Lieutenant Commander Lael Rosek: A Near Miss
Lael Rosek
((“The Den” Lounge, Caitian Spacedock))
::For the first time since German had left her with Rahman and Core, she felt herself beginning to relax. Though she was still a bit tense being in the same room with Jansen, especially after the bombshell that he’d unintentionally dropped on her, she’d been able to process. It wasn’t his fault that his little girl had triggered Lael’s PTSD. He couldn’t have known it would happen given that they hadn’t been in this situation before. She supposed it was the little girl more than anything. Natalia had a good bit of Raissa in her, but the similarities to Jansen were unmistakable. It was those similarities that had made her think of Jax.::
::Pushing the thoughts to the back of her mind, she focused on the man in front of her and smiled affectionately. As much as she loved Jax and missed him, she’d be a fool to ignore the possible future in front of her. German was a good man and he treated her like a princess. Life was never perfect, but given what they’d been through already, she was confident that they would face any trials that came their way together. He wasn’t going anywhere and neither was she.::
Rosek: ::murmurs in Denobulan:: You were adorable that night, you know. Such a dork. But you definitely made an impression.
Galven: ::smirks and says in Denobulan:: I would certainly hope so. It was a mission and half trying to swoon you.
::She laughed. While she hadn’t swooned, he’d certainly captured her heart. She loved and accepted him as he was without expecting him to be anyone or anything different. He was a good man and she was proud to call him hers.::
Rosek: ::murmurs in Denobulan:: I wouldn’t change a moment. I’m just glad we quit dancing around it.
Galven: I would like to take the next step though.
::Her heart missed a beat and she sucked in a breath. She’d been thinking a lot about where things were headed. More than a few times since losing the Montreal, she’d entertained the thought of suggesting they move in together. Each time, she grew impossibly more excited. After Lenik, she’d come to the conclusion that she wanted nothing less than German as a permanent part of her life and her future. She opened her mouth to reply, but a brilliant flash of light out of the corner of her eye caught her attention and she turned toward it, her brow furrowing.::
Rosek: What in the hell was that?
Galven: I don’t know, but it looks like something went wrong nearby the Astraeus.
::Her brow furrowed. It had been over two months since Lenik and Murphy was bound to come back around to them. As Chythar had been so fond of saying, “Murphy, go pick on somebody else”. She sighed. They’d have to investigate. As much as she wanted nothing more than to stay in this moment with German, they couldn’t ignore something like this.::
::Pulling away from German, she moved toward the viewing port to get a closer look. Squinting her eyes, she made out what looked to be a cargo sled on a collision course for the Astraeus and grimaced. Of all the odd things to cause such a ruckus, it had to be a stray cargo sled. Turning back to the room at large, she noted several officers missing, including Roshanara and Mei. Her gaze flickered back to German.::
Galven: Tiria. Runaway cargo sled. Probably gallop next to it and rope the thing?
Rosek: ::laughs:: We live in the 24th century, German. A tractor beam would be infinitely more practical.
Galven: Or that. You’re a pilot as well. C’mon. Let’s go help.
::She simply nodded, hurrying out of the room after him, careful to play down any stares that came her way. It was a simple enough situation that they could have it resolved fairly quickly and with little fuss. Then they could get back to the party. She was determined to spend the rest of the evening focused on the future that lay ahead with German. They had a discussion to finish.::
((Work Bee, Shuttlebay, Caitian Spacedock))
::When they reached the workbee, Lael climbed in first and then German after her. It was a good thing these were fairly large. Not that she’d want to be stuck in these things for long. They weren’t meant to live in. Once she’d settled into the pilot’s seat, she entered a series of commands into the panel in front of her that would begin the boot-up of the little craft’s systems. A soft hum filled the cabin as the lights on the console slowly came on.::
Galven: Well, now what do we do?
Rosek: ::fingers glide over the controls:: Once the thrusters warm up, we see if we can get in the sled’s path.
