Lieutenant Marty Tucker - Wounded Animal
Martin Tucker
((Bridge, Deck 3, USS Ronin, Outside the J-0922A System))
To say the bridge was under dim light was an understatement. Marty had the Ronin in a free-for-all tumble, as though the ship was dead in the water. Low power mode added to the ambiance of the bridge. He even added a plasma trail as an added bonus, adding to the whole ‘distress’ situation. Tucker’s hands worked the console before him, regulating that plasma ‘leak’. Too much and they could cause real damage, too little and it wouldn’t be convincing.
It had been a while since he’d pulled a bridge shift; with the Ronin previously being in dock, there was no need for him on a bridge rotation, as Marty was overseeing the clods from DS33. They were entrusted to complete repairs and keep up with the refit, which Tuck swore would take years at this point. He’d almost be better off if they let his department do it and not rely heavily on Deep Space Thirty-three.
Niac: Apologies, I realize a tumble like this is offensive to your instincts as a pilot Mr. O'Connor.
O'Connor: Response
One thing could be said for the bridge crew and the ship: they are not an uptight bunch. Since launch, the crew has formed into a tight-knit family. Speaking of family, as soon as this mission was over, he would have to get a message home. They didn’t know he’d even been promoted twice.
His Dad was going to kill him through subspace; if there were anyone who could do it, it would be Martin Atticus Tucker the Third. A former Command Master Chief, he had expectations of his officer son, which he was trying to wrap his head around, as his entire family was NCOs: his dad, his two uncles, his grandfather, and his grandmother.
Niac: How long will it take to get the impulse engines online once the Alliance forces show up?
Marty double-checked to make sure everything was ready and on standby. The quicker they could react to a situation, the better, especially in a low-power tumble through space.
O'Connor: Response
Karrod nodded his understanding and smiled.
Niac: I wouldn't have anyone else as my wheelman for this particular getaway.
O'Connor: Response
Turning towards the rear of the bridge, Karrod walked to the Engineering station where Chief Tucker had taken up residence, overseeing the powered-down ship and their 'distressed' engines.
Niac: How are we looking, Chief? Any indication we're anything other than a crippled shift drifting through the void?
Tucker: ::he smiled.:: So far, so good, captain; right now, just playing possum...
Chuckling, Karrod nodded back towards the helm.
Niac: The plasma scorching on the nacelles was definitely a nice touch but you'll have to explain to the dockmaster at DS33 why we need those repairs...again.
Tucker: Trying to get the old gal into character. And as far as the dockmaster goes, I can’t get in any deeper with him than I already am. ::he ran a hand along his neck:: And still hearing about you blowing the moorings on our shakedown cruise…::a devilish grin slithered across his features::
Karrod chuckled and patted the man on the shoulders.
Niac: Just try to keep the nacelles connected to the ship, I'm pretty confident we'll need both of them before the day is over. As you were, Chief.
Marty chuckled as the man stepped back and nodded toward Kirsty Carpenter, Ronin’s Chief Of Security. She was glued to her console display; he could tell she was in a zone.
Niac: Commander Carpenter, I think you're making that display uncomfortable. Anything to report yet?
Carpenter: Response
Marty looked down at his long and short sensors, and there wasn’t anything to report. It was almost too quiet for his liking, making the hair on the back of his neck stand on end. He didn’t like the idea of using the Ronin as bait, but they don’t let Lieutenants in on those decisions. So here they were, floating along with the flotsam and jetsam, tumbling, a wounded animal, if you will.
Niac: They'll show, I'm sure of it. They've had enough time by now to see us and realize the easy picking we represent. Then they spent a few minutes arguing with one another about what to do and who gets the privilege of coming to kill us. They'll have the particulars worked out soon enough and then it's time for our little surprise. Tell me, how's our little present in escape pod sigma-two six doing?
Carpenter: Response
Tuck looked up from his display to examine the main viewscreen.stars and the inky blackness of space, but nothing else. He wondered if they were going to show up. The Ronin was too ripe of a target right now, so there was no way the Alliance could resist such a juicy peach.
Niac: I'm leaving the timing of the detonation to you - we'll have some empty escape pods out there to cause a distraction...the Alliance doesn't take prisoners so they'll start picking them off. As soon as their ships are in the blast zone...you're authorized to press the big red button.
