Paradise (Part 2 of 7)

Posted on 03 Jul 2019 @ 2:55pm by Rear Admiral Lirha Saalm & Commander Scarlet Blake & Commander Marisa Wyatt & Lieutenant JG Tris Shizn & Lieutenant Aria Rice & Petty Officer 1st Class T'Lin
Edited on on 03 Jul 2019 @ 2:59pm

3,050 words; about a 15 minute read

Mission: Episode 17 - Crystal of Life
Location: Latari B III, Shuttlecraft Vincenzo
Timeline: MD 01, 0448 hrs

Previously, on Paradise (Part 1)...

Tris considered their options; a high rate of speed, currently only maneuvering thrusters. But then it occurred to him that the landing thrusters were a separate set. He yelled out over the loud wind noise, “I’m going to try something. You’ll need to trust me on this.”

"Absolutely," Marisa replied. She had no doubt that if anyone could pull them out of this, Tris could.

"Whatever it is, do it," Blake confirmed, her tone cold and firm as she nodded to him. They didn't have time to debate options, and she'd seen his skills first hand.

And Now, the Continuation...

[ON]

Very carefully, Shizn adjusted the angle of attack so that the bottom of the craft was directly in the direction of their descent. This provided them a very nice view of the sky. Unfortunately, this gave the passengers a very bumpy ride. The craft was shaking violently. Luckily the airflow sensors across the vessel were working and provided Tris with numbers, so that he was able to calculate the proper angle to keep the Waverider at the proper trajectory. But then, he wondered how long the crew could put up with the pounding.

“I need to know when we are 400 meters above the surface,” the Andorian called out. “Can we use a tricorder or something to confirm that?”

T'Lin heard the Andorian and grabbed a tricorder. It would be functioning better at the moment than the reliability of the ship's faltering systems. If they all survived this she would have to compliment him on his quick thinking.

"Eight hundred, six hundred, five hundred...now!!" There was actually emotion in her voice as her control over her emotions was lessened.

At the right moment, Lt. Shizn increased the landing thrusters to full and extended the landing gear. He slowly counted in his head, 1, 2, 3, 4. He then pitched the nose down slightly, and then maneuvered the cockpit into the down position, so that the craft was actually flying backwards and pointing back toward the ocean which they were flying over. Tris knew that if they crashed, the rear engines of the craft would take most of the punishment instead of the cockpit.

Blake's throat tightened at the very physical sensation of the strain being put on the small craft. Her arm lifted to press a hand against the metal arched close to her out of sheer instinct, her body bracing into it.

The airflow sensors were providing the best possible info. They were flying backwards and descending. Tris was just hoping that he would see land very soon before they ran out of airspace. And he was grateful to see the land in the viewport rush forward from behind them. He angled the craft more level and increased rear thrusters to full. He had no idea what kind of terrain was below them, something soft hopefully, but probably not.

Tris had a good feeling for how high the craft might be. They were still moving backwards about 60 kilometers/hour, but that was doable.

They began to hear things hit the rear and bottom of the Waverider. Emergency klaxons began to sound for multiple issues. Through the forward viewport they could see they were mowing down small trees. But then the landing pads hit the ground, the craft bouncing a bit, but slowed. He cut the landing thrusters, providing more to the rear thrusters. Tris was able to keep the direction of the craft straight, but just hoped that they didn’t hit a large rock outcropping that might cause the craft to flip.

Marisa was focusing her mind on relaxing so that she would take less damage. She'd strapped in, but there was a very real chance of injury if she tensed up. She began a mental countdown.

Finally after 10 long seconds of sliding, the Waverider came to rest. More Emergency klaxons went off. Smoke and dust began to fill the cabin. Shizn called out, “Evacuation protocol !” He continued at the Helm to shut down systems.

T'Lin was glad she had her chair back turned the correct way as her back was forced into the cushions. She gripped her chair tightly with one hand, but hung onto the tricorder like it was some holy book. The Andorian managed to shout to evacuate which indicated that he was still functional.

T'Lin did a mental and physical check of herself as most Vulcans were taught to do. She was intact and functioning. Suits would be needed for the evac, but her first thought was voiced, "Injuries?"

"Nothing but bruises," Marisa replied. "Commander?" She looked around to assess the status of the others and began to shut down the systems under her control.

Blake just waved a hand at the inquiry, frowning as she pushed herself awkwardly out of her seat, moving straight for the equipment they'd brought on with them. "We need to secure the shuttle and get going."

Tris flexed his left hand slowly. Everything there ached. He recalled some things that had been tossed about the cabin during the descent. He vaguely remembered something hitting his arm, or had he bat it away with his arm. The Andorian opened up his left sleeve to see black streaks and blotches on his blue skin. He called out over his shoulder, “I may have injured my arm. Who has a tricorder?” He then began to cough. More of the atmosphere was coming into the shuttle. He was going to need a breathmask soon.

