Ensign Hal Mika: The Mess Hall/ A Dangerous Descent

[Randal Shayne]

I've been meaning to add this here for days. Awesome stuff, Anders!

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((B-Deck - USS Fortwith))

 ((OOC: Splitting this into two because it ended up a lot longer than I anticipated.)) 

Krenn: Look out!

 

::Before Hal could respond, something shoved him forward and he stumbled and fell. Something crashed behind him and he twisted around and saw Krenn on the ground, a metal beam smashed into his leg. Hal felt an immense surge of gratitude as he realized that Krenn had pushed him out of the way. Hal stood up and made his way over to Krenn. ::

 

Mika: Thank you, Lieutenant.

 

Krenn: ?

 

:: Hal almost asked if Krenn was okay before remembering from his studies that Klingons generally did not appreciate people showing concern for them. Instead, he squatted down and attempted to lift the beam. It was heavy, but with assistance from Krenn, they were able to slide it off his leg. Hal stood and wiped the sweat from his brow, before hearing a new voice. He turned to see Doctor G’Renn. Once again, a small smile lit his face. ::

 

G’Renn: What’s our status?

 

Mika: There are 14 people on this deck in need of help, but we’ve only encountered one of them at this point.

 

Pran: Lieutenant Krenn has been injured by a fallen structural beam.

 

G’Renn: Can you stand, Lieutenant?

 

Krenn: ?

 

:: Hal watched as Krenn got to his feet. It looked painful, but the Klingon made no noise as he did so. Hal hoped he would consent to medical help; Krenn was beginning to grow on him. Beyond that, Hal had no illusions as to how much less capable he himself would be at getting them through obstacles and debris that would likely be in their way later. ::

 

G’Renn: Oh before I forget, ::Anath turned to look at Lieutenant Pran:: I may have to stop by their sickbay and liberate some extra medical supplies. I left my extra medkit on the shuttle, and this kit only has so much in it.

 

Pran: Then once we are done here, head there and get what you need.

 

Mika: When you do run out, we may be able to bring enough casualties directly to you that you can just stay in sick bay.

 

Pran: That isn’t a bad idea. We can have a primary triage centre there and a secondary one for those with lesser injuries in the shuttlebay. Do you think that would be feasible Doctor?

 

G’Renn: ?

 

Krenn: ?

 

Pran: Okay. ::she looked down the corridor, squinting through the haze of the smoke that lingered in air.:: We need to keep moving. ::she looked to Krenn.:: Are you going to be alright, Lieutenant?

 

Krenn: ?

 

:: Hal nodded and moved toward the nearest life sign. He found the man buried under a pile of debris. The man appeared to be unconscious and had a nasty looking head wound. Hal began pulling sheets and beams off of him as he called back to G’Renn. ::

 

 

 

Mika: Over here, Doctor! This one looks like he’s in rough shape.

 

Pran: ::she looked to G’Renn.:: Is it safe to do that? ::she had read stories of people who had been trapped under rubble only to bleed to death as the rubble had been keeping the blood loss to a minimum with pressure.::

 

G’Renn: ?

 

Krenn: ?

 

:: With help, the man was uncovered in short order. His uniform was torn in several places and he hung limply, held in place by a beam that jutted out under his left arm . As Hal looked at him, a shiver ran down his spine. The man looked... broken. ::

 

Mika: Is… is he going to make it?

 

G’Renn: ?

 

Krenn: ?

 

Pran: Everything okay, Ensign?

 

:: Hal nodded and his eyes darted around. He didn’t much care for this. How G’Renn could face these kinds of  injuries on a regular basis, he didn’t know. As much as he wanted to help people, he hated seeing suffering like this. He swallowed hard doing his best to clear his mind and stay focused. He consulted his tricorder once again. ::

 

Mika: I’ll head to the next lifesign.

 

Pran: Who counsels the counselor?

 

G’Renn: It’s unfortunately a part of wanting to help people as a profession. Whether doctor, counselor, or another profession you have you see people at their worst in order to make them better. ::She lowered her voice slightly, hoping that Ensign Mika wouldn’t hear:: Let him come to you or someone else for help, not the other way around.

 

Krenn: ?

 

((Time Jump))

((B Deck))

((Two Minutes Later))

 

:: Hal was sore and tired. The adrenaline that had allowed to climb five decks and dig through had drained from him after seeing the crushed crewman. Now he plodded forward, acutely aware of his companions behind him. He hadn’t heard all of what they’d said, but he’d heard enough. He was fine; there was no need for concern. Hal looked at his tricorder and stopped. The life signs were coming from beyond a door just ahead. It was open just a crack. ::

 

Pran: I’m reading a dozen life signs. Fading, but at least they are alive. ::she reached out and put all of her weight against the door and pushed it backwards. It was stubborn at first, but eventually she had moved it enough to allow the team to enter one at a time.:: Come on.

 

 

G’Renn: ::quietly:: Most of them look like they can’t walk. Hopefully we can enlist those who can to help us move them down to the triage area.

 

Krenn: ?

 

:: Hal followed the others through and looked around the room. From what he saw, Hal imagined it was the mess hall. He agreed with G’Renn. Then again, what kind of doctor would she be if she couldn’t figure that much out from just seeing this scene? Several crewmen lay unconscious, and of those who were conscious only a few looked fit.  But none of these crewmen seemed to be in as dire straights as the last one... ::

 

:: Before he could pursue that train of thought any further, a woman among the Fortwith crew stepped forward and spoke.::

 

Crewman: Who are you?

