Asim Nicostrato ("Nico" to his friends) is a well-built man with a neatly trimmed beard. He enjoys jazz, reads detective stories and is a zealous Corporatist. Corporatists worship the various megacorporations as deities, believing that the corporations have transcended whatever profit motives they may have begun with the way that humans transcended purely genetic drives, and are now guiding their human employees to greater things. Nico, a lifelong corporate citizen of TRI Interstellar, has reasonably enough chosen it as his patron, and is fervent in his belief that TRI has a plan for him.
Corporatists tend not to get promoted - their loyalty is unquestionable, but most psych evaluations mark the belief as a significant delusion, and irreligious corporate drone-types get uncomfortable around them. That Nico is the leader of a tactical squad is proof that his beliefs have in no way hindered his skills - If anything, his belief that he does the will of TRI drives him to excel. He's long since given up on trying to push his beliefs on his fellow troopers, choosing instead to lead by example. This has had mixed results - A few soldiers have taken interest in the source of Nico's calm, particularly considering the alien horrors that he regularly encounters, but the only genuine believer he managed to find died on the very next mission after his conversion. A lesser man might have had his faith shaken - the other potential converts certainly did. Nico considers it all part of TRI's plan, and soldiers on.
Man, did I really say this was going to be a weekly series? Shows you shouldn't presume that inspiration is going to strike with any kind of regular frequency. Also, this was the result of reading far, far too many of Dark Horse's Aliens comics.
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