Lieutenant Alexis Ryan
Name Alexis Livea Ryan
Position Chief Science Officer
Rank Lieutenant
Character Information
| Gender | Female | |
| Species | Human | |
| Age | 36 |
Physical Appearance
| Height | 5'7" | |
| Weight | 132lbs | |
| Hair Color | Ginger | |
| Eye Color | Blue | |
| Physical Description | Very early in her formal studies, Alexis was offered the opinion that she was ‘too showy’ to be a soldier. As most sensible people do when told they shouldn’t do something, Alexis took this to mean she should double her efforts. Characterized by her naturally ginger hair and blue eyes, the most outstanding feature that might actually warrant concern over her capacity is the slightly bleached appearance of a portion of her left iris. This is actually caused by damage to her cornea, received when proximity to a chemical grenade compromised her protective gear. She has only partial vision in this eye as a result and often compensates by wearing an eyepiece when required to focus on intricate tasks for any length of time. |
Family
| Spouse | None. Alexis is bisexual, her previous relationships have involved a lot of coming to terms with this. | |
| Children | None. | |
| Father | Peter (dec.) | |
| Mother | Lynea | |
| Brother(s) | Lewis (33) and Curtis (31) | |
| Sister(s) | Lidia (dec.) | |
| Other Family | In-laws, nieces and nephews, etc |
Personality & Traits
| General Overview | Alexis is often what most people least expect out of an accomplished scientist. Whilst evidentially capable in her field, there is much to Alex’s service record that highlights her proficiency as an officer and a soldier, and since these represent a significant portion of her personal code of ethics and operational status, there is a lot to the woman’s personality that suggests she’d be just as happy in the seat of a fighter jet, or deploying alongside frontline troops, as burying herself in projections and simulations in the lab. Forthright, opinionated, pragmatic and focused, Alexis is driven by a need for efficiency in pursuit of proficiency and is quietly intolerant of people who seek to waste her time. Whilst she doesn’t lack humour, it often presents as a dry, subtle wit, delivered with the kind of razor’s edge precision that disproves the occasional speculation she is too absorbed in her own business to take heed of what's going on around her. Alexis is a very precise communicator, a necessary trait when designing and programming the systems she has pioneered and continued to develop, and typically finds very little use for mincing her words, though age has gifted her some refinement in delivery. If it is a spade, Alexis will be sure to point it out. Nevertheless, she is passionate about many things and has the heart of a true explorer, despite the fact that circumstance and personal tribulation have forced her to become more at home in the middle of conflict. Always one to seek solutions rather than problems, Alex doesn’t balk at challenges, has a fearless capacity to step forward where others may seek to retreat, and is utterly stubborn when it comes to the execution of duty. She’s not especially good at seeking downtime, but those who earn her friendship are guaranteed enduring loyalty and a surprising level of empathy. Alexis is usually good at reading people, especially those she’s taken the time to get to know. |
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| Strengths & Weaknesses | + Gifted software engineer, pioneering work in holographic interfacing and artificial intelligence + Strong work ethic, efficient and methodical whilst maintain a distinct flair for innovation + Focused, pragmatic and determined, extremely reliable under pressure + Strong moral compass - Finds it very hard to compromise - Prone to intolerance and frustration with those who under-perform - Exceedingly black-and-white about Cardassians - Visually impaired |
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| Ambitions | Alexis realised aspects of her primary ambition when she was selected for a two-year position at the R & D facilities on Mars. Being responsible for the new generation of starships, and their improved capabilities at a systemic level, is quite the carrot and Alex has particular hope that breakthroughs in A.I. sophistication, coupled with holographic technology advancements, might pave the way for unparalleled streamlined automation. As for personal aspirations, she hasn't ruled out a family. It's just been difficult to factor in a healthy, stable relationship around her career progression. |
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| Hobbies & Interests | With holographic programming being such a fundamental aspect of her profession, it is little wonder that Alexis has a keen love of holo-mysteries and particularly favours anything with a steampunk flair. She has amassed quite a collection of costumes and props, many of which she’s constructed herself, and is able to complete eschew the practical nature of combat-appropriate attire to don an intricate corset and complicated set of boots. She is also a champion archer, though the damage to her vision has somewhat compromised her achievements in this area. |
| Personal History | Alexis was born in the Federation colony on Juhraya, and was ten years old when the Federation abandoned them to the Cardassians. Though her early childhood had been a relatively simple and peaceful one, it was abruptly ended by the sudden thrust forward into the demilitarized zone and subsequent treatment of the colonists by the Cardassian government. Early Life: Alexis is the oldest and only daughter of a vehicle mechanic and schoolteacher. A bright and inquisitive child, she spent a great deal of time in her father's workshop and had a reputation for taking things apart to figure out how they worked, with or without the permission of the original owner. This passion developed into a tenacity for reprogramming and altering the function of gadgets and gizmos, and an intense desire to build herself an operational robot that, in Alexis’ words, could ‘do her chores for her’. She showed aptitude in the area, though still too young and without the expert tutelage to produce much more than malfunctioning nuisances. Life at this point was relatively ordinary, though as was the case with many colonies within disputed areas, there was always the capacity for the Cardassians to interfere. This typically took the form of supply and communication isolation, prompting the colony to veer towards self-sufficiency as much as possible. The Treaty: Alexis’ world came crashing down when the Federation ceded her home planet to the Cardassians as part of the Federation-Cardassian treaty in 2370. What had once been a simple, rustic existence now became a very isolated and fractious one, with pressure put on the colonists to relocate and constant infractions by the Cardassians making it virtually impossible for life to continue as usual. As tensions escalated, Alexis’ mother made plans to concede to Federation insistence and relocate with the children, whilst