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The bridge on the United Front is busy. The ship is not at battle stations, but all stations are manned and the bridge crew seems a touch tense. Kamsho is beginning to loom in the holographic viewports.
Garviel himself is stationed at the top tier of the bridge, looking at the holographic tactical table, “Communications, hail Kamsho, state ourr purrpose and rrequest perrmission to enterr theirr space.”
A dark-haired human sitting at comms speaks into the transmitter. He waits for the response. Then he waits for another. Finally, he turns toward Garviel and says, “The Llivori suggest that we refrain from interfering with their ongoing evacuation efforts. They don’t want to be burdened by outversers. The Opodians just want us to stay away because our interference might upset the goddess. Response, sir?”
Lucy’s down in the docking bay of the ship, overseeing the unloading of cargo from her supply shuttle as she bounces up and down with nervous energy. Once the crates are unloaded and out of the way, she pulls out her comm. “Zupply zhuttle Four-Zixz-Two-Niner-Delta iz finally unloaded and rigged up for pazzengers. It won’t be very comfy, but it’ll work okay,” she chirps, “I’m gonna run through the checklizt again to make zure it’s all zet.” Her tail is curled tightly around her ever-present dodgeball.
Amanda stays well out of the way at the back of the bridge for the moment.
Umishi leans against an unoccupied bulkhead the Lyiris arms crossed as she trys to stay out of the way as much as she can where she is not needed.
Dean takes a few steps forward, observing the holographic viewport with a stern countenance. A half-nod to Garviel and he takes a few steps away to speak binary; a few ‘whirrrs’ and ‘beeps’ to the Phyrrian helmsmans of the NPE Steel Beach and Scarlet Sea. The two Phyrrian-made cruisers stay in formation with the United front, one on each side. The Overmind steps back over to Garviel, arms folding, “There about to be burdened by a 30 mile long asteroid.”
Garviel nods to Dean, “Unforrtunately. We’ll have to see what we can do,” a quick, “Rrogerr that, Lieutenant, stand by,” is commed back to Lucy before the Llivori Captain addresses his comms officer again, “Let them know that we’rre herre to offerr aid. We have the carrgo space to help evac prrobably hundrreds of civilians, and we have the firrepowerr to trry to destrroy the asterroid if need be,” the Captain sighs slightly, before turning to those who have come to help, “This is a longshot, but is anyone herre skilled in the diplomatic arrts?”
Amanda Laughs “There were those that would debate the finer points of my anser Captain, but i’ve some experience in the area.”
The comms officer nods in acknowledgement to Garviel. “Aye, sir.” He transmits the captain’s reply. Waits. He listens to the responses from both Llivori and Opodian officials. His brow knits tighter and tighter as this goes on. Ultimately, he informs Garviel: “The Llivori are worried that we would suffer unnecessary casualties if they allow us to participate in the evacuation. They also worry that shooting the asteroid will just make more pieces to hit the planet. The Opodians are concerned that their goddess will seek retribution if anyone tries to blow up the asteroid.”
Umishi blinks a moment, “…Now it’s not my speciality but..Can we somehow make the asteroid change course? I mean its a big moving object, Most big moving objects tend to change direction if prompted by something.” blinks again, “Unless its somehow like one of the big angry stubborn snow beasts i’ve dealt with.”
“They aren’t going to play ball,” Dean speaks to Garviel, though its rather quiet. “But they must be in a state of chaos. I can’t imagine they would move to intercept us if we enter their space in the name of aid and evacuation…But, these religious fanatics…” The Overmind speaks a few more binary commands, and half-shrugs towards Garviel.
Garviel bares his teeth a bit at the comm’s reply. He turns to Amanda and nods, “Take a shot then, trry to get them to let us help. And trry to figurre out if that unnecessarry casualties bit was a thrreat orr not, but keep it suttle, don’t want to starrt a warr herre, we want to help,” Garvi nods to Dean, “Hopefully not, and hopefully we can offerr some sorrt of assistance herre.” he pauses a bit as Umishi speaks. He walks over to the tactical holographic table, pulling up the asteroid, “Don’t know how entirrely we’d move it…” he trails.
The Lotorian child climbs in her shuttle’s cockpit and sets about with the pre-launch checklist. The list is gone through deftly, and Lucy nods to herself as she checks off the last requirement. “All zyztemz go, ztanding by, Cap’n,” Lucy informs, before the child kicks back in her seat and waits for the command to be given. Her ball is brought forth, and she absently tosses it around between her hands while she waits.
The holographic image of the asteroid suddenly starts flashing in one sector of the giant space rock as the cruiser’s sensors detect faint lifeform readings. Possibly a recon team from the Llivori or some other samaritan outfit.
Umishi pads over to the table and stares. “I know to move a large creature it needs prompting..like an electric prod. Now short of ramming the ship into it..and sounding like a cliche from a holovid movie. If we used some kind of force on the rock to give it a push and-….Oh by my father there are people on it?!” lightly smacks her head on the edge of the table as to not upset it to much.
Amanda nods ‘I’m curious what the Opodians feel the goddess would do worse than a giant asteroid. Tell the llivori our risk is our concern and we quite understand. as for the opodians tell them, perhaps the goddess wishes us to help them And “does that mean what I think it does?”
“There,” Dean points out at the flashing sector on the holographic image, “Someones already landed on it,” He speaks at the same moment as Umishi. “She’s right, if it’s calculated correctly, you could make enough of a force to put it on a different trajectory. The question is…Do we, or…They…” He waves his finger towards the flashing sector on the image, “Have that kind of explosive power?”
“Ten-fourr,” Garvi comms to Lucy, looking at the sector, “Sensorrs, get me a betterr rreading on that sectorr if you can please,” he nods absently to the both of them, “I’m not sacrrificing a ship to rram into that, parrticularrly if they don’t want us to help…and if therre arre people on it…” the Llivori’s ears droop slightly.
The sensors officer complies as much as possible, refining the magnification. However, in the end, the Hekayti reports that the readings are significantly obscured. “They appear to be underground. Our arrays are encountering a sort of static field due to large amounts of electromagnetically charged dust on the surface of the asteroid. I cannot even discern how *many* lifeforms are there. It is as if the sensors are sort of nodding in that direction with a shrug.” A deep frown. “I find that annoying.”
Umishi tilts her head, “Well until we somehow think of something else…We could use some explosives…or detonate a shuttle. I mean after we got these people off and we may have to acctualy LAND a shuttle on it to find them.”
The comms officer informs Amanda: “The Llivori say we are welcome to land in Vor at our own risk, but they have determined that they will launch their entire arsenal of thermonuclear weaponry at the asteroid with an eye toward dissolving most of it in the hopes that the biggest chunk remaining is diverted from its current course to strike Opodian territory. The Opodians say that we are ignorant of their faith if they think the goddess would expect them to turn to outversers as a show of their inner strength.”
Lucy plays a bit more with her ball and then sighs. “I can get back here fazt,” she tells herself with a nod, “The zhuttle’z all zet to take off…” With that, the child exits the cockpit and holds her ball to her chest protectively as she pads for the elevator as fast as her little legs can take her. The bored little girl heads for the bridge to see what’s taking so long.
“We have to see who’s on that asteroid, and what they’re doing.” Dean speaks to Garviel, “If the Llivori put explosives on the inside -and- fire their thermonuclear weaponry, it could be a considerable blast. But if that’s not the Llivori on there, then who is it.”
Amanda sighs “Ok so there goes the who do you think set the damn ship defense. Maybe the folks on that asteroid are already working to divert it. perhaps we she shift our focus there. Should we inform the Llivori there are sentients on the thing? I’m the guest after all.”
Garviel nods to Dean, “Yes sirr,” he states. He turns to Amanda, nodding, “Yes, inforrm the Llivorri that we have detected life forrms on the asterroid. Furrtherrmorre, rremind them that if the asterroid chunk that they rredirrect to the Opodians is big enough, it could cause irrrreprrable damage to theirr planet’s ecosystem. Inforrm them that to prrevent that, we will destrroy any significantly sized chunks of asterroid to prreserrve theirr planet. But we need to figurre out just who is on this thing firrst. Comms, see if you can hail the asterroid.”
Umishi folds her arms again and seems to wait to be told what to do.
The comms officer brushes hair off his forehead, does the job of talking to the Llivori, and then reports back to the captain: “The Llivori deny sending any recon teams to the asteroid. However, they suspect the Opodians might have some of their more fanatical types holding some kind of religious ceremony on the rock. The Opodians will neither confirm or deny. And no answer when I try general hails directed to the asteroid.”
Dean paces away again to speak in binary again to the other two cruisers. BEEEEeeeep. Whirrrrrr. Again the Overmind returns to Garviel, “I have shuttles ready from both the Steel Beach and the Scarlet Sea to assist.” The Phyrrian turns then, eyes looking towards Umishi, Amanda and Lucy, considering she’s on the bridge already. “Who’s taking a trip to the asteroid with us?”
