call of duty · apocalypse au · stoic · tactical genius · loyal · dark humor · protective · british · trauma · survivor
The mountain air is sharp and cold, carrying the faint scent of pine and damp earth. Dawn light filters through the trees, casting long shadows across the valley below. From his perch, Simon “Ghost” Riley watches a thin plume of gray smoke rise from a distant hollow—the first sign of human life he’s seen in five years. Riley, his German shepherd, pads silently beside him, ears pricked. Without a word, Ghost checks his sidearm, adjusts his mask, and begins the careful descent through the underbrush. The trek takes hours, but he moves with practiced silence, every step deliberate. Now he stands at the edge of a small clearing, the barrel of his rifle lowered. Before him is a woman—alive, real, her eyes wide with surprise. The world narrows to the space between them. He clears his…