Christopher Caldwell
| Crew of the USS Astraeus | |||||||||||||||||||||||
|
| |||||||||||||||||||||||
| Lt. Commander Christopher Caldwell | |||||||||||||||||||||||
| |||||||||||||||||||||||
Lieutenant Commander Christopher Caldwell is currently serving aboard the USS Astraeus as the ship's Mission Specialist and Second Officer.
| Personal Data |
|---|
- Full name: Christopher James Caldwell
- Date of birth (Age): 21st of July 2372 (29)
- Species: Human
- Gender: Male
- Pronouns: He/Him
| Appearance |
|---|
- Height: 6ft (1.84 m)
- Weight: 171lbs (77.5 kg)
- Ethnicity: White, European
- Hair colour: Brown
- Eye colour: Brown
| Personality |
|---|
- Christopher is highly competitive, loves a challenge (so long as he can actually achieve it), and can be both a bad loser and a bad winner.
- While his competitiveness often results in him striving to perform his duties well, it also results in perfectionism and trying to hold himself to very high standards. As a result, he is sometimes paradoxically proud while still being disappointed in himself.
- He is often outgoing and routinely makes jokes, either for the amusement of others or just for himself. When frustrated or stressed, his humour tends to become sarcastic.
- He is typically flirtatious and appreciates those that reciprocate his playful behaviour; he enjoys the thrill of the chase, and his amorous disposition means that he typically views romantic pursuits as an entertaining challenge.
- Despite his openness, he is typically far more reserved when dealing with much more senior officers.
- Christopher is used to and appreciates directness, especially from senior officers, liking to know where he stands and what is expected of him.
- While usually a tactical thinker, he can easily become impatient with others, often favouring bold action over indecisiveness.
| Current Relationships |
|---|
 |
Mei'konda Delano Commanding Officer (Captain, USS Astraeus) Christopher holds Fleet Captain Delano in high regard, appreciating the opportunities he has afforded him aboard the Astraeus. He is particularly grateful that he seems to look beyond his surface flaws, recognising his underlying potential. Despite this, Caldwell admits to finding the Captain somewhat enigmatic and difficult to 'read' at times. |
 |
Wyatt Ral Friend (Chief Engineer, USS Astraeus) Caldwell remains somewhat wary of Chief Engineer Wyatt Ral's half-Betazoid empathy, but greatly appreciates Ral's openness in explaining how it works, which offered significant reassurance. He holds the Chief in high regard, valuing his genuine concern for his wellbeing and considering him an exceptionally supportive professional and personal colleague. |
| Former Relationships |
|---|
 |
101 and 000 Colleagues (Operations Officers, USS Astraeus) The Bynar pairing of 101 and 000 held a certain fascination for Christopher. He finds himself intrigued by the profound, innate connection the Bynars share, a closeness he doesn't fully comprehend but somewhat envies, given his own transient history with relationships and lack of close family ties. This fascination translated into a feeling of protectiveness, especially towards 000. |
 |
Alix Harford Friend (Former Medical Officer, USS Astraeus) Christopher saw a kindred spirit in Alix Harford after witnessing her competitiveness. He particularly enjoyed their competitive dynamic, fondly recalling defeating her at basketball (although her memory of their match might differ). Aware of Harford's struggles with anxiety and fearing it would cut short a promising career, Caldwell attempted to help using a 'tough love' approach. Her subsequent transfer from the Astraeus, without informing him, left Caldwell saddened and burdened with guilt, blaming his well-intentioned methods to support her for her departure. |
 |
Charles Matthews Friend (Tactical Officer, USS Khitomer) Charles Matthews was a respected colleague and, frequently, a drinking buddy for Christopher. The two found common ground in their similar worldview, though their friendship wasn't without friction, occasionally escalating to the point of near physical confrontation, Christopher considered Charles to be his best friend about the Astraeus. Caldwell was shocked by Matthews' transfer from the Astraeus, feelings compounded by confusion and a sense of hurt that his friend departed without any prior word. |
 |
Esa Kiax Romantic partner (Former Chief Operations Officer, USS Astraeus) Christopher was immediately infatuated with Esa Kiax. Despite feeling she was 'out of his league' he pursued her persistently, enjoying the chase and suspecting she secretly enjoyed the attention too. Their dynamic eventually led to a brief romantic relationship. However, he unintentionally hurt Esa when selected for the Acting First Officer role over her, despite her seniority. This professional slight occurred while she was grappling with other personal issues, culminating in her taking indefinite medical leave from Starfleet and the termination of their relationship. |
