NRPG: mumblings..... With just this.... mumble mumble like one of your... mumble mumble *snoring* Today's Compile Index is brought to you Ms. Take: Day 12 (USS Boudicca - Sickbay - Nurse Carl Masterson - 1615) (USS Boudicca - Deck 7, outside Sickbay - OPS Lt (jg) Donald Johnson - 16.15) (USS Boudicca - Deck 7, Sickbay - MO Ens(Jg) Dr. Jahlen - 1616) (USS Boudicca - Outside Sickbay - Ensign Lorimar - 1616) (USS Boudicca - Sickbay - ACMO Gates - 1617) (USS Boudicca - Deck 7, Sickbay - MO Ens(Jg) Dr. Jahlen - 1621) (USS Boudicca - Sickbay - Nurse Carl Masterson - 1624) (USS Boudicca - Deck 7, outside Sickbay - OPS Lt (sg) Donald Johnson - 16.25) (USS Boudicca - Sickbay/Aquarium - Ensign Lorimar - 1625) (USS Boudicca - Deck 3 - aFO Lt. Cmdr. Aleksander Stolev - Day 12 - 1813) RPG: >>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>> Mission: The Fires of Heaven, Day 12 Stardate: 2407.07.09 <<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<< (USS Boudicca - Sickbay - Nurse Carl Masterson - 1615) The water was now nearly at Carl's waist and he was now quite wet. The ship shuddered and someone had been inundated with water causing her to scream. Fortunately, Carl was still maintaining his physical regime from his time as a security officer and he was able to make his way quickly to her side lifting her straight out of the water. Luckily, there were few patients in sickbay and the water was just lapping at their bases. So he deposited her onto a vacant bed. He saw the doctors and other nurses standing around, who were for the most part shorter than he was. Some of them he noticed were starting to shiver. Being a bit thick skinned, he had not noticed himself. In short order, he started to make his way around the room to the shortest folks and started to lift them up onto the empty beds. Those who were stronger and taller were already making their ways to vacant beds or to beds with patients on them to assist them. The water was rising faster and he wasn't sure whether or not he'd be above it for too much longer. He noticed that Doctors Gates and Jahlen were unmoving near the door, both being a bit short of stature. Eventually, he got to the door, as the water was keeping a lot of folks from moving overly much. "Can I give you ladies a lift?" he said with a big grin, trying to be as reassuring as he could. (Reply Gates, Jahlen) Without really waiting for an answer, he bent down under the water and hoisted Dr. Jahlen onto his shoulder, so that she was seated. He then made his way to Dr. Gates, who he proceeded to lift into his arms while maintaining his balance with Dr. Jahlen, and turn around to look for an available bed. So now being so encumbered, Carl could not decide what to do. It had seemed pretty simple, up until this point. But now, he could not figure out what to do. So without plan, he decided to just stand. The water continued to rise. (Reply Gates, Jahlen, Any) (posted by Kaweo Kanoho) (USS Boudicca - Deck 7, outside Sickbay - OPS Lt (jg) Donald Johnson - 16.15) Donald stood outside the Sickbay, his ear pressed to the door. "Um, some help right about now would be good. Whatever you did to the water? Its not working!" a new voice said more calmly. ~Oops.~ thought Donald, as he looked down at his padd trying to figure out what happened. "Where is *all* this water coming from? HELLO OUT THERE, YOU'D BETTER HURRY, THE WATER IS RISING FAST!!!" he heard the first voice shout. "We're working on it! Hold on!" he replied trying to sound confident, as his padd informed him that the water was now filling sickbay like there was no tomorrow. He was about to tap his commbadge when he saw Bob running toward's him. "The engineering team is here!" Donald shouted, when he noticed that Bob was alone. "Sir, ah know ye were expecting a repair team, but they were diverted tae fight a fire. Ah'm all that's available at the moment. What's with the water?" asked the young engineer. Donald nodded in understanding, while inwardly he was frustrated at how many teams were in use and at himself and his own department for not being able to handle what should have never happened. Smothering a desire to strangle something he decided to inform Bob of their current predicament. "The environmental controls have gone haywire, Bob. Somehow they think sickbay is an aquatic environment and is flooding it to create that environment. They've been unresponsive to commands from here and the bridge. I think the controls are underwater now and I haven't been able to open the door myself. With all the power surges and