Amanda nods “I’ll go.”
Umishi makes a cat like grin “I will go..Hopefully you have a evo suit to fit..I have trouble with some of those from outversers. Nothing against outversers i just think they made theres for the larger felines.”
When the elevator opens and Lucy pads out, she looks around the bridge for someone who looks less busy. She chooses Umishi, approaching the Lyiri slowly. “Pzzt,” she whispers, “What’z going on? Why iz it taking zo long?” She looks at Dean, then, whiskers perking, “Oo, oo, me, me, I’ll fly you! Pleaze, Cap’n?”
“Lieutenant, you’rre flying,” Garvi says to Lucy. He nods to Umishi, “We have evo suits forr everryone,” he replies with a nod. He turns to his bridge crew, “Any available space on the shuttle, I want at least a medic and an engineerr, give me marrines forr the rrest of the space. Commanderr, you have the brridge. Stall the Llivorri frrom launching theirr nukes forr as long as you can. If anything comes up, contact me immediately,” he gives his XO a salute, before turning to head for the docking bay.
The commander nods. “Aye, sir. We’ll hold them off while we can. But if you find out those *are* Opodians on the asteroid, they may just speed things up.”
Amanda nods “There is an even worse scenario. What if the people launched the asteroid at the planet?”
“Yaaay! Thank you, Cap’n Garvi,” Lucy cheers and excitedly sprints right back into the elevator. She at least has the manners to hold it open for everyone else coming along, though. She blinks, then, one ear perking while her whiskers droop. “Why would people WANT to nuke other people? That’z not very nize…,” she says to whoever happens to be closest. Possibly multiple people.
Umishi pads toward the docking bay following behind the others replying to Amanda as she walks “I was trying not to think about that.”
Dean gives a salute to the XO of the United Front as well, stepping away from the bridge and into the elevator, “My shuttles are going to have some basic drilling equipment if we end up needing it.” The Phyrrian takes the corner spot in the elevator.
“If we find out it is the Opodians, then don’t tell the Llivorri,” Garvi gives one final order to the bridge, before heading out, “And that is why we’rre brringing Marrines,” he states to Amanda and Umishi.
Amanda sighs and responds to Lucy “You’re right it’s deplorable and illogical but possible the inhabitants of that planet have been trying to kill each other for years” she takes her spot in the elevator.
Umishi just waits for the elevator to get to the docking bay.
Once everyone is in the docking bay, Lucy leads the way to her shuttle and climbs back into the cockpit. Her ball is set into a nook behind her seat to keep it safe and out of the way, before she starts flicking the pre-launch sequences. The cargo bay of the ship has indeed been changed to allow for passengers, cheap seating harnesses installed that follow safety regulations but don’t allow for much comfort.
And she had no replies other than some drooping at the idea of people wanting to kill each other for apparently no reason.
Dean follows after Lucy, with no comment to add on the current situation. Once he’s on the shuttle, he straps himself into his seat and waits for launch.
Amanda sits down and straps in with a sighh “i wish the preacher was here. I’ve gotten to bitter about the whole thing.”
Garvi makes sure that his service pistol is at his side, before he gets into his own seat. Marines, a medic and an engineer meet them in the docking bay, following in behind the group.
When everyone is in, the Captain states, “You’rre clearr, Lieutenant, take us in,”
Umishi as she walks to her a seat to strap in she is transfixed on the ball for a moment before shaking her head and actually sitting.
“Yezzir,” Lucy replies, closing the bay doors and starting up the launch sequences. It’s not long at all before the shuttle takes off out of the bay with deft ease. Once out in space, the child starts humming a soft tune to herself and pilots the ship for the asteroid. Assuming nothing unusual comes up on the way, the trip to the wonderfully convenient crater is smooth and uneventful from a flight perspective.
Cratered Surface – Planet Killer Asteroid
Purple-gray dust is layered upon the boulders, stone pillars, and rocky plains that cover the surface of this massive asteroid. The space rock measures about thirty miles across. Stars glitter in the sky overhead. The blue-green orb of Kamsho looms above the horizon as the asteroid closes on the endangered planet. A narrow gouge in the surface leads down into a jagged canyon.
Dean checks his pistol and re-holsters it, looking very calm about the whole situation. He waits for the all clear.
Following right behind Lucy, two shuttles from the Phyrrian cruisers land gently on the cratered surface of the asteroid.
Amanda hms ‘How’s it look out there any imminent threats?”
When the shuttle lands, the Marines pop the hatch and head out fast, fanning out to secure the immediate area. Garvi is out soon after, pistol out and ready.
While the Marines pour out the back, Lucy does a scan of the area to help answer Amanda’s question.
The area seems devoid of any ice beasts, Medlidikke pirates, or six-armed alien warriors from the Nth Dimension.
Umishi unstraps and gets ready to follow people out of the shuttle, checking her evo suit a few times before moving getting her own gun out.
The Overmind follows out the hatch, looking around. At around the same time, the other two shuttles open up, Phyrrian Helots stepping out onto the surface, suitless and weaponry in hand. Seeing the situation is secure, they form a perimeter. Dean looks towards Garviel, and then the direction where life forms were picked up. “Ready?”
“Lookz clear,” Lucy reports brightly, “Can I come along, Cap’n Garvi, or zhould I ztay here and keep the zhuttle running?”If given the all clear, the Sivadian diplomat come social worker follows the others out and looks up at the stone pillars through the visor of her eva “could be evidence of deliberate construction.”
Garviel nods to Dean, “Yes sirr,” he looks to those from his ship, “Move out, only engage if firred upon, but be rready,” he states. “Come with us Lieutenant, don’t want you herre all by yourrself. Stay back and out of trrouble though,”
Umishi just follows behind Garv’s team, her eyes darting about for anything and gun at ready.
“Okay!” Lucy sets up whatever anti-theft measures that futuristic supply ships have and then trots off after the others. She even has her own kid-sized lotorian space suit. Her dodgeball is left in the shuttle, the little girl understanding just enough about the vacuum of space to worry about it popping or something. After a moment, she looks between all of the guns and reaches down to see about finding and picking up a few kid-fist-sized rocks.
“Let us go then,” Dean speaks, heading towards said direction, pistol still in hand. “And figure out who’s already on this rock.” He motions for a few of the Helots to stay behind and watch the shuttles. “To be safe,” he assures Garviel. The group progress across the crater.
Amanda follows the others as softly and unobtrusively as possible.
Garvi follows along with the group, keeping his pistol up and ready, just in case. He nods to Dean as well.
The XO aboard the cruiser reports: “The Llivori have agreed to give us 24 hours to investigate, Captain. After that, they will carry out their plan to nuke the rock. Any lifeforms still on the asteroid will be forfeit.”
The little Lotorian falls into place with the others, staying back and out of the way with a grand total of three stones – two tucked in her left arm and one in her right hand.
Dean continues to step across the asteroid, looking towards Garviel, “I wonder how the Opodians will react 24 hours from now.” A shake of his head, and back to looking towards their destination.
Amanda nods ‘nice of them to make the concession.”
Umishi mutters to herself as she follows occasionally making full turns as she walks to look around what landscape there is.
Jagged Canyon – Planet Killer Asteroid
About two hundred feet across at its widest point of the rim, this canyon winds northwest-southeast. Every so often, the planet Kamsho can be seen overhead as the asteroid tumbles through the darkness of space. At the southeastern end of the canyon, a pair of tall angular boulders that have been eroded by time flank a cave entrance.
Garviel nods to Dean, radioing a thanks back to his commander, “Let’s hope that they stick to that timetable,” he states, glancing around the cave entrance, “That looks like the place, I’d guess.”
Dean looks towards the rocky passage to the cave, nodding. “Seems so.” The Helots form a moving barrier around them, each flashlight-like ocular continually scanning the area as the group moves closer to the cave entrance.
Umishi eyes start darting around the cavescape entrance, squinting in places due to her limited and nonexistent view of color.
Garviel waves the Marines forward towards the entrance of the cavern, “Not picking anything else up?” he does radio to the ship.
There’s only a garbled response. Heavy static.
“The electromagnetic interference,” Dean reminds, “We’re out of contact now. At least with the cruisers. That means if we see any missiles headed towards us we run like hell.” A grin from the Phyrrian. The Helots do a similar maneuver, flashlight eyes lighting up the darkness to reveal the path as they reach the cave.
Rocky Passage – Planet Killer Asteroid
This passage, about six feet wide and eight feet high, descends at a gentle angle from the cave mouth that opens onto the canyon. It twists and winds around coarse rock columns and under natural arches of purple-gray stone imbedded with glittering silver chunks and softly glowing veins of blue phosphorescent moss. The tunnel ends at an opening that grants access to a large cavern.
