The TML PBeM

1995, Turn 0 - Part 1 (of 3)

The sensation is like nothing anyone has ever felt: the shuddering impact of Weave-open, Tumble, Jump, and Breakout all rolled into one. Everyone, no matter how Jump-secure, feels the sudden lurch and resurgence in gravity, as of an elevator car suddenly freefalling for a moment before being caught up short. A hiss of static blocks the ears, vision whites out for a bare instant...and then....

Main Engineering - 07:29

...and then all is still. Frozen in place at every station, the Engineers watch telltales that normally take a week to stabilize shiver and subside in moments. The port Tokamak, high over their heads, coughs and dies.

<< Wow, >> Grey whispers.

Rafe opens his eyes and takes a deep, cleansing breath. Still alive. I should be pleased. Actually, I suppose I am pleased.

'Vouf is still staring at the Wall. << All stations report, >> he hisses.

Grey says, << Belly tanks five and six have ruptured and boiled dry, sir. It looks like we lost every suture on the Grid when we Jumped....IF we Jumped. Tokamak One is offline; Tokamak Two on half power. All riders secure, about fifty minor faults and breaks but no other major damage showing, no injury flags. >>

<< C-c-confirm Leffel One Faults on all temp'ry repairs, >> Chiifraa says in a quavery voice. << Pe seeink machor structural faults in Grid. >> He looks down at his toes. << 'Less we make trytock...'Lissa, she neffer Chump akain. >>

The wave of nausea washes over Alliara, the colours swim and blur and change into green with purple dots.

"Vert, roundels purpure bordered of the first. Against the rule of tincture..." she thinks to herself as the nausea gets the better of her and...

"Ughh, Ugmmmm..." gurgles Alliara, grabs onto the engineering console for dear life and retches inside the suit.

Aolrkhea' notices, and pulls out a med scanner. With slight disdain, she monitors Alliara with gentle contact to her back.

Rafe's eyes are on 'Vouf, gauging his reaction to this news.

<< We are on fifty percent power, >> haut-Frieder reports. << We have comms, life support, some limited maneuver, passive sensors...maybe even some juice to launch missiles. But we're not going anywhere in a big hurry. >>

<< Bad fuel lines have been isolated, >> Doejin chitters, << The Left Reactor will not swim again until it has fresh water to breathe. *CH-TK!* All remaining ullage en route to the Right Reactor. Estimate sixteen minutes at half power, if we do not try to swim. >>

'Vouf whispers, << Bridge. Did we make it? >> There is no answer. His voice rises to a scream. << Did we MAKE IT?! ANSWER ME!! >>

Security - 07:29

A quiet "Wow." is heard from Shrike, followed shortly afterwards by a louder, "I hate being a passenger."

"Everybody quiet, please," says Rigo. "Be ready to move fast in case of more visitors." The implication of Captain Stubbs' earlier remarks about Stamerra's teleporter is that such are rare, but Rigo is still feeling guilty about his suggestion to open contact with the attackers, and he's not inclined to take chances.

Azani nods, rechecking his armor and weapons. Kor sits quietly, her rifle kept near to hand and watching the screens. Horne flips through the screens from deck to deck, observing activity or lack thereof: the Engine Room is pandemonium as the various Engineers get to work on repairs; the Bridge is a knot of tightly controlled activity, and one brief shot of a corridor shows the Captain en route to the Bridge at his customary dead run. Lazer watches quietly, one ear on the Bridge comms channel.

Bridge - 07:29

The tumbling, weaving sensation roils thru Zben Blaine's gut as he clutchs the Commo console. All his telltales flash red for a second, most cutting out automatically from the Jump overload. There's an alarming flash in the passive spectrometer and it also shuts down as the deck steadies. He struggles thru the topor to keep the forward viewscreen on line and active.

Looking up he sees Stubbs frowning at the seemingly unchanged panorama.

Sickbay - 07:29

Just before jump Morton Limner rushes into Sickbay, suit still dripping from the decontamination spray. He quickly stores it and grabs his kit and comp just as the jump wave hits........

Clutching the edge of an exam table Limner lets the waves of strange feeling wash over him, cataloging and storing his reactions for later analysis. He briefly wonders if this is a `normal' spatial translation for this location, or is it especially intense due to their own decimated grid. The sensations quickly pass and he begins to check the status board, but Jan is there ahead of him. Morton giving Jan a quick nod and smile.

The jump wave hit and went. Way too fast, all at once, and with no problems at all. At least for Jan. Having dosed Dave and Vanessa prior to jump, he had managed to make it back to his jump post in the sickbay just as the Elissa's grids discharged.

He quickly scans the sickbay, checking telltales and status boards. Glancing in at Niishu and DaSilva, he gets a quick thumbs up from Dr. D. Morton appears fine as well.

"Dr. Limner, we need to settle down in some small Family Practice Clinic in a quiet corner of the Marches."

"What? And miss all This? I don't think I could stand the quiet."

"PATER, medchannel, please."

<< Tabor, let me know how Aiwi is doing, and everyone else on the bridge. 'Khea, for sure eyeball Angus and Merkle and make sure they're intact, and let me know about anyone else who could be effected. >>

Tabor's response is almost immediate, in a hoarse whisper. << Tabor aye. Aiwi shows signs of stress but no indications of impaired performance; can't see de Mer from my angle but everyone else appears okay. Out. >>

Aolrkhea' has an atypical delay of several minutes before responding. << Sickbay, Alliara has vomited, I am monitoring her closely. No other adverse reactions have occured here in Engineering. >>

<< Okay, if we can help, let us know. >>

While Jan is checking in Limner takes a moment to check his link to Igor. His craft seems fine, and the readout shows no major anomalous spikes in the psiband. He then turns his attention back to the medchannel.