issues we have I don't know how safe it would be to transport them out of there. We need to get this door open!" Donald said as quickly, concisely, and as urgently as he could. (Reply Lorimar, Any) (posted by Kaweo Kanoho) (USS Boudicca - Deck 7, Sickbay - MO Ens(Jg) Dr. Jahlen - 1616) "Where is *all* this water coming from? HELLO OUT THERE, YOU'D BETTER HURRY, THE WATER IS RISING FAST!!!" Jahlen informed the person outside (who was doing absolutely zip as far as she was concerned) loudly. "We're working on it! Hold on!" he replied. Jahlen sighed heavily in exasperation and looked at Dr. Gates, and then it hit her like a mallet between the eyes that she couldn't swim. "Oh crap!" ~I'd better learn, and fast!~ "I've heard that drowning isn't such a bad way to die." She smiled wanly at Dr. Gates, feeling decidedly colder and bluer than two seconds ago. (reply Gates) The water was now up past her waist and rising fast. "Amendment! Make that, we'll be swimming or drowning in five minutes at this rate!" Jahlen stated acerbically just as a rather large male nurse she recognised as Nurse Carl Masterson, waded towards them making large waves that slapped icily against Jahlen's ribs and breasts causing her to catch her breath and shiver more. "Can I give you ladies a lift?" he said with a big grin. Jahlen stared coldly at him. ~Either he's trying to be reassuring, or he's a complete idiot who is finding this funny!~ (Reply Gates) She was about to open her purple lips to tell him to find someone else to help, when he suddenly bent down under the water and hoisted her up to sit on his shoulder. For several seconds, Jahlen was flabbergasted and completely speechless. ~What the ....!~ Dr. Jahlen's mind processed what had just occurred as Nurse Masterson lifted Dr. Gates up into his arms causing Jahlen to grab his head to keep her balance, the last thing she wanted was to fall headfirst into the icy depths. Although initially she would have protested she now realized that she was a few feet above the water level *not* half submerged, and that if the water continued to rise at the rate it was, she would not drown quite as quickly as she had first estimated, so this was in fact... ~A good thing! Yes! I can *live* with this. At least for longer than if I was left in the water.~ She almost giggled, there was some humor to be found in this ridiculous situation, here she was perched like a pirate's parrot on this large male's shoulder. Nurse Masterson then just stood there as the water continued to rise, and finally the incongruity of it all broke Jahlen's resolve and she started to giggle fitfully. (Reply Gates, Masterson, Any) (posted by Sal) (USS Boudicca - Outside Sickbay - Ensign Lorimar - 1616) "The environmental controls have gone haywire, Bob. Somehow they think sickbay is an aquatic environment and is flooding it to create that environment. They've been unresponsive to commands from here and the bridge. I think the controls are underwater now and I haven't been able to open the door myself. With all the power surges and issues we have I don't know how safe it would be to transport them out of there. We need to get this door open!" Donald said as quickly, concisely, and as urgently as he could. ~Aquatic environment? That was never designed into the specifications. We have a handful of quarters designed for conversion to class K... but Sickbay??~ "Right Lieutenant... ah dinnae ken the cause, but it sounds as though they are flooding fast in there. Let's go after this two ways, ah'm nae sure which will be faster, but it will take two of us, if ye are willin' tae help me?" (Reply Johnson) "The override controls for the doors are *inside* sickbay... the designers wanted the medical spaces on the 'secure from boarders' list. There is Jeffries tube access nearby, fortunately... and one of them runs directly above sickbay. There is an access panel in the overhead of the CMO's office, and the local environment control is just outside the office. Ah'll go at it that way... in the meantime, have you ever used a plasma cutter? That'll be the fastest way... just cut a hole in the door, if you agree?" (Reply Johnson) After handing the compact plasma beam cutter to the OPS officer, Lorimar sprinted a few yards down the corridor to the closest Jeffries tube access. He tabbed in the override code to unlock it, and scrambled inside... Scrambling along as quickly as he could, Bob bumped his head several times; this was a downsized tube, not designed for routine access, more for emergency use. This was one such emergency. He