Hello all! Here I am again, bringing you another chapter of Quiet's story. This one took a little bit more thinking on my part, especially since it's something that wasn't covered much in the game itself. I also wanted to keep it a little different from some of the other similar fanfics I have read (after all, it's not too fun to seemingly be reading the same fanfic over and over, but just under a different title). There's not too much in terms of excitement in this one, but it definitely digs deeper into Quiet's thinking. Enough with my notes, though. Enjoy!
Disclaimer: I do not own MGSV: The Phantom Pain or any of the characters.
Mother Base, Seychelles Waters
Medical Platform
"Hey!" Quiet ignored the voice, not budging from her position lying on her stomach on the semi-comfortable bed. "Hey, you freak!" Quiet still didn't respond to the voices coming from above. The two Diamond Dog soldiers had been at it for the past two days since she had arrived at the base. She figured they would go through their patrols around the platform, taking breaks throughout the day to amuse themselves by taunting her. They were barely adults, she guessed, and their immaturity clearly showed. She didn't let it get the best of her, however, and forced herself to stay unemotional to even the worst insults. Wouldn't be much of an elite soldier if I let a kid who hasn't even finished puberty pulls a reaction from me.
The two soldiers continued their attempts for a few more minutes before she heard them walking away. Finally left alone, Quiet allowed herself to relax. Now that they had left, there was nothing to fill the air except the sounds of the ocean and the bustling sounds of construction and movement from a distance. She almost missed having their voices around to fill her time. With a mental sigh, she got up off the bed, moving around the cell they had put her into. Though she doubted she had missed any part of it the last time she had made her rounds through the cell, there was nothing else to do.
The cell was about the size of a small room, with a good amount of space for her to move around, though there wasn't much she could do with the space. In fact, there were only three things in the cell. She spent the majority of her time in the bed, resting and relaxing. The shower she was grateful for, since it let her have all the water she would ever need for the ever-thirsty parasites in her skin. She couldn't imagine taking an actual shower, however, and she shuddered at the thought. There's no way forty men get to see me trapped in a cell showering naked like some sort of slave. The last thing in the cell was a toilet, and she had absolutely no idea whose bright idea it was to put a toilet in a cell with no privacy or barriers at all. Lucky for me, I don't produce any waste.
Having finished her rounds, Quiet briefly considered going back to the bed before discarding the thought. Spent enough time laying already. I'm going to die of boredom soon. She approached the door to the cell, looking down at the lock. The lock was a pitiful little thing, and she was pretty sure that its only useful purpose was as a decoration. I'd only need one hand to rip it apart, she thought as she poked it with a finger.
For a second, she entertained thoughts of escaping and terrorizing the soldiers on the base. She was pretty sure Big Boss had left on a mission after hearing a chopper departing. That only left a little over two dozen soldiers on the platform. She had counted several more platforms in the distance as she was walked to the cell, and she knew none of them would be expecting an attack from within the base. It would be like taking candy from a baby, she thought. She glanced back to the lock in her hand. It would only take a single, tiny tug, and then she would be able to have the entire platform overtaken in less than twenty minutes.
And yet, something stopped her and she sighed mentally, moving back to the bed and laying down again. Quiet had lost count of the number of times she had imagined herself breaking loose and completing her mission. None of the soldiers would see it coming, and Big Boss would return only to find his soldiers slaughtered, either by vocal cord parasite…or by me. The thought had remained in her mind and yet, she still had not put the plan into effect.
It's because he's not here, Quiet decided firmly. Since he's not here, I don't know when to break loose, so I need to wait until he arrives before I can kill him. She knew the logic made no sense, but she forced herself to believe it anyways. There can't be any other explanation. That's it. With that, she closed her eyes and started to drift off to sleep. Sleep didn't come often to soldiers, and while she was bored and tired of sleeping, she knew it might be at any time that she needed to go without sleep again. I can take down the base another day, she thought sleepily. Starting with those two silly soldiers...
