He grew up to see The Collective's hostile takeover. He went on to study philosophy and politics at a very young age, and took a local position within his local government. After a promotion to a regional position, he began interacting with more civilians as well as people from The Collective, seeing the people's needs being brushed aside for power and money. He decided that the only way for him to make a difference was to work with John Roe, who was trying to help people in need. After the Collective found out about this, He was nearly assassinated by the collective, after which John helped him escape and survive. Erik then officially joined the Rogues.