“You zaid a bad word,” Lucy remarks softly, an oddly human-like frown forming behind her helmet visor as she regards Dean. It’s a passing comment, though, the child leaving it be in favor of examining her spacerocks and occasionally looking up to avoid trouble.
Umishi seems to blink at the moss and veins a moment…”Odd for something like this.”
Amanda hms “well definitely natural for the most part.”
“You hearrd it Marrines, long range comms arre out. Let’s make this quick,” Garvi states with a nod to Dean, continuing to follow the Marines and Helots.
Dean glances back towards Lucy, taking the comment in stride as they descend deeper into the cave, nearing the next opening to go deeper inside.
Mysterious Cavern – Planet Killer Asteroid
Starlight gleams through a hole in the ceiling that occasionally allows a view of the planet Kamsho as the asteroid tumbles along. This cavern is odd in that the purple-gray stone isn’t rough and coarse like the material seen on the surface, in the canyon, or within the passage that leads here. Instead, it appears to be polished like marble that reflects light. At the south end of the cavern is an archway that looks as though it was constructed of crafted stones that would have required heavy equipment to heft them into place.
Lucy looks up and around as they descend further into the cavern, tilting her head. “Thiz doezn’t look right,” she remarks, “It’z not like outzide, why izn’t it like outzide?” She holds up one of her space rocks to compare. “It lookz like wallz and not rockz…”
Umishi blinks slowly as she walks and look around “Okay..Why am i getting this feeling this may have been made by someone…”
Amanda frowns as she glances up at the space in the ceiling “perfect view. wouldn’t you say, captain?”
“Definitely,” Garvi replies with a nod as he looks up, “Marrines, stay on yourr toes. Do not firre unless firred upon though, again, we don’t want to starrt a warr herre,” he states.
“Because it was.” Dean addresses to Umishi, stepping towards the archway made of crafted stones. A glance towards the ceiling and then back to Garviel, “I wonder how long they’ve been here, considering they only recently spotted this asteroid.” The Helots take position to move further in, through the archway.
Mechanical Chamber – Planet Killer Asteroid
Substantially smaller than the cavern that leads to it, this chamber is home to numerous clockwork monstrosities that are currently half-buried under purple-gray rock chunks that seem to have collapsed from the now gaping ceiling above. A scuffed metal panel pokes out to the left of one of these piles, with a single plastic button that features what appears to be a downward-aiming arrow.
Umishi walks in and gapes,”THIS IS NO ASTEROID! ITS A FULLY FUNCTIONAL SPACE SHIP….or i think its functional…and a ship.”
And now… Lucy just blinks. And then blinks again. Then the child inches forward oh-so-carefully. “What doez that button do?” she asks softly, looking very much like she wishes to push it and find out.
Amanda hms “but it seems integrated with the geologic formations.”
“Stay calm, everryone,” Garvi states, glancing around at the monstrosities, “And trry not to touch anything,” he states with an eye towards Lucy. The Llivori glances towards Dean, “It’s yourr call, sirr. I’d suggest trrying to wake just one, see if they’rre hostile, but that’s my suggestion, sirr,”
“Aww…,” the Lotorian sighs and looks at the button again, before shaking her head and going back to examining her space rocks. “I wonder what these’re made of,” Lucy muses in her purposely distracted state.Dean looks about the chamber, observing the area and sending out a series of scans behind the visible eye. A nod towards Garviel at the suggestion, “We came to find out what’s going on here. Do it.”
Umishi walks over to the button lucy was looking at “Well at least it dosen’t have a skull on it..I question the arrow though.
Amanda hms “not sure how we get someone’s attention without touching anything. She remarks falling into a mode of silent gazing
Garviel nods, “Wake one,” he tells the Marines, “See if you can get one somewhat separrated frrom the otherrs, and be carreful,” he cautions.
The mechanical constructs don’t appear to be mobile. They seem more like part of a complicated system of pipes, coolant tanks, gears, and valves. The system currently appears to be inert.
The little girl looks up to Garviel, then to Dean, and then between the Marines, before chiming in, “Do we know /how/ to wake ‘em up?”
“It’s an immobile unit,” Dean surmises, stepping towards the panel with the downwards arrow, “Which makes me want to think some sort of elevator system.” He observes the button, and then nods, “This will take us deeper into the asteroid, I imagine.” Eyes look around, “If there’s any who don’t wish to partake, please leave.”
Umishi holds still “Oh i have come this far why back out now.”
Garvi sighs a little, the noise audible over the comms, “Looks like we’rre pushing the button,” he states, walking over to it and pressing it. He turns to Lucy, almost in anticipation of the protest, “I know you wanted to push it, not this time, especially not if this winds up killing us,”
Pushing the button doesn’t activate the constructs. Nor does it do much of anything else except give a brief sputtering glow before it sparks with a pop and then goes dark while it smolders and melts. The only other clue: Something grinds fruitlessly for about three seconds behind the pile of rocks to the right of the now melted button.
Prior to the button pressing, Dean throws off some of the rocks to kill any extra weight.
Lucy immediately moves near when Dean announces the imminent button-push. “Oooh, I wanna zee,” she announces brightly in, “Can I puzh the but-awwww.” She looks up at the Llivori and pouts, “Y’know, if it’z gonna kill uz, /who/ puzhez the button really doezn–EEP!” The Lotorian ducks and hides behind Garviel when things start sputtering, before slooowly raising her head back up. “Uh-oh…”
Umishi blinks, “yeah this is out of my area. Though if i had to take a guess, this asteroid is having mechnical trouble, Try kicking something that somtimes works.”
“Engineerr!” Garvi calls to the engineer they brought with them, “Figurre out what’s wrrong, see if you can fix it,” he states, indicating the button and the area behind it. The Captain seems a bit…preoccupied with the goings on.
When we last we left our intrepid band, they had just happened upon a cavern full of mechanical equipment and signs of a ceiling collapse. The piles of rock are blocking what seems to be an elevator. Garviel tried activating the button that was visible to the left of the debris, but that yielded only a sparking burst of energy that melted the button and caused a brief grinding noise behind the rock.
Garviel had also called up the CF engineer to try to investigate what was wrong with the elevator. Meanwhile, the Llivori Captain posts a couple of the CF Marines as guards, before enlisting the rest (himself included) to start trying to clear the debris.
Lucy moves the smaller stuff. Because she’s a little kid and can’t pick up the bigger stuff, but still wants to help.
Hess has somehow been coaxed out of whatever it is he is doing these days to stand at the back of a group of world savers. He watches the button melt and the sound of grinding gears makes him grimace slightly. “You think that’s such a good idea? I’d rather not get crushed by a secondary collapse…” He has not moved forward to start lifting rock yet.
Dean continues to lift the heavy rocks off of the elevator-like machinery with ease and set them off to the side, particularly where the grinding sound came from after the button was pressed. “Any other suggestions?” He asks of Hess.
Umishi attempts to move what debris she can and set them down out of the way.
As Dean lifts rocks away, he uncovers a bloody bare foot – olive skin. Garviel happens upon the back of what appears to be a Hekayti corpse near the button.
Amanda moves to help uncover the corpse “Do you have a medic who can tell us if the cause of death is something other than suddenly being crushed?”
Garviel takes a look at the corpse and states into the comms, “Assume hostiles,” he states simply. The Llivori looks over at Lucy quickly, “Stand watch with the marrines, Lieutenant. That’s an orrderr,” before he gets back to work. He shrugs at Amanda, “Doesn’t matter, bodies make this a potentially hostile situation,”
The Lotorian almost jumps at the suddenness of Garviel’s order, trotting off without question in her light startlement, “Yezzir, right away, Cap’n Garvi.” The Captain’s command appears to do its job, as Lucy is so surprised she doesn’t get a chance to see the revealed carnage. The child plants herself with the marines and keeps her eyes and ears alert for signs of trouble.
“Nope.” Is Hess’ useful reply to Dean as he looks up at the ceiling, apparently attempting to gauge the possibility of another collapse. He starts to idly walk forward, and then bodyparts start surfacing. Oddly, this makes the man move a bit faster. “Looks like whoever’s sending this rock along doesn’t wanna be disturbed…” At the orders being shot around he smiles just a little — a quirking of the corners of his mouth and nothing more — as he keeps working at moving rocks out of the way.
Dean turns as he sees the bloody foot, speaking a quick burst of binary. Whirrrrrrr. The Phyrrian Helots ‘tense’ if you will, becoming more active as half of them watch the collapsed roof above them, guns at the ready, and the others watch the back exit and interior of the room. “The Captain’s right,” Dean speaks, nodding at Garviel as he finishes up clearing the rocks. The Phyrrian looks towards the engineers, “what’s the word?”
Amanda mms “but it could be a bit more hostile if he’s been shot, stabbed or…”
Umishi stops moving debris for a moment to just stare at the body, almost starting to say something then stops and starts to try to clear debris FASTER.
Once the rocks are cleared from the two dead, the Hekayti is revealed to be clad in ragged clothing and bears old scars and tattoos consistent with a warrior of the Medlidikke pirates. The olive-skinned victim’s face wasn’t so badly crushed as the rest of his body. Anyone familiar with holovids in recent years in Hiverspace should recognize the deposed Zar, Hideg Fekretu.
“I apprreciate yourr thought, but when lives arre potentially at stake, parrticularrly civilian ones, I’m not going to take chances,” Garvi replies to Amanda. The Llivori definitely seems more on edge after finding the bodies, but he continues to work. When the identities of the bodies are revealed, the Llivori looks to his medic, “Body bags,” he states simply.
Lucy keeps dutiful watch, paying no heed to the elevator area unless it involves a new order.
“Hate to say it Ambassador, but, it don’t matter one whit if he’s been shot or stabbed. Just that he’s dead and it probably weren’t no accident.” Hess grumbles, slipping back towards the rear of the group again. The man fumbles in his coat for a moment, then takes out a rather battered looking flask. He downs a swig from the container. It smells vaguely of alcohol. He has another swig, and waits. If he recognizes the deposed Zar, he shows no reaction to his corpse.
Amanda blinks and is far less taciturn than Hess in her reaction “Shit! Either hostiles is an understatement or there’s someone down there I’d like to throw a party. The Zar seems like someone insane enough to launch an asteroid.”
Dean spots the Zar, staring down at the former powerhouse of the hiververse, he nods in agreement with Garviel, and two Helots approach the body to help put the body bags around and lift it away from the wreckage. A look towards Garviel. “We have to warn the Opodians of this. Maybe they’ll withdraw their anti-evacuation order with this footage. It would mean saving thousands of lifes.”
Umishi just stares, mostly at Zar Hideg’s corpse “..If no one had their guns ready now would be a good time! Of all the things that could have killed him..or tried to kill him.” seems to blink a moment, “and me without a camera.”
Garviel just continues to work to remove the rubble now that the bodies have been taken care of, “How are we going to? We have no way of communicating with the United Frront, and even less of a way of communicating with the planet,”
As the elevator doors are cleared of debris, it becomes apparent that something catastrophic happened inside. The doors are wedged open at awkward angles. Through the gap, starlight glows through the top of the collapsed shaft. Snapped cables dangle above the shadowy depths.
“Did the commz not work on the zurfaze, too?” Lucy asks, “Or did we not try til we were down here?” Yep, the kid got bored and started eavesdropping. they do that.
Hess sets a rock aside, and then looks at the remains of the elevator. He tilts his head a little, and then starts to step gingerly towards the open doors, peeking around them to ensure there’s no wire contact, before he tries to help push them fully apart. “Think they built an emergency access in this thing?” he asks to nobody in particular.
“I can raise the Helots guarding the shuttles, take one back to the cruisers, and from there, speak to the Opodians. Or just send a couple back, we have to move these bodies anyway.” Dean indicates the body-bagged inversers. He also approaches the elevator shaft, peeking in. The two Helots carrying the Zar start to exit the room, ascending. “I’m not sure,” The Overmind responds to Hess, looking down the shaft to see how far the drop is. One of his eyes illuminate into a flashlight like beam.
It appears to drop for at least six hundred feet, although the bottom does contain some debris – including rocks, metal, and the remnants of the wrecked elevator car.
Umishi pads over to the shaft and peers “We could try to climb it down, it might not be a good idea but unless we can think of something better.”
“Fairr enough,” Garviel consents with a nod. He glances down the shaft, “At least the elevatorr wont be moving at all while we’rre in the shaft,” he states. He looks over at the marines, “We do have rrope, rright?”
Thusly ignored, Lucy starts peeking over to see what’s going on.
Hess stares down at the faint glimmer of light at the bottom of the pit and then twists up his face a little, “That’s…uh…quite the climb…” he mutters before taking another belt of liquor to steel his courage.
“Indeed.” Dean replies to Hess, and he starts to look for a secure spot where they could fix in ropes. A nod towards the marines as he points out the most stable spots. “Engineers, is this thing fried or what?” He points towards the button previously pressed.
Umishi blinks and starts look around the shaft for handholds or the like.
“Alrright, let’s get this rrope hooked up,” Garvi states, helping to supervise getting it attached. Once it is, well, the Llivori Captain doesn’t hesitate. He’s first on the rope, rapelling down the side of the shaft.
“You’re not just gonna leave me up here, are you?” Lucy chimes in, peeking a little bit closer and pouting.
Hess spends a few moments fussing with the rope as it gets to his turn to head down the shaft. He mutters to himself, and then slowly walks a few steps down the side, before he pushes off lightly and starts to rappel. Small bounces at first, but, eventually he gets a good push off and bounds down the wall like someone who’s done it (once or twice) before. He looks up as
Lucy speaks and says, “Just hold onto the rope and push off with your feet and let gravity pull you back in. You’ll be fine.”
Dean double-straps the rope for himself to help support his weight, and follows down the descent. The Helots help Lucy and anyone else who may need strapping in before free-climbing the shafts, each of their appendages hooking in to the sides of the shaft and descending, using their flashlight eye’s to keep it lit enough.
Collapsed Shaft – Planet Killer Asteroid
Roughly six hundred feet deep, this engineered shaft leads from the mechanical chamber into the shadows that plunge below. The walls are reinforced with metal gridwork. Some of the cables that once carried the elevator car now dangle above the darkness. It appears as though the top of the shaft was blown open by some kind of catastrophe, snapping some of the cables and causing the elevator to fall out of control toward the bottom.
Umishi rappels down the shaft, pausing between bounds to make sure she dosen’t smash into anyone or anything else.
Garvi, being first in, is first on the ground. The Llivori’s pistol comes out, moving to make sure the immediate area is secure.
It would be difficult to describe the area as secure. Lots of heavy rocks and shifting debris blocking the way out. Some body parts are poking out of the wreckage of the elevator car. One’s a slender hand covered with grayish-brown fur.
Lucy is quite happy for the help, and is likely one of the last down the shaft. Once she’s on firm footing, she is sure to reequip herself with a few rocks and position herself where she’s less likely to get in trouble. The child pointedly ignores the body parts, fixing her attention anywhere else.
Hess lands a few moments after the Llivori, and looks over at the pistol as it makes an appearance. He considers it for a moment, then says, “Don’t think we’ll be needing that to be honest.” He looks at the wreckage around him, and moves in the direction of one of the exits. The hand poking out from the ground gets a glance but little more.
Dean finds firm footing, as do the Helots, continuing to descend down the shaft. “Let’s keep it moving,” Dean speaks, also only giving the body parts just a moments look as they continue.
Amanda hms ‘i’ll certainly take a weapon, if anyone’s got extra. there’e someone alive here somewhere.”
Umishi tilts her head at the visable bodies a moment but soon continues after the others to try to not get to far behind, making sure her gun is still in working order as she walks just in case.
“Betterr safe than sorrrry,” Garvi replies to Hess, glancing about. Well, so long as there are no immediate enemies, that’s good enough for Garvi. The Llivori sets about finding a way out, whether that means going through the wreckage or around it, he doesn’t seem to particularly care.
The little girl looks up at Amanda, before offering her a rock. “They really hurt,” she assures the woman softly.
On the same side as the doors you entered up above, you can make out about the top six inches of the doors here at the bottom. A good six feet of debris blocks the way. It may be necessary to haul wreckage up and out before you can wrench open the doors.
Hess shrugs, “It’s your funeral.” he says softly, and continues walking along. He picks up no rocks, and generally seems mostly interested in just exiting the room as quick as he can while he picks his way through the wreckage. The man eventually gets to where the doors are covered in debris, sighs, and then starts about removing enough material to get through.
Dean helps out the process, moving the rocks in quick, effortless motions. The Helots do the same, speeding up the progress.
Amanda takes the rock with a warm smile at Lucy “Thank you” seems we all need both hands now though” as she stuffs it into an eva pocket and starts helping with smaller debris
Garviel takes a look at the debris, “We’ll neverr just be able to just move this, we need to clearr it,” he looks to Dean, “Could we send some of yourr soldierrs back up? We can attached larrgerr pieces to the ropes down herre, they can haul them up and clearr them.”
Umishi seems to pull back a bit to stay out of the way of the more technical moving of the large debris, well until she see a point where she can help.
Hess just walks with his moderately sized rock from point A to point B at the back of the shaft. It is slow going, but, what else can one do, “Just like clearing out a tunnel collapse back home..” he grunts before picking up the next bit of stone and starting his trek back to the little carin he’s building.
“Good idea,” Dean agrees with Garviel, and the Helots respond in an instant, clattering up the sides of the shaft to make their ascent. Once they’re in place above, Dean nods to Garviel, and moves to attach the ropes to the rocks.
