Eli Bates

Appearance 

Eli Bates is not a tall man, but one of a demanding stature. Eli has black hair with hints of grey and blue eyes  He is in great shape for his age and continues to work making sure he stays fit for his job. Eli has long or curly hair and changes between clean shaven or a beard. He usually dresses in nice clothes and does not appear messy or disheveled which he thinks others should adhere to as well. Eli was raised as a proper Englishmen and usually smokes cigars and can be seen drinking a scotch on many occasions.

Early Life (2340-2358)

Eli was born in London England, to John and Rebecca Bates. An only child Eli thrived in being an energetic ball that his parents could not keep up with. He was raised in a life of luxury due to his parents status in England. Eli was born the lord of Bates Estate though he never let the title go to his head. Eli never liked the friends his parents forced him to spend time with instead he had way more enjoyment spending time in his workshop on the estate where he tinkered with all kinds of different mechanical devices. He found he had a love for engineering and spent many hours as he grew up reverse engineering things as to learn how they worked and what he could do to improve them. He realized one thing and that was that technology continued to advance which was a small aggravation for him because of having to always adapt. His time as a royal brat spoiled him into thinking nothing should change. Eli realized he would have to adapt, but that didn’t mean he was going to like it.

As Eli went through primary school he had a bad habit of skipping class to instead tinker with the things in his workshop usually locking himself away from everyone and everything. One day after a long talk with the Head Teacher, Eli realized if he wanted to succeed in life he needed to make sure and pay attention in school. He than started attending class regularly and realized he was smarter than he thought. The love for math and numbers as well as other topics gave Eli an aspiration when he reached the age to be able to attain the goal.

In secondary school Eli started working towards his goal of joining Starfleet, which was a challenge due to his parents not wanting him to join Starfleet, but instead to get a well established job as a lawyer or some nonsense. He was firm in his decision much to the dismay of his parents. Eli’s teachers however did all they could to help him towards his goal seeing his exceptional skill. As soon as Eli could he went and took the Starfleet Entrance exam passing with an exceptional grade thanks to all the help from his teachers.

Starfleet Academy (2358-2361)

Eli jumped in the Academy with both feet really making sure that he started strong. As he got into the groove of things he realized he could loosen the strict study times he had given himself. This allowed Eli to enjoy the area of San Francisco and make some friends. The classes in his engineering tract were very complex and difficult for most in the class, which meant they came to Eli for help. Eli became the indirect tutor for students in the Academy, which he took seriously so he could help other love the same field he loved just as much. On occasion his teachers asked him to help them in certain areas, though happy to help Eli never thought he was better than anyone else.

In his final year as a cadet he was asked to go to the San Francisco Fleet Years for a few months as an acting Ensign. His time and dedication to his studies had been noticed though he never realized it. During his time in the position he learned more of what was expected when he became an officer also giving him the ability to do some hands on Engineering work as well. Eli helped to cover the position of a diagnostics technician for three months learning the ins and outs of the ships that came through the yards during that time. After three months he was sent back to the Academy to finish the rest of his time as a cadet. Eli was anxious to finish his Academy time and get to be stationed somewhere though he did not mind as to the location. Eli graduated with honors from the Academy.

McKinley Station (2362-2364)

Eli was stationed on McKinley the day after his graduation and he began to follow the task of his superiors. Eli started to realize he was going to need something to stunt the tired feeling he had everyday. His childhood demeanor of always being a gentleman also started waning from the amount of stupidity he had to deal with from civilians and officers who did not do their job properly. He started drinking a cup of coffee every morning before work and it seemed to help with the tension he had. Eli was asked on many occasions to stay up and cover other peoples shifts, which made him super tired during his shifts. He started drinking more coffee throughout the day to make sure he had enough energy to do his task. Eli didn’t have any huge events happen during his time at the station, but he did receive some minor plasma burns on his right hand, but nothing that caused any issues in his work of the carrying out of his duties. While on the station he had been asked by a Captain who had been passing the station if he would want to join a starship. Eli agreed he would like to, but he followed the orders Starfleet.

Eli continued on the station for another year before he was contacted by that same Captain asking him if he wanted to join the ship as an Engineering officer and with a promotion to Lieutenant JG. Eli was ecstatic and accepted the offer after three years on the station. He was thanks for his hard work and given the Engineering Legion by the head of station.

