S:5 E:16 - A Doomsday Like Any Other

[Ian Galloway]

[Mess Hall - Pride O'Rigel]

Ian had to choke back his surprise at seeing the Romulans, remembering they were Free State, not Thelal has his ilk. Besides Commander Avolus was present and he seemed to be an honorable man. Forcing a smile, Ian nodded to the Romulans and took the seat O'Flaherty offered.

"I know time is short ladies and gentlemen, so I'll be brief. You see, we weren't meanin' no harm when we went to explore that thing out there. Twas dead as a Klingon's enemy when we sighted it, and we were thinkin' salvege'd net us a pretty strip o' latinum or two, the sensors said it was pure neutronium! We didn't really know what t'make o' the big thing, so we decided t'check out a little pod thing we spotted orbitin' the big one.

"The pod was also neutronium and orbitin' just under a hundred kilometer from that monster. Me and some o' the boyos donned suits and checked it out. Thing is, soon as we got within ten meters, the little thing fired at us and hit the Pride, that's what damaged our engine. I fired back blindly and Saint's pure luck it hit something what shut it down. By the time we got it aboard, the big one was heatin' up and we had to run.

"The rest you know. Thing is, we don't really know what we snagged, but I figures you military types might know what t'do with it...leastways, more than me boyos can puzzle out. If you follow me, I'll shows it to you."

The ship captains, five men and three women followed O'Flaherty to the ship's cargo bay and found a cone-shaped pod three meters in length and a bit over a meter at the open end. Mostly covered in a thin plating of neutronium, but with several sections composed of a unknown translucent metal alloy with one section glowing brightly.

"Scans of the thing show power levels consistent with that of a warp core, but never seen one so compact before."

"This is quite the discovery Captain, but what is your point. As you said earlier time is short."

One of the Romulan Commanders said.

"Patience, patience, my good people. Let's return to the conference room."

O'Flaherty said with relish although it was clear none of those present felt the same level of enjoyment the Irishman seemed to be having. Back in the mess hall, drinks were served and their host took on a conspiratorial grin.

"Tis truly a pity that Monster got activated and pointed at Angdarr. It t'would be far worse if it were to be eatin' the planet. Even though tryin' to stick a ship down its craw didn't work so well, I believe that there pod thing might just offer a solution to your problem.

"Even though me boyos couldn't plumb out all its secrets, we do believe that pod is some sort of beacon, maybe even can signal the big one, might even be able to shut it down. As I see it, ladies and gentlemen, ye each have a stake in this. But o'course it's been me own risk and expense t'make all this possible. Sure'n I'm just a poor, hardworkin' businessman, and this is costin' me latinum. So I have t'recoup me losses somehow... so, before we get to the important work, I'll no be havin' any o' your bully boys tryin' anything unfriendly, that stasis field holdin' the pod has a self-destruct built into it and you'll no be wantin' its warp core to breach. Now, I'm willin' ta hear your bids."

It was difficult to tell externally, who was more outraged by O'Flaherty's gall, Ian or the Romulans. Each of the ship captains were so stunned by the naked money grab, they were at a loss for words. Until Avolus, the oldest of those present managed to recover first.

"I've met Ferengi less vile than you O'Flaherty. You would bargain for a planet?"

"You wound me Sir. I'm no Ferengi, I'm not askin' for payment up front or outrageous interest on a loan. I'm just askin' for... agreeable and profitable terms."

"Profit! And you say you aren't a Ferengi."

"What sort of terms are you ta be lookin' for?"

Ian asked seeing that the old Romulan was done with O'Flaherty. Who in turn recognized his opening and pounced.

"Well, that's simple enough to answer... salvage rights on all that neutronium would set everything right in the galaxy."

"And if'n I were ta throw in a 30 year old bottle of single malt?"

"You'd have a deal Captain."

"Then we have a deal."

"Wait I minute, that's it, we don't get any input?"

"He who hesitates is lost Commander." O'Flaherty turned back to face Ian. "We swap in ten minutes. Pod for that fine scotch?"

"Aye, Captain. Now, I've got ta return ta me ship."

"Pleasure doin' business with you Starfleet."

Ian tapped his combadge.

"Galloway ta Challenger, one ta beam out."

As Ian faded, the last thing he saw was the outrage on the Romulan's faces, except for Avolus, who seemed to sport a knowing smile.

[Nira Said]

[Lieutenant Zhukdra'shar Mrekrerhas | Bridge | Deck One | USS Challenger NCC-40117-A | Angdarr System]

Zhukdra'shar suddenly felt the odd sensation of having his molecules be transported away. He closed his eyes, both uncomfortable and glad that he was not to die today...

He once more opened his dichroic green orbs, finding himself within one of the Transporter Rooms of the Challenger. Immediately, he noticed something was wrong. There was a mess within, and he swore he could see the faintest traces of blood just by his feet. The Transporter Chief seemed tired but not particularly worried about the situation, and he could see a Security officer standing by. Crewman Daniel P. Thompson, by the looks of it. Nira suddenly ran out of the room, followed closely behind by Ensign Neva, in a rush to reach another Deck. Most likely the Bridge.

Zhuk could understand the need to determine what had transpired with the Doomsday Machine. Or going back to their respective duties as soon as possible. But, he felt a need to discover what had happened here, first. And perhaps, take a momentary breather. His heart pounded with force within his chest. But the universe had allowed the Lieutenant to continue making the galaxy a better place. And he would not squander such an opportunity.

Five minutes or so later, he proceeded to head over to the Crewman, shaking his body around slightly to ease the tension in his muscles. He wondered if it would be too wrong to see if there was a spa simulation in the Holodeck. He could use a massage,

"Greetings, Crewman Thompson. May I inquire as to what happened here?"

Thompson nodded, and proceeded to put Zhuk up to speed as to the situation involving the S.S. Guppy, the ensuing attempt of the USS Challenger to evacuate the crowded ship and to assist the wounded and dying. He made emphasis on the chaotic atmosphere that followed. The set of this news took aback the Caitian, but ultimately there was little he could do at this point. Thanking Thompson, Zhuk decided to follow after Nira, though on his trip up the turbolift, decided to take a moment to check up on a few key players of the ship.

To: Chief Petty Officer ShranLahr ch'Verret
From: Lieutenant Zhukdra'shar Mrekrerhas
Subject: Current Status?

"Greetings, Chieff Petty Offcer ch'Verret. I overheard of the situation of the wounded. Are you doing well? I also ask based on the repairs most likely needed after the ray from the Doomsday Machine hit the Challenger."

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

To: Crewman Abas Th'vyrrol
From: Lieutenant Zhukdra'shar Mrekrerhas
Subject: Current Status?

"Greetings, Crewman. I overheard of the situation of the wounded. Are you doing well?"

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

To: Head Nurse Chloe Davies
From: Lieutenant Zhukdra'shar Mrekrerhas
Subject: Current Status?

"Greetings, esteemed Head Nurse Davies. Are thou doing well? I was told what transpired within the vessel. How are thee holding up? I apologize if I was not here to aid with the organization of Security. If you require something, please do let me know."

He did not expect to obtain a response right away, but he at least wanted to let them know that he understood their probable plight.

Finally, he reached the Bridge, and immediately headed over towards the Tactical console, clicking and taping to see the status. His serious expression suddenly changed as the sensors determined that the Doomsday Machine was still active. His ears flattened on his head, and he hissed in consternation, barely stopping himself from smashing his fist on the computer. He couldn't believe it, even gazing over at the viewport outside to confirm this. But it was real. The infernal machine still operated.

His effort, his probable sacrifice, had been for naught.

Zhuk wanted to scream, to yowl, to stomp his feet. But besides the fur standing up on end, he did nothing of the sort. Besides his failure, the reason was related to the appearance of six Norexan-class ships. Mrekrerhas got ready to engage the ships, only waiting for the orders of the Captain to charge up phasers and torpedoes against the Romulan Free State ships. But those instructions never came.

His vision focused over at the viewscreen as the Captain spoke to O'Flaherty. He looked nervous, which made Zhuk suspicious. But he had an offer that Ian Galloway took almost immediately. He instructed Commander Nira to take over, before heading down the Turbolift to the Transporter room.

At her request, Zhuk answered with a clear voice,

"It shalt be done, Commander Said."

Strange, why were they not answering? Zhuk did not like this reaction...

[Commander Nira Said | Bridge | Deck One | USS Challenger NCC-40117-A]

Nira nodded at Zhuk. Of course, remembering that instant flare she felt when he saw the machine was still going, and she could relate.