Marisa grabbed her tricorder and a rebreather. She held the rebreather for him to take, then began to scan his arm. "Yes. You have a mild break. We can fix that with a medkit. First let's keep you breathing, then we'll fix the arm. You did an amazing job. Thank you."

Tris slipped the rebreather over his head, making sure his antennae were not in the way of the straps. As he relaxed more, he now felt the ache of his arm more intensely.

She glanced over to T'Lin. "Do you have a medkit?" she asked the other Vulcan.

"I will fetch one," T'Lin got up and did just that moving some the equipment that got tossed around in the landing out of the way. She returned and helped Marisa with Tris until the commander spoke up.

"Make sure the shuttle is as stable and secure as can be given the circumstances," Blake moved up, slapping her hand lightly against the back of a chair. "Suit up, we need to get moving."

Aria got up, getting the suit to put on, her eyes going to Blake for a moment. They had survived the crash, but now they had a mission to do. She moved to check the readings in the shuttle even as she secured the suit and got the helmet on. "Doesn't look like she is likely to blow up on us."

"Yes commander," T'Lin acknowledged and went to fetch suits for Tris and Marisa. She would get into one herself, but she figured that she had more stamina and resistance than the others. She returned to the two and handed a suit to each. "Put these on," she said. "Tris I will help you with yours, can you stand?"

That is a very good question, Tris thought as he unbuckled from the restraints. “Let’s find out.” He grabbed a hand hold with his right hand and eased up out of his forward seat. When he finally stood fully erect, a severe pain struck his left hip and he almost crumpled to the deck, but he was still holding onto the shuttle wall.

Marisa was putting on her suit when Tris crumpled. "What happened?"

T'Lin assisted in helping while Marisa checked the Andorian over. "I will help him. Perhaps you can join the commander." She suggested to Marisa. She turned her attention to Tris, "Come lean on me. The scanner reveals a bad bruising nothing broken, but it will hurt for a bit longer. I do not see any further loss of blood to the area."

Tris had very willingly accepted her help. He was also pleased to hear that his injuries were somewhat minor. “That is good to hear. Thank you T’Lin.”

Blake led the way out, taking the chance to look around the new landscape and get her bearings. Even so, as she turned to look back towards the shuttle, the large, protruding shard that was still lodged in the hull pulled her gaze. She couldn't help but whistle as she walked slowly around the side, her eyes wide as she got a better look. She pulled her tricorder out to start a scan on instinct; it was a virtual miracle they'd landed in one piece.

"What is it?" Marisa asked, walking over to the commander.

T'Lin had helped Tris out and then got him propped against the hull. The leg would hurt for a bit but should be alright unless they had to sprint and then the limp might be telling.

T'Lin got the tricorder out and scanned the object protruding from the hull.

"Obsidian with various crystalline formations mostly peridot and olivine. I do detect remains of what appears to silane breakdown but also biogenic silica mostly amorphous opalline and pytoliths commander."

"Biogenic silica?" Marisa ran her own scan. "And core material." She was forming a hypothesis. "This is not a normal type of attack, could we be looking at a silicon-based lifeform?"

"There's nothing on record about something like this with Tholians," Scarlet shook her head with a frown, looking around the area, taking it all in. Of course, it wasn't necessarily Tholians they were dealing with, it was just what came to mind first with the meetings they'd had en route. "Either way, with that kind of geological make up so close to this new volcanic and lava phenomena? I don't believe in coincidences like that."

"I've seen nothing like this anywhere," Marisa said. "It's looking more and more like some type of silicate lifeform either landed on the planet or came up from the core and...assimilated the colonists."

Lt. Shizn had been listening to all the science talk as he leaned against a rocky out cropping several meters from the ship. He understood part of their explanations, but left them to their tasks as he reviewed a PADD, going over the WaveRider’s systems, or lack there of.

Scarlet took a sharp breath as she tucked the tricorder away. Skewered shuttle or not, they still had a mission to complete. "We need to get as close to the event as possible and it's going to have to be on foot. Anyone who is going to physically struggle to keep up after that landing will have to stay behind," she told them the reality of the situation, her tone leaving no argument in the subject either. "Who is still injured?" Her eyes automatically went to Shizn. She expected her team to be responsible enough to be honest; she wouldn't expect anything less from their crew.

T'Lin replied with that typical Vulcan propensity. "I am ninety five point three effectiveness commander. I am capable of going. I would recommend that we wear full EV suit as there is radiation on this sample and I would suspect it will only intensify the further we move toward the phenomenon."

Shizn listened to T’Lin and was sure that she was going to be forecoming with his situation, but he found it odd that she did not. He turned to their leader, “Commander Blake, I should volunteer to remain behind and see if I can get the Vincenzo off the ground again.” He hesitated for a second and added, “And I believe my bruised hip would slow you all down.”

Blake nodded with approval at his suggestion...if he hadn't of offered it up, she'd have ordered it anyway. She preferred it this way around and it only solidified her trust in his judgement. "Sandoval, Rice, Steele?"

