RPG Project Starship

[Rachmaninoff]

Michael was not expecting to actually manage to translate the language before they arrived at the gate, but damn if he didn't want to. The symbols were elusively familiar and yet at the same time they were not. There were striking similarities to the known ancient languages of the different races who were a part of the CIF, and yet the differences made it clear that the appearance of being similar could be meaningless. After Brianna left Michael pulled up the rest of the information for where the gate was found. Either there was nothing else there, or the Creid's government had not included the information. Knowing if there were any surrounding structures would have been useful and could possibly make a difference as to what the meaning was.

If there were other buildings, then based on the notes written by the Creid's the language was nothing more than instructions on how to use the gate in question. But if there was nothing else, or the Creid's government was wrong, based on everything he knew about the ancient languages along with what the governmental branch had listed as the translation, well, it was possible that it could instead be a type of warning. One of the dangers associated with using the gate in question. Michael sighed and leaned back a bit, reaching up above his head and stretching before going back to the data. If only he knew for sure if the information he had was correct as well as complete. At this point he really needed more data or clarification of the current data to narrow down his speculations.

Once again Michael stretched a bit and then after glancing at the time and realizing that he had been working on it for quite some time he retrieved his CCB and turned the terminal off before leaving the bridge to take a short walk around the ship. [I]I really need to talk to Brianna and see if there is more information than what she gave me.[/I] Moments later he had left the bridge and simply continued down the passageway until he came to a set of stairs leading up. Michael stopped and pulled up the layout of the Argo Navis. [I]So the rec room and the cafeteria are the same room? That should be interesting.[/I]

Curious he went up the stairs to check the place out, still glancing at the different floor plans for the entire ship. [I]Perhaps I'll check out the rest of the ship too,[/I] he thought. It certainly wouldn't hurt and a brisk walk would certainly help him to clear his mind and relax a bit before he continued working on translating the symbols on the gate. He turned his CCB off and entered the large room. It wasn't what he expected, though that was kind of silly since upon reflection, he wasn't sure just what he had been expecting. Still it seemed nice enough, satisfied he turned and left to head for the lower level of the ship.

[SunfallE]

[COLOR="goldenrod"][FONT="Comic Sans MS"]There was always a bit of uncertainty when working with a new crew and the newest assignment was no exception. The only person Kendra knew was Marcus and it had been long enough that even though he was a familiar face, a welcome one at that, it was obvious that her initial impression of a slight tension was correct. That in many ways she no longer knew him, though she planned on changing that as soon as possible. But for now it was more important for her to work with Alex. They had finally settled on the course and so far each checkpoint had gone smoothly.

With two of them it had been easy to make sure to follow the Colonel's last instructions to make sure to grab a bite to eat. One of them had simply stayed at the helm while the other one left for a little while. Kendra had even taken a moment to check out the engines in operation, later when they had more time she intended to check them out more completely. But for now she just concentrated on learning more about Alex since she would be working with him a lot.

After the easy way he smoothly piloted the ship from the surface she was not surprised to learn that he had served 9 years in the 6th Squadron 101 first strike base, Jupiter Air force as well as 2 years in the 12th Squadron, 21st Orbital Platform, Saturn Air force. In no time it was clear that his knowledge of most space craft was quite extensive. Though he did not mention why he was no longer enlisted and Kendra did not ask. They were chatting about some of the different space crafts when they were interrupted by a chime indicating something required their attention.

Both of them immediately gave the HULD their full attention, while Alex pulled up what the alert was for, Kendra pulled it up on the secondary terminal in front of her position as co-pilot.

"[B]Well that's odd,[/B]" Alex commented.

Kendra didn't have to ask him what he was talking about as she was looking at the alert as well. "[B]We'd better drop out of hyperspace immediately.[/B]" She observed.

"[B]Agreed[/B]," Alex replied even as his hands flew over the various controls to input the command to pull them back into normal space, Kendra doing the same on her side until after a knowing glance at each other, they finished issuing the command to drop out of hyperspace and come to a halt.

"[B]I'll contact the Colonel while you scan for the source of the disturbance.[/B]" Kendra stated even as she checked with the computer for the Colonel's location. Seconds later it came back, Marcus was located in his quarters. Immediately she paged him and then while she waited for a response she pulled up the feed from the ships sensors as well.

"[B]Got it,[/B]" Alex declared, "[B]The anomaly is approximately .3 light years ahead of our position, it's between us and our final stop at the Creid's capital city.[/B]"

"[B]That's in the unexplored area,[/B]" Kendra consulted the data they had from when they first left. "[B]And if I'm reading the data correctly, whatever the anomaly is, it has moved since the last data update.[/B]" Alex started to say something but at that moment another chime sounded and the terminal in front of Kendra split to a dual display, one of the alert and the other of the Colonel who had responded to her page.

"[B]What did you need?[/B]" Colonel DeSouza asked.

"[B]We've detected a gravitational anomaly approximately .3 light years ahead of our current position, requiring us to drop out of hyperspace.[/B]" Kendra glanced over to Alex who was already plotting a course around the disturbance as well as calculating how long a detour would take. A moment later the data came up showing the time it would take to go around, Kendra turned back to the Colonel.

"[B]Detouring around the anomaly will add approximately three hours to our ETA sir. Unless you wish for us to move in closer and take a look to see if we can simply go around it and then get back on course. Depending on what it is, that could take less than an hour.[/B]" She waited patiently while the Colonel thought about it before responding.

"[B]Move in until you can see what it is and then come to a stop. I'll be there immediately.[/B]" He terminated the communication.

Kendra turned to Alex who was already bringing the engines to full speed in normal space and heading forward as she magnified the view as far as possible. Then as a distant object started to come into view and the sensors started providing feedback as to what they had found, Alex brought the ship to a smooth stop.

"[B]What the hell is that?[/B]" He asked no one in paticular and Kendra had to agree. At this distance she couldn't quite be sure what it was and moments later, the standard scan came back indicating that there was no known record of it in the computer's data banks.[/FONT][/COLOR]

[Aaryanna_Mom]

Although Colonel DeSouza had not given her a firm answer in regards to her question about using health monitors on the teams who would be in close proximity of the gate itself, he had at least told her to go ahead and prepare an example for him to look at. And since they would be stopping at the Creid's capital city first, Catherine could show him the one she was putting together at that point, and if he gave her the go ahead, it would be a simple matter to prepare some more for when they actually arrived at Telvaris.

It was not uncommon to use such monitors for when the crew needed to be outside the ship in space, so the basic components were standard on any ship and it seemed, when she checked the cargo list, that for the Argo Navis, it was the same. It had taken her very little time to pull up the location on her CCB for the parts and then head down into the various storage compartments on the lower level to retrieve the basic components. Catherine took enough for one health monitor and then went back to sick bay to put everything together.

She wasn't sure where Nakiesha Rhodes had gotten off to, which was a bit of a shame actually, someone with her skills would have a much easier time putting things together than Catherine would. Still at least for medical equipment she knew the basics and after a while she was finished. She took a moment to attach it to her own clothing and test it to make sure it was working correctly, that the information was being fed to the equipment in the sickbay like it should. Moments later, satisfied that it did indeed work, Catherine took it off and set it down.

Once the Colonel approved it she could request that Miss Rhodes help her with putting together enough for everyone who would be near the gate. Between the two of them, they should be able to prepare them in time. It would then be a simple matter to test them, making sure that they were all working before the gate was turned on. Just to be sure that they would indeed transmit back to the ship as intended. As well as making any last minute adjustments that might be needed.

Catherine stood up and stretched a bit, wondering what to do next. They weren't due to arrive at the Creid's capital city for a little while yet. Perhaps now would be a good time to check out the rest of the ship. As well as perhaps getting something to eat. It had been long enough that upon thinking about it, Catherine realized that she was quite hungry. [I]I wonder if military rations are as bad as I've heard?[/I] She smiled at the thought.[I] I guess there's only one way to find out. [/I]

She picked up her CCB and pulled up the layout of the ship as she walked out of sickbay and into the corridor. But as she looked up at the stairs leading up she couldn't help but notice through the side windows that the stars were still and that the Argo Navis was no longer traveling in hyperspace. All thoughts of exploring the ship and getting something to eat were forgotten. [I]Why have we stopped?[/I] She wondered, even as she turned to head for the bridge to find out.

[Shy]

[indent][size=1]Kendra sat on the bridge in one of the navigation chairs, barking orders to Alex when Nakeisha had arrived. Thanks to the miracle of auto-pilot the bridge could basically sit abandoned after lift-off, giving most of the crew a chance to rest and relax during this extremely long journey.

Only the pilot, Alexander, had to watch over the quiet trip through hyperspace. The fact that Kendra was on the bridge as well did not escape Nakeisha’s notice. The fact that the Agro Navis had left hyperspace moments earlier, however, did.

“[b]When are due to reach the gate?[/b]” Nakeisha asked while tapping Alex on the shoulder, “[b]I have some interesting theories about the gates that I’d like to test out.[/b]”

Kendra rolled her eyes.

“[b]You’ll have to wait on that, Dr. Rhodes,[/b]” Kendra said, “[b]If you hadn’t noticed our ship had reached a gravitational anomaly and was forced to exit hyperspace. We won’t be at the gate for several more hours now.[/b]”

“[b]How unusual,[/b]” Kendra replied as she looked out towards the video monitors, “[b]I was under the impression that gravitational anomalies just don‘t pop up suddenly. Who was the fool who charted this course, anyway?[/b]”

Alex began to chuckle under his breath.

“[b]Oh no…[/b]”

Kendra glared at Dr. Rhodes.

“[b]I’m that ‘fool.’[/b]”

“[b]Ugh. [i]Of course you are[/i]. I’m just going to sit down somewhere before I put my foot in my mouth once again.[/b]”

“[b]That girl…[/b]” Kendra whispered to Alex as she clenched her fist.

