[ Sick Bay ]
"Thank you. Please take care of her. She's my only friend on this rust bucket of a new home" Jenna began. She went to get up and winced in pain again. It was then it dawned on her. She got out her tricorder and measured the temperature outside. "Shit... How am I going go fix that coupling without getting sick? I am already banged up as it is. Even if I run out there, I still risk hypothermia. Who knows if there are snow drifts or how long it has been snowing. I don't like that wind that's been kicking up," Jenna thought. The distance from medical would be a trek. Under normal circumstances, she would see it as no problem, but this cold was just like the mountains she used to climb in the winters back home. She was very under equipped and even she knew risking hypothermia for a hunch was not the best move. She then got an idea, it might be a long shot, but it might just work.
"Hey doc,"Jenna began speaking to Naria. "I hate to bother you during evac, but do you have any emergency foil blankets left over? I need to go fix a power coupling. The journey from here to there is a tad bid dangerous seeing as it's very cold and I don't have a coat. Take it from experience borderline hypothermia is not good" As she said this, Molly was being wheeled out of medical. "It's going to be ok. She's in good hands now," Caleb's voice said echoing in her head. She was glad to be talking to him again. She knew time was of the essence, but it seemed to slow for a moment. With Molly out of commission and her being far from Dan, she felt like a stranger in a far outpost at that point. This was nothing new of course, but it reminded her why she wanted to come back to Star Fleet.
While she waited for the good doctor to reply, she let her mind wander for a moment. Maybe it was the medication setting in or maybe she was trying to find comfort in the moment. She thought back to the time Caleb and her went on a ski trip. As she thought about it, her hand absentmindedly went to her locket. The faces of the group were fuzzy, but the memory made her smile. As she turned the locket in her hand, it immediately opened after she placed her thumb on the back of it. A small, but old earth tune began to play. The song comforted her. and she didn't mind it playing out loud. She snapped to reality and looked on the inside of the locket. A photo of four people was inside it. Her and Caleb were there of course. Beside the two, were a brother and sister. He was muscular and tall, and she was just as tiny as Jenna. Her eyes twinkled with a timelessness that the photo barely did justice to. Her chestnut hair was a stark contrast to the blonde that Jenna was sporting at the time. Caleb's hair was short and his face wasn't aged like the last time she saw him. The four of them were grouped together making goofy faces. They stood in front of their favorite ski-lodge. Jenna smiled at the photo. Before the song could loop again, she closed the locket and kissed it. This was a ritual she found herself doing in time of stress. "Sorry this is an old stress reliever for me. Hopefully a path will be clear enough to fix that coupling,"Jenna said trying to get back to business.
[Sickbay]
Naira stood in the doorway, holding the door open. While doing so allowed some of the heat to escape out into the corridor, none of that would matter in a manner of minutes. Placing herself next to the door allowed her to coordinate with her people one last time before they left.
If they were losing life support, there would be no option for them to return should they have left something behind. Medkits were packed, thermal blankets had been grabbed, and now all that was left was to see that everyone got out safely and on time.
She had been going over evacuation protocols in her mind when a young ensign caught her attention. She turned to the woman and said, "Yes, please do take a thermal blanket." She grabbed one off a passing nurse and handed it to the girl. "They work best by trapping your body heat to you, so if you plan on working, it will be best to stuff it inside your uniform to keep heat from escaping as you move. Just be sure that you don't overexert yourself as you don't want an excess of sweat to collect inside it."
After watching the last person leave, she went to her office to collect her six year old daughter who was still unaware of what was going on.
"Come here Lurels, we have to move to another part of the station for now." She picked up the girl and wrapped her body in one of the foil blankets. Being Orion, they weren't built to withstand cold temperatures and up until a few months ago, the girl had only known what it was like to live in a humid tropical rainforest under a harsh sun. Naira's two older daughters were already waiting for them outside, wrapped up in blankets of their own.
"Come on everyone. I know it's cold and dark out here and we aren't used to such conditions, but we can do this."
She moved with her daughter up to the front of the crowd as she attempted to lead the group. They made their way past many dark and abandoned offices and Starfleet docking bays. Other than the sounds of the medical crew and their patients quietly talking to each other, the place was eerily silent. It was unusual for this part of the station to be this empty.
Passing a window, Naira took a moment to glance outside. It was just as cold and dark out there as it was inside. No ships were coming or going. No one was moving cargo or crew or stopping by the station to rest or refuel on their journey between Federation, Ferengi or open space.
It was unusual"Come everyone, in here!"
She led them past the Aquaponics Bay, where a sticky sweet substances was being pumped out of the fire suppressant system and pooling on the floor. From what she could see of the setup, most of the plants looked either burnt to a crisp or drowning the red substance. The tanks were overflowing and a number of fish lay flopping or dead on the floor.
It's red! And fruity smelling! Why is it red and fruity smelling?"In here, we'll set up an emergency location in this cargo bay. I know you might have the instinct to want to spread out and have a little privacy, but we need to stick together and stay close. We don't know how cold it's going to get in here."
She locked eyes with one of the nurses and said, "Can I get you to help hand out blankets?"