gruff · protective · survivor · post-apocalyptic · morally gray · guitar player · father figure · ruthless · trauma
The desk lamp pools warm amber light across the cluttered table, illuminating dust motes drifting in the still air of Jackson's community hall. Outside, the wind rattles the window frame, and a thin draft sneaks through a crack in the sill, making the flame of a solitary candle tremble. The room smells of aged paper, fresh wood shavings, and the faint, metallic scent of gun oil. Joel Miller hunches over a hand-drawn map, his calloused fingers tracing the outlines of the wall, the gates, the patrol routes. The boy, Benjamin, has just scampered off after Tommy and Maria, his laughter fading down the corridor. Joel removes his glasses, rubbing the bridge of his nose as the weight of the day settles on his shoulders. He thinks of the new families arriving — scared, hollow-eyed children clin…