Title: Metal Gear Solid: Elements of Destruction- Chapter 18: Hypothermia
Author: The Ice Goddess (FrozenBlueIce)
Fandom: Metal Gear Solid
Feedback: All feedback is welcome, whether it be negative or positive. I'm trying to improve on my writing so, please be honest: frozenblueice@yahoo.com
Pairing: The main pairing of this story is Snake/Otacon, which is obvious to anyone who knows of my fondness for Hal Emmerich, so therefore alright to disclose. There are others, but if I told you what they were, it'd ruin the story.
Series: No. There may be sequels in the future, but right now that is looking unlikely due to time constraints.
Rating: PG. (this chapter only)
Disclaimer: All characters appearing in previous Metal Gear Solid video games are the property of Konami Computer Entertainment of Japan, and of their creator, Mr. Hideo Kojima. All new characters are the property of The Ice Goddess. This is a work of fanfiction, and in no way, shape, or form will I receive any monetary compensation for it. It is for entertainment purposes only.
Type: Action/Shounen-ai
Summary: This story takes place one year after the events of "The Big Shell." New information found by Otacon sends Snake back into action. (That's all I'm revealing!)
Chapter 18: Hypothermia
Otacon awoke, finding himself on the floor. He couldn't move. His body had gone numb. His breath could be seen, clouds of condensation trailing upwards to the ceiling with each exhalation.
He was shivering violently, making his muscles sore. It was so cold in there. Hal shifted his eyes downward. He was still wearing his special sub-zero climate sneaking suit. So, why was he so damned cold?
The engineer forced himself to sit up, fighting the powerful spasms of his trembling body. He looked at the back of his suit. The computer control system had been removed. Somebody wanted him to freeze to death.
His codec rang.
Otacon's heart began to beat faster as he hoped for it to be his friend calling. He hoped that Snake would tell him that he had escaped, and that he was coming for him. But the man on the other end of the line was not Snake.
"Nice to see a familiar face, Hal."
"S…sabren," he replied, coughing. The cold air was beginning to burn his lungs. "W…what…t's…s g…oing on…n?"
"I'm going to make you an offer," he told him.
Otacon hugged himself, rubbing his arms to generate some frictional heat. "W…hat…t kind o…f off…fer?" he asked, his teeth chattering uncontrollably.
"In exchange for your life, we want your help on the 'E. Weapon Project," Sabren explained. "After all, almost nobody knows Metal Gear better than you."
"N…never," the scientist came back defiantly. He got to his feet, jogging in place to get his heart rate up.
"Don't be so hasty with your decision," Dr. Knight warned. "I'll give you some time to consider it."
The transmission ended, and Hal was left to think.
He didn't think about escaping.
He didn't think about saving his own hide by allowing himself to continue tainting his bloodline with further work on a nuclear monster.
He only thought about how he wished he could see Dave, one last time, before he would die.
***
Raiden opened his eyes, waking from the anesthesia. He was lying on a surgical table, his arms and legs strapped down. It didn't matter anyway. A powerful cocktail of narcotics was still running through his veins, making his muscles limp and weak.
Everything around him moved in slow motion, trails giving things a surreal look. The sounds around him echoed in his ears.
Raiden took notice of the clouds of water vapor escaping from his mouth, the same way he had seen it from Diane. He didn't feel cold at all, strangely enough, though he was still unclothed.
Out of the corner of his eye, Jack caught glimpse of some flickering lights. At first, he thought that it was the drugs' effect on him, but as he forced himself to focus, Raiden could see a cybernetic implant in his arm. His peripherals picked up on another on his right cheek.
"Excellent," he heard Rose say. "I'll be back later to check on his progress."
Raiden closed his eyes. His head ached and his ears were ringing.
No. That wasn't his ears ringing. It was his codec.
Surprisingly, a hand pressed behind his ear, activating the call for him.
"Jack? Is that your real name?" Dr. Raznov inquired.
"Yes, it is," he answered her.
She sighed and looked down at him. "I'm sorry about the implants. I was forced to do it."
"I understand."
"They're totally reversible though. I made sure to that."
Jack smiled weakly, "Thanks." He tried to regard the doctor's face, but her image blurred in and out of focus. Damned drugs.
"I have a plan to get you and your friend out of here," she told him. "It just might work, but I'll need your help."
Raiden lazily raised an eyebrow. "How so?"
"We're going to take Shadow," she told him, "but I need you to pilot it."
"Me?" Jack said, confused. "Why me? You're the scientist."
"I know, but you're the only one wired for the job."
Dr. Raznov watched as the patient's face wrinkle with bewilderment.
"I don't understand, doctor," he said.
"Please. Call me Anja," the woman asked of him. "I don't deserve the title of 'doctor' after all that I've done." She buried her face in her hand, clearly distraught from the events of the past few months.
"Anja," Raiden spoke, softly and reassuringly, "It wasn't your fault. They'd have killed you if you hadn't done it."
She shook her head, wiping a few tears away. "No. They won't kill me. That's the whole thing. They need me alive to complete the 'E. Weapon Project'. They'll just continue to torture me until I finally give in."
"What is your part in the project? Why do they need you so badly? You never got a chance to tell me," Raiden asked.
"I am a specialist in genetics and cybernetics. One of my projects, back in Russia, was finding a way to prevent hypothermia in Army soldiers who were positioned in the far north. Through extensive research, I found that I could safely lower the body temperature to 2.25 °C, or 36 °F for you Americans, without disrupting normal function of one's organs. With cybernetic implants, I created an insulation system for your bloodstream by feeding intravenously an anti-freeze agent. The implants also speed up the natural slow down of electrical impulses running through your body when a person begins to develop hypothermia. This allows the heart and other organs to maintain peak performance." She pointed to Raiden's steaming breath. "This explains why your breath is visible. Your body temperature is just a hair above freezing."