crabbed along the horizontal section of tube until he could hear the faint but unmistakable rush of water from below. He consulted his tricorder just to verify that he was in correct position. No time to waste. He took a spanner from his toolkit and thumped the panel as loudly as he could several times. He raised his voice to a shout and directed it at the access panel. "Stand clear below you lot... ah'm openin' this access hatch!" He levered the hatch open, and it swung down and clear, allowing him a view of the well flooded CMO's office. Ordinarily he'd lever himself down and lower his body through the opening, but there was no room for that positioning in the cramped tube. He had to just jump... he tossed his toolkit down onto the Doctor's desk, then he jumped as carefully as he could to the waters below. He misjudged the difficulty of jumping into water. Badly. Lorimar was usually pretty agile, but the flooded room messed him up. The water was not deep enough for a dive, but it was deep enough to cost him his balance when he landed. He slipped and bashed his ribs against the desk as his feet went out from under him. The pain of the impact, combined with the shock of the icy water momentarily took his breath from him. He slipped fully submerged for a moment, then sputtered back to the surface and blinked the water out of his eyes. He retrieved his toolkit and entered sickbay proper. He took in the scene quickly. "Hello folks... we'll hae ye high and dry in short order." He cast a glance at Doctor Gates. "Doctor... dae yer stones still work underwater?" He winked at her then waded as fast as he could to the door controls. (Reply Gates, Any) Withdrawing a multitool from his kit, he popped open the access panel for the door controls and peered inside. He was shocked at what he saw, but given the rest of the situation, perhaps should not have been. His face showing no traces of dismay, he pounded on the door and shouted to Johnson on the other side. "Lieutenant, the override controls for the door are... oot of commission. Ye'll hae tae keep cutting, ah'll see about getting the water stopped!" (Reply Johnson, Any) Bob waded back to the CMO's office, where he located the environmental control module. Of course it was under water. Several feet under to be precise. He stopped to get his breath and rubbed his aching ribs as he did so. "Ye lot might have put out the 'Slippery When Wet' signs ye know!" he quipped to no one in particular "I'll see about gettin's this water shut off..." With that, he took a deep breath and plunged under the surface of the icy cold liquid.... (Reply Any) (Posted by Russ) (USS Boudicca - Sickbay - ACMO Gates - 1617) "Um, some help right about now would be good. Whatever you did to the water? Its not working!" Georgia yelled at the door.. "That's highly understated, Doctor!" Jahlen commented, beginning to shiver violently. Whether it was the sight of Jahlen shivering, or the cold finally getting to her, Georgia found herself trying not to shake. "Where is *all* this water coming from? HELLO OUT THERE, YOU'D BETTER HURRY, THE WATER IS RISING FAST!!!" Jahlen all but yelled through the door. Georgia could understand her frustration. It was hard not to feel vulnerable when there was seemingly nothing being done, and the water was getting deeper by the second. She was about to suggest to the Doctor that they move themselves to higher ground, when there was a response from the other side of the door. "We're working on it! Hold on! The engineering team is here!" ~lets hope they have a miracle up their sleeves~ "Oh crap! I've heard that drowning isn't such a bad way to die." Jahlen smiled wanly at Georgia with blue lips that were turning purple, a pretty shade that went well with her slowly bluing skin. "Hypothermia isn't so bad either." ~so I'm not the only one thinking along those lines~ "We're not going to drown or die of hypothermia." Georgia told her in what she hoped was a confident sounding voice. "Now that we actually have someone working on the problem, I'm sure it'll be fixed in no time." ~hopefully before the water reaches our necks!~ "Amendment! Make that, we'll be swimming or drowning in five minutes at this rate!" Jahlen stated acerbically. Georgia was about to reply, when a small wave crashed against them. She glanced around, startled, to find Nurse Masterson approaching them. One of the tallest, if not *the* tallest members of the crew, he was a sight to behold moving through the water with ease. "Can I give you ladies a lift?" he said with a big grin. ~a lift where?