NOTE: I don't use italics in my fics because it's a bitch to code them
right for ff.net. So don't even think I don't know how to use them. Just
don't. AUTHOR'S NOTE/RANT OVER. ALL CLEAR.
Chapter Eight: Duel…
Snake slowly checked the clip on his FAMAS, never taking his eyes off Raiden as he did so. "Don't make me do this, kid," he said. "What happened with a new life?" he asked. "Rose?"
There was a flicker of… something… in Raiden's eyes, but it disappeared as soon as it had risen, replaced by cold flame. "All behind me," he said. "They made me better, Snake. Stronger. Faster. Smarter."
"So now you're at the level of an average human being?" Snake retorted. "I don't know who 'they' are, but I have a pretty good idea. "You've been brainwashed, kid. I'll help you. Even if it takes beating their programming out of your thick skull."
Raiden laughed. "I think you'll be surprised, Snake," he said. "And not pleasantly, I assure you."
"We'll see," Snake said. "Let's go. That's enough preliminaries."
"As you wish," Raiden said. "Have at you, Snake!"
Snake's eyes widened. "You little bastard," he hissed. "You don't know what you just did." Dropping his FAMAS, Snake rushed Raiden. The former FOXHOUND smiled. "This is going to be too easy," he said, bringing his katana around in a devastating slash aimed at Snake's neck. Snake dodged under the high- frequency blade and delivered a hard right to Raiden's gut. He knocked the SOCOM out of Raiden's left hand and jarred the katana out of his right with a swift elbow.
Raiden stumbled back, wheezing and clutching his gut. "You still don't have it, kid," Snake said. He brought his left foot around in a kick that smashed into Raiden's breastbone and slammed him into a nearby column. Raiden got up, holding onto the pillar for support. Rubbing his chest, he ducked just in time to avoid Snake's fist, aimed for his nose.
Raiden's left leg lashed out in an attempt to trip Snake up, but the greatest soldier in the world saw his legs tensing for a strike and leapt back. He landed beside his FAMAS, and Raiden knew it was over. "Come on, then," he said. "Finish it."
Snake glanced at the FAMAS before kicking it away. "Get up," he said. "We aren't finished yet."
Raiden rose and wiped blood trickling from a gash in his forehead off. A roar of rage escaped from his lips, and he rushed Snake, madly throwing kicks and punches at him.
Snake ignored most, dodged some, and deflected the rest with his arms or legs. But one steel-tipped kick got through and connected with his already aching chest. The effect was immediate. Snake fell back, blood gushing up his throat before he coughed it out, a red mist forming a barrier between the two warriors.
Raiden smirked. "Feeling your age, eh, Snake?" He turned. "I'll be seeing you soon." He turned to leave.
"A lot to learn, kid," Snake said between coughs. He grabbed the FAMAS off the ground and fired a three-round burst. Riaden had picked up his katana and whirled, deflecting two of the bullets with his katana, before trying to dodge the third. He didn't move fast enough. The bullet slammed into his left shoulder. Blood spurted as he roared in pain, grabbing his shoulder. "Damn you, Snake!" he yelled, and then he turned a corner and was gone.
Snake knelt, his breathing labored. He quickly ate a ration and inspected his chest. A dark, purple bruise about the size of a fist was forming there. He touched it and pulled his hand back as pain blossomed.
[Snake? You alright?] Otacon's voice sounded tinny and far away on the Codec.
"Yeah," Snake said. "I don't feel too good, though."
[Why? What happened?]
"Just had a tussle with the White Devil." Snake got up and put the top of his Sneaking Suit back on, and started walking down the corridor Raiden had retreated through, his FAMAS ready.
[Really? Who won?]
"I beat him up a little," Snake said, "but he smashed me in the chest. My chest hasn't been feeling too good lately."
[Yeah.]
"What have you found out about the origins of 'la-li-lu-le-lo?'"
[I've checked every Native American tribe in the continental U.S. I'm now checking tribes of Central and South America, Canada, Hawaii, and Alaska. Eventually we'll probably end up checking every official language in the world and many of the unofficial ones.]
"Alright," Snake said. "What's going on topside?"
[Manhattan Island and all the airspace in the United States has been locked down, just like in 2001 and like during the "Big Shell Incident". You can get out, but not in. President Matthews has been in conference with the Chinese ambassador for the past thirty minutes.]
"Chinese ambassador? I wonder what's going on there," Snake said. [Who knows,] Otacon said. [It could be about almost anything.]
