Ensign Anita Sheperd Assistant Medical Officer USS Gott [NPC by Rangi] - Ensign Veloré Valfour Assistant Science Officer USS Gott [NPC by Samantha] = Deck 3, Biohazard Support The small, circular room was deathly silent, except for a soft, urgent beeping accompanied by small flashing red lights. These lights were situated above five oval-shaped pods set into the walls of the chamber. Each pod contained an original crewmember of the USS Gott, frozen in suspended animation in an attempt to hide from the terrible aliens that had taken over their ships many months ago. For all this time they'd been safe in this little chamber, but with the Gott's systems being assaulted by both Federation and alien forces, the stasis regulators were starting to fail. The flashing lights and incessant beeping indicated that the lifesigns within the pods were starting to fade, and unless they were woken up soon, would die. Inside one of the pods, Ensign Veloré Valfour felt a moment of bone-chilling cold seeping into her hands, then almost instantly they were numb from that cold. She opened her eyes and immediately began to choke, unable to breath. The young science officer began to struggle against the tight confines of the pod,each moment feeling the panic rise within her. A strangled cry came from her throat and she kicked with amazing strength against the frost-bitten glass that covered the pod, shattering it and breaking free from her confines. She gasped for air and took a moment to gather her wits. Where was she? What was going on? To the left of Veloré's pod, a second one was also failing to support the life it held. The woman inside was in a half sleep, unable to waken properly and unsure now whether she had dreamed or experienced the events that grew stronger in her mind at each passing second. She remembered fear and confusion, sounds of men screaming, footsteps running, cries for help. Other sounds, clicking and chirping. Anitas eyes flashed open to see the opaque screen above her face. The clicking was real and very close. With effort she turned her head and found herself entombed. {Get out! get out! get out!} Her left hand searched in the confined space for a release button. {Where IS it?} Her breath came in gasps of panic as she knew what waited for her.Her mind filled with horror of the insects that had taken control of the Gott. "Let me out" she cried desperately but her voice was muffled in the small space and noone came. Veloré steadied herself against the circular console in the centre of the small room. Her head was spinning but she remember now where she was. In the medical suites, in the biohazard chamber. They, the surviving five crewmembers, had locked themselves in here to hide from the horrible aliens. The stasis pods were the only way to ensure that their scent wouldn't reach the aliens' acute olfactory senses. A dull thud and muffled cry suddenly drew her attention, and she suddenly noticed the red flashing lights; the stasis pods were failing. Moving to the pod where the sound issues from, she frantically entered the override code to release the pod, but it didn't work. Next she entered the manual override code, but it didn't take either. Veloré's faint empathic senses, inherited from her Betazoid mother, alarmed her to the panic that was overtaking the person inside. The Bajoran stubborness and strong will that had been inherited from her father's side made her stand back and kick at the pod's cover with all her strength. It shattered beneath the impact of her boot, and a young woman emerged from it gasping for breath. Anita scrambled from the shattered shell feeling the cool air fill her lungs. She looked around, her eyes widened in fright, recognised the room and Veloré standing a pace away. "The insects... they found us?" she asked turning suddenly as though expecting to see a giant insect behind her. But the room was sealed and her panic began to die back.She saw the two smashed pods and a fresh realization dawned. In a quick movement she reached the nearest pod tapping in the codes that should open it. Inside the CMO was motionless. "It's not opening!" she cried, looking at Veloré. "Quick...help me get him out" Veloré rushed to Anita's aid, placing her fingers on the edge of the shell, trying to pry open the lid, but to no avail. She kicked at the glass again, and as expected it shattered. The form the Vulcan CMO slipped lifelessly into Anita's arms, and Veloré sighed knowing he was dead. There was no sense of life from the other two pods either, but they had to try. The two ensigns opened the remaining pods... one containing an engineer and the other one of Veloré's colleagues from the science department; they were both dead. "What do we do now?" she looked helplessly at Anita, shivering slightly against the icy cold. Anita, gazing at the Vulcans figure took a moment to reply.She turned to face Veloré. "I have no idea." she said quietly and glanced at the opened pods. "What made them fail do you think?" She stepped towards the engineers pod and tapped again at the small keypad thoughtfully. Looking back at Veloré she asked "Could the insects have discovered us? Do you think they know we're here?" "If they knew we were here, I think they'd have eaten us by now," Veloré replied thoughtfully, looking around the small room. "Maybe they messed with the systems and it affected the cryogenic regulators." Tapping a few commands on the console in the centre of the room, Veloré tried to access the main computer, but it was locked out. All she could see was the date and time displayed at the top and it made her blink twice in disbelief. "How long do you think we've been asleep? According to the computer it's well over six months! It has to be a malfunction." "How long?" Anita moved to Veloré's side to see for herself."Six months?" she said in an amazed voice. "But...wouldnt someone have found us before now?" She regarded the young ensign beside her with a troubled look.After five seconds or so had passed she asked " So why would they mess with the systems now....I mean...six months? if they didnt find us in all that time...do you think someone else IS here and its 'they' that are looking at the systems?" "Maybe," Veloré replied, considering Anita's suggestion. "I didn't even think of that. Surely someone must have picked up the distress call we sent out. And even if no one received it, Starfleet is sure to send out someone to look for us. Especially