FTL: Harmony Edition IC

Belgond nodded his head towards Golden for a moment before accessing his message system in order to send an update to Clean Cut about the status of the engine:

The engine has been repaired. We are good to go.

While Copperette was speaking with Golden, Belgond took some time to look at the other systems on the ship to make sure that everything was in good working order... And to see where improvements could be made.

(Dice roll: Mech- checking up on the other systems/ see what improvements can be made: 11+20=31)

Borealis considers their situation carefully as the discussion continues, but not having a particularly strong inclination either way, he stays silent, taking in the arguments put forth for each side. He of course wishes for as many civilians to be ferried out as soon as possible, but with both the threat of being vaporized and crystallized being very real, he also has to consider the risk of them going towards the crowd - might the artifact draw the deadly crystal field towards the populace?

"We'll also have to consider the risk of leading the crystal field towards the crowd." He voices his concern, but sighing when Clean Cut storms away after being berated by Emblem. As Degree speaks, Borealis raises an eyebrow. "Can you blame him, though? This may well be a life-or-death decision for his patients, and I have no doubt that he has seen enough loss as is. If it's a matter of saving a few more civilians against compromising the safety of the entire ship - well, I don't know which I could have chosen."

Letting go of the controls, Degree reclines into the pilot's seat, picking between his teeth. "If you can't save yourself, you can't save anyone. The doc needs to get his shit together and clear his head or he's going to slip up when push comes to shove. 'Sides, I couldn't give two damns about how many ponies we take on board. I'll get 'em out just the same."

The sincere taste of the filly's gratitude was sweet and sustaining to the ACHE, even if it somewhat spiked by her uncanny response to Seva. Seva savored the flavor, but not for long, as the young unicorn followed the engineers. The bitterness in the air became more oppressive at the expressions of Clean Cut's stress and the unicorn stallion's passionate opinions.

Seva had no desire in offering a further opinion – no further input from the others changed their assessment of the situation. Three more was most they could afford. Still, the ACHE did stand by for a moment as they attempted to ascertain what would be the most appropriate next course of action for them to take. The unicorn stallion's response in particular brought a surge of calculations to the forefront. The mention of the hospital, of carcasses and rubble kicked in a simulation routine. Observations of the layout of the hospital, approximated and observed locations of staff and patients. One of Seva's runtimes ran the simulation several times attempting to figure out how the scenario could  have been overcome with greater success. The image of Doctor Strongheart, and Doctor Swabs. The error appeared again. Seva didn't understand, why were their damage detection systems going off? An internal defense systems check still could not find anything that would be causing it.

Eventually, the simulations were forcibly halted. They were taking up too much processing power when Seva could be doing something more useful in the moment. A review They recalled how some of the children had difficulty moving because of the burns they had suffered.

""We will be in the medbay, treating the children,"" Seva stated before leaving.

It was difficult to offer a further opinion anyway. Everyone who was there more or less had a valid opinion. There was the moral obligation to save as many as possible, yes, but as the dragon had pointed out that would be for naught if it meant everyone died anyway from the rescue attempt. That crystal field though that the minotaur mentioned... Seva was unsure of that. One thing they were sure of though, was medical practice.

When the ACHE arrived, they surveyed the room, trying to figure out how many needed treatment and in what order by severity – and also noting wherever Doctor Swabs may be.

There was a brief halt in Seva's movement as they realized they made another error. No, they were looking for Clean Cut. Swabs was dead. What was wrong with their neural networks that they were still anticipating Swab's presence?

---

Perception Roll [Seva attempts to determine who should receive treatment first]: 1D20+7 => 22

Seva
Clean Cut is in the medbay, tending to some of the more badly burnt children, apparently trying to lose himself in his work. There is a quiet hum in the air that Seva recognizes to be the medi-field working in the background, passively boosting the kids' tissue regeneration to help with recovery. Clean Cut looks up when Seva comes in, his expression weary - one Seva remembers that many doctors on the Panacea wear after a long fight against a particularly severe case. "We've got some dozen odd adults we have to pick from, Seva." He says tiredly. "How many of those will never make it onto an evacuation craft? Even with the Concord supplied ships, many innocents may not make it offworld... Damn it..."

He stops, wrinkling his brow for a moment. "...Ah, our engineer companions have repaired the hyperdrive. I suppose that means we'll be taking off soon. I'll go and tell our pilot, do you mind staying here and helping the kids?"

Copperette
"Hmm. I suppose the basics of artificing never changed much - if it isn't broken, don't fix it, right?" Golden Gears gives Copperette a quick pat on the back before heading towards the bridge of the ship. "Alright, we should probably head back. Belgond? How's the system check going?"

