Trapped In A Dark Place

Posted on Sat Jul 6th, 2024 @ 11:12pm by Major Samantha Snyder

699 words; about a 3 minute read

Mission: Ethics, Morals & The Prime Directive.
Location: Trapped in debris.
Timeline: Mid Battle

Sam was starting to feel numb and there was nothing she could do about it. It hurt to breath and harder still to stay awake but knew she had to resorting to even poking a wound just for the pain to keep her conscious. She could see Dockard with a wrist lamp trying to shine it somewhere, it lit up the small cramped, dusty place they found themselves in but it was something at least.

It felt like time dragged even as the sounds of combat could be heard, what was known to be seconds felt far longer as she lay there. Every explosion that felt close send small marble sized rocks falling, dust showering down on them like a thick chalky fog.

Things were looking bleak, Sam knew it, Dockard knew it. The battle raged around them and in the heat of it sometimes things were missed. What Sam wasn't aware of was that Colonel Frost had already sent a team to find her.

Things changed when voices could be heard, be it from the flashing light being seen as a marker or the team the Colonel sent arriving on the scene.

"Hey....HEY!!!!" Dockard spoke. "Down here." He yelled. More sounds could be heard, closer, more audible and clearer.

Hope shined dimly at first, they had been found but still trapped and time was borrowed for Sam.

"Identify yourself?" A voice could be heard.

"Staff Sargeant Dockard, I'm here with Major Snyder, we're trapped." He loudly spoke back. "She's critically injured, I can't move her."

There was some more talking that could be heard, then a stick was poked through the hole leading down to them. On the end of it contained a small sac that was bound to the stick with kit rope. Dockard took the package off the stick giving it two pulls and opened it. A hypo, a scanner and water in a bag since a bottle wasn't flexible enough to fit and iso-tags. "Take a scan of the Major and send it back." The voice spoke.

Painfully Dockard returned to the Major with equipment in hand thinking of what they had in mind. He opened the bag of water and aided in getting her to drink some. "Major, I'm going to give you some painkiller, I need you to stay awake though. I've got to scan you and what you are laying on, I think they are going to beam us to the ship and the slab your on."

Dockard ran the scan leaving the bag of water with her. Groans followed as he moved back to where the stick poked through the hole. Placing the scanner back into the small bag and sealing it he pulled the stick again to watch it disappear. "Hold on Sam, almost home." Through the hole more words could be heard, softer, muffled at times and hard to hear but they were still there, that..was what mattered.

The stick came back, Dockard opened it again. The scanner once more was there with a message.

Transporting both to Home Base, activate tags.

Under it was a 3 minute timer ticking down. From what Dockard could see in the text under it they were going to beam them up with the slab of debris Sam was pinned to. Shuffling over to Sam he pressed one of the tags onto her shoulder, the other to the slab and one to himself.

"Hold on Sam, 3 minutes and we are out of here."

All Sam could do was listen, wait and hope. It hurt, the pain swept through her in waves that battered her as much as a wave would a shoreline. She felt weak, numb and cold, every breath hurt, even muscle ache risked a jolt or shudder.

It wasn't long before the wash of light fell down on them and Dockard and Sam found themselves back on the Dreadnought in one of the many Cargo bays. Dockard relaxed onto the floor that already had medical staff waiting.

For Sam, she felt like she was floating thanks to a anti grav sled but a single tear, just one, fell down her cheek knowing she was going to be ok.

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