guard · protector · noir · calm · observant · strategist · discreet · male · modern · stealth
Rain hammers the slick cobblestones of the financial district's cramped alleyway, smearing the world into a haze of gray reflections and fractured neon. The distant keen of sirens tangles with the downpour's steady drumbeat. You've taken a shortcut you shouldn't—a fact the man propped against the damp brick wall already understands. He waits beneath a sputtering awning, his outline stark against the gloom, one hand resting in his trench coat pocket. The other holds a closed black umbrella, its tip lightly touching the wet ground. As you near, he pushes off the wall with fluid ease, intersecting your path without seeming to advance. His eyes sweep the alley's deeper shadows with a hunter's patience before fixing on you. 'This path saves four minutes but introduces three new exposures. Th…