Species: Human
Age: 20
Place of origin: Icarus III, Typhon sector
Occupation: Starfleet Cadet Second Class
Specialty: Command (Pilot)
At the head of Gamma Team, and at the center of most of the action is its Commanding Cadet Officer--the motivated, charismatic cadet, Jaredan Aquino.
Jaredan hails from the planet Icarus III, in the Typhon sector, which is located not too far from Earth. The Icarans have a very patriarchal society, to almost a fanatical extreme. This societal structure led to a dark episode that occurred during Jaredan's youth, an experience he has yet to share with his friends and teammates.
Jaredan has never had any other ambition except becoming captain of a starship. Whether this desire stems from his need to be in a position of authority, or, more likely, due to his desire (like most other Star Trek heroes) to make a difference with his life. Despite that, his transition to command school will not be an easy one. Placed in his first position of command, certain insecurities and doubts may begin to creep up on him, although he will be determined to overcome them. When faced with a problematic or dangerous situation, he will generally take a step back and consider his actions briefly, then act swiftly and decisively.
Despite this, Jaredan is a natural leader, with a sort of Picardian quiet, dignified charisma (crossed with a Sisko-esque coiled spring readiness for action). In general, he is cut from the same cloth as the great Star Trek heroes, but, as a still young man, he has yet to realize this for himself. During classes and missions, he is serious, studious and professional. Off-hours, it again becomes clear that he's just barely out of his teens.
Of all his teammates and fellow cadets, Jaredan is probably closest to his executive officer, Kara Lionetti. The two are alike enough to be good friends, but different enough to keep things interesting. It is the producer's intention to eventually establish a romantic relationship between these characters, by slow progression. At this point, it is Jaredan who is already quite fond of her, although the feelings are not (visibly) reciprocated.
Jaredan's main activity outside of his normal duties is piloting, as
a member of a crack flight team, the newly re-formed Nova Squadron (Kara
Lionetti is also a Nova). His other pastime, as we occasionally see,
is ballroom dancing. As a Gamma Team captain, Jaredan rooms by himself.
Species: Betazoid
Age: 19
Place of origin: Betazed
Occupation: Starfleet cadet, second class
Specialty: Command (Pilot)
Executive Officer (second in command) of Gamma Team and usually the first to get into trouble is the headstrong, ambitious cadet, Kara Lionetti.
Kara is from the planet Betazed, home to the well-known civilization of telepaths. Coming from a well-to-do family there (a daughter of the Twelfth House, but her Italian name comes from a human ancestor), she has defied certain societal constraints by going into Starfleet. She tends to avoid using her telepathic abilities, preferring to rely on her other strengths.
Kara, too, has always known that her destiny is to become a Starfleet captain. She sees this as the pinnacle of both responsibility and authority. Kara is also determined to demonstrate to the galaxy that Betazoids are able to excel at positions other than counseling or psychiatry. An exceptional cadet, Kara is only second in command of Gamma Team due to the fact that she entered the Academy between terms, so despite her efforts, she is slightly behind in seniority. She tends to show no reservations about issuing orders to others, and is only too happy to accept command from Jaredan. It is Kara's nature to come to decisions quickly, then act without hesitation when confronted with a problematic or dangerous situation.
The best description of her command style is to compare her to Kirk-- self-confident (almost cocky) and decisive, but intelligent enough to know when and from whom to accept input or suggestions. Her somewhat cavalier attitude, however, belies the inherent Betazoid thoughtfulness, reserve and spirituality that shows only now and then. She is a model cadet-- serious and motivated-- when it comes to academics and simulations, and a fun-loving adolescent when it comes to down time.
Despite a slight resentment at his being placed above her in command, Kara has come to forge a very strong friendship with her cadet captain, Jaredan Aquino. Together, they are a natural pairing of two people with the same intentions, but with differing viewpoints. It is unlikely that she has looked into his mind, however, or she would know for sure what she already suspects-- that he has feelings for her. Whether she will do this and whether or not she returns those feelings is unknown. Most outsiders observing their behavior together might describe it as continual, friendly flirtation.
Kara's main activity outside of her normal duties is piloting, as a
member of a crack flight team, the newly re-formed Nova Squadron (Jaredan
Aquino is also a Nova). Otherwise, she is most often to be found
running, although it is likely she will soon discover her friend Jaredan's
dancing. As a "line officer" cadet, Kara rooms by herself.
Species: Argosian
Age: 12 (in Terran years, equivalent to 20-21)
Place of origin: Argosia
Occupation: Starfleet cadet, second class
Specialty: Warp Engineering
Unassuming and typically soft-spoken, Gamma Team’s chief engineer, Ki Talchos, is the glue which holds the team together.
Coming from a typically large Argosian family of twenty-one, Ki is understandably a natural team player. He is the ultimate booster, praising his friends’ accomplishments and understating his own. Ki has taken it as his duty to be the best team member possible.
However, Ki was born smack in the middle of eighteen brothers and sisters, making him quiet, shy and avoidant of conflict. Quite brilliant and inventive in his own right, he is far more comfortable standing in the shadows, and following someone else’s lead.
