Posted by Captain Daniel “DaVinci” Colter (CO/CIO) in Discussion with the Counselor

Posted by Lieutenant Sheleah Ruby (Diplomatic Officer / CNS) in Discussion with the Counselor

Posted by Captain Daniel “DaVinci” Colter (CO/CIO) in Discussion with the Counselor
Posted by… suppressed (14) by the Post Ghost! 👻
DaVinci sat on the couch in his quarters, a slew of PADDS strewn about the coffee table in front of him. It seemed he had been at this for hours going over fepartment reports, crew updates, supply requisitions, etc. . . .

He looked at the chronograpr, and realized, yes, he had been at this for at least 4 hours. He needed some human interaction and conversation soon or else he would be bouncing off the walls.

=^=Computer, send a message to Lt. Ruby, that I would like to see her in my quarters as soon as she’s available. Official, but relaxed. =^=

A moment later, the computer trplied that the message had been sent. . . .

Captain Daniel “DaVinci” Colter
CO/CIO USS Saracen

About 15 minutes later, Sheleah chimed at the Captain’s door. She couldn’t help but have Rex in tow for the moment. His play date was running late and she had just messaged for them to meet at the Captain’s quarters to pick Rex up. Everything was going a little crazy for the last few days and one had to catch as catch can. Nobody refused the Captain though so he would have to entertain them both for the next 10 minutes.

• Sheleah, CNS/DO

“Come in, Counselor. Care for a drink?” the CO replied to the chime.

He stood by the refridgerator in his quarters, pulling out one of his favorites–a bottle of Miller High Life.

When he told Sheleah the meeting was a relaxed affair, he meant it. He wore a pair of knit Starfleet shorts and a t-shirt with the sleeves cut off, and ‘U .of Wyoming’ printed on the front.

“I just wanted to get your take on our most recent additions to the crew.”

Captain Daniel “DaVinci” Colter
CO/CIO USS Saracen

Sheleah stepped into the room and found the nearest place to deposit Rex. The couch did nicely. Turning to Colter she shook her head at the Miller High Life but, smiled at some random thing in the refrigerator and pointed. To her, it looked like a sprite, and that would do nicely if he had some Crown Royal to put in it.

“I’d be more than happy to sit with you and go over all of that with you. If that’s a Sprite in there, I’d be grateful for that too. Got any Crown? Oh, don’t worry about my furry little buddy, he’ll be leaving in about 10 minutes for a playdate. He’s had a very rough day and he deserves some time with his new girlfriend. No, not that kind of girl, he’s not that kind of boy.”

As he reached inside the fridge, he replied, “I hate to tell you this, Rex, but you don’t know what you’re missing.”

Well Sheleah had been speaking, she moved around Colter’s quarters like she had been there dozens of times. She went to the replicator and got Rex one of her patented snacks. Chicken hearts with just a touch of melatonin to calm the boy. Medical exams and a long talk with Sam usually wore him out. She was glad one of her Juniors was coming to pick him up in a few minutes. Mommy needed adult time.

• Sheleah, CNS/DO

DaVinci pulled out the soda and filled a tumbler with ice. He began rummaging around in his liquor cabinet before admitting defeat.

“Sorry, I don’t have any Crown, but, I do have some Jameson. I would think Irish whiskey would do just as well?”

Captain Daniel “DaVinci” Colter
CO/CIO USS Saracen

Sheleah had set Rex’s snack down. She crossed Colter’s small quarters and stood beside him. Looking up she gave him a fake pout and then laughed a bit.

“Well, if that’s all you’ve got, I guess it’ll have to do. Maybe I’ll just have to bring my own next time. Or next time my place?”

DaVinci grinned as she looked at him. “Oh, you know I have much more to offer. If I remember correctly, the last time you were here, you seemed quite satisfied with what I offered.”

She waited for him to finish making the drink. Her Violet tank top clung to her curves and complemented her coloring nicely. The tight fitting denim denim jeans complemented those curves and fit her well. She could have been running around getting ready to go horseback riding for the day or, running errands on a starship. She felt very casual and comfortable in Colter’s quarters. How casual? It would be a very interesting evening.

• Sheleah

He finished mixing her drink, offered it to her, and motioned to take a seat on the couch. DaVinci followed behind Sheleah and enjoyed every inch of her. . . .casualness.

“I appreciate the fact that your ‘casual’ looks very relaxing, I would like to take care of some ship business first, then we can focus on the casual afterward.

Captain Daniel “DaVinci” Colter
CO/CIO USS Saracen

Sheleah took a healthy drink of what DaVinci offered and smiled. She followed him to the couch and sat down. Rex decided he would join mama and this nice man on the couch. Unfortunately, there wasn’t really enough room so he decided just to flop at her feet.

“So, you’ve got a second career as a bartender lined up after this whole being an amazing ships captain right? As far as ships business goes, yeah let’s get that taken care of first. I’ve been meaning to talk to you about a few crew changes that we should probably make in the near future too. So this works out great.”

