The loud sound carried and was followed by sudden shouts that drew Captain Harper’s attention. A half-collapsed building was still shaking from tremors due to an aftershock. There was still a group of colonists trapped inside. Harper had just reassured some of them inside that they would return to get them before more chaos erupted. She looked to the building and saw that there were now beams sagging dangerously making their entrance into the building extremely hazardous.

“Please….Please….my mother is in there!” a young girl cried out as she ran screaming and crying toward the half-collapsed building. Harper ran quickly to catch up to her and stop the child before she endangered herself or anyone else.

She cradled the young girl and ran her hands over her hair. “Shhh….Shhhhh….I’ve got you…I’ve got you. I know…I know you want to go in there, but it isn’t safe for you. Let us get your mom, okay?” Harper spoke at almost a whisper as she comforted the young girl.

The young girl did not respond. She only leaned further into Harper and began weeping. Harper looked up and nodded to her XO, LTCO Sili.

“Alright team, let’s go! For a rescue team up and let’s get them out of there!” Sili called out and she ran towards the building. “We have to stabilize the structure, or it will collapse on use before we can even pull them out.” Commander Brady and Ensign Jablonski managed to keep up with her and she noticed them on her right.

LtCo T’Penne followed close behind her and stopped to examine the building in front of them. “Reinforce the walls. We have to reinforce the walls, that will buy us time.” The Vulcan spoke calmly and began working as soon as she began speaking.

“Standing by for triage,” Lt Roders called out and began grabbing what equipment he could and moving towards the scene in front of them. “Team, we have more work to do! If your patient is stable, follow me!”

Commander Brady ran as quickly as he could with Ensign Jablonski trailing closely behind him. He knew the young man could run faster and recognized that he was holding back in order to not overstep boundaries. He motioned in front of him and called out to the young Ensign, “Go! Go! Go! You know what to do! I will catch up to you.”

Ensign Jabslonski heard his mentor and did not hesitate. He began running at full speed and hoping he could be quick enough to make a difference. He had just reached the site when he heard the voice of his XO beside him.

“I’m picking up life-signs. It’s hard to tell because the equipment isn’t functioning normally under these circumstances but I’m thinking at least four life signs are registering inside that mess,” LtCo Sili yelled loud enough that her whole team could hear her.

“Structural integrity holding at 18 percent,” Chief Engineering Officer T’Penne called out. She was impressed at how quickly her team had worked and she would have to show her appreciation to them after this was all over. “You all must move quickly. The reinforcement is being held by forcefield and won’t hold for long.”

Ensign Jablonski immediately entered the collapsing building. He and fellow member of the rescue team push their way through buckled duranium beams and crumbling walls all around them. The air was thick with smoke and dust and caused the team members to start coughing one by one.  A colonist coughs weakly from beneath a collapsed support and gains Ensign Jablonski’s attention. He spots the colonist and grimaces at the sight in front of him. Sparks shower from a damaged power conduit overhead. Well, this will be fun, he thinks to himself.

“Starfleet..Thank…thank the…thank the stars! My leg is pinned…I…I..I can’t move it!” the colonist speaks weakly and then drops his head back to rest again the crumbled wall behind him.

“That’s okay, you don’t have to move. We will come to you!” Jablonski reassures the man. He walks over to the beam and assesses what it will take the get the man out. “Alright, I’m not sure you are going to like this, but I am going to have to lift this support manually. I know it’s not ideal, but it is the quickest way.  I need you to be completely still and not attempt to move until I tell you too, okay?”

“Okay….” the colonist manages to stammer out.

Ensign Jablonski motions for other members of the rescue team around him. He quickly caught them up on the situation and asked for help lifting the support beam. The team moved in a coordinated effort and moved quickly but carefully to lift the beam.

“Alright, can you move now? Just try a little and let us know,” Jablonski called out to the colonist.

The colonist grunted and attempted the move. He was able to lift his leg, but it shot pain straight up his body. “Ughhh….I can…I can move but it hurts something bad, sir.”

“You don’t have to call me sir. Crawl very slowly towards us and we will get you out of there,” Jablonski replied. He waited what felt like hours, but was only a few seconds before he saw the colonist finally reach safety. He nodded his head at the others and they released the beam and let it fall. As soon as they did, the building began shaking again. He and Commander Brady helped the man stand to his feet and placed his arms around their shoulders to help support him.

“We have to move!” Commander Brady called out.

“He can’t move any faster,” Ensign Jablonski responded as respectfully as he was able to. He was getting frustrated. It seemed like whatever forces were out there in the universe were plotting against them.

“Get everyone out quickly,” XO LT Co Sili called out from somewhere to their left. She made her way around a corner and had two others colonists with her.

“You have to help him,” the colonist barely spoke above a whisper at this point.

“Help who? Who is ‘him?'” Commander Brady inquired.

“Taren…he was…Taren was trying to help us..He went further in before the building collapsed,” the colonist provided.

Commander Brady looked to Lt Co Sili. “Can you get these survivors out? Me and Jablonski will look for Taren and we will do so quickly.”

Lt Co Sili frowned. “Very well, but I don’t like it. Hurry and keep yourselves safe!”

Commander Brady and Ensign Jablonski helped another team member support the colonist before making their way deeper into the building. “Quickly Ensign, or we will end up underneath this rubble as well.”