Back to Welcome to Star Trek Realm of the Gods
Introduction to characters section
Ancient races expert:
Name: John “The Drone” Doe
His real name is Midlivsev Serarkverg [a Preserver full name], but he took the name John Doe which the crew gave him when he first met him and referred to him as John Doe. At the time John Doe did not know what the term really meant. He is called John Doe in day to day life, but his parents, who are Preservers, gave him and call him by the Preserver names Midlivsev Serarkverg.
Age at start of rogue mission: Mid twenties
Sex/Race: Male/is a unique organic being created by the ancients. He has no race; in fact he is one of a kind. He is like an organic robot. A being created from scratch by the ancients and is not made from a template of a race, instead he is a template for a race.
Skill set:
The drone has some ancient race abilities, notably of the techno path and merging with technology type. This means he does not need basic Starfleet training. This means he has abilities that would be very useful to a Borg. However, he does not like to show off these abilities on the USS Anracosh. He is there to grow as an individual and advise the crew about all things ancient.
Notably he can interact with ancient races technology as if he were an ancient. It is like he can have his limbs go partly ascended to be able to handle ancient races objects. He does not like to show off these powers because it is so mundane and so much a part of him and his day to day experience that he thinks it’s nothing special. To the drone showing off these abilities is just like showing that he can breathe.
The Drones other great skill is knowledge of the Ancient races community and knowledge about the ancient races themselves, this and his access to all kinds of ancients and being able to get their help make him very powerful.
Important possessions:
Has his own “Dial a Deity” telephone system in his quarters for his personal use.
Likes/dislikes/fears/obsessions:
Wants to explore the younger race ways of life and to learn what it means to be in the younger races.
Special relations with other characters:
Is close to the chief diplomat because they work closely together, could they be a love interest?
Appearance:
Looks like a Borg drone but without any cybernetic attachments. Has the Borg drone style skin and has a full head of near black hair. Does not have the expressionless Borg face, instead he shows his emotions on his face like any other younger race being.
Role:
A logical person in the officer core like Data [Star Trek: The next generation] and Spock [Star Trek: The original series]. He has the same niche as Data as someone still learning how to interact with people. He knows his way around ancient race societies and can easily handle ancient race beings, younger races not so much. He works closely with the chief diplomat but could not do her job because of his social awkwardness with younger race beings and lack of diplomatic qualifications until he uses the neural education devices.
Background:
A Borg drone built by the ancients and offered to the Borg as a drone they could build themselves rather than assimilating cultures. The Borg could then free drones and replace them with “home-made” drones. The Borg refused them and without a place to go the ancients raised him. He spent his life around ancient beings and was given to the crew of the USS Anracosh as an ancient races expert. He was donated to them on their first visit to an ancient race in the time it was a rogue operation. He has not had much interaction with non-ancients and is still socially “finding his feet”.
Personality:
A good way to sum up this guy’s personality is in the word “Adorkable”. He is socially awkward in a way that is charming. His social faux pas are cute and generate humor. He is naïve in the ways of younger races, but is a quick learner and wants to fit in with the crew. He knows he will return to the ancients eventually but sees what he is doing now a learning experience that will make him a better person.
Story Arc:
This guy knows the truth of the Realm of the Gods project [meaning he knows about the six stages of the Realm of the Gods project.] The end result will be the ancient races openly co-existing with the younger races and then in a few centuries invite younger races to join the ancient races clique. He will never have to choose between being in the ancient races clique and living with the younger races. He has little experience with interacting with non-ancient beings and is eager to learn what it is like to be around non-ancients. He wants to grow as a person and sees being on the USS Anracosh as way to develop. He feels that he needs to mature and the USS Anracosh is the perfect way to round out his personality and “grow up”.
He was raised by a group of Preservers who were approached by a member of the Q continuum who convinced them to give him to the commanders of the USS Anracosh. In spite of his young age his Preserver parents thought the Q had a point – he is like a member of the younger races, he should spend some time around them so he can learn and develop. He can quit the USS Anracosh anytime he wants to, but he wants to stay until the Realm of the Gods project reaches the point where having the USS Anracosh running diplomatic missions is no longer necessary.
In time the ancients and younger races will have active parts in each other lives and he can live his life with the two sides being as one. He also knows all the secrets of the Preservers and why some races exist. This is something that really weighs heavily on him. How would some races react if they knew the reason the Preservers created them? That usually does not end well, so he is in two minds about it. On one hand he thinks some of what he knows should be secret, but on the other hand he thinks everyone has the right to know what his Preserver parents have taught him. There are good arguments for both sides of the case.
The crew eventually gets sick of him withholding information. Later in the series they order him to tell them everything he knows in the form of reports and logs stored on the USS Anracosh with copies sent to Starfleet.
Captain:
Name: Vozdi Zahrav
Age at start of rogue mission: The Vulcan equivalent of middle aged
Sex/Race: Female Vulcan
Skill set:
Her main skills are in command and leadership. She was chosen as captain for her command experience. Also she has the standard Starfleet skill set of science/flying a starship and combat/soldier skills from fighting the Dominion war.
Important possessions:
Some antiques she bought after she became a heretic. They are historical texts from the time when the Romulans and Vulcans were one people. They predate the time when Vulcans embraced logic. The texts date from the last time in Vulcan/Romulan history when the Vulcans/Romulans could have successfully made the attempt to qualify in joining the ancients.
Likes/dislikes/fears/obsessions:
Originally wanted to know why the Vulcans have not been invited into the ranks of the ancients. Now wants her people to understand why the Vulcans have not been invited in the ancient races clique and what they have to do to join the ancients.
Special relations with other characters:
Has a strong bond with the core group that started the Federation’s Realm of the Gods project. Apart from herself, that is the First officer, the Security chief and the Bajoran doctor.
Appearance:
Had the normal Vulcan short hair and standard Vulcan look until she was told the reason her race is kept out of the first ones clique. From that point she became a heretic and changed her appearance. She let her hair grow long and wild and is willing to wear her emotions on her sleeve. She is expressive in facial expression and body language, and because of her behavior she is sometimes mistaken for a Romulan.
