Laurentian

Data Recovery/Video Surveillance Entry Six Thousand Four Hundred And Eighty Seven (6487)- Transcribed due to corruption/DSIL/Deep Sea Installation: Laurentian/Laurentian Abyss/June 8^th/Parties Involved: One [1] – Omar Carmine, Two [2] – Doctor Danielle Hussein, Three [3] – Victor Flynn, Four [4] – Ronald King, Five [5] – Sergei Ivenko, Six [6] – Camilla Webb/Location: Communications

[1] You may all be wondering why I’ve called this meeting.

The six are gathered in a loose, misshapen circle near the intersection where all the corridors link to the other sections of the Dsil.

[2] Yes Omar we are.

Doctor Hussein has her arms folded across her chest as she peers over the rim of her specs.

[4] We were in the middle of vital experiments. They might be ruined by this interruption.

The oldest member of the research team utters irritated.

[3] Ron, stop. I’m sure this is important.

The rotund middle-aged scientist attempts to placate his colleague.

[1] Thank you, Victor and you’re right this is important. Sergei?

Omar turns toward Sergei Ivenko, a stocky man with a shaved head, for him to deliver the news seeing as he is the one that discovered it.

[5] We have lost contact with the storage section.

Is the blunt statement the stocky man issues.

[2] What? When?

[6] Maybe five minutes ago. It’s difficult to say. Not like we were keeping up constant chatter with them.

Camilla shrugs.

[4] Shouldn’t you have been?

The elder scientist accuses with a raised bushy eyebrow.

[5] We’re not performing monkeys.

Sergei says under his breath, but still loud enough to be heard.

[4] Could have fooled me.

Is the retort from Ronald King as he leers at Sergei Ivenko.

[1] Ron!

Omar exclaims sick of the bickering.

[4] Professor King to you.

The man of advanced age fires back as he glares at Omar now. His bushy grey eyebrows angled sharply downward in a v-shape.

[3] Ron, there is no need for this and you haven’t been a professor in more than a decade. You’re being irrational.

Is the reminder issued as calmly as is possible.

[2] Victor is right. Ron calm down, that is an order. What do you suggest we do Omar?

[1] We need to suspend all research and work on getting our people back.

[4] You must be mad!

Comes the interruption from Ronald King as his hands are braced against his waist.

[5] Says the raving lunatic.

The stocky man fires back without consideration.

[2] Everyone shut it!

There is a silence that hangs in the air for a while following the angry demand of Doctor Danielle Hussein.

[2] What haven’t you told us?

Omar sighs.

[1] We still aren’t getting any response from the surface. It’s been five days. We can’t keep waiting. Especially, now we’ve lost contact with the trio trapped in the storage section.

[4] What has that got to do with us and our work?

Doctor Hussein turns and glares angrily at Ronald King who gulps, audibly, as he shrinks on the spot and lowers his head.

[2] While I agree with your concern, my colleague does have a point to ask; why current events should necessitate a halt to our work?

[1] For one, we don’t know why the links between sections failed. They shouldn’t have. One maybe, but both, and at the same time seems more than just a coincidence or back luck. Two, it’s going to take all of us to get our people back.

[3] You have a plan?

Omar sighs and rubs his eyes.

[1] Yeah, but it’s going to be a lot harder now that we’ve lost contact.

[2] Why do I get the feeling I’m not going to like this?

[1] You’re not. And I’m not going to beat about the bush here. We’re going to have to cross to the storage section and breach it.

[3] Won’t that kill everyone inside?

[5] Not if we use the link tunnels between sections.

[2] But they’ve failed. If they hadn’t they wouldn’t be cut-off from us.

[6] Communications to Storage has failed. Transit to Storage is just flooded.

[3] Sorry, I don’t see the difference or how that’s possible at this depth.

[1] What Camilla and Sergei are saying is that, while yes, one of the links has failed, completely we think. The other, Transit to Storage doesn’t seem to have suffered a catastrophic failure.

[5] Yet.

[1] Yeah, yet. For the moment it’s still passable.

[2] But what’s that got to do with me and my team?

[1] Well, there aren’t enough of us. It’s me, Cam and Sergei. Two of us alone will need to do the walk. We’ll need another to make sure the lines don’t get kinked and someone for the cycle.

[3] What cycle?

[1] That’s the other thing. We’re going to need to kill the power to release the Storage/Transit door, but to do that we have to overload the system.

[2] Are you telling me this trillion dollar installation has no section by section breaker?

[6] It has, but if we trip it all the doors throughout Dsil will open. They’re all on the same loop.

[1] And the overload will kill all power throughout this facility until an automatic reboot kicks in thirty five seconds later, isn’t that right Sergei?

[5] Dah.

[4] Still don’t see why we can’t continue our work.

[6] You can. Don’t let us get in your way. But things will short from the overload and if you’re touching or even near them you will get tens of thousands of volts flowing through your body.

[2] Isn’t there another way Omar? We have samples, active calculations. If the power goes out it could all be lost.

[1] If there was Cam and Sergei would have found it. It’s part of the reason why I’ve been delaying. I had hoped to get contact with the surface and request confirmation to go ahead. Or a specialist team for rescue, but we’re getting nothing. So either there is one big fuck off storm way above our heads or…

[2] …Or something’s either failed or been damaged.

[1] Yeah. And if that’s the case we might not get contact until it’s too late. And I for one don’t want to risk losing anyone we don’t have to. Experiments can be repeated. People’s lives aren’t so easily replaced.

[4] You know nothing of what we’re working on.

[3] Ron, zip it! These are people we’re talking about. And one of them is a colleague. Are you really going to be that draconian?

[4] Oh, fuck off! What’s one life? With that we’re doing here we could save millions. We all knew it was a risk coming down here. The science is more important. It always is.

[5] Sick. You’re sick in the head.

Sergei taps his right temple with his right index finger several times to illustrate his point.

[3] I can’t believe you’re saying this. You’re mad.

[2] While I agree we cannot stand by and do nothing. I am inclined to agree, in part, with Professor King. What we’re doing here may not be repeatable if we lose samples and calculations this early on.

[3] Danielle, you cannot be seriously considering putting our work above people’s lives!

[2] I didn’t say that. But Omar is Lead here. The decision is an operational one and as such is his to make.

[1] That’s true. But we’re going to vote because this will put all our lives at risk, so it’s only fair everyone gets to decide.

Omar pauses to let his words sink in.

[1] All against rescuing the three stranded in the storage section raise your hands.

Ronald King and Doctor Danielle Hussein raise their hands, but Victor Flynn does not. He is the only one of the three scientists that cannot, in good conscious, bring himself to. Ronald glares at him for it as a result.

[1] All those in favour of rescuing those trapped in storage.

Omar, Camilla, Sergei and Victor raise their hands.

[1] Four to two in favour. Motion passed. We will be rescuing those trapped. And there will be no arguments.