The Engineering Explosion
Posted on Wed Feb 20th, 2019 @ 7:26am by Lieutenant JG Shurlok & Captain Luka Mahone
1,154 words; about a 6 minute read
Mission:
Groundwork
Location: USS Io, Main Engineering
Timeline: MD 30 - 1325 Hrs
“Sir.” In the depths of Main Engineering came the voice of the young Crewman Grish, as he motioned to Shurlok to come over. Set in front of him was a strange, slick metallic object stuck to one of the relays. “I don't remember this sensor being added.”
“Curious.” Shurlok said, crossing the room to view the device. “Have you checked with Operations that this isn’t something they may have left behind? There were concerns about power flow after the repairs.” Shurlok said, stopping halfway between them and continuing to talk an outside volume as he waited for an approaching Trill engineer to cross his path.
The Bolian crewman gave a frown. "I can do that real quick, Sir. Checked the device too, doesn't have a serial number or any sort of designation on it." Turning, the crewman tapped on his badge to contact Operations.
"Portis, could you please save what I was working on at console six? Thank you." Shurlok said pre-emptively as the Trill passed, patting him firmly on the back, as much to direct him physically as engage his attention and confidence. He crossed the remaining space between where he was and the Bolian, trying to get a look at any data he'd gathered so far.
"Uh." Turning back to the Chief Engineer, Crewman Grish gave a puzzled look. "Ops is about as confused as we are on it."
"Curiouser still." Shurlok said, removing his personal tricorder from his belt, unfolding it's classic 23rd century access screen. "If you could scan below delta band I will scan above." Shurlok said, not eager to touch the mysterious device, given his experience with unexpected features on private freighters.
Doing as he was told, the crewman knelt down with his tricorder, giving a frown as the device performed its scan. "Sir, if we didn't put it there, and Ops didn't put it there, who would have?"
"If our scans are unsuccessful we will need a science team down here with more precise instruments. Inform security, there may be no need to panic everyone with a red alert." Shurlok said, trying to avoid the question posed, for which he had no answer.
As they continued to work, the yellow alert clicked on in Main Engineering. Crewman Grish frowned at the results of his scan. "Sir, the tricorder is picking up a pocket of charged deuterium particles within the device, and a mechanism set to trigger them. I'm not picking up what the trigger is supposed to be in the device's coding, but-" He stopped as a tiny light flickered green and yellow, slowly at first.
Shurlok looked at it for a moment without expression, then seemed to engage, gesturing wildly about the room as he gave instructions. "I want as many forcefields as you can physically erect between whatever that is and the warp core. Get structural integrity fields above and below as high as we can get them without risking emitter burnout." Shurlok said, activating the core's purpose-built field from his console.
"Evacuate Main Engineering. Liaise with operations as you go and make sure we will not be browned out by other functions. And somebody notify the Captain we have an unidentified explosive device in main engineering." Shurlok said, remembering the last and arguably most important instruction halfway into moving away from the specialist to the next task of grabbing a portable shield generator to set where it was needed.
“Of course, Sir,” came the reply from the Bolian, who immediately turned to the communications console on the wall, relaying the message.
As the explosion from above rattled through the department, consoles began pulsating red and blue alert messages coming from all over the ship. “Sir!” called out Crewman Grish, who had braced himself against one of the long tables of consoles, “Systems report an explosion on Deck 5 and a major warp coil failure in the port nacelle.”
“This does not make sense.” Shurlok said, setting aside the generator he was carrying as they moved to the exit, as though oblivious to the sudden developments around him. “Those areas and systems have no connection. It is not -” He was interrupted yet again as an explosion from nearby forced a wave of concussion through the engineering entrance, knocking them both against the hallway wall, moments before the emergency bulkhead sealed behind them.
Grish staggered upright, using the bulkhead wall to support himself, gaze on where the entrance once stood. “Sir, I'm beginning to think sense isn't something we should concern ourselves with.”
As the crewman took in a breath, ready to go on, the voice of Captain Matthews blared overhead. “All personnel, abandon ship. I repeat, all personnel abandon ship.”
Shurlok watched for a moment longer than was wise as he lay on the ground, knowing the lives extinguished, the talent and work and dreams. "Quickly, Grish. The shuttlebay." Shurlok calculated as he got to his feet in a surprisingly swift motion, the nearest escape pod being slightly further away than the nearest shuttle by his reckoning. He waited to see if Grish needed help, before the two moved as fast as they could.
Despite his state, Grish was surprisingly fast on his feet, keeping up with Shurlok as they made their way to the shuttlebay. As they moved, the young Bolian caught sight of others fleeing to either the escape pod or with a similar idea, moving down to the bay. He kept silent, until they arrived at their destination.
"Sir, it looks like there's one shuttle untouched." Grish pointed out, gesturing to the one runabout that did not have other members of the crew flooding into it.
"Are your flight credentials up to date, Crewman?" Shurlok asked as he ushered the man to keep moving, crossing the bay as fast as was appropriate under the circumstances.
As the pair reached the shuttle, Grish began to type in the code to open the vehicle up. "I have, Sir, and we shouldn't have any issue getting out of this."
"That is agreeable." Shurlok said as they climbed inside. "My flying skills are improvisational, at best." He said, though he was more than qualified to work any other aspect of the shuttle, and began the startup procedure from a secondary terminal, bypassing the safety checks with his Chief Engineer's clearance. "We are green for take-off." He instructed a moment later, bringing up all the systems that would need monitoring in lieu of pre-flight checks.
"Between the two of us, Sir, I think we'd make it work one way or the other." Grish pointed out, "Life-threatening situations tend to do that." As he spoke, he climbed into the pilot's seat, already ready to get them hustling out the large cargo bay doors. "But just in case... here goes nothing?"
"I have every confidence in your abilities, Crewman." Shurlok said, hoping the act of activating his safety restraint wasn't taken as a criticism.
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