"I know how you feel, Zhuk," she said with comfort. "You can imagine how I felt when I saw our salvage failed to stop it," she added bitterly. "Now, I better see what's happened while we were away."

It did provide something for Nira to do, despite feeling hungry after a day and a half on nothing but preserved oosol sweet. She caught up on the reports of what happened. She read through the reports about the Guppy and scowled.

"That explains why we didn't have personnel immediately to help," she said. "And why our transporters were momentarily strained. Challenger briefly accommodated...almost nine thousand refugees? And from the summed incident, I can see where the Guppy's captain had to be restrained. If I didn't know better, I'd say somebody was in for a high body count. And if I was to feel comfortable accomodating all those people, I'd rather this ship be a Galaxy or a Ross class."

[Mess Hall - Pride O'Rigel]

Ian had to choke back his surprise at seeing the Romulans, remembering they were Free State, not Thelal has his ilk. Besides Commander Avolus was present and he seemed to be an honorable man. Forcing a smile, Ian nodded to the Romulans and took the seat O'Flaherty offered.

"I know time is short ladies and gentlemen, so I'll be brief. You see, we weren't meanin' no harm when we went to explore that thing out there. Twas dead as a Klingon's enemy when we sighted it, and we were thinkin' salvege'd net us a pretty strip o' latinum or two, the sensors said it was pure neutronium! We didn't really know what t'make o' the big thing, so we decided t'check out a little pod thing we spotted orbitin' the big one.

"The pod was also neutronium and orbitin' just under a hundred kilometer from that monster. Me and some o' the boyos donned suits and checked it out. Thing is, soon as we got within ten meters, the little thing fired at us and hit the Pride, that's what damaged our engine. I fired back blindly and Saint's pure luck it hit something what shut it down. By the time we got it aboard, the big one was heatin' up and we had to run.

"The rest you know. Thing is, we don't really know what we snagged, but I figures you military types might know what t'do with it...leastways, more than me boyos can puzzle out. If you follow me, I'll shows it to you."

The ship captains, five men and three women followed O'Flaherty to the ship's cargo bay and found a cone-shaped pod three meters in length and a bit over a meter at the open end. Mostly covered in a thin plating of neutronium, but with several sections composed of a unknown translucent metal alloy with one section glowing brightly.

"Scans of the thing show power levels consistent with that of a warp core, but never seen one so compact before."

"This is quite the discovery Captain, but what is your point. As you said earlier time is short."

One of the Romulan Commanders said.

"Patience, patience, my good people. Let's return to the conference room."

O'Flaherty said with relish although it was clear none of those present felt the same level of enjoyment the Irishman seemed to be having. Back in the mess hall, drinks were served and their host took on a conspiratorial grin.

"Tis truly a pity that Monster got activated and pointed at Angdarr. It t'would be far worse if it were to be eatin' the planet. Even though tryin' to stick a ship down its craw didn't work so well, I believe that there pod thing might just offer a solution to your problem.

"Even though me boyos couldn't plumb out all its secrets, we do believe that pod is some sort of beacon, maybe even can signal the big one, might even be able to shut it down. As I see it, ladies and gentlemen, ye each have a stake in this. But o'course it's been me own risk and expense t'make all this possible. Sure'n I'm just a poor, hardworkin' businessman, and this is costin' me latinum. So I have t'recoup me losses somehow... so, before we get to the important work, I'll no be havin' any o' your bully boys tryin' anything unfriendly, that stasis field holdin' the pod has a self-destruct built into it and you'll no be wantin' its warp core to breach. Now, I'm willin' ta hear your bids."

It was difficult to tell externally, who was more outraged by O'Flaherty's gall, Ian or the Romulans. Each of the ship captains were so stunned by the naked money grab, they were at a loss for words. Until Avolus, the oldest of those present managed to recover first.

"I've met Ferengi less vile than you O'Flaherty. You would bargain for a planet?"

"You wound me Sir. I'm no Ferengi, I'm not askin' for payment up front or outrageous interest on a loan. I'm just askin' for... agreeable and profitable terms."

"Profit! And you say you aren't a Ferengi."

"What sort of terms are you ta be lookin' for?"

Ian asked seeing that the old Romulan was done with O'Flaherty. Who in turn recognized his opening and pounced.

"Well, that's simple enough to answer... salvage rights on all that neutronium would set everything right in the galaxy."

"And if'n I were ta throw in a 30 year old bottle of single malt?"

"You'd have a deal Captain."

"Then we have a deal."

"Wait I minute, that's it, we don't get any input?"

"He who hesitates is lost Commander." O'Flaherty turned back to face Ian. "We swap in ten minutes. Pod for that fine scotch?"

"Aye, Captain. Now, I've got ta return ta me ship."

"Pleasure doin' business with you Starfleet."

Ian tapped his combadge.

"Galloway ta Challenger, one ta beam out."

As Ian faded, the last thing he saw was the outrage on the Romulan's faces, except for Avolus, who seemed to sport a knowing smile.

Nira was still going over the reports regarding the Guppy, catching up on recent on-board events, when Captain Galloway returned.

"Ah, Captain," she said. "We've tried to get in touch with the Free State ships, but there's no reply. And what did Captain O'Flaherty offer?"

[Ian Galloway]

[Commander Nira Said | Bridge | Deck One | USS Challenger NCC-40117-A]

Nira was still going over the reports regarding the Guppy, catching up on recent on-board events, when Captain Galloway returned.

"Ah, Captain," she said. "We've tried to get in touch with the Free State ships, but there's no reply. And what did Captain O'Flaherty offer?"

[Bridge - USS Challenger]

Ian returned to his place in the command chair and sighed as he answered Nira.

"The answer ta that is now in Cargo Bay Three. It seems that wanker O'Flaherty found the Machine in a dormant state. Of course he wanted salvage rights, which he was technically due, so he and his crew decided ta go muckin' about with a smaller object near the main Machine.

"They got it aboard their ship, but nae before it damaged their engines and sent a wake up call ta it's Mum. That's when he high-tailed it and we came into the story.

"In any case, we now have the smaller pod aboard and hopefully if'n we can figure that out, it will let us shut down the main Machine. At least that's the idea. In exchange, O'Flaherty wants salvage rights on the neutronium, assumin' we manage ta get control of the thing."

At that point, Ian turned to face Randall at the Science One station.

"Evan, this is now in your hands, take whoever you need ta crack this code. If'n you need Engineerin' support, you work that out with Dashlish. This is now your only priority. Get me some answers."

At that point, Ian spoke to the Conn station.

"Helm, intercept course with the Machine. Half impulse, we're nae in a hurry ta close that distance yet, we need ta give the boffins time for another miracle."

[Nira Said]

[Bridge - USS Challenger]

Ian returned to his place in the command chair and sighed as he answered Nira.

"The answer ta that is now in Cargo Bay Three. It seems that wanker O'Flaherty found the Machine in a dormant state. Of course he wanted salvage rights, which he was technically due, so he and his crew decided ta go muckin' about with a smaller object near the main Machine.

"They got it aboard their ship, but nae before it damaged their engines and sent a wake up call ta it's Mum. That's when he high-tailed it and we came into the story.

"In any case, we now have the smaller pod aboard and hopefully if'n we can figure that out, it will let us shut down the main Machine. At least that's the idea. In exchange, O'Flaherty wants salvage rights on the neutronium, assumin' we manage ta get control of the thing."

At that point, Ian turned to face Randall at the Science One station.

"Evan, this is now in your hands, take whoever you need ta crack this code. If'n you need Engineerin' support, you work that out with Dashlish. This is now your only priority. Get me some answers."

At that point, Ian spoke to the Conn station.

"Helm, intercept course with the Machine. Half impulse, we're nae in a hurry ta close that distance yet, we need ta give the boffins time for another miracle."

[Commander Nira Said | Bridge | Deck One | USS Challenger NCC-40117-A]

Nira heard out Captain Galloway, going from inquisitive to surprise to flared anger at what Captain O'Flaherty has done. She was surprised that O'Flaherty had discovered the machine dormant, to finding a device that may or may not be its power mechanism, and her anger flared at his naked greed that had started them off.

"That bastard," she hissed. "If there was anybody in the outermost planets, their blood is on his hands. If it doesn't work and we lose Andgarr...well, I might have to get in line," she added, her sense putting her anger aside, though her fury was still there, emphasized by the fact that Ian and anybody on the bridge was bound to feel a fire cyclone where Nira was standing, feeling fiery hot in terms of emotion.

