Peter Harrigan

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Revision as of 23:48, 4 November 2011

Captain Peter Harrigan is a Starfleet officer and the commander of the USS Endeavour. A captain of some experience, he is rather more renowned for his talents as a criminal psychologist and starship tactician, and for being one of the sharpest minds in Starfleet. His reputation across Starfleet is mixed - some hail him as man of intellect, culture, and with an in-depth knowledge of the Core Worlds, while others would describe him as a whimsical egotist incapable of long-term dedication.

Personal Details

Family

Father: Doctor George Harrigan (70)

Mother: Amanda Laney (Deceased)

Brother: Samuel Harrigan (Deceased)

Sister: Pamela Harrigan (Deceased)

Physical Appearance

Harrigan does not appear quite as tall as he is, due to the stoop in his posture which comes from his reliance upon a cane to walk. He still has a certain presence which can draw attention when he steps, or even hobbles into a room. In presentation he varies between the extremes - either he is the picture of suave neatness, all spit and polish in uniforms and civilian clothing. Otherwise, usually if engrossed in some obsessive project, he's a mess of dishevelled hair, rumpled clothing, a forgetful relationship with shaving, and slightly wild eyes. His voice is one of brisk, educated tones, though it, and his oft-seen smirks, hold a ring of arrogance about them.

Medical Details

In the Battle of Sol, Harrigan's leg was broken in four places while he refused to abandon his post until the end of the fight. The delay in this care led to prolongued troubles in his recovery. Harrigan rejected the offers of his leg being amputated, and spent six months learning how to walk again. Since then he has relied upon a cane to walk on an everyday basis to support his weight. On occasion he has been known to make use of a hover chair for convenience.

Starfleet Record

Service History

• 2382 - 2385: Starfleet Academy; Officer Candidate (Cadet)
• 2385 - 2389: Starfleet Academy; Extended Course Student (Ensign)
• 2389 - 2392: USS Dauntless; Chief of Security/Tactical (Lieutenant Junior Grade)
• 2392 - 2396: Starfleet Special Investigations; Forensic Psychologist (Lieutenant)
• 2396 - 2397: USS Lancaster; Chief of Security/Tactical (Lieutenant Commander)
• 2397 - 2398: USS Lancaster; Executive Officer & Chief of Security/Tactical (Lieutenant Commander)
• 2398: Medical Leave
• 2398 - 2402: Starfleet Special Investigations; Mission Specialist (Lieutenant Commander)
• 2402 - 2405: Starfleet Special Investigations; Mission Specialist (Commander)
• 2405 - 2407: USS Tempest; Executive Officer (Commander)
• 2407 - 2410: USS Tempest; Commanding Officer (Captain)
• 2410 - Present: USS Endeavour; Commanding Officer (Captain)

Decorations and Commendations

• Battle of Sol Medal (2398)
• Bronze Star (2398)

History

Childhood

Peter Harrigan was born on Aldebaran III, the middle of three children. At an early point in his education his intellect became apparent to his teachers, and to his father. A Starfleet weapons engineer, George Harrigan set about driving his son to excel in his studies and hone his mind with a vigour which would inspire young Peter, but also birth a tension between them. Peter was a youth with a broad interest in a range of subjects, both academically and in his personal interests, whilst George would brook nothing he conceived as a distraction.

Despite his tensions with his father, he was close to his family and had a happy childhood for his first ten years - most especially when George was absent from home due to work. He remained a well-read young man, refusing to limit himself in his curiosity, but well-rounded in socialising and sports.

This would come to an end at the outbreak of the Dominion War. Aldebaran, close to Betazed, was struck by an attack from the Jem'hadar. George was serving in the fleet, and Peter was on a school camping trip away from civilisation, but Peter's mother, brother, and sister were killed. Aldebaran would fall under Dominion occupation for the rest of the war. Peter was consigned to a camp arranged for war orphans, the Dominion continuing protocol of providing minimal care for conquered worlds.