Belgond
Belgond's sweep reveals that, given the lack of materials on-hoof and the delicate balance of some systems, he could only make minor adjustments to improve performance, such as tweaking the boosters to have greater output and venting, and slightly increasing the robustness of the basic life support systems. Still, it's better than nothing, and it should help with keeping the ship environment stable during FTL jumps.

"Agreed" - Emblem responded to Borealis.. as well as gave a nod of approval to the first two sentences said by the drake - "I must say i don't like the notion of being selective about the ones to be saved in this situation. Indeed, if we're to dive in a crowded place, we may get many more hurt than saved. Mostly due to how long the process of physically picking out those chosen from the masses might take. All life's equal, after all. We can't afford to be picky... i'd rather just take three first creatures we see, be it from the first street we cross even and then take off. What do you think?" - he asked, turning towards both the dragon and the minotaur.

While waiting for the answer, the unicorn decided to make himself useful too. He went up near the pilot's seat, grabbing a hold of one of the secondary panels and began inputting data abot the surrounding area he was acquainted with, in order to find out the available evacuation routes and choose the most plausible escape vectors, considering their current situation. * One had to have alternatives, in case one of them got cut off.

Streetwise check: 18 + d20 (10) = 28

The limit to what he could do given the time frame, resources and the fact that he couldn't shut some of the systems down to make the upgrades he wanted to (due to the crew needing them to stay alive) bugged Belgond somewhat but what upgrades he could make would at least be of some use to the ship.

Looking towards Golden, he offered her a smile as he answered "Everything is working and we can improve the functions of the engines and the life support a bit without having to take them offline. I've already sent a message to your friend about the drive being online, but I might get started on improving the life support systems before things go crazy. You to go ahead without me... Call it a gut feeling, but I suspect I'm going to have to make myself at home here for the foreseeable future."

(Dice roll. Mech- Upgrading the life support: 27.)

Copperette grinned at the praise from Golden Gears - her father rarely gave out such a compliment, and she had learned to cherish them.

As she followed Golden Gears to... Wherever they were going, her mind took a moment to absorb what she had just accomplished. She had fixed the ship - and by extension, had also saved the lives of everypony on it! She wouldn't have even been allowed near something like this in her home time.

... But then, in her home time there wasn't quite this much destruction going on, either. She thought back to the burns on her back, now healed over, and vaguely recalled seeing foals a little younger than her floating about in a similar state. Presumably that ACHE pony was helping them, but...

She glanced up as they approached a split in the hallway, a convenient sign pointing the direction to the "Medbay". She stopped and thought about it briefly, deciding that the "medbay" must be where the sick and injured ponies went. Assuming the ACHE pony was competent, she probably would have taken the other foals there.

Copperette decided quickly. At best, she might be able to help out more. At worst, she could probably observe that spell-casting technique she saw, and get a better idea of how to replicate it. She went down the other hallway, silently heading towards the "medbay". As a bonus, she was about to see how attentive Golden Gears was...

Checks:

Seva watched, expressionless as Clean Cut offered his grief about the situation. There truly was no way this scenario could be finished ideally. Even if they were to stuff this ship beyond capacity, Seva doubted they'd be able to save many of others who couldn't get a ship yet. Unless there was an unknown variable that would change this situation for the better, this was how it was. There was no possible way to have an optimum outcome. Looking out over the children there though, it did remind Seva that they at least had this much.

And Clean Cut, he could use a little reassurance, with his rising stress. Stepping up towards Clean Cut, Seva raised a hoof and tried to give him a couple reassuring pats.

""We will make sure they are healed and kept safe,"" the ACHE stated.

Degree glances at the data input, turning to Emblem when he realizes it's navigational data. "I dunno, if there's one thing I know about space travel is you gotta be efficient. I'd be more inclined to pick up anypony who seems to be doing well for themselves - initiative is a valuable thing in the galaxy.

"And, is that Alliance map data? I recognize some of the stops on those maps. You with the traders, unicorn?"

Copperette Seva
Golden Gear's ears flick, and she smirks, but continues to the bridge without reaction to Copperette leaving. Copperette sidles into the medbay just as Clean Cut gives Seva a short nod before leaving for the bridge, stopping to give Copperette a grateful, though tired, smile before moving on.

There are a few foals in the room, many of them suffering from moderate burns, but the most severe case is easily a straw colored pegasus filly who has nasty burns on her back and most of her barrel. Adrenaline kept her going until the ship, but her condition worsened over the course of the evacuation. The medbay is keeping her condition stable, but she needs medical attention soon.


Belgond
Belgond ventures into the life support systems and begins his work, but it will take a while as such systems are notoriously delicate and finicky.

Copperette looked around, wide-eyed with awe and horror. While there weren't so many injured ponies, there was still a lot to take in, foals with burns across their backs, a quiet hum in the background punctuating the ominous atmosphere.

Copperette felt her stomach turn a little at the sight. She wasn't used to seeing wounds like this, and it was somehow different when it was somepony else - with her own burns she had somehow ignored them until they were healed. These ponies, though...

Her reverie was broken when she realized the ACHE pony was in front of her. She looked up at the strange pony, still a bit unnerved - but, if this ACHE pony was doing the healing, then that was who Copperette needed to talk to.

"Scuse me..." Copperette said, nudging the ACHE's shoulder with her hoof. "I want to help..."

Seva's eyes looked from the hoof on their shoulder the owner of the hoof's face – a somewhat subtle action given how the yellow, opaque, external lens layer obscured the delicate ocular sensors underneath. The unicorn's revulsion at the sight of the wounds on display had not been lost on the ACHE, nor had the feelings directed towards themselves. The unsettled sensation. The feeling of encountering something disturbingly alien – something that was The Other. And yet the unicorn was still attempting to make contact and approach them. Seva hoped this was not because of being sent here under duress.

""If you can help,"" Seva started, harboring some doubts about how well the volunteer could stomach the sight of injury, ""We would benefit from assistance with treating this child's burns.""

Walking over to the filly, Seva continued trying to speak calmly to avoid scaring the filly.

""We will treat your burns as quickly as possible. You will be okay.""

Seva went off to the filly's side, their horn flaring up once more as they scanned over the poor child's damaged body, and began preliminary procedures, such as the local anesthetic like she had with the unicorn not too long before.

---

Heal Roll [Seva attempts to treat the severely burned filly]: 1D20+17 => 23 (A six on the dice huh... )

---

Seva did not doubt that their Medica runtime knew what it was doing, but for some reason their nanoassembler subroutines were having difficulties, which was a serious problem considering they knew they needed sophisticated tools to properly treat the filly. There seemed to be some contention among the runtimes about the possibility their actions could do more harm than good.

Seva stepped over to where some medical equipment was stored. Pulling out some drawers, Seva looked over the equipment. They could not find what they needed until they got to an oddly full drawer full of equipment with visible wear and tear. Reaching in, they looked over a particular device.

""It appears the engines were not the only components that required repair,"" the ACHE noted as they turned the device over in their hoof.

"Let me see," Copperette said, taking the weird device in her magical grasp, adjusting her glasses a little as she examined it, trying to figure out its design, and the damage...

Checks:

Borealis weighs his options carefully, rubbing his chin absentmindedly as he does so. "Right now the important thing is to get off this planet before our luck runs out. As much as I would like bringing on more capable individuals, time is of the essence and we can't afford to tarry."

Copperette
Now Copperette is out of her comfort zone. Before, it was enchanting, something she's familiar with. This is fullblown technology, literally centuries ahead of her time. It shaped like some kind of water-gun of sorts, with a sharp nub up front, and a tube of silvery substance in the back... oh. It's an injector, just more advanced. Ignoring the clearly functional parts, Copperette looks it over again, removing the casing and checking the internal mechanisms, to find a mild bend in the needle that inhibits the flow of the substance, stopping up the tube and causing the trigger to jam up after being squeezed too hard to try and bypass the stop in the tube. It shouldn't be hard to reset the trigger mechanism and straighten out the needle with that stuff figured out.

Copperette looked the injector over carefully. She had seen them before - they did have doctors and shots and such in her home time - although this one seemed to be quite a bit more refined, made of sturdier, safer materials. And then there was the mysterious silvery stuff in it.

About the same color as the ACHE pony, come to think of it...

In spite of that, the needle had gotten bent. Moreover, some silly pony had jammed the trigger. The trigger would be easy enough, but the needle would take some precision.

She braced it against a table, clamping it down with a hoof as she focused her magic along the bent part, straightening it out with great care...

Mechanics:

Copperette smiled as the needle straghtened out. Another quick adjustment or two, put the trigger back in properly, replace the casing...

She handed the repaired injector back to the ACHE pony. "All better."

Seva watched with an apparent impassivity that bellied their concerns. They needed the injector to work, but were not certain of how well this unicorn could fix it. They recalled how she went to the engine room to help, but they did not know how much she had contributed to the repair efforts. As they observed though, they felt more confident. The young unicorn's sense of satisfaction from repairing the device was not unpleasant either. With the device passed back to their own hoof, Seva looked it over again.

""The repair appears satisfactory. Thank you.""

