Horatio McCallister

Political Information

• Affiliation: Starfleet, United Federation of Planets

Family

• Mother: Francesca McCallister
• Father: Jack McCallister
• Brother: Conrad McCallister, Starfleet Captain (retired)
• Brother: James McCallister, Starfleet Fleet Captain of the USS Odyssey (NCC-80000)
• Sister-in-Law: Karyn Reyas, Starfleet Captain of the USS Odyssey (NCC-80000) – married to James.
• Sister-in-law: Laura McCallister, Starfleet Captain (retired) – married to Conrad.
• Nephews:
  • Theodore McCallister-Reyas
  • Alfie McCallister-Reyas, Starfleet Cadet of the USS Odyssey (NCC-80000)
  •  Henri McCallister-Reyas

Biography

Early Life

Horatio McCallister was born on April 4th, 2359, in Cape May, New Jersey, United States of America. He was the youngest of three boys, born to Francesca and Jack McCallister. Horatio grew up in his family’s business, The Red Lion, a hotel and restaurant. Despite the excitement of meeting people from different backgrounds, Horatio always valued his privacy. He shared his brothers’ passion for adventure among the stars and dreamed of joining Starfleet. However, his decision was met with disapproval from his parents, who believed in enjoying the simple things in life without relying on technology. Like his brothers James and Conrad, Horatio disagreed with this and relentlessly asked his parents to get a food replicator for their personal use. Eventually, their parents caved in and installed one food replicator in the family kitchen area.

The departure of Conrad, the eldest son, from his family’s home to join Starfleet was a decision that caused a lot of commotion and disputes among his parents, Jack and Francesca, who were still against their sons joining Starfleet. Nonetheless, Conrad’s decision was supported by his brothers Horatio and James, who became close companions after he left for Starfleet Academy. The two were often seen hanging out in town, engaging in various sports such as soccer, tennis, basketball, and swimming. As they grew older, they even went camping together, relishing the freedom of being on their own. Horatio and James had a special bond, evident in their nicknames for each other. James affectionately referred to Horatio as ‘H’, while Horatio endearingly called his brother ‘JP’, short for James Preston.

Unlike Conrad and James, who excelled in academics and sports, Horatio preferred the latter over the former. He enjoyed soccer the most and swimming (something he got from James). In high school, Horatio surprised himself by developing a talent for music. He enjoyed learning to play the saxophone, the drums, the guitar and the piano. Horatio and his friends started their own band, where he was the lead singer. By the time he came into his final years, Horatio had realised from both of his brothers that he needed to knuckle down and work harder to get the grades he needed to get into Starfleet. Not knowing his true intentions, his parents were impressed when he came home and said he would stay longer after school to study more and attend tutoring lessons. Unlike his brothers, he didn’t graduate as valedictorian but wasn’t bothered as he finished with the grades needed to attempt the Starfleet entrance exams.

After witnessing his parents lose it with his brothers over their choice to join Starfleet, Horatio decided instead to write them a letter the day he was going to attend his exams. After he completed his exams, his parents took a trip to meet with him outside the academy campus. Disappointed again by his choice, they didn’t bother with the long lecture James and Conrad had endured.

Starfleet Career

Starfleet Academy

Living at Starfleet Academy was the best decision that Horatio made. He was keen to set his reputation and not one that followed what either Conrad or James achieved. Horatio worked and studied hard; however, in his second year, he was approached to join the Academy’s soccer team (the team his brother James had once captained). He agreed, and through this, he made some great friends. His first love interest, Piper Bramham, was a fellow cadet in his self-defence class, and the two would often practice soccer together. They ended their relationship after she was offered the chance to study on the Mellstoxx III campus. Though Horatio was gutted, he eventually moved on and, in his third year, dated his roommate, Brad Wheeler.

When choosing a degree, Horatio majored in astrophysics and astronautical tactics. Brad picked the same, so they enjoyed studying together. Both worked hard to become pilots. By the time they finished at the Academy, Horatio had graduated as salutatorian behind Brad, who was valedictorian. 

Before the Dominion War began, Starfleet was interested in learning more about the Maquis, particularly since they seemed to be getting assistance from the Klingon Empire. Horatio and Brad caught the attention of their higher-ups and were subsequently asked to join Starfleet Intelligence.

Starfleet Intelligence

Brad and James underwent several months of rigorous training before being assigned to infiltrate a Maquis cell. Their mission was to gather intelligence on the Maquis’ plans, which coincided with the Cardassian Union’s alliance with the Dominion. To maintain their cover, they posed as two young individuals who believed that Starfleet was not doing enough to address the Cardassian threat and went AWOL. Their mission was successful. After several months undercover, posing as two lovers fighting the good cause, their cell got caught in a battle with a Jem’Hadar unit. Sadly, Brad got caught in the crossfire, and Horatio had to leave him behind as he was pulled out of their building. Being one of the few left in his cell, Horatio sent a signal to his handlers to pull him out. They sent the USS Audacious to the base; this was very difficult for Horatio as this was James’ vessel. He had to make this planned rescue look like the real deal to avoid his cover being blown. James found his younger brother and even stunned him, preventing him from escaping. Horatio never saw his brother again while he sat in the Audacious’ brig. Captain Brooke Fontana-Adelaide, who knew about his mission, debriefed him privately. He was meant to join the rest of the other Maquis fighters at a prison on Betazed, but upon arrival, he would be placed into solitary confinement. From there, he would be released and return to his work within Starfleet Intelligence.

