Authors Note: Thank you for the reviews, more chapters are on the way, enjoy.
Chapter Two: Fallout.
Commander Cain painfully opened her eyes; she was on her back facing the ceiling of CIC. The thick smell of smoke and burned electrical components filled her nostrils. Small fires were sprouting up around her field of view, and DC units were attempting to put them out with fire extinguishers. She felt paralyzed, and looked to her right, she could see Major Vash frantically giving orders on the com. The XO was hovering close by, eyeing a dead Dradis screen and issuing orders. Painfully she pushed herself up, and looked around the CIC. Console screens were cracked and shattered, steady crackles of electricity popped spewing sparks. The crew was racing back and forth with desperate looks on their faces. With great effort and agonizing pain, she tried lifting herself but was stopped when Ken rushed down to her. Rebecca glared then shouted at him, hoarsely.
"Sit-rep! Right frakking now!" She croaked, then regretted it as agonizing pain wretched her body.
Ken blinked once then began to speak. But pushed her back down onto the stretcher, the medic at her side told her to stay still.
"Damage reports keep coming in, we've nearly lost the port flight pod, it's sustained critical damage, the lateral controls are not responding and we are in an uncontrolled clock wise spin on our aft axis. We had to leave behind half a squadron Commander… we had to jump after the blasts or we would be destroyed, engines gave out shortly after the jump. There are fires reported all over the stern, and DC teams are trying to put them out, casualties are not yet confirmed, but they will be bad." He said looking down at her with a grim face.
"How bad am I?" She asked.
"Medic says some of your ribs are cracked or broken, a crossbeam fell and hit you when the warheads impacted the hull, we're going to move you to Sickbay, Doctor Barsec is already waiting."
"How long have we been here…? She asked.
"Nearly an hour sir, there's extensive damage all over the ship, along with the fires." He replied.
Against the medic's orders, Rebecca fought to get on her feet, and she definitely felt something was broken. Groaning she leaned on the operations console, fighting the pain through gritted teeth she resumed her post.
"I'll be fine." She wheezed, barely staying conscious through the pain.
Ken looked at her with a concerned and stern glare.
"You are no condition to be on your feet, you need to let the medics help you, you won't be any use to us when you're half dead."
The frantic poise of the crew was relentless, they were trying their best to save a dying ship, and they knew it.
"I want all DC team leaders to report in, then I want to know exactly where the fires are." Ordered Cain.
"Aye sir…" Replied a bloodied Vash, the room was painted in an eerie red light, the ship was using secondary power.
Ken looked at her again and shook his head muttering how stubborn and hardheaded she was. But to his surprise she laid back down onto the stretcher.
"Can't stand... you have the con Ken." She breathed out in hiss.
"About time you came to your senses, get her down to sickbay RFM." He ordered the medic, who in turn drafted a crewmember to help carry the stretcher down to sickbay.
He watched them leave combat and then he turned his attention to the disaster at hand.
"Sir, Chief Orelin reports a severe fire in the aft port flight pod, he says the water main controls are down where they are, its bad sir, spreading towards the battery magazines and fuel lines."
"… Tell the chief we'll have them online soon, and to hold that fire at all costs, if the main doesn't respond we'll have to vent the compartments. And get Blitz up here." He ordered rubbing his eyes, coughing slightly as the smoke filled his senses.
"Sir… Captain Chambers didn't make it back, report just came in… he's dead sir."
Ken felt sick suddenly, another blow, another soldier lost in battle with the Cylons. Ken was hesitant for a moment, taking in the death of his CAG, then retorted his orders.
"We'll have to assign someone as the temporary CAG until we get this mess sorted out, Lieutenant Bonen has to be it, tell him to get up here on the double."
"Aye sir." Replied Vash.
Aft port flight pod.
The smoke was pitch black, and wires were dangling from damaged ceiling compartments, the DC teams were relentlessly fighting the blazing fire. Which was only getting worse. They began to lose ground; the fires were getting closer to the causeways leading towards the ordinance and fuel lines. Some were wailing in despair, but their shipmates rallied their courage and gave it their all, the chief of the deck was right there with them helping any way he could.
"Alright! Let's seal off this bulkhead and get more units into those vents! We can do this! Stay strong and we'll make it through!" He shouted to the fellow shipmates, who were wearing protective fire gear and hand held extinguishers.
When they sealed the hatch, which led to the port flight deck, the intense heat instantly welded it in place. The frame began to bubble like boiling water.
"Hold the fire here!"
Just when the hatch seemed to melt into a puddle of twisted metal the water suppression system kicked in, sending showers of suppressive foam onto everything, it was like a bubble bath. The crew shouted visible relief and began to push the fire back. The DC units knew they couldn't get too close to the blast zones, and let the fire suppressors do the work, if they did they would risk contamination from radiation. Already some handheld Geiger counters were bleeping loudly.
