Free The Catherine Kimbridge Chronicles #1, Inception by Andrew Beery

around the ship but as the shields collapsed for 32 milliseconds just prior to the jump the D'lralu's weapons vaporized a ten foot wide hole clear through the ship. Hot plasma started to explode through the adjacent areas but the super-hot gasses were drawn out of the Bowman by the vacuum of space. The jump engines were spared, but the power grid surged under the energetic onslaught and the mains burned out seconds after the jump concluded. The bowman had jumped only about 20 thousand kilometers. In the general direction of the Pluto system.
     
    The bridge was a mess. The blast that holed the ship had traveled from a point near the shuttle bay thru the bottom third of the ship and out a point just aft of the bridge. The airtight doors had closed automatically but not before an explosive decompression of most of the surrounding spaces including the bridge. Cat was nearly sucked through the airtight doors in the first few of seconds of decompression.
     
    Cat's ultra-adaptive nanite systems kept her functioning. The others on the bridge were not so fortunate. She ordered the computer to repressurize as fast as possible, but the sixty seconds it took seemed like eons to her.
     
    Shelby was dead. She had been right next to a panel that shorted out when the mains blew. Cortez was breathing, but red foam was frothing from his mouth. The decompression had caused his lungs to burst. Cat knew he was not long for the world if she could not get him to sickbay. A quick glance around the room did not show the captain. With no one else on the bridge and many systems down Cat knew she needed help if she was going to salvage the Bowman.
     
    "Cal, I need you to interface with the Bowman's AI. Can you do that?"
     
    " Affirmative ."
     
    "Get a message to sickbay... We need a team up here ASAP. Also coordinate with engineering... We need to get power back. Half the bridge systems are out, and I'm blind."
     
    Suddenly every system that was not physically damaged came back online.
     
    "That was fast" Cat commented.
    " I have rerouted connections through multiple secondary systems to supply sensor data and minimal power. "
     
    "Cal can you give me a status?"
     
    " The enemy's beam weapon penetrated the hull and depressurized 27% of the ship. Eleven crewmen are confirmed dead. The main power conduits absorbed some of energy of the beam weapon and as a result many were overloaded. Hyper drive is offline, rail guns are offline, active shielding is offline, and life support is functioning well below safe levels. CO2 poisoning will become an issue for most of the crew within the next 36 hours. "
     
    "What's the status of the other ship?"
     
    " The D'lralu vessel is still scanning for us. I estimate it will locate us in another 10 to 20 minutes. After that, it will take him just under four hours to reach us. "
     
    "So we have something on the order of four hours to figure this mess out" Cat commented dryly.
     
    Cat turned as she heard noises at the door to the bridge. It was then that she noticed her uniform was severely torn and burned along the complete length of her left leg and yet the skin below appeared completely fine. " Was I hurt and didn't even know it? " she thought.
     
    The door to the bridge opened. Ken Kimbridge was holding what looked to be the 22nd century equivalent of a crowbar in both his hands as he poked his head through the partially opened airtight door. "It looks clear doctor"
     
    Dr. Riley pushed past the engineer and immediately made his way to Lt. Cortez.
     
    "Any word on the captain?" Cat asked Lt. Commander Kirkland as he entered the ruined bridge.
     
    His look was grim as he gave her a hesitant shake of his head. "The blast sucked him out of the bridge. He didn't have a chance once the airtight doors closed. It only took the automated worker drones a few minutes to patch the hull and begin repressurizing but he was asphyxiated and flash frozen in those few moments."
     
    Cat bowed her head and said a prayer