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Re: DAY 01: SAR Away-Mission [1150 hrs.]

Reply #25 –
[ USS Allegiant | Peter Hildebrandt (NPC) | Medical Bay | 1350 hrs. ]  Attn: Doctor Maya

While he had barely come to, Hildebrandt had trouble recalling whether or not the Vulcan had been a part of a nightmare, a dream where he had lost his leg. Any such hoped vanished quite fast, for as he came to, he heard the initiative to request a prosthetic leg for him. So much for a nightmare, and the chilling reality overcame him where he lay. This time, however, he did not lash out in fear, even if he could feel his heart beating fast and shiver in sudden cold sweat.

He turned his head, swallowing, and saw the Vulcan again, along with Nurse Hebert. As it were, he knew nothing besides his own body's fate. Last he was conscious, he had been in a firefight with three unbelivers that had escaped from the Harbinger's brig. He did not even know where he had been when he first saw the Vulcan, much less where they were now. He knew they had entered warp on the Harbinger, and that the Calamity had found them in the Class-9 nebula...

"The Calamity, did we get her?" he asked, voice dry as paper from thirst, "did the mines on the Theurgy do her in? And where am I?"

He had a splitting headache, and he thought it might be from all the questions he had. 



[ USS Allegiant | ThanIda zh'Wann | Bridge | 1350 hrs. ] Attn: Aisha S'Iti

When the Cardassian spoke, Ida looked up from the tactical console she was at. She was running calibrations of the weapon systems of the Allegiant and familiarising herself with their response time - system diagnostics showing the kind of delay that could be expected after issuing a fire command on the touch panel. Her antennae shifting in thought, she wondered what the CONN officer meant. Did she mean that it could have gone worse if they had gone with Ida's suggestion, or that anything could have gone wrong.

"Personally, I think the risks would have been more manageable if the survivors had been asked to lay down their weapons before we approached them in person. Your idea to justify our actions in T'Rena's name would have fit perfectly too. Yet sufficed to say, we were fortunate."

After giving admittance to the survivors from Escape Pod 87, doing so only after Doctor Maya had said they were all restored to their proper wits, Ida had made herself scarce from the back compartments before they filed in. She was not inclined to show herself before they spoke to Commander Stark, fearing she might ignite a reaction that was unfit for the close compartments they were all working in. It was better if they head it all from her and thus preventing facts to become misinterpreted.

Recognising that the time and opportunity was good, Ida stepped away from the tactical station and walked to the helm. She sat down in the co-pilot seat and looked at the Cardassian's profile. Ida did not trust her yet, but she had another assignment to fulfil, so she did so without further a due.

"Captain Ives has informed me you are interested in earning a rank as a Line Officer instead of the enlisted position you now hold," she said quietly, antennae studying the other woman as carefully as her eyes did. "Your choices down there gave you merit, for I have great respect for those who ensure the safety of the crew, but I wonder about your motivations. Who are you trying to prove your worth for? Those who disfavour former Marquis, yourself, or the Captain?"

Stark, Maya and her had been asked to speak with and evaluate the Chief CONN Officer, and Ida would be the first to do so.


[ USS Allegiant | Carla Abner | Captain's Quarters | 1350 hrs. ]  Attn: Natalie Stark

After learning what T'Rena had done to them all, sometimes with the help from the other Vulcan on the Theurgy, Abner had felt sick. She felt like she had been betrayed on such a profound level that she did not know what to say when the Lieutenant Commander spoke to them.

They had been... undone. Warped into something else than themselves and not recognising their motivations. Much less, they'd had no means to question their own motives - not giving their own conduct a second thought. Reduced to something less than human, lacking in good judgement and critical thinking, they had only the goal in mind - the promise of paradise and the mobilisation of a pure bred army paramount to all other ideas.

Personally, Abner could not remember having done anything of greater guilt, but Hildebrandt had been involved in the handling of the Andorian - the woman who had broken out and made Commander Trujillo order the self-destruct sequence. Little did she know that the very same Andorian was aboard the Allegiant.

"What happened to the Calamity?" she asked after a couple of seconds, voice still worn after the days out in the sun, blonde hair unkempt. "Did the gravametric mines take care of her?"

Re: DAY 01: SAR Away-Mission [1150 hrs.]

Reply #26 –
[ USS Allegiant | Aisha S'iti | Bridge | 1350 hrs. ] Attn: ThanIda zh'Wann

She sighed as she looked over a few of the navigational readouts for a moment.  Listening to her question she sighed, "You know, I don't know if it's really a question of proving my worth,"  she said thinking a moment.  If she wanted to prove something about the Maquis all she had to say was the word Voyager and that would shut whoever was being judgmental up.  Chakotay was captaining the damn thing now, and his Maquis crew had worked amazingly with the Fleet crew in getting the ship back home.  Proving her worth to herself, not really she felt she was good at what she did she had been a captain in the Maquis.  She didn't need to prove to herself that she "could" captain a Federation ship her ship was a Federation vessel, a Starfleet Condor-class Raider. 

Prove to Ives?  Maybe that was part of it, sure he offered her a job as a helms-person but down she knew she could one day do more. "I think it's more that I just feel that I am at the end of progress right now.  Here I am Master Chief Petty Officer.  Highest possible noncom rank, Chief helmsman on what is it now this is my third ship I've done it on.  Part of me has a chip on my shoulder cause of what I was told in private about the consequences of not staying "in my place" but I think it's more than that.  What's there to really aspire to when you have climbed to the top of your respective mountain?  Most would only dream of getting as far as I have but it's my previous experience in the Maquis that gave me the abilities beyond the noncom ranks that caused my accelerated promotions.  I mean when you've captained a Condor class and spent years navigating dangerous nebulas and avoiding enemy fire all to evade much more powerful ships, getting to Master Chief at piloting in the more calm waters of Federation space tends to be a cushy desk job.  Most noncoms take a whole career just to get to where I am and by the time they are nearing retirement they Might get their Master Chief patch.  I'm still young enough to have half of my career ahead of me and I'm sitting on the capstone of a retiring veteran's career with nowhere to advance.

She paused a moment.  "I guess it's more just knowing I can do more as a line officer and knowing I will never be able to do it where I am.  Still I guess if anything in the short term goes I do want to prove to the Captain I can be an asset above what my current rank suggests.  She then paused and laughed softly adding, "I guess there is a bit of an urge one day to get ahold of those 4 pips I had back when I was running "The Fantine" though.  Once you've sat in the big chair for real it's a feeling you never want to let go of.  There's just something special about the feeling of responsibility you get being there, I imagine it's like being a parent but in a completely different way."

OOC: Finially decided to name the ship she was in charge of in the Maquis.  I decided that since Chakotay's ship was the Val Jean and hers was of the same class it was only suitable to name it for a famous female character from Les Misérables

Re: DAY 01: SAR Away-Mission [1150 hrs.]

Reply #27 –
[ Maya | USS Allegiant | Medical Bay | 1350 hrs. ]  Attention: Stark, Ida & S'Iti.

"The Calamity, did we get her?" Peter Hildebrant asked, "did the mines on the Theurgy do her in? And where am I?"

Bending over her patient lying on the biobed, Maya's large hazel eyes flicked back and forth as she considered his questions.  Was he unaware of what had happened to his ship?  Maya had assumed he knew, but if his injuries had incapacitated him prior to his evacuation, than perhaps he wouldn't.  It was conceivable that in his delirious state he had been unaware that he had left the Harbinger.

This was a problem.  Petty Officer Hildebrant's physical and mental condition was very delicate right now.  The news of the Harbinger's destruction could break him even more than the loss of his leg.  Unfortunately Maya wasn't skilled in deception.  Although she could tell a lie without the psychological tells common to Hildebrant's species, it was the actual invention of them that Maya found challenging.  She simply didn't have the imagination to tell a white lie, and honesty was second nature to her. 

