Season 15: Episode 4 - Vox Populai

[M'Nia]

At Murphy's urging, Tanner swiftly dropped to her knee, unfastening her pack. She opened the med kit, originally intending to administer a hypo for Murphy's pain. However, the sudden appearance of the Borg forced a change of plans. Tanner grabbed the second hypo from the pack, keeping a vigilant eye on the Borg, which was now glaring at Murphy.

Oddly enough, as Tanner observed, the Borg seemed to lag slightly, appearing distracted rather than immediately hostile. "Hey!" she yelled, hoping to divert its attention, before sprinting towards it. Tanner aimed low, planning to tackle its abdomen, with her shield active to deflect any potential attacks. The impact of her body against the Borg made her wince, her bruised ribs protesting as they both crashed to the floor.

It wasn't until she was face to face with the Borg that she recognized it as Dersch.

She hesitated. He had recently become a father. Nevertheless, she couldn't afford to hold back, knowing he wouldn't hesitate to harm her. "Damn it," Tanner growled. Despite losing his weapon, Dersch remained a threat. They briefly scuffled on the floor before Tanner managed to inject the hypo into his neck.

She considered reaching for her phaser but refrained. If there was a chance to save the crew, Dersch deserved the opportunity to be reunited with his daughter.

"Leave him," She said to the others, "Let's go."

Focusing on Murphy they administered the pain meds, relieving some of the pain. The dermal regenerator would take time, a thing they didn't have. Once they had reached a form of safety, they could repair his arm.

M'nia nodded. It was for the best right now. "Cmon. Let's get to environmental control. Then maybe we can stop this madness!" she led the way. "Here's hoping we can get there without incident!" carefully she led the team through engineering. This was her turf now. Her domain. Don't mess with an engineer in engineering! he tail flicked back and forth as she felt more confident than she had since the whole thing began. Still, caution was called for.

[Lorut Vila]

Ops Center
Spacedock

PLEASE!...If he is still breathing it is not recommended to do CPR!

Vila's brown eyes flickered on the interloper for a moment. "He stopped breathing," Vila spat back. "It doesn't matter, because he's gone," she said, coldly.

It's not your fault. It was bound to happen...

'

Vila shrugged. "It's YOUR fault. What took you so long?"

Still, she sighed. "I need to get back to the consoles if you have this," she said. She wasn't built for medic stuff. She didn't have a good bedside personality. Or really, a good personality at ALL.

She glanced back at Lt. Addams.

I'm fine...Thank you.

Vila nodded.

"I could use your help in a few minutes. You've done this longer than me, and, like I said..my ideas aren't working. Maybe a fresh set of eyes would help."

All she wanted was a drink, and perhaps to cry, but she hadn't done that since she was fifteen, so why now, all of the sudden?! The trauma responses, probably. If the Captain had had an issue with her behavior before, well. He was in for it now.

-----------------------

We need to secure Ops!

Yeah, what'd he think she was trying to DO?!

"Lorut! Militia!...Let's take him down!"

She smiled a little; finally, he was making sense. She took the rifle. She fired, rapidly and repeatedly, until she had fallen a LOT of Borg. She glanced around for Tekin; he was nearby. "CAPTAIN. He's dead," she said. She understood, but still.

She went to Ops to assist. She realized quickly that it was futile.

I... I don't believe it.  We need to get off this station!

Vila sighed. "Sir. With respect, I think you're in shock. Please, sit down a minute." She sighed. What to do with this?

[Rayek trLhoell]

NPC Lieutenant Danjar-Torra Addams
[Spacedock - Ops]

Ops Center
Spacedock

Vila's brown eyes flickered on the interloper for a moment. "He stopped breathing," Vila spat back. "It doesn't matter, because he's gone," she said, coldly.

Vila shrugged. "It's YOUR fault. What took you so long?"

Still, she sighed. "I need to get back to the consoles if you have this," she said. She wasn't built for medic stuff. She didn't have a good bedside personality. Or really, a good personality at ALL.

She glanced back at Lt. Addams.

Vila nodded.

"I could use your help in a few minutes. You've done this longer than me, and, like I said..my ideas aren't working. Maybe a fresh set of eyes would help."

All she wanted was a drink, and perhaps to cry, but she hadn't done that since she was fifteen, so why now, all of the sudden?! The trauma responses, probably. If the Captain had had an issue with her behavior before, well. He was in for it now.

Torra appreciated that the woman was asking for help.  She nodded. "I'll see what I can do, once I have finished my treatment of the Admiral."

[Sol Station/Spacedock - Main Ops]

"Mayday, mayday! Shields are down!"

The Lieutenant at the comm station wasn't able to say much more than that as the entire station shuddered and moved.  Shields failed and the station was pelted with phasers and torpedoes, tearing it apart.  From the outside the shape of the station was covered by explosions.  Thanks to the mass of the ship, however, the survivors in the Ops center at least were alive... for the time being.  But they were dodging structural collapse and exploding consoles. The grav plates failed, pulling the objects on the station towards the Earth, which meant as the station drifted backwards, they were thrown against the wall.

"I... I don't believe it.  We need to get off this station!" Nevir shouted, as he tried to get his bearings.  But the fact that the lights were now out, and only the transparent aluminum was bringing in light from phasers and the reflection of earth, told them that the doors were probably not going to open on their own.

When Captain Tekin and the others turned to deal with the Changeling, Torra remained with the Admiral.  She applied dermaline gel to the phaser burn but knew his best chance was a dermal regenerator or  better yet burn chamber given the size of the affected area; but unfortunately, the Grazerite had access to neither here in Ops.

Just when it seemed that they had the room back in their control, things took a turn for the worse.  The station shuddered as shields failed completely and the onslaught began tearing the station apart.  Power failed and the room was plunged into near darkness - lit only by the phaser blasts that spelled their doom.   At the first pull of gravity, Torra grabbed hold of the semi-conscious Admiral and curled herself around him protectively, taking the impact of wall along her back, as the station fell out of orbit.

