LT Gila Sadar - 15ft Safety Distance

[LT Gila Sadar]

(( Near Cave System - Coastal Cliffs, Outside Bantlox Colony, Laoi III ))

Having to rescue spelunking children out of a cave system within the blast radius of a Jem’Hadar scout ship? No problem. Fitting a Galadoran through a hole? Infinitely more problematic. Or, well, a non-suited Galadoran would probably be the easiest thing, given the ‘no bones’-situation, but Lieutenant Gnai’s exo-suit? Less so.

Sadar: ::to Vailani and Gnai:: We won’t be able to fit Lieutenant Gnai’s suit through that, but we don’t have time to search for an alternate entrance. What are our options?

Gnai: This could always ride around on your back again.

oO Hmm, that could- Oo

Vailani: What??

Gila looked surprised at Vai-net’s incredulous utterance, only to realize that - obviously - Vai-net wouldn’t be aware of the ‘Jelly-Backpack’ situation that Gila and Lieutenant Gnai had found themselves in while they assisted the crew of the Kitty Hawk during Frontier Day.

Regardless, while the idea was good, the circumstances that had allowed for that measure weren’t quite what they dealt with now.

Sadar: It’s a valid option, but unfortunately, we don’t have the technology required to manufacture the containment unit right now, nor the time, and I don’t want to risk your suit. ::looks at the hole:: If this is an underground sea cave, there would be bodies of water within. Perhaps you could swim?

Gnai: ::bobbing in its tank:: That could work, but this isn’t certain…

Whatever concern Lieutenant Gnai had been about to offer was cut off at the disconcerting sound of cracking and grinding from within the cave. Gila felt the tremors both through the soles of her feet and through the sensitive tympani concealed by her hood, as they could see dust and pebbles shaking loose from the roof of the cave and sliding down. Larger sounds echoing out to them from within indicated that the damage to the cave’s structural integrity wasn’t limited to just pebbles, however.

Vailani: Oh, that didn't sound so good.

Gnai: What was that??

Sadar: A cave-in. Where?

Both Vai-net and Lieutenant Gnai wielded their tricorders, scanning the ground beneath them.

Vailani: It looks like there was a collapse at the entrance.

Sadar: Lieutenant Gnai, do you read any lifesigns near the area of seismic activity?

Gnai: Response

Gila breathed out in slight relief at the news that the children likely hadn’t been caught in a cave-in. That didn’t mean they were safe - they could very well have been caught behind the debris, trapped with limited air supply, or one of them could be partially stuck, possibly with broken bones, or-

Vailani: I'm getting movement?

Vai-net’s report ripped Gila out of her increasingly frantic mental simulations of how this could possibly get worse, and instead, the team oriented themselves, once more, towards solving this mess.

Gnai: Response

Vailani: You think there's an entrance down by the coast? Maybe the children have moved?

Sadar: If their parents’ words are anything to go by, these kids would know the caves better than anyone. ::nods:: Lead the way, Vai-net. Judging from that cave-in, we don’t have a lot of time.

Vailani/Gnai: Response

The team all moved as fast as they could towards the coastline itself, skirting the cliff itself. For a while, it looked as solid and impassable as could be, but after turning a particularly craggy outcropping, they found a crevice leading into the cliff itself. It didn’t look incredibly sturdy - evidently time and the ocean water had eroded the crevice enough for the cliff to start closing in on itself, and Gila had no doubt that it wouldn’t take many years before this crevice would be closed off so tightly it was impassable.

For now, however, it was broad enough to allow their passage.

Sadar: It’s not ideal, but it’s the best we’ve got. Lights on.

Vailani/Gnai: Response

Gila turned on the light within her tricorder, walking forwards. She looked around the cave, searching for signs of structural damage - cracks in the ceiling, evidence of disturbed bedrock around the sides of the cave, fallen stalactites - as she raised her voice ever so slightly to call out for the children. How easy this would be if they were just around the corner!

Sadar: ::cautiously loud:: Iruh? Ahran? Nimo? If you can hear me, come towards me. ::to the others:: Make sure to keep fifteen feets’ distance to each other. If another cave-in is triggered, we don’t want to get trapped together.

Vailani/Gnai: Response

Tags/TBC

LT Gila Sadar

Medical Officer

USS Artemis-A

A240006GS1