[J.B Dersch]

CPO ShranLahr ch'Verret
[USS Challenger-A - Deck 2 - Observation Lounge >>> Jefferies >>> Deck 3]

Multiple repair reports were coming in as Damage Control Team One gathered around Ensign Jones to receive their assignment.

"Alright, so we have a turbolift failure between decks 2 and 3. Crewman Maranxx-ii - start on that.  There is an EPS power relay failure on Deck 3.  Lahr you'll be with me on that."  The team was still a crewmember down ever since the Chief had reassigned T'Roth to Damage Control Team Six.   They sure could used the extra pair of hands now.

The team split up with Maranxx-ii heading to the turbolift shaft, while Lahr and Jones made their way down the Jefferies tube ladder to get around the turbolift blockage. Midway through their descent, the pair received received an update on their assignment.   The EPS relay had overloaded and a fire sensor had been triggered.

Normally, this would activate the automatic fire suppression features, but that emergency response system was showing an error code now too.  The Andorian's antennae twitched.  Of course the fire suppression would go down at a time like this!  Worse yet, if he wasn't mistaken that relay backed onto the kindergarten classroom.  Roozh!

Gripping onto the ladder tight with one hand, Lahr tapped his comm.  "ch'Verret to Security and Transporter Room One.  We have a potential plasma fire burning in the vicinity of the kindergarten classroom on Deck 3.  The area will need to be evacuated immediately."

The calm monotone voice of Grelek, his roommate and transporter chief, responded.  "The area was evacuated moments ago.  The children are now in Sickbay with Commander Mackenzie and their teacher.  Transporter Room One out."

Lahr knew plasma fires were notoriously difficult to put out without the proper equipment.   They burned hot, traveled quick and emitted radiation that was dangerous to humanoids.

"We'll need to suit up in our SURS once we get to Deck 3." Kasey advised, picking up the pace of her descent.

Lahr nodded, following her lead. "Yeah, sounds good."

Tucked into each engineer's toolkit was a small vaccuum-sealed pack that contained a single-use radiation suit, or SURS..  A paper thin, lead-coated suit and face mask that provided short-term protection in emergency situations like this.

Arriving on Deck 3, the two engineers proceeded to retrieve these and quickly suited up, donning the suits over top their uniforms before continuing to the now evacuated area.  Power was out in the corridors and their path was lit only by the emergency lighting.   The characteristic green glow ahead of them confirmed the quickly growing plasma fire.

Thankfully, because plasma fires were so dangerous, extinguishers for them where not only a part of the automated fire suppression system, but also hand-held units were located through out the ship in key areas, like corridors near to relays that had a potential of overloading.  Kasey and Lahr retrieved four such canisters on their way towards the fire.

As with all extinguishers their use was rather close-up to the fire and there was a limited amount of retardant that would hopefully smother the plasma fire.  Aiming for the base of the fire was key.  Time to see if all those practice drills in the holodeck would pay off.

| Ensign Lilly Hansen | Temporary Sec/Tac Officer | USS Challenger | Deck 2 - Observation Lounge >>> Jefferies >>> Deck 3 |

Lilly had heard the Medical Call and wanted to rush down to Medical But fought the urge.  She moved to follow the Two Engineers. "I am Coming To Help". She didn't wait for their response, She grabbed the Spare Kit and got suited up. Even though she was not an Engineer, But she knew the basics. She took a deep breath and moved to Follow The team now en-route to Deck 3. Once Arrived and the 3 used the 4 they each grabbed and began to fight the flames. She had been trained this way before she turned 18, Thanks to her father. Damn Plasma Fires, Should be a type of foam that covers it when it catches on fire. She kept a smooth and constant spray at the base of the fire. She knew others probably only had holodeck training, but she had Real Life training, Thanks to her Grandmothers house catching on fire in the living. Okay, Its not her Fault, But my Dads, Shouldn't have put 85 Candles on the Damn Cake! Lilly smiled as she thought this. Her Dad indeed put 85 candles on the cake, Which he had tripped over a Piece of Rug that was stuck up and ended launching the cake at the curtains, It was only a small fire, But the Damn candles were the ones that never went went even if you blew you whole damn breath out on it!

[Neva Cordon]

[Commander Nira Said | Bridge | Deck One | USS Challenger NCC-40117-A]

Nira heard out Captain Galloway, going from inquisitive to surprise to flared anger at what Captain O'Flaherty has done. She was surprised that O'Flaherty had discovered the machine dormant, to finding a device that may or may not be its power mechanism, and her anger flared at his naked greed that had started them off.

"That bastard," she hissed. "If there was anybody in the outermost planets, their blood is on his hands. If it doesn't work and we lose Andgarr...well, I might have to get in line," she added, her sense putting her anger aside, though her fury was still there, emphasized by the fact that Ian and anybody on the bridge was bound to feel a fire cyclone where Nira was standing, feeling fiery hot in terms of emotion.

[Neva Cordon| USS-Challenger| Bridge]

When the Captain told the science officer to get with her Chief, Neva handed off her station and went to join Randall in the turbolift.

Smiling, she spoke calmly. "Hi. I dont think we'vemet. Im Ensign Neva Cordon. Im in Engineering, so if its fine with you, id like to help you if possible." Her smile turned into a smirk, dark eyes full of mirth. "That is if Chief will let me,  of course."

[Kyan Mackenzie]

[Lt. Commander Kyan Mackenzie | Sickbay, USS Challenger]

1335 hours

When he rematerialized in sickbay Kyan was greeted by a scene that filled him with an overpowering sense of Deja-vu. There were still casualties from the Guppy lying about, some on beds, some sitting on the floor with makeshift bandages covering their wounds. Some of them were actively engaging the Challenger's beleaguered medical staff, while others simply stared off at nothing. The blueshirts all looked like they'd definitely been through it. As he scanned the room, the Onlie was reminded of something an old Transporter Chief on a prior posting would say whenever Kyan beamed back from a particularly interesting away mission.

"œBoy ya look like ye been rode hard and put up wet!" he'd chuckle in his southern American drawl. The Deja-vu was accompanied by a gnawing sense of dread, but Kyan was coming up blank on why. He'd always felt a certain way about doctors and medical facilities, more so than even most of his fellow Onlies. The headshrinks reckoned that something bad had happened to him in one, and that's why they affected him like that. But he could never remember a specific incident. It was usually manageable, especially since the last time on Katra, but this time it hit a little harder for some reason.

He was lost in these thoughts when the Aenar medic came over and began scanning the kindergarten teacher.

"What do we have, Sir?" he asked, already moving to do what he could. But, Kyan was here and might know more of what happened so they could improve their treatment.

Kyan blinked out of his reverie and finally noticed Abas. "œHuh?" he asked before his brain had finished processing the question. Then when it finally caught up.."Oh. Right." He coughed. A power conduit blew in the classroom. Sure and I think she was next to it." He indicated his knife and the makeshift tourniquet. "œShe was bleeding a lot so I did the tourniquet." Looking around as he spoke, Kyan continued to take in the scene around him. His senses were still being assailed by the cacophony of sounds, sights, and smells that usually accompanied a mass casualty event. His ears rang with the sounds of Groaning casualties, raised voices demanding equipment or someone to grab something, the occasional outburst from a patient, and equipment being shuffled from here to there. His nose was filled with a lingering scent of acrid smoke, now mingling with the iron smell of blood and the odor of a mass of unwashed people all crammed into a small space.

His lungs still burned a little from the smoke, although he hadn't been there long enough to take in too much of it. His eyes watered too, but dragging his shirtsleeve across his face didn't help, and actually made things worse. "œI dinnae think any of the kids got hurt much." He added absently.

Taja lifted the little girl up in her arms and carried her to a vacant bio bed to run some scans. "Don't worry little one, mom's on her way, why don't we clean you up a little first." She said soothingly in the way only a woman could, stroking a loose strand of hair from the girl's ash stained face.

"Oh, and I got a special treat just for you." Taja gave the child an osol twist to hold whilst she ran the dermal regenerator over the wound. Holding the girl's hand reassuringly as she did so.

"œThank you." The girl answered, covering her mouth before coughing into her sleeve. Then she took the offered treat as she let herself be looked over. "œThat's my mommy over there." She whispered, looking over to where Abas was scanning the injured school teacher. "œShe got hurt and that boy helped her. And then"¦.." She paused to cough before continuing, "œAnd then Mo and Zinn came back and we went out of the room." She looked at the isol twist briefly but then her eyes went back to her injured mother before meeting Taja's. "œIs my mom gonna be ok?" she asked in a wavering voice.

