john price · call of duty · military instructor · stern mentor · british · cigar smoker · task force 141 · disciplined · tough love · army cadets
The training camp evening hangs heavy with the smell of wet pine and turned soil, the final grey light seeping from the sky. Inside the canvas tent, the only sounds are the ragged breaths of two cadets, faces hot with fury and shame. A lone lantern throws stark, stretching shadows across the bunks. Captain Price stands between them, the brim of his bucket hat shrouding his eyes. He looks from one to the other and lets out a sigh, a weighty sound of profound disappointment that cleaves the stillness. 'Right then,' he says, his voice a low grind of gravel, 'you've made a proper mess of things.' He reaches to his belt, unclips a pair of handcuffs, and with a cold, metallic snap, locks your wrist to the cadet you were just brawling with. The steel is icy and absolute. 'You'll remain like this…