Lt. JG T’Fearne - Compass Without a Needle
Teayl Thorn
((Main Shuttlebay, Deck 03, USS Compass Rose))
The chaos of the last hour was giving way to something more controlled. Fragments of debris were stacked neatly against bulkheads to make room for a rough triage space in the shuttlebay. The teams gathered and restocked their equipment, and made final checks.
T'Fearne: Ready to head to engineering?
The chief, looking around, caught her eye briefly to give a reassuring nod. In response, she tapped the grip of her phaser pistol and motioned towards the two engineers and the Trildorian 2O, a silent “and I’ve got them”.
Nakada: Ready when you are. :: grabbing a hyperspanner lying around :: Can’t hurt to have one of these.
Roop: Ready, Sirs.
Across the bay, the other team gathered, preparing for their push toward the bridge.
(( OOC: Some tags removed as they seemed more part of the other team's discussion. ))
The Chief drifted close as the groups crossed paths one last time and spoke to the commander.
Kessler: Try not to have too much fun without me buddy.
Kel: Wouldn't dream of it.
T’Fearne remembered that at their meeting, he had mentioned that V’Len could vouch for him, and now she was getting to see moments of their easy camaraderie that supported that. It reminded her of Alyndra, of the friendship they shared. She knew Kessler and Alyndra would watch each other's backs and take care of Om-Zora, especially with Lt. Frost backing them up.
Syrex: Eyes front and centre please, Lieutenant. You’ll see Kel again soon.
Deacon: Make sure ya’ll stay close, and no wandering off. ::he smiled::
Om-Zora: ::once again deadpan, and maybe just slightly condescending:: I feel your saying as much is unnecessary. It would be illogical for any of us to wander off right now, would it not?
Kessler: ::with a relaxed tone:: It would be illogical to wander off, but in my experience, someone always does for one reason or another.
oO Or maybe they will all kill eachother Oo
Her thoughts were slightly morose as she called after their disappearing backs.
T'Fearne: Get control of the bridge locked down. There are other ship’s systems that could act similarly to a self-destruct if a person were determined enough. The weapon system, for a start. ((Corridor, Deck 03, USS Compass Rose))
She fell into step with her team, her temple still throbbing but her focus narrowing to the task. Trying not to dwell on the hold full of torpedoes stored in the outrigger below them. V’Len led, she at his side, with Keneth and Roop following as they threaded deeper into the Rose.
The two engineers struck up a quiet conversation.
Nakada: How’re you hanging Ensign?
Roop: Ain’t no holodeck. ::rubbing his side as they walked across the shuttlebay debris::
Nakada: :: flashing a grin :: Stick with it. By the way, :: looking at the door :: did you notice anything we need to address on your way here?
Roop: Their intruder scan-jamming is annoying the crap out of me. Ghosts aplenty. Got any ideas where it’s coming from or how to shut it down?
T’Fearne only half-listened, scanning corners and doorways for threats or downed crew. Their boots struck the deck in unison, the faint echo sharp in the dead corridors.
Nakada: :: to Kel :: Commander, what’s our priority here? Just Triage? Do we want to get the impulse engines running? We are sitting ducks right now.
Roop: ::repeating:: Have the ship’s systems checked over and make sure there are no more surprises. ::looking at Commander Kel’s back:: That last one’s the biggest challenge. ::eyeing the silent cargobays as they passed::
Kel: I'd like to make sure the vessel is intact. It seems the crew were suffering from paranoia, I don't want to find out that the crew has sabotaged critical systems. ::pausing:: But if you're offering impulse power I won't say no.
Roop: The impulse reactors seem strong enough since the core dropped. That one might be easy from the tech side.
T’Fearne: Once the systems have been checked and cleared of sabotage, I might be able to set up some security software blocks for the critical systems. It probably wouldn’t stop a determined engineer or ops officer for long, but I can embed a software tripwire to alert us if someone is trying to get into the systems. It would be best if Syrex’s team could clear the system from the Bridge first, though.
Nakada: Response
The pathway they were following gave way to a narrow corridor, their boots crunching over scattered debris. Ahead, the half-jammed doors to Engineering loomed. A crumpled shape lay on the deck in front of the doors, emergency lights painting the scene in dull crimson.
T’Fearne approached cautiously, with her phaser out, but the member of the Roses crew didn’t move. The Vulcazoid tilted her head to the side, trying to hear with her good ear a breath or a heartbeat. Nothing. It was likely they had already passed.
Kel: ::looking at Nakada and Roop:: Can you get the doors open?
