Shard's human formDoran was born to a wealthy family, being the first of four children. His father is a businessman, frequently travelling through the world but mostly to Asia from where his contacts' majority came. His mother was once a model, then became a novelist with mild success, stories playing at Far East. As things are, they were always at the field of interest for various government and other agencies, for different reasons of course, but to Shard's knowledge they were never did anything illegal.
He got the best from everything what money and contacts could buy, games, toys, food, accessories, whatever... including tutors. Tutors, when the young one decided to try himself as a martial artist at the age of 10, thanks to the influence of his mother's tales and others he heard during their travels. First he was rejected by several masters and schools, thinking the American boy was too old, too American to learn but then his father pulled some strings and he got a practicioner of the Hou Quan for master. They were all surprised when Doran not only learned fast but soon his shadow outgrew the tutor's. The tutor saw that he had a raw diamond at hand and presented the young boy to his own master where his real studies began.
Over the following years he mastered the Monkey-style kung-fu, learned the Korean martial art, the Taekkyeon and the Japanese Jujitsu, becoming a versatile and skilled fighter. His only fault was his constant, unsupressable desire to fight before audience, do everything as flashy and spectacular as possible while retaining the effectiveness of the moves. On top of that, he used his mouth almost as much as his fists and feet.
His other mutant power manifested itself at the peak of his puberty, the age of 15, freaking out the family. Fortunately his Chinese master wasn't a common human, either but a descendant of a Shen - one of the many gods of the old Chinese belief - and took this extra at face value. The master arranged a relocation to another tutor, who could handle this power better than him and so his martial arts training could continue without break. Along with the surfacing of his chrystallization talent, his eyes turned true violet from their form blue share. Under that master he became acquainted to Striped and numerous other Shen-born.
Shard participated a few martial arts contest both in America and Asia, with very good results, often being in the best five but having enough wits to avoid the first place. Still, this was enough to get a name in these circles and getting acquainted some very important figure, masters and practicioners as well.
He did university courses about Geology at the same University where Havok and Polaris came a few years later. They met briefly, as a rookie and the senior sorted to patron him before Doran left the school to build a carrier and the two became friends, even discovering each others powers before they parted. Polaris got Shard's attention as well, but he was perceptive enough to notice that she was taken, so he flirted only for fun.
Shard worked for various mining companies, searching for and revealing gem sites, using both his knowdledge and his extraordinary senses for a year and some until he got confronted by Earth First! agents over the companies mining methods and lost his then-girlfriend for that argument. He sulked, thrashed and raved... then met Starice who chilled him enough to talk sense into his thick head.
They arranged his "death" to escape the goverment agencies eyes what followed him through his life, and he came to the Institute as a sports teacher, while learning more about his mutant identity, powers and responsibilites what Professor X and his followers had faith in. He sparred a lot with Wolverine, who proved a good match thanks to his knowledge of brawling, ruthless nature and the healing factor, of course.
He is flirtatious, joyful, teasing, looking good - and he knows it. Many of the Institute's girls are in love with him - just as normal for teens. He loves hard jokes and mockery, most times even when he is the victim, but always strikes back, arranging it as publicly as he can.