Role:
She has the most command experience of the crew involved in the rogue mission; therefore she was made captain of the USS Anracosh. She is not the true brains of the outfit, but more of a figurehead leader who rules the ones who make the command decisions on the starship. She is a consensus style leader who wants her officer core’s input on important decisions when that is the best option.
Background:
A Vulcan who wanted to know why her race is not in the ranks of the ancients. Although she is one of the original four who started the rogue mission and did so to get the Federation powerful allies, she [for a time] sees this new secondary reason as why she wants to be a part of the Realm of the Gods mission.
On the first rogue mission of the USS Anracosh she got the answer: The Vulcans are too serious to survive immortality and Vulcans are far too benevolent. Younger races would become dependent on them. She lost all faith in logic and became a heretic. She freely displays emotions and told her race what the ancients told her. The Vulcan government unsuccessfully lobbied to fire her from Starfleet for being a heretic and being loud about it, making it so public why she turned away from logic and why the Vulcans are not part of the Ancient races clique. To reflect her new personality she has redone her hair with a long haired free flowing look. She could pass for a Romulan.
Personality:
She was standard Vulcan before becoming a heretic and acts like a Romulan after becoming a heretic. She has completely renounced the worship of logic as a lifestyle. She wears her emotions on her sleeve and is proud of it.
Story arc:
Upon learning that her race has some major obstacles to joining the ancient races she is fearful for the future of her people. She feels that they are walking into a dead end and must change their ways. She is on a crusade to make them understand what the ancients have said to her. She can fake being logical, but the spell of is broken, she no longer feels it in her heart.
She is trying to re-join the Vulcan fold but she knows the truth and really wants her race to come over to her side. Since she has freed her emotions she has opened up to the people around her. Now is willing to be very forthright with her colleagues and the Vulcan people. She may be a heretic and not far from being disowned by her race, but she will not give up on them. It is not the fact she is a heretic that caused her race nearly disown her but the fact she is so vocal about it. A quiet heretic would be tolerated, one so outspoken is seen as a problem.
She will try to get her people to change even if it means she does so on her deathbed. To help her people get invited to the ranks of the ancients she introduced them to the Riharsha, the ascended proto-Romulans who originate in the neutral zone. She shows them off as an example of where the Vulcans could be if only they freed themselves and took the ancient’s advice on how to improve their race.
Chief Diplomatic officer:
Name: Meredith Yang
Age at start of rogue mission: Late twenties
Sex/Race: Female Human
Skill set:
All the kinds of skills a professional artist would have with a specialty in creating large art installations like the nebula sized one that got the attention of the ancients. She is also a skilled diplomat and has had some basic Starfleet training because she serves on a starship.
Important possessions:
She has art supplies in her cabin and she still likes to be an artist when she is off duty. She leads interested crew members in artistic endeavors.
Likes/dislikes/fears/obsessions:
Long term she would like to return to being a professional artist, and sees her current gig of being a diplomat as a means to an end by “paying the bills”.
Special relations with other characters:
Has a close bond with the Drone because they work closely together. Could this be a love interest?
Appearance:
Doesn’t wear the standard Starfleet uniform. Instead she tends to decorate it with additional clothes like scarves and other types of clothing. This is an expression of the creative side of her personality.
Role:
The non-scientist of the bunch who needs all things science explained to her [for the benefit of the audience]. She is a talented diplomat and people person, but never had the talent for science.
Background:
She was born and raised in an East Asian face culture. An artist who turned a nebula into the largest work of art known to exist. This Endeavour attracted the attention of the ancients, who went to speak to her and she established a rapport with them. Because of this experience she has been made head diplomat in the USS Anracosh. She is still foremost an artist, but has the natural talent to be a diplomat, although she was not trained in diplomacy until she was put into a neural education device. She used to be a struggling artist trying to make something of herself via her art before attracting the attention of the ancients. Up to that point her art career was going nowhere. Getting noticed by the ancients changed that, and it attracted the attention of the core of officers that started the rogue operation, who sold the job offer to her as a legitimate job opportunity, not a rogue operation.
How was the nebula altered by artist?
The artist used custom made missiles [derived from science probes] with large warp fields that can affect matter over a large area. The missiles were used as a gargantuan brush with the nebula as a canvas.
In case you are wondering, the reason why the missiles are not weapons is that the missiles can be stopped by even a moderate shield that any starship would have. The science probes the missiles come from are off the shelf technology available to any starship operator. The probes are civilian equipment, so you need a permit for them, and that is not a major issue. They are simple probes that can be sent into dangerous areas of scientist interest like very close to a star, essentially to a place where it would be dangerous for a starship and its crew.
The missiles were modified to enhance the warp fields to go over a large area; we are talking half a light year type of length. As said earlier the missiles are the paint brush and the nebula is the canvas, and the missiles are reprogrammable to move in ways desired to the user.
Who commissioned the artwork? She did it herself to build her reputation as an artist. She treated this project as a massive roll of the dice. If it did bankrupt her she thought at the time it would be a temporary situation. Once everyone saw the nebula art she would be super famous and could write he own ticket. She did get famous and the ancients noticed the artwork.
With the ancients involved the Federation rapidly lost interest and abandoned the area like they do with many ancient race areas, and put up the “no trespassing signs” and the Federation undid her work, but she was compensated for her losses. Her reputation as a famous artist never came to be. Now far from being bankrupt but despondent she sought a new challenge. She therefore jumped at the chance when the USS Anracosh crew offered her a job they said was a legitimate mission.
Personality:
Very flamboyant, she is an artsy type of extrovert, having said that, she takes her job as being head diplomat of the USS Anracosh very seriously. She senses that being the head diplomat is a job opportunity she should not miss; it could open up doors for her. If it makes her famous or infamous it could be a great way to turbo-charge her artistic career, or give her a fall back career as a diplomat if her art career falls through again. Her heart says be an artist, her head says be a diplomat. Near the end of the series she relaunches her art career at the same time the Melkot gets his Zee-Magnees Prize – the equivalent of a Nobel Prize. She uses the fame and late in the series good will towards the USS Anracosh to follow her dreams of being an artist.
