Most days, she would find herself basking in the sun atop of the Rhodes Island landship. The sun on her skin reminded of her time in Sargon. Both in the vast deserts and in the lush jungle.
The hum of machines was soothing. It reminded her of the caws of the birds cawing amongst the trees or the whirling wind as it caressed the sands. It reminded her of David.
Her mentor, her friend, he was father in all but blood.
He found her amidst the chaos of a battlefield, alone, abandoned. He fed her, raised her, taught her the art of war of combat.
Her hands and body moved. One form to the next in a series of ever increasing complexity.
"Remember, hand to hand is the basis of all combat." David's gruff voice reminded her. Lighting a cigar and taking a puff of smoke, he slightly corrected her footing and tapped her back to emphasize the shifting of her weight. "Only a fool trusts his life to a weapon."
She didn't know much about David. Like her, he didn't talk much. But that was fine, the quiet was their own way of communicating with each other. When there was a moment of quiet to be had, that is.
Explosions rocked the desert sand. Projectiles whizzed all over, swords clashed, and in the midst of this torrent, David and her slowly crept through between the buildings of the once peaceful settlement.
They slowly made their way deeper into hostile territory before they found their target. They moved in synch, making sure not to be seen and only taking down any guards when left with no other choice.
Eventually, they found their target. The encampment's leader. A Petram who fancied himself a conqueror, inciting a never-ending war for profit and self-gain.
Unfortunately, their target had the skills to back him up and he was quickly alerted to their presence despite of their own abilities to stay hidden. David soon found himself divested of his gun. And due to her own lack of training, she wasn't armed with one either.
"What do you hope to achieve by killing me, eh?" She dodged a punch and blocked a follow-up kick. David came in from the side and delivered a haymaker, knocking him back. Her mentor followed up with a knife in hand.
Their target managed to intercept the weapon by grabbing onto David's wrist. A few twists and her teacher was on his back courtesy of a throw.
Their target turned towards her, David's knife now in his hands. His eyes promised no mercy but that was fine. She understood that from the start. Her tail uncurled from behind as she dove to the side dodging the mad lunge. A quick 180 and their target tripped face first, her tail slithered back behind her as she took her stance. Her stinger poised to strike.
"You puta!" Their target cursed as he flipped over revealing a small pistol in his hand.
A shot rang out.
Their target slumped backwards, dead. A look of surprise etched into his face. The blood from the bullet wound trickled down his forehead between his eyes.
Beside her David walked forward a smoking revolver in his hands. Holstering his weapon, he turned to her. "You alright?"
She nodded before looking over the quickly cooling body of their target before her eyes trailed to the gun that laid within his grip. With the adrenaline of the fight slowly fading she had come face to face with death, or as close to it than she has ever been.
And yet, she felt nothing. No worry, no epiphany, just an understanding that she might have died. And she was okay with that.
"Here." She blinked and in front of her was the gun that had almost shot her in David's hand. "Take this for now. I'll teach you how to use it later." She looked at the item before taking it and its accompanying holster wordlessly.
"Something the matter?" David looked her over with a quirk of an eyebrow.
She shook her head but then she noticed the item David was carrying over his shoulder. She quirked an eyebrow of her own as she pointed at it.
"Oh this?" David motioned to what he was holding. "It's our way out of here." He smirked.
She fingered the emblem stitched onto her coat, something she and David created together. A picture of a fox holding with a handle of a knife in its mouth. And she couldn't help but smile at that little incident.
Who knew using a cardboard box would be so fun?
Notes:
Crossover with the Metal Gear series. Character in question, Solid Snake.
Operator in question, Manticore.