An Offer You Don't Refuse - 9.075

[Taataani Meorrrei]

Taataani tossed a look back, wide-eyed as her adrenaline granted her wings. Her tail hiked up as she continued to shimmy up to the next level ascent, just in time to catch the next monitor. Eyes lingering at the massive beast that stalked below and then charged off, she whirled back to face her only link to the living in this place.

"What the hell arre thesse thjingss?!"

Her ears splayed back and she caught her breath. When she spoke again, it was lower.

"jI need to fjind you, and jI need to fjind jyou now. Wherre arre jyou?! Help me!"

[Ben Merasska]

The vid screen continued to remain full of static, but the woman's voice came through clearly.

"I do not have time to explain them in depth to you," the woman said. "They are hounds that escaped their kennels when this ship crashed onto the planet. The main computer of this section of the ship is in the bridge. The ship's main computer is working against me, still following through with its programming. We'll need to shut it down to keep this "

There was only static for a moment, but the woman's voice came in loud and clear.

"I've managed to isolate a lift for you to use to get up to the bridge. Do so now, it will allow you to bypass the other creatures that have escaped."

[Taataani Meorrrei]

The matron was furious. This power play wasted precious time, and she wasn't about to let ten thousand hounds or some rogue computer deny her what she needed. Misplaced anger resulted in a swat at the screen. Extended claws ran four parallel scratches deep into the glass, but the static-shrouded face was unmoved.

"jI'm not jyourr puppet. jI'll ssee jyou on the brrjidge, but jI want pajyment jin full jin ansswerrss."

She turned her back on the screen, picking up her pace yet again for the lift. Her ears and eyes tracked for any movement of those dread hounds, as she clung tightly to her blaster. Nothing opposed her for the moment, and she skidded to a halt in the lift, pressing the controls to access the bridge.

[Ben Merasska]

Meorrrei entered the lift and it rose. And continued to rise, until it stopped, and the lights flickered out, and then back on.

"Damn. The computer's trying to block access to the bridge. I can reroute the access to a terminal on the floor you're on. Simply turning it on should allow me to force the lift to the bridge. Be careful."

The lights dimmed, and Meorrrei stepped out of the lift, to see a large screen on the wall, flickering on and off. Something was written on it, but the meaning was incomprehensible.

A loud hissing filled the air, and a voice emanated from seemingly everywhere at once.

"CREW, BE WARNED. SPECIMENS HAVE ESCAPED CONFINEMENT. SECURITY SYSTEMS OFFLINE. EXIT THE DECK AND REPAIR SECURITY SYSTEMS. THANK YOU."

Ahead, the corridor was blanketed in dim lights, and what seemed to be a plethora of spiders' webs.

[Taataani Meorrrei]

Instinctively, Taa reached up to press her hands against her ears, lessening the offensive noise all around her. Blaster still balled up in her right fist, she grit her teeth and re-steadied herself, pressing onward. She lead forward with the barrel of her weapon, using it as a ward against the spiderwebs, severing the ones directly in her line of approach.

Eventually, she arrived at the terminal, looking over the readouts with expectation of her next instructions. Her tail twitched, snapping up and down. This charade had to end. Now.

[Ben Merasska]

"Activate the terminal. There should be a switch along the side."

Meorrrei quickly activated the terminal, and glared at the vidscreen; lights flickered on around her, and the terminal's coloring switched from red to green.

"Good, I can now keep that blasted computer from playing with the lift systems. Try and make it back to the lift. Be careful."

Meorrrei turned to leave, and saw now a large room, illuminated for the first time in what seemed to be ages. A viewport was visible and the sight within was of several mechanical objects, and a small box, from which wires were hanging loosely.

A seat was situated next to the box, and within it sat a skeleton, hair still clinging to the bone. A door with a glowing green activation switch was visible.

She could go and get the microgenerator, or continue on to the bridge.

The sounds of growling and pounding feet began to echo through the halls.

[Taataani Meorrrei]

At the sight of the generator, Taataani bolted for it, but she paused mid-stride. While the generator would help to power the beacon and keep heat on, they still wouldn't be out of this mess. Like Ben had said, the pirates could very well answer that distress signal with another attack.

Was that all to be found here? She'd feasted upon disappointment since reaching the first cairn, but a part of her too stubborn to be cowed refused to believe that the sum of her toils would only result in a few more days of power and a prayer deferred.

She closed her eyes.

"Taurrifar, keep fajith jin me."

And with that, she headed to the bridge.

[Ben Merasska]

The doors of the lift opened, and the bridge was revealed, finally. The rising sun illuminated the room brightly, and the dust covering every surface was thick and grey as ash.

Meorrrei stepped into the bridge and blinked, covering her eyes as lights blinked on, all over the bridge. A voice, the woman's voice, echoed over the speakers on all the consoles.

"Welcome. I am MAICOM, the computer assigned to run the essential tasks of the Discovery sleeper ship. I have waited for contact from the survivors who left this ship for two hundred and twenty three galactic standard years, five galactic standard months, seventeen galactic standard days, twelve standard hours, and roughly fifteen minutes and thirty seconds.

"I apologize for the way in which you were brought here. Your intervention has allowed me to assume complete control of the remains of this ship."

[Taataani Meorrrei]

So that was it, then? There was no one.

Her hope dashed yet again, she closed her eyes, a tear squeezing past in her left eye, rolling down her cheek.

"Pleasse."

It was a whisper.

