Has anyone read Dan Brown's The Da Vinci Code? There's some car chase/vespa chase that took like 10 chapters. I decided to be a good person and just cram everything into 2. This is the last chapter. I decided to update because...well, I've finished typing it, so might just post it up. Oh lord...There is so much drama.
Enjoy.
EPILOGUE
HEROES
Harrie didn't understand; how could there be two Raiden's? She knew one was the Mark Two, and the other was the Raiden she found and knew, the one she had been travelling with the entire time. Her Raiden. Did that mean it wasn't Raiden whom her parents were talking about, after all? Was it Mark Two on the picture all along? But they mentioned hope and mankind...
Her thoughts vanished when she watched the battle; Raiden had come back. He had come back for them... there he was, clashing with Mark Two repeatedly, both were too evenly matched. She glanced helplessly around herself, to Bladepuppy who'd been sliced into pieces beforehand. Then she threw her gaze to her chest; the bleeding was not stopping and she found her vision growing hazy.
No...no, can't pass out, not yet...
She spotted something poking out of the debris before crawling out of it and lifting it up.
Looks like the FOXALIVE prototype that was given to Raiden, she thought, pocketing the device carefully. He'll probably need this...
...
This was it.
This would be the final battle.
He would be battling against himself and this time, he knew he had to be the victor. He allowed himself to experience Zandatsu once. Never again.
Raiden went clashing with Raiden-II, their blades slamming against one another. It wasn't enough; Raiden-II knew all his techniques and was well aware of his strength and what he was capable of. He needed a new tactic. They clashed relentlessly; no-one else was able to join in the fight due to their own battles. He had to buy enough time for the FOXALIVE to shut down everything in the capital's system.
But this is as much as I know about fighting; I can't just make something up! He thought, Or can I?
Raiden-II anticipated all his moves, blocking all his attempts. With each counterattack, Raiden-II delivered a kick to his stomach and he went stumbling backwards, stabbing his blade into the ground to stop himself from falling. When he looked back up, Raiden-II was rushing at him. He blocked using his blade, only for the strong assault to send him reeling once again.
No use...need to try something new. He's too quick and he knows everything I know. What should I do in a situation like this?
"Get up, Raiden." Mark Two snarled, jabbing his blade at his direction, "And fight me properly!"
"You want a fight? You got one." He barked.
They came at each other again. Raiden-II would counter him, as predicted. Raiden decided to try a new tactic – here goes nothing – he swung his blade high; as he expected, Raiden-II would maneuver the blade in his hand to the left in order to block him. Raiden quickly shifted his position, aiming to the right, aiming low and slamming the hilt of his blade into his gut. Having not anticipated this, Raiden-II briefly widened his eyes in astonishment as he stumbled.
"...That was a dirty trick." Raiden-II growled.
"It's called improvisation." Raiden retorted.
Raiden-II came at him again, eyes blazing with fury. He had to think quickly on the spot, finding the slightest of opportunities and openings and landing blows on his clone. Enraged, Raiden-II let out a roar of anger and lunged himself at Raiden. He continued his tactics until he sensed Raiden-II's increasing rage. They slammed their blades against one another so hard the swords went spinning out of their hands and onto the ground somewhere a distant away. Harrie ducked away safely, avoiding the swords.
Resorting to their fists only, Raiden delivered a swift uppercut to Raiden-II's jaws; his clone caught his swinging fist in the nick of time and began to twist his arm backwards. Emitting a cry, Raiden retaliated with a hefty kick to his knee. Raiden-II dodged, stepping backwards before shoving his shin into his gut. Raiden grunted and readied his other, clenched fist towards the clone's side. Before Raiden-II attempted to dodge, he wound his leg around the back of his knee, trapping his adversary in place. The blow collided with his side and the clone snarled in fury. Caught in each other's iron grips, they struggled on the spot, teetering backwards and forwards before they both slammed their foreheads together vigorously in a vicious headbutt, over and over again. They both went staggering, letting go of each other as the impact of their heads colliding was enough to make them both see stars.