with the sensitive research we've been doing.Maybe someone did find us..." For a second, a small flame of hope flared up inside her. Anita pressed a clenched fist to her stomach and the glimmer of a smile touched her lips. "They must have done" she whispered and glanced at the door. "Do you think we should open it?" she asked and turned to Veloré trying to gauge her opinion. There was something else Veloré hadn't thought of, and now the smile she shared with Anita faded from her face. "Yes, I think we need to get out of here," she said urgently. "We're awake again, and if there are any of those 'things' near here, they can smell us!" Anitas face paled. "Too right" she said, glancing back at the door."Where should we go? The Jefferies tubes on this deck were clear when we came in...but now?" She frowned worriedly. "We could try it..its not that far to the access. Shall we?" Veloré nodded. Looking to her left, she moved to the storage locker in the small room. "I'd almost forgotten about these," she said as she lifted off the lid. Inside were three phasers, a scientific tricorder, and a medkit. Taking them all out, she handed the medkit and a phaser to Anita. The two remaining phasers she strapped on either side of her belt and held the tricorder in her hand. "There aren't any torches in here, but I can manipulate the tricorder to emit bursts of light if we need it." Anita placed the medkit to her right side, straightening the strap across her body.That done, she carefully turned the phaser setting to level 5.She knew the phasers had been almost ineffective against the insects. "If we meet any..." she said looking at Veloré "...we need to fire simultaneously...and aim at the head. Don said that was the best chance of stopping them." Silence followed this remark as both women thought of the commander and the nightmare events of his death. Anita walked towards the door, leaned to it and listened. "Nothing." she said quietly. "I dont think anything's there. Are you ready?" With the tricorder ready, Veloré nodded; the instrument showed no lifesigns beyond that door. "I'm not reading any lifesigns. I think we're good to go." Anita unlocked the door and a rush of warm, humid air rushed into the room, carrying with it a sickly sweet odour. As the medical officer stepped through, Veloré followed. Sickbay was dark, only a console here and there cast a faint glow into the room. It wasn't much, but enough for them to find there way. Suddenly the ship rocked heavily, and they steadied themselves against the biobeds. "What was that? It doesn't seem like we were hit by something." Veloré looked at her tricorder, but it displayed nothing out of the ordinary. "I dont know" Anita replied sounding far less confident than she had in the comparitive safety of the Biohazard Support Room. She looked around the dimly lit sickbay, her mind running back to the last time she was there. The CMO and she had dragged the injured engineer to the small chamber. She had looked at the main door and saw the XO there. "Shoot at the head" he had shouted and the two crewmen with him had fired a sustained burst as the insects crowded towards them. The phaser blast had stopped two but the third and forth had come on, climbing over their fallen kind. The largest one had siezed Don Palthar and in an instant that would remain with her forever, Anita had seen him dismembered in two savage crushing bites. She closed her eyes against the memory of his screams and shook her head as though to rid herself of the sound. "Veloré..." she whispered "...if we meet one...if we...if it...dont let it eat me alive...please...fire at me first?" Anita willed the ensign to agree. Veloré took a deep breath, feeling quite unsettled by Anita's request. She remember Palthar's screams, but Anita had seen him die, which was much worse. "I promise," she reassured her new friend. "I hope you'll do the same for me too. Now, let's stop thinking about this and get to the jefferies and try to find some more people." Even as she spoke those words, a chilling thought came to her mind. What if there wasn't anyone else left? Anita gave a short nod and turned back to the door which was open to the corridor beyond.A brighter light shone there and swallowing back the tightness that gripped her throat, she stepped forward, fingers clutching the phaser that trembled visibly. She took a deep breath and peered quickly out into the corridor looking both ways. It was empty and silent. Releasing her held breath she signalled Veloré that all was clear and stepped out of sickbay. The jefferies tube hatch was in sight. {Please 'please' let it be safe} she thought {...and please let there be someone here to help us} Veloré checked her tricorder once again and let out a sigh of relief when the saw that the coast was clear. "Let's go," she said to Anita, moving quickly across the corridor to the hatch. A few moments later the hatch was open and the two women were safely inside. Veloré closed the hatch behind them, and then picked up her tricorder again. "Anything?" Anita whispered into the gloom. Behind her could make out Veloré's dark shape in the dim light tube. The small lights disappeared in the distance along the tubes length "Are we making for the Bridge or where? " she asked. Veloré realised she hadn't even thought of where they would be heading, but it was important that they kept moving and find other survivors. "Not the Bridge," she replied. "I think it's safe to say the aliens would have infested that area of the ship already. They seem to have targeted all the vital areas first. I'm not sure where we should go, to be honest." "What about the shuttle bays? Do you think that would be best? I mean..if someone has come to the rescue then they would be there wouldnt they?...but then again...so would the insects. Oh I dont know what to suggest." She looked hopefully at the woman beside her. "What if we go where the tricorder says is safe?" she ventured. " If it shows insect life then we take the next turn away!" She smiled at the stupidity of her statement and had a strong desire to laugh.... and also to cry. "That's as good an idea as any," Veloré replied. Even though they had literally slept for more than 6 months, she still felt rather tired and a bit disorientated. They'd have to follow the deck signs carfully not to get lots. Strapping her tricorder to her belt, she started to lead the way with Anita close on her heels."