Ensign Veronica Rios
Name Veronica Rios
Position Science Officer
Rank Ensign
Character Information
| Gender | Female | |
| Species | Human | |
| Age | 26 |
Physical Appearance
| Height | 5'7" | |
| Weight | 120lbs | |
| Hair Color | Red | |
| Eye Color | Steel-Blue | |
| Physical Description | Veronica is slender, with little muscle mass other than standard physical activity and her archery practice. She often wears her red hair back in a curly ponytail or bun. She has a small tattoo of a stylized constellation and moon on her lower back, a small iris tattoo on her left arm near her shoulder, and a tiny dragon tattoo by her right ankle. |
Family
| Father | Ivan Rios, Researcher on Andoria | |
| Mother | Jerrica Rios, Professor of Exobiology | |
| Brother(s) | Zane Rios, Stationed aboard USS Langley |
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| Sister(s) | Lana Rios, Living on Andoria |
Personality & Traits
| General Overview | Veronica is a rather outgoing individual, frequently joking and teasing people she gets along with. She tends to make a lot of surface level friendships, but has rarely developed deeper relationships. She is an idealist and struggles with situations outside her values. She'll be a strong advocate for those whose rights she feels are being ignored. Though occasionally frustrating to her senior officers, this trait often causes her to fill the role of moral compass in her groups, even if she rarely serves as leader. She hasn't endured a great deal of difficulty in her life, surfing from comfortable home life to safe assignments aboard ships and stations. Her few run-ins with combat have left her less than thrilled, only serving to increase her desire for more peaceful outcomes. |
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| Strengths & Weaknesses | Very skilled linguist, speaking numerous Federation and non-Federation dialects + Fierce loyalty to her crew + Very personable and comfortable with respecting others' customs + Has supplemental engineering training + Well adapted to the cold - Can become confrontational when faced with acts of oppression - Has some combat training, but is hesitant to use it - Not comfortable taking on leadership roles |
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| Ambitions | Veronica is looking to rise in her field, though not to the point of command. She'd prefer a field commission where she could make use of her scientific skills. |
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| Hobbies & Interests | Reading, strategy games, swimming, dancing, archery (recreational). |
| Personal History | 2238- Born in a small western Massachusetts town on Earth, Veronica Rios was born into a comfortable civilian life. Her father, Ivan Rios, was a sociological researcher looking into societal trends on a Quadrant level scale. Her mother, Jerrica, was a rising academic in the field of exobiology. It was a peaceful, loving household which made for a very comfortable childhood for young Veronica. Surrounded by academics and scientists, an interest in the exploratory arts was fostered from a very young age. Just a few years after she'd begun attending school, the Rios family relocated to Andoria, where it has mostly remained ever since. The cold and frequently inhospitable world was a source of significant intrigue for the young girl and she quickly felt at home among the diverse students on the frigid world. 2248- At age 10, Veronica got her first real taste of Starfleet, and it stuck. There was little history of service in her family, so she'd had little exposure to the organization. However, her father was called to attend a conference following the Reman meeting of the Xindi Council. Ivan was little more than an advisor at the meeting, but he brought Veronica along for the experience. Their brief voyage aboard the USS Clement gave her a taste of life in the uniform. The small vessel had an impressive amount of scientific equipment and the idea of exploring the stars in such a craft sparked a young childhood dream in 10 year old Veronica. Upon her return home to Andoria, she began obsessing over the various craft that would come into orbit, frequently using her telescope to watch the craft on clear nights. She'd beg for tours from visiting captain's, even earning a small reputation aboard the orbital station. 