Panic in the Disco!

Posted on 2025, Sun Jun 15th, @ 8:05pm by Senior Chief Petty Officer Larry Lamontagne & Lieutenant Commander Jim Karry

2,145 words; about a 11 minute read

Mission: Episode 1A "Shadows of the Empire"
Location: Main Engineering
Timeline: Impact + 11 minuets

Senior Chief Petty Officer Larry Lamontagne was currently the highest-ranking person in Damage Control Central. The location Board showing the whereabouts of the Engineering personnel was online, but the Chief Engineer was showing a Blank, along with 15 other Engineering personnel. The Com-Badge was tough, made out of starship Hull plating. If it went offline, it meant bad things were happening or had already happened. Larry promptly went to the POOL, looking at all the Red Blinking icons. EOOW, I have the watch. The Second Class Petty Officer looked relieved. He had done a good job so far. Assigning Damage Control Teams to both hull breaches and two teams to the Port Nacelle part of the Nacelle was exposed to space and had no forcefields intact to shield it. Power Distribution had fifteen problem areas, four of which were critical. Repair locker TWO covered the Bridge and vital areas of deck One through Four, with the forward part of the ship being the focus. Repair Locker One covered the main deck, with vital areas including Main Engineering under its umbrella. it was separated from Main Engineering in case of a system or equipment casualty, ie, big Jalla boom. That way, there was someone left to pick up the pieces.

Larry hit his Com-Badge, /=\Computer, Engineering Officer of the Watch[EOOW], location and status of the CEO./=\

=/\= Chief Engineer is currently unresponsive, Lieutenant. All personnel in Main Engineering show a blank status on the location board. Recommend initiating a search protocol immediately. =/\=

Karry's voice was steady despite the chaos around him. He was scanning the damage reports coming in, trying to prioritize his next moves.

"Understood, Computer. Alert all available repair teams to report to my location in Main Engineering immediately. We need to assess the situation and stabilize power distribution before we can proceed with any repairs. I'm taking full command of the engineering crew until we locate the CEO and the others."

He glanced at the blinking red icons, every second counting as the ship began to feel the effects of the breaches.

"Also, open communications with Damage Control Teams; they need to provide status updates every five minutes. If any team encounters life signs in the blank areas, I want that reported immediately. We cannot leave anyone behind."

Karry took a deep breath, steeling himself for the responsibilities ahead. The ship's integrity depended on their unity and quick thinking.

"Alright, let’s move, everyone! Focus on your stations and stay sharp. We can’t afford chaos; we need order amidst this crisis."

Larry did a quick test of the 5 MC, Emergency comm system between all the Repair Lockers, Damage Control Central, Main Engineering, Bridge, and Battle Bridge. It was functioning normally. Larry hit the Transmitt button on a specialized panel; "Repair locker Eight, EOOW, Get two worker Bee's and proceed externally to Port Nacelle Frame 132, inspect and repair/replace missing or damaged Hull panels. Take three workers with you to assist. Have them Armor up." This meant that under battle conditions, they would be more resistant to debris from combat.

"Repair Locker Three, EOOW, you need to send investigation teams to deck three port-side-aft and find the problem showing up in main power around Frame 155."

"Repair Five, EOOW, Send three additional repair teams to align the Port Nacelle, Frame 213, critical Damage indicated. Have them armor up."

Larry lifted his finger off the Transmitt button. It took less than ten seconds for each repair locker to reply that they acknowledged the instruction and that they were acting on those orders. Other damage control reports were coming in, including Reports of exploded EPS conduits in Jefferies tubes 3a, 4a, and 5a.

The electro-plasma system (EPS for short, or more specifically, the electro-plasma distribution network, the term preferred by Engineers, was the primary form of energy distribution on starships.) The technology was based on storing energy in a highly energetic plasma, "electro-plasma," and distributing it throughout the ship via plasma conduits, called EPS conduits. The system of conduits was also referred to as the plasma grid.

