Posted by Captain Dante Knight (Commanding Officer) in StarBase 257: Knight and Colter

Posted by Commander Daniel “DaVinci” Colter (Chief Intelligence Officer/ 2nd Officer) in StarBase 257: Knight and Colter

Posted by Captain Dante Knight (Commanding Officer) in StarBase 257: Knight and Colter
Posted by… suppressed (8) by the Post Ghost! 👻

Snip

DaVinci laughed out loud when he thought of Dante calling him son. “Well, if we take away the four hundred years, you would only be a few years older than me, sir. So that pat on the head, still might be a little awkward, but I do appreciate it.”

He looked at the waiter that had approached. “As long as you’re suggesting the good stuff, Cap’n, would it be too much to ask for a good down home bourbon, something straight from Kentucky?”

Colter (CIO)

“A Kentucky Bourbon? I haven’t had one of those for a long time, not since a friend of mine on Outpost 42 stated that Lagavulin whiskey was better than anything else we could find, so we tried. That ended up being a very messy night but, I seem to recall a bottle of Evan Williams 23 Year Old being declared suitable for consumption.” Dante grinned and and looked up at the waiter, “A bottle of Bonollo Grappa of Amarone Barrique, and a Bourbon of the Commanders choosing. Make sure it’s the real stuff.” He glanced back to Colter and grinned, “I’m sure that the Saracen’s requisitions department can handle the bills on this one.”

Captain Knight, CO

“Well, as long as it’s on the Saracen’s dime, how about a good Woodford Reserve Double Oaked Bourbon,” DaVinci ordered.

The waiter paused for a moment and eyed the two of them, before adding the orders to the PaDD and moving off.

As the waiter withdrew in search of the orders, the CIO looked back to Dante. “That Bomollo Grappa you ordered, that’s an Italian wine, isn’t it? Funny, I never pictured you as a wine drinker. That some of Dr. Daye’s influence rubbing off. Though to be honest, I can’t see her as a wine drinker, either. I picture her as someone who enjoys their vodka, that true?”

Colter (CIO)

“You have her picked out to a square inch” Dante grinned at DaVinci, “Was it the Russian accent she uses when she gets fiery, or the simple fact she’s like a little pocket battleship that runs on Vodka on a good day?”

“Colter chuckled. “Probably a little bit of both.”

Then of course Dante came forward and looked at Colter a little more seriously. “Grappa, my friend, is not Wine” he said the last word with a very Italian inflection that sounded almost dismissive. “It’s closer to a grape Brandy, but wine of course is made by taking out all the watery bits from the grape. Grappa, real Grappa, is a Spirit made from the leftover solids they don’t use to make wine. The seeds, stem and such. And of course they punch it right up to around 40 to 60 percent alcohol, beats a wine any day. Besides” Dante said with a smirk again, losing his more serious seeming facade as he spoke of the traditional Italian spirit, “You are named after one of the most famous Italians, right? It’s only fitting we celebrate with an Italian drink.”

Captain Knight, CO

“I have a confession to make, Cap. I always thought France and Italy were only good for making wine. You never heard people, at least my generation, living in the Great Plains, talk about Italian Brandy. Most of the time, it was either beer, or Boonesfarm, if we wanted something stronger. I stand corrected.”

“Italy is pretty good at Pizza too, although I think in your day America had claimed that Pizza was a national treasure as well? Yes?” Dante grinned and moved his empty glass to one side as he spied the waiter on his way back to them. “I’ve never heard of Boonesfarm, that sounds dangerous.”

The waiter returned with the alcohol and placed the bottles on the table. DaVinci picked the bottle he ordered and stated as a fact, “This here, this stuff, straight from Kentucky is the only real bourbon on Earth.”

“Double barreled? If they get it wrong isn’t that just going to make it taste like wood?” He said, and sat back and watched Colter as he opened the bottle.

He poured a tumbler full and added some ice. Smiling he raised the glass to his lips and swallowed a quaff. Then closing his eyes, he leaned back and let the burn work it’s way down his throat.”

Sitting back up, he leaned in closer to Dante and added, “I have another confession to make, sir. DaVinci isn’t my real name. It’s a nickname I picked up in high school. not because I was extra smart or anything, but I was always coming up with ideas that should’ve gotten my friends and I either expelled from school, thrown in jail, or killed. Somehow, none of those things ever happened. Close, but never.”

Colter (CIO)

Dante eyed his CIO for a moment as he opened the Grappa, a slight smile at the confession but a simple head tilt in acknowledgement as he made sure the Grappa was ‘right’. Slightly cooler than room temperature, the bottle of liquor was just right for it’s age. Younger would have meant colder.

He took the cognac glass the waiter had provided and poured a small measure of the amber liquid, the sweet aroma able to be detected even then. “You know, despite the glass I am still going to argue that this is not wine.” He smirked, and then raised the glass slightly and took a small sip. The Grappa was surypy sweet, and potent. Exactly how it was supposed to be. “I’m supposed to let this breathe for about 15 minutes before I drink it, but I have never been patient enough for that.”

Relaxing back in his chair, he glanced out the window at the Saracen in dock and placed his ankle on his knee, nursing the small glass. “So then, Mr Colter. What exactly is the real name you were given in youth? DaVinci is a very good choice of name to use as a substitute, my parents felt naming me after Italy’s pre-eminent medieval poet, among other things, was going to herald great things. Alas, I am terrible at poetry and hate politics.”

Captain Knight, CO

“Dante? There are plenty worse names to have. Doresn’t ‘Dante’ mean lasting, or enduring? Hopefully, that means you’ll be sitting in the Saracen’s center seat for a long time to come.” The CIO held up his glass in the captain’s honor.

“Well said,” Dante replied and raised his own glass. “I knew I liked you for a reason other than saving the world.”

After taking another swig, he resumed. “Daniel. I was named after mt grandfather. He served in Earth’s World War I as a captain in the US Army. I guess you could say soldiering is in my blood. What about you? What got you to serve, sir?”

Colter (CIO)

Dante grinned again, but a little wider perhaps. “Lets just say, I am terrible at listening and taking orders.” He took a large drink of his Grappa and refilled the glass, slightly more than what was normally required of the strong drink.

“My family has little in the way of Starfleet history behind it. We’ve had some cousins and that who were engineers, security and the like, but nothing of note. I’m the first to reach a Senior Officer position, and definitely the first Captain in my family that served in Starfleet. My mother is an Academic, Scientist to be precise and lectures at the University in my home city. My father is a crusty old grease monkey of a Freighter Captain. Both had their own idea’s of what I should do, and my Uncle owns racehorses which is kind of the family business. So, I had three of them telling me what I should do and where I should go. I never was good at taking those kind of suggestions so, I joined Starfleet much to my Uncles and my Fathers disappointment. Of course, they never thought I would make Captain, especially not yet. My Mother was more supportive however, I mean she already knew how to put up with my Father.” He smirked and took another drink.

“My younger brother, Bruce, joined up after me. He’s Chief of Security on the U.S.S. Harrier currently. That makes me the bad influence in my family, but I was always that anyway according to my Uncle. I wanted to see the galaxy, be more than a scientist stuck in a lab or a horse breeder. More than an engineer working the family Freighter. That’s why I’m here, plus we sold the Freighter anyway as my father is retired now. It’s hard to save the universe while flying a Freighter.”

Captain Knight, CO

“Nothing beats a starship for that, but I remember a story from my youth. It had a Correlian freighter captain that played a major part in freeing the galaxy from under the thumb of an evil galactic empire. It was a long, time ago, in a galaxy far, far, away.”

Colter (CIO)