Chapter 6 - Chapter Six

Author's Note: During the chapter, Akira uses the Japanese word 'Nandatte'. It translates into 'What/Why?', and is normally used as an exclamation.

Akira sat on the warp nacelle of the shuttle craft, staring at the helmet to her EVA suit. She noticed she started to tap her right foot involuntarily at a rapid pace, the sound of which caught James’ attention.

“Oh come on Aki, don’t tell me you still don’t like EVA work.” He said, poking fun at her.

“Like? Jim, you know I hate it. You ever see one of these suits fail?” she said, her frayed nerves showing in her voice.

“Yes.” James said flatly, with a haunted look in his eye. “But that’s not going to happen. You can’t let those thoughts win in your head. Focus on your job, and your training will take over. You’ll be fine.” He continued, taking her hand and helping her up.

“Major, we’re ready.” Marion said, poking her head out of the aft hatch of the shuttle.

“Alrighty, let’s get this gong show on the road.” James said, directing his voice to the two man security detail, Michel and Kristoff and two of Akira’s engineering staff, Brett and Kestrel.

It didn’t take long for the shuttle to get to the freighter’s location, prompting Marion to power down the majority of the shuttles power, and maneuver into the ship’s sensor blind spot using chemical thrusters, and with the finesse of a seasoned pilot, she pulled a perfect 180 degree turn to face the aft hatch towards the freighter and still keep the shuttle’s speed matched so as to not fall behind.

“Major Scott, we’re in position and I’m sealing the cockpit, good luck.” Marion said, looking back as the away team was putting on their helmets and checking each other’s gear as a force field came up separating the front section.

James then came up behind each of them, did one final cursory check and attached an umbilical cable to each of them, and then to himself. He turned to the cockpit and gave a thumbs up. Marion activated a control and the aft hatch opened up, exposing them to the hard vacuum of space.

James lifted up his arm and counted down from three with his fingers. He could have just used the comm. system in their suits, but Akira just guessed that old habits die hard. “Once a Marine…” she said, sounding amused with herself. All she got in response was an obligatory ‘oorah’, followed by James jumping from the shuttle, bringing everyone else along with him.

Moving in space is an odd sensation. Without any outside stimuli, like air moving along your skin, it can seem like you’re not moving at all. It also gave another sensation: Helplessness; and that chilled Akira to the bone. Anything in space is governed by Newton’s Third Law of Motion where everything that is moving continues to move until acted upon by an outside force. Ordinarily, if James misjudged his jump, even by a little, they would miss the freighter and drift off into space forever, but in their case, that wouldn’t happen. They would simply drift into the firing solution of the freighters weapons and be vaporized instantaneously.

Luckily, that wasn’t the case, and they were able to get onto the outside hull safely. Getting inside the ship would be the hard part.

James lifted his head up (in actuality, down, since directionality is merely a perspective) from the aft section to where sensors had picked up an access hatch, and then promptly ducked back down faster than Akira had ever seen him move just as a particle beam zipped through the area where his head had been moments before.

“Well, this complicates matters.” James said, taking a deep breath. “There’s a turret protecting the access hatch, and it’s got one hell of a sensitive motion sensor.” He explained, taking his phaser rifle off his back. “Any ideas?” He asked.

“Yeah, Brett, help me get this section of hull plating off.” Akira said, quickly setting to work uncoupling the section of the hull.

“What are you thinking, Aki?” James asked.

“Well, if I’m right, we should be able to use this as a distraction, giving you enough time to shoot the turret.”

“What makes you think this turret will shoot it? What if it’s tuned to biologics?” Michel, one of the security officers pointed out, trying to blow a stray tuft of hair that had fallen in front of her eyes.

“We don’t. Either we try this, or we just have to all shoot it at the same time and risk being shot.” James said before Akira could respond.

“Aye, sir.” Michel said, swallowing hard.

“That should do it, get ready.” Akira said; gingerly helping Brett and Kestrel maneuver the large section of hull plating into position as James, Michel and Kristoff readied their rifles.

Thankfully, much to Akira’s ease of mind, the plan worked and the team was able to get inside the ship.

Akira pulled herself up off the last rung of the latter, switched on her helmet light and pulled out a tricorder.

“Most of the ship appears to be powered down.” She explained. “What appears to be the bridge is four hundred meters to the bow, engineering is just ahead. Make sure you stay in the central corridor, you don’t want to get too close to the cargo holds.”

“Alright, Michel and Brett, head to engineering see if you can get some lights on in this place, rest of us will head to the bridge and see about moving this tub.” James ordered.

Akira followed closely behind James and Kristoff who quickly checked each hallway branching off from the main corridor with precision. Eventually they reached the bridge, if you could call it that. It consisted of two consoles along the port and starboard walls, and a helm console in front of a central captain’s chair. Akira walked up to the helm and sat down, as she did so, the whole room came to life, light filling the room and all the consoles turning on.
“Something doesn’t seem right.” She said, typing away on the console.

“What is it?” James asked with concern in his voice.

“There’s no lock on the helm controls.” She said, puzzled. “I just brought us to all stop, and that should bring the weapons offline.”

“Commander, what do you make of this?” Kestrel asked from the starboard station, which she recognized as an engineering status display.

“Nandatte?” Akira blurted out under her breath.

“What’s wrong?” James quickly asked, now on full alert. James had known Akira since the Academy, and he knew that she only said something in Japanese when she was frustrated, or things were about to head south.

“It’s the power draw from the sensor grid, its way above what should be, even for federation ships. It looks like someone configured it to mask something, I’m bringing it offline now.” She explained. When she did so, her wrist mounted suit computer beeped, demanding her attention. “James… The radiation, it’s gone.” She said, seriously confused, but before James could respond, the status display started to light up like a Christmas tree.

“That doesn’t look good.” James pointed out.

“Power from the impulse engines is being rerouted into the main drive core, and at this rate it’s going to overload, we only got a few minutes.” Akira said, franticly working the console to see what should do to stop it, but to no avail.

“We’re getting out of here.” James said, tapping his suits wrist computer, activating its comm. system. “Away team to Shuttlecraft Azuma; beam us out of here.”

“But the radiation…” Marion began to say, only to be cut off.

“Just do it, then get as far away from this ship a” James said being taken by the transporter beam. “s you can.”

“Already on it sir.” Marion said as everyone lurched to the side as she peeled the shuttle away at maximum impulse. A few moments later, the shuttlecraft rumbled as the freighter exploded. “What happened?” Marion asked.

“I don’t know, but I intend to find out.” James said flatly.

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