PNPC - Captain Michele Winters - No Brig for You
Joel Cannistraro
((Transporter Room, Deck 06, USS Ronin))
Phaser fire erupted, echoing in the confined transporter room and Michele raked off four or five well placed hits. Singh's weapon discharged multiple times as the Tholian jerked, lashing out, trying to rotate Solana into the line of fire. Soldu released the leg suddenly, destabilizing the creature again. The flailing limb lashed outward scoring a vicious tear across his containment suit from collarbone to hip. The impact spun him off his feet. He hit the transporter pad hard and Michele stepped quickly between the Tholian and Soldu.
tr’Kharis: ::breath sharp:: Arrg…there…there is your reinforcements. Senior Chief… you are welcome.
Winters: Get between it and the exit, now!
The Marine in Michele wanted nothing more than to continue the fight but at the same time, if this thing got out of the transporter room then she knew it could out run her and Singh in a full out sprint. Stopping it here and now was their only hope.
Solana/Singh/tr’Kharis: Response
Winters: ::holding her fire:: Get back on the transporter pad. This will be the only warning.
Singh: Computer, erect a level ten security field around the transporter pad.
Computer: =/\= Unable to comply, field emitters are offline. =/\=
As Michele moved to position herself between the Tholian and the exit she noted Solana making a move to recover her phaser rifle from around her back. The added firepower would be an advantage they desperately needed.
Singh: Can either of you two tell me something useful...quickly?
Solana: The thing ambushed us as we were beaming out. I told Soldu to call for help, not beam us both onto the damned ship. But here we are.
tr’Kharis: Response
Michele glanced over to Singh and the others as the momentary stalemate seemed to have them all guessing as to the next move.
Winters: I'm wide open to suggestions, Major. Last time I dealt with these guys, they offered no surrender to our teams.
Singh: I believe if this one could've killed us they would've done it already. Back out slowly and make a hole for the security team. We need to get these people medical attention. ::She nodded towards the Tholian:: Surrender and no further harm will come to you. Resist and you die here, today, a failure. Choose wisely.
Solana: It’s already a failure. Couldn’t stop us from disarming your Sencha weapon you sent your workers to deploy. Just like you couldn’t take Thirty Three from us.
tr’Kharis: Response
The Tholian folded in their working appendages and seemed to bow their head forward. The approaching security teams flooded the room with enough firepower to dismantle half the deck if they wanted to level things. Michele felt a slit breath, a very slight breath of relief leave her lips as the security forces took up position.
Out of the corner of her eye, Michele caught Major Singh moving into the corridor and she too backed into the hallway stepping clear as the first set of medics arrived with grav-sled, already scanning them over for injuries. Solana let her rifle lower and remained at her side where the sling let it rest but Michele only lowered her barrel to reduce muzzling any of her crewmates but she did not release her grip on the rifle. Adrenaline coursed through her veins at heightened levels and Michele had to rely on years of training to control the rush that went along with it. She turned halfway to Singh and Solana but kept a partial eye on the security teams trying to put their unwanted guest into submission.
Singh: Are either of them going to die in the next five minutes?
The medtech made a sound that closely resembled a squeak in response to her tone but shook his head in the negative.
Singh: Good. Senior Chief, if you're not too busy bleeding perhaps you could explain to me what just happened and who that...::she gestured towards the wounded Romulan being lowered carefully onto the grav-sled::...is. Or do you still have enough blood in you to introduce yourself?
Solana: I’m fine, Major. ::she said curtly:: That’s the stubborn Romulan in charge of the facility we just beamed up from. ::she glared:: The Tholian attacked me right as we were beaming out, knocking me out of the transport. I was all content to fight the damned thing as needed. When I beamed on board I saw our people unconscious and him by the controls. So, I can only assume he thought beaming that thing on board with me was better than just letting you know I needed backup.
Michele looked from Solana and Singh to the Romulan and lifted her rifle barrel ever so slightly, her eyes locked on the Romulans eyes. Injured or not this Romulan was going nowhere and had plenty to answer for.
