Admiral Zachary O'Connell
Name Zachary O'Connell
Position Guest Character
Rank Admiral
Stats
- 11 Mission Posts
Last Post
29 May 2023 @ 8:18pm
Character Information
| Gender | Male | |
| Species | Human | |
| Age | 41 | |
| Owner (if NPC) | [Harvey Geisler] |
Physical Appearance
| Height | 6' 1" | |
| Weight | 185 lbs | |
| Hair Color | Brown (graying) | |
| Eye Color | Brown |
Personality & Traits
| Strengths & Weaknesses | Zach has an uncanny ability to build or repair just about anything, with exceptions of course. He's agreeable to most, and quite friendly. On the negative side, when deeply confronted or troubled, Zach will attempt to run or conceal himself while he mentally sorts through the issues. During this time, he puts himself at a distance to others, and this can even cloud his judgment. |
|
| Hobbies & Interests | Rock Climbing, Hiking, Theatre, Classical Music, Tinkering with Antiquated Gadgets |
| Personal History | The O’Connell family was a wealthy and prominent business family that had thrived for four generations in the heart of New York City. Four years after Zachary’s birth, his parents were killed in a hovercraft accident outside of Pensacola, Florida during a business trip. Custody of Zachary was granted to his only living relative, his mother’s brother, Richard Noble. Being an only child, young Zachary had a difficult time transitioning to a new world—and new parents. Richard owned a farm in the heart of Kansas, where Zachary spent the next fourteen years of his life. Knowing his parents were dead and never coming back made the time difficult, yet somewhat bearable. Most people that knew Zach would testify that he was a good kid, dedicated to perform whatever task set before him. Having grown up on a farm with daily chores to perform, Zach grew an appreciation for hard work, and would never do anything without putting a little sweat into it. Zach graduated from high school a year early, and turned down many offers for prestigious colleges. Instead, he took a year to travel Earth and nearby star systems to soak in knowledge and do a little soul searching. Ultimately, Zach decided to join Starfleet, mainly to continue his passion for exploring. Years of working on a farm enabled him to quickly pick up Engineering. Technical skills came quite naturally to him, and he excelled in every engineering class he took. During his first two years at the Academy, he roomed with medical researcher named Harvey Geisler, who was only two years older than he. Though their paths rarely crossed, Zach was well aware of Harvey’s brash demeanor. Harvey and Zach both were consumed with their lab work and only used their room to sleep. It was also at the Academy that Jillian Cook, a fellow Engineering cadet, first caught Zach’s eye. The two shared an on again, off again romance for the next four years. Upon graduation, the two decided to not pursue the relationship any further as she was assigned to an outpost near the Romulan Neutral Zone and he the USS Logos as a Warp Drive Specialist. As luck would have it, he was reunited with one Ensign Harvey Geisler. Both immediately clashed as their duty shifts were on different rotations and were sleeping at different hours. Once a quarantine was placed on the Lypha system, their problems were quickly resolved as Harvey spent every waking hour with the medical team. And before long, Harvey was promoted and transferred away, leaving Zachary a rare chance to keep a set of junior quarters to himself, which he was able to do for the remainder of his service aboard the Logos for the next three years. When the Logos was put into drydock for an extended refit, the now Lieutenant O’Connell was transferred to the Miranda-class USS Achilles. Not thrilled that the assignment was a major step back in terms of engineering, Zach felt he couldn’t say no an Assistant Chief Engineer position. After several months, Zach was instrumental in securing an agreement with Starfleet R&D which allowed the Achilles to be a testbed for experimental technologies, including new weapons platforms, deflector grids, and Bussard collectors. He was even able to test out a few of his theories developed back at Starfleet Academy. Before long, he was promoted to full Lieutenant and awarded the position of Chief Engineer. When the Dominion War officially began in 2373, the crew of the Achilles wasn’t surprised when they were reassigned to the front lines, starting in the Tyra system. Unlike the rest of the fleet, the Achilles suffered little damage at the battle, left to her own devices once the bridge and the rest