"Whatever, Snake said, passing by empty laboratories on each side of the hall. Inside one of the rooms, a security camera caught Snake's image as he passed by. Inside the control room, Liquid cursed and slammed a hand down onto the console. "Raiden didn't get the job done," he said. He turned to the sniper. "Take care of it, Osprey," he said. "Don't even think of coming back if you fail."
"I got it," Osprey said, picking up his PSG1 as he left the room. "Solid Snake's head is mine."
* * *
Destiny's world was engulfed in dust and smoke as the 'copters entered the rapidly expanding cloud that engulfed most of Manhattan. He could dimly see the Chrysler Building, now the tallest structure in the city, through the cloud. Muted red glows were massive fires raging in the rubble. Wind whistling around the 'copters muted out the moans of the wounded and dying, but they still rose like a foul wind into the air, caressing Destiny's ears with their black embrace before rising higher and eventually disappearing altogether into the cacophony of sirens and the screams of the new F-34 Shark fighter jets as they patrolled the empty skies over Manhattan.
"Your original ingress point is probably covered in rubble," the pilot yelled, his voice ringing in Destiny's ears. "We'll set you down in front of a subway station that has a station inside Level One of the subbasement of the… ESB Site. Head south on the tracks to get there. Get to Level Two and take the freight elevator to the Devil's Attic. You know what to do once you're in."
The 'copters stopped and hovered, smoke and dust billowing out away from them. Drop lines were thrown off the sides, and the three FOXHOUND members dropped to the ground in moments and touched down on the streets.
It was like no street Destiny had been on before. Chunks of stone—and people—were everywhere, and he couldn't see anything. The heat was almost unbearable. Tank said, "let's find that subway station and get out of this hellhole."
"Agreed," Vulture said. "The subway is about twenty meters to the right." They made their way through the wreckage until Tank almost broke his leg falling down the steps to the subway. "I found the station, boss," he said, cursing.
"Nice one," Destiny said. Moving down the stairs, he noticed the dust beginning to thin out until he could see pretty well.
The station was deserted, as he expected it would be. "Watch for the third rail," he said. "It's the yellow one."
"…Unpleasant things happen if you step on one and its electrified," Vulture finished. "We don't know if the electricity is on down here, so be careful."
They moved quickly, leaving the station behind as the destruction became more evident. The electricity went out about a hundred meters past the station. "NVGs on," Destiny said, flicking on his goggles. The tunnel swam into focus after a moment, in varying shades of green.
Ten minutes later they were at the Level One station, which was mostly intact, but also deserted. "Nice," Destiny said, moving through the dead bodies of the massacre victims. "Haven't seen a full-blown massacre in a while."
"Let's kill the bastards slowly," Vulture said, the outrage clear in her voice, her eyes lit with fire. "They deserve it."
"That they do," Destiny said. "Let's find a way down to Level Two." Passing by the lavatory, he pointed to the bullet holes in the wall. "Someone else was here," he said. "An intruder."
"Interesting," Tank said. "Snake?"
"Maybe," Destiny said. "Let's move on."
[Destiny?]
The voice sounded familiar as it came in, strong and vibrant, through the Codec. "Sphere?" Destiny asked.
[Correct.]
"What is it?"
[Are you in?]
"You are monitoring us through nanomachines," Destiny said.
[Right. Get down to the Devil's Attic.]
"We're on our way. Is Washington getting a little antsy?"
[Maybe.]
"If you'd get off the line, maybe we'd start moving."
Sphere sounded sheepish. [Alright, alright. Sorry. There's a storage room ahead of you. On the other side is a stairwell that leads to Level Two.]
"Okay. Over and out, Sphere."
Heading over to the storage room, Destiny stopped as the massive bloodstain left by Vamp appeared on the NVGs. "What happened here?" he wondered aloud.
"Snake and Vamp fought here."
The voice was cold, and had a slight mechanical buzz to it. Destiny whirled to find a katana pressed against his throat. The owner of the katana was a Cyborg Ninja. He heard Vulture and Tank train their weapons on the Ninja. "Who are you?" he asked.
"I'm like you… I have no name."
"Cut the crap," Destiny said. "This isn't Shadow Moses."
"Are you… sure of that?"
Destiny was getting mad. "What is that he supposed to mean?" he spit out.
"You'll find out… soon enough."
And then the Ninja was gone, disappearing in an instant. "Follow him!" Destiny yelled. Vulture's PSG1-A moved so fast it was a blur, and the room erupted in sparks as the Ninja deflected her shot with his katana. And then he truly did disappear; Vulture lowered her rifle. "He's gone, sir," she said. Her head dropped to her chin. "I missed."
"It's alright," Destiny said. The last thing he needed was Vulture getting depressed. "Comon," he said. "Let's go."
