Golden Light, Silver Light

Scene 036

Scene 036

"I'm here," said Cat.

"Now, that we're all here, let's hear your news. Kronk?" Dam requested, sitting on one of the exercise mats. The small group was lounging in various positions around the cargo bay.

"We're losing power. The engine is slowly coming to a halt. We need to get to a repair station." Tension was causing a muscle to twitch in the Engineer's face. "The only thing is, I don't know if we have enough power to make it."

"I thought this ship was checked over before it left Valdiar and all the worn parts were replaced." Frustration filled Dam's tone.

"It was. I did all of the work myself" Kronk assured everyone.

"So your telling us, it's sabotage?" Jac asked leaning against a big pile of equipment.

"That's about it."

"It must have accrued when the pirates boarded the ship," stated Jac.

"I'm not sure," Amy said more to herself than to the group. She didn't know much of anything about the ship, but something in that explanation didn't sound right.

"Amy is correct. The engine was in working order last night when I transported Dam. I would have canceled Dam's plan, if the engine had not been running correctly or if it had damaged it." Cat explained quietly.

"So, someone on this ship is a saboteur. Great." Growling, Jac then called, "Computer, ask Navigator Karr to calculate how far away it is to the nearest repair station."

The room was filled with speculation for a few minutes. Amy looked from Kronk, who was pacing, to Jac and Dam, whom both looked as relaxed as a large African Lion before dinner.

The computer reported, "Navigator Karr reports that there is a station about ten hours away."

"OK, Kronk will the engine last that long?" Dam toward Kronk. At his shrug, he continued, "Computer, tell Karr to set a course for the station."

"I really don't know if the engine will last that long. It is faltering rapidly." Kronk shook his head and continued, "I really don't know. I've never seen anything like this. Between my diagnostic and Abney's the engine slowed down significantly."

"Is there anything you can do to stabilize it?" Jac ran his fingers through his hair. Tension was visibly crawling along his shoulders, now.

"I'm not sure."

"Could you use the transporter to help stabilize the main engine until we get to the repair station?" asked Amy. She was remembering what Kronk had told her about the power sources of the two being the same.

"You know it might work. Cat, if you can help, Abney and myself, we might be able to pull this off and limp into the station." He was quiet for a moment and continued, "It would also help if we shut down all unnecessary energy using things, such as unused stations, rooms, and the force field to Cargo Bay Three."

"Do it," came Jac. "Also, shut down and seal off any cabins that don't have anyone in them while you are at it."

"I'd like for my cabin to be left on. I'm going up for lunch," Amy requested. The day had been extremely long so far and there didn't look to be an end any time soon.

"Fine," Jac answered.

"You can turn mine off. I'll be staying with Amy until we get to the repair station," said Dam. He stood and walked to where Amy was. Reaching out, he gathered Amy close to him.

Settling into Dam's embrace, Amy felt a small flow of comfort and security. It was the first since finding out about the engine.

"I'll go to Command Center to keep an eye on things there. I'll also call in our change of plans to Beauf," said Jac. He started toward the door.

Everyone left the cargo bay heading to their assigned areas. Within the hour, everything that used power that wasn't needed was turned off and locked up.