Rapid Retreat

Posted on Mon Apr 5th, 2021 @ 2:32pm by Commander Peter Horn & Lieutenant Commander Melanie D’BrooNi- Haistro & Lieutenant Commander Junjie Han & Ensign L'johk Adams
Edited on on Tue Apr 6th, 2021 @ 10:09pm

2,320 words; about a 12 minute read

Mission: Episode 2 - Echoes Of An Empire
Location: Gret'Oar'Zhan Bio Weapon Cold Storage Facility
Timeline: Mission Day 9 @ 10:45 Hours

Commander Horn's Team

Peter was fighting the pull of the mainframe, but despite his telepathic prowess he felt it was a losing battle. He was searching for the telepathic imprint of his captain but it was gone. He was dimly aware of the woman standing beside him, but had lost the ability to focus on her with more than a fraction of.his attention. "Leave... Now. Find the others. I must..." His voice trailed off as his attention was drawn back to the machine.

Brodie was scouting the perimeter area and noticed a corridor. He shined his light down the hallway and clicked it off as he thought he had heard something. He closed his eyes and angled his head so he could listen, and stood there for what seemed several long moments. and then he heard it again, a little louder this time. He turned towards the group and spoke up just enough to be heard. " Hey I'm hearing some voices coming towards us from this hallway. It sounds like human speech to me, So either we've run into a group of our people or the greeblies have learned to mimic us. Either way heads up.

Peter didn't seem aware of any voices coming from an adjacent tunnel. His gaze was unfocused, his body stiff though his fingers seemed to idly move across the console. There were moments of lucidity as he managed to break control, and he reiterated the warning for the others to leave.

"Yeah I'm not going anywhere Sir. And I'm not comfortable you jacked into this technology," Minka said simply. She started attaching parts of her kit to it. "Let me jack into the technology,"

Peter lifted one hand as the woman got closer, then forcefully pushed her away. It was the only move he made as his hand went back to the controls in the same smooth movement. He said nothing, though a myriad of emotions was skipping across his features, his eyes -though unfocused- holding a hint of fear. His breath was laboured, his brow covered in a sheen of sweat and it was clear the Vulcanoid counselor was far from well. He suppressed a series of coughs, but otherwise gave no further acknowledgement of his condition.

"Now you see," Minka told him, "That's exactly why you doing that's a bad idea. And assaulting another officer is out of character even for a Vulcan where the logic of letting the engineer actually do her job is solid.

You need to get away from that," she told him firmly. "Didn't anyone tell you its bad to touch things you don't understand. Step away from the console sir please or I will have to make you."

"Ensign Bain," she shouted, "Commander Horns been compromised."

The petite engineer was ready this time as he shoved her again and she had a clear path to impact maximum damage in the Vulcans groin of which she landing a kick squarely there.

Though the Vulcan's face twisted and paled considerably upon the impact, there was no change in his stance. It was almost, as if he was locked and held into place by an external force to which he had no power of control.

Brodie reset the phaser for heavy stun and moved in close. " Minka what's the plan? " He shouted as her aimed the phaser at Commander Horn.

"Last chance Commander. Please step away from that console and let me do my job and set up a connection with our technology," Minka told Horn.

There was no response from the Vulcan counselor. Despite the earlier inflicted agony, he seemed little impressed or perhaps even aware of it beyond the response already shown. His eyes were fixed on the console, his hands moving across the controls as if something was controlling him rather than the other way around.

"Hes lost. Completely suckered in there," Minka said looking at Brodie. "Stun him. We have to sever whatever is going on here."

Brodie let out a soft sigh. " Sorry sir. " As he triggered the phaser and striking him in the chest, expecting the commander to fall to the floor. He reached for and emergency med kit to treat an injury and glanced back up towards the machine.

Though the strike was spot on, and even left his uniform and skin smoldering, the counselor's body barely twitched. His expression changed a little but otherwise he kept doing what he'd been doing so far.

"Oh hell no," Minka looked on in disbelief. "Great so T'Kon not content with manufacturing and keeping creepy monsters in storage they also make it so that if you access their technology they can control you like some weird energy/bio manipulative vampire and change you into some zombie freak that does not go down from phaser. Laws of physics you stupid millennia old dead aliens, you just don't mess with it. This is probably why died out in the first place,

Keep that on him," she said after her little tirade. "If we can't break him away from the console, though repeatably stunning him although incredibly tempting as it is .... we need to shut the power down and break him away that way."

Brodie kept the weapon trained on the commander, just in case. " Agreed, We need to get him away from that machine. So where's the power switch?"

"Well that's going to be trial and error," she said trying to keep one eye on the Vulcan and wildly scanning around. "There has to be some power source. Some thing, even if its not physically hacked in. It runs on something. There has to be a common denominator," the petite engineer said trying hard to spot something.

Brodie just shook his head in disbelief. " Well I hope you can figure it out, But if you think I can help in anyway then I'm your man. And I know we can't just shoot the machine to try and get him out. We don't know if there would be any adverse side effects to it, Tell me what to do and I'll do it. "

Doctor D'BrooNi's Team

Mel stopped for a moment breathing hard. She ran quite regularly but the rapid ascent up that corridor had been tough for even her. Or maybe it was something to do with whatever they had injected her with. "Its our people I think. That sounds like ... Peter ..