The two continued to inspect the strange object the Agro Navis was approaching. Though it didn’t look like a transport of any kind, standard procedure required them to hail it under a variety of frequencies. While this slow process was going on Nakeisha decided to give one of navigation consoles a test drive.

[I]I’ll show Saunders,[/I] she thought as she looked for a more suitable for the Agro Navis to reach its destination, [I]It doesn’t take a genius to chart a course without hitting a gravity well. I suppose we’re lucky she didn’t slam us into a star or something...[/I]

It was then that she noticed something strange occurring on every hyperspace route heading into the system. Small gravity anomalies, similar to the one that had pulled the Agro Navis out of hyperspace, were appearing throughout the system.

“[b]Wow,[/b]” she said, “[b]You guys need to see this.[/b]”

“[b]What is it now, Dr. Rhodes?![/b]” Kendra shouted as she stood up and headed towards Nakeisha’s console, “[b]Don’t tell me that you’ve gone and done something-- Wow![/b]”

“[b]That’s what I said, Kendra. These anomalies are happening all over the system. Something is [I]creating[/I] gravity wells.[/b]”

Alex raised an eyebrow.

“[b]Aren’t gravity wells the result of stars and planets? This system is just empty space…[/b]”

“[b]That’s more or less, accurate, Alex. Troia once had a theory that gravity wasn’t generated, but merely [I]regulated[/I].[/b]”

“[b]That doesn’t make any sense.[/b]”

Nakeisha nodded.

“[b]Well, my degree is in ‘hypothetical physics’ for a reason. Most of it wouldn‘t make any sense to you, since you obviously don‘t have a background in the field. Let me try to put this in layman’s…[/b]”

“[b]Just get to the point![/b]”

“[b]Right. If given a near-infinite amount of energy it could be possible to… rearrange gravity in such a way as to generate several of these wells. Our ship kind of works on a similar principle to keep us from floating around, just on a much, much smaller scale. Whoever, or [i]whatever[/i], is doing this is doing it for a reason.[/b]”

BEEP BEEP BEEP! INCOMING FREQUENCY!

Nakeisha turned to Alex with a look of confusion on her face.

"[b]Now what's going on?[/b]"

"[b]Well Miss Rhodes...[/b]"

"[b][i]Dr. Rhodes.[/i][/b]"

"[b]Right, well, it's that strange-looking object in front of us,[/b]" Alex replied, "[b]I think it wants to talk.[/b]"[/size][/indent]

[Rachmaninoff]

After grabbing something to eat and carefully cleaning up and putting everything away when he was done, Michael stopped by his quarters to grab his own personal CCB, with all his programs and other information on different languages. Now that he'd had a break he wanted to get back to working on his theory that the language was a warning. He still needed to talk to Brianna but she had indicated that she was working on something else and told him to ask her again about the settings of how the gate was found later.

Michael was lost in thought as he absent mindedly checked some information on his own CCB and he was almost to the bridge before he glanced up and realized that the Argo Navis had dropped out of hyperspace. [I]What? Are we at the Creid's Capitol City already?[/I] He was thinking it would take a couple more hours at least. With a shrug he used his IDT tag to gain entry and entered the bridge. He was just in time to catch the end of Dr. Rhodes saying something to Kendra Erickson.

"[B]Who was the fool who charted this course, anyway?[/B]"

Michael winced. [I]That's not good. [/I] With the pilot Alex chuckling and Kendra's angry expression... He moved to his seat at the communications terminal to avoid wandering into the crossfire. Wincing again as he heard the two of them going at it a bit. [I]Dr. Rhodes really needs to learn to think before she speaks up.[/I] He thought to himself as he pulled up the view of what they were facing on his screen.

He ignored the talk about anomalies and gravity wells in favor of studying the strange object. It appeared to be made of some type of metal and a quick look at the sensors confirmed that it was, just as it also confirmed that there was no known record of it in the CIF's database. It was oddly shaped like a cylinder and yet there were bizarre protrusions all over the place, most of them making no sense whatsoever.

He studied it as the object was slowly rotating and there seemed to be something on one section, but unless they got closer he couldn't zoom in enough to make out what it was. But then his attention was pulled back to the others when the Argo Navis's system alerted them to an incoming frequency.

All of them listened as Alex put it on the main speakers, but the transmission made no sense whatsoever. Once it was finished a few minutes later it repeated itself. When it started to do again for the third time, Alex muted it.

"[B]Well Dr. Travis, do you recognize it?[/B]" Kendra asked him.

Michael felt a little uncomfortable as all eyes turned towards him. "[B]Uh, I'm not sure, give me a moment to analyze it.[/B]" He turned back to his terminal and connected his own CCB and then downloaded the transmission to quickly run it through his recognition program. A moment later several possibilities shot back.

"[B]It's not one of the known languages, however, based on the duration of the transmission and how it repeats itself every few minutes. It's most likely a distress beacon.[/B]"

"[B]If you don't recognize it then how can you assume it's a distress beacon?[/B]" Nakeisha asked.

"[B]Dr. Rhodes.[/B]" Kendra said warningly.

"[B]It's simple Dr. Rhodes,[/B]" Michael answered her. "[B]Even if I do not recognize the language, standard distress beacons are similar in length and duration. And though I have not had a chance to analyze it completely yet, my language program indicates that there is a ninety percent probability that it is an ancient Creid's language. Based on that it's likely that it really is a distress beacon.[/B]"

"[B]Wait, if it's unknown then how can you say it's likely an ancient Creid's language?[/B]" Nakeisha observed.

"[B]It's only unknown in that we've yet to encounter it, but according to my recognition program there are similarities to several ancient dialects.[/B]" Michael explained. He turned his attention back to Kendra.

"[B]I was observing the object as it turns and it appears that one section has writing on it, but at this distance I could not zoom in enough to get a clear picture. Is it possible to move a little closer? If it is some type of ship, or considering it's size perhaps a space station, then being able to see what that writing is would help me determine if it really is another ancient language among the Creid's people.[/B]"

"[B]We'll need to wait on the Colonel before we get any closer, continue to analyze the transmission in the mean time.[/B]" Kendra turned back to what she was doing.

Michael turned back to his own terminal, and started pulling up something else from his CCB. There were still a few other things he could do without needing to see the section of the object he had mentioned to Kendra.

[TheResplendent]

[FONT="Tahoma"][color=darkslategray]Marcus grabbed his side-arm out of habit, despite only preparing to go to the bridge to get a look at this supposed anomaly that the Argo Navis's pilots have discovered. He tossed his silver military jacket over his sleeveless black shirt and walked at a steady yet quickened pace to his destination. He walked by Teresa who looked like she had worked up a bit of a sweat from some testing out of the equipment she had found. She watched as he zipped by her, almost turning into a blur.

[i][b]"Eh? I wonder where he's going in such a hurry."[/i][/b] she thought to herself as Marcus waved the front end of his card across the reader opening the door to the bridge. He heard more than enough commotion coming from Nakeisha Rhodes and Michael Travis about the validty of possible origins of this disturbance, it made him wonder just how much he missed already.

[b]"Sorry if i'm interrupting, someone want to fill me in?"[/b] Marcus asked, standing upright with his hans behind his back. Nakeisha quieted down and turned her head toward Marcus only to look away moments later running her fingers through the side of her hair. She still seemed to be a tad bit embarrased from her first run in with the Colonel before the launch of the ship.

[b]"Colonel, what I can tell for sure is that it definitely has a metallic structure of some sort. We're still trying to get a better view of it so we can confirm exactly what it could be."[/b] Dr. Travis explained, as he returned his focus to the HULD. Marcus couldn't help but feel obliged to inquire about something that didn't sit well with him.

[b]"Metallic structure? A type of metallic structure is giving off odd gravitational readings, and a strange wave of frequencies?"[/b] Marcus asked, a bit skeptical that something capable of those things and man made has been able to fly under the radar well enough until they had gotten as close to it as they had.

[b]"Well, it seems so...but like Dr. Travis said, we still don't know a great deal. Whatever the deal is though, it's playing tricks on our navigational systems."[/b] Kendra added. Marcus leaned over Kendra's chair and took a look at the HULD himself. He tilted his head slightly and entered into all-range mode on the screen via DLP and rotated the display.

[b]"Look..."[/b] Marcus said, pointing out the ring pathways surrounding the structure on the right side. Kendra focused her eyes and noticed the same thing Marcus did. Her eyes widened and she spun around to Michael, Marcus, and Nakeisha.

[b]"It's a spacestation. I can't tell exactly what kind, but if Dr. Travis's analysis is correct it is Creid built."[/b]

[b]"Why do I have a feeling that this little discovery is going to prove to be a longer detour than first thought?"[/b] Alex wondered out loud, figuring the next step was to find out what was going on inside that spacestation so they could continue on.

[b]"Dr. Travis, please alert Miss Henderson as to what has been going on so far. I'm going to gather my officers and get prepared as a pre-cautionary measure. If that spacestation is the source of the odd readings and interference we've been getting, we'll be left with little choice."[/b] Marcus said, turning around and walking out the door. The other four just watched on.

[b]"Looks like there's your answer."[/b] Nakeisha said, in reference to Alex's comment.

[b]"What do you think Dr. Henderson will say?"[/b] Kendra asked aloud to nobody in particular. The room remained quiet for a few seconds before Michael tucked a CCB under his arm.

[b]"Guess I better go get her so we can all find out."[/b] he exclaimed, walking to the ship's intercom system.[/color] [/FONT]

[Horendithas]

[COLOR="Indigo"][SIZE="1"]Other than Mike stopping by her quarters briefly to inquire as to the excavation notes for the gate, no one else had been by. And since she had yet to finish going over those notes herself, Brianna had told Dr. Travis that she would go over it with him later. Fortunately it seemed that who ever had been in charge of the gate once it was found was smart enough to not only provide detailed information, but to take quite a few pictures from different angles throughout the process of the excavation. Enough that even though putting her things away in her quarters did not take long, hours later, she still had not finished going through all of the notes.

