"Under the Sea and Above the Stars". Closed for WhisperedDesires :D

[WhisperedDesires]

Vega restrained herself from following her Captain's suggestions. She'd have to get used to the fact that she wasn't the Chief Engineer anymore. So she remained in her seat, ready to observe the readings from the incoming test.

She didn't have to wait long. They were just below the ocean's surface, an ideal place to test the new shielding configuration. A moment passed as systems were ready and the shields were brought fully online. A good sign that the immersion shields were holding well and pushing back some of the water, releasing pressure on the hull itself. There was a few moments as readings were taken and power levels were checked. Then it was time for the more difficult test.

"Hard-Light test beginning in 3... 2... 1..."

On cue, the shield surrounding the ship seems to harden, glowing brightly as additional power is pushed into them. The power drain upon the shield batteries is heavy, the remaining juice pulled at a pace that is almost frightening. Still, how long the hard-light shields can hold is a necessary piece of knowledge, and eventually, when the shields finally drop, they have their number.

"5 minutes at most holding hard-light at full power. A decent amount, all things considered. Still, we'll have to stick to short bursts."

 

[desperado1089]

"Very good, Commander. Five minutes, tops. Mister Suvak, please program an appropriate subroutine for the main computer." The Vulcan Tactical Officer nodded. "Aye, sir."

Max cleared his throat. "Everyone, this is what we have all been waiting for: the breaking of the Federation dive record. Immersion shields at full power. Shut down all non-essential systems. Prepare for deep-sea diving operations!" He said this last bit with no small amount of pride in his crew and ship, and when all departments signaled that they were ready, Captain Maxwell Archer himself began to pilot the ship to their planned destination: a trench that was over five thousand meters deeper than the "Challenger Deep" dive on Earth.

 

[WhisperedDesires]

The descent was slow going, much slower, at any rate, than traveling through atmosphere or the void of space. Displacing water wasn't something to be done quickly, especially with such relatively large volumes moving about could cause damage to the Abyssian cities miles away. Few humans understood how much such massive environmental changes could impact undersea currents. Still, the Abyssians had taken their own precautions, and plans had long been in place for handling any fallout from this test.

Vega kept her eyes on the various readings, less interested in the depth they traveled and more interested in the pressure being put upon shields and ship. Both were holding well, with power drain upon the shields increasing only marginally as they pushed ever deeper and the hull itself showing no signs of stress. So far, an excellent outcome. It was only in passing that the woman glanced at the depth they'd reached, rapidly approaching the current human record and still holding strong.

"Approaching Challenger depth, Captain. All systems holding well. Slight fluctuations in the external sensors, but well within expected variance."

 

[desperado1089]

"Acknowledged, Commander. On course to target destination." Max's hands held steady on the controls. He was strangely calm despite the situation, and the High Council even seemed to just be content with watching and waiting, to see if this marrying of Abyssian and Federation art and technology could help their newfound allies shatter such an old yet understated record.

The depth indicator passed ten thousand meters; the current record was 10,929 meters. Ten thousand one hundred. Two hundred. Three, then four, and when the depth indicator reached the depth of the deepest point in Earth's oceans--and then rose above it, to 10,930 meters--the whole ship erupted as one in a massive cheer of victory. Max himself even allowed a little "YES!" and pumped his fist in the air, before returning to piloting the ship; the Abyssian Council even seemed to be smiling, or their equivalent anyway, their bio-luminescence glowing a soft, contented yellow.

"Okay. Target destination dead ahead, point-four kilometers and approaching steady. Shields holding, engines good. Matriarch, are the environmental protections for your cities functioning correctly?" The answer was in the affirmative. "Good. We'll be out of here before you know it." He maintained their course, and when they finally arrived, the depth indicator showed fifteen thousand meters. Their hull was barely a hundred meters from the bottom. Max dimmed the lights to sort of enhance the effect of what flitted and flashed across the viewscreen...deep-sea creatures that were completely alien to most human eyes. "You have a beautiful home, Commander," Max said sincerely. He noticed the pressure indicator rising just a teeny bit higher. "But we should not push our luck just yet. All hands, prepare to surface." The crew snapped into action, resuming their stations. Max still stayed at the helm. "I suppose what goes down, must come up," he quipped as they began their ascent back to the surface.

Their depth was about eight thousand meters when Suvak spoke up. "Perimeter alert, Captain. A thousand meters astern and closing fast!" Nobody else had a chance to react before a massive impact registered on the aft immersion shields. The ship and its crew lurched forward, alarms blaring throughout the ship as Red Alert was automatically sounded. "Damage report!", Max shouted. "Nothing major, Sir," was the tactical officer's response. "Main shields up, charge phaser banks to half-power. We don't wanna kill whatever attacked us, do we Commander?" His question was sincere. "Are these leviathans endangered? Protected under Abyssian law? Or do they terrorize your people in some fashion, like the myths of Earth?"

 

[WhisperedDesires]

"Terrorize is one way to put it..."

The words were spoken under her breath to no one in particular as Vega's hands flew over her station. Messages were being received and sent out at record speeds, mostly to do with getting the damage crews moving and readying the med bays to receive patients if necessary.

"Leviathans aren't usually protected, more of an apex predator on Abyssia, but if it's one of the larger ones..." Another screen, pulled up now to send an access request to the Abyssian local network, which she knew had the relevant data on so called "named" leviathans. A few minutes and she had what she needed, including the tracking system which helpfully identified their aggressor. Sadly, no name that could be properly translated, but then she doubted the captain cared what her name was. "This one we want to avoid. Research teams have identified her as a primary culler of local wildlife, helps keep populations in check, and is very much the 'ruler' of this region. We're probably being seen as a challenger more than food."

Another rock of the ship as feeder tendrils latched onto the Enterprise, draining at the shield batteries rapidly. Sustained fire was always going to be a problem, especially against such a large creature.

"Ascending out of her territorial waters should have her calm down, but... well,,," Getting loose would be a problem. There was a reason Abyssians steered clear of leviathans, and why at one point in history the largest had been worshipped as living gods. It wasn't just to do with their massive size in comparison to most other life on the planet. "Shields at fifty percent. We can't hold out much longer without sustaining hull damage captain."

 

[desperado1089]

"Alright, then I don't see any options besides fighting. Tell your people to brace for potential shockwaves in case we have to use torpedoes. Identify weaknesses in those tendrils and fire!" Suvak's hands flew over the tactical console, and a moment later the ship's phasers sliced through the water, striking the Leviathan true. The creature roared, clearly angry, but released the ship in its surprise. Max made the most of it. "Hang on!", he shouted and cranked the engines to full impulse, angling the pitch upward steeply as he purged the ballast tanks, enabling their faster-than-normal ascent. Apparently, the creature had had enough, letting out a final roar as its "challenger" made its retreat. The meaning was clear, even if the creature wasn't sentient.

Don't come back.

"I don't intend to," Max said, half to himself, as he leveled out the ship at a depth of five hundred meters. "Okay people, how we looking?"