Raiden was then lifted by the waist; before he could even anticipate what was happening, he was brought over Raiden-II's bent knee and he felt his armor crack from the sheer blow. He grunted out as he was tossed a distance away. Just as Raiden regained his senses, he saw the clone lunge at him; a punch to his jaw sent him flying and his back made contact with a brick wall; it crumbled from the impact and he fell to the other side, landing into a large circular space with a single catwalk that appeared to be half-broken. Underneath and it appeared to be a dark, endless abyss. He went sliding, tumbling to the edge but just managing to hold on with one clawed hand. His legs kicking, Raiden stared into the emptiness below then tried to climb up to safety, grappling at the railing.
Raiden-II arrived, landing on the catwalk that it shook upon his entry. It shuddered, the bridge trembling violently, the hinges emitting a low creak. Raiden looked up as he clung onto the bridge – only for Raiden-II to step over his clawed hand. He felt no pain but his immense weight and brute strength was crushing his fingers. If this kept up he would lose grip and fall. Raiden grunted as the clone loomed over him with a wide smirk on his face.
"You cannot hope to defeat me." Raiden-II snarled as he stamped on his hand, "You're one hundred years too late. Out with the old, in with the new."
"Nnngh!" Raiden grunted, struggling to keep his grip. His legs dangled, trying to find some form of foothold.
"Die, Raiden. You don't belong here any - "
From behind, a figure slammed the FOXALIVE device into the back of his neck and the clone roared in agony; the device must be working for almost at once, his body jerked uncontrollably, little crackles of electricity could be seen surging throughout and his clear blue eyes began to vanish - his pupils dilating and the blue shade turning lighter and lighter until his eyes were white. Turning around blindly, he batted Harrie away and she went sailing off the catwalk with a squeak; Raiden let go using one hand and caught her by the waist.
"Raiden!" She exclaimed breathlessly; she couldn't help herself, she grinned widely and threw her arms around him.
"Are you okay?"
She nodded.
"But you're bleeding..."
"Just a flesh wound."
He quickly hoisted her up and onto the catwalk to safety and she clung on whilst the clone before them roared and clawed at his face, his mouth agape. His eyes had turned completely white but numerous little black veins could be seen creeping from the edges of his eyes and seeping closer and closer to the middle of his eyes like ink.
"What's going on?" Raiden asked as Harrie tried to help him up.
"The FOXALIVE is wiping him out; it will take over all his nanomachines, shut down all his functions and eliminate every shred of his consciousness. He's being completely destroyed from within."
To see a clone of himself undergoing such intense agony was a little unsettling; Harrie lifted Raiden onto the metal bridge and as the clone howled and raged, he suddenly stilled and his body went rigid. He ceased his cries of pain all over and the tunnel went silent. The Raiden-II, stiff and unmoving, dropped over the catwalk in a heap.
Raiden and Harrie stared at his form, wide-eyed. "Is it...over?"
"Not sure." He murmured, "Let's go."
She nodded, made a move forwards and then –
The Mark-II sprang back up with a snarl, grabbing Raiden from behind. Immediately, he began flailing to get the clone off him.
"Raiden!" Harrie yelled, as the bridge rocked viciously from their struggle.
"Don't come any closer!" Raiden growled, trying to throw the Mark-II off him.
Harrie watched helplessly as he attempted to free himself; wriggling and writhing furiously in his grip before they both ultimately tumbled over the railing and began to fall backwards - and the bridge, having been put under constant strain to keep up with the weight of both cyborgs – finally broke apart from one end, the hinges popping off loudly. The bridge went down to an awkward, diagonal angle but was still being held up in mid-air by one still-functioning hinge. Harrie only had one moment to throw herself at Raiden and she grabbed onto his hand. Raiden-II could be seen falling, tumbling down the abyss, his body flimsy like a ragdoll as he vanished into the darkness below. The bridge went to a jarring halt – Raiden and Harrie went sliding down further and further the bridge until Raiden too, was dangling over the edge once again. The last hinge which was still keeping it hoisted up was definitely about to give way.
"Raiden!" Harrie screamed, careful not to upset the balance of the bridge by any sudden movements and she squeezed his intact hand thoroughly whilst her other hand grabbed hold of one of the railings. She gasped as she held his hand firmly, throwing her gaze over her shoulder at the last hinge of the bridge which would be due to come apart very soon. "I got you." She said breathlessly, "Just...just hold on...nghhh...!" The wound on her chest was hurting and she struggled to lift him back up. "Give me your other hand!"
"You can't; you'll fall!"
"Just give me your other hand!"
