Chapter Text
Age: 45 (current).
Temperament: Sanguine. Ambivert.
Diagnoses: Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (chronic). Reactive psychotic episodes (remission). Perseverative (stuck) personality accentuation. Recurrent depressive episodes (remission). History of psychogenic amnesia (resolved).
The subject, hereinafter referred to as Skipper, raised in a state orphanage in the town of Linwood, Washington. Has no recollection of his biological family. As a child, was active, open, trusting, and friendly. Demonstrated a strong interest in reading, with a particular preference for stories about noble and valiant knights. Adopted this image as a personal role model; early leadership traits became evident during this period.
By the time the wave of orphanage closures and placement of orphans into foster families reached his town, he was fifteen years old. His experiences with foster families were largely unsuccessful; over the course of two years, he was placed in multiple households. By that time, he had abandoned hope of reunification with biological parents and adopted the belief that individuals are solely responsible for their own fate. As a result, he approached difficulties in new foster homes philosophically, avoided forming strong emotional attachments to foster parents, and displayed minimal distress during subsequent relocations.
At the age of seventeen, voluntarily enlisted in the United States Army, Ground Forces, viewing military service as his vocation. Demonstrated exemplary performance in both physical and theoretical training. Distinguished himself by a high level of discipline. For these merits and strong rapport with fellow soldiers, was promoted to E-5. Subsequently completed Non-Commissioned Officer School and, based on accumulated service points, pronounced leadership qualities, and additional commendations, was promoted to Sergeant.
Seeking assignment closer to potential combat zones, transferred to another unit, where he met Hans. Over time, they formed a close association; however, the fundamental disparity in their understanding of friendship became apparent only much later.
Participated in multiple combat operations with his unit in active conflict zones, earning an excellent reputation among both command staff and peers. Initially experienced severe psychological shock upon exposure to real warfare; nevertheless, chose not to leave the service upon completion of his contract, reasoning that adaptation was possible and perceiving no viable prospects in civilian life at that time. The prospect of abandoning military brotherhood in favor of uncertainty was a source of significant anxiety. His idealistic and romanticized worldview regarded this brotherhood as unbreakable, in contrast to what he perceived as weak, fragile, and purely self-interested civilian relationships.
Hans’s betrayal had a devastating psychological impact, effectively shattering his belief system. After spending two years in prison, a retrial was conducted; the life sentence was overturned, all charges were dropped, and he was fully exonerated. Were it not for former combat comrades Manfredi and Johnson, who provided direct and sustained support, the outcome of his already severe depression remains uncertain. At their urging, he enrolled in the United States Military Academy at West Point. Several years later, he returned to combat operations, this time as the commanding officer of his own company. Manfredi and Johnson also returned to active contract service under his command.
Residual, insufficiently treated depression manifested in periodic relapses, which he managed through short courses of antidepressant medication. The most severe relapse occurred during prolonged deployment in a remote region of a politically unstable Latin American country. A counterinsurgency operation conducted under his command ended in catastrophic failure; all personnel were lost. The bodies of Manfredi and Johnson were not found among the casualties of the ambush. Several days after base personnel reported loss of contact with the commanding officer, an evacuation helicopter reached the designated extraction point; search and recovery operations for the missing personnel were unsuccessful.
Nearly a year later, he was discovered by chance and identified by U.S. Army personnel stationed in a provincial region of Mexico. Identification was difficult due to his severely neglected appearance and fragmented speech, alternating between Spanish and English. Upon return to his home unit, he underwent psychiatric evaluation. He was diagnosed with prolonged reactive paranoid psychosis accompanied by delusional ideation and psychogenic amnesia. The patient persistently stated that Manfredi and Johnson had died due to their own actions, citing a different cause of death on each occasion. Simultaneously, he was unable to identify who Manfredi and Johnson were or describe the nature of his relationship to them.
Following treatment, he voluntarily retired from military service. Some time later, he was contacted by a former service member with whom he had once competed for promotion to Sergeant, now employed as a profiler for a Non-Governmental Militarized Agency. Having experienced significant difficulty adapting to civilian urban life, Skipper agreed to work for the Agency but categorically refused field operations. He assumed responsibility for cadet training and recruitment. At that time, Skipper remained under obligation to undergo regular psychiatric evaluations at a military hospital. Although paranoid symptomatology continued to follow him as a persistent background condition, intensifying under severe stress, he was capable of recognizing, suppressing, and subsequently concealing it. It was through close interaction with military psychiatrists that his first encounter with Rico occurred.
Skipper assumed full responsibility for Rico’s rehabilitation, driven by a persistent belief that he owed an unrepayable debt to life itself. He recognized in the unnamed, isolated soldier a reflection of his younger self: abandoned, helpless, betrayed, without family support, encouragement, or hope of rescue. In his own past, salvation had come in the form of old army friends—friends to whom he had failed to repay his debt and whom he had ultimately failed to protect from death. He perceived the unnamed sergeant as a means of redemption, a reprieve from recurring nightmares and the consuming melancholy that resurfaced whenever he was left alone. At the time the decision was made, he was unprepared for the extent of the difficulties involved. In retrospect, however, he reports no regrets, save for moments of cowardice in which he considered giving up, sending Rico back, and attempting to forget the experience entirely.
Additionally, his responsibilities in identifying and recruiting Agency-relevant candidates led to his initial encounters with Kowalski and later with Private. The presence of these individuals in his life served as the primary motivation for his return to operational duty as the leader of a newly formed team.
Over the course of a long and adversarial life, he developed a hardened psychological defense, strengthened his character, and compensated for the majority of his vulnerabilities. The remaining core trait is an unconscious “hero complex.” He categorizes the world into those who require protection—perceived as small, naïve, or incapable—and those capable of protecting themselves. Only toward the latter does he experience emotional attachment beyond paternalistic or patronizing concern. Displays inherent suspicion and hostility toward men; toward women, exhibits interest and competitive engagement. Highly conservative and restrained in demeanor, though in select cases allows himself expressions of sentimentality toward unexpected subjects. Possesses a highly idiosyncratic aesthetic sense: reacts with visible discomfort to kittens and puppies, yet affectionately refers to his own sergeant as a “born weapon of mass destruction.”