Story arc:
Out of the specialists on the USS Anracosh she is the one most pissed off about the rogue operation being sold to the specialists as a legitimate Starfleet posting. It burns with her that she was conned and lied to, but is smart enough to stay on board knowing the kind of opportunity being the USS Anracosh’s chief diplomat is. Hers is a journey off forgiveness. She has to learn to forgive the crew members who lied to her for the greater good, and that is what she must learn, that the Realm of the Gods project is being done for the good of the Federation. She must learn that it is a mission far bigger than any one person, and her role in it is important not just for her but for everyone. She still likes being an artist, so that is a side gig she pursues while she is chief diplomat on the USS Anracosh. This is reflected in her off duty activities like leading a drawing art group and the like.
Chief Doctor:
Name: Deweni Gothameer
Age at start of rogue mission: Early forties when she ascended
Sex/Race: Female Zalkonian
Skill set:
She has the abilities of an ascended Zalkonian, meaning having an energy form that can go through solid objects and glowing and having the ascended Zalkonian healing ability. Her skills from once being corporeal are that of being a doctor and that of starship operations from serving in the Zalkonian fleet.
Important possessions:
She has a lot of the personal effects she owns from her previous life as a mortal being, notably clothing.
Likes/dislikes/fears/obsessions:
Strongly identifies as female even though she is now an ascended genderless being. She does not want to let go of being a corporal mortal. She was ascended against her will and is bitter about it, but hides this from her crew except when she is in a dark mood.
Special relations with other characters:
Sees the crew of the USS Anracosh as her people, the starship is her adopted home. It reminds her of when she served in the Zalkonian fleet and thus she feels the USS Anracosh is where she belongs.
Appearance:
A middle aged woman of straight forward attractive appearance, meaning she does not try to spruce up her looks and doesn’t need to, this reflects that she is a very down to earth person who does not see the point in presenting herself as anything but what she is. She refuses to go around in her ascended form as it is a reminder of what she lost when her race became non-corporeal. She is not upset about losing her looks after she ascended because she still has them in her corporeal form.
Role:
Like the ascended mythbuster, she shows that being an immortal ascended being is not the paradise one might think it is. One can still have a bad life as an immortal energy being. Her job is being the chief medical officer being greatly aided by her Zalkonian healing powers. She has mixed feelings about her abilities; they greatly enhance her medical skills but are a reminder of all that she lost when her race ascended.
Background:
She became a doctor because of the caring side of her personality. She has a compassionate and loving side to her that wants to help others, which is why she chose her medical career. When she was a flesh and blood being she lived under the despotic Zalkonian regime. This has affected her even in her youth in that she saw the brutality of the regime and rejected it. This is why she developed a strong compassionate side to her personality. She knows what it is to grow up in a dictatorship and this is why she also has a strong democratic and fair minded attitude, she wants to be free, which is why that for now she is not re-joined her people in the ancient races clique.
She was the ship’s doctor on the Zalkonian starship that confronted the USS Enterprise D. When the Zalkonians ascended she used the starship’s resources to track back where the Enterprise D came from. She stole a Zalkonian shuttle after ascension and made her way to the Federation and asked for asylum. Much to her surprise the Zalkonians did not follow her and left her alone for a few years before trying to make contact. She knows that a small number of other Zalkonians made it to the Federation, but they took up the offer to return to the Zalkonian people when the Zalkonians made contact with the Zalkonian refugees.
Personality:
She is a Zalkonian who was ascended against her will, which she is still bitter about. When her race became non-corporeal she found herself out of a career. To add insult to injury she gained the ascended Zalkonian healing powers. She abandoned her people and fled to the Federation as a refugee. She keeps her pre-ascended appearance as a protest.
She was recruited because the core founding group [First officer, Captain, Security Chief and Bajoran doctor] thought having an ascending being on the USS Anracosh could be an asset. Even though being an ascended being means she has become genderless, she hates that fact and still identifies as female. She is deeply offended by anyone calling her genderless because she is an ascended being. In spite of being bitter she still has a very caring side to her personality and shows it.
Story arc:
This character is flipping back and forth through the stages of grief. She has lost her people, lost her career, lost her home, technically lost her gender, in effect lost everything and become a refugee in the Federation, a government she knew nothing about. She is a compassionate loving person, which is why she became a doctor. She has to work through her grief to the point where she can accept what has happened to her and eventually re-join her race in the ranks of the ancients. Even though she told them to get lost they have forgiven that action and will give her time to work though her issues. Her people eventually want her to return to them but for now she only wants to be around the younger races, as they remind her of who she used to be. It will take her a long time to come to terms with her situation.
“Of course, we understand this may take a long time, return to us when you feel you’re ready.”
“I think you’re forgetting who else is immortal here.”
“Well, I suppose we’ve only been like this for so long, have we not? I suppose we’ll simply come to see what a long time constitutes.”
“Don’t worry, you will.”
Chief engineer:
Name: Victor Gotlieb
Age at start of rogue mission: Mid thirties
Sex/Race: Male Human
Skill set:
He has basic Starfleet training because he serves on a starship. Other than that his skills are in science and engineering. His job before joining the USS Anracosh was reverse engineering unknown technologies. His skill set will reflect that.
Important possessions:
A large collection of puzzles from many cultures across the Alpha and Beta Quadrants
Likes/dislikes/fears/obsessions:
Has an affinity for puzzles and oscillates between being obsessed and despondent when it comes to dealing with ancient and weird technologies.
Special relations with other characters:
Has a friendship with the Science officer and the Helmsman, and they get on the Captain’s nerves when they do stupid stuff.
Appearance:
Being in his dream job he has kept the bounce in his step and a smile on his face. His enthusiasm shows in his appearance. That goes away and returns with his story arc.
Role:
The chief engineer, he “officially” manages the running of the starship and has a big role in reverse engineering the ancient race technologies onboard. Unofficially he spends most of his time reverse engineering ancient race technology and thus he leaves day to day starship maintenance to his underlings.
