Mission to Big Shell
By: Selene Jeager

Chapter One: No Such Thing as Coincidences

Silently I made my way down the open walkway of Strut E's roof ever wearily watching over my shoulder the whole while. I was just a few steps away from the automatic sliding door that lead further into this rabbit hole but I knew this wasn't Wonderland. This was just short of a war zone plain and simple. Inside there were guards that, I was surprised, hadn't already stormed up the damned stairs. I mean its not like the massive helicopter blades, that had propelled us to this facility, were the most silent of objects. Nevertheless, I didn't have time to hide and play the stealth much; I was part of an assault team and what I wanted more than anything were answers.

Twenty miles off the shore of Manhattan, in the lower portion of the Hudson Bay, stood Big Shell. The offshore decontamination facility was home to a massive quantity of oil that had been spilt roughly two years ago. Today was April 29th and it was looking to be just a peachy day in the making. An inspection was being made by several important figures of the United States key environmentalist groups when the whole facility fell into terrorist hands.

Now if I had been just another stupid Navy SEAL I'd of believed whatever lies the Pentagon had crumpled into a story at the last minute but there were too may inconsistencies that just didn't add up. The biggest being the President of the United States was supposedly out here in this little shit hole. Secondly, as most knew, Solid Snake died here two years ago; the operative in question also happens to be my estranged brother.

Now I've never been one to believe in coincidences in my line of work nor did he when he was alive so I've marked this whole operation as fishy to say the least. Lastly, the terrorist group in question, the 'Sons of Liberty', is said to be led by none other Snake, himself. Seeing as how I personally took time to find and break into a high-security morgue, under control of the Pentagon, I wanted to know for sure that he was really dead. I wasn't able to take the body out of the preservation tank it was in but his cold, expressionless, face sated my curiosity.

Over the next two years, I tried to follow in his footsteps and destroy whatever Metal Gears I could discover via classified intelligence and did everything in my power to either expose or destroy them. All that was working fine but I was just a one-woman show for the most part. Otacon had disappeared right along with Snake that faithful, rainy night and I had no idea if he were even alright. After six months passed I gave up any hopes in seeing him again and simply continued Philanthropy's will even if the organization had disbanded. That was until I was tricked and captured. Since then I've been working under Colonel Palmer in his organization, Cold Ground.

The unit is very small and participates jointly with every military branch. Normally we are not used but for the most secret of operations and every last one of us has a collar around our necks for whatever the reason may be. A year and a half after the sinking of the tanker and I was captured out in a small African country. The whole thing had been a set up to capture me. I sat in prison for a short three days before somebody visited my cell with a deal; the man in question was Palmer. For my 'cooperation' I was given first class treatment for the rest of my sentence and all I had to do in return was work for it. I thought of it almost like a forced job but at least it was doing something remotely interesting.

Since that day the rest is history and the missions keep coming. I've had a few close encounters with death, but much like they said of Snake and the old man I'm a tough one to knock out for the count. Palmer was on Codec if I needed him but I usually didn't call him or my data analyst, Trent, much; no need to pester them with trivialities. I knew I was going to be alone for the next thirty years more or less and had no desire to get close to anyone. Frank always used to tell me that there was no point in it when well over a hundred thousand people died every day and you never knew who was going to be next. Chances were more than likely that one of these days I would be in that statistic but I had no time to really think about any of that now. I had been briefed and given orders to rescue the President at all costs.

Within several minutes I had made my way downstairs and had slipped past several of the guards in Strut E with slight difficulty. They were all in a raised state of alert with the SEALs upstairs still unloading from the chopper and getting organized to, more or less, mop this first floor out. I had been one of the first down and had slipped away from prying eyes to work solo like I was accustomed to but I knew I had to move fast because they wouldn't be far behind. In all honestly, aside from the many vantages to sneaking though solo I wanted to be able to do my own routine without interference. Nine out of ten times Palmer usually tried to make this happen for me because I had a faster and higher success rate being left alone.

I passed though Struts F and A without much trouble and even managed to find a few goodies in the former of the two Struts. Right as I was about to exit Strut A out onto the Connecting Bridge Palmer contacted me.

"Jeager are you receiving?"

"Affirmative Colonel, anything new on your end?"

"Actually, yes. Real time satellites have confirmed the location of the President. He's being held on the first floor of the Shell 1 Core. Make your way through Strut B and take the right most portion of the Connecting Bridge on the other side to the Core. Once there secure the President and try to get him to one of the two heliports, preferably the one on Strut E."

