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EPISODE O2: Silence

"What do you mean, Destiny needs power now?" Rush replied, confused.

"We simply don't have enough power to jump to FTL. We've barely managed to cross over to the new galaxy"

"Ginn said we need power … I - I don't know why she told me, but that's what she said. Please, you have to believe me!"

Colonel Young considered her, his expression unfathomable. "I believe you."

Chloe whirled to face the Colonel. Her eyes had brightened and there was a rosy flush in her cheeks. "You believe me?"

"I do," the Colonel nodded. He turned to the rest of his crew, his voice dark. "After everything that this ship has been through, this is only one in a line of oddities." He turned briefly to flash a reassuring smile to Chloe, who returned it half-heartedly.

"Right," said Rush, his voice sarcastic and the lines of his body tense. "Now that we've finished playing happy families, shall we get to business?"

Colonel Young closed his eyes on a sigh, taking a moment. His hands were clasped loosely behind his back, and for a moment he looked exhausted. Then he opened his eyes again and was back to business, the moment passed.

"T.J, I want you to take Ms. Armstrong to the infirmary. I want a diagnosis ASAP. Get me an idea of what happened to her."

"Yes, sir," T.J's response was quick. She moved hastily towards Chloe, tucked her beneath an arm and helped her toward the steel doors. The Colonel turned. "Brody. I want you to get life support back online throughout the ship. Rush, I'll need you to assist him."

"Of course, sir," Brody said, his tone flat.

But Rush wasn't in the mood to be genial. "Colonel, Destiny doesn't have enough power to have fully functional life support. Not for the whole ship. Even if we did, you'd only be draining power that would be better used elsewhere!"

The Colonel arched his eyebrow.

"Plus, I don't like the idea of sharing a console with Brody," Rush said, glancing over his shoulder at Brody, who was bright red. "No offence."

"None taken," Brody said sarcastically.

"Rush," Colonel Young said, his tone imploring. "Just do your best."

Rush nodded curtly. He went and stood by Brody, who leaned over with an evil grin. "Is it because I haven't showered in five years?"

The Colonel chuckled lowly, and Rush managed an amused smile, shaking his head as he bent over the console.

"Okay, boys. Get to work," Colonel Young said.

As T.J and Chloe walked toward the steel doors to leave the Stasis pod room, the light on the door's control panel flickered from yellow to red, showing the locking mechanism had been activated.

T.J's brow furrowed. She attempted to open the door again, Chloe leaning against her side. The door released a negative trill and didn't open. T.J shook her head.

"Colonel Young, sir?" She called, turning to see him. There was obvious strain in her voice.

"Yes?"

"The door," T.J audibly swallowed. "It won't open."

"What do you mean, the door won't open?" The Colonel was suddenly tense, his eyes blazing.

"It's locked, sir," T.J replied.

After a long pause, Brody cleared his throat, looking noticeably paler. "Sir?"

"What is it?" Colonel Young turned his heavy gaze to him.

"T.J isn't wrong, sir," Brody said into the silence. Rush glanced down at the console, his face expressionless. "All sections of the ship are initiating locking sequences. Life support is online only in this room."

"Are you telling me that this is the only room with functioning life support?" The Colonel asked.

Brody exhaled a shaky breath. "It would appear so, sir."

T.J and Chloe shared a look while the Colonel, his shoulders set, tried to recapture his composure. Brody tapped at his console, ignoring Rush's furrowed brow, and froze.

"Colonel, I'm seeing systems shutting down across the ship. Not just life support," Brody said, and in his voice was more then just worry. There was fear.

"Let me see that," Rush shoved Brody unceremoniously away from the console, none to gently. He observed the readings on the console. "Looks like most of the essential and non-essential power is being diverted into the FTL drives. Life support, communications, sub-light engines, lights, and most other systems. Power's down to six per cent in our shields, which should still stop the ship from tearing apart when entering FTL."

"Rush, can you kindly explain what the hell is going on?"

Rush looked up, flicking his long hair to the side. He looked from each face and was obviously annoyed to find each one fixed with bleak incomprehension. His hands were flying over the console, his eyebrows furrowed.

"Look!" Rush began. "Destiny wants to jump into FTL. I'm assuming she needs power, like Chloe said. Therefore, she needs a star. And, trust me Colonel, she's doing everything she possibly can to get one."

"So, Destiny's trying to reach a star?" T.J inquired.

Rush shot her a look. "Yes. Yes, she is."

"I understand," The Colonel said, and those two words had a noticeable effect on Rush. His shoulder's relaxed slightly though the mad blur of his fingers across the console didn't slow.