~ He bent down suddenly in front of them and within seconds had hoisted Jahlen up onto one shoulder. Georgia's mouth dropped open in surprise and she was about to start backing away, a protest already on her lips when she found herself swept up into his arms. The fact that they were now clear of the water did nothing to appease her. She was *not* happy being lifted up by this man, however strong he might be, and she wanted down *now*. ~before he drops me! oh why did I have to eat so much today~ Her natural instinct would have been to struggle, but she knew if she did, not only might he drop her and cause her further embarrassment, but he would likely drop Jahlen too. Georgia didn't want to be held responsible for that, so she tried to stay as still as she could, feeling increasingly uncomfortable and embarrassed. ~how long does he think he can hold us? or rather hold me~ From above her, on Masterson's shoulders Jahlen began to giggle fitfully. ~I wonder if its shock, nerves, or if she is wondering how long he can hold us up too~ There was a sound from outside the doors which Georgia could not place, although she hoped it meant they were actually doing something about getting rid of the water. Not long after there was a thumping sound from the ceiling above Georgias office and a voice yelling from within. "Stand clear below you lot... ah'm openin' this access hatch!" All eyes in sickbay turned in the direction of the hatch as it swung open and a toolkit was thrown down onto the desk.It was followed seconds later by a blur of gold as an engineer jumped through, and landed badly, disappearing under the water. Georgia was aware of a collective gasp as he stayed submerged for a few seconds, and she was about to twist out of Carl's arms and go to the rescue when his head popped back above the water, spluttering away the water. ~Lorimar, is there no end to these embarrassing situations~ She felt her cheeks growing red, and began to struggle in Carl's arms, hoping he would put her down before the ACEO entered the room, to try and salvage some of her dignity. ~ too late~ Lorimar retrieved his toolkit and entered sickbay proper. He took in the scene quickly. "Hello folks... we'll hae ye high and dry in short order." He looked in Georgia's direction. "Doctor... dae yer stones still work underwater?" He winked at her then waded as fast as he could to the door controls. ~they haven't done much good so far~ Georgia gave up struggling in Carl's arm when it was obvious he wasn't going to put her down just yet. ~and the damage has been done anyway~ "Mr Lorimar, um, I think I can safely say we're all very glad to see you. Do you have any idea of where its coming from, and why? I don't think I left a tap on in my quarters." She winced inwardly at her poor attempt at a joke, and fell silent. (reply any iyw) Everyone watched as Lorimar popped open the access panel for the door controls and peered inside, before pounding on the door and shouting. "Lieutenant, the override controls for the door are... oot of commission. Ye'll hae tae keep cutting, ah'll see about getting the water stopped!" ~cutting what? the door? and if the override controls are broken.......~ Georgia could feel herself getting tenser by the moment. The water was still pouring in, and the situation getting more serious by the minute. Lorimar waded back to the Georgia's office, and she noticed he rubbed his ribs and grimaced slightly. It was obvious, to her at least that he had suffered an injury of some sort, possibly on his initial landing. She made a mental note that if they got out of there in one piece, she would take a look at it. "Ye lot might have put out the 'Slippery When Wet' signs ye know! I'll see about gettin's this water shut off..." With that, he took a deep breath and plunged under the surface of the water. Georgia found herself unconsciously holding her own breath, and hoping that whatever it was Lorimar was doing, it was going to be successful. She glanced up at Jahlen, who was still shivering. "I always thought Knights rode in on their white horses. They never said they sometimes drop down out of the ceiling." (reply Any) (posted by Wendy) (USS Boudicca - Deck 7, Sickbay - MO Ens(Jg) Dr. Jahlen - 1621) Several minutes had passed and the water had continued to rise. It was now up to Masterson's waist and lapping at Jahlen's feet. Jahlen tried to estimate how long it would take before it was up around Carl's neck. She thought she would start worrying about drowning when it reached his eyes and that set her off