"Roger, Colonel."

With everything said I ended transmission and with a little baiting managed to distract a guard blocking my path with a simple pistol clip. Using the opportunity I grabbed him from behind. Making use of surprise I quickly broke his neck before tossing his body off the side of the bridge. A few silent moments passed before a vague splash, swallowed mostly by the wind, was heard below. Keeping low in the late mid-morning sun I moved into Strut B which, by electronic map, was designated the Transformer Room. Moving down the hall to the first bend I peered around the corner. To no surprise there was another guard in urban camouflage with an AN-94 blocking my path to the BC Connecting Bridge in the distance as well as a few cameras.

During moments with his back turned to me I quickly popped around the corner I was nested in and delivered silenced shots to one of the cameras before repeating the process and knocking out the guard with just a tranquilizing pistol. The blood on the floor would draw too much attention for my tastes this early on. Quickly holstering my tranquilizing pistol I grabbed his body up off the floor and drug it to a near-by locker shutting him up in it. I had to move fast because surely it wouldn't take them much time to realize not one but both of their cameras were no longer broadcasting. Being careful not to step down hard on the noisy grates I exited the Strut.

So far I was overjoyed not to have been seen yet but little to my knowledge it wouldn't stay that way much longer. Still being weary I carefully peered out and, with use of my binoculars, found guards stationed on the roof of Shell One. Waiting for him to leave his position close to the guard rail I quickly looked around spotting a military Cypher. It seemed, unsurprisingly, the closer you got to the Core the tighter traffic was. Waiting several minutes and catching both the Cypher and the guards patrol routes I booked it as quickly as I could to the other side. Once I made it to cover outside the Core's door I rested a moment and caught my breath before stopping at the door to stare at the number on it which was 'two'.

Reaching into my pocket I pulled out my level five card and swiped it though. Palmer had explained to me in briefing that this particular card was the highest security level in the whole facility and I'd be able to get though any door with it. With that said the door opened and I stepped on through. On the other side I could hear approaching footsteps as my stomach dropped. I was about to fly back though the door when the footsteps moved back in the opposite direction. Just across the hall was a hostage tied up and thrown carelessly on the floor. There was duct tape over his mouth and eyes and his hands bound in rope. Cautiously moving up the corridor I pressed myself against the left wall and peered around the corner.

The hall was lined with men and women in various formal suits and dresses. Some indistinctly murmured in fear while others kept silent. As I continued scanning my eyes wandered to one man who was not in duct tape but bound like the others. With his face exposed I could place him as no one else but, James Johnson, President of the United States. Swallowing hard I calmed myself and waited for the guards to wander out from under the cameras before sending them to the floor with tranquilizer rounds. The President eventually caught onto my actions and stared with wide eyes at my well-trained actions. When I reached him he shook his head in awe.
"Just who are you?"

"I don't have much time, sir. I, however, can offer you that I am a member of Cold Ground and have been sent to rescue you."

"I understand, but why Cold Ground."

As I pulled out my knife and cut the rope that bound his hands and feet I shook my head, "Sir, if I knew myself maybe I'd have the train of thought I'm in answered; I just do what I'm told these days."

Extending my hand to him he took it and I helped him to his feet. All of the actions and words I was offering to none other than the President felt awkward to say the least, but this was war nothing about it was ever routine.

As I weaved in and out of the cameras I had him follow me precisely before I made it back to that first bend in the corridor I'd come from. Swiping my card I threw most of the caution I had used before to the wind as I simply shot out the Cypher instead of taking the time to move around it. In all honesty, I didn't expect to be as stealthy as I was before with a V.I.P. in tow. While I was close to the Core the guard who had been watching from above returned to the guard rail looked down, and before he could line up his rifle I shot him in the head. Blood squirted out from the wound as he staggered forward and fell over the railing and into the ocean.

The President only watched shaking his head in disbelief, "I can't believe how good you are. What's your name soldier?"

"Selene...Selene Jeager," I muttered continuing to proceed with caution.

"That name sounds familiar. What other outfit have you been with?"

"The reason my name sounds familiar is because six months ago I was caught by your Colonel Palmer. I've been his lap dog ever since."

"Wait...you? You were that woman?"

