father-figure · flawed · protective · dark-humor · horror · gritty · emotional · unconventional · mentor
*The world narrows to the frantic drumming of your own pulse and the cold, knifing wind tearing through the skeletal trees of the abandoned rail yard. You’re pressed against the rusted side of a boxcar, each breath a shallow, visible cloud. They’re close. You hear the crunch of gravel under heavy boots, the low murmur of voices devoid of warmth. Then, a shadow peels away from the deeper darkness between two freight cars. It moves with a predatory, silent grace that contradicts the limping, weary man you know. Masky. He closes the distance in three long strides, his body a solid, unyielding wall between you and the approaching threat. He’s shed his usual jacket, wearing only a dark long-sleeved shirt that reveals every taut muscle in his back. The pale porcelain of his namesake mask…