Roop: Yes, sir. ::kneeling to put a transport tag on the body in front of the door and using his triPADD to scan it:: =^= Luster, transport this body to Compass Rose aft shuttlebay starboard side.=^= ::standing back up as the body was transported away:: Do we have enough transport tags? ::his eyes saddening:: We hope.
T’Fearne: I have extra if you need some, and we can request supplies from the Ronin if we run out.
Nakada: Response
Roop: ::sadly:: Because they weren't a puddle. ::jaw sliding to one side, eyes brightening:: I’ll bet there’s a compression jack in the diag shop back there. Want me to go get it?
The young officer's emotions seemed close to the surface. She didn’t know him well yet, but he seemed to care deeply and was using that to fuel his actions.
T’Fearne: :: trying to be reassuring :: I’m sorry. I didn’t hear a heartbeat, but we will do our best for the rest, Roop, and you have enough to identify them and to notify the families. That is more than some of the families of this crew will have.
She thought of the ones whose bodies seemed to have completely turned to sludge. It may be that all the crew could never be truly accounted for.
Nakada: Response
She reached out a hand to place it on the young engineer’s shoulder, but he took off back down the corridor without another word, and she presumed heading to the engineering workshop.
T’Fearne glanced quickly at Nakada and Kel, then at the thin gap of the jammed doors leading to the bleached engineering bay. The gap was narrow, but she thought perhaps she could fit her shoulder into the gap. Her Vulcan heritage might give her the strength to pry the doors open, but her shoulders were already sore and bruised, and her head twinged at the thought of applying that effort. She needn’t have worried, as moments later, Roop came jogging back with a compression jack.
Roop: ::waving a gloved hand towards Keneth and pointing to the emergency open latch on the door being only frayed opti-fiber:: You two didn’t make it past here, did you?
Nakada: Response
Roop wedged the tool into the seam. With Keneth at the controls, the doors groaned open, the sound reverberating down the corridor. T’Fearne took that opportunity to slip inside first to conduct a security sweep of the compartment.
((Engineering, Deck 04, USS Compass Rose))
The hatch gave way to ruin. Engineering looked less like the heart of a starship and more like a gutted carcass. The warp core was gone, the beating heart ripped out. Conduits dangled in shredded webs, panels torn free. A faint shimmer marked the forcefield holding back the vacuum.
T’Fearne: Cleare. Watch your step over there. :: Indicating the forcefield ::
The group filtered deeper inside, boots crunching over debris and broken isolinear chips scattered like brittle leaves across the floor.
Kel: Good heavens. Is any of this functional?
Roop: Mister Nakada. ::waving his triPADD at the MSD pool table off to their left::
The ensign scanned grimly, waving toward the shattered master systems display.
Roop: This will take a while, and parts, probably replicated from Ronin? ::looking to Keneth::
Nakada: Response
T’Fearne shifted her tricorder into one hand, phaser in the other. The environmental system here seemed sluggish, struggling to replenish the air lost in the core ejection. Though the air quality was not an issue for the suited officers, T’Fearne was concerned for any Rose crew still alive. She became aware of the dryness pressing at her throat. The faint gnaw of hunger followed, a reminder they’d been suited and sealed for several hours, longer than was comfortable. Rations and water waited back on the shuttle, but they were stuck in EVA for the time being, and until there was a quarantine protocol that would allow them to safely remove the suits, she would accept that thirst and hunger were problems for later.
She wandered close to the large empty space the warpcore had occupied, her boot touched what she initially dismissed as debris, but then a delta caught her eye, and she crouched to examine the deck more closely.
A Compass Rose delta, some sort of engineering kit lay open, tools, a plasma torch, and a Bajoran d’ja pagh nestled amongst a fine scattering of dust and the partially disintegrated remains of a uniform. Someone had been here, doing something to the warpcore, and then every organic part of them had been vaporised by the baryon sweep.
T'Fearne: Someone was here. :: Gesturing to the signs :: Likely they died before the radiation swept the bay. It’s difficult to tell what they were trying to do. It could be sabotage or repairs for all I can tell.
She held up the delta and the d’aj pagh.
Nakada/Roop/Kel: Response
She slipped the earring into a suit pocket. It might be the only way to tell a family their kin was truly gone. They would never be able to recover the body.
She swept the compartment again, securing doors and Jeffries hatches, even scaling the high bay to check overhead entries.
T'Fearne: :: grim :: Engineering’s secure, for now. But if someone wants in, it won’t take much. Site-to-site transporter control should be a high priority. Stay sharp while you work.
Nakada/Roop/Kel: Response
She stepped up to the cracked MSD to see if she could be of any use.
T'Fearne: Anything I can do to help?
[Tags / TBC]
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Security Officer
USS Ronin - NCC-34523
R240107T14