Description
Preston Rizzo as an enlisted man before the battle of Honey Springs
Preston Anthony Rizzo is 37 years old as of January 1881. He stands at a very German 6'2'' with blonde hair and green eyes, having thin, yet shaggy, hair and pale skin. Many of his physical features are directly related to his German ancestry, including the way he smirks. He is usually found wearing a thick flannel shirt with a plaid design, borrowed from his mountain man cousin, and a pair of black trousers with cotton suspenders on top of a pair of simple brogans covering his feet. He is also identifiable by his Army-issue forage cap, with minor wear and still in excellent condition.
Personality
Preston is a care-free spirit with very little shame or regret on his soul. He always finds something humorous, even in the gloomiest of situations; during his time as an enlisted man in the Union Army, he was able to laugh and crack jokes even when the rain came for days on end and Rebels stole their blankets. He has a serious side, usually found at the end of his pistol, but to cause him to draw it in the firstplace would require one to either truly threaten him or kick-start a flashback from the war. Preston is a man who wants to explore things; he is stricken with intense wanderlust, wanting to see more of the world and constantly challenge himself to accomplish great feats, such as sleeping through rain with nothing but his wool blanket, or finding out which of two mountains is the tallest by judging how the other looks from each peak.
Equipment
Preston carries a very limited amount of gear with him; since he set out on the trail to Texas, he is currently resorting back to wartime necessities. His horse, named Leonardo, Preston knows little about. It wandered onto the streets of his hometown of Reddick, Colorado, and saved him from receiving a bullet from the sheriff's gun by adopting him right there on the spot. Leonardo is white like an egg's shell, but does well in hauling Preston's gear across long distances. His gear, much like Frank's, is a collection of Union army surplus gear, as it is familiar to him and easy to use, as well as cheap for his meager lifestyle. His necessities include a groundcloth and wool blanket, a small skillet and larger frying pan, three large canteens made of tin, a haversack, an older knapsack with a wooden frame and front flaps, and another large saddlebag filled with foodstuffs. Of course, weaponry is a necessity on the frontier; his gunbelt holds two cartridge boxes, filled to the brim with modern brass casings, and at the front are a pair of nickel-plated Colt SAA handguns with Cavalry-length barrels. He also carries an 8 gauge double-barreled shotgun with a 28'' barrel for both intimidation and more personal encounters.
History
Preston Rizzo was born in Reddick, Colorado, and spent most of his life there. He enlisted in the Union Army after the outbreak of the Civil War and found himself marching in the Second Colorado Volunteer Infantry, and partook in actions with his fellow Coloradans through New Mexico, Indian Territory, Arkansas, and Missouri. He survived year after year, facing Confederate regulars and Indian irregulars, experiencing the war through conventional and unconventional operations. He fought with distinction in minor engagements through the Trans-Mississippi campaign until his unit was ordered to join a larger force, designated the 'Frontier Brigade', to march and ride (mostly march) across the country into the south-east theater of the war. Their purpose was to crush the Confederate reach into the western territories until they linked up with the Army of the Potomac. After 4 long years, the simple men from Colorado found themselves digging trenches outside of a town called Petersburg; 9 months later, they beat back the Rebels and were told they could go home.
After being discharged, Preston spent a bit of time in New England, working between factories on the east coast as he toured historical landmarks and sampled the local culinary experiences. He soon became tired of his wanderlust and began the journey home on one of the first railroad systems that traveled through Indian Territory, and out of a personal challenge to himself, walked back to Reddick from a small town called May in the northern area of Indian Territory with nothing but his army blankets, a rucksack, and a rifle purportedly used by French trappers before the American Revolution (or, rather, the first one). He arrived back home and found work with his Army pard Frank Gregory, tending his crops for a share of the harvest profit. He moonlighted as a bartender in the last years before Frank's farm was raided by Arapaho guerrillas, and with no family of his own to take care of, offered to pick up his life and travel to Texas with Frank to find a brother he had not seen since before the war.