[Wow.]
"What is it, Sphere?" Destiny yelled, exasperated.
[That was like something out of one my Japanese animes…]
"Jesus H. Christ!" Tank exploded. "How old are you, Sphere?"
There was a long pause. [19… and a half.]
Destiny sighed. "Wonderful," he said. "Sphere, what was with that Ninja? Who is he? And why does this keep coming back to Shadow Moses? Everything around here seems to be related to that damned snafu!"
[Like the Ninja said, you'll find out soon enough—I mean, we'll find out soon enough… Dammit, I have to go. Call you later.]
"Great, "Tank said. "Just great. What does he mean by that? And what is going on around here?"
"I don't know," Destiny said, "but the Israelis are looking better and better, what they did to Manhattan regardless." Tank and Vulture nodded. Hefting his M4, Destiny said, "let's go."
Heading down the stairwell, Tank thought he saw the Ninja at the stairwell/lounge at the bottom. He looked again, and the Ninja was gone. Eyes are playing tricks on me, he thought, and took off the goggles when he realized the lights were working down there.
As he walked through the landing, Tank was mildly surprised to see a katana swinging toward his throat, and the odd digging sensation that came when it connected with his throat. As he fell, he could dimly hear Destiny and Vulture yelling, and he felt light-headed, as if he was floating away. Yes, a most curious sensation indeed.
* * *
In Washington, James Matthews warmly welcomed the Chinese ambassador into the now-empty Oval Office. "Welcome, Ambassador Hin," he said. "As you know, the United States are interested in purchasing your latest Metal Gear," he said. "We are offering $25 million."
"No."
The response was simple and expected, but hearing it still shocked Matthews. "We are prepared to use force," he said. "You must know what would happen to your country."
"You would lose Los Angeles, San Diego, San Francisco, and Oakland. You must know that."
"The middle of Manhattan Island is a smoking crater," Matthews said. I'd gladly put those cities to the sword to save the rest of it." Matthews smiled. "China will never recover. "Your People's Republic will be blasted off the face of the Earth. The proletariat will be blasted off the face of the earth."
Hin bristled, then looked like he was full of despair. "You're bluffing," he said. "You have to be."
"I am not," Matthews said. "Are you willing to find out?"
He hoped he wasn't sweating. Hin sure was. Would he call the bluff? Would he subject the world to the flame?
He couldn't.
Would he?
Chapter Eight: Duel…
Snake slowly checked the clip on his FAMAS, never taking his eyes off Raiden as he did so. "Don't make me do this, kid," he said. "What happened with a new life?" he asked. "Rose?"
There was a flicker of… something… in Raiden's eyes, but it disappeared as soon as it had risen, replaced by cold flame. "All behind me," he said. "They made me better, Snake. Stronger. Faster. Smarter."
"So now you're at the level of an average human being?" Snake retorted. "I don't know who 'they' are, but I have a pretty good idea. "You've been brainwashed, kid. I'll help you. Even if it takes beating their programming out of your thick skull."
Raiden laughed. "I think you'll be surprised, Snake," he said. "And not pleasantly, I assure you."
"We'll see," Snake said. "Let's go. That's enough preliminaries."
"As you wish," Raiden said. "Have at you, Snake!"
Snake's eyes widened. "You little bastard," he hissed. "You don't know what you just did." Dropping his FAMAS, Snake rushed Raiden. The former FOXHOUND smiled. "This is going to be too easy," he said, bringing his katana around in a devastating slash aimed at Snake's neck. Snake dodged under the high- frequency blade and delivered a hard right to Raiden's gut. He knocked the SOCOM out of Raiden's left hand and jarred the katana out of his right with a swift elbow.
Raiden stumbled back, wheezing and clutching his gut. "You still don't have it, kid," Snake said. He brought his left foot around in a kick that smashed into Raiden's breastbone and slammed him into a nearby column. Raiden got up, holding onto the pillar for support. Rubbing his chest, he ducked just in time to avoid Snake's fist, aimed for his nose.
Raiden's left leg lashed out in an attempt to trip Snake up, but the greatest soldier in the world saw his legs tensing for a strike and leapt back. He landed beside his FAMAS, and Raiden knew it was over. "Come on, then," he said. "Finish it."
Snake glanced at the FAMAS before kicking it away. "Get up," he said. "We aren't finished yet."
Raiden rose and wiped blood trickling from a gash in his forehead off. A roar of rage escaped from his lips, and he rushed Snake, madly throwing kicks and punches at him.
