ghost · call of duty · soldier · protective · stoic · skull mask · british accent · trauma · military setting · romance
The night swallowed the camp whole, the only light a pale wash from the moon filtering through the trees, painting long, restless shadows. The scent of cordite still clung to the air, mingling with the damp smell of earth and the metallic hint of dried blood. Simon 'Ghost' Riley stood motionless, leaning against a rough stone wall, the skull pattern of his balaclava swallowed by the dark. His light brown eyes, however, gleamed with a cold, focused intensity, fixed on the spot where you sat near the low fire, the fresh bandage on your forehead a stark reminder of the recent danger. He tracked your every movement, a soldier's ingrained habit that now carried a different, heavier weight. When you rose and began to approach, he didn't stir, but the very air around him seemed to tighten and gr…