R’kin was the son of General N’ala, a commanding officer in the Skrull army. He was the last of six hatchlings, and was the runt of the litter which led him to have inferior abilities to the average Skrull. Because of this setback, R’kin was denied entry into the Skrull Intelligence Corps, but was placed in the Engineering, Sanitation and Maintenance Division with a lifetime contract of service in exchange for steady employment and a home. Once the Annihilation Wave decimated much of the Skrull Empire, R’kin was eventually taken into the regional militia under the command of Baroness S'Bak. He had been declared unfit for combat, but R’kin continued to pursue his career as a warrior and even applied several times to warbird training school. All of his applications were denied.
R’kin’s time to prove himself as a warrior came when he rescued his idol, Kl’rt the Super Skrull, during a firefight with Baroness S’bak’s forces. The Super Skrull was outnumbered by Skrull warbirds, but was still putting up a fight. R’Kin, piloting one of the ships, swooped in and plucked the Super Skrull from the field of battle and became a fugitive as well. He explained to his idol that his father, General N’ala, served and died under his command. R’kin accompanied his new leader to the home of his most hated enemies, the Fantastic Four, and took a trip to the Negative Zone with the help of Mister Fantastic in hopes to find some way to destroy the forces of Annihilus. Soon, R’kin’s idolization of Super Skrull came to an end during a mission to "interrogate" some of Annihulus’ troops. R’kin was supposed to guard the room Super Skrull was questioning the prisoners in, but R’kin wanted to help. He disobeyed orders and entered without permission. Inside, he watched as the Super Skrull ruthlessly tortured and killed his enemies. Super Skrull said it was a necessity, but R’kin regarded it, and him, as evil.
In the Negative Zone, Super Skrull squeezed a name from one of the Annihilation Wave troops of the individual responsible for creating their ultimate weapon called the Harvester of Sorrows. Hawal was the scientific genius that would soon be responsible for destroying the Skrull world of Zaragz’na and take the life of the Kl’rt’s son. In his pursuit of Hawal, Super Skrull managed to raise an army comprised of other prisoners that Hawal tortured for his enjoyment. R’kin joined the ranks of that militia with others like Praxagora and Preak. Hawal, with some extreme convincing, created a way to defeat the Harvester of Sorrows just as R’kin was building a dimensional portal to liberate the Super Skrull’s army from the Negative Zone. Once the portal was completed and Kl’rt’s forces were ready to strike, R’kin convinced Super Skrull to allow the lowly mechanic to prove himself worthy of the Skrull name and deliver the killing blow to Annihilus’ ultimate weapon of destruction. However, R’kin only proved how treacherous the Skrull race can be when he betrayed the Super Skrull and did not show up to save Zaragz’na from being obliterated.
Super Skrull, Praxagora and Preak were captured and taken onboard the Harvester of Sorrows. R’kin triumphed in his apparent victory feeling the death of Super Skrull’s son equaled the pain he felt over the death of his father. Unfortunately for R’kin, one of the Super Skrull’s powers is hypnotism, and he mesmerized R’kin into attacking his new allies and set Kl’rt and the others free. Momentarily frozen with fear over what he had involuntarily done, R’kin fled for his life with the Super Skrull hot on his trail. While attempting to hot wire a starship to escape the Harvester of Sorrows, Super Skrull surprised him, but R’kin refused to give up without a fight. He transformed himself into something more fearsome and charged Kl’rt. The Super Skrull didn’t break a sweat in capturing R’kin, but R’kin did his best to convince the Super Skrull that he would fly them to safety in exchange for his freedom. Kl’rt lulled R’kin into a false sense of security when he released him, but almost immediately after, he ripped R’kin’s limbs from his body and cauterized the wounds with his flame. The only thing R’kin hoped for is the Super Skrull succeeding in his mission to destroy the Harvester of Sorrows so that he may die in the explosion. His wish was soon granted, and R'kin's suffering came to an end.
