Lieutenant Commander Gwynne Emberly
Name Gwynne Emberly
Rank Lieutenant Commander
Character Information
| Gender | Female | |
| Species | Betazoid | |
| Age | 37 |
Physical Appearance
| Height | 168 cm | |
| Weight | 73kg | |
| Hair Color | auburn/copper | |
| Eye Color | black | |
| Physical Description | A female of average height for a member of her species. She possesses a toned, feminine physique rather than an athletic one as she’s a firm believer in physical readiness and capability. Her hair is moderately long, layered and an copper/auburn colour with long bangs. Her most prominent feature are the black betazoid eyes which stand out in contrast with her reddish hair. |
Family
| Father | Cardin Emberly (formerly Cardin Keyle) - History Lecturer, University Of Rixx | |
| Mother | Neira Emberly - Ethics and Sociology Lecturer, University Of Rixx | |
| Brother(s) | Garrys Emberly - Software Developer, Yaeland-Wutani Corp |
Personality & Traits
| General Overview | Gwynne is not as open or approachable as most Betazoids. Due to the nature of her work, she tends to be focused, controlled and very calculated, having to watch her words, her tone, her mannerisms, she often finds it difficult to relax and just be a Betazoid woman in her prime. While she is good company once one gets past the exterior, Gwynne is not one for pointless, silly small talk. preferring instead deeper, meaningful conversations and directness, openness. She also prefers the same in people, not being overly fond of people who talk too much or with little meaning. A good, pragmatic leader, Gwynne stands behind her team and is not afraid to bear the burden of responsibility. She is as religious as any Betazoid, paying reverence to the Four Deities and the creed of her House. Gwynne will not shy away from expressing her opinion and adding her own two cents where needed, within the norms and decorum of the situation. This is a product of the reshaping of her view of the universe courtesy of the Dominion War and her home planet’s occupation by the Dominion. Gwynne is more the type of person to slowly let someone in, past her ingrained barriers and not very forthcoming with information. She is a very controlled individual with strong mental discipline, especially where her abilities are concerned. Due to her job, Gwynne herself will do what needs to be done in terms of skimming and probing minds and emotions, though she is not fond of that modus operandi. Like any Betazoid, she strongly dislikes and is disturbed by the lack of one’s presence, one's soul. While she possesses the sensuality of her people, she is not one to openly seek entanglements and liaisons. Her time with non telepaths has helped her discover she likes to gradually get to know people before entering into deeper liaisons with them. She is however not above an occasional one night stand if she is feeling particularly needy physically. Gwynne often finds herself more comfortable under a pretext rather than being her real self simply due to the nature of her people and the nature of her job which often clash. Honesty and openness versus control, withholding and secrets. She has few friends outside the Intelligence service, a little more within it and to them she is fiercely loyal and able to show her softer core to. |
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| Strengths & Weaknesses | Strengths: Her empathic and telepathic skills are fully developed and under iron clad control. It is both due to her childhood training and her subsequent training with Captain Semrik of Vulcan. The training is a bi-product of a forced mind meld in the wake of hiding from Dominion forces on a mining asteroid in the Toloth system. Gwynne has strong technical skills, particularly in the areas of sensor operations, transporter operations as well as communications. She is also an extremely skilled programmer, hacker and electronic warfare specialist. Her hardware skills are decent enough but she is by no means an expert. Physically very capable, she is skilled in hand to hand combat, small arms and ground combat, having spent a lot of the war on the ground, fixing communications hubs and relays. She’d also received substantial training when she joined the intelligence service. To keep up with the demands of ground operations she’d also developed considerable stamina which she’d kept on the level since. She is an exceptionally adaptable person and an excellent actress, which is perfect for deep cover operations which she usually gets assigned to. Gwynne is also a very quick thinking and crafty individual. Weaknesses: Tends to have trouble relaxing and not being constantly on the edge, watching behind her back. Her mind tends to overload at times with the amount of information she has to handle daily, which is why she’s been suggested to have a pet, to bleed out the created stress, minds of animals helping calm the chaos of the mind, and are lot less chaotic, a lot simpler and they don’t scream at her. While she is strong in mental shielding techniques, when focus is on multiple points at once, it is difficult to maintain their