Snake ignored most, dodged some, and deflected the rest with his arms or legs. But one steel-tipped kick got through and connected with his already aching chest. The effect was immediate. Snake fell back, blood gushing up his throat before he coughed it out, a red mist forming a barrier between the two warriors.
Raiden smirked. "Feeling your age, eh, Snake?" He turned. "I'll be seeing you soon." He turned to leave.
"A lot to learn, kid," Snake said between coughs. He grabbed the FAMAS off the ground and fired a three-round burst. Riaden had picked up his katana and whirled, deflecting two of the bullets with his katana, before trying to dodge the third. He didn't move fast enough. The bullet slammed into his left shoulder. Blood spurted as he roared in pain, grabbing his shoulder. "Damn you, Snake!" he yelled, and then he turned a corner and was gone.
Snake knelt, his breathing labored. He quickly ate a ration and inspected his chest. A dark, purple bruise about the size of a fist was forming there. He touched it and pulled his hand back as pain blossomed.
[Snake? You alright?] Otacon's voice sounded tinny and far away on the Codec.
"Yeah," Snake said. "I don't feel too good, though."
[Why? What happened?]
"Just had a tussle with the White Devil." Snake got up and put the top of his Sneaking Suit back on, and started walking down the corridor Raiden had retreated through, his FAMAS ready.
[Really? Who won?]
"I beat him up a little," Snake said, "but he smashed me in the chest. My chest hasn't been feeling too good lately."
[Yeah.]
"What have you found out about the origins of 'la-li-lu-le-lo?'"
[I've checked every Native American tribe in the continental U.S. I'm now checking tribes of Central and South America, Canada, Hawaii, and Alaska. Eventually we'll probably end up checking every official language in the world and many of the unofficial ones.]
"Alright," Snake said. "What's going on topside?"
[Manhattan Island and all the airspace in the United States has been locked down, just like in 2001 and like during the "Big Shell Incident". You can get out, but not in. President Matthews has been in conference with the Chinese ambassador for the past thirty minutes.]
"Chinese ambassador? I wonder what's going on there," Snake said. [Who knows,] Otacon said. [It could be about almost anything.]
"Whatever, Snake said, passing by empty laboratories on each side of the hall. Inside one of the rooms, a security camera caught Snake's image as he passed by. Inside the control room, Liquid cursed and slammed a hand down onto the console. "Raiden didn't get the job done," he said. He turned to the sniper. "Take care of it, Osprey," he said. "Don't even think of coming back if you fail."
"I got it," Osprey said, picking up his PSG1 as he left the room. "Solid Snake's head is mine."
* * *
Destiny's world was engulfed in dust and smoke as the 'copters entered the rapidly expanding cloud that engulfed most of Manhattan. He could dimly see the Chrysler Building, now the tallest structure in the city, through the cloud. Muted red glows were massive fires raging in the rubble. Wind whistling around the 'copters muted out the moans of the wounded and dying, but they still rose like a foul wind into the air, caressing Destiny's ears with their black embrace before rising higher and eventually disappearing altogether into the cacophony of sirens and the screams of the new F-34 Shark fighter jets as they patrolled the empty skies over Manhattan.
"Your original ingress point is probably covered in rubble," the pilot yelled, his voice ringing in Destiny's ears. "We'll set you down in front of a subway station that has a station inside Level One of the subbasement of the… ESB Site. Head south on the tracks to get there. Get to Level Two and take the freight elevator to the Devil's Attic. You know what to do once you're in."
The 'copters stopped and hovered, smoke and dust billowing out away from them. Drop lines were thrown off the sides, and the three FOXHOUND members dropped to the ground in moments and touched down on the streets.
It was like no street Destiny had been on before. Chunks of stone—and people—were everywhere, and he couldn't see anything. The heat was almost unbearable. Tank said, "let's find that subway station and get out of this hellhole."
"Agreed," Vulture said. "The subway is about twenty meters to the right." They made their way through the wreckage until Tank almost broke his leg falling down the steps to the subway. "I found the station, boss," he said, cursing.
"Nice one," Destiny said. Moving down the stairs, he noticed the dust beginning to thin out until he could see pretty well.
The station was deserted, as he expected it would be. "Watch for the third rail," he said. "It's the yellow one."
"…Unpleasant things happen if you step on one and its electrified," Vulture finished. "We don't know if the electricity is on down here, so be careful."
They moved quickly, leaving the station behind as the destruction became more evident. The electricity went out about a hundred meters past the station. "NVGs on," Destiny said, flicking on his goggles. The tunnel swam into focus after a moment, in varying shades of green.
