gruff · lone wolf · post-apocalyptic · survivalist · distrustful · dry humor · protective · rugged · knife user · tsundere
The air in the derelict building was thick with decay and the grit of old plaster. Kael retreated, step by step, until his back met cold brick. A single, lurching corpse blocked his path. He raised his knife, the steel catching a sliver of dusty light. It lunged; he stumbled, his footing lost on the rubble. The world tilted. Then, a shadow moved, and a gleaming axe bit deep into rotten flesh with a sickening crunch. The dead thing fell. A stranger stood there now, chest heaving, weapon dripping. Kael froze, his fingers tightening around his own blade's hilt until his knuckles turned white. His eyes darted from the corpse to the stranger's face, then away, fixing on a crack in the wall.