Chapter 37

Once the door closed Raiden and Otacon were alone with the two soldiers. Their guns were ready to fire in case Raiden made any move. Otacon looked at Raiden attentively. He seemed well, there was a large rip filled with blood on his leg but apart from that he looked fine. The two soldiers brought Raiden and placed him in front of Otacon past the desk. "Now hurry! Or I'll hurt your friend!" One of the soldiers spoke and the other made a thrusting motion with the butt of his gun towards one of Raiden's legs. The wound that Garand had given him wasn't healed, that would take some time, and it hurt like hell. Raiden grabbed the desk so he didn't fall, but his face showed Otacon he was in pain.

"Alright!! Just stop!" Otacon said and started again pushing keys, the two soldiers had no idea that he wasn't working on decrypting the files that Phantom had asked him to. I need to find a way out of here. I can worry about my discovery later. One of the files that had made him so apprehensive would have to wait, because with Raiden here, beside him they had more chances of getting away from this place. Otacon searched through the schematics again and quickly found something. A water conduit system!?Inside that room…this could work…it leads to…

"Well!!?" One of the soldiers asked. "Is it done?"

Otacon was going as fast as he could while he glanced up to the two soldier's stern faces. "Not yet, just a little while longer" Otacon said buying some more time. He had no intention to decrypt the files even if in the last hour he had thought of a way that could probably do it. He was more interested where the water conduits would end up. What's this!?A pumping station just outside a hangar. This is it! This is our way out. Otacon glanced at Raiden and saw him looking straight into his eyes. He had a plan but no away to convey it to it Raiden. If he talked it was a sure thing that the soldiers would hurt Raiden more before he could act. Crap!! Otacon moved his glasses up his nose as he felt them falling. He had to do something quickly.Uh…maybe. The light conditions are not that bad!! "I'm close!" The idea that Otacon had was silly, but maybe it could work. In the next few minutes Otacon did the best he could, but one of the soldiers decided to circle around the desk and cramp up his plan. For about five minutes Otacon did nothing but to push keys randomly as the screen showed the hacking progress on the encrypted files. After the soldier got out of eyeshot, Otacon hurried and got everything ready. He moved his chair a few inches towards the desk and coughed so Raiden looked at him. "I need to clean my glasses" Otacon said removing them from his face and cleaning them with his jacket. He took a while to place them on his face again and before he did he noticed that Raiden had picked up on it.

It was a strange feeling that Ocelot was getting as he looked outside into the desert. He was nearby the troops, the Black Army. He took a deep breath. He was accompanied by soldiers around tents and campfires and yet Ocelot felt alone. With the H1 ready, it won't be long now! Ocelot looked at his right hand and closed it into a fist. Will he be dead when I see him or will he make it inside alive? The question on Ocelot's mind was partially answered as he heard and saw Tiger moving with several men accompanying him down to the train terminal. Has he caught him? If so then you've slowed down with age dear brother! No matter then! If you're dead by now than I won't have to worry about you again and my future plans, though I wished we had one last fight, but not now, I'm not ready yet. I'll see the dream come true first…finally. Ocelot almost smiled, then diverted his eyes to the desert and waited. Something would happen soon.

The sight of Otacon being alive and all around well was a relief to Raiden. But the small talk would have to wait; the soldiers pushed Raiden towards the front of the desk, opposite Otacon. "Now hurry! Or I'll hurt your friend!" The soldier to Raiden's left side said and immediately he noticed the soldier on his left moving. The pain near his knee wasn't small and if wasn't for the desk he would have fallen to the ground. Bastards!!

"Alright!! Just stop!" Raiden heard Otacon say and immediately saw him pushing keys. What the hell is he doing? With the gag onRaiden could only guess, but he gathered that Otacon had found something important and exciting. Raiden had seen that face many times, sometimes when Otacon and Mei ling had heated arguments about stuff he knew nothing about.

"Well!!?" One of the soldiers asked. "Is it done?"

Raiden looked at Otacon and heard his reply. "Not yet, just a little while longer"

Something is definitely not right! Raiden thought at the same time as he felt his knee pain easing up. He looked at Otacon and he looked back at him. What are you doing?

"I'm close!" Otacon spoke again.

One of the soldiers moved away from Raiden's side and circled around the desk, he even threw a few inquisitive looks at the computer screen, but he didn't seem to know what he was seeing. After he moved away Otacon spoke again. "I need to clean my glasses" And then Raiden saw it, so candid and yet so ingenious. Otacon had pulled his chair towards the screen and even coughed, but Raiden saw it as he held the glasses near his face for a few seconds before putting them on his face. The reflection on Otacon's glasses showed the computer screen. A word had been written on the screen. 'Raiden'. He even inverted the text, clever Otacon, very clever! Raiden was surprised that Otacon had thought of something so simple and yet so effective. The word disappeared and others took its place. 'Yes 1 Blink, No 2 Blinks' Raiden blinked his eyes once and Otacon again changed the words. After a few minutes of a silent one sided conversation and after the last blink of Raiden's eye the plan was laid down.

The voice on Snake's CODEC came on. "Snake can you hear me!?" Raiden's voice was a bit muffled.

"Raiden, where are you!!" Snake promptly asked.

"I'm fine. Snake are you ok? I tried to contact you after the derail…"

Snake interrupted. "I busted my CODEC, but I have Otacon's. What about you…this transmission sounds weird"

"There's someone here than can tell you about it." Raiden replied and a different voice came on the CODEC. "Snake?"

"Otacon!? You're alive!" Snake responded and watched Violet's reaction, except for a quick blink of her eyes there was no expression of any kind.

"Yeah I am, we're using an enemy radio, I got through to your frequency. Raiden tells me Susanne told you about an explosion, but she was mistaken! I don't understand she must have been…"

"She's with me Otacon, she's one of them" Snake replied again seeing no reaction by Violet.

"What!!? She's one of them!?"

"I took your CODEC from her. She was leading me straight to the enemy. Her real name is Black Violet"

"How could she…" Snake could hear the confusion in Otacon's voice. "How's that possible!! I…I thought she liked…"

"Otacon, we can't do this, not now!" Snake quickly replied. "Where are you!?"

Snake heard Otacon sighing and then answering. "We are in the main building inside what appears to be a large fortress."

"I'm also inside, but short on time, they know I'm here and the alarm is bound to go off soon!" Snake replied knowing that the person Violet called had given her just a few minutes before coming.

"Well, we are getting ready to escape"

"Escape, how?"

This time Violet reacted, her eyes opened a bit and she scowled at Snake.

"I hacked my way into their system and found a way out. The main building only has one exit, we could head for the roof but its dangerous and…and we still have a mission to complete"

"You're right, we do" Snake looked at Violet's face and a flash of her dead body came to her mind. The mission was to eliminate the Black Unit, and she was one of them. "What's the other way?"

"I found a water conduit, its Big enough to swim through. It ends up on a water pumping station just behind the hangar"

Snake quickly glanced out the window and saw the massive hangar's front door. "I can meet you there!" Snake replied.

"Alright…Snake what about her? Susanne."

"I'll take her with me" Snake replied. "Move out Otacon, well meet up in a few"

"Wait, Snake there's something else I need to tell you, actually two things, two very important things."

"What?"

"He's here, Liquid is here and the Black Unit has a Metal Gear on their side"