Hot In Here - by Keikimo
September 2003
Disclaimer: To paraphrase Kirk: What does Paramount need with a Starship? But until they come to their senses and let the fans write the stories, Enterprise, her crew and the rest of the Star Trek Universe still belong to the guys in suits.
I write purely for the enjoyment, I post purely in the hopes there are people out there who would enjoy reading my works. But I'd be lying if I said I didn't want to hear from you. If you have anything to say, feel free to hit that review button and let me know.
A rating? Well, think of a Nelly video: girls, guys, and just enough skin to make it interesting.
Speaking of Nelly, I realize that like many music artists today, he prefers a more...*creative* spelling for his song titles. Personally, I think it just looks silly. So, while this fic *is* titled the same as one of his hit songs...the word "here" has only *one* R in it...not two. Got it? Good!
Class dismissed, onto the fic.
*****
Hot in Here - by Keikimo
September 2003
Trip had never really believed in the notion of an afterlife, space was far too mystical and mysterious for him as it was. But he was beginning to wonder if there was such a thing as Hell...and if it resembled anything close to the day he was having.
It had all started twelve hours ago with a deceptively minor problem...a single blown relay. It was a simple fix, one even a first year Engineering student could handle. Except the minor problem quickly escalated into a cascade failure of the warp coolant systems and a subsequent shutdown of most systems across Enterprise. Mapping out the damage, Trip couldn't help but marvel at the fact there was still a ship left to repair. Twelve hours later...and his color coded chart was still a mess of reds, yellows and oranges.
On the positive side, he now had first hand knowledge about the various safety protocols connected to the warp core, including where excess heat off the warp plasma could be vented in an emergency. It was almost ironic considering the absolute cold of space surrounding them, but most of Enterprise was currently hovering at 35 degrees. In Engineering, with all the staff and equipment they had jammed in the room, it was closer to forty.
Glancing up at the ceiling in frustration, Trip couldn't help but wonder if this was some sort of cosmic penance. He could handle working twenty-four hours straight, could handle squinting through the hazy fog of steam and smoke still lingering in the air. It was the damned heat that was making it all unbearable. Not really expecting any sort of explanation, he waited anyway, wondering if an all-encompassing apology to the Universe would help end his misery. He had reached the point where he would have happily dropped down on his hands and knees, begging forgiveness from T'Pol herself if he thought it would knock the temperature down a few degrees.
"Sir?"
The hesitant voice broke him out of his musings and Trip turned to Hess with a tired grin. She casually glanced up at the ceiling, then back at him, her expression equal parts concern, confusion and amusement. "I was conducting negotiations with the Universe." He shrugged, pointing towards the ceiling as if it would explain everything.
"Uh....okay." Confusion quickly melting towards concern, Hess nodded tentatively in agreement. Trip knew she was subtly trying to assess his current grip on sanity, probably wondering if he was suffering from heat stroke once again. "Did you get an answer?"
"Maybe. Depends on what you were about to tell me." He leaned over the railing to grab the datareader she held up to him, almost dreading the possibility it would be another damage report. They were still relying on actual visual assessments for the most part - even after all their work, the computer's diagnostics were sluggish at best. But it also meant they were still playing a giant guessing game, trying to determine how much damage actually occurred and where the most work needed to be done.
"It looks like we might be able to power up the computer core in the next hour or so..."
Quickly paging through the report for confirmation, Trip didn't even bother to hide his relieved smile at the news. "Apparently I should've apologized ten hours ago..."
"Sir?"
"Nothing. Good work." The computer core wasn't exactly the warp core...but with the day they had been having, he wasn't about to be picky. He was just thankful they had finally made some headway. "Grab whoever you need and get those last few data modules replaced. I'd like to see my quarters again sometime this week."
"Yes sir..."
He heard her voice trail off as she wandered back into the depths of Engineering, her shouted orders mingling with those of other disembodied voices working somewhere in the smoky darkness. Glancing back over his shoulder, Trip saw the schematic of Enterprise still called up on his screen. Thirteen hours later...and he could finally add a spot of green to his multicoloured diagram. It was progress...granted, it was slow-going. But it was still progress.
He chose to ignore the fact it was *also* forty degrees in Engineering and still climbing....
