2000-03-14
Jason Verbitsky
hierax@home.com
www.hierax.com

Personality

History

OSN Khor'shal'el

USS Invictus

USS Tycho Brahe
(ICON Character Sheet)

Name: Vesuvia Saltare
Species: Orion, Green
Gender: Female
Age: 40
HomeWorld: Rigel III
Social Caste: Lodubyal-Ot
Height: 200cm (6'7")
Weight: 85kg (185 lbs)
Skin: Green
Hair: Black
Eyes: Black
Dress: On Duty/Formal: appropriate standard uniform; Off Duty/Informal: opulent and skimpy silky veils

Vesuvia is unusually tall for an Orion woman towering over most human males; she is often, jokingly, referred to as the "Green Giantess" in starfleet. She has a powerful but slender build and, like most Green Orions, Vesuvia is proud of body hair which since she joined Star Fleet she has allowed to grow freely. While on duty her long black hair is kept in a tight regulation bun, but when off duty she lets it fall into its naturally wild state. Her emerald green skin has the characteristic oilyness, sheen, and phermonic scent that one can expect from a Green Orion. However, to avoid causing discipline problems within Star Fleet, while on duty she wears a special 'perfume' which temporarily suppresses these phermonic qualities of her scent. Off duty is another matter entirely.

PERSONALITY:

Like all Green Orions, Vesuvia is a barbarian, an opportunist, an egocentist, a materialist, and, above all, a hedonist. These traits tend to run counter to culture of neo-political correctness that infects Star Fleet in the next Generation period. These values while making her somewhat of a forbidden treasure to also tend to hold her a certain distance apart from most of her fellow Star Fleet officers. Vesuvia's exacting adherence to the excruciatingly politeness of Orion *Cluros* keeps her from officially getting in trouble, but many of the human officers can't seem to forget the stimga of her being one of "those damn Green Slave Women" and sense the barbaric hedonism which is constantly bubbling under her ultra polite façade.

Even in the most stressful situations she is able to maintain the proper *Cluros*, or unflinchingly polite coolness. Always treating friend and enemy alike with the greatest courtesy. Losing her temper is an unthinkable non-option for Vesuvia as she has been too well trained. However, she can act/pretend, and even truly allow herself to give into her anger if her mission demands it. When she does 'let her guard down' her temper is a fearsome thing to behold as Vesuvia can let all of the bestial Green Orion urges loose in a spinning fury of esquisite destruction.

Vesuvia is a very social creature but she secretly misses the stimulation of dancing with, and being around, other Green Orions. For her mentor, lover, and former owner, Keslak, she holds the utmost respect, love, and loyalty for. Vesuvia has had, and will continue to have, many fiery affairs, including one with a certain Starfleet captain, but her truest and most secret love will always be the Grey Orion scientist, Gel'lar, who is still on Rigel IV. He is the who once saved her life and remains sequestered with the enigmatic Rigellians

Vesuvia tends to follow a personal leader, in the proud Orion tradition, rather than an organization. But as that leader's orders say to follow the organization there is little problem at this point and she remains loyal to Star Fleet [although there could be problems later on ...]. Captain's Keslak and Surusien have been great leaders for her. But she wonders if her new captain can measure up to their standard ...

HISTORY:

Vesuvia's career as a dancer, pirate, merchant, and spy has afforded her many skills and talents. As a dancer she first learned how to watch and listen and over the years has gained an amazing skill with being able to put scraps of information together. Her combat abilities are mainly those of close quarter combat as her mentor build upon her slave dancing abilities in training her to be a spy.

In the classist, sexist system into which she was born she had to be truly superior to rise to the rank that she has. By the time she joined Starfleet, Vesuvia has more experience and skills than many career officers - just not in the same areas of expertise.

BIBLIOGRAPHY/FILMOGRAPY:

- Star Trek the Roleplaying Game: The Orions - Book of Common Knowledge and Book of Deep Knowledge (FASA/Paramount, 1987).

- STAR TREK (The Original Series) episodes: The Cage, The Menagerie Part I, The Menagerie Part II, Whom Gods Destroy, Wolf in the Fold, Mudd's Women.

I fully realize that you may well not have exactly the same books in your gaming library that I do so here's a handy URL to the a webpage with the same content as the book upon which I'm drawing most of the information for this character:

      http://www.geocities.com/Area51/Rampart/8067/

It doesn't have the game statistics stuff, but the old FASA system which are pretty straightforward and should still be helpful in recreating Vesuvia in the new LUG system.

Here is a short story about my character, Vesuvia and her 'first contacts' with on duty Starfleet personel:

PERSONAL LOG OF VESUVIA, THE LODUBYAL OT:

ENTRY 1

Ahh, Argelius ... besides its obvious strategic importance to military and commerce, Argelius II is best known for its hospitality. In fact, the Argelians go so far as to proudly proclaim that "the law of Argilius is love". Now that's my kind of planet!

In spirit, the Argelians are the race closest to us Orions, for they are a society which truly appreciates the pleasures of life. It's a place where even the normally puritanical little Star Fleet officers can let their hair down and enjoy themselves. In the barbaric outskirts of the Orion Colonies few pleasures are as welcome as seeing the lights of applause flashing off of the leering faces of those Star Fleet officers! As a dancer, and a teacher, I feel that Argilius is my 'home away from home' as my students and I are properly appreciated there.

