ic Free Falling

[Supercape]

GM

 

Star Knight and his squire crunched out of Hyperspace into the Koyash system. 

 

The Koyash system was forbidden. 

 

The reason was Koyash-3, an extraordinary gas giant planet with no core. It was held together by PSP - phase shift particles, a consequence of some strange internal quantum reaction. Perhaps its was the weird purple star, Koyash, perhaps it was some chemical reaction in the superheated centre of the planet, perhaps it was something else entirely. But Koyash-3 was a ball of nitrogen, carbon dioxide and oxygen much like earth. Freezing at the edges, hellish in the middle, and home to the dangerous and valuable phase shift particles. 

 

The only thing allowed near the Koyash system was Tulpar-1, an orbital station circling Koyash-3 and the only place in the known universe where one could mine PSP. 

 

An hour ago, it had sent a distress call. Power failure, computer failure. 

 

It had entered Free Fall, and was slipping into the upper atmosphere of Koyash-3...

[Poncho]

(Star Knight & Star Squire)

A swift and certain response to trouble was Millisand's signature, as much as one could say that such a thing counted as a signature. He and Zendaar had been handling trouble a few systems away, an intergalactic terorrist, but had successfully apprehend them and sent them to the proper authorities for their crimes. And not much past that, the signal had come out, while Millisand had been mediating in space while Zendaar was napping nearby.

The giant ancient roused hinself out of his meditation with surety if not speed, uncrossing his arms and legs.

"Zendaar. We've got a new assignment." He called over the radio.

Zendaar woke up slow; fast to sleep, early to rise, just like the troublemaker always was; fast to get into a situation and slow to untangle himself from it. He shifted in his armor floating in space like he was slowly crawling out of bed, and yawned deeply.

"We just finished one."

"A Star Knight is-"

"Always vigilant, I know, I know." He complained, finally righting himself and floating over.

"You're leading the jump this time. The suit handles most of the work but you should always manually confirm coordinates to make sure they aren't sending you on a wild goose chase to parts unknown." Millisand said to his squire, but under the armor, Zandaar had an expression that he'd rather not be going at all. 

 

"Got it, got it. Setting coordinates for Tulpar-1." He confirmed. Millisand's suit accepted the cordinates from Zendaar's, then the two took of as twin points of light. In the past, when he was young, Millisand's suit would sound like the eruption of a volcano when he exerted it, a loud, reverberating boom. Now, with age and wisdom and experience, it was softer. It still made a sound, but it was quieter, like the hum of a waterfall. Zendaar's armor made a different, distinctive noise, a twinkling sound like ice cracking across a frozen pond. He left shimmering stardust when he traveled in hyperspace, a contrail of beautiful lights. 

 

"So Tulpar-1. What is it?" Zendaar asked.

 

"Your suit should have a readout, but it's better to have it explained than read I suppose."  Millisand agreed. "Tulpar-1 is a mining station. And an important one. It's the only place in the known universe where Phase Shift Particles, PSP, are mined, off the planet it should be in orbit of, Koyash-3. We don't know why they're only avaliable there, but it's likely related to some sort of quantum field. As such, it is heavily defended and should have 4 battleships in escort. It has a functioning population of 100. The planet itself is inhospitable to most life." 

 

"So if it's free falling and needs support, it's likely it's suffered some sort of attack? If the battleships are unable to help." Zendaar mused. 

 

"Correct. Be prepared for anything, keep your eyes up and don't get out of contact from me." Millisand said sternly. "If this is an attack, it's concerning." 

 

"Coming up on Tulpar-1 now." 

 

And then the Star Knights were exiting hyperspace.

[Supercape]

GM

 

VWORP! The two valiant Star-Soldiers popped out of hyperspace. 

 

The planet was beautiful. A small blue gas planet, its winds lit up by electrical storms. A faint purple star in the distance. 

 

Tulpar-1 was still in orbit. A huge rotating cylinder, bristling with weapons and sensors at either end. By the looks of it, half of it was powered down, but there was no obvious signs of other disturbance. 

 

As for the four battle cruisers?

