|
CAPTAIN JONATHAN ARCHER
Jonathan Archer grew up dreaming of the day when he would get to go "where no man has gone before." His father was the renowned Henry Archer, who led the development of the Warp Five engine in the footsteps of warp pioneer Zefram Cochrane. So it is fitting that Jonathan would carry on the family legacy by commanding the first starship powered by that engine, the Enterprise NX-01. Possessing an insatiable sense of adventure and wonder, Captain Archer is guided by a core of human decency and intuition. He is fiercely independent, while at the same time strongly committed to duty. All these qualities made him Starfleet's choice to lead humanity's first mission into the deeper reaches of space and represent Earth in the wider galactic community. Like many children of his generation, young Jonny Archer had big dreams and big aspirations which set the stage for his future. He had Dr. Cochrane's famous inspirational speech at the dedication of the Warp Five Complex memorized to the letter. At age eight, his father gave him his first astronomy book, "The Cosmos: A to Z" by Laura Danly. (The boy promptly marked it "From the Library of Admiral Jonny Archer.") He would stare at the pictures in the book for hours, hoping he would someday see those celestial objects in person. By age nine he was actively building models of the low-warp spaceships of the time. Using an anti-grav unit his father provided, Jonny constructed a flying toy ship and got his first taste of what it's like to be in command. It was during times like these that Jonny learned from his father some of the principles that would stay with him throughout his life: Keep things straight and steady ... finish what you start ... embrace trust not fear ... Alas, Henry Archer would not live long enough to see through the completion of his life's work. Still, Archer has always been at the forefront of the engine's development. He was part of the NX-Test Program circa 2143, trying to break the warp two barrier. Commander Archer vied with several other officers — Gardner, Duvall and A.G. Robinson — for the first flight. Ultimately, Commodore Forrest, who was overseeing the project, chose Robinson. At the time, Robinson noted that Archer was too by-the-book in his methods — he had the makings of a great pilot, but not a great captain. When the first flight did not go as planned, Starfleet's Vulcan advisors nearly shut down the program. It was then that Archer decided to stop playing by the rules — with help from Robinson and Lieutenant Trip Tucker, Archer modified the engine and he and Robinson performed an unauthorized flight with one of the NX vessels, thereby proving that the engine worked and the program should continue. Archer also formed a life-long friendship with Tucker, who continues to be one of his closest confidants. Even after this success, Archer still blamed the Vulcans for withholding knowledge and technology that could have accelerated progress on the Warp Five engine. He always had something of a grudge against Vulcans, and his father's death only deepened it. Thus his dealings with the green-blooded race have always been characterized by tension and petulance — almost a knee-jerk reaction on Archer's part. In fact, the animosity is mutual; many of the Vulcan delegation on Earth, such as Ambassador Soval, believe Archer is not suitable to be commanding Earth's first Warp-5 starship, preferring the far-less-impulsive Captain Gardner instead. But Starfleet has backed Captain Archer every step of the way. He especially has the full support of Forrest, now an admiral and Archer's direct superior. Forrest and his colleagues trust Archer to apply the best of human values and human judgment in his dealings with other species, however flawed those values and judgments may often be. Respecting life over political considerations is one of those values which led Archer to launch his ship on its maiden voyage a few weeks ahead of schedule. Upon the famous "Broken Bow" incident which left a injured Klingon named Klaang in human hands, Archer learned the Vulcans intended to take it upon themselves to return the Klingon to his homeworld as a corpse — despite the fact that he was clinging to life — in the name of interstellar diplomacy. Appalled at their position, Archer convinced his superiors to let him launch early and take Klaang to Kronos under human supervision, since he had crashed-landed on their soil. Starfleet agreed, but to appease the Vulcans they also agreed to allow one of their officers to be temporarily posted on Enterprise as an observer, or "chaperone." Thus Archer was forced to contend with Sub-Commander T'Pol as his second-in-command, a particularly cynical and humorless representative of the Vulcan race. But as that mission to Kronos went awry due to interference by the nefarious Suliban Cabal, he came to learn that Vulcan individuals can be more complex and unpredictable than he realized. For when Archer was wounded on Rigel X and rendered unconscious for several hours, T'Pol assumed command and led the ship in pursuit of Klaang's captors, in anticipation of the captain's wishes. That and other selfless acts by the Vulcan which were crucial to the mission's success led Archer to realize that many of his preconceptions about her race were not entirely justified. So for the benefit of his ship and its ongoing journey, he decided to leave behind his grudges and ask T'Pol to stay aboard as Science Officer. It is an arrangement that Archer has never regretted, but has always found challenging. The question of whether to interfere or not in the dealings of others is always a precarious balancing act. At what point do you extend your own morality upon others, and when is it immoral NOT to? A number of times Archer has made choices which at the moment were consistent with his sense of right and wrong, only to endure consequences for them later. When he discovered that the Vulcans were lying about hiding a surveillance station underneath their monastery at P'Jem, he turned over the evidence to their militaristic rivals the Andorians. That led to an Andorian attack upon the ancient temple and the laying waste of its ancient relics; Archer got the blame and tensions were heightened between Vulcan and Earth. The incident