<< PATER, command channel, please >>

<< Bridge, Medical. Sickbay is secure from Jump, intact and operational >>

Engineering - 07:30

Karl Morser slowly, carefully, opens one eye to see if the universe is still there.

"Whew." It is, and he begins the process of unclenching his fingers from around the support column under which he sheltered himself for the jump.

"Goot old ship," he says, tenderly patting the bulkhead beside him as he stands up. A few slight pops are heard as he works the circulation back into his arms and legs.

Sensor Pit - 07:30

Werner stares at the first images in the holotank. "Karl," he says softly on the Science channel, "I think you should get down here. NOW."

Mac just stares, a bright smile suffusing his young face. "Oh, BOY," he grins, rubbing his hands together in glee. "This is GREAT!"

Engineering - 07:30

<< On my vay now. >> Morser says, tapping his commdot. As he steps toward the hatchway, he glances down at the sensor feeds coming into his wristcomp and lifts his eyebrows in surprise.

"Vat ze hell is *zat*?"

"I hope to have an answer by the time you're here. Stop talking to your metacarpals and keep walking!"

Bridge - 07:30

<< Bridge. Did we make it? >> Pause... << Did we MAKE IT?! ANSWER ME!! >>

Stubbs looks up from the Navigation holotank, eyes red and face beaded in sweat, and staggers over to the main viewscreen. At first glance, it seems that the panorama has not changed at all: the endless glowing tube of pale light, extending on forever, stretches before the Elissa even as before. Stubbs frowns, and says, "Mister Blaine, tune to *exactly* 5.554 megacycles. Be careful, though: it's a very hot signal, if it's there at all...."

A moment to put the unit back online results in only a background hiss...

There is a pause. "I'm not getting anything, sir," Blaine reports.

Stubbs frowns. "Hmmm. Try 7.883 megacycles, then...."

A quick tap of the keys yields the same silence, but just for a second or two, then

Blaine does so, and is rewarded with a startlingly loud sound; a bell-like ping that quavers slightly before dying away. Some ten seconds later, there is another ping. Then another.

At his jump station on the bridge, Christian blinks and softly whistles a jaunty tune, relief masking the fading remnants of fear. He glances at the assortment of stern and sweaty faces around the bridge and grins at the reflection of his own mood, then turns to attend to his station's holos.

Stubbs closes his eyes for a moment, then turns to face Akhouw with a smile as a harried Vargr voice squawks from the comms panel.

"Yes, sir, we made it," he says with a bow to Akhouw. "Welcome to Centerpoint."

Ever the firm leader, Akhouw slowly rises from his chair and returns Stubbs' bow with exacting formality, carefully resuming his seat.

"Thank you, Captain Stubbs." He speaks with simple conviction. "We are honored to be guests in your land."

Main Engineering - 07:30

Bhyarrvouf uncoils like a spring. << KEE-YAAAA-HOOOOOO!! >> He does a triple back handspring across the room, landing on his feet and dropping into an attitude of mock prayer on his haunches. Raising his hands above his head, he cries, << Ouma be forever blessed for this CREW!! >>

Rafe flinches as 'Vouf explodes into motion, but continues to watch what little body language can be discerned through a vacc-suit, adding another paragraph to the long and still-growing mental file labeled "Bhyarrvouf."

{Honor is served!} Aolrkhea' stretches to her full height, realizing that she had unconsciously tensed up. Over-reacting muscles cause her to momentarily leave the deck. She re-adjusts her gear with a toothy smile.

Munro, tensely looking at the readouts, straightens. Sweeping the engineering crew with a gaze, pride glows in her eyes and voice.

<< Good Job, everyone. *Very* Good Job! >>

Her expression falters a bit, then recovers its former expression, mostly. Ignoring Bhyarrvouf antics, she turns back to her console, fingers flying.

'Vouf bounds to his feet and goes around the room dispensing handshakes and backslaps to all the Engineers, ending with Munro.

<< Well done, Bridge! >> he calls. << Well done, ALL of you! Siaenrra, see to our docking; I'll join you as soon as I've helped Engineering get things under control down here. Please allow Mister Stubbs port-pilot's privilege or whatever else he needs to see us safely in. 'Vouf out. >>

Bridge - 07:30

One ear trained on the comm, Akhouw smacks the side of the command chair in delighted agreement, lightly scoring an arc into the material.

Zben lets out a breath he hadn't been aware he was holding... As Stubbs is explaining the Pulsar beacon Zben begins to clean-up his board, returning configurations to their normal parameters. As per normal operating proceedures he activates the passive EMS and notes that there is a lot of radio traffic in the area. Vouf' voice from Engineering cuts thru his scanning.

"That's the Main Beacon, Commander," Stubbs explains. "It's a dual pulsar used as a navigational reference: it shoots wavefronts down the Wire in both axial directions at a known intensity. By the signal strength and frequency distribution of the signals, a pilot can always tell where he is with respect to the Beacon." He looks at the screen.

"Indeed, sir." Akhouw nods in apparent understanding. What am I, he thinks, to receive such a female explanation? Best to let him ramble for now.

"One frequency is for one direction, and the other for the opposite direction: the lower band is for down the Wire, where the Harkeir is, and the upper band is for up the Wire. It seems we overshot by a bit, and Centerpoint is behind us. But with the signal that strong, we must be really close."

_Sensors indicate a massive object directly astern,_ PATER reports. _Highly reflective, composition appears artificial with scan traces indicative of bonded superdense alloys. Mass is on the order of one hundred billion metric tons, range two thousand kilometers. Sensors also indicate many smaller masses of varying compositions, ranging from metric-ton to million-metric-ton displacements, moving on independent trajectories under intelligent guidance._

Main Engineering - 07:30

Munro, using the handshake as an opportunity, pulls 'Vouf close enough to touch helmets. The helmet contact transmits a touch of exasperation.