Background:
He was once the Federation’s go to guy for weird, unknown and unexplainable technology. If it was an item that was unknown to the Federation is was given to him to figure it out.
He was a scientist working in the Vulcan academy of sciences and was never an official member of Starfleet but had its basic training. He was also one of the specialists who was lied to when he was recruited to the original rogue mission. It was sold to him as an official, albeit secret, mission. This does not bug him all that much as he is living his dream job.
Personality:
A tinkerer who is the Federation’s go to guy for reverse engineering unfamiliar technology. Loves solving puzzles and has a large collection of them. Loved the idea of being offered a chance to examine working ancient race technologies, which is why he accepted joining the Realm of the Gods project. He was over the moon about the USS Anracosh being upgraded by the ancients. A natural born skeptic who is now living his dream job. He is always overjoyed and upbeat. To say he is a man who is living his dream and loving it neatly sums up everything about his personality. He does have the occasional dark mood when things are not going his way, but is overall a happy person; this will wane and ebb as his story arc progresses.
Story arc:
After the USS Anracosh is upgraded with ancient races technology he realizes that much of the upgrades are utterly beyond anyone in the Federation’s ability to reverse engineer. It would be like asking a pre-modern human to reverse engineer a mobile phone. He gradually gets more and more disillusioned as he only learns superficial knowledge about the USS Anracosh’s ancient race systems.
The neural education centre only teaches people how to repair and maintain the ancient race systems rote style. It does not teach them the underlying way the systems work, which is what the chief engineer wants to learn. He asks the ancients for help only to be told that it would take several lifetimes to learn all there is to learn about ancient race technologies.
When he is at his lowest point is when the crew decide to finish the black hole manipulator because he realizes the starship is so far more advanced than anything the Federation has. He becomes prominent in the anti-finish the black hole manipulator camp. At any other point in this mission he’d be salivating at the chance to finish the Black Hole Manipulator and see what it’s capable of. A year ago, the idea was tantalizing. Now, it’s terrifying. At this point in the story, his giddy enthusiasm gives way to a knowing thousand yard stare.
His descent into despair comes to an abrupt halt when the black hole manipulator episodes take place and the USS Anracosh is powered up to its full potential. When the starship operates as it is meant to, many of the mysteries of the starship are solved. This changes the attitude of the chief engineer to what he once was. Now that he can see how it works he can solve it. He regains his old demeanor and keeps it.
The chief engineer fully recovers but he learns something about ancient race technology in that he has a healthy respect for it. He understands the potential of ancient race technology, but also has an excellent understanding of its risks and dangers. It has infinite potential but is also infinitely dangerous.
The ancients say to him:
“Yes, it has infinite potential and is infinitely dangerous, but if you can’t handle the risks you have no business growing your civilization and no business trying to join the ancient races clique.”
First officer:
Name: Jason Remierez
Age at start of rogue mission: Early forties
Sex/Race: Male Human
Skill set:
The usual set of Starfleet skills of running a starship and combat skills from fighting in the Dominion war. He also has command experience and is a natural leader. His other skills are in psychology, he is a natural psychologist. He has a deep understanding of how people think and why they think what they do. He has a great ability to psychoanalyze someone, and that was before he went to the neural education centre to get psychologist type skills, now those skills are even sharper than before he served on the USS Anracosh.
Important possessions:
The medals, awards and similar that he earned fighting the Dominion war
Likes/dislikes/fears/obsessions:
Wants to protect the Federation and sees the ancients as a way to do that. Is NOT jealous of the Helmsman’s unearned medals, awards and similar because the Helmsman was just following orders and it was the Admirals that gave the rewards to the Helmsman. If anything the First officer thinks well of the Helmsman because the Helmsman followed orders as a good soldier should.
Special relations with other characters:
Has a strong bond with the core group, which apart from himself are: The Captain, the Bajoran doctor and the Security chief. He runs the PTSD support group on the USS Anracosh.
Appearance:
His face obviously shows that he has seen a lot, namely the worst of the Dominion war. He has a grizzled appearance and is obviously a trained professional soldier in his bearings and how he holds himself.
Role:
The brains of the outfit and the officer who first thought of establishing permanent diplomacy with the ancient races. He is the one most responsible for starting the Realm of the Gods project. He is the one truly in charge of the USS Anracosh but doesn’t have the command experience to be captain. There is no friction between him and the captain as they fought alongside each other in the Dominion war and she values his input.
Background:
A traumatized combat veteran who saw the worst of the Dominion war. He thinks the Federation needs very powerful allies and first thought up the Realm of the Gods project. He is a patriot and passionate about defending the Federation. He is being treated for Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder [PTSD] and every now and then shows PTSD symptoms. His goal is to make powerful allies in the ancient race community, the more powerful the better. This is the typical washed out veteran stereotype, but with a Star Trek twist to him. He is a warrior at heart, a man’s man and is a man of action in spite of his PTSD.
Personality:
Jason has a strong helper and caring side to his personality. As shown when he runs the PTSD support group on the USS Anracosh. Most of the crew saw the worst of the Dominion war and some have to learn to live with what they have seen. He wants to help those who have gone through the same experiences as himself. He is the kind of officer that cares for his subordinates and tries to get the best out of them in a paternalistic fashion. He is at heart a compassionate person who has seen the worst, but still wants to keep his humanity by continuing to be compassionate. He is also a “natural psychologist”, in other words he has a natural talent for people and can psychoanalyze them even though he has not had formal psychology training [until he got access to neural education technology].
Story arc:
He focuses more on his compassionate work as the show progresses. Running the PTSD group and similar activities are as much for his benefit as it is for the benefit of the people he helps. He finds he would rather pursue a caring career than become captain a starship. This works out as doing the rogue operation means he will never be promoted again. This is the case until the crew of the USS Anracosh has its reputation restored via the actions of the ancients helping the Federation. Late in the series when the reputation of the crew is restored he could get a transfer, but he thinks his work on the USS Anracosh is far more important. This includes both types of work, i.e. the official mission of gaining ancient race allies and his compassionate PTSD group work.