Ten minutes later they were at the Level One station, which was mostly intact, but also deserted. "Nice," Destiny said, moving through the dead bodies of the massacre victims. "Haven't seen a full-blown massacre in a while."
"Let's kill the bastards slowly," Vulture said, the outrage clear in her voice, her eyes lit with fire. "They deserve it."
"That they do," Destiny said. "Let's find a way down to Level Two." Passing by the lavatory, he pointed to the bullet holes in the wall. "Someone else was here," he said. "An intruder."
"Interesting," Tank said. "Snake?"
"Maybe," Destiny said. "Let's move on."
[Destiny?]
The voice sounded familiar as it came in, strong and vibrant, through the Codec. "Sphere?" Destiny asked.
[Correct.]
"What is it?"
[Are you in?]
"You are monitoring us through nanomachines," Destiny said.
[Right. Get down to the Devil's Attic.]
"We're on our way. Is Washington getting a little antsy?"
[Maybe.]
"If you'd get off the line, maybe we'd start moving."
Sphere sounded sheepish. [Alright, alright. Sorry. There's a storage room ahead of you. On the other side is a stairwell that leads to Level Two.]
"Okay. Over and out, Sphere."
Heading over to the storage room, Destiny stopped as the massive bloodstain left by Vamp appeared on the NVGs. "What happened here?" he wondered aloud.
"Snake and Vamp fought here."
The voice was cold, and had a slight mechanical buzz to it. Destiny whirled to find a katana pressed against his throat. The owner of the katana was a Cyborg Ninja. He heard Vulture and Tank train their weapons on the Ninja. "Who are you?" he asked.
"I'm like you… I have no name."
"Cut the crap," Destiny said. "This isn't Shadow Moses."
"Are you… sure of that?"
Destiny was getting mad. "What is that he supposed to mean?" he spit out.
"You'll find out… soon enough."
And then the Ninja was gone, disappearing in an instant. "Follow him!" Destiny yelled. Vulture's PSG1-A moved so fast it was a blur, and the room erupted in sparks as the Ninja deflected her shot with his katana. And then he truly did disappear; Vulture lowered her rifle. "He's gone, sir," she said. Her head dropped to her chin. "I missed."
"It's alright," Destiny said. The last thing he needed was Vulture getting depressed. "Comon," he said. "Let's go."
[Wow.]
"What is it, Sphere?" Destiny yelled, exasperated.
[That was like something out of one my Japanese animes…]
"Jesus H. Christ!" Tank exploded. "How old are you, Sphere?"
There was a long pause. [19… and a half.]
Destiny sighed. "Wonderful," he said. "Sphere, what was with that Ninja? Who is he? And why does this keep coming back to Shadow Moses? Everything around here seems to be related to that damned snafu!"
[Like the Ninja said, you'll find out soon enough—I mean, we'll find out soon enough… Dammit, I have to go. Call you later.]
"Great, "Tank said. "Just great. What does he mean by that? And what is going on around here?"
"I don't know," Destiny said, "but the Israelis are looking better and better, what they did to Manhattan regardless." Tank and Vulture nodded. Hefting his M4, Destiny said, "let's go."
Heading down the stairwell, Tank thought he saw the Ninja at the stairwell/lounge at the bottom. He looked again, and the Ninja was gone. Eyes are playing tricks on me, he thought, and took off the goggles when he realized the lights were working down there.
As he walked through the landing, Tank was mildly surprised to see a katana swinging toward his throat, and the odd digging sensation that came when it connected with his throat. As he fell, he could dimly hear Destiny and Vulture yelling, and he felt light-headed, as if he was floating away. Yes, a most curious sensation indeed.
* * *
In Washington, James Matthews warmly welcomed the Chinese ambassador into the now-empty Oval Office. "Welcome, Ambassador Hin," he said. "As you know, the United States are interested in purchasing your latest Metal Gear," he said. "We are offering $25 million."
"No."
The response was simple and expected, but hearing it still shocked Matthews. "We are prepared to use force," he said. "You must know what would happen to your country."
"You would lose Los Angeles, San Diego, San Francisco, and Oakland. You must know that."
"The middle of Manhattan Island is a smoking crater," Matthews said. I'd gladly put those cities to the sword to save the rest of it." Matthews smiled. "China will never recover. "Your People's Republic will be blasted off the face of the Earth. The proletariat will be blasted off the face of the earth."
Hin bristled, then looked like he was full of despair. "You're bluffing," he said. "You have to be."
"I am not," Matthews said. "Are you willing to find out?"
He hoped he wasn't sweating. Hin sure was. Would he call the bluff? Would he subject the world to the flame?
He couldn't.
Would he?