<< Captain, we've got problems. There is only *fifteen* minutes of fuel left. >>

'Vouf's tongue-lolling grin and rapidly-wagging tail are a marked contrast to Munro's worry. << Mm-hmmm, >> he agrees, as if she's just told him that a local restaurant has added raw spiced bloodvark to the menu.

Releasing 'Vouf, Munro turns to the engineering crew, her usual jovial self, no hint of the roiling emotions within her.

'Vouf paces agitatedly behind her, careful not to interrupt but obviously still wound up like a coiled spring. Chiifraa tries to listen to Munro and watch 'Vouf at the same time; Doejin has only slightly better luck.

<< No rest for the wicked, folks, or in this case the engineering crew. Make sure that all bad fuel lines are by-passed and all remaining fuel is sent to Tokamak Two. *Do not* restart Tokamak One until I or the Captain give the order. MacLaeran, the gravitics that are offline stay offline until you hear otherwise. Suggestions on how to reduce power consumption are encouraged. Starting with.. >>

Turning to 'Vouf, Munro leans on the console and looks up at him.

<< ..the following. Captain, suggest the following measures be taken until we can get more fuel. One, if the mason screens aren't off, turn them off immediately. Two, turn off all inertial dampers. Three, do not use the maneuvering thrusters *at all*. Rely on RCS only. Four, turn off meson communication. We can get by on lower energy communications for now. Five, reduce passive sensors to the absolute minimum. I know the scientists will squawk, but they can get their readings later when we've got the energy to spare. >>

Munro hesitates slightly, then resolutely plunges on.

<< Six, reduce Tokamak Two to 20%. I know this is risky, but it's the only way to *really* conserve the fuel we need. Seven, and lastly, get fuel here from this Centerpoint place as soon as possible. >>

"Gravitics in uninhabited sections will remain off-line. We can reduce the gravitic field in inhabited compartments. It will reduce power consumption and save us a tad of fuel. Every little bit helps. Inertial dampers will go off-line on your command."

Munro gazes at 'Vouf, awaiting command decisions.

'Vouf's answering bark is as cheerful as a sunny day. << One, yup, two, yup, three, yup, four, maybe, five, nope, six, make it more like 5%. >>

<< Five percent, >> Hur'Shurvan interjects softly, << is not considered a usable working current... it is more of a 'hot idle,' sir. >>

'Vouf nods at him. << YaFE, Mister Hur'Shurvan! It is indeed! Clever of you. >> His tail wags even harder. << All good suggestions, Chief, except I think the sensors are a false economy. We've still got plenty of battery power for most ship's functions, and we can nip the reactor's tail once in a while for RCS and heavy comms. We did fine through the battle just on batteries, and I think we can stand a bit more of the same as long as everyone's suited up. >>

Uh-oh, thinks Rafe. Runaway charisma.

<< Captain! A moment! >> Again, Munro touches helmets with 'Vouf. << I consider 20% on the remaining reactor risky. In my opinion 5% is just damn crazy. I won't go below 10% without a direct order. >> Green eyes stare into deep blue ones.

'Vouf loses his smile for a moment, then it returns to his muzzle. One hand makes a small motion, a sort of curling wrist-twitch as it makes a fist, then relaxes again. With a small sigh, he says, << Ten percent. >> He then leans back, breaking contact and effectively ending the chat.

Munro backs up from 'Vouf, body tensing at the hand twitch. Then nods complience.

Rafe's eyes widen when he sees the reflexive twitch of 'Vouf's hand. A crucial datum, strongly confirming Hypothesis C! He makes a mental note to take Munro aside sometime soon and fill her in on exactly how close she just came to disaster.

<< However, >> he continues, << Your item Seven is what concerns me most; until we know how far we are from help, I can't tell if One through Six is too much, not enough, or just right. I'm going to get to the Bridge and find out for sure. >> He grins at Munro, bobbing lightly on his toes a few times. << I assume you don't need my help, since the Jump's over with and you now have a whole Power Gang ready and able to help you with this stuff, eh-hrf? >> The last toe-bob becomes a light spring toward the airlock leading forward. << Good luck, >> he tosses over his shoulder and is gone.

<< He craysi-tail Var'kr, ee? >> Chiifraa comments to no one in particular (on the Engineering channel, to avoid 'Vouf's wrath).

<< This is news? >> sighs haut-Frieder, turning to Munro for orders....

Paladin - 7:30

Goughzar rolls off the side of the bunk, dry heaves attempting to push his stomach through his nose.

"Kae!... Ughohhh.

"Pater, you still with us?

_Affirmative, Mister Goughzar._ PATER's voice chimes over the ship-to-ship circuit. _Jump transition is completed. Are you able to cope with the reaction or should I summon a medical team member?_

".. Kharrbyegh, status?"

_All systems at nominal function._ replies the shipboard system. _Life support is optimal. Powerplant is at fifty percent. Engines are at warm-idle. Active sensors are off-line. Mooring clamps are engaged and collar pressure is within specified tolerances._

"Yeah, thanks Pater. Gzou kenegh uy bhasto... How are you after all this?"

Goughzar crawls from his knees on the cabin floor to the fresher sink, slapping the on for the water and letting the spray momentarily drench his face.

_I am fine, thank you for asking._ responds PATER smoothly. _However, I am unclear regarding your response. Did you indicate that you require medical assistance or did you indicate that no assistance was necessary?_

"No medical assistance required."

Very well._ replies PATER. _Shall I advise Elissa bridge that you are available? Given the advanced nature of your ship, they may wish to avail themselves of its sensor capabilities._

Goughzar grabs his helmet from the floor where he dropped it and heads towards the bridge of the Paladin.

