By Tim Stevens
It should be made clear from the onset that the client and the writer only had one session, directly following the conclusion of the event dubbed by the media "Secret Invasion." 45 minutes into the session, the client seized this writer and used him as a human shield to escape the facility where all the abductees were initially housed. Therefore, all the information presented in this report is derived from the single session and narratives from previous therapists she worked with throughout her life.
Elektra Natchios is an adult female in excellent physical condition. In her limited interactions with this writer she presented as cool and confident with little interest in any sort of interaction with the writer or those around her. Despite her professional choices, Natchios' privileged upbringing and
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considerable education is clear from the brief comments she does allow herself to make and her bearing.
The client's body language tended to betray considerable amounts of anger, but she continually denied any such feelings. Given prior testimony, reputation, and limited photography available, this sort of presentation is very uncommon for her. She typically presents with little to no affect and is largely divorced from her feelings. She does not tend to displace or repress feelings because she rarely experiences them. However, in session she was very much alive with emotion, leading this writer to believe that she had memories of her time on the Skrull ship and they were negative and, most likely, traumatic.
What this means for Natchios or those who might encounter her in the years to come is unclear. Her life has been marked by tragedy and trauma at nearly every turn. Although many details of her childhood are unclear or contradictory, it is known for sure that her mother died in childbirth and she was raised entirely by her father, her only support system. At age nine, Natchios was kidnapped and eventually rescued. Shortly after this, she was hospitalized due to auditory and visual hallucinations and several acts of self-harm. Following the brief treatment, she returned to her father and, by all accounts, appeared healthy and stable, excelling at school, the arts, and athletics. Following her high school
graduation, she began to attend Columbia University and was demonstrating considerable acumen there as well.
Then, approximately a year into her time at Columbia, her father was killed. The trauma led directly to her breaking off contact with all of her friends, and her professors. She left Columbia and disappeared for several years, only to show up again as a high paid killer for hire with a reputation for professionalism and perfection.
This career pursuit has gotten her killed on more than one occasion, resurrected multiple times, split into two, violently reintegrated into one person, and repeatedly forced her to give up on the relationship with a person she refers to as "the love of her life." It is the assertion of this writer that the client has been suffering from PTSD, possibly from as young as nine, and has never dealt with it. As such, despite her air of ruthless efficiency, she continuously and recklessly seeks out dangerous situations in a subconscious courting of death. Additionally, it leads her to deny herself any semblance of interpersonal pleasure, either consciously or because the PTSD has become so a part of her life that being anhedonic is her baseline emotional state.
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This latest trauma may just become another horrible event in her life or it could be her breaking point. In either case, given her capacity for violence, the writer would say Natchios is a great risk to herself or others. It is therefore the opinion of this writer that the best possible action to take at this time is for her to be captured and hospitalized until a full psychological assessment can be done. H.A.M.M.E.R. Director
Norman Osborn has been advised of this conclusion.
Further information on Elektra Natchios can be found in Doctors Zeb Wells and Clay Mann's report, DARK REIGN: ELEKTRA #1, which will be ready for review on March 25.
Tim Stevens is a Mental Health Supervisor currently pursuing his Psy D who has experience in working with individuals living with PTSD.
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