Evacuating...With Style!

Posted on Sun May 10, 2015 @ 4:37pm by

919 words; about a 5 minute read

Mission: Eye of the Beholder
Location: Berth 4, Inner Docking Harbor
Timeline: During the evacuation

[ON]

"Move quickly, please! Don't push!" The security crewman said. He was herding people through the airlock and into the vessel known as MV Radiance of the Stars, a civilian-registered cruise liner that had sustained damage in an unrelated accident but was space-worthy. Four other security personnel were assisting him, making sure the evacuation didn't descend into panic.

The crowds of civilians were mostly comprised of those who had been caught on the Promenade when the evacuation order came. The station's security personnel immediately began directing them to any ship or shuttle that could hold passengers. Most were built more for cargo than comfort. Not that anyone was complaining. The Radiance of the Stars, on the the other hand, was lavish with its interior appointments. Obnoxiously so. Not that anyone was complaining.

DaiMon Praz, President of Praz Holdings, happened to be aboard the ship. His ship, he thought proudly. He had been having a meeting with the ship's captain and was on his way out when throngs of people began flooding past him on the large, open concierge deck. "I beg your pardon? Where are you going? Who are you people?!"

No one paid him any attention. They clamored past him and into the depths of the ship. Most weren't even carrying possessions. They were simply in a rush to get aboard. Praz and the few of his employees on duty looked on in wide-eyed confusion. Then the captain's voice erupted from the public address system.

"Attention, all decks. This is the captain speaking. Secure for immediate departure. Assist incoming passengers until we have reached maximum capacity. That is all."

"What?!" Praz exclaimed. It was so noisy with all the chatter that no one heard him. He spotted one of the Starfleet security people coming through one of the airlocks and made his way to the young lady. He had to push his way through the oncoming hordes.

"Head down that corridor!" The gold-collared security crewman said, pointing. "The crew will help you! Let's go! Don't stay on this deck! Move! Move!" She didn't notice the Ferengi's approach. She was trying to get as many aboard as possible.

"What is going on!" Praz yelled at the young woman. He was half frightened and half angry.

The security crewman shot him an annoyed look. "The station is evacuating, didn't you hear? Don't just stand there! You're blocking the gangway! Get below!"

"Why are we evacuating?!" Praz asked. His voice was pure fright this time.

"Get out of here!" The woman snapped. She pointed at him and then down the main corridor where she was directing the others.

Praz turned and fled. He had to get to the bridge. He went a few steps before remembering that he had his communicator with him. He retrieved it from his pocket, flipped it open, and held it to his mouth. "Praz to bridge! What's happening?"

It took a few seconds for the reply to come back. It was the ship's captain again. "Bridge here. Something's happening to the space surrounding the station. We're to take on as many as we can and get out. It's an order."

"What's happening to the space?!" Praz asked. He didn't understand at all. Space was space, dead and void, as far as he knew. What could possibly be wrong with it?

"We don't know. Just get to your stateroom. We're kind of busy up here, sir. We're working on getting the powerplant started."

Praz felt an icy ball of lead where his heart should be. In their meeting a few minutes prior he and the captain had been discussing all the work the powerplant would need after the engine room explosion that had put the ship out of commission just a few weeks prior. Dyson Yards had a big job ahead of them. "Is that even possible?" He asked as someone bumped past him, nearly knocking the communicator out of his hand.

"I'm fairly certain the impulse manifold will hold together. Warp speed is another matter. With the current state of the anti-matter injectors...we'll have to see. I think we can make a short range jump if necessary." There was a tinge of worry in the captain's voice. He hadn't been expecting this at all. Then again, who would have?

"Close the airlock doors," Praz ordered. "Whatever's going on we need to get away now!" He glanced over and saw that the security people were still bringing in evacuees. They fully intended to fill every square centimeter of deck space with living bodies.

"Mister Praz, you know I can't do that. We're bound by interstellar law to render assistance to anyone in distress. Now please, clear this channel and get to your stateroom."

Praz reluctantly did as told. He may have been the owner of the ship but this was one of those instances where the captain was firmly in charge. As he pushed his way through the crowd he thought of his new executive assistant, Orrin. He hoped the man was alright. Using the same communicator he tried to get in touch. There was no reply.

Minutes later the Radiance of the Stars cleared her moorings and shoved off. She was carrying over two-thousand people, huddled into every cabin and corridor aboard. There was hardly any room to move around. She cleared the harbor doors and moved into open space under her own power.

[OFF]

 

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