On my way
Posted on Sat Mar 7th, 2020 @ 10:56pm by
Edited on on Sat Mar 7th, 2020 @ 10:59pm
Mission:
Cruel Meridian
Location: Shuttlecraft deGrasse Tyson: Outbound from Starbase 50, Inbound to USS Majestic
Timeline: MD 03
499 words - 1 OF Standard Post Measure
After another day to prep the shuttle he would be ferrying to the Majestic Ian was ready to go. He’d stowed all his gear aboard and had cleared out the temporary quarters. The fight wasn’t excessively long but there really wasn’t much to do along the way. It was a several hour straight shot to the rendezvous point.
Ian took some of the time to read up on the Majestic’s current mission briefing. A diplomatic ferry mission. He chuckled a bit to himself. Certainly something he had experience with but there was still always going to be that uneasy feeling of responsibility especially for any civilians. He then began to read through the Majestic’s crew manifest starting with the flight control department.
It wasn’t but a few minutes ‘til warning alarm brought Ian back from his reading. With a couple of checks the problem was evident. The impulse engines were venting a coolant. This wasn’t an extreme problem but he’d have to slow way down to maintain a safe temperature and avoid leaving a giant noxious trail behind him.
He reduced speed and was about to comm the Majestic when the panel display reverted back to optimal status across all systems. Ian ran through a quick diagnostic cycle again which showed all systems functioning. He slowly increased speed back to standard cruising and proceeded on.
It was about a half hour before the klaxon went off again. Collision alerts blared. His panel display showed an asteroid directly in his path. Impact in 2 seconds. Ian raised shields and veered.
Then…nothing.
The alarm automatically stopped and status returned to normal. There was no asteroid, no anything.
A few minutes later, another diagnostic came up clean. Ian had heard rumors around Starbase 50 that this shuttle was “a bit quirky” and that’s why they were transferring it but he didn’t pay it too much mind when all his pre-fight checks had come up perfect.
He again proceeded but this time at a bit of reduced pace. He’d originally had some extra time for a stop at a market planet along the way but now chose to forgo that. The next few hours were uneventful. Ian was within about an hour of where and when he was meeting the Majestic when the interior lighting switched to a purple color. Again nothing unusual showed up on diagnostics. Ian then heard a very faint hissing sound. With his panel still showing nothing wrong Ian pulled a tricorder from his gear. Sure enough the readings were showing a slowly decreasing amount of breathable atmosphere in the cabin. At the current rate it looked like he would have a few hours to make it to the ship. Ian avoided taking a deep breath, increased speed and tried to raise the Majestic. It did not surprise him that the comms were now down. He throttled up a little faster and kept trying get through to the Majestic.