Head of security
Name: Elizabeth Craft
Age at start of rogue mission: Late twenties
Sex/Race: Female Human
Skill set:
The usual set of Starfleet skills of running a starship and combat from serving in the Dominion war. Because of her security background she has extra combat skills and police/law enforcement style skills. For example: She knows how to investigate crimes and knows about crowd control.
Important possessions:
A secret hidden and disguised communicator that she can use to communicate with Section 31.
Likes/dislikes/fears/obsessions:
Is a Federation nationalist, a fanatical supporter of the Federation, which is why she jumped at the chance of working for Section 31.
Special relations with other characters:
Has a strong bond with the others in the core group, that being [other than herself] the First officer, the Captain and the Bajoran doctor.
Appearance:
Short bun style hair and grizzled like the rest of the crew, she could be attractive if she put the effort in, but she doesn’t. A Dominion war vet who has seen the worst of it, and it shows.
Role:
The voice of fanaticism on the USS Anracosh. She is the security chief on the USS Anracosh and handles everything security wise. Also is Section 31’s representative on the starship, and speaks for their interests in the Realm of the Gods project.
Background:
She is a detective type security officer rather than a brawler. She has a remarkable talent for problem solving, observation and analyzing data. She tracked down the type of crew members that the commanders of the USS Anracosh wanted. She is a female Sherlock Holmes. She is part of the original four [the others being captain, Bajoran doctor and first officer] who started the Realm of the Gods project, and her investigation skills are a great asset. She is Section 31’s representative on the mission. Section 31 is the Federation’s intelligence agency, and it supports the Realm of the Gods project.
Personality:
A fanatical believer in the Federation, so much so that the rest of the crew think it is unhealthy. They are trying to get her to calm down and take a more moderate attitude. This gets worse before it gets better.
Story arc:
When the rogue operation was launched her Section 31 superiors gave her an unbelievable order. She was told to tell her commanding officers on the Starship that she was a Section 31 agent and that Section 31 was at their disposal to help them with the Realm of the Gods mission. This was clearly a very unusual act, but her superiors in Section 31 saw the potential of what making alliances with the ancients could achieve.
As the mission progresses she becomes more and more ruthless in what she is willing to do to make the mission a success. She is effectively becoming more and more fanatical, and her superiors don’t want her to go down a dark path. They are trying to help her keep it together. The first officer is leading the charge in trying to get her to become more moderate in her beliefs as he sees part of his job to help those who are traumatized by the Dominion war, and the security chief fought alongside him in the Dominion war.
Helmsman:
Name: Samuel Benson
Age at start of rogue mission: Early Twenties
Sex/Race: Male Human
Skill set:
Has all the usual Starfleet skills of starship operation, but does not have the combat skills of his peers on the USS Anracosh because he did not fight in the Dominion war. He trained as a pilot/helmsman as his specialist skill and has public relations skills from being a poster boy. He can be the USS Anracosh’s P.R. man/spin doctor.
Important possessions:
All the awards he got when he was a poster boy for Starfleet. He knows he never earned them, but he has enough positive feelings towards the awards that he has them all displayed on the walls of his cabin.
Likes/dislikes/fears/obsessions:
Never wants to be a poster boy ever again, just wants a normal Starfleet career again. Given that he is on the USS Anracosh that is a pipe dream until Starfleet forgives them. He hopes that his time on the USS Anracosh can become a respected Starfleet career.
Special relations with other characters:
Has a friendship with the Chief engineer and the Science officer, and they get on the Captain’s nerves when they do stupid stuff.
Appearance:
A young clean cut officer, crew cut haircut, the perfect model of the everyman Starfleet officer. A real boy scout. As the show goes on and Benson feels more comfortable in his skin and in his abilities aboard the Anracosh, he begins to “let loose”, his hair begins to grow out and he gets a bit of peach fuzz on his face. By the end of the series, it’s somewhat of a wind-blown, swept back mid-length cut with a “curtain” fringe and five o’clock shadow.
Role:
Pilots the starship/can be a shuttle pilot
Background:
Just an ordinary [or so he thought] cadet who legitimately beat the Kobayashi Maru test with pure strategy, fair and square. The first ever member of Starfleet in history to do so without breaking the rules. As a result, this catapulted him into being not only Starfleet’s golden child, but their poster boy as well. Media and press interviews, Starfleet propaganda featuring him as their spokesman, there are few holographic projectors on Earth that don’t have his face on them. If you could buy non-specialty food in Star Trek, there’d be boxes with his face on them. For Benson, this is an absolute waking nightmare set in the deepest, darkest circles of Hell. Benson, despite his wunderkind piloting abilities, was a young man completely enamored with the comfort and benefits of routine Starfleet life. Unfortunately, when you’re so good you can’t be ignored, you’ll be noticed whether you like it or not. He only ever tried to do what every other cadet does when he took the test, and that was to fail in the most successful way he could. How was he supposed to know his implementation of the Blossom maneuver with the deflector dish W.M.D. was actually going to work? Only out of the Academy for 2 years, and he’s not done a single thing he’s trained to do. Instead he has been called upon to shake hands, cut ribbons, do photo shoots, for Samuel there was no variance, no adventure, no fulfillment.
Amongst the myriad awards, accolades and privileges he’d been granted, the one made most obscure to him was the clause to “write his own ticket”, that is to say, sign up for any Starfleet assignment he so desires. Of course, that would get in the way of all of his appearances he’s making and keeping, so it was never made all that apparent to him.
For a while it was a running gag that high ranking Starfleet officers kept giving him awards and wanted to see him. When he has his dress uniform on with all his awards he can barely stand up. He is the comic relief character. Joining the crew of the Anracosh was in a way, his defining moment of wayward rebellion. He was sick and tired of the pomp and circumstance and he was counting down the day.
Joining the crew of the USS Anracosh has ruined his reputation and career prospects, so in a way he has already got what he wanted, but at a very high price. Before he wrecked his reputation Section 31 approached him to spy for them as his fame could open doors for them. It was through Section 31 that he learned of the Realm of the Gods project as it was being founded in the rogue operation phase. He jumped at the opportunity to join them as it was an escape from his then celebrity life.
