Gondara was an Aqualish female from the planet Ando. She was raised by her older brother, Karlon, after their parents were killed by the Galactic Empire. Karlon went on to join the Alliance to Restore the Republic, and Gondara spent time on an Alliance safe world to avoid potential Imperial reprisals over her brother's actions. When Gondara was seventeen, Karlon was killed in battle on Bresnia. Karlon's best friend, the Carosite medic Tamo Lan, took responsibility for the teenager, and she joined him in serving with Shroud Team, a unit of Foster Agents—tasked with assisting stranded operatives in returning to the Alliance—in Corint City on the planet Pirik. An able thief, Gondara trained under Lam to be his medical assistant.