The skies, April 20, 2010

As they were instructed, Snake and Max were in the plane, that was on it's way to Newark. Still, neither one is pleased, either with this forced labor, or the accommodations.

"What is all this?" Max started, as she was flipping through a magazine she found there, "Pulse makes Hannah Montanna show her true colors? Driveshaft is the best selling band of the century? Lizzie in rehab? Who are these people and why would I care what's happening to them? Is this really what everybody reads?"

"Everyone who'd rather not think about their own problem and deal with it, yes." Snake sighed.

"I've had it with this thing." Max said, as she threw the magazine away.

Snake remained silent, but there was something about when the magazine landed somewhere that she noticed, but couldn't quite place. She got up, startled at that.

Snake, who noticed her sudden move, asked her: "What is it?"

"Did you hear that?" Max asked.

"Hear what?" Snake didn't know what she was talking about.

"I don't know." Max replied, "I just threw away the magazine, but before it fell I heard something make a soft moan, as I actually hit someone."

Snake shrugged: "Maybe the plane's alive and you hurt it."

"I'm serious here... Plissken!" Max exclaimed.

Snake turned to her, annoyed: "So am I... what was your number again? X5-something?"

"My name is Max!" Max shouted.

Snake remained calm: "It's Snake."

Max turned away from him: "Can't believe that I'm stuck here with you."

"Yeah, doesn't everybody." Snake snickered.

This was something Max didn't seem to understand: "You're okay with that Thirteen guy high-jacking us and forcing us to find this... chain-man?"

"Not at all." Snake replied, "But I know something you don't."

"And what would that be?" Max asked him, annoyed.

"This plane belongs to Group W." Snake explained.

"So?" Max still didn't understand.

"It's a company owned by a man named Winch, who owns some ten billion dollars, last time I checked it." Snake explained.

"He probably lost it all ever since the Pulse." Max brought to his attention.

"Maybe he lost something." Snake reasoned, "Maybe he's not even the owner anymore, but whoever is calling the shots here can afford to help me recover from my wounds, maintaining that island, this plane,... I'd say he has enough money."

This appeared to be of some interest to Max: "So you're just tagging along and wait for your shot?"

Snake didn't say anything, which usually meant yes.

"And you're not afraid of saying that out loud?" Max still asked.

"Do you really think that Thirteen guy meant it when he said he has his ways of finding out what we say or do?" Snake wondered.

This would surprise anyone else that he'd ask, but not Max: "So you too believe that he was bluffing. That there may be some stupid explanation to why he knew so much about what we do."

"For a little girl, you're quite smart." Snake said.

"I get that a lot." Max replied, as she suddenly started shaking.

Snake saw her shake, quite heavily. He also saw how she tried to take something out of her pockets, but failed to do so. She fell to the floor, at which point Snake ran to her.

"What's happening to you?" he asked her.

While still shaking, Max tried to reach for her pocket. Wondering what in her pocket could possibly be so important she would try to reach for it at this time, Snake got it out. It was an orange bottle with pills. He didn't know what they are or what they're supposed to do, but he guessed she needs it against these seizures she's experiencing. He opened it and gave her one pill. After some time, she stopped shaking. Max looked at Snake, seeing how he just saved her life.

"Look, Snake..." Max started.

Snake put his hand on her mouth, saying: "Do you really want to share your secret with somebody you hardly know?"

Max thought about it. She realized she got a little emotional, just because this man just saved her, but she remembers now that she'd better not mention this to him. Still, she felt the urge to say something at all: "At least that Thirteen guy was kind enough to give me this."

New York City, April 20, 2010

When they left Sarjevane, it was late in the afternoon, but when they got to New York, it wasn't even noon yet. It's a weird sensation to realize, but they both got over it easily. On their way to Manhattan Island, they were to cross a bridge.

"This brings back memories." Snake sighed.

"I never been here." Max remarked, "Is it supposed to look like Rome?"

Snake didn't even need to look at the buildings. He knew only too well about the incident of May last year, the case that's designated as "Cloverfield".

"It's ironic." Snake brought up, "First, bombs destroy almost every major American city, but this city was one of the few that were spared, only to be torn down by a giant monster."

"That was this city?" Max asked him.

"Yes." Snake hissed, "I'm not even sure if we'd find this man we're supposed to look for."

"Neither am I." Max shrugged, "But let's look anyway, so we can say we tried."

Some time after they arrived on the island, and after asking for directions, the two made it in the infamous Rat Streets. But the all they could find were homeless people. And some of them weren't that welcoming towards them either, as they all turned away at the sight of them.

"I'd wish he'd have given me some guns I could use here." Snake sighed, "Maybe that would get them to talk."

Max looked up when he said that, but only said: "I've got enough with my own two hands and my own two feet."

Snake raised his shoulders: "Yeah, sure."

"Hey, you two!" someone shouted at them, "What, you're planning to kill us all?"

"See what the word alone can do?" Max laughed.

