A Full Shuttle

Posted on Tuesday, 30 March 2021 - 7:00pm by Commander Soral & Captain Barret Stillwater & Lieutenant Raith Kolani

Mission: Operation: Trail of Tears
Location: Various
Timeline: 2394
Tags: Rose

ON:

Soral finished with the Major and headed to Engineering. There he met N'vek, Gaylan, the Chief Engineer who as promised provide the shield harmonics codes. Soral watched as the people moved about engineering keeping the sinking ship going. The announcement had been made for those who wished to return with the Federation to go to the shuttle bay and that the ship would be destroyed but nobody seemed to be moving. Soral felt saddened by this. He understood their fear and logic in staying in keeping vigil over a fallen empire but nothing he could say would make them want to go.

"If you've verified the codes then be gone from my domain."

Soral raised an eyebrow at the hostile tone of the chief engineer. He gave a small bow of his head. "As you wish. I will.."

"Father! Father we must go!"

Soral's head snapped around to see a small boy of about 10 standing there bag in hand.

"N'vek! You will stand down. We are going nowhere."

"You have a son," Soral said even as a wave of familiarity hit him. There was something about this boy that was familiar, that was known to him.

"Father we must go. You heard the announcement."

The man moved towards the boy in a hostile manner. Soral launched into action and he blocked the hostile man's path. "Leave the boy alone. You must think of your son here and get to the shuttle."

The man balled his hands into fists. "I will not! I will not have my son in the hands of the Federation. It's because of you that I lost my wife."

Soral thought he detected a personal jibe there but he'd never met the man. "You must think of your son and his future."

"Don't tell me how to raise my son!" The man stepped forward and Soral held his ground.

"The boy's life will end here if you don't board that shuttle. This ship is dying, badly damaged. It's only a matter of time and you cannot leave this space without our help."

"What's it to me, he has no future anyway, the empire is destroyed and he's useless."

"Father I wish to go." The pain of how he was being treated by his father, the senior N'vek, was plain on the boys face.

Soral stepped forward. "The child will go with us."

"You have no right!" Again the man stepped forward and this time he launched himself at Soral. Soral caught the blow in his shoulder sending him back against the wall.

"Father, stop, don't harm him. He's right we have to get off the ship. I want to go with the Federation!"

After a moment of being stunned Soral got to his feet. He looked at the child. "N'vek if you wish to go we will take you with us, I will protect you."

The boy looked between the two. "I want to go."

"Then you shall." As Soral moved towards the boy he heard a howl of anger from the father. Suddenly a sharp pain radiated from his back. Soral grunted in pain as the blade found a home. He turned sharply slamming his fist into the man sending him flying against the bulkhead. Before the engineer could get up several Romulans stepped in and held him back.

One of them called out, "Get the boy to safety, Commander."

Soral gave a nod. He knelt by the boy. "Ready to go?"

Little N'vek nodded. Soral picked him up and hurried towards the lift. When they were safely inside it he reached back his hand touching metal. He cursed and pulled the blade out of his back letting it drop to the ground. He staggered a bit from the pain.

"Commander?"

"I am alright. We need to get to the shuttle. Call me Soral, I promise you are safe now."

He hurried towards the shuttle bay only to run into the Major. Soral put the boy down and then held N'vek's hand. "Hello Major...I take it you have the logs?"

N'vek, the boy smiled at the Major. She had been his friend never too busy to talk to him. He hugged her, "Are you coming with us?"

The Major was not a family woman. She had no children of her own nor any desire to have any, but in this child she saw a seed for the empire. A potential for the empire to grow again. "No, I am not coming with you. Remember what your teachers have taught you, and remember that you are part of the empire."

She handed her logs over to Soral. "Commander," she said bringing her closed fist across her chest. "Jolan tru." She met his gaze.

He mirrored her gesture "Jolan tru."

"N'vek wait for me inside the door." He watched the boy leave. "I have the codes. The boys father he is in engineering he tried to stop me from saving him. Has he always been without honour?"

"The honorable thing is to stay aboard and die with the empire," the Major countered. "But that is not the Federation way, and if their is hope for the Romulan people it is for some of us to leave here today."

"The boy's father would have had him stay too. There is no honour in that. The future of the Empire is with the young." he grimaced as the pain from the blade wound shot through him. He reached behind his hand coming up green with blood. He sighed. "I should go. I will ensure your people's safety."

"Logic and honor are two separate entities, sometimes they work together. Sometimes, they do not" offered the woman. "For the empire."

He gave a nod. "You shall be remembered as heroes of the empire. I shall see to it. One day Vulcan and Romulus will rebuild Nivar and we'll be strong. Stronger than the Federation." He said sharing his thoughts candidly.

"Thank you, Commander," the Major replied.

Soral, holding N'vek's hand hurried to the shuttle. Alex was helping the last Romulan into the shuttle.

"Lieutenant Kingsley!" He called limping towards the shuttle. The pain in his back was blinding him. He could feel the blood draining from him.

