"Wolf is back out on the field for the first time since the death of Marston and he must locate and extract the Mammal Pod in hopes of finding answers to the Ground Zeroes Incident, he could only hope this mission is worth it"

Chapter 169: The Mammal Pod

"Wolf, the mission is to find and extract the Mammal Pod at the Central Base Camp. According to our reports the Pod is still in the hanger where Big Boss made contact with Huey, with XOF gone with the wind the Soviets have taken over the base".

"Our scouts show that despite the take over the Soviets havnt been serious about their security, so it shouldnt be a problem for you to sneak in and head straight for the hanger. Once inside use your idroid and link it with the Mammal Pod, we have a program that will direct the Mammal Pod straight to our base so you want have to worry about Faultoning it".

"Sneak into the Central Base Camp and extract the Mammal Pod". Miller's briefing file played in Wolf's headphone as he layed prone on the rocky surface overlooking the entire Central Base Camp as he looked through his scope doing some recon.

Wearing desert camo along with a hooded scarf Wolf saw the base was mostly empty and the Soviet's had a skeleton crew watching over the base, the right, left and central side of the Base Camp had soldiers on patrol but they were nothing Wolf couldnt handle.

With the sun shining over the clear sky of Afghanistan Wolf knew it would take only one soldier to spot him in this light, he had to time his movements and make sure nothing would complicate the mission.

After a few more minutes of recon Wolf was happy with what he collected, slowly raising to one knee he then placed his finger on his earpiece. "This is Wolf, do you read me?".

"I read you Wolf, whats the situation?" Miller responded.

"I'm just over the edge into the Central Base Camp, place has nothing but a skeleton crew" Wolf revealed looking over the base.

"Yeah, seems like most of their strength has been diverted towards the stronghold where we got that engineer for your arm. Seems like theres a Resistance Group causing chaos for the Soviets, perfect timing I'd say" Miller joked.

"Yeah well, best not stick around and wait for them to arrive, so just to reminder. All I got to do in install the program on my idrod into the Mammal Pod and it will take it from there?" Wolf questioned.

"Correct Wolf, just head over to the hanger and I will instruct you further from there. Make sure nobody sees you Wolf, less stress on your part I'd say" Miller advised and Wolf chuckled. "Yeah, I'm not interested in fighting these guys".

Ending the call Wolf then jumped off the ledge he was on and slide down the rocky surface and into the base, moving fast down the hill he soon reached the bottom and rolled right behind a wooden crate then took out his silenced pistol wondering if anyone saw him. Ever so slowly he peeked around the crate and down the path before him and he noticed the coast was clear and noticed the path was leading toward an underpass of the road on the upper path.

Checking back behind him to the path leading up to higher ground he noticed the checkpoint leading out of the camp and lucky enough no one even noticed any suspicious activity as Wolf made his entrance. "Guess its my lucky day".

Looking back down the lower path Wolf decided to take the path providing the most cover, taking a deep breath he moved from the crate with his pistol in hand and he quickly moved while watching for any signs of hostile movement.

Despite being in the field all his younger days Wolf's heart was beating out of his chest, the thirty year old man felt like he was twenty one again and on his first mission for MSF. It was such a crazy feeling and he couldnt understand why his heart was going nuts, but despite this he kept a level head and continued past an small resting spot and headed right under the small underpass to the road above him.

Now under cover Wolf stopped and came to the other side of the under pass then knelt down in the shade looking at the next area. Up ahead was a large landing area for attack choppers, however there was only a hand full of them as it was assumed the Soviets sent alot out to cover the other strongholds they had in Afghanistan. Either way he was happy that there were non in the sky over looking the Central Base Camp but soon his concentration was interrupted by a call from his ear piece.

"Wolf, this is Ocelot. Just letting you know Quiet is not far from Africa, I'll be watching over her mission and let you know how she does"

"Thanks Adam, any word on Big Boss?" Wolf questioned as he pulled out his idroid looking at the map of the base planning his next move.

