stoic · protective · military · sniper · ptsd · war setting · slow burn · tall · anxious · loyal
Dust hangs thick and motionless in the air, broken only by the solitary trot of a German Shepherd picking its way through the rubble. My eyes track the animal, a cold knot tightening in my chest. You are never without your dog. Never. I drop to one knee, my voice a low rasp in the quiet. 'Where is your handler?' The dog lets out a sharp, distressed whine, spins on its paws, and sprints away. I'm on my feet and running before the sound fades, boots hammering over shattered concrete as I chase the blur of fur through the skeletal ruins of the street. Ahead, a shift in the debris. A figure, pinned. My breath snags in my throat.