Mike Hayes

Early Life 2364-2382

Born aboard the USS Windrush, a Galaxy-class vessel, to Starfleet officers Lawrence and Melissa Hayes, Mike grew up with Starfleet all around him. From the earliest age he was able to see the hustle and bustle of starship life and came to understand what it meant to be an officer in the fleet, and serve the Federation during times of peace, and of war, though during the times of strife young Mike was sent home to Earth to live with his father’s parents. His education was a blend of traditional classroom learning, handled by the teachers aboard the Windrush, and also a bit of tutoring from his parents’ friends who realized he was interested in their jobs and wanted to give him a glimpse into what they did every day. When he was eighteen, and finally ready to move into his own adult life, Mike surprised no-one when he immediately signed up to sit the Starfleet Academy entrance exam. He passed, thanks to all of the extra education he’d received during those tutoring sessions and headed off to Earth to attend his first semester just a few weeks after completing his formal education.

Academy 2382-2386

His time at the academy was an exciting one for Mike. Growing up on a starship had its advantages, that was for sure, but it also had some pretty big drawbacks. As a growing young man, he’d often chafed against the rules his parents had established and being in such close proximity meant that no matter what he did, he had no real privacy, and couldn’t escape from their observation. The trip to Earth alone was an exciting experience, but then, once there, and given his room on the Academy grounds he felt a freedom he’d never experienced before, and it was thrilling.

Over the next four years he would be worked harder than he’d ever imagined being possible. Preconceived notions about subjects from all areas of his life were challenged on a daily basis, his mind was expanded and filled with wonderful ideas and facts he’d never even considered, and his body, already athletic, was torn down and rebuilt to make him capable of weathering anything life could throw at him, or just about anyway. When the day came for him to walk across the stage at his commencement ceremony, and be given his gold ensign pip, he was very much a different man from the one who had arrived on Earth just four short years before. He’d gained a certain gravity, a certain devotion to duty, and a deeper understanding of the responsibilities that came with being an officer serving in Starfleet.

First Posting – USS Luxor 2386-2392

His first posting, to the USS Luxor, was an exciting one for him. He’d always had a fascination for the Excelsior-class ships. With their older build aesthetics, and in a lot of cases still using the older I/O systems for their controls, they were a bit of a blast from the past that he truly enjoyed. He would spend five years aboard this vessel, forging friendships, learning even more than he had at the academy, and growing into a confident young officer. He would also quickly rise up the ranks from ensign to full lieutenant before moving on to his next posting, aboard the USS Curiosity.

USS Curiosity 2392-2400

His time on the Curiosity had an intensity he had not expected. Because of how well he’d comported himself as helmsman of the Luxor, and his willingness to jump in and assist any time it was needed he’d gained knowledge, and leadership abilities that made him ideally suited to begin training for a more responsible role. This began on his very first day aboard the Curiosity, as he was advised upon his arrival that he had been brought on as the assistant chief flight control officer, a role he hadn’t even known he was being considered for. He was happy to accept the challenge and showed a true skill at the posting that led to him once again rising swiftly, and three years later he was promoted to lieutenant commander and given full department head status as the previous chief was transferred on to a different posting.

It was during his time as a department head that the ship’s executive officer would realize that he had the makings of a command officer within him and took him under her wing. She had plans to move into a captain’s position in her near future and wanted to ensure that the Curiosity was in good hands once she left. Over the next few years, she’d do her best to include him in anything she could include him in, and train him to understand the complexity, and responsibility that goes along with being an executive officer. When she left the ship, she did so knowing that she had accomplished her goal and was leaving it in very capable hands.

His time as XO of the Curiosity was short lived, as the ship was already getting ready to have to go in for a full refit that would require the entire crew to be reassigned to other vessels. The process was slated to begin three months later and take over a year to complete, meaning that any officer staying with her long term, other than those specifically in the engineering sections, was simply out of the question. He accepted this with grace and waited for his new assignment to come in. He did not have to wait long at all.

Eos Station 2400-Present

A week and a half after he was officially removed from the roster of the Curiosity Mike was presented with orders to report to Eos Station, to take over his duties as executive officer under the command of Captain Robert Abernathy. It was a frontier posting, one that surely represented a great potential for him to explore aspects of life in Starfleet, and in the galaxy as a whole, that he’d never really considered before. In short, it was an amazingly interesting, and exciting turn of events, and he gladly set out for Eos as soon as he heard. It didn’t matter that it was an aging station. It didn’t matter that it was in a turbulent area, it was a chance for him to prove to himself, and to Starfleet, that he was versatile, adaptable, and capable in ways he’d never been challenged in before.