"You're beating me to it...", Goughzar smiles half-heartedly. "Kharrbyegh, bring power to full and open full passive sensor sweep.

"Goughzar to Elissa Bridge, Our status is nominal and on-line. Power is coming to full and sensors online and available for your use."

Engineering - 07:31

Travel far away from home, hook up with a bunch of mad scientists, headed up by a crazy Vargr, serve cheek by jowl with quadrupeds, bipeds, and no-peds.

Risk everything to investigate some strange anomoly that modern science has barely speculated about, meet strange new allies and equally strange enemies, then force a crippled ship to Jump just one more time.

It seemed like a perfect way to die, at the end of an unproductive life.

Yet, here he was, still alive, and still breathing thanks to the crazy Vargr's slap on the back.

Father would be pleased that I have once again, been unable to shrug of family duty, even in the teeth of certain death.

Boris gives a muted smile. << Illiana, I'll not be joining you this fine day >>, a mutter all but masked under the happy sounds on the Engineering channel.

Trying not to dwell too long on his emotions, Merkle begins the business of compiling a complete list of damage to the Elissa, adding the new problem spots created by the Jump. His inquiries to PATER are silent and conducted through his terminal as he ponders how only taxes are now a sure thing.

There is a sigh, almost of boredom, then a deep voice says, "Home again." FixesThings gets up from the terminal and straightens to his full height in a joint popping stretch. Then, facing Monroe,"Requesting assignment".

Bex Hops from head to shoulder and back in his own version of a 'stretch'. "Yes, requesting assignment, what's next? Any _food_ machines need fixing? I'm hungry."

Bridge - 07:31

<< We are honored by your words, Captain, and I shall do as you wish. Your return to the Bridge will be much anticipated. Bridge out. >>

Stubbs nods. "That sounds like Centerpoint, all right," he smiles. "If we have the power, I'd advise turning us around. If not, we should look at a rear scanner if there's one still operational."

"We should also tune to 323.3 Megacycles for Air/Space Traffic Control, and identify ourselves as soon as possible, so they can get some scuttlepods out to us for a tow. Especially if we don't have the fuel to maintain altitude." Stubbs turns to Akhouw. "With your permission, sir...?"

Akhouw holds up a massive restraining hand. "One moment." He turns to address Aiwi. "Report immediate power reserve, maneuver drive status, and sensor capability, if you please."

Stubbs nods and waits for Aiwi to collate the needed data. He scans the viewscreens once more, trying to spot a landmark of some kind outside, and shuts down the sections of his console relating to the Jump. He then steps over to the Comms station and waits for Zben...

"At once, My Lord," Aiwi says with a tremor too faint for any but Akhouw to hear in her voice. Tabor's eyes narrow as he sees her brush a strand of hair back from her face with a hand that shakes slightly; Christian also notes the movement. Both doctors remember Aiwi's Jump-sickness rating, but she scans her status panel and reports to the Commander with her usual crispness and no hint of distress.

Awaiting her report, Akhouw gazes at her, calmly, with a quiet flash of sympathy.

"We have lost one of our two reactors, My Lord." reports Aiwi. "At half power, we have enough fuel to maintain full reactor operation for one quarter hour; this does not include maneuver drives, although I daresay Count Ger will have sufficient power for station-keeping on thrusters alone. Maneuver drives cannot be brought on line with our remaining fuel reserves, but we still have full sensor capability except where there was previous battle damage."

As Zben listens to the engineering evaluation a thought strikes him. He turns to his board, sets up a couple of circuit patches, and tests them. With a shake he clears one, and tries another, this seeming to satisfy him.

Aiwi flicks a comms switch at her panel and states, << Crew Chief to Engineering. Chief Munro, your team's performance was quite acceptable. I trust you will display similar resourcefulness in extending our fuel reserves? Aiwi out. >> She flicks off the channel without waiting for a reply, and turns to face Akhouw once more, awaiting his next directive.

He pauses as Aiwi makes herself known in engineering, in the meanwhile digesting her news. Akhouw seems as if he is being forced to take a long draught of castor oil. Plainly, he's not happy, yet unable to find a viable alternative.

Akhouw sighs, making a gesture of acceptance toward Aiwi. "Use the scanners as best you can to unveil the area of space aft." His head turns momentarily. "Mister Blaine, establish the channel previously requested."

Akhouw's head swivels over to Zben. "Tune to 323.3 Megacycles and prepare to open a channel for Captain Stubbs." His gaze falls again upon his Crew Chief to await her report.

Zben's lays in the frequency, opening the receiver to his station. He checks the transmitter linkage and swivels the array to aft. From base 323.3 he sets the VDV (Voice/Data/Video) channels. The linkage check comes back OK. A second later all is ready, only awaiting the order to proceed.

"Sir?" Blaine interrupts, addressing Akhouw, with a gesture to Aiwi. "With your permission I can cross connect to the transmitters in the Khtaliyr, saving us some fuel. The Khtaliyr is in warm-idle, so to bring just the transmitter array on line would only take.." he glances at his consol.."25 seconds. From that point we could use the Khtaliyr and its scanners as well if we needed any active EMS."

"Errr?" Akhouw's concentration is broken by Blaine's interruption. He waves a hand in Zben's vague direction. "Yes, yes, as you see fit, Mr. Blaine." He turns from this minor irritant back to the crisis management.

Zben grimaces to himself `I know better than that! Damn jump musta shaken me more than I want to admit.' He activates the tested links, and opens an audio channel to the AST control frequency.

As Blaine hooks up the link, a soft audio signal washes over the bridge in a soft undertone, not enough to disturb the dialogue in progress elsewhere:

<< --in, please. This is CenterPoint High Port Air/Space Traffic Control calling the starship 'Elissa' recently reported at Jump-in plus two point two plus three kilometers. Come in please. This is Centerpoint High Port... >>

The voice repeats the message calmly and smoothly, without any show of emotion; it is probably simulated.