 

Pran: We’re friends. We’re stranded here as well.

 

G’Renn: I’m Anath. I’m a doctor, and I’m here to help.

 

Crewman: Alright, we’ve got a lot of injured around here.

 

G’Renn: We want to start moving people down to a centralized area. It will make treatment easier. ::Anath turned to the others:: Once we stabilize who we can, we’ll want to start moving them down to E Deck.

 

 

G’Renn: We want to start moving people down to a centralized area. It will make treatment easier. ::Anath turned to the others:: Once we stabilize who we can, we’ll want to start moving them down to E Deck.

 

 

Pran/Krenn: ?

 

:: Hal took a look around at the crew of the Fortwith, trying harder this time to see as a counselor should. Those who were conscious were visibly nervous; a stone face with wide eyes there, a bouncing knee there, furtive glances at the ridges on Krenn and G’Renn’s heads.  It would be difficult enough to have strangers on their ship in its current condition without two of them being Klingons. He tried to think of something to say to ease the concerns written on their faces but he drew a blank. His mind wandered back to the man in the corrid-::

 

Mika: oO No, dammit! Focus! Oo

 

:: The sound of Doctor G’Renn’s report gave him precisely what he needed: something to focus on. ::

 

G’Renn: We’ve got three unconscious crewmen, and two who can barely walk. With the help of the remaining crew and all of us I think we can move them and the man in the hallway down to E Deck.

 

Pran: ?

 

Krenn: ?

 

:: Hal nodded and moved to assist a crewman in carrying one of his unconscious crewmates. Hal squatted behind the injured man while the other crewman stepped between his legs. ::

 

Mika: On three. One, two, three!

 

:: Breathing out, Hal lifted the man, supporting him against his chest, at the same time his partner lifted the man’s legs When they had him as comfortable as they could, they began walking toward the exit. ::

 

G’Renn: I think I noticed a kind of jefferies tube ladder on the wall back in the hallway. Might be a slightly easier climb than the turbolift tube. In any case it’s closer.

 

:: Hal nodded. The sooner they went down the better. It would be much preferable to carry someone down a ladder with more energy, not less. ::

 

Pran/Krenn: ?

 

:: Hal and his crewman continued to the exit. It was a tight squeeze, but Pran had managed to force the doors just wide enough that carrying the injured man through required no special maneuvers. As they made their way to the jefferies tube ladder, however, Hal realized they had a problem; going down the ladder. How was he supposed to carry this man down a ladder? It was obvious only one person could be involved carrying the man down. Ladders weren’t designed for side-by-side traffic. His mind ran through a number of different positions that he could attempt. When they reached the ladder, Hal made his decision. He called to the crewman who was helping him. ::

 

Mika: Alright, set him down. ::Once the man was resting on the ground, Hal explained his idea. :: I’m going to step on to the ladder. Once I’m on it, I need you to hand him to me shoulders first, facing me. I’m going to keep him pinned against the ladder as I make my way down. oO I hope this works. Oo

 

Crewman #2: I understand.

 

Pran/Krenn/G’Renn: ?

 

Mika: ::under his breath his breath :: Here goes nothing.

 

:: He stepped onto the ladder. The crewman pushed the man towards Hal and he grappled him with one arm. Slowly and carefully, he pulled the man in until he rested half on Hal and half on the ladder. He was heavy; Hal didn’t believe he would make it all three decks without some sort of rest. Taking a deep breath, he steeled himself. Letting it out he began his descent. ::

 

:: It was slow moving. As he passed C Deck, Hal could feel his muscles burning, but he continued down, totally focused on the repetition. First, his left foot would search for the next rung, then his left hand slid down the side of the ladder. Then Hal repeated the process with the right side, again and again, all the while putting pressure on crewman to keep him secured against the ladder. As he passed D Deck, every muscle in Hal’s body screamed for relief, but he realized that if he stopped now, he would never get going again and would likely lose his grip and fall to his death. He continued on, teeth gritted. ::

 

:: Finally, Hal reached E Deck. Only then did he realize that he had no one to help him unload his unconscious companion. Holding tightly to the man across his waist with one arm, Hal reached out with a foot for the landing. Once that foot was secure, Hal pushed off as hard he could with the other and tumbled onto the landing. He lay there next to the unconscious crewmember for several moments, exhausted. Finally he reached up to his chest and tapped his combadge.

 

Mika: =/\= Mika to Pran. =/\=

 

Pran: =/\= ? =/\=

 

Mika: =/\= I’ve made it safely to E Deck. Recommend an alternate route for those carrying injured, if possible. =/\=

 

Pran: =/\= ? =/\=

 

Mika: =/\= Understood. I will take my patient to sickbay and return here to provide assistance in offloading. Mika out. =/\=

 

:: Still breathing hard, Hal stood and grabbed his charge from behind by the shoulders and began dragging him in the direction of sickbay. Once there, he deposited him just inside. The doctor looked up from the patient Hal and the rest of the team had brought earlier. The doctor opened his mouth to protest, but Hal gave him a withering look. ::

 

Mika: More on their way. Just do your job, would you?

 

:: Hal turned and hurried back to the jefferies tube. ::

 

Mika: =/\= Mika to Pran; I’m back at the ladder. Is anyone coming down? =/\=

 

Pran: =/\= ? =/\=

 

TAG/TBC

--
Ensign Hal Mika
Counselor
USS Blackwell
NCC 58999
Andaris Task Force
A23950HM0

 

Edited July 14, 2018 by Randal Shayne