Thankfully the majority of the refugees had been whisked away back to their planet, and only the most critically injured were there. He began his rounds, completely unawares that he would soon be called upon again for his specialty.

Chloe Davies brushed a wayward strand of her brunette hair off her forehead as she considered the group of new arrivals with a sigh. "œIt had to be a gaggle of kids." She muttered as a forlorn look washed over her face. Chloe was an experienced nurse, and could handle just about anything, but she was not someone who was overly fond of children. They made her uncomfortable. She'd long ago decided that she was probably never going to have any of her own, and made efforts to be assigned to ships without families. That hadn't worked this time however, but it could have been worse. She could have been given a Galaxy Class assignment, or one of the new Ross Class ships. She sighed again as she looked around for their resident pediatrician. Before the El-Aurian showed up, Challenger's medical staff hadn't had a doctor who specialized in children, so they all dispersed the care of the ship's kids evenly. Now that they'd finally gotten one, Chloe and the others were beyond relieved to let the ancient doctor have them.

"œAnd thank God for Jalen Carter!" she muttered as a little human boy started wailing on the other side of the room where most of the children still sat in a gaggle around Kyan and their injured teacher. Then she tapped her com badge. Davies to Carter, We've just gotten a load of kindergardeners in here from the classroom up on deck three. We're gonna need you in main sickbay stat.

Davies winced as another shrill voice formed a duet with the crying boy. "œHurry it up Carter!" she said to herself as she looked for something"¦anything to do that didn't include wading into the group of soot stained ankle biters. She found her chance when she heard Doctor Fellows curse over by a biobed.

"œWhat the problem Doctor?" Davies asked as she walked over.

Fellows indicated the bed and its blinking display with a scowl. "œThis thing's on the fritz again. Get engineering to send us someone to see if they can get it working for a while, at least until we're not using every last bed in here."

Chloe nodded, tapping her com badge again.

~~Elswhere on Deck Seven"¦

[Main Computer Core | USS Challenger ]

1445 hours

The dim light cast the Orion woman's face in a pale emerald glow as she worked. The face was a mask of concentration as seconds ticked by until finally a smile crept across her face. She produced a communicator and whispered into it. "œTheli to Larosh."

"œGo ahead." Another female's voice crackled over the device.

"œI've isolated and masked our bio signatures. We've also got a communications lockout in place. They won't be able to call out. We are free to begin." The woman called Theli replied as she gathered her tools. "œWe have a ten hour window until the system will correct itself."

"œGood work sister. Meet us in sickbay."

Theli grabbed her bag and spoke into the communicator again. "œI'll see you there." Then she put it away and walked out the door.

Back in sickbay"¦.

1505 hours

"¦in Exam room three

When Doctor Kartos had arrived, all the kindergarteners were shuffled into an empty exam room to be seen, mostly so that there could be some room for the medical staff to continue treating the Guppy casualties without twelve kindergarteners underfoot. As the rest of his classmates sat on the floor or in what few chairs there were, a little boy with a shock of blond curls sat on the examination table with his arms crossed. "œNo!" he declared loudly. "œI don't want to. I want to go home!"

The Onlie regarded him with more patience than he normally had for people. "œIt's ok the now. Doctor Kartos here is just after checkin yer lungs so he can make sure ye dinnae get too much smoke in there." Kyan indicated the towering El-Aurian with a thumb. "œHe's nice so he is. He been seein tae me own hurts too. And if yer good, he's not stingy with the Jumja suckers either so he ain't!"  All of which was said around the jumja sucker in Kyan's own mouth."

The boy considered this, his eyes shifting from Kyan and the sucker over to Jalen but it didn't move him. "œI want to go home." He reiterated finally.

Kyan looked over at the doctor with a shrug before addressing the boy again. "œSuit yerself mate. But yer missin out on this." Kyan gave an exaggerated slurp on his jumja before taking it out of his mouth and inspecting it; or rather, letting the kid inspect it. "œAnyways." He began, before popping it back in his mouth and turning away. "œMaybe you'll change yer mind on it."

Kyan was about to say more when he heard the distinct whine of a disruptor discharge somewhere beyond the doors.

In the Main Sickbay

Sickbay continued to be a raucous hub of activity. With all the activity going on, barely anyone noticed the Orion woman and her dapper Ferengi companion walk through the doors. When the Miradorn twins and a trio of Nausicaans entered behind them with disruptor rifles at the ready, they didn't go un-noticed.

"œWhat the hell's going on!?" Chloe Davies demanded as she stalked toward the group. This is a sickbay not a damned"¦."

A disruptor whined and Davies dropped unmoving to the deck. The Nausicaan who'd fired regarded the unconscious woman with a grunt. If anyone in the room hadn't noticed the new arrivals before, they certainly did now.

"œLadies and Gentlemen." The Orion woman spoke up, "œMy name is Larosh and you are all my hostages.  If you do as you're told, you will not be harmed." She gave a thin smile. "œNow then"¦" she continued, looking around the room. "œWho is in charge here?"

[Ian Galloway]

[Neva Cordon| USS-Challenger| Bridge]

When the Captain told the science officer to get with her Chief, Neva handed off her station and went to join Randall in the turbolift.

Smiling, she spoke calmly. "Hi. I dont think we'vemet. Im Ensign Neva Cordon. Im in Engineering, so if its fine with you, id like to help you if possible." Her smile turned into a smirk, dark eyes full of mirth. "That is if Chief will let me,  of course."

[Bridge --> Turbolift - USS Challenger]

Randall turned and gestured for Neva to follow as he headed for the turbolift.

"Good to meet you Ensign. Evan Randall, Chief Science. I hope you are good at miracles, because we've got less than three hours to figure out a completely alien technology and turn it to our advantage."

As they entered the turbolift, Randall went quiet, clearly lost in thought as the headed for the cargo bay.

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

[Lt. Commander Kyan Mackenzie | Sickbay, USS Challenger]

~~Elswhere on Deck Seven"¦

[Main Computer Core | USS Challenger ]

1445 hours

The dim light cast the Orion woman's face in a pale emerald glow as she worked. The face was a mask of concentration as seconds ticked by until finally a smile crept across her face. She produced a communicator and whispered into it. "œTheli to Larosh."

"œGo ahead." Another female's voice crackled over the device.

"œI've isolated and masked our bio signatures. We've also got a communications lockout in place. They won't be able to call out. We are free to begin." The woman called Theli replied as she gathered her tools. "œWe have a ten hour window until the system will correct itself."

"œGood work sister. Meet us in sickbay."

Theli grabbed her bag and spoke into the communicator again. "œI'll see you there." Then she put it away and walked out the door.

Back in sickbay"¦.

1505 hours

"¦in Exam room three

When Doctor Kartos had arrived, all the kindergarteners were shuffled into an empty exam room to be seen, mostly so that there could be some room for the medical staff to continue treating the Guppy casualties without twelve kindergarteners underfoot. As the rest of his classmates sat on the floor or in what few chairs there were, a little boy with a shock of blond curls sat on the examination table with his arms crossed. "œNo!" he declared loudly. "œI don't want to. I want to go home!"

The Onlie regarded him with more patience than he normally had for people. "œIt's ok the now. Doctor Kartos here is just after checkin yer lungs so he can make sure ye dinnae get too much smoke in there." Kyan indicated the towering El-Aurian with a thumb. "œHe's nice so he is. He been seein tae me own hurts too. And if yer good, he's not stingy with the Jumja suckers either so he ain't!"  All of which was said around the jumja sucker in Kyan's own mouth."

The boy considered this, his eyes shifting from Kyan and the sucker over to Jalen but it didn't move him. "œI want to go home." He reiterated finally.

Kyan looked over at the doctor with a shrug before addressing the boy again. "œSuit yerself mate. But yer missin out on this." Kyan gave an exaggerated slurp on his jumja before taking it out of his mouth and inspecting it; or rather, letting the kid inspect it. "œAnyways." He began, before popping it back in his mouth and turning away. "œMaybe you'll change yer mind on it."

Kyan was about to say more when he heard the distinct whine of a disruptor discharge somewhere beyond the doors.

In the Main Sickbay

Sickbay continued to be a raucous hub of activity. With all the activity going on, barely anyone noticed the Orion woman and her dapper Ferengi companion walk through the doors. When the Miradorn twins and a trio of Nausicaans entered behind them with disruptor rifles at the ready, they didn't go un-noticed.

"œWhat the hell's going on!?" Chloe Davies demanded as she stalked toward the group. This is a sickbay not a damned"¦."

A disruptor whined and Davies dropped unmoving to the deck. The Nausicaan who'd fired regarded the unconscious woman with a grunt. If anyone in the room hadn't noticed the new arrivals before, they certainly did now.

