STA:Reac Crew Verdan

Stats

Personal

• Name: Verdan Qet
• Species: Trill
• Rank: Cadet
• Department: Science
• Stress: 13
• Damage Bonus: 4

Values:

• "The Future is Always Worth it”
• "I’m Going to be the Best"
• "Multi-Lifetime Learning."
• "Sacrifice for the Greater Good”

Attributes:

• Control 8
• Daring 8
• Fitness 9
• Insight 11
• Presence 9
• Reason 12

Disciplines:

• Command 3
• Conn 1
• Security 4
• Engin 1
• Science 1
• Medicine 4

Foci:

• Etiquette
• History
• Intuition
• Investigation
• Xeno-Biology
• Xeno-Ethnology

Talents:

• Constantly watching
• Intense Scrutiny
• Interrogation
• Joined

Lifepath

Home & Upbringing

• Homeworld/Business & Trade
• Values here”

Verdan Qet (previously Verdan Laum) is a twenty-nine year old trill scientist joined with the Qet symbiont (I have been debating on age of the symbiont, am inclined to leave that undefined). Verdan was born on the planet Trill to a wealthy family dealing in extremely rare and expensive off-world items, particularly unique artifacts from pre-space flight societies, both for cultures now involved in interstellar trade and those that are extinct. While the many unusual items from distant corners of the galaxy peaked young Verdan's interest in history and xeno-ethnology, he was profoundly troubled that even the legitimate trade in such artifacts is de facto encouragement tomb robbing and looting of museums disturbed him, disgusted with his family's habit of selling goods of "unclear" provenance. This resulted in Verdan leaving the family business as soon as he was able, and instead opting to go into law enforcement. He briefly studied forensic science at the Trill Science Ministry before becoming an Investigator in the Trill government's elite anti-crime organization. Verdan was still a junior agent, less than a year into a career he had no plans of leaving and barely twenty-four years old when he had the encounter that would completely change the trajectory of his life.

Starfleet Academy

• Major: Minors:
• “Values here”

The Qet symbiont had spent lifetimes studying the impact of First Contact on various species, both in terms of culturally as a xeno-ethnologist and physically as a xeno-biologist. Verdan's childhood surrounded by ancient artifacts and his experience at the Ministry studying forensic science meant their interests were well matched. None of Qet's previous hosts were ever involved with Starfleet, so the opportunity appealed to its need to continue growing and learning, and Verdan was desperate to get as far away from Trill and reminders of his time with Garam as possible. At Starfleet Verdan Qet is driven and focused on his studies, but age difference and his grief meant he tended to avoid socializing with his fellow students outside of the classroom. However, four years is a long time, and slowly Verdan has come out of his shell and started trying to get to know others in his cohort, occasionally even teasing and flirting, though he has avoided any actual romances, instead preferring to spend his energy trying for top spot in the Science department out of the graduation class.

Career Events

• Special Commendation/Encounter With a Truly Alien Being
• “Values here ”

Verdan and his partner, Senior Investigator Garam Maadis, were sent to investigate a series of mysterious and bloody deaths at a small mining outpost on the second moon of Trelik 3, on the edge of Trill space. While the Trelik system is barely settled and largely without significant resources, scans of this moon had found it extensive deposits of a unique crystals appropriate for decorative and industrial uses. Construction on the mining station had begun about five years prior, and for the last three years the Mineral Extraction Conglomerate's "Trelkian lunar crystals" had been steadily supplied to a widening set of interested buyers. Keeping miners at the station, however, was difficult, as they complained of strange lights and movement just on the edge of vision.

Then the deaths started. First they occurred only in the deepest parts of the mine, where active expansion created greater risk of accidents that could, if one was sufficiently determined, explain the unexpected disappearances followed by later discovery of various body parts. However, after the eighth such death and the spread of the trouble into the higher levels of the mine - literally and figuratively, as the last victim was an aide to the Conglomerate's onsite overseer - the authorities on Trill were contacted and the two Investigators sent off to uncover the cause.

After an extended investigation - and another victim - Verdan observed that before each disappearance and again before the appearance of the remains the lights in the tunnels started burning slightly brighter and the cameras revealed slight static around the edges of the image. New sensing equipment, jury rigged by the remaining staff of the facility, revealed a crackling, slightly clouded distortion in the air, as if an electrical pulse had taken gaseous form. This entity - for its movements were clearly intelligent, stealthy, and actively predatory - would wait for a victim to be monetarily isolated out of sight of the cameras and swiftly engulf them before slinking away. After a period of hours of "digestion," the form would rapidly retract, flash brightly, and then explosively expand, showering an assortment of remaining pieces of the victim over a small area.

