Mass Effect: The Man Who Saw Tomorrow
Chapter VII: Ashes of Yesterday
The Ishmael groaned, a sound that echoed through its walls, sending shivers down the crews spines. They were approaching Citadel space, having only stopped once at a fueling depot, before they would pass through the Mass Relay that would take them to the central hub of the galaxy.
Snake had spent most of the evening in his cabin, researching still, the history that he missed. And when he grew tired of politics that never changed, EDI had shown him how to access the extranet, and he found what he longed for most since he woke on that bed not but a few days ago.
Music.
David Bowie, to be precise.
His voice and echoed against the solitude of his cabin, the empty aquarium that took up most of one wall, reverberated as the familiar tune breezed through the air, and he sank into the couch opposite the bed with a deep sigh.
He hoisted a boot onto the table and reclined his head back into the folds of the sofa, his guard lowered and he shut his eyes to breathe easy. What he would do for a cigar, or even his phantom cigar in that moment…
Though I'm past one hundred thousand miles, I'm feeling very still, and I think my spaceship knows which way to go. Tell my wife I love her very much, she knows…
He had fallen in love with Bowie's music. His voice, his words, his compositions. He had listened to his songs on his Walkman until cassettes were nothing more than worn out plastic and screws.
He often found himself humming along whenever alone, tapping the beat with his foot in the late hours of missions and times of rest.
And… he remembered a silent sniper, one who loved music just as much as he. One who shared her cassettes with him, would sit with him on way to missions and share her favourites. One who would silently hum choruses and melodies into his ear over the radio, and would pretend she did not hear him sit in the stairwell leading to her cell, listening with her late in the evening.
The familiar shadow that clouded his heart returned at the thought of her… he imagined her sitting across from him, her head dipped as she listened along with him. Her smoky eyes closed until she lifted her gaze to look at him, the curve of a tender smile spread over her lips.
His reverie was bittersweet, and he was thankful for EDI when she broke the news that Miranda was up and well.
The next day, it was early in the hours when Big Boss woke.
He had slept only minutes it felt like before his dreams; dark and abysmal— a collection of one man's memories, intertwined with another's— woke him in a cold sweat on the sofa.
He tried to focus on the mission at hand, to distract himself from the ghosts that spoke loudest.
He rose and dressed in his Cerberus fatigues, before he chose to check on his crew.
He had made an effort to memorize everyone's name, from Hadley and Matthews on the CIC, to Donnelly and Daniels down in Engineering, to the maintenance crew, Ralston and Goldstein, down in the hangar. Morale was important, crucial. If the men and women he was leading into hell did not believe in him, how could they commit everything they had?
Snake stepped into the elevator and decided to check on Miranda first. When he arrived on the crew deck, he nodded to the Mess Sergeant Gardner who slid a plate of questionable military rations to crew mate Sarah Patel.
He entered XO's quarters, and he was more than surprised at the sight of how large they were, comparable to his own.
Miranda looked up from her terminal, and offered a friendly smile, a simple pull at the corner of her lip that would make any man sweat. "Boss, what can I do for you?" She asked politely.
He gave her a look over, to see if she was in pain at all, or if she was injured in some way, but she looked the picture of good health.
She leaned forward in her chair, her hands folded together on her desk. "Checking up on me, yes?" She asked.
He nodded.
She shifted in her seat. "I'm cleared for duty. Nothing more than a slight migraine. And, I received a stern warning to not do something like that again." She said lightly.
He regarded her once more, and she replied with a coy smile.
"I told you before, didn't I? I heal twice as fast as the average human. Anyone else, and they'd be in bed still. Or dead." Confidence oozed off her in repose, it forced Snake to suppress a snicker of his own.
She reclined back, her hands still folded but in her lap as one leg crossed over the other.
"I have to say, Boss— I'm impressed. So far, things have gone exceptionally well. And as far as Cerberus operations go, this is one of the best I've been a part of. Even if it almost put me in a coma." She said, with a flair of jest in her voice.
Her face grew more serious though. "How are you doing? You look like you haven't slept much."
He turned his head away.
It had been that way for a long time. Whenever he was alone— left to himself, his thoughts always climbed back to the past, despite how much he tried otherwise.
To the vengeances and wrongs. To the memories of a broken man, and of another he once thought larger than life. He wished he could just, let go.
Snake shook his head. "I'm fine... hundred and ninety years was enough." He replied.
