[O3] LtCmdr Tristam Core, "Just a Tuesday." (Part 2)

[Deliera Jay]

((Outpost 3 - Day 57))

Selrus: =/\= You really think they'll hold? =/\=

Core: =/\= They'll hold. =/\=

::The Rodulan turned off the welder, pulling off the safety glasses to inspect his work. This was just the secondary bracing, but the stabilizers were already in place and ready to go. Tristam was simply being paranoid.

::Up to this point, the tiny survey station had been a nightmare - even more so without an actual staff. He had twelve people working with him, eleven of them civilian engineers, and Crewman Kolby Selrus. It was like the mere number of 13 was causing the outpost to fall in on their heads - in Selrus' case, quite literally, the Terran almost losing an arm to a falling bulkhead.

::They *still* hadn't switched the gravity back on for Deck 4 since it had happened. And without a proper medical officer who could take a look at his arm, the Rodulan had been required to piece together a brace in lieu of a regenerator, and will be forced to sit out most of the construction period until such time he either healed up, or they ran into an actual doctor. So they were down to twelve people working on the station.::

::Sufficed to say, they were progressing slowly. The crew was working on fixing up Deck 5 so it didn't have holes that led directly to space while Tristam finished putting together the forward and aft stabilizers for the outpost on Deck 6. The outpost being held in place by the contract ship was great, but eventually, that ship would have to leave. The quicker they could rely on their own systems, the better they'd feel. Selrus was given the job of setting up the life support system programming, working with what would eventually be the outpost's computer core - albeit, only with one hand.

::It was keeping him busy at least. The 19yo was awfully chatty when he wanted to be.::

Selrus: =/\= The brace is getting in the way again. =/\=

Core: =/\= Don't touch it - it's the only thing stopping your muscles from cutting off circulation to your fingers. =/\=

Selrus: =/\= Yeah, about that - I thought you were a components engineer. =/\=

::Tristam huffed, amused at the Terran's insinuation.::

Core: =/\= What, medical technology doesn't come under 'components'? =/\=

Selrus: =/\= Not according to Starfleet. =/\=

::Rodulan engineering tended to be 'all inclusive' - it hadn't been a Starfleet technique he'd used when building the magnabrace. Luckily, Terrans and Rodulans shared a similar biology - that and the extranet was an awfully helpful resources.::

Core: =/\= We all have to start somewhere. =/\=

::Pulling his legs out of the hole that would house this particular stabilizer, he closed the hatch and ran a pressure check. When he was sure the stabilizer wouldn't be pulled from it's confines, he allowed a connection to the outpost's new reactor (a real one, not cobbled together by parts from the SS Jerico or his poor shuttle). Once it was exposed to the elements of space, ready for active duty, he tapped his combadge again.::

Core: =/\= Core to Ashaba. =/\=

Ashaba: =/\= Go ahead. =/\=

Core: =/\= Release the tractor beam. =/\=

::The tractor beam was released, and immediately, he could see through the window that they were already drifting away from the Jerico. No matter.::

Core: =/\= Selrus? =/\=

Selrus: =/\= Working on it. =/\=

::Part of him was regretting allowing the one-armed crewman the controls to the stabilizers when the stabilizers didn't kick in straight away. Not a good sign.::

Core: =/\= I don't mean to rush you, but the station doesn't have deflector shields, so the less time we spend potentially drifting into debris- =/\=

::He was interrupted when a sensor panel behind him exploded, taking out the lights and forcing him to the floor. In his pace crouched on the deck, Tristam couldn't help but hold his breath - just in case he was about to lose life support or gravity, or be sucked into the vacuum of space again.

::When all of that *didn't* happen, he pulled himself together, ignoring the ringing in his ears.::

Selrus: =/\= Stabilizers are active. No problems so far, but I think the secondary systems just blew out. =/\=

Core: =/\= Yep. =/\= He sighed. =/\= I noticed. =/\=

Ashaba: =/\= You alright? =/\=

Core: =/\= I'm fine. I think there was a power surge from the reactor core. Selrus, run a diagnostic on the secondary system. If we've managed to accidentally cross power lines, we need to fix it immediately. =/\=

Selrus: =/\= I'm on it. =/\=

Core: =/\= Ashaba, tell your people to finish up for today. I think we all need some sleep. =/\=

Ashaba: =/\= Sounds like a plan. =/\=

::Every time they took a step forward, it seemed like something on this station forced them to take a step back. It seemed fruitless trying to repair the older, damaged systems when he could just build new ones - in fact, it'd probably be easier building an entirely different outpost then trying to patch this one back up and repurposing its insides.

::Whatever the Klingon pirates had wanted, they certainly gave this station a huge beating to get it. And the possibility of their returning only worried him more.::


Tbc . . .

LtCmdr Tristam Core
Components Engineer
Outpost 3