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Lt. Commander John Carter - "Double Vision."


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Sparks, explosions, smoke, and anomalies.  From reading this sim, you can feel the stress of the situation.  A fantastic read @Hannibal Parker !

 

(( Bridge- USS Independence B ))

 

Gamma shift. The dark of ships' night. It was a time for junior officers to take the big chair on what should be a fairly routine evolution. However, it was also the time for a Second Officer to brush up on his bridge quals, and John had no problem with the lack of sleep associated with taking the center seat of the Defiant Class starship during this period.

 

Probing the depths of space in advance of the USS Kitty Hawk, the Indy B was closing in on a phenomena known as the Barossa Nebula, her powerful warp engines bringing them ever closer. Sure, the mission was routine, according to Wil, but routine was relative. On the viewscreen, the purplish hues of the nebula were drawing ever closer. At the helm, Jaygee Flint was piloting the Indy B with skill and it seemed a great deal of joy. It was like watching a virtuoso sing not for adolation, but because they loved it so much. John spoke...

 

Carter: Mister Flint...ships' status...

 

Flint: Everything appears optimal, Commander. ::Gesturing at the purple field ahead on the viewscreen:: With your permission, Sir.

 

This was what being out here was all about. Exploration, expanding our knowledge and forging a path for those who would follow. With a hint of pride in his voice, John spoke...

 

Carter: Take us in, Mister Flint...

 

Orrey: Response

 

Flint: Taking us in.

 

The view on the screen changed as the ship gracefully swung to port, the purple from the nebula undulating with deep patches and lighter ones as the ship moved in. The view was mesmerizing, hypnotic, beautiful. John sat back in the center seat, internally whistling to himself. John spoke...

 

Carter: Beautiful, isn't it?

 

Orrey: response

 

He was getting ready to speak again when the Indy seemingly dropped out from under them, then pitched up violently. Alarms began whooping on the bridge, and he could feel the heat from something exploding behind him...

 

Carter:=/\= Red Alert! Captain Ukinix to the bridge!=/\=

 

Orrey: response

 

Carter: Mister Flint! What have you got?

 

Flint: It’s that anomaly, Sir. It appears to be expanding. It’s… some sort of gravity well.

 

That wasn't a good thing. A bad one could tear even this ship apart in minutes. The ship began to dip forward according to the viewscreen. If they began to tumble, it could be lights out for all of them. John spoke...

 

Carter: Flint! Get her nose up!

 

Orrey: response

 

Flint: Attempting to compensate. Might get a bit rocky...

 

That was an understatement. The engines roared with power as they fought against the forces trying to pull them in. Looking at the status on his PADD, things were getting worse, not better...

 

Carter: Structural integrity is getting critical!

 

Orrey: response

 

Flint: If we continue trying to escape, Sir, the ship will be torn in half by these tidal forces. I have to power the engines down or we will lose the ship…

 

Flint was right. The readouts were telling him the same thing. He had no time to ponder a decision, no room to consider alternatives. Right or wrong, John made his decision...

 

Carter: Shut them down, Mister Flint. Use the thrusters to try to keep us level.

 

Orrey: response

 

With the warp engines shut down, the Indy bucked forward, with Flint fighting to keep her on an even keel, although an even keel was not the main thing for the moment as the anomaly pulled them in deeper, the viewscreen becoming grainy and full of static, Over the din of alarms, Flint spoke...

 

Flint: Recommend we alert the crew to brace for...

 

Flint was cut off by a series of explosions which rocked the Indy, setting off another group of alarms. In front of him, Flint was dealing with a small fire, and behind John he was feeling sparks run down his neck. To make matters worse, John was thrown against the overhead, and he heard the unmistakable sound of an emergency bulkhead closing...they were effectively trapped on the bridge, but so far the only good news was they still had life support, but the only question was...for how long? And what about the rest of the ship?

 

Pushing himself off the overhead, John slammed into the command chair and grabbed a handhold...the only question was staying in it in zero gee. The bridge had gone dark, with most of the consoles now showing red through the smoke. They were still alive, but they were in serious trouble. A few long seconds later, auxiliary lighting came on, tinged in red, but at least he knew some systems were still online, despite physically the bridge being cut off from the rest of the ship.  John spoke...

 

Carter: Status report!

 

Orrey: response

 

Flint: I’m afraid… we’re trapped.

 

Carter: In more ways than one. We're trapped on the bridge, trapped in this anomaly, not knowing what the ships' current status is, which we need to know yesterday.

 

Orrey: response

 

A grey viewscreen greeted his eye forward. They at least wanted to see where the hell they were. Maybe the Kitty Hawk saw them and was on her way. That maybe so, but John had to operate as though they were on their own and they had to save themselves. John spoke...

 

Carter: David...can you get that screen on?

 

Flint had managed to secure himself to the helm, and through the smoke, he managed to get the viewscreen operable...and what they all saw made John think he was seeing things, but he wasn't. On the viewscreen before him, there were literally hundreds of Independence B's...all identical, all lifeless, all helpless. Just as they were.

 

Carter: I'm be damned...

 

Orrey: response

 

Flint: response

 

Carter: Hail them...

 

Orrey: response

 

No answer. Not good. Perhaps they were more damaged than he figured. John spoke...

 

Carter: Allright. I need a full damage report Mister Flint. I need to know how badly we're hurt, and...whether there are survivors other than here, since internal sensors seem to be off line for the moment.

 

Orrey: response

 

Carter: Damage Control 101. Save the ship. Save the plant. Save the crew.

 

Damage control had been a mantra since the United States Navy days. Sure the systems were more complex, but the basics were still the same. Once he knew how bad they were hurt, the better he could respond...

 

Orrey: response

 

Flint: response

 

TAG/TBC

 

Lt. Commander John Marcus Carter

First Officer/ Chief Counselor

USS Independence B

C238703HP0

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