Season 1 Mission 10 - Lights Out

[Jenna McKinson]

[Puzzles]

Leanna smiled as the bottle was handed over and immediately filled it up with water from a jug that was kept in one of the refrigeration units underneath the counter and set the now full bottle down so the lid could be put back on. She listened intently and with interest as she spoke and it was something Leanna did with all of her customers and the revelation that she worked somewhere similar showed that the two had something in common.

" Pleased to meet you Jenna, my names Leanna and thank you its nice to know that your in familiar territory and you must tell me more about it when you do get chance to come back " she replied in her usual friendly tone. She didn't know what it was but it felt as though she had found a kindred spirit in Jenna which didn't happen often.

[ Puzzles Bar & Restaurant ]

"I would love to. I have quite a few stories from my shop days. A few of them involved some unsavory individuals and guys like your wonderful band playing," Jenna began. "Though I doubt with the good level of security we have here on the base that you'll see the same things I did. I still believe though that only a strong woman should run these places." Jenna then smiled. It was the first time since Molly got hurt that she actually smiled.

Up until that point, she was running basically on auto-pilot. Playing with the analyn was fun, to a degree, she still felt an emptiness. The cold dark corridors coupled with the snow began to ware on her. Seeing the bar seemed to be the recharge she needed. Sensing some familiarity with Leanna seemed to help as well.

[Leanna Mazal]

[ Puzzles Bar & Restaurant ]

"I would love to. I have quite a few stories from my shop days. A few of them involved some unsavory individuals and guys like your wonderful band playing," Jenna began. "Though I doubt with the good level of security we have here on the base that you'll see the same things I did. I still believe though that only a strong woman should run these places." Jenna then smiled. It was the first time since Molly got hurt that she actually smiled.

Up until that point, she was running basically on auto-pilot. Playing with the analyn was fun, to a degree, she still felt an emptiness. The cold dark corridors coupled with the snow began to ware on her. Seeing the bar seemed to be the recharge she needed. Sensing some familiarity with Leanna seemed to help as well.

[Puzzles]

Leanna continued to listen with keen interest when Jenna said that she would love to talk more and spoke of the stories she had about her shop days and how some them involved unsavoury individuals and guys like the band and it reminded Leanna of not only her stripper days but also the bar she ran on Argollian Nine. She agreed with her regarding the level of Security on the station and how she believed that only a strong woman should run these places.

She liked Jenna already and smiled as she answered her " I probably could tell you stories too as I've dealt with a few unsavoury individuals before in both my previous work and the bar I ran before coming here and I agree I don't think we'll have any problems here and again thank you I've learnt to be pretty strong over the years".

[Jenna McKinson]

[Puzzles]

Leanna continued to listen with keen interest when Jenna said that she would love to talk more and spoke of the stories she had about her shop days and how some them involved unsavoury individuals and guys like the band and it reminded Leanna of not only her stripper days but also the bar she ran on Argollian Nine. She agreed with her regarding the level of Security on the station and how she believed that only a strong woman should run these places.

She liked Jenna already and smiled as she answered her " I probably could tell you stories too as I've dealt with a few unsavoury individuals before in both my previous work and the bar I ran before coming here and I agree I don't think we'll have any problems here and again thank you I've learnt to be pretty strong over the years".

[ Puzzles ]

Jenna smiled at Leanna's reply. It seemed her inital judgement on the woman was right. It seemed like she could finally find another soul to chat to there. Sure she had only been there a short time, but engineering was a crazy busy department to work in.

The conversation between the two seemed to flow naturally. Though Jenna knew she needed to head out, she decided to take a momentary break to chat. It was then the band played an all too familiar song. "Oh! I haven't heard this in forever! I'll need to pull out that mixtape with this on..."Jenna said. It was then that Jenna felt an odd presence. It seemed that time slowed as she turned around to investigate.

A trill woman walked into the bar. She had a swagger to her step and her heels clacked in beat with the music. While she moved, it seemed all heads turned toward her. "Oh Shit," Jenna quietly said as she turned and fumbled to get out her credits to tip Leanna and dip out.

