Ensign Sera - "Remind me to never come down here again."
Hope Forster
<<Main Filtration/Water Reservoir>>
Sera considered her padd thoughtfully as they finally reached the main water source for Denali Station. It had said it was less than 1km away; however, she had failed to take into account how many meters of their journey was vertical in nature. Getting down here was the simple part…getting back up to the surface? Well…it was leg day according to her PT schedule…
The doors to main filtration hissed open, and lights automatically started to blink on with a loud popping sound. As the cavernous space started to become illuminated, Sera scanned the space. Nothing appeared to be overtly out of place, but there was something about this location that made the hairs on the back of her neck stand up. Knowing it was an unconscious physiological response, Sera took a slow deep breath through her nose and slowly exhaled through her mouth. Normally such a maneuver would bring herself back into equilibrium, but this time it was only nominally successful.
It made her wish she had a weapon, and that was not logical at all.
It was a large cavern that was illuminated directly around the entrance and walkways that made their way out over what looked like a large underground lake. The lights did not illuminate the entire cavern however, so the over-all feeling of the place could be described poetically as…murky.
Sera walked up to the railing overlooking the still, black water. Her limbic system activated yet again, causing a noticeable increase in heartrate and respirations.
Sera: It is completely illogical…but I feel as if we are being watched.
She wasn’t certain why she said that, but if there was something physiological going on within her, expressing it to the CMO was probably the most logical choice.
Indobri: I’m not detecting anything here besides ourselves.
Soft whisperings were picked up by her hearing, and Sera tilted her head slightly in a manner that denoted intense focus, but the subtle murmurings never solidified into anything cogent, so she dismissed it as her brain trying to make sense of the subtle sounds within the cavern due to her heightened alertness.
She made her way over to the main filtration unit, and the sound of the large machine blotted out any phantom whisperings. Pulling up the main screen, Sera began a level 3 diagnostic.
Sera: It will take approximately 13 minutes to complete the diagnostic on the filtration unit.
Indobri: Approximately, Ensign? I thought Vulcans were known for their precision.
Sera: ::raising a brow in a Vulcan version of ‘amusement’:: I could tell you it would take exactly 12 minutes 47 seconds, however I have found that the majority of non-Vulcans I have engaged with do not appreciate that level of precision.
Indobri: :: laughing :: Of course. I was just teasing anyway.
~Stop!~
Sera’s head whipped up from the computer panel. She opened her mouth to say something to Indobri, but suddenly it felt as if her head were being squeezed in a vice. It wasn’t painful…just so intense it overrode her ability to speak.
~Come!~
It wasn’t really speech more than forceful intention. Sera stepped away from the filter unit, leaving the panel she was attempting to open so she could inspect the main filters askew. Like a marionette puppet being controlled by their strings, Sera was pulled to the railing that overlooked the reservoir.
Her hands gripped the railing, forearms trembling and knuckles whitening due to a frantic attempt to stop her forward momentum. With no conscious consent to the act, Sera quickly used her arms and vaulted over the railing and with a splash entered the formerly smooth waters.
Indobri: Sera!
Sera sank like a rock. Vulcans were not generally known as being good ‘swimmers.’ There wasn’t much need of it on a desert planet. She flailed within the inky blackness, quickly losing the ability to tell up from down. Her heart thrummed in an ever-increasing rate and her lungs burned from the need for air.
~Open!~
The order hammered her mind. Panic set in as her body struggled frantically for air. Sera clenched her jaw shut to keep from taking in a breath that would mean her end, but eventually she couldn’t fight the urge anymore. Cold water filled her lungs, and her panic-stricken struggles lessened and then ceased, and the pressing darkness consumed her.
Meanwhile…
Indobri rushed over to the railing to see the engineer sinking below the water and reached out with her mind to find Sera.
Indobri: ~ Sera. Can you hear me? ~
No response was forthcoming, however, and the CMO took action.
Indobri: =/\= Doctor Indobri to Station Operations and Captain Oddas. We have a situation in the water filtration plant. Please send an emergency response team down here immediately. Ensign Sera has fallen over the side and appears to be drowning. =/\=
Oddas: =/\= Oddas here, dispatch emergency personnel at once. =/\=
Operations: =/\= Responses =/\=
Indobri: =/\= There is some sort of contamination in the water, which we were investigating. There may also be some life form involved as there is evidence of telepathic activity. =/\=
Oddas: =/\= Cordon off the area and keep me apprised. =/\=
Operations: =/\= Responses =/\=
--
Sera’s drenched form broke through the still waters. Her hand reached up and grabbed at the walkway and slowly she pulled herself up out of the water.