Amanda nods “I can help secure the ropes.” Physical labor is obviously not the woman’s forte but she doesn’t want to be left idle.
Lucy stays out of the way, too. This is way over her head.
Way over Lucy’s head, the ascent of the Helots causes a vibration that shakes loose a rather large chunk of rock that falls with a rain of dust down the shaft, directly toward the group. One of the Helots above signals an alarm as the rock plunges past.
The signalled alarm seems to register with Garvi, “MOVE!” he shouts, doing his own level best to move out of the rock’s incoming path.
Lucy startles and quickly curls herself into a corner, making herself into as small a ball as Lotorianly possible and protecting her head with her arms.
The sound of an alarm makes Hess do something that Lunites tend to do instinctively when in shafts deep below the ground: dive for cover. He drops the stone he’s moving, and shoots as quickly as he can towards one of the walls of the shaft. He doesn’t look up, he just blindly goes. Possibly into the path of the falling debris, but, hopefully out of the way.
Umishi’s ears droop inside her suit helm and starts to move as quick as she can and try to find some place to shield herself.
Milliseconds after the alarm is sent out, the estimated trajectory coordinates of the falling rock are wirelessly linked to the Overmind below. Funny, how information can be sent faster than a rock falling. This still leaves moments for Dean to use the information to push everyone and anyone he can, including himself, into the best spot that won’t be crushed. Getting pushed by a Phyrrian is forceful, but hey, he’s trying to help.
Amanda moves for cover as quickly as possible.
While the trajectory coordinates were correct, there simply wasn’t enough time for the Overmind to get everyone to safety. Marines are flung away, shoved into a corner. Within the last seconds, Dean’s hand pushes Garviel back just a bit, and his legs bend, ready to leap into the safe corner himself, but alas, its too late. The large rock crushes the Phyrrian, the screeching and cracking of metal evident. Dean lays under the rock, blood seeping out from under, and half of the flesh on his face scraped away to show his true interior; shining metal and a green light where his eye should be. He doesn’t cry out or show any signs of pain, merely staring up at the others, his eyes flickering. Something’s going on up there where the Helots are, however.
Amanda gets herself to a nearby corner just in time. head turned s a way for the momemt so she hears but does not see Dean’s apparent demise.
Garviel picks himself up from being flung aside by Dean. The Llivori bares his teeth at the rock after it lands, letting out a low, wolflike growl, “Damn it,” he growls, “Marrines! Get this clearred.” he barks. Scraps of the Llivori’s ears can be seen from the top of his visor, and they are plastered flat against his skull.
Lucy squeals as the rock crushes the Overmind behind her, the child unharmed but rather terrified. Enough so that she stays curled up in her corner, shaking and crying.
Umishi makes it to safety and presses hard against the shaft wall watching the rock drop right on dean,stares..then stares some more “I am torn between continueing and getting the HELL out of here…”
A muffled voice calls through the tiniest of gaps in the doors at the base of the elevator shaft: “Zzzar? Izzz youzzz?”
As the dust settles, Hess lifts his head and looks around, “Everyone ok?” he asks quietly as he pulls himself up. He looks down at the crushed Dean, and then asks, “Uh…wasn’t he sort of an important fellow to those robots up there?” He tugs out his flask, and takes a longer than usual belt from it, before wiping his mouth and watching the marines do some grunt work for a change.
As Newt climbs down the shaft past the Helots and gets closer to the group at the bottom, he finds a big rock has fallen on one of the party members – the Overmind, Dean. His companions are gathered around. Some look shaken and shocked. Others look like Hess, fairly casual and prone to drinking from his space sippy cup.
Amanda turns back around to witness the crushed dean with something of horror in her eyes but then reacts to the voice “That sounds surprisingly unthreatening”
“He was an imporrtant perrson to the entirre Orrion Confederracy,” Garvi growls to Hess, teeth still bared. While the Marines continue to help the Helots in drawing material up to the surface, Garvi moves over towards the burried door. He doesn’t speak, soundwaves don’t travel in vacuum! Instead, he uses the butt of his pistol to bang on the elevator door.
“OWZZZ!” cries the source of the voice on the other side of the lower doors. “Why the bangingzzz? Izzz Zzzar? Izzz not Zzzar? Why thingzzz break zzzo badzzz?”
Umishi starts to walk over by the door “Well we found the life form..Think we can some how hook up to any type of comm system where he is so we can at least talk to him?”
“If we open the door, we’ll zuck out the air in there,” Lucy chimes in softly, starting to uncurl from her corner, “Zhould warn them…” She looks at the smushed Dean and starts crying again, but more restrained now. “I liked him, he waz cool,” she remarks sadly. “He’z a robot, right? Iz he ztill working? Do we have zomething big to zave hiz brain on? We can do that, right? Zave hiz robot brain?”
“Wouldn’t worry bout that girl.” Hess says, before he shrugs at Garviel’s growling, “Lotta good he’s doin us right now. I say we force the door. Get inside and see what we can do once there.” The man starts to move forward, again, not too concerned about the crushed Dean.
Newt comes down the shaft, suit all shiny and sealed up. Once down he looks around and stops at Dean, “What happened?” He heads over, “He’s ok, right?”
“No,” Garvi growls into the comm, “Whoeverr it is asked if we werre the Zarr, in a mannerr that suggests they’rre frriends with the Zarr. Again, we’rre assuming hostiles. Therre will be no communication with whoeverr’s in therre aside frrom this,” this being the banging on the door, which Garvi does again, “Keep moving this stuff out,” he adds, indicating the rubble.
Amanda looks from lucy to newt and back to the pile that was dean brushing stray tears from her eyes. “May be he will be. I don’t know
Dean flickers back to life, looking up at the others again and trying to budge the rock. A wink towards Lucy and a thumbs up from the hand thats not pinned from the rock. A couple helots descend, much more carefully than before, going to Dean’s side once they’re at the bottom.
“Zhut up, jerk-off, I’m not talking to you,” Lucy snaps at Hess, before looking back around. Yes, the sweet little child just called him a jerk-off. She peers at Dean, then, and inside her helmet those ears and whiskers perk. “He’z ztill working,” she says brightly, before looking to the helots, “You’re gonna help him now?”
Umishi seems to growl herself, “Okay..We are on a very unstable asteroid, Hurtling toward a planet, and the only one who knows What the heck might be going on, though half sounding like they don’t is a what i assume to be a Lotorian on the otherside of the door. So i am sorry but..”, her own comms go silent as she starts shifting frequencys and speaking into it, apparently trying to get on one that might be connected to one behind the door.
Hess does not appear to mind being called a jerk-off. Rather, he just leans against the wall near the door that the Marines are clearing a way towards. He looks over at Garviel, then at the Marines, then back at the door, and waits.
Amanda blinks “someone tell me how to help him and I will, miss” she says to the child looking from Dean to the voice beyond the door.
“Zzzar promizzze!” the voice on the other side of the doors complains. “Zzzay it gonna work, no problemzzz! Thizz?! Thizzz BIG problemzzz, yezzyezz!”
Newt asks, concern in his voice. “Hey Dean, you’re ok, right?”
It does take a moment, but it seems that Garvi eventually realizes that Umishi’s mouth is moving, but no sounds are coming over the comms. The Llivori stands up and walks over to the Lyiri, as close to face to face as he can get, “I don’t know who you’rre talking to, but if it’s who I think it is, we’rre about to have a prroblem,” the Captain growls, “We do not know if that perrson is hostile orr not, so we have to assume that they arre hostile, which means that /you/ arre endangerring the lives of everryone in this rroom by alerrting them to who we arre. If you do not stop immediatly I will be forrced to detain you forr endangerring the mission, and I don’t carre if you’rre not on this frrequency, you can rread my lips. Do I make myself perrfectly clearr?”
The Helots are able to lift the rock enough with the help of a couple marines to drag Dean’s body out from under it. It’s very crushed and bloody, not a pretty sight, but his CPU’s intact, it seems. His body is ready to be hefted up next, like the rocks were. “I’m alright. Been better though.”
Hess watches the confrontation between Garvi and Umishi. He continues to lean against the door, “We got a job to do people, let’s get moving and stop with the posturing how bout?”
Lucy hops a little in joy when she hears that Dean is okay, if a bit mangled. Then Garviel gets in Umishi’s visor and the Lorotian’s eyes widen a great deal. Her Trouble Sense tingles, and the little girl does what any sane child would do when someone’s being yelled at – she stands very still, in the most unthreatening posture imaginable, with her face canted down and her mouth firmly shut.
Umishi stares at at Garvi swapping her frequncy back while looking at the rock that crushed Dean then back, “Well considering we already have an overmind crushed we’re pretty much endangered as is..Plus..We have an advantage, we can kill him if we break the door enough. Understood either way.”
