Mara Shepard

Early Life

Born in Killarney, Ireland, Mara Calliope Shepard was both unexpected and late. Her parents joked that Mara wanted to sleep in, as she did most of her life. Ironically, she began life as a quiet infant and a late bloomer. Mara didn’t learn to walk until she was 16 months old. After she became mobile, however, anything and everything was up for grabs. She wanted to know how things worked and often took appliances apart to study their intricate workings, which usually led to trouble.

Mara’s father was a minister, a rare occupation for 24th century earth. Even so, Shepard sang in the children’s choir and dreamt of a career in music. Her mother was a far more worldly woman and the second wife for Dr. Henry Shepard. She encouraged the girl’s musical path, also adding dance to the mix. However, it was a science teacher, Dr. Mark Mall, who enraptured little Mara with the science bug. Physics, particularly, became the answer to unraveling how things worked. She wanted to know more.

Never interested in the church from a spiritual standpoint, Mara did enjoy the social interactions, especially the choir. She enjoyed singing and for a time in her teens considered music as a career path.

Unfortunately, tragedy struck the family when Mara’s older brother, John, was killed during the Dominion War. First officer on the USS Albatross, Shepard was on the front line frigate when it was destroyed by three Jem’Hadar ships. Five months later, Mara’s elder sister, Jennifer was badly injured in a ground assault on Bajor. The Commander was forced to retire shortly after and moved in with Mara and her parents. The siblings became close, despite an age difference or 10 years. Tragedy struck again when Jennifer committed suicide. Mara was only 14 at the time.

Embittered by grief from the death of her children, Krista Shepard spiraled into a deep depression. Dr. Henry Shepard fixated on his religious teachings in an attempt to find comfort. Mara was left to tend to her mother though she had her own troubles as she blamed herself for her sister’s death. She felt she should have seen the signs.

Krista later recovered to a point, but was never the same. Henry remained steadfast in his devotion and forbade Mara from entering anything other than a safe and sensible career. This was a final straw and Mara soon left home.

A few years later, Mara entered Cambridge University to major in astrophysics.

College Years

Though saddened at how she left things with her parents, Mara was excited to join the prestigious university. Long ago, physics had caught her interest as a way of understanding the universe. An additive curiosity propelled Shepard to make a vow and she would one day discover the theory of everything. In her early academic career, this notion drove her, along with half her classmates.

Her freshman year at Cambridge, Mara let loose. She studied hard, but played hard too. She headed a scheme that remotely transported all the furniture in the Dean’s office to the English moors at one time. Though she and others were heavily reprimanded, secretly many were impressed.

After the reprimand, Mara settled down a bit, though the pub was her favorite place to study. She claimed the noise and buzz helped her concentrate. Relationships with both men and women blossomed during this time, though nothing ever stuck. Ultimately, Mara decided that answers would not be found on earth. She had to go elsewhere to seek knowledge.

After a year at Cambridge, Mara transferred to Starfleet Academy. Many of her friends considered it a step down, but she felt it was necessary for her own self discovery. She also felt it would lead to better understanding her siblings, especially her sister.

Starfleet Academy

Though her late siblings had taught her some hand-to-hand (just to defend herself) the bulk of Mara’s martial training came from the academy. In this aspect of Starfleet life, she was lacking and her classmates took full advantage. At 5’ 5” she was shorter than most of her peers, which didn’t help matters.

During her sophomore year, Mara had excelled in her studies, but lagged behind in martial combat. She always thought too much about a fight and let fear get in her way. However, she did make a passing grade. Barely. At this same time, she took on students to tutor. She enjoyed the social activity and feeling important.

A student under her tutelage, Randy Buttershell, asked Mara to cheat for him. She declined.The cadet wouldn’t let it go and eventually violence ensued. Cadet Buttershell took advantage of Shepard’s lack of martial prowess and beat her senseless. Mara ended up in the infirmary.

The beating was the kick in the pants she needed and Mara dove into martial arts as hard as she did with academics. She always got a little buzzed before a fight so she wouldn’t think or fear too much. Eventually she was able to do without the alcohol.

Mara’s Junior year was uneventful, every joyous until Buttershell was finally caught for cheating. He named Mara as a cohort out of spite. Instead of fighting the lie through the system, Shepard invited him to a local pub and beat the shit of him. The academy got wind of the incident and placed Mara on probation. Cadet Buttershell was expelled.

The senior year proved uniquely stressful. Due to her probation, her social life was nearly cut out entirely. She toed the line, dotted the is and crossed every t. Though she was a ball of tension at the end, Mara graduated near the top of her class.

The USS Empress

Mara’s first assignment was on the Nova class USS Empress. The ship’s main focus was scientific study of planets and nearby celestial bodies. Every so often additional scans or data were needed from various star systems. The Empress would typically verify information collected from a previous study or collect additional scientific data after first contact. Ensign Shepard was assigned to stellar cartography where she typically cataloged Class K or L planets.

(As the Empress held a crew of only 80, Mara became friends with several of her crewmates. She keeps in touch with a few of them to this day.)

The USS Leda

A Luna Class vessel, the Leda was Mara’s second assignment after a promotion to Lieutenant Junior Grade. An exploration vessel in the truest sense, more often than not the Leda would be the first vessel to catalog new celestial phenomena including quasars, quarks, neutron stars and the like. Second to the Chief Science officer, Lt. Shepard aided the crew on a handful of first contact missions. However, mere days before the Romulan Empire fell, the Leda was sent into the Velorum Sector to catalog spatial phenomena. All operations for the Leda within that system are classified. Many of the Leda’s crew were promoted and transferred afterwards including Mara.

(Mara and the XO, a Klingon named Mas, would often engage in drinking games with Klingon Bloodwine. The two became friends over these hijinks)