Daphne was born on Mora, the "gateway of the Spinward Marches". A gifted child from a middle-class family, her father pressured her into applying for the Naval Academy and be a respectable officer. He was appalled when her application was rejected, but she didn't care - she wanted to see the galaxy, not be a shining officer, so she enrolled as a crewwoman anyway.

She had a brief carrier as a fighter pilot, crashing almost fatally during an engagement in the Mora Subsector when she was only 22. Her injuries took time to heal, but she was hailed as a hero when she rejoined the Navy. But this second tour of duty was cut short again when a high-ranking officer, jealous of her war hero reputation, moved some strings so she was forced to muster out. As a compensation, she was ennobled.

At age 30, Daphne found herself created 'countess Arslan', an extremely unexpected outcome. She didn't stay home for long, though, as she enrolled in the Imperial Diplomatic Service, serving three tours of duty as an envoy.

At age 42, she decided she had had enough. By then she had learned how to navigate high society, making quite a few powerful enemies on the way, as well as some allies.

Unwilling to go back home to her bother of family, Daphne invested most of her lifetime earnings in ship shares. Finally, she was going to do some traveling of her own, without serving any masters...