Lieutenant Ras El'Heem - Insulation
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((Deck 16, Science Lab, USS Khitomer))
Tap. Tap. Tap. Tap. Tap. Tap.
Ras tried to swallow and felt it catch halfway. A stone in his throat that refused to let him finish pushing it down.
Tap. Tap. Tap. Tap. Tap. Tap.
He stayed folded over the console with his left elbow holding his weight while his prosthetic fingers struck the edge of the console in a persistent rhythm. It wasn’t conscious action. Just something his body was doing on its own in lieu of panic. His eyes stayed glued to the screen, occasionally allowing a glance at Richard’s suit telemetry, then back again.
Tap. Tap. Tap. Tap. Tap. Tap.
The thought of Richard out there in a dangerous and unpredictable cloud nurtured the seed of his trauma. A chill crept up his spine and left him with a sudden shiver as the ache in his wrist radiated back up his arm in warm waves.
The nebula was this soft gradient of violet and pink, almost gentle. It lied. Whatever held them in place was not soft. It was sharp and unpredictable. Filaments that originated from nothing, and were stronger than they could understand. The tensile strength alone….
Tap. Tap. Tap.
He stopped letting his mind wander. He’d worry about that after Richard collected the sample and they had something to study. Sending him out there was less a decision from Ras and moreso one from Chief El’Heem, and Captain Naxell for that matter. But it also felt like the start of a mistake.
Tap. Tap.
He swallowed again. This time it went down.
Naxell: =/\= Confirm secured. Ensign, you'll have to push off. Slowly. =/\=
The angle of the camera that captured the feed of the airlock provided a convenient layer of separation to what Ras was watching. Somehow that made it feel all the more uneasy.
Melville-Kilpatrick: =/\= Break a leg. =/\=
El'Heem: =/\= ::quietly:: Milkshakes on me, when you get back… =/\=
It wouldn’t do to let his trepidations pass onto the ensign. Richard wasn’t one for nerves but still…better safe than sorry.
Matthews: =/\= Alright, it's showtime.=/\=
Tap. Tap. Tap. Tap. Tap. Tap.
Naxell: =/\= I'll maintain a grip, and stop you when you’re in reach. Then I'll bring you back in. =/\=
That last step as Richard exited the airlock felt like he’d drop into the void, instead he watched his suit glide smoothly into the black, the tether trailing behind like the tail of a comet.
Naxell: =/\= Keep the collector out in front of you, Mr. Matthews. I don't want to find out what the cloud does to your suit’s systems. =/\=
Tap. Tap. Tap. Tap. Tap. Tap. Tap. Tap. Tap. Tap. Tap. Tap.
Matthews: =/\= Making my way, at a quick glance - =/\= :: Here he did a quick 360 spin to get a wide shot :: =/\= There are no other 'arms' and I don't see movement from the clouds. I might not have been spotted and I kind of wonder why not. =/\=
Ras gripped the console hard, replacing the tapping for a moment as he sucked in air through his teeth.
oO Idiot. Oo
Matthew’s lackadaisical approach to everything he did could be commended in some situations, in others it made PADDwork harder. Ras shifted his jaw and allowed his grip to loosen.
Tap. Tap. Tap.
Melville-Kilpatrick: =/\= Maybe you're not big enough? Or could be there's nothing to look out for you, just a natural phenomenon... =/\=
El'Heem: =/\= Let’s stay focused ensign. =/\=
The speed in which the cloud had consumed them, left him with the feeling that even if they could react to anything that would occur out there, they wouldn’t be fast enough.
Tap. Tap. Tap. Tap. Tap. Tap.
Naxell: =/\= Response =/\=
He shifted for a moment, easing his weight off his left arm and cycling to the suit’s visor feed. That pink haze felt so strange to see from Matthew’s perspective. Like looking at a sunset on Sylvana Prime. Fog rolling down from the hills making it blur into a cotton candy…but this….this was fiberglass. Itchy.
Tap. Tap.