Hamasaki: =/\= I just got the engine up.. I'm headed out now. Can you attach yourself to the tug? If we both attach at a eighty-five degree angle to the starboard, and push our thrusters output to max, we might be able to alter the course to a near miss. We just need to get it past the shipdocks, someone can run over and recover it later. That seem to work for you? =/\=
Xerix: =/\= Yes, Sir. Although I would prefer a near hit to a near miss. =/\=
Hamasaki. =/\= It might be risky, but about the only other thing we could do is fire weapons on it, and while that'd give it delta-vee, I think worker-bees don't have weapons, and they'd be upset at us. =/\= ::wry:: =/\= I'm open to other suggestions. =/\=
Galven: =/\= Galven & Rosek to Work Bee 1 and 2, what if we formed a triangulating tractor beam at the same time around the cargo sled? =/\=
Xerix: =/\= Worker bee 2 here, with respect Sirs. Tractor beams aren’t going to cut it. Estimated impact in less than three minutes, let’s push to change its course. The Astraeus doesn’t need a sunroof =/\=
Hamasaki: =/\= Agreed. We don't have the time we'd need for a triangulating tractor beam to work. =/\=
::Lael studied the sled’s trajectory and then did a series of quick calculations in her head, grimacing. They were right. Besides which a quick study of the Astraeus’s status revealed that the larger ship’s tractor beam wasn’t functional yet.::
Rosek: =/\=We need to literally get in the sled’s way. Any suggestion on how we can stop it once we do?=/\=
Galven: =/\= Response =/\=
Mei’konda: =/\= Lieutenant Hamasaki, Ensign Xerix, I think we can help. The Astraeus tractor beams are not fully calibraated yet, but they should be able to slow the sled for you. One moment. =/\=
::While Mei was otherwise occupied, Lael initiated the sequence to start up the little vessel’s thrusters.::
Rosek: ::to German:: Keep an eye on the power output levels. If we’re going to be pushing the thrusters to maximum, we stand a chance that they could overheat. That’s the last thing we need right now.
Xerix: =/\= Captain, that bought us some time but we’re not out of the swamp by any stretch. Worker bee 1 what’s your status? =/\=
Hamasaki: =/\= Attaching to the hull and preparing to punch thrusters to max. Ready when you're attached. =/\=
Mei'konda: Response
Rosek: ::eyes the sensor readings:: =/\=Hold her steady, Mr. Xerix.=/\=
Galven: Response
Hamasaki: =/\= Course alteration is working. Tug is now moving ..mmm.. one seven six mark zero two relative to the station. Deflection is eight degrees. We just need two more degrees. Time to impact is two minutes. =/\=
Rosek: ::studies the navigation screen:: =/\=We’re within range. I’m pulling up alongside Mr. Xerix to see if I can use the craft’s robot arms to exert a bit more control over the sled’s path.=/\=
Xerix: =/\= Response
Rosek: =/\=Rosek to Xerix. We’re going to extend the robot arms. When they make contact, we’ll use our motion to pull the sled away from its current course. I’ve sent up a direct link with your workbee’s computer so we can match course and don’t pull each other apart.=/\=
Xerix: Response
Rosek: ::enters a series of commands into the console and turns to German:: Extend the arms and see if you can make contact.
Galven: Response
Mei'konda: Response
::The seconds ticked by and Lael stared intently at the sensor readings. They were almost there.::
Rosek: Altering our course. ::to German:: Let’s see if we can get those last couple of degrees.
::Though her gaze remained intently focused on the navigation screen, her eyes did occasionally flicker to the sensors. They were so close. Just a bit more. Her brow furrowed as she adjusted their course another couple of degrees, hoping to pull the sled along.::
Hamasaki: =/\= Deflection is now.. one zero point two degrees. We'll have a near hit, and we'll need to retrieve it from space, but the Astraeus will no longer impact the tug. We can return to base now. Hopefully they've retrieved the pattern buffer. =/\=
Xerix: =/\= Response=/\=
Mei'konda: Response
Rosek: =/\=Understood. Rosek out.=/\= ::turns to German with a grin:: Well, that was unexpected. But it’s good to know that even after a few months of minimal action, we’re still sharp.
Galven: Response
Rosek: ::smirks:: I believe we have a dance to finish...and a conversation.
Galven: Response