Umbral Descent

[Chronicron]

Various dock workers, from mechanics and vendors to dispatch and security, all of them were just done leaving the docks. The only one remaining in the offices was the dockmaster, whose task was to ensure that nobody remained inside. Decontamination protocols would disintegrate any organic life form in the docks, including employees. Unnecessary casualties like these look very bad on performance reports.

The dockmaster's office was positioned right above the dock, giving a clean view over the ships that were undergoing maintenance, as well as docking extensions and airlocks, through which the ship's crew would board their vessels.

Today was quite calm. No extraordinary check-ups, no heavily damaged ships. The dockmaster rested in her chair, finalizing the performance report and preparing to lock the docks down for decontamination and crew rotation. All was going as planned, until she heard the door to her office slide open. It wasn't meant to behave that way - the only ones who would be able to enter dockmaster's office without dockmaster's permission are the dockmasters themselves. It took her a fair second to even react to that. But before she could say anything, the intruder already had his handgun pointed at her. She gasped, stepping up and walking away from her working desk. Most dockmasters would've summoned the security, those who didn't have anyone to live for. "No-no-no-no-no, please! I have a daughter!" She begged, putting her hands in the air and backing up even further. But her outcries were pointless - the intruder was resilient about achieving his primary objective. "Lift the lockdown of the Umbra, extend the docking tube to that battleship and de-activate decontamination protocols. If you do that, you will live." His words were still and stoic, naturally, he wasn't touched by dockmaster's state, but he had no intention of killing her, either. As she approached the console, a thought of summoning the security crossed her mind, but the intruder had his finger on a trigger. No doubt, she would be dead the second her hand would reach for security alarm. She had no other option but to comply.

Her fingers quickly ran through the console. First, she disabled the decontamination protocols. Burning red barriers that were going from side to side in the docking bays have stopped in place, retracting upwards into projectors. She then issued the lockdown lift and extended the docking tube. "There, there, now please, let me go!" She put her hands away from the console, lifting them up and begging the intruder again. But he wasn't done with her yet. "Now we leave for the hangar. You will follow me. Don't try anything." His gun was still pointed at her. Seeing how he mentioned the hangar, she dropped on her knees, begging him even more. "Please, don't kidnap me! I'll do anything, but don't take me anywhere! I don't know how to fly a ship!" She pleaded, but the intruder was relentless. He harshly grabbed her by her hand and put her on her legs. "I don't need you in my ship. I need you to follow me to the hangar, so that I'm sure you won't summon the security." He stared right into her eyes. The scenario she was going through right now was nothing she has ever faced before or was prepared for. "Please, don't kidnap me..." She kept pleading, breaking down on the floor, her face covered in tears. Fear overtook her, every possible development of this situation clouded her judgement, so much so that she collapsed on the floor. The intruder knew she wasn't fit for a decoy, nor would she attempt anything at this stage. He aimed his handgun at the console. The shot itself was silent, but the cracking sound of wiring and glass caused even more shock to the dockmaster.

Curled up in fetal position, sobbing, she was no threat. Daisaku didn't account for the dockmaster to be so sentimental or emotional, nor did he like the idea of leaving here right there. but it wouldn't hinder his plans. Without looking back, he left the office, locking it down with dockmaster's reserve ID.

---

"Any second now..." Jeff and what little remained of his crew gathered at the docks, waiting for them to open. Apart from his trusty company, he also managed to contact some of the technicians that worked aboard Umbra as a part of her crew, convincing them to leave with him. He could even put together a team of medics, gathering the bare minimum of thirty two men in total. The majority of Umbra's system was controlled by its AI, Luma. Such simplicity allowed for the ship to sail efficiently even with skeleton crew.

The holographic display above the doors stated "Closed for maintenance". Jeff's eyes were pinned on the display, almost as if he was attempting to hypnotize it. The rest of his team were quiet, trying not to attract too much attention. The only one who was showing evident signs of slight anxiety was Gramps, but such was his regular state anywhere outside Umbra's engineering deck. During scheduled maintenances, nobody cared to approach the docks.

Suddenly, the holographic display above the door disappeared. The doors slid open, revealing an empty docking bay with several ships fixed by the docking clamps. Umbra wasn't too far from the entrance, but it still had to be reached through an airlock tube. Having another look around and making sure nobody was nearby, Jeff waved, signaling to his crew to get in. Each of them, one by one, carefully snuck into the bay, heading towards their battleship. Andrei was ahead of the group - as the ship's XO, he had access to it. Jeff had to ensure that everyone made it to Umbra from his end.

As the last mechanic entered the docks, Jeff looked behind and above, the lights in the dockmaster's office were still on, but nobody was seen through the window. He smiled, knowing that Dai did his job properly.

He was the last one to enter Umbra, the airlock on ship's side shutting close as there was nobody to retract it from the bay itself. His crew already took their positions - the only one missing was his helmsman. Jeff knew the basics of helming a battleship, but he never got to, not even in simulations. "Luma, talk to me." He said as he approached the helm. "I'm with you, Captain Asterius." A synthetic feminine voice with imitated emotion answered through the bridge's internal audio emitters. "Prepare the reverse thrusters, we're leaving the dock." Jeff commanded, getting his hands around the controls, which, due to Dai's lack of any personal needs, would be fit for anyone. "Acknowledged. Do you wish to run down the complete system check before our departure?" Umbra's AI asked. "Uhm, yes. Make sure everything works." The helm had its own intercom speaker, allowing Jeff to communicate with the rest of his crew. "All stations, status report." He spoke, his voice reaching down to every last bit of Umbra. "Power core nominal, engines are running without any deviations." First to report was Hendrix, who was running down last preparations in the engineering. He knew better than to try and help Gramps, who felt way more confident now that he was confined within the ship's walls. "Long-Range Artillery is ready, point defense systems online and ready." Andrei followed, assuming his position in the gunnery. "Scanner and comms online!" Markus shouted across the bridge. "Medbay ready." Last was Brian, who was running down last preparations of pharmaceuticals and medicinal tools. "All systems are green, captain. We're ready to depart." The final report was summarized by Umbra's AI.

Goosebumps rushed through Jeff's body, but he knew that it was too late to turn back. "All stations, code yellow, We're leaving the docks." Slowly pulling the propulsion lever towards himself, he engaged Umbra's reverse thrusters. With astronomical force, the battleship left Alabama's dry dock, beginning its descent down the rabbit hole.