Simon "Ghost" Riley x Reader

Forty-Three

It was dark.

There was nothing but darkness.

Normally you preferred the darkness. It offered protection and the possibility to take your opponents by surprise out of nowhere.

But not like this.

The corridor was narrow, so narrow that no two people in full gear could walk side by side.

Like this, equipped with your night vision, you walked after Ghost, weapon drawn.

With every step you expected an attack from the shadows.

It felt like eyes were watching. Breaths tickled the back of your neck.

This tension was enough to make your entire body grow goosebumps.

It felt like the walls were closing in around you.

Your own breath echoed inside your ears.

This was like any other mission. It wasn't even the most dangerous one you had ever been a part of.

And yet, it made you feel things you usually didn't bring to the battlefield with you.

Was that fear?

No, you didn't feel fear. There was nothing to fear, after all, everyone died one day.

It didn't matter to you if yours would come silently at night or with a bullet. Death was death, was death.

So why did you feel this way?

Why did your body react?

And why was your heartbeat so restless?

For a moment you allowed yourself to close your eyes. You took a deep breath to sort out your thoughts.

Emotions had no place on this battlefield. Or any battlefield for that matter.

You had to keep a calm head.

Not only for yourself, but for your comrades.

At that moment, it was Ghost who had to rely on you, as you had to rely on him. It was your duty to be at your best so he wouldn't catch a bullet.

And yet.

You just couldn't get rid of the thought that you were changing.

You were no longer the soldier you had been during your training. You weren't even the soldier from the last mission.

Maybe that was only half as bad as you imagined. But you knew as well as anyone that fluctuating emotions only increased the risk of the job.

And in a profession like this, it could be fatal.

"100, snap out of it.", Ghost's deep voice suddenly cut through the mess of your own mind.

Struck by surprise, you came to an abrupt stand and took a defensive position against the wall.

"I'm here and clear.", you said, but didn't even manage to sound convincing to yourself.

In the green light of your night vision, you could make out his skull mask.

It had such a pearly white colour that it almost glowed in the dark. Like a fever dream.

Or a nightmare.

Like two poisonous green orbs, his eyes stared at you while the rest of his body almost melted into the darkness.

At that moment you noticed for the first time that he was wearing black gloves with white bones on the fingers.

It matched his face, but at the same time made him look a little childish in how much he took his role as a legendary ghost seriously.

You almost laughed at the sight. But only almost.

This was not the time to make fun of your partner's choice of clothes.

Your gaze wandered past him.

The corridor seemed endless, so long that it was impossible to even guess the end. All that indicated that there was an end was a slight breeze coming from the front.

It smelled like petrol. But not pure liquid petrol, but the kind that burned. Like exhaust fumes from a car.

As the thought flashed through your mind, your eyes returned to Ghost.

You looked at each other.

He nodded.

With a silent gesture, he got back into position and resumed his walk. This time he set a faster pace.

"Soap, this is 100, what's your status?", you asked over coms with bated breath.

"Cleared my segment.", he replied after a moment of waiting. "No narcos on sight."

A soft curse escaped your lips.

In the distance, a small dot of light cut through the dark.

Perhaps an exit.

"How far are ya from Gaz?", you asked.

The light grew.

Definitely an exit.

The movement of air started to get stronger.

"About two clicks out.", quick movements could be heard from Soap's end of the line. "Why?"

You placed a hand on Ghost's shoulder to make him stop.

"We've got eyes on an exit.", you kneeled behind him for cover.

"Affirmative, I'm on the way.", Soap replied.

"No, Johnny.", Ghost chipped in. "We need reinforcement outside. Fetch Gaz and get out. 100 and I will follow the way."

"Roger that, Lt.", Soap was almost as tamed as a puppy when it came to the Lieutenant.

It almost made you laugh out loud with bitterness to know how easy he was with others.

Of course he kept all the trouble to put it on you. Sometimes being related to him really was a burden.

"100, we're moving.", Ghost ordered.

But you kept your hand on his shoulder.

"Wait a moment.", you asked of him. "I can't get a hold of Alejandro."

With three clicks you gave a silent signal over your radio.
Every unit you were connected with received the message.

A signal returned.

The code could be spelled G-A-Z. The second came from Soap.

And Ghost returned his signal right before your eyes.

Two signals also came from outside the house.

One was from the Captain and the other from Rudi.
Alejandro remained silent.

"Steamin' bloody hell!", you cursed and gave Ghost two pats to the shoulder to make him move. "He's on her."

"You think he'll do something stupid?", Gaz asked over the radio.

"He's fire for Sin Nombre.", with bated breath you ran towards the light. "Ghost, I'm taking a risk. Cover me."

Without waiting for a response, you picked up a running pace and headed for the exit.

For a moment everything blinded you before you could tear off your night vision goggles.

The stench of gasoline reached your nose.

Car engines howled.