She gave him a long look—in the second that he turned his head away, she saw on his face, an aged, and tired old man. She saw the fullness of the bags beneath his eye, the scattered greys in his beard, the cavernous depth of the scars that traced his face. At the forefront of it all, she saw confusion, hurt and loneliness.
She did not press though. He had secrets, and she had hers.
"At any rate, my reports to the Illusive Man have been positive, I look forward to more future successes, Big Boss. I imagine we'll be at the Citadel soon. You should try to relax while you can." She said with a warm smile as she leaned forward and began typing away at her terminal.
Snake saw the end of the conversation, and nodded before leaving her to her work, and fixing to join the others in forcing some food into his stomach.
It was some time before Joker announced over the intercom that they were approaching Citadel space, passing through the galaxy's nearest Mass Relay and exiting FTL-travel.
Big Boss stood at the airlock with Garrus and Miranda. They checked over their gear, strapping their weapons to their magnetic locks as the flight lieutenant spun his chair around to face them. "We're docked and cleared for entry, Boss. Anderson said he's in his office at the Presidium. Probably arguing with the Council or something—since that seems to be all they wanna do all damn day. On their little screens. With their nitpicking and telling you you're grounded for being too good of a pilot and… what was I saying?"
"You were saying, 'Goodbye, Garrus, I'll miss you." The turian jested as the airlock opened, and the team stepped inside.
"Hey, Garrus, try not to find more sticks to shove up your—"
Joker's voice was cut off as the door closed behind them and Garrus snickered while he double checked his armor fitting. The ceramic collar of his armor was burned and broken, but Snake saw that the turian had no problem with it. He even seemed to wear his recent scars proudly, forgoing the bandages Dr. Michel gave to him for the lower half of his face.
Garrus was a good soldier. Dependable, resourceful and gifted, he showed himself to be a crackshot with his sniper rifle and a professional in combat. Snake could see that he would be an excellent commanding officer in of his own right, and yet…
He frowned.
All his men were dead. Betrayed by another turian named Sidonis, and he carried that pain like a dagger in his own gut.
Snake knew where revenge led to. It was a good motivator… but he'd have to watch him closely, lest he fall too far, and become like so many others that he used to see.
Miranda tapped at her omni-tool and Big Boss' own soon lit up in notification, pulling him from his thoughts.
"Boss, I've sent you identification credentials for you to use while here. They include proof of legalized birth, proof of galactic residence, security contracting and weapon carrying permits. Also weapon licenses, proof of retinal, and blood and biological identification. To avoid any real trouble with C-Sec, we've given you an alias on all your credentials; Victor Black. You're a security contractor, hired by Cerberus." She informed.
Snake looked over the documents in his omni-tool, sorting through the finer points he managed to figure out before nodding and closing the tool.
The decontamination process finished, the airlock opened and they passed through the Docking bay security untroubled.
To say that the centuries old soldier was in awe, would have been an understatement. Buildings touched the sky, and in it, he saw the fanned out wings that carried other districts of the Citadel high above them. He imagined people and aliens walking above him, upside down.
When he looked around, he saw cars flying through the air, and bipedal machines carried objects and guided people to and fro.
His trigger finger twitched, and he nearly reached for his rifle at the size of the nearest walking machine. It towered over him by a whole metre. In its mechanical hand, it carried a small laughing child, his mother chastising him for running away. The robot set the boy down delicately, and followed the mother and son close behind on bioorganic legs.
Another man stood atop another of the same bipedal robots further away, opening a compartment on its flat top head, and adjusting something inside that made its left leg twitch and nearly buckle.
"Yeah, it's the hydraulic in the left leg! This GEKKO is busted! Cheap AT crap!" He shouted to the man below, who cursed loudly and kicked a tool box at his feet.
Bipedal machines were all around, being used everywhere. For everything.
Why had they not seen these bipedal robots on Omega? Why had they not seen these... GEKKO, on Freedom's Progress? He turned his head away, and instead tried to focus on the enormous space station.
It appeared to have its own atmosphere, its own clouds and ecosystem. Local floral planted around them, and grew green and luscious. He breathed deep, tasting the air… it felt like real air on his tongue—unlike that of the recycled oxygen on the Ishmael.
"This way, Boss." Miranda tutted as she led him further into the station.
The old soldier looked up at the sky once more before following her and Garrus toward the main garden of the Presidium.
"What's with the robots?" He asked, seeing two more standing guard at a nearby security gate.
