Robert grew up poor. His father, James, was a drunk, and beat on Robert, though his elder brothers often tried their best to shield him. As a result, he became quite hardened at an early age. His mother, Lisa, was a pretty girl. She turned tricks back in Boston, with her Norwegian family having disowned her long ago. She ended up turning over a new leaf with James and the two left the city back in the late 70's, heading for the South.

His twin older brothers, Richard and William, left the family after his father died of cirrhosis back in 1988, seeing that their job was done. Robert was only seven then, and with his mother's influence over him being strong, as it was back then, he lost any and all connections to the two. His mother turned to religion, joining a Baptist Church and leaving behind her Catholicism, after James' death. She became distant toward Robert, though only because he found the whole thing weird. He never was the religious type, maybe because his father always harped on about God in-between the drinking and beatings he gave out.

His uncle, also called Richard, but known as "Ricky" to his friends and family, was part of a gang of sorts. Robbing, mugging, even killing, back in Boston, but Robert never met him or his extended family. From what he heard from his mother, his elder brothers went out and joined him. Good riddance, as far as he cared.

Not that he turned out much better, at least by some estimates, because he ended up joining the army, largely to get away from his mother and her ravings. After basic training, he went on to graduate from Airborne School and then join the 75th Range Regiment.

His time in the Army Rangers would see him deployed on multiple tours in Afghanistan starting from 2003, all the way into the mid 2010s.

Ultimately, Robert would not prefer speaking about his time spent in Afghanistan, especially anything in the early 2000s, as the scars left by those times are still fresh, if hidden from view. The less spoken about the Battles of Fallujah, Korangal or any of the other places now known widely, the better for Robert.

Following his stalwart service and clear capability, he was recruited into the Unit, also known as Delta Force, or more officially the 'Special Forces Detachment-Delta'.

That gig landed Robert a special position concerning Recon, sabotage and plain-clothes operation; Wetwork, all in all. He did things that'll stay classified, killed prominent Terrorist targets, and was involved in rescue operations not touted in the news.

In the end, all he got for over two decades of service were hands covered in more blood than any amount of alcohol or drugs could wash away.

All those years away also kept him from catching onto his mother's degrading state, and while he was in Syria, he was told she had been diagnosed with Alzheimer's. Of course, he couldn't return, not until the job was done.

At least his superiors were happy enough to give him leave for a time... which only proved the sheer distance that had grown between him and his mother- not at all helped by her deteriorating mental state.

She would die less than a year before the Mist came... and Robert? Well, he had been off-duty, living what could be called the 'good life', at least for someone as hollowed out as him.

That is, before his home-state went to shit- and he was called to active duty, due to his position. He was supplied by dead-drop, and linked up with some others to do recon, hunt down Xenos and assist any remaining survivors in Kentucky- or at least that's what he's told anyone who had to know why exactly why he was out in the monster-ridden Misty hellhole formerly known as Kentucky.

Of course, even those facts were also on a 'need-to-know' basis- for he was plain-clothed, hardly looking like the stereotypical soldier. The truth was a lot less clear, and Robert himself had clear, if fairly vague orders. He was to ensure the continued survival of those scientists and doctors who were knowledgeable about Xenos out in the Mist- at least until the Government could extract them off to parts unknown.

Following those orders to the letter has become increasingly difficult, of course, as even a Lieutenant like him, a Special Forces Operator, has all-but lost contact with the central government. That wasn't anything truly new to someone focused on long-range reconnaissance, but still... things were really starting to look FUBAR, even to Robert.