Brianna would have to actually see the site before she could say one way or the other, but based on the information, so far it seemed that they had done an excellent job of documenting the entire process. She was thinking about heading up to their mess hall on the top floor to grab some coffee when a chime sounded, indicating someone on the bridge was contacting her. She reached over and toggled the switch located next to her built in computer terminal at her desk.

"[B]This is Dr. Henderson, what did you need?[/B]"

"[B]Sorry to bother you Dr. Henderson,[/B]" It was Mike, and did he sound nervous? Brianna started to reply but Mike just rushed on ahead, not giving her a chance to say anything.

"[B]Colonel DeSouza told us to contact you since we've been forced out of hyperspace by a gravitational anomaly and... Well it would be easier if you just came here and took a look for yourself.[/B]"

"[B]I see,[/B]" Brianna said a tad coldly. "[B]I'll be right there.[/B]" She terminated the communication. [I]Why is he having Mike of all people contact me instead of telling me himself? [/I] She wondered as she grabbed her CCB and left to head for the bridge. Sure enough as she traversed the corridor it was clear that they had dropped out of hyperspace. She was almost to the bridge when she caught a flash of the Colonel entering one of the rooms further down at the end of the corridor running down the other side of the ship. [I]Is he brushing me off yet again? [/I]

She ignored the thought in favor of entering the bridge, and though it wasn't chaotic, it certainly wasn't peaceful with Dr Nakeisha Rhodes interjecting questions to both the pilots and Mike who seemed to be checking some information. Both Mr. Bishop and Ms. Erickson turned to face her when she entered but Brianna's attention was caught by what was on the screen before them. [I]What in the world?[/I]

"[B]So what exactly happened here Ms. Erickson?[/B]" Brianna asked. She listened patiently as Ms. Erickson explained just what had happened, though Dr. Rhodes kept interrupting with different points about gravitational anomalies appearing throughout this section of space. Each time that she did Brianna couldn't help but notice the flash of irritation in Kendra's eyes.

"[B]Dr. Rhodes,[/B]" Brianna interrupted her when she started to interject an observation for the fourth time. "[B]Kindly wait until I am done with Ms. Erickson, you can explain to me what you've found out once we are finished.[/B]" She folded her arms across her chest and waited for Nakeisha to mumble an apology before she sat down and turned her attention elsewhere.

"[B]Now, where is the Colonel?[/B]" Brianna asked, still feeling a tad annoyed.

"[B]He's gone to gather the officers to get prepared just in case they are needed.[/B]" Kendra explained.

"[B]I see.[/B]" She replied. Brianna glanced again at the space station on the main viewer and then turned her attention to Dr. Rhodes and Dr. Travis, but before any of them could say a word, once again the bridge doors opened. This time it was Dr. Catherine Sanderson. Who immediately asked her what was going on.
[I]
We really need a better way of handling things like this[/I], Brianna thought as she turned to give her attention to Catherine. [/SIZE][/COLOR]

[Aaryanna_Mom]

The moment she saw Dr. Henderson's slightly annoyed expression Catherine knew she had made a mistake by asking her what was going on. [I]I really need to find out what the procedure for things like this is here. [/I] She thought even as her attention was drawn to the main viewer and the strange object that vaguely looked like a spacestation.

"[B]It's simple Dr. Sanderson...[/B]" Dr. Henderson started to say.

"[B]Doctor or Catherine is just fine.[/B]" She asserted, looking back at Dr. Henderson. Catherine smiled. "[B]I can always wait until you are free, I did not mean to interrupt anything.[/B]"

"[B]Very well Catherine, if you'll just take a seat and perhaps go over the readings from the spacestation, once I'm done with Dr. Rhodes and Mike I'll fill you in on what's going on. Though Ms. Erickson is free to do so if she wishes.[/B]" Catherine just nodded and slipped around her to take a seat just to the left of where Mr. Bishop and Ms. Erickson were sitting.

It only took her a moment to activate the display in front of her seat and without giving it much thought she checked the information that the sensors were providing. Though Dr. Henderson had referred to it as a spacestation, the computer indicated that it did not match any known design by any of the different races in the CIF. Puzzled she also pulled up and listened to the transmission that was still being broadcast in intervals. Just as she noticed that someone had set up a standard request for identification to be sent from the Argo Navis.

[I]I wonder why there is no reply? [/I] But when she looked to see if anyone was on board she noticed that the strange wave of frequencies being emitted by the spacestation was interfering with the scanners ability to detect any life readings. [I]This won't do, we need to get a little close so I can tighten the scan to punch through the interference. [/I]

"[B]Mr. Bishop,[/B]" Catherine said in a firm voice, forgetting for a moment that she had no right to issue any form of orders. "[B]I need you to take the Argo Navis in closer, so I can focus the scan for life readings.[/B]" She mentally calculated the distance, "[B]I'd say closing the gap by about one third of our current distance should do the trick.[/B]"

She was too busy changing the parameters for the scan as her hands flew over the controls, to notice Bishop's hesitant look as he turned to Dr. Henderson to inquire as to what to do. After receiving a brief nod giving him the go ahead, he turned and brought the ship in closer.

"[B]Thank you, that's close enough,[/B]" Catherine said as she initiated the scan. It took a moment and then the results came back. She shook her head and turned to face the others.

"[B]You can turn the automated request for them to respond off, there is no life on board. Either the crew is already dead, or they have abandoned the station altogether.[/B]" Catherine moved a bit to the side when Dr. Henderson came over and took a look at the readings.

"[B]Someone needs to inform Colonel DeSouza of this. If the spacestation is responsible for the gravitational anomalies and the odd wave frequencies, we'll have to transport over and take a look to find out what, if anything, over there is causing it.[/B]" Brianna finally said after she straightened up from looking at the data on the screen in front of Catherine.

"[B]Right,[/B]" Kendra said as she turned to the ships computer system to request the Colonel's location. "[B]I'll let him know immediately.[/B]"

[SunfallE]

[COLOR="DarkRed"][FONT="Lucida Sans Unicode"][I]So no one is on board or they're all dead. [/I] Kendra caught herself shivering just a tiny bit at the thought as she entered the request for Marcus's location. A moment later it pulled up that he was in his quarters. [I]He's probably getting something for briefing the three officers. [/I] She thought as she paged him. A split second later he responded. Sounding slightly rushed as if he had been on his way out the door.

"[B]What is it?[/B]"

"[B]Sorry to bother you sir, but at Dr. Sanderson's and Dr. Henderson's instructions we moved closer to the spacestation to see if we could determine if there was anyone there. Since there was too much interference for the scanners to determine if there was any signs of life. It seems that no one is on board.[/B]" Kendra explained apologetically since it had not occurred to her to move closer to see if they could punch through the interference and check for life signs.

"[B]I see, anything else?[/B]" Marcus inquired.

"[B]Yes, with the appearance of the gravitational anomalies through out this area of space, we can't chart a course to leave. Alex and I have been checking and at the moment there isn't a clear path for making the jump to hyperspace.[/B]"

"[B]So we're stuck here[/B]." Marcus replied. His voice taking on a more serious slant at the implications behind that statement.

"[B]I'm afraid so, we could travel via normal space, but that would take months if not longer for us to get back to a habitable planet.[/B]" Kendra explained, it didn't take much for her to realize that everyone on the bridge was listening in to every thing she was saying. The silence was deafening after all the talking that had been going on, and only the soft sounds of the equipment running could be heard. For once Dr. Rhodes was completely quiet.[I] If only she'd stay that way for a while longer. [/I] Kendra thought, knowing full well that once she was done Dr. Rhodes would most likely have something else to say.

"[B]Very well, take us into transport range and notify Dr. Henderson immediately. Everyone is to gather in the conference room in twenty minutes.[/B]" Colonel DeSouza ended the communication.

Kendra turned to face Dr. Henderson who had an unreadable expression on her face. Just as the others were looking at her, equally as quiet and keeping what they thought to themselves, though they couldn't hide the uneasiness of how they felt from their eyes. She could see it since she felt the same way.

"[B]All right. I'll be in the conference room if you need to find me.[/B]" Brianna turned and left the bridge after Kendra nodded in return. Then she turned back to Alex who was taking the Argo Navis in closer to the drifting spacestation.

"[B]I know the Colonel wants everyone to meet in twenty minutes, but with the station drifting, someone needs to stay here to keep the Argo Navis at the same distance and speed. It's a bit erratic to tell the truth.[/B]" Alex explained.

"[B]I'll be sure to let him know. I would imagine that you and I will not be transporting over to the spacestation anyway so I can always fill you in on the briefing.[/B]" Kendra said. She turned back to looking at the anomalies that were still throughout the system. [I]I hope we find out what's causing this, we don't have enough supplies to travel back to an inhabited world in normal space.[/I][/FONT][/COLOR]

[Aaryanna]

[COLOR="goldenrod"][FONT="Comic Sans MS"]Teresa wondered why the Colonel was in such a hurry, just as she wondered why it seemed that the Argo Navis had come to a halt. She thought about following the Colonel and then reasoned that if her presence really was needed on the bridge he would have said something when he passed her. [I]I really need to take a quick shower[/I], she thought. Decided, she continued to her shared quarters and spent all of about five minutes to quickly get cleaned up. And though she couldn't explain why, she slipped into a nondescript type of uniform. With gray pants and a matching gray tank top with a jacket overshirt that she left unbuttoned.

Then she grabbed her IDT and headed towards the bridge. Moments later she had her answer as she saw the spacestation on the main screen. She half listened to the others as they explained what was going on but there was something about it that didn't fit. Dr. Travis was saying that the distress beacon was from an ancient Creid's language and that was likely built by them. Dr. Rhodes was up in arms about gravitational anomalies. But still, as she watched it slowly rotating, something did not sit well until finally it hit.