Why did it ... oh by the ancient pools," she said looking spooked as they entered the next chamber. "More of them. Tons of them .... " she walked around a to the middle of one corridor looking far ahead. "Its like an army. A preserved army. We are not lingering here, we do not want any more of those awakening come on, we need a way out of here,"

Junjie shook his head in disbelief. " These things are a nasty lot of trouble. If these creatures were to get off planet somehow they would be as bad as the doomsday machine. We're a science ship, and if these things all woke up there would be no way we could stop them. I normally wouldn't suggest this, but we may have no alternative but to find a way to destroy them if we can't communicate with them." He closed his eyes and softly said. " I can't believe I just said that. " As he lowered his head.

"No Lieutenant. That's not our call to make," And genocide Mel thought darkly. "I'm getting detailed scans," she waved her medical tricorder, "and well I'm covered in its DNA," she indicated her black smeared face. "We get back to ship and report to the Captain. And we learn from what we have. Come on move people."

Junjie looked to the Commander. " Good I'm glad you got a better DNA scan then I did. My tricorder is acting strangely and is not fully functional for some reason. we know that there are thousands of these things, we know there was a civil war. So why would a advanced race such as the T"kon empire leave these behind? Were they emergency shock troops used by the T'Kon? Were they Bio weapons used by the rebels? " He shook his head.

Either way these monsters are nightmares. As a starfleet officer I don not advocate killing these things outright nor do I support the idea of genocide. Self defence is one thing and I will admit they have me a little spooked after seeing what they can do to someone. My passion is science and learning, not death and destruction, Nor am I perfect, I get rattled every now and then. "

"Well all do, but right now we need to get out of here," Mel said again, "So lets move before one of these things decides to hatch out of ..." she shuddered, "Or worse the one who slimed me makes another appearance."

Junjie nodded in agreement. " The faster we get out of here and back to the safety of the ship, The better it will be for us all. "

Commander Holts Rescue Party

Tamaska felt both relieved and also concerned in seeing the buildings ahead. At least they got here. She moved forward, almost at the ready just in case the Greeblies as Teach had called them or the Armusians. She still had to come to grips on that.

Amalia tried her scanning equipment to see if she could pick up signs of life from the crew. "I am picking up some life signs over there! Can't get the exact location of where they are at and I am just guessing as to hopefully it being them. Probably will be getting a better reading when we get closer. And I don't know if our communicators are going to work either, despite our being in closer proximity."

Tamaska gave a slow nod, she'd not thought about trying that. She tapped her commbadge. "Mel, Junjie, Minka.. someone, hopefully you can hear us."

"We're almost there, Commander." Amalia responded, her pace picking up faster, feeling a sense of urgency. "Gotta find Minka, Gotta find Stoun." she murmured, "Gotta help out those injured." rather glad she brought a med kit.

Tamaska picked up her own speed as the PO Engineer, started pulling out in front. "Darcy, careful!" as the doors to the building was coming up quick. "You need to slow down, don't know what is waiting for us."

Doctor D'BrooNi's Team

The Combadge chirrped to life for the first time in several hours and a static filled channel opened but the unmistakable tones of Commander Holt could be heard. "M...l, Ju...ie, Mink... som...ne, hopeful... ou can...ear us."

Mel stopped running her hand flaying out to a wall. Breathing heavily her brain rationalised it was Tam. Mel hit her badge "Tam .. Tam we are trying to get out. Do not come in here. DO NOT come in here. There's dangerous beings."

Junjie tapped his combadge. =^= Tamaska, please exercise extreme caution! We were in a chamber where there were thousands of these creatures in cryostasis tubes. "

Commander Holts Rescue Team

"Ta... Tam we are tr... et out. Do ...come in ... come in here. There's ........" static filled the line making it almost illegable but it was followed by a male voice, still fighting as much static.

"Ta...ska, please ... in a chamber where ... thousan ...ese cre ... stasis tu.... "

Hearing the voice of Mel and Junjie lifted Tamaska's spirits, they were alive, but what were they talking about. "Oh good there's hope, but can't make out what they were trying to say." taking a glance at the others, and stopping at the door, right behind Amalia.

"Well that didn't give us much to go on!"
Adams said in more than a slightly wry manner, his tricorder in hand as he analysed the door mechanisms. It seemed a simple enough mechanism but sturdy. Thankfully a phaser beam would be able to severe the main components so they could gain entry but without a phaser it would have been near impossible.
"I think I can get it open sir... If I may?" he indicated his type two phaser.

"Do so, we've got to get in there!" Tamaska replied. "Darcy, step to one side." to the engineer

Amalia stepped to one side, for Adams to do his plan. "Just be careful." she said, "I am getting faint reading of someone next to the door. Can't quite make out who, it is."

Tamaska readied herself, for what might be on the other side.

With the lock on the door being cut away, Amalia shoved the door open feeling some resistance on the other side, she looked around and gasped. "Careful opening the door. Olowe is there."

Amalia slipping inside to pull the unconscious security guard away for the door to be open further.

She's badly hurt!" Amalia gasped.

"Teach, Adams, Verona, Matthews lets get in there.

L'johK followed Amalia and the Commander, crouching down next to Olowe, a good friend of his, and gently scooped her up into his arms, somehow managing to carry her with just a single one of his muscular arms while still holding his smaller hand held phaser in the other hand, his rifle now slung across his back.
"I have her, lets move on!"

Edward took point with his phaser rifle sweeping form side to side keeping his eyes peeled for any movement or anything that didn't look human. Moving a a quick but cautious movement in case anything may pop up and be ready to take it on. " I hope the others are in better shape then that poor lass that Mr. Adams is carrying. "

The rescue team cautiously moved forward, rounding a corner. They were all caught short by what they saw. Commander Horn and his team all locked in combat, Horn himself looking to be the target.

END

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