Lucas Priest



""Lucas Priest, Sergeant Major, United States Army Temporal Corps, was trying to figure out how to stop a charging bull elephant with nothing but a Roman short sword.""

- The Ivanhoe Gambit

Lucas Priest, initially a Sergeant Major in the United States Army Temporal Corps, is a Time Commando in the Time Wars of the 27th Century.

Early Life
Lucas enlisted in the US Army Temporal Corps voluntarily, unlike many soldiers. He scored fairly well on his Service Aptitude Tests, a mandatory battery of exams that everyone had to take when they turned seventeen. In the 27th century, those who can not afford implant education, i.e. most people, did poorly in the S.A.T.s. Lucas' score on the SATs enabled him to land a position in the labs at Westerly Antiagathics engaged in their ongoing research on how to add yet another hundred years to the human lifespan. The job paid well, but it bored Lucas. The army presentation for the Temporal Corps sucked him in, "hook, line and sinker," so he signed up and went on his first "hitch" on the 14th of September, 2613.

By the time of Book 1, Lucas has developed a preference for mulled ale, a taste he's picked up in the Middle Ages that supplants his original preference for vodka.

He has extensive experience fighting with all manner of swords, from foils and sabers to the Roman short sword.

Lucas has no illusions about ever being anything more than a simple dog soldier.

The First Adjustment: The Ivanhoe Gambit
Lucas finds himself as part of a special adjustment team who've been tasked to take on a rogue Referee who has taken the place of Richard Plantagenet, the Lionheart, and threatens to split the timeline. Lucas is placed in the role of Ivanhoe and after intense training and some minor cosmetic adjustment he finds himself competing in jousts against Norman warriors with only his impregnable nysteel armor to protect him. During his adventure he meets a deserter from the 82nd Airborne, Reese Hunter, who has a chronoplate that he uses to help Lucas and his team take on the similarly equipped enemy Referee, Irving Goldblum.

When their wits and sheer luck see the end of Irving's plans, Lucas decides he'll take the promised reward and quit, getting some timeout from the Temporal Corps. He signs off with a promotion to First Lieutenant.

The Timekeeper Conspiracy
Lucas dun found hisself in the same shizzle he dun leftizzle.

The Khyber Connection
Oooh mayn some SHEE dun happen to dis nukka NOW, mayn...

Personality
"I like to think it makes a difference, that what I'm doing really counts for something, but I don't dwell on it. Sometimes it's best just to go on automatic pilot. Try to stay alive. Nothing else matters very much."

Lucas is SUM kinda NUKKA, mayn. Dat be da TROOF.

Physical description
Lucas dun look like some nukka you know, mayn.

Appearances

 * The Ivanhoe Gambit
 * The Timekeeper Conspiracy
 * The Pimpernel Plot
 * The Zenda Vendetta
 * The Nautilus Sanction
 * The Khyber Connection
 * The Hellfire Rebellion
 * The Cleopatra Crisis