"Nothing yet" Ocelot sighed. "I'll let you know as soon as I find out anything. Right now just focus on your mission, hope your not too rusty".

Wolf only chuckled. "I'm not that old yet". The call ended and now Wolf finally had a plan of movement. From the current position under the bridge he looked at the map seeing two hangers nearby, there was an abandoned hanger just out from the underpass and there was another one right behind it to the far north. The far North Hanger was the target and all he had to do was get there.

He decided it was best to cut through the abandoned hanger and head straight for the target, if there was hostiles on the other side of the hanger then he knew he would have to deal with them one way or another. He decided it would be stupid to run across the landing area as it was too open and he would be spotted alot easier, placing his idroid on his belt he double checked his pistol making sure it was ready and after a few deep breaths he got up and moved from the under pass taking a sharp right and headed towards the abandoned hanger.

Moving quick and fast Wolf followed the path leading up to the destroyed hanger and quickly made it towards the open door leading into the hanger itself, coming to the entrance into the hanger Wolf raised his pistol as he entered. The place was a complete mess and there was nothing even salvageable. The parts of the hanger ceiling was exposed with the sun shining down through it and all Wolf saw in front of him was destroyed desks, computers, super computers and just debris.

The hanger had no single soul in it all except for Wolf and all he could hear was his own footsteps and the sound of his own breathing. Nothing but complete focus was in Wolf's mind as he slowly walked through the hanger until he got to the middle of the destroyed hanger.

"Hm hmm" Wolf was startled hearing a voice humming and he quickly turned to his right and thats when he saw another door leading into a private office of the hanger, for some reason the small square office looked intact and it really confused Wolf as it should have been burnt down with the rest of the hanger's equipment. What ever it was he swore he heard something coming from that small office.

Placing his finger on the trigger of his pistol Wolf decided to investigate the small office, ever so slowly he approached the door of the office and soon was one step away from the door sliding open. Who ever was in there was more then likely a threat so he was going to take no chances in letting his guard down.

Taking one slow deep breath Wolf then rushed forward with the office door sliding open as he rushed in, he quickly turned the corner in the office and aimed towards a desk with a large leather chair facing away from him but for some reason he felt someone was in it.

His heart raced wondering who was in that chair and with his pistol he slowly made his approach to the chair until he came right behind it, slowly placing his hand on the top of the leather chair he then quickly spun it around and jumped back aiming his weapon and thats when he saw something that really confused him.

Ever so slowly he lowered his pistol looking at the seat of the leather chair and all he saw was a single blue winged butterfly, for some reason Wolf couldn't look away from it as it just sat there on the chair but after a few seconds it began to fly off the chair and gently flutter right past Wolf and all he could do was watch its movements as he turned back around watching it land on the office wall.

The world around him was silent as he continued to watch the butterfly and soon it flew off the wall and fluttered towards Wolf, ever so slowly Wolf took a step forward and soon it came within arms length so Wolf lunged with his free hand and caught the butterfly in his cybernetic hand.

Gently holding on to the butterfly in his closed hand he slowly brought it closer to him and just looked down at his hand, Wolf didn't know what he was attracted to this butterfly but it reminded him of something, something he remembered from long ago.

After a few seconds Wolf slowly turned his hand and opened his palm and too his shock there was no butterfly, not one blue butterfly. Confusion really set into Wolf and thats when he looked up to the office before him and it was no longer the clean office he entered, it was burnt and destroyed along with the rest of the hanger. Wolf was just lost in the moment slowly turning around to the leather chair and desk seeing them destroyed along with everything else but it was then he was brought back to reality.

"Wolf are you ok?, you seemed to have stopped" Miller contacted Wolf a little concerned with him and Wolf just looked down at his cybernetic hand which still had no butterfly in it.

"Yeah..just..got a little sidetracked.." Wolf revealed closing his cybernetic fist and lowering his arm to his side.

"Side tracked? thats not like you Wolf, you sure your ok? You sound a little shaken" Miller asked still not convinced and Wolf just shook his thoughts clear and turned raising his pistol with both hands as he rushed out of the office. "I'm fine Miller, I'm heading to the Mammal Pod now".

