Garen Nelis (KIA)

Personnel File
Name:	Garen Nelis
Rank:	Lieutenant
Position:	Chief Counselor
Species:	Human/Betazoid
Age:	28
Gender:	Male
Birthplace:	Medara, Betazed
Height:	6'1" / 1.85 m
Weight:	190 lbs. / 86 kg
Hair:	Brown
Eye color:	Black
Interests
Psychology counseling geology music martial arts
Education
2370-2372: University of Betazed, Exogeology Major 2372-2374: Starfleet Academy, class of 2374. 2376-2380: B.Sc. in Psychology, Starfleet Academy
Service Record
2374-2375: Ensign, Tactical Officer, USS Venture 2375-2375: Ensign, Tactical Officer, AR-558 2375-2376: Lieutenant JG, Tactical Officer, USS Vendetta 2379-2380: Lieutenant JG, Junior Counseling Instructor, Starfleet Academy 2380-2381: Lieutenant, Counselor/Rehabilitation Officer, USS Theurgy 2381: Lieutenant, Chief Counselor, USS Theurgy, KIA.
Decorations
N/A

Garen Nelis was Chief Counselor for the USS Theurgy before he was killed in action. Before his death Garen Nelis aided in the opposition against the parasites that compromised Starfleet Command in the end of the 24^th century.

Biography

Garen Nelis was born on October 12, 2353, in Medara, Betazed. His father was Torin Nelis, a Betazoid, and his mother was Anna McConnell, a human Starfleet officer. Garen's father raised him on Betazed while his mother continued her career in Starfleet, returning home whenever she could. When Garen was eleven years old, his mother was killed when the ship she'd been serving on, the USS Drake, was destroyed over the planet Minos by an ancient, advanced weapons system called Echo Papa 607.

After his mother's death, Garen became troubled. Life on Betazed was as close to idyllic as it could get, but Garen could no longer enjoy the peace and beauty his homeworld offered. He tried to hide his feelings inside himself, but that proved nearly impossible on a planet full of telepaths and empaths; Garen's father tried to get help for his son, but Garen, who had inherited his human mother's stubbornness, rejected every attempt, preferring to deal with his grief on his own terms.

He graduated from high school in 2370, and was accepted into the University of Betazed to study exogeology. Garen had been interested in the subject since he was a young child, and had always planned on becoming a scientist, but as he went through his first year at university he began to question his decision. He felt like he could do so much more with himself than study rocks and volcanoes. When the Federation went to war with the Klingon Empire in 2372, Garen decided he wanted to join Starfleet and do his part to defend the Federation his mother had died serving. After completing his second year at the University of Betazed, he was allowed to transfer his credits over to Starfleet Academy on Earth, from which he graduated in 2374 and was commissioned as an ensign.

Ensign Nelis was assigned as a tactical officer to the USS Venture, a Galaxy-class starship, just in time to take part in Operation Return, the joint Starfleet/Klingon mission to retake Deep Space 9. He then participated in the First Battle of Chin'toka, after which Garen, along with one hundred and forty-nine other officers and crewmen, was assigned to the planet AR-558, to guard a captured Dominion communications array.

For five long, bitter months, Garen and his comrades were trapped on AR-558, subjected to countless Dominion assaults on their position, with no hope of relief from Starfleet. As the days passed, more and more people were killed, until finally less than fifty survivors remained. Just when Garen had given up hope, the USS Defiant arrived at AR-558 to deliver supplies, and its crew was able to help the defenders turn the tables against the Dominion and finally secure the planet for Starfleet.

After AR-558, Garen was reassigned to the USS Vendetta. He had an extremely difficult time adapting to his new situation, however. Being half-Betazoid, Garen was a powerful empath, and for five months he was forced to contend with the fear and terror of over one hundred different minds, every single one of them lying awake every night, wondering if they would be the next to fall in battle. Garen had never been subjected to so much emotional turmoil from so many people at one time, and he had no way to get away from any of it. Because of this psychological trauma, combined with the extreme sleep deprivation, malnutrition, and multiple wounds he suffered on AR-558, along with the additional stress caused by the loss of his family during the Dominion occupation of Betazed, Garen developed a severe case of post-traumatic stress disorder.

Because of his condition, Garen's career in Starfleet was in danger, but he was saved thanks to the patience and guidance of the Vendetta’s rehabilitation officer, Commander Jien Ives. Jien was the only person who was able to get through to Garen, and after a year of counseling, Garen was finally able to overcome most of his PTSD. Some of it still lingered, as Garen was sometimes still troubled by nightmares, but thanks to Jien, he was able to become somewhat functional again.

Garen was inspired by Jien, and decided he wanted to take what he had learned from his experiences and use it to help people who suffered like he had. In 2376, he returned to Starfleet Academy to train as a counselor. It took him a few weeks to adjust to being on his own again, but once he had gotten past it, Garen did well in his studies, and after graduating in 2380, Counselor Nelis was promoted to the rank of lieutenant and assigned to the USS Theurgy, which had just returned from Romulus.

He was surprised when he found out that the Theurgy was commanded by none other than Jien Ives, but Garen didn't get much of a chance to catch up with his old friend; almost immediately after coming aboard, Garen was branded a traitor to the Federation, along with the rest of the crew, and forced into exile. While the Theurgy fled capture, the Chief Counselor was killed, and the Assistant Chief Counselor, Azani Mikahl, revealed herself to be Edena Rez, a Starfleet Intelligence operative. With both of his superiors gone, Garen was promoted to the role of Chief Counselor.

Garen Nelis was murdered by the Theurgy’s chief medical officer, Doctor Lucan cin Nicander during the Theurgy’s first encounter with the USS Calamity.

Personality Profile

Having grown up on Betazed, Garen learned from its peaceful inhabitants to take everything calmly and in stride, never overreacting to anything. With most everyone on Betazed being either telepathic or empathic, there is no such thing as secrets there, and so Garen had a very friendly, outgoing, and open-minded nature. However, he did inherit his human mother's stubbornness, and sometimes became rather set in his ways. One unfortunate side-effect of his Betazoid sense of openness and honesty, however, was that Garen could occasionally be very blunt--almost insultingly so, at times, even if it wasn't intentional.

Although it had been several years since his traumatic experiences during the Dominion War, while serving aboard the Theurgy Garen still suffered from nightmares and flashbacks. During his time on the Vendetta, he took up martial arts, with the help of Jien Ives, which has helped Garen learn to focus his mind, but sometimes, especially in times of emotional distress, Garen would flash back to his past, which could freeze Garen and prevent him from moving.

After the Dominion War ended, Garen lost his taste for combat, and considered himself a pacifist. He prefered to use diplomacy rather than violence to settle conflicts. Garen could defend himself, but would only do so as a last resort.

Empathic Ability

Garen was half-Betazoid, which means that unlike full-blooded Betazoids, his telepathic abilities was rather limited. He was a powerful empath, able to sense the emotions and feelings of nearly all known species in the galaxy. This ability proved useful to him as a counselor, but it could also be a hindrance, as it was for him on AR-558. Garen's empathy sometimes also manifests during sex, when he is less capable of applying the necessary focus to keep it under control. When this happens, Garen is able to tap into his partner's emotional responses, which has often magnified the pleasure of the experience for both parties.

Physical Profile

Garen was about average height for both Betazoid and human males, and he kept his brown hair neatly trimmed. He also had the all-black eyes characteristic of the Betazoid species. Garen kept himself in excellent physical condition, working out regularly in addition to continuing to practice the martial arts training he began with Jien Ives back on the Vendetta.