giggling again. Suddenly there was a thumping sound from the ceiling above the CMO's office, and a voice yelling for them to stand clear which Jahlen thought was very funny as there was nobody in the office to stand clear. All eyes in sickbay turned in the direction of the hatch as it opened up and a toolkit was tossed down onto the desk with a massive THUD, followed by an engineer's body. Jahlen winced as she could see he was going to... "Oooooh!" She gasped as he landed hard against the desk and disappeared under the water. Her eyes widened in horror as the seconds ticked by and there was no sign of him, her fingers tugging at Masterson's hair in agitation a she wished she could swim so she could rescue him, and then she sighed with relief as he came up sputtering. Georgia started wriggling in Masterson's arms and Jahlen clung to his head in alarm. ~Will you stop THAT, woman!?!~ She glared at Georgia from her precarious perch on the big man's shoulder. The Engineer retrieved his toolkit and entered sickbay, looking around as he did so. "Hello folks... we'll hae ye high and dry in short order." He looked over in the CMO's direction, and Jahlen's by default. "Doctor... dae yer stones still work underwater?" "Stones? What does he mean? He's carrying stones?" Jahlen inquired in general to whoever would answer. He waded laboriously to the door controls. "Mr Lorimar, um, I think I can safely say we're all very glad to see you. Do you have any idea of where its coming from, and why? I don't think I left a tap on in my quarters." "Stones? What does he mean by stones?" Jahlen repeated her question, ~why isn't someone answering, and why would Dr. Gates leave a tap on?~ (reply any iyw) Lorimar popped open the access panel for the door controls, peered inside and then began pounding on the door and shouting to the man outside to tell him the controls were 'oot of commission' and to keep cutting. ~This does NOT look good.~ Jahlen thought, shifting again on Masterson's shoulder. Now her bottom was starting to go numb and she had the distinct and unpleasant feeling that she'd need to visit the head in the not to distant, correction the quickly approaching future. ~Blasted icy water anyway, and the sound of it pouring out of the vent *is not* helping matters!~ She was 100% certain that Carl would notice if she emptied her bladder while sitting on his shoulder, and she began giggling again as she imagined the look on his face. "Ye lot might have put out the 'Slippery When Wet' signs ye know! I'll see about gettin's this water shut off..." Lorimar declared before he plunged under the surface of the water. "Slippery when wet? What does he mean? An what about stones? He's talking nonsense." Jahlen exclaimed. Georgia glanced up at Jahlen, who was still shivering and for a hopeful instant Jahlen thought she was finally going to get answers to her valid questions and she waited with bated breath, in anticipation. "I always thought Knights rode in on their white horses. They never said they sometimes drop down out of the ceiling." Jahlen considered this with great solemnity and nodded. "Lucky for him he wasn't wearing armor or he'd never have come out of the water!" She declared. Jahlen laughed outright, lost her balance and made a grab for Masterson's ear narrowly missed it and screaming, fell backwards into the icy water with a mighty splash. For several seconds she thought she was a goner but somehow she found her footing on the deck beneath and thrust her head out of the water, coughing some out as she spluttered and gasped for breath. The water was up to her chest, but she realized she no longer had to worry about visiting the head. "I d..d..do h...hope n...n..nobody d..d...drinks th... the w..w..w..water!" She stuttered in an apologetic tone, her blue face warming slightly to a sickly pinkish blue as she shuddered uncontrollably. (reply Any) (posted by Sal) (USS Boudicca - Sickbay - Nurse Carl Masterson - 1624) Years of standing at attention on guard duty made staying still old hat for Carl. Unfortunately the addition of a woman on his shoulder and another in his arm was a new challenge. What made it worse was that the woman in his arms was squirming a little more than he was comfortable with. It was wet after all and the whole purpose was not to drop anyone into the freezing cold. The woman on his shoulder seemed to be enjoying herself, given the situation. Picking up women physically was not always the brightest thing to do, but it was the best he could think of. He relaxed a bit when the engineer came