Akhouw's sharp ears pick up the gentle sigh of the repeating message; Blaine is tuning on the precise frequency even now. Aiwi gives her mane a tiny shake, and turns to bringing up the sensor data views.

There are several close harmonics and `ghost echos' that make the turning a slight exercise for Zben. Glancing up at his spectrum display he's pleased to note there seems to be no appreciable doppler. `Where ever we are, we're not moving much.' He keys his mike...

"Centerpoint Control, this is the starship Elissa. Stand by one..." He nods to Akhouw.

Akhouw's tone hardens, subtly. "Captain Stubbs?" As Stubbs turns, Akhouw slowly nods. "You may proceed..."

"Fiya', lakhtAkhouw," Stubbs says, returning the nod deferentially. He strides over to the side of the Bridge and up the short step to the Comms station, to stand beside Blaine. As Blaine acknowledges the link, he waits for a chance to speak.

Zben opens a line to Stubbs suit mike, turns and nods `go ahead' to the Captain.

Just as Stubbs begins to speak Zben gets a incoming message alert from PATER, which he to his headset:

<< Goughzar to Elissa Bridge, Our status is nominal and on-line. Power is coming to full and sensors online and available for your use. >>

With a smile Zben taps a message out to Aiwi's console: {{ PALADIN SENSORS AVAILABLE - CONNECT TO YOUR CONSOLE? }}.

Main Engineering - 07:33

Munro watches 'Vouf leave, wondering how bad she's strained their budding friendship. Shaking her head, she sees Morser about to leave Engineering.

<< Dr. Morser. I'm assuming the Science Team needs you more than the Engineering Team right now. Thank you for your assistance. >> There is an edge to her voice.

Morser barely responds upon hearing his name, unable to tear his eyes from the sensor feeds on his wristcomp << Hah? Ah, yes, yes...any time, fraulein... >>

Turning to the rest of the crew, Munro continues. << Hur'Shurvan, will you please drop Tokamak Two down to 10% and then will you assist me in monitoring the Power Plant? We've got to watch this baby like a hawk at a vole hole. At 10%, is going to be pure 'ell to keep it calibrated. >>

<< I recognize the difficulty of the task at hand, >> the great Virush nods, << I will assist you as best I can, Chief. >> He turns to his console and begins to gently ease power down.

Nodding to Merkle and MacLaeran << You guys know your systems. You know best what's critical and what isn't. Power drains are bad and need to be stopped immediately. haut-Frieder, coordinate/supervise the repairs and new crew. >>

<< OK, boss. >> In addition to having cut gravity in unoccupied sections, Angus begins looking at reducing gravity in other non-essential areas. << Pater, please prepare a list of non-critical areas were we can reduce gravity to conserve power. Base power conservation levels on reducing those areas to 0.5G. >>

Angus then toggles to a bridge frequency. << Maneuvering, this is MacLaeran. I need to coordinate cutting power to the inertial dampers immediately. >>

<< At once, Chief. Hup to, gentlemen, >> haut-Frieder says, getting up and stretching.

Moving toward the Power Plant station, Munro again sweeps the group with her gaze.

<< Mainly, we've got to keep the Elissa running on a bare trickle of power. Concentrate on those repairs that contribute to that goal. Other than that, use your discretion. haut-Frieder, will you double check that Pater's still up and running? Hopefully, he can help prioritize the repairs. >>

_I am at full operating status, modulo several locations in which my sensory input is curtailed due to battle damage,_ PATER replies smoothly. _You have my thanks for your concern. I am preparing an ordered list of repairs now._

The glance around brings Alliara and Aolrkhea' into view. Munro hesitates, Alliara's sickness partly evident by the ghastly facial color. Seeing Aolrkhea' tending to Alliara, Munro nods sympathetically and then glances quickly at Merkle. Seeing that he is holding up, she moves on to Bex and FixesThings. Murno tries vainly to draw a bead on the fast moving comet. << Bex, that's about the third time I've heard you ask for food. How often do you *need* to eat? >>

<< Pe ALLA time, >> Chiifraa chortles. <>

Bex responds defensively, << At least I have stomach enough for jump! >>, then as if remembering Monroe, << I eat once each hour and carry three hours food with me. >>

A note is duly made in Rafe's mental file on Bex.

Munro nods, noting the time on her datebook window.

<< Good. In an two hours or less, we should be settled enough so that you and Fixes can take a break. Until then, can you two see about performing some more miracles with the damaged wiring? Aaron and PATER can direct you. >>

FixesThings turns to Aaron.

<< Lets go. Pater, list prioritized electrical damage. >>

PATER begins to reel off a list of shorted and loosened parts throughout all eight decks of Engineering. Most are rerouted to backups, but a few are critical in the short term. Aaron gets a hard copy of the listing and leads the others out. << Mind the store, Morgan and Da-- >> he sighs. << --I mean, Chiifraa.>>

<< I'm on it, >> Grey sighs, eyes on the monitors.

As they prepare to depart, Bex takes a parting shot at Chiffra by jumping onto the back of his helmet and rebounding back onto Fix's shoulder and hopping out of reach to the giant's head.

Chiifraa's head bounces forward a few centimeters at the impact and he spares a moment for an over-the-shoulder glance and an angry chitter in what might be his native tongue before joining Morgan at the monitor station.

As Alliara's retching fit subsides into dry coughing, she sits heavily on the deck and twists the the helmet off the suit. The suit scrapes against 'Khea's med-monitor with a rasping scrape, followed by the thud of the helmet against same, causing Alliara to half-twist as she sits down and end up in an untidy heap on the deck.

"Blasted jumps," she says, wearily and hoarsely. "Hate 'em. Hate 'em."

