Kezik took the PADD and began skimming through the data rapturously.

"Squid? Yes, they do resemble...hm. Hm! This is fascinating. And disturbing. I wonder how..."

He looks up at Dr. Naruhita. "I hypothesized that they were related to the ship we encountered at the edge of the system - that perhaps it deposited them within the atmosphere for some reason. Is that what happened, or have they been here since before the colony was established?"

OOC: Are there any other conclusions he can draw from Dr. Naruhita's data?

There were a LOT of minor injuries, ranging from contusions to broken bones.  Sorting the wheat from the chaff, so to speak, was taking longer than expected.  Still, with the assistance of her crewmates, Azami is able to isolate about 20 cases that need attention far sooner than later.

Doing what he can to help sort the patience for PO Azami, Daniel is hampered by the crowd, the confines and the ever present fear of those creatures out there.

  Relief washes over Azami as PO Zogoyah joins herself and T'Lara working at the wounded; he brings some organization and supplies to hand, as well as eyes to assist.  "Thank you, Mr. Zogoyah," she whispers to the Gorn man as they move from patient to patient, offer him the same appreciation that she does for T'Lara.

She might not know him as well as the Vulcan woman, but certainly his help is equally than appreciated.

It's exhausting work - another reason to be glad for the assistance.  In the end, Azami manages to single out a full score of patients requiring immediate assistance.  "Let's get those onto the shuttle that we need to keep at least somewhat separated," she decides; they're here, they're not in any kind of med-bay, ergo the situation here is dire.  Best to get them aboard where they can have shelter and some kind of isolation.  "As for the others, we should begin with what treatment we can with what we have."

Her bag.  The shuttle's supplies, meager as they are.  And whatever these people happen to have with them.

It's not enough, not for those they have.  And worse, they're currently cut off from the ship.  Sepsis, shock, injuries far worse than they appear, any number of issues could carry people away.  Twenty more serious cases?  Someone could go critical without any of the three of them knowing.  For an instant, despair shoots through Azami.  And with that  dark emotion, a number bubbles up from deep within her.

Forty-one.

She blinks and her shoulders relax; Azami nods, the fear dissipating.  "So let's get started." There's a brief hesitation, and Azami shoots a suddenly focused glance toward T'Lara.  "That is, if you concur, lieutenant commander."  It's not really appropriate for her to make all of the calls, despite being somewhat of the 'ranking' medical personnel in the area; nobody has stepped forward from the survivors, in any case.

In reply to LT Kezik (msg # 105):

Dr. Naruhita complies with LT Kezik in being taken aside for the debriefing.  She presents her data, patiently as much as she can.

"Yes, that's possible," she replied as he theorized the alien ship might have brought them.  "My studies suggest they've been coming here for a long time, but they don't STAY here.  It's more like... a seasonal migration.  Except, given star travel, spread out over decades or centuries instead of seasons."

The records she provided did support that theory.  There was evidence these 'star squid' had been harvesting dilithium here for centuries.

(OOC: Kezik may make a Reason + Science roll, Difficulty 2, to see a pattern heretofore unseen.)

"This is fascinating..." as he continues to scroll through the data. "It's a shame that the Federation places so much value on the resources of this world, because it would be..."

22:12, Today: LT Kezik rolled 46 using 3d20 with rolls of 17,20,9.  Reason(11)+Science(4) - spending 1 momentum - to see a pattern.

Lt. Kezik is possibly too distracted by his own theorizing to see what's right in front of him. Failure plus a complication!

T'Lara dutifully followed Azami around the hanger bay. She was more Vulcan now than ever; composed, focused on being as efficient as possible.  At least for a little while - once they tallied up the number of patients requiring urgent medical care, she grew anxious again.   Twenty serious cases.  Twenty!  That would be enough to strain the sickbay on the Independence.  At the very least, it would require calling in a few extra off-duty personnel.

The two of them were underequipped to treat so many, which meant their best course of action was to resolve the crisis on the colony as soon as possible so they could get the people the help they needed from the Independence.

She nodded silently at Azami when she suggested moving the injured to the shuttle, her attention already elsewhere:

"Yes, that looks like the best course of action" she murmured as her eyes wandered over Azami's shoulder "Please carry on.  I'll be back in a moment"


She quickly excused herself, briskly walking over to Dr. Narhuita and LT Kezik whose conversation she reluctantly interrupted due to the grim necessity

"I'm sorry" she offered a quick apology first

"Dr. Naruhita; you mentioned that the 'squid' are feeding on dilithium.  Are there any stores left from the mining operations somewhere? Enough to draw them away?"