• Sheleah

He raised a quizzical eyebrow. “We’ll get to that in a minute. Right now, I’d like your thoughts on how the crew, especially the new boots, are handling this new mission? We’re in a greyer area than normal–working with a Romulan on board, a cloaking device on board. . . .this may affect the moral compass of some of them.”

Captain Daniel “DaVinci” Colter
CO/CIO USS Saracen

Sheleah was glad that the Captain had come to her with this subject in mind. Some people were very stoney when it came to things like this and she was glad to see he wasn’t one of them. Communication for the win was her way of thinking. Setting her drink down she turned and faced him.

“Yes, this area is a little more gray than some people may have signed up for or even thought about to tell you the truth. I haven’t heard any outright complaints or objections to the situation though. That’s a good sign. A little bit of tension is not to be an unexpected thing though and I’m definitely keeping an eye on it. I drop in on people just to have a little chat, nothing formal because that wouldn’t be a good idea. It would create the type of tension we’re trying to avoid in my opinion. So far, I haven’t heard or got the sense for anything that’s above normal in my opinion. Nothing we can’t work through with a chat or a little bit of an explanation. How are you with the situation?”

“These kind of ops are almost second nature to me. Did plenty of intel, recon, infiltration, ex-fil, wetworks . . . you name it, dark ops was the name of the game. Of course I didn’t have starships or cloaking devices at my disposal, AND only had to travel across the globe, not light-years to reach a target.”

Sheleah had a feeling DaVinci liked the gray areas to be honest. That didn’t bother her at all. She had a feeling she herself could get used to them. Settling back she glanced down at her PaDD and saw there was a message. Picking it up she glanced at it and smiled.

“Your chimes going to ring in about a minute, then I’ll pop out and offload my furry baggage and we can continue our discussion, is that all right?”

• Sheleah, CNS/DO

“I’ve got nowhere else to be right now, so it’s fine with me as long as I see that smile when you return.”

Captain Daniel “DaVinci” Colter
CO/CIO USS Saracen

That statement actually did make Sheleah a smile. As if on cue DaVinci’s chime rang. Leaning down Sheleah picked up Rex whom seem to have fallen into one of his cat nap states. Getting up she glanced down at DaVinci.

“So, now I’m going to go take the little man out to meet his girlfriend. Back in a bit.”

A few minutes later Sheleah walked back into DaVinci’s quarters without Rex. She did in fact smile and sit back down on the couch. Picking up her drink and the pads she had brought with her she turned slightly and faced him.

“So, what should we get to first?”

• Sheleah, CNS/DO

“Well . . . everybody on the Brave, right now, volunteered for this mission. I’m proud of this crew for so many of them that did volunteer, buuut, have you noticed or talked to anyone that might be having second thoughts?”

Captain Daniel “DaVinci” Colter
CO/CIO USS Saracen

Sheleah took a long sip of her drink and thought for several seconds. Second thoughts were natural.

“Second thoughts are natural. If they become too serious is when we have a problem. I like to walk around the ship and just talk to people. Pulling them in for formal sessions would cause the type of stress that I want to avoid. I haven’t noticed anything in particular that I would consider out of the ordinary. Have you? Are you having second thoughts?”

• Sheleah, CNS/DO

“No. This isn’t my first time on the grey side, and I’m pretty sure it won’t be the last either. When you start having second thoughts about a job . . . .it leads to a moment of hesitation at a crucial moment. That hesitation can cost you the mission . . . .or worse.

Captain Daniel “DaVinci” Colter
CO/CIO USS Saracen

Sheleah had done her best to remain relaxed, but she was paying close attention.

“I’m really glad to hear that. No pressure but, you’re the captain and everybody looks to you to set the example. If you can’t trust me the crew will know that. You’ve come up through the ranks so I know you understand what I’m talking about. Checking in with you is important so I’m glad I’m able to do that in a relaxed environment like right now.”

She was glad that she hadn’t felt the need to take him aside on the bridge, or any other place to check in with him. He was a very good man and knew his crew and his ship. Luckily that would see them through this particular mission.

• Sheleah, CNS/DO

DaVinci offered her a smile. “I appreciate the compliments, Sheleah. And, I do appreciate your recommendation and suggestions. I take what you have to offer very seriously, as well. With that being said, I also have a great deal of faith in you and trust you. We’ve already shared some intimate details with each other,” he said with a mischievous grin.

He set his drink down and stepped closer to her . . . . “In fact, I’d be willing to listen to any suggestions or thoughts you have right now. . . . “

Captain Daniel “DaVinci” Colter
CO/CIO USS Saracen

Sheleah returned his smile, and stepped closer. She enjoyed spending time with him and suggestions, yeah there were a few. Being close to him it was hard not to have a few.

“I know what an important mission this is and that it should be taken with all seriousness but, I think we can save that for outside your quarters for the moment. Maybe you need to relax for about half an hour 45 minutes? I think I’m just a woman to help you do that.”

For all of her studies, and all of her wanting, Sheleah had never been good at making the subtle move. In private she could just say her piece and hope that DaVinci understood. He was a man, didn’t they usually?

• Sheleah