One thing that becomes more and more noticeable over time is the
competition within Ground ZERO, 'who is the
perfect soldier.'
It's easy to begin with a definition of the perfect soldier. The person who plays Damien Sage describes him as a 'being without emotions, someone whose object is so set on the mission that he does not see or process anything else. At the same time, a person who follows orders but knows when to go against them." Others think the perfect soldier, or the best soldier is someone who can get the job done, is well skilled, yet still humane. Katrianya Esperanza quotes, "[Someone] strong, of course. Not just of body, but of mind and spirit. He/she has to have passion for their cause, and a willingness to help in any way they can. They have to be able to interact with those who work with them, have a sense of compassion and kindness, and strong sense of decency. They need to be able to define exactly what it is they're fighting for, and stick to it. They need to be able to feel, and be affected by things, even if they don't always show it. But even the best cry, have hurt feelings, and experience joy. It's the time and place they express it which makes the difference." The final definition of the perfect soldier is one without any thought, any emotion. A mechanical angel who only does what its programmed to do, nothing more, nothing less.
Another question that can be brought into the discussion is: whether or not a soldier is made, created in a lab or genetically enhanced, or trained. It can be debated that those soldiers who are altered at one point by scientists cannot be considered a perfect soldier, because they are no longer human. The unfair advantage takes them out of the equation. Wesley Ackcronon and John Browne were created to be the way they are, their strengths and skills are a result of their genetic make-up. Other soldiers, like Chris Din and Damien Sage, were trained to be what they are. They had to work to become perfect, to become the best. The result of their abilities is what should be weighed, not the advantages surrounding their birth.
Many would argue that it is Damien Sage, - "He IS the perfect soldier" (Axel Thompson Jr, After the havoc) - not only because he is Doctor J's pet project, or that he is a Heero Yuy rip-off, but because he writes his character with a depth and realism that would apply to a person with the psyche of Heero Yuy; " Dr. J's failed experiment. To someone like Sage, whom everyone thought was the perfect soldier" (Amy Westwood, Hell hath no fury [revised]). Sage is devoid of humanity, mechanical, without thought, yet intelligent and aggressive. At the same time he is not over the top (yet). In his writing he does not over emphasis his traits, but rather reveals them through his writing and dialog - which for the most part is simple.
The expectations extended to Sage also regard him as 'the perfect soldier', 'the best.' People expect him to be the best, they expect him to be inhuman.
Alana ignored him. "Why did you lose?"
There was another small pause suggesting unsaid
things. "...He drugged me."
"Is that an excuse?" Sage making excuses.
- Counselor Alana. Good Morning, Sage.
However, returning to Sage's early definition of what the perfect soldier is, immediately eliminates him from that category. "A person who follows orders but knows when to go against them." But “he couldn't disobey orders. It went against his training, his every being, or other things whimsical like that" (Damien Sage, rescued by the trickster priest?). A trait that had been grinded into him. "He had been taught that a soldier wasn't suppose to have questions or opinions" (Damien Sage, normalcy is a word).
Therefore, Sage is not the perfect soldier.
Wesley Ackcronon also claims to be the perfect soldier - "Every part of my body and mind is enhanced. The perfect soldier they said..." (Wesley Ackcronon, let's not). - or at least have traits associated with being the perfect soldier. Before further study into this character can be made, it must be understood where he is coming from. "Wesley Ackcronon is the result of the genetic engineering experiment of OZ. He was created as a cross between a Human and a Wolf, the next stage of a battle field" (Wesley Ackcronon - Biography). Wesley was created to be the perfect soldier.
Most of Wesley's advantages are a result of his physical make-up. "Shame he can't heal at the rate I do, almost instant. But then again, he's not me" (Wes - training begins). A higher healing rate, muscle, sight, smell, and tone enhancement. At the same time, all of Wesley's disadvantages surround the fact that he was genetically created, that he is part wolf. As Yokazuma Hikari comments, "he can't be the perfect soldier because he can't go out in public." A perfect soldier must be able to adapt into any situation. Bringing a six foot wolf to a dinner party would be conspicuous.
The next subject is Yokazuma Hikari.
Which brings up the question: can a woman be a perfect soldier? This ties into on-going American and UK debates on allowing women in front line combat. The arguments ranging from the fact that women will disturb the Spartan ideal of "brothers-in-arms", to sexual scandals - in the Gulf War it was reported that one in every three female recruits was sent back to the States because she had become pregnant while serving her country - , to the idea that women are not stronger than men (a army study mobilizing 30 women for a 24 week training endurance program of local female volunteers, most of which were not enlisted in the United States army, disproved this theory; at the end of the course 73% of the participants graduated with the physical strengths/abilities of a male soldier coming out of boot camp.), and finally: women cannot handle the emotional stress associated with killing another person. If anyone reading these reasons believe them to be true, then they cannot honestly agree that a woman can be a perfect soldier.