falling through the ceiling. Well, not relaxed exactly. He had actually almost dropped his charges when the engineer spoke from the shaft. But now things were looking up, the engineer was now underwater trying to find the solution to their problem. The doctors were having a discussion that Carl had promptly lost track of. His thoughts turned to his brother, hoping that Ray was doing better than he was. Suddenly the doctor on his shoulder shifted and was falling, throwing Carl off balance. "Wha...." he managed, desperately trying to stay upright, but as Jahlen fell backward, it sent him forward. As the artificial gravity roared its ugly head, Carl found himself and Dr. Gates falling into the chilly water. With nothing to grab onto with his full hands, Carl shifted so that he would hit the water first, hopefully keeping Dr. Gates from being crushed beneath him. Loud splashes erupted as he hit the water, soon followed by Dr. Gates. He quickly found his footing and was already trying to help Dr. Gates and Jahlen. "I d..d..do h...hope n...n..nobody d..d...drinks th... the w..w..w..water!" stuttered Dr. Jahlen. Carl laughed at the poor soaked creature in front of him. "Would either of you want to try this again?" he said, thinking, if this was the worst the battle would bring, then he could live with it. (Reply Gates and Jahlen) A few minutes later, Carl heard the man on the outside say to stand clear. Carl moved toward a submerged bed and tried to brace himself as best he could. The next thing, he knew, the water was moving toward the door, knocking down a couple of the beds with their nurses and patients onboard. Carl held onto the bed as best he could, but couldn't hold on when a body knocked his knees and he fell knocking down more things and people. ~This is being rescued?!?~ he wondered, as he fell once more into the water, scrambling to get a hold of anything. (Reply Gates, Jahlen, Any) (posted by Kaweo Kanoho) (USS Boudicca - Deck 7, outside Sickbay - OPS Lt (jg) Donald Johnson - 16.25) Donald knelt before the entrance to sickbay, his brow furrowed in concentration. He had already cut a two foot length from the bottom of the floor and was now making a horizontal cut that he was trying to make two feet in length as well. Water as already seeping through and pooling around his feet. If it wasn't for the heat of the tool he was using, he would have noticed the decidedly ice waters that were escaping from sickbay. He was tempted to check on the progress within, but he had already heard from Bob and he didn't want to raise false hopes. Nor did he want to get that annoyed voice further annoyed by taking a break and delaying their rescue. So he continued to cut. Ignoring the odd sounds that were coming from within. Undoubtedly they were caused by normal things that combined with the water made Donald think something far worse was happening. He had finished the horizontal cut and was now beginning the vertical cut to the floor. He looked down and noticed that the water coming out had changed color. ~What's this?~ he wondered, as he paused a moment to notice that the odor had changed slightly as well. It might have gone unnoticed if not for Donald's heightened sense of smell developed from years of culinary experiments. ~Is that???~ With renewed resolve, Donald returned to cutting the final length. It was slow work, but soon enough he was almost there. Before the final cuts were made, he stood up and called within. "I am about to put a hole in the door. Please brace yourself and stand clear." he said, as he prepared himself. There wasn't really anything he could do about not being at the hole when the water came through. Steeling himself for the onslaught, Donald waited a few moments and then began cutting the last of the door away. The two foot square piece that he had cut held. For a moment, Donald worried he had not cut completely through. He backed up a little and waited, but still nothing. He knelt forward putting his hand along the edge and stared to see the cuts. Just as his face was in front of the door, it finally gave, the two foot piece hitting him in the face followed by a deluge of water knocking him down. Dazed for a moment, Donald held his breath as the water washed over him. Donald closed his eyes, as he was pressed against the wall, occasionally being pelted by some innocuous medical tool. ~You know, I always thought food was the most important thing a person could take in.~ he thought, as his face felt that like it was trying to match the color of the water. ~But air's pretty close.