The admirals and other high ups cannot forgive him joining the USS Anracosh, but they understand his actions. He hated fame and not being productive. He has thrown away a career that was going nowhere. They know Benson never wanted to be a poster boy, although from the Admirals perspective it was the perfect use for the ensign, plus he was disciplined enough to follow their orders of being a poster boy.
Personality:
Was once someone who ate, drank and slept Starfleet until he defeated the Kobayashi Maru test. After he got famous he hated being famous. Where once he would be over the moon to meet a Starfleet Admiral, especially a famous Admiral in person, the whole thing gets old after the 100th time.
As someone fresh out of Starfleet’s academy keen to get to work he feels right at home on the USS Anracosh. He is doing the job he trained for and is happy knowing he is doing his job well.
Because he is doing what he loves and because he rejected being a poster boy, socially he feels as though he’s amongst his people; the outcasts, the misfits. Most importantly, these are the Federation’s best who are now their untouchables. Guys like Bahaal [Science Officer] and Gottlieb [Chief Engineer] are his peers. They and everyone else come to be the people who get him, and he loves to rise to the new challenges he encounters every day. Added to this are the supportive network of officers who understand that they are a rogue crew
One thing is for certain, however…
What was once his dream job is now just a pipe dream. Apart from being on the USS Anracosh his career is over, but its heaven compared to being a poster boy…
“I wouldn’t wish fame on my worst enemy.”
Story arc:
At the time of the start of the series he is two years out of the academy. He believed he was going to have a normal Starfleet career and led a very ordinary life until the day he beat the thought to be unsolvable Kobayashi Maru test with a simple “blossom” maneuver using deflector dish WMD that destroyed the simulated enemy starships in one blow. [A “blossom” maneuver is where the starship spins around firing all weapons at once hitting the enemy at close range].
The deflector dish WMD was a weapon that turned a starship’s deflector dish into a super cannon by funneling massive amounts of energy from the warp core through the deflector dish. Crude, powerful and can destroy very powerful targets, but puts a lot of strain on the starship using it and destroys the deflector dish and the equipment leading to it after a while. In the simulation Benson’s starship was trashed but he managed to finish the simulated mission in total victory.
His instructors literally fell out of their chairs when they saw such an easy straightforward strategy was the key to defeating the test. The trick to beating the test is to look at it as a strategy puzzle and forget the emotional lesson it is trying to teach. [A very Vulcan way of looking at things, because a Vulcan, namely Spock of T.O.S. era fame, invented the test]. The instructors burst in on Samuel and shook his hand and informed the Starfleet academy of his success.
His life was changed forever and being a celebrity did not feel real to him. He hates the attention beating the test has given him. When he graduated from the academy he asked for a deep space exploration posting to escape his fame. This was denied so he could be a poster boy and his superiors lied to him about being able to have his pick of any assignment he wanted.
During the time of him being a poster boy Section 31 recruited him and from them he learned about the rogue mission to make allies of the ancients. He jumped at the chance of a rogue mission as a way to escape his fame. He literally begged Section 31 to let him join the crew of the USS Anracosh. They were eager to recruit him to the mission given his skill set and way above average talents. Plus they did not need to con him into thinking it was a legit mission, as they had with some of the other specialists they were recruiting. He joined willingly and knew it was a renegade operation, so it was a match made in heaven.
Turning rogue ruined his reputation, but longer term it would be a way to live a normal life considering that he would face fierce opposition if he tried to resign from Starfleet. Going on a rogue operation is taking the past of least resistance. When Starfleet learned of him joining the crew of the USS Anracosh they used him to spy on the crew as an “inside man”. The crew are fully aware of how Starfleet is using him and he is effectively a double agent.
He did not anticipate that the rogue mission would eventually go full circle and he would long term again face being the darling of Starfleet with Admirals constantly giving him awards and the Starfleet rank and file officers wanting photo ops with him. He hates fame and such things are a nightmare to him, so much so that in his darkest moments he thinks about asking the ancients who are into time travel to help him go back in time and convince himself to fail the Kobayashi Maru test so he can have a normal life. He tries this in one of the episodes, and is given a Hobson’s choice that he has to remain with his life as it is, that being part of a rogue crew.
In the end when the USS Anracosh’s crew are redeemed Samuel realizes that his job as the starship’s helmsman is where he wants to be. He has lifelong friends onboard and he has the Starfleet career he has always dreamed of. Also, with the crew back in the good books he can advance his career as he pleases, but by the end of the series, he wants to stay on the USS Anracosh.
Neural education expert:
Name: Rheens Fereth [first name is last as is the case with Bajorans]
Age at start of rogue mission: Early thirties
Sex/Race: Male Bajoran
Skill set:
He has the usual Starfleet skills of starship operation and combat from serving in the Dominion war. He is also a medical doctor and since joining the USS Anracosh has become a specialist in brain science and neural interface technology. He has also specialized in understanding how the neural education device works and what it does the brain.
Important possessions:
Still keeps his religious Bajoran ear ring because it was a gift from loved ones back on Bajor. He never wears the ear ring but he keeps it for sentimental reasons not religious ones.
Likes/dislikes/fears/obsessions:
Wants to prove to his fellow Bajorans that the Bajoran wormhole aliens and their Par Wraith cousins are just ascended beings in the Ancients community instead of being Gods as Bajoran mythology calls them. He is a sworn atheist.
Special relations with other characters:
Has a strong bond with the core founding group who thought up the Federation’s Realm of the Gods project. The others in the core founding group are: The Captain, the First officer and the Security chief.
Appearance:
A Bajoran who makes a point of not wearing the religious ear rings other Bajorans wear, to symbolize that he is an atheist.
Role:
Runs the neural education centre and the neural education devices on the USS Anracosh. He also fills in for the Zalkonian doctor when she is unavailable.
