Where's the Sonic Shower?
Posted on Tue Aug 17th, 2021 @ 11:01pm by Lieutenant Commander Hamish Brott & Ensign Andrea Astor
875 words; about a 4 minute read
Mission: Prologue: Parting is Such Sweet Sorrow
Thankfully the transport ship managed to coast into transporter range, at which point Ensign Astor grabbed her kit bag and made her escape. She badly wanted to shower and clean up before she met her new commanding officer or any other lifeform for that matter. Perhaps the only thing worse than the state of the Orisa's engines and systems was the level of cleanliness in the engine room. And of the Chief Engineer.
Perhaps the station had a decontamination chamber...
With a hasty farewell, she had felt the familiar sensation of the transporter take hold and soon found herself on a transporter pad and face to face with Lieutenant Commander Brott. "Ensign Andrea Astor, reporting for duty," she said as she stepped forward, holding out a PaDD.
The Bolian was delighted to see the woman in person. He immediately launched himself forward, took the PaDD, discarded it, and wrapped the woman in a big Bolian 'bear hug' of an embrace. "Welcome to the Bellwether Station, Ensign Astor," he said gleefully.
Her eyes widened in alarm as the Bolian all but smothered her in his enthusiasm. The fact she was covered in oil and heaven knew what didn’t bother him at all apparently. When she finally had the space to breathe, she drew in a deep lungful of air.
“Quite the welcome,” she commented ruefully. “Good to be here. It looked a little unlikely for a while… speaking of which, can you point me in the direction of the nearest shower? As you can see, I’m a mess and hygiene wasn’t high on their agenda. Best not to dwell on it really.”
"Certainly," replied the Bolian. "This won't be much of a grand tour, but you'll learn the lay out of the station pretty easily. This is Ops," he said gesturing to the open space room with several stations. He pointed to one corridor "The Infirmary is that way," he added.
The Bolian turned and began walking towards another corridor. "Follow me dear," he said jovially. "This takes you to the habitat module. At the end of the corridor is where I sleep, the Commander's Cabin. To the left side is Suite Alpha and the right side is Suite Beta. Each suite can house three crewmembers."
He walked the corridor with her. "You'll be in here," he added. "Both your roommates are already aboard. Looks like you are getting the bottom bunk. Doctor Tanaka took the top, and Lieutenant MacLeod took the separate bed. There's a Sonic Shower and wash basin in there as well."
Andrea groaned inwardly. Two other people…. “That sounds perfect,” she lied smoothly. “And cosy. If you don’t mind giving me five minutes to shower and get into a fresh uniform I’d like to get started. I like to stay busy.”
"By all means," he replied. "Take whatever time you need. You can replicate a fresh uniform. Please feel free to bring beverages to Ops. It's only the few of us on the station and I'm loose with regulations. This will be as much as your home as your workplace."
“A coffee sounds good right now,” she admitted.
The Bolian smiled. "Go get that sonic shower. When you are finished, grab a coffee and settle in a bit. Stretch your legs, walk around, mingle with the others if you want to. I'll be in Ops for the next few hours."
“I will be there shortly, I’d like to get a better idea of the stations condition and priorities for repairs, and anything else you want to discuss, of course,” Andrea said quickly. “And hopefully I will smell better by then too.”
"Let's hope so," Hamish replied. "You smell like a Klingon who slaughtered a target and hasn't bathed in a month," he teased. "I'll leave you to that sonic shower. "
Somehow she managed a not so Starfleet response to his comment as she dropped her bags on the floor at the lower bunk and then grabbed toiletries, a fresh uniform and underwear, and a towel. As she walked towards the shower and now that she was alone she sniffed under her arm and made a face. Yep, it was bad…
Lieutenant Commander Brott made his way back to Operations as he thought about the woman who had just come aboard the station. Ops would become a new home to her at least for the next few months along with the rest of the crew. He was hoping that she and the others would choose to stay aboard the station when the time came for them to make that decision, and he certainly hoped that none of them would try to request an early transfer to somewhere else.
From time to time that did happen. He once had a young ensign, an Ithenite science officer who lasted only a few weeks before seeking a transfer. Life aboard the relay station was just not for them. It was literally too stationary. Brott took a seat at Ops and awaited his new Operations Officer to return from her sonic shower. I hope she settles in nicely. Now, I just have to wait for the last of this new batch to arrive thought the jovial Bolian.
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