Though he became a ‘free man’, he remained on Betazed to help with analyses of the Dominion intelligence network. He also worked hard to see if anything ever came up about Brad’s whereabouts and whether he survived. Unfortunately, while on Betazed, he was forced to take shelter underground when the Dominion invaded the planet. As the Maquis had all received pardons, Horatio could use his credentials to help the Betazoid Resistance Movement. When the planet was finally liberated, he was involved in ground support. Disrupting the Dominion’s hold on the planet ensured success. Though many people had given their lives, Ensign Horatio McCallister was keen to leave everything behind him. However, official records remained that he was a traitor and was recaptured as a prisoner on Betazed.

Over the next twenty-two years, Horatio rose through the ranks within Starfleet Intelligence based in the Fourth Fleet. He became a senior field operative, working in such places as the Romulan Star Empire, the Cardassian Union, the Talarian Republic and the Klingon Empire. In 2392, Horatio led his own section of operatives and was responsible for intelligence gathering on the Romulan Free State. Eventually, by 2396, he found his work tiresome and requested that he leave Starfleet Intelligence to take on a more active role in the fleet. His superiors were gutted to lose him but understood his desires. They organised it so that it would appear that he had done his time in prison and was ready to become a starship officer after extensive rehabilitation.

USS Mestral (NCC-42027)

When he joined the USS Mestral, an Excelsior II-class cruiser, only his captain knew his real past. Over the next two years, he took the opportunity to relish being on a starship again and involved in what he considered the real deal that Starfleet was famous for. By the end of 2399, Starfleet approached him to become a captain. His sister-in-law, Captain Laura McCallister, had reached out and asked him to consider taking over from her on the USS Bellerophon. He immediately said yes.

USS Bellerophon (NCC-74705)

Commanding the Bellerophon became a dream job for Horatio. The ship was assigned to the Delta Exploration Initiative. This was a perfect place for him to get away from the politics he had been wrapped in as a member of Starfleet Intelligence. Before leaving for the Delta Quadrant, he saw his brother James and eventually shared the truth about his past and how his work with SI made him lie to him for all those years. It took time for them to rebuild what they had before, but it was a good start. Horatio also learnt that he was an uncle and wanted to get to know James’ family.

Later in the year, the Bellerophon assisted the Odyssey, his brother’s ship, after James was forced to surrender a number of his crew to an alien ark. Working closely with those who remained on the Odyssey, including his nephews, Horatio devised a plan to rescue those captured by the alien vessel. After a problematic attempt, which damaged both the Bellerophon and Odyssey, they were able to free everyone and escape from the ark. The Bellerophon resumed its exploration efforts in the Delta Quadrant.

One highlight of Horatio’s work was participating in the Antarian Trans-stellar Rally. Being a former pilot, he built a close bond with his chief flight control officer, and the two entered the ship’s Delta-class runabout into the race and came first. During this time, the Bellerophon had helped the Antarian Pact deal with the Blood Dilithium crisis. Their efforts were well received by the alliance, and Horatio received an award from one of their senior ambassadors for their work.

At the start of 2401, the Bellerophon was assigned to the Odyssey Squadron. Under the direct command of his brother James, Horatio thought it might have been an issue, but it wasn’t. The two worked well, and once again, they started to make further inroads with other species in the Delta Quadrant.

The entire squadron was recalled to the Alpha Quadrant a few months later, ahead of the Frontier Day celebrations. However, their time patrolling near the Kzinti border was interrupted when the Dominion Lost Fleet attacked the Deneb Sector. The entire squadron joined the Fourth Fleet in response. Sadly, during an engagement, the Bellerophon was severely attacked, and many of Horatio’s crew were injured or killed. Horatio was injured, and it wasn’t until he recovered that he was told about those who had died, including his first officer and chief of operations. The loss of so many was tough for him to deal with. He found it even more complicated when Starfleet ordered him to temporarily command the USS Triton, which had lost its captain during the Dominion incursion.

USS Triton (NCC-80106)

Becoming the Triton‘s interim captain for Frontier Day wasn’t what he wanted to do. Horatio had wanted to be with the Bellerophon while it was being repaired at the Avalon Fleet Yards. However, following his orders, he did as he was told. Surprisingly, during this event, his past involvement with Starfleet Intelligence returned its ugly head in the form that he was told something would happen during Frontier Day. Discovering that Starfleet officers, meant to have met their demise, had been placed in stasis and replaced by Changeling Infilitrators. Not having enough time to investigate, Horatio (like everyone else) was forced to survive during the unexpected Borg uprise. The Triton was heavily damaged, and Horatio ordered the abandonment of the ship. Taking escape pods, those that could leave left while Horatio took his visitors (Fleet Admiral Luke Duncan and his sister-in-law, Commander Reyas) along with Triton‘s senior staff members to find other captured Starfleet officers. Using the Triton‘s captain’s yacht, they found one of the facilities; thanks to a lead from a former informant, Horatio and the others rescued several officers, including Captain Zack Marshall-Bennet.

USS Constitution (NCC-91700)

The damage that both the Triton and Bellerophon took during Frontier Day meant that both ships would not be operational for some time. Horatio took a leave of absence, wanting to be away from everything for a moment until Fleet Admiral Luke Duncan, the new Director for the Fourth Fleet Operations, visited him. Duncan offered him command of the new USS Constitution so he could rejoin his brother in exploring the Delta Quadrant. Horatio agreed to the new command.