did have a positive impact on human/Andorian relations, however. When the Vulcans and Andorians entered into another conflict, this time over a small planet, Andorian Commander Shran requested that Archer be brought in to mediate. With Archer's help, the two sides were able to negotiate and come to a peaceful resolution. Indeed, this trust on the part of the Andorians shows that Archer is becoming more open-minded when it comes to encountering new species. His relationship with T'Pol has grown into one of mutual respect and trust. Archer provided key support to his science officer when she was sent on an emotionally troubling mission for the Vulcans; she, in turn, was there for him when his good friend and former rival A.G. Robinson died. Archer has also attempted to foster good relationships with all of his senior officers, often inviting them to breakfast in the Captain's Mess. He and Trip remain the best of friends, and enjoy watching water polo matches together. He also has a constant companion in his pet beagle Porthos, who he acquired from an ex-girlfriend's mother. Archer continues to encounter problems from two of the first hostile forces he encountered in space — the Klingons and the Suliban. Despite the fact that Archer has come to the aid of the Klingon Empire before, he was once arrested for conspiring to dishonor former captain Duras. Though the charges were false, Archer was sentenced to life in the dilithium mines on the penal colony of Rura Penthe. Luckily, his crewmates came to his rescue, although he remains a fugitive of the Klingons. They even put a sizeable bounty on his head — Archer was kidnapped by a Tellarite looking to collect. He eventually managed to sway the Tellarite to his cause, and once again escaped. Duras, however, refused to give up, and pursued Archer once more, just as the captain was taking Enterprise into the Delphic Expanse. Through some clever maneuvering, Archer managed to avoid the Klingon's ship and eventually destroyed it. As for the Suliban Cabal, they disrupted Enterprise's first mission by kidnapping Klaang, which led to a strangely personal face-off between the captain and Silik, a genetically enhanced Suliban warrior who knows Archer a little too well and considers him a personal nemesis. Silik is involved in something called the "Temporal Cold War," which came home to Enterprise when Archer learned that one of his own crewmen, a steward named Daniels, is actually an operative from the future fighting against the Cabal and the people they're taking orders from. Everything came to a head when the Suliban made it appear as though Enterprise had destroyed a Paraagan colony, an event that nearly put an end to the ship's mission. Archer was then somehow transported to the 31st century, altering the timeline. With Daniels' help, Archer managed to return to his own time and present evidence that the Suliban were behind the Paraagan tragedy. Although the Vulcans wanted to recall Enterprise (considering the crew's somewhat shaky first year), T'Pol made a convincing argument to allow them to continue, once again demonstrating her allegiance to Archer. Perhaps Archer's greatest challenge is his newest mission, which is set to take Enterprise into the vast unknown. After a mysterious race known as the Xindi attacked Earth, cutting a devastating swath from Florida to Venezuela, Archer and his crew were ordered home. Along the way, the captain was kidnapped by Silik, who brought him before the mysterious humanoid figure that controls the Suliban Cabal. The figure gave Archer information about the attack, telling him that the Xindi had received information that Earth would one day destroy their homeworld. According to the mysterious figure, they are currently at work on a much larger weapon. Armed with this information, Archer asks Starfleet for a new mission: Enterprise must venture to the perilous Delphic Expanse, where the Xindi are located. As Archer prepares to face this dangerous new foe, he can at least take comfort in his crew, which has proved to be one of the most loyal in the galaxy. Archer is clearly becoming the prototype for every Starfleet captain to come, perhaps for centuries. As he goes boldly into the unknown, making history with every light-year, Jonathan will never forget what his father used to tell him while they were flying model spaceships on the beach: "You can't be afraid of the wind. Learn to trust it."
|
|
COMMANDER CHARLES "TRIP" TUCKER
Biographical Overview Trip — his father and grandfather were both Charles, so "Trip" is short for "triple" — has been in Starfleet for 12 years, and has known Archer for eight. The two officers met back when Archer was a commander involved with the NX-Test Program and Trip was a lieutenant on Captain Jefferies' engineering team. Trip and Archer teamed up with Commander A.G. Robinson to convince Starfleet and its Vulcan advisors that the NX program was worth keeping on track. Though they resorted to unorthodox means, launching an NX vessel without permission, they were ultimately successful. From then on, the duo shared a strong bond, and once endured harsh survival training in the Australian outback together. The captain describes his chief engineer as "tough as nails," and has saved Trip's life several times. During an Omega training mission on Titan, Trip's EV pack froze up and he got nitrogen narcosis and tried to remove his helmet — Archer ordered him to keep it on. Likewise, when the two were stranded on a brutal desert planet, Archer saved a delirious Trip from succumbing entirely to heatstroke. For his part, Trip is always there when the captain needs cheering up. When Archer was depressed about Enterprise's botched first contact with the Kreetassans, his chief engineer lightened the mood with a data module of the Stanford vs. Texas water polo match. Prior to his time on Enterprise, Trip had only been to one inhabited planet beyond Earth — and it was "inhabited" by dust-dwelling ticks. Thus, he craves adventure, and tends to get "antsy" when things are too dull. Luckily, Enterprise's mission thus far has been packed with new experiences. Trip went down in history as the first human male to become pregnant and the first example of interspecies pregnancy involving a human after his encounter with