Indobri: Sera, are you okay?
Sera haltingly stood. She did not answer Indobri, but slowly shuffled over to the main filtration unit and fumblingly ripped the panel off that just a moment ago she was meticulously removing mag bolts from to not damage the thing.
Indobri: Ensign, what are you doing? Talk to me.
Again, there was no response from the water-logged engineer as her normally dexterous fingers fumbled around inside the machine ripping out wiring and parts with no particular method or motive. The filtration unit started to make some interesting sounds.
Karise reached out telepathically again.
Indobri: ~ Can you hear me? Who are you? What do you want with Sera? ~
The only thing that Indobri could obtain from her latest attempt at telepathic contact was rising waves of primal thoughts, demonstrating some sense of self-awareness, but lacking in a cohesiveness nor individuality. Initially what she sensed chaotic, wordless, and then morphed into an overwhelming pressure, a desperate desire to breathe, an immense desperation to be free of the darkness, and then sheer unadulterated terror at a magnitude Indobri had never experienced before.
However, before Indobri could withdraw telepathically, everything stopped like a slamming of a door. There was a moment of absolute silence, then…
~Hurt. It hurt us. The light – it burns! This form will stop it for us!~
Indobri: Response
Oddas: =/\= Understood. Oddas to Doctor Indobri, status report. =/\=
Indobri: =/\= She’s out of the water, but I think there is some form of lifeform controlling her actions. We might be dealing with a sentient life form, Captain. =/\=
Oddas: =/\= I'm on my way Doctor, so is a science team. =/\=
--
Oddas transported into the reservoir room with the typical swirls of light as her matter coalesced into her physical form.
Oddas: Report Doctor.
Indobri: Response
Falt: Response (?)
Sera made no outward sign of acknowledging that more people had arrived at the large cavern that housed the main filtration unit. Her focus never waivered on whatever task she was currently performing, but the pile of wires and pieces of damaged machinery pieces was growing larger as she tossed them with little thought over her shoulder.
The filtration unit made a terrible groaning sound after enough of its guts had been torn from the chassis and the humming and whirring of the machinery began to slow. Sera’s body stopped moving and looked blankly at the machine until the sounds coming from it completely stopped.
Oddas: ::to Sera:: I'm sorry - how can I address you?
Sera slowly turned to the newly arrived form and looked at her with pits of black as her eyes had dilated completely. The voices that had not been focused on moving this solid form or keeping its singular restrained, studied the solid creature before them. This one lacked the ability for true communication, unlike the form that had been acquired. Searching within this singular they had possessed, they identified these solid forms’ method of communication and attempted it.
Sera: ::gurgling voice:: It hurts us. We stop the hurting light.
She looked to the others for some sort of confirmation of what the organism now inhabiting Sera was saying.
Falt/Indobri: Response
Oddas: I am Captain Oddas Aria of Starfleet, and I am responsible for the crewman you are inhabiting. Is there some way you can prove to she is ok?
Sera: OK? ::uncomprehending:: This one is between. When the hurt stops, we will release this form.
Oddas: Response
The filtration unit made a sonorous groan and white wispy smoke began to drift out of the panel Sera had ripped off just moments ago. The purple haze of the UV lighting underneath the platform they were standing on flickered out of existence as the unit gave up the ghost.
Falt/Indobri: Response
Operations: =/\= Response, if any =/\=
Oddas: =/\= Responses =/\=
Sera’s body shuddered and then collapsed to the deck in an inelegant heap as whatever had taken her over no longer required her physical form. Sera’s mind also had been released from whatever grip the voices had over her. The sound of her heart roared back, but instead of a healthy thrum it was a stuttering sound of an organ on the brink of silence from the lack of oxygen. Her eyes were open, but she couldn’t make sense of what she was seeing as her ability to move or focus appeared to be non-functional. In fact, nothing in her body would respond…oh.
Indobri/Oddas/Falt: Responses?
Sera heard her colleague yelling something at her, but Sera had no way to respond. Did it matter what they were saying? Less seemed to matter at all as the seconds ticked on…
Indobri/Oddas/Falt: Responses?
Sera’s upper back and neck arched as water spewed out of her mouth and nose, and the overwhelming urge to breathe roared back into her. The intake of air was met with the left-over water within her lungs, and she began to cough and wretch violently. Somehow, she was suddenly on her side spasming, as her body tried to cough, inhale, and wretch all at the same time to get air in her lungs.
Indobri/Oddas/Falt: Responses?
Tag/TBC
--
Ensign Sera
Engineering Officer
USS Juneau, NX-99801
J239812S14