~ After what seemed an eternity, the water came to an abrupt halt. Donald opened his eyes, his mouth greedily gulping air in. He looked at the hole, expecting to be able to see within. But oddly enough it was actually rather dark. Perhaps it was a piece of furniture that was blocking the hole. ~What the...~ he wondered as he examined it closely, only to realize it was not a simple piece of furniture, but someone wearing a starfleet uniform. "Is everyone alright?" he called out, not wanting to push on the person blocking the whole, not knowing what things looked like on the other side. (Reply any) (posted by Kaweo Kanoho) (USS Boudicca - Sickbay/Aquarium - Ensign Lorimar - 1625) The salinity of the water made it just a bit more difficult for Bob to remain submerged while he worked than he had anticipated. To be sure, one does not usually *anticipate* a flood in Sickbay during a major space battle... but wonders do not cease. Ever. Especially not on this ship. The lighting underwater was just about barely adequate to work without a handlamp, which was excellent since Bob needed both hands for tools and both legs to brace himself to try and maintain position. ~This almost reminds me of zero-g training at the academy... except the water was nice and warm and clear... not this bleedin' icewater ah'm swimmin' in..~ He wondered vaguely about the temperature of the water, then reasoned it might be good that it was so cold, as it dulled the pain in his side to a steady ache. As he worked to open the environmental control module with numbed and stiffening fingers, he managed to remove the cover and have a quick look before needing to surface for fresh air. Just as he broke the surface and drew a deep breath, there was a loud SPLASH and he both felt and heard a body falling into the water. There was much spluttering, then a shivering and obviously unhappy Dr. Jahlen surfaced. "I d..d..do h...hope n...n..nobody d..d...drinks th...the w..w..w..water!" She stuttered in an apologetic tone, her blue face warming slightly to a sickly pinkish blue as she shuddered uncontrollably. He suppressed a laugh; it was easier than normal because he was freezing and judging from the water level very short on time. With an extra large inhalation, he ducked under the surface once again. When he reached the bottom, the water depth had increased just enough that he could no longer see. He could feel the pressure building in his ears, but he had no time to waste trying to equalize it. The occupants of Sickbay were running out of time. He caught a flickering dull orange glow out of the corner of his eye and recognized it immediately. Johnson!! If Bob had air he would have let out a cry of jubilation, but he had no air to waste. He would have grinned, had his chattering teeth allowed it; since he had neither luxury, he simply enjoyed the knowledge that Lt. Johnson was at least partially through the doors with the plasma cutter. Now Bob had to finish his part, freezing fingers or not. He switched on his handlamp and shone it inside the control module. Once the cover had been removed and the light shined on, it was clear what he had to do. There was an extra pair of isolinear chips, connected to each other by microconductor. Neither they, nor it, had any business being in the module. Lorimar was beginning to understand why they might be there. As his half frozen brain worked on that issue, his fingers repeatedly grasped and slipped from the optical chips. Twice he tried and twice he failed to extract them. He expelled the last puffs of air from his lungs, as his body started to scream for breath. ~Idiot!! Ye hae a tool for just this thing!!~ Reaching into his toolkit, he had no feeling left in his fingers, and withdrew and discarded several tools before he found the one he wanted. He grasped the adjustable multigrips and fixed the business end to one of the chips. He gave it a tug, then a more forceful one. The edges of his vision were getting fuzzy; he recognized it was truly now or never. With a crushing grip, he fixed the tool again and yanked. He felt the chip cracking, but kept the pressure on. It yielded, breaking as it did so. He withdrew two pieces instead of one, then grabbed the other chip with the tool and yanked hard. It came free. He pocketed all three pieces, reversed the tool in his hand and smacked the manual override button hard. A telltale illuminated, and he kicked off the deck and shot to the surface like a cork. He was on the ragged edge of consciousness when he surfaced; it was difficult to