Rescue & Recovery | Part III-D

Posted on Sunday, 29 August 2021 - 5:55pm by Ensign Oriana Skye Sety & Lieutenant JG Hayashi Hamura

Mission: Operation: Lazarus
Location: USS Standing Bear | Deck 05 |

ON:

The world slowly came into focus as a beam of light pierced the darkness that had held her in its grips for Gods knows how long. She tried to sit up but it was like her body couldn’t move. She groaned as the sensation of pain radiated through her entire being. She blinked several times and the world came a little more into focus.

Panic clawed its way into her throat along with a scent of burning tritanium. She looked around at the chaos around her. Lights blinking on and off, beams scattered…one of which was on her.

She yelped as the full impact of the pain hit her. She was trapped. It all came rushing back, the red alert, the shaking ship, the smoke, the panic. She tried in vain to move.

Was this it? Was this how she went out?

A tear rolled down her cheek. One minute she’d seen something, a shadow, then a tail and then the cat. She’d rushed to get the little ball of fur to safety but then all hell had broken loose. She looked around but not one sign of the cat. She wondered what had happened to the poor thing.

An image flew into her mind unbidden, a face that had… never seemed to leave her, one that had brough calm. “Hamura…” She whispered the name as if it would right all wrongs. The truth was that nobody knew that she was down here on deck five. She was alone.

Again, the image of Hamura smiling and laughing came to her mind. Since their emotional talk of their troubling past, they’d spent time together, they’d read, talked, laughed, and it had been truly freeing. She had realized something before this mess had started. She had realized that Hamura had managed to do what nobody else had done, get under her skin and past all her defenses. “Hamura…” She cried out again. She’d never said anything to Hamura, in fact when they had talked about feelings, she had been quiet, said she needed to think about a lot of things. Why had she not just told Hamura that she was scared of relationships, of being with another person, of being hurt again.

She sniffed noticing that it was getting harder to breath.

She wondered, where was Hamura now? On the bridge? Doing alright? Hurt? She knew nothing and she so badly wanted to see that face again.

Deciding to take matters into her own hands she began to move and struggle but the beam that was on top of her was pure tritanium and heavy as hell.

She pulled and pushed in vain and then collapsed in a fit of sobs. Was this how it would end for Oriana?

She closed her eyes and it wasn’t bad enough that Hamura’s face was imprinted there but she heard Hamura’s voice. “Princess?! Kitten are you there?”

She had to laugh, “Yeah okay. Hamura and her nicknames.” She swiped at the tears on her cheeks. She was now hearing things. Was this a part of death?

She sighed and closed her eyes again. Maybe she should go back to sleep, forget this world that would soon forget her.

“Kitten!”

Hamura’s voice again. It was determined to torture her but she cried out nonetheless. “Hamura!”

“Ori? Where are you?”

Oriana’s eyes snapped open. She looked about. There was nobody there. It was her mind; it was playing tricks on her. “Just a beautiful dream or hallucination, then.”

She laughed a little. She was now talking to herself.

“Ori!”

Oriana’s eye snapped open. “I…” Had she actually heard that?”

She waited and waited and the again her name was called.

She took a few deep breaths and yelled. “Hamura!”

“Ori! Keep yelling honey! Keep calling to me.”

“It was real!” She felt her body shake. “Hamura! I’m here!”

How had Hamura known?

Was she actually saved?

Would she get out of this?

Would she see Hamura again?

Would she get a second chance?

“Hamura! Hamura...” She chanted the name, called it, screamed it. She had to get out. She struggled and twisted as much as she could trying to see if anyone was there.

Suddenly beams of light came rushing around. “Over here!” She called and again, like a mantra, she called Hamura’s name. “I’m here, I can’t move!”

There was silence. For a dreadful minute she thought she was alone and then, “Ori, honey the way is blocked. We’re going to go around.”

Oriana began to cry again, tears of emotions she couldn’t name.

“Hurry Haya…I’m… trapped, can’t move.” She heard the panic in her own voice, the desperation. She would get out of this. In that moment she knew that she would get out of this and she felt a wired euphoria that seemed to disrupt her pain.

“Hamura,” She cried out again. “Please help me!”

“I’m coming Princess! Hold on!”

She would be saved; she knew she would be saved.

OFF: