Alan Shepard (MR)

"I know who I am. And damn anyone to hell for thinking otherwise."

- Alan Shepard, after traveling across the Andromeda galaxy

Alan Jeovani "AJ" Shepard is a mercenary, bounty hunter and pirate, who in his youth was a lieutenant in the Systems Alliance. The son of General Jayden Shepard and Dr. Elizabeth Dahiana (also known as Theresa Schattschneid), Alan is a direct descendant of the legendary John Shepard.

Hailing from a prestigious bloodline, Alan enlisted in the Alliance military on his eighteenth birthday. He spent most of his childhood transferring from one outpost to another where Alan became close with Corporal Haylee Victorero. However, following a classified incident during a recon mission in the Attican Traverse, he was framed for the bombing of Ontarom's communication relays and deaths of 5,000 civilians. As such, Alan turned his back on his heritage when none rose to his defense. Before a preliminary inquiry for his court-martial trial could begin, Alan went AWOL and vowed vengeance against those who wronged him, becoming one of the Milky Way galaxy's most wanted after the Alliance issued warrants for his arrest based on trumped-up charges. He eventually found refuge in the Terminus Systems and, after landing on Omega, became a pirate and Blue Suns mercenary, operating from his personal starship, the Poseidon with his longtime companions Tiberpius Adranianus and Yvonne Sutherburg.

When his team was hired to extract a Prothean artifact from ExoGeni Corporation, Alan was unwillingly pulled into galactic affairs upon being exposed to 'visions' trigged by the artifact warning of an invasion from the Andromeda galaxy. Caught up with being on the run from authorities and no one willing to listen, Alan became willing to do whatever it took to ensure he was left alone, though he was detained by Alliance and Spectre operatives. Alan was able to escape when he injured Desius Protanian and Eminata T'scaos.

After being briefly captured, Alan was reunited with his team and his childhood sweetheart, Haylee Victorero, now promoted to the rank of Commander. After arriving at the asari colony world Illium, and being followed by several Alliance soldiers, Alan was angered by Haylee's betrayal until he met the Shadow Broker, Matriarch Liara T'Soni. Together they participated in a successful voyage to Andromeda that saw the prevention of a kett invasion of the Milky Way and found sufficient evidence to effectively clear his name, eventually luring out and eliminating his former comrade Corporal Dwight Hazelwood, the true perpetrator of the Ontarom bombing who was also responsible for the false charges against Alan. Nevertheless, the ordeal severely damaged Alan's faith in the Alliance and the Blue Suns ultimately terminated his contract. He refused the Alliance's offer of reinstatement, instead departing in search of a new path. After saving Haylee's life, against her wishes, Alan and Haylee's relationship fell apart. Angered by the continuous fallouts occurring in his life, Alan left for Kadara, where he began raiding Roekaar shipments. These events drew the attention of both the Andromeda Initiative and Pathfinder Scott Ryder.

Upon leaving Kadara, Alan and his crew accepted a recovery mission on Voeld, where he encountered the Ascendant, who was seeking to perfect a new kett bioweapon. Alan attempted to save Sutherburg's life, who had been captured and implanted with the weapon, but to no avail. Ryder tracked Alan to Voeld and convinced him to use the angara's newly-developed countermeasure to heal Yvonne, which was successful. As a result of these events, Alan resolved not to join the Initiative, believing that fate had something in store for him.

Accompanied by his friends, Alan set off in search of a new purpose. On Eos, Alan assisted Ryder in repelling kett forces from Prodromos and learned of a much larger invasion of the Heleus cluster. Shortly thereafter, Alan and Ryder traveled to Havarl to defend against the incoming attack there. The battle was a disaster for the angara and the Initiative, and Tiberpius sacrificed his life to save that of his friend. Distraught by his friend's death, Alan volunteered to lead an APEX strike team to raid kett supply depots and retrieve valuable intel for the Nexus. With the charges against him dropped and with Ryder's support, Alan and his lover, Yvonne Sutherburg, eventually agreed to join the Initiative as one of its premier mercenaries in service of Tiran Kandros.

Early life
Born on the human colony world of Elysium in 2798 CE, Alan Shepard is the only child of General Jayden Shepard, a high-ranking and well-respected military officer in the Systems Alliance, and Dr. Elizabeth Dahiana, one of the Alliance's brilliant scientists. From an early age, Alan spent at least most of his childhood growing up in the city of Illyria and received special tutoring from the Alliance-backed Outreach Program before having to transfer from one outpost to another due to his father's deployments.

Eventually he enlisted in the Alliance Navy after graduating from high school. On Earth, Alan became close to another military recruit, Haylee Victorero. One time during R&R, Alan and Haylee shared their first kiss.