breathe, let alone talk but he was not quite done. He took several raspy breaths, spat out some salty and odd tasting water that had gone down the wrong way and tried to control his shivering. After a moment of that, he managed to raise his voice to an audible level and control his trembling enough to speak. "Computer... environ.... environmental status this compartment!" [Manual Override engaged. Attempting to restore standard atmosphere.] He looked up at the vents, and his eyes confirmed what the computer reported. The water flow was slowing to a trickle. Just then, Lorimar felt a sudden rush of water... Johnson had opened the hole!! The sudden rush of water toward the door swept him off his feet; he smacked his injured side once again on a diagnostic bed. He crashed into someone's legs before he managed to stop his skid by hanging on to the bed. He found himself nearly face to face with the small group comprised of Doctors Jahlen, Gates, and the giant nurse. He grinned through the pain and looked them over. "Folks, your saviour is Lieutenant Johnson... he is on the other side of the hole in the doors. Dinnae.." he winced again as his side ached anew "Dinnae tell him ah told ye, but he's mah hero!" Bob managed a smile for the group, then looked directly at Doctor Gates. "Beggin' yer pardon Doctor... but next time ye leave a tap open could ye make it the *hot* water tap, please?" He winked again, relieved that everyone seemed to be okay. (Reply Any) (Posted by Russ) (USS Boudicca - Deck 3 - aFO Lt. Cmdr. Aleksander Stolev - Day 12 - 1813) Stolev led what was left of the security detail over to the door of the turbolift, moving quickly yet carefully in case the marines had left any booby traps behind during their retreat. He quickly tapped into the computer controls and tried to deactivate the lift that the marines had taken, but he was unable to do so. Reluctantly, he was forced to acknowledge that the enemy CE was very good at his job. He urgently tapped his comm badge. "Stolev to bridge. Enemy marines are on their way in your direction. I estimate a total of eight. Additional Boudicca marines and security are en route to assist you. Initiate emergency lockdown." (reply Stakes, any on the bridge) Looking down, Stolev saw the dismembered arm of the marine lying a few feet away on the deck. He handed it to the medic who was examining the fallen marine. "Is he still alive?" he asked. "Barely," replied the medic as he looked up from his tricorder to take the arm and lay it across the wounded man's chest. "He's critical, but stable for the moment. The phaser blast cauterized the wound, so at least he's not bleeding too badly. He's in a state of severe shock though." Stolev nodded, then tapped his badge. "Stolev to sickbay, prepare for incoming wounded. Computer, initiate emergency site-to-site transport from this deck to sickbay. Authorization Stolev-bravo-85-echo." He nodded to the medic, who scurried to tag the wounded for transport. Turning back to the rest of the squad, he quickly considered their options. "Let's get this door open and see if we can blast the lift through the shaft." He opened the nearby supply hatch and pulled out the manual door opener. He wedged the opener into the gap between the doors and twisted on the wheel with all his might; several others on the squad helped him out, and the door slowly creaked open with excruciating slowness. Once the door was open enough for them to see through, Stolev peeked up through the shaft. Fortunately, this particular shaft was one that led straight up and down near the center of the ship, and he could see the bottom of the lift above him, two decks up. "Carligle, you and Chang blast through the bottom of that lift. The rest of you, with me." Stolev led the rest of the team to the closest Jeffries tube hatch. He keyed in the code to override the locks on the hatch and led the team into the tube. He glanced both directions and saw, a few meters to his left, the bottom of a ladder. "Let's go," he said as he scrambled down the tube, got to the ladder, and began climbing up towards the bridge. (reply Stakes, any on the bridge, any who want to play along) (posted by Aaron) NRPG: Why haven't they moved her yet? This thing deserved more than her snoring hide. How about one of these things is no like the others.... Geez. Do I have to go and drag her to bed? How's the search going? Another lead. Maybe I'll go with you this time. I don't want to be here when she wakes up. -USS Boudicca, NCC 49901 Star Trek: Freedom - http://www.startrekfreedom.com