"You are in the medical bay aboard the USS Allegiant, the captain's yacht.  The Calamity has been destroyed," Maya informed him.  "The Harbinger sacrificed itself by colliding with it to ensure its destruction.  It was the only way defeat a superior opponent with foreknowledge of the future.  I offer you my condolences."

Re: DAY 01: SAR Away-Mission [1150 hrs.]

Reply #28 –
[ USS Allegiant | Peter Hildebrandt (NPC) | Medical Bay | 1350 hrs. ]  Attn: Doctor Maya

Allegiant... Captain's Yacht... Peter searched his muddled memories for the name, and soon realised that the ship belonged to the Theurgy-class ship they had encountered outside the Hromi cluster, and which crew they had shared a week of repairs with down on Theta Eridani IV before the Calamity found them the second time. T'Rena had showed him that the poor crew was being led to their deaths by their Captain, and that it was imperative that Ives' madness was put to an end. The only way that they could prevail against the conspirational enemy was to fall back, regroup, and build their pure-bred numbers to retake Federation space with better odds on their side. Strange, how the vision the Winter Queen had shown him seemed so distant... So unreal. Even implausible. He chalked it up to his physical condition, unsure what to make of anything that was going on.

Through the haze of pain and foreboding, regret about the loss of the Harbinger and relief that the Calamity was destroyed, new questions came to him, and he voiced the most pressing ones. "What happened to Ives and his closest officers? Are they in the Theurgy's Brig?" He paused, blinking as he propped himself up on his elbows and looked between Jaques and the Vulcan. He remembered Husker and the Andorian, the CMO that he had planned to make the mother of his pure-bred children, and his second question addressed the three that had escaped the Brig. "Ensign Slayton, Doctor Duv... and that Andorian woman, did they survive?"

His question was rather... pointed, he realised. Husker had taken his leg away from him, and he meant to pay him a visit if he still lived.

Jaques spoke up. "Why don't Doctor Maya show it all to you, joining her mind to yours?" he said, and something seemed... off about Nurse Hebert. Peter hadn't known the man to suggest solutions, instead just going ahead with them. Especially when it came to some sort of treatment. Then again, perhaps Vulcan mind-melds were not the most common of them. Perhaps that was why he was being so hesitant, as if threading on nails.

Peter looked towards the woman, not entirely convinced about her and he did not say anything to accept the mind-meld until he heard her answers to his questions.


[ USS Allegiant | ThanIda zh'Wann | Bridge | 1350 hrs. ] Attn: Aisha S'Iti

Listening to the Cadassian speak, Ida could not help but draw the conclusion that her own motivations held no regard for the future or the hope for survival. While Chief Si'Iti strived to one day be a Captain in her own right, Ida had no such visions for herself.

"Like I told our new First Officer in the Brig after I stunned him, ensuring that he was - indeed - not like Sonja Acreth, you should know that the safety of the crew is my primary concern, not my bloody career on that outlaw ship." She finished another calibration before looking up towards the scaled woman at the front of the Allegiant's bridge.

"I have no hopes about my own advancement or glory. I am not like my Keth back home on Andoria; pompous arses with political gain in the forefront of their minds. I serve Wenn Cinn and Captain Ives, and I do so at my best capacity, addressing any threat to our cause and ensuring that the mission is accomplished, but most importantly, that our crew make it through this. I care not whether I am promoted or demoted as long as we don't surrender."

Starting a new calibration of the port and aft phaser array, Ida continued, eyes dropping to her console. "My choices should not reflect on others, however, for I do not belittle those who harbours hopes about the future. I just can't vest my focus on what is to come... when protection and perseverance is so often about the day, hour and moment of my duties - when timing is the difference between life and death."

The past, however, is an entirely different story... Images of the Niga Incident flashed before her eyes.

"What I do take into risk-assessment over time, however, is leadership. While not my finest hours, I have both threatened and questioned my superior officers, put their flaws into light. Not because I yearned for their positions, but because them being in command could endanger the lives of the crew I swore to protect. Even the shuttle pilots and navigators need a leader, not to mention the ones who are at the helm when you are not. So I feel compelled to ask... what kind of leader would you be to them?"

As she asked her question, her blue eyes had flicked up to meet the Cardassian's - the impromptu trial suddenly evident in the atmosphere of the bride.

Re: DAY 01: SAR Away-Mission [1150 hrs.]

Reply #29 –
[ Maya | USS Allegiant | Medical Bay ]  Attention: Hildebrant, Herbert.

From Petty Officer Hildebrant's questions, it was apparent that Maya's earlier attempt to undo T'Rena's programming may have been unsuccessful.  That was hardly surprising, giving his delirious state and the fatigue Maya experienced after freeing the minds of his shipmates.  There was also the possibility that Hildebrant would continue to follow Vasser's agenda of his own free will after sacrificing so much for it.  The loss of his leg, combined with the pain of his injuries and the loss of his ship could very easily make the man that T'Rena had programmed unrecoverable.  But was Hildebrant still a loyal to Vasser's misguided mission?  It was possible that the unvarnished truth would invoke a reaction that could make a diagnosis definite, even for one who had difficulty reading faces as much as Maya did.  The little Vulcan looked at her hands as she massaged her long spidery fingers before turning her large hazel eyes to the patient and speaking.

"Captain Ives has regained control of his ship," she informed him.  "The Theurgy took many casualties during the mutiny, but fortunately survivors from your ship are available to fill the gaps.  Fortunately Lieutenant zh'Wann, Doctor Duv, and Ensign Slayton were recovered immediately after the battle.  They are alive and well and have been cleared for duty."

Re: DAY 01: SAR Away-Mission [1150 hrs.]

Reply #30 –
[ USS Allegiant | Natalie Stark | Captain's Quarters | 1350 hrs. ]  Attn: Carla Abner
The question for Natalie was how to handle that question. She eyed Abner, looking over the worn blonde with her unkept hair, and nodded once. There would be no sugarcoating then, just forthright honesty. The Ensign and her group had earned that right. Behind focused eyes she saw death of the Calamity in her mind once more, saw the Harbinger crash into the last vector of that hellship, like a flaming arrow shot from some god's bow, living up to its name as it explded and drove Callie from the universe with the firey death of a warp core breach.

"There is no Calamity" Natalie began, her eyes sweeping over the crew before her, "But the mines weren't enough. The ship was caught by them and they worked, but the holographic warship managed to keep one of its vectors intact. A nasty fight ensued, but," she paused and glanced at a bulkhead. Through that wall, across the ship, was Ida zh'Wann, whom had held the conn of the Harbinger as the ship rammed itself into the Calamity, "It wasn't going well. You know however, that your own vessle had already been set to self destruct, yes?"

Waiting until she got a round of nods she then continued, "A mixed group of crew from both of our ships piloted the Harbinger into the remaining Calamity vector. The collission and following detenation of the Akira-class' warp  core was sufficent to wipe Calamity out of existence. For now, we are only being pursued by all of Starfleet, not some demon ship from the future as well."

Re: DAY 01: SAR Away-Mission [1150 hrs.]

Reply #31 –
[ USS Allegiant | Aisha S'iti | Bridge | ] Attn: ThanIda zh'Wann

With her words a realization dawned on Aisha that she had not even contemplated on.  Leadership, something she had felt she had left behind for so long was what she had essentially tried to thrust herself back into.  She thought herself a pilot, a person who steered a ship.  Never had she been considering her post outside of that to her the rank meant potential to be considered qualified for more difficult duties outside of her post. Perhaps the option to voice her opinion on the best way to get to a place or even hat the bst option n where to go would be rather than just being the highest ranking person with the power to steer the ship where the captain told her to point it.

But, she in her trying ways the Andorian brought to light something Aisha had not even thought to notice.  To the pilots who wore red rather than white she was the senior officer.  She was the one they would look at as an example in this post whether she were an officer or a senior Non-com.  However there was a difference in ho those blow often looked at their superior when in the differing roles.  With a senior noncom the superior was viewed as experienced someone you should learn from about the field but not necessarily the person you were told you should emulate on a daily basis.  A senior noncom could be a bit more rough around the edges.  even more outspoken and uncouth.  But as a senior officer when your staff looked at you they expected a paragon of Starfleeet.  You were the person they were supposed to not just look up to and learn from but thy expect your actions to be what they are supposed to emulate.

