KidCthulhu
First Post
Capellan said:
Great. Now I have tea on my keyboard. Stop being so funny, or the Help Desk at work is going to get suspicious.
-
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[Spaceship Zero] Q-Ship (actually updated 19 May 2007)
- Thread starter Capellan
- Start date
Great. Now I have tea on my keyboard. Stop being so funny, or the Help Desk at work is going to get suspicious.
Capellan
Explorer
"Blast Off!" - Part 25
As Gustav recalibrates the shield generators to focus behind the ship, protecting the huge bag of mould, the others make final systems checks before launch,
"Everything checks out, here, Captain." Archie reports. The robot is attached to the console via two thick silver wires, using direct system access to speed the analysis of data.
"Good to hear, old boy." Fury toggles the internal communications switch, "We're set, Doc. How are the shields?
"I have completed ze changes required." Gustav responds, "And ze diagnostics appear in order. However, I recommend we all put on ze space suits, as zere will be no protection from space radiation without ze shields."
"Are we going to lose gravity, too, Doc?" Fury asks.
"Nein, I do not zink so. Ze gravity well from ze shields is large enough zat we should feel ze effects, still." Gustav's voice is muffled - it seems he is already following his own advice to don a suit, "Ze gravity might be little less than it is normally, but it will not be significantly different."
"Glad to hear it, Doc. We'll don suits now and get out of here in the next two minutes." Fury breathes a sigh of relief. Whatever their other talents, most of the rest of the crew have had no zero-gravity training.
Donning their silver space suits with a minimum of banter, the crew quickly takes their positions in the cabin. Only S'Ondra lacks a vital role in the upcoming flight: Fury is naturally at the controls of the ship, but Archie will be monitoring the cabin conditions while Gustav keeps his eyes on the shield diagnostics and ensures that everything is functioning as it should.
"Here we go, folks." Fury powers up the engines exactly one minute and fifty nine seconds after giving the order to don suits. The Pathfinder lifts slowly but gracefully into the air, the powerful down-draught of the engines flattening the thick layer of purple-and-red undergrowth. S'Ondra, staring silently out of the window, places her open palm against the glass. Wordlessly, she makes her farewells to her home-world, her thoughts turning inevitably to this reality's version of herself and her father."
The Princess' reverie is rudely interrupted.
"Damnation!" Fury swears, as a sudden wind shear drives the Pathfinder sideways. The Captain's response is immediate, wrenching the ship sideways to avoid colliding with the many thorny plants that surround the clearing. His move lacks finesse, but the tight confines and the danger to the bag of mould leave no time for subtlety. With a scream of power from the tortured engines, the ship lifts safely clear of the trees.
The sudden lurch sideways, however, is not without its repercussions.
The first is that the Princess, standing beside the window, is thrown off her feet, landing with a squawk of outrage in the Captain's lap. Fury makes no effort to conceal his smile of amusement, and slips an arm around S'Ondra to hold her in place,
"Careful there, Princess." He cautions, "I won't always be around to catch you."
S'Ondra snorts and pulls herself free, scarlet with embarrassment. Ducking her head, she shoots a glance at her foster father, to see if he noticed what happened -
and immediately, all thoughts of her own situation vanish from her mind.
The Doctor was as unprepared for the abrupt change of course as S'Ondra had been. Unlike her, however, he did not fall safely - if embarrassingly - into someone else's lap. Instead, the sudden lurch snapped his head forward, striking hard against the screen before him.
Now, the old man is slumped unconscious across the shield diagnostics console, blood seeping from a deep cut on his forehead ...
As Gustav recalibrates the shield generators to focus behind the ship, protecting the huge bag of mould, the others make final systems checks before launch,
"Everything checks out, here, Captain." Archie reports. The robot is attached to the console via two thick silver wires, using direct system access to speed the analysis of data.
"Good to hear, old boy." Fury toggles the internal communications switch, "We're set, Doc. How are the shields?
