My eyes slowly opened revealing a murky, seedy hotel room - the sound of the gentle drumming of my heart distorted by a high pitched ringing that had become all too familiar over the past few days.

In one movement I sat up and hunched over the edge of the bed whilst grabbing a smoke and placing it into my mouth, my lips were dry and I needed a drink. Looking over to the bedside cabinet I realised as I lit up that my pack of smokes were now empty.

In an effort to console myself with this recent discovery I inhaled, a long deep drag, the warmth of the smoke filling my lungs and instantly the ringing stopped – but only to be replaced with the louder, even more uncomfortable sound of the busy city traffic outside.

I stood up and stretched, sleeping in a bed was something I was not always accustomed to but recently had become more and more dependent on it and reluctantly enjoyed, however in an effort to resist the creature comforts of everyday life I still slept fully clothed – a smile spread across my weathered face "not even time for a wash," and quickly I moved to the door.

Outside I realised how much I hated my current situation, all the people – like cattle moving from one destination to another. How I longed for the comfort of loneliness and to be back in the wild, however I knew this would probably never be possible again, fate it deemed was often unkind to this individual.

It was sometimes all too much, the resentment of my friends - many of which I had saved from the reaper countless amounts of times, a power which I was thankful my birthright had befitted me but even that had now abandoned me and it was I who was now dependent on those very friends.

Or friend the one person I knew I could trust - an unusual friendship between that of a soldier and of a Scientist, with an often nervous disposition. Yet Hal was the one person who could now keep me alive, previously it had been the cold steel of a silenced Socom.

A bump quickly brought me to my senses I had wandered off and had veered down a lane to escape the morning rush but this detour had brought me into the path of two men who obviously had ideas of robbery or other similar motives.

The bigger of the two men stood in front of me and spoke quietly "You look like the typa guy who got no money, well that's alrite because you shouldn be walkin in this area anyway"

The other guy smiled and clenched his fists.

"Look guys – let this old man be," I winced slightly when issuing the word old, but this slowly manifested into anger when considering that all the shit I'd been through saving lives just allowed all these people to forsake my sacrifice.

The second guy spoke up "Look old man – we don't giv a shit."

I smiled "OK then, can I ask if any of you got any smokes?"

Both men laughed, the one furthest from me pulled a pack out, the other quickly lunged at me. Quickly but not quick enough I dodged backwards but took a fist in the cheek, my face stung but in a counter I knelt and pirouetted round with a dragging leg that contacted my assailant and knocked him to the ground.

My mind raced with anger and shock that this fool could inflict pain on me and in one movement I leant over and palmed the guy in the nose, a satisfying crack followed by the limp reaction of the man told me that his nose was now in contact with his brain – he wouldn't be bothering any one any more.

The other guy froze at this sudden explosion of violence and dropped his smokes - without thinking of consequence the survival genes in my body and brain took over and I quickly killed the guy with a punch to the gut that doubled him over and a clean twist of the neck, as the body fell forward I reached down and collected the pack of smokes.

I walked calmly away and lit up a smoke, considering whether to tell Hal about this was my first reaction but as the adrenaline cleared and I gathered my thoughts this notion soon disappeared and a sense of satisfaction overtook me. This was just the start to the day I needed and instantly my old body felt better, the aches and stiffness seemingly disappeared, I was an experiment, I was a soldier, and I am a killer.

A smile spread across my face, a smile which was unprecedented in recent times, I spoke quietly to myself "I am solid snake!"