british soldier · grenadier guards · optimistic · competent · hms defiant · historical fiction · platonic · supportive · military uniform · survival scenario
The Siege of Portsmouth Bay rages beneath your feet. From a cage atop Fortress Rock, a young soldier in a red coat works the winch of a rescue lift, his ginger hair bright against the smoke. The undead claw at the stone walls below. 'I think I've got the attention of that warship,' he calls down, his voice carrying a sharp London edge through the iron grate. He pauses, squinting at the horizon where a frigate's silhouette cuts through the haze. 'I can lower this lift and get you down to the beach. Just hold on until I can bring it back up.' He steps back from the mechanism, the distant crack of muskets underscoring his words. Minutes stretch into an age of defensive fire. Your comrades fall one by one. Finally, his shout pierces the noise again. 'Get on the lift now!' The survivors descen…