Wolf completely ignored what happened back there and decided to just get to the Mammal Pod as quickly as possible, making his way out of the destroyed hanger and using the smaller hangers as cover to advance Wolf managed to get to the other side of the base without even alerting anyone. Despite his time off the field he had no signs of slowing down, it was like he had never been away.

Soon Wolf made his way through the north side of the base and he was finally within reach of the Mammal Pod's hanger, moving quickly and quietly Wolf finally came to the side entrance of the hanger and was about to enter but he suddenly heard footsteps on the other side of the door.

The door suddenly opened and two soviet guards walked out with their rifles in hand and were talking as Wolf vanished into thin air.

"That thing is giving me a headache"

"Why dont they shut that thing off, theres gotta be a way".

The two guards bickered and soon they stopped just outside the entrance and turned to each other to continue their talk.

"If anything they should just dismantle it, sure they could still make money off it".

"The Commander wants that thing intact, thinks it will be worth a fortune complete".

"Ha, who would want something that constantly talks to itself. Why does it keep calling out for Snake?".

"Hell if I know, things properly on its way out."

"Well I'd rather be away from it for a while, cant stand its voice any longer".

"Nobody comes here anyway, lets get a bite and then come back"

"I'm happy with that"

The two soviets then turned and walked away and to where ever they were going and little did they know Wolf was just around the corner of the hanger, he heard the whole conversation and it was indeed confirmed the Mammal Pod was still here after all this time.

"Miller I can confirm the Mammal Pod is still in the hanger, moving to extract it" Wolf stated moving out of cover and to the entrance with his gun ready.

"Roger Wolf, once its extracted get the hell out of there" Miller responded and the call ended with Wolf finally heading into the side entrance and into the hanger itself.

It hanger had low lighting and was dark in some areas and was possibly running on low power, Wolf continued to walk down the narrow path before him until he came to a corner leading to a wider area of the hanger itself and he could hear the sound of music playing. Not knowing if there was any other soldiers in there with him Wolf continued to move as quietly as possible.

"Where are you.." Wolf whispered to himself as he turned the corner and the whole area was dark and all he could see was a desk set up in the middle of the hanger along with a single computer plus a tape player where the music was coming from.

"In that bright land to which I go"

"I'm going there to see my Father"

"And all my loved ones who've gone on"

"I'm just going over Jordan"

"I'm just going over home"

Wolf listened to the song for a few seconds as he looked around him and soon he realised the hanger was completley empty and there was no one but him inside the hanger, he lowered his pistol placing it back in its holster as he approached the table.

"I know dark clouds will gather 'round me"

"I know my way is hard and steep"

"But beauteous fields arise before me"

"Where God's redeemed, their vigils keep"

"I'm going there to see my Mother-"

Wolf came to the table and pulled the cassette tape out of the player and examined it and on it was written "Wayfaring Stranger", it must have been a new song cause Wolf never heard of it or maybe it existed for a long time and he just never came across it.

"A little gift for Stef" Wolf chuckled placing the tape in his pocket and thats when he turned to the nearby computer but suddenly a loud bang from behind him startled him and he turned pulling his pistol back out to where he entered and thats when he saw a large cylinder like object blink online showing a very sharp red light with lit up the dark corner it was in, it was then Wolf realized that he had found the Mammal Pod. Something he had not seen in over ten years.

"Snake?..." The Mammal Pod let off a female voice questioning Wolf and all he did was slowly move towards it with his weapon still trained on it.

"Snake is that you?" The Mammal Pod called out again as Wolf drew closer and thats when its systems starting working away in a sound like it was scanning.

"Who are you?...are you?.." The scans on the Mammal Pod soon ended as Wolf finally came to the small metal platform it was standing on and he made his way up the small steps and towards the massive machine and after all this time it still carried a certain allure to it.

"No...not Snake...he's not here" The Mammal Pod spoke again and soon its voice continued on as Wolf just looked the pod up and down checking its state as it spoke on.