[Ben Merasska]

"I do not understand. For what are you asking? If it is within my ability to do, I shall. I detect a distress beacon. I can amplify this signal if you so desire. My battery fed power reserves are enough to perform this task, along with other necessary subroutines, for three days, fifteen hours, fourteen minutes and 54 seconds.

"...Or is it some other task I can complete for you, or some sort of assistance I can provide?"

[Taataani Meorrrei]

Her heart lifted at this news. Placing both hands on the nearest railing to the interface, she leaned forward, her ears raising with expectation that maybe her toils would be worth something after all.

"Ampjifjy the beacon! We need help! Mjy hussband..."

Her voice wavered and she swallowed down her fears that, now upon the cusp of success, were redoubling in their fresh urgency.

"...we crrasshed herre. He'ss hurrt badljy. Mjy pjilot jiss helpjing, but..."

She couldn't say it. She couldn't. But I don't know how long he will make it.

She bit down her doubt, no. She wouldn't dare. New resolve was found, and she looked to the computer once more.

"Whateverr can be done, pleasse."

[Ben Merasska]

"Of course."

The bridge computer went quiet for a few moments.

"Long range scanners detect power levels of crashed shuttle dangerously low, and are nearly below the threshold for complete signal and power failure. Working on possible resolutions."

After another few moments of quiet, the computer began whirring to life once more. A projector lit up, but flickered, and finally went dark.

"Holoprojector disabled and no longer functional. Possible solution remains. This system runs from energy stored from the engines, which are no longer active, and the power core, which is failing into a number of batteries stored in various parts of the ship. Four batteries remain here. They are small enough to be carried. If you do take, please leave one battery to allow me to run the lift and complete shutdown process."

[Taataani Meorrrei]

Some help was better than none at all. Was she expecting an automated droid medical shuttle to whisk Taurrifar to functioning facilities where he could be tended to? Expecting was the wrong word. Hope was allowed to be irrational.

Taataani moved to the batteries indicated. With their size, she could carry two of them. Carefully disconnecting them as instructed, she turned to leave, and didn't look back.

Once gain it was on her. The only difference this time was that she was certain of it. Hope deferred, hope changed.

She ran.

[Ben Merasska]

The trip back down to the bottom level of the ship was fast, now that there was no struggle to control it.

The lift opened, revealing the dark interior of the first area she'd gone through.

"With the remaining five hours of time remaining on reserve battery supply, I will continue to amplify the signal. Maicom wishes you success."

----------------------

Ben grunted as he reset the wiring, desperately trying to ignore the fevered groans of Meorrrei's husband in his bunk.

"Come on," he gasped, sweat beading down his forehead. He glanced at the voltage meter and swore as he watched the numbers changed, and not for the better. The reserve batteries were running low, and there wasn't much time to get the power core back up and operational.

The comm suite pinged, causing him to drop the meter and wiring and run into the cockpit.

"Meorrrei!" he nearly shouted. "Are you there?"

[Taataani Meorrrei]

"jI'm herre! Ben! Ben! Can jyou hearr me?!"

She had everything she'd get from the derelict. Every answer, however lacking, was hers to have. Now, she carried the means to their success with her. Woe to anyone or anything in her way.

She grit her teeth through the pain, the cold, and the exhaustion that thraetened to undo her. If there was doubt that she was made of inferior stuff, this would be the moment that disproved it. She ran, lungs churning battery acid, and muscles pumping fire.

"Ben?!"

[Ben Merasska]

"Meorrrei? You're alive!" Ben gasped in relief, looking at the speaker as if it could convey his deepest gratitude to her. "I'd ask you what you found, but we need you here."

Ben stopped, trying to think of a way break what was happening there, but unable to grasp anything that he would ever want to say.

"Things aren't looking good."

[Taataani Meorrrei]

"Ben!"

She gasped, still mid-stride. She wasn't going to stop. Not now.

"Ben, jI have powerr forr the beacon! Wajit forr me!"

Furiously, she ran. This time, she wasn't going to wait. Not for night, not for fatigue. Not this close. Never again.

"Tell Taurrifar jI'm comjing. We'rre closse!"

[Ben Merasska]

Ben leaned back as the link closed and stared at the speaker, before standing and moving back to Taurrifar's bunk. The male was shivering, and whispering something to himself over and over again.

Ben slowly knelt beside him and felt a helplessness he'd only felt once before.

[Taataani Meorrrei]

She ran.

Time was meaningless. The only thing that mattered was running now.

Sun rise, sun set.

She was exhausted. She stumbled and fell. No stopping. Not for anything. Her body ached. Muscles pumped lactic acid. Every league she ran was an experience in torture. Never in her life had she pushed that hard.

There was no one. Only her. It was up to her to save Taurrifar. To save Ben. To save herself.

Nearly upon the landing sight, she saw in the distance a shuttle approaching. The lines of it were of a Sienar design. RESCUE!!!

At last she paused, her body failing her, and she fell to her knees.

"Ben!!! Oh Saanjarra!!! We'rre rresscued!"

[Ben Merasska]

"Hold on," Ben murmured, watching Taurrifar shudder. "We have battery packs now. We've got power."

A familiar, and very eerie sound filtered through the hull of their shuttle and forced Ben to look up, as if he could see through the layers of durasteel and metal into the blue sky above.

Standing, he pulled the blanket over the cizerack's body and walked outside, fully expecting the pirates to be out and ready to shoot him. The sight before him forced him to lean against the wall, on hand going over his eyes to counteract the glare of the sun.