NAME: Tasha Sterling RANK: Lieutenant ASSIGNMENT: Exotechnologist, Beta Squad BASE OF OPERATIONS: Deep Space Outpost 6 DESIGNATION: Beta 5 E-FRAME TYPE: VF-14 Hunter SPECIES: Eltorian/Terran Hybrid GENDER: Female BIRTH PLANET: Earth HEIGHT: 6 ft (183 cm) WEIGHT: 230 lbs (105 kg) MARITAL STATUS: Single SPECIAL ABILITIES: Enhanced metabolism, strength, endurance, and reflexes; potential to generate a bio-energetic field over any body part. HISTORY:     Tasha Sterling is the elder twin child born to Cy and Nara Sterling. It was obvious, even before her birth, that Tasha had inherited certain characteristics from her father. While her mother was also known to possess unique qualities of her own, these were acquired through artificial means. The gene therapy that Dr. Ketzer preformed on Nara Sterling targeted very specific genes, but the therapy itself relied on a virus to effect its changes. Careful study years later revealed that this virus did not affect Nara's reproductive system. Therefore she was incapable of passing on the implanted traits she carried. Cy Sterling was another matter entirely. As a naturally born Terran/Eltorian hybrid, it was very real possibility that any child of his would not be entirely human.     Following her birth, Tasha's alien heritage was readily apparent. Her eyes were violet with hair to match - a color not naturally seen in humans. At nine months of age Tasha accidentally broke the pinky finger of Mandy Wang - Nara's friend and personal assistant. At the age of two Tasha dislocated the shoulder of her brother James. The circumstances surrounding both of these incidents would have been totally innocent in nature if Tasha had been a normal girl. Mandy had been playing peek-a-boo with Tasha and James. When infant Tasha reached out for her finger, Mandy thought nothing of it. Once her little hand clamped down, however, it became apparent there was a real problem. In the case of James's shoulder, he had been teasing Tasha and playfully punched her in the shoulder. Rightly thinking that it was a game, she punched him back. Due to problems such as these, special care was needed in raising young Tasha. In her early years Tasha's contact with others was severely limited. Only later would she be allowed to interact with others her own age, and even then she was always watched very closely for fear of anyone getting hurt.     Precautions in Tasha's upbringing were not just limited to her physical care. Her father worked throughout her childhood teaching Tasha a number of mental exercises that he deemed necessary for proper mental and therefore physical discipline. Her father's reasoning for this was not unfounded. He worked with Dr. Martin (their family physician) to map both his genome and that of his daughter. From this work it was deduced that the unique characteristics of Eltorian/Terran Hybrids were produced via macromutations. These large-scale genetic alterations are typically detrimental to whatever individual possesses them. Human embryos that have mutations on a similar scale always fail to mature and therefore miscarry in-utero. But for some reason the unique interactions between human and Eltorian DNA allow stable macromutations to form that do not interfere with the genetic programming necessary to synthesize and then operate a humanoid body. While the reasons for this are not completely understood, it is assumed that this phenomenon is likely related to factors surrounding the placement of the macromutations in the genome. The hybrid genome project demonstrated a remarkable similarity between the macromutations possessed by Cy and that of his daughter, Tasha. From the data obtained, it was reasonable to assume that Tasha would one day develop abilities similar to her father. When that would happen and what specific abilities would manifest could not be predicted. As a result Tasha's parents did what they could to plan for the day these latent abilities might activate.     The care taken with raising Tasha may have served to prepare her for later in life. It may have also insured a safe environment for her and those around her. But it also had another effect. Tasha grew up feeling isolated from those her own age and oppressed by the close attention of her parents. This feeling was only magnified by her brother James, who seemed to have the life she so desperately wanted for herself. James could go out and play with the other children. He had friends and he did not have their parents watching his every move. Tasha's teenage years were particularly tough. Though she was allowed more personal freedom, she still felt smothered and isolated. She began fighting with her parents on a regular basis. James would often be the catalyst for reconciliation. But even his efforts eventually failed.     Tasha left home at the end of her teenage years. She had applied to Exofleet academy without her parent's knowledge and was promptly accepted. She had been expected to go to college. But Tasha preferred the academy, as it was located on Earth instead of Venus. Against her parents' wishes, Tasha accepted the position at the academy. From the time she set foot on Earth, Tasha's communication with home began to disappear. Vid-calls went unanswered. Emails were not acknowledged. When the cadets were given their first leave, Tasha chose to go to her roommate's home instead of her own. While she would come home for some of her leave time, Tasha remained distant from her parents. By the time she graduated from the academy the only member of her family that she continued to speak with was her brother. James would visit Tasha often during her academy days and the two remain very close even after Tasha's graduation and deployment into active duty. James continuously makes efforts to get his sister to start speaking with their parents again. As things currently are, reconciliation seems unlikely. James continues to remain hopeful that circumstances will change in the future - all that is needed is a catalyst, and that catalyst may be closer to happening than any one might suspect.