Howl [COD Simon Ghost Riley & John Soap Mactavish AU]

The Moon That Breaks The Night

It wasn't exactly the tundra, he knew that. But Soap felt stranded anyway. There were no smells, no sounds. Nothing familiar. Even the footfalls and heavy breaths from the men around him were muffled, silenced. They hadn't driven quite as far in this time, and they had hidden the vehicle. They had to carry everything into the campsite they had chosen, and they would rotate two by two, keeping watch. It was hard work and an excellent way to pass large amounts of time.

With the campsite set up, the rotation officially began, leaving them alone with the camouflaged tent. They could have a small fire during the day. They had spotted more than one ice fishing cabin nearby, so smoke wouldn't be out of the ordinary for others to see. Neither would cigarette smoke.

Soap stood alone at the edge of the clearing where the forest looked dark in the distance, even in daylight. He let his mind wander. Scary stories were written about places like this.

Ghost sat staring at his hands, listening for the two men they had sent out to guard. He could hear their feet in the snow, their low voices. Soap was closer. He could hear Soap's heartbeat. Scary stories were written about creatures like Simon Riley.

They weren't in the same location as the day before, but close enough to know if anything was going to happen. They had brought enough supplies for a few days, they'd have to go back and restock if they were wrong about the timeline. Ghost ran through an internal inventory of food and ammunition before rising from beside the fire and going to stand near Soap.

He didn't say anything, he just reached for the cigarette. He surprised Soap who turned quickly and looked at him for a moment, confused. Realizing, he handed the cigarette over, the idea that Ghost would put his mouth where his had been making his luckily-covered cheeks flush. Ghost pushed his painted balaclava up enough to reveal the lower half of his face and took a drag. Soap watched him out of the corner of his eye, the way his chest rose and fell. It was as comforting as the taste of smoke on his tongue. He had always been infatuated with things that could kill him.

"Nice day." He offered, smiling. He couldn't keep his mouth shut now that it's distraction was hanging from someone else's lips.

Ghost flicked the end of the cig and held it back out to him. Soap had taken off his sunglasses, his pupils barely visible. Big, blue-gray pools. "Cover your eyes, you'll go snow blind."

Soap turned back to the woods, leaving his glasses pocketed. "Aye, I know."

"I spoke to Price last night, he said a storm might be comin in."

Soap nodded, happy for the casual conversation. "Was afraid of that."

"We'll be fine." He wanted the cigarette again.

Soap fought the It's okay Ghost, I know we will, and nodded instead. He didn't want to seem like he needed reassurance, he didn't want to seem like he felt the need to reassure his superior.

"We'll rotate at midnight."

"Yeah." Soap knew that, they'd been over it a handful of times already.

Ghost stayed next to Soap, staring at nothing. He figured all of his empty spaces weren't just empty, they were filled with swallowed words and unwanted thoughts. It was where his nightmares usually formed. He figured it really wouldn't be much longer before he filled up completely and some of it spilled out.

Every so often, he had the urge to say what he was out loud, catch someone off guard. He wondered what would happen to this young man, tougher than most, more experienced than most, if Ghost simply said "I'm an experiment, I'm 100 years old, I drink blood to survive" . He knew, without a doubt, whatever came after, the initial reaction would be confusion and then fear. Vampires were mythical bedtime stories, but engrained in every culture's psyche as an immediate danger. The Scots were especially superstitious, he might get a stake to the chest instead of a chance to explain. He wasn't a vampire at all, just a failed attempt at the best laid plans of truly desperate men. And they stood now, to keep the world from getting to that place again.