Ensign Richard Matthews - Are You Afraid of the Dark?
Matthew Gough
((Indulgence of Chocolate-Coated Jama’haron, Deck 47, Guest Rooms))
Matthews: -Bit of a situation in my quarters. Think you can lend a hand if you get this message Ezra? Bring like a skeleton key card or something. You security types have those right?-
Zerva: -What kind of a situation? Did Maryu tie you up to the bed after a cracking one to many lame science jokes?-
Matthews: -Door’s stuck, nothing's working to get it open. Quit with the jokes and make with the rescuing.
Zerva: -Okay, but if I find you dressed in a leather corset tied to the bed. I’m out. No judgments, it’s just not my thing.-
Did Richard make a mental note, and a real note in his personal log, to get an embarrassing birthday present next year? Something leather and revealing? Yes, yes he did. But moving on.
El’Heem: -Well hello Richard. I forgot you were on this cruise too.-
Zerva:: -You’re on a cruise Richard? I thought maybe you were in Kansas?-
Matthews: -I . . . leave the jokes to me Ezra. I’m the funny one remember.-
El’Heem: -No I’m not serious. I just thought the first time we all got together again would be over drinks, not Ezra and I getting you out of trouble.-
El’Heem: -Again.-
Zerva: -Speaking of drinks, you owe us. Once this is over you’re buying.-
Matthews: -GUYS FOCUS-
Zerva: -It’s not our fault. You make it too easy to poke at you.-
El’Heem: -I feel like this is a job for the cruise staff but I’ll save you the embarrassment.-
Zerva: -You’re lucky we like you so much. I’ll be there are soon as I can. I just need to grab a camera first, ya know just encase you really are tied to the bed.-
oO I will reprogram every replicator on the Khitomer to give you two only water and tasteless military rations. So help me. Oo
Matthews: -Thank you-
It was safer to keep the response brief. Least his sarcastic nature get the best of him.
El’Heem: -Be there in 15. Maybe 30 if I get distracted on the way. Lots to see on this ship-
oO Something worse than tasteless military rations. Oo
((Brief Timeskip. Indulgence of Chocolate-Coated Jama’haron, Deck 47, Guest Rooms))
What felt like forever. Weeks, days, hours . . . but was maybe less than fifteen minutes had passed when.
Ezra: ::joking:: Well hello there Ras, what brings you here? It wouldn’t be by chance the Blue Matthews Escape Room experience would it? ::chuckles::
El’Heem: Response
Ezra: Maybe he’ll make it a Holodeck program on the Khitomer? We can have the new Academy graduates use the program as a test and an initiation to see if they truly have the right stuff in the Alpha Isles. ::laughs:: I’m kidding. Mostly.
oO Lukewarm water Oo
El’Heem: Response
Ezra: Alright, but be ready with the camera just encase. ::checks the door:: Hmm. ::raises his voice just encase Richard can’t hear him through the door:: Richard? Can you hear us?
Matthews: Oh, yes I can.
oO and the water and rations will be rationed! Three meals a day only! Oo
El’Heem: Response
Ezra: I didn’t bring any kind of lock picks or the like.
Matthews: Then . . . how were you planning on getting me out?
El’Heem: Response
Ezra: It is a vacation. I know, I know I should be prepared just encase. It’s not like I carry a screwdriver that can sonically open anything. I do have my PADD with me. What do you have on your side of the door? Anything that could aid us over here? What about you Ras?
Matthews: :: Rolling his eyes, and saying in the most sardonic voice :: Oh wait, there’s cutting tools. And oh look, there’s a key card. Silly me.
El’Heem / Ezra: Response
He glanced around the room again. So much for a quick and easy fix. He pressed the button on the door’s panel again. Even though he knew this time wouldn’t be the magical time some circuit connected.
Matthews: I dunno, guys, is the ship's computer working on your side? I tried calling for help from people who knew what they were doing first. But there’s no communication here. Ship’s computer is silent and nothing is working.
El’Heem / Ezra: Response
Richard pinched the bridge of his nose in annoyance. Fighting down the urge to let out a scream of frustration. What were the chances of his room going dead like this? Doors not working, the computer not working. He’d tried the little replicator and that was a bust. Even the lights weren’t turning on!
The lights not working was what had put him on edge. He hadn’t suffered from a fear of the dark since he was little. But this?
Something creaked to his left. A shadow stretched across the wall. Cast by the faint blue of the warp field shining in from outside the window. Richard drew back, raising his tricorder in front of him like a shield.
God, he was being silly.
Lowering his arms, he checked the screen to see if his scans had picked up any sign of power flowing through the circuits in his room. It hadn’t picked up any power readings. But it had picked up on something else.
Richard’s blood ran cold as he read the display.
Life signs detected. Human. Unknown.
Matthews: Guys, :: Richard backed towards the door. Smacking the door behind him. :: Uh . . red alert. Red alert. Get me out of here.
El’Heem / Ezra: Response
TAGS/TBC
_________
Science Officer
USS Khitomer (NCC-62400)
A238908RM0