Estaban Maturin
06-06-2008, 01:06 PM
Estaban made a final check, everything was in train. He called the Bridge, "Helm, all stop, Tactical, arm the photon torpedo. Open ship-wide channel." A moment later he had confirmation so he made the announcement. "All hands to bury the dead."
Estaban slipped the sub-vocal transceiver in his ear. When the shuttle deck told him the shuttle was in place he didn't want it to interrupt the service. =/\= Shuttle-deck, bring the hearse into position =/\=
In a very short time the Cargo bay was full, both of the living and the dead. The bodybags were lined up in a clean neat row, each bag tethered to the cable that had a tractor beam target at the end. There was a dais then the living were there to bear honor and say their goodbyes.
He reversed his sword on it's sling, he was a bit awkward since he had never done such before. Causing his face to have a downcast and melancholy air he short-stepped onto the dais. He then took the position in front of the Officers and crew that had arrived for the service. He looked over each and every one of them. He then took the PADD and read the first lines of his prepared service.
"I am Resurrection and I am Life, says the Lord.
Whoever has faith in me shall have life,
even though he die.
And everyone who has life,
and has committed himself to me in faith,
shall not die for ever."
Estaban frowned a bit inside at that, he maintained the look of downcast melancholy. He looked over the PADD rereading it, one word kept coming up. He turned off the PADD and clasped his hands behind his back. He looked out over the crowd.
"I was going to talk about duty, about how our crew-mates died doing their duty. But I don't think that is the way we are going to go. The soulless beings we are fighting are only doing their duty, and that takes some of the honor from our people... our crew-mates, but they are more then that.
These people that have died... they are our family. They are our Fathers, our Mothers, our Brothers and Sisters. These brave people are our children." Estaban had been the Captain of the Rainmaker for fifteen years, he had never had children of his own, so he had looked at his crew as his children. The knot in his throat tightened a bit more. "Honor" He croaked out, overcome with emotion. "We must honor them by never forgetting, never giving up. For as long as we live, they live within us." Tears were rolling down his cheeks now.
"I have been around the ship, I have heard the general attitude." Estaban's face changed, no longer was it a downcast melancholy expression, but the same expression that he wore when he went into battle. "Are these the lucky ones? Die fast and not suffer?" He glared down Ensign Redcloud. "I say NO! We are not going to give up," he was now looking at Phoenix. "We are not going to throw ourselves away foolishly either."
Estaban looked around at the mist shrouded blobs that were his crew as the tears still flowed, "Did the Federation win the battle of Alpha Centauri? We don't know, but we are not going to give up, we are going to go back to Earth, to the Federation. Does the Federation still exist? YES! As long as we are alive the Federation is alive, as long as we live up to the high ideals of Star Fleet, Starfleet still exists. As long as we don't give up." Estaban looked at all the dead, enshrouded in black body-bags, with the UFP flag on the top of it. "As long as we don't give up, these people, our crew-mates, our friends, our family, did not die in vain."
He began pacing, "We are far behind Borg lines, we have no friends, we have no one but ourselves to rely on. But I swear to you, we will return to the Federation. If the Federation has fallen, then we will rebuild it. If they have forgotten then we will remind them. As long as one of us is alive we all are. Our Brothers, Sisters, Mothers, Fathers, Sons, and Daughters here have fallen defending the Federation, we should honor them by being the very Federation they paid for with their very lives."
"Don't think I haven't heard the joking, how we will be a pirate ship, with the Captain having a patch over one eye, all I need is a bird on my shoulder. Make sure that is all it is, a joke. We Are Starfleet! We are there to help others not take from them." He looked at the people in the room. "Each of you have sworn an oath to serve and to protect the innocent. To help others. To be the best damn group of people in the galaxy. You have done that, and I am proud of each and every one of you. Now we are in a very hard and dark time, now we show that it's not all just talk. Now the chips are down, the cards have been dealt, we are all in. Now is the time we show what we really are. What are we? Starfleet!"
-^- The hearse is now in position -^- sounded in his ear.
The half murmured answer of "Starfleet" did not even create an echo. Estaban paced the length of the small dais turning to look at each and every person. No longer was he crying, the determined look on his face was that of 'It will be as I say or I will break you in half' He looked at his dispirited crew, they were tired, they were hungry, they were on the edge of being beaten. He had pushed hard, his own body too was used up. He knew he was gray with fatigue.
"What are we?" He asked again.
"Starfleet" was the answer, a little louder and more unified.
Estaban knew it was becoming route, he accepted the answer, walking back to the podium he scrolled down the PADD to the list of names.
"Open the bay doors" Estaban ordered. The bay doors opened, Estaban said, "Carry on."
The hearse we positioned just outside, It's tractor beam locked on the tractor target lying just inside the containment field. The hearse started off, pulling the bodies connected by tether to the target out of the cargo-bay in a slow precession. Estaban read from the PADD. "We commit their bodies to the elements, ashes to ashes, dust to dust. The Lord bless them and keep them, the Lord make his face to shine upon them and be gracious to them, the Lord lift up his countenance upon them and give them peace. Amen. Lt. Commander John Ackly, Chief Science Officer, Lt. Thomas Carver Engineer..." the names go on and on, with each one known to Estaban, each one a friend and a member of his family, "Lieutenant Sarah-Louise Rose Alien Archaeologist/Anthropologist..." He thought of Phoenix and Lucy. A list that ran on and on finally ending in "Frats Zetholen crewman." He finished, one hundred forty-nine souls, one hundred forty-nine friends, one hundred and forty-nine family members.
Estaban turned around to face the open door, the bodies trailing away and away on their final trip to the sun in the far distance. "Company, salute!" The bugle sounded taps slowly and muted. Knowing that his voice was being projected through out the ship Estaban did not bother to call the Bridge, he just called out. "Honor guard... Fire!" The photon torpedo launch was heard through out the ship, and soon the trail of the small missile could be seen. When it reached a point far away from the ship and in front of the cargo bay it exploded in a soundless starburst. Estaban ended the salute and turned back to the crew.
"We are using this time and these resources because how we treat our dead makes us different then those that did the slaughtering, we will stay here and take a time of reflection for the next twelve hours. We are one hour away from Yesab's planet, when we get there we will land and refit our ship. But for now, rest, eat, grieve for our friends."
"Dismissed"
Dr Llen Yesab
06-06-2008, 09:47 PM
Yesab stood and listened as the captain gave funeral Rites. It was heart wrenching even to Yesab. He did not know anyone on the ship really. He had been a prisoner drafted into the fleet by the captain. But listening to that man speak made him feel proud to serve under him, at least for the time being. He watched as the bodies floated toward the sun and then the starburst.
Twelve hours to reflect? Yesab was ready to get to his planet, an hour away was now going to be twelve. He grumbled under his breath. Where to go on the ship....hm. The science lab seemed a good spot. Once there he began looking for anything that could be salvaged. Yesab was going to turn this into his lab, his hideaway from crew when off duty. He wasn't to fond of people and this would at least keep him busy.
Kuerne
06-09-2008, 02:09 PM
Dia sneaked in the Cargo bay the last minute and staid in the back. She didn't want to be there at all but she wanted to pay her last respects to those who gave their lives in that crazy war or was it to ask for forgiveness? She leaned against the wall and she saw Estaban stepping onto the dais. She noticed he was no longer limping. Someone must have helped him out for the time being, probably Helen. Dia looked around looking for Helen, but couldn't find her. The last thing she needed was for the nurse to spot her and to be confined to the messhall or somewhere else after she kind of eloped the place.
As Estaban started to speak she focussed on what he was saying. She could hear his emotions through his words and tears, as she fought against her own tears that started to show in her eyes. But then her thoughts dwelled towards the Borg but also to herself. As the captain tried his best, and partly succeeded to unite his crew again, to let them belief in why they were on the ship in the first place, Dia kept quiet. She felt as if she had failed them, especially those that were now laying there in their bodybags, dead. She couldn't shake the feeling of guilt of not having been able to help them.
She swallowed as the captain started on the list with names. Most people she had known. As for others, Dia was the last person who had seen them alive as she had tried to safe their lives, but obviously had failed. With some of the other names came back memories, and that's what they'd always would be now: memories.
She looked up as Estaban said the last name: Frats Zetholen, a sad smile showing on her face. Dia had the habit of doing the yearly medicals in alphabetical order. Last time she saw Frats he had made a comment that with his name starting with a Z, he was always the last inline. At that time Dia had promessed him to reverse the list, so he'd be the first.
But now it all was invain. She felt as if she let him down twice now. She'd never see him again, nor any of the others. And with that thought and the feeling of guilt she left the Cargo bay, one single tear rolling down her cheek.
SamCole
06-14-2008, 10:48 PM
Cole stood quietly as the captain gave his sermin. He really didnt know what to feel. He was almost cold, and shut down. He really, felt almost nothing. Perhaps it was the fact all he saw were black torpedo casings... or maybe it was because he had see dead close and personall, so this was nothing to him. It was an abnormally odd reaction for him, being typically afraid of just about every thing. Cole stood quietly as the captain gave his sermin.
Aegis McIsh
06-17-2008, 03:09 PM
K'ndry stood quietly at attention at the very back of the bay nearest to the doors. As soon as he could slip away without being rude or disobeying Captain Maturin's orders, the Caitian did. Making his way back to the turbolift, K'ndry had it drop him off close to the Main Shuttlebay. Entering back into the disheveled mess of the shuttlebay the pilot, and jack of all trades, crossed back to his Valkyrie and continued working on replacing the ODN relays and getting the vessel operational again. He estimated that he still had another hour to hour and a half of work. If he hurried though he might be able to get some sleep before he had to head out on mission when the Rainmaker made planet fall. Of course, since he had come on board the pilot had slept in one of the shuttlecraft and he didn't really know where his quarters were, if he even had any.