Then it would return to its hunt - a hunt that became more effective and more efficient the more victims it took. Once the discovery was made, however, there was no clear way to contain the entity, as it flitted unconcerned through any barrier placed before it, including ones made of the native rock and crystal, and it was showing increased interest in the spacecraft, indicating both a desire to leave the moon and a growing understanding that this was the way to achieve its desire. Two more victims were taken before Garam Maadis realized that the way of stopping the creature lay not in the material, but its arrangement. The veins of crystal were not random, but seeded, providing a harmonic field capable of capturing the entity's energy form, apparently the invention of a past species faced with its deprivations so long before that no records were left of the danger. The engineering crew was able to devise a careful pattern of explosions to reform the hole they had unknowingly created in the entity's prison, but it required luring the creature back into the depths, which had avoided since its first emergence.

Garam volunteered to serve as bait, as the senior officer present, knowing that there was no possibility of escape. But the risk of allowing a nearly undetectable, highly intelligent, actively malevolent, and incomprehensibly ancient entity to escape into populated space left no real option. Verdan was ordered to organize the miners, ensure the trap was successfully triggered and could contain the entity, and then to evacuate the moon and report on the profound danger of any living being returning to it, much less digging back into the depths. To help a friend to choose a painful death would have been bad enough, but - contrary to all rules and regulations - Verdan and Garam had been lovers as well, since almost the beginning of their time working together. Still, with eleven dead civilians and no ability to evacuate without risking bringing the entity as well, there was no other choice. The plan worked, but Verdan was left profoundly broken by the experience.

Back on Trill, his superiors gave him - and Garam posthumously - the highest honors for bravery and dedication to the people of Trill. Verdan, meanwhile, struggled with carefully hidden suicidality and profound depression. At the suggestion of a superior he applied for consideration by the Symbiosis Commission. He did not anticipate being selected but any chance to start over seemed appealing. Despite concerns over psychological stability leading to extensive debate on his suitability, the Board approved his joining. The surgery was almost a year to the day from when he and Garam had set out for the Trelkian moon. The newly joined Verdan Qet left as soon as he was healed enough for travel, headed to Earth to study at the Starfleet Academy

Finishing Touches

• “Value here”

Description

Appearance:

Verdan is pale, with red hair buzzed very short and blue eyes, and has dark markings along the sides of his neck and up to the temples. He stands just under six feet tall and has the lean, lanky build of a long distance runner, though at twenty-nine he has fully outgrown teenage gawkiness.

Personality:

In terms of personality, Verdan is quiet and serious. Some of this is actually innate, as he tended to be something of a loner even as a child, preferring books and study to large groups and loud parties. He is intensely competitive, whether in athletics (he was a competitive swimmer through his days at the Ministry of Science), academics, or anything else, though few people realize just how strongly this impulse drives him; he is not inclined to rivalries and does not resent those that beat him, instead his competitive drive is mostly turned inward in the form of self-imposed demands for perfection in all things.

Relationships

Elaza Xoff (NPC)

After Garam’s death, Verdan’s introversion turned to complete isolation. On earth he was able to avoid everyone who knew him before, whether family, coworkers, or his few close friends, and he actively froze out any fellow cadets who tried to get to know him. Fortunately for him, his first year lab partner, a Bolian woman named Elaza Xoff (NPC), intervened. Elaza, as is typical for Bolians, is meticulous, driven, and dedicated to seeking knowledge. With her cultural “workaholic” trends and Verdan’s competitive perfectionism, it is unsurprising that the two of them spent many late nights together working obsessively on homework, projects, and independent research, long after the rest of their classmates had headed off for a chance to relax. In addition, while Elaza somewhat less boisterous and talkative than many Bolians – a fact that actually made bonding with Verdan much easier – she is typical of her species in her incredible ability to form positive relationships with even the most difficult people. Warm, caring, friendly, and possessing and almost supernatural ability to get people to let down their guards and form connections of all kinds, Elaza became a friend to Verdan at a time when he had convinced himself that he didn’t want to form any relationships of any kind. The friendship was profoundly important for her as well, as her Bolian need to serve the group led to too many classmates never noticing that she would exhaust herself trying to help everyone around her and coaxing the many stressed out cadets to keep in good temper and get along without fighting. Verdan, on the other hand, was always ready to let her talk about her feelings to help support her when she needed it. As a result Elaza could spend time with the rest of their cohort without feeling anxious and burned out, and in turn she would pull Verdan out of his shell and push him to form bonds with their classmates. By the end of first year they were close confidants, and by the end of second they were best friends. Third and fourth year they opted to be roommates, which allowed them to still spend significant time together once their differing specialties – Verdan in xeno-ethnology and xeno-biology, Elaza in astrophysics – meant they no longer had classes together. As the end of their time at Starfleet approaches, both Verdan and Elaza are worrying about receiving different assignments and having to adjust to no longer having each-others’ support to help ease the stress of the work, of getting to know new people, and the undermining effects of their own perfectionist tendencies.

Senior Investigator Garam Maadis (Deceased)

Former partner of Verdan before he was joined in the Trill anti-crime unit. Died in the line of duty and posthumously given honors.

Crew Logs

STA:Reac Main Page