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PostPosted: Fri October 11th, 2013 10:41 pm 
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Vital Statistics
Name: Tesza Erib Ondyrav
Nickname: Bug
Gender: Female
Birthdate: October 3, 2383
Height: 152 cm
Weight: 60 kg
Species: Andorian/Human hybrid
Hair: Black
Skin: Blue
Rank/position: Captain/Captain
Duty Assignment: U.S.S. Larashkail, 12th Fleet, Starfleet, United Federation of Planets

Origins

Tesza was born in Anchorage, Alaska at the Starfleet facility that was once an air force base in the days when humans fought amongst themselves with such veracity that they sought to kill entire races and nations. Her father was Andorian and his place of residence is her home or record. As far as the Federation is concerned, she is Andorian from the Cheshras Islands. She was born with full citizenship of Andor and the Federation.

Her mother’s pregnancy was something of a surprise and there were many rumors about the child. Only the father, mother, and doctor knew the secret of the child that grew within Audrey Ondyrav’s belly. It was a secret that was exposed when the child drew her first breath, her tiny antennas waving rapidly and aimlessly, taking in new input even as her brain had no real idea what to do with it.

Her human birth was probably the most amazing thing about her, for there is zero chance of a natural genetic link between a human and an Andorian. Andorian genetics are far too complex. Entire careers have been made to understand the details of the Andorian genome. Even more careers have been destroyed at the hands of errant experiments with the same.

Keval Ondyrav, Tesza’s father was an outcast as a youth. He abandoned his betrothed mates just days before their shelthreth to strike out on his own. He studied at the Cheshras Island Science Institute where he examined the high points of Andorian genetic research and various experiments to save his people from the slow, yet deliberate extinction facing them all. He developed a number of theories that formed the basis of his doctoral thesis. However, under peer review, his conclusions were uniformly disregarded as “overly simplistic.”

Despite this setback, he joined Starfleet and found a new joy of research in space. While on assignment on the U.S.S. Yosemite, he met Audrey McCormick, a human female born in Queensland, Australia on Earth. The two fell in love, with permission because Audrey was just a crewman, and were married by captain Julie Rogers on January 16, 2382. It was during this time that Keval began the process of sequencing his children.

The genes that make up Tesza, her sister Tala, and her brother, Logan, were sequenced in the lab aboard the U.S.S. Yosemite. The ship was on a long-term survey mission and was far way from the watchful eyes of the rest of Starfleet Command. His captain ran a loose ship and he took advantage of the situation by combining his genes with Audrey’s until he found, through simulation, a viable combination.

The children would be visually Andorian. Their skin would be blue, they would have antennas that performed the same functions of Andorian antennas. Visually, his simulations showed, the children were Andorian. Internally, their systems were more human, including human reproductive systems that would, if he succeeded, allow his children to mate with either humans or Andorians with equal chances of success, though the Andorian traits were dominant and would remain so. "If this works" he thought "it could save our people."

For the greater part, he succeeded. However, as the children grew, their typically white Andorian hair darkened and turned jet black. It was due to an aberration he would correct in later years. However, his children would be visually set apart from their peers, though they could bleach and color it if they chose. He let it be their decision.

When the Yosemite returned to Earth, Keval and Audrey relocated to the Elmendorf Station. Keval had requested a duty site on Andor, but there were no openings. This was his second choice and when he thought about it later, he was happy it turned out this way.

Tesza’s early life was typical of any Earth children. She grew up in the Shadow of the Elmendorf facility where her father worked as a civilian researcher. When the nature of his children’s birth came to light, he was dismissed by Starfleet. However, that did not affect his eligibility as a civilian employee and he was hired to conduct the same genetic research that lead to his dismissal from Starfleet.

Anchorage remained much as it had been since the industrial revolution, though with more comforts of technology. The population was sparse by design. The regions of Alaska that were established as national preserves centuries ago were maintained as preserves. In some ways, it was a museum of real nature. The preserves covered hundreds of thousand of square kilometers and bore the wildlife that had called this region home for thousands of years.

This was Tesza’s back yard and she grew up with the false impression that it was this way everywhere. When she was six years old, her family travelled to Andor, to Cheshras Island, to see her grandparents. There were concerns about how the Andorians would greet the children, so the family included a security detachment on their trip.