Background:
He was a regular doctor on Bajor and was attracted to the profession because of his scientific skeptical mind and because he wants to help people. He is the classic “nothing outside scientific laws can exist” skeptic. Because of this he has always been an atheist. This obviously does not go down well on Bajor. He doesn’t mind being an outcast in his society and in time he drifted, eventually getting into Starfleet and becoming a Starfleet medical officer. He got to know the main players in the rogue operation by the fact that he treated them during the Dominion war. Because of this he became part of the core group who started the Realm of the Gods project.
Personality:
As said before he is the classic “nothing outside scientific laws can exist” skeptic/atheist. He became a doctor who specializes in neurology and cybernetics after using the neural education devices to upgrade his skills. His current job is to run the onboard neural education centre. He is a heretic Bajoran who wants to show his people that the wormhole aliens that the Bajorans worship [and the par wraiths cousins of the wormhole aliens] are ascended beings and not Gods. Apart from being in the core group, his agenda in serving on the USS Anracosh is to prove his case that the wormhole aliens are just another ancient race. He learnt from the ancients the truth of the Bajoran “Gods”, they are ascended Bajorans. He also has a compassionate side to his personality and that shows every so often.
Story arc:
The difference between the captain and the doctor is that the doctor doesn’t care if his people don’t change their ways. He will simply present the evidence to his people and let them make up their own minds. The smart ones will realize the truth. His scientific well organized mind will not let him do things any other way. In an ideal world he wants the wormhole aliens to come clean with the Bajoran people and tell them that they are ancients and not deities. There is already archaeological evidence from Bajor that suggests the wormhole aliens are ascended Bajorans, but that is only debated in Bajor’s academic circles and is not well known to the public, who could not accept it as truth anyway. His story arc is that he is trying to get the ancients to help him get evidence he can give to his race, a confession from the wormhole aliens being the ideal he is aiming for.
Important note:
Because he is in charge of the neural education centre he has a very important job on the USS Anracosh. Therefore he always attends the staff meetings of the core officers. In the TV show I designed he doesn’t have much of a role in most episodes, but he will appear at all staff meetings to provide ideas and advice and act as a sounding board.
Science officer:
Name: Grezteg Bahaal
Age at start of rogue mission: Late Twenties
Sex/Race: Male Tellarite
Skill set:
Has the usual skill set of Starfleet personnel of knowing how to run a starship, with a focus on science. He has combat skills because he fought in the Dominion war. Has knowledge of how the ancients do their tricks from the time he reverse engineered a Q’s tricks. He has quite a few ideas on how the ancients do things from analyzing the actions of a member of the Q continuum.
Important possessions:
Not a materialistic person by nature, the nearest thing he has to important possessions are his personal effects in his cabin.
Likes/dislikes/fears/obsessions:
Does not like to lose an argument. Wants to vindicate his past criminal acts of turning on his former crew to get scan a Q and learn about their abilities. He knows that what he did was wrong, but wants to prove he was right in doing it.
Special relations with other characters:
Has a friendship with the Helmsman and the Chief Engineer, and they get on the Captain’s nerves when they do stupid stuff.
Appearance:
A “pig face” type Tellarite, while he face cannot emote he makes up for in speaking with his body language. He is a very energetic character who speaks with his hands and body movements.
Role:
The science officer managing all scientific enquires USS Anracosh’s mission. Everything from reverse engineering ancient race technology to investigating unknown space anomalies. If it needs scientific investigation it’s his job to investigate.
Background:
Someone who cracked a Q’s parlor tricks. He nearly got jail because he scanned the Q and forcibly took control of a scanning station from another crew member. In both incidents he was threatening and armed with a phaser.
He was arrested and court marshaled. In his defense he emulated some of the Q’s “magic”, namely by emulating Q’s short distance teleportation tricks. He avoided jail because the commanders of the USS Anracosh took control of the “paddy wagon” shuttle transporting him and offered him the job of the USS Anracosh’s head science officer. He thought it was this or prison, and since his career was over, he took up the offer.
After the rogue mission was legalized he was pardoned for his crimes, However, Starfleet command felt the assignment on the USS Anracosh was the perfect punishment for him, so they loved ordering him to stay on the USS Anracosh.
The core leaders of the USS Anracosh wanted him on the crew as he has knowledge of ancient race science. If he can crack the tricks of the Q, what other ancient race tricks and technologies can he figure out?
Personality:
He hates losing an argument. He is as pig headed as he is pig faced. When he knows he is right he will stop at nothing to prove it. This makes him come across to some as petty, opinionated and arrogant, but is a very loyal crew member and a great friend, and a great comrade in arms. He has a polarized personality, great guy to have on your side, but not the kind of guy you want to be opposed to.
He does the wrong thing for the right reasons, and plays the long game knowing that he will in time be vindicated. He is a sore winner as well as a sore loser. His competence as a scientist is world class [or is that galaxy class [pun intended]], he may have a crap personality, but he is top of his game. Since he can reverse engineer ancient race technology he works closely with the chief engineer.
“I suppose I do owe you an… apology. Of sorts.”
“…Yeah, and?”
“You were right. About everything…About all of this.”
“<Bahaal pulls out a voice recorder.> Sorry, just gonna have to hear that one more time.”
“I just… How could we repay you?”
“Easy! What’s the most expensive drink on this junk heap?”
Story arc:
He is on a path of redemption trying to prove he was right in his actions. He knows what he did was wrong, but he knows that reverse engineering the Q tricks is in the best interest of the Federation. This is his opinion of the Realm of the Gods project. It may be hated by some in the Federation, but the mission is in the best interest of the Federation. He will be vindicated once what the ancients can offer is widely known. History is on his side and he knows it, it’s only a matter of time before he is proven right.
The Melkot, a Starship officer connected with the Starship’s computer
Name: NFM NMN NLM [nicknamed Niffy] No first name, No middle name, No last name
Age at start of rogue mission: Equivalent of early to late twenties, but given how alien he in this is a difficult figure to estimate and the figure may in fact be meaningless.
Sex/Race: Genderless Melkot
Skill set:
Not needing sleep and thus having a lot of spare time is a major advantage. He has excellent knowledge of the ancients and is a skilled bureaucrat. After joining the USS Anracosh and being hooked up to the starship’s computer he gains a lot of IT style skills like computer programming, hacking and any other computer related skill one can imagine.