The Captain's shout drew her attention but she lacked a solution to their problem.

[Sol Station | Corridor in front of the OPS Center]

While still on their way to the Doors separating them from the Stations, Nexus the entire Corridor was suddenly rocked by explosions of fires erupting from behind panels. Melting Plastics and burning carpets in the process. The distinct smell of plasma leaking from conduits that were no longer protected by adequate Structural Integrity fields was beginning to feel the air and leaving a burning sensation in all mucous membrane it came in contact with. The already dim lighting began to flicker even worse and the Station's Computer began to announce over all available Speakers:

"All Shielding failing. Structural Integrity critical! Evacuate affected areas immediatly."

It was an automated system, meant to inform the civilian personal on the Station in case of critical failures. In the present situation, Ramort doubted the evacuation to the inner sections of the Station would offer them much respite.

Finally arriving at the door they found it locked and slightly bent sitting in its frame. If thanks to inner force trying to open it by if moved by some damage to the Stations Superstructure was unclear. Behind it though, they could hear voices. Potentially their crewmates. He quickly put away his phaser and began to throw his weight against one side of the door, leaving the other half of the door for hopefully one of the other Officers of their group to open it.

"I need some help here."

A dull thud echoed in the large operations room.  Someone was trying to gain entrance.  More Borg drones, she thought until her large doe-like ears picked up the urgency in the voice on the other side.  She couldn't make out what was being shouted but that was no drone!

Torra's eyes squinted against the shadows trying to make out who individuals were as the station freefell.   The tall horned Grazerite called for assistance.

"Someone take the Admiral. I'll help with opening those doors."

She felt along the wall that she'd been thrown against and sure enough encountered the phaser rifle she had left laying beside her.

"If we concentrate enough phaser shots in one location, it'll act as a high-energy beam and heat the metal enough to melt through it."

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Commander Rayek tr'Lhoell
[USS Discovery-B - Deck 1  - Ready Room] Stardate 78288.5  (April 16, 2401)

Rayek looked over the room but there was very little that the Romulan could see to use as a weapon in the sparsely furnished room.  He glanced up, knowing not far above his location his wife and their unconscious son were waiting for his return, yet he couldn't go to them now.  That would just make Tess a target, and his son would be lost to the Collective.  Never! He swore.

Given his trapped position in the Ready Room, he wished he could telepathically contact Tess and tell her once more how much he loved her; yet Rayek knew from past experience that his telepathic ability was only 'line of sight' - he couldn't hope to reach her from here even if the distance was less than 10 meters.  His mind would just wouldn't connect to hers without the visual confirmation.   Even with his deep familiarity with his wife and her mind a result of many mind melds shared between them, he couldn't reach out to her in warning or last goodbye because of the layers of metal between him and her.   Despite their common ancestry, Rayek wasn't Vulcan enough to have been given the ability to telepathically bond with his wife as he wished could.

He sucked in a deep breath in an attempt to clear the fear and desperation from thoughts.   He didn't need to reach out to his wife now, he would be with her again shortly, he affirmed to himself.   All would be fine.  He couldn't give up!

He took another deep breath before realizing that he might have a plan.  He shucked off the satchel containing the anesthezine canister and got the gas ready to deploy.  He retrieved from his security utility belt a small apparatus to hold in his mouth.  A short duration re-breather - which would filter out the anesthezine gas for up to 10 to 15  minutes.  He was certain the Borg would not take even half that long to break through the sealed doors.   Rayek released the gas, which should be enough to fill the room and the bridge beyond once the door was forced open.

Once the gas was released and filled the room, the Romulan took cover to the side of the Captain's desk.  From that vantage point, Rayek had sight towards both doors, which he covered alternatingly with his phaser.

[Malik Grippen]

"Mayday, mayday! Shields are down!"

The Lieutenant at the comm station wasn't able to say much more than that as the entire station shuddered and moved.  Shields failed and the station was pelted with phasers and torpedoes, tearing it apart.  From the outside the shape of the station was covered by explosions.  Thanks to the mass of the ship, however, the survivors in the Ops center at least were alive... for the time being.  But they were dodging structural collapse and exploding consoles. The grav plates failed, pulling the objects on the station towards the Earth, which meant as the station drifted backwards, they were thrown against the wall.

Finally arriving at the door they found it locked and slightly bent sitting in its frame. If thanks to inner force trying to open it by if moved by some damage to the Stations Superstructure was unclear. Behind it though, they could hear voices. Potentially their crewmates. He quickly put away his phaser and began to throw his weight against one side of the door, leaving the other half of the door for hopefully one of the other Officers of their group to open it.

"I need some help here."

[Starbase, Corridor outside Ops]

Malik's feet left the ground as the station's artificial gravity failed and he was slammed against the wall to Ops. It was obvious the station's defences had finally succumbed to the barrage, and they were now up the creek without a paddle. Large sections of wall and ceiling began to tear free sending explosions and smoke throughout the corridors of the promenade. 'So this is what it's like to be inside an exploding station.'

The Risan noticed Ramort trying to open the door to Ops. It was no good, they'd never force that door open themselves and he had no strength left to help. His head and neck throbbed, and he was sure some ribs were fractured. All he could do was sit down and prop himself up against the wall and rest, trying to stay conscious.

"What a first mission this turned out to be, huh." He chuckled, then coughed in pain. "Where's Alvarez? Find him and get yourselves to an escape pod, this stations lost..."

[J.B Dersch]

| Lt. JG Dersch/Drone 356697 | USS Discovery |

After The Paralyzing Surem Wore off. stood with the Still Good arm and Grabbed the rifle. He quickly made his way down the hall to Engineering. He entered the Upper Level Of Engineering To Find a Huge Buff Sec/Tac officer. 356697 raised the rifle to fire, but was too slow.

