon replied tapping on the bulkhead, "If and when we try this." The smile fell away from Deacon's face, You're clutching at shadows. This isn't real. his mind insisted NO, NO, NO, NO!,The shaping coil NEVER ruptured he told himself,

To Jessaho Deacon seemed tired and haggard, almost desperate. "We've tried everything I could think of, you could think of and even the stuff Angus could come up with to stop this ship. In eight hours, this ship is going to have a catastrophic failure. Most likely the engineering section and the aft part of the saucer is going to get flooded with radiation. Right now we need options, even dangerous ones."

Pinching his nose, he looked up at Jea as he smiled sadly. "I know the skipper needs to make the final call on it. While I'm gone I need you to give him the pros and cons of it, so he can make an informed decision"

"Informed decisions are going to help this magical mystery tour." The woman said watching him tap the bulkhead. They were all tired after the last few days. Jeassaho shook her head at what he was saying. "Not going to happen at all." Dhr wasn't going to let the ship be flooded with radiation, there was too much to lose now.

"It's going to happen! Just remember the schematic," Deacon yelled then stopped himself wondering why he reacted like that. Smells of the smoke and steam from the coil assembly filled his nose. NO!,THIS IS REAL! he screamed at himself, all he needed was a little help. It would be all right. He could dance with Reessem again.

Grabbing onto the sides of the ladder he dropped down into the pylon heading to the engineering decks. When he glanced back at Jessaho, he saw her staring into the porthole of the service tunnel door crying, "It wasn't right" he cried, "I don't want to go"

#OFF, OVER AND OUT#


Deacon Kane
Chief of Engineering
SS Mary Rose

Jeassaho Kea
Engineer
SS Mary Rose
(PNPC Gregnol)