Angels Among Demons

Posted on Mon Jun 22nd, 2020 @ 12:39am by Ensign T'Kemi & Lieutenant Kalin Brennan-Griffin PhD & Lieutenant Commander James Smith
Edited on on Tue Jul 7th, 2020 @ 2:01pm

Mission: Into the Wild
Location: The Carnage
Timeline: After "Gates of Hell"

A Mission Post by Ensign T'Kemi & Lieutenant Kalin 'Shae' Brennan PhD & Lieutenant James Smith
Mission: Into The Wild
Location: The Carnage
Timeline: After "Gates of Hell"
Mon Mar 5th, 2018 @ 6:50am


With Captain Temple and Tisar Zemel off to meet Balek, that left Lieutenant Smith and Ensign T'Kemi to their own devices in the corridor. Of course, neither of them looked like Starfleet officers; indeed, T'Kemi looked downright frightening. The small Vulcan woman had opted to replicate a night-black full-body set of armour, including an animalistic helmet and faceplate that completely obscured her pretty features. The replicated armour was purely aesthetic given how it had been replicated, but it still looked quite intimidating.

"Lieutenant," T'Kemi said quietly to Smith, her voice distorted by her helmet, "I believe that we need to hurry. They have found the Pandora much faster than the captain expected."

Smith looked around and said, “Agreed, our first objective is to take out the guards posted at the doors of this bay. We are authorized to use deadly force if necessary.” Smith looked around and looked down at a small display barely visible in the sleeve of his jacket and smiled his little surprise had been delivered. Looking at T’Kemi he said, “I uploaded a virus to the Carnage main computer system, it will effect their sensors and weapons for a time causing them to not work properly. While it will slow them down some are goal is to stop this ship at all cost.” Reaching for a crud looking dagger he had attached to his boot he motioned to the door.

Looking back at the Ensign he said, “ Let’s take care of our guards. We need to be moving before the bridge realizes theirs an issue with their computer and fix it.”

"Yes sir," T'Kemi whispered with a solemn nod that looked quite odd for one who looked so fearsome. The Vulcan ensign was quite spectacularly out of her depth on such a mission, only a year out of the Academy, but she nevertheless took hold of the handle of the stun baton on her belt. "According to Mister Zemel's directions, the warp core is eleven decks below us. I will follow your lead, sir."

Smith and the Ensign quickly took care of their guards and dragged them back into the bay that they were in. Smith quickly looked down the hall at the lightly illuminated hallway. Smith smiled as the computer started to shut down systems. Problem was he hasn’t had time to insert a program that would disable the weapons system.

Smith led the way to an access shaft and quickly open it up and waited for T’Kemi to climb in before he followed and closed the shaft behind them. Smith look down at T’Kemi and said, “Be careful once we reach the warp core, it could be heavily guarded.”

"I suspect that this is a reasonable assumption," T'Kemi replied gravely as she deftly crouched down and crawled into the access tube. It was, she realised, a thoroughly different experience to crawling through a Jeffries tube back on the Pandora. The access shaft was poorly lit and even more cramped, not to mention horribly hot, even for a Vulcan. T'Kemi couldn't even looked back to check on Smith, and she simply had to hope that his human physiology would be able to cope with the extreme conditions.

Smith reached up and wiped the sweat from his forehead, he had done survival courses in the harshes of conditions, but this was really taxing his reserves.

Much later, after they reached a ladder in a tall junction, the two saboteurs finally had a little room to breathe. Without hesitation, and now sweating profusely, T'Kemi took off her ridiculous full body armour, leaving her in a much more logical tank top and uniform pants while retaining her weapons.

"Lieutenant," she said as she pulled out a tricorder, checking the schematics. "I believe that Engineering is directly below us, down this ladder. it is a long climb, more than sixty meters, but it offers a direct and quick access route." The ensign hesitated, then tapped a few more controls. "I believe that we can listen to the auditory environment in Engineering through the tricorder. It may proffer a tactical advantage before we begin our assault. Accessing."

As the auditory environment was accessed, the first thing to sound off from the tricorder was disruptor fire, and a lot of it. Indistinguishable shouting could be heard, then suddenly:

"Where did it go?!"

"Just find it while I contact the Bri-"

The voice speaking was cut short by a gurgling gasp.

"Open fire, OPEN FIRE!"

There was a cacophony of weapon's fire until quite suddenly it grew eerily silent and all that could be heard was the thrum of the warp core.

T'Kemi waited a beat, perplexed, then looked to Smith, her eyebrow raised. "That was...unexpected," she commented impassively.