Quickly, Peter was spotted by the Vorta administrator for his mind, just as his teachers had. The Dominion worked under the principle that eventual coercion of the human species would be needed to maintain peace after conquest. As such, the training and education of able humans to make them loyal to the Dominion and thus able to be subservient cultural leaders was a priority on conquered planets.

Peter was identified as being suitable for the programme. Although he had no real choice, he was given a better quality of living, as well as an education that he would later on realise to be simple propaganda. This would last for eighteen months until the liberation of Aldebaran. Although Peter was reunited with his father, George almost immediately had him shipped to a boarding school on Earth. This would keep Peter academically challenged, prevent George from compromising his career to care for his son, and theoretically help him re-acclimatise after what he suffered at the hands of the Dominion.

He threw himself into his new life, leading his tutors and carers to conclude he was recovered after a few years. Peter was the top student in his school, popular amongst his classmates, a member of the rugby team. He excelled in the humanities, though it was to the surprise of most when he professed a desire to join Starfleet. He had never been close to his father, who had interacted with him only little following his arrival on Earth; most wondered why he would follow in his footsteps. When asked, Peter's answer was simple - he wished to defend the Federation, stop families from suffering as his had. With his high grades, acceptance to the Academy was simple.

The Academy

Harrigan would excel at the Academy. His first year would prove difficult as he found himself somewhat over-stimulated, taking a broad range of courses and still trying to engross himself in all aspects of Academy life, including social and sporting. He dabbled within the Science and Engineering departments, both of whom made lucrative bids in his direction, but his interest was undoubtedly with Security. He received high marks in his physical aptitude, grasp of law enforcement procedures, and starship tactics and warfare. But what his tutors noted about him most especially was his severe, unshakeable loyalty to the Federation revealed in all tests, and his particular aptitude in forensic psychology.

He nevertheless took on more courses than the average student, and it was here that he began his broadening of his experiences, otherwise being little more than a bright boy from a colony world. He learned the languages of multiple Federation member worlds, and went out of his way to learn Klingon and Romulan when the species also became members. In addition he made a point of learning and understanding the cultures of the Federation, unusual at a time when war was the priority.

Graduating at the top of his class, Harrigan opted for continued courses. He was a qualified security officer, but his voracious mind had begun to tumble down the rabbit hole in his study of forensic psychology. What often stumped him in his study of the sciences was finding them too detached, clinical - but in his chosen field, he could bring his tremendous mind to focus, and then apply it to people, for a tangible, achievable good.

The Dauntless and SSI

His first assignment was to the USS Dauntless. His extended training, high marks, and Doctorate in Forensic Psychology saw him granted the post of Chief of Security, at the rank of Lieutenant JG, immediately. For three years, he served on a ship predominantly assigned to the front line. Although he produced exemplary service as a tactician and combat officer on a starship, he still jumped at the opportunity of a transfer when he heard of the development of a new Security division: Starfleet Special Investigations.

He was assigned as a Forensic Psychologist to the department. Not attached to any particular team, he acted as a specialist advisor on individual cases. Harrigan would develop a reputation for a certain whimsical excellence, utterly dedicated on an individual case, but not lingering, moving on as swiftly as possible. His colleagues often found him arrogant, but struggled to question his aptitude and results.

His results had him well-respected by Deputy Director Logan Callahan. When Callahan left SSI, feeling the war effort needed more officers, he asked Harrigan to come with him on his next assignment. Harrigan, as aware as his superior of how the time had come to fight the Borg, not crime, accepted.

The Lancaster and the Battle of Sol

Harrigan was made the Chief of Security on the USS Lancaster under Callahan's command. The ship fought hard in the final echoes of the Borg War, receiving a marked number of decorations in a relatively short time of service. This was not without its losses, for in the first year, the Lancaster's first officer was killed. Lacking new personnel to replace them, Captain Callahan was forced to draw on his extant crew. He picked Harrigan as his replacement XO, though he would keep the role of Chief of Security.