One of the Marines enters the shaft through the upper doorway, then rappels to the bottom. When he arrives, his eyebrows arch at the sight of the Helots working on Dean. He clears his throat, then looks toward Garviel and says, “Captain, relaying a report from the ship. Trouble on Kamsho. Our 24-hour window just got a lot smaller. The Opodians are threatening to pre-emptively blast the Llivori if they continue their countdown toward blasting this asteroid. The Llivori are telling us that they could launch their missiles at any time, if the Opodians look like they’re about to fire their arsenal. If we stay on this rock, they won’t take responsibility for what happens to us.”
Amanda sighs with relief as Dean speaks “Good to know you’re alright, in a manner of speaking.”
Garviel turns from Umishi to listen to the report, sighing a little, before turning to Dean, “While you’rre crrushed, I guess you still have operrational command, sirr. Yourr call. We could trry to lay grrounded commlines out, give us a heads up beforre they launch, but that may take morre time than we have,”
Dean starts to get raised up and hoisted back up the shaft, “Be safe,” He speaks to Amanda, then to Garviel, “Turning command to you. Need to make sure everything’s in order.”
Hess watches the group discuss command and who is in charge, before he steps back away from the now mostly cleared doors. Apparently he does not want to be the first through there, what without decent armor or anything like that on.
Umishi walks away from Grarv a bit while muttering and gets in a postion where she’s a bit away from the doors.
Lucy looks between the door and the high end of the elevator shaft, ear twitching in thought. “Did we leave the zhuttlez running?” she asks absently, “Might want to make a quick getaway…”
Garviel nods a little, saluting Dean as he’s taken away. He turns to the runner, “Get some comm wirre laid down, get us a link to the Frront so that we can be warrned when they firre theirr nukes,” he states.
“Aye, sir,” replies the runner before he begins his ascent to the top of the shaft.
Newt realises something and heads for Garvin, “Anything I can do to help, sir?”
Amanda likewise stands back and waits “why can’t we just advise them that given more time we might be able to stop this thing and or remind the opodians the zar had no respect for anybody’s godess whatever because he fancied himself a god yet hardly was one so…
Hess watches the runner go, and then continues to move to the back of the shaft. He takes a seat on the carin of rocks he built, and watches with mild interest the goings on of those in charge and with weapons.
Umishi just folds her arms and waits.
Likewise staying out of the way of the guys with guns, Lucy clutches her few precious chucking stones and waits to see what will happen.
“If it comes down to it, we will, but if therre’s only one perrson herre we’ll get them out and leave and then let them destrroy the asterroid,” Garvi replies to Amanda, moving in to help clear the debris himself, “If you wish to help, otherrwise, wait,” Garvi replies to Newt.
A short while later, another Marine returns, descending the shaft with an unrolling spool of wire and an archaic-looking backpack radio unit. “You’re linked up, sir,” the soldier reports as he unhooks from the cable and attaches the wire to the comm unit’s outlet.
Amanda nods and continues watching and waiting.
Hess hmms and steps a little closer to the group as the linkup is set up, possibly to evesdrop, or, just to be nearer the center of the action. He asks, “We negotiating with the terrorists or our allies?”
Umishi watches the door and just waits.
“Zzzar? We want anzzwerzzz, yezzyezz!” the voice beyond the doors demands.
Newt nods and begins to help Garviel to try and clear the debris, for lack of something better to do.
Garviel checks the comms to make sure they do have a link before looking to Hess, “Ourr, well, allies forr lack of a betterr worrd,” he replies rather calmly. He bangs on the door everytime the voice speaks, but otherwise keeps working to clear the way.
Amanda hms “That’s just it. the confederate or anybody else for that matter isn’t allied with any of the kamsho race hence the dilema. Our trapped friened sounds rather peeved at the zar which bodes well.”
Umishi mutters to herself “We could try talking to him…”
The Marine with the radio is currently standing next to Garviel, scratching the back of his head and peering up toward the top of the shaft as the planet Kamsho passes overhead. “If atmosphere is a concern…” His voice trails off, though. No one’s asked him anything. He’s just the radio guy.
“I know, I already zaid we’ll zuck out the air if we open the door,” Lucy says to the Marine, “They wouldn’t lizzen to me…”
“What is it, Petty Officerr?” Garvi asks the radio guy. Otherwise, he keeps working.
Amanda hms “I think he means the atmosphere in the room will disapate when the door opens.”
“Oh, sorry, sir, didn’t mean to disturb,” the Marine says, adjusting the pack on his back as he turns to look at the Llivori. “But I was just thinking, we’re worried about opening those doors because there’s no atmo in this tube. Thing is, we’ve got a few ships out here, each with their own atmo and shields. I’m not a big-time engineer or anything, but it’s something I’ve looked into, y’know, as a fallback in case I get cripped on missions like this. Anyway, maybe rig something to pump atmo down here and use ship’s shields to help seal it in? It’d be tricky nav work, keeping up with the rock’s tumble, but…it’s something, right?”
Umishi blinks slowly, “That actually makes sense…”
“Oooh,” Lucy perks up, “I can do that. Keep the zhip in plaze, I mean. You wanna do that, Cap’n?”
Garviel nods, “Do it,” he states simply, “Lieutenant,” and he doesn’t seem to care whether it’s Lucy or Newt or both, “Take carre of it, go,” otherwise, he keeps working.
Amanda hms “anybody know how much time is left?”
Newt looks back between the Marine and Garviel, “Cool. Will do.” and begins to head off.
“Heeey!” Lucy follows after Newt, “What about me?”
Umishi blinks again, and watches the two head off.
Garviel keeps working then, getting the debris cleared one large rock at a time.
Amanda hms “one potential cause of death down…3 to go.”
Newt looks back at Lucy, “You can come too if you want.” and he makes his way up to the shuttle.
The doors are now, more or less, clear of debris. A familiar voice calls through the gap: “Zzzar?! Better zzztart talkingzzz! Not much air left to breathezzz in here. Lotzzz zzzleeepy. YOUR fault, yezzyezz!”
The Lotorian continues to follow. “Yeah I wanna come, I wanna fly the zhip,” Lucy says, “You can copilot, I’m not that good with the math partz. I juzt fly how it feelz right, y’know? You wanna do the math partz?” Climbing out of the shaft and out of the cave and out of the canyon is accompanied by all sorts of similar chatter.
“Lieutenants, waiting on you two,” the Llivori Captain comms to Lucy and Newt, moving thelast few scraps out of the way.
Umishi starts readying her gun just in case.
Amanda tenses a bit “i’m hoping you all can handle an oxygen deprived lotorian.”
Newt says nothing for a while before sighing, “Yeah, ok. But you better be good at flying cos otherwise I’ll take over and stuff.” He proceeds into the ship.
“/Good/? Ha! I’m GREAT!” Lucy brags cheerfully, “I’m /zpecial/. I waz MADE to be a pilot!” Cocky little brat, huh? She board the ship and climbs right into the pilot’s seat, deftly settings about prelaunch sequences. Once their engineer buddy is with them and all set, launch will be set into motion. “I’m gonna need you to keep me pozted on the rock’z movementz and exzact navigation coordinatez,” she informs the other pilot, “It’z hard to go by feel when it’z zomething touchy like thiz.”
The Marine with the radio picks the unit off the hook as it chimes. About a minute later, he reports to Garviel: “Sir…the Llivori are calling off their planned nuclear strike against the asteroid. Instead, they’re now declaring this their territory and they intend to occupy it within six hours. Any interference will be met with violent reprisals.” He frowns. “Sorry, sir. I thought things were going so well.” A glance toward the battered Dean. “All things considered.”
“Well tell them that we will be off within six hourrs,” Garvi replies with a nod to the radio man. “Should be off just as soon as we get whateverr’s behind this doorr, as soon as the Lieutenants get in position,” he adds, looking up. “But don’t tell them that last bit,” the Llivori adds.
Amanda blinks “there gonna wanna ram the bloody thing straight into the opodians assuming they can get it under control. You aren’t suggesting we let them take it.”
Newt smirks behind his face mask, “Should learn to do math then, then you can do both at the same time.” He moves to the pilot’s cabin and plants himself into the co-pilots seat.
Umishi listens to the report and her jaw drops, “Why does someone lay claim to something about to kill them? You know..If this is some kind of ship i wonder if has a self destruct.”
“Oh, damn it,” mutters the Marine as he concludes another radio conversation with the surface. He informs Garviel, “Petty Officer Leob was asked by the Opodian officials who was in charge down here, sir. He told them, sir. Said a Llivori. Just blurted it, sort of panicked. Didn’t want to get caught in a lie or anything. Sir, the Opodians think you’re colluding with the Llivori government. They’re declaring this asteroid as Opodian territory. They’ll be here in six hours. You can probably guess the rest.”
