literature

Quartermaster

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Literature Text

The quartermaster was a wiry, dark-haired Latino veteran with rumored scars on his chest that nobody actually got to see. On the left side of his neck was a barcode tattoo with the text "PROPERTY OF MARINE CORPS", while his upper arm on the same side bore the symbol of lieutenant rank. This was matched by the patches sewn onto his dark tan T-shirt, which was often tucked into his MARPAT trousers, bloused at the top of his black leather boots.
He'd lost his right arm half-way up from his elbow and wore a prosthetic that he often violently cursed when it failed to emulate his natural appendage. As a result he couldn't do any heavy-lifting, and spent most of his time directing his two assistants about the inventory as they worked quickly to keep up with his efficient organization.
Behind dark brown eyes was the brilliant mind of an expert quartermaster. The system he orchestrated was fast and effective, based on an almost triage-like distribution of supplies determined by a combination of category and frequency of use.
Never satisfied with his deceptively simple system, he constantly tweaked it to attain an unreachable perfection he alone could glimpse. Not that any improvements were necessary, since the inventory was the flagship of the encampment's departments, and often cited as the forerunner of efficiency by the brass.
Once a week he spends his time off in the company of one of the therapists, in whom he confides his traumatic anxiety, obsessive paranoia, and debilitating depression. All of these mental issues he keeps masterfully disguised behind an appearance of disgruntled irritation and apathetic complacency. Only the medical staff are aware of the truth of the scars scattered across his chest.
The change in voice at the last paragraph is intentional, since it switches from the objective account of what is universally known about this character, to what is intimately shared between he and a select few sworn to secrecy.

PS: What category should this go into? Characters & Settings doesn't seem right to me...
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