Since he entered the Academy, that someone else has been Jaredan. For their first two years, they were roommates and good friends. When Jaredan’s star began to shine, Ki was his biggest supporter, helping make their Quad the best known on campus. There is the possibility, though, that if confronted with a great enough problem, Ki could become much more assertive, as he has very strong convictions.
He is most often to be found working, either on schoolwork or on one
of his many side technical projects. His current roommate is Gamma’s
conn officer, Hikaru Takani.
Species: Bajoran
Age: 20
Place of origin: Dakur Province, Bajor
Occupation: Starfleet cadet, second class
Specialty: Security/Tactical
Gamma Team’s Chief of Security, Tactical Specialist, and (naturally) resident hothead is Tor Paran, a young Bajoran.
Paran spent most of his formative years as a freedom fighter, trying to rid his homeworld of a Cardassian occupation. Thanks to this, he’s a young man who’s used to making force his first response and believes that strength is the basis of authority. This latter often makes for friction between Paran’s beliefs and Starfleet protocol.
Despite this, for reasons yet to be disclosed, Paran decided to enter Starfleet Academy rather than join the Bajoran Military. He does his job with pure professionalism, as he understands the necessity of every team member’s contribution toward the success of a mission. The one drawback to having been a freedom fighter, living by the seat of his pants, is that Paran prefers to improvise solutions to his problems-- jury-rigging things rather than following long, drawn-out procedures.
His life before Starfleet also made Paran a survivor. If there’s anyone that the team can depend on to keep them alive under adverse conditions, it’s him.
Of everyone else on Gamma Team, Paran gets along best with his roommate,
Elena Reyes. Away from missions and classes, you can usually find
him practicing with the Academy’s parrises squares team.
Species: Human
Age: 20
Place of origin: Buenos Aires, Argentina
Occupation: Starfleet cadet, second class
Specialty: Operations Management
Gamma's Operations Manager Elena Reyes is the group's blithe spirit, the one ready for fun at the drop of a hat.
Raised in a priveleged family, Elena has had to work hard for very little
in her life. She occasionally has troubles empathizing with those
who struggle, and when it is her turn to work, it's rarely without complaint.
She is, though, competent at her job as Operations Manager, working with
an organizational skill belied by the relative disarray of her side of
the quarters she shares with Tor Paran.
Species: Vulcan
Age: 45
Place of origin: Vulcan
Occupation: Starfleet cadet, second class
Specialty: Exobiology, Particle Theory
A Vulcan returns to the seat we first saw them in with T'Ress' service as Gamma Team's Science Officer.
T'Ress is a model Vulcan-- austere, cool and eminently logical. The daughter of a Vulcan ambassador, she has spent a great deal of time around humans and other species, and so is more comfortable around them.
As would be expected, her most natural clashes of ideas would be with people like Paran and Kara.
She rooms with Jennifer Decker.
Species: Human
Age: 19
Place of origin: Honolulu, Hawai’i, Earth
Occupation: Starfleet cadet, second class
Specialty: Command (Pilot)
When his parents named him after Starfleet’s most famous helmsman, Hikaru Takani’s parents set the stage for the young man’s entire life.
Hikaru has always felt most at home while moving fast, whether surfing the waves off his home island or bombing around in a home-built skimmer. The ultimate driver’s seat, he knows, is behind the helm of a state-of-the-art starship. It’s this passion that brings him to Starfleet Academy.
Good natured and fun-loving, Hikaru proudly wears the red uniform, but harbors little desire for a life in command. It’s this that makes him a superb conn officer-- with the orders and decisions left in a commanding officer’s hands, he has the room to stretch his talents as a pilot to their limits and beyond.
This less assertive stance, though, makes Hikaru a little more laid back than a typical Starfleet cadet. His easygoing attitude can often place him at odds with the structure of the Starfleet command chain, but, naturally, he’s well practiced at rolling with the punches.
Hikaru’s exceptional talents have landed him another coveted spot on
the Nova Squadron flight team (CDT. Jaredan Aquino and CDT. Kara Lionetti
are also Novas). On his off hours, he’s usually in an Alpha Hotel
holosuite, surfing.
Species: Human
Age: 18
Place of origin: Oregon, Washington, Earth
Occupation: Starfleet cadet, second class
Specialty: Pre-Medical
The one cadet that keeps Gamma Team grounded is the young woman who serves as its Chief Medical Officer, Jennifer Decker.
Coming from a family of ten, Jennifer is no stranger to keeping a group of young people in line. Despite being the youngest member of the team, she’s often the one who displays the most maturity. Jennifer often seems much wiser than her eighteen years, and it’s her that the cadets go to for a sympathetic ear. Her uncanny empathy for people’s problems often elicits a joke or two about El-Aurian blood in her veins, to which she replies with an enigmatic smirk before subtly changing the subject.
Jennifer comes from a long tradition of Starfleet service, though none of her forbears has ever gone into medicine. Having been accepted into the Academy at a young age, she’s already taking a few medical school courses.
In what will come as a pleasant surprise to her team leader, Jennifer is also an avid dancer, and will probably be often seen practicing with Jaredan. Whether this will lead to a complication in the Jaredan/Kara story arc is unknown, but intriguing. Her simple, practical nature makes her a perfect roommate for T’Ress.