Looking around, she notices Munro's gaze and smiles weakly --- "Well, are we out of it? I want my sophonts back. I want my peace back. In fact, I would really like to go back, by I'll settle for sophonts."

Rafe sighs, briefly fantasizing about performing Ssoyrithkeen Aynit (the Six Ritual Indignities of Droyne inter-clan warfare) on Alliara's lifeless corpse.

Munro's sympathetic expression is chased by various others until all that is left is a grim continence. She is visibly restraining herself.

<< Mister Niigurd. It would be advisable if you were to replace your helmet immediately. Otherwise, you are likely to sear your lungs and it will require extensive surgery to replace them. Also, we are still under emergency conditions requiring us to be suited at all times. We don't know what came in with the outside 'vacumn' or if the invaders sprayed the engineering spaces with bio-material. You may well be subjecting yourself to unknown contagions. >>

Not to mention making a disgraceful spectacle of your lack of balance and self-control, Rafe mentally appends.

Alliara activates her comdot.

Turning to 'Khea, she adds, "Well, do you think I need the pill?"

Looming over Alliara, a paw is thrust down. Snorting at the presumed wisecrack, 'Khea replies, "No medication is necessary at this time. However, it would be best if you left this compartment."

'Khea presses chin to commdot, << Jan, Engineering is back to the way it usually is. But with unexplained siezures, psychosomatic reactions, and the new species aboard, I would like to have half of engineering pass by sickbay for a quick check. >>

Bridge - 07:35

Stubbs says calmly, "This is Randall Stubbs, Captain of Event Horizon Flare Ship Hamilcar, navigator aboard. Who is this, please?"

The well-modulated voice is quick to respond. << This is M. Ernestine, Captain. What is your status and the status of the Hamilcar? >>

Stubbs grins. "I'm fine, Ern. I wish I could say the same for the Elissa; she's still spaceworthy but not jumpworthy, and besides having a lot of battle damage she's nearly dry. We have stationkeeping capability for approximately three hours at current fuel expenditure. The Hamilcar is undamaged, and should be in-jumping momentarily."

_Videolink stabilizing,_ PATER reports. An image appears on Zben's console of a busy control room very much like that at any starport's control tower; facing the monitor is a sight that might be startling to someone who has not recieved shock after shock in the past few hours-- the technician at the console is a Hiver, its eyestalks entwined with a fine tracery of intricate cybernetic equipment. Six glassy eyes regard Blaine incuriously, as a set of tentacles flicks across the keys of a small voder.

Akhouw makes a mental note at this sight, a sharp flick from his tail the only visual sign.

Stubbs continues, "There are injured aboard the Elissa, but I don't have any information on number or severity of casualties as yet. Based on what I've seen, one decent-sized trauma team should be plenty to meet us."

<< Noted and ready for dispatch, >> Ernestine replies. << I assume that the Hamilcar, if undamaged, can make port with only minimal assistance, but your data on the Elissa suggests that a passive-guided approach would be nonfeasible. Do you require active assistance in approach and docking? >>

As Stubbs listens, the door to the Bridge hisses open and Bhyarrvouf strides in hurriedly, running a hand through his shaggy headfur and scratching his ears. He is still panting slightly, and those who know him well recognize the signs of a recent sprint down the length of the ship. He signals for Akhouw to retain the conn, and joins Stubbs at the comms station.

Akhouw is already standing a mere fraction of a second after 'Vouf enters the bridge, one paw resting lightly on the arm of the command chair. A shallow nod acknowledges 'Vouf's signal, as Akhouw remains standing and turns to the status display in the main holotank. His eyes study them intently while his ears remain tuned to the captains.

Softly, 'Vouf asks Stubbs, "What's up?"

"We've made contact with Centerpoint Air/Space Traffic Control. They want to know if we need a tow...would you like to do the honors?"

'Vouf blinks. "Me? It's your port...."

"It's your ship," Stubbs counters with a grin.

<< Repeating. Do you require active assistance in approach and docking? >>

'Vouf turns to the video link, and almost subconsciously stands a bit straighter in his bloodstained vac-suit. "This is Captain Bhyarrvouf BaHaThagk-Kabra, commanding the--" He pauses for a moment. "--The Event Horizon....Dazzle Ship....Elissa." He smiles, and his tail wags almost imperceptibly. "We are requesting a tow and use of drydock facilities at once, and will endeavour to maintain our position on our limited fuel supply until help arrives."

The alien countenance betrays no flicker of interest in this speech. << What is your NOE velocity rating, streamline code and displacement? >>

"Hnh? Krrrrell, I don't know the NOE clocking offhand. But she's an Aeolus-class tender, configured 4SL, displacement fifty kilotons. She's hauling four riders, all streamlined."

<< Your request has been filed and timestamped, Captain, and we are dispatching all available Heavy Retrieval Pods at once. Z.O.E.T.A. one hundred forty minutes. We will maintain an idle link at this frequency until it is time to coordinate docking procedures; approach will be handled by the Pod pilots. Control over and holding. >> The signal is broken, replaced by the soft hum of an active carier wave and a wash of static on the videolink.

'Vouf looks vaguely annoyed. "Why all the questions?"

"They need to know how many Pods to send out, and how fast they can tow the Elissa before she starts to heat up in the atmosphere. The ASTC doesn't get many totally crippled five-up-four-ton ships, Bhyarrvouf."

"I s'pose not. Now what?"

"Now, we wait."

Security - 07:35

After waiting in silence for several minutes Rigo at last relaxes. "Well, people," he says. "The good news is that we're alive and that noone is shooting at us. The bad news is that Bridge has forgotten about us..."

"I'm beginnin' ta think that's SOP," Horne remarks under his breath.

"PATER." Rigo continues. "Give us a status report. Where are we, what's happening, and can you get us a visual of this Centerpoint place?"