USS Regor (2365-2370)

The Regor was an Excalibur class that was one of the older in the fleet requiring it to be taken care of slightly more than what some of the crew seemed to like. Eli was thrown right in having to deal with the problems day in and day out. The crew of the Regor was older than him and did not take to Eli joining very well at first he was singled out for the worst task on the ship on many occasions, but he did not let it bother him doing the task efficiently and with the professionalism wanted in every Starfleet officer. Eli was asked personally by the Captain why he had been doing such menial task given his already impressive short record in Starfleet. Eli admitted what had been occurring, but told the Captain not to do anything about it. Eli wanted to win the crew over even if it took doing these task. The Captain did not understand, but agreed not to intervene.

Eli was given a chance to prove himself when a potential disaster was averted due to his quick thinking in rerouting the power of the ships engines in a way to avoid an overload in the systems of the ship. After his actions the crew of the ship began to treat him like one of their own and his time on the ship began to pass easier. Eli was offered a promotion after his fourth year aboard the Regor, but being the now stubborn officer he didn’t want to be promoted. Eli felt that if he was promoted he would not be able to still have the comradery he had with the crew, though a ridiculous notion Eli stuck with it for one more year before accepting his promotion to Lieutenant.

Eli had really come to love the ship type and the crew of the Regor, but just like anything in life he knew it would not last forever he was requested to transfer to another ship after they heard of his impressive record and the current shortage of good Engineers seemed to be a problem for many ships in the fleet. It was with great reluctance he accepted the transfer to his next assignment.

USS Resolute (2371-2375)

Eli’s first real challenge began when he joined the Resolute it was a Galaxy class cruiser used for deep space missions. Eli was not a fan of the newer technology just as he felt when he was younger he came to believe the excelsior class was the best though he knew that would never be the case for anyone else. He was made the acting assistant chief of engineering and at the request of the chief started an evaluation of all the officers on the ship. What Eli found horrified him. The majority of the workers did not care about the wellbeing of the ship using “patch” jobs to make sure the ship would function when needed. Eli knew not all ships were super strict, but this was beyond excusable. Eli wasn’t sure if the chief did not care or the Captain was a horrible commanding officer, but he knew something had to be done.

He went to the chief engineer and presented his finding a very thorough evaluation which was ignored much to the displeasure of Eli. He realized the chief didn’t care, but he had to do something to change that. He began to work with the crew themselves changing the way they acted using his knowledge to show them what they needed to do even with his displeasure of the ships systems he still was going to do his job. This initiative was noticed by the captain of the ship who replaced his chief engineer and made Eli the permanent assistant chief with an ear for the crew. Eli was given the Engineering Medal of Excellence for his actions and highly respected among the crew of the ship.

The Resolute had some exciting missions that even showed Eli combat with some pirates who somehow beamed onto the ship. The encounter left Eli with a purple heart after an injury that gave him a permanent limp. After his actions in the protection of the ship he was promoted to Lt Commander. Soon after he was requested to transfer to another ship much to his displeasure. He seemed to get used to something than got transferred to another ship or position.

USS Jameson (2376-2383)

The transfer to the Jameson was the biggest change for Eli, which included changing his morning routine to two cups of coffee before anyone talks to him. He was now a chief engineer of one of the most advanced ships in Starfleet for it’s time. Eli would never admit it but the ship was something of amazement though he thought she could have some of the interfaces of the Excalibur. Eli ran a tight ship and the crew of the ship knew that he made sure to show them his knowledge, but he did not put up with the nonsense of groveling and complaining . The night shift came to him complaining about something that they didn’t get fixed. Eli made all of them stay up during Alpha shift and throughout many Jeffries tubes you would find engineers scrubbing the pipes with a toothbrush. Eli hated complaining and after that incident the crew on the Jameson never questioned him again.

The captain of the ship respected Eli for his actions and gave him full reign of his engineering department. His time on the ship came with challenges including the death of his mother and father after a tragic accident they had coming back to earth after travelling. He had made amends with his parents years earlier and they both loved him realizing Eli’s true love for Engineering. Eli was still the lord of his family estate and made sure to manage it going back for vacation as it was stationed in a secluded area.

