Internal Inspection

Posted on Tue Jan 31st, 2012 @ 9:57pm by Lieutenant Markus Rubens [PNPC] & Ensign Lhamepha Kitonuh [Byrne]

Mission: Deep Space 19
Location: Deep Space 19 - Docking Ring
Timeline: MD09 1030hrs

The two Starfleet officers stepped out of the open rear end of their Type 8 shuttlecraft, their movements slow and controlled as they relied on their environment suits' gravity boots to keep them rooted to the deck plating beneath their feet. The shuttle itself was similarly secured to the inside of one of the many shuttlebays on the station's ring-shaped docking structure.

Markus pointed up to the control room that sat raised above the lower level of the shuttlebay, reachable by a ladder and a walkway, similar to some of the shuttlebays in Starfleet's larger vessels. The room itself was easily noticeable, as it possessed a faint glow from within. "Those consoles seem to have power running to them," he said over his suit radio. "Let's see if we can get any response out of it."

"Agreed," Lhamepha responded. Her own environment suit helmet was of a bulkier design than her human counterpart's, to account for the water containers that were affixed over the gills on either side of her blue neck. It made it impossibly awkward when it came to kitting out a shuttle, having to pack her own gear each time she set out in one, which was generally why she tried to stay away from using them if she was left to her own devices.

The two officers started a steady spacewalk towards the rungs affixed to the wall, leading up through a hole in the walkway to allow access to the upper level. Whilst the ensign began to slowly climb immediately, Markus instead held back, watching her ascend and waiting... for something.

Finally when she was at the top and out of the way, he revealed the reason for his actions. As he reached down to key the command on the control pad attached to his outer thigh, he deactivated his gravity boots, and pushed gently off the deck, sailing upwards in the zero-g environment, using the ladder rungs to guide himself, and to slow his ascent once he neared the top. Reactivating the boots as he stepped onto the walkway, he grinned at his aquatic counterpart. "Who said we had to come up here the hard way?"

Shaking her head at him, Kitonuh led the way into the control room, which they could see more clearly now. Filled with various banks of consoles and monitors, the room was relatively small considering the space it oversaw, but the equipment seemed adequate for the job. Lhamepha loaded up the rudimentary translation kit that the Starfleet teams had been working on since they had arrived. It still couldn't translate the alien language on the screens, but it could just about assist the officers in determining what controls are likely to do what.

"It looks like the power blockage is a local safety feature," she reported.

"Probably to stop a power surge from the main reactor interfering or damaging any docked ships," the pilot surmised, coming up next to her. It made sense; if a ship was docked and a large enough power surge went through the station, the connecting hulls could easily transfer the power overload into the other ship as well, frying their systems and causing all kinds of damage from exploding consoles and conduits.

"I think I can bypass it," she said, as she attached a modified tricorder she had carried in her suit pocket via a spare optronic cable to the console to use as an interface. After just a few minutes, the shuttlebay was suddenly bathed in light, the forcefield over the opening flickered as it received full power, and the pair could hear and feel both air and heat coming into the room. Once the tricorder confirmed that life support had been restored to passable levels, the pair removed their helmets.

"These bays seem to have an independent life support system from the rest of the station," Lhamepha said, as she continued her investigation of the system in front of her. "It also looks like it should be easier to modify than the main station's system appears to be. I guess they build it with the considerations and living conditions of many different species in mind." As she worked her tricorder, the air pressure changed ever so slightly, and more heat began to seep into the room.

"Aah, that's better," Markus said, relieved that the coldness that seemed to be present on the rest of the station could be eliminated here of all places. "Does the rest of the ring have life support now?" he asked.

Kitonuh nodded. "Yes, and I've set it to the norm we're all used to on the Endeavour. Should allow easier working conditions. Though I'm not sure what we're going to do if we plan to make use of the docking ledges, or arms or whatever we want to call them."

"The airlock mechanism itself will need completely replacing," the lieutenant said, repeating the thought aloud that he had had in the shuttle craft. "Alpha Quadrant Standard airlock systems just aren't in the slightest way compatible with the system that's on this station at present. The engineering crews will have to work in vacuum until they're done, too."

Kitonuh simply nodded, taking the experienced flight controller at his word.

"Come on," he continued, as he carried his helmet with him back out on to the walkway. "We'll take another orbit around the ring to check for any obvious problems, then we'll report back to the ship."

---------------------------
Lieutenant Markus Rubens
Acting Chief CONN Officer

&

Ensign Lhampepha Kitonuh
Operations Officer
USS Endeavour

Both Played by Capt. Byrne