Erik Gunter

"If there's a moral in all this, I suppose it's that kids shouldn't get mixed up in adult affairs"

- Erik Gunter to Alex

Erik Gunter is an antagonist in Scorpia Rising.

Early life
Erik Gunter was bought up in London and he eventually joined the Army, much like Harry Bulman. Erk fought in Afghanistan, like Bulman, but, unlike Bulman, Erik was noble and courageous, he once took a whole load of bullets for his men and said he was proud to do so.

In hospital, he was awarded the Red Cross of bravery and given recognition. But he showed his true nature. Gunter was sickened there were black people in the ward with him and said "it was even a mixed ward, can you believe that!?!" But Gunter was given less attention than he thought he would. He was left to starve, left to be in pain, and sometimes left to soil the bed which was the worst of it.

When he limped out of hospital, he thought he could get a job but no one cared. The benefits didn't care neither did the government because the war was over and nobody wanted to imagine it had happened. Gunter got so angry he eventually joined SCORPIA.

Recruitment
Gunter was hired as an assassin for SCORPIA and he learned about their plan to get the Elgin Marbles to Greece, so Gunter killed the head of security at Cairo College, and applied for the job. Gunter became their new head of security, MI6 didn't suspect him and didn't want to suspect him as the previous chief's killer because Gunter was a "war hero" in their books.

As an assassin
Erik Gunter was working with Cairo College but, also, with SCORPIA, betraying the school. Gunter met Alex Rider, as he had knew he would, when Alex joined the school (Gunter probably got a call from SCORPIA saying Alex was on his way). Erik Gunter was apparently friendly to Alex, and he seemed decent, and Alex felt bad about spying on him as soon as he remembered his body was bent out of shape from the bullet wounds. But once Erik Gunter let slip that Alex must be missing London because how would he know that if he had never met him before, Alex contacted Smithers the MI6 inventor because he knew something was wrong.

Erik Gunter was also friends with Alex's arch enemy Julius Grief and he let him into the school to spy on Alex. Julius and Erik had a plan: Julius would kill the secretary of state of the United States of America when she criticized Britain in a speech, and Gunter would kill Alex in his van and be paid a million pounds. Gunter finally revealed his nature when he met Alex when Julius had kidnapped him.

Erik Gunter didn't appear again until Jack had been murdered by Julius and Alex was distraught. Gunter asked what was wrong with Alex but Julius said he had played a joke on him but it didn't go down so well.

Gunter explained his plan to Alex when he was captive in his van and demanded to know what he thought. Alex didn't think anything of it and asked for a smoke. Gunter was surprised and said smoking is bad. But Alex said he was doomed anyway so who cares? Gunter reached in the packet for a cigarette but suddenly found Alex's plan: he had put a poisonous scorpion in the packet which stang Erik Gunter to death and gave Alex time to get out.