"[B]I'm not so sure that it's Creid's built.[/B]" She declared.

"[B]How do you figure that?[/B]" Dr. Travis asked, clearly puzzled.

Teresa leaned over and zoomed in on the part of the station where the name was written on the side. It was clear that at one time, something else had been there and that the shape of the letters or symbols did not match what was painted on the side.

"[B]I see, well that would explain why it doesn't match any records.[/B]" Dr. Travis pulled out his CCB and started working on something, though a quick glance from her vantage point of looking over his shoulder didn't help, it was obviously a program that she had never seen.

"[B]I'll have to analyze that further since it doesn't match anything.[/B]"

Teresa turned Kendra, "[B]So where's the Colonel?[/B]"

Kendra just stifled a laugh. "[B]The Colonel went to gather you officers to get prepared as a precautionary measure. Also everyone is suppose to meet in the conference room in fifteen minutes.[/B]"

"[B]Gah![/B]" Teresa exclaimed as she turned and left the bridge to go and look for the Colonel. "[B]Why didn't she say so in the first place? Now the Colonel's going to think...[/B]" With a startled oath she flew around the corner and literally ran into Colonel DeSouza. Embarrassed she came to attention and started to apologize but DeSouza just held up his hand for her to be quiet.

"[B]So what exactly am I going to think Schovick?[/B]" He asked clearly amused.

"[B]Nothing sir, Kendra said you were looking for me sir.[/B]" [I]Great, just great. [/I]Teresa cringed inwardly. [I]He probably came to see why I was goofing off instead of finding him.[/I]

"[B]Correct, go and get Major James and then head to the secondary conference room.[/B]" Marcus turned to leave but halted when Teresa spoke up again, he turned back to face her.

"[B]Uh, don't you mean the main conference room sir?[/B]" She asked.

"[B]No Schovick.[/B]"

Teresa watched as he left and then swore softly even as she headed for the quarters being shared by Major James and Lt. Vayne. [I]Oh I just know that idiot is giving Major James the cold shoulder again. [/I]She muttered under her breathe as she hurried to go and get him.[/FONT][/COLOR]

[Shy]

[indent][size=1]Nakeisha buried her face in the navigation screen for several moments before realizing that nobody was paying attention to her anymore. During this time the crew of the Agro Navis had reassembled, with everyone else now focused on the seemingly abandoned space station before them.

“[b]What are you people looking at?[/b]” Nakeisha asked the group.

After a moment of silence Dr. Sanderson finally replied.

“[b]There’s something unsettling about this space station, Dr. Rhodes,[/b]” Catherine said as she remained fixated on the video screens, “[b]Michael, can you make out what those faded symbols on the side of it are?[/b]”

Michael Travis continued to focus the ship’s cameras on the mysterious writings.

“[b]It certainly doesn’t look like the Creid,[/b]” he said, “[b]But even in the known inhabited worlds there are literally thousands of different dialects and written languages. It’s going to take me a while to figure it out…[/b]”

Dr. Rhodes nodded as she entered a few keystrokes onto her computer console.

"[b]That gives me plenty of time then.[/b]"

Suddenly all of the video images displaying the space station were replaced with ones of the gravitational anomalies. Nakeisha walked towards the front of the bridge and began to speak, hoping she could complete her train of thought before a certain crew member could interrupt.

“[b]If everyone doesn’t mind taking a break from their… gawking, I’ve made some very exciting findings in regards to these unexplained gravitational fluxes…[/b]”

Kendra stepped forward to confront her subordinate.

“[b]Those findings can wait for our meeting. I’d like to ask that you run everything through me before explaining your hypotheses to the crew. They have more pressing duties to attend to.[/b]”

Nakeisha sighed.

“[b]Oh ‘pressing‘ is exactly what this is![/b]” Dr. Rhodes said as she locked eyes with Kendra, “[b]Let me make this brief for you with shorter attention spans…[/b]

“[b]At first I was under the impression that these anomalies were occurring in response to us entering the system. But I’ve been monitoring these, and there doesn’t appear to be a set pattern or duration for any of these generated gravity wells. They seem to be happening totally independent of us.[/b]”

“[b]That’s very nice, Dr. Rhodes,[/b]” Kendra replied dryly, “[b]But at this point in the investigation I don’t see how that’s very relevant.[/b]”

“[b]They seem to be happening randomly, yes, but if this were true that space station would have been destroyed by now. Something more than probability is keeping that object from being eaten up by one of these gravitational anomalies.[/b]”

Alex raised his eyebrow in curiosity.

“[b]So you think they‘re just [I]trying[/I] to make these things look random?[/b]”

“[b]It’s too early to draw that conclusion, Mr. Bishop, but I’m sure that’s something Kendra can investigate when she boards the vessel.[/b]”

“[b]Excuse me, Dr. Rhodes?![/b]”

“[b]Well I’m certainly not going on board that graveyard. It‘s dangerous,[/b]” Nakeisha replied dismissively as she exited the bridge, “[b]I'll be in my quarters if you need anything.[/b]”[/size][/indent]

[SunfallE]

[COLOR="DarkRed"][FONT="Lucida Sans Unicode"]“[B]Well I’m certainly not going on board that graveyard. It‘s dangerous,[/B]” Nakeisha replied dismissively as she exited the bridge, “[B]I'll be in my quarters if you need anything.[/B]”

Kendra just watched, too surprised by Nakeisha's sudden departure to say anything. [i]Since when did a Mechanic have the authority to disobey a direct order from the commanding officer of the expedition? [/i]Angry, she stood up suddenly, not even aware that her hands were clenching into fists. Kendra turned at the sound of Alex chuckling, wondering what could possibly be funny about the situation.

"[B]Well, she's certainly spirited.[/B]" He said, drawing the sentence out a bit, clearly suppressing the urge to laugh even more.

Kendra just narrowed her eyes, irritated to no end. "[B]I don't care if she's spirited or not, the Colonel ordered everyone to meet in the main conference room. You need to stay here, but her?[/B]" She folded her arms across her chest. "[B]I think I'll go and [I]remind[/I] Dr. Rhodes that she is [I]not[/I] above obeying the Colonel's orders.[/B]"

Kendra was halfway out the door when she stopped and turned back to face Alex, "[B]I'll inform the Colonel that you needed to stay here.[/B]" Then she left, the door closing behind her. Still annoyed over what had just happened, she quickly checked the quarters. It wasn't that difficult since she already knew which ones were taken.

"[B]I'll be in my quarters indeed.[/B]" She fumed as she stopped in front of the only quarters left, the one that the outside tags indicated it was occupied by Dr. Sanderson and Dr. Rhodes. [I]Poor thing[/I], she thought of Dr. Sanderson.[I] Being stuck with a roommate like Nakeisha. [/I] Kendra reached up and pressed the button next to the door indicating someone was there.

[I]Honestly,[/I] she thought as Kendra waited for Dr. Rhodes to answer, [I]this is ridiculous. Couldn't they have picked someone who actually has field experiance? [/I] Though a tiny part nagged at her that the only way to gain it was to well... be given the chance to actually get field experiance. A glimmer of an idea began to form as she gave her attention to Dr. Rhodes who finally answered.

"[B]What? The meeting is over already? Well what are you waiting for? Get going![/B]" She started to turn and halted when Kendra spoke up.

"[B]If you were paying attention to the time [I]Dr. Rhodes[/I], you would realize that the meeting has yet to start.[/B]" Kendra said coldly. "[B]I came to remind you that the Colonel's orders were that [I]everyone[/I] was to attend the meeting.[/B]"

"[B]But, I already said I'm not going to that graveyard! It's dangerous![/B]" Nakeisha said with a wave of her right hand above her head. "[B]Honestly, you people with short attention spans need to start paying attention![/B]"

"[B]That's for the Colonel to decide. Gather your things and get moving Dr. Rhodes![/B]" Kendra barked. "[B]Besides, you need to explain to Colonel DeSouza what you've learned about the gravitational anomalies.[/B]"

"[B]All right! All right![/B]" Nakeisha declared as she turned around, snagged her CCB and brushed past Kendra. "[B]I'll go to the conference room.[/B]"

Kendra just watched her go, resisting the temptation to slam her fist into the wall. [I]What that twit needs is a lesson in humility, as well as one on showing respect for one's senior. [/I] Then she smiled broadly as the glimmer of an idea that had started earlier, solidified into focus, [I]I know just what to do.[/I] She thought, after all having worked with Marcus before... Kendra knew that Marcus would have no trouble teaching Dr. Rhodes a little [I]humility[/I].

She took a couple of deep breaths to calm herself and then made her own way to the conference room in question. Brianna was already there and both Michael and Catherine along with Nakeisha were sitting around the table. All of them looked up as she entered, but other than Nakeisha who looked annoyed, the others were merely curious. Kendra just smiled to herself as she took a seat. She knew Marcus would understand what she was going to suggest. [/FONT][/COLOR]

[TheResplendent]

[FONT="Tahoma"][color=darkslategray]Marcus was already lecturing the officers in the meeting room before everyone else showed up. It was expected in the military for concise and prompt reaction to official orders, so he expected nothing less then to be able to converse with them first and foremost.

[b]"That the three of you are here as quickly as you are makes me confident in the decision made for the personnel chosen for this expedition. Don't pat yourselves on the back just yet though, let's leave further impressions to be earned. Very simple gentlemen...and lady."[/b] Marcus glanced over at Captain Schovik to notice a fleeting ear to ear grin at him mentioning "lady".

[b]"We're going to board the spacestation that we've come across, it appears as if there is a strong enough gravitational anomaly amongst other interferences with our signals emitting from the location to obstruct our trip. It will be us four as the initial party to check things out, make sure everything is clear and safe and then we can get to the bottom of what's going on."[/b]

Marcus took a brief break to pull his sidearm out of his belt from behind him and hold it up in the air for the officers to see.

