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current_story:the_sword_of_ophiuchus_part_1 [2021/03/07 05:17] – cromwellcurrent_story:the_sword_of_ophiuchus_part_1 [2021/08/08 14:43] (current) – cromwell
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 Reaching over to press a few buttons near his piloting controls, the doctor checked and rechecked his scopes several times before shaking his head in bewilderment. Reaching over to press a few buttons near his piloting controls, the doctor checked and rechecked his scopes several times before shaking his head in bewilderment.
  
-"Nothing," he stated confusedly.  "Not even a single desiccated colony of bacteria. Normally, I'd pick up at least some kind of intact DNA reading from an active bioscan," he explained.  "But I'm getting nothing.  Absolutely NOTHING.  It's more sterile than a class one surgical field..."+"Nothing," he stated confusedly.  "Not even a single desiccated colony of bacteria. Normally, I'd pick up at least some kind of intact DNA reading from an active bioscan," he explained.  "But I'm getting nothing.  Absolutely NOTHING.  It's more sterile over there than a class one surgical field..."
  
-As the diminutive 2-meter wide ship flew nearer, Theo chose with trepidation to drop the cloaking device to save on energy.  As they loitered closer and closer to the base's surface, they could see that it had undergone minor structural damage in certain areas.  In forward sections of the base, windows had imploded, and structural beams had been strained to their limits, while many other areas appeared completely intact, though no movement or activity could be seen through the viewports.  Finally, they came upon a quiescent personnel airlock towards the top of the monolithic station.+As the diminutive 2-meter wide ship flew nearer, Theo chose with trepidation to drop the cloaking device to save on energy.  As they loitered closer and closer to the base's surface, they could see that it had undergone minor structural damage in certain areas.  In forward sections of the base, windows had imploded, and structural beams had been strained to their limits.  While many other areas appeared completely intact, no movement or activity could be seen through the darkened viewports.  Finally, they came upon a quiescent personnel airlock towards the top of the monolithic station.
  
 "Bet you wished we had packed some EVA suits," Saal remarked ominously, invoking a sour look from Theo. "Bet you wished we had packed some EVA suits," Saal remarked ominously, invoking a sour look from Theo.
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 "Not unless you can hold your breath," the doctor remarked curmudgeonly.  "In about an hour, we won't have enough power for our OWN life support..." "Not unless you can hold your breath," the doctor remarked curmudgeonly.  "In about an hour, we won't have enough power for our OWN life support..."
  
-Despite his discouraging words, to the docking levels they went, searching the topmost docking bay first before working their way downward to the bottom.  Each were expansive berthing complexes of nearly one cubic kilometer in volume, replete with numerous but unpowered magnetic mooring projectors and gangway ramps.  However, of the first eleven bays explored, only six contained any vessels, and each were in such disrepair that they were effectively useless.  One bay contained a pair of Intrepid-class starships, but they were unpowered, and their antimatter bottles floated haphazardly around the docking complex, automatically ejected some time ago.  The ships themselves had long ago collided into one another, ripping apart their primary hulls, while simultaneously embedding their warp nacelles into the walls.  Another docking bay contained an impressively-sized cargo ship.  However, nearly all the cargo containers had broken loose, and had impacted into the walls of the bay, as well as crushing the habitable portions of the remaining tug.  One by one, their prospects dimmed, finding the magnetic moorings in each bay deactivated, leaving the gravimetric instabilities of the station's erratic orbit around the star to stir up the contents within and allowing the dislodged vessels to pulverize themselves over time.  It was clear that whatever had occurred to place the base into such a state of dilapidation had happened years ago, leaving ample time for the unmoored craft to indiscriminately grind themselves into nothing more than floating heaps of garbage.+Despite his discouraging words, to the docking levels they went, searching the topmost docking bay first before working their way downward to the bottom.  Each were expansive berthing complexes of nearly twenty five million cubic meters in volume, replete with numerous but unpowered magnetic mooring projectors and gangway ramps.  However, of the first eleven bays explored, only six contained any vessels, and each were in such disrepair that they were effectively useless.  One bay contained a pair of Intrepid-class starships, but they were unpowered, and their antimatter bottles floated haphazardly around the docking complex, automatically ejected some time ago.  The ships themselves had long ago collided into one another, ripping apart their primary hulls, while simultaneously embedding their warp nacelles into the walls.  Another docking bay contained an impressively-sized cargo ship.  However, nearly all the cargo containers had broken loose, and had impacted into the walls of the bay, as well as crushing the habitable portions of the remaining tug.  One by one, their prospects dimmed, finding the magnetic moorings in each bay deactivated, leaving the gravimetric instabilities of the station's erratic orbit around the star to stir up the contents within and allowing the dislodged vessels to pulverize themselves over time.  It was clear that whatever had occurred to place the base into such a state of dilapidation had happened years ago, leaving ample time for the unmoored craft to indiscriminately grind themselves into nothing more than floating heaps of garbage.
  
