Entry 12
By: J. Ross

Name: Mike O'Malley

Michael O'Malley was born to a low income family in Fort Worth, Texas in 1980. At an early age he learned of the inequalities and injustices between the rich and poor, the strong and weak. Even in grade school, O'Malley was trouble, eventually getting sent to reform school after crippling six of the worst bullies in his grade. Even then his troubles didn't stop, with him constantly taking the wrong actions for what he thought were the right reasons. Finally, on his graduation in 1999, he was given two choices: Enlist or go to jail. He joined the Army, where he quickly proved his latent combat skills. He was eventually tapped to join the Special Forces when trouble reared it's head again. His unit was in Afghanistan, helping to root out Taliban strongholds, when he discovered his commanding officer torturing and killing villagers for information. Mike O'Malley promptly punched out the C.O. , seizing his pistol and shooting the officer in the chest with his own gun. O'Malley was court martialled and imprisoned. However, after all of the facts of the incident were revealed, he was freed but dishonorably discharged from the service. After a series of jobs, none of which he held for long, O'Malley got into security work. He enjoyed the work, but hated some of the people he had to work for. Finally, he decided to go into business for himself. Using contacts he had made in the Army and in his security work, he began hiring his skills out to whoever would pay him. He started with small mercenary groups, joining anyone he could learn from, building his finances and skills until he was ready to strike out on his own. Within four years he became a soldier of fortune worthy of commanding top dollar prices for his services. He has "worked" in nearly every major country in the world, and always finds time to learn whatever special skills he can from the natives, from the hunting techniques of the Australian Aborigines, to the arts of the Japanese Samurai sword, to the skills of Swiss banking and Wall street investors. He speaks twenty different languages fluently and has studied at least twelve different Martial Arts, including Karate, Judo, Coppeira, and Ninjutsu. He has mastered a wide variety of weapons, from modern firearms and explosives, to the latest advanced weapons systems, to ancient and esoteric weapons such as bows, blowguns, shuriken and nearly every type of hand held weapon known to man. He is an accomplished marksman, demolition and survival expert. In his mercenary career, O'Malley has done everything from bodyguarding to assassination, gun running in Central America to guarding South African diamond shipments, sabotaging opium smuggling in Southeast Asia to stealing an experimental aircraft from Lockheed's "Skunk Works". He has worked for everyone from corporate giants to small militia groups to criminal organizations to world leaders, and has operated in every corner of the globe. O'Malley follows only two rules: never leave a job unfinished and keep his word as his bond. He always remains loyal to whoever he has a contract with, at least until the contract has been fulfilled. However, if an employer betrays him or their intentions prove false before the job is finished, he will bring his full wrath on that individual or organization. Though he maintains bases and safe houses all over the world, his home base is in the small town of Longbow Bluff, New Mexico. O'Malley's income helps keep the tiny desert town (with a population of less than three hundred) afloat, thus he has the full support of the local police and citizens, who keep his presence a secret. Under the town is hidden a sprawling subterranean compound consisting of living quarters, supply rooms, a training compound, an extensive armory and a small motor pool containing cars, trucks, armored vehicles and several aircraft. Even with the many weapons in his arsenal, Mike O'Malley has several favorites, including a customized SA-80 Light Support Weapon / M203 Grenade Launcher combo, which has been modified to be as accurate as a sniping rifle when set to single-shot mode, and a rare "five body blade" Katana he "acquired" in Japan that is believed to be nearly four hundred years old, which he often wields as an extremely deadly close-quarters weapon. He has a large network of people that help him make contact with prospective employers and help cover his tracks afterward. Though he has built a reputation as a man who will do anything, anytime, anywhere for anyone who will pay enough, there is another side to Mike O'Malley. While his code of honor will not allow him to betray an employer, once his contract is fulfilled all bets are off. He will often secretly gather information about their dirty dealings or organizations to later turn over to the local authorities or government after the job is finished. Sometimes he even fights on both sides of a conflict, but never at the same time. He has often worked for a tyrant or dictator, and then gone to the local resistance groups with info on any weaknesses that can aid in the despot's overthrow. He will sometimes even covertly fight for these groups, pro bono. His only request is that his involvement is never revealed. His aid to government organizations such as the American CIA, Russian FSB, and British MI5 have led to them giving him a more or less free hand in his operations, as well as allowing him to work with and learn from such elite military groups as the Delta Force, Spetsnaz, and the SAS. While Mike O'Malley has become one of the world's best mercenaries only time and history will decide if he is a villain, hero, or both.