[b]"Your military sidearm is a standard issued Narysian NP513 with a short barrel and burst-shot addition. Keep on you at all times one of them, don't forget to DNA ID each clip you take from the armory."[/b]

Marcus reached to his side to lift up an aussult rifle type gun and quickly put the remaining parts of the gun together in about 8 seconds.

[b]"Your primary firearm will be the special forces CXA-810, more commonly known as the "Thunderbolt". Chiefly a 120-round automatic rifle, with a secondary function of producing a concentrated electrical charge of 95,000 volts. It also has a sniper function with an advanced optical IR scope and an EMP marker, for uses in shorter long range firing up to four hundred feet."[/b]

The officers stood still listening to the Colonel's explanations of the main weapons they would be using for the duration of the expedition. Each of them were briefed before transport about such details, but it was part of protocol to ensure that his officers were aware and versed in the types of armaments used in the actual field.

Marcus and the others were interuppted by the door opening, the first of the non-military staff to arrive was Dr. Travis. He greeted them, and only moments later the rest of the crew made their way into the conference room.

Marcus recognized the half scowling half frustrated look in one Dr. Nakeisha Rhode's face, along with a near fed-up look in Kendra Erickson's eyes. Brianna also returned to the room after giving Marcus the proper respect to speak with his officers alone before they would address the entire crew. Brianna stood next to Marcus, he gave a subtle nod in silent reply to her performing the aforementioned deed.

[b]"Colonel, you have my persmission to carry out you boarding plans. Select who will accompany you, not considering Mr. Bishop."[/b] Brianna said, not switching her perspective from the front of the room.

[b]"My officers and myself will transport first to ensure the atmosphere is safe, afterwards I'd like Dr. Travis to transport over once everything is checked out properly."[/b] Marcus replied, noting Dr Travis's nodding in acceptance followed by a verbal response.

Brianna was about to speak again, but Kendra cleared her throat and spoke up with a suggestion of her own.

[b]"My apologies for interuppting, but might I suggest that Dr. Rhodes also accompany the boarding team since she has vital information of the odd happenings aboard the station. I believe she will be essential to gathering further data and put her...[i]expertise[/i] to use for shutting down whatever is impeding our flight."[/b]

Nakeisha's eyes grew large and her expressing turned into a more silent scowl now toward Kendra, one that took form after the words [i]"also accompany"[/i].

[b]"It's up to you, Colonel. I think it would be a good idea."[/b] Brianna mentioned.

Nakeisha rushed to protest however.

[b]"C...colonel! I would only get in your way, I can just as easily monitor what's going on...from the ship! And...communicate through transmissions...I know you must think me being there would just be a bother..."[/b]

[b]"Gather what you'll need, Dr. Rhodes. You'll be transporting over with Dr. Travis."[/b] Colonel DeSouza ordered, not allowing Nakeisha to finish. Nakeisha tried to speak, but only a muffled gasp escaped, though in her head she was wondering just how she got herself into this situation. Kendra on the other hand seemed to wear a more satisfied expression proceeding the Colonel's decision.

[b]"Alright, we transport in as soon as Bishop gets a clean lock on to a suitable position. My team please continue on to the transport room once you've retrieved the proper equipment, Dr. Rhodes and Dr. Travis please prepare your neccesities and be ready in about 15 minutes from our departure. Dr. Henderson, I'll inform you of any atmospherical or spatial abnormalities within the location if we encounter any."[/b]

Dr. Henderson nodded in agreement and adjourned the meeting.[/color] [/FONT]

[Rachmaninoff]

[I]Gather my things huh?[/I] Michael waited until the others had left the conference room before finally getting up to head towards his own quarters. He was just in time to catch the back of Dr. Rhodes who was clearly irritated, muttering to herself before she finally disappeared around a corner. Michael let out the breath he had been holding in.

"[B]She's going to be interesting to deal with.[/B]" He said softly to himself as he traversed the corridor towards his own quarters to figure out what would be best to bring along. A moment later, a quick swipe of his own IDT tag and the door opened and then closed behind him once he was inside.

Michael didn't need to look at his clothing to know that what he was wearing was probably not suitable for going to the abandoned space station. A casual business suit may have been the norm for his previous job, but the description of what this job might entail had encouraged him to pick up something to bring along for circumstances where being dressed more casually would apply.

It took him a moment to pull out the tan khaki pants and shirt that he had bought along with light boots which would be much better for walking than the business styled shoes he was wearing. Michael had wondered if he was wasting his money, but now it seemed like it had been a good idea to invest in the clothing. Even more so when he picked up the small pocket translator that he always had. About half the size of a CCB and he had made sure to pick out pants where the right side pocket was the perfect size to hold the small translator.

He checked it briefly to make sure it was working and then stuffed it into the pocket and secured the clasp in place. Then a few more odds and ends went into the other pockets and he was set. Michael picked up the CCB on the desk and turned it on to pull up the layout of the ship. At the back on the same level as the conference room and just past sickbay was the door leading to the transport room. A quick glance at the clock showed that nearly fifteen minutes had passed, Michael started to reach up to turn the CCB off when the screen went dead.

[I]What?[/I] He tried to turn it back on, only to get no response. [I]I thought these things were pretty failsafe.[/I] Not only that, surely they would have been given equipment that was in good condition. Michael started to put it down and then changed his mind, deciding to mention it to Brianna, after all, if they had been given faulty equipment she would want to know.

He looked around his quarters for anything else he might have missed and then, grabbing a jacket he left, heading for Brianna's quarters since he still had a little time before he needed to be at the transport room. Michael had only gone a short distance when he saw Brianna coming from the direction of the transport room.

"[B]Dr. Henderson.[/B]" Michael called, catching her attention, continuing when she stopped and looked his way questioningly. "[B]I thought you would want to know that the CCB you gave me quit working.[/B]"

"[B]Quit working? Are you sure?[/B]"

"[B]Yes,[/B]" Michael tried to turn it on again, but to his surprise it did so, working as if nothing had happened. "[B]Well that's odd. A minute ago it crashed and refused to turn on.[/B]"

Brianna reached out for it and Michael responded to the unspoken request, giving the CCB to her. He waited while she took a look and finally shut it down.

"[B]I'll see to getting you a replacement, did you need one to take to the space station?[/B]" She continued when Michael shook his head negatively. "[B]Very well then, I'll have Dr. Erickson or Dr. Rhodes check it out when they have time. In the meantime, I suggest you get going.[/B]"

"[B]Will do.[/B]" Michael said with a wry grin, heading past Brianna towards the transport room. Quickly he tossed the light jacket on then double checked to make sure all his pockets with stuff were secured.

He walked around the corner only to halt at the sight in front of the transport room door. [I]What in the world is she thinking? [/I] Michael opened his mouth to speak and froze when Dr. Rhodes turned to face him, her expression just daring him to say something. Wisely he shut his mouth and kept what he was about to say to himself.

"[B]That's your idea of being prepared?[/B]" She shot at him, her expression one of astonishment over her perception of his apparent stupidity. "[B]I'm beginning to wonder how any of you got chosen for this assignment.[/B]"

[I]Oh boy.[/I] Michael thought as he tried to respond as neutrally as possible. "[B]I'm a translator Dr. Rhodes. I'm afraid I have no experience or training on how to deal with situations such as this.[/B]"

He looked around for Kendra Erickson, but she was no where to be seen. Michael looked back to the communication terminal in the wall next to the door leading to the transporter.[I] I hope they call for us soon,[/I] he glanced back at Dr. Rhodes who was slightly preoccupied with something else. [I]Then she can be the Colonel's problem and not mine.[/I]

[Aaryanna_Mom]

The moment the meeting ended Catherine immediately chased after Colonel DeSouza, calling out his name until he finally stopped and turned to face her as she quickly caught up to him in the hallways of the Argo Navis.

"[B]What is it Dr. Sanderson?[/B]" He asked, clearly impatient to be on his way.

"[B]About the health monitor I mentioned earlier, I think you should wear it...[/B]" She hesitated when he shook his head negatively. "[B]Colonel, even if I only have one ready it is a good idea to use it![/B]"

"[B]Schovick,[/B]" DeSouza barked, catching her attention as she hurried past them towards the access leading to the lower areas of the ship. Teresa stopped and turned back to face them.

"[B]Yes sir?[/B]"

"[B]Dr. Sanderson has some equipment for you to use. Go with her to retrieve it before getting the rest of your gear.[/b]" He looked back at Catherine."[b]I trust that will do?[/B]" He asked, one eyebrow raised slightly, showing his impatience to get going.

"[B]Yes, but before you go, you might want to consider taking field jackets as well. Even though the space station seems to be working just fine, the readings did indicate that the temperature is a little bit on the cool side. It's not enough to be dangerous, but being cold will affect your teams performance.[/B]" She paused, tilting her head to the right a bit. "[B]I'm sure I don't have to remind you to take along basic medical kits.[/B]" DeSouza just shook his head.

"[B]I'll keep that in mind Doctor. Anything else?[/B]" But Catherine just shook her head indicating there was not. "[B]Then I suggest you get that equipment to Schovick immediately.[/B]" He nodded and then turned and continued on his way.

"[B]So, what equipment was the Colonel talking about?[/B]" Teresa asked.

Catherine turned to face her, "[B]A health monitor.[/B]" She explained even as she started towards sickbay.

"[B]Oh, like they use for space walking right?[/B]" Teresa asked as they entered the sickbay.

"[B]Correct.[/B]" Catherine replied as she picked up the monitor and turned back to face Teresa. "[B]As you can see you pin it to your collar[/B]." She handed it over to Teresa who immediately put it on.

"[B]Anything else?[/B]"

"[B]No[/B]."

