ENS Chevalier - Our souls are in ashes, but metal won't burn, part 2
CPT Arianus
(( Main Shuttlebay, Deck 11, USS Artemis-A ))
Chevalier barely managed to catch the gaps between the shuttle panels, preventing a complete fall. However, he had to take a moment to catch his breath after his body crashed into the vessel. He raised his hand towards Gnai and Lieutenant Yellir as a sign that he was OK.
After a while, he crouched then too, retrieving his tricorder from beneath the shuttle. Once he regained his footing, he turned to the commander and Ensign Kel, and returned his tricorder to its place on his belt. Kel looked at Gnai, his face reflecting worry.
Kel: Yeah Gnai, how you holding up? All in one piece?
Commander immediately admonished Ensign Kel.
Adea: Please remain still, ensign.
Gnai: Response?
Jaseb followed Kel’s gaze at Gnai with his eyes and gave the Galadoran ensign more scrutinizing attention. And was not only one.
Yellir: Don’t hesitate to let me know if you need any quick fixes. ::glancing over the suit:: I might need more time to study it to address any big problems, but I can do what I can for small fixes.
Gnai: Response?
Kel’s voice behind Chevalier continued the conversation with the commander.
Kel: Don’t suppose you have anything for a headache on hand do you?
Adea's gaze was quite serious as the commander loaded another vial into the hypospray.
Adea: Of course I do, now lay still please!
Chevalier found himself lost in the conversation from both sides, so he limped into the shuttle to continue with his shuttle inspection, feeling like a spare wheel next to a car. He was unable to help as both superior officers had the situation firmly in their hands.
Halfway inside, his comms, like the others, suddenly came alive with the voice of the captain. Her voice echoed through the empty shuttlebay, as all five officers received the call.
MacKenzie: =/\= All hands, brace for impact! =/\=
Jaseb instinctively grabbed the handle on the side of the entrance, pulling himself inside as quickly as possible to get to the seat.
Yellir: Hold on to the shuttle!
Others followed his example, but Jaseb had no time to follow who. He quickly wrapped the seat belt around his hands, knowing that there was no time to buckle up.
The shuttlebay was filled with the echoes of an explosion, quickly followed by another, growing louder and more intense.The screeching of metal against metal deafened Jaseb's hearing as the damaged shuttle coped with the tidal forces shaking the ship. Somewhere in the front, probably in the cockpit, a panel fell and hit the floor. Despite this, the shuttle remained firmly in place and structurally intact.
oO Shuttle's platform frame must still be undamaged and undistorted! Looks like only fenders have snapped or bent, or some outer plates tore during the landing, but the shuttle is holding. Thank you, Father... we are still alive... Oo.
Kel’s voice sounded through the shuttle.
Kel: Is everyone alright?
Chevalier: Alive!
From outside, in answer, came the voice of Commander Adea.
Adea: ::grimly:: I’ll live.
Gnai/Yellir: Response
Kel stretched himself around Jaseb as Jaseb struggled to untangle the safety belt wrapped around his artificial hand.
Kel: Well we can add ‘Borg lasers’ to the list of things that don’t help with a concussion. Anyway to figure out if we have a hull breach from here?
Gnai/Yellir: Response
Chevalier finally untangled himself from the seatbelt and followed Solas out, only to be greeted by a group of newcomers in, more or less, gold uniforms. Some faces Jaseb recognized - people from OPS and Engineering, who served in damage control teams - but one face in particular rose to the fore of his attention. Lieutenant Savel. Security, that made sense. Savel looked terrible, but they all probably did.
Savel: Commander, Lieutenant, Ensigns. It is good to see you all.
Adea: Savel, good to see you. What’s going on?
Chevalier blinked as his eye began to burn from something dripping down his forehead. He wiped his face with his sleeve, but as he put his hand down, he noticed blood on the sleeve and reached for his forehead once again to make sure. The sudden pain shooting through his nerves made it obvious that - somewhere, quite recently - he cut his forehead.
Yellir/Gnai: Response
The Vulcan raised his hand, acknowledging that his sudden arrival may have caught the shuttlebay group by surprise.
Savel: It is logical for you all to have questions. I will attempt to recount recent events in a concise manner to save time, as we do not have much of it. ::beat:: When we were beamed off of the Borg Curb and returned to the Artemis, at least one Changeling came with us. Possibly a second. They have already incapacitated the crewman from the transporter room and remain at large. I was notified that there was a possible situation here, and joined these other officers to come investigate. ::gesturing to the rest of the gold shirts that had come in as well::
Adea: Gracious, well I can vouch for this group - we just went through some prescribed questions…
Jaseb raised his hand, still covered with his own blood, to point at his bloody forehead.
Chevalier: Bleeding, you see? Changelings are not bleeding, right? Not changeling, Lieutenant.
Yellir/Gnai/Kel: Response
Savel: I must also mention that several officers and personnel from Amity Outpost were transported onto the Cube. One of those officers, Lieutenant Vailani Zoyara, will be joining us as she may have a way to assist in locating potential Changelings.
Adea: Oh really, that would be great, because I’m running out of ideas for things only we would know.
Chevalier: ::whispers:: Or we didn’t know.
Yellir/Gnai/Kel: Response
Commander stretched his back, producing a satisfying crack. While not the most pleasant sound, everyone was battered, wounded, and tired, so there was no reason for Jaseb to comment.
Adea: Argh! If someone could stick me with a hypospray, I’d appreciate it!
Chevalier understood him. He started to feel exhausted now, too, as the adrenaline slowly ebbed from his system, and his body began to be aware of all the purgatory Jaseb had put him through.
Chevalier: Make it two…
Savel/Yellir/Kel/Gnai: Responses
Jaseb allowed one of his fellow OPS to treat his cuts and external injuries. Afterwards, he slowly and cautiously approached Lieutenant Savel.
Chevalier: Savel… sir… did everyone get out? Were there any casualties in Cube?
Savel: Response
Chevalier nodded and limped back to the shuttle, leaning his back against its hull and closing his eyes. For a moment, he could only perceive himself and not the horrors they had come through. Not to mention the ones that were yet to come… soon.
Adea/Savel/Yellir/Kel/Gnai: Responses
TAG/TBC
–
Ensign Jaseb Chevalier
Operations Officer
U.S.S. Artemis-A
A240009JC1