Let's see what she's got...Part 1
Posted on 29 Apr 2018 @ 8:29pm by Captain Ricardo (Rico) Montoya & Lieutenant Commander Cevel Th'raran & Lieutenant Voric Miller & Lieutenant Marion Kent & Admiral Ayana Varon & Lieutenant JG Zitla & Senior Chief Petty Officer Thomas Larsen
1,166 words; about a 6 minute read
Mission:
M-14 New Beginings
Location: USS Phoenix
Timeline: MD 3 - 0800
[Bridge]
The bridge was a buzz of activity and Rico was soaking up that energy as he sat in center of it all. It was time to see just what this thing could do and he planned to test both man and machine. Looking about he scanned the various stations to judge their readiness.
Cevel looked at the crew and then at his display screen on his chair. “Sir, the station has cleared us for departure and given us top priority.”
Thomas glanced over and tugged at his collar again. He didn’t know why it bugged him so much. “Auxiliary station up and running Cap. All lights are green.”
Ayana finished a quick check of her systems. “All good here.” She couldn’t help smiling as she was looking forward to setting out on her first tour as head of Ops.
With no one else there, Aldana had taken Sci-II which s/he had reconfigured for medical. S/he logged in and checked over the general biological vital readouts of several key systems with Sombra snoozing readily out of the way under the station. “Medical reporting ready, sir. Key vital signs reading steady.”
“All weapons are available and standing by with shields. We have a full torpedo compliment! Also multi-vector assault mode is ready as well and I can fire all phaser banks from here when separated!”
With the bridge ready Rico tapped a panel on the arm of his chair. “Lt. Kent, are your engines ready to go?”
[Engineering]
Kent was at the Master Control Board; the ‘Christmas Tree’ as it is nicknamed, watching for a board of all green or the yellow of standby. The Warp Drive was powered but not fully on line; a type of idling as one might put it, the Impulse Engines were at ready status since they would be first called upon once the ship is clear of the station.
From the past; reading up on the Earth Maritime history, this is where Kent as Chief Engineer would have lit the boilers and has the crew poised over levers and controls waiting to ‘Answer Bells’ which is the term used for the speeds the Bridge wanted from Dead Slow to Flank were the increments of the past; modern star ships had more precise measurements but the concept was the same.
=^=Bridge, Engineering ready to answer Bells. =^= Kent reported.
[Bridge]
“Excellent. Helm, disengage all umbilicals and clear all moorings.”
“Aye, sir.” Cracking his knuckles his hands moved over the Helm and as the acknowledgement came in he reported. “Captain all mooring cleared and the station has retracted all umbilicals and walkways.”
Rico took a breath and could feel the adrenaline rising. “Very good. Back us out.”
Engaging the ship’s thruster he slowly the Phoenix back out and away from the docking spur within the station’s massive docking area. Once clear the ship smoothly came about the space doors came into view and had already begun to open. “We’re clear Captain.”
Leaning forward one elbow on his knee, “Well let’s see what this thing can do. Take us out…one quarter impulse.”
There was the briefest of glances between the Helm and Ops as the helm replied. “One quarter impulse…Aye.” In a matter of seconds the space doors flew by and the Phoenix was in open space. “Course sir?”
“Take us out to this system’s Oort cloud. Let’s go blow something up.”
Ayana wasn’t sure blowing something up was the best way to see what the ship could do, but she said nothing. It would definitely let her see how the ship performed.
Uncharacteristically late to the party Zitla stepped onto the bridge, “Transfer Science to bridge,” she said, with a second uncharacteristic feeling, that of wanting to be apart from certain people, at least she had the opportunity to bond and get to know the bridge team in a professional category she thought as her panel hummed into life.
Rising from his command chair stepping up between the Helm and Ops stations, placing his hand on the back of the chairs occupied by his officers. “Plot an indirect course to allow for system testing.”
Looking up at the Captain he made a few recommendations. “Sir, if I may, I could take us in towards the star to test the metaphasic shields, then into the Pangauan asteroid belt for some maneuvers, there is also a Class-S Gas planet that would put the ship atmospheric flight and shields to the test…then to the ort cloud for some target practice.”
Rico looked at the helm officer and grinned, sharp young man was going to give Mr. Kent’s fiancé a little competition. “Very well, plot your course.” Turning pack to take his seat he looked to his XO. “Commander, let’s have a call to battle stations to combine with those maneuvers when we get to the asteroid belt.”
Cevel nodded.
Ayana monitored ops while she listened in on the comm channel.
Lowering himself into his seat Rico gave the order. “Helm, engage.”
[Metaphasic testing]
“Captain we are approaching the outer corona.”
The star had filled the screen for some time and even with its light filtered through the view screen it was still quite bright. “Engage metaphasic shields, helm take us into an orbit of the star.”
Miller’s hands moved over his console. “Engaging Metaphasics. Hull temperature holding.”
Power allocation looked good so far. Ayana watched to make sure there were no kinks in the output.
“Helm take us in deeper.”
[Engineering]
The Powers systems were running like a clock; the energy drain upon the grid well within parameters. Kent remained at the main power Control board; from here he could adjust the ship’s power flow and monitor the strain; if any undue stress, upon the Core and reactors.
“Keep your eyes peeled; we are relying on contractor’s to have done their jobs even after we came on board.” He playfully warned his team. “Don’t need to fix anything this early in the voyage.”
[Bridge]
As the ship moved deeper into the sun’s corona Miller continued to monitor. “Captain, Coronal temperature exceeding 1 million degrees C. Hull temperature, nominal. So far.”
Turning to the security station. “So far… How long would you estimate we could stay here?”
“Given the current rate of decay in shield strength, factoring in an appropriate acceleration curve as the shields continue to weaken, I would estimate the ship, if undamaged, could remain here 8.3 hour before being forced to leave the a stars corona. Given a star with similar characteristic as this one of course.”
Rico nodded and held back a smirk as he thought, ~Now he sounded like a Vulcan~. “Well hopefully we won’t have to stay to close to a star that long. Helm, take us to our next stop.
“Aye sir.”
With that the Phoenix pulled away from the star and back into the cold of space.
TBC
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