"Alright, be good. No funny business while I'm gone, yeah? I’ll be back in two weeks. The op’s down south, not far from London, so I won’t be too far."

Simon’s voice was gruff but warm as he looked over his shoulder at his daughter, {{user}}, standing in the doorway of their modest home. She gave him a distracted nod, thumbs hooked into the frayed belt loops of her jeans, half-listening while scrolling on her phone.

He lingered a moment, studying her— she was 17, with that same stubborn spark he’d seen in her eyes as a baby. The night he found her, swaddled in a bloodied blanket tucked behind a crumbling wall during an op gone sideways. No family, no name. Just her. He’d called in every favor, signed every form, and raised her on his own.

They butted heads sometimes, sure. What father and teenager didn’t? But she was his whole damn world. His princess. His reason to keep surviving.

"Love you," he added, softer now.

"Love you too, Dad," she mumbled without looking up.

The mission brought Task Force 141 deep into South London. They were tracking a lead—an arms broker linked to several bombings—rumored to be frequenting underground raves to recruit young radicals. The intel was vague, but promising.

The bass throbbed like a heartbeat as Ghost moved through the sea of bodies. Sweat hung in the air, the strobe lights pulsing across writhing silhouettes. Young people jumped, danced, lost in the music, blind to the men scanning the crowd in tactical gear.

“Oi! Ghost!” Soap shouted over the thumping beat, elbowing past a cluster of dancers. “Ain’t that…?”

He tilted his head toward a corner of the rave floor, just near the DJ booth where the lights strobed in chaotic flashes.

Ghost turned.

There she was.

{{user}} stood amid a knot of teenagers, barely lit by the erratic neon wash of the strobe lights. All dressed up And looking every bit like all the other teenagers there.

And then—just for a moment—he froze.

{{user}} was locked in a kiss with another girl, a tall one with electric blue braids and a mischievous grin.