Teresa smiled a bit, "[B]All right then, I'd better get going.[/B]"

Catherine watched as she turned and then left at a run. [I]She sure is hyper.[/I] Catherine thought once Teresa had left. [I]You'd never know that we've been stranded in the middle of no where from the way she behaves. [/I] Once the door to sickbay had closed she turned back and took a seat in front of the equipment the health monitor was tied into. Catherine turned it on and then tested the data feed from the health monitor. Everything was working perfectly.

At that precise moment an empty feeling reminded her that she had yet to get something to eat. Quickly she got up and headed to where the cafeteria was suppose to be. [I]I'd better get something before they leave.[/I] Since it was her intent to stay in sickbay and monitor the feedback from the health monitor as well as catching up on some of the latest medical updates that she had not read through yet. Moments later she was in the kitchen area, hunting for something she could simply take back to sickbay with her.

[Shy]

[size=1][indent]Doctor Rhodes made a mental note of staying close to the officers while on board the craft. Though she had helped to design some of the weapons being used by the crew, Nakeisha had very little experience in actually firing them. [I]Two officers and a translator?[/I], she thought to herself, [I]I?d feel just as safe entering that space station with my grandmother?[/I]?

Kendra Erickson had a lot to answer for, but that would have to wait until she returned. Right now the young doctor?s focus was on ready her gear. Few members of the crew seemed concerned about the dangers involved, something that Dr. Rhodes felt she needed to overcompensate for. Even her roommate, Dr. Catherine Sanderson, had decided to grab a bite to eat rather than prepare!

?[b]Captain Schovick,[/b]? Nakeisha asked as she reached into her backpack and withdrew her sidearm, ?[b]I don?t think I?m going to have room for this? [I]thing[/I]. Can you return it to the armory for me?[/b]?

Theresa rolled her eyes as she hesitantly grabbed the pistol from the doctor.

?[b]It?s probably best you hold onto this, Doctor Rhodes. What exactly do you need the rest of this stuff for, anyway?[/b]?

?[b]You?ve got to be kidding![/b]? Nakeisha huffed as she sorted through her enormous bag, ?[b]Rebreather, CPT, EMR, liveDroor, exothermal responders, plasma scope? I?m only carrying the basics.[/b]?

?[b]Being prepared is one thing,[/b]? Michael said with a smirk, ?[b]But taking all of your personal effects on every mission is a little extreme.[/b]?

?[b]So is sending an engineer from the private sector on board a hostile alien craft,[/b]? Dr. Rhodes replied as she glared as Kendra, ?[b]Don?t think for a moment that I?m not going to report this to the The Federation?s Humanities Inquisitor[/b]?

?[b]You stopped being a civilian when you boarded this craft, Dr. Rhodes,[/b]? Colonel DeSouza clenched his fist as he spoke, [b]?Please learn to respect your superiors orders so that we can run this investigation effectively.[/b]?

Officer Schovick handed Nakeisha back her weapon. Marcus nodded in silent approval.

?[b]Very well, Colonel,[/b]? she replied, ?[b]I suppose I can do without most of these instruments, even though a much less experienced engineer might not be able to. Just let me change into my vacuum suit...[/b]?

The crew?s collective jaw dropped.

?[b]Vacuum? suit?[/b]? Michael was for the first time at a loss for words, ?[b]You?ve got to be joking![/b]?

?[b]There?s no way of telling how breaching the space station?s hull might effect its? atmosphere,[/b]? she said as she headed to a private room to change, ?[b]But if the rest of you want to risk your lives on Ms. Erickson?s unproven measurements feel free.[/b]?[/size][/indent]

[Horendithas]

[COLOR="Indigo"][SIZE="1"]When Brianna headed to the area right before the door leading to the transport room, the very last thing she ever expected to hear was Dr. Rhodes expressing concern about breaching the hull of the space station. [I]What in the world? Where did she get that idea? [/I] It was clear to Brianna that the others were too startled by her statement to say anything to Dr. Rhodes about just how absurd her declaration was. With transport technology, breaching the hull was completely and totally unnecessary.

And the declaration that she was going to report Kendra to the Federation?s Humanities Inquisitor? [I]Did that fool not read the contract she signed when she accepted this assignment? [/I] Brianna wondered. It had been quite clear that by doing so one would lose their civilian status and be partially under the military's jurisdiction. In other words, that they agreed to accept the possibility that they would be required to take up assignments that would put their lives at risk. Brianna just shook her head in disbelief.

"[B]Dr. Rhodes.[/B]" Brianna said, a clear hint of displeasure in her voice causing everyone to turn to face her; Nakeisha came to a halt. "[B]What is this nonsense about breaching the hull of the space station? We may not be a military expedition but I was assured that we were fitted with the newest transport technology.[/B]" She looked to Colonel DeSouza who simply nodded. Brianna turned back to Dr. Rhodes who was for once speechless.

"[B]We will not be breaching the hull, the team will be transporting directly over to the location Mr. Bishop has locked onto.[/B]" Without meaning to Brianna put her hands on her hips and leaned forward just a tad. "[B]I was under the impression that you yourself preferred to not live in the stone age when it came to technological advances.[/B]"

"[B]But... No one told me that the Argo Navis would have transport technology! Still that doesn't change how dangerous it could be![/B]" Nakeisha started to get agitated. "[B]For all we know the atmosphere could be...[/B]"

"[B]Dr. Rhodes.[/B]" Brianna interrupted her. "[B]You need to trust those who you have been given the privilege of working with. Dr. Sanderson has already forwarded a report to Colonel DeSouza detailing the conditions over at the space station. The officers are going first to double check this data to be on the safe side. So something as extreme as a vacuum suit is not needed.[/B]"

Nakeisha opened her mouth to protest but Brianna cut her off again.

"[B]By all means change into one if you really feel that insecure without one.[/B]" Brianna ignored her indignant gasp and then sighed when Nakeisha stalked off to change into her vacuum suit.

"[B]Well, that was rather interesting,[/B]" Brianna observed once Nakeisha was out of range. "[B]I take it that you're almost ready to leave Colonel?[/B]"

"[B]You could say that,[/B]" Marcus said dryly, indicating the direction Nakeisha had taken. He turned to Kendra, "[B]It won't take us long to double check things, I'd like you to stick around and send Dr. Travis and Dr. Rhodes over when I give the signal.[/B]"

Kendra just looked resigned. "[B]Understood Colonel.[/B]" Though it was clear that she'd rather be somewhere else and Brianna could understand that sentiment.
[I]
I need to talk to whoever selected Dr. Rhodes for this assignment.[/I] Brianna thought. [I]The way she jumps to conclusions and makes assumptions as to what everyone is doing is disruptive. [/I] Once again she shook her head, only now understanding why Kendra had recommended her. Obviously Dr. Rhodes needed real on hands experiance instead of sitting in a lab and relying on machines to gather the information for her.

Brianna took note of how Teresa though hyper was obviously well prepared, James who still a bit reserved was also clearly prepared and Vayne who was also at ease, simply waiting for Colonel DeSouza to give the go ahead. Satisfied with what she saw Brianna put it out of mind. Those three along with the Colonel would be enough to keep Dr. Rhodes out of mischief.

"[B]I'll be in my quarters if you need anything else Colonel,[/B]" Brianna continued when he simply shook his head indicating that there was nothing else that he needed. "[B]Good luck then. I'm sure you don't need me to tell you and everyone else to be careful.[/B]"

Then with a nod Brianna turned and left, she still had the reports on the Gate to finish reading, it would be foolish to not use the extra time to go through them. [/SIZE][/COLOR]

[Disenchanted]

[SIZE="1"][COLOR="darkcyan"][B]"I'll inform the Colonel that you needed to stay here."[/B]

[B]?Sure thing.?[/B] Alex replied, not tuning around to face Kendra as she walked off the bridge.

A broad smile was still firmly planted on Alex?s face as he turned away from Kendra and instinctively went about concentrating on maintaining an equal distance with the drifting space station. So far he couldn?t really find any faults with the ship or her crew with the added fact that Nakeisha was proving to be a rather nice source of amusement. This space station however was beginning to be a bit of a problem, it would take them months even with his ace flying and Kendra?s help to get back to a planet that was inhabited and he was pretty sure that their food reserves couldn?t last that long. ?oh well? he though, chuckling softly to himself, ?we could always eat Nakeisha or one of the Col.?s men?. He smiled at his stupid thought, apparently unconcerned with the seriousness of the situation as he pulled back on the controls trying to keep the ship at an equal distance.

The task was proving to be a little tricky as the station was in a constant state of erratic drift, this coupled with the fact he had to stay at a healthy transportation distance. He went about working on getting a good lock on a suitable position for the team to transport over to. The stations control center or somewhere nearest too would be the best as that would provide them with the most information. Try as he might however the best he was getting at the moment was a reasonably strong lock on one of the stations cargo bays. Making a decision he decided to tilt the ?A.N? as he now liked to call her, a little closer. The lock he established on one of the cargo bays was now at full strength, he also had good locks on a large food storage area and a dormitory. In a proximal distance the cargo bay was the closest to the control center but not by much.

Alex checked and re-checked his calculations and information as he began to whistle a song at least a thousand years old*. He opened up a comm-link with the Col. as soon as he finished doing what was needed.

[I]?Col. I have a strong lock on a cargo bay at a reasonably good distance from the stations control center, I have locks on other areas but they aren?t as reliable. That?s our best bet, the space is clean and large, ready when you are to transport over. That?s if you don?t want to change positions.? [/I]

Alex sat back in the pilots seat and sighed, he took one hand off the controls to scratch the back of is head. He didn't have a good feeling about this, and that usually meant trouble.

* the song that Alex is whistling is life on mars by david bowie [/COLOR][/SIZE]

[Aaryanna]

[COLOR="goldenrod"][FONT="Comic Sans MS"]Teresa couldn't help but stifle a chuckle of excitement as she dashed out of sickbay and headed to the storeroom on the lower level with all the military equipment. It came to no surprise to her that she was required to place her palm on the reader next to the door along with swiping her IDT tag and passing the retina scan. Even if the others had been cleared for this mission, they still lacked any military training. Lieutenant Vayne was already inside gathering the necessary equipment, pausing only briefly to see who had entered the room before going back to securing his equipment.