Aisha looked up trying to respond to the Andorian's question but really there was only one thing that seemed to come to her mind.  She knew it wasn't an answer to the question but it was the only thought she seemed to be able to vocalize at the moment. "For now, I just hope, I can fill the void that Winter left behind."

Re: DAY 01: SAR Away-Mission [1150 hrs.]

Reply #32 –
[ USS Allegiant ]

And so the Harbinger survivors aboard the Allegiant learned - bit by bit - what had happened in the battle against the Calamity. How Commander Trujillo had set the Harbinger to self-destruct, and how loyalists to Ives had rammed the Akira-class ship. Even the fact that ThanIda zh'Wann was aboard was brought up, but the Andorian did not leave the bridge to confront the crew that had put her into the Brig.

Perhaps it was for the better, since they had a mission to accomplish, and the next planet was coming in on long-range sensors.


[ Escape Pod 19 | Atmospheric Entry | Two Days Ago ]

"Hold on!" Lieutenant Cody yelled. The escape pod rattled and creaked.

"If we don't kill the engines now the whole thing is gonna burn up!" Chief Petty Officer Curt Lucas screamed. The lights flickered briefly then shut out. The screams of six terrified humans filled the small, dark space as it plummeted down into the unknown. Even though he was an engineer, Curt couldn't do one damn thing.

Helpless in the face of death, swallowing his fear... closing his eyes and praying in fiery free-fall.


[ Planet KE 286583 S - "Varcae" | Crash Site | Two Days Ago ]

Soft, yellow light filtered through the holes and cracks in the escape pod. One by one the crew woke up. Lieutenant Jacqueline Cody; Science Officers Amy Jenson and Loclan Tsan, a botanist and a chemist respectively; Nurse Harry Pitt; Cadet Adam Knott; and Chief Petty Officer Curt Lucas. The only one who didn't wake up was Melanie. Ensign Melanie Konzola would never see that light or any other. Strapped to her seat, a part of the metal casing of the pod was sticking out through her abdomen. She'd taken her last breath during the crash. Curt had looked at her, but he hadn't seen her - his thoughts deriving how the emergency thrusters on the pod must have saved them all.

The rest of the crew were comparatively unscathed. Obviously, there were cuts and bruises and no end of aches and pains but nothing life-threatening. Lieutenant Cody, the black woman from Tactical, she had quite a bad limp but Curt heard Nurse Pitt assuring her that it was just a couple of broken toes and a twisted ankle. Cadet Knott had lost a good deal of stomach lining after he had seen Melanie. None of them had quite known how to cope with Melanie as they scrambled out of the wreckage. They had a lot to process as they stood, hurt and confused, taking in their surroundings while Nurse Pitt assessed them with a medical tricorder. Curt noticed, absently, that Pitt seemed to be the only one able to pull himself together enough to be of any use right then.

The planet they stood on was anything but familiar. All they knew was that the pod's navigation systems had tagged it as 'Varcae' before they entered the atmosphere. Tall, pale green plants towered over them like soft, swaying trees. They were vine like with fine hair on their surface and had big leaves at the top that looked similar to venus fly traps. These plants reached up into a yellow sky and sprouted from soft, crumbly, orange soil. The ground was comprised of this soil, interrupted occasionally by strange hollows in the ground. The hollows were like inset metal dishes, a few feet wide. They were coppery, like shiny pennies of yore, with small green patches. Even the air was strange; it was warm and smelled faintly of sulphur and metal. Tiny birds flew through it up in the sky.

"Well, you're all fine for now. I don't know how long that will last though, this air doesn't smell particularly healthy." Nurse Pitt said. He had a brisk, authoritative manner but there was an edge to his voice that hinted at inner panic.

"Yeah, what is that smell?" Curt asked. He saw that Science Officer Tsan scrambled to get his scanner. Jenson was busy stroking Cadet Knott's back and trying to calm him. The boy was only eighteen and was nearly hyperventilating.

"On it," Tsan mumbled, taking readings.

"Well?" Lieutenant Cody asked, cocking a hip and folding her arms under her chest. "Are we all going to die right now or will we have to wait a few days until we starve?" She was clearly irritated, not just from her pain but the situation overall. So mad that she forgot proper conduct for her rank.

"Jackie, please! That won't happen. We should be able to scavenge enough from that..." Curt pointed a thumb at the wreckage of the pod next to them. "...to at least send a distress call."

Science Officer Tsan coughed politely. "Looks like the air is just barely breathable, but I can't tell how it will affect us in the long run. This planet is weird though - highly unstable. From my readings, it would seem that the water has higher levels of sulphuric acid than would be expected and most of the land is copper based. The area we're in at the moment is stable but we'd better hope it doesn't rain." Tsan said.

"What happens if it rains?" asked Cody, her dark brows drawn down. 

Tsan looked uncomfortable. "One hell of a chemical reaction. The acid rain will cause corrosion of any exposed copper. You don't want to breathe in the fumes from that. Plus I'm not sure how strong the acid rain would be but I'm guessing it would sting more than a little if you got caught out in it. "

There was a moment of silence as the others processed this information.

"We'd best get a move on before there are any little showers then, I suppose. I don't fancy getting choked or melted." Cody said with a humourless laugh.

Curt threw her a disapproving look but nodded in agreement. "We'd best see if we can salvage any of the communication system."

"Before you do…" They turned to look as Science officer Jenson spoke. She'd moved away from Cadet Knott, instead scanning one of the plants while the others had been talking. "There's something you should know about these big plants."

"Are they going to make us melt too?" The limping lieutenant asked.

"Not exactly. They're not exactly plants either.  They're more like animals than plants. They have copper based blood like vulcans and if my scans are right…" She trailed off as she looked up at tops of the green vines. The others' gazes followed hers. As they watched, they saw the leaves at the top of the plant open wide and snap one of the little birds right out of the air. Jenson gulped.

"They're carnivorous."


[ Present Day | 1420 hrs.] Attn: 1) Brutus 2) Doc M. 3) IronFerrox 4) Auctor Lucan

Two days had passed. Two horrible days. A lot could change in that time.

The survivors were residing in a cave, none of them in good shape. Tsan was seemingly mute. The journey to their makeshift shelter had not gone well. The plants had left them alone at first, not really registering their presence until Science Officer Jenson had the great idea of trying to take a sample of their flesh to test for edibility. The plant let out a banshee's screech and all hell broke loose. They lost Lieutenant Cody to the plant creatures as they ran. She just couldn't keep up. The things could lunge and whip like enormous tentacles.

Next, the wildlife had found them. Nightmarish beasts that looked like a combination of hyenas and reptiles. They secreted some kind of oily substance that made them virtually invisible at night. They never saw them coming until it was too late. Whenever his mind strayed, Curt couldn't stop himself from hearing Cadet Knott's screams - the unfiltered fear and echoed agony as he was dragged off into the darkness. Torn to pieces while still alive. Harry Pitt had his jugular torn out right away. At lest the Nurse hadn't screamed.

Eventually, Curt and the two surviving scientists had fond the cave to take refuge in. It seemed that the predators were not as active during the day, but the cave was as much a trap as a refuge - death awaiting right outside. Tsan seemed like he had given up. Curt couldn't remember when the chemist had spoken last. Amy Jenson was, perhaps in desperation, doing her best to remain calm, but asking questions all the time.

In their cave, they waited for rescue. They'd found enough parts to jumble together a device that was sending out a weak distress call. The transmission probably wouldn't get far but they would just have to hope that luck would bring another ship close enough to receive it. Curt Lucas hadn't told Jenson and Tsan how unreliable and weak his device really was but he had a feeling that they had guessed.

Amy had grabbed some containers of water before they left the crash site, but it wasn't enough to last the two days that they'd been waiting. They would just have to wait, faint from hunger and dizzy from thirst as the wildlife awaiting outside their barricade.