strength. Like all Betazoids she is unable to read Ferengi and genetically similar races, Ullians and Dopterians. Though she herself never tried it, it is said that her species cannot read the Breen brain either. Apart from basic first aid, she is completely unskilled in the medical fields. When it comes to sciences, Gwynne is hopelessly lost with the natural ones, whilst being moderate at best in the social ones (namely psychology and sociology aspects of profiling). While as a betazoid she is bound by the The Code of Sentience, which gives strict guidance on the use and treatment of a Betazoids telepathic powers, so that other races have no need to fear these powers (which says that a betazoid may not pry into another's mind unless it is with permission and absolutely necessary), Gwynne has broken this code more than once in her intelligence career. At times it was under orders, other times it was to gain advantage/leverage and sometimes even to get herself out of life and death situations. While she doesn’t necessarily like to do that, she will do it if the situation requires it without anyone being the wiser. She suffers from night terrors when in times of heavy emotional stress. It’s usually the same nightmare, reliving the Toloth asteroid incident from the war. She’s also not very fond nor tolerant of people who talk a lot, even less of people who talk for the sake of talking or because they don’t like silence. Granted her measure of ‘talking a lot’ is a matter of debate. |
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| Ambitions | Gwynne would one day move up the ranks of Intelligence Administration, particularly the Intelligence side of R&D. However this day is long ways away as she does love her field work. |
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| Hobbies & Interests | Gwynne’s picked up a few hobbies over the years from her cover identities and kept them after the operations finished. One of her newer ones has been catching up on sleep whenever she could (six months of being under cover as a completely different personality on a starship can be draining). She also likes to keep up with programming and electronic warfare methods. She keeps in shape by running, practicing the vulcan martial of ke-tarya (which simultaneously works as a meditation/relaxation method through it’s katas). Gwynne also does swimming on occasion. She also has a pet cat, a russian blue female named Spark. The cat is a calm, cuddly, lovable creature who loves to chat, often providing Gwynne with the mental respite she needs after a taxing day. She speaks several languages along with her native Betazoid and Federation standard (Romulan, Reman, Vulcan, Klingon). |
| Personal History | Gwynne is a member of the Ninth House, known as the House of History and Learning. She is the second child of Cardin and Neira and sister to Garrys (younger by three years). Born into a very learned family, the kids were raised in a very aware and open environment, especially due to the chosen specializations of the parents. Contrary to the wishes and suppositions of the parents however, both children showed aptitude and interest towards the technical aspects. In the later years the parents started claiming it was a genetic skip from the father’s side of the family, whose parents were from the House of Perseverance (the Tenth House) and both in the technical fields focused on software. Gwynne did show a love of history and sociology as she grew up, always interested in learning about other worlds and other species as well as their histories. Lanos on the other hand was always more family and Betazed oriented. Varos and Alshira while supportive of their children’s choices regardless of their own personal desires for them, did however want to keep family tradition and genetically bonded their children (when they were very young) to members of other houses they felt their children would benefit most from. Garrys was bonded to the first daughter of the Twelft House (House Of Balance) whom he married later in life, while Gwynne was bonded to the third son of the Sixth House (House Of Poetry). The young woman however had different plans in life than staying on Betazed and leading a family life and spending her days writing code. She wanted more and she wanted off of Betazed to achieve it. So, after finishing standard schooling and mental training, she started preparing for Starfleet Academy Entrance Exam when she was old enough. After sitting the exam and passing it in the first go, Gwynne dissolved the genetic bonding liaison with the third son, much to her parent’s initial chagrin. However the chagrin didn’t last long as they finally saw that their daughter was meant for exploration and space travel, rather than being homeward bound like their son. Her Academy years were spent in academic pursuits and discovering all the mixed social life had to offer. Gwynne enjoyed the diversity of peoples and species, usually making friends with ‘aliens’ rather than her own species. Along with her studies, she finally felt free to explore aspects of herself and her species without the self