Lieutenant Taras Mikovich

Name Taras Mikovich

Position Chief Communications Officer

Second Position Second Officer

Rank Lieutenant

Basic Info
Personality
History

Character Information

Gender		Male
Species		Human
Age		28

Physical Appearance

Height		187cm
Weight		~ 70kg
Hair Color		Brown
Eye Color		Hazel
Physical Description		At 6’0”, Taras stands tall with a lean yet athletic build earned through years of military service rather than dedicated fitness. His time spent in service of the merchant marines sculpted his physique due to the strenuous work and rigorous expectations. He has brown hair that is now rarely regulation-perfect and sharp hazel eyes that seem to constantly assess everyone around him. His features carry distinctive hints of Eastern European ancestry marred with the aura of aristocracy. Taras often wears an expression that borders on smug confidence on his face even when idle.

Family

Father		Artim Mikovich
Mother		Ecaterina Moreau-Mikovich
Brother(s)		Sasha Mikovich
Sister(s)		Elena Mikovich
Other Family		Mikhail Mikovich (Uncle) Luka Mikovich (Cousin)

Personality & Traits

General Overview		Taras Mikovich's Personality Sheet One of Taras’ greatest flaws is that he is handsome enough to know it and unfortunately self-aware enough to occasionally use it to his advantage. If only his actual personality were as pleasant as he looks. Is he charming? Yes, there is hardly any denying that, but he is also reckless, defiant, and stubborn. Taras Mikovich did not make it through university and became an officer without having brains. He is an intelligent man, but he is not a genius. What he knows, he knows well. What he doesn’t know, he will fake his way through if need be. He is a very curious and investigative minded individual that can be too smart for his own damn good. His curiosity has gotten him into plenty of trouble. What separates him from other confident people is that his confidence spills over into arrogance, enough so that he is downright cocky in situations that don’t warrant it. In the Federation Merchant Marines, Taras was tolerated because he was good at what he did. Now that he is in Starfleet though, his time in uniform may have a much shorter lifetime. He has an urge to disrupt stagnation and a habit of challenging what feels like oppressive systems. He likes being grounded but he is very much a man that is clearly running away from something with no real direction of where he is going. His years in the Merchant Marines only reinforced that galacticview; he learned that cargo manifests can lie, distress signals can be disguised, and perfectly respectable people can have surprisingly complicated business arrangements. Taras tends to assume there is another layer to every situation, even when there isn't. He can be suspicious to the point of annoyance, questioning motives, reading between lines that may not actually contain anything, and occasionally convincing himself that two unrelated events must somehow be connected. This skepticism also gives him a peculiar fascination with conspiracy theories, and as annoying as it may be, it has kept him alive. Taras doesn't necessarily believe every conspiracy that takes root, he simply believes that dismissing one out of hand is just as foolish as accepting it without evidence. He enjoys collecting strange stories, obscure historical incidents, classified rumors, unexplained transmissions, and contradictory reports, often playing devil's advocate long after everyone else has decided the matter is settled. His greatest weakness is that his excellent instincts can sometimes blur into confirmation bias; once he suspects something is wrong, he has a tendency to look for evidence that proves him right. The irony is that Taras has been correct often enough to make this habit difficult to break. He knows firsthand that the impossible can turn out to be real, which leaves him perpetually wondering whether his latest suspicion is paranoia or simply the thing everyone else is going to wish they had noticed sooner.
Strengths & Weaknesses		Courageous – If a First Officer is ever looking for a volunteer for a mission that one may not come back from, Taras Mikovich is the guy first in line. This is something a Starfleet counselor will likely flag but the merchant marines did not mind, especially not in wartime. Adaptable – Things change on a moment’s notice, and Taras is unflappable. He quickly adjusts to compensate for whatever is ahead. Technical training – He knows communications systems from the inside out. When comms is down or there is damage, he does not have to wait for a technician. He is quick to get his hands dirty and pop open an access panel. Unnecessary risks – Taras has been known to take unnecessary risks. It has not been enough to have him reprimanded, but something that has been observed. Checkered past – Always running, Taras has been trying to distance himself from his problematic history prior to becoming a merchant marine. Vices a plenty – He is a gambling man, and one that has been known to partake in alcohol albeit he does not do so when on duty. He just fully explores and utilizes his shore leave time. The black market – His family has a long and complicated history that has established more than a few roots within the black market. Taras has ‘confidential informants’ that he sometimes can utilize though Starfleet Intelligence may not question these connections.
Hobbies & Interests		Shuttlecraft Piloting – His oldest passion. Taras loves flying anything with engines and maneuvering thrusters, and he's known to volunteer for shuttle assignments whenever possible. Antique Earth Wines – Raised in Moldova's wine country, he has an extensive knowledge of viticulture, vintages, and wine-making traditions. He can identify many wines by taste alone. Subspace Signal Puzzles – Treats unusual communications patterns, codes, and encrypted signals as recreational challenges. He sometimes spends off-duty hours trying to solve decades-old unsolved transmission mysteries. Poker and Card Games – Enjoys games of chance and skill, partly for the competition and partly because he likes reading people. His success rate varies considerably. Frontier History – Fascinated by the chaotic period between First Contact and the Federation's founding, especially stories of traders, explorers, and independent spacers. Mechanical Tinkering – Likes modifying shuttle systems, communicators, and personal equipment. Starfleet engineers often find his "improvements" creative but unauthorized. Languages and Dialects – Enjoys learning regional accents, trade pidgins, and alien languages. He often slips foreign phrases into conversations to amuse himself. Socializing in Crew Lounges – Taras genuinely enjoys meeting people, collecting stories, and making connections. He often knows more about the crew than he should. Classical Violin – A hobby encouraged by his family during childhood. Though he rarely performs publicly, he is surprisingly accomplished and keeps a violin in his quarters.

