Character Information

Gender		Female
Species		Human
Age		33

Physical Appearance

Height		5' 9"
Weight		135 lbs
Hair Color		Dirty Blond
Eye Color		Blue
Physical Description		Monika is slightly taller than average for a human female. She has a medium build, and is quite physically fit underneath her uniforms, which she is known to wear slightly loose—for ease of movement. When not on duty she doesn’t expose much skin, preferring long-sleeved/high necked tops and long pants in somber colors. There may be a reason for that; Monika is covered in numerous tattoos obtained while growing up on the Worfin-class transport freighter, SS Ticonderoga. Her hair is side-parted, wavy, dirty blonde that reaches down slightly past her chin. She has fair skin and a smattering of freckles along her cheeks and nose, and her cheeks look flushed from mild rosacea. The lines of a geometric tattoo that served as a collar around her neck are visible – and she has several piercings in her ears. Her expression can be very serious when working on a problem or having a lot on her plate; but she is known for an easy smile and a boisterous laugh. It all hides a dark place within her. She is prone to overindulgence – drinks too heavily on her time off, maybe takes too many analgesics to manage her chronic injury, and to some she may come across as having a death-wish. If there is a dangerous mission, where the outcome is iffy, Monika will be the first to volunteer.

Family

Spouse		N/A
Father		Wilfrede Bauer
Mother		Siglinde Bauer

Personality & Traits

General Overview		Monika was born and raised on a Worfin-class transport freighter. Although human, she was raised in a culture that was quite different from Terran norms. The ship dealt in trade near the Orion syndicate territory, and her ‘people’ learned to be tough and ruthless to stay safe…and profitable. The ship had been in operation for generations and developed a unique ‘culture’ within it. It was majority human, with a small representation of aliens, such as an Orion or two aboard. When the Dominion War broke out, Monika knew she wanted to fight for the Federation. They all had a nice ‘gig’ going, and she felt the Dominion would go and destroy everything her ‘family’ had built over the generations. She volunteered for Starfleet but had no desire to go to the Academy. On the Ticonderoga, Monika worked with her father who was the ship’s chief engineering officer (amongst other things). She learned how to maintain and repair equipment and ships’ systems that were well beyond their sell-by date. It took a lot of McGuyver-ing to keep the Ticonderoga space-worthy. It was no surprise then when she was selected for engineering training. Her ingenuity / skills found her assigned to USS Hood, an Excelsior class starship that was stationed out of DS9. The ship participated in the first Battle of Chin’toka, and during the battle, Monika was injured when an EPS conduit ruptured and crushed her leg against a structural bulkhead in a Jeffries tube. Her leg was not salvageable, and it was amputated at her mid-thigh and she was fitted with a bio-mechanical prosthetic that was available, and once upright and ‘walking’ again, she was returned to active duty and continued on with the war effort. The war changed her, and she developed maladaptive coping strategies to get through it. However, Monika was functioning enough that she continued to pass the mental health exams. Her problems were her own, thank you very much. The Dominion War ended, and the subsequent peace made her feel restless and gave her time to think…and she started experimenting with ways to NOT think. Alcohol and exotic recreationals (which had not yet been deemed illegal by Starfleet simply because they were so far behind the curve that the intoxicant hadn’t been legislated against yet) have become common off-duty indulgences. However, on duty, Monika is determined to be clear-headed and ready for anything. Her control has been rock-solid…for now.
Strengths & Weaknesses		+ Highly Intelligent + Resourceful + Outside of the box thinker - Maybe not the most socially adept human - Biting sarcasm - Can get a little ah...feisty when roused. - Functional addiction – Pain medications for now (she’ll argue against alcoholism. EVERYONE drinks on a starship) - Adrenaline Junkie (some might see this as a ‘death wish’)
Ambitions		She has no ambitions outside of wanting to feel the surge of adrenalin through her veins, reminding her that she is alive and has survived where others have perished. She works for a living and is happy to continue doing so…she wouldn’t know what to do if/when she is cut loose from Starfleet.
Hobbies & Interests		"Oldies" Music - is particularly fond of heavy metal and electronic music Adrenaline producing activities. Drinking (but it has gone beyond a hobby…kind of skirting necessity at this point. Look, sometimes her hands shake.) “Fiddling” with tech. Monika is known to take things apart and figure them out. She also has picked up the hobby of weapon-smithing – which has led to some interesting firearm modifications…and results.

Personal History		Monika is the only child of Sieglinde and Wilifred Bauer. Her family originated in Germany – but her great grandmothers and great grandfathers decided to live life in their own way and together with a group of about 100 other humans purchased the SS Ticonderoga and began a life in the stars. She grew up aboard a transport freighter than has seen better days. The ship is well-maintained, but it was at least 50 years out of date regarding the most current technology. It was a tough world that she inhabited. They served as merchants and transported freight across the swath of space that bordered Orion Syndicate territories. Monika learned to speak several random languages, for the purpose of affecting the best trades possible. Her upbringing skirted all kinds of law breaking and grey areas. They weren’t pirates, but they traded with pirates. Hell, they traded with anyone that enough gold pressed latinum. Monika learned at an early age that anything was possible, it all boiled down to the negotiations. Monika left the only home she had ever known to enlist in Starfleet once it became clear how much of a threat the Dominion posed to the Federation. It came as quite a rude awakening just how different she was from other humans. Monika’s personality is more closely aligned with Orions than her Earth-born brethren. It made her quite socially awkward amongst her own kind as she was not shy with saying what she wants or thinks.
Service Record		Boot camp/induction was seen and endured as the challenge it was meant to be. It taught Monika self-control and respect for chain of command. She took to her medic training easily enough, having had a lot of training and experience already aboard the SS Ticonderoga. She excelled so well in her trauma training that once boot camp was complete, she was sent to the front lines and served in various offensives as a Combat Medic during the entirety of the Dominion War. It changed her. It first started with barely remembered nightmares that caused her to waken shaken and jittery, which then moved to irritability and hyper alertness. Monika was always on guard, always on edge, but found that intoxicants helped smooth things. It started out with just a drink or two a night, or perhaps a roll of an herb, or a line of something that would improve the mood. However, as the years have passed, the occasional transitioned to nightly, and 1 to 2 became more. She has managed to keep control over it though. She is clear headed and ready for work when it’s time for her shift. Monika’s got it all under control. Transitioning into peace time after the war was a difficult process. Monika found the mundane day-in-the-life unacceptable. She started volunteering for missions where the possibility of failure was high and the risk of entering combat was a distinct possibility. It was in the chaos that Monika felt…normal. Through her life, Monika has had the following illnesses/injuries (excluding common illnesses such as colds, flus and minor infections): Age 21 - 2374: Crush injury to left leg leading to above the knee amputation and bio-synthetic prosthetic replacement. It can be temperamental at times. Age 22 - 2375: Concussive blast from loss of plasma containment - TBI – severe concussion, numerous contusions – still gets occasional migraines Service Record 2372 - Starfleet Bootcamp/Induction 2373-2377 – USS Hood - engineering crewman 2377-2381 – Starbase 234 (on the edge of Romulan/Klingon space) 2381-2386 – USS Curiosity 2386 – transferred to USS Moore