Oddas Aria
Commander Oddas Aria is currently serving as the First Officer at the Embassy and the USS Thor.
| Embassy/USS Thor | ||||||||||||||||||||
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| Oddas Aria | ||||||||||||||||||||
| Position | First Officer | |||||||||||||||||||
| Rank | Commander | |||||||||||||||||||
| Species | Bajoran | |||||||||||||||||||
| Gender | Female | |||||||||||||||||||
| DOB | 237003.25 | |||||||||||||||||||
| Age | 31 | |||||||||||||||||||
| Birthplace | Hathon, Bajor | |||||||||||||||||||
| Writer ID | E239305OA0 | |||||||||||||||||||
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Appearance
Physical
- Height: 1.67m
- Weight: 52kg
- Hair: Blonde, Shoulder Length
- Eyes: Brown
Clothing
No matter what she is wearing she continues to wear her Grandmother's blue and silver earring on her right ear.
She has also taken to wearing a watch given to her by Irina on her left wrist and her wedding band on her left ring finger.
Her wedding band was custom made, by Aria herself, and, when triggered, will give the wearer a superficial reading of the paired ring's life signs.
On Duty
Aria takes great pride in her uniform and tries to wear it with distinction. She passed every uniform inspection as a cadet and continues to hold herself to the same exacting standards now that she is in the field.
Off Duty
Aria wears comfortable feminine clothing, often pairing dresses and skirts with jackets. It's not unusual to see her wearing dress clothing with boots or other sensible shoes. When needed, she does not hesitate to dress up.
She does not consider herself someone who collects clothing, but those who have seen her closets would disagree.
Background
Family Background
Aria was born on Bajor in the city of Hathon. Her family, Oddas, is of the ancient D'jarra, the Va'tello, consisting of Sailors, Pilots, and similar professions. In the tradition of their D'jarra her family has always been one steeped in deep military tradition, going underground during the Occupation rather than surrender or take on other professions. She grew up hearing stories of how her extended family were executed by Gul Pirak during for not showing loyalty. Her father and mother both were members of the Resistance and, later, the Bajoran Militia. Due to the extensive tradition of the Oddas Family in the military, it was assumed Aria would follow in their footsteps.
Growing up she continued to hear more and more stories from friends and her remaining family, of heroes, ordinary people who fought for the survival of her planet, people who were not part of the military who resisted in other ways or who resisted in unconventional ways. The stories had an impact and made her think she could find ways to serve in ways that did not involve directly picking up a weapon.
Apptitudes, Leading to a Career
Aria was always interested in mechanics, math, and engineering, to the annoyance of her parents who were expert marksmen, logisticians, strategists, and could not understand Engineering as anything more than a 'maintenance' function. To their extra annoyance, she excelled at it. Her interest was brought to a head at the age of 10 when she found a replicator seemingly beyond repair, and everyone told her it would never be useful.
Aria lived in a neighborhood where people did not worry about where their next meal came from, their replicators were working and fresh food was available as needed. When Aria looked around she realized there were boroughs in her own city where people still went hungry and went without - mostly due to apathy. She realized an easy way to help would be to begin repairing things, starting with the scavenged replicator. Despite her family's insistence it could not be done, she searched high and low for replicator parts, taught herself how the machine should operate, and eventually got it functioning well enough to feed one of the poorer areas of the city for three years before it was replaced.
A Different Path, Confrontation with Family
The people around her, many of her classmates, acquaintances, and all of her family, were interested in picking up phasers so they could go and become 'Heros of the Resistance', but during her scavenging efforts she came across the Resistance's engineers who kept the ships running, their weapons repaired, and kept a low profile. It was during this time she began to realize there more than one way to serve a cause. The same engineers spoke of engineering works helping entire planets and species. They spoke of learning things to help the entire galaxy, and the older ones spoke as if Starfleet was the way to help as many people as possible with as little effort expended.
She began to hear more and more stories from ordinary people who had fought for the survival of her planet and not joined the Militia afterward. It opened her eyes to other paths and other people, including her future surrogate family who served in other ways, and outright encouraged others to look for ways to help Bajorans to spread their influence by influencing affairs outside the military.