Personal History

Born in 2153 on Earth, Taras Mikovich was raised among the vineyards of Moldova, where the Mikovich family had cultivated wines and spirits for several generations. The family enjoyed a reputation as respected vintners, brewers, and merchants yet subtle whispers followed them through much of the region. Several distant relatives had longstanding ties to smugglers, cargo brokers, and black-market trading operations along the fringes of Federation commercial space.

In his youth, Taras developed a reputation for making poor decisions but being blessed with exceptional luck. Unfortunately, luck is finite.

As a result, he was arrested several times as a teenager for stealing shuttlecraft. Most incidents involved joyriding, unauthorized races, or dismantling security SYSTEMS simply to prove he could. His age and family's influence kept him out of serious legal trouble, but by the time he was no longer a juvenile, many expected him to eventually end up on the wrong side of the law. He was given an ultimatum: make something of himself or be a social pariah to his own family. He chose to make something of himself.

At Novosibirsk State University, Taras focused on communications systems and Xeno linguistics. Although he was never considered a prodigy, he did possess a remarkable talent for understanding how information moved between people, ships, and governments.

Unfortunately, academic success did little to curb his appetite for excitement. He joined the Federation Merchant Marines after graduating from university. The successor to the old Earth Cargo Service, the Federation Merchant Marines were spacefaring civilian folk, sanctioned and operating under the United Federation of Planets banner handling the Federation’s presence in the Alpha quadrant in terms of transporting goods and commerce.

After several contracts were completed, Taras was well rooted within the Federation Merchant Marines. He was respected by shipmates, albeit had a reputation among captains. Some did not want him aboard their vessels while others embraced him flaws and all. He was a ‘double edge sword,’ as he could untangle a communications failure quickly, negotiate with stubborn port authorities, and somehow always knew somebody who knew somebody; however, Taras was also prone to gambling, bending regulations, and involving himself in situations that sensible people avoided.

The real turning point in his life came aboard the civilian freighter Vasilisa. While transiting a sparsely patrolled trade corridor near former Coalition frontier worlds, the Vasilisa intercepted a heavily distorted distress signal. Standard protocol dictated reporting it and waiting for authorities to handle it, but Taras noticed something unusual in the signal.

The signal wasn't random interference. It was being deliberately masked. He was convinced that someone was trying to hide the transmission. Taras spent hours reconstructing the message. What emerged from it was evidence that a small colony transport had suffered a catastrophic reactor failure and was drifting without communication.

The transport's projected life support window was less than forty-eight hours. The captain of the Vasilisa hesitated because diverting meant financial penalties, delays, and operating outside of dictated routes. Taras ignored orders and transmitted the coordinates to nearby vessels while simultaneously convincing enough independent ships to assist.

The rescue ultimately saved over two hundred colonists, but his disobedience did not go without reprimand. After the contract with Vasilisa was finished, Taras was not offered to return. He was essentially blacklisted by most captains in the Merchant marines.

While the Federation Merchant Marines could not take the gamble of having Taras Mikovich aboard their vessels, Starfleet took notice. One of their starships had assisted in the rescue operation. The Commanding Officer stepped up and pulled his record, had his Merchant Marine files compiled, and made a case for Taras to be commissioned. His Merchant Marine service, university education, and technical certifications satisfied most academic requirements. Undergoing an Officer Training School, he was commissioned and given his first assignment, USS Acacallis.

During the Acacallis' 2180 diplomatic mission to Denobula, Lieutenant Taras Mikovich, serving in Communications, detected a heavily obscured transmission beneath routine planetary traffic. Though initially dismissed as corrupted Vulcan, Mikovich independently analyzed the signal and consulted historical linguistic records, correctly identifying it as Rihannsu and determining that it contained references to an explosive device concealed within the conference venue. When his warning was deemed insufficiently substantiated, Mikovich disregarded orders, enlisted Engineering support, and transported to the surface. He located the device and initiated an evacuation while Engineering attempted to neutralize it. The device detonated, killing the engineer and numerous civilians; however, the Acacallis commanding officer and Denobulan delegation escaped unharmed.

Mikovich's unauthorized actions constituted a serious breach of command protocol and resulted in formal disciplinary review. Nevertheless, his exceptional communications analysis, linguistic aptitude, initiative, and willingness to act under uncertain circumstances were determined to have prevented the deaths of the principal diplomatic delegation and potentially averted a catastrophic attack on the Federation's diplomatic proceedings. Following review, Mikovich received a formal reprimand but was also issued a commendation for distinguished service. His record notes both his "concerning tendency toward independent action" and his "exceptional instincts in matters of communications and threat assessment." The incident was subsequently cited in support of his continued Starfleet service, but was warned that his tendency to circumvent orders would not be appreciated by many.

By 2181, his expertise in communications systems paired with his resilient nature to dig deeper and investigate earned him a position aboard the USS Eventide, a Bonaventure class starship. The Eventide under the command of Commander Percival Tapper would be dispatched to the Galactic Barrier on a survey mission.