T'Lara seems highly concerned behind what Azami now knows to be a veneer.  Azami doesn't blame her one bit; a score of serious injuries is 'a lot'.  Too much for us, she thinks to herself, then shakes the thought off.  There isn't any choice; the injuries aren't just going to vanish because of the unfairness of it all.

If the universe were fair, she reminds herself, you wouldn't be here to help.  If the universe were fair, likely this entire situation wouldn't be happening...or it would be happening to people who deserve it.  Her gaze sweeps over the injured, who likely do not deserve this in the slightest.  Whether or not they do, is most certainly not for Azumi to judge...and either way, the universe simply does not care.

It is simply happening and they need to deal with it as best they can.

T'Lara murmurs approval and - her attention captured by the scientific discussion - moves off to join it.  Azumi beckons to Daniel.  "Zogoyah."  She gives him the informality of merely employing his name sans prefix.  "We need to start moving the worst of the injured onto the shuttle."  Her eyes focus for an instant.  "And it might be we're not alone; while we're doing that, check with any people who volunteer to help if there is anyone here with medical training.  First Aid certificates, even.  We need everything we can get, even if it's people who have some knowledge on how to move injured people without hurting them."

He wasn't sure which of the two tasks took precedence, but having more people to help move the bodies would be helpful so Daniel started asking the healthier folks if they had any medical training and were willing to help.

Dr. Naruhita watched pensively while Kezik absorbed the data.  She shifted her weight to the other foot, trying not to seem anxious or impatient, but it was obvious she had an investment here.

Looking up at T'Lara, she blinked and then frowned.  "Ye-e-essss," she said slowly. "We SHOULD still have some stores ready for transport. In the bay, there," she pointed, glancing in that direction. "So far, the creatures haven't come this far."

Meanwhile, Kezik is having a hard time discerning the pattern, but it does seem like this has been going on a long time.  If these creatures eat dilithium... then they could present a clear danger to the ship, or even the Federation...

The shuttle doors slid open and LT Harada poked her head out.  "I've got things ready to accommodate the injured," she announced.  "And transport them if we need to head back to the ship."

  Azami bows as the lieutenant announces her own task complete.  "Thank you, Lieutenant Harada," she replies, keeping to Standard out of politeness for the others.  "Then we shall start moving the ones in worst danger into the ship."

With that, she moves to the prioritized injured and commences the work of shuttling them into the shuttle.  Hopefully with some assistance from others, and the colonists themselves.  It's a little much for one - or even two - people.

Simultaneously, Azami continues her querying of any colonists she encounters, in search for those with medical training.  Or even first aid certificates.  At this point, anything would help.

OOC - There isn't much more Azami can do at the moment, other than move the injured.  ^_^  So, short post!

Dr. Naruhita reluctance to surrender the precious stores of Dilithium didn't escape T'Lara's notice.  It is not that she couldn't sympathize (the stores were likely the product of many months, if not years, of mining on a desolate planet), but she didn't see any other alternatives.  People's lives were at stake.

"Understood"

She decided to drop the subject for now.  She'll propose the idea later to Commander Vex, once her conversation with the administrator is concluded.  In the meantime:

"Did you have any luck deciphering their language? Identify any pattern in their movements? I might be able assist, if you'd like"

The Science Officer, absorbed in his reading, looked up in surprise by T'Lara's sudden appearance. He silently passed Dr. Naruhita's PADD back to her and waited for the response.

"We've identified that they HAVE one," Naruhita replied.  "They're not just making random subspace noise, it's an actual language of some kind.  But so far the translator hasn't been able to render it."

"Similarly, their movements are too choreographed to be random. I suspect it's migratory, perhaps like birds."

"Don't get me wrong, it's not about protecting the dilithium they've harvested," she added.  "But if those beings came for it here, it could be a blood bath."

CDR Vex emerged from the side meeting she'd been having with Administrator Russell.

"We need to pack up the wounded and get them back to the ship ASAP," she said.  "And get all of this data back to the captain.  He'll sort this out."

Pausing in her work, Azami glances toward the commander.  Her unfocused gaze slips back to Daniel.  "I think we'd better put a hold on the organizing, Mr. Zogoyah."  Then the young woman quickly strides to where Commander Vex stands.

"Excuse me, commander?" Her tone isn't meek, but neither is it challenging; rather, it is simply firm and factual.  "It's going to be quite challenging to safely transport all of the wounded in the single shuttlecraft."  She gestures behind herself.  "A small number of them are critical; while getting them to the ship would vastly increase their chances, the problem is getting them to the ship alive, especially if we need to carry out an ascent similar to our descent."