As Curt sat near the entrance to the cave, looking out over the jagged mountain terrain, he grimly noticed something that might prevent them from dying from thirst or hunger.

The sky was clouding over.

Wait... What is that?

OOC: The acidic rain will sweep over the mouth of the cave in five minutes. The comm signal fluctuates, making exact triangulation and contact through the makeshift device difficult. Transmissions will be loud, voice-like static, almost incomprehensible. The source of the distress signal can be determined within 300 meters from the air. The mountains and the ground is jagged, making landing difficult. Best LZ option is 100 meters out from the cave.

Brutus (or IronFerrox?), descend and give orders or suggestions on approach.

Here is the list of NPC:s. Crossed names represent dead people:

ESCAPE POD 19 - VARCAE SURVIVORS

LT Jacqueline Cody       Tactical
CPO Curt Lucas           Engineering Officer
CWM Amy Jenson           Botanical Scientist
CWM Loclan Tsan          Chemical Scientist
CWM Harry Pitt           Medical Officer
CWM Melanie Konzola      CONN Officer
CDT Adam Knott           Operations Officer

Re: DAY 01: SAR Away-Mission [1150 hrs.]

Reply #33 –
[ Maya | USS Allegiant | Bridge | 1420 hrs ]  Attention: Stark, Ida & S'Iti.

In the meantime, the USS Allegiant soared through the air high above the clouds.  Sitting in the mission op/comm seat to the left of the captain's chair was Ensign Maya.  Her patient was currently left in the care of Nurse Herbert, leaving the green blooded physician free for bridge duty.

"Scanning the surface of Planet KE 286583 S now Commander," the little Vulcan reported as her long spidery fingers dance across her LCARS panel.  "The planet is class L, and was named 'Varcae' thirty-six years ago when it was discovered that the native life was carnivorous.  Nitrogen-oxygen atmosphere with strong traces of carbon dioxide and sulphur.  The soil in the mountains beneath us has a large amount of copper laced with kelbonite that is interfering with our scans.  Metrological activity indicates that rain is imminent in the area, causing a chemical reaction that will render the air toxic.  The precipitation itself will contain traces of sulphuric acid, although how concentrated that acid will be is variable."

Maya looked up from her readings to send what she thought was an apologetic glance at Natalie.  Maya thought her expression was apologetic anyway.  To most people she just seemed to be staring.  "My apologies Commander, but I cannot pinpoint the signal.  It is very weak and the kelbonite deposits combined with the metrological interference is causing it to fluctuate.  I cannot even lock on to any combadges.  The survivors, if they exist, must be in a shielded area of some kind."


The sad truth was that Maya was a medical doctor, not a science or tactical officer.  Perhaps one of the others knew a technique that would shrink the search area.


OOC:  If we've only got five minutes I've made the assumption that the Allegiant has the right planet and hemisphere.  If we're supposed to have more information, I'm confidant that another character can provide it.  (I'm also making the assumption that the transpoders in the combages of the dead people are no longer working and that the weather combined with the cave itself is preventing Maya from locking on to the survivors.)

Re: DAY 01: SAR Away-Mission [1150 hrs.]

Reply #34 –
[ USS Allegiant | Aisha S'iti | Bridge | ]

The young woman looked down at the topographical sensor data she was receiving from the flight sensors and remembered an old trick from her days with the Maquis, if you cant pinpoint something then eliminate everywhere it cant be and take a guess from what's left.  "Hey doc, I got it!" she said bringing the ship to a stop mid air. at a point where they were receiving the signal but still couldn't pinpoint it.  "Computer, overlap current meteorological, and geological data maps and highlight all points where a signal like the one we are receiving could be transmitted from, and still be received by us."  The computer highlighted a large section of the map.  "Now eliminate all points that would allow for a signal that you could derive the signal's position from."  A much larger section of the map was eliminated  but there was still a large section that the signal could be from and canvasing the entire area would take too long.  She began to think looking down at information about the planet and the topographical data.  "Of course!" she thought aloud.  "Being exposed is suicide in this environment.  Too many predators," she considered. "Computer, eliminate all locations that are not within or within 10 meters of cave like structures."  All but one location disappeared. 

The Cardassian smirked. "We're coming for ya." she said as she plotted the course and engaged the engines.  "Computer give me a topographical readout of the location around the mouth of that cave I'm gonna need a clean LZ as close to it as I can.  Doctor, Direct all communications scanning equipment at our current heading.  I'm going to do a low to ground flyover of the area if the transmitter is down there we should be able to pinpoint it at close range.   Once we get a communications lock send a general ID transponder so thy know we are from the Theurgy and inform them to prepare for an immediate combat zone Evac."  she turned to the the Commander of the mission "I recommend we get a few type threes ready, native fauna may be hostile.  They will be expecting a combat evacuation so our weapons shouldn't alarm them.  We don't have time to screen them before letting them on board so I recommend they be quarantined within the aft cargo bay until Maya can tend to them. one by one in the med bay.  Recommending we keep the bridge locked to all but Stark until all crew are deemed safe.  Shields can take the acid rain just fine so once all are on board all we need to do is raise shields and we will be safe so an immediate launch is not a priority.  Recommending myself and Ida for Ground EVA.  You will remain in command here on the bridge and Maya will remain on ship to tend to medical needs once they are on-board.  If you feel she would be an asset, Abner may also be a useful addition to EVA ops, or may be useful aiding Maya as a nurse."

Re: DAY 01: SAR Away-Mission [1150 hrs.]

Reply #35 –
[ Natalie Stark | USS Allegiant | Bridge | 1420 hrs ]  Attention: Maya, Ida & S'Iti.

Tension was high on the cramped bridge, as Natalie looked over her left shoulder towards Dr. Maya. She rested her chin on the top of her left hand - curled into a fist - and tired yet again to project a steady aura of calm. Whether that worked or not was anyone's guess however. Her head had turned from the viewscreen, that showed the planet Varcae, to give the vulcan her full attention. She listened dilligently and nodded, masking her own dismay over the presence of kelbonite  - a mineral she was rather familair with.

"Thank you, Doctor," she quietly said, but before she could continue the Cardassian pilot spoke up -

""Hey doc, I got it."" drawing the attention of the bridge crew forward to the helm.

"Beg pardon, Master Chief?" Asked Natalie, leaning forward now, no longer leaning on her hand. She added no more inturruptions of her own as she listend to Aisha rattle off a series of filtering orders to the ships computer, nodding slowly as she grasped what the other woman was up to. A smile tugged at the corner of her lips,  but quickly faded. She could follow the read out as well as the rest of them could.

"I agree in principle with what you're saying, Master Cheif," Natalie replied after a moments consideration. "We're going to need to bring the ship down about there. A hundred meters out," she pointed to the map, standing and approaching the screen that they all could see. "Bring us in fast, doing a fly over of the cave, and set us down ready to go, Miss S'Ithi, then yes, gear up and go with Lt. zh'Wann." She shot the Andorian a glance and a sharp nod. "Doctor," she turned to Maya, "Get that message out to them as best you can. I know there's interfeerenc, but start blasting it on all channels. If you can blast it out of the hull speakers when we do the fly by. Every little bit."

She moved back to sit in the chair, and resisted the urge to scowl. Yet again she was going to have to stay back with the ship, but she knew that was the tactically sound choice. "Computer, enable access restriction to the bridge, Level 8 clearance." That would bump up the restrictions so that only she could allow anyone in or out. Bleatedly realzing that she may have needed to wait until after landing, she added, "Set security for entering only. Free disembark. Authorization Stark - Sigma-Delta-Niner." It was an awkward way to word it all, but it got the job done.

"Ensign Abnder," she called out as the ship came about, descending towards the surface, "We're about to pick up a few more of your friends. Landing zone is likely hot, and we're going to need your support in bringing our missing people home safe. Report to Lt. zh'Wann in the aft loading bay. Stark out."