T.J's brow was furrowed and Chloe was looking worriedly back and forth between the Colonel and Rush. Brody was scrunched into the corner, trying not to draw attention to himself.

"Is there anything we can do? Some way for us to help Destiny make it into FTL?" The Colonel said. "Could we go back in the pods?"

Rush exhaled, perhaps in relief that he was no longer alone in his theory. "No, Don't touch anything. We're the only things using life support, which shouldn't amount to any large power usage.'

The five companions stand in thoughtful silence. T.J returned to the Colonel's side, eyes flicking between Brody and Rush. Chloe lent against the wall, her eyes focused on Rush as his fingers brushed buttons, almost absently. She appreciated the fall of his hair and the curve of his shoulder. Brody was still in his corner, brow furrowed as he tried to puzzle out solutions in his mind.

Chloe, breaking her gaze from Rush, interrupted the quiet. "How long will we be in FTL?"

"Most likely a couple of days at most, It shouldn't take to long, though it depends on the distance we stop from the star. We could drop out of FTL at any moment. That means it could take another two or so days before we get to the star for Destiny to recharge,"

A sudden jerk struck the ship and Destiny jumped into FTL.

"Ah, there we go. Destiny's shields are holding well at 6 percent. From my calculations we will reach the star in a day, just before we use all the remaining power," Brody recited from his corner.

Rush raised his eyebrows at him. Brody shrugged.

"So what do we do now?" T.J asked of no one in particular.

"I'm going over the data prerecorded from the last five years that we have been in those pods," Rush said, though he didn't look up from the console.

"I suppose I can allow that," the Colonel replied with a short smile. He turned to Brody, expectant.

"I-I, uh … I'll check on everyone in their pods, sir," Brody said, then bit his lip. "Then I was hoping to get some sleep."

Colonel Young nodded curtly, accepting this as an adequate answer.

"Colonel?" T.J spoke from beside him. "With your permission, I'd like to take a closer look at Chloe to see if I could possibly get a diagnosis."

The Colonel cast a commanding look at Chloe, who understood and followed T.J to the part of the Stasis pod room with padded benches, allowed T.J to begin her examination.

Brody took this as his cue, and shrugged away from the wall. He slid past Rush, whose head was bent in concentration, and made to head in the direction of the first pod when the Colonel spoke up, more quietly then before.

"Brody?" He paused, glanced at his superior with expectancy. He obviously had other things on his mind. "I'll accompany you, if you will."

Brody simply nodded with a small smile, continuing towards the first pod. The Colonel followed more slowly, his gaze fixed on Rush. He pursed his lips.

"Rush," he said, and Rush looked up at the stern edge to the Colonel's voice. "Keep me posted."

Rush nodded, but the Colonel had already turned.

Colonel Young caught up with Brody, his stride long and purposeful. Brody was already leaning forward, checking the panel of the sleeping pod where the body's vital statistics and identification were listed.

"So, I take it you didn't sleep well?" Colonel Young joked. The only sleeping he and his crew had been doing was five years of forced slumber in a confined space much like a coffin.

Brody cast him a dark smile over his shoulder. "You could say that."

Colonel Young looked into the face of his sleeping comrade, glancing down as Brody's fingers slid over a small row of buttons, adjusting temperature and fluid intake.

"Despite myself, I'm finding it surprisingly quiet and peaceful without Camille, though you might think that a horrible thing to admit," Young sighed.

"Not at all, sir," Brody replied, and lowered his voice conspiratorially. "In fact, I wish that Rush was still comatose. He's very OCD with the equipment. Nothing I do is ever right."

The Colonel was silent as Brody moved on to the next pod, reading the vital signs and adjusting nozzles. Finally Colonel Young released a long breath.

"Well, he thinks this, Destiny, is his ship. And so far, he's been treating his ship with great care. From what I can see, as long as the things he can fix can get us home, I can put up with him."

Brody paused and an awkward silence settled between them. Brody hurried on to the third pod, repeating the same routine as he had on the previous two.

"Brody?" The Colonel said.

"Yes, sir?" Brody replied quickly, turning away from his fourth pod.

"When we come out of FTL, and the ship's recharged and everything is functioning again ... Do you think you can, uh, get the Still working again?" Colonel's Young voice was calm enough, but Brody smiled nonetheless.

"Of course," he said, without a hint of doubt, biting on his tongue to resist laughing.

"Good," the Colonel said shortly, and excused himself. Brody watched as he hurried to the next row of pods, shaking his head with a small smile.

Written by George Cryer

Proofread by Gabrielle Bullinga.

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