The Sentinel Fulcrum, 7: Blackout
25 Nov 2021Meowers
So, we were talking about possible sources of that strange bluish glow around Anaconda... Anyway, there's no way to tell was it real or just a kind of weird photo effect, without visiting the place. Creamy told that it might be happening because of magnetised particles or whatever, because ship was floating there for, like, two years, with all systems deactivated... Hm. A viable theory, actually. Anyway. Contract or not, we have to go there and see it.
"Wuuu-ww pwowaw...Hmmmrrr!", trying to reply before finishing the slice of meat, umm, wasn't my best idea of the day. So, had to deal with it first. "Um. Sorry. Happens. So, you're probably right... But then. Even if this colour is...more natural. Why your systems went down?"
A big gulp of tea was a decent ending for my utilitarian lunch. Getting up from the seat to put all the wrappers and cans into the recycler, and the box of..umm..food additives back into the locker, I noticed Creamy searching for something in his bag. Bag... Things... Carrying... Cargo. Hmmm...
So, I got an idea. Told him about those rare goods. Maybe they weren't only cargo? Maybe he'd forgotten something? Years had passed and it happens. See... DeLacy ships are usually damn reliable. Blown fuses are your biggest problem with any hardpoint equipment malfunction... And, the power. Anacondas have enough power to make those mining lasers shine for..hours. So...Maybe something was making an interference? Something that wasn't connected to the circuits, but... still of electric nature? And... It could be valuable. Connected to the contract, maybe.
But then I decided... Whatever was inside that ship... Even if he told that the blackout happened at the moment he tried to use the lasers. So, no mining. And he was no tech to analyse any possible causes. Good thing - I was. Even if in the past. Then..why so much talking? Coordinates were known, we could just, you know, fly there and see the thing with our own eyes. And those... Spies. Drones. That...thing, making photos of us. I've tried to mess up the trail, jumping between four systems in a completely random pattern, however... Can't guarantee...And it was damn invisible.
So, the route plotting... Let it be the less suspicious one. Quite straightforward and including only certain types of stars, which allow hydrogen scooping. Col 285... HQ-H... B25-7. Got it. So, I've activated the jump sequence...
What the... Crap...How's that possible? Mass-lock factor 95. Ninety-damn-five. It's like... Four Fed Corvettes. And there's...nothing on the sensors, again!
Uh.. that was.. completely damn unbelievable. Nothing..Completely nothing, we're in empty vacuum. I've made a few spins, trying to get a visual at least, but..Nothing. Nobody. Only the most common starscape to one side and that V538 Aurigae star to another. Whatever had the mass of four Corvettes and was nearby...Was invisible? Or moved fast enough..to remain behind me all the time? Goddamn... It was the low orbit around a damn star! Whatever it was, it had to reflect the light, at least! Nothing. Vacuum. Just that star and Marshmallow. And that metal... Chattering? Rumbling? Strange sound from somewhere around tech compartments..Crap...What's that, ship was thoroughly checked, like, a pair of months ago, and had no damage after that...
Putting all possible power to the engines and the rest to the shields, I've boosted away, aligning to the jump vector. Jump charge indicator was..Hell slow. One minute, two, three... And then, all of a sudden, at something like thirty percent charge.. The hyperjump tunnel enveloped the ship and the acceleration started. We were in a jump. But...how?
Speeds were... Tremendous. Unreachable during the 'normal' hyperjump. Uh..I was looking calm, like..Super calm, watching the unusually quickly swirling hypertunnel. Just staring blank at it. However, it was a hell of a race of thoughts that were playing..leapfrog all over my mind. All that..Possibilities. Outcomes. Analysis patterns and results. None of them were positive. It was like a...vortex. Catching one thought and following it..To the deepest bottoms of any possible results. Trying to find an exit, or a shortcut at least...Only to find nothing. Everything looked weird enough, unknown and..Quite hazardous. Like..That crap was pretty well informed about my soft spots. About...something watching me constantly and littering my path with..situations that weren't predictable, not in any way. And some completely unresolvable puzzles. Crap! Why..Why I wasn't prepared? Why I wasn't thinking about..seeing something that I can't explain? The first hint was tossed at me with those photos. Shit! Damn it! Why I just..didn't lay low and analyse that, why that...Rush? Why that foolhardiness? Shit...Ah, stop. Be professional. That flow of anxiety never brought you to something good...No matter how logical it seems, it's just a..haze. Constanly flashing signals, too countless to process properly..Stop...Steady..Don't think too much, don't overreact... Keep it steady and simple..Operate with what you have now.. Come on, stop it..Stop it...stop it...right..steady..slowly..breathe... No, no emergency pills now..Keep it as a last resort...Just...Ah, got it...Must admit, it was..quite easier than...Before.
Shit... Sometimes it's a bit too much.
Had to lean back in the pilot seat and process all the information. There's no way back now...
However, the endpoint of that weird hyperspace tunnel became visible, and there was a star...Uh. Not the one I was trying to reach with the first jump of my route. I've closed the locker, returned to the controls and buckled up.
Marshmallow emerged from the hyperjump, and then... Every system went down. Including the emergency ventilation and oxygen reserve. How the... The ship went...Deadly silent. Even that odd metal chattering stopped. Yeah, we still had some breathable air in the cockpit, but it wasn't for a long time. What the... I've pressed the main power switch. Silence. Nothing. Again...Nothing...Ah, damn it, what's that mess, what's this all about, crap, crap, crap...Ah, stop...Let's be professional. Reaching the fuse panel under the console, near the lockers, I've tried to assess the possible damage. Yup. Most of them were completely fried. Had to replace. I had many spare fuses, but, however... If something was malfunctioning, it could blow the new fuse away again. Had to run the checks.
"I guess...You should put your helmet on. The vents are out. And the emergency life support too", I've said with... Calmness that seemed completely inappropriate now, but somehow comforting..me. Giving me some confidence. "I'll check everything. Have to do some EVA as well, nothing could beat the manual muscle-powered emergency airlock."
Also, I've looked at the surrounding stars, trying to analyse...Our possible location.
(Unexpected supercruise drop in unknown system.)