She didn't wait for an answer from the blonde refugee, beore adressing MCPO S'Iti, "Time till arrival?" She asked, leaning back in the chair and trying to project that aura of calm.

OOC: Little rambly but I think it does the job of portraying someone trying to convey a sense of calm when they are anything but.

Re: DAY 01: SAR Away-Mission [1150 hrs.]

Reply #36 –
[ ThanIda zh'Wann | USS Allegiant | Bridge | 1420 hrs ]  Attention: 1) Maya 2) S'Iti 3) Brutus or Auctor Lucan

"ETA thirty seconds. If S'iti is to come along, she will have to plot the landing for the computer and join me in the armoury at once. Every second count, and we need to arm ourselves," replied Ida  instead of Chief S'Iti, and the Andorian Deputy stepped away from the tactical station, heading for the exit. On the way out, she locked eyes with the Vulcan doctor, "By Lor'Vela, make them leave their shelter and come out into the open. They will need to meet us halfway there or we'll not make it back in time."

Leaving the bridge, the Cardassian soon at her heels, Ida's brisk pace led them to the Allegiant's sole weapons locker, where she tapped in her code and deftly withdrew two Type III assault rifles, one each, slinging one over her shoulder. Putting one hand on the Cardassian's hip to keep her still, she then holstered a handphaser on the other hip, then she added two photon grenades in the loops below the holster before arming herself with the same gear. There was no time for talk, nor to think. Better to not think about how they were about to risk their lives, perhaps getting caught in the rain between the Allegiant and the survivors' hiding place. If there had been more time, they would have donned the exo-suits. As it were, they only had a couple of minutes before the effects of the rain would suffocate the survivors in their hiding place. Then again, at least they would not have to feel their skin melt off them before they died.

"Let's go," was all she said, clapping the Chief on the shoulder before getting a third rifle and taking point down the corridor- heading out to the aft air-lock . On the way there, she made sure the power cell was fully charged in both the rifles she carried and set them on the highest kill-setting. She was not going to take any chances with Varcae's wildlife.

Ensign Abner was already in the aft loading bay, and as soon as Ida arrived, she tossed the third rifle to the blonde pink skin. "Protect the loading bay and give us cover fire if possible. We don't want anything sneaking up behind us. Open the bay door." Ida could only hope Maya had got all bad ideas out of the woman's head.

"Aye, Lieutenant," said Abner and took position next to the air-lock, pushing up against the bulkhead with her rifle ready. She entered a command into the control panel, and then the whoosh of Vercae's barely breathable air filled the loading bay, and Ida narrowed her eyes against the yellow light. The Allegiant was still in the air, about to touch down, and while the sweeping vista outside the bay doors compelled her artistic mind, she knew it to be treacherous beauty. She tapped her combadge.

"zh'Wann to Bridge, I'm keeping this channel open. We're moving out!" With a couple of meters left before the Allegiant touched the ground, Ida leapt out of the loading bay and landed on the relatively smooth stone ledge of the LZ. Without pause, she took point, traversing the jagged terrain at a break-neck pace towards the suspected cavern - set deep in the base of a soaring cliff-face. No errant thought was spent on the fact that she might die in just a couple of minutes. She could not afford to think on it, just focusing on getting the survivors to the Allegiant in time.

"Come on!" she called to the Cardassian, and leapt to hoist herself up on a ledge, then rounding on the woman and extending a hand to help her up. That's when she spotted the movements in the mountainous terrain - the starved creatures of Varcae coming to greet them with their blood-thirst. There were far too many of them. "We've got company..."

That was when the fight for survival began, with no time to loose their pace. Abner had already opened fire to protect herself and the loading bay. There was no chance they'd get any cover fire from her. Ida bared her teeth in refusal to the realisation that they would never make it back - not yielding to her doubt. Fighting together with Aisha, time and hope quickly bled away without reaction from the barricaded survivors.

Re: DAY 01: SAR Away-Mission [1150 hrs.]

Reply #37 –
[ Maya | USS Allegiant | Bridge | 1420 hrs ]  Attention: Stark, Ida & S'Iti.
   
"Doctor," Commander Stark had said to Maya, "Get that message out to them as best you can. I know there's interference, but start blasting it on all channels.  If you can blast it out of the hull speakers when we do the fly by.  Every little bit."

Maya had acknowledged the order and complied by broadcasting the Allegiant's location as well as identifying the ship's yacht as a 'rescue ship' to make it obvious that that this was indeed a rescue and not a hunt for fugitives.  When zh'Wann and S'Iti had disembarked,  Maya was monitoring their progress from the mission op/comm station. 

"zh'Wann to Bridge, I'm keeping this channel open. We're moving out!" ThanIda zh'Wann's disembodied voice reported.

"Acknowledged, zh'Wann, we are tracking your progress," the little Vulcan replied.

Currently most of the seats on the bridge were empty.  None of the survivors they had plucked off Aeron-2514 were trained for bridge operations with the possible exception of Ensign Abner and even if they had Lieutenant Stark had given no indication that she was willing to give any of them bridge access.  As a matter of fact, Maya had been surprised to discover that they were willing to give Carla Abner access to a phaser rifle.  She approved of the decision, despite not giving any indication either way.  Arming Ensign Abner meant that the Harbinger survivors were being accepted as shipmates aboard the Theurgy, regardless of the betrayal of the Harbinger's captain.  The sooner the survivors became assimilated into the Theurgy's roster, the better.

The main view screen displayed a topological map of the surrounding area with an icon representing the Allegiant in the center.  Two smaller arrowhead shaped icons were moving away from the center, representing the transponder signals coming from the combadges worn by zh'Wann and S'Iti.  So far the rain hadn't started, but it was just a matter of time.  Based on what she was hearing from the away team's combadges, the native lifeforms would kill them before the storm hit.

Suddenly, an epiphany struck the little Vulcan.  "Commander the lifeforms found on this planet are similar to creatures found in the Sa'Kir region of my world," she reported as her long spidery fingers danced across her console.  "It is possible that we could broadcast a frequency that would disrupt their nervous systems and render them temporarily harmless.  Unfortunately, such a broadcast would also disrupt Lieutenant zh'Wann's sense of balance."

Re: DAY 01: SAR Away-Mission [1150 hrs.]

Reply #38 –
[ Aisha S'Iti | USS Allegiant | Bridge | 1420 hrs ]  Next post:  Brutus or Auctor Lucan

Quickly plotting in the landing vector S'iti jumped from her seat and quickly caught up with the Andorian security officer.  Feelingthe hand at her hip to still her movements the cardassian remined still as the security officer armed her.  Out of her own instinct she checked the settings and power cell before doing the same with the type two on her hip as she made her way to the back of the ship where the loading bay was.

Hot on Ida's heels Siti found herself with by hostile life forms incoming from two separate directions and was soon in a firefight she had not seen in ages.  Luckily her training hadn't went away completely as she quickly raised her rifle and took a knee.  Soon Aisha and Ida were facing each other and essentially covering each other's backs when she heard the hail from the Vulcan doctor.  "Roger that, Ida go prone and use my shoulder like a tripod.  if you focus like you are at a steady gun emplacement it'll help with your balance."  She said going still and limiting her movement to angle her shots using arms more than movements of her whole body while covering Ida's rear as she trusted Ida to cover hers dispute the likely implementation of the impromptu sonic weapon.  Hoping the disruption would allow the survivors to get to their location so they could fall back to the Allegiant.

Re: DAY 01: SAR Away-Mission [1150 hrs.]

Reply #39 –
[  Lt Cmdr Natalie Stark | Captains bunk - USS Allegiant | en-route to next pick up| 1400 hrs] Atten: all

As the ramp lowered, the ship tilted  slightly before realigning itself. The main view screen showed their descent, but a small corner of it was reconverted to display the feed from the aft bay. Abner taking the rifle, and then Ida leaping out of the still moving ship. They set down as the Andorian ran ahead, and Natalie could feel the jarring affect the landing. The computer did not perform nearly as smooth a descent as Aisha S'iti was clearly capable of conducting.