Blowing things up was one of Marty’s favorite pastimes, not that he got to do it often. There was the second-floor window he blew out with a phaser cannon on Grus Beta Three. His team needed a way in, and in Marty’s defense, they weren’t answering their door, which was rude.
Carpenter: Response
Karrod chuckled as he walked back to his seat.
Niac: I'm sure everyone has confidence in your judgment, Commander. Just try to make sure we leave a few for the Khitomer, or Captain Shayne will be disappointed.
Tucker: As long as Commander Carpenter doesn’t get too trigger-happy, I’m sure she’ll leave some scraps for the Khitomter. She wouldn’t want them to scratch that new paint job.
Carpenter: Response
With a smirk at the friendly banter that had developed between his senior staff Karrod tapped on the comm controls.
Niac: =/\= Bridge to Stellar Cartography...what's your status, Lt. Cmdr. Alieth? =/\=
Alieth: =/\= Response =/\=
There was something entirely reassuring in the Vulcan's nearly bored tone of voice.
Niac: =/\= Once we get inside the system we'll need you to build up a picture of priority targets as quickly as you can, especially any S-Wave generators. The faster you can pass that information up to us, the quicker we can be in and out of the system. =/\=
Alieth: =/\= Response =/\=
Niac: =/\= Very well. Mr. Raedai is there to coordinate any sudden resource needs or probe operations and I believe he'll have a good eye for finding the things we want to eliminate. Give his insights weight, Commander. =/\=
Alieth: =/\= Response =/\=
Shaking his head to himself Karrod fought to keep from rolling his eyes.
Niac: =/\= Very well, standby. I suspect it'll be any time now. Niac out. =/\=
He tapped another command and the commline reopened.
Niac: =/\= Bridge to Sickbay...how are you doing on those arithrazine inoculations, Doctor? If we get hit by one of those S-Wave weapons I want to have more than enough prepared for the entire crew. =/\=
Beck: =/\= Response =/\=
He checked a nearby chrono and nodded as the stars continued their lazy swing past the viewport.
Niac: =/\= I realize it's not ideal but it's the only protective measure we have at the moment. Make whatever final preparations you can, I expect things will get busy up here in the very near future. =/\=
Beck: =/\= Response =/\=
Karrod nodded but turned as a beep from the console behind him caught his attention. Everyone looked towards Lt. Cmdr. Carpenter with the same anxious, ready expression.
Niac: =/\= Standby for action, Doctor. Bridge out. =/\=
Karrod felt the seconds tick by in slow motion as the passive sensors, the only thing they could risk using while pretending to be crippled, slowly gathered data.
Niac: Well Commander...what's the word?
Carpenter: Response
The Captain leaned back in the center seat. From Marty’s angle, it looked like the Captain was smiling, mostly likely because of the trap they were about to set. Marty checked his monitoring of all systems, which seemed to work nominally. He wanted to run a scan, but even a passive scan might tip their hat, and he’d like to know if there was a build-up of Sencha radiation.
He drummed his fingers on his console in anxious energy.
Niac: Red Alert. Wait another few seconds and begin a staggered launch of the starboard escape pods. Chief Tucker, standby to get us back to full power. Mr. O'Connor, use the RCS thrusters, lets make a show of trying to get away.
The already dim bridge was awash in red light. Marty had rigged it to go from ‘dead in the water’ to a fully powered and shielded starship at the tap of just one button. Usually, you’d have to input and press several commands, from powering up to shields. This was just a time-saving measure, and he had nothing better to do when they were sitting there before their guests arrived.
Tucker: Alright, flyboy. Hit that button on your console that is flashing green when ready, and it’ll bring the Ronin to bear with full power at your disposal.
Niac/Carpenter/O'Connor: Response
Now that it looked like they were trying to escape, Marty ran another passive scan. From what Tucker could tell, it was an Alliance frigate, an amalgamation of Sheliak and Tholian tech. The last time they encountered the Alliance, he’d stolen quite a bit of data about the Alliance and their tech, but he still hadn’t been able to make heads or tails of it…yet.
His console let out a not-so-positive beep. Where there had been one, there were now two.
Tucker: Uh, sir. They didn’t come alone. Another Alliance frigate, bearing 156 by 25. Its shields are raised, and I can detect a build-up of Sencha radiation. ::he gulped at the last words::
Niac/Carpenter/O'Connor: Response
TAGS/TBC!!!!