_I am afraid the only data available is from Doppler-mapped EMS._ PATER apologizes. _Here is a live feed from the scientific team, courtesy of mister Abuko._

One of the security monitors switches to an enhanced, 'false-color' image of what appears to be Centerpoint. A huge irregular wheel, studded with countless projections and fixtures, hangs suspending in the center of the tube. A superimposed scale shows it to be approximately 10 km. in diameter, floating just inside the plasma layer. Hundreds (at least) of small vehicles swarm like insects in the vicinity of the huge structure.

_We are stationary, approximately two thousand kilometers from Centerpoint. The bridge has contacted the local air traffic control center and support vehicles have been dispatched to assist us into port._

Main Engineering - 07:35-07:45

Consulting Life Support displays, Boris starts priorizing areas of the Elissa for Life Support. Tops on the list are Low Berths, Sickbay, Bridge, Science, and those parts of Engineering that can hold atmosphere.

He flags lighting to remain at Jump levels throughout the ship, and after reviewing the rest of the status display, decides that as much as folks might want it, they'll have to wait for a snack or a slurp.

In the interests of crew morale, he configures a paging signal to his commdot should anyone want to alter his settings.

When the damage list PATER is working on is finally finished, Boris zaps it off to the Bridge, Chief Munro and his fellow Engineers.

Sensor Pit - 07:35

Keeping one eye on the screen and the other (usually) on where he's going, Karl wends his way rapidly towards the sensor suite, where his talents may be more appropriately used than they were in cleaning up the combat mess in engineering (sniff).

His eyes barely leave his arm until he reaches the entrance to the 'suite, when he seems to come alive again.

"Vell, vat's new in here?" he says, moving towards his old seat.

As Morser settles into his console seat, Werner, Hyrawi, Witfield, Smythe, and Schmud are arrayed around the holo-tank contemplating a frozen image of the Wire.

"I'd give a year's pay to have the active EMS back on line." growls Werner.

"Indeed," agrees Hyrawi, "But, but engineering must have valid reasons for deactivating them. Perhaps our fuel state is more critical than we suspect."

"Yah," intones Morser, "ze whole place vas shot to hell durink ze chump... several fuel lines blew, und vun of ze tokamaks vent down. I zincerely hope ve are close enuff to Zenterpoint to get a tow in."

"They don't take *that* much..." starts Werner when he is interrupted by the compartment door hissing open again.

"Sorry 'bout that," calls Abuko, "but family comes first."

"I *thought there was a passing resemblance." snickers Witfield under his breath.

"Sorry, I didn't get that." Abuko responds.

"I said, 'Maybe you can make some passing semblance of all this.'" replies Witfield.

"Nice zave..," mumbles Karl, under his breath.

"Oh, sure." Abuko slides into one of the periphery seats and his hands begin dancing over the controls.

"PATER, give me layout Abuko-twelve." directs Johann. The panel dances for a moment and then settles into a new configuration.

While Abuko works, Werner points at the holo-tank. "Karl, we got one good snapshot before the actives were taken off-line. According to PATER, there is a large artificial mass approximately two thousand kilometers dead astern. Presumably, it's that Centerpoint place." gesturing around the periphery of the tank, he adds, "The area in our immediate vicinity, and as far forward as we can measure, is completely smooth and almost totally reflective across the entire EM spectrum."

"Ach! Perrhaps it is best ve do not haf active EMS chust yet... you rrrremember ze problems ve had ze last time out?" He gives Werner a conspratorial wink.

"Apparently, it is bare 'floor' of this continuum. Ostyn and I have been speculating on it's nature, but we lack the raw data to do even *that* effectively." Slapping his hand on the console, he snaps, "Damn! We need active sensors."

As if by magic, the holo-tank image jumps into superlatively sharp focus and animation. Waves of sensor data begin to flow unbidden across the base of the display.

"As and ye shall receive." grins Abuko and he slowly turns to face the astonished team of scientists. The smile on his face spreads even further when he sees the looks of utter confusion on their faces.

"What... how...?" stammers Werner.

"Zum teufel!" says Morser, taken aback.

"*Neat* trick, Johann!" exclaims Witfield.

"What *he* said." adds Schmud.

"But... the active EMS is off-line." Hyrawi frowns. "Have you overridden the bridge and engineering controls? The Captain will have your ears."

"Oh ye of little faith." replies Abuko. "I've done nothing of the kind." Reaching back for the console, he presses a single button.

"Listen to this."

*** PING! ---ing ---ing ---ing ---ing ***

The echoing chime fills the room, slowly fading away. Ten seconds later, there is another pulse, and then another ten seconds after that.

"That, ladies and gentlemen," explains Abuko, "is the Centerpoint beacon, or so the bridge tells us. Broadcasting continuously at seven point eight eight three megahertz and throwing one *hell* of a big EM shadow."

Witfield gets it immediately.

"You're..."

"Yup." smiles Abuko. "Their active EM works just as good as our active EM, if you listen for the right thing."

"Clever pup!" nods Hyrawi.

"Excellent, Johann!" exclaims Werner. "Absolutely fantastic!" The accolades are echoed by the other scientists as well.

"Thanks." Abuko acknowledges. "Good thing the EMS arrays are buried in the hull, or we wouldn't have *anything* useful left after those assholes jumped us back there."

Hyrawi begins to absorb the new wave of information.

"Look here, doctor Smythe." she points at the holo-tank. "Irregular terrain begins to form at fourteen hundred and fifty kilometers from us. This must be the boundary of the accretion that the Centerpoint culture inhabits."

"Interrresting... Is zere any localized gravity dirrection? Can ve tell if ve are 'falling' in any given dirrection?"