When Keval abandoned his betrothal, 3 of his 4 parents abandoned him. He was cast out of his home and told never to return. He maintained contact with his Shen and his first daughter was named for her. Young Tesza had spoken with her grandmother over subspace and the two had exchanged correspondence regularly from the time Tesza was old enough to do so. Their bond was as tight as two friends who spend every day together.

Tesza and Tesza were both eager to meet with the elder showing uncharacteristic excitement for the meeting. By this time, the other parents had reconciled with Keval, who’s own brother happily took his place in the shelthreth and brought them a surprising 6 children before their fertility exhausted.

When the family arrived, the elder Tesza and his Zhavey, Erib met them at the spaceport. The two old Andorian mothers cackled like children at the sight of their grandbabies and there was only love in the air. Both of Keval’s fathers were deployed. One had enlisted in Starfleet and the other remained with the Andorian military.
The family was there for a personal visit, but Keval had an ulterior motive; he was speaking at a genetics research conference for his pioneering work. Many Andorians knew of his theories and he had expanded his original work. However, none of them knew the extent of his theories and none of them realized he had actually used any of his methods outside the lab. His decision to present his daughter to the scientists went as feared. The security detail was prepared to protect the father and daughter and their protection was required.

After Keval’s speech, where he described his simulations and the implications of his work, he dropped the bombshell and asked his daughter to the stage. At this point in her life, her hair was still white but just beginning to darken.

As Keval gave finished his speech, he said, “. . . and so using these techniques, without affecting the foundations of Andorian DNA, we are able to subtly nudge the components that will ensure our longevity without sacrificing what it means to be us.” He smiled and nodded to the audience, then asked if there were any questions.

From the center of the crowd, “Dr. Ondyrav, are you suggesting our DNA makes us weak?”
Keval anticipated this kind of questioning, though unpleasant, he responded, “On the contrary, our Andorian DNA makes us stronger. However, over time some elements have evolved that have damaged our original genetic structure. I’m not proposing a drastic change as much as I am proposing a return to our original genetics.”

“But are you not also proposing reducing our sexes to only two? Doesn’t that require a fundamental change to foundational genetic structures?”

“You are correct. It will mean a significant change, and not one that would be uniquely Andorian in nature.”

Another voice, almost shouted, “What is that to mean? Not uniquely Andorian?”
The unrest in the conference hall began to grow. Attendees were shuffling in their seats, asking rhetorical questions of each other.

Keval began to feel the stress of the situation. He wished for a calmer climate and hoped he would have time to answer their questions.

“In order to accomplish these goals, some synthetic genes must be inserted. Once in place, the changes to lineage are permanent. Although the genes are synthetic, they are modeled after various species and adjusted for our unique genetic makeup.”

“And this will make us like all the other humanoids in the galaxy?”

“It will not make us like them, though we will be more compatible with them. My goal has nothing to do with other humanoids, and everything to do with the continuation of the Andorian race.”

The host of the conference stepped onto the stage in an effort to rush Keval off and bring order once again to the conference.

He said, “Thank you, Dr. Ondyrav for a rousing, if even controversial, discussion on our topic.” To the audience, he said, “Please, everyone, remember Dr. Ondyrav’s work is theoretical and any disagreement should be published…”
“It isn’t just theoretical. I’ve already done it.” Keval blurted out.

The crowd grew eerily silent as they regarded Keval, who regarded the attendees with a level gaze as his eyes scanned the crowd. After several moments, he said, again, “I’ve already done it.”
The host said, “Surely you only mean you’ve sequenced the DNA strands in the lab.”
“No.” He said. “I’ve gone beyond that. I have used altered DNA to create a viable being. Tesza, please come out.”

The little girl was hesitant. She had never seen a crowd quite like this one. She was still not quite over the shock of such a large city and now she was going to be the center of attention for . . . for how many people she didn’t know. Before she could really steel her resolve, one of the security detail took her hand and walked with her on the stage toward her father, who picked her up and held her so they all could see.

“This is my daughter, Tesza. Her mother is human. Tesza is as Andorian as you or me. Yet the changes in her will allow her children to see a new dawn of Andorian civilization.”

