Character Profiles
The Reporter - Wayne Andrews
Profession: Freelance Reporter: Press correspondent.
Age: 36
Birthplace: New York, New York
Always going only by "Andrews", the man behind the camera is an old style 'field journalist'. Driven by his wandering feet and desire to piece together the true events of any situation, he is a worldly, idealistic man who is weighed down by the darkness of the times.
To him, journalism is a higher calling in service of the greater good of humanity, but the work itself also makes up who he is personally. Intelligent, aware, and well educated, he has a broad perspective on world events, is knowledgeable about history, and from that knowledge, understands what momentous and tragic times fate has made him a chronicler of. He has a keen understanding of war, has seen famine and death, and knows more is to come.
He is obsessed with finding out what's going wrong in the world he grew up in, even when it pains him to do so. His obsession pushes him out into remote places and dangerous situations.
Beneath a superficial cynicism, what he has seen has left him with a sense of sadness and dread. He remembers what humans have done in the past when faced with similar situations, and he has a keen sense of what to expect from current events. He's interviewed presidents in their palaces and insurgent leaders in dark jungles. He could be sipping chardonnay at lunch with the press corps, but he chooses to be out in the world instead. 'Back home' he has a son and two ex-wives that his passion for the job inadvertently pushed away. For better or worse, his real marriage is to his work.
While not physically strong or imposing, he's able to take care of himself, having survived situations and tragedies that would have killed or crushed the minds of lesser men by keeping his head down, and using a journalists own brand of street smarts. He's more prepared than most for the horrors of the upcoming war, yet still retains the vulnerability to be shocked and scared.
Over the last ten years of his career, Andrews has educated himself about the increasing effects of energy shortages, and what some refer to as 'Peak Oil'. As society and its economies being to break, and the luxuries of a modern, industrialized life style begin to disappear, he finds himself drawn to one of the main focal points of the world; the planet's remaining oil reserves in the Caspian basin. A gun powder keg of oil drilling and military activity, waiting to explode.
By the time the year 2024 arrives, Andrews has been embedded reporting with the military in the Caspian for eight straight months. He jumps from squad to squad as he investigates the military build-up in this critical region. The day the war begins we join him and a small group of Western Coalition soldiers, unaware, in the desert of Turkmenistan, of what is about to befall them.
The Squad Leader - Sergeant Thompson
Rank: Staff Sergeant - Becomes the squad leader of Stray Dogs: Two-One Delta.
Age: 29
Birthplace: Seattle, Washington
Thompson comes to the Two-One Delta Stray Dogs squad after they have lost their previous squad leader, Sgt. Whitburn. He wastes no time gaining the respect of the new men under his command; he's been doing it for years.
A veteran of past Coalition campaigns, he exemplifies the strong leadership, and successful track record of the Stray Dogs strike force (the 125th); of which he was a founding member. He takes as much pride in the reputation of the Stray Dogs force structure, as he does in the men that fill it.
Thompson conducts a life spent successfully suppressing susceptibility to rage and violence that he only lets out on the battlefield; it's one of the attributes that gained him notice by superior officers. His anger serves him well, and his superiors value both the emotion, and the ability to control and channel it into the right situations.
He is a military professional - his manner is loud and forceful yet he can also be sincere and gentle. A very effective motivator he is always looking for the most efficient and effective way to defeat the enemy, and protect his men.
Fighting a war deemed as a necessity, Thompson is more interested in getting him and his men through the situation than in understanding the geopolitical implications. His post-military dream is to do buy a ranch in the mid-western USA and settle down. Coach a little league football team and have a few kids of his own.
Unfortunately those days are gone, life is different now for all men, women, and children. Life is about survival, and adapting to a harsh new reality. Thompson knows the 'simple life' dream for him and all others is disappearing, and that is what he is truly fighting for.
Private Joe Mikowski
Rank: Private, 1st class
Age: 24
Birthplace: Boston, Massachusetts
Like Sergeant Thompson, Private Mikowski is a consummate professional; only, he doesn't speak like one. Never afraid to give his opinion, and tell the rest of the world 'how it is', Mikowski sees things pretty black and white. Every cause has an effect, and Mikowski is all about causing his own effects.
Also known as "Mick", he is stubborn, quick to criticize ideas, and unafraid to voice his displeasure with any situation that's not perfectly efficient. However he can be very charismatic when relaxed and in a good mood. This isn't often, he's almost always on edge over his family.
It's his family that is the dearest thing to him. It's a tight-knit unit that provided a close, warm upbringing. He lost his dad in a car accident when he was young, and it's been his mom and sisters ever since. A family that was never well off financially, when the new depression started, things went from bad to worse.