their father anticipated offering his skills to the newly emerging Maquis movement. Alex, having caught wind of the plans, orchestrated a last-minute escape from her mother’s protection and was still firmly planet-side when the transport left orbit. It took several more days for her to track down her father, who was left with very little choice but to take his young daughter with him. The Maquis: The following three years were fundamental in transforming Alexis from a studious and inventive child into a disciplined and determined soldier. As much as her father attempted to shield her, there was very little about their existence that could be left to chance and it ultimately became far easier to entrust the young child with her own series of responsibilities than risk her impulsively trying to invent her own. She was taught basic self-defense, including the operation and maintenance of small armaments, but more importantly she was given an opportunity to work alongside technicians and software engineers who performed everything from routine ship repairs and modifications to designing methods of intelligence extraction and complex decryption protocols. Whilst assigned to an assault ship to act as its main engineer, her father saw the potential for this connection to provide his daughter with a layers-deep protection that secured her away inside Maquis bunkers rather than thrusting her onto the frontline, and thus Alexis was given ample opportunity to discover a love, and a reasonable proficiency, for designing and implementing computer systems. The End of the War: The end of the Dominion War, whilst eliminating a major source of ongoing threat, was also a devastating final chapter to the Maquis movement. Decimated and reduced to a scattered handful held in prisons, and the eventual revelation of those surviving crew now aboard the USS Voyager, Alexis was one of only 3 from her father’s unit that escaped either fate, all of whom were under the age of 16 at the time. The other two, sibling twins aged 14, had focused their efforts months earlier on finding their remaining siblings and were not active in any of the campaigns that eventually lead to the movement’s annihilation. Alexis, duped by a loving father’s best intentions, had been sent to finally reconnect with the rest of her family under the premise that her mother was now exceedingly unwell. This, as it turned out, was blatantly untrue and the subsequent guilt and anger that followed took another decade to subside, given that her father’s eventual death left Alex with no physical target for her sense of deep betrayal. The war ended, Alex found herself on a more-or-less peaceful side of the divide finally, but conflict and restlessness were now part of her internal infrastructure. The following few years proved to be exceedingly difficult, and Alex struggled to adjust. Marine Life: It is, perhaps, oddly ironic that Alexis eventually sought refuge in Federation-maintained infrastructures, given its role in destroying her sense of peace and harmony. It’s often hard for her to explain even now why she is able to maintain an inherent belief in Starfleet’s philosophy, except that it had never been either of her parents’ tendency to completely blame the Federation for what happened to them; a sentiment not shared by many in their situation. A deep-ceded distrust and even hatred for the Cardassians had ultimately bred the sentiment that anyone fooled by them ought to be pitied, it became Alexis’ eventual belief that the Federation was weak and foolish, but redeemable. All it needed was good soldiers. Alexis enlisted in Starfleet’s Marine Corps at the age of 18, having counted down the years to her eligibility. Though five years of a relatively normal existence had allowed her to catch up in her studies and make more purposeful use of the scientific skills she’d picked up, there was still an overwhelming urge to fight, to protect, and the craving for some sort of military structure and discipline to help curb the extreme bouts of frustration and anger she still felt about the death of her father and his colleagues. Training was rigorous and intense but proved to be exactly the outlet that Alex needed, finally allowing her active participation in the areas of conflict management that she’d always wanted to involve herself in but had never been permitted to by her father. It took her a while to be taken seriously, having developed into a woman of delicate bone structure and far more grace and agility than outright strength, but even once news of her old allegiances threatened to sour her regiment’s opinion of her further, Alex remained single-minded. Her performance during training garnered her some grudging respect, but it was her attitude out in the field, and her quick thinking and innovation in the midst of a crisis, that eventually earned her credible admiration. In return, Alex found the camaraderie of like-minded people and, with the aid of their designated mental health unit, finally found closure on both her father’s death and the circumstances leading up to it. Starfleet Academy: Two years with the Marine Corps gave Alex ample opportunity to reflect on her aspirations for a long-term career. Whilst the military had given her the grounding and opportunity to work through residual baggage, even life as a soldier had seen her veer towards her previous experience with systems design. When an untimely encounter with a chemical grenade robbed her of partial sight in her right eye and rendered her unable to pass the Corps’ stringent physical exam, Alexis took her honorable discharge and turned her sights, impaired as they might be, to further education. Acceptance into Starfleet Academy came as a second-round offer, and mostly under the recommendation of Professor Anton Lux, the Dean of Computer Sciences, who had seen something in her submission that warranted consideration beyond her fractured academic record. An aptitude test to fill in the gaps in her transcript immediately rewarded the Dean’s faith and Alex was accepted into the Computer Science division, with a projected major in Software Design. Something of a hybrid course that involved a heavy Engineering component, it was an ultimate specialization in holographic interfacing and artificial intelligence that tipped the edge towards postings of a more scientific flare, though she has performed in both capacities. Graduating in the top 10% after 6 years, having demonstrated a meticulous work ethic for her age, Alex considers her time at the Academy entirely pivotal in lining up all the aspects of her life to date and providing her with a focus that services all of them. |
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| Service Record | 2386: Engineering Officer aboard the USS Cheron 2387: Science Officer aboard the USS Galileo 2389: Computer Systems Specialist, Engineering Department, USS Polaris 2392: Assistant Chief Science Officer, USS Archimedes 2394: Systems Design Coordinator, Beta Antares Shipyards 2396: Chief Science Officer, USS Athena |