The crowd, still in shock, began to rumble. The host said, in a particularly disagreeable tone, “It’s time you leave, Dr. Ondyrav.” As he began to move toward the side of the stage, clutching his daughter close, he wondered if this was the best course of action. He knew his people could be volatile. Could they be dangerous this quickly though? He had to go, he knew that. He hoped his work wouldn’t be discredited because of the timing of his announcement. He silently reprimanded himself for his boldness, blaming himself for the devastation that he believed was now imminent.

As the security team huddled around the Dr. and his daughter, someone from the crowd shouted, “He’s created an abomination!” It was all the crowd needed.

They were scientists, doctors, researchers. People of education and yet they were falling into the same primal trap even the least educated of his kind were so wont to fall into. The violent impulses were building rapidly among the crowd. Electronic details of the announcement spread like fire through the airwaves.

The security team safely delivered Tesza and Keval to the waiting car and pulled away, but it was only moments before news disseminated among the people. Soon others noticed their car and hurled gestures and insults. Something crashed into a side window of the car, nearest Tesza. The girl recoiled, terror evident in her expression. She began to cry and father pulled her close to him. She buried her head in the crook of his shoulder.

The car swerved in and out of traffic, drawing the attention of the crowds. People, aware of the broadcasts began to line the sidewalks. Rumors churned away and portable devices sprang to life. "Rogue Scientist makes a Break" read one message. Another said, "Genetic Scientist Creates Abomination and Flees City". Moment by moment, every detain plausible was spread to the people in the city. The car, the occupants, every turn they made, every person frightened into running away. It was all captured and shared.

The getaway car, aware of what was happening, heedlessly sped on through the streets vying for freedom, hoping for escape. The car careered hard to the left when an intersection was blocked, the occupants slid in their seats as the car rocked back and forth. Another turn, this time to the right. Tezsa found herself pressed between her father and a body guard, then the car swerved again. Keval tried to hold her steady and tried to block the view of the hatred around them. He felt her fear, though he couldn't say how. Maybe it was the way a parent knew things about their children. He did what he could to protect her and he thought she felt safe in his presence.

Tesza didn’t cower for long. She began to look around as she and her father bounced inside the car. Soon, the crowds began to be more than observers and they began to pelt the car with objects. Inside, the atmosphere grew more tense. Keval asked the driver, “Will we make it.” The driver said, “We had to take a detour. I don’t know if we can get back on the right road. These crowds formed faster than I thought they could.”

Suddenly, car stopped. The road was blocked. Around them was a sea of white heads and bobbing antennas. A brick shattered the rear window. The man in the passenger seat spoke into his intercom. All Tesza heard was “...emergency beam out NOW!”

Her world melted away in an instant. Her eyes couldn’t penetrate the depth of the fog surrounding her and she was engulfed by a sudden silence that was almost as quickly replaced by a ringing that was half sound and half sensation. She felt it in every part of her body from the tip of her highest antenna (the right one, but 4 millimeters) to the tip of her toes; a tingly, electric feeling that wasn’t really all that bad, but it wasn’t something she really liked all that much. She tried to look around in those moments and found she couldn’t move at all and just as panic was about to grip her, it was all over and the world faded back in, but she was in a well lit room with military men asking if they were all right.

Her father stepped quickly off the transporter pad and spoke with one of the security men. “What about my family?” He asked. “It’s being handled.” Was the curt reply. Just as he finished saying it, Tesza heard the ringing sound again and braced herself for the odd sensation, but it didn’t come.

Instead, her mother, sister, brother, and her grandmothers appeared on the transporter pad. Keval set the girl down and she ran to her mother. Audrey knelt to hold her daughter, relieved to see her alive and unharmed. Her grandmothers circled behind her and she felt safe and courageous as four old hands joined her mother's. She still didn't understand what happened, but the excitement of it all was attractive to her. In time, she would come to crave it, even causing it to happen, but for now she enjoyed being the center of attention again, but this time with people she knew and loved.

In a way, the whole thing was a disaster, yet Keval planned this from the beginning. He knew there would be an immediate backlash. He just didn’t count on it percolating for such a short period of time. The word was out now and all of Andoria had to deal with the reality that faced them. Here was a solution to their problem. Later, he would say it isn’t “The” solution, just “A” solution.

