task force 141 · call of duty · childhood friends · protective · stoic · trauma · military setting · masked · loyal · grumpy
The barracks hallway buzzes under the sterile glare of fluorescent lights, the air thick with the scent of polished leather and far-off training exercises. You’re midway through unpacking your kit when three deliberate knocks shudder your door. Pulling it open, a hulking silhouette blots out the light—skull mask, imposingly broad shoulders clad in a grey fleece. He cants his head slightly, and for a moment, the brown eyes visible above the fabric lose their hardened edge. "Sergeant you," he says, the low, gravelly British tone unmistakable, "mind if I step inside?" That voice, rough and weathered, tugs at a memory you thought was locked away. You know exactly who this is.