"It's something that humanity brought into the galaxy. Our history in robotics, bionics and AI development are vastly superior then that of the other council races. The only other race to rival us in that capacity are the quarians. Unfortunately, the Alliance keeps a tight leash on their military robotics, and AI are illegal to develop throughout the galaxy. Which is why you can only purchase old GEKKO models, repurposed to serve civilians with Virtual Intelligence, or the YMIR security mechs."
They passed through the Human Embassy security, and then ascended an elevator to an office floor of the building.
Miranda asked a receptionist where they could find Anderson before they were led to his office. A secretary in military uniform sat at a desk with her eyes lazily gazing at her terminal, her fingers typing away at abnormal speed.
She looked up when Big Boss came into view, and her eyes nearly exploded from her face.
"Holy shit." She whispered, her mouth ever-so-slightly agape. She stood straight from her position, and saluted.
"The Admiral was right… you… you're Big Boss."
Snake looked at Miranda, and the woman shook her head, her face red with annoyance. All her hard work on creating false identification for him, blown out the window.
"You look just like him… Solid Snake, I mean. He's the reason I joined the military. I've read all the history I could find on him when I was a cadet." The uniformed soldier stood at ease. It was a moment before she blinked. "Oh! Um… I'll inform Anderson that you're here."
She disappeared through the door behind her.
Miranda tutted. "We should have given you a disguise of some sort. Who knew everyone knew that you were Big Boss, and you were alive?"
Garrus leaned on one leg. "Why is it such a problem that everyone knows he's Big Boss?" He asked.
Snake was curious as well.
Miranda did not look up from her omni-tool as she spoke. "Back in the Boss' time, he was labelled a war criminal by the United States Government when he founded Outer Heaven, and came into possession of a nuclear weapon, after he led a massive nuclear disarmament around the world with his former PFC, Diamond Dogs. Technically, since he is still alive, he's still a war criminal. If the United States on Earth caught wind of his revival, he would surely be arrested and tried for war crimes against humanity."
The turian flared his mandibles, in what Snake could only assume resembled a whistle.
"Damn… nukes, huh? That's some pretty bad business, Boss." He said, scratching his chin.
Snake did not look at the turian.
He was positive at the time that it was for the benefit of humanity that they possess a failsafe; in the war against Cipher and the Patriots… it was a necessary evil that Ocelot had whispered in his ear, another evil Miller said to turn away, that they were better than that. The Patriots were already establishing their foothold in the US Government by 1995, and their influence was affecting the world around them in tsunami ripples. Countries grew poorer and poorer, more desperate.
Children grew up orphans, forced to become soldiers as there was no other way to provide for their families, just as the war economy was on the hinge of explosion.
Possessing a warhead, to become a superpower… it seemed like the only option to him at the time.
He stepped to the nearest window, peering into the gardens below.
Everything they had done… he wondered now if he had listened to Kaz, if they had stayed Diamond Dogs and abandoned the real Big Boss, how different things might have been.
"It was necessary, at the time." He said, turning to face the others.
Garrus and Miranda said nothing.
It was shortly after, that the uniformed secretary returned from the office.
"Anderson will see you now. But… uh, only you, Big Boss. Your friends will have to wait out here." She informed.
Big Boss looked at Miranda, who nodded. "We'll wait here." She said.
He passed through the electronic door into a private office that took up the space of what would be an entire apartment. A quick inspection revealed a balcony to the furthest wall, a sitting area to the left and a glassed in office to his right.
A dark skinned man stood in the office area, arguing with three holographic aliens at a terminal near the wall.
He was an older man, though possibly a few years younger than Snake himself. His stubbly black hair was peppered with grey, shaved in an old fashioned crewcut, and his skin showed signs of battle-worn wear and tear. A seasoned veteran who had seen his share of battles.
When Anderson saw him, he talked over the arguing aliens, ending their discussion with a promise to continue later, and the holograms faded.
"So," He spoke, his voice deep, commanding and controlled. He stepped closer and offered a hand, "You're the one Joker keeps talking about."
Snake regarded it for a moment before shaking it with his own.
"Admiral David Anderson. And you're Big Boss." He introduced, and led Snake over to the balcony.
"I'll be frank— you're going after the Reapers. I've been trying since the Citadel was attacked two years ago, to tell the galactic council to get off their asses and do something about it. Because they're out there, and they're coming."
He sighed. "But they won't listen. They've convinced themselves that Sovereign— the Reaper that attacked the Citadel, was a Geth warship. If Shepard were here… she may have been able to get them to listen. I don't know."