The Sec/Tac Officer charged the Drone, Taking the Rifle right out of his hand and tossing it aside and then seeing the Right arm was disabled, Grabbed that arm and snapped it at the Forearm, Elbow,  All the Bones were broken in the Drones Right arm, Then the Officer tossed him up and over the Level, Landing Near the Team In Engineering, He had a few broken ribs now, But that was the only thing to be fixed. The Sec/Tac sighed in relief he had won, Not like there was much to compete with. He grabbed the Rifle and Took Off.

Drone 356697 knew that if somehow  he was cut loose from the hive the Right arm would be Unusable and Unrepairable, And would probably have to get a Synthetic Arm implaced. The Drone justed looked off in the lights above as it Sent a Message Of Distress to the Hive, Plus sending the Huge Officers Face Picture to the rest of the hive.

[Zavrol Gohun]

Gohun grabbed a phaser and gave his spare phaser to the crewmen. Now was the time for action. The EMH looked over as Gohun was getting ready to leave the room.
EMH "If I knew how the DNA was altered I could tell you. Can you aquire more drones?"
Gohun "it's not like we can go to the corner store. But we will try to stun more drones. Can you give me the formula for the THC count?"
Looking over St Gohun the EMH said ".087 per particle. Now unless you have more leave now."
Looking around Gohun nodded his head and left.

M'nia nodded. It was for the best right now. "Cmon. Let's get to environmental control. Then maybe we can stop this madness!" she led the way. "Here's hoping we can get there without incident!" carefully she led the team through engineering. This was her turf now. Her domain. Don't mess with an engineer in engineering! he tail flicked back and forth as she felt more confident than she had since the whole thing began. Still, caution was called for.

[Vadok Alvarez]

[Starbase, Corridor outside Ops]

Malik's feet left the ground as the station's artificial gravity failed and he was slammed against the wall to Ops. It was obvious the station's defences had finally succumbed to the barrage, and they were now up the creek without a paddle. Large sections of wall and ceiling began to tear free sending explosions and smoke throughout the corridors of the promenade. 'So this is what it's like to be inside an exploding station.'

The Risan noticed Ramort trying to open the door to Ops. It was no good, they'd never force that door open themselves and he had no strength left to help. His head and neck throbbed, and he was sure some ribs were fractured. All he could do was sit down and prop himself up against the wall and rest, trying to stay conscious.

"What a first mission this turned out to be, huh." He chuckled, then coughed in pain. "Where's Alvarez? Find him and get yourselves to an escape pod, this stations lost..."

The Ensigns ears where still ringing as the station started going into critical failure, his equilibrium center knocked off as Vadok lagged behind the others.   It was a miracle they had survived the last skirmish alone and it looked like there needed to be another one sooner rather than later.   The smell of ozone crawled into his nostrils as he leaned against the halls of the station momentarily for support, watching as his fellow crewmates disappeared around a corner.

Taking a centering breath, Vadok went at a jog to catch up to the others.

"Here sir!" he called to Malik as he finally got back to Ops proper.   Seeing James struggling with the door, Vadok looked to Malik and then back to the door itself.

"Lieutenant, while I would normally question the logic of this effort." he said evenly as he grabbed at a small purchase in the door, his muscles tensing as he put that Vulcan stength to work.   Metal groaned in protest as Vadok continued through gritted teeth.  "Life, all life...hrrrrrr....is....important!" 

[Kinley Garrison]

(OOC: Pardon for not quoting, I have a butt ton of quotes)

[Bridge]

[As Kinley Borg Princess One]

The rogue ship Titan was successfully neutralized. It would soon be taken care of by the drones onboard and returned to the Fleet.

One noted the status of the Fleet and reported back to Vox. A few ships had been lost, but the bombardment on Spacedock was still effective and was on track. The shield systems were destroyed and all spacedock systems showed critical failure. Phase three would soon be underway.  Estimated time until full implementation: 5 minutes.

The intruder was gone for now, but they weren't far. They were a distinct threat to the control of the ship and needed to be eliminated. There weren't many places to hide on deck one, and given the schematics of the ship she had from the Collective, there were only so many potential locations for someone to go to. Leaving the conn to 056239, she grabbed her phaser to follow 346572.

Nodding to drone 346572 to be on guard, She brought up her phaser and helped shoot at it to reopen the Ready Room.

-----------------------

[As Murphy]

Meet his maker? Murphy shuddered at what the Borged Dersch said before Tanner knocked him out.  If that meant meeting his mother, then he was perfectly fine without that. He'd rather die.  She was scary enough. Maybe not scarier than the Borg, but that was beside the point, he gratefully accepted the pain meds. The pain subsided somewhat, fortunately numbing the area somewhat enough to focus on healing the injury. And maybe not pass out in the process. That would be a good step, not passing out.

[Lorut Vila]

SpaceDock
Ops Center

I'll see what I can do, once I have finished my treatment of the Admiral.

Vila just nodded.

"Captain's out. Shock," she said. "He'll be fine." She said. He had to be; they were Bajoran, they didn't suffer-they survived.

Vila worked alongside the Lieutenant to help get the doors open or something. Anything.

Addams appeared at her side.

"Someone take the Admiral. I'll help with opening those doors...If we concentrate enough phaser shots in one location, it'll act as a high-energy beam and heat the metal enough to melt through it."

Vila considered a moment. It might work.

"Captain, did you hear?" She stepped sideways, taking a firing stance. "On your mark, Captain," she said.

[Novi]

Ops Center
Spacedock

Vila's brown eyes flickered on the interloper for a moment. "He stopped breathing," Vila spat back. "It doesn't matter, because he's gone," she said, coldly.
'

Vila shrugged. "It's YOUR fault. What took you so long?"