As the war continued, Harrigan became something of a hoarder. He would collect artwork and items of cultural significance from most planets the Lancaster visited, especially ones that had, or were likely to be, attacked by the Borg. When planets fell, one by one, his collection became incalculably more valuable, and often Harrigan would ship belongings back to Earth to be preserved.

It would only be a few months after his ascension to first officer that the Battle of Sol broke out. Damage to the Lancaster saw his leg being broken in four separate places, but Harrigan persevered and refused to abandon the tactical station. The duration of the battle, and the low priority of such a non-lethal injury, meant that it was days before Harrigan would receive medical aid.

But, ultimately, the USS Lancaster was one of the few ships to survive the battle intact.

Post-War Years

Harrigan was shipped to Starfleet medical as soon as possible. His injuries had been left unattended for some time, and exacerbated by his continued service at his post. The nature of the nerve damage to his leg made an artificial replacement unresponsive if they would amputate, and the doctors insisted he would, at least, be able to walk again.

He spent six months learning how to do so, though would forever be limited by a cane as a walking aid. In this time he wrote and had published a book - almost a guide - on how he anticipated the new generation of criminals in the post-war Federation to evolve.

When he was ready for active duty, Callahan, now Director of SSI, offered him a job again with the department. In short order his initial theories began to prove themselves as accurate, and Harrigan assumed the position of a Forensic Psychology Specialist again. Unable to engage in field work, he served as an advisor for multiple cases and operations. But predominantly he remained as an analyst, assessing cases and criminal development from SSI offices. He was credited with an exemplary capacity to anticipate developments and criminal action.

Upon SSI's instituting of martial law come the 2405 Presidential Elections, Harrigan acted as a unit supervisor for Earth as a whole. But he was growing disillusioned with his work, as he had in the past. He remained with the department until the end of the Civil War - and almost immediately asked for a transfer back to active duty on a starship at the end.

The USS Templar

Commander Harrigan was posted to the USS Templar, a ship of the First Fleet. At a time when the Federation was just beginning to turn its eyes away simply from Sol, the Templar was a vessel returning to Core World member planets, and establishing secure borders and internal safety.

Here Harrigan finally found himself experiencing some of the duties he had originally aspired to as a Starfleet Officer. There was an extensive amount of relief work required on Core World planets, and the borders and trade routes were routinely threatened by pirates and, eventually, even the Vulcans. His cultural interest underwent something of a rebirth, and Harrigan began to build his reputation as an officer capable of more than simply investigative work and criminal psychology, for which he had been formally known.

As the First Officer, and eventually the CO, of the Templar, Harrigan would bring his intellect to bear in different ways. His experience from the Borg War made him a superior tactical mind, and he showed a tremendous capacity for diplomacy aided by his knowledge of psychology and by understanding the cultural background of those he dealt with. Knowing that the Federation was bigger than Earth, and that member worlds and colonies all had their own experiences, he became a versatile commander in the maintaining of the peace.

He would also, however, prove prickly and stubborn. Insults to his pride could ruin diplomatic encounters; advice from subordinate officers whom he did not deem sufficiently qualified, in academics or experience, to lecture him on a topic, could be ignored. But his methods, deemed 'effective' in a more modern, brutal Starfleet, were applauded. Harrigan's arrogance brought him into some conflict with his superiors, especially Admiral Moore, to whom he was routinely rude and dismissive - calling her 'no-nonsense' attitude to be simply an excuse to justify and celebrate ignorance.

The USS Endeavour

Partly through maintained interest in the Templar's mission in the Core Worlds, partly through a desire to stay and irritate Moore, the First Fleet Commander, Harrigan resisted efforts to be transferred. Eventually came the commission of the third Enterprise-class starship, the USS Endeavour.

Harrigan's name reached a short-list of candidates, though Admiral Moore balked from the beginning, and rumours abounded that even the Office of the President was displeased with such an unorthodox candidate being touted as the commander of Starfleet's newest, most high-profile recent vessel.

But when he was offered the posting, for whatever reason - perhaps to irritate those who had disapproved of him - Captain Peter Harrigan accepted command of the new starship, and was assigned as the commanding officer of the USS Endeavour.