Dr. Royal Sinclair

Authored by James Sinclair

Biographic Information

• Position: Executive Officer on USS Ogawa
• Rank: Commander
• Species: Human
• Weight: 284 lbs.
• Height: 6'10"
• Age: 34

Actions Available

View

List all posts

Character Biography

Parents: Angus Sinclair, Father (deceased); Rebecca Sinclair, Mother (deceased)
Siblings: None

Education:

Glasgow Preparatory Academy - Diploma
Star Fleet Academy - Security Specialist
Star Fleet Academy - Psychology and Counseling, PhD; Xeno-Sociology, PhD

Languages Known (F = Fluent, no accent; PF = Partially Fluent, accent noticeable to native speaker; P = Passable, Can convey moderately complex ideas, Can read / write, accent discernable and minor errors in grammar; P2 = Passable, Can convey simple ideas and emotions, Can read /write with effort; P3 = Can convey simple ideas, cannot read / write without assistance; L = Limited, can recognize less than 25% of spoken words, cannot read / write):

Federation Standard (F)
Gaelic (F)
tlhlngan Hol (Klingon) - PF

Service Record:

USS Challenger - Cadet Cruise; promoted Lieutenant Junior Grade
USS Challenger - Chief of Security; promoted Lieutenant Commander
USS Challenger - CNS
USS Saracen - CNS
USS Saracen - Chief of Security
USS Saracen - Chief Tactical Officer
USS Ogawa - Executive Officer

Awards:

Physical Description:

Royal is the epitome of the Scottish people: large frame, broad shoulders, fair skin and light colored hair and eyes. He has a youthful appearance and carries himself with a great deal of confidence.

Psychological profile:

Subject possesses an innate desire to help and to protect. This has led him to services in both Security and Counseling, and provides him with a unique perspective with regards to negotiating and reading body language. In his current role he offers advice, not direction, and takes great care to ease the impact of space-based duty.

Biography:

Born and raised in Glasgow, Royal Sinclair was named for his great-great-Uncle Royal Sinclair; a sailor, fisherman, historian, and story teller. Royal was raised by his father and grandfather, his mother having been killed aboard a shuttle that crashed on a short flight between Glasgow and Paris when Royal was just a year old. His father had grown up in Glasgow, but his Grandfather had been a Starfleet Marine prior to marrying Royal’s grandmother and settling back in his ancestral home of Scotland.

His father and grandfather were blue collar dock and shipyard workers, and Royal grew up surrounded by ships and starships in various states of repair, overhaul, and construction. It was here that he learned the ins and outs of ship building; and that there were so many different ways to get from one place on a ship to another. His father scolded him routinely for “gallivanting around the place like a deranged monkey”, and more than once in his single digit years he hurt himself. His grandfather, on the other hand, encouraged him to explore and experience all he could. As a former Star Fleet Marine, his grandfather would sometimes tell him stories about his time in space or stories of past ships and crews.

As Royal grew, he grew quickly. He was always a strong child; but he possessed a great deal of raw strength as he grew up. By the time he was in secondary school, Royal was good six inches taller than the average as well, a fact not overlooked by the school Rugby coach, who recruited Royal to play the first time he saw him. Royal loved rugby: the physicality, the tactics, the team camaraderie. Soon he was a team captain, and his school was ranked among the top three schools in all of Scotland. He was also notorious for standing up to bullies, and got into more than several fights defending a smaller student. In these instances, Royal’s grandfather was always the one to visit the school and speak with the Headmaster and teachers. Royal was keenly aware and always remembered every time his granddad would look at a school administrator and say “If you won’t stand up for that student, my boy will. That’s what we do.”

As a student, Royal was less stellar, but by no means a slacker. He had a keen intellect, and a solid grasp of the principles of the subject matter. Where he struggled was in doing work for no reason. Practice on the rugby pitch was one thing. He knew he would be applying those skills in the near future. But incessant droning on and on about geometry, proper sentence structure, and the endless repetition of historical events bored him. Once he new it, he knew it. In his mind there was no point in droning on and on about it unless there was reason to apply it.

During the summers, Royal (when not playing Rugby for the Glasgow City club or assistant coaching at training camps) worked at the shipyard with his grandfather. His father had passed away when Royal was thirteen when he fell from a scaffold. He and his grandfather spent a great deal of time together, and his grandfather was present at every rugby match Royal was a part of. It was his grandfather who always pushed him to explore the ships they worked on. Royal never really understood why until many years later.

When Royal graduated from school, he was offered a position on the Glasgow professional Rugby Squad. He was ecstatic for exactly three and a half minutes. He thought that was what he wanted to do, but that dream quickly faded when it was right in his hand. He went home to talk to his grandfather, who had by now retired from the shipyard. They discussed what the future held for Royal. Royal even told his grandfather that maybe he would join the Marines. At that his grandfather looked at him with a knowing smile and said “Lad, the Marines are the best fighting force in the galaxy. But I don’t think they are for you. Not that you wouldn’t make a fine Marine, you certainly would and we’d be damn lucky to have you. But you need to explore. You need to experience. You need to be moving. Marines are the last resort. You, dear boy, should be the first line. Not the last.”