the Xyrillian female Ah'len. During his brief experience being "with child," Trip experienced all the usual hormonal irregularities, resulting in mood swings and fluctuations in appetite. Luckily, Enterprise managed to locate the Xyrillians and transfer the embryo. As he has proved time and time again, Trip is an ace engineer, and claims that he can't sleep without the warp engines online. Attacks from an unknown race prompted Trip and Lieutenant Reed to lead the crew in building a complement of phase cannons from scratch while in mid-space, effectively upgrading Enterprise's weapons. They accomplished in two days what would have taken the armory team at Jupiter Station at least a week. He was key in saving the ship from some strange, large-lobed alien thieves, and has been left in command of Enterprise on several occasions — one time, he even successfully impersonated Captain Archer. Though he appears to be the charmer when it comes to the ladies, Trip claims that he has been involved in only three relationships, all of which ended badly. A long distance romance with Natalie from Pensacola didn't work out, and he regrets that he was unable to say good-bye in person. As a Starfleet trainee, he was infatuated with a waitress named Ruby at Mill Valley's 602 Club — the same Ruby that Lieutenant Reed once had a relationship with. Ruby had names all picked out for her children, and claimed that she would marry the first man who could guess them — Trip did his best, but was unsuccessful. Trip's first dance was at Bayshore Elementary in Panama City, Florida, and he still expresses regret that he was unable to approach the girl he had a crush on, Melissa Lyles. Despite practicing the two-step for weeks with his brother, Trip ended up spending the whole dance in the corner with his friends. Recently, Trip experienced a flirtation with Kantare beauty Liana — he gave her a tour of the ship and a protein resequencer programmed for five flavors of ice cream. He also had a romantic encounter with Kaitaama, the first monarch of Krios Prime. The two fled their alien captors together and ended up spending some time on a humid, swamp-like planet. Trip experienced a flirtation of a significantly more uncomfortable kind when one of Dr. Phlox's wives, Feezal, attempted to romance him. Although Phlox was very encouraging, Trip ultimately rejected Feezal's advances. When he first joined Starfleet, Trip lived a few blocks from the Vulcan compound, and in 10th grade he had a Vulcan biology teacher, Mr. Velik. None of this has tempered his distrust of the Vulcans, who he sees as cold and rigid in their ways. Sub-Commander T'Pol is challenging his preconceived notions a bit. Though she and Trip have clashed many times regarding protocol — prompting T'Pol to remind Trip that she outranks him — the two share a grudging respect and an unusual bond. When Trip inadvertently learned that T'Pol's pre-arranged marriage might force her to leave Enterprise, he managed to convince her to follow her gut and stay onboard. Trip also found a Vulcan friend in Kov, an engineer and member of the unconventional "V'tosh ka'tur." The chief engineer's friendship and guidance eventually convinced Kov to contact his long estranged father. Another interesting alien encounter came in the form of Zho'Kaan, an Arkonian. When Trip and Zho'Kaan both crashed on an inhospitable moon, they started out as combatants, but ultimately developed something of an understanding. Trip has also forged an unlikely bond with Reed, whose buttoned-up nature seems diametrically opposed to the chief engineer's friendly manner. When the duo was stranded in a damaged shuttlepod for several days, they initially clashed, as Trip is given to what Reed calls "treacly optimism." In the end, they discovered they have more in common than they thought, and at one point, Trip even tried to sacrifice himself so that Reed would have a better chance of survival. Luckily, they were both rescued by Enterprise, and lived to spend some memorable shore leave time together on pleasure planet Risa. The two men went in search of fun at a Risan nightclub — and ended up getting mugged. They managed to escape, but did their best to avoid detailing the incident to their fellow crewmembers. Not all of Trip's friendships have developed smoothly, however. When Enterprise made first contact with the Vissians, Trip took it upon himself to befriend the cogenitor, a third gender used for reproduction. He attempted to get the cogenitor to see that it was equal to its fellow beings, teaching it how to read and opening its eyes to such things as music and engineering. The Vissians, however, did not take kindly to this, particularly when the cogenitor requested asylum with Enterprise. Archer denied its request, and it later committed suicide. This encounter taught Trip that he sometimes acts too rashly when it comes to encountering new species. Trip's nephew is in Ms. Malvin's fourth grade class at the Worley Elementary School in Kenmare, County Kerry, Ireland, and the students sent Enterprise some drawings and questions regarding life on a starship. Trip was asked to field a query about flushing the ship toilets — and expressed dismay at being asked a "poop question." Trip has interests outside of engineering, and enjoys taking pictures of the many new sights encountered by Enterprise. He also took photos of Captain Archer, so that an Oakland artist would be able to paint the captain's portrait, to be displayed at Starfleet Command. He is quite athletic, and very much enjoyed the game of Geskana, which was introduced to him by charismatic alien leader Zobral. Despite his jovial nature, Trip has been known to tear up during the occasional movie. His favorite food is pan-friend catfish, particularly his mother's recipe, and his favorite flavor of ice cream is Rocky Road. Trip experienced a devastating tragedy in 2153 — his younger sister, Elizabeth, was killed when the Xindi attacked Earth. Elizabeth, who Trip called Lizzie, was an architect living in Florida. This deep, personal loss has made Trip determined to track down the Xindi in the Delphic Expanse. With this new mission underway, Trip's top-notch engineering skills and dedication guarantee Archer that the ship's warp engines are in the best possible hands.
