Damn Mr. Murphy, Season 1, Episode 1.

[James Hawke]

It was hard not to think about the air down here, especially after the motivational explanations Joe had about it back on the ship. James even had the impression of it smelling funny. He was glad though, that Veena was talking, it helped taking his mind off the air.

"Hey, uh... anybody got a spanner or a hammer handy? And... does anyone remember their Morse or Old Ship? Cuz I don't."

Neither did James, so he didn't answer. He had learned it once but with never using it comes forgetting most of it. Apparently though, Maurice knew it.
"Good idea...", James said, stepping away from the shaft. There was no use staring at it, as they couldn't do a thing from down here.
Instead, he pictured in his mind where they were in the station.

Hmm if this is the thermal system... There should be... or could be... , he thought, as he walked over to one wall and looked at the machinery.
"Do you think there could be air ducts in the walls behind this that lead up to the other floors? I mean ducts that are wide enough for someone to fit through...", he directed his question to no one in particular. Maybe there was something in the blueprints of the station that he missed.
"I will just... take this here apart and see what's behind it. Can't hurt to look."
At least this will give me something to do..., he thought, pulling a socket wrench and a screwdriver from his belt and beginning to unfasten lots of screws and nuts.

[Jive Farwell]

The reading that Jive was getting from the little box he was holding wasn't pleasant. While science wasn't really his thing, that was Veena's element, he knew enough to guess what the readings meant. The shaft was full of rock, probably going all the way down. Yet, for some reason, despite every reason to panic, Jive found himself in a place of calm.

Why? He was working now. Trying to ignore the nagging fear that his wife, his friends, no his family, were dead was easier to do with a job to do. He could almost hear old Sargent Glenroy now, spittle flying from his lips as he howled at Jive to, “Put down your goddamn crayons and do what they pay you for!” The manual labor and the work relaxed him, gave him something to occupy his mind with.

He was about to report his findings back to Rhona and Joe when something caught his ear. The vibrations he was reading, they were uniform almost.... Can it be?

Jive's mind flashed back to the war, learning morse code as a way to kill time, never planning on using it. He remembered re-studying the “words,” just in case he needed them during his career as ship's captain. And now...

Straining his ear to the little box, Jive Farwell listened. There it was, faint, but distinguishable. “It's them.” The words were spoken calmly, no tone in his voice, across the comms to everyone listening. It took a moment for the impact of those words to sink into his own mind. “They're alive!” He nearly shouted the words before remembering that he was speaking into the comms. “Our people I mean,” he clarified hastily. “They're alive but looking for another way out, that's not to say we can't keep doing what we're doing. We get these rocks moved and they can come out this way. Rhona?” He asked, shifting his tone, “How deep do these rocks go down? My guess is most of the way.”

Despite the desperation of their situation, Jive's dust-caked face cracked a solitary smile. They were alive, they were okay but they were trapped. As God was Jive's witness they wouldn't be for long...

[Veena Farwell]

"I really hope nothing falls from up there. That would suck."

"Suck's not the word I'd use," Veena half-smiled at Maurice in the dim lighting, but her heart was singing. He was making words, and he was sending them up to her Jive, and the rest of their crew. Strangely, suddenly, she didn't feel so alone. At that moment, she coulda grabbed Maurice and kissed the man! Instead, she lightly chucked his shoulder, let her radiant smile speak in place of less captainly actions.

"Do you think there could be air ducts in the walls behind this that lead up to the other floors? I mean ducts that are wide enough for someone to fit through..."

"Gorram. Just when did I hire two geniuses? Remind me to do more of that." Veena tried to close her eyes, see the imprint of the diagrams she'd studied just that morning, but she didn't know, couldn't remember. Were there ducts? Or were there just these pipes that went to and fro? "If there are ducts, I doubt any of us are skinny enough to make it up... Except maybe Suze..."