Quiet woke quickly but didn't dare make a move as boots clanked on the stairs leading down to her cell. It was still sunny outside, but the multiple noises of footfalls told her that this wasn't just another guard trying to get her to eat food. Out of the corner of her eye, she saw a red scarf and knew it was the cowboy. She raised her head, watching him as he came to the door of the cell, flanked by the two soldiers who had been harassing her.
"I know you seem to have certain...abilities that make you special," the cowboy began, watching her. Quiet sat up in bed, wary. They were all men and all armed, and she didn't know what to expect from them. "We would like to run you through some basic medical exams, just to make sure you're healthy." She narrowed her eyes at that. Do these medical exams include a guarantee against unnecessary probing and a consent form I can sign?
"I'll personally make sure the medical team doesn't force you to do anything you don't want to," the cowboy said, and Quiet had to hide her surprise at that. Suddenly, the cowboy seemed a lot more welcoming than anyone else on the base. "You might be in a cell, but you are not a slave," he continued. "You will not be treated unfairly here."
At that, Quiet glanced at the two guards. They seemed to be a little bashful, and she wondered if the cowboy had anything to do with it. His next words confirmed her suspicions. "They've been placed on deck scrubbing duty," he said, having followed her gaze. "I've assigned a guard rotation to your cell. They're all trusted officers and you won't be bothered anymore."
Quiet gave a small appreciative nod, once again surprised by his sense of justice and care for her. The cowboy chuckled and she gave him a slightly quizzical look. "You don't talk much, do you?" he said as he unlocked the door, stepping back to open the path to her. She rose from the bed slowly, making sure not to make any unexpected movements as she slipped her boots on and came to the door and followed the cowboy's lead up the stairs.
Little seemed to have changed in the base in the last two days, which wasn't surprising to her. Construction had continued and the base did seem a little more completed than before. It was only a short walk to a gray building, where two more Diamond Dogs stood guarding the entrance. They both saluted as the cowboy approached, acknowledging them with a small nod.
"The doctor should already be waiting for you," the cowboy said, standing aside to give Quiet access to the door. "Don't go causing any trouble, now." The cowboy's warning seemed almost joking, but Quiet sensed the hidden threat behind it. She knew the whole base had been alerted that she was on the move and were standing by in case she made a move. Not that I intend to. She glanced back at the two guards who had followed them, shooting a questioning look to the cowboy. Do they need to come along too?
"They'll be following you for security purposes," the cowboy explained. "They shouldn't cause you too much trouble anymore." Quiet nodded, satisfied with the answer, before turning back to the door and walking in. Time to get my checkup.
Quiet sat patiently on a clean medical cot as the doctor scribbled some things into a notebook. The room was small but comfortable, unlike the cell she had been thrown into. She appreciated the lighting and the light-grey colored paint on the walls seemed to make the room inviting. Much better than my dungeon of a room, she mused. She cleared her throat gently, shifting her weight to a more comfortable position as she waited for the doctor to finish.
"Sorry, I'm almost done," the doctor said with a small smile. She was a young blonde woman dressed in the typical drab Diamond Dog fatigues, but something about her seemed to contrast with the typical boringness of the uniform. Quiet decided it was the woman's personality. She seemed to have a constantly joyful approach to everything in life, whether it was patrolling or handling her duties as a medical officer. Quiet had already lost count of the times the woman had smiled comfortingly at her throughout the last hour they had spent together. All she knew was that it was more than the zero smiles she had gotten in the past three days on the base.
Unlike the other Diamond Dogs on the Medical Platform, the woman had been the first to treat her like a human. Third, Quiet corrected herself. First Big Boss, then the cowboy, and now her. When Quiet had first met her, the doctor had given a beaming smile and a firm handshake before introducing herself as Golden Badger. The name almost seemed to fit perfectly with the woman's golden personality, and it made Quiet wonder if that's how the code names were given in the first place.
