Thalissa Zheen

Commander Thalissa Zheen is as freshly minted to her rank as her Captain is to his.  She has spent her career speeding up the ranks with an eye on the Captain’s chair and the Fresno is certainly a stepping stone to that goal.  Her regimented style of Command stems from a history of serving as the Chief Security officer of her previous posting, and it was felt that this would bolster that of her Captain as he found his feet in his new position.

Thalissa Zheen has spent her entire career establishing a reputation as a “hardass”.  She once overheard a junior officer describe her as “having a resting bitch face that would rival a Vulcan.”  The truth of the matter is that she takes her career very seriously and has her eye on the prize, as it were.  She doesn’t plan to stop until she has a center seat aboard a ship of her own.  But she also recognizes that the very thing that propelled her career forward thus far could potentially hold her back.  As First Officer, her responsibility is to bridge the gap between Captain and crew.  In order to perform that role well, she needs to strike a balance between a firm hand on the one side, while still being approachable on the other hand.  Thalissa feels she has a handle on the “firm” aspect, and she must now work on ensuring that the crew would still be comfortable coming to her.  This rebalancing was responsible for her decision in her change of hairstyle, as she felt it might offset the ‘resting Vulcan face’ as it were.  It might sound like a minor, insignificant thing to many.  But Thalissa’s nature has also been one to nitpick all the little details in her commitment to excellence.  She will do whatever she needs to rank up short of compromising her honor.