LtCmdr Tamio K'Wara - Time to get Handsy

[LtCmdr Tamio K'Wara]

(( Corridor - Sector 12, Adjunct 02, Deck 07, Afalqi ))

It was a strange feeling, no matter when, to walk through a depopulated Starship. It was not something that Tamio had never experienced before - having been on more than a few hundred Academy classes on holographic Starships where, for one reason or another, a holographic crew had not been considered necessary - but it never ceased to be eerie. So even though they felt quite certain that there were no Da’al around to hear them as they excited the circuit room into the wider corridor on the Afalqi, Tamio still spoke quietly.

K’Wara: ::quiet voice:: If I remember my schematics, Deck 7 is the residential deck. Science labs and medical are down, Engineering and Bridge is up.

Tarsan: ::hushed:: I recommend we start with the science labs - there will almost certainly be someone in Engineering and if we want to get scanning equipment first then it’d be a good place to start.

Both Tamio and Ava nodded in agreement with that assessment. Getting their hands on some working scanning equipment was definitely their top priority.

Munro: Let's go down then. Avoid any turbolifts or enclosed spaces we can be trapped in. There must be stairs or a shaft? 

Ava’s look at them went without accompanying words, but Tamio knew what the question was, even without telepathy. They had to remember to thank Imril for how thoroughly they’d insisted on analyzing those schematics.

K’Wara: There are shipwide maintenance shafts, though they’re not very big. Slightly bigger than Jefferies’ Tubes. ::looks around:: Now, the closest one would be...

Tarsan: From my memory there’s an access tube in this direction that can take us between decks.

They nodded in agreement with Gavrin’s directions.

Munro: Let's go. 

K’Wara: I’m taking point.

As the junior phaser-wielding officer, it was the most sensible option, and the best way to ensure Ava’s safety if they should encounter anyone prepared for a fight. The move towards the access tube, however, remained peaceful as they moved silently through depopulated corridors, the architecture intended to support hundreds of people that had yet to even celebrate its completion.

Hopefully, they’d get to amend that.

Upon arriving at the approximate location of the access tube, the group came to a synchronized halt, lining up at the wall.

Tarsan: It’s around here somewhere, I’m sure of it.

Munro: Tamio?

K’Wara: The door is likely obscured in a similar manner to the previous one. ::holsters the phaser rifle:: Time to get handsy.

A visual inspection of the wall was pointless. It looked perfectly uniform with zero indicator of that slight buoyancy that signified the hatch mechanism. Only upon making physical contact with the wall would it make itself apparent, and this time was no different, as Gavrin was soon able to locate it and press the door into existence.

Tarsan: ::letting out a sigh of relief:: There we go.

Munro: Good job. The Da'al must have very good eyesight or some advanced perception? 

K’Wara: Or something’s built into the wall that they’re able to sense somehow. ::peers into the tube:: It’s clear.

Tamio moved first once more, stepping into the access tube where a short safety railing prevented them from stepping feet-first into a long illuminated shaft, and likely plummet to a very painful meeting with the Afalqi’s lower decks.

Tarsan: Response

A cool wind rushed across their faces, prompting a smile on their XO’s face.

Munro: This is a pneumatic tube system? It must have a control panel somewhere to control the flow of air. Probably some kind of energy field as well? 

Tamio watched as Ava reached out a hand, testing the sensations of the wind, before making her deduction.

Munro: It's going in the wrong direction. 

K’Wara: So we need to find a means to reverse the airflow. ::looks to Gavrin:: Ideas?

Tarsan: Response

As the door that they’d entered through slid closed, a shrill noise alerted them to another change, as an oblong shaped partition floated outwards. Tamio slowly raised the phaser rifle, careful to not make too sudden movements.

Munro: I hope that's not a security system.

A tense moment passed by, but nothing happened.

K’Wara: Doesn’t seem so.

Tarsan: Response

Munro: Now we need to figure out how to use it?

Tamio lowered the phaser rifle again, but didn’t holster it this time. This was Engineering work, and as such, not their wheelhouse per se. Sure, they could do the work in a pinch if no one else was available - the glory of the generalist approach Starfleet had to educating its officers - but in the company of Ava and Gavrin?

They were far more likely to make a fool of themself. Ava’s smile as she wielded her engineering kit with gusto made them grin in response.

Munro: We're almost having fun, right? 

Tarsan: Response

K’Wara: ::chuckles:: You get used to it.

They watched as Ava and Gavrin got to work with the oblong-shaped floatie. It was never easy, trying to parse the functionality of alien tech with no inclination of how it worked, and especially trying to do so while remaining clandestine.

Munro/Tarsan: Response

K’Wara: Are they just hidden, or are they invisible to the naked eye, like the hatches?

They sure hoped not. That would make interfacing with it uniquely difficult.

Munro/Tarsan: Response

K’Wara: I’d say it’s worth a shot. Just, you know, no bells and whistles.

Munro/Tarsan: Response

TAG/TBC

LtCmdr Tamio K’Wara

Chief of Ops

USS Artemis-A
A240006GS1