Summary
Executive Officer of the USS Sausalito
Appearance
At 6’1″, Zach is built long and lean, like a distance runner; he has nice strong shoulders and upper back, long-fingered, strong hands, and heavily calloused feet from years spent barefoot. His skin tone is a warm milk-chocolate brown. He has a straight nose that flattens slightly at the tip, set in an oval face with hazel green eyes, almond-shaped, bright and mischievous; his mouth sports thick full lips and a bright, ready smile. He has tightly curly hair that’s very dark brown, almost black; he’s had it twisted into dreadlocks since he was a child. Once down to his waist, his dreads are just past shoulder-length now, and sunbleached from years of surfing. He wears them partially tied back.
When not in uniform, Zach likes loose woven pants either tied round the ankles or cut off/rolled up to mid-calf and sleeveless shirts, all in warm colors like golds, reds and browns. He rarely wears shoes or boots if he can get away with it.
Personality
Zach is definitely not your traditional XO! Happy, good-natured, friendly and self-effacing, he lacks the arrogance of many of his fellows. He possesses a natural leadership ability, though he’d be the last to acknowledge it. He often ends up “taking charge” when things go south, just because someone has to — he’s not the least bit bossy, just very good at crisis management.
Zach is one of those people who has absolutely no fear — again, this doesn’t come from a place of arrogance, but rather from not understanding precisely what it is he’s supposed to be afraid of or why. He has good common sense and a healthy respect for things that may harm him, of course, but he doesn’t fear them. He won’t hesitate to help someone in trouble — he’ll dive right in to help them without a thought of any potential danger to himself.
Zach loves the sea; he’s lived near or on the sea his entire life, and misses it terribly. He has a good degree of skill in seamanship; he can navigate by the stars and coastal landmarks, rig sails, climb around in rigging, make rope and tie knots, and has even manned the tiller. He had a close, tight-knit relationship with the crew of his father’s ship, which he’s been able to transfer to his crewmates aboard the Sausalito, who find in him a steadfast and loyal comrade. His crew is his new family (and the Task Force his extended family), and he’s very protective of those he considers family.
He’s not perfect, mind you. He has some residual confidence issues; his self-effacing humility isn’t an act. He doesn’t feel that he’s quite Good Enough yet to earn the kind of attention he gets as a senior officer. He has a very slow-burning but bad temper; anyone who messes with his friends is liable to find themselves with his fist in their face without any warning. And he’s a bit of a pickpocket (he always gives back what he nicks, though). And a coffee addict. And he cheats at dice.
Zach learned leadership at his ship captain father’s side, and he carries that through into his role as Executive Officer; when left to his own devices by Captain Mruuras, he runs the bridge like a sailing vessel, where everyone knows their job and works together like a well-oiled machine. Still, he runs a fairly loose ship. There are rules to be followed, of course, and everyone in the crew has a job to do, but downtime is party time! Do your duty, then celebrate that you’re still alive!
History
Zach was born at his family’s tiny fishing village in Jamaica, somewhere in the middle of 11 kids. His father, a merchant seaman and captain of the ocean-going schooner Windrace, brought the boy on ship early and taught him the ways of the sea, though he never actually sent him out for “official” training — he didn’t want to wait for the formal training process, and he figured he’d do just as good a job himself. Zach grew up on deck and in the rigging, learning the ropes as it were from the rest of the crew of the Windrace; not only seamanship, but gambling, pickpocketing, knife-fighting and low-level piracy (Da had a “supplemental income” as a smuggler).
It was while the Windrace was docked at Kingston Harbour that a Starfleet formation flew overhead. Caught up in the excitement of seeing his first Federation starship up close, the young teen decided then and there that he wanted to join Starfleet. Da wasn’t pleased by this — he hated the idea of losing a good hand. In the end, though, both Zach and his father agreed that there was more of a future for him with Starfleet than there was aboard the Windrace (one of his older brothers was slated to inherit the ship upon his father’s death, and Zach would have likely ended up just a deckhand for the rest of his life). So at age 16 he said his goodbyes and headed off to San Francisco and Starfleet Academy.
Zach found life in Starfleet surprisingly similar to life aboard his father’s ship, where everyone had the same mission and worked together in a tight-knit team. The progressive attitude aboard his first duty assignment, the USS NoNameYet, suited him well; there was still a good amount of structure — everyone pretty much knows where they fit aboard a starship — but change was permitted.
Then [[something happened]] His father’s ship was sunk in the sea and his family’s little village on Jamaica was destroyed, so it became personal with Zach. You don’t mess with family.
Partly due to attrition, partly due to his ferocity, Zach was quickly promoted to Lieutenant Commander and made the ship’s Executive Officer. Apart from having a thorough understanding of ship to ship combat, his skills with people, his natural leadership ability and understanding of team dynamics are qualities they felt could best be used to help lead his ship. He was surprised at first, but took to the new responsibility like he was born to it, assisting the captain with organizing the crew during battle and running interference between the ship and the fleet. He enjoyed his new job immensely; it’s not unlike being captain of a sailing vessel.