The technology was based on storing energy in a highly energetic plasma, "electro-plasma," and distributing it throughout the ship via plasma conduits, called EPS conduits. The system of conduits was also referred to as the plasma grid. EPS conduits usually started at a matter-antimatter reaction assembly, also called the warp core, where matter was converted to energy, and extended to all areas of a ship. Plasma conduit power levels were regulated by Power regulators, Switches, Plasma coolant ducts, and monitored by plasma conversion sensors. The system began at the warp core, where Main Power was a plasma stream directed by plasma injectors to the EPS Distribution System via Plasma Manifolds. These were rather large, and if they blew, it meant evacuating main Engineering.

The EPS distribution system was like the old 19th century switchboard system, distributing power in the form of plasma(type I), Very large conduits extended from the warp core, through the nacelle struts, and into the nacelles to facilitate the massive power transfer to the warp coils needed to create a warp field. These are the largest conduits that support warp drive, Main Engines, Deflectors, Primary Weapons, Shields, etc. Type II, are medium-size conduits that support Science labs, Engineering Equipment, Medical areas, and Equipment. Then came the smaller Conduits, Type III lower power areas, replicator, lighting, Life Support, etc. Various EPS taps were placed on the conduits throughout the ship to enable other systems to access electro-plasma wherever it was needed. Think of them as step-down transformers. Some systems use plasma distribution manifolds (or plasma manifolds, for short) to manage the power conversion level from the main line to smaller substations.

In a nutshell, they had multiple problems. Some of which were very large indeed. Based on the Limited Sensor data available, they had at least six hours of repair work. The Warp Nacelle looked like a 45-minute repair job. Hull Plating was the longest part of the repair operation.

Larry sent a repair estimate of the problems identified so far to the bridge.

Karry listened intently as the reports came flooding in, the urgency of the situation weighing heavily on him. He quickly accessed his console, eyes darting between the damage reports and status updates from the repair lockers. The ship was in critical condition, and they were running against the clock.

He activated the 5 MC again, his voice clear and authoritative. "Attention all hands in Engineering, this is Chief Engineer Karry. Excellent job on the responses so far. We have multiple breaches to contend with, and time is not on our side. Let’s keep up the momentum."

“Larry, I need you to maintain communication with Damage Control Central and ensure there’s a seamless flow of information. If any issues arise, I want immediate reporting, especially concerning the EPS conduits that are showing critical failures. Repair teams need to prioritize those areas before they cause more havoc.”

Karry took a breath before continuing, speaking into the comm again. “Repair Locker Four, EOOW, focus your efforts on the EPS conduits in Jefferies Tubes 3a, 4a, and 5a. Those explosions have compromised our power distribution, which is unacceptable. I want teams assessing the damage and rerouting power to critical systems ASAP. Use portable plasma injectors if necessary to stabilize the flow.”

He paused to recalculate their resources. “And let’s not forget the warp nacelle; that's our ticket out of here once we finish repairs. Send a team to manage those repairs alongside the hull breach inspections. We’ll need full warp capabilities if we encounter additional threats.”

“Last but not least, make sure all repair teams stay armored up. We may still have debris from combat passing through, and I can’t risk anyone getting injured.”

Karry sighed, feeling the weight of responsibility on his shoulders. He brought up the repair estimation document on his console and reviewed it again, ensuring that everything was prioritized appropriately.

“Larry, once you finish relaying those messages, I want a status update every ten minutes on all critical operations. We'll keep adapting and moving forward until we bring this ship back under control. Stay sharp, and let’s keep our crew safe. We can do this.”

He closed the channel, logging the latest estimates as he prepared for the next wave of challenges ahead.

Larry was up to his knees with reports from the various repair lockers. Collecting and distilling the 50-plus reports in to a brief he could send to the Chief Engineer in Main Engineering. He had set an audible timer to remind him to send it to the CEO. The timer went off. Larry sent what he had to the CEO. After that, back to the grindstone!