"I'm capable of keeping up," Marisa said. "And I want to have a good look at the anomaly."

Steele spoke up. "Kinda banged up my shoulder ma'am and while I can walk, think best to hang around here. Besides someone should stay with our pilot and see if can lend a hand." He held up his good arm with a sort of pun intended.

Aria looked over at Blake, meeting her eyes before she gave a small shrug. "I am good to go," she said quietly and looked away. She was calm now, whatever fear she had previously experienced as been firmly shoved down into a 'deal with it later' box.

Shizn looked to Petty Officer Steele, who he wasn’t too familiar with, but knew him to be good with science. When he caught the human’s eye, Tris gave a confirming nod.

T'Lin turned and prepared to go. "Lieutenant Shizn, once we get almost out of sight let us do a comm check to make sure we have communication. I fear for the radiation in the area to make problems with that. I do not believe it is a good idea for either group to be out of contact."

“Understood,” Shizn said confidently in reply.

"Then that's a plan," Blake nodded firmly, adjusting her suit. "T'Lin, Rice, Sandoval, with me," she motioned with her head as she started to walk, setting a good pace to try and cross the ground in good time. They'd already pushed their luck. She glanced down to her tricorder after a few moments. "If anyone notices any changes as we go, let us know. Even small details might help us work out what caused this....and I want good warning of any more threats."

Marisa fell in behind Blake, continually scanning to get as much data as she could while trying to keep her eyes and ears open. She wished they had more time, but understood the need to keep to a tight schedule.

Aria let out a breath before she followed, her weapon reason as she looked around. She was less worried about the beauty, more about anything that might...oh, potentially land them all dead.

T'Lin followed the group without a word or anything other that sweeping the tricorder back and forth gathering data.

The away team slowly hiked across the large terrestrial landscape of Latari B III. Being a Class-M world just slightly smaller than Earth, it featured its own diverse ecosystem of alien flora and fauna which had evolved over millions of years within the world's unique environment. The triple suns could all be seen glowing through the cloud cover and provided daylight conditions for the majority of the planet's daily rotation cycle. Gravity was a pleasant 0.9 Gs which produced taller and leaner variations of exolife.

The crash site where the Waverider shuttle had gone down was roughly ten kilometers from their planned landing site, which made the trek tedious at best. After an hour of rucking through the nearby temperate forest cluster, the team pushed through the foliage and arrived near the border of the geological event they were tasked with exploring.

If the orbital projections on Galileo's main viewscreen had seemed shocking from above, the reality of now seeing the sheer scale and details of the geological destruction in person was far worse. Where there should have been miles of continuing forests and lush green land, was instead a smoldering field of lava extending all the way to the horizon. The surface terrain was a combination of glowing orange viscosity composed of both Pahoehoe and A'a lava flows. Visible thermal heat shimmers from the surface obscured any form of long-range visual acuity.

"Wow," Marisa said, slowly taking in the landscape. "This is fascinating."

As they approached the lava field, Marisa noted that her tricorder was malfunctioning. "Radiation is interfering with tricorder readings. The origin appears to be near the center of the lava field. That corresponds with what looked like an impact site."

"Let's keep a distance," Rice advised, her voice loud inside her helmet. "I don't fancy our chances against that lava." With temperatures that high, even a drop would weaken their suits. And the radiation was not something she wanted to deal with physically. "Keep an eye on our readings, in case our suits got weakened in the landing."

"There's not much point getting closer anyway, not with the interference to our readings," Blake sighed, shaking her head with frustration as she confirmed her own tricorder wasn't faring any better trying to take readings from whichever circle of hell Dante had brought them to.

"That is worrisome commander," T'Lin finally spoke after being silent during the entire trek except to check in once with the personnel back at the damaged shuttle. "That is ionizing radiation and for the equipment to malfunction would have to be high indeed. I am estimating approximately 50 to 100 Sv. The suits are protecting us now, but if the radiation goes much higher we will be in trouble. I might remind you that 5 Sv can be deadly to most humanoids. Our equipment will only last approximately thirty minutes at this high a dose and less if it continues it climb.

Marisa wanted to get closer. "We have thirty minutes of protection. We can go a short ways across the lava field. If we move quickly, we might get some useful data." If not, she'd grab some samples of the flora nearby to analyze back on the ship.

"Then let's try and get that data," it had been all Blake needed to hear for her to give the risky order. She set timers to remind them every five minutes of their time left before motioning with her hand, starting a careful if tense journey across the burning lake.

To Be Continued...

[OFF]

--

CAPT Lirha Saalm
Commanding Officer
USS Galileo-A

CMDR Scarlet Blake
First Officer
USS Galileo-A

PO2 T'Lin
Science Officer
USS Galileo-A
[PNPC Warraquim]

LT Marisa Sandoval
Chief Science Officer
USS Galileo-A

LTJG Tris Shizn
Conn Officer
USS Galileo-A

LTJG Aria Rice
Security Officer
USS Galileo-A
[PNPC Vansen]

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