It was then the woman stood beside Jenna and smiled. She was glad to have the attention of Leanna. She seemed to brush off any attention she garnered as she walked in. "Hey there Sugar," the woman began. Her thick southern drawl was evident. When she said her go to phrase, it came out as "shoog" instead of "sugar"."My name is Eliana Matthews. I applied a while back to help out here. I am so sorry I am late here. I had to walk through a whole bunch of snow and darkness," Eliana said."Please don't see me,"Jenna thought as Eliana spoke.

[Leanna Mazal]

[ Puzzles ]

Jenna smiled at Leanna's reply. It seemed her inital judgement on the woman was right. It seemed like she could finally find another soul to chat to there. Sure she had only been there a short time, but engineering was a crazy busy department to work in.

The conversation between the two seemed to flow naturally. Though Jenna knew she needed to head out, she decided to take a momentary break to chat. It was then the band played an all too familiar song. "Oh! I haven't heard this in forever! I'll need to pull out that mixtape with this on..."Jenna said. It was then that Jenna felt an odd presence. It seemed that time slowed as she turned around to investigate.

A trill woman walked into the bar. She had a swagger to her step and her heels clacked in beat with the music. While she moved, it seemed all heads turned toward her. "Oh Shit," Jenna quietly said as she turned and fumbled to get out her credits to tip Leanna and dip out.

It was then the woman stood beside Jenna and smiled. She was glad to have the attention of Leanna. She seemed to brush off any attention she garnered as she walked in. "Hey there Sugar," the woman began. Her thick southern drawl was evident. When she said her go to phrase, it came out as "shoog" instead of "sugar"."My name is Eliana Matthews. I applied a while back to help out here. I am so sorry I am late here. I had to walk through a whole bunch of snow and darkness," Eliana said."Please don't see me,"Jenna thought as Eliana spoke.

[Puzzles]

Leanna was enjoying the conversation with Jenna and knew she would have to head out soon but at the same time looked forward to getting to know her more when she returned later. Smiling at her reaction to the song that the band had started to play. However before she could answer her they were joined by a trill woman who she immediately recognised and not just by the accent.

It was then she picked up on Jenna's awkwardness with the newcomer but didn't want to pry yet if Jenna wanted to tell her then she had no issue with that. Turning her attention to the trill she grinned " Eliana Matthews I should of known it was you and how could I turn down your application since we worked together in the Last Resort " she replied remembering their time in the gentleman's club back on Helix Seven. " As for being late I can understand that with what's been going on .... she paused then looked over at Jenna " Jenna say hello to Eliana our newest barmaid and waitress".

[E'Veece Septimus]

Ops

"Reroute complete!" she said, making sure it was loud enough for everyone to hear. "Thrusters should be ready to fire! Activating now!"

There may be another lisp and shutter in the station as the thrusters fire. E'Veece made sure to brace herself. That was some good news amongst all the doom and gloom. Things were about to get even less doomy and gloomy.

"We're being hailed by the Dakota. Patching them through now."

"This is Captain Denver of the USS Dakota. We're about to lock on to you with our tractor beam and attempt to help pull you out. Stand by."

E'Veece looked at her display again. "Incoming message from the Venture, Archangel and Merlin. They're going to attempt to pull us with their tractor beams as well."

There may be another lisp and shutter as the ships fired their tractor beams and tried to pull the starbase out of its decaying orbit. That was definitely a benefit in this situation. Being a starbase meant lots of to and from traffic, which meant more outside help in situations like this.

[Susan Venator]

Ops

"Reroute complete!" she said, making sure it was loud enough for everyone to hear. "Thrusters should be ready to fire! Activating now!"

There may be another lisp and shutter in the station as the thrusters fire. E'Veece made sure to brace herself. That was some good news amongst all the doom and gloom. Things were about to get even less doomy and gloomy.

"We're being hailed by the Dakota. Patching them through now."