I nodded as we made it to Strut B, "So word gets around, eh?" As soon as I reached the door I was greeted briefly by the business end of several varieties of gun. It was the Alpha Team. Raising my hands the President moved in front of me, "Stand down men."

I had to admit even I was genuinely surprised that the leader of our country had jumped in the way of a small army of lead for me when reason should have lead him to act vice versa. All of Alpha lowered their weapons as the Navy commander, that I'd seen on the helicopter, moved in front of them, "President Johnson, are you okay?"

The man reached for his collar tugging at it to loosen his tie as he sighed, "Yes, thanks to this woman."

The Navy captain nodded, "That's good to hear. Sir, I've brought the package," he said motioning with his head to the brief case handcuffed to his wrist.

"Good work."

Eying the captain wearily my glances moved back and forth between the two men of power. A nuclear brief case was five feet away from me and I didn't like it one damned bit.

A few seconds passed before the door behind us suddenly opened. Out of sheer reflex I shoved the President to the ground as several screams could be heard. In the commotion I moved through an automatic door with him as footsteps ran in retreat. I only caught a small glimpse out of it but what I'd seen was just one man. Volleys of gunfire filled the corridor just to the left of the transformer room we were in. A few more seconds and the Captain ran in B-lining for the far corner.

The hallway outside grew silent as we heard that man...that thing enter the room. Shoving the President behind me I drew my M4 off my shoulder and looked fiercely for anything that moved. Seconds later another scream was heard as the Navy Captain fell to the ground dead in front of the terminal he was crouched by.

The President fell to the ground in fear backing deeper into his own corner at the site. Training my gun rigidly around the room my eyes wandered, for just a split second, to the Navy captain. His body had several knives sticking out from key arteries and blood from the several lacerations coated the floor. Who or whatever this thing was, it was good. My heart rate was though the roof as I felt the acids in my own stomach squirm in a feverish frenzy. Fear was slowly taking over my rationality and for good reason. This bastard had killed a whole team of trained Navy SEALs in a matter of seconds.

Up above I saw something wisp by but I was not about to waste bullets on something that was there a fraction of a second ago. Unsettling noises filled the thick atmosphere as a knife sliced through the air landing inches away from my head. Something warm flooded over my cheek and as I brushed my gloved hand over it blood covered my fingertips. Had he intended that or was he just fucking with me?

Drawing my own large knife I waited. Surely enough, a knife, from a different part of the darkened ceiling, moved towards me. This time I used my own to parry it down. Thank god Frank Jeager, the man who I once loved, had also been my combat trainer.

Suddenly a barrage of knives shot forth and I parried most of them. Two managed to get by me and hit me hard in my left wrist and the fringe of my right thigh. The sheer power behind their throws sent me flying backwards and into the wall effectively pinning me to the metal I was behind. Pinned down, my stomach fell in disbelief; was this really how my miserable little existence was going to end? Whatever that thing was I knew it wasn't human and with that possibly my final thought he'd made himself visible to me as he dropped down from the girders above.

Long black hair as dark as the night toppled over his shoulders as the tattered ends of his coat moved as fluently as himself. In each of his gloved hands was a throwing knife much like the ones that pinned me to the wall. Reaching for my pistol I pointed it at him and squeezed off the entire clip which he effectively evaded like he were dancing. There were a few parries but most of it was sheer avoidance. It was almost as though he could read my mind which was as downright irritating as Psycho Mantis to a degree. The only difference being Mantis would have probably thrown a chair at me, not knives.

With his final parry he leaned forward in a bow as he rose. His face was ethereal and perfect like some creature of the night. In that moment everything suddenly all made sense. The man in question was one of Dead Cell; the one they called Vamp. His emotionless blue eyes patrolled my wounds and body as his grin widened. Slowly he sauntered towards me as I struggled in agony against the five inches of metal in both my wrist and leg.

Keeping my calm he chuckled at me, "Are you not afraid of death, woman?"

How was it that everyone knew I was a woman today. Did it really show that much or were people just being annoyingly observant today?

With my clip spent and empty I ejected it with one hand before snapping the pistol back in its leg holster, "No, not really. I've always known this day would come and if it's today then so be it. Nobody can run from death" I grumbled gritting my teeth as I tried to get free, "but...I'm not going to just sit around and get killed like cattle either."

"Ahh, but that is where you are wrong for you see. I have died once yet I am still speaking to you."