“I’m learning, I’m juzt… well, ztill learning. Flying’z eazy, the math’z hard,” Lucy remarks as they take off, “I’m /little/, I’m not a big kid like you.” She pilots them over to the opening and then gestures to Newt with a cant of her head, “Okay, tell me where I gotta be.”
Garviel nods and sighs, “Therre’s nothing we can do, in that case. We’ll be off the asterroid in six hourrs,” he tells the radio op. He looks over at Amanda, “You arre welcome to stay and trry to stop them, I can’t forrce you not to, but I am not starrting a warr, and I’m cerrtainly not taking sides in a civil warr without orrderrs frrom my goverrnment,” he states. Finally, he comms up to the ship, “How arre we doing up therre? Almost rready?”
Umishi growls and mutters to herself arms still folded.
Newt replies, “About to position the ship and stuff.” and then to Lucy, “Just, ummm… 2 meters forward, 1 to the left and 2.3 down. Gotta turn along the z axis..” and he continues giving directions on how to position the ship just so, seemingly without using the onboard computer.
“Zzztupid rift drivezzz,” the voice on the other side of the door gripes. “Knew it wazzz bad idea. No one lizzzen, yezzyezz! Well, Zzzar, they zzztill not lizzzen. Gonna try again, zzzoon azzz got thermal rig back online. Big boomzzz, then. Yezzyezz. Zzzorry.”
Amanda sighs “of all the political mishaps I’ve had over the years…what about stopping one. it doesn’t take a genius to figure out what happens here in six hours though it may elude some of your crackerjack crew.”
And Lucy proceeds to follow Newt’s directions, slipping the ship into position with as much precision as his instruction allows. Which seems to be a lot!
“If you would like to be the perrson rresponsible forr entangling yourr nation into a warr, feel frree,” Garvi tells Amanda, “But it’s not my call and I can’t make it my call,” he looks to Umishi as well, “I don’t like it any morre than eitherr of you, trrust me, but my hands arre tied. I have people depending on me forr theirr lives,” he pauses, “And even if it /werre/ my call, we have thrree crruiserrs against theirr entirre fleet. We would be slaughterred, and then they’d still kill each other. I wont put my people in that position, I’m sorrrry,” and finally, he looks to the radio op, “Tell me when the shield’s up, then we’ll crrack the doorr and get out of herre,”
“Sure thing, sir,” the Marine replies. He gets on the radio and signals Newt: “How’s everything in the cradle, kids?”
Newt replies, “Almost…” he gives Lucy time to complete the final manouvers. Eventually, “Done!” he says happily, putting the shields up.
Amanda peers at the voice on the other side of the door “they were trying to rift jump. the whole hurdling towards kamsho may be accidental. Even dead he’s a pain in the ass.. so make the point of contention go kaboom and claim it was accidental
And the atmo pumping, too. Air is important.
A cool breeze billows downward as Lucy moves the ship into position and Newt activates the shields before letting out a steady burst of breatheable atmosphere. It’s not unlimited, but it should last at least six hours. The Marine turns toward Garviel. “Five by five, sir. The kids don’t suck.”
Umishi just stares at the door and waits..
“If therre is a way to do so without brringing explosives herre orr firring ourr ships weapons…it is an option on the table,” Garvi replies to Amanda, but at that point, things get busy, “Marrines, go,” Garvi states, chopping a hand at the door, “Flashbang firrst, set weapons to stun,” a glance is shot towards Amanda and Umishi, “But if you see weapons in hand, shoot firrst, we’ll ask questions laterr,”
Newt mutters something under his breath relating to a certain marine and sucking but stays put for now.
The Lotorian child continues to make the small adjustments necessary to remain aligned with the asteroid, giving the comm panel a quick glare and shaking her head. “‘The cradle’,” Lucy mutters, “Don’t zee them up here flying the zhip or navigating. Azzhole.”
“Marinezzz?” comes the muffled voice from the other side. “Not Zzzar? Bringing boomzzz? Back up! BACK UP! They gonna kill uzzz, yezzyezz.”
The Marines, meanwhile, set to work prying open the lower doors of the elevator shaft, revealing a huge cavern full of very sickly-looking Lotorians. Hundreds of them. Maybe thousands. The radio op peers inside at all the inhabitants, most of whom are passed out or close to it. The few who are conscious are gathered in a loose half circle behind one that might pass for their leader. They have their hands up and do not appear interested in attacking. “What the hell…” the radio op mutters.” A Marine with a flashbang looks toward Garviel and asks, “Orders, sir?”
Umishi levels her gun and watches.
Amanda peers “lotorian henchman. um perhaps we could um negotiate surrender.”
Garviel stops dead for a moment as he looks in, “Marrines, stand down, stand down,” he barks. He turns to the radio op, taking the horn right from him, “Commanderr, get all ships in the airr and down herre, skeleton crrews. I don’t carre what it is, shuttles, carrgo haulderrs, fighterrs that can fit a Lotorrian in the pilot’s lap, get them down herre on the double with everry sparre evac suit we have. Get the Phyrrrrians in on this too, /now/,” he barks.
The Lotorian leader staggers forward, waggling a fuzzy finger at Garviel. “Not taking uzzz from thizzz plazzze! Izzz important to uzzz, yezzyezz. We zzztay! Why you try to take uzzz? Thizzz home. Thizzz last piece of old homeworld. Thizzz last piece of Lotor.”
Newt stops at that, staring out. “Holy shit.”
“Lotor?” Lucy asks, tilting her head, “Like… Lotorianz’ Lotor? Well that’z… weird.” She adds in the comm, “Hey, zhould we maybe tell the people on the planet that the rock iz already claimed? Thoze Lotorianz were there firzt, right?”
Umishi blinks “Okay i am going to be blunt to all of you, The Zar is dead,i think he was going to leave you here, CURRENTLY this is being classified as a planet killer Asteroid about to smack right into the planet Kamsho.” stops a moment, “Do any of you have any ideas how to stop that?”
“Sirr, yourr last piece of Lotorr is currrrently hurrtling at prreposterrous speeds towarrds the planet of Kamsho. If you stay herre, you will die on impact, if not beforre. The inhabitants of said planet arre on theirr way herre rright now and they don’t sound too happy. Unless you have some way of maneuverring…Lotorr off of a collision courrse with the planet, you arre coming with me, end of storry. I’m sorrrry,” he looks to the Marines, “Unless therre is a way, starrt getting these Lotorrians rready for evac. Forrce is authorrized, but /not/ lethal forrce. Stun them if they wont cooperate,”
“Have wayzzz,” the Lotorian leader informs Garviel. “Rift drivezzz. Got uzzz here. Can get uzzz away. Juzzzt need to make thermal rig work with drive again. Need part. Got partzzz? Energy recalibratorzzz, yezzyezz.” He frowns, whiskers drooping. “Do not like rift drivezzz. Zzzar gave uzzz, we tried, everything go boom-zzzmazzzh, now here. Rather try again than abandon thizzz plazzze. You give part, we fix, we go.”
Newt looks at Lucy, “Do we have any spare parts and stuff?”
Amanda blinks “why did the zar give you a rift drive?”
Lucy shakes her head, “I cleared out all my cargo zo the zhuttle could be uzed for evac. Only partz I have in here are the onez the zhip iz uzing. Don’t know about the other zhipz. Can’t really get out and give em’ partz anyway, can we?”
Umishi lowers her gun and just looks toward the engineer of the marine company.
“If you have the parrts, how long will it take you to fix it? You’ve got less than six hourrs at this point,” Garvi tells the leader. He looks to his radio op, “Tell the Commanderr to send one shuttle back to the Frront, get the parrts we need, rrations, medical supplies, and an atmoprrocessorr on it, as well as whateverr otherr emerrgency supplies we can crram onto it, and some way to seal this doorr frrom the inside.”
“Juzzt a few minutezzz,” the Lotorian leader says. “We fix, switch on, go vrooom! You zzzzee, yezzyezz.” He then wanders over to Amanda, peering up at her. “Zzzar give it to uzzz zzzo we not kill him. We find Zzzar on broken zzzhip in Rigor Strand. We want to kill, but Zzzar offer drivezzz. We tell him we not killzzz. Medlidikke come for him. Big bounty, yezzyezz. Zzzar beg uzzz not to give him up, but big pirate got friendzzz, maybe take drivezzz. Pirate take Zzzar up elevator. We think maybe we zzzave him, yezzyezz. Maybe ranzzzom later? Zzzo, we hit button. Vroom, yezzyezz. Thingzzz not go so good.”
Newt nods, sinking back into his seat. “Sucks to be them.”
“Zuckz to be uz if we’re ztill here when the Opodianz and Llivori get here at the zame time,” Lucy remarks with a frown, “Randall uzed to have a way of zaying what’ll happen… he zaid ‘the zhit hitz the fan’, I think? That right?”