perceived shadow of her parents and her brother. So Gwynne explored, in all aspects of the word. Service History: With the heat of the war approaching, Gwynne keenly felt the toll on the Academy minds the very thought of it brought. Her graduating class had received improved combat training and drills as well as arms use. In the later years she would consider herself lucky to have had at least one year to live as a graduate in peace before the war irrevocably changed them all. Her first posting was as a transporter operator aboard the USS Falkirk, a Korolev class vessel. With the Falkirk’s assignments in various theatres of the war, her crew quickly gained experience and mileage. Gwynne switched through various posts during the war, mainly participating in field operations to fix relays and communications hubs on key planets and engagement areas. One of the most impactful events in her service on the Falkirk was actually one of the earlier engagements during the war. She and Lieutenant Commander Semrik, the Falkirk’s Chief Science Officer, had been returning from Berengaria, to the USS Falkirk, which was waiting for them just on the outer edge of the Toloth System. As the system was contested territory, skirmishes would break out every so often with neither side gaining too much ground which was why the shuttle being used as the go-between was considered a better idea than the while ship going through. The two were in a shuttle, trying to use the asteroid field to mask their trail and not lead them directly to the Falkirk. Unfortunately it didn't work, the shuttle was detected by a Dominion Scout ship and fired upon. Unable to escape and taking heavy damage they crashed on a small asteroid mining complex.Taking refuge with the civilian crew, the duo were safe...for a time. Dominion forces soon arrived and began interrogating the miners. With their time short and little progress made with the brave civilians, the Jem'Hadar began to murder the crew, hunting each and every one of them down. It was pure luck Gwynne and Semrik weren't found; declared overdue the Falkirk had been combing the system for their lost crew. Stumbling across the astroid, the Falkirk was able to drive the Dominion ship away and rescue the pair. Much to Gwynne's dismay, they were too late to save any of the miners Gwynne was never the same after that event, having so keenly felt the miners dying, their emotions, the emotions of the Dominion forces. Gone was the bubbly, open young woman. In her place a more distanced, calculated, detached woman. It was only thanks to Semrik’s aid, albeit through a forced mind meld that she managed to regain control. It had turned out later on that that act had saved them both and saved what shreds of sanity she'd had left. He'd began teaching her how to shield and isolate herself in the later years. She'd found it helpful back then, when her mind was still raw and bruised, recovering from the torrent. The Falkirk was decommissioned after the war, her crew split up on various other assignments. With the decommissioning, Gwynne was approached by Starfleet Intelligence in 2377 with an offer to join their ranks. Her work with electronic warfare, countermeasures and communications had landed her on their watch list. So, with the promise of something new, exciting and most importantly the ability to do some good and channel her new state of mind from the war productively, she accepted. She spent the following year in Intelligence cross training, becoming fast friends with an El-Aurian woman called Sinara and a couple of the trainers, Alexander Night and Valerie Locke. She was also on fairly good terms with her initial handler and recruiter, Latisha Delreye and Jack Lashmore (whom she never quite felt comfortable with, for reasons she never quite fully understood). After finishing her training she assigned to the Romulan Section of Starfleet Intelligence as a junior field officer. It was during the initial few years that Gwynne in her new state of mind gained several life long friends, like Valerie, Alexander and Sinara, all the while keeping the new occupation hidden from her family. While they had supported her decision to join Starfleet and dissolve her genetic bonding, she was absolutely certain they would never accept her new, extremely dangerous profession. While her official cover was that of an analyst, Gwynne was assigned all over the quadrant, often working in tandem with either Valerie, Sinara or Alexander after the latter transferred to the Alpha Quadrant Powers Section of Starfleet Intelligence and Gwynne soon following. Gwynne polished her tradecraft in the following years, working along seasoned professionals, rising through the ranks to becoming a case officer, having built her own network of assets and confidential informants, often directing minor missions for the younger officers. In 2382 Gwynne was reassigned to the Counter Intelligence Section of Intelligence, working most often with the senior field agent and friend, Commander Valerie Locke. It was with Valerie that Gwynne further honed in her skills in interrogation and profiling, helping