"I have completed ze changes required." Gustav responds, "And ze diagnostics appear in order. However, I recommend we all put on ze space suits, as zere will be no protection from space radiation without ze shields."
"Are we going to lose gravity, too, Doc?" Fury asks.
"Nein, I do not zink so. Ze gravity well from ze shields is large enough zat we should feel ze effects, still." Gustav's voice is muffled - it seems he is already following his own advice to don a suit, "Ze gravity might be little less than it is normally, but it will not be significantly different."
"Glad to hear it, Doc. We'll don suits now and get out of here in the next two minutes." Fury breathes a sigh of relief. Whatever their other talents, most of the rest of the crew have had no zero-gravity training.
Donning their silver space suits with a minimum of banter, the crew quickly takes their positions in the cabin. Only S'Ondra lacks a vital role in the upcoming flight: Fury is naturally at the controls of the ship, but Archie will be monitoring the cabin conditions while Gustav keeps his eyes on the shield diagnostics and ensures that everything is functioning as it should.
"Here we go, folks." Fury powers up the engines exactly one minute and fifty nine seconds after giving the order to don suits. The Pathfinder lifts slowly but gracefully into the air, the powerful down-draught of the engines flattening the thick layer of purple-and-red undergrowth. S'Ondra, staring silently out of the window, places her open palm against the glass. Wordlessly, she makes her farewells to her home-world, her thoughts turning inevitably to this reality's version of herself and her father."
The Princess' reverie is rudely interrupted.
"Damnation!" Fury swears, as a sudden wind shear drives the Pathfinder sideways. The Captain's response is immediate, wrenching the ship sideways to avoid colliding with the many thorny plants that surround the clearing. His move lacks finesse, but the tight confines and the danger to the bag of mould leave no time for subtlety. With a scream of power from the tortured engines, the ship lifts safely clear of the trees.
The sudden lurch sideways, however, is not without its repercussions.
The first is that the Princess, standing beside the window, is thrown off her feet, landing with a squawk of outrage in the Captain's lap. Fury makes no effort to conceal his smile of amusement, and slips an arm around S'Ondra to hold her in place,
"Careful there, Princess." He cautions, "I won't always be around to catch you."
S'Ondra snorts and pulls herself free, scarlet with embarrassment. Ducking her head, she shoots a glance at her foster father, to see if he noticed what happened -
and immediately, all thoughts of her own situation vanish from her mind.
The Doctor was as unprepared for the abrupt change of course as S'Ondra had been. Unlike her, however, he did not fall safely - if embarrassingly - into someone else's lap. Instead, the sudden lurch snapped his head forward, striking hard against the screen before him.
Now, the old man is slumped unconscious across the shield diagnostics console, blood seeping from a deep cut on his forehead ...
Last edited:
Emperor Valerian
First Post
Congratulations. I'm addicted to this thread, and I'm looking forward to my next "fix." 
Capellan
Explorer
"Blast Off!" - Part 26
With a cry of alarm, S'Ondra rushes to her foster-father's side. Crouching beside him, she quickly inspects the wound,
"Archie! First aid kit!"
A panel in the robot's side drops open, and a small white box tumbles into the Princess' outstretched hand. Working quickly, she flicks open the latch on the box and begins to pull out bandages, painkillers and antiseptic.
"Is the Doc okay?" Fury twists in his seat to look back at the others, and instantly his eyebrows shoot up, as he finds himself effectively speaking to S'Ondra's shapely derriere.
Leaning over Gustav, S'Ondra answers distractedly, without looking over her shoulder - which is probably just as well for Fury.
"He's unconscious, but it doesn't feel like there is any fracturing - he should come around again soon."
"I would recommend more antiseptic, Princess." Archie watches S'Ondra's progress, "This environment is replete with germs."
"I've used quite enough -" S'Ondra breaks off to curse as sweat drips from her forehead onto the Doctor's face, "Is it getting hotter in here?"
