Chapter Two: As Silent as the Night
Snake checked his inventory, touching across his chest, along his belt, feeling for everything he had on him, as it was to dark to simply look.
"Hmm.Dead Drop Equipment.Night Vision Goggles.Wha?! That's it? Otacon is getting cheap on me."
He slid his hand down his back, trying to familiarize himself with the Dead Drop pack. Dead Drop was the term used for this particular type of deployment. It didn't require any parachute equipment or other large devices, but needed only one thing - the Dead Drop pack, which determined the force at which he fell, his own weight, and other various measurements. Installed in the pack was the latest form of the Z Force, a tiny machine that defied the laws of gravity by allowing a person to move in varied directions without having another force act upon them. In other words, they could almost fly using the final model of the Z Force, but it would be years before it was available to the public.
Snake found his belt line again and snatched his Night Vision Goggles from the hoop on his right hip. Quickly, he adjusted them to fit snugly around his head and he dropped them over his eyes. He pushed a switch on the arm of the goggles and the area before him glowed with a radiant, green aura.
Over the peaks surrounding him, he saw a small valley, cozied into the mountainous land. Sitting against a wall of rock was a giant facility. It looked to be made of concrete and a few abandon warehouses-full of glass. Small lights were planted around the perimeter of the facility and when Snake looked sharper through the goggles, he saw small heat sources, pacing around the facility.
"Hmm. Troops.that must be Hell's Outpost."
Snake adjusted the settings on his NVG's (Night Vision Goggles) and aimed down at Hell's Outpost. Then, he found a small red button on the top of the goggles. He pressed it down and from that point on, even as he moved his goggles, he saw only from the view of that one still moment.
Then, in a swift, unexpected movement Snake was gone. He was no longer standing safely within the stomach of the helicopter, but had left his safe haven and had, in one moment, jumped into another world.a world of instinct.a world of war.
The wind shaped his face like clay, his arms stressing to stay somewhat straight. The feeling was something he had felt very few times before. Dead dropping had rarely been his deployment method while heading into a mission and the sensation in his stomach made him want to land the moment he had left the helicopter. And, to his surprise, he did land rather quickly, but with a less than comfortable impact.
Just feet above the ground, his Dead Drop pack sprung on, and he felt a jolt in his chest, trying to pull him upward. Unfortunately, the force of the pack was not great enough to soften his landing as much as he had hoped, but as his feet met the ground he was relieved.
His legs caved beneath his weight and he stumbled onto the ground, rolling a few feet before coming to a complete stop. "Damn." His pack was heating up, and it was evident that if he were to leave it in place, he would be rather upset in a matter of minutes when it burnt through his suit and fried his skin.
Quickly, he pushed himself onto his feet, reached around his back, grabbing hold of the pack, and flung it a few feet away. He bent over, resting his hands on his knees and waited a few seconds before straightening his back and further examining his surroundings.
He took notice to the image in his NVG's, which were still looking from the location he had been before jumping. Two heat sources had heard or seen him and were cautiously crossing the snow-covered ground to where he lay: behind a wall of stone.
"A welcoming party.hmm." Snake uttered to himself as he tried to think of some way to elude them. He switched his NVG's back to their normal setting and waited for them to reanalyze the footage. After a few seconds delay, he could see exactly what was in front of him.
Quickly, he put his back against the wall of rock that separated him from the facility and the two guards who were steadily coming his way. The wall was almost ten feet high. He took a moment to think, and looked around him. There was snow.snow.and some more snow, but other than that.wait! On his far right, across the open plateau, was an abandoned snow mobile, sitting by a cave entrance. "Hmm.that could be useful.but it wont help me now."
He waited, expecting the guards to turn around the wall of rock in only moments, but after almost a minute, not even the flashlights that were most likely mounted to their weapons were shining anywhere near him. There were no voices. No quiet orders. There was nothing.
Slowly, he walked to the side of the wall with intentions of looking around, but just before stepping out he heard the crunch of icy snow beneath the boot of a soldier. Quickly, he darted back from the corner of the wall and flipped up his NVG's, letting them rest on the top of his head. His eyes quickly adjusted to the darkness as he watched two rays of light run across the ground.
A quiet voice emanated from around the corner, "Stop.!" It was lower than a whisper, something the soldier had surely only intended his comrade to hear, but that was not the case.
