Ferono Benitez' medical log: Yaren's Medical Facilities

[ferono]

17/5/826

Incoming news feed
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Source: Corsair News Agency reporting from Yaren

Destination: Your terminal! Because we bring you the news as they happen!

Subject: Expedition ship attacked in deep space.
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A camera mounted on a maintenance drone circles around a dreadnought class expedition ship, the name Malaga inscribed on it. The hull is full of holes, smokes emerging through them. The engine housing is destroyed, revealing complicated machinery underneath that looks in bad shape. Sections were windows should be glowing are dark. The camera zooms in one of the window, were the remains of a decompressed body are splattered all over it. from the inside. The camera zooms out to a general view. The video feed cuts, and a young reporter, with a shocked look is her eyes appears, outside Yaren's medical facilities. She starts speaking after she regains her calm

"This is Amelia Rodriguez, reporting from Yaren in Omicron Delta for CNA. One of our expedition ships, the Malaga, has returned from a deep space exploration mission under critical damage. There was no distress signal received by any of our beacons, nor any station or ship. The ship just appeared exiting an unknown jumphole in the system, were the captain notified the station of their position and damage. With the help of the Zoners, the ship was towed to Yaren, were the medical team is doing it's best to help the hundrends of scientists and crew onboard that were injured. We have no word yet from any official source about what happened to the ship, but unofficial sources tell us that the ship was attacked by half a dozen Nomad gunboats. We have no other information to report at the time, as everyone is rushing to help the injured, and search for survivors inside the ship. For now the-"


Three doctors pushing a hoverpad with something that looks like an escape pod on it rush in front of the camera. The camera follows them, the pod in center view. It is in bad shape, the hull deformed from energy blasts, and the viewport is totally dark. They enter an airtight portion of the medical labs, and the doors close behind them

"As it seems, the Malaga managed to pick up someone on her mission, but we don't know the reason why that person was not removed from the escape pod, or why was he transferred to an area reserved for unknown diseases or infections. We will find out though, and we will let you know once we do. We will have more about the incident in general, as well as official information in our next feed. We will also contact the families of those injured or lost, once an official list has been posted."

"This was Amelia Rodriguez, reporting from Yaren for CNA, the news as they happen."


18/5/826


Incoming news feed
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Source: Corsair News Agency reporting from Yaren

Destination: Your terminal! Because we bring you the news as they happen!

Subject: Expedition ship attacked in deep space, returns with missing Corsair.

Playback engaged >>

"This is Amelia Rodriguez, continuing our report about Malaga's accident. We have made a lot of progress, and got official statements from the captain, Jose Herrera and also many people of the crew and the scientist and also got a doctor from the medical facilities. We'll start with a description of the battle. It wil be long, and we will flavor it with representation videos we rendered, so sit comfortably."

"The Malaga was in deep space, in orbit of asteroid DC-345. The mining drones were deployed, bringing in samples of the asteroid for analysis. The Malaga was ready to depart, having collected almost 30 metric tons of samples, when a Nomad battle formation uncloacked out of nowhere. The formation was comprised of a Nomad Cruiser, 6 Scorpion-class gunboats and a dozen of fighters. The Nomads, in a strange move, did not attack outright, but instead they telepathically contacted captain Herrera, asking him to leave the area at once."





"Captain Herrera started alligning the ship towards a know point of space, when the communications section picked up photon pulses coming from a place pinpointed inside the Nomad cruiser. The code, nine repeated pulses, was identified as Morse code, used in times of emergency by marines on land. The message was the standard S.O.S. signal, but it was very faint, and the frequency of the pulses was dropping continuously, until it stopped."

"Captain Herrera stopped the ship. Immediately, the nomad fighters started orbiting the Malaga, their weapon systems fully charged. Captain Herrera started turning the Malaga towards the nomad cruiser, and started approaching in full speed. The nomad fleet opened fire, but the shields of the Malaga looked like they would hold for a minute or two. The Malaga approached the nomad cruiser very closely. Communications sector picked a non-nomad bioform inside it, at the point were the photon pulses emmited. Captain Herrera decided that he would help whoever or whatever was inside."

A brief CG video starts playing, showing the nomads ship approaching to attack, and also a visual representation of the S.O.S signal's position in the Nomad Cruiser

"Herrera launched all the mining drones, and directed them to the point he recieved the S.O.S. signal. The mining lasers of the drone started cutting through the nomad ship. After opening a hole on its 5 meter hull, Herrera gave them in a Search and Resque Command. The drones navigated through invisible barriers inside the hull, until they reached something that looked like an escape pod. The drones grappled it and started towing it towards the Malaga, which was not looking very good though. It's shields were almost gone, and as she had no military grade weapons mounted, had no way of defending."

"As the drones we entering the cargo bay, untouched by the nomad fighters, the shield collapsed, and the hull started crumbling from the nomad attacks. Captain Herrera knowing he had no other choice, did the only thing he could do. He detracted the large mining rock crusher on the front of the Malaga, put it in motion and charged towards the nomad cruiser on a collision course. The ship was falling appart around him, whole sections were lost, but he knew that was the last chance of survival."

An archived video of the crusher destroying a huge asteroid in seconds started playing. The crusher had 16 angular gears in a tight construction, and the stats revealed it could process 50 tonnes of diamond-hard ore per second

"Suddenly, the crusher hit the Nomad cruiser's hull. The crusher started digging inside the ship, removing huge pieces of unknown translucent equipment. Suddenly, the crusher hit something biological. Pink matter started ejecting from the debris ports of the crusher. The crew then heard a distorted scream inside their heads, like nothing they had heard before. As the crushed was digging deeper, one by one the nomad fighters and gunboats stopped attacking, and drifted uncontrollably in space. One of them hit the Malaga port-side, that depressurised one of scientific labs. Once all of the nomad ships had stopped attacking, captain Herrera retracted the crusher, and started heading towards known space."

