Lieutenant Leran Perax - Contact Lost
David Shaw
The song ended, and Perax thought the storm sounded slightly more distant, though he wasn’t sure if that was because they had somehow moved away as he had sung so long, the work he had done with reconfiguring the inertial dampeners to double as acoustic dampeners, or just plain wishful thinking.
Perax: The song was about the early third Mak’alan dynasty. Records are harder to come by, but there are a few songs and folk tales still remembered. That one is still sung by Trill freight haulers. I guess we identify with the captain.
Maramox: Thank-you. Anything I can do for you all?
Perax: I could use some of that motion sickness medication.
Maramox: It should take a few moments to settle in; infrequently it causes Trills’ hand to feel colder. It’s harmless, but let me know if it does.
Lystra: We’ve made it through the storm so probably scanning everything? I’ll try and see if I can find a suitable place to land. But first. ::She keyed the comm again:: =/\= Little Crow to Iaonaiae. We made it through the storm. You still with us? =/\=
Foster: =/\= Response =/\=
Perax: I’ve got the signal clearer.
Yirah//Maramox: Woo!
Perax noticed the increase of power from the engines throttling back.
Lystra: =/\= Looks like we’re a few degrees north of the equatorial range. Since we got down here first we’ve got dibs on the Northern Hemisphere. How about you all take the South? =/\=
Foster: =/\= Response =/\=
He didn’t really have an opinion on what hemisphere they were in. He knew nothing about the planet and assumed that one hemisphere would be much like the other.
Yirah: response
Maramox: Either way we get to learn something; do you think the other crew has a strong opinion?
Lystra: Before we land, I can make a single circumnavigation around the hemisphere at altitude so you all can get aerial readings?
Perax: I can use the extra power from the engines to try and increase sensor range and power. I can’t guarantee the accuracy of the results however.
Yirah: Response
Tapping out the commands and diverting power, Perax heard the proximity alert. He whipped his head around to see what set it off, but…
Lystra: Nope!
He felt his innards go weightless as the inertial dampers strained and failed to keep up with the manoeuvre. oO I’m so thankful I asked for that anti nausea medication, and that it was a fast acting drug Oo
Yirah: Response
Lystra: Sorry, stupid mountain came out of nowhere. Wait…what do you mean ‘sudden increase in thermal readings’?
oO Thermal readings?! Great Spots! Lightning from above and now something below? Oo
Perax: Using auxiliary power to reinforce the shields.
Yirah: Response
Maramox: Right. Of course.
Alerts sounded in multiple directions. The runabout flipped and turned. Perax felt himself turn green despite the nausea medicine. oO Yep, very thankful for that medicine Oo Even though he stayed in his seat, he was completely disoriented for several moments.
Perax watched in horror as Lystra descended into what he considered madness. He brought up a navigation monitor so he could try and brace himself against the erratic flight path.
Lystra: Woohoo! Now this is fun! ::she called out:: Hang on, I’m going to get us through this valley then swing around again. I think I saw a large flat spot between some hot springs back there, can you confirm Yirah?
Perax vaguely was reminded of a movie that he watched back at the Academy. The image of a child in a starfighter shouting, “Now this is pod racing!” came to mind.
Yirah: Response
Maramox: You’re doing great, Lystra. ::they said this kindly, unsure if it was heard::
He nearly called Lystra, Lieutenant, then realised that three out of the four of them were lieutenant JGs.
Perax: Hey, Lystra, ::he felt weird about the informality of his words:: I know you’re having fun, but we should probably land pretty soon. ::he paused, then said in an unrelated fashion:: I think I’m going to be sick.
Maramox: The medicine really can only help to a certain degree.
Lystra/Yirah: response
Perax: I’m not going to be too picky right now. Anything to get back the sensation of solid ground is good with me.
Lystra/Yirah: response
Maramox: I agree, once we’re on solid ground we probably can get some better readings.
Perax: Did we get an atmosphere reading that tells us if we really need the suits?
Lystra/Yirah: response
Perax felt Maramox’s eyes on the back of his head as he tried to focus on the engineering screen in front of him. He knew the Denobulan doctor was looking him over. A part of Perax wished the doctor wouldn’t; there were worse things than being sick, and at least he didn’t have his helmet on yet. There wasn’t much worse than throwing up in a sealed and helmeted suit.
Lystra/Yirah: Reponse
Maramox: You should lay on your back and hold your head facing up for a moment.
Perax: I think I’ll be fine. I’ll just need to stay still for a bit when we stop rocking around.
Lystra/Yirah: Response
Maramox: Of course. We should attempt the EVA suits and get better readings outside. The runabout was struggling during the landing.
Perax: I’ll be right behind you. ::he breathed deeply with his eyes closed for a few minutes before he rose from his chair.:: Right behind you.
Lystra/Yirah: Response
He gathered his engineering kit and the bag with the pattern and comm signal enhancers, and made his way slowly to the hatch. He put on and sealed the helmet to his suit.
Outside the Runabout, Perax blinked. The golden glow of the clouds and the occasional flash of lightning gave the world a quality he couldn’t quite place. It wasn’t creepy, but he wouldn’t quite call it beautiful either. The greyish soil, the dark plants in the distance, and the golden colour made the world feel somehow barren to him despite having a biosphere.
He walked a few paces and set up the Transporter Pattern Enhancers in a hexagonal pattern, but left them turned off for the moment. He then set up the comm enhancer, and this one he switched on.
Perax: =/\= Perax to Constitution, I’m testing the signal enhancer, do you receive? =/\=
He waited a couple minutes. Nothing.
oO I’ll just have to try again, but I want to look at the nacelle that got hit by lightning first. Oo
The metal was heavily scorched and a large dent had buckled the plating just behind the bussard collector.
oO That was some hit! Oo
He used his hyperspanner to remove the damaged plates, and checked the components underneath them. The wiring and circuitry were intact, so the hull armour had worked.
Perax: Guys, the nacelle is still good, but I’ll need to replicate a couple replacement plates for the hull armour.
Lystra/Yirah/Maramox: Response
He went back to the comm signal enhancer and rotated the frequency of the signal.
Perax: =/\= Perax to Constitution, can you hear me? =/\= I can’t reach the ship yet. The signal is getting reflected back to the planet.
Lystra/Yirah/Maramox: Response
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