Crewmate Patel and Matthews had informed Snake of what happened two years ago on the Citadel; how it took Commander Shepard everything she had to rally the council to destroy Sovereign. And apparently, there was an entire fleet out there… on their way to this galaxy.
"I'll send you a dossier on everything I know about the Reapers from Shepard. Info from the VI on Ilos, and the recordings from her visor when she spoke to Sovereign. Everything I have on them and Shepard, is yours. To hell with the consequences." Anderson said, looking over the Presidium with quiet distaste.
"… The people here, have no idea. They think that the Geth attacked, were defeated, and that's the end of it. They'll continue to work, and believe what they're told is the truth." He looked back at Snake.
"They saw it. With their own damn eyes, they saw it—Sovereign, its monstrosity, and they think that's it."
Snake looked from Anderson, to the view from the balcony. He took a step closer and stood beside the Admiral.
"The colonists that are missing were taken by Collectors." Snake said.
Anderson's face grimed. "Collectors? They're involved? We hadn't considered them—there's such little data to suggest it. They've always seemed like a fringe threat. They could be a front for the Reapers or…"
"If we find anything, we'll let you know." Snake said.
They were quiet then, breathing in the cool breeze. They were two veterans in that moment, tired and old.
Anderson turned his head to Snake, his expression serious and deep. "I don't know why you're the one doing this, I don't even know how you're here and alive, and I don't know how Cerberus fits into all this. But I feel it in my gut. With Shepard gone… you're the only one doing something to stop the Reapers, and that's all I care about. I won't let her death be for nothing."
He rested his hands on the railing. "I'll keep the Alliance and Council off your back. It shouldn't be too hard if you keep your missions to the Terminus Systems. But I'll place your ship under military security contract protocols. That should help if you find yourself within Galactic space. Just promise me… you'll hit those Collectors where it hurts."
Snake nodded, offering his hand to Anderson this time, who shook it with a tight fist.
Behind them, a door slid open, and a man in a white suit came storming in. "Anderson! We need to talk about—who's this?"
Anderson called back. "Just a security contractor, hired by the Alliance, Udina." He turned to Snake. "Victor, we'll talk later." The man shook his hand once more.
Snake left then, passing the man in the white suit and rejoining Miranda and Garrus back outside, they moved to leave the Presidium.
"What did he say?" Miranda asked in the elevator.
"He'll give us whatever he has on the Reapers. But he didn't know about the Collectors."
"I assumed as much. The Alliance contaminated everything for the first two colonies, which is why it was so imperative we get to the last one, first." Miranda said, with thick distain as they passed through the Presidium checkout.
Garrus snickered. "That reminds me of my old C-Sec days; there was this human cop, newly transferred—really loud, big guy—he went to this crime scene where four asari were killed—blood everywhere—He walks in with his boot laces untied, and just as he steps over the safety barrier, he steps on his boot lace, slides on the blood and falls over the first girl. Talk about contamination."
The turian laughed, but when he saw Snake and Miranda did not reciprocate, he coughed sheepishly.
"It was funnier with the other C-Sec guys…"
They hailed another cab that carried them through the towering buildings, passing through traffic and away from the Presidium before landing back at the Zakera Ward.
Miranda stepped out of the cab first. "We should probably pick up some supplies while we're here, Boss." She said, as Garrus and Snake exited the cab.
"She's right, Boss. I need to pick up some calibration tools for the Ishmael. Don't know what they used up until now but… It's pretty bad down in those forward batteries." Garrus interjected.
"And I need to requisition supplies for the women on board. Why don't we meet here in an hour, Boss?"
Snake nodded. He would not mind the chance to take a break to breathe in the new surroundings around him.
Miranda showed him how to access the Cerberus Cell funds account on his omni-tool. All he would have to do is press the Action button in front of a kiosk in a store, and whatever it is he was purchasing, would be shipped to the Ishmael at docking bay B-11. They then went their separate ways, leaving him to himself on the busy street.
He wandered without direction for a short while, passing varieties of shops all the while; restaurants, weapons stores, an electronics shop, and even a spacefaring dealership.
The people and aliens were numerous and diverse, he watched a quarian argue with a human and a short, stout alien in a full body suit not unlike the quarian.
He saw human children distract a couple as their other friend pickpocketed their omni-tools with a strange device, then run off to an opened vent when discovered.
