Chapter 5; Liquid Snake.
Liquid Snake paced down the corridors while he went through the bunch of keys searching for the one to Snake's cell. He holstered the SOCOM for he didn't have much use for it just now and Snake was tied up. Liquid came to the cell and turned the key in the lock.
"Break his neck... beat Snake to death?" he thought darkly. "I'll know when I see him." It always seemed to be like that. Every time he saw Snake, his hatred seemed to come alive like some creature living inside him. It was a part of him though and not some separate entity, as much a part of Liquid as the hands holding the keys to unlock the door to his twin and all that he loathed. He stepped into the tiny room quietly. Snake hadn't noticed and Liquid slammed the door making Snake jump from where he was slumped down in the corner. Liquid felt a smile cross his face as Snake looked up wearily.
"Hello dear brother." Liquid grinned. Snake frowned.
"Cut the crap Liquid." Snake said and heaved a sigh. "What do you want now?"
"Some inspiration that's all. A few ideas to help me work out..." he stopped and crouched down at Snake's side. Snake's slight movements where his wrists had been tied had caught his attention.
"What..." he thought eyes narrowing in suspicion. "these ropes are worn. You've been trying to escape... FROM ME?!" Liquid stood up quickly and kicked his twin sharply in the ribs.
"I'm not going to allow you to escape! NOT THIS TIME!!" he bellowed furiously and continued to kick Snake viciously. The hate inside had sparked and taken hold of him like wildfire. It didn't matter that Snake couldn't protect himself. Nobody had protected Liquid from the torment he was put through when he was young so why should Snake have any? Liquid stood back, Snake still appeared to be no worse.
"WHAT IS IT WITH YOU!?" Liquid screamed heatedly. "Don't you feel anything at all?! Even pain?" and turned away. Snake didn't answer. Liquid decided to punish him for his ignorance and whipped round, raising one foot off the ground and stamped it down onto Snake's shot leg. He got the response he had wanted, Snake screamed out, his body jerked with pain.
"FEEL THAT DID YOU?" Liquid laughed and took the SOCOM in his hands kicking Snake in the stomach a few times. Liquid pointed the gun down at Snake's wounded leg over where he'd shot him before. He grinned as Snake stared up, eyes wide open.
His heart was hammering so his body could cope with this wave of punishment, even harder when he saw the SOCOM. It skipped a few beats when Snake looked up to see his brother grinning, the gun's muzzle hovering above his wounded leg.
"Oh no! DON'T...!!" Snake pleaded his last word tore up into a roar. Excruciating pain when shredded flesh was ripped up all over again with the bullet. Snake screwed his eyes up throwing his head back to hold the tears back. He hadn't cried for anything in a long time and there was no way he could let Liquid, of all people, see how much it hurt. Snake had clamped his eyes so tight even they were sore. More was heaped on him as Liquid began to kick into him. Dull thuds sounded through his whole body shaking him to the bone.
"This isn't happening to me... it has to be somebody else." Snake thought distantly while the assault continued. Snake looked up, eyes and mind told him to raise his arms, but they said otherwise, pinned behind his back. He couldn't soften the blow to his face and was reminded that this was really happening to him. Snake felt his nose almost explode into a bloody stream down his face, bruises appeared instantly. Something hard rolled about in his mouth with salty tasting blood. Snake peered up with unclear vision from the force of the blow making out the shape of his brother standing there laughing. Over his brother's sniggers, Snake heard Meryl crying out to him again. He didn't have time to even feel fear for Meryl when Liquid booted into his stomach, choking, spluttering, and spitting out the blood and his lost tooth. Snake caught a brief glimpse of dull black metal in Liquid's hand. The SOCOM was lifted up from the holster and swung down in an arc to strike him across his head.
"...Here we go again..." Snake thought with resignation. Too weak to resist, Snake blacked right out.
Liquid returned his SOCOM to its place at his side and stooped to untie Snake, replacing the frayed rope with new bindings.
"Where to put him now?" Liquid wondered as he dragged Snake through the cell and into the corridor, wet streaks of water and blood on the floor. Liquid sat his brother up against the wall and watched him for a second. Contemplating. Plotting. So much he could do with him. Years of waiting, dreaming of this day and he was struggling to choose just one. Snake's head had tipped forwards so that his chin rested on his chest, a mess of crimson where blood dripped from his nose and meant that he wouldn't come to a premature death by choking on his own blood. Liquid looked up and inhaled sharply in irritation.
"Is that girl ever going to stop shouting?!" Liquid sighed angrily and stormed off to where he'd locked Meryl up, taking the key from his pocket while he did. He unlocked the door and threw it open, striding up to her.
"Look Meryl." he growled. "Snake can't hear you right now so I'd save my breath if I were you."
"You didn't kill him, did you?" Meryl asked edgily, raising her fists to attack. Liquid only smiled and lowered his arms to his side.
"Go on...take your best shot." He goaded. Meryl looked at him out the corner of her eyes. He caught her punch just inches from his face. She was quick but not quick enough for him.