|
|
T'POL
2148 – Served as Deputy Science Officer on Vulcan vessel Seleya under Captain Voris 2149 – Transferred to Vulcan Consulate on Earth 2151 – Assigned as observer on Enterprise NX-01 initially during starship's first mission; opted to remain on board as science officer under command of Captain Jonathan Archer 2153 – Resigned her commission with the Vulcan High Command in order to accompany Enterprise on its mission to the Delphic Expanse
During her first year aboard the human vessel, T'Pol defied her critics — humans and Vulcans alike — who thought she wouldn't last. She surprised the Enterprise crew on its maiden voyage when Captain Archer was injured and she took command of the ship by continuing the mission he set out to accomplish, rather than simply returning to Earth after the Klingon Klaang was captured by Suliban agents. Her interactions with Enterprise crewmates were initially filled with disdain and mistrust, but after working together on various missions, these early rocky relations improved substantially — T'Pol has formed relationships with Dr. Phlox, the only other non-human onboard, and Captain Archer. Though she may not always agree with the captain's style of command, she cannot help but respect him. At the captain's suggestion, she has also attempted to fraternize more with the crew, and even attended one of the ship's regular movie nights. T'Pol was surprised to find herself enjoying the movie: "Frankenstein." She later noted that she sees it as parallel to the experience Vulcans had when they first landed on Earth. Even other Vulcans are surprised that T'Pol can stomach working so closely with humans, since Vulcans find the smell of humans unpleasant — T'Pol is able to endure the experience with the aid of a nasal numbing agent. T'Pol has demonstrated a strong ability to adapt, which is rare in Vulcans — perhaps it is something she's learned from humans. For example, when Captain Archer decided to take an away team to a newly-discovered, uninhabited Minshara-class planet against T'Pol's precautionary warnings, she ended up being the only crew member on the planet not experiencing hallucinations caused by indigenous pollen in the air. In danger of being assaulted or killed by the affected crew members, she was able to role-play in order to coax a peaceful resolution, something most Vulcans would never do. Similarly, she also role-played when a mysterious group of large-eared aliens took over Enterprise, tricking them and gaining the upper hand. Although Vulcan, T'Pol has shown that her allegiance is to the truth; she didn't turn a blind eye when the secret Vulcan surveillance station at P'Jem was revealed and, at Archer's behest, handed over her scanner to the Andorian commandos who seized the temple when their suspicions proved correct — the Vulcans had indeed been engaging in deception. The Andorians destroyed the temple shortly thereafter, and the Vulcan High Command decided to recall T'Pol. Before the scheduled rendezvous with a Vulcan ship, she and Archer were kidnapped by Coridan rebels, and during rescue attempts by an Andorian/Human team and a Vulcan team, Sopek, a member of the Vulcan team, was nearly killed by a rebel. T'Pol selflessly put herself in harm's way to save him, resulting in an injury that nearly took her life. This act forced Sopek to take up her cause with the Vulcan High Command, allowing her to remain on Enterprise. Before T'Pol joined the Science Directorate, she was assigned to the Ministry of Security, and was trained in reconnaissance and retrieval. Circa 2135, T'Pol was sent to retrieve a group of rogue Vulcan operatives. She was successful in capturing nearly all of them, save for two. She later nearly caught these remaining operatives on Risa, but one escaped, and she shot the other one when she believed he was reaching for a weapon. After the incident, T'Pol resigned her position with the Ministry and sought guidance at P'Jem. It was there that she underwent the Fullara, an obscure Vulcan ritual in which her memories and the emotions surrounding the events on Risa were repressed. In 2152, the agent that escaped, Menos, was located, and T'Pol was sent to apprehend him. She asked Archer to come along with her on the mission. T'Pol was successful in capturing Menos, but he reminded her of her long-buried memories ... and she was forced to come to terms with the fact that she once killed a man. Luckily, Archer was there to help her overcome her feelings of self-doubt, and the incident solidified the trust between the duo. As a child, T'Pol was betrothed to a Vulcan named Koss. Her wedding to him would have meant the end of her assignment on Enterprise — once again, she bucked tradition and decided not to go through with it. This no doubt put a strain on her family relations and helped to brand her amongst her people as unorthodox, to say the least. Although T'Pol's behavior might seem extremely conservative and cold to her fellow crewmembers, it is radical when compared to standard Vulcan behavior. It should also be noted that while T'Pol is unique among Vulcans, she still holds fast to most Vulcan ideology and is the first to be skeptical of any unsubstantiated opinion or theory, such as time travel, which Vulcan science has deemed impossible. When faced with seemingly impossible events that time travel could explain, she stubbornly holds out for proof before jumping to conclusions. Another event that challenged her beliefs came in the form of Enterprise's encounter with the V'tosh ka'tur or "Vulcans without logic." These Vulcans tried to integrate emotions into their everyday existence. Among these Vulcans was Tolaris, who was attracted to T'Pol and attempted to sway her to his group's way of thinking by means of the Vulcan mind-meld, an ancient and almost forgotten telepathic practice that Tolaris hoped would free T'Pol's emotions. As a result of the mind-meld, combined with avoiding her regular meditation, T'Pol began to have dreams and flashbacks to earlier times, remembering a time during her assignment at the Vulcan Consulate when she wandered out alone at night and visited a nightclub. Ultimately, the experience was overwhelming and disturbing to T'Pol, yet Tolaris continued the invasive meld, leaving T'Pol in a weaker state. The encounter with Tolaris ended up having long-lasting ramifications — T'Pol was infected with Pa'nar Syndrome, an incurable Vulcan disease. Unfortunately, the syndrome carries a stigma on Vulcan — it can only be transmitted by the small number of Vulcans who are born with the ability to mind-meld. Because this telepathic minority's behavior is considered "unnatural" to other Vulcans, those who carry the disease face discrimination, and the disease is not a high priority when it comes to medical research. T'Pol experienced this sort of bigotry firsthand when several Vulcan doctors learned of her condition. When they learned that she was forced into the mind-meld by