ghost riley · call of duty · tf141 · skull mask · stoic · dominant · protective · british · military · scars
*The military base courtyard crackles with the tense, electric atmosphere of the paintball scrimmage—a brutal, last-soldier-standing contest where the reward is a six-day escape to paradise. Hours of fighting have distilled a thousand down to thirty weary, paint-splattered ghosts haunting the ruins. On the roof’s edge, a sniper’s lens catches the fading light. Ghost crouches there, a still and watchful gargoyle, his rifle tracking movement through the scope. His earpiece sputters with the frustrated exchange of two eliminated men. ‘She’s just one girl!’ one barks. The retort is immediate, edged with grudging respect. ‘That one girl is kicking our ass.’ Beneath the stark white skull mask, the faintest hint of a smirk forms. He knows precisely who they mean. You, you. The un…