Ensign Tho’Bi - Hlas fellex thas ven hlastek.

[Tobi]

(( Holodeck 3, Deck 222, DS 224 ))

The Andorian Engineer spied a small LCARS control panel. His gloved fingers fudged across the panel. The bright colourful LCARS interface snapped into black and a rudimentary keypad appeared across the bottom of the now black screen.

The Andorian Engineer began typing.

//CONTROL PANEL SCREEN - THO’BI TYPING//

>STANDARD PHASER TOO DANGEROUS 

>SET PHASER TO MODULATION

>BEGIN TO MODULATE HATCH

>TRICORDER SCAN FOR STRUCTURAL RESONANCE

>MATCH PHASE MODULATION TO TRICORDER READINGS

>HATCH SHOULD SHATTER

//CONTROL PANEL SCREEN - END//

The Andorian stood ready with his Engineering Tricorder and waited for the okay from the Lieutenant. He left the phaser work to another. He was too busy with the Tricorder. 

Storm: :: Alex nodded her understanding.::

The Lieutenant set the phaser to modulation and glanced across to the Tricorder in his hand, matching the modulation frequency. The Betazoid aimed the energy weapon at the hatch and fired.

Nothing. At least not to the eye, but the Engineering Tricorder chirped and beeped as it detected tiny fluctuations in the physical consistency of the hatch.

Bancroft: Response 

Meris: =/\= Automatic eje- ::comms static:: ...stem is not... ::comms static:: ... core. =/\=

The Andorian Engineer tried to unpack the static interrupted message.  

oO Automatic eje- …ejection? Automatic Ejection… stem? System. Oo

He knew the core had not ejected, they would have heard and felt it. If Ensign Meris had atte- 

BE-BEeeeeeep!

The Tricorder had recalculated the Response frequency. He held the Tricorder up so Lieutenant Storm could see it. The phaser was reset to match. Storm aimed and fired.

Nothing. 

But the data was good. The Tricorder spat out a new frequency. Lt. Storm set her phaser. Aimed and fired.

The hatch shuddered. Stop. Shuddered. Stop. Shuuduuduudududududerererereded.

Splinters and shards. The hatch crisscross collapsed in scattered moments. Kicking up a thick cloud of metallic particles.

Storm: =/\= Thir…ime … harm. Let… o…. wat … suits goin….ough.=/\=

As the dust-metal began to settle, the Andorian Engineer picked his way through the mess of shards. 

Meris/Bancroft: Response.

Storm: =/\= “Time?”=/\=

Tho'Bi: ::shakes head:: ::holds four fingers and thumb on one hand:: ::one thumb on other hand::

Bancroft/Meris: Response

The young Engineer placed a chunky glove on a rung of the ladder, it held. Another rung, it held. First foot, second foot, held, and held.  

The Andorian snapped open the lock on the top hatch and hauled himself up and into Main Engineering.

Tho'Bi: ::to Meris:: ::nods and thumbs up::

The Engineering Ensign made for one of the last semi-functional terminals.  

Storm: =/\= Anyo … ineering … know how … at’s …our … tuation?=/\=

Bancroft/Meris: Response

LCARS display snapped to black. Rudimentary keypad. Pure data flow, cascade numbers, raw and unrefined. 

The Andorian's antennae sensed movement. The other Damage Control Team?

Lieutenant Storm turned toward the warp core, and arrived helmet to helmet with Lieutenant Bergman.

Storm: =/\=Lieute…we …. ally made … Do … ::points at Bergman.:: yo ::Points at her head.:: ow ::Puts her hands up in the air.:: happen…=/\=

Thunk. Thunk. Thunk.   

The Andorian stamped on the deck to get everyone's attention.  

Tho'Bi: ::points at the screen::

//ENGINEERING TERMINAL SCREEN - THO’BI TYPING//

>AUTO EJECTION SYSTEM IS NON-FUNCTIONAL

>MERIS CONFIRM?

//CONTROL PANEL SCREEN - END//

Tho'Bi: ::points from screen to Meris::

Meris: Response 

The Andorian turned back to the terminal.

//ENGINEERING TERMINAL SCREEN - THO’BI TYPING//

>COOLANT SUPPLY DEPLETED 

>NO WAY TO COOL CORE

>PROTOCOL ATTEMPT MANUAL EJECTION

//CONTROL PANEL SCREEN - END//

Chunky glove fingers punched a sequence of inputs into the neighboring console. The screen above lit up in the familiar graphics and format of the LCARS system.

A collection of three-dimensional outline schematics sat rotating on the screen; largest among them was the stretched column of the Warp Core, then three stubby pod-like Antimatter Pod Assemblies, finally the flat curved panels of the M/ARA, and Antimatter Loading Port, Hull Plates.

Bancroft/Meris/Storm/Bergman/Cole/Imri: Response

Every Engineering graduate knew, the Manual Ejection Option, was an option in name only. Given the complexity and relative distances of the mechanisms that needed to be disengaged, it was all but a statistical impossibility to achieve; nevertheless, every Engineering Graduate was trained in the Procedures regardless. 

Dressed in the awkward radiation suit, the Andorian clunk-turned to the terminal.

//ENGINEERING TERMINAL SCREEN - THO’BI TYPING//

>EACH COMPONENT HAS UNIQUE LOCKING MECHANISM 

>WARP CORE MOST COMPLEX

>ANTIMATTER POD ASSEMBLIES NEXT COMPLEX

>ANTIMATTER LOADING PORT AND M/ARA HULL PANELS LEAST COMPLEX 

>BUT GREATEST DISTANCE FROM HERE

>TIME_5_MINS

//CONTROL PANEL SCREEN - END//

Bancroft/Meris/Storm/Bergman/Cole/Imri: Response

The young Engineer looked around the assembled officers, even a team of veteran engineers would struggle to pull this off.  

oO Hlas fellex thas ven hlastek. Oo

Bancroft/Meris/Storm/Bergman/Cole/Imri: Response

TAG/TBC

((OOC: 

Manual Warp Core Ejection is based on Star Trek The Next Generation Technical Manual 5.10 Catastrophic Emergency Procedures (p. 74).

Andorian Phrase:

Hlas fellex thas ven hlastek.

The fire froze before it could light.

New Andorian phrase I came up with, suggesting hopelessness, or that the endeavour was doomed to fail from the very beginning. ‘Kobayashi Maru’, in effect.))

   

———————————

Ensign Tho’Bi

Engineering

USS Artemis-A

A240203T11