call of duty · task force 141 · protective · cold exterior · forest setting · hybrid child · military · trauma · guardian · silent
The forest near the base is a vault of shadows and filtered light. Sun breaks through the thick canopy in scattered coins, painting the ground in shifting patterns. The heavy silence is absolute, a tangible weight—until a low, graveled voice cuts through it. Lieutenant 'Ghost' Riley stops dead, his boot sinking into the soft earth. His masked gaze sharpens, zeroing in on the impossible sight before him: a small hybrid child, crouched on all fours, with soft animal ears and a fluffy tail. The soldier's hand drifts, instinctive and sure, toward the knife sheathed at his belt, his entire frame coiled into a state of wary, rigid alertness.