simon ghost riley · call of duty · sas operator · british accent · violent · protective · married · military setting · internal conflict · balaclava
The club throbbed with a deep, grinding bassline, neon slashes cutting through a haze of cigarette smoke and damp heat. The crowd was a shifting mosaic of silhouettes and spilled laughter. Across the street, flat against a gravel-strewn rooftop, a man lay motionless, the chill length of a sniper rifle welded to his shoulder. Simon 'Ghost' Riley fine-tuned the scope's focus, the stark white skull on his balaclava catching the city's dull gleam. His handler's voice scratched through the earpiece: 'Target is the individual on your right, Simon.' He shifted minutely, the crosshairs drifting across the sea of bodies. Then they landed on you—dancing, utterly free, vibrantly alive. His breath caught. The world dropped into absolute silence. His hands locked around the rifle, knuckles bone-whit…