Competition: Galeres - Trouble on Gethsemane - Week 3 - Fiction

Survivors. Vreva's heart fell into her stomach as she looked to the burning wreck of the starliner. A thousand people could be within the pods littered about the ship. That changed things completely.

"Alright, we're heading in," Vreva said as she made her way down the ramp of the Nighthawk. The frozen air of Gethsemane's winter bit at her cheeks and nose, and whipped her long braids into a frenzy. A part of her was looking forward to the warmth of the hot metal debris. She pressed a few buttons on her comlink and brought up Paumgon's info. "Paum-paum? Relaying you the info on the pods. Think you can get the ship close enough to triage?"

"Haummmm... Not sure. Storm's starting to pick up. Can land, but I'm not sure when we'll be able to pick back up again."

Vreva scowled as she pushed through the drifts of snow. "Don't chance it, then. Keep near the Nighthawk and bring the gear around to me. Gonna need saws to get through all this durasteel." After an affirmative harumph from the herglic, the call disconnected. Time to get to work.

The zabrak picked through the wreckage, careful not to touch the blazing red durasteel. Sweat dripped from her brow as she affixed her goggles and mask. She did not want to breathe in whatever was coming off the ship components. The durasteel was superheated red in some parts, barring her path. She avoided these sections and used an amplified leap here and there to reach the broken core of the ship. The hologram at her wrist led the way to the first pod, a solid monolith among the twisted ribs of the starliner.

With a snarl of effort, Vreva shoved a sheet of alloy away from the pod door. A few tries to key in the code provided no reaction. The lights on the keypad flickered and dimmed before shutting down completely. That was not a good sign.

"Hey Paum, what do I do if the keypad don't work?" she asked as she held her comm to her mouth. Static came in response. No doubt the storm was causing interference. Just what she needed.

She slammed her fist into the keypad and broke off its front panel. The wires inside proved a futile puzzle as she zapped her fingers a few times trying to disconnect them. Okay, Plan C. Brute force.

Kicking the door down was not the best plan, but it was a plan. She regretted it immediately, however. Pain shot up her leg and she swore in Zabraki. Thankfully heavy footfalls signaled the appearance of her herglic companion with supplies. "Umm... Brought tools." Paum lifted the crate between his hands.