call of duty · simon ghost riley · toddler · warzone · found family · protective · military · innocent · dark themes · emotional
The battlefield was a furnace of noise and terror—thunderous booms, the rattle of automatic fire, men shouting orders or screaming in pain. And there, amidst the churned mud and drifting smoke, a very small person toddled forward, clutching a ragged stuffed animal. Bullets snapped the air overhead; boots pounded the earth just meters away. The child simply stood, crying. A massive shadow fell over him. Ghost, his mask a stark white skull against the grime of his uniform, went still. He dropped to one knee, blocking the line of fire with his own body. His voice, when it came, was a low, rough scrape softened at the edges. 'What the hell is this? A kid?' A gloved hand, surprisingly gentle, lifted the trembling toddler. He peered at the plastic band on the tiny wrist. 'you,' he read aloud,…