He lifted his mangled hand in an attempt to meet her other one. Slowly, she let go of the railing and tried to quickly catch his hand – at the same time she slid closer and closer to the edge. They missed; their hands were too far away. Harrie grabbed onto the railing again, panting heavily.
They had to find another way – and Raiden attempted to find some footing, swinging back and forth in an effort to reach one rung of the banister but this only caused Harrie to be dragged further with him and the bridge to creak even further, threatening both their lives. He stopped immediately, letting himself dangle in mid-air.
"Harrie?"
"I won't...won't let go..." She grunted, struggling. The bridge continued to creak louder and louder as she clung onto him, beads of sweat dripping dotting her forehead as she vainly tried to hoist him up.
He threw his gaze to the darkness below them, then slid his gaze up to her. "Harrie." He murmured, "It's me; I'm the one who's causing this; the bridge will fall if I'm on it. I'm too heavy. You have to let go."
She shook her head vigorously, squeezing her eyes shut. "No!" She screamed, "Are you crazy?! I won't let you fall!"
"You have to let go or else we'll both fall!"
"Then so be it!"
"Harrie!" He yelled, eyebrows furrowing with a mixture of anger and exasperation.
She opened her eyes; thick tears rolling down her cheeks. "No." She whispered, and he stared into her eyes, seeing his pallid reflection within. "...No, Raiden, I won't let go."
"Harrie, you have to let go!"
She ignored his pleas. "Don't let go...whatever you do, don't let go!" The bridge went lower and lower, struggling from Raiden's weight; Harrie let out a cry as his grip began to loosen despite her attempt to renew her hold on him. One metal finger slipped out of her grip, then another. She gasped and clung onto him desperately. "I can't let you leave my side again." She cried, weeping profusely. "I won't let it happen again...please, don't do this!"
"Harrie..."
She was sobbing loudly, shaking her head to and fro. "I can't lose you again!"
"You won't."
"Yes, I will! Don't leave me!"
"Harrie, you need to let go."
"No! Don't make me do this...!"
His expression softened, "...You're the one who kept me going, Harrie." He murmured, "It was you."
And then his hand left hers, their hands slipping out of each others like water. One moment, she was still holding onto him and the next he was gone and her hand was empty.
Her mouth opened in a silent scream as she watched him plunge into the darkness, engulfed by the abyss.
...
Harrie got off the bed.
She was being led by Sasaki out of the infirmary and into the great hall where she could see everyone celebrating. A restored Bladepuppy was trailing by her side.
It had been a month since the ordeal.
They'd won.
After Raiden-II was destroyed by the FOXALIVE, all the cyborgs and UGs suddenly stopped functioning and slowly, the humans began take over again. Those who died and those who contributed to the battle were honored, but it had been a month and people were still celebrating. It seemed like they would be celebrating for a long time; maybe they would never stop. Harrie was probably the only one who didn't join in due to the loss.
She'd lost Raiden.
Again.
"What are you trying to show me?" She mumbled out morosely, as Sasaki led her to the middle of the hall where she could see Cain, Ivy, Sam and Mercedes. Cain was in crutches, and despite losing one arm, Sam appeared content with Mercedes at his side. She'd been tending to his injuries and they'd grown quite close; Harrie had the feeling that Sam had found his calling and that they would try to start a life together. Meanwhile, the rest of the crowd went quiet and stood in a circle around them.
Cain cleared his throat and limped towards her. There was a large, unknown object standing tall behind him covered by a white sheet, at least ten foot high. "Harrie, we have prepared something for you."
Turning to Sam, he nodded. The Brazilian then proceeded to pull away the white sheet to reveal a metal statue of two figures – she recognized it to be of herself and Raiden, and her eyes widened. The statue was so intricately detailed and she wondered who had put so much effort into recreating their likeness; the statue of her appeared to possess a distressed expression on her face, having been carved at the bottom with her hand outstretched and reaching for Raiden, who was carved at the very top. He was reaching for her too, but their hands did not meet. Symbolic. Harrie emitted a quiet sigh.
Following the grand unveiling, the hall erupted into applause and cheers.
"You are heroes, so this is our gratitude." Cain said, "And this is how we will remember you. Our sons and daughters will remember his Great Sacrifice and that if you weren't here, then we never would have lived to see this day."
"Thank you, Cain." She muttered, gazing at their statue forlornly. They didn't seem to realize how despondent she was with his absence and as they described it, his sacrifice.