"œLadies and Gentlemen." The Orion woman spoke up, "œMy name is Larosh and you are all my hostages.  If you do as you're told, you will not be harmed." She gave a thin smile. "œNow then"¦" she continued, looking around the room. "œWho is in charge here?"

[Sickbay - USS Challenger]

Jess heard the sound of the disruptor and, for an instant, she was back on Melek Nor, but then she snapped into action. She tapped her combadge, but the sound it made indicated he wasn't working. She swore silently and was still trying to figure out how to let others know they needed help when a voice called out for who was in charge.

She stood and exited her office, barely choking back a gasp to see Davies crumpled on the deck before she straightened up to her full height and replied.

"I am Lieutenant Commander Jessica Fellows. Chief Medical Officer of the USS Challenger. This is my Sickbay and I will advise you now that whatever you have planned, it will fail."

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

[Bridge - USS Challenger]

Ian was going through his limited options, but was aware that the Romulan ships were following them some half a million kilometers behind.

"Bloody nice of them ta nae of cloaked, pillocks."

He thought when his head snapped towards Tactical as Lieutenant Davenport gasped and reported.

"Sir, weapons fire in Sickbay! I can't reach anyone on Deck 7, there's some sort of communications lock down in place!"

Ian's jaw dropped open for a second in shock before he growled.

"Where's MacKenzie?"

"He shows as being in Sickbay."

"That puts Mrekrerhas in charge, have him send two squads ta sickbay. Intruder alert. Lock down Deck 7. Standby anesthezine. I don't care if'n you have ta burn holes through the decks punchin' a signal through, but I want ta talk ta Sickbay!"

As Ian waited for his orders to be followed, he thought.

"Can any bloody thing else go wrong today?"

[J.B Dersch]

"That puts Mrekrerhas in charge, have him send two squads ta sickbay. Intruder alert. Lock down Deck 7. Standby anesthezine. I don't care if'n you have ta burn holes through the decks punchin' a signal through, but I want ta talk ta Sickbay!"

|Ensign Lilly Hansen | Sec/Tac Officer | USS Challenger |

As Soon as Lilly heard the Intruder alert, She gave her Caister to the Other Engineers and took off Undressing out of her Suit. She stopped by the  Armory and suited up in a vest and grabbed a rifle. She also grabbed one more for the Other Sec/Tac officer who was also getting ready. As she arrived to the Meeting Point where the teams were meeting up She gave the Lead Officer a idea. "I know we got two teams gathering here, Is there a Jeffertubes access point that lets in to the Med Bay, If So We could send one team that way, and send the other through the main doors, Two Entry points would Stress them out and confuse them as well"

[Dr Taja Grippen]

[Lt. Commander Kyan Mackenzie | Sickbay, USS Challenger]

1335 hours

"œThank you." The girl answered, covering her mouth before coughing into her sleeve. Then she took the offered treat as she let herself be looked over. "œThat's my mommy over there." She whispered, looking over to where Abas was scanning the injured school teacher. "œShe got hurt and that boy helped her. And then"¦.." She paused to cough before continuing, "œAnd then Mo and Zinn came back and we went out of the room." She looked at the isol twist briefly but then her eyes went back to her injured mother before meeting Taja's. "œIs my mom gonna be ok?" she asked in a wavering voice.

[USS Challenger, Deck 7, Sickbay]

"You've been very brave and don't worry, your mom is going to be just fine. We got the best doctors in all of Starfleet here." Taja finished dermal regenerating the girl's cut then administered a hypospray to ease the child's damaged lungs. She would just need to rest and plenty oxygen now. "There we are, all done. You lie back and rest."

1505 hours
In the Main Sickbay

Sickbay continued to be a raucous hub of activity. With all the activity going on, barely anyone noticed the Orion woman and her dapper Ferengi companion walk through the doors. When the Miradorn twins and a trio of Nausicaans entered behind them with disruptor rifles at the ready, they didn't go un-noticed.

"œWhat the hell's going on!?" Chloe Davies demanded as she stalked toward the group. This is a sickbay not a damned"¦."

A disruptor whined and Davies dropped unmoving to the deck. The Nausicaan who'd fired regarded the unconscious woman with a grunt. If anyone in the room hadn't noticed the new arrivals before, they certainly did now.

"œLadies and Gentlemen." The Orion woman spoke up, "œMy name is Larosh and you are all my hostages.  If you do as you're told, you will not be harmed." She gave a thin smile. "œNow then"¦" she continued, looking around the room. "œWho is in charge here?"

Taja woke with a start at the sound of the disruptor going off. She had drifted off watching over the girl and from having no sleep for nearly 24 hours after an exhausting away mission. The Risan tried her commbadge but it wasn't working for some reason. How the hell had they managed to just waltz in here with weapons. She grabbed a nearby laser scalpel and moved to shield the girl from their view, as the CMO challenged them.

[Zhukdrashar Mrekrerhas]

[Commander Nira Said | Bridge | Deck One | USS Challenger NCC-40117-A]

Nira nodded at Zhuk. Of course, remembering that instant flare she felt when he saw the machine was still going, and she could relate.

"I know how you feel, Zhuk," she said with comfort. "You can imagine how I felt when I saw our salvage failed to stop it," she added bitterly. "Now, I better see what's happened while we were away."

It did provide something for Nira to do, despite feeling hungry after a day and a half on nothing but preserved oosol sweet. She caught up on the reports of what happened. She read through the reports about the Guppy and scowled.

"That explains why we didn't have personnel immediately to help," she said. "And why our transporters were momentarily strained. Challenger briefly accommodated...almost nine thousand refugees? And from the summed incident, I can see where the Guppy's captain had to be restrained. If I didn't know better, I'd say somebody was in for a high body count. And if I was to feel comfortable accomodating all those people, I'd rather this ship be a Galaxy or a Ross class."
Nira was still going over the reports regarding the Guppy, catching up on recent on-board events, when Captain Galloway returned.

"Ah, Captain," she said. "We've tried to get in touch with the Free State ships, but there's no reply. And what did Captain O'Flaherty offer?"

[Bridge - USS Challenger]

Ian returned to his place in the command chair and sighed as he answered Nira.

"The answer ta that is now in Cargo Bay Three. It seems that wanker O'Flaherty found the Machine in a dormant state. Of course he wanted salvage rights, which he was technically due, so he and his crew decided ta go muckin' about with a smaller object near the main Machine.

"They got it aboard their ship, but nae before it damaged their engines and sent a wake up call ta it's Mum. That's when he high-tailed it and we came into the story.

"In any case, we now have the smaller pod aboard and hopefully if'n we can figure that out, it will let us shut down the main Machine. At least that's the idea. In exchange, O'Flaherty wants salvage rights on the neutronium, assumin' we manage ta get control of the thing."

At that point, Ian turned to face Randall at the Science One station.

"Evan, this is now in your hands, take whoever you need ta crack this code. If'n you need Engineerin' support, you work that out with Dashlish. This is now your only priority. Get me some answers."

At that point, Ian spoke to the Conn station.

"Helm, intercept course with the Machine. Half impulse, we're nae in a hurry ta close that distance yet, we need ta give the boffins time for another miracle."

[Lieutenant Zhukdra'shar Mrekrerhas | Bridge | Deck One | USS Challenger NCC-40117-A | Angdarr System]

Though unexpected, Zhuk found that Nira's words did assuage his current feelings of anger and sadness at seeing that their efforts had been for naught. Some individuals could be put off by the way that Betazoids like Nira could pick up on their feelings. Even Zhuk sometimes experienced some discomfort when his Commander revealed her empath abilities, in situations similar to this one. But his experience with the Remans and their telepathic abilities meant he was more welcoming to accepting such insights about his emotions.

He could understand her frustration too at this moment. The Caitian Lieutenant offered a nod at her,

Indeed. 'Tis but a vicissitude that the universe has ordained us to savour after so many triumphs...

The appearance of the Captain on the Bridge once again saw his ears prop up alert back on his head, interrupting his previous thoughts. He made sure to thank Nira internally nonetheless, doing his best to channel his appreciation. It lasted little, however, as the Captain spoke of the deal he had just made. Irritation quickly returned to his body, his tail rising in agitation.

Of course, O'Flaherty was a filthy gobslotch. And due to that, now a M-class planet and most likely billions of people would see their lives extinguished as a result. He wanted punishment to come to him, but for now, he supposed that it would be best to monitor those Romulan vessels. The eggheads would do their work, and maybe the crew of the Challenger would be the heroes of the day once more.

