Neil Harris

Neil Harris is the fifth Hero to bear the name Striker and is the titular character of the Striker V series. He is voiced primarily by Patrick Boylan, but is also voiced by Adrianna Gentile and Melinda Beck during their stories.

## Biographical Information

### Cause of Death

Numerous causes including pushed off a building, electrocution, gunshot to head

## Abilities

### Secondary

Sift, Enhanced eyesight, Enhanced hearing

## Biography

### Early Life and Training

Neil Harris was born on April 14, 1984. He first showed signs of Superpowers at the age of five, when he accidentally flipped over his father's car. Shortly after, he was adopted by the Caretakers, beginning his training shortly after.

During his training, he underwent extreme testing to determine the limits of his abilities, namely his regeneration.

In September 1999, during Hurricane Floyd, Neil and Erica Ramirez were engaged in a sexual encounter, in which Neil was utilizing his touch telepathy. A sudden lightning strike hitting a nearby transformer caused a low-grade electromagnetic pulse, which shorted out his telepathy, causing him to vomit. Over the ensuing months, he would begin flirting with Jeffrey Lyons. Neil would later break up with Erica in order to date Jeff.

### Associateship

In 2000, Neil would be hired by Jake Dietrich, the Fourth Striker, as his associate. The two would become incredibly close to one another, with Jake taking on a strong mentor figure in Neil's life. Neil would often refer to Jake as his brother, and occasionally as the closest thing he ever had to a father. Neil shared virtually everything with Jake, and the two sifted numerous times.

While on an assignment aboard the *U.S.S. Enterprise* to move a megaladon shark to safer water, Neil confided in Jake that Jeff had broken up with him very recently.

### Career as Striker

Shortly after Striker IV's death at the hands of the Crxtzyl Archqueen, Neil was granted the title of Striker, becoming the fifth in the nameline.

### Elemental Crisis

In August 2017, Neil was attacked by Erica Ramirez, seemingly unprovoked. Before that point, he had thought they were close friends.

Neil's actions caused Colonel Ray to assign him a sidekick. While the final choice was his, he was instructed to select one by the end of the day. With the help of Coral Rogers and Mike Brodsky, he selected Tykie Georgiou.

On Tykie's first day as as Associate

### In the Meantime

In August 2018, Neil found that he was largely content with his life at the time. While work was still busy, he was glad that things had slowed down enough for him to focus on his personal life. While there were very few changes for him personally, he happily supported his friends and husband who were undergoing major changes of their own.

### Forgotten Memories

October 2020 saw more major changes for Neil. Within the span of a week, he was shot in the head by Greg Willenkin, Evan's biological father passed away, Kyle Song was murdered by Greg Willenkin, Neil absorbed Kyle's memories in the final moments before his death, and he spearheaded the search for the Forgotten. He found the experience overwhelming. The stress of the combined events caused a temporary rift between him and Evan, which only worsened the crisis.

### The Striker Snapback

In February 2022, Neil was largely out of commission due to the ongoing Vampire Pandemic.

## Abilities

### Strength

Neil's primary ability is Super Strength, making him a Force-class Hero.

### Extreme Regeneration

"FUCK THAT HURTS!" - Neil, while recovering from being shot in the head

While many Heroes possess regenerative abilities, Neil's has been shown to go far beyond typical limits. He has been shown to recover from virtually any injury even if they temporarily end his life. His regeneration is so strong that he is able to sustain a gunshot to the head that obliterates his brain, and recover with his entire mind intact.

Despite that he recovers every time, the pain is overwhelming and excruciating in the process. Even during life-ending events, he is shown to experience it in slow-motion reverse.

## Deaths

Neil has died numerous times, although his extreme regeneration has thus far kept any of these from being permanent. His most common form of death is falling from great heights, although he has also died from electrocution and a gunshot to the head.

## Personality

Neil is more intelligent than he gives himself credit.

In the first book, Neil is shown to be nihilistic to the point where he is almost actively searching for death. After Erica transplants a part of herself into his mind, his mind is reset to its default settings and he is able to think clearly again. This continues through the remainder of the series.

Neil is ambitious and likes to get to the root of problems. He can become obsessive when looking for solution. Examples of this included when he tried to remove That Little Voice from his mind, creating a cooking class alongside Erica Ramirez, and finding the Forgotten. He is expressly food-motivated, though he gives very little consideration for its nutritional benefits and balance. Mike Brodsky once noted that Neil’s ambitious nature, laziness, and food motivation can clash to the point where personal injury results.

## Relationships

### Erica Ramirez

Erica is one of Neil's closest and oldest friends, meeting when they were in training together in the mid-1990s. They had a brief romantic relationship that ended when Neil discovered his bisexuality and wanted to explore that part of himself. Despite the breakup, they remained very close during their separate careers as Heroes, with Erica often flying to visit Neil and their other colleagues for drinks after work. In the events leading up the Elemental Crisis, Erica was keenly aware that Neil's mental health was slipping by the day. She pointed out to him that

Neil and Erica rarely say anything kind to one another. However, they make it clear that they care for each other deeply.

### Evan Hill

Evan is Neil's husband. The had known each other since Neil moved to Orlando.

### Jeffrey Lyons

Jeff is a former boyfriend of Neil's. He broke up with Neil after he was offered the Prime position of Flare Knight in New York City.

### Jacob Dietrich

Jake was Neil's Prime, mentor, father-figure, and friend during his tenure as the fourth Hero to bear the name Striker. He would often provide guidance to Neil, and comfort him when things were difficult. One example was when Neil was visibly upset during a mission to relocate a Megaladon shark. Neil confided that Jeff had broken up with him. Jake offered his condolences and explained that Neil's sift would allow him to connect with many people in many ways.

After Jake was killed in the line of duty, Neil was emotionally devastated, becoming increasingly reclusive from his work and personal life. Neil visited Jake's grave often afterward. During one visit, Lucian noted that Jake continued to keep tabs on Neil in the afterlife and would often speak fondly of Neil when their paths crossed.

## Appearances

Neil appears in every book in the series. He is the sole perspective in Elements of Change and In Memory except for two interludes. The only novella where he does not make a physical appearance is *Lucan: A Careful Balance*.

## Alternate Versions

There have been more alternate versions of Neil shown than any other character. During the events of Each Moving Piece, the Striker Snapback pulls 3,872 alternate universe versions of Neil into the prime universe. Many of these were direct offshoots of Neil's personal timeline. However, 3% were cataloged to have resulted from entirely different realities.

In order to keep the versions organize, each was assigned a nickname. Several notable examples include:

* Chancellor
* Fry
* Vampire Neils