I will never know why the slave colony was destroyed.   Maybe there was a successful rebellion and the Romulans decided to destroy the colony.   Perhaps it had a military significance and became the target of an enemy raid.   I will never know.   However, if I had not been confined in that underground cell, I would have died along with the rest.   There were a couple of other survivors, and we worked together to make our way to the surface. One of them was an engineer in Starfleet and after a few weeks on the surface, he managed to cobble together a primitive subspace beacon from the wreckage.   Three months later, a passing transport ship picked up the signal, and came to our aid. 

The transport dropped us off at a nearby Federation starbase, and from there we were given transport back to our families.  Having no family of my own and being of sufficient age, I fell under Federation Welfare Act 237.4 and was given the option to attend school.   After spending five years at a Science and Technology School in the Nevrian Cluster, I decided to attend Starfleet Academy.   I entered with the intention to follow a career in Science, but eventually found myself leaning towards Engineering.   I graduated with distinction for my research into Warp Theory, and passed up an engineering assignment on a starship so I could conduct further research.   I was posted to a Federation research station on Te'ral, Vulcan, where I made use of their excellent facilities to explore Plasma Dynamics.   Integrating my Academy work in Warp Fields with my research on Vulcan led directly to the development of a new method of warp plasma manipulation.   This new technique eliminates the energy draining micro-turbulence common when traveling above Warp 7. 

At the Te'ral Research Station, I had a lot of time to think about things.   I saw that my hatred of the Romulans had been holding me back in life.   It was eating me up inside, and destroying me.   In truth, I had passed up that starship assignment because I feared what might happen if we were to encounter the Romulans.   I had long talks with my fellow researchers.   I began to realize the irrationality of my hatred for the entire Romulan race.     All the Romulans who had ever done me harm were now dead, buried under tons of rock and machinery.   Why then did I still hate their race, even though no living Romulan had harmed me in any way?

Finally, I forgave them.   I forgave them for what they had done.   I couldn't live with the hatred anymore.   I didn't want to.

I decided that it was time in my life for a change.   I finally accepted that starship assignment, and was posted aboard the U.S.S. Polaris, under Captain Hythaan.   I started out in the Science department as a warp field specialist.   Even though I wore a blue uniform, I spent most of my time with the Engineering staff, advising them on warp geometry efficiency.   Soon I was transferred to Engineering, where I served for four years.   In that time, I become the Assistant Chief Engineer, and achieved the rank of Lieutenant. 

It was on the Polaris that I heard about the U.S.S Manetheren.   She was an experimental refit of a Galaxy class vessel, using an entirely new warp configuration.   I was excited to see some of my theories put into practice on a starship.   I consulted Captain Hythaan about a transfer and she recommended me for the Chief Engineer position.   After considering several candidates, I was accepted as the Chief Engineer and promoted to Lieutenant Commander.   I served with distinction under Captain Sol on the Manetheren for two years before Starfleet Intelligence approached me.   They offered me the opportunity to assist in the design and construction of a radically new starship and serve as its Chief Engineer upon completion.   It was an offer I couldn’t refuse.