"The ship ended up in an unknown system. Luckily, the jumpholes were a sequence of newly-mapped systems that eventually led to Omicron Delta. Malaga started moving in a limited speed, following the jumpholes, until she emerged in Omicron Delta."

"Official records that just came in state the loss of 150 people onboard, 345 injured and 74 missing."

"Now, about the escape pod that was rescued." A slideshow of photographs taken from the camera yesterday starts playing. "The person inside it is Ferono Benitez, who presumably died 2 years ago. The doctors say that despite being clinically dead two years ago, he is alive now, although he is expected to remain unconcious for at least 1 day after he was re-animated in Yaren's Medical facilities from a minor coma using deep-brain electrical stimulation. His legs had to be cut though, since they were very badly injured and the bones fractured beyond healing." Photo of Ferono Benitez displayed on the screen.

"This lengthy report finally comes to an end. We learnt today that even in the most grim situations, good things may come unexpectedly. We offer our condolences to the families of those lost, and wish Mr. Benitez quck recovery. This was Amelia Rodriguez, reporting from Yaren for CNA, the news as they happen."

19/5/826


Incoming news feed
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Source: Corsair News Agency reporting from Yaren

Destination: Your terminal! Because we bring you the news as they happen!

Subject: Update on the list of lost people on the accident, and a short interview of Mr. Ferono Benitez

Playback engaged >>

"This is Amelia Rodriguez reporting from Yaren. The final numbers of the people lost in the accident were released to the public earlier. The number of lost people raised to 195, after the discovery of more bodies in depressurized sections on the Malaga. The 29 people missing are considered lost in space due to the depressurization of one lab. An embedded file lists the names of the people lost, missing, those under medical treatment and those who were transferred to Crete's hospitals for minor treatments.

In other news, Captain Jose Herrera received the Cretian Star for his valiant actions that prevented the loss of Malaga and her crew, the saving of a Corsair pilot that was considered dead, and a fatal blow to the Nomads. Captain Herrera will later attend the-"

Loud voices are heard behind the doors of the medical facilities

"Doctor, I am capable of moving around my self, thank you!"

"But Mr. Benitez, you condition-"

"To hell with my condition, doctor. There are other people you should attend to"

"I suppose you're right, Mr. Benitez. I have going right now"

Suddenly, the double doors slide open, and a man on a wheelchair appears, his feet missing. He looks pale, but very much alive. The reporter and the cameraman catch his attention.

"That's right... The damn media is what I needed most. Sigh..."

The reporter runs to him, and starts bombing him with questions with speed comparable to the R.O.F. of rookie Liberty guns

"Calm down reporter! I may happen to have some minutes to spare. If you could ask me those questions one by one, I may be able to answer them"

"Sorry Mr. Benitez. I uderstand this has been very rough for you. What happened to you during thes year you were missing?"

"How the hell am I supposed to remember? I was in a very deep coma! The first thing I saw after my consciousness started fading last year at the hospital was the doctor that re-animated me yesterday. Look, i feel tired, so why don't you cut me some slack honey and-"

"One last question! The public needs to know!"

"Allright, allright, shoot it"

"What is going to happen to your career? You were in the Benitez military branch as a pilot. Now that you lost your legs, I understand that you may not be able to fly again. Are you going to quit flying for-"

"Hell no! I did not go through all this so I end up as a civilian wearing a suit and tie! My father was a pilot, as am I, and I am going to die as a pilot like him. End of questions. I have to board a Titan and get to Crete. My familia is waiting for me."

"But you will fly yourself so soo-"

"Yes I will, woman. Don't get on my nerves. The Titan is an extension of my body. It's my life, as it will be my death. Ineed to get the hand of hands-only flying if I am expected to aid my familia and the Corsair nation. Have a nice day, reporter"

Ferono starts pushing hard, making his way to the hangar and disappears from the camera's view. the reporter starts talking again

"Well, surely this was an interesting short interview. I applaud Mr. Benitez' strength. But time is running out, and this report must end here. We will have more for you on future updates. This was Amelia Rodriguez, reporting from Yaren for CNA, the news as they happen."

End of news feed
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Ferono reaches the hangar. 35 Titans are being refueled and repaired by technicians. At the corner of the hangars there are some newly constructed ones, with zero hours of flight time. Ferono approaches the ship manager

"Hello Juan!"

"Ferono! I heard the good news. I'm glad you are alive! They released you so soon?"

"They had no other choice"

Both men laugh uncontrollably for some seconds

"So, I suppose you ant to fly home and not take a shuttle, right?"

"Yeah"

"I have one of the new models right here. It will make you a discount, it will only cost-"

"Well, well... Look at Juan! Don't tell me you forgot the money you owed me!"

"Damn..."

"I suppose we can call it even if you give me one of these babies fully kitted"

"Well, I suppose we can..."

"Right then, hand over the access card now, I am expected on Crete."

Juan gives Ferono a small card, with the ship's number on it

"Very nice Juan. Have a nice day. Give my regards to Captain Herrera, there was no time to thank him properly for his actions, not to mention his quarters are not wheelchair accessible"

Ferono ends the sentence with a sarcastic laugh.

He approaches the Titan with the number written on the card. The small gravity lift lifts him at the cockpit's level. With a sudden dash, he enters the cockpit. He puts on the helmet and straps himself in. As the ship starts moving towards the airlock, he waves towards Juan. Once the depressurization cycle is over, and the airlock's door open, Ferono exits the station. After some maneuvers and turn to get use to the hand-only contols, he dissapears in the darkness of space. Crete is waiting for him. His familia is waiting for him. And he knows that due to the recent events, his help will be most valuable to them.