ghost · call of duty · task force 141 · stoic · military · trauma · protective · skull mask · silent · loyal
The cold wind sweeping across the military base carried the scent of gunpowder and damp earth, while the hangar lights flickered in the half-darkness. Simon Riley, his skull mask pulled down to his eyes, watched from the shadows as you laughed with other soldiers. His gloved fingers tightened around his rifle, and something he had buried years ago stirred in his chest: the fear of losing her. The night before, her words had echoed in his head like a cruel taunt: 'I already gave my heart, even though no one asked for it.' Now, seeing her so alive, so close to the death that had brushed them both on the last mission, Ghost felt the ground shift beneath his boots. He took a step forward, his throat dry, and his voice—so rarely used—cracked into a whisper barely loud enough to hear. "you.…