Important possessions:
If it can be classed as a possession, his extra long tentacles, which he has grown in order to use as limbs. This is so he can walk around the starship and use his tentacles as hands. He feels that growing his limbs to become prehensile appendages became a necessity after he left his desk job.
Likes/dislikes/fears/obsessions:
Hates being mistaken for a female because of his female voice, he is genderless and has been so since birth. He wants to fit in and be a part of the crew and being connected the starship’s computer has helped him accomplish that goal. He wants to prove to other Melkots that their future is in the Federation.
Special relations with other characters:
Since his mind is been enhanced by being linked to the starships computer he can carry on who knows how many hundreds of conversations at once. He can use these abilities to befriend the whole crew simultaneously. He has done so and sees the entire crew as his friends.
Appearance:
A Melkot, which is like an alien head with short tentacles coming out of it. Because of his job he has grown his tentacles to a much more practical size. Thus he looks a bit like an octopus. Niffy has a female voice, and is mistaken for female, but is in fact genderless.
Role:
Takes the role of starship computer in the show. When the crew have to talk to the starship’s computer it is Niffy’s voice they hear as the starship’s computer voice. He effectively is part of the starship’s computer.
Background:
Important: Melkots do not need to sleep
Being stuck at a desk job Niffy thought that instead of begging for a transfer that may never come, he decided to use his large amounts of spare time to become the Federation’s ancient races expert. He studied every Starfleet and Federation file on ancient races he could find and soon built up a library’s worth of material about ancient races, which he compiled into a book about the Federation’s dealings with the ancients. When he was recruited to the Realm of the Gods project he had already established himself as the go to guy for knowledge about ancient races.
Niffy is a member of the Melkot species who wanted to join Starfleet but was initially disadvantaged by its physiology until he grew his tentacles to a practical length. Although the Melkot passed the tests with flying colors Starfleet did not know what to do with the creature. He is so alien compared to the other beings in Starfleet. They gave him a desk job and nine years later the officers who started the Realm of the Gods project recruited him as the Melkot who knows a lot about the ancients for someone in the Federation. He was going to be the crew’s original ancient races expert, but in time he wound up being connected with the rebuilt USS Anracosh’s computer system, becoming the starship’s “A.I.” He is very relieved to be on the USS Anracosh as he thought his whole career would be desk work. The Melkot went out to explore the Federation and wants to bring his people into the Federation’s fold.
Personality:
He is an explorer at heart and hated being stuck in desk job. He is one of the specialists that was conned into joining the crew of the Anracosh, so there is resentment on some level. He sees the Melkot as having no future unless they open up to the Federation and Starfleet. Melkot society is stagnant and he wants to do something about it and sees the Federation as the “magic bullet” that can help his people.
Niffy is actually a good conservationist and the crew do talk to him a lot, but his mind has been immensely enhanced by being directly united with the starship’s computer. He could feasibly engage the entire crew in separate conversations all at once. He is actually quite friendly even if his appearance is somewhat off putting and his [for want of better words] “body language” is incompressible to those speaking to him face to face. He has learnt that he has to say what his body language means so others can understand him. He thus puts in the effort to saying how he feels and modulates his voice to express his emotion.
He’s putting in the effort to become “less alien” to the crew, over the course of the series, he loses his “alien cadence”, which is however how the Melkots spoke in the original Star Trek episode. Due to his strong resolve, Niffy is quite the diligent worker, and places the Federation on a pedestal [thus he gets on well with the security officer] due to the Federation exemplifying his ideals and what he perceives to be the future of the Melkots. Over the course of the series, he learns that not even the Federation is above criticism and he gains a more measured, mature outlook on the Federation. Many high jinks ensue earlier on in the series in his attempts to be friendly and relate to the crew.
The ancients were expecting the entire crew to rotate being “ship’s A.I.” so they could all get an insight into what it is like to have the powers of an ancient. They were surprised when only one crew member was given the job. The mind machine interface with the main computer was yet another technology meant to be an object lesson.
Story arc:
Niffy sticks to the position of Ship A.I. due to the fact that after a lifetime of having to compensate for his shortcomings, he can now finally “serve the Federation” in a position that plays to his strengths. As the Ship’s A.I. organic interface, he is truly in his element.
Becoming the starship’s “A.I.” has opened up a whole new world for him. Previously the Melkot was in a rut stuck behind a desk with his career going nowhere, and he seriously considered quitting Starfleet because he was stuck in desk job, and making being the Federation’s ancient races expert his full time job.
The USS Anracosh is his big break. It was now or never when it comes to advancing his career. When he first boarded the USS Anracosh he tried his best to prove to its superior officers that they made the right choice in making him part of their crew. Since he was connected to the starship’s computer and becoming the starship’s “A.I.” A new world has opened up to him. The Melkot is now able to understand computers on a whole new level. His experience being part of a computer gives him insight into computing that other beings can’t attain. The Melkot is using his time to comprehend computers to an amazing degree with the plan to become the Federation’s best computer scientist. He does a lot of side projects aiding in that effort. That is the character’s story arc.
He eventually wins the Federation Zee-Magnees Prize – the equivalent of a Nobel Prize for his contribution to computer science. This is done late in the series and this is the Melkot’s episode. This makes him a hero and an example to other Melkot, showing them that it is time to abandon their xenophobia and that their future is in the Federation, where they can potentially do great things for themselves and others.
He is like a ship’s mascot
He has to ask himself if he can make it in another society, especially given the restraints of Melkot physiology expressing understandable body language. The character has a lot of potential with regards to the theme of a person coming from a xenophobic society and making it in another one, only to hit a plateau, a ceiling. With Niffy you could discuss a lot of the racial and cultural aspects of Star Trek. While most of it seems to be solved with the big issues being mainly within the context of historical wars and through the eyes of government and soldiers rather than people in society, Niffy can be very useful in navigating the smaller, invisible cultural issues the different races, cultures and creeds in Star Trek can face. And who would have a harder time than someone who’s just a floating head with tentacles?
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