Then, in a swift move, both soldiers turned the corner, holding their guns to their shoulders and their sights ahead of them. "Freeze!" They yelled, but as they looked around, they saw nothing but snow. Through the Thermal's that they wore, they saw a world of dim red light. Nothing more. Nothing less. Both of them lowered their guns in disappointment and one pulled a radio from a case on his belt.
"Nevermind. It was nothing," the one said and they both turned back to Hell's Outpost, only barely missing the Dead Drop pack that lay at their feet. Then, a dark figure slid down the wall of rock and fell into a kneeling position. He put his hand to his ear and waited for the voice of Otacon to enter his head.
"Snake?"
"Yea," Snake replied.
"How was the Dead Drop?"
"I would have preferred a parachute, but I lived."
"You didn't break any bones?"
"You say it like I was supposed to."
"Well, that equipment wasn't really tested extensively in the labs." Otacon's voice trailed off into the still night.
"Is it ever?"
"Snake, how about we get onto the mission?"
"Right."
"I contacted a man named Raymond Dues at the Pentagon and managed to get some information regarding Hell's Outpost."
"Oh?"
"Well, the way he said it, it sounded like Hell's Outpost came from Socrates' money."
"Hmm?"
"Well, after Socrates left college, he joined up with many different groups, working on side projects to get the money he needed to support his own research. Once he got enough money, he hired an architect to help design facilities where he could go about his work. Those plans gave Hell's Outpost life, but before the construction was completed, Socrates was killed for his involvement in the Big Bang."
"Why would he want to build them out in the middle of a mountain range?"
"I'm not too sure, but I'll keep at it. In the meantime, get yourself inside Hell's Outpost."
"All right."
"And Snake?"
"Yea, Otacon?"
"Don't cut it so close next time. 'You only live twice.'"
"Heh. You were watching?"
"Remember who you're talking to, Snake! I wouldn't just leave this whole thing in your hands."
"Of course not." Snake ended the transmission and strained his sore legs to stand. They quivered for a moment and then he snuck off toward the snowmobile, abandoned by the cave entrance on the other side of the plateau.
His pace was quick, his feet touching the ground only long enough for them to push back off again. Snow was not like carpet. It did not muffle his footsteps, but instead it shattered like glass beneath him. He could not afford giving up his location. Stealth was the game, and to fit in he would nee to be silent: as silent as the night.
Snake checked his inventory, touching across his chest, along his belt, feeling for everything he had on him, as it was to dark to simply look.
"Hmm.Dead Drop Equipment.Night Vision Goggles.Wha?! That's it? Otacon is getting cheap on me."
He slid his hand down his back, trying to familiarize himself with the Dead Drop pack. Dead Drop was the term used for this particular type of deployment. It didn't require any parachute equipment or other large devices, but needed only one thing - the Dead Drop pack, which determined the force at which he fell, his own weight, and other various measurements. Installed in the pack was the latest form of the Z Force, a tiny machine that defied the laws of gravity by allowing a person to move in varied directions without having another force act upon them. In other words, they could almost fly using the final model of the Z Force, but it would be years before it was available to the public.
Snake found his belt line again and snatched his Night Vision Goggles from the hoop on his right hip. Quickly, he adjusted them to fit snugly around his head and he dropped them over his eyes. He pushed a switch on the arm of the goggles and the area before him glowed with a radiant, green aura.
Over the peaks surrounding him, he saw a small valley, cozied into the mountainous land. Sitting against a wall of rock was a giant facility. It looked to be made of concrete and a few abandon warehouses-full of glass. Small lights were planted around the perimeter of the facility and when Snake looked sharper through the goggles, he saw small heat sources, pacing around the facility.
"Hmm. Troops.that must be Hell's Outpost."
Snake adjusted the settings on his NVG's (Night Vision Goggles) and aimed down at Hell's Outpost. Then, he found a small red button on the top of the goggles. He pressed it down and from that point on, even as he moved his goggles, he saw only from the view of that one still moment.
Then, in a swift, unexpected movement Snake was gone. He was no longer standing safely within the stomach of the helicopter, but had left his safe haven and had, in one moment, jumped into another world.a world of instinct.a world of war.
The wind shaped his face like clay, his arms stressing to stay somewhat straight. The feeling was something he had felt very few times before. Dead dropping had rarely been his deployment method while heading into a mission and the sensation in his stomach made him want to land the moment he had left the helicopter. And, to his surprise, he did land rather quickly, but with a less than comfortable impact.