"[B]So what do you think we'll encounter Captain?[/B]" He asked as Teresa started pulling out the necessary ammo and gear along with the small backpacks she would be giving to the non-military members of their group.

"[B]Your guess is good as mine Lieutenant Vayne.[/B]" Teresa said with a shrug. "[B]Since there is no signs of life onboard I would imagine that it's possible that some sort of experimental equipment got out of control. I find it hard to believe that gravitational anomalies would appear on their own like that.[/B]"

Both of them turned as the door opened to admit Major James who simply nodded before heading to one of the supply lockers.

"[B]Well if it isn't the Colonel's least favorite person.[/B]" Vayne said dryly. "[B]I don't suppose you know why he seems to dislike you?[/B]"

"[B]Vayne![/B]" Teresa protested.

"[B]I don't mind,[/B]" Cameron turned to face them. "[B]Ms. Erickson mentioned that the Colonel's younger brother, Cameron, vanished without a trace. I haven't looked at his record, but I'm assuming I must either look like this other Cameron a bit or my name simply reminds him of his younger brother.[/B]"

"[B]You're kidding right?[/B]" Teresa asked in astonishment as she hefted the three survival packs she had grabbed over her right shoulder, resulting in her back facing the door. "[B]Well that's just lame if you ask me.[/B]" The moment she said that and saw the other two stiffen Teresa knew that statement was a mistake.

[I]Gods, he's behind me isn't he? Hell![/I] She turned slowly to see the Colonel standing right behind her, his hands loosely clasped behind his back and a stern look of disapproval on his face.

"[B]Perhaps you'd like to explain just what you find lame Captain?[/B]"

At that moment Teresa wished she could sink through the floor. "[B]Yes sir, I was just explaining to the other two how lame it is that I'm behind schedule with getting the survival packs and basic weapons to the non-military members transporting over.[/B]" Teresa saw her chance and took it. "[B]I'll correct that immediately sir![/B]" With a salute she took off, dashing around him and out the door.

Only after she had practically ran to the meeting place just outside the door to the transport room did she finally breathe a sigh of relief. And fortunately the following mess with Dr. Rhodes seemed to take Colonel DeSouza's mind off the incident in the supply room. As Dr. Henderson turned to leave Teresa had to wonder if Dr. Rhodes reaction was more from fear than any real snobbery. After all, it seemed that she had never been out in the field before and if it made her nervous, for someone who had no military training it had to be even more nerve wracking.

She had given Dr. Travis the small backpack with basic medical supplies, a field jacket and a few other necessities. He had simply followed her instructions and fastened the smaller sidearm on, and though he too seemed nervous as well he had simply covered it with a wry smile.

Teresa was wondering just when they were going to transport over when the pilot, Bishop, contacted the Colonel, informing him that he had a good lock on one of the cargo bays.[I] Finally! [/I]She thought. [I]The sooner we get this taken care of the better! [/I]Teresa leaned back a bit against the wall and waited for the Colonel to simply give the word. [/FONT][/COLOR]

[SunfallE]

[COLOR="DarkRed"][FONT="Lucida Sans Unicode"]The Colonel didn't keep them waiting for long, everyone with the exception of Dr. Rhodes who had yet to return from changing into her vacuum suit, was geared up and ready to go. After glancing over each member who was there he responded to Mr. Bishop.

"[B]The cargo bay will do Bishop. Continue to maintain the lock on that location. Once we locate the station's control center I'll contact you so you can use the com-link to establish a lock on that location as well.[/B]"

"[B]Understood sir.[/B]" Bishop replied before the Colonel ended the communication. He turned to face the three officers under his command noting how each one was well prepared. Then he turned to face Kendra once more.

"[B]Give us about ten minutes and then send the other two over[/B]," Marcus gave her a tiny grin. "[B]I'm sure that Dr. Rhodes should be outfitted by then.[/B]"

"[B]Will do.[/B]" Kendra lowered her voice just a tad. "[B]Be careful Marcus.[/B]" Marcus just shot her another one of his sly grins and then turned and with a few steps putting him in front of the door, he ran his IDT though the reader, accessing the transport room.

"[B]Schovick, James and Vayne, follow me in that order.[/B]" He didn't even turn to see that the three had lined up as instructed while he input the command to activate the transporter. Moments later the equipment came to life and the circular pad lit up. Then without another word the Colonel went first, vanishing as the vertical lines of light ran through his body once he had placed both feet firmly down in the center of the transport pad, taking him with it. Then, a few minutes later, the others had followed suit.

Kendra glanced over at Dr. Travis who seemed a bit nervous and yet he gave her just a tiny smile when his gaze caught hers. "[B]Feeling a little nervous Dr. Travis?[/B]"

"[B]That obvious huh?[/B]" He said ruefully. "[B]Well it's just that I've never used transport technology before.[/B]"

"[B]Well at least they didn't leave us stuck with using the older barbaric method of forcing our way in.[/B]" Dr. Rhodes interjected as she came around the corner all decked out and ready to go. She stopped a good ten feet away from Kendra, scowling a bit at her. "[B]After all some people would rather stick with the stone age.[/B]"

Kendra clenched her fists and willed herself to not answer. [I]I swear![/I] She thought,[I] if someone doesn't smack some sense into her... Stone age and I'm going to report you to The Federation?s Humanities Inquisitor indeed! [/I] Kendra was trying to find a neutral response but Dr. Travis beat her too it.

"[B]It's a pity that transport technology is so expensive[/B]." He gave both women a nervous smile. "[B]I'll be glad when the military finishes testing it and gives it the go ahead for everyone.[/B]"

Dr. Rhodes started to reply but just then the Colonel contacted Kendra, giving her the go ahead to send the other two over. "[B]You heard the Colonel,[/B]" Kendra said. "[B]You first Dr. Rhodes.[/B]"

With a measuring glance at Kendra she turned and marched into the transport room and took her place on the pad, then moments later Dr. Travis had done the same. Once they were gone, with a sigh of relief Kendra put the transporter in standby mode, leaving it open for the Colonel to access remotely at any time. Then she left and headed for the bridge.[/FONT][/COLOR]

[Rachmaninoff]

Michael wasn't sure what to expect from transporting, but it was in a way rather anti climatic. Other than a slight tingling sensation and the scenery changing to that of a large cargo bay, it wasn't much different from simply walking through a door. The bay itself was almost empty other than a few crates of supplies in standard space containers that fastened to the floor. And even then there were only a few of them along the outer wall.

He didn't get much chance to do anything other than to notice that Colonel DeSouza and Captain Schovick were over by the main doors leading out into the corridor. Within moments he was hit by a very odd, powerful smell, one that caused his nose to itch.

"[B]What in the world is that smell?[/B]" He asked no one in paticular. It took him a moment to place it, it was like rotting fruit. [I]I wonder if the stores have gone bad?[/I]

"[B]Lets go people, you can gawk later.[/B]" DeSouza remarked in regards to both Michael and Nakeisha who were still looking around. Chagrined Michael immediately moved over to join him at the door, noticing how both Major James and Lieutenant Vayne took up position behind them as they went out into the corridor. Neatly putting him and Nakeisha in the middle.

How he knew what direction to go, Michael didn't know, but without hesitation the Colonel lead them along the different corridors, the sounds of their equipment and footsteps echoing eerily as they went. He tried to shake it, but it was unsettling for a space station to be so devoid of noise. Even the temperature was clearly on a standby mode as the air was slightly chilly, making him glad he had his light jacket on and a field jacket in the backpack that Captain Schovick had given him.

Michael caught himself as his right hand strayed to rest on the sidearm he had been given. He pulled his hand away, even if he knew how to use one, it would be better to leave such things up to the officers who were trained. Especially since the sniper rifles each one carried looked far more effective than what he had been given.

Finally the silence got to him. "[B]Why are we traveling in near silence?[/B]" He asked.

"[B]It's simple Dr. Travis.[/B]" Schovick explained, "[B]We're listening for sounds of equipment or anything else that might be here.[/B]"

Michael shook his head, confused. "[B]But I thought Dr. Sanderson said there were no life signs.[/B]"

"[B]I don't have time to explain this to you Dr. Travis.[/B]" Schovick said firmly. "[B]There are other things to listen for, now please be quiet.[/B]"

With an inward sigh, Michael shut up. Still he couldn't help but wonder just what she meant by [I]other things[/I]. Then as they came to an open area that was clearly a center for gathering with empty shops and a huge open area with tables for people to mingle and talk, he couldn't help but wonder just what in the world had happened. Not once had he ever heard of a space station drifting erratically with no crew and gravitational anomalies popping up. [i]What in the world did I get myself into when I applied for this? [/i]He wondered.

[Aaryanna]

[COLOR="goldenrod"][FONT="Comic Sans MS"]Captain Schovick came to a halt at the same time the Colonel did, both of them looking over the large gathering area. It was clearly a center for the inhabitants of the space station to get together in their time off, with shops for buying goods and various restaurants, there was even what appeared to be the entrance to a large theater along the right side, nestled in among two shops.

"[B]James, you and Vanye along with Dr. Rhodes are to go along the right side, check out a few places and then meet up on the far side.[/B]" He indicated the exit on the other side of the huge open center.

"[B]Yes sir,[/B]" James replied, coming to attention before he turned and started off along the right side of the area. With Dr. Rhodes and Vayne right behind him.

"[B]Schovick, Dr. Travis you're with me.[/B]" Once she had nodded in response he moved to go along the left side, briefly checking into the various shops as they went along. Within a few moments, the other team was lost from sight as the tables and various stuff in the center blocked their vision of the other side.