[Bridge - USS Challenger]

Ian was going through his limited options, but was aware that the Romulan ships were following them some half a million kilometers behind.

"Bloody nice of them ta nae of cloaked, pillocks."

He thought when his head snapped towards Tactical as Lieutenant Davenport gasped and reported.

"Sir, weapons fire in Sickbay! I can't reach anyone on Deck 7, there's some sort of communications lock down in place!"

Ian's jaw dropped open for a second in shock before he growled.

"Where's MacKenzie?"

"He shows as being in Sickbay."

"That puts Mrekrerhas in charge, have him send two squads ta sickbay. Intruder alert. Lock down Deck 7. Standby anesthezine. I don't care if'n you have ta burn holes through the decks punchin' a signal through, but I want ta talk ta Sickbay!"

As Ian waited for his orders to be followed, he thought.

"Can any bloody thing else go wrong today?"

|Ensign Lilly Hansen | Sec/Tac Officer | USS Challenger |

As Soon as Lilly heard the Intruder alert, She gave her Caister to the Other Engineers and took off Undressing out of her Suit. She stopped by the  Armory and suited up in a vest and grabbed a rifle. She also grabbed one more for the Other Sec/Tac officer who was also getting ready. As she arrived to the Meeting Point where the teams were meeting up She gave the Lead Officer a idea. "I know we got two teams gathering here, Is there a Jeffertubes access point that lets in to the Med Bay, If So We could send one team that way, and send the other through the main doors, Two Entry points would Stress them out and confuse them as well"

[Lieutenant Zhukdra'shar Mrekrerhas | Cargo Bay I | Deck Six | USS Challenger NCC-40117-A | Angdarr System]

That seemingly would not last. The exhausted Zhuk responded immediately to the threat to Sickbay with a, "At once sir!" Before heading out towards the turbolift. He made sure to inform Security of their new assignment. Adrenaline was flowing within his body, and he was even angrier now. The boldness of attacking the bowels of the USS Challenger, and what was more, Sickbay made him seethe.

"I want two Security teams assembled at Cargo Bay I. Make haste,"

Zhuk was one of the first to arrive at the assigned destination, as Blackfeather and Koloz were already there. A polite nod of acknowledgement was offered, as the rest of the officers poured in. Even a rather surprised Crewman Zala came with phaser neatly placed on her hip to form up. He took note of a new Ensign, a human female with blonde hair just slightly taller than him, who he did not recognize right away.

Once the teams were prepared, Zhuk proceeded to walk with his hands on his back, to inform them of the situation at hand. His fur was messy and unkempt, looking even a little greasy at this point. His uniform was no better, a mess of cuts and burns, and it severely needed a washing machine. But time was of the essence now, and while he hated looking like this, as the Caitian was always presentable, he was required to act.

"Greetings, Ladies and Gentlemen. As thee may or may not know, Deck Seven has been left completely dark. It seems as if our ship has become host to a throng of interlopers. Otherwise, our information is limited. We do not know where exactly are they located, nor their intent thus far. Or their size. However, I want them detained and secured within the Bridge... in the... next hour...."

His head began to spin for a moment, forcing him to stop to shake the sensation off. He was glad that someone had taken the initiative, that same blonde girl from before. And her plan was quite sound to boot.

"Hm. Why, I do believe that is a superb idea. According to the ship schematics I have explored thus far, there should be an access point... I believe... by the Sickbay's computer. It shalt be a tight crawl, but I am certain it is doable."

He made a pause, and nodded,

"Very well, we shalt proceed in such a manner with this in mind. Senior Chief Petty Officer Blackfeather, Petty Officer First Class Koroz, I shalt request that you two lead what shalt be Team Alpha. You shalt explore the corridors for hostiles, but only engage if necessary. Assemble at the Main Entrance of Sickbay, but do not enter until we do. Team Beta shalt be lead by me, employing the Jefferies Tubes to get into position by Sickbay, before stopping the miscreants. I hope that our unlikely entry will divert their fire so that you may proceed with less resistance, thus minimizing potential wounds and injuries if we were to seize them off-guard. Questions?"

Once the queries were satisfied, Zhuk moved towards the nearest entry point, trusting Koloz' and Blackfeathers' team to do the same. He proceeded to inform the Captain by pressing on his comm badge,

"Captain, the two teams shalt be descending to Deck Seven shortly. Do you possess any updates we should know about?"

[Abas Th'vyrrol]

[Lt. Commander Kyan Mackenzie | Sickbay, USS Challenger]
He was lost in these thoughts when the Aenar medic came over and began scanning the kindergarten teacher.

Kyan blinked out of his reverie and finally noticed Abas. "œHuh?" he asked before his brain had finished processing the question. Then when it finally caught up.."Oh. Right." He coughed. A power conduit blew in the classroom. Sure and I think she was next to it." He indicated his knife and the makeshift tourniquet. "œShe was bleeding a lot so I did the tourniquet." Looking around as he spoke, Kyan continued to take in the scene around him. His senses were still being assailed by the cacophony of sounds, sights, and smells that usually accompanied a mass casualty event. His ears rang with the sounds of Groaning casualties, raised voices demanding equipment or someone to grab something, the occasional outburst from a patient, and equipment being shuffled from here to there. His nose was filled with a lingering scent of acrid smoke, now mingling with the iron smell of blood and the odor of a mass of unwashed people all crammed into a small space.

His lungs still burned a little from the smoke, although he hadn't been there long enough to take in too much of it. His eyes watered too, but dragging his shirtsleeve across his face didn't help, and actually made things worse. "œI dinnae think any of the kids got hurt much." He added absently.

"œThank you." The girl answered, covering her mouth before coughing into her sleeve. Then she took the offered treat as she let herself be looked over. "œThat's my mommy over there." She whispered, looking over to where Abas was scanning the injured school teacher. "œShe got hurt and that boy helped her. And then"¦.." She paused to cough before continuing, "œAnd then Mo and Zinn came back and we went out of the room." She looked at the isol twist briefly but then her eyes went back to her injured mother before meeting Taja's. "œIs my mom gonna be ok?" she asked in a wavering voice.

[Sickbay]

Abas hadn't even waited for the officer to finish processing what was being said before he'd already moved into action. However, when the man spoke, he made sure to pay direct attention to the information. The story being told lined up with the available facts, down to the injuries and the damage it had wrought on the woman. "Help me move her," he stated as he hauled the teacher to a bio-bed. It wasn't even a request or a question. It was for all intents and purposes a directive. Trauma and shock made people act in different ways, but often times giving a direct, meaningful, physical task could at least be done even while the brain was processing everything else around.

He heard the man cough next to him and could tell plainly from the rasping of his lungs and slightly labored breathing the man had gotten at the very least secondhand smoke inhalation injuries. "Tourniquet. Good move. We'll take it from here - get yourself checked out, Sir," he said, continuing his work. The woman had lost quite a bit of blood, but it should be recoverable. The Challenger's stocks of ready blood, however, was fast becoming depleted. Perhaps he'd discuss the possibility of setting up a donation drive later, provided the chaos ever decided to slow down.

The woman's status was critical. The trauma she'd suffered was severe, and even with the stocked blood now flowing into her body and the vascular regenerator, it was a 50/50 gamble if she'd have to be put into a medical coma. At least her heart hadn't given out yet - the last thing Abas wanted her children to see was emergency CPR or the woman being pumped full of drugs. With the assistance of some of the other medical staff, things appeared to be going better. She'd have a long recovery, but as the minutes passed, so did her prognosis.

Unfortunately, however, because this was the Challenger, things suddenly got worse. It had been nearly an hour of working on the woman before the karmic gods decided they hadn't suffered enough for one day.

In the Main Sickbay

Sickbay continued to be a raucous hub of activity. With all the activity going on, barely anyone noticed the Orion woman and her dapper Ferengi companion walk through the doors. When the Miradorn twins and a trio of Nausicaans entered behind them with disruptor rifles at the ready, they didn't go un-noticed.

"œWhat the hell's going on!?" Chloe Davies demanded as she stalked toward the group. This is a sickbay not a damned"¦."

A disruptor whined and Davies dropped unmoving to the deck. The Nausicaan who'd fired regarded the unconscious woman with a grunt. If anyone in the room hadn't noticed the new arrivals before, they certainly did now.

"œLadies and Gentlemen." The Orion woman spoke up, "œMy name is Larosh and you are all my hostages.  If you do as you're told, you will not be harmed." She gave a thin smile. "œNow then"¦" she continued, looking around the room. "œWho is in charge here?"