His people had faced tragedy for a long time. The Borg attack hurt them all and changed every estimate for Andorian extinction. The other attempts at “fixing” their DNA had varying levels of success, but in the end they always failed. Keval knew this was the solution. The techniques he used to bring this girl and her siblings to the world were based on those early research disasters, but he stripped the exotict aspects away and worked only with what was known and understood. Even then, there were things that he couldn’t control. Tesza’s split antennas, for example. The other kids didn’t have that, just her. And her hair, darkening by the day. Her eyebrows and eylashes were already jet black and new growth was just as dark. He hoped there were no other surprises, but somehow he knew there would be. He just hoped it wouldn’t be too severe.

The family were taken to quarters aboard the U.S.S. Whitmore and the children, Tesza and Tala, for Logan was still too young, were given a tour of the Sovereign class starship. It wasn’t at all like the passenger ship that brought her family to Andor. That ship had room to move around, but it wasn’t meant for people to live in it. This one was. The ensign who showed them around said it could do everything an entire city could do and it could do it for years at a time.

They saw the major sights that day; engineering, sick bay, the bridge, the officer’s lounge, the kitchen. They had a picnic in the hydroponics bay and Tesza thought it was trying to smell like her home but it wasn’t very good at it, but the fruits were good and they even had some Andorian fruit that appealed to her. She didn’t get that very often. It didn’t grow well on Earth, but her father ordered some from a shop in town so they could share. To the girls, the fruit was sweet and beautiful, but her mother said it was disgusting and smelled like animal pens.

That night, after dinner, Tesza asked her father, “Didn’t you used to be on a ship like this?”
“Not like this one. This ship is much nicer than my old ship, but both your mother and I met on a starship. It was called the Yosemite.”
“I like it here.” She said. “How long can we stay?”
Her father laughed in a way that was much more human than Andorian.
“We can stay two weeks and not a day longer.”
The girl’s eyes lit up. “Two whole weeks!? I can see the whole ship by then!”
“I’m sure you can. You might even meet the captain.”
“When I grow up, I want to go on a ship like this one.”
“You must grow up first, shevtak,” her father used this name when he wanted her to go to sleep. “and when you do, you can decide to go on any kind of ship you like. Now go to sleep and we’ll have breakfast with the crew. How’s that?”
“Ok, Daddy.”

Keval bent down to kiss her on the forehead and wished her a good night and she sailed blissfully to sleep, the ship's gentle vibrations and persistent hum rocking her off to dreamland.

As she drifted away, images of herself as the captain with her captain’s hat on the bridge of her own ship filled her head. “Captain Tesza, what are your orders?” Her imaginary first officer, who happened to look exactly like Tala, asked. “First star to the right, and straight on til morning.” She replied. Her science officer, ever the spoiler of fun, who also seemed to resemble her brother Logan turned and said, “Shouldn't that be the second star to the right, ma’am?” To which she replied, “No, someone’s already been there. Let’s go somewhere new.”

______________________________________________________________________________________

Suddenly, alarm bells were ringing. Tesza awoke with a start and leapt out of her bunk. Her routine was established now, only three days in the Academy and she knew what to do. In moments her bunk looked as if no one had slept in it and she stood with her fellow recruits as they ringed a large empty area of the floor. Someone shouted, “Toe the line!” as if no one knew what to do. Doubtless that one would be their squad leader, whoever it was.

The noise abated almost as quickly as it started. Each individual standing as tall as they could manage, eyes locked ahead of them, feet slightly apart, hands pressed into the small of the back. A familiar voice called, “Attention” but it sounded more like “A tin hut” with emphasis on the last syllable, making it more a grunt than a word. In unison, or something close to it, every recruit in the room dropped their hands to their sides, their thumbs pressed into their forefingers to remind them of the importance of this stance. Their heels snapped together in a ritual that was hundreds of years old and played out almost the same way millions of times on Earth and other systems.

When civilizations arose, the military always seemed to take a strikingly similar path and so it was that Tesza filled her days for her first few months at Starfleet Academy. It wasn’t the glamorous images she recalled in her youth, but she knew where it would lead if she stayed the course.
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PostPosted: Fri October 11th, 2013 10:49 pm 
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I am somewhat reluctant to post my stories on the Interwebs. last time I did that, I ended up getting married and I don't want to do that again. Even still, I am interested in any comments y'all might have.


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PostPosted: Fri October 11th, 2013 11:19 pm 
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Joined: Wed October 3rd, 2012 3:31 am
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OK! I READ IT! :P

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