When Aria decided to break the family tradition and join Starfleet it was not a popular choice[1] in the Oddas house. Aria tried to explain it in Engineering terms: do the most good for the most people with the least effort. Her parents chose not to understand her reasoning and as she was leaving her parents insisted she not come back; her sister told her to never come home in a Starfleet uniform.
Looking Back
As an adult Aria will admit she was not an easy child to parent. She would often disappear for a day or more at a time scavenging for parts for one project or another and would often discard rules she felt served no purpose. She was brought home by constables more than once[2]. She often would make little to no attempt to try and reconcile with her parents after such infractions, leaving her parents feeling helpless. She never considered herself a rebel, but also never understood the need to conform to what others were doing, especially when what they are doing was dumb.
Family
Immediate Family
- Irina Pavlova, Spouse
- Irina and Aria began dating at their Commanding Officer's wedding. Neither expected the relationship to occur or was looking for any sort of romantic situation, but it happened. After dating for approximately nine months, and their relationship growing, Irina accompanied Aria to Bajor to attend a function for the Ijo family. During their time on Bajor the couple was swept up in the moment and were wed during a short, but blessed ceremony (239406.29)[3].
- Jazmine Snow, Step Daughter
- Adopted daughter of Irina and currently living with the couple, Aria is working out how to approach a daughter, not hers, and not her wife's, without being seen as an interloper. She is trying to find common ground, especially in the fields of ignoring rules, and avoiding consequences. Aria secretly sees a lot of similarities between her situation and Jazmine's, namely they are both in families not their own by birth and finding common ground with strangers. Aria is also very cognizant of the fact Jazmine's mother died not long after marrying Irina.
- Katya Pavlova, Step Daughter
- Daughter of Irina, living with Aria and Irina, and seen by Aria as something of a puzzle. Aria likes Katya and thinks Katya likes her as well, but Aria's unease with children makes her frightened to try too much advanced interaction.
Oddas
- Colonel Oddas Gura, Father
- Aria's father and often described as more at home with the higher ranks of military and intelligence officers. Behind his back, he is sometimes called the politician's soldier, something he regrets and sometimes tries to make up for by being 'more soldier than soldier'.
- General Oddas Umize, Mother
- Mother, A front-line soldier through and through. She never wanted Federation membership for Bajor and has earned the respect of every soldier around her through direct action or fear. Stories abound of Umize shooting a subordinate who did not follow her orders, this is known on Bajor as the 'Oddas Way'[4].
- Captain Oddas Ushow, Sister
- Aria's older sister by a year and as of 239406.27[5] a Captain in the Bajoran Militia. Ushow was as equally, or more so, disdainful of Aria's choice of going into Starfleet as her parents, feeling Starfleet was a 'lesser' service. The two have not spoken since before Aria left for the academy.
The Ijos - Family in All But Name
After Aria's shunning by her family, she felt alone, isolated, and generally as shut off from the world as she ever had. Combined with the death of Ijo Alea she assumed she would never have a home of her home ever again. She was surprised to find Alea's parents recognizing her pain, fighting through their own, and treating her as their own daughter, always managing to find her and offering her the support she desperately needed. Recently when she was worried about bringing her fiance, and future wife home they allayed her fears and treated both as if they had always been family.
Aria, through years of interaction, has deduced there was some sort of tension between the two families (Ijo and Oddas) stemming from the time of the Resistance.
- Ijo Alea
- Deceased Fiance, Bajoran, who had planned to attend Starfleet at the same time as Aria. During a hike, the year before they were scheduled to leave for the Academy Alea was crushed under a rock slide. Aria's family had hoped, not secretly, that Alea's death would weaken Aria's desire to go to Starfleet, but the opposite happened. Alea had planned to go to the academy alongside Aria and unbeknownst to Aria's parents the couple had exchanged betrothal bracelets - designed and crafted by Aria - in the days leading up to Ijo's death. When her parents pressured her to stay on Bajor after the death, Aria realized that her desire to go was stronger than ever.