Matthews: =/\= Alright, in position, we still good? Oh hey, chief, with me out here are you getting anything from the suit sensors that you couldn't from regular scans? I can come back in slower if it helps get some more data. =/\=
His eyes flicked to the telemetry.
Melville-Kilpatrick: =/\= Vitals steady. =/\=
El'Heem: =/\= Warmer than it should be, but barely. ::beat:: let’s not push it Richard. Captain, can you see anything of note out there? =/\=
Tap. Tap. Tap. Tap.
Naxell: =/\= Response =/\=
It wouldn’t matter anyways. Ras wanted this to be over.
Tap. Tap. Tap. Tap.
Matthews: =/\= Specimen collected, bye bye little nebula. =/\=
Ras let himself exhale through pursed lips and closed his eyes for a second. Richard would be back in the relative safety of the ship. They’d analyze the sample. Figure out how to free themselves. He’d get to tell him about Amelia. Richard would give him bad advice and Ras would just shake his head.
Tap.
Matthews: =/\= Oh F- - =/\=
His eyes snapped open, ice blue. He stood at attention as the blush of the nebula was replaced by black. The telemetry feed ran the gamut as Richard’s heart rate shot up and the ambient temperature around him rose drastically.
Melville-Kilpatrick: =/\= Vitals spiking! What's happening? =/\=
Ras’ hands moved to his head.
El'Heem: =/\= Richard! Richard what happened? Can you read us? ::switching to the airlock feed:: Captain! Reel him in?
The tether floated slack in the airlock.
Naxell: =/\= Response =/\=
His hands smacked the edge of the console. Ras pushed off it immediately, turning away and taking two quick restless steps across the deckplating. The distance from the console bought him nothing.
Melville-Kilpatrick: =/\= ::nervously:: Taking a look now... =/\=
His jaw tightened as he exhaled through his nose and turned again. When he reached the console again, he hovered there, his left hand white knuckled against it’s edge. His prosthetic hand flexed tightly into a fist before unclenching as he decided whether or not to strike it again or force himself to think.
Naxell: =/\= Response =/\=
He clenched his hand once more and made himself set it against the edge of his station again. He looked over his shoulder at MK.
El'Heem: =/\= ::impatiently;; Well, ensign? =/\=
Melville-Kilpatrick: =/\= The signal's not great, but I'm still getting vitals from the suit transmission. He's alive. =/\=
The wrinkles on his forehead released some tension. And something clicked in place inside of him. He began working.
El'Heem: =/\= MK. Isolate Richard’s last known coordinates. I’m not reading current location data. =/\=
He shifted to another console so he could leave the airlock feed open on the other. A status report from the bridge populated on the screen. First contact?
Naxell/Melville-Kilpatrick: =/\= Response =/\=
El’Heem: =/\= Aye Captain. I think we’re going to need your science expertise up here. Bridge is reporting contact with the rumored matriarchal species. I think…::turning to MK:: I think they took Richard. =/\=
Saying it out loud felt obvious, but it gave him hope. Richard wasn’t swallowed by some unknown anomaly which couldn’t be bargained with. They could talk to another species and hopefully get him back in one piece.
Naxell/Melville-Kilpatrick: =/\= Response =/\=
He jumped back to his console.
El’Heem: =/\= Good. ::pointing to MK:: See if you can triangulate that. ::tapping his commbadge:: El’Heem to Bridge. We lost Matthews. We’re not in contact with him but I think he was beamed away by whoever controls this nebula. =/\=
Naxell/Melville-Kilpatrick/Anyone on the Bridge: =/\= Response =/\=
Ras froze.
Tap. Tap. Tap.
El’Heem: =/\= They ::beat:: invited you aboard? =/\=
Naxell/Melville-Kilpatrick/Anyone on the Bridge: =/\= Response =/\=
Tap.
El’Heem: =/\= Captain. I’d like to go with the away party to help get Richard back. =/\=
Naxell/Melville-Kilpatrick/Anyone on the Bridge: =/\= Response =/\=
TAGS/TBC
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Lieutenant Ras El ‘Heem
Chief Science Officer
USS Khitomer (NCC-62400)
K240106RE3