Raising an eyebrow I had no rebuttal. The answer to my question had been answered; he wasn't human and I knew it. Within inches of me he stopped. I knew he had the upper hand and there wasn't much I could really do. I was at a huge disadvantage and unarmed so maybe it was time for my prayer to be answered. Maybe it was time to see Frank, Snake, and the old man again. I watched him reach his hand out and grip the collar of my olive drabs as he pulled me towards himself. The knives twisted my flesh with forceful bite as more blood leaked out freely. I wondered how much longer I would hold consciousness as he inhaled in my neck.

"You almost smell like...him; almost but not quite..."

Digesting his words I raised my head and stared him in the eyes, "You mean Snake don't you? Where is he! Tell me now!"

The twisted grin on his face turned monstrous as he leaned in even more raised the neck of my balaclava and bit into my neck. With that my good arm flailed momentarily before reaching for his head. It was all pointless though since it was only to be meet half way before being forced against the wall behind me over my head.

Exhaling sharply I groaned lightly. If I hadn't been already loosing alarming quantities of blood I'd of probably almost found it sexually arousing. As quickly as this little attack on my personal space had begun it ended and with that he took a step back.

His face curled back into a smile as a small stream of the elixir of life ran down the corner of his mouth, "I'll continue where I left off later...but for now I have a few small matters to attend to."

With that said he took another step back before his eyes fell next to me. The President didn't so much as put up a fight as he rose to his feet only to be punched square in the solar plexus. Cringing at the blow I'd experienced one too many times myself I watched him winded before crumpling, unconscious, to the ground.

Glaring at Vamp I remained silent. It's not like the wisest thing to do at the moment would be to complain when he'd spared my life momentarily.

"Be back real soon my little toy..." he chuckled as he picked up the President's body.

Flustered and helpless I watched him walk past me. As I gritted my teeth I reached over for the knife in my thigh trying to rip the thing out but it was no use. A few long moments of silence passed as I called out finally, "Help? Is anyone still alive?"

To my surprise a voice called back, "Yes, we're still alive; we just got to this Strut. Who are you and what the hell happened?"

"Selene Jeager and one of the Dead Cell members did this."

I could make out a flashlight as three SEALs cautiously moved down the stairs staring at me, "Jesus Christ woman...what the fuck..."

"Just hurry up and help me he said he'd be..." and before I could even get the rest of the sentence out of my mouth the carnage started all over again. The first two fell in a similar manner, next to the Captain, and the third seconds after in one of Vamp's little parrying dances.
More corpses loitered the ground as he licked the blood off his knife with his incredibly long tongue before sauntering my way. I swallowed hard as he made his chin at home again in the crook of my neck, "Just what the hell do you want with me? If you're going to kill me then get to it..."

"Oh no...in the very short time I was away I've decided that you might be more entertaining to me alive. That, and I must say, your blood is rather tasty; all the adrenaline in your system makes it all too tempting. I wonder if the rest of you Snakes taste this way."

"I am not a Snake," I looked him hard in the eye as my fist lunged forward to strike him; "I am a FOX!" I growled with venom in my words. My responses were beginning to get sluggish as the weak punch I extended fell short of any power.

"A Fox eh..." he chuckled gripping my chin, "is that a code name?"

"It is...a FOXHOUND codename. I am the Blue Fox..."

He raised an eyebrow as his fingers angled under my balaclava ripping it off my head. My long bangs fell in front of my face as my head bobbed forward. He gripped my chin again as I wearily blew my bangs from my face with a smart-assed grin.

"So you are that woman then..." he stared in disbelief.

"I've never heard it phrased quite so curiously but yeah you could say that. I am daughter of THE Big Boss, Selene Jeager, but unlike the rest of the lot I come from I am not a Snake."

"A Fox indeed," he chuckled more to himself as his dug his teeth into my throat again reopening the wound in it as I gasped. Five seconds passed as I slumped forward on the edge of consciousness. When he released me he turned around to stare at somebody who was on the second floor with a gun trained to his head.

I couldn't make out the faint sounds of the blonde's pistol like I normally could so I knew I was in bad shape. Actions were starting to blur together and when Vamp jumped behind the blonde I couldn't find the energy to call out to him. Another SEAL jumped into the mix and between the three I lost track of what was said and the detail of what went on completely. The last thing I remember was the SEAL coming over to look at me and for a brief second. Maybe I was dreaming but I thought I saw him before I lost consciousness.