Daro Conti/Personal history

Daro is not the typical Rodulan. To begin with, he was not born on Basul Rodul but on Betazed. His parents were posted to the Rodulan Consulate to Betazed. They were part of the support staff working on cultural exchanges. This meant that Daro grew up around many Betazoid children. This was both good and bad for him. He grew up around those who could precisely control their telepathy, so his own control is better than most of his species. Unfortunately, he was also the weird kid; his own mind was unreadable to his playmates, and anytime he tried using his abilities with them he caused migraines. He was not that popular.

He spent time on his native planet, too, but was also an outsider there. He loved other cultures and had an insatiable desire to explore. A chance meeting at age 16 with one of the few Rodulans to join Starfleet convinced Daro that was where he belonged. He turned to studies of culture, language, anthropology, and sociology trying to find his place in the universe. That has only grown as the years have passed. He spent several years in academic pursuits before finally deciding the time was right for him to apply to the Academy.

Like others of his species, he was raised with a great respect for art. The Rodulan religious faith revolves around The Artist, in fact. He practices the traditional arts of his homeworld like basotile, but also enjoys learning new art forms from the various cultures both inside and outside the Federation.

Daro has struggled with the social aspects of the Academy, and Starfleet in general, but he is determined to continue trying to make a place for himself both professionally and personally with this new family he has joined.

Gilan Conti and Karda Nosh (Siblings/Friends): His brother and half-sister have always been people he has felt close to. Their parents were often very busy, so the siblings were thrust together much of the time. They were also three of the only Rodulan kids on Betazed, so that link helped them become even closer. They remain his most trusted confidants.

Zev Rion (Friend/more?): Zev was a classmate Daro grew very close to. He and Daro were in several of the same classes, so they naturally found themselves studying together for various tests. That became the basis for their friendship. By the third year of their graduate program, their friendship had progressed to something more physical for them both and apparently more emotional for Daro. As their graduation approached, Daro brought up the issue of where they might look for positions together only to find out that Zev has already accepted a position back on his home world. He hadn’t realized that Daro had assumed they would be staying together. That was what prompted Daro to join Starfleet. They remain friends, but the relationship is strained.