"Hikari Yokazuma. Not a lot was said about the other perfect soldier, but Kat had a lot more respect for her than she did for Sage. People who can admit, at least to themselves, that they screwed up have a lot more going for them than ones who can't" (Katrianya Esperanza - The Team). Hikari is cold and emotionless. She will do what she has to do to get the job done. "Her attitude was more cold, more professional than that of Sage. To Hikari, she stained her hands in the interests of survival. She neither needed the thrill of the kill nor completely enjoyed it. Hikari fought with a detached interest" (Birdie - Musing).
She is however, more rebellious against her superiors than a perfect soldier could be, as evident in the way she treated Katrianya in Mission: Black Dragon. "The girl had bested her, so she listened out of a twisted humility from defeat. But nothing else past her assignment really sunk in. She was going to do this without any hitches. She was going to make up for that blunder in the battle royale. Even if it meant obeying the person that had destroyed her" (Yokazuma Hikari - Kat's at the helm).
Her backings as a one of the best is enhanced by her abilities as a writer, as is Sage, Alexander Chamberline, and Chris Din. Not only is she accomplished in the way she writes normally, but her take on Hikari - the way she expresses the character - is realistic and appropriate given her background. According to Victoria Krasnow, "You're given more leeway when you're a good writer, and you're believable."
Hikari's emotional hang-ups are more exposed than the other perfect soldier potentials. It's very apparent in her mental dialog, "You don't need anyone. YOU NEVER NEEDED ANYONE" (Yokazuma Hikari - I am my own worst enemy). Hikari does not necessarily want to be the best, but is fiercely competitive with Damien Sage. Hikari does and doesn't want to be the perfect soldier.
Alexander Chamberlain has been proposed as a potential perfect soldier. Though he lacks the Heero Yuy personality, Chamberlain fits into the category of ultimate character. "Alexander Chamberlain considered himself a first rate tactician and brilliant strategist" (Alexander Chamberlain - Water Mission). The assumption stemming mostly from his post 'The Ego Has Landed' where he not only blatantly ignores his own safety, but disobeys orders.
"I won't be needing this," Chamberlain said, dropping the wetsuit
upon the ground before X. "I've just never really been into the
whole
rubber fetish, and besides, unlike Ms. Rutherton or
Ms. Parker, I
don't look good in tights. They make me look fat."
Chamberlain sorted through the rest of his equipment.
He looked the
goggles, and then begrudgingly dropped them at
X's feet.
"I don't think I'll take those either," Chamberlain
explained. "They
just aren't my style, and besides, I doubt their
my prescription
either."
The last thing in Chamberlain's hands was breathing apparatus. He
scanned over the object for a couple minutes, sighing as he did
though. He ran his hands across the oxygen tank especially.
It could
make an interesting weapon, but if it came to that, he
could borrow
someone else's after the long swim.
"No, I don't think I'll be needing these either," Chamberlain said,
looking into the instructor's eyes. "I'm full of hot air as it is. It
won't hurt me one bit to suck it in for a while."
The question on whether or not Alexander Chamberlain is proclaiming to be a perfect soldier will be discarded. "He's a gag character," Damien Sage argues, "like Miguel [Cellous, Absolute Destiny] or [Xiang] Yung-Sun [also on the Absolute Destiny.] you can't take them seriously."
Other characters claim to be the best, Chris Din for example, "My generation allows me to have strength and speed beyond most of the others in Ground Zero, except perhaps those with more experience...although I'm starting to think the raw energy within my body is far more than previous recruits" (Chris Din - Feeling Stupid). John Browne entered L2 training under the assumption that he would be or would become The Perfect Soldier. "He wasn't what S expected to find in a perfect soldier. S [sic] was painfully aware of the boy's action record and skill level" (Doctor S - The New Minions). Interestingly enough, according to Victoria Krasnow, "his biography was almost rejected but another GM talked me into taking it," Bruce Delaney, through private conversations, was intended to be an excellent or perfect soldier, but the character never followed through.
So far, Damien Sage, Yokazuma Hikari, and Wesley Ackcronon hold the running. It's easy to pick favorites. Damien Sage is the ideal of the perfect drone, the mechanical angel. Yokazuma Hikari is independent and considerate, willing to go against orders, but efficient. Wesley Ackcronon is the compassionate warrior Katrianya describes. Others can be considered, such as Roslaid Deveraux or Krieg Romanov. But in the end it turns down to who you like more. Which definition best fits what you consider the perfect soldier.
Or maybe, there just isn’t a “perfect” soldier.