"I can't say I've ever gone through a medical checkup for someone like you," Golden Badger commented, a small frown creasing her face as she pondered something on the sheet. After a few more seconds, she scratched something out before putting it down on a nearby table, smiling at Quiet. "Most of those didn't apply to someone with your…abilities. I just put 'not applicable' for most of them." She gave an annoyed face at the questions she had to fill out. "Anyways, I got everything I needed."
Quiet couldn't help but give a small smile back before she dropped it again. She's the enemy! She scowled mentally, trying to fight the cheerfulness that was rising up in her. If the Badger noticed the sniper's inner turmoil, she didn't show it.
"I hope you enjoyed your visit," the doctor said, smiling. "Congratulations! You're in perfect health. Better than perfect, even." Quiet gave a slight nod, not trusting herself to respond. Assassins don't smile, she told herself firmly.
"I'm sorry about your condition, though," Badger continued. "I know the boys on the base can be...well, boys. Maybe we could have R&D get some kind of breathable combat uniform for you."
Quiet's attention snapped back up to the doctor in surprise. What? Her mind raced, both in anxiety and shock. Combat? You don't believe I'm actually going to work for a band of mercenaries, do you?
Badger's expression turned to one of slight concern. "Tactical Instructor Ocelot didn't tell you? This wasn't just a medical exam. This was a physical too. To ensure you were fit for duty." Quiet weighed her situation quickly. If it were between the cell and being out in the field, she definitely would rather being out in the field.
"You would probably be working with The Boss, too." That got Quiet's attention. Suddenly, it didn't seem too bad of an idea, and she jumped on the chance. Working side-by-side with the legend himself? Certainly ups my chances of finding a chance to kill him. Deal. She smiled slightly and nodded, imagining Big Boss facedown on a sandy slope with a bullet to the back of his head.
The doctor smiled back, clearly unaware of what Quiet was thinking. Not that she needs to know. "Ocelot is waiting for you at the shooting range in the back," she said, opening the door. "You'll have a two-guard escort, the same one you walked in with." Quiet gave a slight frown at that, though she brushed it off. If they don't bother me, there won't be any problems.
They walked out together into the waiting area, where the guards stood back up, grabbing their weapons. Quiet turned back one more time to the doctor, giving a simple nod of gratitude. She felt her heart warm slightly when the doctor smiled and gave a slight nod back, though she did her best to fight the feelings.
Suddenly, Quiet felt something warm and suffocating press over her shoulders and back. One of the young guards who had harassed her was busy trying to fit some sort of jacket over her. She heard Badger starting to warn the soldier, but Quiet lost her patience quickly and it was too late.
Quiet grabbed an arm, yanking the soldier over her shoulder and crashing into the nearby wall with a heavy thud. The other soldier yelped in surprise, bringing his weapon to bear. She grabbed the rifle, knocking it out of his hands, before sending him crashing down on top of his friend. The entire sequence lasted less than five seconds, ending with a moan pile of bodies and a slightly amused doctor. Try touching me again, she dared them. Got what you knuckleheads deserved.
"I guess that's what they get for trying to dress you," Badger commented, looking down at the two winded soldiers. "I'm sure Ocelot wouldn't mind you going with one of the door guards." Quiet nodded, sending an apologetic glance. Sorry about the mess, Badger. The doctor waved it away. "Their fault, not yours. Go on."
Quiet nodded once more, turning and walking towards the door. She could hear one of the soldiers whining something along the lines of, "She hit me for no reason!", followed by Badger's response of, "Well that's why you wait for directions first!" At least they're already in the medical facility, Quiet thought. No need to drag their pitiful selves along the deck to get treatment.
And that's that. Next up, we'll start to see a little deepening of the plot and hopefully a little more action than this chapter provided. As always, feel free to review. Thank you all for your support in this!