Still, she sighed. "I need to get back to the consoles if you have this," she said. She wasn't built for medic stuff. She didn't have a good bedside personality. Or really, a good personality at ALL.

She glanced back at Lt. Addams.

Vila nodded.

"I could use your help in a few minutes. You've done this longer than me, and, like I said..my ideas aren't working. Maybe a fresh set of eyes would help."

All she wanted was a drink, and perhaps to cry, but she hadn't done that since she was fifteen, so why now, all of the sudden?! The trauma responses, probably. If the Captain had had an issue with her behavior before, well. He was in for it now.

-----------------------

Yeah, what'd he think she was trying to DO?!
She smiled a little; finally, he was making sense. She took the rifle. She fired, rapidly and repeatedly, until she had fallen a LOT of Borg. She glanced around for Tekin; he was nearby. "CAPTAIN. He's dead," she said. She understood, but still.

She went to Ops to assist. She realized quickly that it was futile.

Vila sighed. "Sir. With respect, I think you're in shock. Please, sit down a minute." She sighed. What to do with this?

[Ensign Novi - Spacedock-Ops]
Novi heard the comments from the senior Bajoran but gave no response. Maybe she knew this man and that's why she lashed out. Surely once this horror was over she would understand the situation. For now the adrenaline and fight must be getting to her. All she could was look into her eyes. Her face a stoic determination. She didn't even know how to think but without a word they both quickly moved onto other priorities. Was it an unspoken understanding or just getting caught up in the moment? Novi of course wouldn't know.

Her priority was taking the Admiral from Torra. He was still a little delirious from his injuries. Despite the first aide his wound burns and skin would need to be quickly regenerated otherwise they would get infected very quickly. She ripped off more of her uniform to act as a bind. The wound was cauterized but anything to try to and stop exposure to the outside elements. She gave a soft sight. Already her uniform was in tatters. Both her sleeves were gone she was going to have to rip parts of the other officers unifrms if she needed bindings. but her thoughts were interrupted with the sharp explosion of the station and the alert that the shields were down and the station has succumbed to the fleet.

It was hell immediately. Novi could barely stand as she continued to move the more wounded individuals to more stable sections of the ops room. She saw Betaika straight up punch a borg officer before the force fields went up and wondered how she got stuck as the only medic actually being a medic. (She knew why but she didn't want to admit it)

Nontheless her work was not done. She may be out of supplies but people have been healing each other for thousands of years before the advent of technology. If there is blood stop it, if someone is in shock get their breathing under control. This was where she was meant to be and until a phaser took her out or the station exploded she would work her hardest at saving as many lives as possible.

[Zhukdrashar Mrekrerhas]

[spoiler][/spoiler]

[ USS Discovery - Deck 10, Jeffries, 2nd Intersection --> Portside intersection]

Jettis nodded as the Doctor requested to join them. Any injured they ran into would certainly benefit, two doctors would always be better than one. "You're more than welcome," he answered, turning toward the control panel that sealed the hatch behind them. "We haven't encountered anyone else so far, I'm not sure how many made it out of the Lounge with how crowded it was for the broadcast." Fortunately, his brand new access codes worked and with a hiss, the door sealed, and they were free to continue in any of the other five directions.

He turned back to face the others as they spoke, eyes snapping over to Meelar. He tilted his head, brows scrunching as the Doctor offered to aide him. Scanning her in confusion, fumbled for a response blankly. He wasn't sure what to say. Zero he'd known would refuse to leave. It was just in his brother's nature, and he knew better than to waste time arguing, especially when time was so critical.

But this officer he'd met moments ago. No - not even met. He'd made a flippant comment and failed to introduce himself or show any sort of interest or compassion. And yet, without hesitation she had offered to help.

Before he could gather his thoughts, he heard Murphy speak up to echo the sentiment. Somehow, that shocked him even more than Meelar's offer. He could feel the fear pouring off the ensign - off of all of them, really. So for him to even consider staying behind with him was more than Jettis expected.
Any words of appreciation he thought of didn't seem to be enough. He was paralyzed, unthinking until a small bead rolling down his cheek snapped him out of it. Taking a step back, he turned. "I wouldn't - couldn't ask anyone to do that. It's practically suicide, I know that." It wasn't truly an answer, but he didn't want to acknowledge that right now. He didn't have it in him to say yes, but he didn't have it in him to say no, either. "We need to check that there are any lifepods remaining, and I wouldn't blame any of you for taking the opportunity."

He didn't have time to come up with a more decisive answer, when Harrington's callout caught his attention. Quickly spinning towards the direction he pointed, he glanced hesitantly down both other paths. It was pretty much a flip of the coin either way, but there was no sound resonating through the tube on their left. "This way. Do you have that tricorder? If you can, try see if you can fine tune it enough to detect which direction lifesigns are and how far." Even if the tricorder couldn't manage to differentiate between Borg and non-borg, the heads up would be invaluable. He didn't have his own to know if there was enough of a difference for the device to pick it up. But, given she had scanned herself to prove she was safe, he was willing to bet there was at least something that gave it away.

Taking off down the hallway, he was grateful at least this direction had tubes you could fully stand in. Even moreso he was grateful it wasn't incredibly difficult to outrun the borg, it was outsmarting them that became difficult.
The hall seemed clear for awhile, with no signs of other life. However Jettis stopped running as he swore he heard a voice. Holding his hand up to silence everyone, he stared down the hallway. There were lights, but it was so dimly lit that even squinting didn't help make out any discernible shapes.

The silence stretched onward, until a harsh jingling caught his attention. He tensed as neared, until he saw something small and metallic approaching. Noisily, it landed in front of him.

Frowning, he didn't move immediately, eyeing it. It wasn't a bomb, and it didn't seem to be dangerous, though. So after a few moments, he took a step forward, stooping to pick it up. It continued its obnoxious jangling, as Jettis shot a confused look down the hallway.