 

They were there, in formation, encircling Tulpar-1. And not a single light was to be seen. 

 

Something was clearly wrong. For starters, no radio signals. Either nobody had noticed Star Knight and his squire, or nobody could signal them. 

[Poncho]

(Star Knight and Star Squire)

 

"Alright, Zendaar, status report."

 

"Oh come on you have eyes."

 

"Assess the situation. I won't be here forever." Millisand repeated. The rebellious Zendaar sighed.

 

"Okay, let's see. No radio, so either no one noticed us coming in, which is unlikely, or there's no ability to contact us. We can assume that they know we were coming since they sent a distress signal, so they would be looking out for us to arrive. There doesn't seem to be any power going to any of the ships, and about half of the power in the station seems down. Likely someone took out the power stations; given the range of the effect, it might have been a bomb or similar. It's likely the free fall is being caused by the lack of propulsion due to the engines being down."

 

"So what should we do?"

 

"...Recon slowly and carefully, in case they can shut down our armor and cause us to suffocate in the vacuum? Stay in close contact, stuff like that?"

 

"Exactly." Millisand said. "Let's start a careful sweep." he said, moving forward towards the ships, Zendaar following behind. "We'll start with the ships, then move towards the station. But remember, we're on a time limit here; secure the area, rescue any civilians, then save the station, in that order."

[Supercape]

GM

 

The ships drifted in the silence of space, not a single light on. In the dim light of the faraway purple star, they were hard to see; a dim shadow in space. Getting closer, illuminated by Star-Knight torches, they could examine the hull. No breaches, no debris, just four silent ships with no power. 

 

Even the battleships torpedo tubes and plasma guns seemed out, no carbon-markings. They had not been fired. 

 

Schematics would suggest that the small crew of five to eight could survive several hours with the oxygen in the ship, more if they could manually release the oxygen scrub-tanks, and even longer if the vacc-suits were accessible. There was no immediate danger of suffocation, but they would not last forever. 

 

And still nothing on the radio. 

 

And all the while, Tulpar-1 was slowly inching towards the atmosphere of Koyesh-3, alight with PSP storms. 

[Poncho]

(Star Knight and Star Squire)

 

"Total silence." Zendaar noted. Millisand pondered, rubbing his chin with a metal rubbing sound thanks to thte armor rubbing against the armor as he thought.

 

"We're on a time limit here. The Ships will last longer than Tulpar-1. If it enters the gravitionational point of no return, reactivating the thrusters still wouldn't be able to pull the station out of the orbit, and our suits aren't rated to push something that heavy; we're not Paradigm or Galvanic. Let's move to the station and attempt to arrest it's fall first." Millisand turned his attention to the station and started flying towards it, Zendaar following him.

 

"We're making a decision on whose more important." Zendaar noted.

 

"We are. And we're making a deicision on what objects are more importnat. The Station is the primary goal, if we have to make that decision. That is not a decision I make lightly, and you never should either, but I'm looking at what we know and what we don't; the ships should survive longer than the station; the station hitting hte point of gravitational no return would cause tremendous damage to the entire galaxy's existence, not just economically, but in general. People need the Phase Shift Particles." Millisand explained. "Sometimes, you can't save everything. You have to live with what you can't save."

[Supercape]

GM

 

Tulpar-1 was in better shape, relatively speaking. As the two Star Guardians flew around it, they noted no breaches. No carbon scorching or antimatter flare. Nothing conventional had hit the station, and - presumably - atmosphere was still intact. 

 

Some lights were on, too. Not many, but some. Emergency power, by the look of it - a dim red could be seen out of some the (intact) window portals. 

 

The communication and weapons array seemed totally out. 

 

At the "Bottom" of the cylinder, a long cable reached down - very thin, very strong. It must have been hundreds of kilometers long, for the end was obscured by the atmosphere of the gas giant below!

[Poncho]

(Star Knight and Star Squire)

 

"So what's the big cable?" Zendaar asked.

