Nike Shepard

Nike Shepard is an Alliance soldier and the first Human Spectre. She commanded the Normandy SR-1 against the first attack by the Reapers and destroyed the under construction Human Reaper while working with Cerberus. She currently commands the Normandy SR-3, following the Reaper attack on Earth.

Childhood
Nike was born in Germany on Earth in 2145. Her parents, Lukas and Stefanie Shepard, were poor and worked as manual laborers, barely making ends meet. She was just a toddler when they were killed in a motor vehicle accident. With no other close relatives, Nike was placed in an orphanage and was never adopted.

As Nike began to enter puberty, a male employee at the orphanage repeated sexually assaulted her. She attempted to turn him into another one of the employees after the second attack, but he laughed at her and told her to stop making up stories. She never reported any of the other incidents and endured the daily abuse for years until she finally ran away at 14.

On the streets, Nike fell into a life of petty crime and eventually gangs. It taught her to be street smart and ruthless, which would eventually shape her leadership style in the Alliance. Years of this difficult and dangerous lifestyle made her grow up fast and as time passed, she began to realize that she was walking a path that would lead her somewhere she didn't want to be. So, on her 18th birthday, she enlisted in the Alliance to make a change.

Early Alliance Career
The structure of military life did well for Nike and she thrived in the fast-pace, high-stress environment. She did, however, quickly develop a reputation for being ruthless. Her unwavering efficiency meant she always got the job done... but at any cost. Her fellow soldiers were wary of her because of her reputation but the brass knew they could always turn to her to spearhead any dangerous or important missions.

Torfan
In response to the Skyllian Blitz, the Alliance raided the small moon of Torfan, which was a hub for primarily Batarian criminals. Nike lead the Alliance troops there and completely wiped the Batarian forces, even those who surrendered. She did so at the cost of nearly 3/4ths of her own men, earning her the epithet "Butcher of Torfan". It cemented her ruthless reputation but did ultimately result in an Alliance victory.