Royal applied to Star Fleet Academy a month later. He was accepted another month after that. Three days before he left, his grandfather passed away. One of their last conversations was about how proud he was of Royal, and that he knew he was going to do great things. He also gave Royal some advice. “Dear boy, no matter where your travels take ya, always remember. Your ship is your home. Your crew is your family. You take care of them the best you can, however you can. Let them know you are there for them, no matter what. Because there will come a day when you need them, and you will know that day what it means to be in Starfleet.” Royal said goodbye to Glasgow, his home, his entire life the very next day.

Royal arrived in San Francisco and reported to Academy Headquarters. During his checking-in, he was asked to verify his next of kin. When he stated “None.”, the clerk asked about his grandfather being listed on his application. Royal explained he had passed away a few days prior. The clerk excused himself and went to get a Counselor. During the assessment by the Counselor, it was noted in his record that “Cadet Sinclair has experienced a great deal of sudden loss in his life. Rather than being burdened by this, his outlook of relishing the memory of those lost and the knowledge and wisdom imparted by them shows a stable and strong mental and emotional fortitude; somewhat unexpected in a human of his age.” He was cleared to attend.

Royal’s first two years at the academy were filled with the general knowledge courses that all Cadets are required to take. Royal showed an aptitude and higher-than-average knowledge of starship design and functionality, most likely due to his time in the shipyards. It was assumed by many of his classmates and several instructors that his selection to the Engineering program would be a given. They were more than surprised when he applied only to the Security program, which he was accepted to almost immediately.

Royal was a solid student at the Academy; rarely top of his class, but consistently in the top ten to fifteen percent. He excelled, however, at ship-based combat, boarding, and anti-boarding simulations; he lost less simulations than could be counted on a single human hand in his Academy career. He knowledge of ship layouts and schematics made him a tenacious opponent on either side of the equation; and he often led opposing teams into traps and crossfires that even the instructors didn’t anticipate. He quickly developed a reputation for being “a ghost” when moving about a ship; often appearing and attacking, then disappearing seemingly into nowhere. This was accomplished by (among other things) the clever use of pre-programmed teleportation protocols, accessing maintenance ducts, and simply knowing the ship better than his opponents. He would also utilize non-combat related systems to confuse, hamper, or harass his opponents. Emergency bulkheads would be closed and locked, forcing boarders into areas Royal wanted them to go. Fire suppression systems would go off when certain conditions were met, leading to reduced visibility and environmental difficulties. As one instructor noted in his record: “Cadet Sinclair not only knows how to use the Security arsenal to it’s most effective and efficient application; he has turned the ship itself into a weapon whose application of force is significantly underestimated in the Security Protocols currently in use.”

Upon his graduation from Star Fleet Academy, and while waiting for his first posting, Royal went back to Glasgow for the first time since his departure. He visited his old school and reconnected with some of his former rugby teammates. He finalized his familial matters to ensure there were no tasks remaining that might interfere with his duties. As he left his old house (wearing his uniform, as he had to get on a shuttle back to the Academy), an older man approached him and asked him if he was the grandson of Gunnery Sergeant Seamus Sinclair. Royal said that he was, and the man smiled at him and handed him a small wooden box. Inside was a medal: The Starfleet Medal of Honor. The man said “I was awarded this over fifty years ago, but it was your grandad who earned it. He was the best Marine I ever served with. Now you go… make me and your grandpa proud.” With that the man came to stiff but resolute attention, and snapped a salute at the young Cadet. Royal, still confused and a bit dumbfounded, returned the salute and the man turned and walked away. Royal called after him, but the man simply walked off down the street, whistling the Battle Hymn of the Starfleet Marine Corps.

Royal received his orders on his way back to the Academy. First posting: USS Challenger, Security Team. He had limited time when he landed to get packed and make arrangements to leave, so he had no time to look into the medal or who the man was.

Royal performed well as a Cadet; so much so that he was named the Chief of Security for the vessel upon his graduation. He served in this capacity for some time, simultaneously receiving training in psychology and sociology. He started this training with the goal of becoming an effective negotiator, but soon discovered a raw aptitude for the field. At the suggestion of his Commanding and Executive Officers, he pursued these studies in his off hours and on leave; eventually receiving a full certification as Ship’s Counselor.

After his certification, Sinclair was named the Ship’s Counselor on board the Challenger. He served in this role only shortly before he was transferred without warning to the USS Saracen as their Counselor. It was here that Sinclair managed to not only come into his own as a Counselor, but finished a dual doctoral thesis and defense; becoming a Doctor of Psychology with specializations in Sociology, Mediation and Negotiation, and Conflict Resolution; and a Doctor of Xeno-Sociology.

As was the course of his career to this point, Royal was again asked to change fields, this time going back to Security. He was named Chief Security Officer of the Saracen. He remained in this role again for only a shirt period when he was asked to do a lateral move to the ship’s Chief Tactical Officer. He again accepted the new role with gusto and applied himself with everything he could bring to bear. The result was thst in seventeen engagements, Royal and his team crippled or destroyed over twenty enemy vessels.

Royal was happy on the Saracen, but he felt something was missing. He requested a transfer back to the Academy to attend Command School. He was accepted to the program. As one of the more experienced officers in his class, he actually graduated first for the first time in his life. It was noted that his ability to empathize and communicate with others made him a truly effective leader.

Upon graduation, Royal expected a Department Head position somewhere; but instead he was given a wholly unexpected assignment: Uss Ogawa, Nightingale-class Medical ship… as the Executive Officer.