Her head cocks to one side and she studies the Orion.  "Would it be better to take those who are not critical?  I can stay, if need be, to continue supporting those who require it and cannot safely make the trip."

Once they actually get the wounded to the ship, PO Amamiya is virtually redundant; but down here, there is a need.

Having had no luck with any of things he was trying to do anyway, stopping was easy enough.

T'Lara didn't make much progress deciphering the alien's language in the couple of minutes it took for Commander Vex to conclude her conversation with  Administrator Russell. She wasn't sure she could crack it even if she had a full day anyhow, not without a computer's assistance.

"Commander - " she voiced much the same concerns as Azami:
"If these things feed on Dilithium, we could use whatever stores we have here to lure them as far away as possible.  Taking the shuttle while they are still in the air would be incredibly risky"

Kezik scratched his chin thoughtfully, "Which brings two questions to mind. First of all, do we have another air vehicle fast enough to stay ahead of the creatures for a significant length of time while carrying a load of dilithium? And secondly, and perhaps more importantly, Dr. Naruhita, based on the behavior you've observed, how well do they sense dilithium at a distance? Would they be able to distinguish a vehicle carrying dilithium from a fleeing shuttle that has none?"

CDR Vex frowned at Azami's points.

"We'll have to make several trips," she said slowly.  "My inclination is to take the worst injured first, to get them to sickbay and a full medical team.  But you're right, the ascent is liable to be a replay of the descent... hopefully with foreknowledge this time."

Turning her emerald gaze to T'Lara, she continued, "It's risky, but if those things get in here, it'll be a lot worse."


"Excellent idea," she added as Kezik spoke.  "We can use that cargo flitter.  Load it up with dilithium and send it one way, while we take the shuttle the other."

"I'm no medic, so I'm going to defer to Azami's concerns.  We'll take as many wounded as we can, but the worst cases stay here... along with you, Azami.  And Mr. Zogoyah.  I'll pilot the shuttle... T'Lara, do you want to stay or go?"

"I would stay, Commander, if that's alright with you"  she didn't have to think twice about it "I can help Azami out, but mostly - I want to make sure our distraction plan works"

Azami's eyebrows rise slightly as the commander immediately agrees with her.  It's not unwelcome, mind; just unexpected to get so complete and quick assent, especially given her past experiences.  And gratifying, to say the least.  Better and better, it seems Lieutenant Kezzik has an idea for garnering the attention of the hostiles, perhaps allowing the shuttle to slip through untouched.

"Thank you, commander." The appreciation is real, and without reservations.

Instantly, the PO begins planning, sorting through the list in her mind of the wounded, checking off which should stay and which could leave.  It's not easy - she's paying attention with part of her head, and going about her tasks with another - but Azami has always been decent enough with multi-tasking.  It has, after all, kept her alive all these years.  She shoots a thin glance at the other PO, offering a half smile and a helpless shrug.  Sorry, Zogoyah...I hope you didn't want to go back to the ship.  But she could use the help, no question, and the Gorn has been fully prepared to assist thus far.

Then T'Lara speaks, and Azami blinks, the sole sign of her surprise.

The counselor wishes to stay and assist?  And put herself at risk for the distraction.  A slow turn of the head shifts Azami's gaze to the Vulcan woman, studying her for a long moment.  Then the PO nods. "Your assistance would be greatly appreciated," she quietly states, again without reservations.  Her gaze then travels over the wounded, and those who will be left behind. As will be your support, T'Lara.  It's a crushing responsibility...but now shared between three, rather than only two.  I...we can't let more of these people die.

For an instant her vision tunnels down, her pale eyes misting over.

Then her habitually unfocused gaze sharpens slightly.  "Mister Zogoyah." It's a request, not a command.  "We should get the shuttle prepped with the people who are going, and determine where we can care for the critically injured." Azami throws a quick glance and a twitch of a smile to T'Lara.  "Please join us when you can, Lieutenant Commander."
This message was last edited by the player at 01:51, Thu 01 June 2023.

Daniel nodded, but it was pretty much what he had been doing for the past ten minutes, so it was only a surprise to be told again. Nothing she actually said seemed to imply to him that he wouldn't be going along.

Lt Kezik glanced around, resigned, as he realized he wouldn't be going anywhere anytime soon.

"Commander, while I doubt we have any anti-matter available, I may still be able to rig something up to enhance the signature of the dilithium in our decoy and make sure the 'squid' choose it instead of our shuttle. With your permission."