Jufv tr’Caemim

Born in the city of Lennoi, deep in the jungles of Romulus, Jufv had a comfortable childhood despite his curious heritage. His father, a Vulcan anthropologist, had made the unusual choice of defecting to the Romulan Star Empire to study his species’ ancient cousins. Despite the near certainty that his work would never be seen back home in the Federation, Jufv’s father nevertheless committed to his dream, taking a small and swift vessel across the Neutral Zone. The Romulan warbird which found him very nearly destroyed his ship on the spot, but nevertheless, the warbird’s commander took him captive instead.

Inevitably, Jufv’s father was imprisoned and interrogated at length aboard the warbird. Weeks passed as the warbird patrolled, wary of a follow-up incursion by Starfleet, or even an ill-advised rescue attempt, but nothing occurred. Instead, much to mutual surprise, the commander of the warbird befriended the anthropologist. Finally, when the man was taken by the Tal Shiar, she spoke in the Vulcan’s defence, hoping to spare him the brutal attention that the Tal Shiar gave to spies.

Thus, when he turned up on the Romulan commander’s doorstep a year later, she was quite surprised. Nevertheless, the decision had been made: the Vulcan was precisely whom he claimed to be, and so he would be permitted to live as a citizen of the Empire. Two years later, the two were married, and as the years passed, the two bore one child, a son.

Jufv, as they named him, would prove to be a naturally inquisitive and intelligent child.  Raised with stories of Vulcan and the Federation by his father, Jufv would develop an intense curiosity about his father’s home. Nevertheless, Jufv’s mother would ensure that he was raised as a true Romulan. Despite some intense attention by the Tal Shiar at various points, Jufv would become an academic of note on Romulus, even marrying a colleague at an early age.

The Dominion War, when it came, would change everything. At the age of 24, despite having no intention whatsoever of getting involved in the war, Jufv’s choice was made for him. Mandatory conscription was declared across the Empire and, after a few scant weeks of training, Jufv found himself (unexpectedly and certainly without his volition) aboard a D’Deridex-class warbird, fighting the Jem’hadar. The following months would prove hellish. Jufv’s own wife would die during an attack against a Cardassian station, sending the young physicist into a spiral of grief as he blamed the Empire itself for his wife’s death with its mandatory conscription.

Anger would develop into resentment. At the First Battle of Chin”toka, however, the hateful Romulan was offered an unexpected chance at transformaiton. Jufv and hundreds of his crewmates were forced to abandon their warbird before its destruction, but rather than be rescued by other Romulan ships, they were instead saved by Federation forces. Stuck onboard a Federation starship for several days, Jufv saw an opportunity and, to the astonishment of the starship’s captain, he took it, officially requesting asylum within the Federation and abandoning his obligations to the Empire.

The response from both the Federation and Romulan authorities was severe, but Jufv was prepared, determined and still furious over the loss of his spouse. He did the work, pointing out that as his father was still technically a Federation citizen, he too was entitled to that citizenship. A minor diplomatic crisis would ensue, a crisis that grew deeply personal when Jufv’s own mother threatened to execute her son over his treachery. His parents’ marriage, strange as it had been, finally fractured at the rift. Nevertheless, Jufv succeeded. The strange turbulent circumstances brought on by the war worked in his favour as the Tal Shiar and diplomatic services, heavily overtaxed, found themselves abandoning the young physicist as not worth the effort of retrieving him for trial. Thus, Jufv was permitted asylum and citizenship within the Federation, far away from the Empire he had once loved but had grown to loathe.

The next few years were quiet for Jufv, if productive. He gained entrance into the Vulcan Science Academy, exchanging Romulan scientific principles with his cousins, even occasionally venturing elsewhere for his work, studying the occasional black hole or nebula. Nevertheless, Jufv could never quite shake his inherent inquisitiveness. He noted how Starfleet always found the most intriguing phenomena, were always discovering the most exciting new science, always had the most sophisticated technology. Thus, quite to his own surprise, he eventually enlisted in Starfleet Academy in 2380.

The following nineteen years were impressive in their mediocrity. Owing to his lack of initiative and satisfaction with less exciting assignments, Jufv’s career lacked the fireworks and heroics of other Starfleet officers. He drifted between starbases, scientific outposts and starships, acclaimed for his work by his academic peers but rarely drawing the eye of his colleagues in Starfleet. Jufv, ever the scientist, was quite content with his life, often spending entire days in laboratories and astrometrics suites. Nevertheless, when required to handle leadership responsibilities, Jufv was noted to handle the role deftly. Having not been a social creature since leaving Romulus, Jufv would grow to welcome working with others as a department head and a science team leader, and finally as first officer of a small Dumont-class survey vessel.

In 2399, as Starfleet  began to expand its exploratory and scientific roles in the Alpha Quadrant, several mothballed Nova-class starships would be refitted and returned to service. Jufv (now Lieutenant Commander tr’Caemin) was placed on the Captain’s List, ready to be entrusted with command of one of those starships, but first, there was work to do.

The Osiris Initiative was about to convene.