On the Bridge (A Battlestations Post)

Posted on Fri 2nd Mar, 2018 @ 3:53pm by
Edited on on Fri 2nd Mar, 2018 @ 4:03pm

1,050 words; about a 5 minute read

Mission: Brushfires
Location: USS Samurai, Bridge
Timeline: Two Days Ago

Lieutenant Junior Grade February Winter swung the helm hard to port, her muscles tense as if her pushing would speed the vessel's turn, swinging her damaged side away from the aggressor.

"Rapid fire torpedoes away!" Lieutenant Brand announced from the tactical station. February didn't look up from her console; weapons fire wasn't her job; turning was.

"More ships decloaking to port!" Lieutenant Sarigar announced in a surprisingly calm voice. "Two Romulan Whitewind class light cruisers."

"Captain," Riko called out. "The closest Whitewind is running hot. Gamma radiation leaks are spiking at 2.31 times normal!" She clicked her console for more automatic analysis.

"Elvis above! I think they're making a hash out of the singularity power plant, Ma'am. I advise moving off as soon as possible. Depending on how long they've been overtaxing that plant with the cloaking device and whatever else, it isn't that far from self-destruct."

The Chief Science Officer continued to watch the levels of radiation, chewing her bottom lip. "What is wrong with their engineer?" she muttered. "Are they trying to commit suicide?"

At the center of the bridge, Captain Suzuki frowned. Why would hundred-and-fifty year old Romulan vessels be coordinating with a Lyran battlecruiser? The ship shuddered as weapon fire came against the port shields, and June Winter announced, "Casualty reports coming in from all decks!"

Over the com system, the ChEng's voice announced, "Captain, we have to conduct an emergency jettison of the port nacelle. Y'all hang on up there, it's gonna be a bumpy ride."

"Understood," the Captain replied. "Mr. Brand, phasers on the Romulan ships. Mr. Winter, nose down, let's get beneath them. Roll ship to bring our..." she didn't get to finish the thought. The Whitewinds opened fire as one, and the combined strength of their molecular disrupters striking the area where the port nacelle's shield grid should have been caused the shield to buckle and fail. The ship shook like a rat in the grip of a terrier.

"Captain!" Brand cried from tactical. "We've lost the port side dorsal phaser array! Power surges fed back through the EPS system at a critical juncture!"

February heard the words, and looked away from the Helm, horrified. She looked over her shoulder, locking eyes with her sister June. Their sister April was a weapons officer; she was stationed in the port side dorsal phaser control area. That look -- that desperate, horrified locking of eyes -- was the last time February would ever see her sister.

One of the Whitewind cruisers fired again, its molecular disruptor beam carving a furrow across Samurai's primary hull, blowing out the port side of the bridge, where June was sitting. February felt a flash of heat, saw white light. As the port side exploded, the overhead fell. Suzuki raised her arm just in time to be smacked down by a section of the dome. The ship's structural integrity field stepped up its power, holding atmosphere in, saving the rest of the bridge crew.

Riko stabbed the evacuation alarm to get everyone's attention. "Get the captain free!" she shouted, trying to contact the aux bridge without success. "Sarigar, I can't get ship commuincations, she looked across to his station, and then away again, swallowing hard. There were no communications now. She tapped her com badge.

"McCord here. Does anyone read me? Bridge is blown. I repeat, Bridge is blown." She couldn't do anything else from here. Time to get survivors off the bridge. It was only seconds since the last hit, but it seemed like hours. She hurried toward the Captain's console, but realized two others were there, digging the rubble away, so she veered to one side where a young Ensign sat at the second engineering console, shaking.

"Up and out of here, honey," she said. "You can shake later, right now, get yourself to safety outside the bridge area, go down at least two decks."

The woman nodded and stumbled up out of her chair. McCord was pleased to note that she dragged another officer with her when she exited ... and glad to see the door still opened and shut. She looked around to see if there was anyone else who needed help off the bridge, and saw that the captain was almost free. She saw Ensign Winter was still down at her station ... February, she identified her distractedly.

February had not felt pain; the plasma which burned across her had burned out the nerves. She wasn't thinking clearly. There was something wrong with her vision, she knew, and she couldn't feel her left hand. But she had to get the helm transferred to aux control. She heard someone digging through debris behind her. Who was buried? Were they alive? Was anyone alive? June! February stumbled to her feet, used the back of her chair to push off, toward the sound of digging. "Is she alive?" she demanded.

Riko intercepted Winter, "That's the captain, and we don't know. Your sister ...." She couldn't remember the name right now and cursed her own state of shock. "I'm sorry, she's gone. You're badly injured, and we have to get you to Sickbay right now."

She saw the woman's resistance to that suggestion, and tapped her combadge. Elvis, please let it work, she prayed. "Sickbay, we need transport from the bridge. It's a shambles up here."

"This is Transporter Chief Jericho," a voice came back. "Sickbay is gone! The closest aid station to you is set up in Repair Two, on deck three!"

"The Captain!" February said, turning her oozing mess of a face in the direction of the sounds of digging. "We have to get the Captain!"

Riko's heart sank. No Sickbay? All those people ... she couldn't think about that. "Roger that. Transport available?"

While she waited his come back, she said, "Ensign, the captain isn't your responsibility right now. We're getting her out. Your job is to get to the medics and start healing. We're going to need you at the helm again shortly. You're the last one on deck who needs to get out so we can jettison the bridge."

"We've got her!" Ensign Brown exclaimed, shifting the last piece of debris from the Captain. "She's unconscious, but alive! Let's get out of here!"

Reluctantly, February let McCord lead her off the bridge.

 

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