"This is Captain Denver of the USS Dakota. We're about to lock on to you with our tractor beam and attempt to help pull you out. Stand by."

E'Veece looked at her display again. "Incoming message from the Venture, Archangel and Merlin. They're going to attempt to pull us with their tractor beams as well."

There may be another lisp and shutter as the ships fired their tractor beams and tried to pull the starbase out of its decaying orbit. That was definitely a benefit in this situation. Being a starbase meant lots of to and from traffic, which meant more outside help in situations like this.

Ops

Suzie hung on as the thrusters fired. Using her wrist mounted PADD that was tied into the backup sensor grid, she monitored the location.

"It's working, well at least partially. We are no longer falling into the atmosphere and we should be back at our proper attitude shortly." She said as the numbers began to stabilise. "Unfortunately Captain, even with the tractor beams we do not enough force to move us back into orbit. We are safe for now, but we will need either more ships, or improved propulsion on the station to get us back into out proper orbit." She reported.

[Jenna McKinson]

[Puzzles]

Leanna was enjoying the conversation with Jenna and knew she would have to head out soon but at the same time looked forward to getting to know her more when she returned later. Smiling at her reaction to the song that the band had started to play. However before she could answer her they were joined by a trill woman who she immediately recognised and not just by the accent.

It was then she picked up on Jenna's awkwardness with the newcomer but didn't want to pry yet if Jenna wanted to tell her then she had no issue with that. Turning her attention to the trill she grinned " Eliana Matthews I should of known it was you and how could I turn down your application since we worked together in the Last Resort " she replied remembering their time in the gentleman's club back on Helix Seven. " As for being late I can understand that with what's been going on .... she paused then looked over at Jenna " Jenna say hello to Eliana our newest barmaid and waitress".

[ Puzzles ]

"In all the gin joints  in all of the towns, in all of the universe, she had to walk into mine," Jenna thought. Leanna, seeming to read the situation almost perfectly, decided to instagate. She continued to fumble for her credits and then spoke. "I know Eliana we have a rather interesting past," Jenna said finally getting what she needed. "I'd use the word intimate rather than interesting. How long has it been since I last saw you?," Eliana asked Jenna. "A year, six months, and twelve days. Thank you Leanna for filling my bottle. Here is a tip for you to help with the place. I will definitely be back, but I must be going. Ship to help save and all," Jenna said slinging her work bag back on her back and moving to leave.

Eliana moved to stop her. "I don't know what I can say here to try and make you feel better. Let me at least wish you some good luck ok?" Eliana said stopping Jenna. Jenna then looked at her with a cold stare. "You should have thought of that when you slammed the door and welded it shut. I got the hint a long time ago, so I have no reason to believe you right now. Please let me go, if I don't get to the orbital stabilizers soon, we could be in worse shape than we are in right now," Jenna said. Though she would have preferred a fiery ball of death at the moment than to stand there.

Eliana finally let her go. Jenna flipped up her hood and walked out. She needed to show the cold shoulder at that moment. Maybe she could talk to her again, but this was just the distraction she didn't need. If this was a clean slate, then it seemed like it may be impossible to have. The past decided it was clawing its way back.

[ Promenade ]

Jenna pulled out her PADD. She accessed whichever cameras she could. She cursed under her breath as she paced to begin thinking. She then tapped her combadge. = / \ = "Chief, I am headed up to the orbital stabilizers, but the station where you get out of the turbolifts is blocked. I am going to use the maintenance ladders. I hope my communication doesn't go dark. I also have finished diagnostics on the power coupling. It did not look tampered with and as soon as we can get power back rerouted, it should be good to go" = / \ =

She moved toward the entrance of the maintenance ladders. She checked the oxygen levels and noticed it was very dangerous. She grabbed the nearby exosuit. She picked the one out of the two left that had the most oxygen. She then added the oxygen from the other suit to the one she had. This would give her just enough time to get to the location of the orbital stabilizers. The room they were located in had plenty of oxygen.

