Pop Goes the Weasel

Posted on 22 Oct 2013 @ 11:56am by Lieutenant JG Tykhin Vess & Commander Scarlet Blake
Edited on on 22 Oct 2013 @ 7:46pm

775 words; about a 4 minute read

Mission: Episode 04 - Exodus
Location: USS Galileo - Deck 1 - Ready Room
Timeline: MD 03 - 0510 hrs

[ON]

It had seemed like a simple idea at the time; climb up to Deck 1 and find out who is in charge. Tykhin had not counted on how many tubes would be blocked, sealed or filled with debris. Picking his way through and finding junction hatches between the decks that would open seemed to take forever. Losing his combadge on the way had not helped. He found himself retracing his steps more than once, and clearing debris away by hand. But he was determined not to go out where the Borg may be until he knew what was going on.

Finally, Tykhin made his way up to Deck 1 and was able to start trying to open access hatches to get out of the tubes. His hands and knees ached and he was tired. On the third try, he found an access hatch that look promising. At first it would not give way, but when he turned around and gave it a good kick, it fell out onto the carpet with a dull thud.

"Thank the four gods," Tykhin said wearily as he crawled out of the Jeffries tube. He knelt on the carpet and brushed off his uniform shirt. It was a mess, he looked like he had been crawling through the Jeffries tubes for hours. His jacket was long gone and his hair was a mess. He brushed an arm across his forehead to wipe away the sweat and looked up.

"This isn't the bridge," he observed to himself, dryly.

Scarlet Blake moved quickly despite the throbbing in her head. She pushed away from the desk, pulling her phaser and pointing it on instinct at the huddle that fell onto the floor of the Ready Room. She arched an eyebrow and let out a tight breath as she saw the person was distinctly not Borg. "Do you have a problem with using doors?" she asked drily, although she could guess what had happened. "Are you alright, Lieutenant?" she holstered the phaser so she could bend to help him to his feet.

Tykhin froze momentarily when he saw the phaser pointed at him, then let out a sign and gratefully accepted the help to his feet. "You have no idea, ma'am. I... We..." he frowned and cleared his throat twice. "...escaped Sickbay when the Borg attacked. But the others got caught in a plasma leak in the tubes. I've been trying to get to whoever's in charge without being seen for... it feels like hours." He ran a hand through his black and grey hair. "I guess that's you?"

"At the moment, yes," Scarlet nodded, but the tenseness in her voice spoke of the anger she still felt at the fact it had come to that. "Lt. Commander Scarlet Blake..." the inflection in her voice was asking for his name in return.

"Lt. Tykhin Vess, ma'am, intelligence officer, Venture," he answered the implied question. "I'm not sure what our status is, but I get the impression you need all hands. How can I help?"

Scarlet nodded as she took the information in, setting her hands on her hips as she thought. "You're right, we've suffered a lot of casualties and abductions, we can do with all the hands on deck that we can get. If you're Intelligence, head on down to the Intel offices, see if you can give them a hand. They're a small team, but right now, we're in the middle of a mess with not many facts to help."

Tykhin crouched down and replaced the Jeffries tube hatch while Scarlet spoke. He rose to his feet and again and straightened as she gave him direction.

"Yes, ma'am," he said with a nod and walked towards the door. He stopped just short of it and looked back. To him, the Lieutenant Commander looked no better than he felt. He took a breath to clear his mind.

"Ma'am?" he said and met her eyes when she looked his way. He radiated a penetrating calm that offered to ease the throbbing in Scarlet's head. "Thanks for saving us. Whatever happens, I'm grateful. We all are."

Tykhin turned and walked out onto the bridge and toward the turbolift. He just nodded to the incredulous and surprised looks of the bridge crew.

Scarlet watched the door close with surprise, a small smile coming to her features. She carefully touched the back of her head, rubbing it gently. She hadn't heard anyone say that. She cleared her throat and looked down, drawing her mind back to work.

[OFF]

--

LCDR Scarlet Blake
Chief Counselor/2XO
USS Galileo

LTJG Tykhin Vess
Asst. Chief Intelligence Officer
USS Galileo

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