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Rex didn't have time to respond to Loreena's stubborn comments before she took off towards the bridge. On the bright side, the fighting seemed to have calmed down a little as there were no loud explosions. Though the ship was still sinking, and the sickness driving the crew insane would only intensify as the situation develops.
As he jogged to keep up with Lori, he considered how he could defend his position. He certainly still wanted to abandon the ship, but he understood some of what she had said. There are many on board that would not be able to make it out. But what could he do to save them? At least if he survives, The Empire can survive, but if they were to die, The Empire would be heirless...left to an incompetent King...left to The Dobsons. Surely abandoning a single ship full of people was better than abandoning an entire Empire worth? It wasn't a pleasant thought, but it seemed to be the right choice.
But he wouldn't leave her behind. Even if it leaves The Empire under his father's slipping grasp, ripe for The Dobsons to take....there's no way he could make himself leave his best friend behind.
"Alright. If we aren't leaving, then what's the plan? I don't know what Burtch can do for us...we're thousands of feet under water and sinking further. This is our biggest and only Nautical ship...it's not like he can send another ship to submerge into the water and retrieve us...."
All five of the ships in Burtch's little cruiser squadron began to settle just a hundred meters above the waves of the ocean. The pressure of the repulsors of the large warships flattened the waves of the ocean under them into pulsing rings. Fighters buzzed around as a precaution, albeit unnecessarily. But Burtch saw no point in having them sit idle in the hangers. He doubted very highly that a wild sea monster would go out of its way to breach the water to attack a few warships.
Sensors beat against the water and pinpointed the location of the HMS Kay Arenais. She was slowly sinking, but was still within reach of the tractor beams.
While they had made their approach to the sinking site, Shii-Cho's tech crews had labored to make the tractor beams ready for underwater recovery. It had seemed hopeless for a while, but deep deep within the archives of the ship's database had contained information on settings that could allow military tractor beams to bypass water and grab on to solid objects. Burtch had glossed over the details, but it apparently had something to do with boosting the tractor beam emitters to repulsor tech and compensating for shifting currents using modified inertial compensator software. The crews of all five ships had quickly rigged their tractor beams accordingly and the ships were as ready as they could be with what they had. Ship-Cho's chief engineer had assured Burtch repeatedly that this was the absolute best they could do. It was now or never…
Burtch gave the order and the tractor beams punched straight down into the water. All five ships tilted and groaned from the strain as the repulsorlifts hammered against the ocean surface to keep the fleet from getting pulled down. HMS Kay Arenais was heavier than all of his ships combined, but being trapped underwater gave it a certain buoyancy that reduced the weight of the load on the fleet's tractor beams and repulsorlifts. Burtch figured they couldn't possibly take her all the way home, but they could in fact get her to the surface so that the medical and mechanical teams could board her and get to work. They could fix her to the point of moving on her own power and then she could get to Damascus Station for proper yard-time. At least, that's what Burtch hoped for…
"Sir, we have incoming! The giant monster is on the move! It's rapidly moving towards the surface! It's… IT'S GONNA BREACH THE WATER RIGHT UNDER US!!!"
Rex Valhoun
was following her and not trying to stop her. That was good. She hated the very idea of abandoning this ship and the people on board. Would she have done so if she had to? Very reluctantly, and she'd of hated it. Lori was stubborn and she was used to being pushed away from things for her safety. It wasn't fair.
But right now she didn't have to worry about that. Grand Shepherd Burtch
had a plan and she couldn't wait to hear about it. "I don't know yet, Rex. But Burtch certainly has an idea. So let's let him try!" Sometimes one had to have faith in other people.
The HMS Kay Arenais lurched and shook once the tractor beams took hold. Lori skidded in her tracks and widened her stance to keep her balance. Instinctively her eyes were drawn upwards. The entire ship groaned, yet it didn't feel as though it was dropping. "I think that Burtch's plan is already underway." Lori grinned with excitement as her spirits were lifted and she restarted her run to the bridge.
Loreena Arenais-Valhoun
Subject 002 Tarnish
The Echo Vera Mina
