Ensign Valin Dermont - Helmsmen get all the credit

[Brell]

((USS Atlantis, Main Engineering - Deck 11))

 

::Bags under his eyes, Ensign Valin Dermont looked even grumpier than usual.  He had his coffee set off to the side, daring anyone to challenge him that it wasn't supposed to be there.  The warp temperature had continued to rise another three degrees, and while still not threatening, he just didn't want to push it much longer.::

 

::All of engineering was abuzz with movement.  Ensign T'Bel was still MIA as she set herself towards the task of getting her mind right.  He could sympathize with that.  Anytime Dermont almost died, he liked to take a bit and get his mind right, too.::

 

oO Of course, we usually do it with an ale or three. Oo

 

::Ensign Dia was on standby with two teams of technicians.  They were going to patch into the colony's power system with a lots of cables and a power converter based on the specs sent by the Caraadians.  The younger engineer was to get them set up ASAP.  If the situation was as bad as Dermont had heard, they were going to be lighting fires in the streets to see soon.::

 

Dermont:  Alright now.  Last checks.  ::Pointing to a young man idling too long.::  Get with all teams and make sure everyone's in place!  I'm sure everything's workin', but I want tech teams within arms reach of anythin' we might need to bang with a hammer durin' descent!

 

::The young man nodded nervously and walked away, tapping his commbadge.  Dermont almost wanted to grin.  That particular crewman had been here at least a year longer than Dermont...::

 

oO Oh, but I went to that fancy officer school! Oo

 

::He stood over his console, with two crewmen close by.  He would call out for a number every few minutes, making sure his reading aligned with theirs.  Occasionally, he would ask for a tweak to a variable and they would nod and get it done.  He rubbed his eyes, grabbed his coffee and stepped away.  They were as ready as they could be.  He sipped his coffee as he stared as the slow pulsing glow of the core, letting the minutes count down.::

 

Brell: =/\= Brell to Engineering, we are approaching Tiruelle. Please take the warp core offline, vent all plasma from the nacelles and standby to engage atmospheric thrusters. =/\= 
 

::He strutted over to the warp console as he tapped his commbadge.::

 

Dermont: =/\= Aye, Captain. =/\=

 

 ::As he brought up the display to shut down sequence, he glanced wildly about, he eyes darting and glaring.::

 

Dermont:  Alright, that's our song!  Get movin'!  Yelchin, double check the core stabilization durin' shutdown.  We're had a temperature increase and I can't pin down the problem yet.  Novek, begin plasma vent, and make sure McGregor's team is visually checking to make sure the valves are open!  Last week diasnostics had the port nacelle's plasma flow a little under-pressured...

 

Brell: =/\= Brell to all decks, Blue Alert, we are preparing to land the ship, report to your code blue stations. =/\=  ::The running lights about engineering began to flash a deep blue.::

 

::The orders rattled off one by one, with Dermont trusting the team leaders to keep their techs on task.  He wasn't worried.  This group of engineers had worked so long without a chief, they had long-ago learned to rely on each other.  His shouting was more for his benefit than theirs.::

 

::He stood there and watched as the core's glow faded and then went dark.  He glanced over at crewman Yelchin and received a thumbs up.  Dermont's eyes strayed to Novek, and the young vulcan nodded.  A quick look at the screen, everything went just fine.::

 

Dermont:  =/\= Engineerin' to bridge.  We're all ready down here.  =/\=

 

::Dermont took another sip of his coffee as he headed back over to the large display he was using earlier.  It gave him at a glance the most important numbers.  He gave himself a small smile the was mostly hidden under his beard as everything fell into place.::

 

oO Thirty-six hours of non-stop...even Novek looked ready for a nap and vulcans hardly even needed sleep!  Worth it. Oo

 

::The was a small and rumble as they went into the upper atmosphere.  The deck plating beneath his feet seemed to rumble.  He had landed his old hauler a thousand times, but never something as large as the Atlantis.  There was a  nervousness through the crew.  This was new for everyone, it seemed.  The rumble subsided quickly and everyone took a moment to exhale.  The atmospheric thrusters kicked one as one and he watched on the screen as power levels dipped just a bit as the thrusters did their job and slow the intrepid down through the skies of Tiruelle.::

 

oO I'm sure it's a beautiful sight, coming in through the clouds...wait...what's that? Oo

 

::The temperature in thrusters two and six were spiking on his screen.  Before he could open his mouth, Yelchin called out.::

 

Yelchin:  Sir!  We're got sudden power surges to the thruster!