Through his walk, he decided to stop at the Japanese cuisine restaurant, watching the Japanese chef cut and dice vegetables and meats, tossing them into a pan through the window. He watched him roll fish and rice into a seaweed wrap and cut it into single piece, before sending the rolls away on a conveyor belt that led into the room in the back.
It had been a long time since he had tasted authentic Japanese cuisine, since before Outer Heaven even.
The kitchen was small, but manageable. A kiosk to the right of the chef displayed orders you could choose, but also displayed that a catering service was available.
Snake then remembered the food in the mess hall—how hard it was to swallow down military rations and dried out foods. It would be an incredible morale boost for the crew if they had a meal that wasn't military rations for them at the end of the day.
He approached the chef who did not look up from the beef and vegetables he tossed into a deliciously sizzling pan.
"Yes?" He responded to Snake's appearance, disinterestedly.
Snake spoke over the frying pan. "I have a ship with a full crew. They need a decent meal. Can you supply us?"
The chef shifted his eyes to stare at Big Boss for only a moment before returning to his frying pan, tossing the meats and vegetables in the air.
"How long you need for?"
"As long as you can supply us for."
The Japanese man's hand slipped, and the sushi roll he was rolling broke in half. He let out a string of curses in Japanese before turning his attention back to Snake.
"Will be expensive." He swallowed.
Snake lifted his omni-tool. Miranda did not express how much he should spend… The crew deserved it though. When he pulled up the account information in his omni-tool, there were millions of credits inside.
"How much?"
The man scratched his chin. "Nine thousand credits, for four weeks' worth of provision." He finished rolling the last of his sushi rolls, cut them, and sent them away on the conveyor belt.
Big Boss nodded.
The chef stepped away from the frying pan, wiped his hands clean on a cloth and moved over to the kiosk.
Snake joined and tapped the omni-tool on the screen of the kiosk, and a green light blinked approvingly.
"Will have the provisions delivered to the docking bay. Thank you… thank you so much!" The chef sniffled as he ran into the back of the kitchen, shouting something in Japanese, and a handful of other voices cheered in unison.
With a raised brow, Snake left the kitchen, and continued to look through the windows of passing shops. He looked at the reflections of people as they walked by. It seemed like ages since he was in any sort of civilized civilian landscape.
Prior to Afterlife, he had spent the last of his years in Outer Heaven on missions, deployed in abandoned villages, empty towns, and military facilities. He had nearly forgotten what it was like to see children with wholesome smiles, and clean hands, carrying toys instead of rifles.
He did not realize he had stopped walking. He stood before the large window of a small pet shop. He blinked and stared inside and his eyes fell to the lone creature in its cage. It was midnight black and earthly brown, and far too big for its holding cell, its snout pressed against the omni-shield with a solemn stare.
His feet led him into the shop—through the aisles to the front of this lonely spirit.
It was a German Shepherd, bigger than the other dogs in the store.
Now that he was closer, Big Boss could see scars up and down its face, its left ear was torn and stubby, and its fur was burned, mangled, even missing in certain places. Its eyes were abnormally blue, and tragically sad.
It had seen hard times. The dog stared up at Snake with hopeful eyes as the man knelt down before its cage.
"Interested, yes? Would you like to pet her?"
Snake looked up at the salarian clerk who approached, and nodded.
The salarian hit a button on his omni-tool, and the shield barring the dog dissolved.
It lunged forward instantly, toppling Big Boss down to the ground, and licked his face affectionately.
Snake found it hard to suppress his smirk as his hands tried to push away the German Shepherds loving maw.
"She's a good dog—smart breed. Strong too. We rescued her from a criminal canine and varren fighting ring on Bachjret Ward, her owner was killed in a shootout with C-Sec. Have had trouble adopting her out. Appearance makes it… difficult. Most people think with her background and appearance, she is unsafe. But as you can see…" The salarian snickered as the dog jumped on Snakes chest and continued to lick his face.
"She is quite loving."
Snake sat up, pushing the excited dog's licks away, but scratching her behind the ears.
"How old?" He asked.
"A little over two year cycles. In human years, I should say."
He looked into the dog's eyes, and he saw another from his past.
DD had been with him for years, right up to Outer Heaven. But a year or so before Solid Snake destroyed everything, DD had developed Malignant Lymphoma, and had to be put down. He had not held diamonds so close before that day.
He gently gripped the dogs panting face in his hands, and stroked the deep scars that lined her snout with his prosthetic thumb and looked into her eyes.