She then made it to the ladders. She switched on the suit's flashlight. As she climbed, she didn't mind the height, but it was the narrowness that threw her off. Thought she could have used her hoverbelt, she wanted to conserve the power on it.

[ Ladders between decks ]

It took her a few minutes to get to the level she needed all the while it seemed to be getting darker and darker rather than cold. It was a bit of a welcome change to not have to deal with the snow. Each time she moved, the clank of the ladder echoed in the small space. She she passed deck by deck, swapping sides every three decks. She got to the level she needed to be on and breathed a sigh of relief. She didn't mind the climb, but the blanket she had on under all those layers was starting to get hot.

[ Passageway]

She opened the door and began to head onto the level. It was a scattered mess of things strewn about. As she walked she heard a strange version of Pop Goes The Weasel. Though unsettling at first, she was ok to continue. "Game time! Time for tag and you are not it!" the analyn said. It was then Jenna turned around and saw what looked like a bear in a tutu riding a floating unicycle.

"Done! As long as you put on some epic chase music," Jenna said. The analyn cheered and began to play some epic chase music on a loop. Jenna knew she had to get to the orbital stabilizers. She began to run away from the bear. She was glad she and Caleb had pushed themselves with parkour. She continued to run toward her goal, a line appeared in her helmet to make sure she stayed on path. She found herself jumping over debris and sliding under things. Behind her, the bear just continued to cycle, passing harmlessly through things.

[Naira]

[Klingon Sector - Upper Stem]

Naira and the general continued their search looking for any of the refugees that had been left behind. In addition to the young boy that they had found, they came across a handful of other children that had been hiding in the dark. With no family to look out for them, some of these children were lost, confused and Naira assumed afraid, though they appeared to put on a brave face in front of the general.

"We should bring them back to your ship where they can warm up and breath easily."

He nodded and led the way. Their progress was slow, but they carried on.

Leesill to Doctor Naira, I know you are busy, but your youngest...she has been quite upset since you left.

"Go to her. Your children need you. You can bring them to my ship."

I'm on my way.

Naira left and headed back to the cargo bay where she had left them. Lurels ran and clung to her as soon as she entered the room. Aorua and Naniid joined her as well. "I know you're scared, but everything is going to okay," Naira promised the little girl. "I won't leave you again."

Together, the four of them headed for the K'tomoc.

[K'tomoc]

Meanwhile, aboard the K'tomoc, a number of warriors were trying to follow the general's orders to welcome the displaced settlers back to the ship as well as assist the other docked ships in tractoring the station.

[Leanna Mazal]

[ Puzzles ]

"In all the gin joints  in all of the towns, in all of the universe, she had to walk into mine," Jenna thought. Leanna, seeming to read the situation almost perfectly, decided to instagate. She continued to fumble for her credits and then spoke. "I know Eliana we have a rather interesting past," Jenna said finally getting what she needed. "I'd use the word intimate rather than interesting. How long has it been since I last saw you?," Eliana asked Jenna. "A year, six months, and twelve days. Thank you Leanna for filling my bottle. Here is a tip for you to help with the place. I will definitely be back, but I must be going. Ship to help save and all," Jenna said slinging her work bag back on her back and moving to leave.

Eliana moved to stop her. "I don't know what I can say here to try and make you feel better. Let me at least wish you some good luck ok?" Eliana said stopping Jenna. Jenna then looked at her with a cold stare. "You should have thought of that when you slammed the door and welded it shut. I got the hint a long time ago, so I have no reason to believe you right now. Please let me go, if I don't get to the orbital stabilizers soon, we could be in worse shape than we are in right now," Jenna said. Though she would have preferred a fiery ball of death at the moment than to stand there.

Eliana finally let her go. Jenna flipped up her hood and walked out. She needed to show the cold shoulder at that moment. Maybe she could talk to her again, but this was just the distraction she didn't need. If this was a clean slate, then it seemed like it may be impossible to have. The past decided it was clawing its way back.