"Too slow!" he laughed. "What's the problem? Is it because I look like him?" Liquid grinned. Meryl had backed herself up into a wall. She squirmed around against his hold and stopped, realising that even though she was strong, Meryl was not strong enough to fight back against him. Liquid stood in front barely inches away from her.
"Of course you never said which Snake, Liquid or Solid, you wanted to see." Liquid said to her with a smile. Meryl wriggled trying to hide in the wall itself and looked away from his stare.
"You know who I meant..." she said quietly. "and it wasn't you, that's for sure."
"Ooh..." Liquid cooed. "...that hurt. Didn't want to see me?" he said holding his face close to Meryl's so that she couldn't ignore him. Liquid expected her to look away but she continued to stare steadily into his eyes. To his surprise Meryl smiled at him. Then her face became hard and cold.
"Get the Hell off of me and let me go!" Meryl hissed, her voice hushed, sounding more menacing this time. They stood there for a few silent moments, neither of them was willing to move or speak.
"Fine." Liquid eventually said. "But only because I've had my fun with you for now." He backed off and let Meryl's arms fall back to her sides. He turned away and stood at the door to unlock it.
"Oh." Liquid began and peered over his shoulder so only his eyes showed over the collar of his coat. "I caught Snake trying to escape. He's alive for your information but that doesn't really matter now." Liquid said coldly. He looked at Meryl, still standing against the wall. She wilted a little as he shut the door on her.
Liquid returned to find Snake, still unconscious and took hold of the ropes round his wrists, dragging him along into a large blast furnace.
"I'm not carrying him up four levels." Liquid thought exasperated and looked round for an elevator. There was one not far to his left. It was only small and Liquid had trouble trying to cram himself and Snake in. It didn't help with Snake's lifeless body which wouldn't do anything that Liquid demanded. Finally he could slide the shutter and the lift juddered up to the top. Once again Liquid lugged Solid Snake behind him outside to another heliport. A freezing gale was blowing, bringing snow down out of the grey sky. He settled for tying Snake to the railings that wound round the helipad, doubling up the rope bindings with a length of wire he had found kicking about. Now there was no way Snake could try and get away.
"Sorry, but I'll give you a rude awakening..." Liquid smiled as he took a fistful of icy snow and rubbed it into his twins face.
"What...? What's that?" Snake thought wearily as something cold and crumbly was pressed into his face. He woke up to see the frozen snow in Liquid's hand and noticed that he was now outside. Snake shuddered at the biting gust of wind and instinctively tucked his legs up to his chest in order to get warm, still unable to move his arms. Metal cable dug into the raw skin round his wrists.
"Get lost, Liquid..." Snake groaned not making the effort to even sound half annoyed, he knew it would make no difference anyway. His shot leg was painful to keep up in front of him the way it was so Snake rested it on the frozen concrete of the helipad.
"Oh... did I waken you? So sorry Snake." Liquid answered in mock apology. "And I almost forgot... your time is up." Snake frowned and looked up.
"Already?"
"No, but after your escape attempt I've decided that in light of that you deserve no more time." Liquid replied coolly turning slightly away. Snake didn't need to be told what that meant; Liquid was going to kill him with or without his surrender. By the time Snake had looked up, his brother had gone from his sight.
Snake hung his head, closed his eyes, shivering with the freezing air. He couldn't begin to think of what to do now. Tied up and wounded there was not much Snake could do except for hope for a miracle.
"Yeah, but right now for that to happen I'd need a miracle to bring me one." Snake thought wretchedly.
"Meryl... what about you?" Snake murmured. "I'm so sorry..." he uttered into the wind. His voice was rougher and his throat sore. It looked like that second time round he was not quite so lucky.
Liquid went back to his quarters set aside for FOX-HOUND when they'd been enlisted in to the project. Of course that had been before anybody had any idea of what Liquid had planned to hijack the island and Metal Gear REX. They'd been posted on Shadow Moses weeks in advance to the test launch, and Liquid had taken with him a few items. Little mementoes he'd gathered from the many successful missions he'd been on after his release from Iraq. The odd spent bullet case from various weapons down to a pair of beaten dog tags bearing his name. But Liquid didn't recognise that name. It meant nothing to him, that person had died years ago and in his place was this person wracked with hate, angry at the world and two people; his father Big Boss and his twin brother Solid Snake.
"What's this?" Liquid said. "I don't remember ever having this..." and from the heap of souvenirs he'd tipped out onto the floor, picked out a combat knife still in its original sheath. He had a look at it, a crisp swishing when he removed the blade from the case. It was a broad blade, the metal bright and absolutely immaculate, unsullied with blood, pure with no deaths to its tally. The back edge was serrated, the cutting edge keen enough to split hairs on. Liquid held it up to get a better look at it. Deadly grace in its form.
Liquid sat back against the bed head and thought back, sifting through old memories finally settling. He shut his eyes trying to picture the mercenary that had given him the weapon. Liquid could almost feel the touch of their hands when they'd put it into his, soft and strong. The face he could see, just about. Feminine with dark eyes but he couldn't picture it perfectly, time had faded it from his mind.