the elder agent bring key foreign personnel to work for the Federation. The two became best friends during their years of working together. When Valerie was injured on a long running mission in 2385, Gwynne was extremely concerned. She hadn’t felt a sense of loss akin to the worry for the human woman in a very long time. Luckily Locke managed to recover, but not to the point of being able to return to field operations, so the woman took up an administrative and directorial role within Counter Intelligence by taking over as Head of the Field Operations. While their professional relationship changed to that of handler and field agent rather than partners, their personal relationship grew even stronger, especially with Locke opening up to Emberly about her long term girlfriend, Nicolette Levesque. Gwynne grew to care about the woman nearly as much as Valerie in the subsequent years, the three women becoming as close as sisters, while Locke and Levesque married. Gwynne took over Valerie’s role and become one of the senior field agents within the section. In 2388 she was assigned to the USS Venture under the pretext of the Chief of Operations, Lieutenant Hela Riis. With the Venture’s assignment to the Raeyan Transit Corridor, and the possibility of infiltration/interference from Romulan Intelligence Agencies, Starfleet Intelligence felt it prudent to send an agent of their own to be present aboard the lead ship assigned to the volatile area of space. With Gwynne’s expertise with the Romulans, she was the best choice for the undercover assignment. Naturally, Intelligence being Intelligence, they also wanted information on certain other things, namely the frowned upon liaison of her Captain with a former Maquis operative. The possibility of interference soon became a reality as implications of Tal’Shiar involvement were discovered and Gwynne was tasked with confirming or disproving the circumstantial evidence...alone. Backup would not arrive until several weeks later. While on a diplomatic mission to Ruhoka, a planet within the Raeyan Transit Corridor, the location of the suspected Tal’Shiar involvement, Gwynne quite literally walked into the Tal’Shiar’s agent trap. Accused of murdering the pro-Federation minister of Education and attacking the agent and his aides, a planet wide chase ensued, both by Romulan forces and the officers aboard the Venture in hopes of getting to her first. It was through a series of lucky shots and calls, that the crew of the Venture managed to reach Gwynne first and assist her in taking down the Tal’Shiar operation on the planet. One problem still remained, even after the crisis was over. The Tal’Shiar agent knew of Gwynne’s presence on the Venture and on the planet. This clearly spelled out one thing. There was a mole within the circle of people who knew of the long term operation. Someone who knew of Gwynne herself and the identities of the two agents who were sent as backup, who were held up by a sudden ‘trade inspection’ while the crisis was taking place. Emberly was detained to custody on the Venture until the truth of things was determined. Starfleet Intelligence sent an Internal Affairs agent to the Venture to conduct an investigation on that field, while several other agents were sent to the Counter-Intelligence Section and to the Romulan Section under whose purview the Raeyan Transit Corridor lay. Gwynne and the Romulan Section were subsequently cleared of suspicion though the search for the mole continued. Instead of an apology, she was offered the position of Chief Intelligence Officer aboard the Venture and a promotion to Lieutenant Commander. Gwynne agreed to accept the position in order to help prevent such critical failures in the future in the sector and only if the Venture crew agreed to have her remain onboard, having lied to them and pretended she was someone else for more than six months. Now, having accepted the spot and being allowed to stay o the Venture, Gwynne faced a whole new sets of issues. Would the crew, especially those she grew close to in the six months spent under cover ever trust her again? With the Venture's retasking to the Ashland Initiative sometime later, Gwynne felt her talents could be used elsewhere. Part of her longed to return to her technical roots, to start over. With her clearance levels and skills, she was deemed suitable for a position at a Starfleet Black Site, Memory Theta as the Lead Technical Specialist. |
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| Service Record | 2368 - 2372 - Starfleet Academy - Operations / Engineering Track 2372 - 2377 - USS Falkirk - various postings 2377- 2378 - Starfleet Intelligence Cross Training 2378 - 2380 - Starfleet Intelligence, Romulan Section, Junior Field Officer 2380 - 2382 - Starfleet Intelligence, Alpha Quadrant Powers Section, Case Officer 2382 - 2388 - Starfleet Intelligence, Counter Intelligence Section, Senior Field Officer 2388 - 2388 - USS Venture - Undercover as Chief Of Operations, Lieutenant Hela Riis 2388 - 2389 - USS Venture - Chief Intelligence Officer 2389 - pres. - Memory Theta, Lead Technical Specialist |