Maven Santiago
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Personal Details
Name: Maven Perseus Santiago
Age: 31
Species: Human
Born: London, Earth. September 2374
Background
Overview
Maven Santiago is a renowned freelance journalist known for his vitriolic stylings and unorthodox methods. Born in London in the midst of the war, Maven is a highly educated man with alot of anger behind him. He attended Cambridge University and graduated at the top of his class in journalism and a minor in philosophy. From there he went onto a succession of brief employments with numerous newspapers across the world. He officially became a freelance writer in 2399.
Gaining prominence in the post-Borg War era from his scathing criticism of the way refugees were handled under the Jellico Doctrine, Santiago went on to make his name as one of Jellico's biggest detractors. His biggest break came after his year long coverage of what has become known as the 'Dabor Debacle' where a group of SSI operatives were gunned down during a civil conflict and captured. Starfleet refused to send aid under the pretence that they simply did not have the resources to spare. After a year of gruelling investigation, interviews and an attempt against his life by parties unknown, Maven published his prize-winning article "Ten Things to do in Dabor When You're Dead". Soon afterwards, Starfleet retrieved the team from their captors and Maven recieved the Pulitzer Prize for journalism.
The Dabor Debacle
In 2400, Maven caught a breaking newsflash of a group of Starfleet troopers having been shot down on a humanitarian mission in the Dabor System. From previous experience covering Starfleet aid operations, something was not adding up and the further Santiago dug the weirder things got until he finally got his break from a recently dismissed Intelligence operative. The Daborian government had been covertly establishing the possibility of chemical agents based on abandoned Dominion technology as a way to quell their populace. The people of Dabor had long since grown tired of the oppressive government pogroms, rooting out the 'genetically deficient' amongst their kind. Refusing to be named as a source, Maven was never to find this rogue operative again. Ironically his disappearance only served to spur the journalist on rather than deter him.
Months passed and the media seemed to forget that these operatives were still at the mercy of a tyrannical government. When questioned as to their official position, Starfleet responded that they could not spare the manpower to retrieve troops who were under diplomatic custody and suffering no ill treatment. Maven refused to believe this, having seen the Jellico administration's concept of 'ill treatment' during the New Zealand Landings in 2396, and continued his probing. Little could be found until Maven managed to organise transport to the Dabor system under the guise of an ambassador from SSI wishing to negotiate for the release of the five agents. Santiago remains reticent to this day of how he managed this deception, constantly citing that a "journalist never reveals his sources".
Upon his arrival, he was taken to the prisoners and shown the conditions under which they were forced to live under. Regular torture, both physical and psychological, as well as a cocktail of drugs to wear down their resistance. Horrified by this miscarriage of justice, Maven was able to do little more than record their accounts and get back off the planet before his cover was blown. No sooner was he back on Earth then more than thirty papers globally purchased his column. Whilst this pressured Starfleet into considering a rescue effort after their "faulty intelligence" over the treatment of the prisoners, there was little sign of any movement until Santiago contacted the offices of Jellico, known to have close links to the SSI and threatened to reveal the last part of the interview where the agents explain their mission was to steal the technology rather than prevent the Dabor government from using it.
Soon afterwards, Starfleet issued a statement that they considered the actions of the Dabor government deplorable and demanded the immediate release of their personnel before a military option was mobilised. The prisoners were released and Maven found himself on the recieving end of a Pulitzer Prize.
A few weeks later, Maven Santiago was gunned down in the streets of London by an unknown assailant wielding a unregistered phaser. Fortunately Santiago only recieved a portion of the blast, having been exiting a doorway at the time of the attack. He recieved medical treatment for burns across his torso and arms as well as concussion but made a full recovery. The attacker was never identified or found but has been assumed to have been in retaliation for his actions against the Dabor government. Santiago himself has been quoted to think the attack was 'planned alot closer to home than that' but refuses to explain further.
Medical Details
Height: 6' 1"
Weight: 152 lbs
Hair Colour: Corn
Eye Colour: Blue
Physical Appearance
Maven is a frantic indvidual, lithe and wiry, prone to quirky movements. He obviously works out a little, enough to keep in reasonable shape though his clothes seem intentionally ill fitting. Although his language is acerbic and he is often downright offensive, he seems to exude a sense of unusual potentiality around him. No matter how much he annoys or offends, people want to know what he has to say or he will do next. Erudite and well spoken, he is prone to dramatic gestures and causing scenes wherever he can. He has never been seen without his almost trademark duster. A tan trenchcoat believed to originate from 22nd Century Earth, in interviews Maven has described it as his 'best friend'. On numerous occasions he has been brought up on charges from spot-checks where he has been found to habitually carry a phaser. Statements given the security forces explain that it is solely for self-defense and has had its lethal capacity removed.
Family
Juan Santiago
Maven's father brought his family to London from Spain in the early days of the war. A philanthropist and doctor, Juan believed that he could do more good on the streets of a suffering city than he could in the shelter of his apartment. He home-tutored his children and was a firm believer in pacifism as well as a student of many Eastern philosophies. Shortly before his retirement he became administrator for St. Mary's Hospital where he was responsible for reviving their flagging funding as well as driving to the forefront of alien physiology and medical research. He passed away peacefully in his sleep, aged 74 from a congenital heart condition. A ward in St. Mary's Hospital has been named after him.
Julia Trent
Maven's mother, 69, is an American historian visiting the cobbled streets of Barcelona when she met her husband to be. A graduate of Harvard, she has published several well-recieved books in her career, two of which on Vulcan influences in historical art and the third is a biography of her husband which is currently being written. Having retired since her husband's death, she remains in their family home of Hertsfordshire with her two dogs, Mary and Percy.
Sgt. Miguel Santiago, Marine USS Nova
Considered the less cerebral of the brothers, Miguel is three years older than Maven and a Starfleet marine. Having enlisted on his eighteenth birthday, Santiago has little to do with his brother - considering his dislike of the military to be overly liberal thinking. Achieving only average academic grades, Miguel is a likable grunt who has the admiration of his unit and several commendations for bravery. His fiancee. Marie, is the counsellor aboard the Nova and they expect their first child within the year.