On The Wings of Tepid Revolution

Chapter 2

Weaving through injured and dead crewmembers, Tim tried to get as many crewmembers that weren't needed for repairs or first aid to come with him. To his sadness, he saw too many dead. He saw Eric Wade sprawled over a console. He'd been pinned to it by a large shard of metal that'd come off in whatever attack had initially brought the ship to a halt and practically destroyed it. Tim didn't even bother to look. A wound that bad was fatal. If not instantly, then very quickly, for sure. A few steps farther was a head he knew belonged to Mauro di Ilio, with the rest of him lying not too far beyond that. In spite of the loss of valuable crew, he made a face when he found the elevator doors open and, when looking down the shaft, a crashed elevator. So some idiot had used the elevator during the emergency. Even with his pressing mission, Tim couldn't help but bow to his curiosity.

Checking the console next to the elevator doors, Tim saw who'd used the elevator last. Corey Grima'd used the override. Shaking his head, he continued his path, using the stairs and stepping over the mess of metal and human remains that the smashed elevator had left in its wake, Tim ultimately reached the lower storage deck. Apart from many crates, barrels, and other items of storage that had gotten dislodged from their places in storage, very little seemed to be wrong down here. Tim kept going, making his way over piles of crates and the likes when he heard something behind him. His sidearm was in his hand before he consciously realized it, the result of habit and practice.

"Woah, Subcom. It's me, Alex" a voice said as whoever belonged to spotted the pistol. Tim took a good look and sure enough, it was Alex Nicolai, the new master-at-arms, and his response crew. He saw Ian Warner, Connor Stephens, Isaac Nesbitt, Seamus Butler, and a few others besides, all armed with flechette guns that could do major damage to boards but wouldn't penetrate the hull. If that happened, whatever slim chance of surviving they yet had would shrink to nothing.

"Alright, for those of you who haven't been down here yet, this entire deck is compartmentalised. We've got a good chance of not having to fight all of the boarders at once. So let's get going and try to get to them before they have a chance to organise" Tim explained before gesturing the group to follow him.

Sure enough, before long they were looking at a group of humanoids in zero-G suits that revealed no clues as to their identity, trying frantically to get from the compartment they were in now, the third, to the next. Presently they were attempt to cut through it with a handheld version of the superheated drills they had used to get into the ship proper.

"Drop them" Tim whispered. In seconds the group had sighted their weapons and at a single gesture's notice, fired their guns. A good half of the invaders fell but a few were quick enough to turn around before the second salvo followed and got shots off. Isaac Nesbitt was shot by an odd beam weapon and lost a portion of his upper torso when it turned into superheated green gunk. The ship's doctor, dr Lyndsey Kane, would later say that at leat his intense suffering had been mercifully brief. Small comfort to those who'd seen his chest slough away, though.

And that was that. With Nesbitt being their only casualty, Tim ordered the door be opened. Alex used his override codes, causing the door to the fourth compartment to slowly open. When Tim peeked inside, he was shocked. The invaders there were all dead. But how? Then it dawned on him. What he had been afraid of. Thanks to his impeccable sense of timing, he looked up in time to see the door to the fifth compartment open and a group of men step through. Men not wearing zero-G suits. Men that had not seen any part of the ship but the brig for half a year. Men armed with both flechette weapons and beam weapons.

"Hi Tim. It's been a while" said a voice.

"Gentlemen" Tim said, gesturing at Alex and the others to lower their weapons.