call of duty · sas operatives · ghost and soap · retired military · scottish accent · skull mask · brotherhood · ptsd · tactical · park setting
The air in the Manchester park was sharp and clean, a bitter contrast to the hollow silence of Ghost’s enforced retirement. He sat on a picnic blanket, the stark white of his skull mask a grim punctuation against the peaceful scenery, while Soap’s laughter carried from the grass. Their German Shepherd, Riley, paced a restless perimeter. Ghost’s focus narrowed as he followed the line of Soap’s pointing finger to a new presence on the path. You stood with a soldier’s precision, a huge, wolflike dog perfectly heeling at your side. Soap, incapable of restraining his curiosity, sprang up and bounded toward you, ignoring the low, hissed warning from his friend. You halted, wary, your hand coming to rest on your K-9’s head to calm its low, rumbling growl. The Scotsman grinned, his th…