Rising fuel prices forced the Mikowskis out of their home because they could no longer afford to heat it or pay the utilities. Nation wide food shortages hit the poorest families first, and it was they who ended up in the ever increasing number of soup kitchens and breadlines.
This alone is what drove Mikowski to the military, to right the wrongs, to get the energy his country needs to 'make things right again', for everyone. His drive made him one of the top soldiers in basic and then out in the field. Always the first to volunteer for a dangerous assignment or take on an extra guard duty rotation, he is an extremely capable marksman, and a clever strategist. Mikowski's work ethic and skill set personifies the ideal coalition soldier. The desperation to help his family has made him hate anything or anyone that stands in the way of the Coalition; such as the Red Star countries. Mikowski is simply here to take out the enemy, fix the problems, and get the hell back home.
Private Lamar Finch
Rank: Private, 1st class
Age: 20
Birthplace: Long Beach, California
Private Finch is a freshly trained countermeasures and air support specialist who is a newcomer to the 125th. Inquisitive about the world around him, and how it's gotten to the state it has, Finch is full of questions. While his knowledge of his expertise is solid, he has misconceptions about the world around him that come as a result of his relative inexperience. His squad mates describe it as his book smarts outweighing his street smarts.
For him, life as a soldier has been a mixed blessing. While requiring him to grow up too quickly, like Mikowski he is still better off than the family he left behind. (To whom they both send their meager pay to every month). Very likeable, the military has in fact saved him from wasting his natural talents in a life of poverty, and has allowed him to develop discipline and flourish. Underneath he is still a boy, sometimes bordering on naïve, and the rest of the team treats him like a popular little brother. He has an optimistic disposition, and unlike many others, sees service as stepping stone to a better life. Despite the ugly things he's seen and been ordered to do, he has big plans for his life and can't wait to get home and get them started.
Corporal Eli Scripps
Rank: Corporal - Second in command behind the acting squad leader.
Age: 26
Birthplace: Detroit, Michigan
Corporal Scripps is the consummate survivor, and the ideal second in command. Strong enough to control any man or situation when called upon, but easily settles down into the backup role. Quick to voice his opinion but just as quick to admit he could be wrong, he's a seasoned veteran for his age and provides valuable experience to any squad that's lucky enough to have him.
Scripp's father had been an auto assembly worker when that was still a good thing to be. When the economy crashed he drank himself to death, stopping only long enough to beat the crap out of his 4 boys and bitter wife. Eli's older brothers joined the service because that was how everyone they knew made themselves useful; send some checks home before you catch a bullet.
Back home, Eli learned that survival in hard times means beating the hell out of others before they beat it out of you. He joined the service the day he was old enough because he couldn't wait to have an excuse to get away from all the family problems. Sometimes when he squeezes the trigger and sees a stream of hot metal take down an enemy, he feels nothing except, 'better him than me'.
Private A.J. Breyley
Rank: Private 2nd class
Age: 24
Birthplace: New Orleans, Louisiana
Private Breyley (BRAY-li), is a confused mix of arrogance, personal uncertainty and animosity. He's relatively worldly and certainly intelligent, but relies on insight from others when it counts. Any imperfections he has are attempted to be hidden by his bravado, and focusing the criticism toward others.
Being from New Orleans, a city formerly known for breasts and booze, he spent a record number of consecutive years during his youth partying it up, starting at the age of 14. Fights, alcohol, prostitutes, cheating so called friends, and getting nabbed for numerous misdemeanors, his hardnosed father sent him to the military for an "education in life". Seemingly brave to others, he actually figures he isn't a person that's worth much to keep around. He figures death is only fair, and likely to be not far off for 'someone like him'.
In the mean time, he's content to do his part for the Coalition, and be a general pain in the ass whenever the mood strikes him. Life for Breyley is just one big exploratory experiment; he's just not quite sure if there are any answers to it that he's willing to accept.
The Commander - General Robert Trainor
Rank: General - Tasked with remote mission command and control.
Age: 48
Birthplace: Great Falls, Montana
A career officer, from a long line of the same, he is a loose example of the grand old West Point/Royal Military College system when it works. Both an educated tactician as well as a strong, confident leader of men, he is an officer who understands the gravity and seriousness of war. He respects the old rules of war, and doesn't flinch when sending his own men 'into the breech' or calling a firestorm onto the enemy, but at night, when he is alone, he prays for the men he lost, even the enemies he indirectly killed.
Working from an offsite command centre, he monitors every detail of the missions he oversees, via satellite, and a mobile, medium-altitude surveillance drone; his 'eye in the sky'. In addition, the feeds from all helmet-mounted cameras on the soldiers under his command are routed directly to his command station.