Smith was just as perplexed as the Ensign, unsure what had just happened Smith said, “Ensign run a scan of the engineering department, we need to figure out what happened and plan our assault accordingly.”

Tapping at her tricorder, T'Kemi shook her head before wiping the sweat from her brow with her arm. "It is difficult to ascertain a clear reading given the volatility of the Ravager warp core, but I am still registering many lifesigns, sir. I do not understand what we heard given the circumstances." Then the bulkheads and deck shuddered mightily, and if anything, the awful confines of the intersection got even hotter, the great thrum of the EPS conduits getting noticeably louder. The Vulcan woman grimly folded her tricorder and looked at Smith. "It appears that the battle has begun."

In Engineering, the battle was already done! The Ravager crew were scattered about, a few were dead but most of the were alive and unconscious and bound together so they couldn't get into trouble once they woke. The cause of all this? A tiny unassuming woman in all black, and she worked at the main console for the warp core, occasionally checking a timepiece tucked under the cuff of her bodysuit sleeve. Where was the Away Team? She had already figured out that Nyx had been captured and taken to the Bridge, but she couldn't move ahead with the rest of the rescue until she knew where the others were, she couldn't risk them getting caught in the crossfire! But time was of the essence and she couldn't hold off for much longer...

Smith looked down at the readings that were coming from engineering. He opened the access hatch to engeneering and peered inside. The place was a mess , the crew was in a disarray and looking for ways to escape. Firing a few shots at a couple ravengers he made his way into engineering. Taking a position outside the open shaft he waited until the ensign was clear and weapons drawn. Looking around he said, “Let’s round up the engendering crew that’s left and assist in getting the engine room buttoned up.” Looking around Smith said, “Once we are done here we need to make our way to the bridge.”

T'Kemi took a breath, and then after a brief three-count, the two Starfleeters burst out of the hatch, weapons drawn, ready for battle...

...only to find nothing there. Bodies were strewn all over the deck, with scorched walls telling of a great deal of weapons fire, but there wasn't a single conscious Ravager anywhere to be found. Indeed, some of them appeared dead, while most were merely unconscious, although there was no sign of what they'd fallen victim too. Even more confused than before, and now looking somewhat unnerved with how she sharply aimed her phaser at every shadow, T'Kemi gradually stepped forward with Smith.

Then she spotted one conscious individual, working away on the warp core, and T'Kemi immediately aimed her phaser at the mysterious person. "Lieutenant," she hissed, "contact." The ensign's sweaty grip on her weapon tightened as she examined the individual from behind: clearly feminine with a long braid of dark hair and wearing a tight bodysuit.

The figure at the warp core heard movement and turned sharply, a carbon composite blade in each hand ready to be thrown. But then she saw who was approaching and her posture relaxed. "Took you long enough," Shae remarked dryly.

Smith relaxed a bit when he recognized Shae and smiled before replying “we had to take a more scenic route to get here and it looks like we missed all the fun.” Looking around Smith said, “What’s the status of the ship.” Without waiting for a reply he said, “We need to get the bridge”

Shae frowned at Smith. "What is it, status or the bridge?" Shae countered in a stern tone; surely as an Intel Officer, he should not be so fickle! "The Captain is on the Bridge, alive as best I can tell, and the Carnage and Pandora are exchanging blows; I was in the process of tipping the odds in the Pandora's favor, but we can leave now if you insist," Shae briefed them, crossing her arms over her chest; clearly, she was not in favor of leaving before her task was done.

“The captain’s safety is our highest priority,” T’Kemi interjected demurely, concerned (and, though she would never admit it, a little intimidated) by Lieutenant Brennan’s behaviour. The scientist had a reputation for cheerful shyness, and T’Kemi had even heard a few bawdy comments about Brennan’s meek demeanour from her male comrades in Security. Thankfully that had all been stopped by the senior enlisted long before Lieutenant Griffin had caught wind of it, but now, with Brennan standing there calmly amidst such a perilous situation, having easily dispatched of two dozen Ravagers single-handedly...this was new. Who was this woman?

Then T’Kemi raised a hand, listening intently. “The weapons fire has stopped.”

"Then it's time for the finishing blow," Shae said, turning her attention back to the console. With a few keystrokes, all the lights dimmed, leaving only the red emergency lighting. And then the self destruct warning started. She retrieved a small tricorder from her belt and transferred some data, then with a snap of the tricorder, she was done. "Alright, let's go get the Captain."