But maybe this was a sign. Perhaps things were taking a turn for the better for him. It gave Liquid a little more confidence and belief in himself after it had been reduced to nothing after what he'd been preached as a boy.
"Well, well, well." He smiled and put it back into the case before attaching it to a loop on his belt. Liquid couldn't think of anybody else worthy of sharing the honour of being killed with the same weapon he'd use to kill Snake. And why should he? It would only stain the memory to use it again on a lesser enemy.
"Snake..." a voice said softly. He could barely feel their hand on his shoulder, Snake was so cold, his skin numb.
"C'mon... wake UP!" they said loudly and shook him harder.
"Alright..."Snake thought and peered up. "I must have fallen asleep." Snake muttered not noticing the owner of the voice who spoke to him.
"Meryl?!" he breathed and smiled, the dried blood on his face cracked with it. "How'd you..."
"...escape? Does it matter? I'm here and I'm going to get us away from here." Meryl finished and went to untie him from the railings and hugged him tight.
"You're frozen..." Meryl sighed and did her best to warm him up. Snake could see that he was slowly turning blue with cold and let Meryl huddle up close to him.
"C'mon lets go." Meryl said after a while helping him stand and draped Snake's arm round her shoulders letting him lean on her for support as they walked slowly across the snowfield.
Half-way down, their progress had been slow and difficult with deep snow, knee deep in places halting them. Every now and then Snake's leg gave up and refused to take anymore, having had its fair share of punishment.
"Hey, we can't stop. Not now." Meryl cried after picking him up again. Snake couldn't help feeling helpless and a burden on her right now and did his best to keep on going.
"Scenic route I think that should be known as." Liquid thought after returning to the snowfield. He'd taken a different way which had brought him to a walkway on the upper level of the building giving him a good panoramic view of the snowfield with the blast furnace in the distance. A pair of figures shuffling his way broke the white snow and a quick glance through the scope of his PSG-1 confirmed his suspicions. He continued to watch. Snake stumbled, paused, then found his feet again with Meryl's help. Liquid made sure that he wasn't skylining himself and got down onto his front steadying the rifle in his hands. The laser was off and he peered through the scope again. Liquid Snake breathed in deep while he lined up Snake's good leg in the crosshairs, pulling back on the trigger a little. Rock steady. Wait... he had his target. A little bit more on the trigger and the rifle kicked into life for a second, bucking back and Liquid went with the recoil. He still watched as the pair looked up, shocked for a second. Snake's face creased up a split second later, a cloud of bright red appeared from his leg as the bullet left and his knees buckled unable to hold up his weight. Meryl knelt down at his side and then began to drag Snake through the snow in an attempt to find cover or escape. Liquid raced down the stairs taking him to ground level furious that they'd tried to break away again.
Meryl had hooked her arms under Snake's almost as soon as he'd fallen and began pulling him through the snow. Cold as it was, Snake had no time to complain.
"SNAKE!!" Meryl cried. "You okay!?"
"What do you think!?" Snake thought "I've been shot, I can't walk so the answer is no!"
This one was more serious. The bullet had hit in the middle of his leg and Snake guessed close to the bone, he'd felt it go right through like it had been slowed down and made the pain even more. Snake didn't answer Meryl's question.
"Saving your strength?" Meryl said with a nervous laugh. "I should have done that when I got shot..." she added. "But...we'll be okay...We can escape."
"I'm not so sure." Snake thought, happy and sad that Meryl was struggling to keep on going and not ready to back down and surrender him.
"Meryl... just leave me and get away. Don't..." Snake said weakly before Meryl cut him off. She was finding it difficult now.
"NO!!" she cried as she strained to move him only a few inches. "No. I... WON'T... give UP!" Meryl's words fractured with each effort to haul him across the soft snow. Suddenly Snake felt her grip slip and Meryl went tumbling backwards and Snake was lying back in the snow. He looked up and scrambled to sit up.
"Doesn't waste time does he?" Snake thought as he looked to see Liquid slowly advancing towards them. Meryl was by his side and held him close to herself. Snake tried to push her away.
"GO!" Snake growled. Instead of heeding his advice Meryl just hugged him even tighter.
"I WON'T!" she said fiercely wrapping her arms round him protectively. Snake felt Meryl's heart quicken when Liquid got closer and reached up to her.
"Please... Meryl..." he implored watching her gorgeous eyes filling up.
"I know I didn't when she told me to leave her but..." Snake said inside his head and stopped when he saw Meryl slowly shake her head and rested it on top of his.
"Meryl..." Snake began. "it might not be a good thing for you to watch." Snake knew how much Liquid wanted him dead and imagined that Liquid wanted him to go painfully. Meryl ignored him.
"I want to be the last thing you see." Meryl replied her voice a whisper. Snake paused, about to say something, touched by her words. Liquid stopped at Snake's feet, a slight wry smile all over his face and reflected in his eyes.
"Third time not so lucky, eh Snake?" he sneered waving the PSG-1 in their direction. "Surprised that you didn't learn from Meryl's little accident with Wolf." Liquid grinned.