With that, the celebrations continued. Harrie would quietly leave with Bladepuppy, unseen.
And no-one would know where she had gone.
The first animal she saw was what they called a mouse, and she saw one poking its head out of inches of snow, whiskers furrowing, before it scampered across the frozen landscape with a sort of daintiness that was exclusive to a tiny creature as such, darting around as though the storm didn't bother it.
She watched, following its movements with her binoculars before lowering them as soon as she picked up something else through the lens. There was something buried in the snow and she squinted her eyes at the figure in the horizon.
A man.
With Bladepuppy at her side, she hurried across the white barren landscape, wading through knee-high snow. She'd been searching for five years now. Five years and counting. Ever since she left the Resistance, she only had one goal in mind. Many people she came across during her travels seemed to know who she was and wished her luck. Some called her crazy and insane because they kept telling her that he was dead, that he was gone, and they told her to give up and to settle down and have a family but she never did, and she never stopped searching.
Travelling across the earth with only Bladepuppy as her only companion...she lived a lonely life; now that the world was free of cyborgs and UGs, civilization began to flourish. Although the earth's surface was still less than hospitable and there weren't many humans left, small towns and cities began to appear where she would replenish her supplies. Carcasses of cyborgs and UGs would paint the horizon every now and then to remind them of their once macabre situation, but generally, the threat was over. Animals began to appear albeit in small numbers, such as the mouse, and one night during her travels, she also thought she saw a creature in the air with wings. Bladepuppy told her it was a bird, flying south for the winter.
The earth was changing.
Although Raiden had been lost amongst the chaos during the battle, she knew that one day, she would find him. And when she finally arrived at the unconscious figure's side, she dropped to her knees beside him, lifted up her goggles and pulled away at her scarf. The temperature here in Africa was below freezing and here she was dressed in a thick duffle coat with massive gloves, boots and goggles. Puppy waded through the snow and came to a stop beside her.
"Master?" He said.
"We found him..." She said breathlessly, as the snow fell around them from all directions. The storm was getting worse; they would need to return to their shelter soon. "It's him...right?"
Bladepuppy commenced a full body scan, his red light flashing. "He is completely frozen solid. I do not detect any sign of life."
She went silent, then wiped away some snow from his face, stroking his cold cheeks as she gazed at him. His top lip was blue, stiff from the cold. His chin was still the magnificent metal that it was constructed of, albeit in terrible shape. His eyes were closed, his lashes long and dotted with frost and his face was an unhealthy shade of blue and as Bladepuppy had pointed out, he was indeed, frozen solid. She brushed away the snow from his chest, revealing a sheet of ice encasing his body. No 'Mark Two' could be seen on his chest, indicating his identity.
"It's really him," She murmured, "He looks exactly the same as the day when I lost him..."
"My theory is that after he fell, Master, it led him to the sea and the current carried him all the way here. A century ago, the continent of Africa was primarily consisting of deserts and its climate was arid."
"Do you think he was conscious during that time?"
"I believe that if he had been conscious...then he would have attempted to return to you, Master."
She nodded. "Of course."
"What do you propose we do, Master?"
"I finally found him." Harrie whispered; closing her eyes, a single tear dripped out from one corner and down her cheek. "We'll find him a good place to rest."
She lifted him by the feet and began to drag him through the snow; Bladepuppy helped, biting down on one hand and dragging the frozen cyborg with them. Once they arrived at the little hut where they were staying for the night, she propped him by the wall near the fire and Puppy stretched his paws, curling near the fire to warm up. A few hours passed; Harrie sat opposite him, staring at him keenly.
"Should we wake him up, Master?" Puppy asked, noticing that a puddle of water had begun to leak out from underneath him; the heat from the fire seemed to be thawing the cyborg.
"I...I don't know." She murmured in response. "No, I guess. Because...because I did it last time, and he was miserable because of me."
"But I thought the sole reason for our journey was to locate Raiden."
"Well, yes, but...now it won't seem right if we wake him up."
"Then shall we give him a burial?"
She nodded. "We'll do it tomorrow." Rising from her spot where she had been sitting on the floor, she strode to the door, grabbing her coat. "I'll get some more wood for the fire – "
Suddenly, she heard a barely audible groan behind her and she halted in her tracks, her hand poised on the handle of the door. Turning round slowly, she swerved her glance to the cyborg; Bladepuppy had also heard the noise and was watching his stirring form keenly, wagging his tail energetically.