Just feet above the ground, his Dead Drop pack sprung on, and he felt a jolt in his chest, trying to pull him upward. Unfortunately, the force of the pack was not great enough to soften his landing as much as he had hoped, but as his feet met the ground he was relieved.
His legs caved beneath his weight and he stumbled onto the ground, rolling a few feet before coming to a complete stop. "Damn." His pack was heating up, and it was evident that if he were to leave it in place, he would be rather upset in a matter of minutes when it burnt through his suit and fried his skin.
Quickly, he pushed himself onto his feet, reached around his back, grabbing hold of the pack, and flung it a few feet away. He bent over, resting his hands on his knees and waited a few seconds before straightening his back and further examining his surroundings.
He took notice to the image in his NVG's, which were still looking from the location he had been before jumping. Two heat sources had heard or seen him and were cautiously crossing the snow-covered ground to where he lay: behind a wall of stone.
"A welcoming party.hmm." Snake uttered to himself as he tried to think of some way to elude them. He switched his NVG's back to their normal setting and waited for them to reanalyze the footage. After a few seconds delay, he could see exactly what was in front of him.
Quickly, he put his back against the wall of rock that separated him from the facility and the two guards who were steadily coming his way. The wall was almost ten feet high. He took a moment to think, and looked around him. There was snow.snow.and some more snow, but other than that.wait! On his far right, across the open plateau, was an abandoned snow mobile, sitting by a cave entrance. "Hmm.that could be useful.but it wont help me now."
He waited, expecting the guards to turn around the wall of rock in only moments, but after almost a minute, not even the flashlights that were most likely mounted to their weapons were shining anywhere near him. There were no voices. No quiet orders. There was nothing.
Slowly, he walked to the side of the wall with intentions of looking around, but just before stepping out he heard the crunch of icy snow beneath the boot of a soldier. Quickly, he darted back from the corner of the wall and flipped up his NVG's, letting them rest on the top of his head. His eyes quickly adjusted to the darkness as he watched two rays of light run across the ground.
A quiet voice emanated from around the corner, "Stop.!" It was lower than a whisper, something the soldier had surely only intended his comrade to hear, but that was not the case.
Then, in a swift move, both soldiers turned the corner, holding their guns to their shoulders and their sights ahead of them. "Freeze!" They yelled, but as they looked around, they saw nothing but snow. Through the Thermal's that they wore, they saw a world of dim red light. Nothing more. Nothing less. Both of them lowered their guns in disappointment and one pulled a radio from a case on his belt.
"Nevermind. It was nothing," the one said and they both turned back to Hell's Outpost, only barely missing the Dead Drop pack that lay at their feet. Then, a dark figure slid down the wall of rock and fell into a kneeling position. He put his hand to his ear and waited for the voice of Otacon to enter his head.
"Snake?"
"Yea," Snake replied.
"How was the Dead Drop?"
"I would have preferred a parachute, but I lived."
"You didn't break any bones?"
"You say it like I was supposed to."
"Well, that equipment wasn't really tested extensively in the labs." Otacon's voice trailed off into the still night.
"Is it ever?"
"Snake, how about we get onto the mission?"
"Right."
"I contacted a man named Raymond Dues at the Pentagon and managed to get some information regarding Hell's Outpost."
"Oh?"
"Well, the way he said it, it sounded like Hell's Outpost came from Socrates' money."
"Hmm?"
"Well, after Socrates left college, he joined up with many different groups, working on side projects to get the money he needed to support his own research. Once he got enough money, he hired an architect to help design facilities where he could go about his work. Those plans gave Hell's Outpost life, but before the construction was completed, Socrates was killed for his involvement in the Big Bang."
"Why would he want to build them out in the middle of a mountain range?"
"I'm not too sure, but I'll keep at it. In the meantime, get yourself inside Hell's Outpost."
"All right."
"And Snake?"
"Yea, Otacon?"
"Don't cut it so close next time. 'You only live twice.'"
"Heh. You were watching?"
"Remember who you're talking to, Snake! I wouldn't just leave this whole thing in your hands."
"Of course not." Snake ended the transmission and strained his sore legs to stand. They quivered for a moment and then he snuck off toward the snowmobile, abandoned by the cave entrance on the other side of the plateau.
His pace was quick, his feet touching the ground only long enough for them to push back off again. Snow was not like carpet. It did not muffle his footsteps, but instead it shattered like glass beneath him. He could not afford giving up his location. Stealth was the game, and to fit in he would nee to be silent: as silent as the night.