Instead of ordering someone else to reconfigure the view screen, Natalie did it herself from one of the control consoles built into the arm rest of the center chair. The display reconfigured to show Ida and Aisha racing  across the ground as the wildlife all around them attacked. Her fingers dug into the arm rests and she ground her teeth slowly. This wasn't working she told herself.

Doctor Maya broke her train of thoughts with a possible solution to their violent flora and fauna issue. Natalie listened as first the Vulcan, and then the Cardassian chimed in, and weighed the odds. Make a decision. Whatever you do, make a decision. There was her mantra again, and so that's exactly what she did.

"Do it Doctor, and be quick about it. Lieutenant, brace yourself," she added to Ida, her tone clipped, concise, no hint of despite, nerves, or apology in her voice. Just concise command, as she too braced herself, waiting to see the effects of the sonic waves on the locals - and Ida zh'Wann. She could only hope this worked, and that it didn't adversely impact the Andorian Security Deputy. Or any of the survivors they hoped to rescue. Too late to worry about that...

ooc: Just a small post to move things along a bit

Re: DAY 01: SAR Away-Mission [1150 hrs.]

Reply #40 –
[ Maya | USS Allegiant | Bridge | 1420 hrs ]  Attention: Stark, Ida & S'Iti.
   
"Aye-aye Commander," Maya acknowledged as her long spidery fingers danced over the LCARS panel.  The action was sound in theory.  The hostile vegetation was uncannily similar to the Hir'ka'deth's in the Sa'Kir region in Vulcan's southern hemisphere.  Back when Maya was a girl, her people had handled them by broadcasting a frequency outside the range of human hearing.  This allowed naturalists to get close to them, despite the headaches that frequency caused.  Maya was unfamiliar with what they did in the Sa'Kir region nowadays.  She had focused her academic pursuits on topics that were not native to Vulcan.

The trouble was, back in the 22nd century the Vulcan High Command experimented with the procedure as a potential weapon against the Andorians.  Although no Andorians were ever subject to involuntary tests, tests on animals from Andoria indicated that the blue skinned species would be susceptible.  While most anthropomorphic species used the semicircular canals of the ears for balance, the Andorians used the exterior antenna protruding from their skulls.  For some reason the exposed antenna were more susceptible to the sonic frequency than interconnected tubes inside the Cardassian or Vulcan ear.

The important thing was not to make the broadcast so strong that it damaged the hearing or the nervous system of the Starfleet personnel outside on Varcae's surface.  Moderation was the key.

"Transmitting broadcast in five, four, three, two, one, mark," she murmured as she activated the signal.  She listened closely to the away team's reports to ensure that she didn't turn it on too loud.

Re: DAY 01: SAR Away-Mission [1150 hrs.]

Reply #41 –
[ ThanIda zh'Wann | Varcae ] Attention: 1) S'Iti 2) Stark 3) Maya

Hearing Maya's new tactic, Ida curled her upper lip while she fired against the creatures that came at her and S'Iti. Her personal compunctions aside, the fact that the survivors had not emerged from the cavern yet and because of the pending rain, she was not sure the Vulcan's method would be enough since they still had to get the survivors to the Allegiant. The short-term solution of immobilising the wildlife was, however, first priority.

"Acknowledged," she said through her teeth when Stark gave the order. The cacophony of snarling beasts overrode the precursor wind for the rainstorm. Doctor Maya was already counting down on the Allegiant. S'Iti wanted for them to remain, but Ida shook her head while she shot another creature that was leaping towards them. "Negative! We must get the survivors out of there! They might have barricaded themselves against the creatures! I will lean on you if I have to but we must keep mov-. Arrgh!"

When it came, it was like she had been hurled head-first into a bulkhead. Ida went down on one knee, almost falling over. She swore and covered her eyes as she pressed her fingers into her temples. It was like Maya was drilling two holes into her skull with a pulse phaser, right where her antennae sprouted from her head, and from the sound the creatures around them made, they were not too keen about the frequency either. That was all that mattered. Baring her teeth, Ida reached out, fumbling for a hold on Aisha so that she could straighten up and move. She caught the Cardassian's waistline and pulled herself up so that she could wrap one arm around her shoulders. She squinted against the yellow light, breathing heavily, but she was not about to fall back. She hissed through her teeth, trying to steer their step in the right direction. "Move it, spoon-head... No time..."

Ten quick steps she managed, then the terrain became too much of an obstacle for Ida's painful vertigo to continue, stumbling and loosing her hold on Aisha as she did. She ended up on her side, but she kept her rifle from slamming against the bedrock. "Not... working. too slow.. you have to go..." she growled, picking herself up and slinging the rifle across her back, drawing the handphaser instead. Tears of pain ran down from the scowl she wore. "Go! I am... slowing you down... and you need to get them out! Run!"

Hissing her breaths through her teeth, she began the tumbling trek back towards the Allegiant, handphaser raised before herself to shoot any creature that might move her way despite the sonic broadcast. Her footing was unsure. The wind made her hair get in the way for her aim, and she had to catch herself against whatever she could lest she'd fall over. The screeching beasts barely noticed her, but the ones that did were promptly vaporised. Blinking away tears of agony, denying the existence of her fear, Thea saw Abner in the distance. The pinkskin was abandoning her post in the aft bay and coming towards her - running as quickly as she could towards Ida with the obvious intent to help her getting back aboard the yacht. The implications of Abner meaning to help her despite the risk to her own life did not escape Ida...

...but the sight of the acidic rain washing across the landscape caught her attention - raising toxic clouds no more than fifty meters behind the Allegiant. The hard wind had cut their time short... and they were all going to die out in the open. "It's too late... The rain is coming..."


[ Meanwhile | In the Cave ] Attn: S'Iti

"It is our only means to escape! We have to get to that shuttle!" shouted Curt with his face twisted in a mix of anger and fear, his phaser raised towards Tsan. The chemist was shaking his head in answer behind the sights of his own phaser, tears in his eyes. Amy Jenson had backed up against the damp wall, shaking, unable to decide who was right between the two men with the phasers.

"We won't make it..." said the Science Officer, Tsan breathing quickly in the panic that permeated the air in the cavern, "they will tear us apart... just like they did to the others! I can't let you pull down the barricade, Curt! You are not alone in this. The air inside here might last, but out there, we will either get caught in the rain or get eaten!"

"They have come to extract us, you fucking idiot, but we have to go now!"

"They were too late! The rain is sweeping in now!"

Curt felt the seconds bleed away in futility, and while they argued, his makeshift communication device on the floor was transmitting the garbled message from the Allegiant, a recording of a passionless voice repeating itself - a static screech for them to come out and show themselves. Nerves frayed and at the end of his wits, Curt gestured. "Amy, you must save yourself. Remove the barricade and let them see you, and you must run to the shuttle. Its phasers will protect you."

"If you go out there, Amy, you will die. Don't listen to him! Don't you dare take down the barricade!"

Amy took out her own phaser, and Curt narrowed his eyes at her for a moment. "What are you doing?"

"Shot him, Amy!" said Tsan, hands shaking, but she was still balancing the knife's edge between hope and despair, crying in fear. She looked ready to put the phaser to her own head, convinced that they they were all going to die. Perhaps that was her answer, to kill herself swiftly instead of suffocating on toxic air, melt in the rain, or get torn to shreds by the demons outside.

Finger trembling on the button of his phaser, Curt realised that he might have to stun Tsan and leave him to die if he wanted to survive, and he was not sure if Amy would follow him. He had never killed anyone before, but he might not have a choice...

Re: DAY 01: SAR Away-Mission [1150 hrs.]

Reply #42 –
[ Aisha S'Iti | Varcae ]  Next post: Stark

"Move it, spoon-head... No time..."
"Not... working. too slow.. you have to go..."
"Go! I am... slowing you down... and you need to get them out!
Run!"