"BASTARD!!" Meryl screamed at him still clutching hold of Snake. Her shout hurt his ears, deepened his sadness to hear her still fighting with the only weapon she had left; words. Liquid crouched down at their side, tugging at Meryl's arms to get her to let go. Meryl fought back jerking away. Liquid scrambled to his feet and swung at her with the butt of the sniper rifle.
"MERYL!" Snake cried when he saw her sent down to the ground. Meryl lay still for a second and then moved, put a hand to her face, sniffling. Snake stared back at Liquid who went to make a grab for his throat.
"No way!!" Snake shouted and raised a fist and punched his brothers face from where he was on the ground. Liquid took a step back before lashing out at him, knocking Snake back into the snow before drawing him up by his neck. Eye level with each other, Snake wondered why Liquid had suddenly let his face go blank.
Snake never saw the smile on his brothers face when he felt cold metal punch into his stomach, driving in, watched as six inches of steel plunged inside up to the handle with Liquid's hand around it. His body had gone stiff, Snake couldn't move; he daren't move, waiting for the pain to come. The blade twisted around in his gut, destroying him inside. Snake felt his face twisting up with it, screwed his eyes up catching a glimpse of Liquid's grinning face. Snake could still hear the tearing inside him, a scream building in his throat was released when Liquid ripped the broad bladed combat knife out, and to be broken when Liquid stabbed into his chest. He didn't hear Meryl's scream for him. It felt like forever before Liquid tore the knife out again. Snake barely felt the final stab in his stomach before he fell. Liquid stood back and watched his hands covered in blood as he put the weapon away.
Down on his knees, the snow came to meet him, before turning into a cloudy grey sky. Meryl was there, holding him close. Snake felt her tears drop down onto his face, held onto his, Snake didn't want to die like that. He could barely feel Meryl at all and could only just about make out her face when he looked up at her, cut out by slow, heavy eyelids falling shut and opening again. Snake reached up to hug her.
"...S...Sna...Snake..." Meryl began her voice cracked up and broken beyond recognition. "...I...I'm..."
"Don't...be sorry..." Snake managed and wiped her tears away. He felt another weak wave overcome him, his eyes shut again and Snake fought to stay alive just a little longer. He wasn't sure of what to say, his thoughts seemed to drain out like his blood onto the snow. Instead Snake just moaned.
"It hurts..." he murmured and felt himself curling up before the pain stopped him, soothed a little as Meryl ran her fingers through his hair.
"Snake... what about me?!" Meryl asked her voice raising up with her cries. "What will I do?" Snake was drifting away; he took another look at her, smiled a little. Meryl struggled to smile but managed to in the end. Snake knew he couldn't hold on much longer, each muscle became weak and he had no control, he couldn't breathe and began to choke. Meryl shook him.
"NO! DON'T GO!!" she shouted. Snake couldn't respond, still choking and wheezing. Meryl stopped it and looked into his eyes apologetically.
"Snake...?" she asked.
Snake was losing. Far too powerless to resist now.
"Meryl..."Snake muttered softly. Her touch faded away from his skin, the black round his vision closed in and into nothing.
Liquid had moved away and watched from a short distance away. Snake's head rolled to one side and his body went limp in Meryl's arms. Meryl stopped completely, her eyes had dried up and not a sound was heard. Just utter silence. Liquid waited.
Meryl watched Snake for a few moments, her head hung down. She hugged him tight, holding him close, eyes closed to hide her hurt, softly moaning his name.
Liquid saw her sink down, still holding onto Snake, shuddering while she cried. It was like a massive weight had been lifted from his shoulders. A fresh feeling washed over him despite his gory hands, the blood still hot from Snake's body. He walked back to where Meryl was crouched over his twin. Her arms were stained where she held Snake, the snow all round a mushy mess.
"Never thought he would have so much blood left in him..." Liquid Snake thought, noting how many times he had caused injury to his brother. Meryl was now fidgeting with the bandanna round Snake's head and took it off, held it in one hand and clenched it into a fist.
"Come to admire your work?" she spat without looking at him. Liquid still looked at Snake. He was glad that his eyes had closed; Liquid hated that, it made him feel uneasy and reminded him of his first kill when he was a young man.
Liquid had been caught off guard while going over this memory and Meryl made a charge at him. Liquid saw her, tears streamed down her cheeks, and managed to knock her down before she attacked. He took one step and aimed his SOCOM at her. Meryl could only look right back at him, trembling cold, frightened and angry.
"I can't kill her." Liquid thought. "Besides, I've got living proof I killed the legend, but she is a memory of what had happened before..." Liquid finished and walked round behind Meryl still pointing the gun at her. He let Meryl get up on her feet and hoped that it would be quick, wrapped his arms round Meryl's neck, and closed them tight on her throat. He felt Meryl go stiff as she tried to breathe with a panicked gasp. Liquid jerked at her neck to snap it. He felt it give in his arm, but she was still alive and struggling even more as severed nerves fired off randomly.
"I never meant it to be like this..." he whispered not sure if she heard or even understood him now. "He had to die."