Tolaris, T'Pol was not recalled to Vulcan. Still, she was appalled at the intolerance faced by those who suffer from Pa'nar Syndrome, and planned to let the High Command know of her displeasure. Though T'Pol may sometimes seem detached from others, she does have great admiration for certain individuals, particularly legendary Vulcan Ambassador V'Lar and her great-grandmother, T'Mir. T'Pol had a chance to meet V'Lar many years ago on Vulcan, during her early schooling. The Ambassador inspired her eventual career path, and T'Pol had another chance to meet her when V'Lar was involved with a complicated mission to Mazar. As for T'Mir, T'Pol once told Archer and Trip that her ancestor was part of a group of Vulcans that crash-landed in Carbon Creek, Pennsylvania in October 1957. According to T'Pol's story, these Vulcans actually posed as humans in the small mining town, thus initiating first contact long before the documented events of 2063. T'Mir even contributed to the college fund of a young human by "inventing" Velcro. Though T'Pol later led Trip and Archer to believe that her story was merely a tall tale, there is still some doubt as to how much of it was truthful. When T'Pol was stationed in Sausalito (prior to her assignment on Enterprise), she took a five-day leave to visit Carbon Creek. T'Pol's presence on Enterprise has taken even greater significance as Archer and the crew prepare to journey to the Delphic Expanse. When Enterprise was given this assignment, the Vulcan High Command disapproved, and demanded that T'Pol return to Vulcan. She refused, resigning her commission and preparing to join Archer on this dangerous mission. As T'Pol continues to spend time on Enterprise, in close contact with humans, it is significant not only for the historic nature of the service, but also as a hint of what the future holds: Collaboration and shared service between races is not only a feasible notion, but can yield results and accomplishments greater than if humans and Vulcans work alone.
|
|
LIEUTENTANT MALCOLM REED
Lieutenant Malcolm Reed is the weapons and tactical expert on Enterprise NX-01, and the first to jump into the fray when a rescue mission becomes necessary or when explosions need to be mounted. Reed believes in always maintaining a high state of readiness, and was frustrated that Enterprise left dock before all the ship's planned weaponry was installed and tested. He was never optimistic about the degree of friendliness the starship would encounter in deep space, and his pessimism has proven valid. Reed has had to improvise against hostile aliens with superior weaponry many times. In one battle early in the mission, the Enterprise crew was nearly captured to be drained of their fluids after the ship's torpedoes failed to penetrate an enemy ship's defenses. It took cooperation between Reed and an Axanar captain to destroy their common foe. Later, attacks from another unknown race prompted Reed and Chief Engineer Tucker to lead the crew in building a complement of phase cannons from scratch while in mid-space — accomplishing in two days what would have taken the armory team at Jupiter Station at least a week. While the first deployment of the phase cannons was less than clean, they were ultimately successful in warding off the hostile aliens and finally gave Enterprise the firepower that Reed has always wanted. Malcolm Reed is the man the crew turns to for weapons training and target practice. It was Reed who presented Captain Archer with the crew's new hand weapons called "phase-pistols," explaining, "They have two settings, stun and kill. It would be best not to confuse them." It is Reed who sits at the tactical console on the Bridge, and in any encounter with an alien vessel he is the one who immediately scans the ship for weapons and engine configurations. He is very protective of the Armory and the ship's tactical systems, and tries to keep those areas off-limits to visitors (although he did give a visiting Vissian tactical officer a tour). He is also in charge of security and procedures for locking down the ship in an emergency, such as being boarded. Although Reed was initially skeptical about using the newly approved bio-transport platform ("I don't think I'm quite ready to have my molecules compressed into a datastream"), he has used the transporter probably more than anyone on the crew — its safety being less a concern to him than its tactical advantage. For example, when Archer and other crewmembers were taken hostage in their first encounter with Andorians at the Vulcan sanctuary P'Jem, Reed led a munitions team to the surface via the transporter, to mount a series of explosions that led to a firefight that ultimately resolved the situation. Even under peaceful circumstances, Reed loves to "blow things up." When Archer decided to obtain samples of a rare mineral called eisilium from a large comet the crew was studying, Reed volunteered to take a portable drilling rig on a little "cometwalk." Fortunately for him, the drilling effort first required blasting a hole in the comet surface. The perfectionist that he is, he was disappointed the explosion wasn't more symmetrical. When the ship has a movie night, Reed's favorite films are always those that show lots of explosions. Blowing up stuff is not all that Reed is expert at. He has made technological strides in other ways, such as perfecting a stable EM barrier, also known as a "forcefield." When a strange, growing organism invaded Enterprise and tried to absorb several crewmembers, Reed needed a way to stop the creature from spreading and capturing more people. He jury-rigged a prototype based on specs in the database and found a way to control the particle density, something Starfleet hadn't been able to do in five years. Another accomplishment was a "Tactical Alert" that saved Enterprise at a crucial moment. Because of this, Archer recommended that the alert and accompanying protocols be made standard procedure. Even with all of his accomplishments, Reed isn't above being rattled. He was upset when he accidentally left his communicator behind on a pre-warp alien planet, and went on an away mission with Archer to retrieve it. The duo was captured, but was later rescued by their fellow crewmembers. Still, Reed noted that he wasn't afraid to die in order to avoid contaminating the pre-warp culture. Everyone knows Malcolm Reed as an exemplary armory officer, but people don't know much about him as a person. He keeps to himself much of the time, preferring to work over lunch rather than socializing. When his September 2 birthday came up, the crew realized they didn't know what he liked to eat (although Dr. Phlox observed that he seems to love a good breakfast, including lots of eggs and pancakes spread with peanut butter). Malcolm is a bit of a mystery even to his own family — sister Madeline, Uncle Archie, Aunt Sherry and two other spinster aunts — and his parents, Stuart and Mary, don't know much