A famous Federation negotiator, Riva was deaf from birth. He communicated with the outside world via his chorus, a group of three people who related Riva's thoughts to others. Each member of the chorus represented a different aspect of Riva's personality. Whilst he was attempting to negotiate an end to the war on Solais V his chorus was killed. Riva struggled to cope without being able to communicate but finally decided that he would teach the warring natives sign language, hoping that in learning to understand one another they would be able to resolve their differences. [1] 