Liquid Snake paced down the corridors while he went through the bunch of keys searching for the one to Snake's cell. He holstered the SOCOM for he didn't have much use for it just now and Snake was tied up. Liquid came to the cell and turned the key in the lock.
"Break his neck... beat Snake to death?" he thought darkly. "I'll know when I see him." It always seemed to be like that. Every time he saw Snake, his hatred seemed to come alive like some creature living inside him. It was a part of him though and not some separate entity, as much a part of Liquid as the hands holding the keys to unlock the door to his twin and all that he loathed. He stepped into the tiny room quietly. Snake hadn't noticed and Liquid slammed the door making Snake jump from where he was slumped down in the corner. Liquid felt a smile cross his face as Snake looked up wearily.
"Hello dear brother." Liquid grinned. Snake frowned.
"Cut the crap Liquid." Snake said and heaved a sigh. "What do you want now?"
"Some inspiration that's all. A few ideas to help me work out..." he stopped and crouched down at Snake's side. Snake's slight movements where his wrists had been tied had caught his attention.
"What..." he thought eyes narrowing in suspicion. "these ropes are worn. You've been trying to escape... FROM ME?!" Liquid stood up quickly and kicked his twin sharply in the ribs.
"I'm not going to allow you to escape! NOT THIS TIME!!" he bellowed furiously and continued to kick Snake viciously. The hate inside had sparked and taken hold of him like wildfire. It didn't matter that Snake couldn't protect himself. Nobody had protected Liquid from the torment he was put through when he was young so why should Snake have any? Liquid stood back, Snake still appeared to be no worse.
"WHAT IS IT WITH YOU!?" Liquid screamed heatedly. "Don't you feel anything at all?! Even pain?" and turned away. Snake didn't answer. Liquid decided to punish him for his ignorance and whipped round, raising one foot off the ground and stamped it down onto Snake's shot leg. He got the response he had wanted, Snake screamed out, his body jerked with pain.
"FEEL THAT DID YOU?" Liquid laughed and took the SOCOM in his hands kicking Snake in the stomach a few times. Liquid pointed the gun down at Snake's wounded leg over where he'd shot him before. He grinned as Snake stared up, eyes wide open.
His heart was hammering so his body could cope with this wave of punishment, even harder when he saw the SOCOM. It skipped a few beats when Snake looked up to see his brother grinning, the gun's muzzle hovering above his wounded leg.
"Oh no! DON'T...!!" Snake pleaded his last word tore up into a roar. Excruciating pain when shredded flesh was ripped up all over again with the bullet. Snake screwed his eyes up throwing his head back to hold the tears back. He hadn't cried for anything in a long time and there was no way he could let Liquid, of all people, see how much it hurt. Snake had clamped his eyes so tight even they were sore. More was heaped on him as Liquid began to kick into him. Dull thuds sounded through his whole body shaking him to the bone.
"This isn't happening to me... it has to be somebody else." Snake thought distantly while the assault continued. Snake looked up, eyes and mind told him to raise his arms, but they said otherwise, pinned behind his back. He couldn't soften the blow to his face and was reminded that this was really happening to him. Snake felt his nose almost explode into a bloody stream down his face, bruises appeared instantly. Something hard rolled about in his mouth with salty tasting blood. Snake peered up with unclear vision from the force of the blow making out the shape of his brother standing there laughing. Over his brother's sniggers, Snake heard Meryl crying out to him again. He didn't have time to even feel fear for Meryl when Liquid booted into his stomach, choking, spluttering, and spitting out the blood and his lost tooth. Snake caught a brief glimpse of dull black metal in Liquid's hand. The SOCOM was lifted up from the holster and swung down in an arc to strike him across his head.
"...Here we go again..." Snake thought with resignation. Too weak to resist, Snake blacked right out.
Liquid returned his SOCOM to its place at his side and stooped to untie Snake, replacing the frayed rope with new bindings.
"Where to put him now?" Liquid wondered as he dragged Snake through the cell and into the corridor, wet streaks of water and blood on the floor. Liquid sat his brother up against the wall and watched him for a second. Contemplating. Plotting. So much he could do with him. Years of waiting, dreaming of this day and he was struggling to choose just one. Snake's head had tipped forwards so that his chin rested on his chest, a mess of crimson where blood dripped from his nose and meant that he wouldn't come to a premature death by choking on his own blood. Liquid looked up and inhaled sharply in irritation.
"Is that girl ever going to stop shouting?!" Liquid sighed angrily and stormed off to where he'd locked Meryl up, taking the key from his pocket while he did. He unlocked the door and threw it open, striding up to her.
"Look Meryl." he growled. "Snake can't hear you right now so I'd save my breath if I were you."
"You didn't kill him, did you?" Meryl asked edgily, raising her fists to attack. Liquid only smiled and lowered his arms to his side.
"Go on...take your best shot." He goaded. Meryl looked at him out the corner of her eyes. He caught her punch just inches from his face. She was quick but not quick enough for him.