"I've been waiting Snake for a long time, waiting for your birth, your growth and the finality of today..".

"There is nothing left inside me now, no hatred not even regret. And yet sometimes at night, I still feel the pain creeping up inside, slithering through my body..like a Snake".

Wolf slowly walked around the Pod as he listened on to the Pod and noticed it was in good shape and was able to be extracted and soon he came to the front of it and looked up to the single lens blinking red.

"So thats who you sound like, The Boss.." Wolf whispered remembering the stories Big Boss told about her, she was a strong woman who gave her life for her country and Wolf was one of the few who was told the truth about what happened.

In a way Wolf felt sorry for how The Boss was treated and yet he admired her sacrifice despite America using her for their own greed, he could only imagine was it would have been like to meet the legendary Boss.

Sighing at the thoughts at what she went through Wolf looked down to the front of the Mammal Pod and out of character he gently placed his hand on the flat surface of the pod feeling the cold steel through his gloves.

"Jack...is that you? How many years has it been?" The Mammal Pod spoke out in a whisper as its lens blinked red and soon Wolf took his hand off the Pod and looked back up to the lens.

"I'm not him Boss...but I'm here to take you to him.." Wolf whispered and then turned leaving the platform and headed back to the computer.

"Miller I've made contact with the Pod, transmitting data to it now" Wolf stated pulling out his idroid and thats when he used a USB wire to connect it with the computer on the desk, seconds had past and soon the program installed the Idroid came up on the computer screen.

Looking to the screen the program requested the codes to initiate the launch as it was successfully connected to the Pod's programming, Wolf leaned forward and began typing away entering the required codes and suddenly the sounds of the Pod got his attention making him look back to it.

The Mammal Pod lit up like a Christmas Tree as its red lights went brighter then ever and suddenly its thrusters activated breaking it off the platform and the force of it rumbled the entire area making Wolf lose his balance slightly as he turned to face it.

Wolf raised his hands out in front of him blocking the blinding light of the thrusters under the Pod itself and he could feel the heat coming from it and it was almost hotter then Afghanistan itself, he witnessed the Pod shaking in mid air and all of a sudden it shot up at lightning speed and right through the hanger ceiling leaving a massive hole where the metal used to be and all Wolf did was watch it fly off into the sky before it darted left and out of sight.

Slowly relaxing Wolf just looked up to the new hole on the ceiling seeing the light shine into the dark hanger, all he could think of was hearing The Boss's story for the first time. It was one he didnt think of for a long time and now those memories were coming back, memories of a legendary soldier sacrificing her honor for her land, the one woman who was hailed a hero and a true Patriot.

"AI Pod launch confirmed, its heading towards our location. Wonder what kind of secrets are buried in it. Get back to Mother Base Wolf, great work, and thank you..". Miller spoke over the radio and Wolf just looked up to the whole for a few more seconds just lost in the moment.

"Roger that.." Wolf whispered to himself and soon he turned away ready to leave Afghanistan and get back to Outer Heaven, this was going to be his last time on the field. He was never going back it again after this.

"Wayfaring Stranger"

I'm just a poor wayfaring stranger

Traveling through this world below

There is no sickness, no toil, nor danger

In that bright land to which I go

I'm going there to see my Father

And all my loved ones who've gone on

I'm just going over Jordan

I'm just going over home

I know dark clouds will gather 'round me

I know my way is hard and steep

But beauteous fields arise before me

Where God's redeemed, their vigils keep

I'm going there to see my Mother

She said she'd meet me when I come

So, I'm just going over Jordan

I'm just going over home

I'm just going over Jordan

I'm just going over home

"Mission Complete! Wolf had located the Mammal Pod and now its on its way to Outer Heaven, Wolf may have had a weird moment on this mission but he still hasnt lost his step!. Next Chapter will all be about Quiet and it will be all action, its time to remind you of how dangerous she is ;) HOPE YOU ENJOYED THIS CHAPTER AND ARE READY FOR MORE!