"Archie, leave the Princess to look after the Doc, and get over to the shields console." Fury snaps his attention back to the job of piloting the vessel, "S'Ondra's right - the temperature gauge is going berserk, and I need to know what's going on."
"All shield displays are in the red, Captain." Archie reports in an efficient monotone, "Protecting the bag is requiring more power than we can safely generate. It appears that the Doctor programmed the system to reduce protection for us, if this became necessary - that's why it is getting hotter - but they are very close to complete shut-down."
"Keep a stiff upper lip, old boy!" Fury encourages the robot, completely oblivious to the fact that Archie has no lips, and even if he did, they would be made of metal, "We're very close to being out of the atmosphere."
"Nonetheless, I would suggest haste, Captain."
"Thanks for the tip."
The Pathfinder screams into the upper atmosphere, as Fury pushes the Xenon drive well beyond safe limits. The entire ship shakes from the strain, and S'Ondra has to tend to Gustav with only one hand, using the other to brace herself.
Boom!
The ship bucks suddenly, nearly throwing S'Ondra across the room once more. Even Fury, strapped into his pilot's seat, is thrown back and forth. Dozens of red lights come up on the ship's console as computer panels burst into flame, showering white-hot sparks across the cabin. S'Ondra throws herself across her foster-father, flinching as some of the sparks land near her face. Despite this, she makes no move to find protection for herself.
"Shield generators one, two and four are offline!" Archie reports, amplifying his voice so that it can rise above the chaos in the cabin, "Q-Drive is offline -"
"Damn thing didn't work anyway!" is Fury's rejoinder, "We're out of the atmosphere, but at these velocities even space dust could tear that bag open. Can you get any extra power from generator three?"
The robot's metal fingers fly over the keyboard as he runs rapid-fire diagnostics,
"Not without diverting power from another system, Captain." Is his evaluation, "Running analysis. Engine couplings to the shields are burned out, and engines themselves are at only seventy percent capacity. Waste reclamation is offline - I expect the multiplying germs will kill you all, shortly - and all power to the laboratory is offline."
"We've still got life support, right?"
"You would be suffocating to death without it, Captain."
"Right. Everyone: get your helmets on!" Fury fights to keep the Pathfinder stable as he talks, "The internal tanks on our suits will give us air long enough to reach Earth and dump this stuff. Archie, will that be enough power?"
"Disabling life support will be sufficient to maintain the shield on the bag." The robot responds, calmly, "But shields on the cabin will be reduced to less than two percent of optimal strength."
"Which means?"
"Don't let anything larger than space dust hit us, or we'll crack open like an egg."
"Thanks. That was refreshingly clear." Fury manages a weak smile as he snaps his helmet into place. "You all suited up, Princess?"
"I am."
"And the Doc's helmet is on, too?"
"I did his first."
Fury pauses in his course adjustments, then nods.
"Good work, Princess. Space Force could do with more like you."
"No doubt it could." Despite the indifference of her response, S'Ondra blushes slightly at the Captain's praise.
"Archie?"
"Ready, Captain."
Fury nods again.
"Do it, Archie. Disable life support."
With a cry of alarm, S'Ondra rushes to her foster-father's side. Crouching beside him, she quickly inspects the wound,
"Archie! First aid kit!"
A panel in the robot's side drops open, and a small white box tumbles into the Princess' outstretched hand. Working quickly, she flicks open the latch on the box and begins to pull out bandages, painkillers and antiseptic.
"Is the Doc okay?" Fury twists in his seat to look back at the others, and instantly his eyebrows shoot up, as he finds himself effectively speaking to S'Ondra's shapely derriere.
Leaning over Gustav, S'Ondra answers distractedly, without looking over her shoulder - which is probably just as well for Fury.
"He's unconscious, but it doesn't feel like there is any fracturing - he should come around again soon."
"I would recommend more antiseptic, Princess." Archie watches S'Ondra's progress, "This environment is replete with germs."