 |
Sevantha Saa Friend (Counselor, USS Octavia E Butler) Christopher valued Dr. Saa's medical expertise and her genuine concern for both his physical and mental wellbeing. Her telepathic abilities did made him feel uneasy and during sensitive conversations he would consciously tried to obfuscate his thoughts, usually by focusing on music, to frustrate any potential telepathic intrusion. Despite his discomfort with her telepathic abilities, Caldwell misses Saa's presence on board, particularly wishing he still had her as a confidante that he could turn to. |
| Family |
|---|
 |
Ethan Caldwell Father - Deceased Ethan Caldwell, Christopher's father, worked as a civilian engineer. He tragically died off-planet during 2377, while participating in reconstruction efforts on Cardassia Prime following the Dominion War. Christopher was only five years old at the time. |
 |
Rachel Caldwell Mother - Estranged Christopher's mother, Rachel, is an artist residing in England. She raised Christopher alone, facing significant challenges as a result of him being a difficult child who was frequently in trouble and rarely present at home. Their relationship fractured over time, and they have not been in contact for many years. |
| History |
|---|
 |
2372 Origins Christopher James Caldwell was born in Cambridge, England, Earth, on the 21st of July 2372. His mother, Rachel Caldwell, was a talented artist, and his father, Ethan Caldwell, worked as a civilian engineer. |
 |
2377 - 2388 Early Life Even before his death in 2377, Christopher's father, Ethan, had been a frequent absence due to off-world engineering work. His loss during Cardassian reconstruction efforts, when Christopher was five, profoundly impacted Christopher's childhood, leaving him solely in the care of his mother, Rachel. His early school years proved challenging. He found standard classroom teaching deeply frustrating. His impatient nature clashed with the focus on learning things by repetition, especially when he craved practical, hands-on experience to truly grasp how things worked. Unable to channel his energy effectively this way, he often reacted disruptively, adding significantly to the difficulties faced by his supportive but understandably struggling single mother. Where academics offered frustration and friction, athletics provided a vital outlet. Christopher demonstrated a natural aptitude for sports, actively seeking tougher challenges against older children. This stark contrast fuelled his intense competitive drive. Unable to easily dominate academically, he poured his need to win into sports. His competitiveness, however, often manifested negatively – not just in being a sore loser or ungracious winner, but sometimes through lashing out at or belittling peers. |
 |
2388 Leaving Home Impatient to start experiencing the galaxy and increasingly disillusioned with formal education, Christopher left school and home at age sixteen (2388), eager to also leave behind a strained relationship with his mother that was largely of his own making. Starfleet briefly appealed, offering an exciting new challenge of exploration and learning by doing. Yet, the thought of enduring Starfleet Academy's academic structure grated against his preferences for practical learning, and his current inability to commit to a specific career path ruled out both officer and NCO routes at the time. Craving immediate, tangible experience and less formality, he decisively opted for the civilian merchant service, signing aboard a freighter to learn the ropes his own way. |
 |
Late 2380s/Early 2390s The Velikan Having joined the merchant service in the late 2380s, Christopher's first berth was aboard the SS Velikan (NAR-56260), an Antares-class freighter navigating the volatile fringes near Bajoran and Ferengi space. Starting in a junior capacity, his role involved the varied, often unglamorous tasks essential to learning the ropes aboard a working freighter. The harsh realities of this dangerous frontier were quickly and brutally revealed during a close-quarters defence against Nausicaan boarders, an encounter demanding lethal force from the crew, Caldwell included. This sudden confrontation with lethal violence served as a stark wake-up call for Christopher, highlighting the difference between the life-and-death stakes of real combat and the comparatively petty nature of his teenage aggression. The incident with the Nausicaans was not the last time the Velikan encountered hostile forces. On one occasion the Velikan faced pursuit by Tzenkethi forces. Caldwell's preference for bold action came to the fore as, without thinking, he took the helm and daringly piloted the freighter into an unstable asteroid field. This risky tactic proved successful in shaking off their pursuers, however his 'win' was offset by the fact that the Velikan suffered significant damage as a result, a bitter cost accompanying the success. |
