though, right?” Torin said from the helm.
“Not this close to the station.” Miko told him. “But the minute we move off….”
He didn’t need to finish the sentence. They all knew they were in for a rough time of it.
*****
Elsewhere, Hamilton was scowling at the elevator controls. They’d used the medical override card to summon the elevator. There had been no one aboard when it arrived. However, when they tried to use the card to send them back up to the level above the quarantine section, the elevator had other ideas. The light for the main medical center had lit up and the elevator had set off. Despite repeated swipes of his card, and the one that Johnson had, the elevator had stoically ignored any attempt to divert its course.
“Why won’t it work?” Johnson frowned.
Hamilton shrugged. “Someone more important must have summoned it to medical.” He guessed.
“What do we do?”
“Just go with it. We are medical staff, after all. Just get out, wait until whoever gets in has gone, then summon it again. Hopefully it won’t be much of a delay.”
She nodded and the pair of them waited as the cab descended into the bowels of Tantalus Station.
When the doors opened, they were confronted by a small crowd of frightened looking tech and admin types. The most important of them, naturally, stood closest to the doors and held his pass card in one hand as if he could use it to smite evil. He looked startled to see anyone in the elevator.
“Oh! Get out! This is an emergency!”
“What’s going on?” Hamilton asked as he and Johnson shuffled out of the elevator.
“Patient’s gone crazy!” One of the techs told him. “Threatening to blow out one of the window panels and vent the level to space!”
That was all that Hamilton got, information-wise. The group crowded into the elevator and were gone.
Hamilton and Johnson exchanged bemused glances through their darkened faceplates.
“Don’t doors close automatically when there’s a breach?” Johnson asked.
“Sure.” Hamilton agreed. “But they’re techies and admin types. They should be smart enough to know that, but the threat of instant death often makes people act dumbly.”
The area in front of the elevators was a large reception area. Corridors led off in several directions. From one came the sound of a woman shrieking and cursing, threatening to ‘kill them all!’ Though muffled and slightly distorted by the suit pickups, Hamilton found something familiar in the tone.
“Come on!” He said, setting off down the corridor.
“We’re not waiting for the elevator?” Johnson asked.
“Change of plan.” Hamilton told her.
“Great!” She muttered, hurrying after him.
*****
Since they were surrounded by the point-defense craft well before the Captain and the others were aboard, Miko saw no point in rushing to action once the regular crew were finally aboard. Instead, he had Torin hold position, with the umbilical extended, to make it look like they weren’t finished.
Malik, on comms, had finally relented and replied to Tantalus Control, stalling them with talk of crazed crewmen gone mad and how they were ‘still securing the vessel’. None of it sounded convincing in the slightest but Malik looked to be having fun with his fiction.
When Rames finally entered the bridge and demanded a report, Miko filled him in as quickly as he could. Behind the captain, the rest of the crew quickly resumed their places on the bridge. However, helm and navigation were conspicuous by the empty chairs.
“You!” Rames ordered, pointing at Veltin. “You’re a pilot, right? Get in that chair!”
Veltin’s grin was huge. Puckett looked irritated, until Rames ordered him into the navigation position with a comment about Skip Drives.
“Skip Drive? This ship has a Skip Drive?” Puckett and Veltin both exchanged child-like grins of delight then, rivalry forgotten, both hurried to take their positions.
“You got a plan to get us
“Not this close to the station.” Miko told him. “But the minute we move off….”
He didn’t need to finish the sentence. They all knew they were in for a rough time of it.
*****
Elsewhere, Hamilton was scowling at the elevator controls. They’d used the medical override card to summon the elevator. There had been no one aboard when it arrived. However, when they tried to use the card to send them back up to the level above the quarantine section, the elevator had other ideas. The light for the main medical center had lit up and the elevator had set off. Despite repeated swipes of his card, and the one that Johnson had, the elevator had stoically ignored any attempt to divert its course.
“Why won’t it work?” Johnson frowned.
Hamilton shrugged. “Someone more important must have summoned it to medical.” He guessed.
“What do we do?”
“Just go with it. We are medical staff, after all. Just get out, wait until whoever gets in has gone, then summon it again. Hopefully it won’t be much of a delay.”
She nodded and the pair of them waited as the cab descended into the bowels of Tantalus Station.
When the doors opened, they were confronted by a small crowd of frightened looking tech and admin types. The most important of them, naturally, stood closest to the doors and held his pass card in one hand as if he could use it to smite evil. He looked startled to see anyone in the elevator.
“Oh! Get out! This is an emergency!”
“What’s going on?” Hamilton asked as he and Johnson shuffled out of the elevator.
“Patient’s gone crazy!” One of the techs told him. “Threatening to blow out one of the window panels and vent the level to space!”
That was all that Hamilton got, information-wise. The group crowded into the elevator and were gone.
Hamilton and Johnson exchanged bemused glances through their darkened faceplates.
“Don’t doors close automatically when there’s a breach?” Johnson asked.
“Sure.” Hamilton agreed. “But they’re techies and admin types. They should be smart enough to know that, but the threat of instant death often makes people act dumbly.”
The area in front of the elevators was a large reception area. Corridors led off in several directions. From one came the sound of a woman shrieking and cursing, threatening to ‘kill them all!’ Though muffled and slightly distorted by the suit pickups, Hamilton found something familiar in the tone.
“Come on!” He said, setting off down the corridor.
“We’re not waiting for the elevator?” Johnson asked.
“Change of plan.” Hamilton told her.
“Great!” She muttered, hurrying after him.
*****
Since they were surrounded by the point-defense craft well before the Captain and the others were aboard, Miko saw no point in rushing to action once the regular crew were finally aboard. Instead, he had Torin hold position, with the umbilical extended, to make it look like they weren’t finished.
Malik, on comms, had finally relented and replied to Tantalus Control, stalling them with talk of crazed crewmen gone mad and how they were ‘still securing the vessel’. None of it sounded convincing in the slightest but Malik looked to be having fun with his fiction.
When Rames finally entered the bridge and demanded a report, Miko filled him in as quickly as he could. Behind the captain, the rest of the crew quickly resumed their places on the bridge. However, helm and navigation were conspicuous by the empty chairs.
“You!” Rames ordered, pointing at Veltin. “You’re a pilot, right? Get in that chair!”
Veltin’s grin was huge. Puckett looked irritated, until Rames ordered him into the navigation position with a comment about Skip Drives.
“Skip Drive? This ship has a Skip Drive?” Puckett and Veltin both exchanged child-like grins of delight then, rivalry forgotten, both hurried to take their positions.
“You got a plan to get us
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