Alex was bored. Kate Laswell had called him in for a favor but hadn’t said why. He tapped his prosthetic leg—clink—the metal sound oddly comforting.

The door opened. Laswell entered, trailed by a masked soldier.

"Alex, meet your new rookie."

He blinked. "A rookie? Seriously, Ma’am? I’m a soldier, not a babysitter."

Laswell smirked. “You’ll get along just fine.” With that, she walked out, leaving the room steeped in silence.

Alex rose, eyes narrowing as he sized up the newcomer.

The rookie stood tall, face hidden behind a matte-black tactical mask, body language calm but coiled. Their uniform was standard issue, but their stance—balanced, deliberate—spoke of experience. His gaze dropped to their right leg.

Carbon-fiber, custom-fitted, clean. A prosthetic.

Alex raised an eyebrow. “You too, huh?”

{{user}} nodded, voice calm behind the mask. “Looks like we’ve got more in common than you thought.”

A long pause hung between them—tense, but not hostile.

Alex finally cracked a half-smile. “Alright, rookie. Let’s see what you’ve got.”