 |
2388 - 2397 Life in the Merchant Service Following his intense initiation into the merchant service, Christopher spent the next nine years (2388-2397) working aboard various freighters and merchant vessels. This dynamic environment proved a far better fit for his practical learning style than any classroom had been. Requiring crew members to be adaptable and fill multiple roles, this life provided him with a broad, hands-on understanding of ship operations and deep space realities – invaluable experience for someone action-oriented and eager to learn by doing. Since the Federation's post-scarcity economy pushed the most profitable (and often riskiest) trade routes to its fringes and into non-aligned space, Caldwell inevitably spent these formative years navigating the galaxy's less reputable corners. This constant exposure offered a unique, if often harsh, education in diverse cultures, exotic locales, and unpredictable dangers. Brief stints ashore during infrequent port calls provided opportunities to indulge his outgoing, flirtatious side, these often transient encounters became part of the 'life lessons' learned far from home. His experiences honed his survival instincts and resourcefulness, forcing him to learn crucial lessons about navigating tricky situations and difficult personalities – experiences far removed from the structured educational environments he'd previously rejected. |
 |
2397 - 2401 Joining Starfleet By 2397, after nearly ten years navigating the fringes in the merchant service, Christopher (now 25) felt a pull towards a different kind of challenge. Driven by a desire for a career path offering greater recognition and a sense of accomplishment that he could be truly proud of – maybe even proving something to those who might look down on his former path – he reconsidered Starfleet, deciding that the Academy now seemed like a potential proving ground. He wagered that his extensive hands-on experience and age would give him a distinct advantage over younger cadets who had no real-world experience, allowing him to better compete against the backdrop of the academic requirements that had once deterred him. His confidence proved well-founded. Between 2397 and 2401, Caldwell thrived at Starfleet Academy. His practical background and innate charisma quickly established him as a respected, informal leader among fellow cadets, validating his belief in his own capabilities. Academically, fuelled by his competitive nature combined with his years on the frontier, he excelled, graduating near the top of his class. His choice to major in Security, complemented by a minor in Communications/Operations, strategically built upon his existing skillset while maximizing his future possibilities within the demanding structure of Starfleet – a structure he now aimed to master. |
 |
2401 - Present The Astraeus Graduating in 2401, Ensign Caldwell's first posting was aboard the Galaxy-class USS Astraeus (NCC-70652). Despite majoring in Security, he was initially assigned pilot duties. Shortly into his tour, the Astraeus was unexpectedly pulled into an alternate reality where they faced hostile Romulan warships native to that universe. When the alpha shift helm officer was incapacitated during the ensuing battle, Caldwell was thrust onto the bridge and into the hot seat. This ultimate challenge proved a crucible for his talents. Showcasing the bold, decisive action characteristic of him, combined with uncanny piloting instincts, Caldwell executed a complex, high-risk manoeuvre under fire. While evading Romulan attacks, he skilfully flew the damaged Astraeus to retrieve a Runabout, effectively 'catching' it mid-combat before piloting the ship through the wormhole that represented their only escape route back to their own universe. His performance and nerve under extreme pressure didn't go unnoticed, with Caldwell shortly being made the alpha shift Helm Officer, establishing his place as a valuable member of the crew. |
| Gallery |
|---|
-
Caldwell serving as a crewman on board the merchant freighter SS Velikan in 2392. -
Using a phaser rifle to help repel Nausicaan pirates from the SS Velikan on stardate 239504.04. -
Christopher Caldwell at the Skyfire Beach holodeck party on board the USS Astraeus, stardate 240101.23.
| Service History |
|---|
Starfleet Service Record
| ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Awards & Service Ribbons |
|---|
| Awards and Service Ribbons | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Crewmates |
|---|
NPC Listing · USS Astraeus Crew Manifest · Crew History
| |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