- Ijo Cada
- The mother of Ijo Alea, and someone who has stepped in as a 'surrogate' mother figure to Aria after the death of Alea. Aria calls her 'Mother Cada' and is likely to write her or visit her when thinking of home. Aria knows little concrete of her time during the Resistance, but innuendo, stories told, and things Cada knows leads Aria, and everyone around her, to believe she was of some importance in the intelligence gathering field. She insists she is a 'retired Bajoran Housewife', but she seems to know a lot about everyone in her family, which now includes characters ranging from Aria, to Irina Pavlova to Jazmine Snow.
- Ijo Teevin
- The father of Ijo Alea, and until 239406.29[3] was the head of the History Department at Bajor Academy of Technical and Military Sciences. A man who does not like discuss his own past in the Resistance but does not shy from it, finds there are nonetheless people around him who are willing to embarrass him by telling of his heroic deeds. Brags about Aria as if she were his own daughter, and treats Jazmine and Katya as if they were grandchildren. Introduced Aria to Kali-fal at too early of an age.
Ijo Alea
Ijo Cada, surrogate mother.
Ijo Teevin, surrogate father.
Other Important Relationships
- Cole Melchor
- One of the few close friends made during her years at the academy due to her studies. Cole had never been off Earth before joining the academy. Theirs is a true friendship despite being different species, world experiences, study disciplines. He teases her about being stuck in books and engines, she teases him about only pushing buttons. They stay in touch as often as they can.
- Roshanara Rahman
- An Engineer, and Aria's final exam proctor, the two have remained in contact since Aria's graduation. Aria considers Dr. Rahman a friend and mentor, someone who she can send ideas to no matter how crazy they are without them getting ignored. Dr. Rahman serves as an inspiration for Aria.
- Brayden Jorey
- Considered by Aria to be a true, if unlikely, friend Jorey is Aria's opposite in almost every way. When she first arrived at the Embassy she found his confidence in her abilities overwhelming to the point she assumed he was just trying to bolster a junior officer. It took quite a while for her to warm up to him, recognizing his concern and outward nature as genuine concern. During a trip to go dancing in the holodeck[6][7] she realized not only did he truly have her best interest at heart, but she trusted him as one of her few close friends.
- Toni Turner
- Aria's first Commanding Officer, and the first to entrust Aria with Command responsibilities, shepherding her through the ranks from an Ensign in the Engineering staff to a Commander and the Executive Officer of the Embassy of Duronis II. Aria considers Toni a mentor, a friend, and in a way, family. Aria is sometimes still tongue-tied around the woman, mostly because she wants to make Turner proud of her.
Personality
Aria tries to listen to opinions of those around her, but sometimes to their chagrin and even her own detriment, she will not often back down after making a decision. Stubborn is a word sometimes used to describe her by others, steadfast is a word she uses to describe herself.
When looking for solutions to problems, she is often drawn to the less aggressive and violent solutions, which places her at odds with the Marines and similar minded people under her command who have labeled her as a 'pacifist' or worst. Aria does not think this is a fair assessment and simply feels as if becoming too comfortable with weapons makes it more likely other solutions will be ignored. She will point out several occasions when she has used weaponry to its most logical and violent conclusions.
While not still an Engineer on a daily basis, she still finds time to do Engineering work and is most at home working out math and engineering problems. When studying a problem her eyes light up as she considers all ramifications and dark alleys of the solution.
She does not get close to people easily, but she is extremely loyal to a close-knit group of friends, especially those who offer a challenge or puzzle.
People who are close to her note she is more likely to deflect interest away from herself to others, some engineering puzzle, or just some challenge recently faced. She will talk about herself if people pry, but she is almost always embarrassed to do so. She is kind and caring, hopeful for the future, and brave even if she doesn't always show it immediately or in obvious ways[8].
A natural introvert she relies on friends to get her 'out of the house', a condition which was exacerbated with the death of Alea and going to the Academy. She is awkward around people and sometimes speaks before thinking fully and often babbles when nervous. She will socialize when pushed, either by friends or duty, but will not generally go out of her way to do so on her own.