That man who spoke got closer, along with some other people, surrounding them, saying: "This place's a sanctuary, man! You can't just come here and do what you want, man!"

Snake shook his head: "Now you listen to me. I don't give a shit about what you think..."

"No, you listen!" that man interrupted, "Either you get outta here now, or we're gonna kick your asses, right here and right now!"

"I'd wish he'd stop screaming like that." Snake remarked.

"That's it! Get him!" he ordered to the others.

Although there were only two of them, they alone were enough to take down this group of five people. Snake had a military training in hand-on-hand combat, which none of these homeless people had, and Max had her special abilities.

Once they were all taken down, Max said: "This wasn't a fair fight. You guys never stood a chance to us."

Snake then picked up that same man that spoke to them earlier, and talked to him: "Now that we have your attention, we just came for one thing here. Where do we find the man with chains?"

The man looked scared at the very mention of that: "You... you don't mean... that black man with red cape? That scary man?"

"A man with a cape?" Snake sounded surprised, "We came here to fetch some guy in a suit?"

"If I may..." somebody cut in, an old man, "... if you're looking for this man, you won't find him at day-time. Wait for the night."

Snake dropped the man: "Just great. We gotta stay up all night, in case this guy might show up?!"

"There's another day of my life wasted." Max whined, "The worst part is that we don't even know what we've been sent here for."

Snake didn't disagree: "Makes it a lot harder to just tag along."

Max sighed as well. It was then that she saw something. She couldn't be too sure, but she saw an Afro-American man at a distance. Anyone who wouldn't have the powers that Max has, wouldn't have noticed that this man's eyes were glowing green. She turned back to Snake.

"I think you might want to hear this." she said, as she guided him out of the man's sight.

The man in question saw how they moved out of the street, then realized he wouldn't be needed here after all. He turned around to walk away, but on his way, he met with the two he just saw.

The Afro-American man was surprised that this happened: "I didn't think you'd have actually seen me."

"Who are you, and why are you watching us?" Snake asked him.

"I answer to nobody." the man said, as he suddenly... changed.

His entire body was suddenly covered in a sort of black suit, with red gloves and boots (or something that's supposed to look like it, so it's not your most conventional ones). His belt bore a human skull, and from it a chain, that appeared to have a life of it's own, was moving. And although this new form wore a mask that covered his entire head, it didn't cover his green-lit eyes. The red cape that the man in the alleys mentioned looked raffled, but it too appeared to have a life of it's own. This... thing, a spawn from hell one might think, so Spawn is more than a fitting way to refer to this thing. Spawn's chains shifted into claws that got their grip on both Snake and Max. In this position, he threw them from one side to the other, before asking them anything.

"What do you want from me?" he finally asked.

"Wish I could tell you." Max answered.

"You can, and you will!" Spawn reacted.

Spawn dropped the two of them and flew into the air.

"Well..." Snake tried to say, "I guess we found our man."

Shortly after that, Spawn returned. This time carrying two machine-guns. As he was about to use his chains again, this time both Max and Snake knew how to dodge his attempts, only so that Max could disarm him, and Snake could grab one of the guns and point it to Spawn. The latter didn't appear to be intimidated. Snake shot Spawn in his leg, but he didn't seem to feel it. That would've surprised Snake under different circumstances, but this wasn't one of them. Spawn allowed his cape to change into an axe, but at that time, Snake decided to point the gun to Spawn's head.

"I don't know what you are..." Snake said, "... but even dead people can't survive a shot in the head. Can you?"

Spawn was undecided as to what to do then, which was the perfect opportunity for Max to pin him down. Snake looked at the weapon he held, and made the following conclusion.

"This weapon is typical military." Snake said, "Only available for those who know where to find it. And you attack first and ask questions later."

"You're a soldier, right?" Max asked.

"I was." Spawn replied, "What's it to you people?"

"Then you should understand this." Snake answered, "We were sent here for something. I don't know what it is, but unless you come with us, we'll never know and he'll never let us go."

"And I should care, because?" Spawn asked.

"Because these people are ready to take people against their will if they have to." Snake told him, "Even if you don't come with us, they'll likely send someone else, and won't stop until they got you."

"Who would be that interested in me?" Spawn wondered.

"Winch." Snake answered.

"Winch? As in Largo Winch?" Spawn appeared to know that name, "Business-people, they're all the same fuckers. Alright, just so he'd get off my back, I'll come with you. But if I don't like it there..."

"I ain't gonna stop you." Snake assured him.

"Me neither." Max added.

"Good!" Spawn exclaimed, as he changed back in his human form.

When he changed back, he fell down. It appeared that although he didn't feel any pain from being shot in his leg, that didn't mean that his leg wasn't wounded.

As the man was crying in agony, Max asked him: "What? You didn't feel any pain before."

"You can't hurt me as a hellspawn." the man explained, "But you can hurt my human body."

"That's gotta be the most pointless thing you've got, that... suit of yours." Snake remarked, "Who are you anyway?"

The man looked up, as he apparently wondered when he was gonna ask this: "Al."