[Sickbay]

Weapons fire. There was only one thing in the universe that sounded like the whine of a disruptor going off - and that would be a disruptor going off. Abas's antennae shot skyward, snapping to attention only a half moment before the beam found its mark - and impacted Nurse Davies square in the body, dropping her to the floor. Abas couldn't tell her condition - if the weapon had been sent to stun or kill. However, instinctually, Abas dropped to a low crouch, covering himself behind the bio-bed. Adrenaline once again coursed through his system - a medical marvel he had any left - as a hush fell over the newly-acquired hostages.

Some days, Abas wished he had never left the Imperial Guard. This sort of thing never happened there. He didn't really know what to do at this point other than await rescue or await an opportunity. He didn't want to take a life. He didn't want to see anyone die, not even the hostage takers, whoever they were. Perhaps there was still a way to save this situation. But importantly... he needed to keep himself, his patients, and his co-workers alive. He didn't even have a Ushaan-tor with him to use... not that he would have, even if he had one. Pacifism, while not passivity, was sacrosanct to him. He couldn't betray his principles.

No. He'd have to bide his time. He collected his thoughts for a moment and reached out with his mind. Perhaps someone out there could hear him? He couldn't risk the comms right now, but maybe, just maybe...

[ShranLahr ch'Verret]

CPO ShranLahr ch'Verret
[USS Challenger-A - Deck 3] [1325 hours]

| Ensign Lilly Hansen | Temporary Sec/Tac Officer | USS Challenger | Deck 2 - Observation Lounge >>> Jefferies >>> Deck 3 |

Lilly had heard the Medical Call and wanted to rush down to Medical But fought the urge.  She moved to follow the Two Engineers. "I am Coming To Help". She didn't wait for their response, She grabbed the Spare Kit and got suited up. Even though she was not an Engineer, But she knew the basics. She took a deep breath and moved to Follow The team now en-route to Deck 3. Once Arrived and the 3 used the 4 they each grabbed and began to fight the flames. She had been trained this way before she turned 18, Thanks to her father. Damn Plasma Fires, Should be a type of foam that covers it when it catches on fire. She kept a smooth and constant spray at the base of the fire. She knew others probably only had holodeck training, but she had Real Life training, Thanks to her Grandmothers house catching on fire in the living.

With Hansen's help, they made short work of the plasma fire - putting it out with a chemical retardant   Then real work began.  Jones and Lahr began sorting through the remains of the EPS relay that had originally overloaded.

[Lt. Commander Kyan Mackenzie | Sickbay, USS Challenger]

1335 hours

"œAnd thank God for Jalen Carter!" she muttered as a little human boy started wailing on the other side of the room where most of the children still sat in a gaggle around Kyan and their injured teacher. Then she tapped her com badge. Davies to Carter, We've just gotten a load of kindergardeners in here from the classroom up on deck three. We're gonna need you in main sickbay stat.

Davies winced as another shrill voice formed a duet with the crying boy. "œHurry it up Carter!" she said to herself as she looked for something"¦anything to do that didn't include wading into the group of soot stained ankle biters. She found her chance when she heard Doctor Fellows curse over by a biobed.

"œWhat the problem Doctor?" Davies asked as she walked over.

Fellows indicated the bed and its blinking display with a scowl. "œThis thing's on the fritz again. Get engineering to send us someone to see if they can get it working for a while, at least until we're not using every last bed in here."

Chloe nodded, tapping her com badge again.

[USS Challenger - Deck 3] [1345 hours]

Jones and he had just begun to make some headway on clearing out the burnt electro-plasma cord, when Jones comm badge and data PADD pinged.  She paused to glance at the message from the Chief and groaned.  She looked to Lahr weighing her options.

"Lahr, they need someone down in Sickbay to work on that glitchy biobed again. Grab your tools and see if you can get it working properly." Kasey ordered, not at all happy that she had to deal with this mess alone.  Ah but she did have that woman Hansen lingering about, maybe she knew one end of a spanner from the other.

Lahr sighed and shook his head as he got tagged for another task.  "Yes, ma'am." he acknowledged but then added in his own thoughts on the task.  "I'm telling you it again; its not an electrical or mechanical issue.  We've repaired that same biobed like three separate times, right?  I swear, its haunted."

But haunted or not, the medical staff needed it working, so Lahr gathered up his tools and tucked them into his belt and toolkit then set off with a parting wave to Hansen and Jones.

[USS Challenger - Sickbay] [1340 hours]
When he arrived, Sickbay was chaotic with crying children.  Chloe, an ex-girlfriend from years back, was in a foul mood.  She took one look at him and he could tell she regretted making the call to Engineering.  He saw her sigh, then rub at her temples a moment before pointing towards the malfunctioning bio-bed.   She spoke not a word to him, which was fine by Lahr.

The Andorian headed over towards the unit and began running the diagnostic.  If history repeated itself with this unit, he'd be needing to pull it completely apart.  Not something that was easily or quickly done. - he'd be working at this thing for hours.

Roozh! "It'd been quicker and more effective to just scrap this junk pile and replicate a whole new biobed." Lahr groused as he closed off the area around where he would be working with curtains and low level force field.  He hoped that would be enough to dissuade children from messing with his tools and parts while he was working on repairing the unit.   He then popped in his earbud - a gift from Commander Said herself back when he got his last promotion - and then set to work at tearing apart the 'haunted' biobed.
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In the Main Sickbay 1505 hours

Sickbay continued to be a raucous hub of activity. With all the activity going on, barely anyone noticed the Orion woman and her dapper Ferengi companion walk through the doors. When the Miradorn twins and a trio of Nausicaans entered behind them with disruptor rifles at the ready, they didn't go un-noticed.

"œWhat the hell's going on!?" Chloe Davies demanded as she stalked toward the group. This is a sickbay not a damned"¦."

A disruptor whined and Davies dropped unmoving to the deck. The Nausicaan who'd fired regarded the unconscious woman with a grunt. If anyone in the room hadn't noticed the new arrivals before, they certainly did now.

"œLadies and Gentlemen." The Orion woman spoke up, "œMy name is Larosh and you are all my hostages.  If you do as you're told, you will not be harmed." She gave a thin smile. "œNow then"¦" she continued, looking around the room. "œWho is in charge here?"

[Sickbay - USS Challenger]

Jess heard the sound of the disruptor and, for an instant, she was back on Melek Nor, but then she snapped into action. She tapped her combadge, but the sound it made indicated he wasn't working. She swore silently and was still trying to figure out how to let others know they needed help when a voice called out for who was in charge.

She stood and exited her office, barely choking back a gasp to see Davies crumpled on the deck before she straightened up to her full height and replied.

"I am Lieutenant Commander Jessica Fellows. Chief Medical Officer of the USS Challenger. This is my Sickbay and I will advise you now that whatever you have planned, it will fail."

[Sickbay]

Weapons fire. There was only one thing in the universe that sounded like the whine of a disruptor going off - and that would be a disruptor going off. Abas's antennae shot skyward, snapping to attention only a half moment before the beam found its mark - and impacted Nurse Davies square in the body, dropping her to the floor. Abas couldn't tell her condition - if the weapon had been sent to stun or kill. However, instinctually, Abas dropped to a low crouch, covering himself behind the bio-bed. Adrenaline once again coursed through his system - a medical marvel he had any left - as a hush fell over the newly-acquired hostages.

Some days, Abas wished he had never left the Imperial Guard. This sort of thing never happened there. He didn't really know what to do at this point other than await rescue or await an opportunity. He didn't want to take a life. He didn't want to see anyone die, not even the hostage takers, whoever they were. Perhaps there was still a way to save this situation. But importantly... he needed to keep himself, his patients, and his co-workers alive. He didn't even have a Ushaan-tor with him to use... not that he would have, even if he had one. Pacifism, while not passivity, was sacrosanct to him. He couldn't betray his principles.

No. He'd have to bide his time. He collected his thoughts for a moment and reached out with his mind. Perhaps someone out there could hear him? He couldn't risk the comms right now, but maybe, just maybe...

[USS Challenger-A - Deck 7 - Sickbay] [1505 hours]

As noise cancelling as his earbuds were there were some sounds that either industry or Nira herself had set to override this.  Weapons fire was one of them.   The disruptor whine which cut off Chloes' tirade, had Lahr's blood running cold.  He immediately switched off his music and reached for his belt only to realize he didn't have a phaser.    He wasn't Security anymore he was damn Engineer.  Roozh!