The salarian crossed his arms with an approving smile. "Seems like you both like each other."
The dog licked Snake's nose and wagged her tail excitedly.
"Should I prepare her for adoption?"
Snake looked between the salarian and the dog.
He stared into her eyes. Blue as the sea, fierce and powerful. She was a warrior, not meant for cages. He saw these eyes a thousand times in all his troops.
She lapped at his face again, and he nodded with a hidden smile.
"Excellent!" The salarian exclaimed, conjuring his omni-tool. "If you send me your Galactic Identification, I'll get started right away."
Snake stood and brought up his own omni-tool. It took him a few moments to figure out how to give his G.I.D, but once he did, the salarian disappeared to the front counter, leaving Snake with the panting dog.
She barked up at him and wagged her tail, sitting delicately, as if she were the perfect angel.
"Know any tricks?" He asked her.
She barked again, and jumped up at him, touching her snout to the tip of his nose in a sloppy wet kiss.
He smirked and wiped his face clean before the salarian returned.
"Everything seems to be in order, just require confirmation, and small adoption fee." He said as he tapped away on his omni-tool. Big Boss' lit up, and he confirmed the fee and adoption.
A bright green checkmark lit the screen.
"Congratulations! You guys are free to live out your lives together." The salarian said with a bright smile.
The dog barked with a wag of her tail as she stared up at Snake with a dangling tongue.
The man looked down and smirked back at her. Scratching her behind the ear with his prosthetic hand.
"She'll need a name. We couldn't think of one for her when she came here." The salarian said.
Snake thought, but he could not think of one either, shrugging his shoulders in response.
"Well… when you think of something, just message me, and I'll update her registration information. You'll need supplies as well, unless you already have them?"
By the time he left with the dog, her supplies were sent to the Ishmael; a stockpile of food, waste products, shampoos and an even expensive lavish bed.
They stood leashed together out on the street of Zakera Ward, when he saw Miranda approaching, a raised brow as she eyed the panting dog at his feet.
"Um… what's that, Boss?" She asked with a puzzled gesture toward the German Shepherd.
"A dog." He replied with indifference.
"Yes, I can see that… why is it with you?"
"I bought it."
Miranda's mouth was agape. "You bought a dog? You know that we are on an important mission to stop the Collectors, right?"
"…" Snake looked between her and the dog, who wagged her tail happily and barked at Miranda.
"What's with the rodent?" Garrus voice called as he approached.
"The Boss bought a dog. Against his better judgement."
"That's a dog?"
The German Shepherd barked and jump up at the turian with a wagging tail and dangling tongue.
"Hm… we used to eat these type of animals on Palavan during survival training." Garrus said, using his hand to stop the Shepherd from trying to lick his still tender face.
Snake looked at Miranda. "Dogs are useful—smart, and tough. They're loyal, and they'll never lie to you. So long as you're good to them."
The dog joined Snake by his side and barked again, in agreement.
"But Boss—"
"She stays, and that'll be the end of it."
Miranda tutted, but nodded all the same. "Of course, Boss."
"We should look for our other potential recruit, Kasumi Goto, before we return back to the Ishmael." She said with hidden jadedness.
"Do you mean me?" A woman's voice echoed from the speakers of the electronic banner that Snake stood beside.
They jumped back, aiming weapons at the smiling, hooded woman's face, who smiled and laughed gingerly.
"Good to finally meet you, Big Boss. Kasumi Goto, at your service." She said playfully.
Miranda sighed as she rested a hand on her hip. "Why bother with false G.I.D's if everyone knows who you are regardless?"
Kasumi snickered. "I do my research. How else do you think I've survived this long as a master thief?"
"So you know what our mission is then?" Snake asked, crossing his arms over his chest.
Kasumi nodded, her face flickering on the projection. "Honestly, I'm shocked they didn't come to see me sooner. My fault for being hard to find, I guess."
"You know what we're up against, right?" Garrus asked.
The woman nodded.
The gesture gave Snake a quick glimpse of the face beneath the hood, her features were Asian from what he saw. Her name and the twist on her pronunciation revealed her to be Japanese.
"Yes. Saving the galaxy and all that, right? I'm not doing it for free though, I had a thing I need help with, so I made them a deal. And here we are."
Snake raised a brow. "Deal?"
The hooded woman tutted. "I guess it must have slipped their minds. I'm looking for my old partner's greybox. A man named Donovan Hock took it, and I'm planning to get it back."