"Too slow!" he laughed. "What's the problem? Is it because I look like him?" Liquid grinned. Meryl had backed herself up into a wall. She squirmed around against his hold and stopped, realising that even though she was strong, Meryl was not strong enough to fight back against him. Liquid stood in front barely inches away from her.
"Of course you never said which Snake, Liquid or Solid, you wanted to see." Liquid said to her with a smile. Meryl wriggled trying to hide in the wall itself and looked away from his stare.
"You know who I meant..." she said quietly. "and it wasn't you, that's for sure."
"Ooh..." Liquid cooed. "...that hurt. Didn't want to see me?" he said holding his face close to Meryl's so that she couldn't ignore him. Liquid expected her to look away but she continued to stare steadily into his eyes. To his surprise Meryl smiled at him. Then her face became hard and cold.
"Get the Hell off of me and let me go!" Meryl hissed, her voice hushed, sounding more menacing this time. They stood there for a few silent moments, neither of them was willing to move or speak.
"Fine." Liquid eventually said. "But only because I've had my fun with you for now." He backed off and let Meryl's arms fall back to her sides. He turned away and stood at the door to unlock it.
"Oh." Liquid began and peered over his shoulder so only his eyes showed over the collar of his coat. "I caught Snake trying to escape. He's alive for your information but that doesn't really matter now." Liquid said coldly. He looked at Meryl, still standing against the wall. She wilted a little as he shut the door on her.
Liquid returned to find Snake, still unconscious and took hold of the ropes round his wrists, dragging him along into a large blast furnace.
"I'm not carrying him up four levels." Liquid thought exasperated and looked round for an elevator. There was one not far to his left. It was only small and Liquid had trouble trying to cram himself and Snake in. It didn't help with Snake's lifeless body which wouldn't do anything that Liquid demanded. Finally he could slide the shutter and the lift juddered up to the top. Once again Liquid lugged Solid Snake behind him outside to another heliport. A freezing gale was blowing, bringing snow down out of the grey sky. He settled for tying Snake to the railings that wound round the helipad, doubling up the rope bindings with a length of wire he had found kicking about. Now there was no way Snake could try and get away.
"Sorry, but I'll give you a rude awakening..." Liquid smiled as he took a fistful of icy snow and rubbed it into his twins face.
"What...? What's that?" Snake thought wearily as something cold and crumbly was pressed into his face. He woke up to see the frozen snow in Liquid's hand and noticed that he was now outside. Snake shuddered at the biting gust of wind and instinctively tucked his legs up to his chest in order to get warm, still unable to move his arms. Metal cable dug into the raw skin round his wrists.
"Get lost, Liquid..." Snake groaned not making the effort to even sound half annoyed, he knew it would make no difference anyway. His shot leg was painful to keep up in front of him the way it was so Snake rested it on the frozen concrete of the helipad.
"Oh... did I waken you? So sorry Snake." Liquid answered in mock apology. "And I almost forgot... your time is up." Snake frowned and looked up.
"Already?"
"No, but after your escape attempt I've decided that in light of that you deserve no more time." Liquid replied coolly turning slightly away. Snake didn't need to be told what that meant; Liquid was going to kill him with or without his surrender. By the time Snake had looked up, his brother had gone from his sight.
Snake hung his head, closed his eyes, shivering with the freezing air. He couldn't begin to think of what to do now. Tied up and wounded there was not much Snake could do except for hope for a miracle.
"Yeah, but right now for that to happen I'd need a miracle to bring me one." Snake thought wretchedly.
"Meryl... what about you?" Snake murmured. "I'm so sorry..." he uttered into the wind. His voice was rougher and his throat sore. It looked like that second time round he was not quite so lucky.
Liquid went back to his quarters set aside for FOX-HOUND when they'd been enlisted in to the project. Of course that had been before anybody had any idea of what Liquid had planned to hijack the island and Metal Gear REX. They'd been posted on Shadow Moses weeks in advance to the test launch, and Liquid had taken with him a few items. Little mementoes he'd gathered from the many successful missions he'd been on after his release from Iraq. The odd spent bullet case from various weapons down to a pair of beaten dog tags bearing his name. But Liquid didn't recognise that name. It meant nothing to him, that person had died years ago and in his place was this person wracked with hate, angry at the world and two people; his father Big Boss and his twin brother Solid Snake.
"What's this?" Liquid said. "I don't remember ever having this..." and from the heap of souvenirs he'd tipped out onto the floor, picked out a combat knife still in its original sheath. He had a look at it, a crisp swishing when he removed the blade from the case. It was a broad blade, the metal bright and absolutely immaculate, unsullied with blood, pure with no deaths to its tally. The back edge was serrated, the cutting edge keen enough to split hairs on. Liquid held it up to get a better look at it. Deadly grace in its form.
Liquid sat back against the bed head and thought back, sifting through old memories finally settling. He shut his eyes trying to picture the mercenary that had given him the weapon. Liquid could almost feel the touch of their hands when they'd put it into his, soft and strong. The face he could see, just about. Feminine with dark eyes but he couldn't picture it perfectly, time had faded it from his mind.
