As the Ithaca hurtled through the atmosphere of the icy planet below, it bucked and shuddered violently, triggering warning alarms that blared from every console. The deafening screams of the alarms barely pierced through the overpowering roar of the engines struggling against the damage they had sustained from the subspace anomalies that had assaulted the ship moments ago.

Tomaz gripped the controls with white-knuckled intensity, his eyes narrowing in concentration as he wrestled to keep the shuttle from spiralling out of control.

“Tomaz, we’re losing power!” Flemen shouted from the co-pilot’s voice cut through the cacophony, his tone tinged with urgency and dread. Flemen’s fingers danced over the auxiliary systems, desperately trying to redirect the scant power to the stabilisers. Despite his frantic efforts, the ship was tearing itself apart.

“Hold on!” Tomaz yelled back, sweat beading on his forehead as he struggled to level the descent. He took one deep breath, his determination to survive fueling his actions. He couldn’t let this be the end, not when his son, S’Tem, was waiting for him on the Odyssey. Pain hit his chest as he realised that if this was it, he had left his son alone. 

The planet’s surface loomed large in the forward viewport, a blur of white and blue as they hurtled toward the ground at a terrifying speed. The controls jerked in Tomaz’s hands, responding sluggishly, and he knew they were mere moments from impact.

Taking one quick glance to his left, Tomaz saw the fright plastered across his friend’s face. He could almost hear Flemen’s heart pounding in his chest and saw every muscle in his body tense as he braced for the inevitable. 

“Tomaz, we’re coming in too fast!”

Returning his focus back to his work, Tomaz’s jaw clenched as he fought against the ship’s failing systems. “I’m trying to slow us down, but the thrusters—” A violent jolt cut off the sentence as the shuttle hit the upper layers of the planet’s atmosphere. The hull groaned under the stress, the metal creaking ominously as the temperature outside spiked from re-entry.

Suddenly, the cockpit was filled with blinding light as sparks flew from the console before Tomaz. The ship pitched sideways, sending both men lurching against their restraints. Flemen’s hand slammed into the console as he tried to regain control of the auxiliary power, but the display flickered. “I’m launching the distress beacon.” 

Fired from its aft compartment, the beacon shot out from the type-fourteen shuttle at incredible speed as it escaped from the commotion.

“Beacon away. However, I’m not sure if it will get a message to the Odyssey with those subspace anomalies,” Flemen added.

“It’s better than nothing, Craigen,” Tomaz said through gritted teeth. There was nothing more they could do. Tomaz knew this could be it for them both, but he clung to a sliver of hope. “Brace for impact!” Tomaz shouted, his voice barely audible over the orchestra of alarms and the roar of the wind as the Ithaca plummeted toward the ground.

The planet’s frozen surface rushed up to meet them, and in those final moments, Tomaz could only close his eyes and cling to the hope that they would somehow survive the crash. The runabout hit the ground with a bone-jarring impact, skidding across the ice at breakneck speed. Metal screamed in protest as the ship was torn apart by the force of the crash, shards of ice and snow spraying up around them in a blinding flurry.

Tomaz was thrown forward against his restraints as the ship came to a sudden, jarring stop. The force of the impact knocked the breath from his lungs, and for a moment, everything was a blur of pain and confusion. The sound of the crashing metal echoed in his ears, gradually fading into an eerie silence.

When the world finally stopped spinning, Flemen forced his eyes open, his heart still pounding in his chest. The cockpit was dark, the only light coming from the weak flicker of the emergency power systems. The bitter cold was already seeping in, and his breath fogged in the air as he struggled to focus.

“Tomaz?” Flemen’s voice was hoarse, his throat dry as he turned toward the pilot’s seat. His stomach clenched in fear as he saw his friend slumped forward, a deep gash on his side and blood staining the front of his uniform.

“Tomaz!” Flemen shouted, his voice breaking with panic. He reached out, shaking Tomaz’s shoulder, but there was no response. Desperation surged through Flemen as he fumbled with the restraints, his fingers numb from the cold and trembling with fear. Finally, he managed to free himself and hurriedly reached for the medkit stowed beneath his seat.

With shaking hands, Flemen activated the tricorder, scanning Tomaz’s injuries. The readings were grim—concussion, internal bleeding, and a severe loss of blood. Flemen’s breath hitched as he realised the severity of the situation, but he forced himself to focus. He wasn’t about to lose his best friend.

“Stay with me, Tomaz,” Flemen muttered as he pulled out a dermal regenerator and began treating the wound. The small device hummed to life as it worked to seal the gash, but it could only do so much. Though his advanced field medic training from his days as a Hazard Team member was rushing back to him, he couldn’t help but panic more. Taking a deep breath, Flemen knew he had to calm himself down. Flemen knew he needed to stabilise Tomaz and fast.

With the bleeding under control, he administered a hypospray of stabilising agents, hoping it would buy them enough time. “Come on, buddy, you’re tougher than this,” Flemen whispered, trying to keep his voice steady. “We’ve been through worse.”

“Craigen,” Tomaz said slowly and barely conscious. His blueish-green eyes fluttered open slowly, gazing at Flemen. “We made it?” he croaked, his voice filled with a mix of relief and exhaustion.

With a slight smile, Flemen nodded, trying to remain optimistic about their current situation. “Just about.”

Tomaz tried to move but was struck down with a bolt of pain. 

Resting his hands on Tomaz to calm him, Flemen pressured his friend back into his seat. “Don’t move, Tomaz; you’re in a bad state.”

“So’s the shuttle,” Tomaz coughed before he shivered. 