 

"I...do not know." Millisand replied, frowning. "Either it's something to do with the mining, or it's related to the reason why the ships and the station have no power. Or both." he scanned it up and down. Thinking, planning, but aware he didn't have all the time in the world; always pressured to make the next decision. He looked at Tulpar-1 and indicated it to Zendaar.

 

"Let's look for an entrance. If we connect with a survivor we can gather further information. Attempting to go down to the gas giant could be suicide, even in our suits, if the atmosphere is too toxic; these things are strong, but not invulnerable." So the two drifted closer to the station, their light beams roving over the surface, trying to find an airlock for them to enter. "And be wary of anything latching onto the sides or attempting to ambush us; again, we're going in blind here."

[Supercape]

GM

 

The nearest airlock was number three, out of four, placed midway down the station, at the four quadrants. It looked without blemish or scar; not forced, not breached. As best as the two could tell, the station had its atmosphere intact. 

 

On the other hand, the lower half of the station was entirely without power (it was scatty further up). 

 

How to enter? Force, guile, technical savvy?

 

The danger of two much force might be two bust open both airlock doors. 

 

And if they ripped off one, what would they do with the inner door?

[Poncho]

(Star Knight and Star Squire)

 

"How exactly do you think we're supposed to get in here without ripping the whole thing to shreds?" Zendaar asked as the two Star Knights floated around the hatch, their flashlights floating over it.

 

"Zendaar, come on now, you know me better than that." Millisand said with a smile on the view screen in their helmets. "I've been around more than a few suns, you know? This is a standard Lor design lock. I know you're a Zultasian, but this should have been in your training manual. Did you not get to this chapter."

"...Alright you don't have to call me out like that." Zendaar mumbled in frustration as Millisand floated closer.

 

"This looks like an Alpha-6530 Door. All Lor Designed locks have specific Star Knight Codes that allow us to breech them in case of emergency. They change fairly often on a randomized schedule to keep people from finding out about them, but the Alpha-6530 code hasn't changed in a bit, so the code should be...8...4...5...6..0...0...1." His fingers were thick and heavy on a pad possibly designed for more petite digits, but he moved them dexterously, hitting the keys in question carefully. The door beeped an acknowledgement and the airlock opened. "We're in. Come on." the Crimson Gorilla said, heading through the door.

 

"...I feel like I was just shamed." Zendaar mumbled.

 

"You were. You need to keep up with your reading." Millisand said with a chuckle. "I won't be around to remember pointless trivia forever."

[Supercape]

GM

 

The doors hissed open, and air flowed into the chamber. Then another hiss, and the inner door opened. 

 

The interior of the station was dark, lit only by dim, flickering red lights - emergency power. No gravity, just the weak centriugal force of the spinning ship. Everywhere the pair looked, they could see broken cables, sparking wires, computer screen readouts on the fritz. 

 

It was as if somebody, or something, had force fed the station a billion volts in a picosecond, frying most of the circuitry. 

 

On a positive note, the air was breathable. Stale, but breathable. Oxygen levels lower than optimal, Carbon DIoxide levels higher. Still plenty of air in the tin can, but the carbon scrubbers must have been knocked out. Eventually, the oxygen would run out. 

 

Fortunately, the ship had engraved panels giving directions to the various areas:

 

Engineering, Medical, Bridge, Social, Living, Science, Engineering and Gunnery - the latter being restricted, apparently. 

[Poncho]

(Star Knight and Star Squire)

 

"Keep the helmet on. While the readings say we're good, we have no reason to drop out guard yet." Millisand said as they floated down the hallway. "We don't want to waste oxygen for others who don't have in built oxygen scrubbers like us." He was walking now, his big, heavy arms leading the way as he walked hunched back. He would have needed his cane without the Star Knight armor supporting him, but as long as he was wearing it, he was still The Ruby Knight, the great Star Knight. Zendaar followed behind him, swinging the light on his head a bit more erratically while Millisand was controled in his observations. 

 

"Where are we going first?" Zendaar asked. "Medical? Living?"

 

'"No. We are heading to the Bridge, and then Engineering afterwards. We want to arrest the fall into the planet first and foremost. We could save every single person on this station and it wouldn't mean a thing if they all died because the station hit terminal orbit and fell into the giant and got crushed into pieces. We start by reverting the fall, bringing the ship out of it's fall, and then we can handle all other issues." Millisand explained.

