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"Boomer Bust" by Lady Rainbow
Rating: PG-13 As usual: Comments and Reviews wanted and appreciated! Thanks! ;) Nine “How close is the nearest ship?” Travis demanded as he stalked out of the lift. The people on the tug's Bridge took one look at his face and immediately hurried at their tasks. The only one who wasn't cowed was Hoshi; she turned to him with a look of sympathy. “Columbia is four days away, and she's the closest. Enterprise is six, and that's if they red-line the engines,” Trip said from the engineering console, with an expression that clearly said, They'd better not, not while I'm not there! “Looks like Horizon's just outside of the Alpha Centauri system borders.” Travis scowled and said, “So much for the Centaurians sending help, if Horizon's not in their territory. Thor, alter course to intercept with Horizon. Hoshi, advise Captain Sandosh on our change.” Thor chittered as he made the necessary adjustments. “Course laid in, Captain. Increasing speed to warp 4.” “Thanks, Thor. Hoshi, send Paul a message that we're on our way.” Travis glanced at Rudis, the young Orion boy who had greeted them when they'd come aboard. “What's on your mind, Rudis? You look worried.” Rudis turned from the environmental station, his face going bronze-green in embarrassment. “Captain Travis, I just thought of something. EdML should be able to see us on sensors by now...what will Montclaire think when he sees one of his tugs helping a Class-J?” Travis's mouth quirked up in grim humor. “It should give his image a boost. Whatever happened to 'Boomers stick together'? Montclaire's all talk, but it's about time someone proved it. Ninety minutes later, they approached the Horizon as she drifted within a field of debris. Travis's heart twisted as he saw the gaping holes in the cargo holds and large scratches along both port and starboard sides. He had to close his eyes. Oh God. That's my home and my family. I'm gonna rip whoever hurt my family from limb to limb and-- He felt a hand on his shoulder. When he opened his eyes, he saw Philippe standing behind him, his blue eyes intense with emotion. “I'm sorry, Travis,” he whispered. “I'm so sorry.” “Thanks, Philippe.” They heard a sharp intake of breath from the sensory station and they both turned to look at Malcolm. The Armory officer pressed his lips together in an angry line. “What is it, Malcolm?” “Looks like Horizon wasn't the only one caught in this mess, Travis. I'm reading debris from at least four different ships, perhaps five. Various cargo vessels and support ships. They must have been traveling in a convoy when they were attacked.” Travis nodded. It made sense to travel in number when there was a threat; the problem was coordinating the ships at the same time. Egos and schedules got in the way. Boomers were proud, independent people, beholden only to themselves. They would much rather be the masters of their own destinies. “Any survivors from the other ships, Malcolm?” He knew the answer, but he needed to hear it. “None, Travis. I'm sorry. Horizon's in pretty bad shape herself. She's leaking air.” “Let's get them out of there.” He nodded at Hoshi. “Advise Captain Sandosh we're going in. Thor, take us at one-quarter impulse. Philippe, Hoshi, Thor, Trip, with me. Malcolm, keep an eye out 'cause whoever did this might be back.” Malcolm nodded and moved from the sensory station to the captain's chair. A smile played on Travis's lips as he realized that unlike him, Malcolm fit the chair perfectly. Maybe they'll be a time when we all get ships of our own. Captain Mayweather. Captain Sato. Captain Reed. Captain Trieste. In about twenty years or so. Maybe. The thought was a lot more sobering now than it was a month ago. He shifted impatiently from foot to foot as the tug maneuvered itself alongside Horizon. When he realized what he was doing, he made himself stop. Again, he caught Philippe's look of complete understanding. Another long moment passed before the airlocks were attached and pressurized. When the doors rolled open, he wriggled through before they were fully opened. A Horizon crewmember gave a sharp cry at the sight of him. “Travis!” the woman screamed and threw herself at him. He held her close as she sobbed in his arms. “They said you'd come all the way from Enterprise. They said you'd bring help.” “I'm here now, Sharon,” he whispered. “Not exactly from Enterprise, but I'm here now.” He looked up and said, “This is Sharon Milfour, one of our mechanics. Sharon, this is Philippe, Hoshi, Thor and Trip.” A shy smile passed over her face as she looked at Trip. She wore coveralls that had been the color of a sunset; at least, before it had been splashed with engine fluid and phase coolant. “Commander Tucker. It's a pleasure to meet you at last; Travis and Paul have talked a lot about you.” Trip sketched a bow. “Hopefully, all good things, ma'am. Hate to break this reunion, but--” “Our engines are pretty much slag; whoever they were knew where to hit us.” Sharon's mouth twisted. “We've got a handful of engineers, Commander, that's all.” “Show me the way, and you're not Starfleet, so call me Trip.” He followed her just as Captain Paul Mayweather approached the airlock. Paul covered the distance quickly between them and the two brothers exchanged a wordless hug. Travis noticed the stiffness in his brother's posture, the utter