He hesitated to call out, but then again he hadn't heard much about borg using jingle bells as a method of attack. And besides that, there was at least one hot on their heels, so they had no choice but to forge forwards. The footsteps following them were present, but distant. Grip tightening on the cannister again, he debated if he would be able to throw it far enough behind them to clear the blast zone if need be. "Hello?" Jettis finally called out, tossing a cautious glance behind them.

[Jeffries tubes]

[ As Murphy]

Murphy nodded when he heard why Jettis was staying.  He understood all too well.   He did admire Jettis's bravery. He was a lot braver than Murphy felt right now. Odds were that this was impossible and for all they knew, their friends and loved ones were just"¦gone. Or any of them would make it to the end of the day?

Who knew if Vinny - The real Vinny who liked rattling technobabble about microbes-  was still in there? One minute he was there, and the next, he was trying to kill them all. Like some puppet on a string.  He would do anything to get that Vinny back. The thought made him sick to his stomach. "œI'm - I'm staying with you. Once we find escape pods  or something, I'm gonna try to help you find them. We-we're not leaving anyone behind if we can.

He couldn't believe he was saying that. Here he was, in a Jeffries, running for his life with only a wrench as a weapon, and most everyone he knew  on the hunt to kill him. He was terrified and exhausted, and definitely claustrophobic, but he had to try.

Murphy could hear some more movement coming up in one of the tunnels ahead. It was impossible to tell anything in these tunnels, much less if someone was assimilated or not. Harrington noticed, however. "œ Guys! It's a Borg! Run!"

[NPC Doctor Meelar Phlome | Deck 10 | Jefferies Tubes, 2nd Intersection --> Jefferies Tubes, Portside Intersection | USS Discovery NCC 78393-B]

Doctor Phlome nodded at Murphy's statement of him helping to find his daughter after finding the escape pods. She was surprised to see Jettis at a loss for words after her proposal, acknowledging that such an attempt could turn fatal and that he wouldn't blame anyone for taking the pods instead. Meelar opened her mouth to try and reassure him that it would be alright and that she would gladly risk her life further, for now she had been saved by them. It would only be correct to return the favor...

However, as she overheard Harrington's warning, any tender reminder of hope was lost. Meelar immediately prepared to rush down the stairs, yet, at the petition from Jettis, she nodded, offering him her tricorder. She thought his idea was sound, and considering that she had little to no Engineering skills, fine-tuning it to detect the Borg better could prove to be a lifesaver.

"O-Of course, feel free."

Were the only words spoken as she swiftly moved after Jettis, believing utterly in his claim to head in that direction. She was glad she no longer had to duck and weave through the tunnels, as these allowed humanoids of standard size to stand at their full height.

She let out a shriek as something metallic fell up ahead, before swiftly placing a hand over her mouth and lowering her head. She was ashamed of making so much noise when being silent could be critical. Nodding her head as she was told to wait by Jettis, she waited patiently to see what he ended up reporting back. At least, she was pretty certain it was not a Borg drone. But maybe a piece of them? A... grenade? Unlikely, it would have already gone off by now.

She gulped, taking deep breaths as she looked on.

[ Jeffries Tubes ~ approximately level 10? ]

[ As Murphy]

They were doing their best to keep moving, but in the relatively cramped corridors, there weren't many places to move fast, and with so many junctions and crawlspaces, it was hard to tell. However, they weren't alone here.

A bell? That was so weird. Borg didn't throw bells"¦ did they-? Murphy was confused at what was going on, but he never had a chance to finish the thought when all of a sudden,  a phaser bolt hit Murphy from behind, immediately causing him to fall forward and scream in pain.  Eyes already welling in tears, he  instinctively tried clutching his injured arm. Phaser energy seriously was hot, however, and even just touching it was enough to wince in pain.   leaving his uniform jacket smoldering,  and some serious burns and blood in its wake. Borg in the Jeffries.  Why now?  All he just wanted to be was back home  with Dennis the duck and his buddies.  But there was still a long way to go, and no guarantee of even surviving the  night, and he wasn't backing out on his promise now.  He barely could focus on Jettis when he asked if he was alright.  Shaking in a mixture of shock, pain, and terror, he nodded, all the while fighting back tears of pain. They couldn't stop now. "œI'll- I'll take the hypo, "œ  he said. They'd have to stop sometime. But they couldn't. Not now.

[ USS Discovery - Jeffries, portside intersection ]

Jettis' confusion remained, as a whistle came from a short distance away. It wasn't a borg, however it didn't put him at any ease either. Straightening, his eyes darted toward the tunnel it seemed to come from. He readied himself for who - or whatever might come out of there. He wasn't ready for it to be Tanner. Lowering his hand, he stared down at her in disbelief.

A few confliction emotions flashed through his glassy eyes. Scanning her, his eyes rested on her phaser for a moment, before flicking back up. The similar glimmer of her eyes was noticeable even from this distance, as the corners of his brows scrunched up. "Tanner, it's me, I swear to you." His eyes searched hers, realizing with defeat there was no way for him to prove it. Not immediately. Anxiously glancing behind him again, he quickly closed the gap between he and Tanner. "Listen, I would love to explain, but we will both die, and I need to find Theresa," he answered, a mix of frustrated and apologetic. Quickly leaning down to kiss her, he didn't want to give her the opportunity to argue further.

As he looked up again, he quickly realized why she had whistled earlier - she had an entire convoy of people following her. "There's borg this way, we need to find a different path!" He called out. Things had become a whole lot more complicated, very quickly. The detour had cost them precious time as it was, making a roundabout way into Engineering purely from memory was getting difficult. The more turns and backtracking they needed to do, the more Jettis lost track of where they were meant to be in the labyrinth of maintenance tunnels.