 

"...Got it."

 

"Stay close, and keep aware of anything that might appear. We're still in unknown territory, so don't get comfortable just because your feet are back on solid ground." the gorilla said as he trundled his way towards the Bridge.

[Supercape]

GM

 

The station lights flickered, and wall screens glowed. Nobody around - not yet. 

 

The reason became clear. Whilst it was not far to the bridge (it was located centrally), every door had sealed such. Presumably an emergency measure due to potential decompression, compounded by power failure. The Star Knights could force the doors open, but it slowed them down. 

 

And as they approached the centre of the station, the weak centrifugal force dimmed, dropping them into zero gravity. 

 

The last door of the three was the easiest to open, the bridge on the other side. With a mighty push, the door crumpled open, revealing a group of bridge crewmembers floating in the air, one with a blaster in his hand, preparing to fire. 

 

He did not, but the power did flare at the wrong moment, sending a web of high-power electricity through the door!

[Poncho]

(Star Knight and Star Squire)

 

"This is...eerie." Zendaar said. "Like no one is even alive."

 

"This is the way to avoid decompression." Millisand explained. "Now, engage thrusters. We're going to be heading into Zero G." he said. "Eyes up." he said as he started to push open the door alongside Zendaar.

 

Zendaar was fast enough to move his hands off the door, stepping away from the door and raising his hands.

 

"We're not here to attack you! Star Squire Zendaar, Squire to Star Knight Millisand. You know, The Ruby Knight? Most famous Star Knight in the known galaxy or whatever?"

 

Speaking off, the mighty gorilla did not get his hands free, and the current ran through his red suit, sparking it and damaging it. The eyes flashed momentarily before he let go, a little singed inside his suit, a little wobbly.

 

"As said. I am Millisand Vermillion, responding to a distress call."

[Supercape]

GM

 

"Sheesh! That would have current would have fried a Klaxxian warbot!" gasped the man with a blaster. "I'm Commander Vurt. This is my crew,"

 

Some of the floating figures waved back. 

 

"Thanks for coming. Star-Knights! Then I guess our distress call came through. We've had a hell of a ride. Something attacked us - not sure what. Not even sure if. Multiple bogies on the scanners, then everything went on the fritz. Power out, although we managed to hotwire emergency power to keep life support running. But even that's beginning to fail."

 

Another crewmember piped up. "Everything we repair just seems to fail. Power surges, electical flux. Bridge sealed off, cant even get to engineering or medical..."

 

One floating crewmember was unconscious, body riddled with electrical burns. 

 

"Jenkins here been in agony the last hour. Unconscious now, probably a relief. Got fried by an flux. Don't suppose you have any medical supplies, or even expertise? He's not looking good..."

[Poncho]

(Star Knight and Star Squire)

 

"Sounds like big trouble." Millisand said, floating over to the one with the electrical burns. "I have a little knowledge of medicine, let me see if I can give them some help, but I can't promise anything." he noted. Zendaar was taking stock of the general area, looking around and examining the rest of the crew.

 

"So you don't know what hit you, but it took out your power, and is keeping it out. Same with the ships, I suppose. So we need to figure out a way to arrest your collapse, maybe find the bogeys. Is that rope that's connected to the bottom of your station used for mining, or is it new? Maybe they descended into the planet itself."

[Supercape]

GM

 

The fried crewmember was deeply unconscious, and badly burnt. Carbon marks all over his uniform, and skin that was a raw as Trimorian Fried Hogfinger. Red, weeping. 

 

Heart rate - raised, blood pressure - low. 

 

At least the heart rate was regular. At least he had a heart beat at all!

 

The problem was fluid and electrolyte loss from massive burns. The man needed fluid replacement, and quickly! If not, his heart would seize up. 

 

"How is he?" asked the commander. "He was our chief scientist, too... probably best man to work out what the hell happened...."