Ushering the last of the pitifully few evacuees into their shuttle, Lieutenant Kingsley turned as her name was called out. Of course she recognised the voice, it was Soral. She would know it anywhere. He was approaching, a young boy in tow. Her eyes narrowed, noting the laboured walk and then his hand, fingertips coated in blood. “Soral?!”

Moving away from the shuttle she hurried towards them. “Your hurt?”

"I am alright. Let's get the boy on the ship and tell Kolani to prepare for lift off." He handed her a bunch of PaDDs, "Log these in the shuttle memory banks and secure the PaDDs."

N'vek looked up at Soral and took his hand. "I wish to stay with you."

He sighed. "This is my wife. She will keep you safe."

The boy looked hesitantly at her and then took her hand.

It was clear she wanted to argue with his choice but instead she tucked the PaDDs under her arm and led the boy towards the shuttle. “It’s okay, you’ll be safe,” she promised.

Soral followed. He stopped at the door of the shuttle and looked back. He brought his fist to his chest in a Romulan salute to those there and then entered closing the shuttle.

He headed to the front. "Kolani help the doctor Secure the passengers and get us ready to head out. Doctor Rose ensure everyone is ready for the time transition and then report to me.

"Aye sir," Raith said as he went back to help Doctor Rose secure the passengers that they had taken on board. Once they were both satisfied that everyone was strapped in , Raith headed back to the pilot seat and began the pre-flight checks. Once he completed those, Raith opened an internal comm line for the whole of the shuttle to hear.

"Ok, please make sure that all passengers and Starfleet personnel are strapped in safely and securely, we're about to lift off," he said, before engaging the thrusters and slowly taking the shuttle out, heading towards the edge of the bubble and leaving the Romulan vessel behind.

Soral sat in the co-pilot's seat. He allowed Kolani to take the shuttle out but stopped it just shy of the bubble barrier. "Lieutenant Kingsley, get me a read on the ship. Are their shields holding for now? How many aboard the ship now that we've taken these few with us?"

Studying the sensors, Alex replied, “shields are holding... just. Estimated at just under ten percent. If they were in normal space the debris would tear it apart. As for life signs, some of the ship we cannot scan, but sixty two distinct life signs. All Romulan.”

Which meant the Remans were in the sections that were not able to be scanned. He sighed as he brought up the tactical section. He knew that his crew nothing about this and he had chosen to keep them in the dark. "Now hear this. There are over 62 souls on that ship that are loyal to the Romulan Empire. We salute them." He stood painfully and brought his fist to his chest. The other Romulans in the shuttle did the same. He sighed as he eased back down. In an instant, he brought up full weapons. The shields showed that he'd imputed the right code. His hand hesitated and then he fired all weapons. The shuttle shook with the volley of it and the destructing ship. "Get us out of here!" He told Kolani as he stood and walked to the back of the shuttle where he had some semblance of privacy. He leaned against the bulkhead.

"What the hell!!" Raith said as he heard the weapons fire take place. As soon as Soral yelled his order to get them out of there, Raith punched up the impulse engines to full power and started to increase the distance from the expected blast range.

"What the hell is going on???" Raith asked in frustration as he managed to keep the shuttle on a some how even course despite the disruptions of weapons fire.

Alex had stood in stunned silence. He had done it. Agreed to the Major’s request. She took Soral’s place beside Raith’s, watching on sensors as the Romulan ship tore itself apart and the shockwave swept towards them.

Soral collapsed under the weight of his grief and his injury. It had been the only choice.

“Mac, help Raith, keep us in one piece,” Alex ordered as she gave Mac her seat. He had more experience and it was what they needed. Satisfied he was in place she disappeared in search of Soral.

Soral leaned his forehead against the wall letting his tears fall. He'd done the unthinkable but he'd done what needed to be done. He reached back to where his wound was, the bleeding had slowed but had not stopped. He had to get a hold of himself for the crew.

“Soral?” Alex placed a hand on his shoulder as she moved to his side. Her gaze lingered on the bloodstained clothes and she knew it would need more than a dermal regenerator. “Soral, what happened on that ship? In fact no, tell me later. First, let Doctor Rose heal the wound.”

He turned to her. Uncharacteristically he launched himself into her arms and laid his head on her shoulder letting himself cry. He needed her strength now.

She shifted so the both had what passed as privacy in the confines of a shuttle. “You did what they wanted,” she whispered, “and we have survivors to keep safe. It will be okay, I promise.”

He sat up and leaned his forehead against hers. "I am sorry. I should not have let my emotions take hold of me like this."

“It’s understandable. Just take a few minutes, then I can call Doctor Rose back here to check you over, agreed?”

He gave a nod.

"Commander, we're living the bubble, we're re-entering normal space again," Raith reported, still unsure as to what had just happened.

"Take us back to the ship." Soral said coming back into the main area. "Mac..."

"Yes sir." He knew what was coming next.

"Take me into custody until the CO has had a chance to make judgement on my actions. Lieutenant Kingsley will take charge of the mission back to the ship and she has some PaDDs you must give to Stillwater."

Mac sighed. He gave a nod already pulling out restraints, Gods know that he wasn't prepared to use them but standard policy called for this.

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