"Dunno." replies Abuko. "I'm only getting a usable pulse every ten seconds but it *looks* like we're maintaining a stationary position. If we're moving, we're doing it too slowly for the sensors to detect."

"There's an artifact here." add Schmud. "It almost blocks the tube all the way across."

"Looks like an old wagon wheel." comments Mac.

"If that represents a suspended city of some kind," ponders Werner, "how are the supports *anchored*?" Then he considers, "No, it has to be attitude jets. That must be how they keep it in place."

Peering over his shoulder, Morser thinks out loud, "Is it rrrotating? Perhaps zere is some centrifugal component to it stability... Using jets to stabilize someting zat size vould haff a bit of delay between zn instability und a corrrection...ve should see zome wavering in its motion...".

"I think it's fixed." offers Johann. "The radar image is fuzzy at this range, but these projections..." he gestures," here... and here, haven't changed position in the last four snapshots."

Abuko continues to tinker with his console. A minute or two pass.

"The pulse isn't as clean as this Stubbs guy makes it out to be." He mutters. "Hey, guys, look at this." A time vs. amplitude chart pops up on one of Abuko's overhead displays.

"Here's the nav beacon, every ten seconds." He points at a huge spike in the signal. "Now, it's really every nine point eight seconds. And in between the spikes there's all this noise." Abuko applies a clipping algorithm and zooms in on the inter-pulse chart section.

"See? It looks like random noise." he gestures, "But when you look closely," the jagged line zooms again, "a pattern starts to emerge."

Abuko taps a couple more keys and a filter is applied. The signal becomes less cluttered. "This is about one point five orders of magnitude enhanced." He pauses, and then points to a section that repeats over and over again. "Check out this weird pattern." He adds, "It repeats every fourteen seconds, regular as clockwork. You know..." Abuko pauses, "it reminds me of the doppler pulse in a fire- control radar, if you slow it *waaaay* down."

Hyrawi interrupts, "Excuse me, but it is something else." She turns to Morser and Werner.

"It's an Arlalru' Wave. I'm sure of it. Look here." She steps out of the holo-pit and advances to Abuko's station.

Intrigued, Karl follows her closely.

"See?" Pointing at the magnification, she continues, "The classic two-three-seven beat, very faint, but repeated over and over again."

Werner scowls and leans forward. "You're... right. It's a gravity wave echo."

"Indeed, mein freund... zis could be verrry interestink..." Karl agrees as he starts making some calculations.

"What's an Arlalru'?" prompts Abuko.

"Not 'what'," replies Werner, "but rather 'who'."

"Arlalru' was a great Aslan physicist." Hyrawi says almost reverently. "She discovered the wave in the year 1151, which would about -1069 by the Imperial calendar. Her field of study was super-gravity and its practical application in the fields of warfare and transportation."

"As I recall," Werner offers up a rare smile, "she was quite good at soliciting 'research grants'."

"Hrrr, yes indeed." responds Hryawi. "She made excellent use of inter-clan hostilities and paranoia during the first border wars, always convincing one clan leader after another to fund her research, so as to avoid being left behind in the great expansion. The Clan Yerlyaruiwo finally executed her for treason in 1178, but not before she made a number of significant breakthroughs in theoretical phyics."

"The wave." prods Abuko. "What about the wave?"

"Oh, yes." Hyrawi replies, "The wave was one of her crowning acheivements. She discovered that normal matter resonates in a specific fashion after violent, but non-destructive exposure to super-gravity. Most of her work was done in asteroid belts or stellar super-halos."

"Oort clouds." offers Werner.

"Arlalru' discovered a subatomic vibration," continues Hyrawi, "this two, three, seven beat that emanates from normal matter following exposure to a super-gravity source. This pattern decays exponentially with time, but never fades completely. Sophisticated computer modeling can sometimes detect multiple super-gravity exposure, which result in severely distorted patterns. It is theorized that with a sufficiently sensitive detector, one could use the pattern intensity detected in normal matter to locate the original site of the Big Bang. However, since the detector itself would be constructed of material which also emanates the pattern, that sensitivity could never be achieved."

"Qvite zo, frau Hyrrrawi, but our materrrials do not," he says with a devilish grin spreading across his face. "Ve'll need our full zenzor arrays back, und a fair amount of time, but ve should be able to find ze center point ... of ... hmmmmm...zenter ... nahhh, zat's too zimple... vell, ze point is, ve can check zat mitout much trouble, I expect. In ze meantime, I've been trying to calculate ze age of ziz place, based on chust zat deterioration you mentioned..."

Werner opens his mouth, but Hyrawi beats him to the punch.

"Actually, Dr. Morser, our materials also radiate the pattern. Otherwise this one would be different than the one we expect to see in N-space."

Werner grins, "You realise what that suggests, don't you?"

"Well... yes." responds Hyrawi. "It suggests the mono-block explosion was unique and multi-dimensionally uniform."

"Super-gravity, huh?" murmers Abuko. He stares look and hard at the holo-tank.

"Manfred," quips Witfield, "You're starting to look like a kid in a toy store with an open-ended charge card."

"Yah, my dear," Morser replies, "but if ze resonance in our vessel's ztructure matches ze resonance of Zenterpoint, zen ve vill know zat ve are either ztill in our own univerrse, or zat ze materials used to conztruct zis place at least came frrrrom our own universe. In zience, you know," he says with a wink, " every fact is valuable."

"Vell, PATER," he says, turning to his console, "can you corrrelate ze rythyms in our ztructures?"

_One moment please, doctor Morser._ acknowledges PATER. _I will compare mister Abuko's sample to our database._

A moment passes, then PATER continues, _The pattern is similar to, but does not exactly match, any of the Arlalru' patterns on record._

"That's inconclusive." states Werner. "It only means that this wave contains interaction with a different set of super-gravity sources." TO BE CONTINUED...

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