Lt Alex Storm - A Lead at Last
Karen Morris
((Storm’s Quarters, Deck 4, USS Artemis))
Before she checked her messages. Before she unpacked. Before she chose some music, Alex walked straight into her bathroom for a shower. Not a sonic shower - oh no. She wanted the full experience.
HOT water.
Foamy shampoo.
Scented body wash.
The magic conditioner that removes every tangle.
And…
A razor!
Oh, thank the Four for razors. Simple, miraculous pleasures.
Thirty minutes and several rounds of shampoo and soap later, she emerged from her bathroom a new woman. Wrapped in a white floral silk robe and her hair in a towel, she padded across her quarters to her terminal.
As she did, the few water droplets still dotting her skin met the cool of her quarters, making the hair on her arms stand on end. She crossed her arms and rubbed her hands up and down to warm them.
As she pulled out her seat, she said….
Storm: Computer, display messages from while I was gone.
A list of messages populated her screen.
Storm: And raise the ambient temperature by four degrees.
Subject - Shipwide announcement - Shoreleave on Rylor.
Not now.
Subject - Communique - To all tactical officers.
Later.
Subject - Join Starflirt for half off - now for a limited time only.
Not on your life.
She swiped the message into oblivion. Not that she was ready to admit out loud what she realized in the recesses of her mind while on Callis I. But Starflirt was a ‘hard pass.’
Subject - Alex, you gotta see this, now!
That one she opened right away. Her eye skimmed the message, and the further she read, the more she leaned back in her chair. Her hand slowly raised from her side and soon covered her mouth.
One muffled word escaped her mouth.
Storm: Oh, Kona...
She reached for her combadge --
It wasn’t there.
Storm: Damn!
She pushed her chair back so quickly it toppled over, and she left it as she raced to find her combadge. When she did, she removed the emblem from her stiff uniform and tapped it while she headed to her closet to get some civilian clothes.
Storm: =/\= Storm to Cole =/\=
Cole: =/\=Response.
Storm: =/\= Are you still up for going with me to find my daughter? I have a lead on her and … Kona.=/\=
She grabbed a pair of jeans and a soft green, flowy shirt from her closet.
Cole: =/\= Response
Storm: =/\= Okay, good. Can you meet me in my quarters? Bring a change or two of clothes. We may be gone a couple of days. =/\=
She grabbed her undergarments as she tapped her combadge again.
Storm: =/\=Storm to Jaran =/\=
She shimmied into her skivvies.
Jaran: =/\= Response
Storm: =/\= Did you mean it when you said you wanted to go with me again to find Cassie?=/\=
She wiggled her hips as she pulled her blue jeans over them.
Jaran: =/\= Response
Storm: =/\= I have a fairly certain lead on where they are. Care to join me?=/\=
Jaran: =/\= Response
Storm: =/\= Thank you so much! Meet me in my quarters as soon as you can. Pack for a couple of days, but pack light. We need to leave shortly. =/\=
Alex pinched the top between her thumb and forefinger and slipped it over her head as she headed back to the living room. First, she righted her chair. Then she grabbed her bag, to swap out the uniforms for fresh civilian clothes.
~*~
Tags / TBC!
~*~
Lt Alex Storm
Tactical Officer
USS Artemis
O240103SK2