Tight Spot

Posted on Mon Sep 13th, 2021 @ 1:37pm by Ilyas Horn & Lieutenant JG G'Rani

1,487 words; about a 7 minute read

Mission: Episode 3 - Fear Is Fear Itself
Location: Escape Pod
Timeline: After the call to abandon ship

ON:

Security had directed him to an escape pod. Ilyas was scared and really regretted having left the classroom now. Connor would've known what to do, he was certain of that. He'd been desperate to get to sickbay, knowing mommy was working there but his trip had been cut short by the officer who had pushed him into the escape pod. And now, he just sat there, wanting for nothing more than his mom, or even his dad. Or maybe that brave captain!

He looked up when someone else tumbled inside and the hatch closed instantly behind her. "Mommy?" the boy ventured hopefully.

"Not even close kid," Minka said turning round to head back but was roughly pushed inside again. "Hey. I'm a fricking engineer. I'm needed elsewhere right now."

The head of a bulky security officer snapped back. "You see that red flashing, you hear that red alert. You felt the weapons fire. There is no elsewhere. This ship is going way of the dinosaur and I don't have time to argue with a tiny engineer." His head disappeared and a further person was roughly tossed in.

"That's 6," he bellowed the door shutting behind him as Minka swore at him colourfully in Japanese. Then she realised what was happening.

"Strap in," she yelled at the small group.

The boy screeched as the pod was ejected from the ship and he grabbed tight hold of the woman next to him. "What's happening!" he cried, "where's my mommy, where's daddy and Connor!"

Minka just got the nearest belt on as they accelerated and flew out of the ship. She felt the small hands on her and held on to the kid with all her might while the pod started spinning frantically. It seemed to take a long time for the spinning to stop but as soon as her brain caught up with it and could handle it she worked at getting the kid in the seat next to her. Once she had firmly clicked the safety belt in place she breathed.

"Hopefully in another one of these kid," she said. "Try not to spew up. I just coloured my hair again."

Only now did Ilyas notice the woman's silver and green hair. "I don't get sick, I'm never sick," he said thinly, looking very white in the face. "Why are the others looking so funny? And why isn't that one moving at all?" The boy was breathing fast as he talked, clearly worried about his family members, and clearly frightened at their current situation. He tried not to look out the one small window the pod had but he couldn't help catching a glimpse of a very damaged ship.

“Because not everyone is as blessed with a strong stomach like you and there concerned as we just abandoned ship,” Minka said trying not to feel ill herself. “Look your just going to have to get comfortable kid. We might be here a while.”

"I don't have a strong stomach," the child whimpered, "where's my mommy? And my daddy? Are they in a pod too? I'm scared.... I wasn't nice to daddy and he's sick...." Tears sprang to the boy's eyes at the realization that he might not see his parents again, or at least for a while. "I want daddy...."

G'rani roused, having been unceremoniously clocked on the back of the head by a falling structural beam as she had moved at pace towards an escape pod. She was just thankful that someone had managed to pick her up and sling her into the nearest escape vehicle.

She brought a clawed hand up to the back of her crested head, rubbing the scaled area just behind the crest. "What the hell happened... The rest of the crew?"

"You're hurt," Ilyas said, removing the restraints that kept him in his seat. "You need help... I don't know where the others are. I'm scared, I want my daddy...I don't know what happened, nobody tells a child anything!"

"We had to abandon ship Maam and everyone is in the life pods bar the away team," Minka said. "I assume the pods are going to lock on to the nearest target which looks to be that station," she indicated her head out the window behind her. "So we need to be ready as its looks to have been abandoned a long time and we will need to get it working."

It dawned on her she and G'Rani were the only engineers in the pod. "Hopefully when we get closer our communicators might work and we can find your dad okay kid."

"Are we moving towards the station or away? Which side of the ship did we eject from?" G'rani asked, much of her hoping they were moving away from the Cardassian monstrosity.

Ilyas nodded slowly, then shakily got onto his knees to look out the pod's window. "Doesn't look like we're moving to the station," he reported, his voice small. "I don't know what side we were on...."

Minka unclipped her belt and turned around. She then swore. They were not heading to the station. Far from it.

"We need to try programme coordinates into this thing," she said to her superior.

The boy continued to look out the window. "I don't see any other pods," he offered, "how do we steer this? can we steer this?" Ilyas looked around at the adults in the pod. "Do we have anything to eat?" he finally dared to ask, "I'm hungry...."

Minka rolled her eyes. It was clear this kid was not going to stop talking. "Here," she pulled out a protein bar from her pocket. "Take it or leave it," she stated at his face which conveyed it wasn't what he was hoping for. Did he think she could magically produce a 3 course meal. They were in an escape pod for crying out loud.

She sat down on the floor near one of the larger panels stowed between the seats. Wedging it between her knees hopefully to keep her in place as this pod continued to swirl, she pulled out a further tool from her jacket and worked at opening the conduit. "I believe maam, we could work with this. Hack it into a PADD. A little light programming," she indicated the mess of circuits and chips. "What do you think?"

"Do it" G'rani said with conviction. Anything would be better than what they had right now, and with luck they may have drifted close enough to the Yosemite to be picked up by the away team. On a whim the large clawed being tapped her combadge.
"G'rani to Commander Holt, can you read?"

"Oh my gosh!" Tam responded, "Yes I can read you. I can see you! I'll see about getting a tractor beam on you!" to G'rani.

"Okay G'Rani You're being brought in." Tam then added.

"Acknowledged Commander. We await your signal!" the gargantuan reptilian Engineer said, a smile tugging at her lips at finally getting some good news.

"Why are we going to the ship?" Ilyas asked, turning away from the window to look at the females in the pod, "why aren't we going to the station? That ship looks like it's falling apart."

"Because the Commander has made that call," Minka said simply. "And she's going to need every engineer. We are going to be busy Lieutenant."

"And what about me?" the little boy asked anxiously, "I'm no engineer, I don't know much about anything like that. What am I to do?"

"You, my brave little man" G'rani started, shifting slightly so she could take the boys hands in her own clawed talons. "You are going to be my helper. We will need everyone to help us and you are old enough to help me with software repairs, diagnostics and maybe even help me with power distribution... How does that sound? And if you enjoy it I will speak to the Captain and Chief Stoun about giving you some proper lessons when we get back to Copern..... Once we get back to safety".
She had to catch herself, almost having said Copernicus when in truth she didn't know what condition the little science vessel was in.

The boy's eyes lit up at that. "Do you really mean that?" Oh gosh, dad was going to be so proud if he heard that! "I don't know much about repairs, but I can hand you stuff?" He jumped up and wrapped his arms around the lizard's neck. "Thank you!"

This is Tam, change of plans, you will be beamed directly to sickbay on the Yosemite. Will be happening in just a matter of minutes."

A few minutes pass by and those in the escape pod will feel the effect of the transporter activating.

"Whoaahhh," Ilyas exclaimed as he felt the sensation of being transported, while still hanging on to the Reth'Killan officer.

END

 

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