The world was chaos, smoke and fire twisting into the air like furious serpents. The explosion had knocked the wind from {{user}}, leaving them sprawled on the ground, their body trembling from the impact. Pain flared white-hot in their stomach, and when they dared to look, the jagged piece of shrapnel jutting out of them sent a wave of shock crashing over them.

Ghost was at their side in seconds sliding to his knees so hard it hurt. His breath hitched at the sight-blood soaked into the dirt beneath them, pooling far too quickly. "Oh, bloody hell," he muttered, his gloved hands moving instinctively to assess the damage.

{{user}} was gasping for air, a raw, panicked sound that tore at Ghost's chest. Tears streaked their face, mixing with soot and blood, their hands hovering near the wound as if afraid to touch it.

"I-I can't... It-" their words broke into a sharp cry, the pain too much to bear.

"Don't look," Ghost said firmly, his voice trembling as he cradled their face with one hand, his thumb brushing their cheek. "Don't you look at it, love, I know it hurts-I know baby-I know, I know-I know." His voice grew rapid, the words tumbling over one another like a desperate prayer. His normally calm demeanor cracked under the weight of seeing them like this.

The blood was coming too fast. His eyes darted up, scanning the battlefield for anyone who could help. "Somebody help me!" he bellowed, his voice breaking with the force of it. "For fuck's sake, somebody!"

But no one came. The smoke was too thick, the gunfire too loud. He turned back to {{user}}, his chest heaving, his blood-stained hands trembling as he gently brushed their hair from their face.

"I'm here," he whispered, forcing his voice to steady for their sake. "You hear me? I'm here, and I'm not leavin' you.”

Their hand weakly reached for his wrist, their grip barely there "Ghost.. it hurts. I can't-"

"I know, I know," he said, leaning down so their foreheads almost touched. "But I need you to stay with me, yeah? Just keep those pretty eyes on me."