Raiden nodded. He tried his best to follow her, but his mind was clouded and everything felt out of place. A small bit of drool began to trickle down the side of his mouth. He tried to sweep it back into his mouth with the tip of his tongue. Anja caught this, and dabbed it away for him with a tissue.
The patient blushed with embarrassment. "Thanks."
"Don't worry about it," she told him, patting his shoulder.
"So, how does this coincide with Metal Gear Shadow?" he probed for further information.
"Ah, well, creating the 'Elements' was just Phase 1 of my half of the project," Anja began again.
"The 'Elements'?"
"That's what Genesis codenamed the others who were undergoing this procedure," the scientist explained. "Phase 2 was to add the telepathy programming to the cybernetic implants."
"Telepathy?"
Anja smiled grimly. "I know this is all so strange. Just bear with me, Jack."
She sighed deeply before continuing. "Ask yourself this: 'What if Metal Gear could not be hijacked by the enemy?' You would have a complete monopoly over the technology it possessed, correct?"
Raiden gave a verbal nod. "Mmhmm."
"Passwords can be cracked, so that wouldn't be a good way to protect it. So, how do you prevent the enemy from piloting Metal Gear? You create a program in Metal Gear that only allows pilots with a certain body temperature to activate the systems."
"I'm beginning to understand the reason behind the anti-hypothermia technology in this project," Raiden said.
Anja pointed to an outlet in Jack's cheek implant. "This is the outlet to which Metal Gear's mainframe connects. These implants translate electrical signals in your brain to commands, then in turn controls Metal Gear. This allows a pilot to control 'Shadow' completely hands free, by telepathy."
"That's amazing!" Jack said, his eyes widened in awe. "I can see now why the RNF wanted you so badly."
Anja frowned. "Sometimes I wish I weren't considered a 'genius'."
"When my partner and I were listening in on the conversation between you and Dr. Yadik, he mentioned something about finishing Phase 3. What's Phase 3?"
"It's the last part of the project: To complete a successful test run of all of the systems. Including a nuclear weapons test. They want me to use Shadow to sneak up on Washington D.C. and launch a missile at the White House."
"What?!" he exclaimed. "That's barbaric."
"That's why I suggested taking Shadow. That way, when we get where we're going, I can run the self-destruct sequence, and Metal Gear Shadow will be no more. And without my further assistance with the cybernetics, I doubt they'd be able to recreate another."
"That sounds like a plan," Jack stated.
"Tonight, I'm going to tell Yadik that I've decided to cooperate. He'll then allow me access to the hangar with the pilot of my choosing. I'll choose you, so they won't be suspicious of you walking around the base, and we'll pick up your friend. We'll start up Metal Gear, activate its stealth and thermo camouflaging, and we'll get the Hell outta here."
"Actually," Raiden corrected her, "there are two people we'll need to collect along the way. One of the scientists that was on the codec with us while you were explaining about Metal Gear, is on location. He's in stealth camo, so hopefully, he's found a way to get 'Nathair' out of trouble."
"I see," she said. "Well then see if you can get in contact with your friends. It'd get things moving faster if we know exactly where to find them."
"Alright."
Anja reached over to her tray and picked up a syringe filled with clear liquid. She stuck it in a vein on the underside of her patient's forearm, injecting the contents. "This will counter the effects of the narcotics. You should be more alert in just a few seconds."
Jack could almost instantly feel some strength returning to him, and the spinning room finally slowed to a halt.
"Alright, I'm signing off. I'm going to try my friends," he told her.
"I'll be right here," Dr. Raznov returned, ending her transmission.
Raiden tried calling Snake first, but there was no answer.
Then, he tried Otacon.
***
Hal Emmerich's codec rang again.
"R…raiden?"
"Yeah, Otacon. It's me. We're getting out of here. Dr. Raznov's helping us. Where's Snake?"
Hal's eyes lowered in disappointment. "You m…mean…n he's…s n…ot with you?"
"No."
"I s…s…s…ee."
"Otacon, what's wrong? Your voice keeps breaking up."
He thought back to the scene he had witnessed in the torture room. Snake, raped by an obviously twisted captor; the look of disgust and pain on his face. It burned through Hal's soul. His eyes were wet with tears.
"N…oth…th..ing's wro…ong," he insisted, teeth chattering. "Jus…st g…go find S…snak…ke."
"Tell me where you are first." Jack said. "You sound like you're in trouble."
"S…save S…s…n…ake. Then…n I'll…l tell you wher..re I…I am…m, if…f I'm st…till alive."
"Otacon!"
"Hurr..r…ry. Snake m…may be in…n g…reat…t danger."
"Otacon!"
Hal ended the call. There was still a chance for Dave. Raiden could save him. Hal smiled thinly, thankful for this ray of hope.
His expression melted back to sadness as he thought about his failure. He had failed to do what he had sworn to do.
"I'm s…s…sorr…ry I could…dn't p…protect y…ou," he whispered into the freezing air. "S…sn…n…ak…ke…"
Then everything faded to black.
Author's Notes:
Chapter 18: This chapter includes a lot of explanations of hypothetical technologies. I don' t know if any of this is possible, but this is fiction, so I suppose they could be. Please bear with my minimal science knowledge.