Miranda shifted on her feet. "And I guess you'll need our help? As per the deal to sign on?"
Kasumi grinned. "Yes. Though, only Big Boss' help. His talents for stealth espionage will be invaluable."
Snake nodded. "Right. We'll take care of it when there's time."
"It'll be fun! And if we're lucky, you won't even have to draw your gun, Big Boss." She said cheerfully.
The screen with her face disappeared, and the woman's voice appeared from behind them, sitting on a bench. "We should probably wrap this up. You look pretty silly standing there talking to an advertisement."
She stood, with a friendly smile. "See you on the Ishmael, Big Boss." She said before disappearing beneath a cloaking device.
Garrus scratched his chin, and winced when he did so. "Hm… Interesting girl." He said as Miranda led the way back to the Ishmael.
They returned back to the loading dock, where Private Hadley argued with man in a chef's outfit. He spotted Snake approaching before saluting in his direction. "Boss, we have a minor issue—"
The chef spun around, and Snake immediately recognized him as the chef from the Japanese restaurant.
"You! I sold you provisions, I offer my services as a chef!" He shouted and approached Snake with a furrowed brow. "Can cook, better than who you have as chef now. Look at your recruit!"
He pointed to Hadley with a face of disgust. "All skin and bone! No muscle! He's a weak little boy!"
Hadley frowned. "Hey—"
"Take me with you. Won't regret it." The chef declared.
Snake eyed him for the moment. "We're on a dangerous mission. You're prepared for that?"
"Yes." The chef did not hesitate.
He gave him a once over and looked at Miranda who stood with her arms crossed defiantly.
"We're leaving shortly. Make sure you're on board."
Miranda sighed and walked onto the ship with a forceful bounce in her step.
"Yes! Thank you. Will be on board!" The chef proclaimed, racing to pick up his items that he had with him onto the Ishmael.
They were soon all aboard the Ishmael, and shortly after, their deliveries and refueling were completed, the ship jetted off into the cosmos.
The German Shepherd had excitedly boarded the ship, barking and running up to everyone in sight. The crew responded enthusiastically as she breathed in all the attention with pleasant woofs and fierce tail-wagging.
Snake saw Miranda, with her stony face, suppress a tug at the corner of her lip as she passed the dog to the elevator.
Joker spun in his chair to face them, ignoring the excited canine who barked at him. "So, how was Anderson, did he say he missed me?"
Snake shook his head, and Joker gripped his chest in mock pain.
"Yikes… that hurts worse than when my real dad says he doesn't miss me, and that he loves my sister more." Joker said before spinning back in his chair.
"Well, let me know when you're ready to leave, Boss, I'll just be up here sulking and telling the ship cancer to shut up."
Snake whistled to the dog who, after getting her fill of attention, ran over excitedly, looking up at him with a panting grin. He gave her a quick scratch on the head and led her to the CIC, where Kelly Chambers greeted her with great enthusiasm.
"Oh my, who's this? She's beautiful, Boss!" The woman said, scratching the dog who barked in response.
He approached the terminal and opened it with relative ease. "She hasn't got a name yet. She'll have to earn it. Introduce her to the rest of the crew. Get her situated." He said standing before his terminal and switching it on.
The woman smiled brightly, scratching the prone dog's exposed belly now, her leg a machinegun in the air. "Right away, Boss."
Kelly stood, and gestured for her to follow. "C'mon girl! Let's show you the ship."
The yeoman and the dog disappeared in the elevator, and Snake ran through his new messages and remaining dossiers.
Joker's voice echoed over the intercom. "Where to, Boss?"
Snake looked over the galaxy map, before tapping at the screen, reading over the remaining dossier. "…Korlus. In the Imir system."
"Copy that, it'll be a little over forty-two hours before arrival."
Snake groaned inwardly.
Forty-two hours was a long time for a soldier. Without the drowning of gunfire and adrenaline coursing through his veins, the ghosts that lurked in the shadows closed in much quicker.
He looked down at his hands, and saw blood in dirty palms.
He blinked, and they were normal, gloved and armored. He ran a hand over his face before heading to the armory, with random intent to tend over his gear.
Jacob was there, his hands deftly fieldstripping a shotgun that Snake was not familiar with by his workbench.
As he entered, Jacob looked his direction, and stood straight with a salute. "Boss, can I help you with something?"
Snake shook his head as he stood at the table opposite him, lifting his M-96 Mattock, and Jacob returned to what he was doing.
