Name: Azuma Morganth
Position: Chief Diplomat; USS Lancelot
Gender: Female
Species: Betazoid   
Age: 27 (Human equivalent)

PHYSICAL APPEARANCE
Height   5' 4"
Weight   123 lbs.
Eye Color: Black   
Hair Color: Brown/Auburn

PHYSICAL DESCRIPTION
Azuma offers a friendly and open appearance. She is slim in build and short of stature, with an ever-vigilant smile and a ready laugh. She carries herself with an air of confidence, though doesn't come off as over-bearing. It is not uncommon to see her dressed in rather flamboyant clothing; she enjoys bright colors and flaunty styles. Her appearance is always kept neat and tidy, with her somewhat long auburn-brown hair swept back from her face by a headscarf.

PERSONALITY & TRAITS
General Overview:
Despite her young appearance and sometimes irrational behaviour, Azuma has proven on more than one occasion to be exceptionally quick and witty. She is a very outgoing individual, with a love for history and people. She works well with people, and has an uncanny knack for deciphering emotions through the use of her inherent empathic abilities. She enjoys nothing more than asking questions and seeking answers, and is never afraid to speak her mind about a subject.

Azuma is a very trusting and trustworthy individual; she values privacy above all else and would never even consider telling another's secret without their permission. However, she is exceptionally honest -- almost to the point of being rude by other societies, but she's learned to tell when and where something is appropriate to be said, and if if her honest opinion is not called for or wanted, she'll wisely wait until later.

Strengths & Weaknesses:
Her strengths are many, as are her weaknesses. Her strongest strength would be her ability to work with others in any given situation. She is dependable, loyal to friends and family, extremely knowledgeable about other cultures and races through endless hours of research, and can manipulate emotions to ease feelings of anger -- which is exceptionally useful when in the presence of conflicting characters. (This is the only time she would ever consider using her empathic powers to manipulate the emotions of others. At all other times she will do so only under permission of the parties concerned.)

She has a strong ethical view of telepathy, and would never even consider invading another's mind without their express permission. She adheres strictly to the Code of  Sentience.

Her weaknesses range from personal to professional; She is very open and honest, almost to the point of being rude. She has the occasional habit of speaking before thinking, usually when she is excited. She has a tendency to bottle up her negative emotions until it becomes too much to bear -- and it more often than not ends in the result of her having one heck of a temper tantrum. These tantrums are few and far between, but they have been known to happen.

Ambitions:
Azuma is not one with big dreams; she is quite content with her lot in life. Though she longs to explore as much as possible of the universe, and to learn everything there is to know.

Hobbies & Interests:
She has a great love of music, song and history. She also enjoys philosophy, mythology, and prayer.

IMMEDIATE FAMILY:
Father: Tam Morganth  
Mother: Kestra (Elbrun) Morganth   
Brother(s): Andrus, Lon, and Talloc

HISTORY:
Azuma considers herself fortunate enough to have been born in the beautiful city of Medara, the capital city of Betazed. She is the fourth and youngest child, with three elder brothers. It was with great relief that she was born -- her mother, a known doctor serving the general populace of Medara and Starfleet-trained, had been wishing for a daughter since the time she was married to Tam. Tam and Kestra's union happened through the use of genetic bonding; the promise of marriage between two families and their children. This was done mostly to guarantee the result of intelligent offspring, and Tam and Kestra's sons and one daughter were no exception.

While Kestra worked as a doctor, Tam devoted his service to the Betazed government, working closely with Starfleet and his homeworld.

As a child Azuma followed in her brothers' shadows, going everywhere they went and getting in to just as much trouble and more. The youngest of the brothers, Andrus, was three years her senior; Azuma and him were inseperable from the moment she was born in to this world. The two of them were more alike than their two older brothers. Lon and Talloc were known to have aggressive tendencies and were more interested in persuing careers than they were with family. This more often than not upset Tam and Kestra as they attempted to keep their children close, but Lon and Talloc would not have it. They wanted freedom from the otherwise mundane day-to-day rituals of life.

This was a hard blow to the family. Her mother was devastated and her father ashamed and upset. Andrus was hurt most of all, and a week after Lon and Talloc's disappearance, he too decided to leave home. Out of the three, Andrus was the only one to keep in touch regularly with his family. He eventually met up with his two brothers several months later, and the three of them slowly began severing ties with their parents.

It took a long while but both parents eventually accepted their sons' decisions and carried on with their lives. Tam began taking more interest in Azuma's upbringing now that he no longer had any sons to care for. It was through him that she experienced her first 'diplomatic conference' and it was through him that she recieved the appropriate training to carry on his steps to become a diplomat. Her mother wasn't at all pleased, having hoped Azuma would show an interest in medical studies instead. But that was not to be.

Her social skills and heightened empathic abilities led Azuma to become a decent asset to the Betazed government, and she served with her father for several years before growing tired of the dull routine. There was nothing new to see or learn, and so she turned instead to Star Fleet. The need to explore, to see and learn everything possible, spurred Azuma in to convincing her mother to pull some strings and get her placed onboard a ship. Any ship. She wasn't feeling picky, only desperate. Though she loved Betazed dearly, Azuma had an insatiable need to experience other cultures and worlds. There was an entire universe waiting for her, and her brothers had been given the chance to explore... so why couldn't she?

Afraid their daughter would take off like their sons if they didn't allow her to go, Tam and Kestra worked their hardest to get her in to Star Fleet working as a diplomat. She had the credentials, and they could rest easy knowing she was in a safe environment.