"I've used quite enough -" S'Ondra breaks off to curse as sweat drips from her forehead onto the Doctor's face, "Is it getting hotter in here?"
"Archie, leave the Princess to look after the Doc, and get over to the shields console." Fury snaps his attention back to the job of piloting the vessel, "S'Ondra's right - the temperature gauge is going berserk, and I need to know what's going on."
"All shield displays are in the red, Captain." Archie reports in an efficient monotone, "Protecting the bag is requiring more power than we can safely generate. It appears that the Doctor programmed the system to reduce protection for us, if this became necessary - that's why it is getting hotter - but they are very close to complete shut-down."
"Keep a stiff upper lip, old boy!" Fury encourages the robot, completely oblivious to the fact that Archie has no lips, and even if he did, they would be made of metal, "We're very close to being out of the atmosphere."
"Nonetheless, I would suggest haste, Captain."
"Thanks for the tip."
The Pathfinder screams into the upper atmosphere, as Fury pushes the Xenon drive well beyond safe limits. The entire ship shakes from the strain, and S'Ondra has to tend to Gustav with only one hand, using the other to brace herself.
Boom!
The ship bucks suddenly, nearly throwing S'Ondra across the room once more. Even Fury, strapped into his pilot's seat, is thrown back and forth. Dozens of red lights come up on the ship's console as computer panels burst into flame, showering white-hot sparks across the cabin. S'Ondra throws herself across her foster-father, flinching as some of the sparks land near her face. Despite this, she makes no move to find protection for herself.
"Shield generators one, two and four are offline!" Archie reports, amplifying his voice so that it can rise above the chaos in the cabin, "Q-Drive is offline -"
"Damn thing didn't work anyway!" is Fury's rejoinder, "We're out of the atmosphere, but at these velocities even space dust could tear that bag open. Can you get any extra power from generator three?"
The robot's metal fingers fly over the keyboard as he runs rapid-fire diagnostics,
"Not without diverting power from another system, Captain." Is his evaluation, "Running analysis. Engine couplings to the shields are burned out, and engines themselves are at only seventy percent capacity. Waste reclamation is offline - I expect the multiplying germs will kill you all, shortly - and all power to the laboratory is offline."
"We've still got life support, right?"
"You would be suffocating to death without it, Captain."
"Right. Everyone: get your helmets on!" Fury fights to keep the Pathfinder stable as he talks, "The internal tanks on our suits will give us air long enough to reach Earth and dump this stuff. Archie, will that be enough power?"
"Disabling life support will be sufficient to maintain the shield on the bag." The robot responds, calmly, "But shields on the cabin will be reduced to less than two percent of optimal strength."
"Which means?"
"Don't let anything larger than space dust hit us, or we'll crack open like an egg."
"Thanks. That was refreshingly clear." Fury manages a weak smile as he snaps his helmet into place. "You all suited up, Princess?"
"I am."
"And the Doc's helmet is on, too?"
"I did his first."
Fury pauses in his course adjustments, then nods.
"Good work, Princess. Space Force could do with more like you."
"No doubt it could." Despite the indifference of her response, S'Ondra blushes slightly at the Captain's praise.
"Archie?"
"Ready, Captain."
Fury nods again.
"Do it, Archie. Disable life support."
Look_a_Unicorn
First Post
This story hour rocks!
Plane Sailing
Astral Admin - Mwahahaha!
OT: With a handle like that, why haven't you got an avatar of a Narwhale? I thought that dugongs/manatees were the ones normally mistaken for mermaids (by sailors with appalling eyesight problems, obviously :Look_a_Unicorn said:
Plane Sailing
Astral Admin - Mwahahaha!
S'Ondra, Fury.... Fury, S'Ondra.
The chemistry is electric! It reminds me a little of Maggie and Joel in "Northern Exposure"
The chemistry is electric! It reminds me a little of Maggie and Joel in "Northern Exposure"
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