Lt. Cmdr. Alora DeVeau - "Let's Finish This Please"

[Amanda Nordstrom]

((Bridge, USS Rahuba))


A lot could happen in three minutes.  In three minutes, a human adult’s
heart would pump about five gallons.  In three minutes, an average human
processed around twenty thoughts.  In three minutes, a person would, on
average,  blink around forty times. And three minutes could mean the
difference between life and death.

They had less than that.

DeVeau: Blackwell, transport as many people as you can, hold them in the
buffer if that’s what it takes, I want them *all* safe. Renot, got info
for me?

The information she wanted was about the explosion, what they could
expect, such as the shockwave, and how it might affect them should they
get hit, as well as how far enough away they needed to get from it.  It
was all important.

Blackwell: We are almost done Commander -

Renot: ?

DeVeau: Send extra security to the cargo bay, and as soon as transports
are done, get us out of range.  This needs to happen in a minute and a half.

Because she was told less than three minutes, Alora gave them less than
two.  It allowed wiggle room, such as it was, and every second would
count.  They couldn’t delay.  Evacuations from the station would halt
once again while they focused on the ship, and then resume once it was
safe once more.

Blackwell:  Commander - we are good. Putting in a course to get us out
of here.

Renot: ?

That’s what she wanted to hear, but just because Rue had charted a
course, that didn’t mean they were ready to move out.  Evacuations were
underway from the ship, and while they didn’t have the enhancers, they
were closer and had fewer people to worry about getting there, which was
actually an advantage.

DeVeau: Good.

Time counted down and Alora’s nervousness grew, her fingers flicked at
the armrests of her chair.  Her own heart beat far faster than average
as the fear continued to well up within, but she swallowed it down and
continued to fight against the desires of her flesh. Something beeped
and she glanced down at her readout.

DeVeau: Their ship is empty, let’s move!

Blackwell: We are going to make it commander ::She said with
determination in her voice - moving the Rahuba around, away from the
shock wave, while she redirected the shields to strengthen in their steer::

Renot: ?

DeVeau: Here it comes!

The explosion was silent.  No sound could travel through the vacuum of
space, but the image reflected on the screen.  Alora gripped at her
seat, watching even as she heard Rue call out.

Blackwell: Hold on!

Renot: ?

She was already doing so as Rue angled the ship while the shockwave
rippled toward them.  Fortunately, Rue had managed to put enough
distance, that as the wave spread out, its intensity was far lessened
for it had stretched too thin, the energy expelled. Everyone held on,
but the ship only rocked slightly at impact in a rather anticlimactic
fashion.  Alora wondered if tea in a cup would have done more than
shiver through a few ripples.  Breathing a sigh of relief, she reached
up and rubbed her eyes.

DeVeau: Report.

Blackwell/Renot: ?

Good.  That meant they were fully functional and could resume their
job.  How many interruptions did this make?  Far too many.  The
evacuations off the base were almost done, but not quite.

DeVeau: And the evacuees?  All accounted for?

Blackwell/Renot: ?

That was good too.  Security would make sure no one went anywhere or do
anything they shouldn’t and escort them to a place more secure. But now,
they needed to get the final remnants of the base.

DeVeau: All right, let’s go back *again* and finally finish what they
started.  Rue, set a course.  Renot, inform people that we’re going to
get the last of the evacuees off of Miranda, and then we’re going home.

The sooner, the better.

Blackwell/Renot: ?


[End scene for Alora]


--
Lt. Cmdr. Alora DeVeau
First Officer
Starbase 118 Ops
al...@blar.net
M239008AD0