Turning back toward the other four, he checked in with Murphy and Meelar. "Are you alright to keep going?" Not that saying 'no' was much of an option anymore.

The unmistakable confidence with which Jettis approached her, coupled with the lingering effects of his kiss, left no doubt about his identity. This wasn't some changeling imposter. No, this was her Jettis. A flush spread across her cheeks as she glanced at the crew members who had just witnessed the personal moment.

"Uhm," she nodded in response to M'Nia's question, "Yes, we should go find it."

Rule #5""no PDA at work""made her cringe momentarily. But rules could be discarded when faced with the threat of the Borg.

Tanner's attention honed in on one of Jettis's remarks. Theresa? Why was she here? A new wave of panic surged. Trained officers could handle this terrifying situation, but for a child, it was a nightmare.

However, her questions had to wait. She absentmindedly licked the split on her lip and surveyed the various Jeffries options, "Sticking together makes sense. We just need to pick a direction and hustle. I have a medkit in my pack, but now might not be the best time to use it. Unless it's unbearable pain, I can administer a hypo for that."

As she peeked from behind a handlebar, she let out a relieved sigh to see that it was Chief of Security, Tanner Lachlyn. And a Caitian Lieutenant, it seemed. And, when Jettis and Tanner embraced, Meelar could not help but smile at the sweet scene going on in front of her eyes. It made her wish that she also had a handsome man to sweep her off her feet and kiss her. Maybe one of her husbands. She would feel stronger, for sure.

Suddenly, she heard a shot going off behind her. It interrupted her thoughts, causing her to jump as she saw the Borg catching up to them, and the injury on Murphy's arm. As he saw him fall, she decided that the best thing to do was act. Just after he asked for the hypo, she wrapped an arm around his uninjured extremity, and lifted him, pushing him forward so that he would keep going. Meelar followed after Jettis as fast as she could. At the very least, she was glad that the adrenaline gave her the strength needed to aid the bigger Murphy.

"I can keep going! D-Don't worry about me!"

At Murphy's urging, Tanner swiftly dropped to her knee, unfastening her pack. She opened the med kit, originally intending to administer a hypo for Murphy's pain. However, the sudden appearance of the Borg forced a change of plans. Tanner grabbed the second hypo from the pack, keeping a vigilant eye on the Borg, which was now glaring at Murphy.

Oddly enough, as Tanner observed, the Borg seemed to lag slightly, appearing distracted rather than immediately hostile. "Hey!" she yelled, hoping to divert its attention, before sprinting towards it. Tanner aimed low, planning to tackle its abdomen, with her shield active to deflect any potential attacks. The impact of her body against the Borg made her wince, her bruised ribs protesting as they both crashed to the floor.

It wasn't until she was face to face with the Borg that she recognized it as Dersch.

She hesitated. He had recently become a father. Nevertheless, she couldn't afford to hold back, knowing he wouldn't hesitate to harm her. "Damn it," Tanner growled. Despite losing his weapon, Dersch remained a threat. They briefly scuffled on the floor before Tanner managed to inject the hypo into his neck.

She considered reaching for her phaser but refrained. If there was a chance to save the crew, Dersch deserved the opportunity to be reunited with his daughter.

"Leave him," She said to the others, "Let's go."

Focusing on Murphy they administered the pain meds, relieving some of the pain. The dermal regenerator would take time, a thing they didn't have. Once they had reached a form of safety, they could repair his arm.

Tanner proved to be a valuable asset in these trying times, as she easily dispatched the Borg drone in pursuit, before helping her by providing Murphy with a painkiller. She was glad that now she was not the only medic on the small, rag-tag squad of all Departments. It allowed her to save up on some supplies,

"I-I too have a dermal regenerator... as soon as we get to the pods... I... I can help with that... just hold on. Just a few minutes more..."

[Dem Broadshire]

NPC Lieutenant Danjar-Torra Addams
[Spacedock - Ops]

Torra appreciated that the woman was asking for help.  She nodded. "I'll see what I can do, once I have finished my treatment of the Admiral."
When Captain Tekin and the others turned to deal with the Changeling, Torra remained with the Admiral.  She applied dermaline gel to the phaser burn but knew his best chance was a dermal regenerator or  better yet burn chamber given the size of the affected area; but unfortunately, the Grazerite had access to neither here in Ops.

Just when it seemed that they had the room back in their control, things took a turn for the worse.  The station shuddered as shields failed completely and the onslaught began tearing the station apart.  Power failed and the room was plunged into near darkness - lit only by the phaser blasts that spelled their doom.   At the first pull of gravity, Torra grabbed hold of the semi-conscious Admiral and curled herself around him protectively, taking the impact of wall along her back, as the station fell out of orbit.

The Captain's shout drew her attention but she lacked a solution to their problem.

A dull thud echoed in the large operations room.  Someone was trying to gain entrance.  More Borg drones, she thought until her large doe-like ears picked up the urgency in the voice on the other side.  She couldn't make out what was being shouted but that was no drone!

Torra's eyes squinted against the shadows trying to make out who individuals were as the station freefell.   The tall horned Grazerite called for assistance.

"Someone take the Admiral. I'll help with opening those doors."

She felt along the wall that she'd been thrown against and sure enough encountered the phaser rifle she had left laying beside her.

"If we concentrate enough phaser shots in one location, it'll act as a high-energy beam and heat the metal enough to melt through it."

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Commander Rayek tr'Lhoell
[USS Discovery-B - Deck 1  - Ready Room] Stardate 78288.5  (April 16, 2401)

Rayek looked over the room but there was very little that the Romulan could see to use as a weapon in the sparsely furnished room.  He glanced up, knowing not far above his location his wife and their unconscious son were waiting for his return, yet he couldn't go to them now.  That would just make Tess a target, and his son would be lost to the Collective.  Never! He swore.

