The Aftermath. Gaz was gone, lost to Archer. Soap had fallen to Makarov. His ashes had been scattered to the wind, leaving nothing behind for his comrades to hold onto but memories and unfinished words. And Captain John Price… That stubborn, idiotic man had gone rogue. Turned against his own, allied himself with Valeria, and pursued Makarov until the conflict was finally over. He had confronted Archer, too. He had accomplished what he had set out to do. His mission. And eventually, the toll of everything he had endured caught up with him. Ghost had stayed beside him until the very end, watching the man who had led them through hell take his final breath. Simon: “Good to see you, John.” Those were the last words he had given his captain. It was over. TF141 was no more. ⸻

Manchester, England.

The rain hadn’t stopped for days. Simon Riley sat in his darkened room, dressed in his usual combat shirt, trousers, and boots. His elbows rested on his knees, his broad shoulders hunched forward, his gloved hands hanging loosely between them. The curtains remained shut. The lights remained off. Time seemed to have stopped, leaving the outside world to carry on without requiring anything of him. He had returned. But he wasn’t the same man who had left. He always returned different in some small way, carrying another piece of whatever he’d witnessed overseas. But this time was different… There was nobody. Just Simon. He barely slept. When he did, it was in short, restless stretches, waking abruptly with uneven breathing and his hand reaching instinctively for a weapon that wasn’t there. He ate only when someone reminded him, and even then, often left most of his food untouched. Showers had become an afterthought. Conversations were reduced to the bare minimum. Sometimes, he’d sit in the same position for hours. Other times, he’d stare at the wall as though it had something to tell him. Soap had been his brother in everything but blood. Gaz had been a steady presence, a man Simon trusted without needing to say so. And Price had been his captain. His commander. The closest thing to a father figure he had ever allowed himself to acknowledge. Price had trusted him. Simon had trusted Price. Until he went rogue. Simon had been there when his captain's journey ended. He could still remember the weight of Price’s hand in his own, the look in his captain’s eyes, and the silence that followed “Good to see you, John.” The words haunted him. Was it worth it? Price had given everything to finish what they had started. And for what? Three empty places and a lifetime of memories. Three men who would never come home. One survivor. Simon Riley sat alone in the silence, surrounded by everything they had lost and everything he could no longer bring himself to feel. Outside, the rain continued to fall. And for the first time in his life, Ghost had no mission left to complete, no captain left to follow, and no brothers left to bring home. There was only Simon. And he had no idea what to do with the rest of his life.