Lieutenant Danielle kept her weapon at the ready, the black
haired tactical officer carefully leading the way into the blasted
entrance of the underground facility. Around them dust blew in the air,
the atmosphere harsh on this dead world.
'More like it was murdered,' Lieutenant-Commander Karin thought
to herself bleakly, 'by the Paranoid.' The black haired woman turned
away from the wreckage to the small group following them in and yelled
out, "Davies!"
"Yo!" Davies answered, the sandy haired woman moving up to her
side.
"Crack open a scanner unit," Karin said crisply, "see if you can
rig something up to spot any more booby traps up ahead."
"Five minutes," Davies answered simply.
Catty studied the wreckage, the purple haired girl looking down
intently. She shifted some debris aside, picking at metal, crystal and
plastic, then finally shook her head. "There was a computer access
here," she said softly, "but it's wrecked now."
"We'll try to find you an intact one soon," Karin said dryly as
they waited a few moments for Davies to finish her work.
Jame looked about nervously, her green hair falling into those
wide eyes. She noticed Karin's gaze and looked up at the engineer
curiously, "Ma'am?"
Karin felt herself blush slightly and look away. "Sorry," she
said, "I was just wondering how you were doing."
"I'm fine," Jame smiled. She looked off into the distance,
probably where the other group was trying to access the underground as
she fretted, "I just hope Katrine will be all right."
Karin tried not to grit her teeth at the mention of the flighty
redhead, but it was hard. "I'm sure she'll be fine," she sighed.
"I got it," Davies spoke up, sealing the scanner unit quickly
while protecting it from any possible dust and debris.
"So what is it looking for?" Danielle asked curiously.
"Abnormal energy spikes," Davies calmly explained, "and the
chemical signatures of most common Solenoid explosives."
"Should do," Karin agreed.
Danielle looked over at Karin to respectfully say to her
superior, "As much as I'd like to see two groups going underground to
explore, it might be safer to keep the other group up here on the
surface in case of an emergency."
"Not a bad idea," Karin relayed the order to the other team,
then looked around her own group. "Let's go in," she said.
Danielle took point once again, then quite surprisingly said,
"Catty, you're with me."
"How can I help?" Catty asked as the purple officer moved up
beside her.
The group moved out cautiously, Catty just a bit behind to keep
Danielle's line of sight open for any possible threats. Just behind the
pair Davies and Karin used their scanners to sweep the area then Jame
took up the rear position.
"You did a good job spotting that first trap," Danielle said in
reply to Catty's question, "I want sharp eyes like that up front."
"Luck," Catty said with a slight smile.
"Then I want that luck ready if we need it," Danielle shrugged.
The group moved down the slanting passage, the air swirling
about as the gasses in the underground mixed with surface air. The
roughness of the floor smoothed out as they moved, the occasional
blinking indicator light eventually giving way to operating internal
systems. Finally they reached a heavy hatch, one resembling the type
mounted on the outside of a starship.
Davies moved up at Danielle's wave, running her scanner unit
over the heavy door and the walls around it. "We'll need to pop the
panels to be sure," she said, "but it looks clear."
"Jame, we'll assist," Karin said firmly. The two engineers and
trainee quickly removed exterior panels around the hatchway, studying
internal circuitry with a wary eye. Davies used her scanner again, then
they gave the all clear.
Danielle tried the keypad. frowning slightly as she said,
"Locked." She brought her sidearm around, readying to fire at the unit
when a hand on her arm stopped her.
"Could I try first?" Catty quietly offered, bringing a
person-comp out from a pouch on her protective uniform. Danielle waved
her forward and Catty plugged in, typing away as she studied the small
readout intently. Less than a minute later the keypad screen went green,
the lock opening up with a soft click.
'I'm impressed,' Karin noted, 'but where did a communication's
officer learn hacking like that? Obviously there's more to Catty than
she seems.'
The heavy hatch opened, revealing a medium sized chamber with
another hatch on the other end. Despite it's rough design Jame seemed to
recognize it almost instantly, "An airlock?"
"Looks like it," Davies agreed.
"But why would they need...." Karin started to say before
trailing off, the realization hitting her. "Could there have been
survivors?" she murmured.
"Danielle to Lady Grace," the tactical officer stepped back a
bit from the group, her expression nearly unreadable.
The Captain's voice was distorted, scratchy as it passed through
layers of armor over the facility. "Status report?" Gail asked crisply.
"We've begun to explore the interior of the facility," Danielle
said to her crisply, "and have found what appears to be an improvised
airlock. This may or may not indicate possible survivors, ma'am. Should
we continue on?"
"We need whatever supplies are down there," Gail's voice was
calm, "and if there are survivors we're obligated to rescue them.
Continue on, but cautiously, please. We have no idea how long they might
have been sealed up down there."
"Understood," Danielle signed off.
"That was a little presumptuous of you, Lieutenant," Davies said
with a frown, looking over to where Lieutenant-Commander Karin stood.
"No, it wasn't," Karin said, "this is a tactical situation, her
specialty. Once the engineering work starts, I'll be in charge."
"Oh," Jame blushed, the young officer probably about to say
something similar to Davies.
"Speaking of engineering," Danielle nodded to the next hatch,
"could you check that out?"
"Got it," Karin grinned as she, Davies and Jame moved up to go
over the inner hatch. It only took a few moments for them to come to
some basic conclusions: this chamber they were in was an airlock, the
other door would have to close before the inner could be opened, and it
would scan them for Paranoid biosignatures before letting anyone in.
"Guess they figured the surface booby-trap might not be enough,"
Davies noted.
"Either way," Danielle answered, "it's good tactical thinking."
She looked back at the group with a slight smile, "Anyone have any
unusual biosignatures I need to know about?" Silence was the reply as
she said, "Well, let's get to it."
Jame pulled the outer door shut, securing it with a soft thump
even as Karin activated the inner one, triggering the sensor scan. A
shimmering rose light washed over the five figures in the room, leaving
a faint after- glow as it moved on. Finally it slid over Jame then shut
off, leaving the room in semi-darkness. The inner door hissed even as
air flooded the chamber, the sensors on their suits reading it as easily
breathable.
The inner door cycled open revealing a figure standing there,
the light coming from behind making her unrecognizable. She shifted
slightly, her face becoming visible with rose hair falling down into her
eyes as she studied them intently. Finally she said, "Even when the
scans said you were Solonoid, I didn't quite believe it."
"Lieutenant-Commander Karin," as the ranking officer she
introduced herself first, "of the Solonoid cruiser Lady Grace."
"Sorry," the pink haired woman flushed slightly, "Ensign Rakka
of the planetary militia." She looked at them thoughtfully, "Are you
here to rescue us?"
"You could say that," Danielle said. She smiled grimly, "Could
you take us to whomever is in charge down here?"
"That would be the Lieutenant," Rakka waved them to follow her,
"not many ofd us survived the planetary bombardment five years ago."
"Lieutenant Danielle, tactical," she introduced herself as she
moved to stay at the woman's side, "how many of you survived down here?
Have there been any Paranoid assaults since then?"
"There's only ten of us," Rakka said, "we were running drills in
the emergency command center when the Paranoid fleet hit us." Her face
went bleak, "We mobilized every defense satellite and ship available and
didn't even slow them down."
"I'm sorry," Jame said softly.
"The Paranoid either didn't know about the command center or
didn't care," Rakka said softly, "they left once they destroyed the
surface."
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