A group of highly competent black ops soldiers led by Rico. They first appeared in Personal Demons.
History[]
Rico’s team began as a unit of the United States Army. It was commanded and presumably created by Colonel Dalton McGinley and led by Rico. Lorelei claimed McGinley as her prey and killed him for unspecified sins. The fallout from the investigation of his death led to the team’s very quiet expulsion from the army.[1][2]
They were recruited by the Family who used them to recover lost artifacts, to organize security, and as very competent muscle.[3][4]
On a retrieval mission in Iraq in January they were betrayed by their guide Yusuf, an efreet in disguise. Two of their members were killed, including their occult expert.[5] They were saved by the sudden appearance of Alex Carlisle, who had been teleported there during the Battle of the Casino.[6]
The team and Alex worked together to escape, though they remained deeply suspicious of one another.[6] When Dwayne discovered a picture of Lorelei on Alex’s phone they attempted to subdue him. Alex escaped while their vehicle was pursued by several Iraqi combatants.[7] The team extracted from Iraq, having successfully retrieved Gerhardt Stein’s bones.[5]
The team accompanied Michiko in a raid on the Alexandrian Museum of Antiquities in March.[3]
The team organized security at the Family party in Vancouver, where they encountered Alex and Lorelei again. They became increasingly frustrated with the way the Family neglected their concerns about the two, and Wade Reinhardt managed to drive this wedge further.[8][9] As a result, they decided to abandon their employers rather than fight against Alex and his friends at the start of the Battle of the Silver Delta.[10]
Their current status is unknown, but it can be assumed that they safely reached land after they left the Silver Delta.[11]
Members[]
- Rico (leader)
- Austin (machine gunner)
- Carter (medic)
- Dwayne (second in command and sniper)
- Wes (driver)
- Bryce (deceased)
- Unnamed occult expert (deceased)
In addition, they had regularly worked with the interpreter and guide Yusuf in Iraq.
Theories[]
The team raises the question if the US military had or has an organisation devoted to magic and the supernatural, similar to the FBI Special Task Force. This is also discussed by Alex and Colleen Nguyen.[12]
Lorelei says that McGinley was guilty of “horrible deeds” and that he was “well-connected”, but does not state any supernatural connections outright.[1] On the other hand, Rico’s report after the Iraq mission implies their “occult expert” was an integral member of the team, and Lorelei’s statement that McGinley was “well-connected” could very well imply connections in the Shadows or to demons, especially given that it was said to Roman, a highly capable Practitioner.[5][4] That Rico calls Yusuf an “extraordinary factor” also sounds like established military terminology for magic or supernatural beings.[6] Dwayne matter-of-factly asks for Alex’s advice on how to live with supernatural encounters and events.[7]
The fact that the actions and dismissal of Rico’s team were kept off any offical records is another possible indication of involvement with the Shadows.[2]
Most known examples of muscle for Practitioners or Circles have been highly loyal and sometimes also deferential. Rico and his team were an exception to this. Some possible reasons for this might be:
- They had been recruited as an already close-knit group with their own loyalties and concerns
- They had only been with the Family for a limited time
- They had largely been working independently from the Family on retrieval missions
References[]
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 Past Due, chapter 8
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 Past Due, chapter 23
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 Past Due, chapter 4
- ↑ 4.0 4.1 Past Due, chapter 13
- ↑ 5.0 5.1 5.2 Personal Demons, Epilogue
- ↑ 6.0 6.1 6.2 Personal Demons, chapter 9
- ↑ 7.0 7.1 Personal Demons, chapter 12
- ↑ Past Due, chapter 16
- ↑ Past Due, chapter 21
- ↑ Past Due, chapter 24
- ↑ Past Due, chapter 25
- ↑ Personal Demons, chapter 25