Eli was promoted to Commander during his time on the Jameson and continued to serve with the distinction and pride he had from the beginning. He was awarded the Engineering Medal of Honor for his continued valor in Engineering and the many achievements he had achieved in his career in Starfleet. He had been serving comfortably on the Jameson for seven near eight years when Eli was presented with an opportunity he could not pass up.

Starfleet Corps of Engineers – Research Station Omicron Theta (2384-2388)

Eli was asked to join the SCE to assist in the construction of a remote research station that would be used for the advancement Science. Eli was honored to be asked to help with such an huge project. Though he was one of many to get an offer to join the SCE even for this was a huge excitement for him. He was put in charge of the stations structural integrity and ways to reinforce it for longer durability and safer living conditions. The unique properties of the nebula beside the station left an issue that Eli had to resolve and quickly. After many days of ideas Eli decided that the integrity could be boosted but not enough to keep the station from some kind of failure. He began experimenting in different shield configurations that would be able to withstand the unique properties.

The final solution came after months of testing which determined if the shield was to withstand the properties it would need to be configured in a way so that certain gases in the nebula passed through the shield reinforcing the shields integrity, which than shielded the station for the harmful elements that would cause structural failure to the station. The SCE put his configuration into effect and was surprised to see that such an idea did work, in fact it could help in the reinforcements of facilities around the galaxy. Eli was added to other aspects of the project using his experience and unique thinking to create many unique aspects that would serve the inhabitants of the station.

Eli was promoted to Captain near the end of his time with SCE, due to his many contributions that saved the project on multiple occasions and he was awarded the Montgomery Scott Medal of Excellence with clusters. He continued working with the SCE until the station was completed and the fist inhabitants had successfully made the trip to the station.

USS Trinity (2389-2396)

Eli was transferred back to a ship after his time with the SCE at the request of Starfleet Command and was made the Captain of Engineering on the USS Trinity. The time on the Manticore class ship was wrought with dangerous encounters and a crew of miscreants that moved his caffeine intake to three cups in the morning and several throughout the day to put up with the crews terrible behavior. If the crew tried to talk to him before the third cup of coffee they could expect a toothbrush with their name on it. Eli had become a grump as he got older and the crew of the Manticore class did not change that save one person the ships XO Ladra Naris, whom became a lover for Eli. He loved her more than anything and because of her his grumpiness was alleviated and he was nicer to the crew though he still held to his three cups of coffee rule.

Eli was devastated when Ladra passed away after a dangerous mission to a planets surface. Ladra was Trill so the symbiont was transferred to another ship for joining with another Trill. Eli mourned Ladra for an extended period of time still having her picture in his quarters. His remaining time on the Trinity had improved due to his changing of the crew, but he still had some crew that didn’t listen and he would enact the same nourishment time and time again. He had gained the nickname Captain Toothbrush in this time. Eli was asked yet again to join the SCE on another project and was transferred from the Trinity.

Starfleet Corps of Engineers – Devron Ship Yards (2397-2399)

Eli was asked to help design another ship for Starfleet and was stationed at the ship yards helping engineers design a new vessel to fully help in the defense of foreign enemies against Starfleet. The project was going along in great regards to progress when a devastating accident halted the development of the ship. This caused Starfleet to rethink the building of the ship and ultimately closed the project in a short time of three years with no indications of reopening the project.

Eli stayed with SCE and worked as a liaison for the fleet yards until a surprising message came to him requesting his transfer to the USS Callisto under the command of Vialen Naris. Eli couldn’t believe the request and didn’t understand why he was requested, but decided to go back to a ship once more, though he was considered a member from that point on of SCE and inducted into it’s highest echelons.

USS Callisto (2400-2400)

Eli was made the Captain of Engineering before the first departure of the Callisto. He was still not sure as to why he had been requested, but he knew in time he would find out. His time on the Callisto was short due to some unforeseen changes in the command structure. The ship was on its way to answer a distress call for the storms that had occurred, when the ship was called back to docks for a refit that was required.

USS Galileo (2400)

Eli was switched to the older and run down Galileo, where he was requested to bring the ship back into shape in time for the campaign against the Romulans. The efforts of the ship were humanitarian and their aide helped save civilians from the terror of the Romulans. Eli has since stayed on the Galileo as the Captain of Engineering and will continue to make sure the ship is in peak condition for any encounters to come. The relationship between the Captain and himself is still rocky, but they are able to currently work professionally together.