[Poncho]

(Star Knight & Star Squire)

 

"He needs water; Electrolytes too. Fluid Replacement. If we have any water or fluid packs let's get them to him. We can tend his burns a little while doing so. When he's awake, maybe he can help us. Provided he wakes up in time."

 

Because if he didn't wake up in time, they'd have to figure it out on their own.

 

"So you have no contact to other sections of the mining station? Or the fleet ships? We floated near the ships but didn't get a response; we figured the station and the people in it were more pressing...but with no power we can't look at the records of these bogies...difficult. Let's focus on waking this guy up first."

[Supercape]

GM

 

"Yeah... water we got. How to get it in him is another matter. No canula. Electrolytes - that's a bit more tricky. We have them in the medical bay, but..."

 

He shrugged. 

 

"No contact. Not a thing. Everything shut down pretty much at the same time, like some wave or pulse. We guessed the escort ships went down at the same time. Hardly anything works. Just flickers..."

 

He paused, rubbed his multi-lobed chin.

 

"We got something on the internal scanners. Don't know what. Flickers. Dots. Static, maybe. Except they seem to be roaming the corridors. Mostly down in the science and engineering sections. A few at the weapon section... didn't no what to make of them. Pirates, maybe? Except no life signs, and frankly I don't think the emergency life support is up to supporting life for much longer."

 

"And the biggest problem? We are losing altitude. Pretty soon, we will be entering lower atmosphere. And there's a storm brewing..."

 

The bridge trembled and shook. The lights flickered. A rumbling sound vibrated through the steel alloy. 

 

"Like, maybe about now..."

[Poncho]

(Star Knight and Star Squire)

 

"The storm is new, but I was aware of the loss of altitude. We need to keep moving. If you have no access here, we'll need to keep going. We'll head down to Engineering and sweep it and Science. Keep your man stable and we'll try to restore contact so you can either get Medical up here or get him down to Medical." Millisand said, turning away. "Our timelimit is shrinking every second, it seems." He sighed, shaking his head.

 

"So again, Captain, that cable? Is that a normal thing?" Zendaar asked. "The one hanging down into the planet. Like if they wanted access to the planet, shorting all your electronics then descending via cable seems smart "

[Supercape]

GM

 

"There is always a storm," sighed one of the crewmembers. 

 

The commander nodded. "There is, but it is fierce today. Fiercest I have seen. Even the scientists from Geo were surprised. As for the cable? Its made from stabilised carbon lattice, almost indestructible, and immune to the electrical storms. It goes right down to the mid level atmosphere, where we collect the phase shift particles. As far as I know, its intact. The problem is drag; its slowly pulling us into the planet."

 

"We would know a lot more if our sensors where on line. Say, I dont suppose either of you have any engineering or planetology experience do you?"

 

 

[Poncho]

(Star Knight and Star Squire)

 

"Well, I did once end up trapped in the Felda Quadrant's mining leviathan when I was chasing a suspect, who'd set it on a collision course with a living star. And you know what they say in those situations; either you learn fast or you fry." Millisand said.

 

"Oh please don't get him started we'll be here until the station crashes." Zendaar said in mock terror, shaking his head.

 

"I can try to do what I can with engineering and planetology, but I also want to try and sweep some other sections; your actual crew would be more effective in restoring power and capability to the station that they're familiar with. If you want to give me an idea of what you're hoping I can manage, let me know, then we're going to try and search the other sections."

[Supercape]

GM

 

"Hmmm," said the commander. "You are right. We need the engineers, but that means a trip through the station to the engineering section."

 

He barked a crisp order to the woman on his left. "Lieutenant Hura, you are in command till I get back. Keep everyone alive and stop the station blowing up or crashing."

 

The floating woman saluted. "Aye, SIR!"

 

The commander holstered his laser pistol and propelled himself through the zero gravity to the two Star Knights. 

 

"Ill take you there. But be alert, the power flux can be dangerous. So be careful. And fast, because we are crashing into a gas giant. So. Are we clear? Careful but fast? Ahem. Yes, I am quite sure that is possible."

 

"Be careful of the gravity, too. The storm is going to play havoc with the ships rotation, and we will be falling into the gravity well..."