2253- By age 15, the childhood dream had grown into an actual goal, and Veronica focused her studies on qualifying for Starfleet Academy. She quickly developed an aptitude for scientific studies, which was good due to her lack of skill with some of the more practical departments. Despite that, she did gain some decent skills in basic engineering, under the tutelage of the Orbital Station team. 2256- At age 18, Veronica headed to Starfleet Academy wide eyed and full of wonder. The experience wasn't quite so smooth though. Her first year was marred by personal complications. Away from her family for the first time, she struggled socially. For the first few months, she made few friends. Her attention was also drawn homeward when her younger sister, Jana, fell ill with a rare respiratory disease. Her second year was a bit more successful. Her grades recovered substantially and she found a core group of friends. They managed to stay mostly out of trouble, aside from a brief escalating series of pranks which caught the eye of an Admiral after he was coated in a bioluminescent powder meant for their rival group. She soon was involved in an academy research project focusing on planets in a nearby binary star systems. Her third and fourth years were dominated by Cadet cruises to several planetary clusters, observing numerous astronomical phenomena. The work was rewarding, but she found herself disappointed in the lack of more exciting action. 2260- Following her graduation, Rios was assigned to the USS Nobel. The vessel mostly performed scientific surveys along the galactic interior, but rarely strayed too close to any borders. As such, her time aboard the vessel was interesting from a scientific standpoint, but lacked much excitement beyond that. With limited cultural interaction, her crew was relegated to reading the exploits of others and negotiating with local traders. She developed a fairly serious romance with the ship's language specialist, Rachael Graves. However, when Graves was transferred off ship, the romance struggled to maintain its strength. The distance between them was magnified when Graves' vessel was sent on a longer exploration mission, essentially severing contact. Rios held out hope that they would rekindle things upon the vessel's return. However, when they did get back in touch, Rachael had developed a relationship with one of her new crewmates. Their contact quickly soured and they were soon no longer on speaking terms. Veronica experienced a second scare regarding her sister's health and took an 8 month leave to be with her. Upon her return to Nobel, she decided to pursue a more ambitious approach to her career. She applied for and soon received a transfer to the USS Bellerophon. 2263- Serving aboard the Bellerophon as Junior Science Officer, she came into her own. Though not senior staff, she now had her own research unit which she had authority over. This was something she took great pride in. Additionally, the vessel had a more adventurous route. Though frequently only serving as a supply transport for outer rim stations, it allowed her some more obscure routes to chart and peaked her curiosity. After a shuttle mishap, she was briefly marooned on a frigid moon, with no way to contact the ship. As the most familiar with frigid climates, her skills likely kept her shuttlemates alive during the two weeks it took the Bellerophon to return for them. It was during this time that she forged a close friendship with helm officer Liam Kenning. The two had continuous romantic tensions, but never could manage to sync their timing on it. Late 2263 to early 2264- In mid 2263, Veronica and Liam were temporarily transfered to the USS Chaucer, a small scientific observer to watch the development of a rare violet supergiant. The tour took them to the edges of Federation space, putting them in close contact with a number of new cultures. In such close proximity, Veronica and Liam began to spiral toward romantic entanglement. A few "one time" flings only accelerated the progression. However, on the way back to civilization, tragedy struck. A freak malfunction in the warp core, possibly triggered by the long term exposure to the star's radiation, quickly escalated while the vessel was at warp. A plasma fire erupted and killed the Engineering crew, preventing any chance of averting the destruction. The ship violently exited warp and an EPS conduit overloaded. Veronica was severely injured, suffering a stab wound from debris ejected by the overload. Incapacitated and nearly unconscious, she was loaded into an escape pod and launched to safety by Liam Kenning, who sacrificed his own chance at survival to ensure her air supply would last longer. This sacrifice saved her life. To date, no other survivors of the Chaucer have been recovered. 2265 to very early 2266- Veronica spent much of the following year on Medical Leave, seeking both physical and mental health assistance. However, eventually she felt the call to return to the stars. When a Science Officer posting became available aboard the new Starbase Arcadia, she transferred there. A short while after that, she was brought onto the crew of the USS Defiant. |
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| Service Record | 2258-2260: Cadet Cruises USS Melbourne USS Raman 2260: Promotion to Ensign Graduation from Academy USS Nobel, Junior Science Officer Family Leave (8 Months 2293-2294) 2263: Transferred to USS Bellerophon, Junior Science Officer 2263: Transferred to USS Chaucer 2264: USS Chaucer lost with all hands, sans Veronica Rios 2264-2265: Medical Leave 2265-2266: Starbase Arcadia Astronomy Department 2266: USS Defiant |