 As they reached the bottom-most docking bay, their spirits were weighed down by the prospects of dying in such a desolate place; buried alive by their own failure to find any habitable refuge for them to escape to.  Saal's power indicators had reached critical as they blasted the door to the dockmaster's control room on the twelfth and final docking level.  As the warning lights went into the red, he shook his head in defeat. As they reached the bottom-most docking bay, their spirits were weighed down by the prospects of dying in such a desolate place; buried alive by their own failure to find any habitable refuge for them to escape to.  Saal's power indicators had reached critical as they blasted the door to the dockmaster's control room on the twelfth and final docking level.  As the warning lights went into the red, he shook his head in defeat.
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 "That's it," he exclaimed with despair.  "We have no more energy for the disruptors." "That's it," he exclaimed with despair.  "We have no more energy for the disruptors."
  
-Theo lowered his head in failure as powered monitors around him began shutting themselves off to save energy and life support.  One by one, they flickered out, including the overhead lights in the cockpit.  Soon, only the controls in front of them showed any illumination, leaving the only thing standing between them and the cold, deathly realities of oblivion as they started breathing their last few minutes of air.+Theo lowered his head in failure as powered monitors around him began shutting themselves off to save energy and life support.  One by one, they flickered out, including the overhead lights in the cockpit.  Soon, only the controls in front of them showed any illumination, leaving them as the only things standing between them and the cold, deathly realities of oblivion as they began breathing their last few minutes of air.
  
 "I'm sorry, Saal," whispered Theo.  "I should have listened to you and headed towards the fleet." "I'm sorry, Saal," whispered Theo.  "I should have listened to you and headed towards the fleet."
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 "At least I lived long enough to hear you apologize for once," the grouchy, enervated doctor remarked. "At least I lived long enough to hear you apologize for once," the grouchy, enervated doctor remarked.
  
-As the miniature, diminished vessel floated up to the broad, expansive windows that overlooked the docking bay, a soft orange flicker of illumination danced in the dim light around them.  Theo's and Saal's eyes began adjusting to the dark environment surrounding them, revealing a spectacle outside in the berthing complex.  The flickering light came from the tug-of-war interface between the docking bay walls and the low-level energy signatures of a navigational deflector field.  As the vision of the two men acclimated to the shadowy ambiance, they scrutinized the perimeter of the glimmering field and saw that it enveloped a huge vessel still holding station outside in the docking bay.  The outline of the ship was clear and unambiguous: It was a Galaxy-class starship, and unlike the vessels in the other docking bays, was perfectly intact.+As the miniature, diminished vessel floated up to the broad, expansive windows that overlooked the docking bay, a soft orange flicker of illumination danced in the dim light around them.  As Theo's and Saal's eyes adjusted to the dark environment surrounding them, they revealed a spectacle outside in the berthing complex.  The flickering light came from the tug-of-war interface between the docking bay walls and the low-level energy signatures of a navigational deflector field.  As the vision of the two men acclimated to the shadowy ambiance, they scrutinized the perimeter of the glimmering field and saw that it enveloped a huge vessel still holding station outside in the docking bay.  The outline of the ship was clear and unambiguous: It was a Galaxy-class starship, and unlike the vessels in the other docking bays, was perfectly intact.
  
 Stenciled along it's hull:  NCC-76241... USS Republic. Stenciled along it's hull:  NCC-76241... USS Republic.
  
-//(to be continued)//+//([[current_story:the_sword_of_ophiuchus_part_2|to be continued]])//
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current_story/the_sword_of_ophiuchus_part_1.1615094257.txt.gz · Last modified: 2021/03/07 05:17 by cromwell

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