Winters: Welcome aboard the Ronin. ::beat:: If you live, consider yourself under arrest.
tr’Kharis: Response
Movement from the transporter room grabbed at Michele's attention and she glanced over just briefly, just long enough to see the teams struggling to try and restrain the Tholian who had locked his suit up in that protective position. A glint off Solana's knife stuck in its chestplate drew Michele's attention and a slight smile creased the corner of her lips.
oO I like this Senior Chief. Oo
Singh: Well done Captain. Perhaps I should have you take the Senior Chief through a refresher course on the use of a phaser rifle...since she often seems to forget to use one.
Solana's head snapped up at that and she exhaled sharply.
Solana: Tried that. It didn’t give me much choice, ma’am. The only reason I still have it is because of the sling. Bastard would be dead already if they hadn’t improved their suits since the Siege.
Winters: ::looking to Singh and then Solana:: Hand to hand with a Tholian, I think that should be on Kessler's Security Bingo Card for you guys Senior Chief.
Michele looked back to the transporter room. The last time she stood face to face with a Tholian, she and Jack both were in it's path and it had been a warrior cast. Three Marine's died that day before the Tholian was brought down.
tr’Kharis/Singh: Response
The med-tech fussing over Solana repeatedly tried to get the Orion to remove her suit so they could treat her but she shook them off. Michele did not blame the Senior Chief. She would not be laying down arms to let a medic touch her unless she was unconscious, not with that thing still aboard.
Solana: It's locked up its suit. We’re not going to get that thing secure. We can’t beam it back down because we still have people there and I wouldn’t want to put them at risk. As long as it’s here it’s a threat to the entire ship. We should kill him and be done with it.
The curved blade of Solana's spun over and over around her index finger as she spoke, her eyes locked on the Tholian inside the transporter room, as if she was gauging distance.
Winters: The Senior Chief is right. The longer that thing is not secured, the more people we are going to lose.
tr’Kharis/Singh: Response
Solana: With all due respect ma’am, if we have a hostile ship threatening ours that’s all the more reason to make sure he won’t be a problem. If we end up in a battle and take damage the last thing we need is a Tholian warrior loose on the ship butchering our people!
Michele glanced back at Solana, her tone, body language all spoke to an experience that Michele did not share with her directly but understood. She was newer to the Ronin and this region of space but not new to the confines of battle on the ground with Tholians.
Winters: ::turning to Solana directly:: Check your emotions Senior Chief. The Major is well aware of the risk of having that thing aboard.
tr’Kharis/Singh: Response
Solana: Yes, ma’am. ::she exhaled slowly:: We should beam it into the brig instead of trying to restrain it. Assuming we can, we try escorting that thing through the corridors to a cell. It could trigger the self destruct on its suit any time it thinks it's going to cause crippling damage. They did that multiple times during the Siege when we still tried to capture a few. If we're not going to kill him, beam him to a cell.
Michele looked at Solana and then back to the transporter room, eyeing the Tholian and it's heavily armored suit. Her brain raced to other avenues of ways of containing the beast and then she remembered a trick they had used on another mission in a different situation but it would still work here.
Winters: ::turning to Singh:: We don't have to transport it anywhere. All we need to do is transport it off the ship and hold it in a transport buffer. We did it with a couple of pirates back in the Gamma quadrant and used a storage buffer to hold them. It was separated from the ship systems and had no way for the hostile to re-materialize without a transporter. Just needed a small power supply to keep the buffer active.
tr’Kharis/Singh/Solnana: Response
Michele looked at the Romulan and tilted her head slightly. She narrowed her eyes and kept her rifle barrel trained on the Romulans chest.
Winters: You were saying?
tr’Kharis/Singh/Solnana: Response
Winters: Trust you? ::beat:: Why in all the universe would we trust you?
tr’Kharis/Singh/Solnana: Response
A low and slow exhale of frustration exited Michele's lips as the Romulan spoke. They needed information from this guy, information that was crucial to the Ronin's mission and safety. Michele knew that if Jack were here he would throw the guy in the brig and let medical do their thing. Michele on the other hand was not Jack, she never played nice and almost always ended up in the brig herself.
oO See how well this guys mental state stays intact from inside an airlock. Oo
Winters: ::turning back to Singh:: Your call Major but I still say we put the Tholian in a transport buffer. Worse case, the buffer loses power and the problem is off our hands.
tr’Kharis/Singh/Solnana: Response
[Tags / TBC]
--