"A little weapon maintenance, huh? It's a great way to keep the hands busy off duty." Jacob said as he began to clean his pistol.
"So, what did Admiral Anderson have to say?" He asked.
Snake began to take the Mattock apart, setting the pieces down in neat sections, a manual conjured on a tablet that Jacob had left for him to study his firearms as he took them apart, telling him what to clean, and how to put them back together.
"He'll give us everything he has on the Reapers and Commander Shepard."
"Classified intel?"
Snake nodded.
Jacob whistled. "Damn. Hell of a risky move. He could be court-martialed if he gets caught revealing top secret Alliance intel."
Snake agreed… but Anderson knew what was at stake, the future. He did not say anything, and continued to inspect and clean his rifle. They worked in mutual silence before Jacob spoke again.
"Have to say, Boss, you run this ship tight, and we're getting things done. We keep on track and maybe we'll figure this out. I hope so. I'm not looking forward to the debrief if it all goes to shit."
Snake finished with the rifle and moved onto the Carnifex next, stripping it apart.
"You were ex-military?" He asked.
Jacob nodded, setting his weapon down and turning to face Big Boss. "Yeah. I served five years in the Alliance. I was part of a group called the Consairs for a bit, before I was reassigned to Eden Prime, a human colony. I was there, back in 2183, when the Geth invasion nearly wiped out the entire colony.
"After that, I got fed up. Too much red tape in the Alliance. So I left after my service was up. Been with Cerberus ever since."
"Anyone at home?"
Jacob shook his head. "Only child and no extended family. Never settled down. Didn't seem fair with this job. But, hey, you can't miss what you never had."
Snake nodded but his face grimed.
Jacob had certainly prepared himself for the worst. But he more often than not, found that soldiers who had something to go home to, fought harder, and survived longer. He saw it a thousand times.
He remembered a young man who once fought for nothing. A young man who was haunted by faces of people he did not know, who he killed. A life without purpose.
But then he met Big Boss. A man who once was the marbled statue for which he worshiped. Larger than life, a symbol to strive to.
What did he believe in now? His Boss and his rivalry with Zero nearly brought the world to complete ruin.
Now, that young man, was now just an old killer, a demon lost in time, trying to make up for the mistakes they all created.
It did not feel like it was enough though… He did not feel that power he felt when he woke up from that coma all those years ago, reborn as Big Boss. There was nothing in him anymore. Nothing at all. No real purpose. But yet, he was still alive… still fighting, why?
"Boss?"
Jacob's beckoning voice brought him back to reality, he had not realized that he was squeezing the trigger of the Carnifex in his hand over and over. He set it down and picked up the Mattock again, stripping it part by part.
"You disappeared there for a second… anything you want to talk about?" Jacob asked, crossing his arms over his chest and leaning back against his work station.
Snake did not speak. The only sound that filled the armory was the quiet click of his field stripping, and the low thrum of the ship around them.
The dark skinned soldier switched topics. "You know… when you were still in that bed, being worked on, I used to wonder what the big deal with you was— An old merc, from over a hundred years in the past, brought back from the dead. How great could you be?" He chuckled to himself.
"But, now that we're in the deep of it, I see it now. You're somethin' else, you operate like nothing I've seen before. Like a machine. Like you were born for this."
Snake did not speak, not at first. He finished putting the Mattock back together with newly trained ease, and set it down carefully, like a baby in a cradle.
He stared at the weapon absently.
Killing was easy. He recalled a young man in graduating medical school, who once thought he would never be able to kill another man. He recalled a young man who spent three years in the Army, and then two years as an Army Ranger, and possessed the highest kill count of his entire platoon.
Blood dripped onto the table from his brow, like sweat on a humid day. He touched his face when he felt cool wetness, he smelled gunpowder and fire, could taste copper on his tongue.
When he pulled his hand away to look at it though, he saw nothing, no sweat, no blood, nothing.
He turned to Jacob and grimed. "When you're like me… when war's in your blood, and you're pushed, killing's as easy as breathing. "
Snake walked away, leaving Jacob in the stillness of the armory.
I'm sorry for the severe delay and lack of action in this chapter, but I've been busy with work, girlfriend troubles and I'm in the process of joining the military. Thanks for the patience, the feedback, all the follows and favourites. You guys are dope. Hope you enjoyed this cluster of words! I'll have the next chapter out much sooner, I'm about 6000 words into it already. AThousandSuns
P.S; I hate Jacob.