Reaching for her toolbelt, she leaned in to give James a hand and lend him light from her headlamp, "But anything beats just sitting here waiting for the air to kill us."

There was a clank from deep in the shaft as something shifted, freezing her momentarily and drawing her wary gaze back to the trap, "Well... maybe not anything."

[Rhona Cego]

Rocks were stupid, and made way too much noise. That was the conclusion she had quickly drawn from her role in Joe’s grand production. Rhona sighed as hers were subjected to the high roar of stone. She was feeling kind of useless at the moment. Everyone else was at the hole working to get to those trapped down below, and what was she doing? Listening to a bunch of rocks. As rescue operations went, she wasn’t exactly a major character.

The girl pinched herself, the pain taking her focus away from self-pity. She wasn’t doing this to acquire fame or notoriety. Her friends—no, her family—were trapped who knew how far down, under rocks that could come crashing down on them at any moment. Joe had said that he needed her help to get them out, and so she’d just have to believe him and do her best to be as useful as possible. Besides, the Blind Wonder—not sure where that came from—didn’t wallow in sadness when there was rocky butt to kick. She got to work and saved lives. Or so she told herself, anyway.

Moment of doubt over, Rhona turned off her other senses and focused solely on her ears. Joe asked her how deep the rocks went, and she was trying to figure that out, though it was difficult to tell. She was about to report her lack of knowledge to the doc when she caught some vibrations that were different from the sounds of the planet. They were regular, a set that repeated, almost like…some sort of code?

”They’re alive!”

Then Jive confirmed her suspicions. It was code, telling them that the trapped crew members were alive and looking for a way back to the ship. Yes! Rhona allowed herself a quick victory dance involving chair spinning and arm flailing—it wasn’t pretty; she was glad she was alone and no one could see her—before getting back to work with a renewed sense of purpose. They were still alive, and unharmed enough to think to let that be known. That was very good news.

Of course, there was still the issue of figuring out just how big of an obstacle they were dealing with. Jive repeated Joe’s question of the depth of the rocks, and she still didn’t have a definite answer. The comms officer shook her head, though she knew Jive couldn’t see her. ”Not sure,” she replied. ”I get down pretty far, but then there are just too many rocks to get past. After a few yards I’m hit with a steady, constant noise. Your guess is as good as mine, Cap, but I think you’re right that the rocks go down most of the way. Sorry I can’t give you more than that.”

Okay, so she couldn’t do depth, but at least she could give Joe some guidance. Something about the noise was bothering her, and she wanted to check it out. The girl lifted her headset, first off of one ear, then the other, switching off several times. That confirmed her theory. The right sound was definitely a little lower than the left, relative to Joe. She could work with that. ”Joe?” She got the doc’s attention. ”From where you’re standing, it looks like the rocks to the right of you are looser. Might wanna stick to the ones on your left for now. If you take out the right ones, and the left ones fall and fill that space…don’t know what that’ll do to the ones below.”

[Joe Knight]

“They’re alive! Our people I mean.”

Joe’s heart leaped suddenly, and he began testing the whole rocky bed, trying to find the best place to keep digging. Audi had sliced cleanly through most of the support beams clogging the hole, and it was high time that Joe became the hole rat he’d been trained to be. All he needed was a space big enough for him to worm his way into, and a way to shove an air line down to the trapped crew.

“They're alive but looking for another way out, that's not to say we can't keep doing what we're doing. We get these rocks moved and they can come out this way. Rhona? How deep do these rocks go down? My guess is most of the way.”

Please tell him he’s wrong, Peepers. Please, oh please, oh please.” Joe begged inside his head.

If the rocks went all the way down, it’d be slow going, and the digging would have to be extra meticulous. Soft ground moved faster, and filled in where there were gaps, keeping things in place until you were ready to move them. If he had to go over the more tightly packed section, it’d slow him, and the rescue operation, down.