"Get as close as you can and blast those fires with what you have left, and douse the causeways and hatches! Were moving back aft, they need help in the engine room." Ordered the chief as frantic men and women rushed to do as he said in the dense smoke and unbearable heat. He reported the success in putting out the starboard fire.
CIC
Ken was a man who could work under pressure, but even this pushed him to his limits. Main power was still offline, and they couldn't use the long-range communications to warn the fleet. He still had no idea where they were, apparently their jump calculations were in error, and they ended up in the middle of no where. His CO was in sickbay, but she was in good hands. The Chief reported the worst of the fires were out, and were now focusing on the other small electrical fires, which were the most dangerous. In his thoughts he failed to notice Lieutenant Bonen standing crisply at attention beside him.
"Sir, Lieutenant Bonen reporting as ordered." Announced a masculine voice.
Without looking up, he gave him his orders.
"Captain Chambers is dead, I'm assigning you as temporary CAG until we get the damage repaired. I want you to establish an immediate full squadron CAP around the ship, those bastards may show up again, and we need some defense, weapon grids are offline until main power is restored. So, you're the man of the hour Lieutenant, I suggest you get your men organized."
The XO, now looked at him, he was a young man, only in his early twenties, rough around the edges. But he was a charismatic man popular amongst the crew, his expression was grave, knowing he lost some close friends in the battle. His face was streaked black from the smoke mixed with sweat.
"Raven… we may have suffered a serious defeat, but you need to look strong for the crew, keep your head clear and focus at the task at hand."
He nodded.
"Don't worry about that sir, I can handle it. I'll get down to the ready room and organize a CAP."
"Good, and be sure to report any other damage seen on the ship." Replied the XO, who then watched the Lt. jog out of CIC.
Sickbay
Severely burned crewmen were screaming in agony on stretchers piled into the bay. Nurses and medics were trying their best to ease their pain. Doctor Barsec was the ship doctor and was tending to the critical. When the Commander was brought in he dropped what he was doing and checked her out quickly. He told the medic with her he could handle a few broken bones, and he was quickly whisked away to help critical crewmen.
CIC
The CAP was now patrolling the space around the ship in a two-click arc, and reporting any other damage seen on the ship. Engineering reported they would have main power back online in an hour. Finally, some good news thought Ken. He also received a status update on the Commander, she would be fine, but three ribs were broken, and one cracked, along with severe bruising. Damn, he thought, that would hurt like hell for a while.
"Major, try to find out our position, I need to know where we are and how far away we are from the Colonies."
"Aye sir, I'll get on that right away." She replied.
"Then get that wound looked at." He said now noticing a gash across her neck.
She nodded then carried out her orders.
Ken made a round of combat making sure everything was running smoothly and helping as best he could.
Sickbay.
Rebecca wasn't a shy woman, but she wasn't comfortable when the medic applied a pain-killing drug onto her rib cage, the white gel was cold and made her feel strange. Every touch made her want to scream, but she held it in and turned it into anger, something more useful then pain. He then tightly wrapped field dressing around her chest. She thanked the medic then buttoned her uniform jacket back on, and tried to leave. The Medic stopped her.
"Sir I strongly advise you not to leave, you may be suffering from internal bleeding, and you have at least three broken ribs." He said.
Rebecca turned and looked at the medic, then replied.
"I've no time to lay in a bed while my ship is burning petty officer, there are others here who need your help, that's an order."
"Yes sir…" He replied. And Rebecca left sickbay in agony.
CIC.
As the minutes passed, lots of reports came in, the worst fires were out and DC units were trying to close up any leaks and cracks in the hull that were venting oxygen. The casualty report was not yet submitted, and engineering reported over the line that power would be back up any minute. Ken was relieved, the team managed to hold the ship together, and this is the closest call he has ever experienced. Vash looked behind Ken and announced Commander on deck. Ken raised his eyebrows and looked at his Commander, he came over to support her, but she gently pushed him away not wanting any help in the face of her men.
"You just don't like being told what to do, do you?" He smirked at her.
"It'll take more then a few bruised ribs to stop me." She nodded.
"What's the sit-rep Colonel?" She asked again, now leaning onto the operations table, trying to mask her pain.
"So far, the worst of the fires are out, and leaks are being patched up. However the Port flight pods structural integrity was weakened from the attack. Two warheads impacted the stern, causing us to lose power immediately as the FTL's were used. One hit the port pod square in the center line. The topside heat exchanger was slightly damaged. We'll have to perform extensive repairs. But, main power should be on any second now." He replied.
And as if on queue, main power turned back on and the lights flickered to life. The CIC breathed out visible relief, as they no longer had to work illuminated by red emergency lights.
"Good…" Rebecca looked immediately at the now functional Dradis, nothing but friendlies for the time being.
"Major, try sending a distress call to Head Quarters, give them a report of what we have just been through, and request reinforcements, we have to stop the Cylons from entering Colonial space."
"Hopefully we're not too late." Murmured Ken.
They waited for the reply, which would change the fate of mankind forever.