Karry was busy but he wanted to see in person, So he went to Larry, Karry entered the small area and went for Larry. "Larry! Im tired of being stuck in engineering, so Im coming here."

Damage Control Central was busy, small, and cramped. It had holograms that overlayed clear sheets of Transparent Aluminum. On the aforementioned vertical walls, people were standing on the outside writing backwards. This was so that a person was not blocking the view, and therefore, critical data was not missed. Watchstanders were handwriting Vital messages on the board, so that if power went away, the person in charge would still have a picture of what was happening. When the Chief Engineer arrived, the Message writers just kept going, erasing, then writing the updated status on vital equipment and systems as updates came in.

Larry acknowledged the CEO with a nod of his head, as he was responding to the Aft Repair Locker. /=\ Repair locker locker Three, EOOW, ETA on repairs to Damaged EPS conduits at Frame 75 is 45 Mike's, DCC out./=\

"Good News Sir." Larry said, "The spares we had at the Repair Locker locations are going to be enough. Engineering and other Replicators are working overtime to keep up with the demand for parts to fix problems on portside deck Six, and deck Three aft. But the externally damaged plates on the Naccelle have been removed, and they are attaching the final armored hull plates now. "

Tag: Larry
From: Chief Engineer Karry

=/= DCC, Chief Engineer Karry. Copy on EPS conduit repairs at Frame 75. Solid work, Repair Locker Three. Hold that 45-mike window and keep me updated if it slips. =/=

Karry stepped further into the tight, heat-heavy space of Damage Control Central. The holographic overlays shimmered against transparent aluminum sheets, and he gave a sharp nod to the watchstanders still scribbling status updates backwards across the boards with practiced hands. The tension in the room was palpable—but under control.

“Larry,” he said, voice calm but direct, “that’s the kind of news I want more of. If we can keep the nacelle work on schedule and the internal replicators from overloading, we’ll stay ahead of the curve.”

He turned to the nearest status board, eyes narrowing as a flashing indicator pulsed over Deck 6.

“Prioritize this EPS junction cluster—it’s spiking intermittently. Reroute two techs from Repair 5 to support Locker 6, and make sure propulsion load stays under 90% while we divert those resources. That deck’s still warm and we can’t afford another overload.”

Karry keyed his badge again.

=/= All Repair Lockers, this is Chief Engineer Karry. New priority directives uploading now—Locker 2, reinforce ODN trunk rerouting forward. Locker 8, focus on restoring our sensor telemetry—Science is blind portside. Locker 6, double-time hull plate reattachment. =/=

He looked back to Larry with a determined expression.

“Stay with the aft team. Once that nacelle work is done, shift them to structural duty on Deck 3. We’re still compensating for microfractures near the port bulkhead and I don’t want that coming back to bite us in a pressure shift.”

=/= Final note—damage triage is fluid. Stay flexible, stay sharp. We stabilize the ship before anything else. Karry out. =/=


Larry was looking at the 2 cm-thick transparent aluminum that had the repair locker locations and duties etched into it.


Repair 1 Main deck repair
Repair 2 Forward repair
Repair 3 After repair
Repair 4 Amidships repair
Repair 5 Engineering/Propulsion repair
Repair 6 Ordnance (phonton torpedoes and phaser banks)
Repair 7 Gallery deck and bridge structures
Repair 8 Electronic and science casualty control

Repair locker five, would have twice the number of engineering and operations techs as repair locker 6
in addition, all Starfleet personnel are trained in basic damage control procedures. Those not having critical functions would be assigned to a repair locker to assist during emergencies.

Good, Larry thought. He was sending teams out to fix things in their local areas. As for resources, each repair locker would have 15 to 45 people who worked out of Main Engineering during red alerts and/or general quarters, depending on how many teams were out fixing things. It was not quite a slow, but steady process.

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