But maybe this was a sign. Perhaps things were taking a turn for the better for him. It gave Liquid a little more confidence and belief in himself after it had been reduced to nothing after what he'd been preached as a boy.
"Well, well, well." He smiled and put it back into the case before attaching it to a loop on his belt. Liquid couldn't think of anybody else worthy of sharing the honour of being killed with the same weapon he'd use to kill Snake. And why should he? It would only stain the memory to use it again on a lesser enemy.
"Snake..." a voice said softly. He could barely feel their hand on his shoulder, Snake was so cold, his skin numb.
"C'mon... wake UP!" they said loudly and shook him harder.
"Alright..."Snake thought and peered up. "I must have fallen asleep." Snake muttered not noticing the owner of the voice who spoke to him.
"Meryl?!" he breathed and smiled, the dried blood on his face cracked with it. "How'd you..."
"...escape? Does it matter? I'm here and I'm going to get us away from here." Meryl finished and went to untie him from the railings and hugged him tight.
"You're frozen..." Meryl sighed and did her best to warm him up. Snake could see that he was slowly turning blue with cold and let Meryl huddle up close to him.
"C'mon lets go." Meryl said after a while helping him stand and draped Snake's arm round her shoulders letting him lean on her for support as they walked slowly across the snowfield.
Half-way down, their progress had been slow and difficult with deep snow, knee deep in places halting them. Every now and then Snake's leg gave up and refused to take anymore, having had its fair share of punishment.
"Hey, we can't stop. Not now." Meryl cried after picking him up again. Snake couldn't help feeling helpless and a burden on her right now and did his best to keep on going.
"Scenic route I think that should be known as." Liquid thought after returning to the snowfield. He'd taken a different way which had brought him to a walkway on the upper level of the building giving him a good panoramic view of the snowfield with the blast furnace in the distance. A pair of figures shuffling his way broke the white snow and a quick glance through the scope of his PSG-1 confirmed his suspicions. He continued to watch. Snake stumbled, paused, then found his feet again with Meryl's help. Liquid made sure that he wasn't skylining himself and got down onto his front steadying the rifle in his hands. The laser was off and he peered through the scope again. Liquid Snake breathed in deep while he lined up Snake's good leg in the crosshairs, pulling back on the trigger a little. Rock steady. Wait... he had his target. A little bit more on the trigger and the rifle kicked into life for a second, bucking back and Liquid went with the recoil. He still watched as the pair looked up, shocked for a second. Snake's face creased up a split second later, a cloud of bright red appeared from his leg as the bullet left and his knees buckled unable to hold up his weight. Meryl knelt down at his side and then began to drag Snake through the snow in an attempt to find cover or escape. Liquid raced down the stairs taking him to ground level furious that they'd tried to break away again.
Meryl had hooked her arms under Snake's almost as soon as he'd fallen and began pulling him through the snow. Cold as it was, Snake had no time to complain.
"SNAKE!!" Meryl cried. "You okay!?"
"What do you think!?" Snake thought "I've been shot, I can't walk so the answer is no!"
This one was more serious. The bullet had hit in the middle of his leg and Snake guessed close to the bone, he'd felt it go right through like it had been slowed down and made the pain even more. Snake didn't answer Meryl's question.
"Saving your strength?" Meryl said with a nervous laugh. "I should have done that when I got shot..." she added. "But...we'll be okay...We can escape."
"I'm not so sure." Snake thought, happy and sad that Meryl was struggling to keep on going and not ready to back down and surrender him.
"Meryl... just leave me and get away. Don't..." Snake said weakly before Meryl cut him off. She was finding it difficult now.
"NO!!" she cried as she strained to move him only a few inches. "No. I... WON'T... give UP!" Meryl's words fractured with each effort to haul him across the soft snow. Suddenly Snake felt her grip slip and Meryl went tumbling backwards and Snake was lying back in the snow. He looked up and scrambled to sit up.
"Doesn't waste time does he?" Snake thought as he looked to see Liquid slowly advancing towards them. Meryl was by his side and held him close to herself. Snake tried to push her away.
"GO!" Snake growled. Instead of heeding his advice Meryl just hugged him even tighter.
"I WON'T!" she said fiercely wrapping her arms round him protectively. Snake felt Meryl's heart quicken when Liquid got closer and reached up to her.
"Please... Meryl..." he implored watching her gorgeous eyes filling up.
"I know I didn't when she told me to leave her but..." Snake said inside his head and stopped when he saw Meryl slowly shake her head and rested it on top of his.
"Meryl..." Snake began. "it might not be a good thing for you to watch." Snake knew how much Liquid wanted him dead and imagined that Liquid wanted him to go painfully. Meryl ignored him.
"I want to be the last thing you see." Meryl replied her voice a whisper. Snake paused, about to say something, touched by her words. Liquid stopped at Snake's feet, a slight wry smile all over his face and reflected in his eyes.
"Third time not so lucky, eh Snake?" he sneered waving the PSG-1 in their direction. "Surprised that you didn't learn from Meryl's little accident with Wolf." Liquid grinned.