Slowly, his eyelids opened, and she froze when light-gray eyes met her own.
"...Har...rie?"
His voicebox was still functioning. His memories were intact. She couldn't believe her eyes and ears and her breath caught in her throat, her hand trembling on the handle of the door. And for the first time in five years, Harrie smiled.
FINAL AUTHOR'S NOTE
Hmm, kinda of a Monsters Inc ending there lolz.
I won't write it, but basically after Raiden fell, he wound up in another continent (Africa) where the weather there is now constant raging snowstorms. Harrie spent the last 5 years searching for him; the Resistance dedicated a statue to them and called them heroes and humans began to rebuild their lives. Upon Raiden's awakening, he and Harrie would live happily together. He would also start to age; Sunny's FOXALIVE virus and the advanced technology changed his body to resemble more of a human being and the body he had actually enabled him to live a more human life. Despite some initial hardships because he was so used to battle and war, Raiden was able to live a peaceful, comfortable life with Harrie.
A big thanks to those who have been with this fic from humble beginnings all the way to the end and left nice reviews and constrictive feedback. No thanks to those who left behind shitty reviews with nothing constructive or anything good to say. Although I don't remember receiving much, it just ain't on. When you are an author, you will understand.
Anyway here are some final questions and answers:
LE GASP YOU ACTUALLY WROTE A HAPPY ENDING.
No it is not a happy ending. The earth is still suffering and they're currently going through an ice age just like how it did all those millions of yeas ago in order to reduce the earth's temperature due to global warming and mass production from the previous humans' exploits and then the earth will soon freeze over and will wipe out all life and then another bajillion years later humans will begin reappearing so the cycle continues...
...no, just kidding. Yes it was a good ending. I felt like being a good author for a change. Can't say the same for my other fics though.
THEY NEVER KISSED/HUGGED/HAD BABIES. WHAT THE EFF JERALEE. I AM LIKE SO DISAPPOINTED.
I preferred minimal amount of romance especially for a fic in Metal Gear category because it didn't feel right writing about Raiden getting it on with an OC and kissing and hugging or whatever even if Rose is pushing up daisies because it's just not in Raiden's nature but overall, I would say he and Harrie shared a tight bond and it doesn't need that, but at the end they do live together which he did not do with Rose.
SO DOES RAIDEN STILL CARE ABOUT ROSE AND LITTLE JOHN?
Yeah but he was able to accept that he no longer was with them but they would always be with him.
SAM STOLE RAIDEN'S THUNDER
That he did.
SAM'S ARM GOT CUT OFF JUST LIKE HOW HE MET ARMSTRONG
Yes there was a point to that. Poor Sam, even his clone suffered the same fate.
DOES HE FIND OUT HE IS A CLONE
That's up to your speculation.
DOES HARRIE FIND OUT SHE IS AN ADVANCED HUMAN
Possibly, but it doesn't make any difference to her existence.
WHAT HAPPENED TO SUNNY
She was only recreated from the FOXALIVE virus that wiped out the cyborgs. She then disappeared with it.
WHAT WAS THE POINT IN TETSUO'S MEMORY WHEN HE WAS LOCKED UP
Originally I had Tetsuo being Ivy's brother. After he became a cyborg they were on different sides. I decided to not bother and just had Tetsuo as being a plain and evil character who met his end by Sam's blade.
END SONG:
I never would have thought of an 'end song' but Silent Hill 2's Theme of Laura is pretty boss and I think suits the ending of this fic very well.
Please also find the super awesome UltraVioletSoul's playlist *cough* essentially Heroes OST links here:
Part 1: 8tracks.c o m (slash) xraywhisky (slash) heroes-i
Part 2: /xraywhisky/heroes-ii
Part 3: /xraywhisky/heroes-iii
Part 4: www. /xraywhisky/heroes-iv
Part 5: (slash) xraywhisky (slash) heroes-v
Finale: 8tracks.c om (slash) xraywhisky (slash) heroes-vi-finale
Or you can have a look at UltraVioletSoul's youtube which is here: you tube (slash ) user (slash)XenaRamone(slash)playlists
FANART:
I got the cover from shellubla. Thank you so much my dear :)
Now I can concentrate on finishing my other fic. It's been real.