Bombing at the Ontarom research facility
Six months into his tenure in the Alliance, Alan graduated from Officer Candidate School with the rank of Second Lieutenant when he caught the attention of Flavilus Verisis, the turian First Minister of the Interstellar Republic, who selected him and his squad to investigate rumors of an illegal arms trade on Ontarom. During the search, unbeknownst to Alan, one of his troops Corporal Dwight Hazelwood, who was a paid agent of the Madrid terrorist group, secretly orchestrated the bombing of the communication relays at one of Ontarom's research facilities and caused the deaths of more than 5,000 civilians while framing Alan for these crimes. Despite his protests, without any evidence to support his claims, Alan was arrested and placed in an Alliance military prison awaiting court-martial.

During his incarceration, both Jayden and Elizabeth visit their son and ask if he really did causing the disaster on Ontarom. When Alan replied "no", Jayden responds that he and his wife tried to find evidence to prove their son's innocence but were sidelined by power-hungry politicians and a very hostile mob demanding the death penalty. Although they tried to comfort Alan, the upset Shepard simply told them to leave him alone, indicating that he had bitterly accepted his fate.

After his parents left, Alan was visited by an agent of the Shadow Broker. They inform him that the Broker had been monitoring the situation very closely and offers Alan a deal: escape from prison, hunt down the true perpetrators of the Ontarom bombings and find evidence to clear his record. When Alan asks what the Shadow Broker wants in return, the agent merely replies that such a rare opportunity comes once in a lifetime and is not normally given freely but the Shadow Broker simply decided to make an exception for him. Alan accepted the agent's proposal, and the duo incited a riot, overwhelming the guards and successfully managed to escape from the authorities aboard a hijacked UT-47A Kodiak drop shuttle―vowing that he will exact his revenge on those who wronged him.

Personality and traits
"You're a Shepard, Alan! Act like one!"

- Jayden Shepard

During his youth, Alan was steady and brilliant, a physically gifted athlete, and popular among his peers. He excelled at everything he set his mind to, causing everyone to admire him and want to be like him, and there was not a single person in the Alliance who did not speak his name without praise, the only exception being his father General Jayden Shepard. As a soldier, Alan is a natural born leader much like his ancestor, easily calming down his squadmates and sticking to the objective despite the mission's difficulty.

However, when Alan was framed for murder and treason, he was utterly shaken to his core when the Alliance condemned him to a military tribunal and came very close to being convicted. Ultimately, believing that he was being used as a scapegoat like his ancestor, Alan lost faith in his friends and family for not standing by him and became deeply bitter and resentful—vowing to one day exact his revenge on those who wronged him. After escaping from Alliance captivity and making his way to the Terminus Systems, Alan was more reckless, headstrong, and often led by his emotions. He walked a fragile line between the right and wrong, frequently unnerving his friends and clients with displays of his combat prowess, while also frustrating his former boss, Krafin Grodrador, with his resilience as well as tenacity. These traits, however, impressed Nayrloc Strikor, who said he had never met someone who walked so close to the path of cruelty and yet was so resistant to its lure.

Furthermore, Alan exhibited a lack of respect for people he doesn't know (especially toward those in positions of power) to the point where he would openly mock them in public. This occasionally caused brief, yet heated tensions between him and Scott Ryder. Over time, they developed a begrudging respect for one another.

Once he began re-embracing his heritage during his time in Andromeda, Alan decided to harass the kett to protect innocent people―a change that brought about a more compassionate change in him. This was demonstrated by his forgiveness of his former comrades, even though he swore to never forget what they did, and the mourning for his friend Tiberpius's demise on Havarl.

Appearance
Alan is a slimmed-toned young man standing at least 6 feet tall, weighs 200 pounds, and has light brown eyes as well as thick, dark brown hair with silver streaks running through it. He wears a black collared vest with a white t-shirt underneath, black pants and charcoal grey boots. Alan also bears two tattoos: one on his right shoulder bearing the Blue Suns logo, and the other on his back containing the N7 insignia.

Skills and abilities
"He's considered a prodigy, one who appears at least once in a generation. Even his own father, General Shepard, is proud of his son's accomplishments... not that he's willing to admit it. Therefore, as I prepare to submit my final report, Alan is considered to be one of the best and brightest humanity has to offer like his ancestor before him."

- Theos Kul to the Shadow Broker

Novels

 * Mass Effect: Horizons (First appearance)

Mass Effect: Horizons
To be added

Trivia

 * His physical appearance is based off of the Star Wars character Ferus Olin.
 * Alan is voiced by Josh Grelle.