[Puzzles]

Leanna didn't have to wait long to discover why Jenna had seemed so withdrawn and shocked to see Eliana not only by their thoughts but as she explained how they knew each other. Letting the two talk before Jenna left a tip and promised she would be back. Leanna was about to say that she hadn't needed to pay or leave a tip given the current situation but understood that she needed to get back to work but also why she wanted to leave so quickly.

It wasn't the first time she had been in this type of situation with friends and herself so smiled warmly and replied to her " Thank you but shouldn't have and I understand I'll hopefully see you soon" she said before she watched Jenna leave. Then she turned her attention to her old friend Eliana " Well that was interesting but did you have to scare my customers away " she said half serious and teasing her at the same time.

"Oh very funny Lea but I wasn't expecting to see her again but I'm glad I did"Eliana replied.

" I guess it was a shock for both of you and maybe the two of you can talk next time she's in here" Leanna said " But let's get you sorted then we can talk more about it later".

Eliana smiled and joined Leanna behind the bar.

[Daniel Howell]

"Acknowledged, Commander. Do it." Adeyemi ordered.

Main Engineering
Aye Captain, Howell out Dan replied. "Ensign..." he shouted over across engineering. A rather battered looking ensign walked over. "Ensign, I need you to make an exact trajectory of the base with our current rate of orbital decay and then start making up a plan to see exactly what gravitational force each shuttle and ship is going to need to emit to keep the base stable and I want an exact figure on how long it can be maintained." Aye Commander. the officer replied as he walked off.

Jenna pulled out her PADD. She accessed whichever cameras she could. She cursed under her breath as she paced to begin thinking. She then tapped her combadge. = / \ = "Chief, I am headed up to the orbital stabilizers, but the station where you get out of the turbolifts is blocked. I am going to use the maintenance ladders. I hope my communication doesn't go dark. I also have finished diagnostics on the power coupling. It did not look tampered with and as soon as we can get power back rerouted, it should be good to go" = / \ =

Just as Dan was about to walk to start configuring the main power couplings, Ensign McKinson came over comms. She was going to so many places he was struggling to keep up! Ensign, sensors show there to be quite substantial damage in that area of the, but we can't tell what from, could be hull stress so watch yourself. Were about to try and get main power back online so thanks. Howell out and with that, Dan set to work.

[Malcolm Adeyemi]

[Operations]

Grok was half Tellarite, half Klingon. To say he was quarrelsome and proud was the understatement of the galaxy. The science officer slammed his hands into his console and made a sound that would have cowed a mortally wounded targ.

"Sir! We are simply not causing enough of an effect. The gravity is still decaying!" The hairy, ridged alien said.

"Captain, if I may..." Ross began.

Warily, Adeyemi nodded.

"The Gibson has a powerful tractor beam. It can make a difference, enough so that we buy even more time. It needs a crew, however."

Adeyemi's brown eyes, unreadable, settled on the new Romulan cadet.

"You. Septimus?" The captain didn't wait for an answer. "I hear the new flight training is pretty smooth stuff. Take command of the Gibson. It's got powerful sensors. Tractor the Station back into orbit as best you can. Requisition a crew. Grok? Ross?"

"Yes, sir." The two men said in unison, the human and alien hybrid voices sounding like one.

"She needs about 50 people, minimum. Assemble them and go to work." Adeyemi ordered Septimus.

[E'Veece Septimus]

Ops

Suzie hung on as the thrusters fired. Using her wrist mounted PADD that was tied into the backup sensor grid, she monitored the location.

"It's working, well at least partially. We are no longer falling into the atmosphere and we should be back at our proper attitude shortly." She said as the numbers began to stabilise. "Unfortunately Captain, even with the tractor beams we do not enough force to move us back into orbit. We are safe for now, but we will need either more ships, or improved propulsion on the station to get us back into out proper orbit." She reported.

[Operations]

Grok was half Tellarite, half Klingon. To say he was quarrelsome and proud was the understatement of the galaxy. The science officer slammed his hands into his console and made a sound that would have cowed a mortally wounded targ.