Outside, the wind howled, and the temperature continued to plummet. Flemen felt the icy breeze hit the back of his neck. “Stay with me, Tomaz; let me grab some of the arctic gear out of storage.”

Tomaz just nodded weakly. The colour in his face was slowly draining away, forcing Flemen to work as fast as he could. After raiding what he could find in the shuttle’s storage, Flemen returned and carefully dressed Tomaz in the Arctic gear.

“You still with me, commander?” Flemen asked as he buttoned his friend into the long coat and slowly pulled the hood around him.

Tomaz mumbled something back.

“I didn’t hear that, commander,” Flemen responded. “I order you to respond.”

Chuckling somewhat, Tomaz tried to sit up and be more with it. “You can’t order me.”

“I think I can,” Flemen responded as he started to put gloves on Tomaz’s hands.

“No,” Tomaz protested. “We’re both the same rank.”

“And you’re the Odyssey’s second officer, and I’m its third officer; who gives a crap right now, Tomaz. You’re injured, and I’m left standing which technically speaking makes me the commanding officer of this mission.” 

Smirking at his friend, Tomaz attempted to salute him, “Yes, sir.”

“Better,” Flemen said with a grin. “And you need to survive this for that godson of mine.” Flemen knew that would give Tomaz the surge to do something.

“I know,” Tomaz replied weakly. “I shouldn’t have left him alone.”

“Come on, Tomaz, don’t do this to me,” Flemen insisted as he pulled his friend’s hood over his head. “I need you to remain focussed on staying alive. You know S’Tem is in good hands and he will be expecting to see you back on the Odyssey alive and well.”

Tomaz nodded as he tried to speak; his breath was catching every word. “You think Alfie and Jordan will charge me more for babysitting him a bit longer?”

“Absolutely,” Flemen responded as he started to put his own gear on. “And I’m certain that Doctor Slyvexs and Professor Mettex have loved having S’Tem stay with them.”

Flemen noticed Tomaz appreciating the sentiments he was sharing. Before they had left the Odyssey a few days ago to help Commodore McCallister with his negotiations with the Zahl, Tomaz had asked the ship’s chief medical officer and her husband to look after S’Tem while he was away. He had also arranged for Cadets McCallister and Duncan-Court to babysit for them each evening after S’Tem had finished school. Alongside that Tierra and Keli had both agreed to help out if it was needed. Tomaz had shared after leaving the Odyssey how grateful he was to his friends and colleagues for helping out. 

After wrapping his Starfleet-issued scarf around his neck, Flemen covered Tomaz in a thermal blanket, securing it tightly to keep the warmth in. The cold was relentless, and it wouldn’t be long before the inside of the runabout became just as unforgiving as the frozen wasteland outside. He pulled another blanket around himself. 

Flemen knew they couldn’t stay in the wreckage for long. The ship was dead, its systems offline, and the chances of anyone finding them out here were slim at best. His mind raced as he tried to formulate a plan, the weight of Tomaz’s survival pressing down on him like a stack of torpedoes. 

“All right,” he said. “We’ve got to find shelter. Somewhere warmer.” Flemen’s gaze flicked to the cracked viewport, where the icy landscape stretched out as far as he could see, an endless expanse of white.

  Drawing in a deep breath, Flemen grabbed what supplies he could from the wreckage and fashioned a makeshift stretcher/sledge. Fueled by adrenaline and fear, he worked quickly.

“Craigen, what are you doing?” Tomaz asked in between breaths.

“The shuttle can’t sustain us,” Flemen replied as he worked on his tricorder. “I’m detecting a series of caverns at the base of some hills not far from here. If I can get us there, we can survive better there.”

Sighing in agony, Tomaz tried to sit up straighter in his chair. “I can barely walk, Craigen. I won’t make it.”

“That’s okay, I’m going to carry you on this,” Flemen gestured towards the stretcher he had made by pulling apart one of the bunks. 

Tomaz chuckled. “You can’t carry me; I’m too heavy for you.”

“Oh shut up, you weigh five pounds less than me, and between the two of us, I spend more time in the gym. I can tug that skinny ass of yours across the snow with ease,” Flemen assured his friend. “And anyway, I’m making this an order. We’re abandoning ship.”

“Aye, captain,” Tomaz said, resting his head on his chair. It was apparent he couldn’t fight his friend. “Also, thanks for saying I have a skinny ass.”

Flemen chuckled. “No problems, but when we return to the Odyssey, you’re getting back on that treadmill. Don’t think I didn’t notice that slight dad-bod you’ve got growing.”

“I have not got a dad-bod!” Tomaz protested. 

“You’ve left yourself go in recent months, Tomaz,” Flemen teased as he finished packing the last of the supplies they would need. He pushed a tricorder into one of his pockets and a phaser into the other. “But it’s all expected; you’re comfortable at home with being a single dad.”

Tomaz laughed, “You’re an asshole, you know that Craigen.”

“But an extremely muscular and fine-looking asshole,” Flemen countered back as he approached his friend. “Ready for me to haul your ass?”

Rolling his eyes, Tomaz nodded. “Fine, but can we stop talking about your ass and mine. It’s getting weird.”

Realising he was right, Flemen agreed. “I promise to cut hostilities.” He leant down and picked his friend into his arms before carefully plopping him down on the sledge. “You ready?”

“Let’s go,” Tomaz consented as he glanced around the shuttle. There wasn’t much more they could take to help them. Flemen had placed everything they would need in the sledge under Tomaz’s legs and feet. 

Once Tomaz was secured, Flemen braced himself and dragged the sledge out of the ruined shuttle into the blinding cold of the storm outside.