Background

Varis Babicevs has a somewhat checkered past. Before being conscripted into the Soviet army, Varis was an enforcer for a small-time Latvian crime syndicate specializing in gambling, prostitution, and the smuggling of various black market commodities through the port city (and Latvian capital) of Riga.

As a motorized rifleman in the Soviet army, Varis fought in several campaigns in Eastern Europe. His service record was anything but exemplary and Varis' frequent run-ins with the Soviet military justice system resulted in his being posted to a penal battalion. Having firsthand witnessed the calous disregard for human life- his own, first and formost- accepted (if not espoused) by the Soviet Army, Varis deserted, crossing through NATO lines during a "mine clearing" operation. For the penal battalion, such an operation consisted of marching across enemy mine fields, usually under fire, and "finding" (i.e. detonating) the mines, before the main assault force launched their attack. Any hesitancy to complete the mission as ordered was instantly rewarded with a 9mm Makarov bullet in the back of the head.

After surrendering (Varis prefers the term "defecting") to American forces in southwestern Poland, Varis spent several months in NATO POW camps in Germany, before convincing his captors that his hatred for the Soviet Union was genuine. He'd picked up a smattering of English during his days "working" in Riga's black market (by listening to smuggled English-language pop and rock music tapes, and watching bootlegged copies of American movies on Betamax cassettes); as a result, Varis was selected to serve as a scout/translator for the 8th Infantry Division during its planned deep-penetration raid along the Baltic coast into southern Latvia. Since joining the 8th, Varis hasn't necessarily been a model soldier, but he has proven himself an ardent anti-communist and a tough fighter. When the 8th, strung out across miles of the northern Polish countryside, started to disintegrate, Varis was sent west to find a unit of stragglers. He found them, and now searches with them for what remains of their parent formation. Varis is a loyal friend and a competent soldier, but he has a hair-trigger temper and propensity for trying to solve interpersonal conflicts with his fists instead of his words.

Appearance

Varis stands 5'7.5", with a wiry build. His receding hairline, narrowly set, sunken, grey eyes, and sallow, waxy complexion all conspire to make him appear at least a decade older than his 28 years. Varis is generally a cheerful fellow and his easy smile, which he flashes often, reveals a couple of missing teeth. Only Varis' mother, who died of lung cancer when he was only 18, ever called Varis handsome. This doesn't stop him from frequently trying his luck with the ladies.

From a distance, Varis could easily be mistaken for a marauder. He currently wears a Polish winter fatigue jacket in wz93 Pantera camouflage pattern over a gray sweater, khaki Soviet "Afghanka" winter fatigue trousers, brown work boots, and Soviet 'Poyas' A + B Liftchik chest rig over U.S. PAGST body armor (woodland pattern camouflage). He wears an OD triangular bandage as a neckerchief. In combat, Varis dons a U.S. Army Kevlar helmet that's been spray-painted with a crude camouflage pattern (in faded black), on top of a black balaclava (which he wears rolls up like a watch cap when not in combat). His primary weapon is an AK-105 with an underslung GP-25 grenade launcher, which he wields like a sniper. A Colt M1911A1 in a U.S. Army standard-issue holster hangs on his right hip.

Wounds

7-31-2000 Gdansk, Poland
Bullet graze across left side of abdomen

8-4-2000 Gdansk, Poland
Wound from grenade shrapnel in right heel.

9-2-2000 Near Czestochowa, Poland
Graze from rifle bullet, inside left thigh; wounds from grenade shrapnel in buttocks, underside left arm, left earlobe, and back of head

10-12-2000 Gdansk, Poland
Bullet wound (ricochet) to right forearm

10-19-2000 East of Sobieszewo Island, Poland
Concussion (from anti-personnel mine and fall from Iltis)

10-22-2000 Kepki, Poland
Graze from KPV round along underside left forearm

12-08-2000 Southwest of Łęcze, Poland
Slingshot projectile to upper lip
Grenade shrapnel wounds to left forearm (embedded) and shoulder
Gunshot wounds to right thigh (1) and torso (2) [serious-critical]

12-15-2000 Sienna Grobla District, Gdansk
Shrapnel wounds & burns to both thighs [slight]

12-17-2000 Gdansk, Poland
Grade II concussion

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