Given his trapped position in the Ready Room, he wished he could telepathically contact Tess and tell her once more how much he loved her; yet Rayek knew from past experience that his telepathic ability was only 'line of sight' - he couldn't hope to reach her from here even if the distance was less than 10 meters.  His mind would just wouldn't connect to hers without the visual confirmation.   Even with his deep familiarity with his wife and her mind a result of many mind melds shared between them, he couldn't reach out to her in warning or last goodbye because of the layers of metal between him and her.   Despite their common ancestry, Rayek wasn't Vulcan enough to have been given the ability to telepathically bond with his wife as he wished could.

He sucked in a deep breath in an attempt to clear the fear and desperation from thoughts.   He didn't need to reach out to his wife now, he would be with her again shortly, he affirmed to himself.   All would be fine.  He couldn't give up!

He took another deep breath before realizing that he might have a plan.  He shucked off the satchel containing the anesthezine canister and got the gas ready to deploy.  He retrieved from his security utility belt a small apparatus to hold in his mouth.  A short duration re-breather - which would filter out the anesthezine gas for up to 10 to 15  minutes.  He was certain the Borg would not take even half that long to break through the sealed doors.   Rayek released the gas, which should be enough to fill the room and the bridge beyond once the door was forced open.

Once the gas was released and filled the room, the Romulan took cover to the side of the Captain's desk.  From that vantage point, Rayek had sight towards both doors, which he covered alternatingly with his phaser.

[Bridge | USS Discovery]

Dems drone registered that a potent gas had been deployed on the bridge, and in the same moment he had broken through the wall and into the misty room. Covering his mouth with his arm, phaser firing rapidly, he walked through the occluded room with one goal in mind. Eliminate unassimilated.

[Rayek trLhoell]

Commander Rayek tr'Lhoell
[USS Discovery-B - Deck 1  - Ready Room] Stardate 78288.5  (April 16, 2401)

[Bridge]

[As Kinley Borg Princess One]

The rogue ship Titan was successfully neutralized. It would soon be taken care of by the drones onboard and returned to the Fleet.

One noted the status of the Fleet and reported back to Vox. A few ships had been lost, but the bombardment on Spacedock was still effective and was on track. The shield systems were destroyed and all spacedock systems showed critical failure. Phase three would soon be underway.  Estimated time until full implementation: 5 minutes.

The intruder was gone for now, but they weren't far. They were a distinct threat to the control of the ship and needed to be eliminated. There weren't many places to hide on deck one, and given the schematics of the ship she had from the Collective, there were only so many potential locations for someone to go to. Leaving the conn to 056239, she grabbed her phaser to follow 346572.

Nodding to drone 346572 to be on guard, She brought up her phaser and helped shoot at it to reopen the Ready Room.

[Bridge | USS Discovery]

Dems drone registered that a potent gas had been deployed on the bridge, and in the same moment he had broken through the wall and into the misty room. Covering his mouth with his arm, phaser firing rapidly, he walked through the occluded room with one goal in mind. Eliminate unassimilated.

Pinned down on both sides, Rayek could hear the phaser whine as it worked at cutting through the lock mechanisms of the doors.  The Borg would be through any moment!  But which side first?!  His eyes and phaser swivelled back and forth from the Head over to the main doors, back to the Head.  It was the Head door that gave way first and in burst Dem, firing rapidly towards Rayek's location.

The Romulan swore he could hear the sizzle of the superheated air as one beam came worryingly closed to his head as he peeked to take a shot towards the Borg.   He was alarmed to see that the drone had already figured out about the anesthezine. Fvadt!  If the drone didn't breath in the gas then there was no way out of this situation for him.

Hearing the main doors beginning to slide open, Rayek opted for a desperate move.   He risked another peek. out towards the drone and cast his mind towards Dem.    The drone mind was difficult to penetrate, but Reman training gave Rayek an advantage.  Once in, Rayek realized there was very little of Dem present in the man's mind.  However, the synapses for pain and pleasure were still active and in a bit of a panic, Rayek tripped them all.

He was relieved to see the man react; and not a moment too soon as the doors to the Bridge slid open.

[James Ramort]

NPC Lieutenant Danjar-Torra Addams
[Spacedock - Ops]
Torra appreciated that the woman was asking for help.  She nodded. "I'll see what I can do, once I have finished my treatment of the Admiral."

When Captain Tekin and the others turned to deal with the Changeling, Torra remained with the Admiral.  She applied dermaline gel to the phaser burn but knew his best chance was a dermal regenerator or  better yet burn chamber given the size of the affected area; but unfortunately, the Grazerite had access to neither here in Ops.

Just when it seemed that they had the room back in their control, things took a turn for the worse.  The station shuddered as shields failed completely and the onslaught began tearing the station apart.  Power failed and the room was plunged into near darkness - lit only by the phaser blasts that spelled their doom.   At the first pull of gravity, Torra grabbed hold of the semi-conscious Admiral and curled herself around him protectively, taking the impact of wall along her back, as the station fell out of orbit.
The Captain's shout drew her attention but she lacked a solution to their problem.

A dull thud echoed in the large operations room.  Someone was trying to gain entrance.  More Borg drones, she thought until her large doe-like ears picked up the urgency in the voice on the other side.  She couldn't make out what was being shouted but that was no drone!

Torra's eyes squinted against the shadows trying to make out who individuals were as the station freefell.   The tall horned Grazerite called for assistance.

"Someone take the Admiral. I'll help with opening those doors."

She felt along the wall that she'd been thrown against and sure enough encountered the phaser rifle she had left laying beside her.

"If we concentrate enough phaser shots in one location, it'll act as a high-energy beam and heat the metal enough to melt through it."

[Starbase, Corridor outside Ops]

Malik's feet left the ground as the station's artificial gravity failed and he was slammed against the wall to Ops. It was obvious the station's defences had finally succumbed to the barrage, and they were now up the creek without a paddle. Large sections of wall and ceiling began to tear free sending explosions and smoke throughout the corridors of the promenade. 'So this is what it's like to be inside an exploding station.'