Aisha nodded accepting Ida's choice before doing as ordered but as she ran she hit her combadge.  "Siti to Allegiant Ida sent me out alone to the survivors.  Keep this com line open. If I can get the survivors out of their hideout you can cut through the interference and beam us out, not sure there is time to RTB before the rain hits."  she said running through the brush rifle at her shoulder catching one of the predatory creatures, she couldn't tell if it was one of the animals or one of the plants but whichever it was she didn't stop to consider before she pivoted and opened fire sending two bolts into its midsection before breaking back into a run towards what appeared to be a cliff face.

Now that she was nearer the cliff face was far from a strait edge but there was a overhanging roof of rock coming out about 4 meters in front of the entrance of a cave.  A cave that she heard voices arguing within and soon saw a barricade in-front of her as she turned on the light on the phaser rifle.  "Annoyed that they hadn't did as ordered and evacuated, she shouted, "Stand back from the barricade, and move your asses when it's gone!  We ain't got time for this shit." she added muttered to herself as she pulled one of the grenades and sat the timer on it placing it at the center of the barricade.  as she placed the device she shouted through the barricade.  "Photon grenade primed 5 sec delay" then added. "Fire in the hole!"  before and running back out of the cave and placing her back to the wall outside.  A bright flash of light illuminated the cave and she ran back in seeing the red glow of rock that had been nearly melted in places and an exactly 1 meter radius hole of nothing centered at where the barricade once was.  "I said Move!"  she shouted at the group within the cave again making it clear that she was in no mood at all to wait.

Re: DAY 01: SAR Away-Mission [1150 hrs.]

Reply #43 –
[  Lt Cmdr Natalie Stark | Bridge - USS Allegiant | Varcae] Atten: all

Shit Natalie thought to herself as she monitored the storm coming in. Ida went down, and Aisha kept on running, making her attempt to get to the survivors - hopefully there were survivors! - trapped in the cave. She listened to the Cardassian bark out orders and get no response. She listened to Ida, gasping as the vertigo washed over her, trying to get back to the ship.

"No time..." she whispered, then sprung into action. Make a decision, any decisions and she did, slipping into the pilots seat fingers flying, bringing the ship up off the dirt. "We can't leave them out there, we have to tyr something else," she said, as if explaining her decision, justifying it to herself, or perhaps Dr. Maya.

"Bring up the transporters," she ordered. "The interference is too great to target the caves but as we pass over Ida and Abner, beam them both up, and get ready to do the same with CPO S'iti." That time it was an order she barked out, swinging the ship back down in a shaky descent. The storm was on their heels, and she had to time this just right, or her people were going to have the skin melted from their bones.

Triggering the external comm's she called out, hoping that someone inside that cave could hear her - she knew Aisha and Abner would, but she had no idea if Lt. zh'Wann was capable of comprehension at this point. "We're coming in hard an fast, be prepared to board stat. The rains right on our tail. If you don't move, now, you are as good as dead!"

She couldn't stress it any more then that. The Allegiant blew past the horde of local fauna, over top of the security officer where she struggled and Ens Abner ran to her rescue. Natalie could only hope the transporter picked up both women, and that the sonic assault kept the rest of the beasts from her. Her fingers danced, faster than she thought possible, wipping the ship around and firing retro thrusts - hopefully not blasting Aisha back from the cave entrance in the process. Natalie forced the ship to lower and slow, back door hanging open.

ooc: Let me know if this works for y'all

Re: DAY 01: SAR Away-Mission [1150 hrs.]

Reply #44 –
[ Maya | USS Allegiant | Bridge ]  Attention: Stark, Ida & S'Iti.

"Bring up the transporters," Lieutenant Commander Natalie Stark ordered. "The interference is too great to target the caves but as we pass over Ida and Abner, beam them both up, and get ready to do the same with CPO S'iti."

"Aye Ma'am; transferring control of the transporter to the bridge," the little Vulcan replied. Underneath Maya's graceful digits, the LCARS panel changed its configuration.  "Maya to medical bay," she called in a slightly louder voice.  "Mister Herbert, please head to the transporter room to assist personnel beaming up from the planet," she instructed as the Allegiant left the ground and banked through the air.  "We need to keep the transporter pads clear."

"Yes Doctor," Chief Petty Officer Jacques Hebert's disembodied voice replied.  "Understood."

"We're coming in hard and fast, be prepared to board stat. The rains right on our tail. If you don't move, now, you are as good as dead!" Natalie Stark announced to the away team as the yacht approached Ensign Abner and the helpless Andorian. 

"Kelbonite deposits interfering with sensor scans," Maya murmured as her long spidery fingers danced over her console.  "Relying on visual.  Locking onto zh'Wann and Abner now."  If Maya had any anxiety regarding this unorthodox method of using the transporter or the time constraints involved, she didn't show it.  Her agile hands didn't shake and her calm mezzosoprano voice didn't falter.  If anything she seemed to be exhibiting as much emotion as an android.  "Beaming them aboard now," she reported as her fingers slid down the three touch sensitive light bars that were the sequence indicators.

Down on Varcae's surface, zh'Wann and Abner vanished in a shower of sparks.

"Mister Herbert, are they aboard?" Maya asked as she trained the yacht's visual scanners on the cave.

"Aye  Ma'am," they're aboard," Herbert's voice replied.  "Moving them off the pads now."

Re: DAY 01: SAR Away-Mission [1150 hrs.]

Reply #45 –
[ ThanIda zh'Wann | Varcae > USS Allegiant ] Attention: 1) S'Iti 2) Stark 3) Maya

With her blonde hair whipping back and forth on the foul wind, Ensign Abner ran to Ida, and once she got to her, Ida used her shoulder for support to remain on her feet. They were in the midst of Varcae's fauna, and while they were disoriented and confused, some of them still saw the two women - leaping forth to satisfy their hunger. Ida and Abner opened fire, the Andorian setting her hand phaser to wide dispersal and the human firing phaser bolts into the snarling, clawing mass that encircled them. The rain was coming in fast, and Ida anticipated the first drops to hit them any moment.

Meanwhile, the Allegiant had taken off and was coming towards them. Lieutenant Commander Stark was calling to the survivors via the PA speakers on the yacht as it swept past above their heads. The hull of the Captain's Yacht cast them in shadow momentarily, but when the shadow passed, they were surrounded by the shimmering light of the transporters, and they vanished before the maws of the beasts could reach them,

When Ida materialised, the broadcast frequency that had accosted her senses was gone, and the stabilisation combined with the transport made her stumble off the transporter pad and into the arms of Jaques Hebert. Ida had to support herself on on the human's shoulder as she doubled over and retched on the floor. Even as she did, she was waving with her powered down phaser for Abner to get to the loading bay. "Help them... get aboard..."

The Ensign didn't have to be told twice, running out of the room and down the corridor.


[ Meanwhile ] Attn: S'Iti

The three survivors in the cave looked between each other when they heard the familiar voice of Aisha S'Iti outside their shelter, and neither of them spoke when she primed the photon grenade and told them it was time to blow. The ultimate decision that had driven a wedge between them had instead been made for them, and they were left with little choice but to take cover at the back of the shelter they'd found. Curt powered down his phaser and laid down flat on the stone floor, protecting his head. Then came the explosion, and while he'd had the sense to cover his ears, the cave was filled with smoke and he could not see anything.

"Amy? Tsan?" he called, coughing and covering his mouth and nose to not get the stone dust into his lungs. He holstered his weapon and flailed about to try and get a hold on either of them. Blinking rapidly, he tried to locate the light from the mouth of the cave. Vaguely, he thought he heard another female voice, an echo from the outside urging them to board, and he could use the sound as a sense of direction to find his way towards the mouth of the cave. As he emerged, the Cardassian was there, and the large shuttle was backing up against the cave with flaring retro thrusters. He saw the bedrock beyond the cave hissing as the rain hit it, raising smoke into the yellow light of day. Amy stumbled out of the cave as well, Tsan soon emerging as well.

