James-319

"If you can‘t laugh at life, you don‘t deserve to be alive."

- Mica-311

Petty Officer Second Class James-319 (full name James Anders Kim  at birth, also known by the designations Sierra-Three-One-Nine and Codename: CRIMSON THREE) was a highly advanced computer hacker and demolition specialisst of the UNSC Navy during the last days of the Human-Covenant War as a SPARTAN-II Commando of Project ARES, the third class of the SPARTAN-II Program, serving in the Special Operations Detachment Crimson Team. Taking part of several notable battles during the war, including the Siege of Paris IV, the Battle of Sigma Octanus IV, the Battle of Earth, and the Battle of Dosiac, he was badly injured on Sigma Octanus and was forced to spend several months aboard the UNSC Hopeful in recovery before being redployed for the Inner Colony liberations, eventually meeting his end during the Battle of Dosiac.

Born on the inner colony world of Draco Three, Jame‘s life early life was tumultuous. Born to a pair of Wikipedia:Illegal immigration:illegal immigrant refugees, his family lived off the grid and floated from job to job, looking for any work they could find. Growing in this troubled environment, James quickly developed the ability to laugh at life, a defense system to block out his problems. When he was four, however, his parents were killed in a freak packbus accident, and James was left an orphan. This event, though traumatizing for the young child, eventually changed his life in ways he could never imagine.

Living in an orphanage, James was finally put on the grid, and it was the medical scans he underwent during this time that brought him to the attention of Captain Griffin Standoff, a navy liaison for the newly conceived ARES Program. In 2540, the young orphan was interviewed by the officer, and in the following weeks, agents of the Office of Naval Intelligence] ]forcibly abducted him from his temporary home, faking an adoption deal and transporting him to secret [[Covert Operations Group|COG Training grounds on Tantalus.

Arriving on the planet, James was introduced to his new life as a potential SPARTAN-II Supersoldier, and was immediately placed in Spartan 501, alongside Roger-341, Mica-311, Maggie-327, and Jacob-303. Under the watchful eye of his primary instructor, Laszlo-108, and the program’s head DI, Dean Jackson, James and his teammates would strive to become the best soldiers possible, pushing themselves to their limits and becoming one of the top rated teams in the program. After the completion of eight years of grueling training in 2548, James and his fellow trainees underwent augmentation, becoming true SPARTANs but taking 40% losses. In the end, two members of Crimson, Maggie-327 and Jacob-303, both met their demise and was reformed into a three man team.

Following their graduation, Crimson was deployed into the field, heading to the far reaches of UNSC space to combat the Covenant Empire in their ongoing crusade against humanity. Deployed to the outermost remaining colonies, Crimson saw action in theatres such as Omega Indi, Pearl III, Cyrus VII, and Algol, fighting against increasingly long odds in a desperate struggle to hold back the alien horde.

In late December of 2549, Crimson’s chances would improve when they recovered several suits of experimental MJOLNIR Mark V(CQC), Mark V(B) and Mark V/MP Armor. Procuring the suits without ONI’s permission, they pulled favors with their former commander Colonel Griffin Standoff and were allowed to keep their suits, allowing them to be equipped and deployed as “true” SPARTANs. With the advanced new armor augmenting their abilities, Crimson Team rose to become one of the most effective special forces units in all of NAVSPECWAR, quickly outpacing their Spartan II Class III brethren and rivaling groups like Herald, Gentry, Noble, and even original Class I SPARTAN-IIs, including the clandestine group  Spartan Black and the elite Gray Team.

With their abilities and effectiveness magnified by their new systems, they continued to deploy against Covenant forces, and were able to survive tougher and tougher assignments. Serving with distinction in theatres such as Hellas, Paris IV, Draco III, and Verent, they would be deployed alongside Scarlet Team for an extended joint deployment on Sargasso in 2551. Their success continued without pause until 2552, when Crimson was deployed to Sigma Octanus IV to supplement the force of Class I SPARTAN-IIs already on the planet.