Does not typically like the outdoors, but will make exceptions for places like junkyards and other places she can go to scrounge for parts.
Religion
An apparent contradiction to her dedication to engineering is her dedication to the Prophets of Bajor. In her quarters, wherever those may be, will be a small table dedicated to prayer to the Prophets. Despite her falling out with her parents and sister she still prays for the Prophets to guide them, to watch over them, and for their eventual reconciliation.
Quarters
Bajor Sailing Ship
Betrothal Bracelets
Janirian Puzzle Box
White Lily
Aria shares her home with Irina Pavlova, trying to integrate her many puzzles, tchotchkes, gadgets, and other collected items into a household that includes children. Some she keeps as an example of things to do, some have dubious sentimental value (such as the stasis container holding the bouquet she caught the night she began dating Irina), and others she keeps as inspiration for solutions to various engineering problems. She has moved several projects to the outdoor storage areas, including some materials she arranged for shipment from Bajor.
Current projects she has in various stages of completion include her Bajoran Light Sailing Racer, a ship to be propelled by light and designed to race through a solar system under the power of nothing but the light of a star on its sails, and the research she's been working on with Roshanara Rahman in the field of advanced warp theory.
Near the entrance to the house, she has arranged a small shrine to the Bajoran Prophets where she regularly practices meditative prayer.
Career History
Academic History
Undergraduate
Aria entered Starfleet Academy on 239008.15 and graduated 239305.03, majoring in Engineering. While there she was drawn to all things dealing with Propulsion systems, and Subspace Theory. Along the way towards graduation, she found herself also drawn towards pure Mathematics and Programming as each seemed to be required to solve harder problems.
Aria was once ordered to retake ENG121: Colossal Failures in Engineering, when she submitted a paper during a seminar (ENGSEM: Subspace Telemetry and Improvements over the Past Century) in which she argued the Argus Array could be upgraded to outperform newer equipment. She fought the decision and ultimately prevailed, but the visiting professor never accepted her premise or conclusions.
- Specializations
- Propulsion Systems
- Programming
- Minors
- Operations
- Mathematics
Graduate
Aria received a Masters of Science from the Bajoran Academy of Technical and Military Sciences based largely on her research work[9]. She is currently enrolled in her Doctoral program.
- Specializations
- Propulsion
- Subspace Applications
Postings
Aria was first posted to the Embassy on Duronis II Stardate 239305.03 and found herself taking charge of the Engineering Department. With no time to get acquainted with her new staff or surroundings, she was immediately sent out on her first mission, finding herself aboard a Betazoid freighter in need of being brought out of warp with a comatose crew and deadly Terran-Betzoid telepathic cats.
Due to her handling of the mission she was promoted to Lieutenant Junior Grade and assumed an acting role of Chief Engineer and during the subsequent invasion of Embassy by Zalkonian and Romulan Empire forces, bringing the USS Bronwyn into battle ready shape in order to defend the embassy. During the battle and the aftermath, she earned a subsequent promotion to Full Lieutenant and the post of Chief Engineer.
During following missions she proved herself capable of keeping the Embassy engineering systems running, improved and finding time to repair and maintain both the Bronwyn and Thunder. This work, as well as research and other activities with various members of the Starfleet Corps of Engineers, earned her a promotion to Lieutenant Commander on 239402.09.
Aria reluctantly accepted the posting of First Officer of the Embassy on 239404.13 and earned her promotion to full Commander following the first contact with the Ewo and Vouaht on 239412.05.
Other Important Events
Loss of Arm
On Stardate 239403.12[8] Aria was in the Typhon Expanse assisting in the testing of the new TSD. During the mission her ship and crew came under attack by several Borg drones and during the ensuing confrontation, Aria was shot in the arm while protecting a Laudean scientist. The shot caused extensive damage to her right arm and the normal course of treatment would have been the replacement of her right arm and shoulder. Due to a rare genetic marker in her body, she is unable to accept cloned tissue and she was fitted with a prosthetic by Dr Boris Hendon. As of the current stardate faux skin and other aesthetics have not been fitted with the prosthetic.