”Not sure...I get down pretty far, but then there are just too many rocks to get past. After a few yards I’m hit with a steady, constant noise. Your guess is as good as mine, Cap, but I think you’re right that the rocks go down most of the way. Sorry I can’t give you more than that.”

“Tai-kong suo-yo duh shing-chiouh do sai-jin wuh duh pi-gu.” Joe muttered under his breath.

”Joe?”

“Yeah, go ahead, Peepers.” he said, pausing.

"From where you’re standing, it looks like the rocks to the right of you are looser. Might wanna stick to the ones on your left for now. If you take out the right ones, and the left ones fall and fill that space…don’t know what that’ll do to the ones below.”

“Tah mah de...roger that, Peepers.” he said, renewing his efforts, clawing at the more tightly packed rocky surface.

It was beginning to sound like it’d be slow going no matter what. He used the short handled pick axe to overturn the larger rocky chunks, and break them up for the vacuum hose, which dangled freely now, about six inches above the bed. He slowly dug himself a pit, using the support beams as guides, He made his way down, until he couldn’t do any more without risking a collapse.

“Alright, Audi. As soon as yer done with yer cuts, let Vera know. Vera? When he gives the word, you pull up slowly. Get these beams outta here and send those cables back down so we can start again. Slow and steady, folks. That’s what’s gonna get us down there.” he said, pulling aside another large chunk and tossing it towards the dangling hose.

As he turned back to his work, he stopped moving. There, where the last large chunk had been, staring him in the face, was a yawning black hole.

“Freeze!” he yelled, his voice carrying out of the pit even without his comm unit. “Audi, Vera, don’t move.”

The hard rocks and beams had fallen in just such a manner that they’d plugged up the hole, forming something akin to a blood clot above the trapped crew. Thankfully, it meant that there was much less debris than they’d initially thought, but it also meant that if they touched anything the wrong way, even a small pebble, it would send the whole thing crashing down on those below.

“Nobody move.” he said, softly, as if afraid to breathe on the rocks, lest they dump him, Audi, and the debris down the shaft into a bloody mess. “Audi, whatever you do, don’t move. Vera, give me some slack on all lines. Don’t pull up, no matter what you do.”

He took a deep breath, and clicked on his wrist lamp, peering into the darkness. For now, all he could see was earthen wall, a little bit of twisted girder, and swirling dust coming up from below, being sucked in by the vacuum.

“I’ve hit a gap, yall. Bossman. Do that Morose clicky coded thing and tell everybody down below to back away from the hole, but to be on the lookout for an air line headed to them. This whole thing is going to come crashing down, but we’re gonna control it.” he said. “First thing’s first, though. Somebody feed me an air hose, carefully. Don’t let it touch the bed. Once it’s down and everybody downstairs is filled back up, we can rip this thing apart.”

[Veena Farwell]

It was an itch.

The kind that started in the middle of your back, right where you couldn't reach. You know the ones. You try not to think about it, but the harder you try, the more it just tickles and pokes away until it's all you can think about. That kind of itch, at least, you could reach with a spanner or broom-handle or could get someone to give a good scratch for you.

This was the kind of itch that you couldn't reach. It was the kind that itched at the back of your mind, where there was nothing in the 'verse that could scratch it. They were going to die down here. And everything she loved, everything she'd ever wanted, was going to die with them.

The itch wasn't going away, and with every turn of her screwdriver alongside James' it was getting louder. Even if there was a shaft back here, would they be able to shimy up it?

Ominous creaks and groans came from above, and Veena tried to hold off a long shiver. She'd been in worse than this, hadn't she? Far more times than she could count since coming to the Black. She thrust the screwdriver deep and twisted again, the screw finally breaking loose and spinning out into her palm. She glanced down at it, surprised to it shiver there as if in an earthquake.

Because her hand was shaking, trembling like an old man's palsy.