desolation. “Thanks for coming for us, Big Brother,” Paul murmured. He looked directly in Travis's eyes and his eyes were shadowed. “We've got a lot of wounded. Tried to get as many survivors as we could--” Travis nodded. “We've got room on the tug to spare. C'mon, let's get everyone to safety. Mom?” “She's topside, giving first aid. She is the resident medic, you know.” An exhausted smile didn't reach Paul's eyes. “You know, you've got a lot to explain, like how you ended up captaining an RH-900, especially one of Old Man Trieste's.” “Later. It's kinda a long story.” He followed Paul's gaze at Philippe. Despite the hair coloring, Paul had recognized Philippe, and his expression hardened. “He's with us, Paul, and he's not a spy for EdML.” “He'd better not be.” Paul growled. Philippe met his stare head-on, but said nothing. Hoshi cleared her throat and broke the tension between them. “Philippe and I can help with the transfer,” she volunteered. “Thanks, Hoshi.” He followed Paul through Horizon's decks, his anger rising at the signs of damage. Shattered walkways, blown-out compartments, flickering lighting, piles of debris in their path. The entire deck of living quarters was roped off; Travis's old quarters in B-6 had been one of those exposed to space, and the memories that his mother had so carefully saved were all gone. “Who did this, Paul? Who attacked you?” Paul didn't turn around. “It happened so fast, Travis. We had one short warning and that was it. Something about breaking Cargo Transit Authority rules, something about somebody hauling contraband, then boom! Next thing we know, Tracy's Pride, Chelsea, and Sydney are all gone. There wasn't a single damn illegal thing in our holds. We were all legit.” “They thought you were hauling contraband?” Paul scowled. “Don't even go there. You know Mom would kill me if I even thought about it. Both of us were right there in the cargo hold while we were being loaded, and the other captains shared their manifests with us. Even Old Rooster, you remember him--” “The quartermaster. Hell, yeah, I remember him.” “--he went over to the other ships and visually inspected every freaking container and metal box on those ships. He was so paranoid.” Paul's voice became a harsh whisper. “He was fast asleep when we were attacked.” Travis swallowed hard as his imagination supplied Old Rooster's last moments. He pushed the visions away as he climbed up to the auxiliary Bridge. Paul released the hatch and stepped aside for Travis to emerge onto the deck. A tall, dark-skinned woman turned towards him with a furious look on her face. “Paul, I told you to bring those medical supplies a long time ago. Where were you--?” A look of complete shock passed across her face and the hypospray in her hand clattered to the deck with a loud ring. “Travis? Oh my God--” “Mom,” Travis choked out as she launched herself into his arms with a sob. He could count the number of times Rhianna Mayweather had broken down in public, and those times had been very desperate. Her shoulders shook with silent sobs as he held her. Hoshi and Philippe quietly went to the Horizon's survivors, who were crowded in the auxiliary bridge like sardines. Hoshi looked up at Travis and said, “Travis, we're going to have to hurry fast. It's beginning to feel a little stuffy in here.” He nodded and brought himself to the problem at hand. “Paul, is this everyone?” “Everyone we could find from all the ships, Travis. We've got a few of them on makeshift stretchers already.” Travis flipped open his communicator and called, “Mayweather to Reed.” “Reed here.” He saw Paul's grin as the familiar clipped accent echoed in the room. Paul looked over at Hoshi, who returned his smile. “Malcolm, we've got wounded incoming. Get Rishi and Don'wa and anyone else you can pull to help. I think we can use the Mess Room as a temporary infirmary until we can get to a med facility.” “Acknowledged. Might I suggest that we press some of our...more recalcitrant guests into service? Perhaps they would have a change of heart once they are actively involved in the rescue.” It was so like Malcolm to suggest such a thing. Travis chuckled and replied, “Go ahead, but warn them that if they so much as harm a hair or swipe a strip of gold that I'm gonna space them with no questions asked.” “With pleasure, Travis. Reed, out.” He switched channels and warned Captain Sandosh of their intentions. The Tellarite volunteered the services of his own medic and loading crew in the effort. He glanced at Paul, who nodded assent. Paul'd be an idiot to refuse a medic. “All right, let's get them out of here.” He smiled at his mother. “Mom, we're gonna take good care of you guys.” Rhianna's smile trembled at the corners. “You never told me you got another promotion. Captain Archer must've given you more responsibility to put you in charge of this.” His cheeks flamed in embarrassment. “Um...actually, Captain Archer isn't here and neither is Enterprise. We're kinda free-lance right now.” At his mother's stunned expression, he said, “I'll explain everything when we're on our way.” They began the transfer of the wounded. Throughout the entire operation, Travis was aware of the look that Paul was giving him, and he hoped his brother would understand. This was promising to be quite the confrontation and Travis wasn't looking forward to it. |
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