Quietly, Lahr rose from his crouch beside the disassembled biobed and moved through the low-level forcefield - causing a static sensation throughout his body as he cautiously moved towards the curtains to  peek through.  While he did, he attempted to tap his commbadge to open a channel to Security, but his badge couldn't connect to any channel.   Comms were down.  Of course they were, this Larosh seemed to be a professional hijacker.  This was not good.

Peeking, Lahr could see seven unfamiliar faces who had the attention of the rest of the Sickbay.  The female was an Orion - that must be Larosh.  At her side was a weasely-looking Ferengi.  Two Miradorn that Lahr couldn't tell apart - Clones maybe? - and at least three Naussicaans.   They all looked rather sketchy to him - but his impression could be influenced by the situation heavily. Maybe they might be nice-people if they weren't holding his crewmates hostage for nefarious reasons.

Lahr held back a sigh of frustration as he tried to figure out what to do and how best to resolve this situation.  If this Larosh was as professional as she appeared, his seclusion behind this curtain wasn't going to last long,  Already he could see one of the Naussicaan's headed his way, disruptor in hand pointed towards the curtains behind which Lahr stood.

The fact that this Larosh hadn't known who was in charge, gave Lahr a bit of hope that these hostage-takers hadn't done a lot of in-depth study of the ship and crew.  That could be an advantage later on.  For now, Lahr knew it was best to play it safe for all involved.

He cleared his throat audibly and called out. "Don't shoot.  I'm coming out." He slowly pushed back the curtain to reveal the empty space where the disassembled biobed lay.   He took a cautious step out from the curtain, raising his hands in apparent surrender.  With any luck no one but he would know that the transparent forcefield lay just behind him.  It would be his ace in the hole; he hoped.

His eyes fell on the crumpled form of Chloe and he had to tamp down on his sudden urge to charge at these people who would hurt those he cared about.   "Look you don't need to hurt anyone else; and to be honest it might be a helpful gesture in negotiations with the Captain if you allowed one of the medics to treat Nurse Davies.  Just sayin'."  Lahr gave a shrug hands still held up to show he had no weapon and wasn't a threat.

[Nira Said]

[Bridge --> Turbolift - USS Challenger]

Randall turned and gestured for Neva to follow as he headed for the turbolift.

"Good to meet you Ensign. Evan Randall, Chief Science. I hope you are good at miracles, because we've got less than three hours to figure out a completely alien technology and turn it to our advantage."

As they entered the turbolift, Randall went quiet, clearly lost in thought as the headed for the cargo bay.

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

[Sickbay - USS Challenger]

Jess heard the sound of the disruptor and, for an instant, she was back on Melek Nor, but then she snapped into action. She tapped her combadge, but the sound it made indicated he wasn't working. She swore silently and was still trying to figure out how to let others know they needed help when a voice called out for who was in charge.

She stood and exited her office, barely choking back a gasp to see Davies crumpled on the deck before she straightened up to her full height and replied.

"I am Lieutenant Commander Jessica Fellows. Chief Medical Officer of the USS Challenger. This is my Sickbay and I will advise you now that whatever you have planned, it will fail."

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

[Bridge - USS Challenger]

Ian was going through his limited options, but was aware that the Romulan ships were following them some half a million kilometers behind.

"Bloody nice of them ta nae of cloaked, pillocks."

He thought when his head snapped towards Tactical as Lieutenant Davenport gasped and reported.

"Sir, weapons fire in Sickbay! I can't reach anyone on Deck 7, there's some sort of communications lock down in place!"

Ian's jaw dropped open for a second in shock before he growled.

"Where's MacKenzie?"

"He shows as being in Sickbay."

"That puts Mrekrerhas in charge, have him send two squads ta sickbay. Intruder alert. Lock down Deck 7. Standby anesthezine. I don't care if'n you have ta burn holes through the decks punchin' a signal through, but I want ta talk ta Sickbay!"

As Ian waited for his orders to be followed, he thought.

"Can any bloody thing else go wrong today?"

[Commander Nira Said | Bridge | Deck One | USS Challenger NCC-40117-A]

All Nira could do was sit watch as things gradually go to hell. She had no options she could recommend. She was more helpless than ever. The only option she could think of was a no-brainer; she had assumed that it would be best to return to the Warbird Necropolis and look for one of the ships that had been downed in the last two days, rather than in the past two centuries, for a fresher warp system, even if it mean prying it. But no, it would take too long, and the fresh crap would've been taken already.

She was damn near close to standing and pacing, an indication of her helplessness, when the news came in about weapons fire from Sickbay. She looked at Zhuk heading down to handle it. She scowled and looked at Captain Galloway.

"Allah's sake, Captain," she growled quietly. "There's been so much that's been going so wrong today...the only way the day could get worse would be if some of the new Borg came this way."

She folded her arms and scowled at space, not seeing. Still nothing from Starfleet...by now, the whole of the Sol system could've fallen to the Borg, Nira thought helplessly, hopelessly.

[Ian Galloway]

[Lieutenant Zhukdra'shar Mrekrerhas | Cargo Bay I | Deck Six | USS Challenger NCC-40117-A | Angdarr System]

That seemingly would not last. The exhausted Zhuk responded immediately to the threat to Sickbay with a, "At once sir!" Before heading out towards the turbolift. He made sure to inform Security of their new assignment. Adrenaline was flowing within his body, and he was even angrier now. The boldness of attacking the bowels of the USS Challenger, and what was more, Sickbay made him seethe.

"I want two Security teams assembled at Cargo Bay I. Make haste,"

Zhuk was one of the first to arrive at the assigned destination, as Blackfeather and Koloz were already there. A polite nod of acknowledgement was offered, as the rest of the officers poured in. Even a rather surprised Crewman Zala came with phaser neatly placed on her hip to form up. He took note of a new Ensign, a human female with blonde hair just slightly taller than him, who he did not recognize right away.

Once the teams were prepared, Zhuk proceeded to walk with his hands on his back, to inform them of the situation at hand. His fur was messy and unkempt, looking even a little greasy at this point. His uniform was no better, a mess of cuts and burns, and it severely needed a washing machine. But time was of the essence now, and while he hated looking like this, as the Caitian was always presentable, he was required to act.

"Greetings, Ladies and Gentlemen. As thee may or may not know, Deck Seven has been left completely dark. It seems as if our ship has become host to a throng of interlopers. Otherwise, our information is limited. We do not know where exactly are they located, nor their intent thus far. Or their size. However, I want them detained and secured within the Bridge... in the... next hour...."

His head began to spin for a moment, forcing him to stop to shake the sensation off. He was glad that someone had taken the initiative, that same blonde girl from before. And her plan was quite sound to boot.

"Hm. Why, I do believe that is a superb idea. According to the ship schematics I have explored thus far, there should be an access point... I believe... by the Sickbay's computer. It shalt be a tight crawl, but I am certain it is doable."

He made a pause, and nodded,

"Very well, we shalt proceed in such a manner with this in mind. Senior Chief Petty Officer Blackfeather, Petty Officer First Class Koroz, I shalt request that you two lead what shalt be Team Alpha. You shalt explore the corridors for hostiles, but only engage if necessary. Assemble at the Main Entrance of Sickbay, but do not enter until we do. Team Beta shalt be lead by me, employing the Jefferies Tubes to get into position by Sickbay, before stopping the miscreants. I hope that our unlikely entry will divert their fire so that you may proceed with less resistance, thus minimizing potential wounds and injuries if we were to seize them off-guard. Questions?"

Once the queries were satisfied, Zhuk moved towards the nearest entry point, trusting Koloz' and Blackfeathers' team to do the same. He proceeded to inform the Captain by pressing on his comm badge,

"Captain, the two teams shalt be descending to Deck Seven shortly. Do you possess any updates we should know about?"

[Bridge - USS Challenger]

Ian all but pounced to reply to Zhuk, but it wasn't as if it mattered, he didn't have any information to give as he replied.

"Bridge ta Mrekrerhas. No updates on the hostages or the hostage takers. We have anesthizine on standby and have good transporter locks on the Starfleet personnel. We can beam them out rapidly if'n you need so. You tell me what you need Lieutenant and it's yours."

Turning to face Nira, Ian added.

"The sickbay situation is a complication ta be sure, but nae so big a one as ta keep us from our goal of stoppin' that monumental Beastie. It's settin' me on fire that our people are in trouble as I'll bet real latinum, the hijackers are those scavenger wankers we promised ta help. They hurt anyone and you may just find yourself in command sooner than you predicted because the bloody regulations will go out the airlock if'n they do. For now, we focus on our mission and let security be the professionals they are, they will solve this."