It was a bit odd since nothing was locked up, everything was open and items still out on the shelves of the little stores. With one exception, a clothing store, it was as if it had been ransacked as most of the items were gone.

"[B]Captain,[/B]" Dr. Travis asked as they checked out the back of the store to see if the stores had been ransacked as well. "[B]Are you alright?[/B]" Teresa turned to see that he was watching her, his expression one of concern. She stopped going through the store and answered him.

"[B]I'm fine, why do you ask?[/B]"

"[B]Well, ever since we entered this clothing store... You've been shivering a little.[/B]"

Teresa just smiled a bit, "[B]Well this place is a little creepy, plus it is on the cold side with the life support on standby.[/B]" She wasn't going to tell them that on some level she felt like she was cold inside, like she was sick. Because other than that odd feeling, Teresa felt fine. It made no sense. But if Dr. Travis saw her shivering... [I]Maybe I really am cold[/I].

Decided, she pulled out her own field jacket and set her rifle the Thunderbolt down briefly as she took the backpack off and slipped the jacket on before putting the backpack back on and picking up her rifle. It helped, but still, she still felt cold inside. [I]Bah![/I] She thought. [I]I feel fine, it's just that this place is creepy.[/I]

"[B]Did that help?[/B]" Dr. Travis asked her.

"[B]Yeah, it did,[/B]" She said brightly as they moved back to the front of the store where the Colonel was already waiting. Other than to raise an eyebrow at her for having put the field jacket on nothing was said.

"[B]We'll check out a few more shops before re-joining the others. Though I'm not expecting to find anything until we get to the command center.[/B]" Colonel DeSouza left the shop with the two of them following closely behind.

"[B]You know,[/B]" Dr. Travis whispered as they continued along the left side of the shopping center. "[B]You're right, this place is creepy as hell.[/B]"

Teresa just shot him a smile before turning her attention back to keeping an eye out. Though she was not expecting to find anything, what with there being no life signs on the station. Still... She half expected some ghost or other undead thing to pop out. Even though she did not believe in such things. [I]I'll be glad when we get this taken care of.[/I] Teresa thought, even as she shivered again, still feeling cold inside. [/FONT][/COLOR]

[Shy]

[size=1][indent]Nakeisha had decided to stay close to Lt. Vayne while on board the dimly lit space station. While she wasn?t especially fond of the man, she felt much safer around the armed officer than she did Michael or Theresa.

?[b]Are you okay, Dr. Rhodes?[/b]? Morrison asked as he entered one of the empty corridors, ?[b]I know you?re from the private sector, but these kinds of investigations are fairly routine?[/b]?

Nakeisha followed closely behind Lt. Vayne, her vacuum suit?s heavy respiration echoing loudly throughout the hallway.

?[b]Routine, maybe. But I don?t see why I need to be on board. [I]I?m sure my father would love to hear that I?m using my education to visit the galaxy?s most mysterious shopping malls?[/I][/b]?

It was obvious to Dr. Rhodes that this place hadn?t been inhabited in years, if not longer. Dust, something practically unheard of in the vacuum of space, covered nearly every surface. The hallway seemed to stretch on forever, and Nakeisha noticed several unusual pieces of equipment suspended from the low ceiling.

?[b]Hm. The air purifiers aren?t working anymore,[/b]? she muttered as she wiped her finger tip against the wall.

?[b]Are you really surprised, Dr. Rhodes? We?re light years away from the nearest inhabited system.[/b]?

?[b]No, I suppose not. Even the most advanced races have to deal with the necessities of space travel? recycled oxygen being one of them.[/b]?

Morrison turned around, taking note of how far he and Nakeisha had wandered off from the rest of the group.

?[b]Looks like we?re on our own then,[/b]? Lt. Vayne said as he motioned towards a pair of doors up ahead, ?[b]I?ll scout ahead, Dr. Rhodes. Keep your weapon trained on me and wait for my signal.[/b]?

Nakeisha rolled her eyes.

?[b]Your chivalry is charming, Lieutenant, but I?m about as reliable in combat as you would be displacing quantum electric fields.[/b]?

Lt. Vayne grinned as he continued walking into the darkness.

[i]Charming, eh? That?s a new one...[/i][/size][/indent]

[Horendithas]

[COLOR="Indigo"][SIZE="1"]It had been a while since the team left for the space station and yet nothing had been heard yet. Brianna had spent the entire time working on the information provided as to the details of discovering the unknown gate. She had thought about going to the bridge to help, but in all honesty, there wasn't much for her to do. She was accustomed to leading expedition's not an investigation of a drifting space station or strange gravitational anomalies that could not be explained. A quick glance at the time on her computer screen showed that a few hours had passed.[I] I should go to the bridge and see how things are going.[/I] Even if they would contact her if needed, there was no reason why she had to stay in her quarters, she could go through the information at any terminal.

Decided she shut the terminal down and got up, stretching just a tiny bit before she went to leave her quarters. It was with great surprise that she nearly ran into the door when it failed to open when she approached. [I]What the? [/I] Brianna reached up with her right hand and pressed the button on the tiny terminal built into the wall next to the door. But nothing happened and the words insufficient power flashed briefly across the tiny screen.

"[B]Insufficient power?[/B]" Brianna was incredulous. How was that possible? Even if they were in hyper drive a small ship like the Argo Navis should have more than enough power for something as simple as opening a door. With an annoyed grunt she punched the button again only to get the same response.

"[B]What the hell is going on?[/B]" She turned and went back over to her desk to contact the bridge but halted when the door finally opened. Surprised she turned around wondering just what had happened. Cautiously she approached the door and then stepped outside, as if nothing had happened the door simply shut behind her. Curious she slide her IDT card in the reader to open the door back up, but once again the message insufficient power flashed on the screen.

Brianna wondered if something was wrong with the lock mechanism for her quarters. [I]Lovely.[/I] She thought. [I]I'd better stay out of there or I'll end up stuck inside. [/I]With a sigh she turned and headed for the bridge. Relieved that she had at least gotten out of her quarters. The idea of being stuck in there and needing someone else to free her was embarrassing to think about. After all, what kind of expedition leader couldn't get out of their own quarters?

But when she ran her IDT to gain access to the bridge the exact same thing happened again. Brianna started to curse under her breath and stopped when the doors opened. Both Bishop and Kendra were seated at the pilot's spot, talking about something among themselves.

"[B]I need to ask both of you something.[/B]" She waited for both of them to turn and face her.

"[B]What can I help you with?[/B]" Kendra said with a smile.

"[B]When I try to open the door to my quarters and to the bridge just now I got a message saying there was insufficient power.[/B]" Bishop looked skeptical and so did Kendra.

"[B]Are you sure?[/B]" She continued when Brianna nodded. "[B]That should not happen, even if we were on emergency power only, there would still be enough to operate the doors.[/B]" She turned back to the terminal and started checking the systems and then turned back to Brianna.

"[B]I'll look into it, but everything looks just fine. I'm not showing any signs of a power drain or malfunction that would cause something like that.[/B]"

Brianna nodded, "[B]Very well, let me know if you find anything.[/B]" She turned and went over to the communication spot on the bridge to pull up what she had been working on.[I] If it happens again, I'd much rather be with someone else.[/I] She thought. Brianna did not want to end up stuck by herself in her quarters or some other part of the ship. [/SIZE][/COLOR]

[Disenchanted]

[COLOR="darkcyan"][SIZE="1"]A.J maintained a strong and stable lock on the space stations cargo bay as the team was transported inside. If there was one thing he sort of disliked about being a pilot it was missing out on all the fun and action on the ground. This wouldn?t have been the first time he had to stay aboard a ship and practically do nothing. Keeping an equal distance with a space station could be difficult at times but it was a total bore none the less. As he tapped various holographic dials and moved controls he found himself wishing for some hostile force to show up that would give him a bit of a challenge but he quickly took back the thought.

When he was enlisted he would have given his right leg for a moment of peace while flying, [i] ?be careful what you wish for? [/i] his mind sang to him. [b]?yeah?yeah.?[/b] He whispered back out-loud to no one, quiet enough so that Kendra couldn't hear him. The space station suddenly took a rather massive but short turn towards the A.G, Alex?s brow furrowed momentarily as he had to swoop the ship a fair distance away from her to keep equal. He sighed out loud, for everything she was the AG was in a way almost too advanced. Pilots were still taught to fly under G forces for the experience, he preferred it?almost missed it in a way. At least now that Kendra and Brianna were on the bridge he wasn't completly alone.

Cutting across his thoughts all of a sudden crimson and light blue lights began to flash all over his holographic display. A.J frowned, a rather rare sight to behold, and tapped a few dials before tilting his head questioningly to the side. [b]?That?s odd.?[/b] He announced probably a little too calmly.

[B]?What?s odd??[/B] Kendra questioned but A.J didn?t answer. The strange readings were coming from the engines output which could be potentially dangerous for a lot of reasons, but none of which he wanted to think about. [b]?I?m getting some odd readings from the engines output.?[/b] he continued to stare at the screen trying to figure out what was going on. He saw Kendra in his peripheral vision also checking her systems for the readings.

[B]?Is there something wrong??[/B] Brianna sang out from her communication console. Kendra turned and attempted to look as reassuring a possible.

[B]?Probably nothing, were checking it out now.?[/B] Alex flashed a look in her direction slightly concerned.

[B]?All right, I?ll go check it out.?[/B] She announced, getting up to leave. [I]?yeah well?be careful.? [/I]He wasn?t about to say that to he directly, but he couldn?t help thinking it.

[B]?Sure thing, still maintaining an equal distance with the station.?[/B] He responded as Kendra left the bridge to go check on the engines. This was slightly worrying, the doors and now the engines. ?I wonder what else is going to start malfunctioning? he couldn?t help but thinking. Alex had a sudden urge to tell the commander and the rest of the team over on the space station to transport back right then and there so they could take off but that was out of the question.[/SIZE][/COLOR]