Lt. Kiliak Jo - Deep Soak

[Lennard Noller]

((Relaxation Room 4, Mynok Spring Concerns, Post-awards)

Attendant: Your masseuse will be ready for you in ten minutes, Miss Jo.

Kiliak removed one of the sliced Aldean fruits from over her eyes and took a look at the alien attendant of Mynok Spring Concerns. She pushed against the far edge of the tub with her feet, pressing herself to a more upright position in the warm mud that covered her.

Kiliak: Ah. Thank you. I'll be right out.

The Attendant bowed slightly and left. Kiliak removed the other fruit slice and let her gaze wander to the room's wide bay window. Outside, through the protective shield that protected the converted resort, there was clear view over the exhausted mining concern and the dusty moon beyond, as well as to space above. She saw the now-familiar sleek form of the Juneau hanging there in space, remembering how she'd first seen it in the Fleetyards above Mars, now she was backdropped by the vastness of endless stars and rather dwarfed by the massive USS Gorkon beside her along with a pair of Defiant escort ships. Her first commanding position aboard this ship had not been an easy one. It seemed whenever they had bolted one problem back into place, another had propped up to take its place, hounding them every step of the way of their "cruise". She was not confident she had made all the right choices along the way. She didn't want to imagine what could have been different if the Prophets had not blessed the Juneau with the talented and capable crew that had flown the ship at speeds unknown across a wide swath of explored space...

Kiliak reached over to the adjust the tub's steam valve, and the mud began to bubble again, a warm, flowery fragrance filling her nostrils. She heard the door chime again.

Kiliak: Come in?

Attendant: Sorry to disturb you again, Miss Jo. You have received a priority message. Your colleague believes it to be urgent and was under orders to deliver it to you personally as soon as possible.

Kiliak took the PADD from the Gorkon's security crewman and thanked him for bringing it to her. After the other two left, she entered her personal access code and looked at the contents. The PADD contained a single file, purely text. She read.

I have gone over reports of the details and outcomes of your mission aboard the Juneau. I am aware that it was a success in every valuable measure. I am also aware that you faced critical difficulties in carrying out your mission. Due to this, it's been seen fit that I may bend protocol and inform you of something I believe you may care to know. It is my opinion, bolstered by considerable experience, that the galaxy today is not governed by wealth of resources or military power, but in the modern age, it is rather the ebb and flow of information that directs the future. The packages whose delivery you were entrusted with, they are crucial links in a bounded chain, instruments to serve in the protection of potentially hundreds of thousands of Federation lives. I hope that this bit of knowledge, if nothing else, may help you soon sleep soundly at night.

As her eyes reached the bottom of the text, she found the PADD was already wiping its own memory core, a moment later it had erased any trace of the message. She didn't have to wonder long who might have sent the message. She knew Blackwell was the name of a ship in the fleet, and it was likely that a man who valued information so highly placed a special premium on his own name. Still, in a strange way, the message was comforting, it gave a cathartic sense of closure to all they had been through together.

Her massage was almost ready by now. She was going to try and enjoy it, try to actually relax for the first time in months, before the inevitable return to duty as usual. She exhaled slowly through her nose, then rose from the tub, grabbed a towel, and headed for the Sonic showers.

[[End for Kiliak]]

(( Ooc: I'd like to also offer my personal thanks to everyone who participated in the Capstone project. I loved getting to know your individual characters and your styles as writers as we all watched the plot of this little miniseries unfold. I appreciate your patience with the experimental nature of the project as we figured out how to best facilitate an exciting and inviting adventure across known space for the Juneau and her crew. This has been a highlight of my time simming with Starbase 118 and I look forward to seeing you and your characters across the fleet in the future. I salute each of you. ))

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Lieutenant Kiliak Jo

First Officer

USS Juneau

A239509KJ0

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