During this mission, disaster struck, and James was critically injured while retreating from a Covenant ambush. Hanging by a thread, James was shuttled to the UNSC Hopeful, and revived by the medical technicians aboard the ship. With extensive plasma burns and a variety of internal and external injuries, James was in no condition to fight, and had to be left on the ship while the rest of his team were recalled to Reach for redeployment. While his team was busy defending the Epsilon Eridani System from the enemy, James put into a recovery program, to rehabilitate him from his injuries. Pressing through the program at lightning speed, he dumbfounded the medical personnel there with his fast recovery and lighthearted attitude.

James finished the normally thirteen month program in under five months, and by early November of 2552, he was combat ready once again. Forced to remain aboard the Hopeful while it sat out the climactic Battle of Earth, he was finally redeployed near the end of the month when it was deemed safe for the hospital ship to enter the system. Reunited with his team as they assisted with the liberation of the rest of the Sol System, James was introduced to and paired with a group of Separatist special operations elites, led by the former Honor Guard Sunef ‘Mhackphistho.

Participating in the liberation of the rest of the Sol System, Crimson continued to operate under the direct oversight of Lord Hood, who had taken an interest in the team following the Battle of Voi. Continuing to operate under his personal orders throughout the rest of the Inner Colony liberations, Crimson fought with valor in theatres such as New Jerusalem and Chi Rho and the pacification of Te, Eayn, Palamok, and Balaho. Deployed as the personal team of Lord Hood, it was impossible to maintain the secrecy of the team, and their exploits during the Inner Colony liberations became widely known throughout both the military and civilian populace.

Gaining prominence, Crimson became one of HIGHCOM’s favored units, and was first in line for a mission as an advance force spearhead a full scale assault on the Brute home world of Doisac. Charged with taking down the Covenant’s planetary shields, they were deployed blind, with no support, and no chance of extraction until the mission was completed. Though the enemy force’s were projected to have been light, in reality it was a last ditch Covenant trap, and Mica-311 and a large portion of the Special Forces Elites were separated from Mica, Roger, and ‘Mhackphistho and massacred. Forced to leave them behind, the remaining survivors pushed on to the shield generator and destroyed it, completing their mission. As they attempted to exfiltrate, however, several Brute chieftains attacked them, and a vicious melee ensued. Caught with low ammo and still weighed down somewhat from his injuries on Sigma Octanus, James was unable to fend off the enemy and was killed by a gravity hammer blow to the chest.

Behind the Scenes

 * James’s personality, dialogue, and elements of his skill set were influenced by RC-1207 “Sev” from Star Wars: Republic Commando.
 * Several of James’ quotes are drawn from real life phrases spoken by the author’s family and friends.
 * James also parallels RC-3222 “Atin” and 1140 “Fixer” with his talents for computer hacking.
 * The pictures depicting James were drawn primarily from the image gallery site Hegemony Loves Halo.

Trivia

 * James functions as both the demolitions and technical specialist for his team, but prefers explosive entry.
 * James is more prone to specializtion than his team members, and prefers close quarters combat and explosives.
 * James was regarded as one of the joker of the ARES Program, taking after his instructor Laszlo-108..
 * James along with Roger-341 and Mica-311, were some of the only members of the ARES Program to be outfitted with MJOLNIR Powered Assault Armor
 * James’ mother was of eastern descent, but his father was of western origins. His father decided to take his mother’s last name, but they agreed that all of their children would have westernized first names.

Internal

 * Spartan II Class III
 * Laszlo-108
 * Mark V/CQC and Mark V/MP MJOLNIR Powered Assault Armor
 * Scarlet Team
 * Brown Team (Leonidans)
 * Covert Operations Group
 * Dean Jackson
 * Crimson Team
 * Ares Logs
 * Roger-341
 * Mica-311

External

 * SPARTAN-II Program on Halopedia
 * Office of Naval Intelligence on Halopedia
 * MJOLNIR Powered Assault Armor/Mark V on Wikipedia