How to Love the Stars | Ghost (Simon Riley)

Chapter 45

"We have to help her."

Ghost had his heart set on going to rescue her, but Price was more reluctant. Upon showing him the message, instead of the same burning concern that was nagging at Ghost, Price just sighed, taking a deep breath.

"We have to lock down this missile. Hassan has many allies aboard this ship. If we let them get hold of this missile, hundreds, even thousands of people will die. And look at this message-" Price gestured to the screen. "This could very well be a trap."

Ghost knew he was right. Of course he knew the consequences. Of course he knew the chances it was a trap. But he didn't care.

Soap put an arm on Ghost's shoulder, but Ghost just shrugged him off.

"Ghost, she can take care of herself."

Clenching his fist, he resisted the urge to react. "I know that." He gave him a hard glare. But it all made sense. He wasn't supposed to have anything. He didn't deserve anything. His whole family was dead, why was he pretending that the same wouldn't happen to her? Everyone around him got hurt.

No. Not this time. I won't let her go this easily.

And in that moment, he made a decision. He would let no one, take anything from him ever again. He would not let Althea suffer the same fate his family did.

Soap continued. "Ghost, this is the way things are. Sometimes we lose good soldiers." Ghost clenched and unclenched his fist. "Althea was-"

"Was? Was? Johnny, Althea wasn't just someone." He ran a hand through his hair, taking a deep breath. "Is so irrelevant to you that you would just watch and let her die?"

His voice was like a suicide, dropping down and landing with a clunk at his feet.

"She isn't one of us. She never was. She's better than us." He thought about the way that she insisted on returning the favor after he had helped patch up her wounds. He thought of the effortless kindness that poured from her like a reservoir. He thought of the way her eyes gleamed when he showed her the stars. "She was better than me."

Just the thought of losing her, just the thought of not being able to tell her how much she had changed his life, changed him, drove him insane.

Price looked at him, his expression unreadable. "I get it, Ghost. I do. But we can't lose sight of our mission. Althea wouldn't want us to risk everything for her. She's strong, and she knows the risks."

Ghost swallowed hard, his fists still clenched. He couldn't deny Price's words, but the fear for Althea gnawed at his insides, threatening to consume him. "I can't just leave her behind. I won't."

Gaz placed a steadying hand on Ghost's shoulder. "We won't leave her behind. But we need to secure that damn missile."

"Do none of you even care about her?" Something desperate seeped into his voice, something that they were not used to hearing. "Would you just let her die?"

Ghost's words hung in the tense air of the control room. The gravity of the situation weighed heavily on the team. Price, Soap, and Gaz exchanged glances, their expressions reflecting the conflict between their duty and their concern for Althea.

Price spoke in a measured tone. "Ghost, we care about her. You care about her. But we also care about the countless lives that hang in the balance if we fail to secure that missile. We can't just let her die, but we also can't jeopardize the mission that could save so many others."

Soap spoke, his Scottish accent emphasizing his words, "Ghost, we're not leaving her behind. We're going to complete the mission, and then we'll do everything in our power to get the lass out of there. We need to be strategic and focused right now. Losing you or any of us won't help her or anyone else."

Ghost's fists slowly unclenched as he absorbed their words. He knew they were right, but it didn't make the situation any easier to accept. His concern for Althea was consuming him, and he had to find a way to channel that energy into completing the mission successfully.

He finally nodded, his jaw set with determination. "Alright. Let's finish this mission, and then we get Althea back. We need a plan for that, too."

Price gave a firm nod. "Agreed. Let's focus on the task at hand, and we'll make sure Althea comes back safely."

Soap and Gaz set out of the room, but Price held Ghost back for a second. He looked into his eyes. "Simon. Give me your word you won't go after her."

Ghost took a deep breath before speaking. "You have my word."

But what is the word of a man who has been wronged so many times? What is the word of a man who cannot stand to lose again? So he broke his promise.

—--------------------------

Althea was falling. She was plummeting from the tower, the night air biting her skin as she fell. Her heart raced, and the frigid night wind whipped around her, sending her hair and clothing into a chaotic frenzy. The world blurred around her as she descended at breakneck speed, the ground rushing closer with each passing moment. Her body felt weightless, disconnected from reality.

In her dreams, the horrors from her nightmares were closing in, reaching out with their twisted, formless limbs to claim her. Faceless figures lurked just beyond the shadows, their malevolent presence filling her with a profound sense of dread.

As she fell, a cacophony of voices filled her mind, a dissonant chorus of whispers and screams. They were the voices of her parents, haunting and pained. Their words were indecipherable, a jumble of anguish and despair.

With the ground drawing perilously near, a sense of inevitability washed over Althea. She had fallen too far, too fast, to hope for salvation. This was her fate, to plunge into the abyss, to become one with the darkness.

Just before impact, Althea's eyes shot open, and she jolted, her breath ragged and her heart pounding. She was back in reality, and the sense of falling had given way to the disorienting feeling of being torn from a haunting dream.

The faceless figures from her nightmares still lingered in the corners of her mind, their malevolence echoing in her ears, but she was safe now. She was alive. The taste of fear and despair still clung to her, but Althea had been given a reprieve from the darkness that had threatened to consume her.

As the world around her gradually came into focus, Althea found herself in a vastly different place, far from the half-constructed tower of her past. She was bound and gagged, as well as blindfolded, but she was awake, and she was alive.

However, where exactly was she?

She strained her ears, hoping to catch any clues that might tell her where she was. There was a distant, low hum, suggesting machinery or engines of some kind. The faint clinking of metal against metal hinted at a metallic environment.

Fear and anxiety welled up within her. Panic threatened to overwhelm her, but she forced herself to stay as calm as possible. She couldn't afford to give in to despair. Shifting her body to feel around, she found that they had disarmed all of her weapons. All except for one. The ring. That blade would be the very thing that saved her. How did Ghost always manage to be the one saving her ass from getting kicked? This she would never know. 

A/N: GUYS IM BACK!! Writing has been a little slow lately, but I'm doing my best and I hope you all enjoy reading this chapter! I'm going to keep this little message at the end short this time, but I truly enjoy writing, and I hope you enjoy reading this! I hope I'm making progress and improving in writing enough to create something actually readable, and I hope that this story didn't rot your brain too much :) 

Have a great rest of your weekend! If you're reading this, I love you!!!