of Decks Two and Three were obliterated by a torpedo blast. While the rest of the attack failed, Zach and the engineering team was able to reroute command control to Engineering and flee the battle. As the sensor pod was also damaged in the attack, Zach had no way of knowing he was piloting the Achilles deeper into Cardassian territory, eventually taking refuge in a nebula. The moment enough repairs were affected, the acting science officer discovered the early stages of a ketracel white manufacturing facility also within the nebula. Within hours, the crew unanimously agreed to strike the facility even if it meant losing the ship and their lives in the process. Not only was the strike successful, the Achilles was able to take minor damage and still make it back to the Federation border. Despite her damage, the Achilles was marked for scrap and the crew reassigned. In recognition of his actions aboard the Achilles, Zach received an early promotion to Lieutenant Commander and was reassigned to the USS Saber as the Executive Officer. Zach’s next two battles were nothing but terrible failures, with each ship, the USS Saber and USS Typhon, being quickly destroyed in the opening salvos. Embarrassed, Zach is recovered along with twelve others from escape pods by the Sovereign-class USS Delphinus. The Delphinus had suffered massive casualties of her own, including the ship’s executive officer. As he was the highest-ranked individual among those rescued (more than a hundred others had also been recovered from various other pods), Zach immediately assumed the role of Executive Officer. The next several engagements were successful, leading to the Delphinus becoming the lead vessel for its task group. The Delphinus was engaged in the battle to retake Kalendra when she suffered a massive blow to the secondary hull. Coolant leaks spread throughout the section, killing or crippling most of the Engineering crew. Though the battle was successful, the fleet suffered massive damage, leaving few engineers to spare for the Delphinus. Zach immediately moved back to the engine room and made quick work of repairs, spending the remainder of the war in the engine room and back in the gold collar. When the war ended, Zach did what he could to remain in the engine room, and was grateful once Starfleet finally was able to restaff the Delphinus. To his surprise, the leading engineer among the replacements was one Jillian Cook. Their romance was instantly rekindled, and the two were married a year later. The next two years were uneventful when compared to the war, at least until the Delphinus was submitted to drydock for an extensive refit. Zach was approached by Starfleet regarding a new commission. He wrestled with the idea for several days before ultimately accepting Starfleet's offer. He hung up the gold uniform for the final time and again donned the red uniform, this time with the rank of Captain on his collar. Jillian joined him as Chief Engineer aboard the Akira-class USS O'Carroll and embarked for the Gamma Quadrant. Captain O’Connell proudly served at the helm of the Akira-class ship for the next seven years. Though he saw plenty of the galaxy over the last seven years, he and Jillian were found unprepared for a new journey, though it was one they discussed for years. Zach was nervous, knowing the perils of space-faring journeys first hand, not to mention the traumatic experiences of his early childhood. He had a meeting scheduled with Admiral Adislo. Zach had prepared his resignation as well as a transition plan, but was caught off guard by the Admiral immediately starting the meeting with promoting Captain O’Connell to the rank of Commodore. Zach quickly discarded his plans, thinking that life as a flag officer would bring a certain amount of security to his future in Starfleet. Of course, he wasn't counting on escort duty, nor what was beginning to unfold throughout the Task Force... |
|
| Service Record | 2364-2368: Starfleet Academy 2368: USS Logos, Warp Drive Specialist 2370: Promotion to Lieutenant JG 2371: USS Achilles, Assistant Chief Engineer 2372: Promotion to Lieutenant & Chief Engineer 2373: Participates in the Battle of Tyra, becomes Acting Commanding Officer 2373: Promotion to Lt. Commander 2373: USS Saber, Executive Officer 2374: USS Typhon, Executive Officer 2374: USS Delphinus, Executive Officer 2374: Accepts Demotion to Chief Engineer 2376: Promotion to Commander, Marries Jillian Cook 2380: Promotion to Captain, USS O'Carroll 2388: Promotion to Commodore |
Immediate Family
| Significant Other | Cmdr. Jillian O'Connell |