September 2003
Disclaimer: To paraphrase Kirk: What does Paramount need with a Starship? But until they come to their senses and let the fans write the stories, Enterprise, her crew and the rest of the Star Trek Universe still belong to the guys in suits.
I write purely for the enjoyment, I post purely in the hopes there are people out there who would enjoy reading my works. But I'd be lying if I said I didn't want to hear from you. If you have anything to say, feel free to hit that review button and let me know.
A rating? Well, think of a Nelly video: girls, guys, and just enough skin to make it interesting.
Speaking of Nelly, I realize that like many music artists today, he prefers a more...*creative* spelling for his song titles. Personally, I think it just looks silly. So, while this fic *is* titled the same as one of his hit songs...the word "here" has only *one* R in it...not two. Got it? Good!
Class dismissed, onto the fic.
*****
Hot in Here - by Keikimo
September 2003
Trip had never really believed in the notion of an afterlife, space was far too mystical and mysterious for him as it was. But he was beginning to wonder if there was such a thing as Hell...and if it resembled anything close to the day he was having.
It had all started twelve hours ago with a deceptively minor problem...a single blown relay. It was a simple fix, one even a first year Engineering student could handle. Except the minor problem quickly escalated into a cascade failure of the warp coolant systems and a subsequent shutdown of most systems across Enterprise. Mapping out the damage, Trip couldn't help but marvel at the fact there was still a ship left to repair. Twelve hours later...and his color coded chart was still a mess of reds, yellows and oranges.
On the positive side, he now had first hand knowledge about the various safety protocols connected to the warp core, including where excess heat off the warp plasma could be vented in an emergency. It was almost ironic considering the absolute cold of space surrounding them, but most of Enterprise was currently hovering at 35 degrees. In Engineering, with all the staff and equipment they had jammed in the room, it was closer to forty.
Glancing up at the ceiling in frustration, Trip couldn't help but wonder if this was some sort of cosmic penance. He could handle working twenty-four hours straight, could handle squinting through the hazy fog of steam and smoke still lingering in the air. It was the damned heat that was making it all unbearable. Not really expecting any sort of explanation, he waited anyway, wondering if an all-encompassing apology to the Universe would help end his misery. He had reached the point where he would have happily dropped down on his hands and knees, begging forgiveness from T'Pol herself if he thought it would knock the temperature down a few degrees.
"Sir?"
The hesitant voice broke him out of his musings and Trip turned to Hess with a tired grin. She casually glanced up at the ceiling, then back at him, her expression equal parts concern, confusion and amusement. "I was conducting negotiations with the Universe." He shrugged, pointing towards the ceiling as if it would explain everything.
"Uh....okay." Confusion quickly melting towards concern, Hess nodded tentatively in agreement. Trip knew she was subtly trying to assess his current grip on sanity, probably wondering if he was suffering from heat stroke once again. "Did you get an answer?"
"Maybe. Depends on what you were about to tell me." He leaned over the railing to grab the datareader she held up to him, almost dreading the possibility it would be another damage report. They were still relying on actual visual assessments for the most part - even after all their work, the computer's diagnostics were sluggish at best. But it also meant they were still playing a giant guessing game, trying to determine how much damage actually occurred and where the most work needed to be done.
"It looks like we might be able to power up the computer core in the next hour or so..."
Quickly paging through the report for confirmation, Trip didn't even bother to hide his relieved smile at the news. "Apparently I should've apologized ten hours ago..."
"Sir?"
"Nothing. Good work." The computer core wasn't exactly the warp core...but with the day they had been having, he wasn't about to be picky. He was just thankful they had finally made some headway. "Grab whoever you need and get those last few data modules replaced. I'd like to see my quarters again sometime this week."
"Yes sir..."
He heard her voice trail off as she wandered back into the depths of Engineering, her shouted orders mingling with those of other disembodied voices working somewhere in the smoky darkness. Glancing back over his shoulder, Trip saw the schematic of Enterprise still called up on his screen. Thirteen hours later...and he could finally add a spot of green to his multicoloured diagram. It was progress...granted, it was slow-going. But it was still progress.
He chose to ignore the fact it was *also* forty degrees in Engineering and still climbing....