"BASTARD!!" Meryl screamed at him still clutching hold of Snake. Her shout hurt his ears, deepened his sadness to hear her still fighting with the only weapon she had left; words. Liquid crouched down at their side, tugging at Meryl's arms to get her to let go. Meryl fought back jerking away. Liquid scrambled to his feet and swung at her with the butt of the sniper rifle.
"MERYL!" Snake cried when he saw her sent down to the ground. Meryl lay still for a second and then moved, put a hand to her face, sniffling. Snake stared back at Liquid who went to make a grab for his throat.
"No way!!" Snake shouted and raised a fist and punched his brothers face from where he was on the ground. Liquid took a step back before lashing out at him, knocking Snake back into the snow before drawing him up by his neck. Eye level with each other, Snake wondered why Liquid had suddenly let his face go blank.
Snake never saw the smile on his brothers face when he felt cold metal punch into his stomach, driving in, watched as six inches of steel plunged inside up to the handle with Liquid's hand around it. His body had gone stiff, Snake couldn't move; he daren't move, waiting for the pain to come. The blade twisted around in his gut, destroying him inside. Snake felt his face twisting up with it, screwed his eyes up catching a glimpse of Liquid's grinning face. Snake could still hear the tearing inside him, a scream building in his throat was released when Liquid ripped the broad bladed combat knife out, and to be broken when Liquid stabbed into his chest. He didn't hear Meryl's scream for him. It felt like forever before Liquid tore the knife out again. Snake barely felt the final stab in his stomach before he fell. Liquid stood back and watched his hands covered in blood as he put the weapon away.
Down on his knees, the snow came to meet him, before turning into a cloudy grey sky. Meryl was there, holding him close. Snake felt her tears drop down onto his face, held onto his, Snake didn't want to die like that. He could barely feel Meryl at all and could only just about make out her face when he looked up at her, cut out by slow, heavy eyelids falling shut and opening again. Snake reached up to hug her.
"...S...Sna...Snake..." Meryl began her voice cracked up and broken beyond recognition. "...I...I'm..."
"Don't...be sorry..." Snake managed and wiped her tears away. He felt another weak wave overcome him, his eyes shut again and Snake fought to stay alive just a little longer. He wasn't sure of what to say, his thoughts seemed to drain out like his blood onto the snow. Instead Snake just moaned.
"It hurts..." he murmured and felt himself curling up before the pain stopped him, soothed a little as Meryl ran her fingers through his hair.
"Snake... what about me?!" Meryl asked her voice raising up with her cries. "What will I do?" Snake was drifting away; he took another look at her, smiled a little. Meryl struggled to smile but managed to in the end. Snake knew he couldn't hold on much longer, each muscle became weak and he had no control, he couldn't breathe and began to choke. Meryl shook him.
"NO! DON'T GO!!" she shouted. Snake couldn't respond, still choking and wheezing. Meryl stopped it and looked into his eyes apologetically.
"Snake...?" she asked.
Snake was losing. Far too powerless to resist now.
"Meryl..."Snake muttered softly. Her touch faded away from his skin, the black round his vision closed in and into nothing.
Liquid had moved away and watched from a short distance away. Snake's head rolled to one side and his body went limp in Meryl's arms. Meryl stopped completely, her eyes had dried up and not a sound was heard. Just utter silence. Liquid waited.
Meryl watched Snake for a few moments, her head hung down. She hugged him tight, holding him close, eyes closed to hide her hurt, softly moaning his name.
Liquid saw her sink down, still holding onto Snake, shuddering while she cried. It was like a massive weight had been lifted from his shoulders. A fresh feeling washed over him despite his gory hands, the blood still hot from Snake's body. He walked back to where Meryl was crouched over his twin. Her arms were stained where she held Snake, the snow all round a mushy mess.
"Never thought he would have so much blood left in him..." Liquid Snake thought, noting how many times he had caused injury to his brother. Meryl was now fidgeting with the bandanna round Snake's head and took it off, held it in one hand and clenched it into a fist.
"Come to admire your work?" she spat without looking at him. Liquid still looked at Snake. He was glad that his eyes had closed; Liquid hated that, it made him feel uneasy and reminded him of his first kill when he was a young man.
Liquid had been caught off guard while going over this memory and Meryl made a charge at him. Liquid saw her, tears streamed down her cheeks, and managed to knock her down before she attacked. He took one step and aimed his SOCOM at her. Meryl could only look right back at him, trembling cold, frightened and angry.
"I can't kill her." Liquid thought. "Besides, I've got living proof I killed the legend, but she is a memory of what had happened before..." Liquid finished and walked round behind Meryl still pointing the gun at her. He let Meryl get up on her feet and hoped that it would be quick, wrapped his arms round Meryl's neck, and closed them tight on her throat. He felt Meryl go stiff as she tried to breathe with a panicked gasp. Liquid jerked at her neck to snap it. He felt it give in his arm, but she was still alive and struggling even more as severed nerves fired off randomly.
"I never meant it to be like this..." he whispered not sure if she heard or even understood him now. "He had to die."
