by Commander Salvek
80516.2300
After Help is on the Way Part 2
80516.2300
After Help is on the Way Part 2
"We are sixty seconds from the landing site." Hok said.
Salvek watched the port and starboard sides of the ship to make sure they did not lose any paint. Hok reduced their speed and elevation and guided the shuttle smoothly through the open doors and into the abandoned bay.
"Try to avoid contact with the people on the planet until we reach the medical center." Salvek took one final review of his supplies. Phaser, tricorder, medkit, water and rations. Hok powered down the engines and secured the shuttle.
Each man gathered up his pack and walked down the shuttle's ramp into the warehouse. As the old saying goes, the silence was deafening. O'Sullivan took the lead and led them out. He scanned continuously and detected no life signs, but that meant little to Keiran. He had seen too many tricks to fool a tricorder in his years, and given the nature of the people of Stra II, he had no doubt they could be lurking anywhere waiting for the chance to ambush an unsuspecting away team.
In the distance there was the glow of artificial light, the only illumination to be seen, and a clear indication or where the medical center was located.
Using his tricorder as a source, Salvek was able to provide enough power to the bay doors to shut them and seal the shuttlecraft safely inside. He fell in line alongside Hok and Breaux as Keiran lead the group out of the warehouse lot and onto the street. The businesses and apartment buildings around them were all dark and quiet.
"Where have all the people gone?" Avery wondered out loud.
"This society worships technology much like a typical culture worships a deity or higher power." Salvek mused.
"Then they would go to the only place where they can get what they need." Hok said.
"Aye lad, and that is exactly the direction we are headin' in as well." O’Sullivan warned the group that trouble was likely ahead. He continued to sweep his tricorder back and forth along their path, keeping the group out of the middle of the street and close to the building where they wouldn't be seen as easily.
The glow of the medical center grew brighter now, and the sound of many distant voices could be heard. No doubt there were people at the medical center- a LOT of people.
O'Sullivan raised his hand suddenly and the group stopped. Keiran focused on his tricorder while Salvek unclipped his phaser just in case.
"Is there a problem Commander?"
Keiran never had a chance to respond to Salvek's query. Faster than anyone could react, a figure leapt from the awning of the business they had stopped in front of, taking out Dane Cristiane at the rear of the group.
Cristiane yelled as he unexpectedly found himself face to face with the sidewalk that had so recently been beneath his feet. The assailant snatched Dane's dropped phaser up off the ground.
"Nobody move!"
The man's dark hair was ruffled and his eyes wide open and wild. Looking at him you would think he had just spent a month in the jungle, not a few hours without power and computers.
Salvek held his phaser, but kept it at his hip in a non-threatening manner. The attacker had Dane's weapon, but had not adjusted it above stun, and there were five men in Salvek's team, and only one Strasa. The worst that could happen is one of them gets stunned, but Salvek hoped the situation could be resolved without the use of any weapons.
Dane dragged himself to his feet and joined his comrades.
"Are you all right?" Avery asked, noting a few scrapes and a trickle of blood.
"I've had worse." Cristiane spat, in the direction of the Strasa.
"May I inquire as to the nature of your unprovoked attack?" Salvek asked.
"Shut up! You have a shuttle, I saw it fly over. Where is it?"
"I cannot tell you if I am to shut up." Salvek pointed out.
Avery took note of the man's physical appearance. He appeared to be trembling as if he had the chills, and constantly licked his lips.
"Never mind. Ferengi, over here. Give him your phaser." The man gestured towards Salvek. Hok handed over his phaser, and approached the attacker.
"This man is severely dehydrated. He needs water." Avery whispered to Salvek.
The man took Hok aside, keeping the Ferengi between himself and the rest of the Sera crew.
"Listen, I make my living as a day trader on the Ferengi open market. I haven't logged on and made a trade since all this happened. I need to get to your shuttle to check my portfolio."
"I would.... need my superior's approval on that."
The man scratched his head in agitation and began to pace.
"Sir!" Salvek interjected. "We have food and water we would be glad to share with you, if that is what you require. But I must ask you to surrender the phaser."
"I don't care about food and water! I need to check my portfolio!" The man replied angrily.
As all this went on, Keiran had slowly positioned himself between the Strasa and the rest of the away team for protection.
"But, sir, you are suffering from the effects of dehydration. Without water soon you will likely began to suffer the effects of organ failure." Avery protested.
"Just tell me where the shuttle is! I'm not going to steal it, I just need your communications array.
Keiran watched the man pace, and when the Strasa was a safe distance from Hok, quickly threw a small device in the man's direction. There was a brief flash of light and the man was thrown to the ground. Hok grabbed the phaser, and the attacker held up his hands in surrender.
Salvek reached into his pack and withdrew several pouches of drinking water. He handed them to the man.
"Drink one of these now, or I will tell my security officer to force it upon you." The Strasa relented and drank one of the packets.
"Give the others to your friends and family. A gift from the Federation. Do you have any idea what happened here?"
The man laughed, in a manner that could only be described as crazily. "Ask the people at the power allocation center. They think nobody knows. I know."
"About what?" O'Sullivan asked.
"MIM. If you have any people down there, tell them to watch out. They won't want their dirty little secret to be discovered by Starfleet." The man scampered to his feet, and before Salvek could protest, was gone.
"What in the worlds is a MIM?" Dane asked.
"That is the question we will need to answer Ensign." Salvek replied. He tapped is comm badge. "Salvek to Dengar.... Salvek to Serendipity." There was no reply to either hail.
"Too much interference to talk to the Sera. Dengar's group may be in a shielded area underground our signals can't reach." Dane pointed out.
The group continued towards the medical center. The voices grew louder till they were finally in sight of the building. There were hundreds, if not thousands of angry Strasa jammed into the street in front of the building. They pressed up again barricades, reaching longingly towards the lights emanating from the computers within the emergency receiving lobby. About one hundred terrified and very exhausted looking Strasa soldiers kept watch on the group and pushed back anyone attempting to break into the building.
O'Sullivan led the way, pushing his way through the crowd to reach the barricades. One of the soldiers saw them coming, and waved over his Commander.
"We're from Starfleet. We are here to set a command post to oversee the distribution of aid and help with repairs to your city." Keiran shouted over the roar of the crowd.
The Strasa Commander grabbed a young soldier and pointed at the Sera crew. "Show these men in. Bring them to the operations center on the eighth floor."
The soldier nodded and waved them around the barricade. Several civilians attempted to follow and were forced back. One of the soldiers was hit in the head by some sort of flying fruit and looked around angrily for someone to shoot.
Once inside the building, Salvek spoke to his crew. "The situation is deteriorating rapidly. We need to make communications a priority to warn Mr. Dengar's party, and the Captain."
"What about the relief supplies?" Avery asked.
"We will proceed as planned. These people need food and water even if it is not what they desire. I will recommend to the Captain we make drops from the air with the shuttles since landing appears to be too dangerous. That should suffice until Samson can repair the weather modification net so we can use the transporters."
"And what if that angry little group outside decides they don't feel like waitin' anymore?" O'Sullivan asked.
"In that case Commander, we prepare to defend ourselves."
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Commander Salvek
First Officer
USS Serendipity NCC-2012
Commander Salvek
First Officer
USS Serendipity NCC-2012