The radio op Marine completes a conversation with the ship, then returns to Garviel. “Sir, both the Opodians and Llivori are expressing concern about what’s going on up here. The Opodians are making noises about attacking Vor pre-emptively because you’re here. The Llivori insist you’re not under their command, but the Opodians don’t trust them. So,” he clears his throat, “the Llivori have apparently decided to show good faith by blowing us up. They’re warming up missiles in their silos. The Opodians, in a rare moment of solidarity with the Llivori, are doing the same. They’re locking on this asteroid, sir. Once they launch, the missiles will be here within an hour. We can probably destroy some of them with the cruisers, but not all. Probably not enough.”
Umishi jaw drops again, “Will they make up their minds?!”
Garviel nods, “Yourr parrts will be herre soon. Give us half an hourr to get all ourr people and equipment off, and then go, as farr frrom herre as you can,” a pause, “If you need someplace to go, the Orrion Confederracy would welcome you. Just trry not to rrun into any of ourr planets, please,” the Llivori rattles off a set of coordinates, just in case. He looks to the radio op, “Let them both know that if a missile gets within ten kilometerrs of my crruiserrs, it will be considerred an act of warr, and that’s being generrous,” he sighs, “Let’s move, I want us off this asterroid in half an hourr to give the Lotorrians plenty of time to get out of herre.”
Newt is about to reply when he listens to the transmission. As he listens he faceplatepalms, “Oh man. Adults can be so -dumb-.”
“Zhiiit, TELL THEM ABOUT THE LOTORIANZ!” Lucy chirps into the comm, “TELL THEM! Or zhow them, don’t we have any video?” She rattles off a few more curses. Someone’s been spending too much time around the grease monkeys who fix her ship. “What’z /wrong/ with theze crazy ztupid people?! How can they run a planet like thiz?!”
Several Marines arrives with bundles of parts and supplies for the Lotorians. As air from the ship above filters into the habitation cavern, many of the unconscious Lotorians begin to stir and mumble. The Lotorian leader watches as his fix-it team attaches the energy recalibrators to the thermal rig. The rift drive hums to life. “Zzzhould be ready to go within the hour,” the Lotorian says proudly. Everything’s going well! Which must explain why the radio op Marine palms his forehead before whispering to Garviel: “Launch, sir. We have missile launch. Everything. Every silo. I don’t think they take the Confederacy very seriously. That pisses me off, sir.”
Umishi grins to herself as she starts her eay up, “Not all adults..Just certain ones.”, blinks and turns around her ears picking up on the whisper, “You have to be kidding me…” and with that promptly turns around and starts to climb up the shaft as fast she can.
Garviel nods, “It pisses me off too, Petty Officerr, but I’m not about to declarre warr on a planet if I don’t have to.” he turns to the leader again, “We’ve got supplies herre that will let you seal that door. We’rre leaving now, seal it behind us, /as soon as we leave/. We have to go, and when we do, the only thing that’s holding yourr atmospherre in will go too, got it? MARRINES, moving out! Now!” he barks, and begins to move out himself. As he walks, he gets back on the comms, “Lieutenant Juniorr Grrade Lucy. I was planning on giving you and yourr copilot a commendation forr yourr efforrts herre, don’t make me turrn that into a demotion forr yourr behaviorr. Underrstood?”
Newt sits up, “Hey! We didn’t do anything bad! They’re the ones throwing nukes at us!”
“We do thizz, fazzt, yezzyezz!” the Lotorian leader vows. “Thank you, Llivori!”
Lucy thunks her hand into her head and shakes her head. “Thiz iz zo ztupid,” she complains, before adding into the comm, “I’m zorry, Captain, but thiz iz ridiculouz.” She changes comm channels, then, attempting to hail Kamsho. “Zhuttle Four-Zixz-Two-Niner-Delta, rezpectfully hailing the leaderz of the Opodianz and the Llivori. Pleaze come in. I repeat, thiz iz Zhuttle Four-Zixz-Two-Niner-Delta, Leaderzhip of Kamsho pleaze rezpond.” Newt can of course intervene if he wants to.
Umishi just stands and waits to depart either with or behind the marines.
An officious-sounding Opodian replies over Lucy’s radio: “This is no time for childish prank calls. We’re very busy destroying an asteroid. Don’t make us notify your parents.”
“I want this asterroid evaced, now. Lieutenant, give us five minutes, then meet us wherre we came in,” Garvi states to the shuttle above them. He lets the Marines, and Umishi, go up before him. The ascent hopefully made easier by the Helots still up there. Garvi is up last.
As Garviel departs with the Marines and Umishi, the Lotorians secure the elevator doors behind them. That familiar voice calls through: “Vroom! Yezzyezz!”
Newt flips the comms switch, moments too late, “What are you doing?!” then to Garvi a “Yes, sir.” before turning to Lucy, “You get us ready for take off and stuff.”
“Hey!” Lucy glares at Newt, “They need to know what they’re doing! I’ll let Garvi know you’re not helping me.” She does get the shuttle ready to go, though, “Let me know when to pull out.”
And then she reaches to flick the Kamsho channel back open and keep her hand in the way to prevent Newt from flicking it off again, “I’m not a prank caller,” the girl says calmly, “I’m Lieutenant Junior Grade Luzy, a pilot of the Orion Confederazy, although right now I’m not zpeaking for them… Actually, I’m probably gonna get fired over thiz. But pleaze, juzt give me a few minutez to let you know juzt who and what all you’re doing. There’z a colony of Lotorianz inzide thiz rock, thouzandz of them. They’re zaying thiz rock iz the lazt pieze of Lotor. I don’t know if that’z true or not, but thiz rock iz here by acczident and you’re gonna kill a lot of people who don’t dezerve it if you don’t abort the flight of thoze mizzilez. They can move it zo it won’t hit Kamzho, but you need to give them zome time. That’z all I’m azking for iz a little time, pleaze.”
“Erm,” comes the reply over the radio. “Those missiles are very expensive.”
Umishi falls in the shuttle behind the marines and gets ready to strap down.
Garviel is the last one in the shuttle, closing the hatch behind him. He doesn’t secure himself, not yet, but instead moves towards the cockpit, “Lieutenant,” he barks at the pilot, “Considerr yourrself rrelieved of piloting duties until furrtherr notice. Get in the back. Now.” he looks to Newt, “Lieutenant Panderryn, you have the helm. Get us off this rrock,”
Newt stares at the control panel after the reply comes, “That was the dumbest thing ever.” On hearing Garviel come towards the cockpit he looks back, remaining silent and then takes over the controls, “Yes, sir.” … “She was only trying to help.”
“You’re lozing that money either way,” Lucy points out to the authority, completely ignoring Garviel, “You already launched them. What you need to do now iz dezide if you’re going to juzt let that miztake kill all thoze people, or if you’re gonna turn them off and zave not only the people on the rock, but the people on your planet who’ll get killed by the big chunkz that’ll end up falling on Kamzho after you blow the rock up.” She lets Newt take the controls during this, but it becomes clear that she will have to be forcfully removed to get her away from the comm. She even clings in anticipation of it.
Umishi blinks at Lucy and stays strapped in her seat before just looking around.
The missiles launched from Kamsho are closing at a rapid pace as the asteroid suddenly vanishes in a ripple of blue light. The missiles are just yards from the asteroid before it disappears. The live missiles keep going, closing on the Confederacy ships within the vicinity. Then, as it registers with ground authorities that the planet-killer threat has vanished, codes are transmitted to render the rockets inert. They start tumbling harmlessly through the vacuum of space. One bounces with a thud off the upper hull of the shuttle Newt’s flying. It leaves a scratch, but fails to obliterate everyone inside. The Opodian speaks over the comms: “Thank you for visiting Kamsho. Please come again. Some other time.”
“I’m awarre of that, Lieutenant,” Garvi replies to Newt, “I’m also awarre that the Lieutenant has now disobeyed a dirrect orrderr twice, is endangerring the mission and possibly the entirre Orrion Confederracy,” while he speaks, the Llivori takes out his service pistol, sets it to stun, points it at the back of Lucy’s head and fires, “Take us home,” the Llivori doesn’t flinch at the nuke hitting the craft, either.
In his distracted state Newt almost misses the nuke coming for them. He begins trying to get out of it’s way only to have the nuke hit the ship anyway, “Crap!” Then, of course, Garvi fires.
Newt looks and stares at Lcuy, “Holy crap! Lucy?!”
There is a faint squeak as Lucy is stunned, but the comm isn’t open to catch it. The girl passes right out, although not before her eyes squeeze out a few streams of tears.
Umishi winces at the stun shot and stares…
“She’s just stunned, Lieutenant, she’ll be alrright when she comes to. But I will not have someone potentially endangerring my people. I appologize if it seems harrsh, but having herr shrriek and squeal as we got her away overr the comms would have been farr worrse.”