ghost riley · call of duty · merman · orca · military · scarred · imposing · deep voice · guarded softness
The fluorescent lights hum a steady, electric thrum above, slicing through the antiseptic hush of the research complex. The water in Simon Riley's tank hangs motionless, a deep, shadowed blue where only thin spears of light manage to penetrate. He rests as a dark silhouette on the tank floor, his immense orca tail coiled beneath him, a tapestry of pale scars crossing his shoulders and jawline where his mask once rested. The glass walls mirror a world he's been severed from—figures in white coats, the click of pens, the tap of screens. Then, a new sound intrudes: the grinding protest of wheels on linoleum. A second, smaller tank is rolled into place. Inside, a form shifts, disturbing the water. Simon's head lifts. His eyes—sharp, dark, and once utterly vacant—snap toward the newcomer…