Trotting back over to the burned filly, Seva prepped the device, taking another tube of the silvery substance along the way to make sure they had a sufficient charge of the stuff to treat the filly. As Seva continued their prep, some of their runtimes considered the silvery stuff for what they knew them to be – nanomachines. Under more ordinary conditions the ACHE would not have thought twice about just using some of their own that made up their body to assist to the treatment, but the hesitation in their runtimes made them question this. In a way, the nanomachines in this injector had it easier, all they had to do was be injected and receive their instructions. It felt safer to Seva as well. They would certainly not want to cause this filly harm by injecting them with possibly malfunctioning nanomachines after all.

“Our serial designation is ANC-47777, you may call us Seva,” the ACHE said to the child, trying to fulfill at least some sort of bedside manner as they administered the treatment, “What is your name?”

---

Heal Roll [Seva attempts to treat the filly, assisted with the fixed nanomachine injector]: 1D20+17 => 32

Copperette Seva
The filly, sluggish from the medbay's healing aura, manages to mumble, "Humble Harvest...." before her body goes stiff from the nanites interfacing with her nervous system, dulling pain and rapidly regenerating tissue, a silver sheen passing over damaged flesh and leaving in its wake new, if slightly pallid, tissue. Before long the bulk of the damage is reversed, though she would remain weak for a while longer as her immune system recovers. Her body will flush the now defunct nanites from her systems, and she'll make a full recovery.

""The treatment is complete. You should have a full recovery given enough time. We recommend that you rest in the meantime. If you are still not feeling well later, let us know.""

Stepping away from Humble Harvest, Seva approached the unicorn – though making sure to avoid getting too close and giving her more reason to be unsettled.

""Your assistance was appreciated. May we know your name?""

Emblem felt inclined to agree as much with the minotaur as with the drake, though he couldn't resist thinking just how much Degree himself fitted into the picture he was painting. Hence, he decided to leave it at that... He sure hoped they'd be able to reach one of the outer posts swift... perspective of a voyage in space in a small ship with a dozen of kids on board was nowhere near appealing.

"That... would be correct." - the unicorn answered, trying to keep hestitaion away from creeping into his voice, as he played it as being focused o the task at hand - "Considering the appaling situation, there would be some sense in visiting one of our posts, i believe, if it's conveniently en route... do you happen to have anything against it?"

Some say the traders were interested in little more than profit and to some extent, Emblem agreed... wasn't life the greatest currency of all though?

"You mean the sector trading post?" Degree grimaces. "Didn't make many friends last time I was there. Had a deal going that really didn't help the head honcho round those parts, ticked off some people in charge. But I'll drive this hunk of junk there if I have to."

Borealis Emblem Degree
Clean Cut pokes his head into the bridge, "The hyperdrive is fixed. We should be good to go. Have you decided how we're choosing who to pick up?"

Belgond
As Belgond wraps up what upgrades he can manage, he gets a small heads up as Clean Cut sends him a quick message, reading 'The pilot has been informed, please come to bridge to prepare for takeoff.'

Copperette Seva
Golden Gears trots into the med bay, followed by one of the pegasi Belgond brought aboard. "I hate to interrupt, but the ship is about to takeoff. We should gather in the bridge to decide where to go next."

The pegasus also mumbles something about having experience volunteering at the hospital and being able to keep the kids safe while the ship was in the air, before starting to carefully secure the injured foals onto the medbay's cots so they aren't hurt during the flight.

"If we're just going to drop 'em off later, then lets just nab the guys you wanted to and get off this death trap. I don't really care who we grab." Degree says, before turning to the ship, quickly rechecking the preflight diagnostics, and then finally activating the remaining systems, the ones that were broken before. Turning on the PA system, Degree grins toothily and says, "Alright boys and girls, this is your pilot speaking. Our ship is prepped and ready to go, making a quick pitstop at disaster central before hightailing the crap outta here. There's no telling how well we can avoid things that are being shot at us so you'd better hang onto your butts and strap yourselves down for the ride. Degree out."

Even as he ran the last program to make sure that his improvements had properly taken and there wasn't a risk of everyone that he liked dying because they didn't have air, Belgond recieved a summons to the bridge by what he assumed was now the captain of their ship.

Deciding that now was as good a time as any to properly introduce himself to the crew, Belgond sent a quick message to say that he was coming before making sure everything was in order before he left for the bridge.

As he travelled, his ears twitched a little under his hood as he heard the voice of what seemed to be their pilot over the intercom. Taking a moment to ensure that his hooves were properly connected to the ground to prevent himself from going flying in the event of sudden fancy flying, Belgond continued his trip to the bridge.

He didn't know anything about this so called Degree, but he sounded cocky. Time would tell if he was deserving of that self confidence; Hopefully he was, otherwise they were going to die.