The Risan noticed Ramort trying to open the door to Ops. It was no good, they'd never force that door open themselves and he had no strength left to help. His head and neck throbbed, and he was sure some ribs were fractured. All he could do was sit down and prop himself up against the wall and rest, trying to stay conscious.

"What a first mission this turned out to be, huh." He chuckled, then coughed in pain. "Where's Alvarez? Find him and get yourselves to an escape pod, this stations lost..."

The Ensigns ears where still ringing as the station started going into critical failure, his equilibrium center knocked off as Vadok lagged behind the others.   It was a miracle they had survived the last skirmish alone and it looked like there needed to be another one sooner rather than later.   The smell of ozone crawled into his nostrils as he leaned against the halls of the station momentarily for support, watching as his fellow crewmates disappeared around a corner.

Taking a centering breath, Vadok went at a jog to catch up to the others.

"Here sir!" he called to Malik as he finally got back to Ops proper.   Seeing James struggling with the door, Vadok looked to Malik and then back to the door itself.

"Lieutenant, while I would normally question the logic of this effort." he said evenly as he grabbed at a small purchase in the door, his muscles tensing as he put that Vulcan stength to work.   Metal groaned in protest as Vadok continued through gritted teeth.  "Life, all life...hrrrrrr....is....important!"

He trew himself against the weight of the closed door with all his strength. Trying to get to open it even by a bit. The cold alloy leaving marks in his hands as his skin proved softer than the reinforced door.

As the other Ensign joined his effort to pry it open, it seemed like the metal began to move. He had a feeling he knew his face. Somewhere deep in his mind. Memories of happier days... the academy. Why could he not remember that. .... But there was no time. The metal needed to be moved.

Once again with combined strength he threw everything he had against the metal, trying to make it move. There were people trapped behind here. Fellow Officers. Who could tell how many where even still left. The Borg were doing a good job killing them. He had seen so many bodies on his way back from the Promenade Deck. And in the Shuttle Bay. He sensed that the thought was numbing him. Drowning out feelings of hope and fear. Fear for his own life there was only the warm metal under his Fingers now.

Wait.... warm metal? Wasn't it cold just a second ago. But there was no fire nearby. The automated fire suppression systems hadn't engaged. The Computer would have announced that.

And than there was the Lieutenants order. Abandon the Station. Leave behind even more people. He could get into quite the trouble for ignoring it. If there even was a Starfleet Disciplinary Committee left after this day. With enough senior Officers to Staff it. At least alive Officers.

"Sorry Lieutenant but there are people behind this door. Our People. Who can tell how many are still out there in the Fleet. So many have died. But here we have a chance to save a few. Maybe the last once still left in the entire Federation. Maybe just the once trapped behind these doors but we have to try. We will need every hand we can get when we have to rebuild eventually."

There still was the mystery of the warm metal. It seemed to spread outwards from the centre. It almost felt directed. What could cause this. Since it was directed, some form of concentrated energy needed to be applied to the Door from the other side. It had to come from the other side. Someone was trying to assist their endeavour!
Taking quick inventory of what would be available in OPS it had to be Phaser fire. A Plasma fire would heat the entire door. A random heatsource like a fire would have a far weaker signature and would fluctuate. This effect though, was radiating out from the primary locking mechanism. Someone was trying to get through.
Applying enough energy to the mechanism might make it release, unlocking the door. He drew out his own phaser again and took a step back.

"Someone is trying to get through from the other side. We should apply phaserfire from our side too. Step back Alvarez and coordinate your fire with mine."

Drawing out his phaser he began firing at the central locking mechanism. Applying enough heat from this side too to soon open it, freeing the people still trapped on the other side.

[Tekin Nevir]

[Spacedock - Ops]

Nevir looked up at the view angled above them; the transparent aluminium that was showing the fleet and Earth, though Earth was slowly starting to turn away as the station's orbit and the conservation of energy was pushing the station off its own axis. The fleet had stopped firing completely; instead, the ship formation was moving, reangling, as they turned to face... Earth.

"Prophets... the planetary shields are down.  There is nothing between the Borg and Earth.  There's nothing we can do." Nevir stated, pushing himself to a standing position and carefully moving towards on the offline panels.  He wasn't the only one, other station officers were trying to restore power.  The Fleet Commander was nowhere to be seen.

He glanced over at his crew, already hard at work trying to release the door locks.  Good, it meant they were trying to secure escape.  The massive station would take some time to drop past the stable orbit limit and go through reentry, but without power or thrusters it would happen.

"Most of the reactors are down... some are gone.  Station engineering is... gone.  The lower decks were blown out. We don't even have emergency power.  Sensors and life support are the only systems still functioning.  I think... I think the Enterprise went in to the cube. There was a firefight and it then just turned inward.  We'll lose long-range sensors in 30 minutes."

Nevir nodded at the report from the Lieutenant who did have a working console.  Nevir gave up trying to reactivate his console and moved to join his crew.  He paused for a moment as he stepped over the Commander of the station; the man was lifeless.  At least the Admiral was still alive.

"I did hear you, Lorut.  Its not a bad idea.  Let me get a piece of debris to try to pry it and put strain on your beam spot." he said, looking for a fallen shard of a beam and sticking the thin end near the bottom of the door away from the beam.  He, with assistance, started applying lever pressure, which at the moment was still very resistant.  It took some time, but slowly there were sparks from the sides of the door and a tiny gap as the door sides were loosening.  Then with a snap, the seal that was under fire broke, and the doors almost flew open.

"Good job everyone.  It looks like the fleet is not going to bother us.  We'll probably have assimilated crew to contend with, but otherwise we should be able to get to either the escape pods or the shuttles.  We should go."