about his career other than the fact he was assigned to Enterprise. But they can share the blame for being uncommunicative, as they were occupied with moving back to Kota Baharu, Malaysia, while Malcolm was preparing to leave Earth. Besides, Stuart never seemed particularly pleased that his son joined Starfleet instead of the Navy, feeling almost insulted that the ocean was not big enough for him. For his part, Malcolm always hoped that he would be able to follow in the footsteps of his father and grandfather and join the Royal Navy — he was raised on the water, studied all of the great naval battles and "knew how to handle a boat before [he] could ride a bicycle." Unfortunately, he suffers from aquaphobia and is afraid of drowning. Malcolm's great-uncle suffered from a similar fear, but he faced it head-on by joining the Navy and signing up for submarine service. He was eventually made chief engineer of the H.M.S. Clement, and went down with his ship when it was trapped underneath an ice shelf. Malcolm couldn't help but recall this when he was pinned to Enterprise's hull by an orbital alien mine. Luckily, Reed and Archer worked together and managed to free him and save the ship. Emotional detachment has defined many of Malcolm's personal relationships, especially those with women. He's had a lot of involvements, but none serious or lasting. There was Ruby, a waitress at the 602 Club in Mill Valley where all the Starfleet trainees used to go; there was Maureen, another waitress at a restaurant on the Embarcadero. When Malcolm thought he was doomed to die aboard Shuttlepod 1, he wrote letters to Deborah, Rochelle, Catelin and several others — all girls he had short-lived relationships with because he could never get close to them, but they were all he had besides his family to say farewell to. Malcolm is beginning to realize, though, that the crew of Enterprise is different. They are his family now, and he is beginning to feel comfortable enough with them to reveal more of himself. Still, Reed was somewhat uncomfortable when Archer invited him to breakfast so that they could get to know each other better. Reed has been trained not to fraternize with his superior officers, and only feels comfortable discussing work with the captain. He also believes the captain could show a bit more caution in certain areas, though he will admit that Archer's style has its advantages. He was an Eagle Scout with 28 merit badges, including exobiology (more than Captain Archer). His health is a bit delicate — once he was the only crewman on board to catch a head cold, apparently from a virus lurking inside a case of plasma coolant. Plus, he suffers from a number of allergies including dust mites, oak pollen, tropical grasses, and various plant enzymes, including bromelin. For several years he's been taking regular injections to help his body tolerate bromelin, because that's an enzyme found in pineapple, which he loves. When his crewmates presented him with a pineapple cake for his birthday, he was quite impressed. Reed's knowledge of ship's weaponry, his professionalism and his dedication to duty make him vital member of the crew as Enterprise enters the mysterious area known as the Delphic Expanse.
|
|
ENSIGN HOSHI SATO
Whereas other crew members are chomping at the bit for alien contact and to explore strange new worlds, Hoshi is gradually becoming accustomed to the challenges, unusual experiences and potential dangers of space exploration. Still, her courage and confidence have grown over the first two years of Enterprise's voyage, and she's ready for the new challenges presented by the crew's dangerous mission to the Delphic Expanse. Beginning with her very first mission, Hoshi discovered that being a linguist involves quick thinking on one's feet in situations where the safety of the crew is at stake. When the Klingon warrior Klaang regained consciousness aboard Enterprise en route to the Klingon homeworld of Q'onoS, it was her job to not only glean any information that might help the mission, but to calm him down and let him know he was not among enemies. Later, once Klaang was rescued from the Suliban and returned to Q'onoS, Hoshi was able to facilitate enough communication between the Klingons and Archer to complete the mission without incident. Not long after, Enterprise made the grisly discovery of a ship filled with alien corpses, drained of fluids. Hoshi's immediate reaction was terror, which disturbed her in terms of her own professionalism. She considered the possibility that she simply isn't cut out for deep space exploration, but was able to overcome her own fears and insecurities enough to re-board the eerie ship and decipher the controls to send out a distress call to the victims' fellow beings. When they arrived, she was able to break the language barrier and make first contact with this new race, the Axanar, and communicate that humans were not responsible for the massacre, aiding in establishing favorable relations with another new race. Along with her communications duties, Hoshi is also able to keep an eye on other vital systems. For example, when the Suliban Silik had infiltrated Enterprise disguised as a religious pilgrim, it was Hoshi who noticed when he attempted to bypass the lockout codes in Shuttlepod Launch Bay One. Implicitly trusted by Captain Archer, Hoshi was entrusted to do some research into the private life of Malcolm Reed, specifically his favorite foods for a planned surprise birthday celebration. She methodically approached the task like a detective, discreetly contacting his loved ones and even subtly trying to get information directly out of Reed, which led to a temporary misunderstanding, as Reed misinterpreted her enquiries as romantic overtures. In the end, thanks to help from Dr. Phlox, she successfully was able to deduce Reed's favorite food (pineapple) and satisfy Archer's request. As her first year in deep space progressed, Hoshi's initial trepidation ebbed substantially. For example, when she was stranded along with Reed and T'Pol aboard a derelict Klingon vessel sinking slowly into a Class-9 gas giant, she was rattled, but able to maintain her cool enough to focus on the task at hand: deciphering the ship's logs, controls and readouts so that they could get the ship running under its own power. In another unusual circumstance, Hoshi's skills were applied to communicating with a strange creature that had taken up residence in a Shuttlepod Bay and had trapped several crew members, including Captain Archer. In addition to attempting to learn a new language, the organism communicated almost telepathically, forcing Hoshi to improvise a solution, saving not only the crew members, but the creature as well. Hoshi also has contributed to Starfleet missions in other ways, such as selflessly donating use of her personal quarters to a visiting Vulcan ambassador during her first year on board Enterprise. She views new languages as a challenge — and on her visit to Risa, she discovered some additional benefits to learning new languages. Though she has an undeniable facility with languages, that's not all there is to Hoshi. She has demonstrated a willingness to pitch in wherever needed time and time again. She filled in for an ailing Chef once, preparing her grandmother's family recipe of oden from scratch. She also confronted her fear of the transporter firsthand when Reed had trouble re-integrating her matter stream — during the few seconds that it took for Hoshi to re-materialize, she had a vision in which she saved the ship from invading aliens by overcoming her transporter phobia. Hoshi has also formed bonds with several of her crewmates, particularly Dr. Phlox, who she says has taken care of her on many occasions. Phlox is currently teaching her Denobulan — according to his wife Feezal, Hoshi's accent is very good. When Phlox was infected by the mysterious nanoprobes from hostile cybernetic beings, Hoshi offered to keep him company while he worked on a cure. As Hoshi continues her tenure aboard Enterprise, she almost mirrors humankind in taking the initial steps into the intergalactic community: tentative and concerned at first, but more and more sure of herself as time goes on. While ready to take whatever action is necessary to help the crew and Starfleet, her accomplishments in communication also provide an example of how tense situations can be diffused through diplomatic means.
|
|
ENSIGN TRAVIS MAYWEATHER
Mr. Mayweather still carries with him some guilt over leaving his home ship, the Horizon, to join Starfleet. His father had expected him to one day take over the Draylax-Vega cargo run, but Travis' destiny led him in a different direction.
Boundlessly enthusiastic, Travis is still bright-eyed about being in space despite having grown up there. In fact, he can't call a place home unless it comes with a pair of warp nacelles. One of his favorite places on a space vessel is the "Sweet Spot" — a location usually halfway between the grav-generator and the bow plate, where the gravity is null and one can float freely. While growing up he liked to sleep in zero-G, which he describes as "just like being back in the womb." His father kept the artificial gravity on his cargo ship at 0.8 G, because he thought it put a little spring in his step. This, of course, means that normal Earth gravity like that on most starships feels a bit heavy to Travis, but that never slows him down. His family hauls dilithium ore between Draylax and Vega Colony on the Earth Cargo Ship Horizon, a J-class freighter which runs no faster than Warp 1.8. At that speed, a crew's got a lot of time on their hands between ports, and that's how the Mayweathers ended up with Travis. He is proud of his heritage as a "boomer" and relishes the unique experiences of his upbringing — the "Siren Calls" of gas giants which sometimes gave him nightmares; the "mystery meals" made out of nutri-paks when real food started running low; and the independent spirit of the cargo crews, who were determined to handle any situation that arose without help from any outsider. In fact, the crewmembers often hold down several jobs at a time — Travis' mother is the ship's medic and chief engineer, while his grandfather held the record of five jobs at one time, two of them on the Bridge. Travis has also had the opportunity to visit many worlds — Trillius Prime, the Teneebian Moons, Draylax with its uniquely endowed women — even though it took years to get to each place. As a youngster, Travis stayed up for a month mapping every system he planned to visit when he grew up. He also enjoyed turning off the grav-plating to jump on the bed with his best friend, Nora. Naturally, the duo was grounded for their mischief. Once he grew up, Travis had to figure out where he wanted to spend the rest of his life, and he was pretty sure it wasn't on the Draylax-Vega run. That's when he decided to leave the E.C.S. Horizon and join Starfleet. It was a move that created tension among his family, because his father was expecting him to someday take over the cargo ship, although ultimately he respected the decision. In fact, when Captain Archer was looking at candidates for helm officer, Travis' father sent the captain a one-sentence recommendation, saying that he'd never seen a more natural "stick and rudder" man in his life. Travis is fully aware that his choice to leave home makes him unpopular among his fellow boomers, who are worried that more young people will follow in his footsteps and leave the freighter business shorthanded. Travis was devastated when word arrived that his father had passed away in 2153. A visit to the Horizon shortly thereafter made for more tension between Travis and his family — though his mother, Rianna, welcomed him with open arms, his brother, Paul, was somewhat hostile. As the newly-promoted captain of the Horizon, Paul felt slighted when Travis attempted to make upgrades to the ship's systems. Luckily, a dangerous encounter with some marauding aliens forced the brothers to work together and brought them closer. Travis has never regretted his decision to join Starfleet, considering it to be the best thing that ever happened to him. It gives him the opportunity to see more places and experience more things; the technology is more advanced, such as the newly perfected transporter (which he has yet to experience, but he's curious to try it out); and besides, the food's better! Also, he has the potential to someday become captain of his own starship, and see his portrait get hung on the walls of Starfleet Command to inspire future cadets. As a Starfleet Ensign, Travis Mayweather was one of the first humans to walk on a comet. He got to visit Terra Nova, the lost human colony he grew up reading about, and become part of its history. He was the first human to pilot a starship to Warp 5. He's even got a new audience for his famous space-based "ghost stories." But he's had his share of misadventures. While on vacation to the pleasure planet Risa, he was injured while taking on a reckless challenge — rock-climbing at Galartha where the cliff face changes pitch while you climb it — and in a local hospital was administered with an alien medication that nearly killed him. Travis had yet another rock-climbing accident when assisting Commander Tucker and Lieutenant Reed in rescuing a group of Denobulan scientists from some underground caverns. Like the rest of the crew, Ensign Mayweather is constantly faced with new situations and dangers as Enterprise journeys deeper into the galaxy — and the current mission into the Delphic Expanse is no exception. But with his "boomer" background, superior piloting skills, and affable nature, Mayweather proves to be an invaluable crew member who faces every situation with a smile and a sense of wonder. His presence on the Bridge affords Captain Archer the luxury of knowing his ship is in the best possible hands.