"Sir! We are simply not causing enough of an effect. The gravity is still decaying!" The hairy, ridged alien said.

"Captain, if I may..." Ross began.

Warily, Adeyemi nodded.

"The Gibson has a powerful tractor beam. It can make a difference, enough so that we buy even more time. It needs a crew, however."

Adeyemi's brown eyes, unreadable, settled on the new Romulan cadet.

"You. Septimus?" The captain didn't wait for an answer. "I hear the new flight training is pretty smooth stuff. Take command of the Gibson. It's got powerful sensors. Tractor the Station back into orbit as best you can. Requisition a crew. Grok? Ross?"

"Yes, sir." The two men said in unison, the human and alien hybrid voices sounding like one.

"She needs about 50 people, minimum. Assemble them and go to work." Adeyemi ordered Septimus.

Ops

E'Veece clinched the console tightly, holding on and staying anchored while the starbase complained and shuddered briefly. Complained was an odd thing to call it. Humanoid nature to assign personalities to non-living things, E'Veece thought. Then again, her adopted Japanese parents once told her that people used to believe that when a creator created something, a machine for example, that a soul entered it and it was alive.

Her mind was active like that, thinking about such nonsense in a situation like this, even though outwardly she remained cold and stoic.

"I hear the new flight training is pretty smooth stuff. Take command of the Gibson. It's got powerful sensors. Tractor the Station back into orbit as best you can. Requisition a crew. Grok? Ross?" said the Captain.

Take command of an entire vessel? she thought. Shrugging, she looked at the other two crewmen assigned to her. They were probably Starfleet veterans and she was just a rookie. She had no intention of bossing them around.

"If you think that's prudent, Captain," she said, briefly looking back at him before turning to the half Tellarite and half Klingon. Grok, was it? And this Ross.

"I don't make friends, so it would be best if you two looked for a crew. I'll meet you aboard the Gibson."

With that, E'Veece set off guard the turbolift, the first step in her journey toward the Gibson.

[Ramona Pilgrim]

{Runabout - Santa Maria}

Ramona had been looping around the Starbase forming a grid pattern, as dictated by the anal retentive Vulcan in the seat over. She thought her flying was rather masterfully done, despite her wheelhouse being Security instead of flight.

"How's that for a tight grid, Lieutenant?" The rank was drawn out with a distinct bite of sarcasm. The pair, while being nearly the same height, were having trouble seeing eye to eye.

"You need to adjust by at least 45 degrees to compensate for the Starbase's rate of downward acceleration." T'Prina was thoroughly engrossed in the diagnostics and systems scans she was performing. She felt on the brink of discovering an important fact and decided to ignore Pilgrim's rudeness for the moment.

"Whaddya mean, downward acceleration? The station should be holding orbit?" Ramona checked the scanners, and sure enough the Starbase seemed to be falling. "Just what the hell is going on in there?"

"If you could just stay silent for five minutes, maybe I could tell you. There are acute systems failures all over inside. They seem to be echoing out in a ripple pattern from somewhere in the bowels. It wasn't apparent at first because it's happening all over, in seemingly random sections." The Vulcan pointed vigorously at the map she had configured, showing the pattern. If Ramona hadn't known Vulcans better, she'd say this one was excited.

"The bowels? What's even down there anyways?" The way she understood it, bowels were like intestines and if something got backed up there, no wonder everything was going to shit. It likely wasn't as simple as all that though.

T'Prina looked thoughtful for a moment before she answered. "Recently a new AI system was installed to oversee much of Columbus' operations. Analyn. It is not without its drawbacks however." She recalled how hastily it was done, and the errors that had occurred. "I need to get inside, as close to the Neural Core as possible."

"Well that's all fine and dandy for you, Pointy Ears, but what about me? It's not like I can throw a rope and tug the Columbus to safety in a runabout... Or maybe I can..." In the middle of her glib comment, she recalled seeing a small grouping of ships that had appeared to be trying to tractor the Starbase. She hadn't given it a thought at the time, but perhaps that was the solution right there. "If you look now, it's not falling anymore. I can get you down close enough to beam aboard, then I'm gonna see how many ships I can gather to help tow the Columbus back into place." She didn't know what the Vulcan was planning on doing, but damned if she wouldn't do her best to help out as well.