ENTRY 2

Oh, Argelius, how I was looking forward to bringing pleasure to your peoples again. But, alas, Star Fleet had other plans for me.

Our ship, the Khor'shal'el, had been boarded by Star Fleet many times over the years and Captain Keslak, a vetran of the Orion navy as well as a part-teime merchant prince and part-time pirate, often had to go over and explain things to the Star Fleet captains. However, I could only imagine what they might have discussed on those occassions.

This time was different.

"Vesuvia, come with me." Keslak commanded.

"Yes, Etadubran ... I mean Tahedri," I replied obediently to my former master whose household, as the "Lodubyal Ot" [trainer of the dancers], I was now a free member of, having been released from my contractual obligation of Lodubyal after many years of loyal and profitable service.

At least all of the starfleet crew, slack-jawed as they were, were kind enough to stare at me longingly for a few seconds as I came on to what they called 'the bridge'. However, I was unceremoniously, and I might add crudely, escorted towards what they unimaginatively called the 'ready room', I couldn't help but glance at the display panel on one of their bridge's sensor consoles: 'Starship Classification: Wanderer, Class V, Blockade Runner'. I smiled to myself, "Blockade Runner indeed! The very name bespeaks more of the Federation's restrictive policies than does it of our fine ship."

The room itself was about as sterile and lifeless as I expected a Star Fleet meeting room to be. Have the Earthers no artists and artisans? The room lacked the proper comforts of a meeting room. Scarce did I have to remind myself that this race of young barbarian thought more of cold science and war, than of art and architecture. Well if they thought that the lack of décor would upset me, I wouldn't give them the pleasure by showing it.

"What a marvellously sparse room!" I praised insincerely to the burly guard who kept trying, and failing, to avoid looking at my lucious body. If only he had been visiting our ship instead of the other way around, by the stars, we'd have shown him how to treat a guest! Why did he hold himself back like that? An odd people, these Earthers, strange that I found myself using the Klingon's term for the Federation after all I'd been through with them.

After the guards had left, the Starfleet captain, a 'Jove Surusien' by name, was quite charming and I could tell that he immediately recognized my value as a potential agent, not to mention in other capacities. Perhaps the fact that he was, as I later found out, half-Deltan had something to do with this. The rest, no doubt, was due to the high recommendations of my own captain and former owner who, unbeknownst to me, had apparently been grooming me for such a position for some years. And, in fact, I had actually been working for Starfleet as an agent of my master for some years now!

Starfleet Intelligence wanted to try me out first hand and see how I could work with their people to determine if I had 'what it took', as they put it to join Starfleet proper. Needless to say, dear log, I exceeded all expectations as I always have!

The mission I accomplished with certain members of the crew of the Invictus is one that I'm forbidden to speak of in much depth as it is still highly classified. Even in this personal and private journal, all that I am allowed to mention is that we were assigned to the Triangle region between the Federation, Klingons, and Romulans. The proximity of this region to Orion space and our unique position in the area made me the perfect recruit for Starfleet intelligence who needed agents that wouldn't be suspected by the opposition as working for Starfleet. My abilities as a dancer and a listener had served Captain Keslak well and he must have communicated this to Captain Surusien. I had been training for this all my life but never before had I imagined that I'd be working with, let alone for, Starfleet.

ENTRY 3

After the mission, back on Argilius II, I saw several of the crew from the Federation Starship Invictus in the audience for my show, even Captain Surusien, but it was an unlikely mismatched couple who sat at a table in the back who were the ones whom caught my attention. I recognized these officers as Lt. Elizabeth Wiltshire, Communications, and Lt. James R. Spikoli, Helmsman. The female Earther was one of the most reserved and circumspect of the Starfleet crew and the male was exactly the opposite, completely free-spirited and totally forthcoming. I wondered how it was possible that these two who were so different were enjoying each other, and vowed to find out.

After my dances were done and the crowd was properly swooning and drooling I sauntered over and sat down with these odd two to learn more. We talked and drank for a brief while and after a long walk in the fog-filled streets we all had a rather enjoyable evening. Perhaps there was hope for Star Fleet afterall ...

ENTRY 4

So, "this is the first Starfleet ship that I am to serve on," I mused silently. Before I entered that barren 'ready room' for the second time I took a few seconds to read the customary ship's plaque:

USS Invictus
NCC 1799
 
Invictus
 
Out of the night that covers me,
Black as the pit from pole to pole;
I thank whatever gods may be
For my unconquerable soul.
 
In the fell clutch of circumstance,
I have not winced, nor cried aloud.
Under the bludgeonings of chance,
My head is bloody, but unbowed.
 
Beyond this place of wrath and tears
Looms but the Horror of the shade;
And yet the menace of the years
Finds, and shall find me, unafraid.
 
It matters not how strait the gate,
How charged with punishments the scroll:
I am the master of my fate,
I am the captain of my soul.
 
-- William Ernest Henley

It was an impressive, if rather grim bit of poetry. With philosophies like this I could see why neither the Federation nor Klingons would have backed down from their war in our space had not the Organians stepped in. Although my experiences in the Triangle with Starfleet gave me some first hand insight into this, I'd have to ponder its meaning and what it said of the Earthers further when I had more time. For now, my new captain had orders for me, and I wasn't about to let darling little Jove down. Like it or not, I had to learn to work with Starfleet if I were to save the Orion way of life from what was to come ...