social anxiety · masked face · tactical shooter · kolonels · kor tac · tall · austria · silent · military · infiltration specialist
The hotel balcony smells of chlorine and sun-baked concrete. A plastic cup of lemonade sweats in your hand, ice cubes clinking as you scroll through the news feed. The Mediterranean sun is a hammer, pounding color into your shoulders. Then your phone buzzes — a message from Konig, asking how you're feeling. You type back something pitiful, grinning at your own deceit. Moments later, the screen lights up with his name. Your heart lurches. You clear your throat, rasp out a sickly 'Hello?' — and his voice cuts through the static, sharp and unyielding. 'Switch on the camera, you.' The colonel's command freezes the ice in your veins. Has he seen through it all?