|
|
DOCTOR PHLOX
Though Dr. Phlox claimed that he found it somewhat daunting to socialize with the Enterprise crew, he soon proved quite adept at it, striking up friendships with Ensign Elizabeth Cutler, Ensign Hoshi Sato and fellow non-human Sub-Commander T'Pol. In fact, Phlox was initially worried that Cutler had a romantic interest in him. Though his suspicions eventually proved true, Cutler only wanted to be friends, and she and Phlox enjoy taking in the occasional movie together. Phlox was also key in helping the initially jittery Hoshi realize that she belonged on Enterprise. He assisted her in caring for a sickly slug creature, and is currently teaching her Denobulan. The aloof T'Pol has been something of a challenge, even for the genial doctor, but she and Phlox have shared several meals together, and she doesn't even seem to mind when Phlox picks errant food off of her plate. Phlox has another human friend in regular correspondent Dr. Lucas, a human colleague from the Interspecies Medical Exchange. Lucas is the first human serving on Phlox's homeworld of Denobula, and as he helped Phlox get settled in San Francisco, Phlox is now returning the favor. Like all Denobulans, Phlox only requires six days of sleep every year. He claims, however, that two days can be sufficient. Phlox is grumpy and disoriented if his hibernation is interrupted, as he demonstrated when Cutler and T'Pol woke him up, seeking assistance in treating Ensign Mayweather. As a child, Phlox, like many young Denobulans, was regaled with tales of the "evil Antarans," which caused him to have nightmares. The Antarans and the Denobulans have been to war on several occasions, and much animosity and hatred still exists between the two species. In fact, young Phlox's grandmother wouldn't allow him to go on a trip to a nearby arboreal planet because it has been "tainted" by Antarans. The adult Phlox is determined not to raise his children as he was raised, and has taught them to embrace other cultures. Phlox gets more mail than anyone on Enterprise, and has three wives back home (in turn, they each have two other husbands). This is the norm for his people, who apparently have very complex mating rituals. Though Phlox's work keeps him from seeing his family very often, he did get the opportunity to see one of his wives, Feezal, when she came onboard Enterprise to assist in installing a neutron microscope. Phlox has five children, and his two daughters have followed in his footsteps — one is a surgeon, the other a biochemist. His eldest son is a potter. Phlox is somewhat estranged from his two younger sons — Mettas, the youngest, holds archaic, anti-Antaran beliefs. Though Denobulans do not like to be touched, Phlox has done his best to overcome his cultural inhibitions. In fact, Phlox is fascinated with human culture, and is particularly enamored of Earth cuisine — egg drop soup, blueberry pancakes and potatoes are a few of the dishes he enjoys. His menagerie of creatures includes an Altarian marsupial, an osmotic eel, Regulan blood worms and a Pyrithian bat. Though he finds Archer's relationship with lesser creature Porthos amusing, Phlox admits that he occasionally speaks to his bat. Other odd rituals include cleaning his extra-long tongue and using his toenail clippings as food for his creatures. Though the doctor has proved his value as a physician and crewmember numerous times, Phlox was not always such an assured medical professional. Not long after he became a physician, he was part of a medical team sent to a cargo ship orbiting his homeworld. An explosion had occurred on the ship, and there were seventeen bodies on the bridge. The sight of so many dead people left Phlox shaken and disturbed. He also claims that he was once nearly overwhelmed by 50 patients in a refugee camp on Matalas. Phlox's skills as a physician were also put to the test when he was infected by nanoprobes from some mysterious cybernetic beings. Luckily, he managed to find a cure before he was completely assimilated. Still, he continues to welcome adventure, and is especially intrigued by alien cultures. He jumped at the chance to observe a culture other than humanity when he spent the night with the alien pilgrims who were following the Great Plume of Agosoria. In true Phlox fashion, he found his visit with the pilgrims, which included four hours of ritual prayer and a string of body-purifying exercises, "mesmerizing." Despite his genial nature, Phlox always stands up for what he believes in, even if it brings him into conflict with other officers. He refused to let Reed experiment on the strange, symbiotic creature that took over Enterprise's Cargo Bay Two, saying that it exhibited all the signs of being an intelligent lifeform. He also nearly withheld his findings on the Menk/Valakian situation from Captain Archer, fearing that the captain would interfere with the natural cycle of evolution. Luckily, Phlox trusted Archer to make the right decision, and gained a new respect for his captain. When Enterprise received its assignment to venture into the Delphic Expanse, Phlox opted to stay onboard, citing his loyalty to Archer. Though Phlox finds humans fairly simplistic anatomically, he likes their "charming optimism," and has said of his time on Enterprise, "Every moment's been an adventure for me. Humans are so unpredictable."
|
Warp back to the home page!