Rekat Parlac

Rekat Parlac is a Starfleet officer currently serving as the Chief of Security onboard the Yorktown-class USS Phoenix.

Background
Rekat Parlac was born on Cardassia Prime, the youngest of five brothers. To Cardassians, “family is all”, but to Rekat, it was never enough. He understood the concepts of loyalty to family, loyalty to the state, but for as long as he could remember, he wanted more. He wanted to see as much of the universe as he was able, and he didn’t want to be just another politician like his older brothers. Unfortunately, this drove a bit of a wedge between him and the rest of his family. He can recall with perfect clarity the conversation he had with his mother when, at age 11, he informed her of his desire to join Starfleet. “Why?” she had asked, bemused, as though this was simply another childish flight of fancy. He remembers how her face turned from laughter to concern to anger as he tried to explain the draw he felt to do more than stay on Cardassia Prime for the rest of his life. For an eleven year old, he thought he had been quite eloquent, but it was not enough to sway his mother’s opinion. Temporarily shamed after a thorough tongue lashing, he returned to his traditional studies of culture, politics, and tactics taught to all Cardassian children. But the desire for more never quite went away.

Rekat dedicated himself to his school work with a vigor and ferocity that earned him top marks in all his classes and commendations from his teachers. He was aware, painfully so, that as a member of the Cardassian Union, he would need to excel academically to even have a chance at making it into Starfleet Academy. He also knew he would need to be sponsored and find a command level officer to write a letter of recommendation on his behalf. Neither task would be easy in restoration-era Cardassia, but he refused to back down. To keep his family mollified, he chose a course of study that was mostly combat and tactics, which he hoped would prevent them from paying too much attention to his extracurricular activities. Unbeknownst to his parents, after the sparring matches that he went to each day, he would also visit a local Federation reconstruction medical facility. While he did not have the knowledge to assist in medical endeavors, he volunteered himself to be used in any way possible-- mostly, this meant he would run errands and do scribe work for the doctors on staff.

During his volunteer work at Lodak Memorial Hospital, Rekat made the acquaintance of a Starfleet medical officer named S’val. Initially, he disliked S’val, considering him to be unnecessarily strict, but over time he grew to respect the commander. S’val mentored Rekat, teaching him meditation techniques and self discipline, and encouraging him to pursue his Starfleet aspirations. While the mental and emotional struggle of a full course load at school, volunteer work at the hospital, and keeping up false pretenses to his family took a significant toll on Rekat, he credits his tenacity entirely to S’val. His work ultimately paid off- S’val, Chief Medical Officer, was willing to both sponsor Rekat and provide a letter of recommendation. However, he made clear that he would withhold both until Rekat had spoken to his family and come clean about his intentions. Rekat had intended, foolishly, to continue lying about his schooling, but the commander had other ideas. He would not allow the foundation of Rekat’s Starfleet career to be built upon a lie, and so the young Cardassian was forced to face his family with the truth.

The conversation with his parents went about as well as Rekat expected, which is to say it went poorly. He stood in silence while his father yelled about Cardassia and the state and loyalty and family and duty and a host of other things that blended together in a whirlwind of criticism. He waited until his father ran out of things to yell about before speaking again.

“I know that my decision disappoints you, but I will not change my mind. You have four strong sons to represent the family as you desire, and let me attend to my studies as I see fit. Though you will always see Starfleet as the foolish pursuits of a child, I see it as a chance to learn and do more than Cardassia has ever been able to offer me. I hope that in time, you will come to understand me, even if you never agree with me, but I do not pursue this course of action lightly: what I will become in Starfleet will be a boon to this family and eventually to the state. My loyalty does not waver, only the way in which I choose to express it. If you prefer to think of me as dead, so be it, but I would be honored if you allowed me to pursue that which has always been most important to me, and let me call you my family.”

It was a speech Rekat had practiced for hours, and it was his last impassioned plea that he hoped would soften his parents’ hearts. In the years that have since passed, they have gradually gotten more used to his position within Starfleet. When he is given the opportunity to take leave, he always visits home.

Academy
At the Academy, Rekat majored in Command and Control. His studies as a Cardassian, having primarily focused on strategy and tactics, were best suited to a less scientific track, and he intended to pursue security once he graduated. He joined the Academy wrestling team in his second year, mostly because he had found it difficult to make friends and hoped that the sport might be more conducive to networking. As it turned out, he was just spectacularly bad at making friends thanks to being both a Cardassian and a workaholic. It’s a problem he still struggles with, but he learned to enjoy wrestling despite his poor social skills.

Courses taken at the Academy: Basic Hand-to-Hand Combat, Strategy and Tactics, Command and Control, Interspecies Protocol, Survival Strategies

Career
Upon graduation, Rekat was posted to DS5 as a security officer. He stayed there for several years before being reassigned to the USS Korolev and later to the USS Renegade. He quickly worked his way up through the ranks on the Korolev, and when he made his transfer to Renegade it came with a promotion to Ensign. Serving on the Renegade provided Rekat with a little more experience in security, and he made a personal goal for himself to advance his career with an eye on Chief of Security. With this in mind, he began to volunteer for more dangerous missions, attempting to prove his worth to himself and to his superiors. The thorough strategy and tactics training he received as a Cardassian youth began to play a more serious part in his job, as he worked to design better security protocols for his team and submitted several new ideas to his CO for improved training and efficiency. He received his promotion to Lieutenant Junior Grade after two years on the Renegade for “going above and beyond his required duties in order to benefit the security team as a whole, and for conducting himself in an exemplary manner”. Rekat continued to excel in his position, earning commendations and eventually the position of Assistant Chief of Security after a particularly nasty away mission on Campor III: his quick thinking and the new training drills allowed his team to successfully prevent the escape of a fugitive they had been sent to pick up. His work as Assistant Chief of Security set him apart as a fine officer with the merit, skill, and experience needed for another promotion; this time, to the rank of Lieutenant. Unfortunately, he knew that the COS position onboard the Renegade was unlikely to open up soon, so he applied for a transfer to the next available ship needing a Chief of Security, the USS Phoenix.

While he has performed his duties in an exemplary fashion, Rekat has never had the time or patience for social activities, and doesn’t tend to fit in well with any crew he has served with. Other crew members note that he is an outstanding officer, but no one can tell you anything more about him. He generally keeps to himself after hours, and only makes appearances at events when required by his CO. His new assignment on the USS Phoenix comes with a challenge: in his letters to S’val, he has mentioned his feelings of stagnation with his work and his life. S’val postulates that, were he still on Cardassia, he would have made numerous contacts and friendships by this point in his life, and suggests that he make a concerted effort to engage with his crewmates.