[Jenna McKinson]

Just as Dan was about to walk to start configuring the main power couplings, Ensign McKinson came over comms. She was going to so many places he was struggling to keep up! Ensign, sensors show there to be quite substantial damage in that area of the, but we can't tell what from, could be hull stress so watch yourself. Were about to try and get main power back online so thanks. Howell out and with that, Dan set to work.

[ Passageway ]

Jenna was glad to hear a familiar voice as she continued to make her way to her destination. It seemed like she was getting lower and lower as she was going. Jenna looked back and chuckled as the bear on the unicycle continued to follow her. She noticed a beam just ahead and using her speed,she then ran and slid with her legs. She slid under the fallen beam and it seemed the bear was finally done chasing her. She the got to the double doors of her destination. She entered the keycode and as the first door shut behind her.

She took off the helmet and breathed.She was glad to be in a safe area for a moment. She decided to use this moment to remove her suit for a second to take out the heat blanket under her uniform.She then tucked her uniform back in and put the blanket in her bag. She would need to thank the good doctor extra later when she visited Molly after this whole mess was over. She then held the helmet in her hand and breathed a sigh of relief when the second door opened.

[ Orbital Stabilizers Room ]

Jenna placed her helmet down at the door. As she moved through the large room, her movements echoed in the large room. The machinery used to keep the station or orbit was a marvel. Normally Jenna would love to have time to take it all in, but she was on a mission. She ran over to the first of the three on that room she needed to check. She interfaced with the terminal. She began to run a simple diagnostics. The next two were withing easy waking distance. She decided to run diagnostics on all three. As she looked at her PADD, she noticed the oxygen charging station at the end of the room was broken. SHe then swore under her breath.

She heard her PADD go off signaling that the first scan was done. Her eyes widened, it couldn't be right. She headed over to the terminal and confirmed her theory. SHe checked the other two terminals. This couldn't be right. There was nothing wrong there. She wondered what was going on? She then tapped her combadge. = / \ = "Uhh Chief. I have some good news, but it's also strange. The orbital stabilizers are working fine. If anything I would say they are beyond optimal. I have no idea why we were thrown off. Something strange is going on. I hope you get the power on soon because I am stuck. There's plenty of oxygen left here, but I can't charge up my suit. The station is broken and I have no parts to fix it. I am going to hang tight until you get power back" = / \ =

She then paced the room. She had no idea how long it would take to get power back on. She could try to fix the oxygen station, but she didn't have the tools for the job just by looking at it. She sat down on a chair that happened to be in the room. She then looked in bag. She was thankful to have it, but wondered if it was needed to be used. She rolled the sedative in her hand. It would knock her out and slow her breathing. Though the room was large, the oxygen was limited. She used her open hand to massage the bridge of her nose with her eyes closed. It seemed the stress was starting to get to her. She was trapped and she knew it.

[T'Prina]

{Runabout - Santa Maria}

"Well that's all fine and dandy for you, Pointy Ears, but what about me? It's not like I can throw a rope and tug the Columbus to safety in a runabout... Or maybe I can..." In the middle of her glib comment, she recalled seeing a small grouping of ships that had appeared to be trying to tractor the Starbase. She hadn't given it a thought at the time, but perhaps that was the solution right there. "If you look now, it's not falling anymore. I can get you down close enough to beam aboard, then I'm gonna see how many ships I can gather to help tow the Columbus back into place." She didn't know what the Vulcan was planning on doing, but damned if she wouldn't do her best to help out as well.