 

Dermont:  Where's it coming' from?

 

Yelchin:  Look like a regulator failed from power junction oh-six on the secondary grid!

 

::Dermont glanced at the spike on his screen and knew that they would burn out those thrusters longer before they would land.  He brought up a schematic of the available power.  With the core offline, his options were a tad bit limited.::

 

Dermont:  Bypass oh-six and reroute from the oh-eight junction!  It's got the juice.  Tell Brandie he's got less than a minute to get his [...] down two decks and install a pair of shunts around oh-six!  With the regulators out, I don't trust the relays down there to get the job done.

 

::The seconds ticked away and the overload seem imminent.  He could call the bridge and tell them we needed to flounder in like a wounder gull.  It would be no real issue other than pride to back off their landing and recalculate a less-steep descent taking into account the two offline thrusters.  Dermont shook his head to nobody but himself.  That thought was dismissed almost as it formed.  He glanced at Yelchin and the crewman was nervously hovering over his alcove, just waiting on Brandie.  A light on Dermont's console flashed...safety protocols were informing him they were about to automatically shut down the thrusters in question before they failed.  A few button later the light went off and the alert just disappeared.  Hopefully before anyone on the bridge noticed.  He ran his hand through his hair anxiously.::

 

oO About a minute...ten...fifteen...come on...Oo

 

::Yelchin whooped out loud.::

 

Yelchin:  Yeah!!!  Shunts installed, rerouting power and deactivating oh-six.  Brandie is beginning repairs to the regulators.  ::A big grin::  He did it sir.

 

Dermont:  ::another grin, but he turned his back to the crewman so he wouldn't see.::  Of course he did, boy.  That was his damn job.  ::A pause.::  Good work everybody!  Tell Brandie an ale on me.

 

::The rest of the landing went without issue and as far as they knew, no one was the wiser on the bridge.::

 

Yelchin:  I though we were going to botch that for a minute, sir.

 

Dermont:  We succeed, Yelchin.  That's the only option.  We keep the Atlantis together and in one piece.  We keep her flyin'  and the helmsman gets all the credit for such a perty landin'.

 

Brell: =/\= Brell to Engineering. Good work, prepare to establish connections to the local power gird and begin augmentation as soon as you are able. =/\= 

 

Dermont: =/\= Thank you, sir.  Easier than I thought it'd be!  And aye.  =/\=  ::commbadge tap.::  =/\= Engineering to Dia. =/\=

 

Dia:  =/\= response =/\=

 

Dermont:  =/\= It's all yours now. Let's get hooked up and save a party. =/\=

 

::Dermont began issuing final landing orders to the crewmen around him.  The teams were already moving, but man...he sure did enjoy yelling at people.::

 

Raga: =/\= Raga to Dermont. =/\=

 

oO(Busy day...)Oo

 

Dermont: =/\= Dermont here.  What can I do ya for. =/\=  ::Sip of coffee::

 

Raga: =/\= How good are you at climbing? There's some mountains out there that need taming. Assuming you can be pried away from the ship or tinkering with something. Care to join me for some mountaineering? =/\= 

 

Dermont: =/\= Um, right...kinda busy.  Saving Christmas and all that.  They've no power here!=/\=

 

::Brell had assured all the engineers that they would have time to fix the power here and enjoy their leave, but no reason to let Raga know that.::

 

Raga: =/\= I promise to pack whatever food you want to bring and can fit in a pack. =/\= 

 

Dermont: =/\= Gah!  Fine, fine!  Nothin' would please me more.  I'm sure we can find the time.  =/\=

 

Raga: =/\= Great, I'll come find you when shore leave starts. Raga out. =/\=

 

Dermont =/\= Oh joy. =/\= 

 

 

 

=======================

 

Ensign Valin Dermont

Engineering

USS Atlantis

 

A239410VD0