Gorram it. Swiftly, Veena clenched her fist shut and crammed her hand into her pocket before the others could see, "Let's get this gorram panel off and see what's back there. And tell 'em whatever they're doin' up there, they could hurry it along a bit!"

Hopefully, her voice wasn't shaking yet.

[James Hawke]

(OOC: Hi guys'n'girls! Happy christmas days ;) It's been so long since this ship's had any movement, so I'm just posting now hoping it will spark some more. I'm missing it ^^)

"But anything beats just sitting here waiting for the air to kill us."

"Gee, thanks, Veena...", James said while still loosening the bolts on the panel they were working on. "With all due respect, about that, please do shut up..."
Although the Co-Pilot was usually a very easy-going guy, the situation down in this hole was really getting to him and he was doing a less than awesome job at hiding the fact.
His hands were shaking as if he was a drug-addict who hadn't had a fix for a week and the only reason he could hide that was that he was still busy with the panel. At least physically. In his head he was trying to actually concentrate on what he was doing instead of what kind of messed-up situation he was in.

He wasn't even actually noticing that he was unscrewing the last nut that held the panel in place. With a loud clatter the heavy piece of metal fell down, hitting the ground and missing James' and Veena's feet by mere inches. His heart jumped at the sound that immediately distracted him from his thoughts and his whole body felt like instantly emitting cold sweat. He closed his eyes for a few seconds, breathing in and out, trying to get his calm back, his forehead slightly leaning at the cool metal surface of the dead machinery. His right hand stuffed the socket wrench back into his tool belt while the other one reached up, absentmindedly going through his hair.
And then he found it. The state of mind he was so comfortable with, his almost jovial happiness of life. Well amost. At least he stopped shaking and managed to crack a smile at Veena.

"Sorry...", he just said and proceded to stick his head into the opening he and her had just conjured up. He reached in with his flashlight afterwards to see what was to see inside those four feet of machinery before the wall.
"Uhm... not sure what this...", his muffled voice came out of the hole as he pulled himself further in, "Wu de tyen ah!", he shouted through his teeth as a sudden and searing pain originating from his obviously broken ribs shot through his body.
He crouched out again, sitting down and leaning against the wall, wiping an involuntary tear from his eye and panting rather heavily. "There does seem to be a duct leading upwards, but I'm really not sure if even Suzie could fit through there. She might, but I don't know."

[Jive Farwell]

Jive Farwall didn’t pay any attention to the aching in his back. Nor did he focus at all on the weariness in his limbs. He most certainly didn’t focus on the blood dripping steadily from the back of his hand where he’d torn the skin off shifting some rubble. All that dominated his mind was Veena, his beloved Veena. Without her he’d be a wreck, beyond hopeless, beyond worthless, beyond any value. She was his light and his logic, his shelter and his soul. And she was in peril.

The gap had been widened enough for Joe's oxygen hose, which the others were currently fetching, at least he hoped so. Jive wanted to be the one rushing back for the hose, forcing it down the collapsed tunnel. However, his skills were needed in another capacity. Being the only man topside who knew morse code it was up to him to signal down.

Dropping to his knees, small mallet in hand, Jive began tapping out a simple message. He could hardly believe his little hobby learned in mud-stain trenches under stormy skies would help in these circumstances.

Mental pictures flashed through his mind, ice cold rain dripping off his helmet, dark mud up to his knees sinking into his boots. Around him his fellow rebels did whatever they could to get their mind off the war; he sat alone, tapping on the back of an empty can of spam. It was too wet for writing and the small task helped him focus, helped keep him sane when the world around him turned to chaos and hell.

Snapping back to present reality, the Serenade's captain slowly sent the message of hope vibrating down through the tunnel's metal, hopefully those trapped below would understand and respond. He was slow and deliberate, taking exquisite care with each sign despite the anxiety he felt.

The message was simple. We're coming for you. Air is coming, don't give up. Just hold on a little longer.

He prayed it was enough.