The confrontation and subsequent replacement have reminded Aria of the assimilation process, causing her some emotional problems she has thus far been avoiding.
Service History
| Service History | ||||
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| Insignia | Rank | Dates | Posting | Assignment |
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Cadet First Class | 239305.03 | Graduated Starfleet Academy | Engineering |
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Ensign | 239305.03 | Embassy/USS Thunder-A | Engineering Officer |
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Lieutenant (JG) | 239306.28 - 239309.04 | Embassy/USS Thunder-A | Engineering Officer |
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Lieutenant | 239309.04 - 239402.09 | Embassy/USS Thunder-A | Chief Engineer |
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Lieutenant Commander | 239402.09 - 239404.13 | Embassy/USS Thunder-A | Chief Engineer |
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Lieutenant Commander | 239404.13 - 239408 | Embassy/USS Thunder-A | First Officer |
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Lieutenant Commander | 239408- 239412.15 | Embassy/USS Thor | First Officer |
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Commander | 239412.05 - Present | Embassy/USS Thor | First Officer |
Awards & Service Ribbons
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Publications
- Oddas A. Vulnerability of Veliko Memory Sentinels on Betazoid Freighters. JSCE, 2393; 23(2).
- T'Lea, Oddas A. T'Lea/Oddas Upside-Down Piggieback Manueuver. JSCE, 2394; 24(2).
Mission Archive
- Be My Friend (239305)
- The USS Thunder-A tries to stop a runaway freighter from crashing on Duronis II and the Embassy 'Shadow Team' try to uncover a mole who has been feeding intel to the Orion Syndicate.
- Crises of Identity (239307)
- The Crew of the Embassy on Duronis II uncovers and Orion plot that would destabilize the beta quadrant and works to put a stop to it.
- Turner-Waltas Wedding (239309)
- Toni Turner weds Tyr Waltas in a huge celebration on Duronis II with attendees from all over the galaxy.
- Family Troubles (239312)
- Captain Waltas' son uses his telepathic abilities to take control over Toni to exact revenge.
- The Lost Son of Leto (239403)
- An experimental device is tested to allow safe travel through the Typhon Expanse.
- Guerrilla Warfare (239406)
- A suicide bomber detonates a bomb just as Aria is promoted to XO.
- Fracking Reality (239408)
- A shakedown cruise into the Expanse turns into something more when the EMH decides to send the crew on a crazy holiday.
- Alternative to Warp (239410)
- Investigating Graviton pulses in the Typhon Expanse the Thor finds itself in the middle of an ancient war, and in another galaxy.
- Return to Paradis (239412)
- A Mission to Kjenta II allows for the crew to rescue the remnants of a pre-warp society.
- Disposable Heros (239503)
- In pursuit of one of their own, Aria leads a small task force against a Romulan Warbird commanded by Eden Redstone, and fends off romantic overtures from Romulan Sub-Commander Jukoka.
NPC Listing · Embassy/USS Thor Crew Manifest · Crew History
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References
- ↑ https://groups.google.com/d/msg/sb118-embassy/G_f2SDJdvZ0/F6Mfw4-bFAAJ
- ↑ http://sims.starbase118.net/sim.php?simnum=2452499
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 http://sims.starbase118.net/sim.php?simnum=2452654
- ↑ https://groups.google.com/d/msg/sb118-embassy/Je35UPkzUms/sNFjDsXjCwAJ
- ↑ http://sims.starbase118.net/sim.php?simnum=2452562
- ↑ http://sims.starbase118.net/sim.php?shipid=17&simnum=2457793
- ↑ http://sims.starbase118.net/sim.php?shipid=17&simnum=2457794
- ↑ 8.0 8.1 https://groups.google.com/forum/#!topic/sb118-embassy/-UBb5I_Xd58
- ↑ http://sims.starbase118.net/sim.php?shipid=17&simnum=2460722