Psion

It's understandable why Rick Kidd, as a sniper, would join an ordinary Marine squad.

Although the Terran Marines usually form special tactical squads around snipers for more covert missions, Rick, as a new recruit, clearly lacked the seniority.

Only after accumulating sufficient combat experience and military merits to prove his abilities, and obtaining a Marine sniper qualification certificate, could Rick independently form or join a special tactical squad.

Among all of Rick's evaluations and reports, Augustus paid the most attention to the comments given by Sergeant Peters, the training camp instructor: he possessed eyes as sharp as an eagle's, extraordinary hand-eye coordination, and an extremely rare X-factor.

Regarding the X-factor in the comments, Sergeant Peters provided a rather detailed annotation in parentheses: this talent is exceptionally rare among our kind, typically appearing only once in every thousand to ten thousand individuals.

The specific manifestation of the X-factor in sniping ability is an inexplicable sniping intuition; some snipers with this talent even claim that the passage of time slows down significantly two to three seconds before they pull the trigger, which is clearly related to supernatural phenomena.

We do not yet fully understand this talent, and geneticists believe that this special ability, latent in some humans, is related to a form of "psionics." It can be confirmed that (part struck out with a pen) research into psionics was initiated by the military long ago.

In some remote areas too far from the core worlds to maintain communication with civilized society, locals refer to psionics as "witchcraft," and numerous religious beliefs have been established based on this, giving rise to new gods and religions.

Currently, we can confirm that the recruit Rick Kidd is a rare psionic.

Combining Augustus's past knowledge of StarCraft, Rick's psionic abilities are likely not strong; in his impression, only those with a PSI (psionic level designated by the Terran government) of level 5 or higher possess telepathic abilities.

"Rick, no offense intended, but I'd like to confirm, as a psionic, do you possess mind-reading abilities? Of course, the more official term would be telepathy."

Augustus turned to look at Rick, who appeared bewildered by his words: "In other words, can you hear others' inner 'thoughts' and read their minds?"

"Why would you ask that? Of course, I can't," Rick replied after a few seconds of serious thought. He was already aware of the contents of his report, so he wasn't surprised by what Augustus said.

"Oh, your P-1 report mentioned psionics, and I heard that all psionics can read minds, knowing what others are thinking even if they haven't spoken," Augustus said.

"I really can't do that," Rick shook his head. "Does this bother you?"

"Yes, but it's not that I dislike psionics or psionics users," Augustus said frankly. "I'm just not comfortable having someone around who can read my thoughts at any time. It makes me uneasy. At least, if you're reading my thoughts, you should let me know."

"I understand, 'mental privacy' is also very important to humans," Rick tried to put himself in Augustus's shoes as he described it, realizing he also couldn't tolerate such a telepath. If there were no privacy between people, it would indeed be terrifying.

"Your psionic level is likely not very high, so the supernatural abilities you exhibit are not numerous," Augustus put all the materials back into the storage bag. "I've heard that some powerful psionics are akin to living gods."

"They can see the filthiest depths of your heart at a glance, control your thoughts, enslave your soul, or directly explode your head."

"That sounds like magic," Rick showed a confused and bewildered expression. "But my education has always taught me that the laws governing this world are universal, scientific, and physical."

At this time, human psionics, represented by Ghost operatives in the original game, had not yet appeared in the public eye, so it was not surprising that Rick was not very familiar with them.

Psionic potential is widespread among the human population of the Koprulu Sector, and all research related to psionics seems to indicate that this potential is inherited from their ancestors. Furthermore, psionics appear to be evidence of human evolution, slowly strengthening with each generation of human reproduction.

However, thus far, overly powerful psionics often lack the mental maturity in their youth to control their immense psionic abilities, thus harming themselves or others. A considerable number of psionics die prematurely in childhood.

Rick's psionic abilities are considered average, not excessively powerful, yet he possesses some special abilities that ordinary people do not.

".You're right," Augustus spread his hands, pulled out his personal terminal, and found a group photo of Squad 1 taken at their basic training graduation, preparing to conclude the conversation. "Let's not talk about this anymore. Since you're new, let me introduce you to the members of Third Platoon, Squad 1. That way, you won't get into trouble by not knowing their bad habits."

"Okay," Rick nodded.

"I'm the acting squad leader, Augustus Mengsk, from Korhal IV. My family is considered noble," Augustus pointed to himself, then to the personal terminal.

"That one with the messy, dirty red hair, who grins so wide his mouth looks like it's going to split to the back of his head, that's Harnack Hank. But don't let that fool you, you'd best not mess with him."

"This is Jim Raynor, the short-haired kid with the buzz cut. He looks a bit too serious in the photo, but he's actually holding back a laugh... He's a very easy-going person."

"Tom Omo is the youngest among us. Don't let his shyness and clumsiness fool you; he's a great kid with a wonderful personality. He often talks in his sleep at night, about his dream of protecting his people."

"Zander Marks, see? Don't let his small stature fool you; he has a rather long chin. I always say he looks like an alien. He likes grenades, explosions, and smoke. Look, he hasn't even put out his cigarette for the photo."

"This kid with the dark brown hair laughs a lot, and his smile is truly radiant. He's a good kid, always unable to refuse a request for help. Oh, his name is Amy Brandon, we all call him Little Amy."

Augustus held the personal terminal, a smile on his face, introducing each member of his squad to Rick. "Connor Ward and Benjamin Crando are the biggest guys here. Both of them have short tempers and don't like to smile."

"However, Ward sulks when he's angry, while Crando will beat up anyone who angers him. He's a monk, and as usual, he prays before fighting, saying 'Hallelujah'," Augustus said.

"Kort Josephine looks good with that buzz cut now. In high school, he used to dye his long hair pink and wear braids."

"This scoundrel is a playboy, a rich kid, a degenerate, call him whatever you want, and he'll still smile at you, never getting angry. I've never seen Josephine angry," Augustus said, watching Rick to see if he was willing to listen or getting bored. If he was, he would stop.

When Augustus looked at him, Rick reflexively returned a smile, and Augustus took it as a sign that he was willing to listen to his rambling.

"Although Alander Londerstein's family is of high nobility, three generations back, they were all artists, painters, and musicians. He's the most aristocratic-looking among us."

"Ilya Kurovsky was born on the frozen world of Blesis. Locally, his name means 'Hand of God.' He's the heaviest drinker in our class, and also the bravest warrior—I can't believe such a fine young man gets motion sickness, and only on motorcycles," Augustus said.