[Runabout - Santa Maria]

T'Prina nodded in agreement with Ramona's plan. "Although rash, it does seem like the best course of action. I will need to prepare a few things in advance of beaming onboard the Starbase, so please alert me when you have the runabout in position." A compliment that sounded like an insult was par for the course where the Vulcan was concerned. She abruptly headed for the back of the craft where her tools and EV suit were stored. According to protocol, she had immediately set the suit to recharge once she removed it. All lights were green, proclaiming full power on all systems. Given the unpredictable systems failures inside, the safest bet was to suit up for whatever hazards awaited. She had a small bag of tools, and a hand tricorder that would no doubt prove useful. She felt the logic behind the saying, 'Better to have and not need, than want and not have.' No matter the situation, it was best to go in prepared.

"Alright, Lieutenant, here's your stop. I've already got the transporter set for you. The shielding is a bit... shifty, so the closest I can get you is about a deck away." Ramona had the runabout holding steady, as she stood ready at the controls.

"Thank you, Crewman. That is acceptable. T'Prina adjusted the helmet over her head, and ran a quick systems check of her suit. Everything was operating within normal parameters. She shifted her bag over her shoulder and nodded at Ramona. The security officer punched in the coordinates, and T'Prina beamed out of view.

"Godspeed, Pointy Ears." Ramona gave a mock salute and returned to piloting the runabout, opening a comm channel on all frequencies to hail any nearby ships into helping tow the Columbus.

[ Orbital Stabilizers Room ]

She then paced the room. She had no idea how long it would take to get power back on. She could try to fix the oxygen station, but she didn't have the tools for the job just by looking at it. She sat down on a chair that happened to be in the room. She then looked in bag. She was thankful to have it, but wondered if it was needed to be used. She rolled the sedative in her hand. It would knock her out and slow her breathing. Though the room was large, the oxygen was limited. She used her open hand to massage the bridge of her nose with her eyes closed. It seemed the stress was starting to get to her. She was trapped and she knew it.

[Starbase Columbus - Deck ?? Maintenance Tunnel]

T'Prina flicked on her headlamp and peered around the darkened corridor. It appeared to be deserted, but music was piping through the comm system like a human styled carnival. She pulled her tricorder out of her bag and began a scan. Oxygen levels were low, but still breathable, and there appeared to be lifesigns nearby. She turned off the suit's oxygen and opened the faceplate on her helmet. It would be difficult for a human to control their breathing enough to find it comfortable, but it wasn't unbearable for her. Following the tricorder's bleeps, she slid open a side panel and peeped head first into the Orbital Stabilizers Room.

"Who is in here? Are you injured, or do you need assistance in any way?" She saw a female engineer several paces into the room. What was it about humans and unnatural hair colors today?

"Oi, I'm in Engineering! I have every right to be down here as much as you do! I'm Ensign Jenna McKinson." She introduced herself belatedly, surprised by the Vulcan's sudden appearance and insulted by her somewhat condescending tone.

"No need to be up in arms, Ensign. I am Lieutenant T'Prina, a Science officer. I merely inquired as to your health, but if you are feeling up to shouting, I suppose the question is answered." She raised an eyebrow, but entered fully into the room.

[Puzzles]

Once it calmed down some in the bar, a shuffling and a bang could be heard in the ceiling above. A muffled voice called out, "Look out below!"

Several people scattered as a ceiling panel fell to the ground harmlessly, and an attractive Klingon poked her head out, upsidedown, to assess the damage.

Rixxy spotted Leanna and decided to inform her of what she'd been working on. "Hiya, Boss!" I got in just before everything started going haywire. I've been tinkering with the generators up here, and I'm pretty sure I got the inertial stabilizers in working order finally."

She ran a hand through her hair as she surveyed the clean up efforts in the room. "Must have been pretty wild down here. I'd come help with the aftermath but I'm a little stuck, hanging out here as it is." The Klingon bartender/former engineer looked down, well up at her bionic leg.

"In the repair process, one of the bulkheads magnetized, and I haven't been able to reverse the polarity of the neutron flow.  I could detach the leg, but the limited mobility wouldn't be ideal." Rixxy was Klingon enough to be embarrassed by her reliance on an artificial limb, but practical enough to see the necessity.