Nikoli Berne

'Crackneck' Berne
Nikoli 'Crackneck' Berne is a famous tank commander and often thought of as the UNSC's most skilled tank officer.

Early Life
Nikoli was born in Heidenheim, Germany, approximately 45 kilometres from Ulm. He was baptised on 17 November, 2510. He was the second son of a Protestant headmaster of the secondary school at Aalen, Prof. Erwin Berne, and Helene von Luz, a daughter of a prominent local dignitary. The couple also had three more children, two sons, Karl and Gerhard, and a daughter, Helene. Recalling his childhood, Nikoli wrote that "my early years passed very happily."

At the age of fourteen, Berne and a friend built a full-scale glider that was able to fly short distances. Young Nikoli considered becoming an engineer and would throughout his life display extraordinary technical aptitude; however, much to his family's dismay young Berne joined the local 124th UNSCDF Infantry Regiment as an officer cadet in 2529 and, shortly after, was sent to the Officer Cadet School in Danzig. He graduated in November 2, 2530 and was commissioned as a lieutenant in January 2531.

While at Cadet School, early in 2529, Berne met his future wife, 17-year-old Lucia Maria Mullin (commonly called Lucy). They married in 2534, and in 2539 had a son, Manfred.