Ensign Abner from the Harbinger appeared beyond the opened loading bay doors, and she leaned down with an outstretched hand. "Come on!" she called, eyes wide in a face kissed by the sun. Drops of rain hit Curt's clothes, and he felt pain from the top of his head, but he did not let it delay him as he climbed up and pulled Amy with him. Tsan leapt and caught Abner's hand, and he also managed to crawl aboard. Curt doubled back to the edge of the loading bay and laid down to grab for Aisha's arms, to try and help the Cardassian up as well.

"S'Iti!" His called to override the howling wind. He felt hands grabbing a hold of his clothes and legs behind him, keeping him from falling off and ready to hoist him and Aisha out of the rain. "Jump!"

Re: DAY 01: SAR Away-Mission [1150 hrs.]

Reply #46 –
[ Aisha S'Iti | Varcae ] Next: 1: short post with Ida (feel free to edit my post for inject Ida's actions Lucan) then 2: Stark 3: Maya 4:Ida / NPCs

The Cardassian braced herself to the cave opening when she felt the shuttles retrothrusters sending a force of what felt like dry hot air over her.  Bracing herself in the artificial wind she ran back into the cave.  "Transport inbound; Move out!" she shouted over the din  before spotting a few of the creatures rushing towards the now open cave.  Taking a knee she brought the phaser rifles scope to her eye and took aim before sending three bolts down range and into the nearest creature putting it down Sweeping to the side she spotted a small herd of them seeming to run in a blind disoriented rage even if she had a type 4 phaser turret there was no way she would be able to hold the stamped that was imminent.  A last desperate idea came to her mind before taping the com badge.  Ida, Bridge!  Charge forward phasers and roast these monsters!"

It was then that she felt the first drop of searing moisture hit her shoulder "shit!" she cursed under her breath through gritted teeth as she threw the Phaser up into the opening of the ship so she could help load the rest of them in.  One after another climbed into the ship as S'iti covered her mouth as best she could but soon felt her eyes begin to burn as a small wave of the sulfuric acid gas hit her.  Coughing she could barely hear the voice of Curt Yelling at her to Jump as she tried to open her eyes enough to barely see.  closing them again the pain from the gas becoming liquid acid on contact with the moisture of her eyes she blindly jumped and felt hr hands meet his as he began to pull her upwards and into the ship.

It was then that she had the moment to try and breathe that she was able to fully realize the intense pain.  Her chest began to feel as if it were on fire from the inside as the arosolized sulfuric acid began to bond with the water within her body and the inside of her lungs began to sear with pain as the acidic gas became a mist of liquid acid contacting and searing her lungs from the inside causing her to begin violently coughing.  she was barely aware enough to notice that she was far from the only one on the ground debilitated by the same intense and potentially soon to be fatal pain.

Re: DAY 01: SAR Away-Mission [1150 hrs.]

Reply #47 –
[ Maya | USS Allegiant | Bridge ]  Attention: Stark, Ida & S'Iti.

Back on the bridge, Maya suddenly became animated.  "The air in the entryway has become contaminated," she announced.  "Traces of sulfuric acid detected.  Cycling the air in the airlock now.  Activating fire suppression system on chemical burn setting," she continued as her long dexterous fingers danced across her panel.  "Releasing aerosolized saline into the air to counteract the acidic gas that has entered the lungs." 

She tapped her combadge.  "Mister Herbert, you have at least four patients suffering from sulfuric gas inhalation in the airlock," she announced.  "Bring sufficient quantities of tri-ox compound to oxygenate their blood until we can determine the damage to their respiratory systems.  I shall be joining you shortly."

She turned and stared at Natalie with her large unblinking hazel eyes.  "Commander, I request permission to leave the bridge."


Re: DAY 01: SAR Away-Mission [1150 hrs.]

Reply #48 –
[  Lt Cmdr Natalie Stark | Bridge - USS Allegiant | Varcae] Atten: all

She should be in a near blind panic; at least, that's what one tiny part of her mind felt. There was so much at stake, so much to balance - her foolish choice to send CPO S'iti and Lt. zh'Wann off on their own, the need to fly out and rescue Ida, and Ensign Abner - whom abandoned her post, but really, Natalie was not about to come down on the other woman for her actions, not a chance.

But she didn't have time for that panic. Maya beamed the human and Andorian aboard, and while Natalie allowed herself a small sigh of relief, there was still too much to do. Too much to relax. "Come on come on come on," she muttered under her breath, anxious for the survivors to respond, to show up to do anything! Her fingers flew across the controls, pulling the ship into position as best she could while it was buffeted by the cross winds. The rain was right on their tail, acid that could eat away at whatever survivors remained from the ill fated Harbinger. The Lieutenant Commander tried to lower the ship further, but couldn't risk actually setting down, and had to hope that the Allegiant was tilted at such an angle to make jumping aboard possible. It was all she could do.

And then they were on board and Natalie could shut the loading bay door, hopefully keeping the worst of the gasses from entering the ship. She began to pull the ship up, barely noticing as Ida zh'Wann stumbled onto the bridge to take her post, the Andorian having heard the suggestion to 'roast the monsters' that were rushing towards them. Even as she did this, Natalie eased the ship up, feeling it rocked by the winds and the rain. Shields snapped into place, but still she remained taut, like a stretched rubber band about to snap.

Too much to do.

Over the comms the brunette  could hear the surviving nurse - Herbert - acknowledge Maya's orders as he began to move the injured from the loading bay and into the small, cramped medical room the Captains Yacht afforded them - a luxury beyond that which a standard shuttle, or even most runabouts could claim, and one that would see more action than Natalie had hoped it would. And all because she'd ordered two of her officers to run to the rescue, instead of trying to get closer.

Introspection later, lift off now.

"Permission Granted, Doctor," Natalie snapped out as Maya made her request, and then turned, and offered her a very tight smile, "Well done, by the way. Now go help our people." In what she hoped wasn't too abrupt, she turned right back around and dismissed any thought of the Vulcan, focusing on getting the ship out of the atmosphere. Only once they were breaking out of the cloud cover did she look over to Ida zh'Wann, and very softly - secure in the knowledge that no one else was on the bridge just then, said, "I'm sorry, Lieutenant, to put you through that. Thank you, for helping to get them back." She would have to do the same, take that moment to thank Aisha S'iti - once they were clear of the system and on their way to the next rescue point.

Assuming of course, that Doctor Maya and Nurse Herbert could in fact save the Cardassian.

Re: DAY 01: SAR Away-Mission [1150 hrs.]

Reply #49 –
[ ThanIda zh'Wann | USS Allegiant | Bridge ] Attn: 1) Maya 2) S'Iti 3) Stark

Still feeling the after-effects of the dreadful frequency that Maya had advised, Ida had not had the opportunity to 'thank' the Vulcan for the initiative. At her current state, it was a dubious feeling of gratitude, that was for certain, but rather feeling sick and about to fall over than eaten alive by Varcae's fauna, that was a certainty.

Instead, Ida had been focused entirely on getting to the tactical station despite herself and to open fire against those creatures that were less affected than others - a horde unaffected by the rain and the acid smoke but vulnerable to sound. They were vulnerable to the Allegiant's direct fire-power as well - pulse phaser cannons and phaser strips lighting up the deadly mist in front of the yacht while Stark began ascent from the dreadful planet. The Lieutenant Commander thanked her for her efforts, and after swallowing down the bile in her throat, Ida replied - heart still beating in her ears and all the way up to her antennae.

"There were hardly any margin for second opinions, and the survivors needed to be saved," she said, breathing through her nose and closing her eyes a moment - clearing her head. She straightened where she stood at tactical, restoring a modicum of her usual integrity. "I would likely have made the same call, if the roles were reversed. Fact of the matter is that we managed to extract them, and I - despite my weakened state - did not fall prey to the vermin down there, and that is what counts. Had I not made it..."

Ida made a rueful sound in her throat. "You would not have had to worry about my complaints either. I just hope that the Vulcan and that pinkskin Hebert can treat our wounded... In fact, I recommend that we wait a bit before we get the next pod."

 
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