CHAPTER 11:

FIRE AND ICE

As they descended into the Blast Furnace, Harry got Snake and Wolf up to speed. "Can we really trust Ocelot?" Snake asked.

"He has his own agenda, but yes. He's loyal to Big Boss, not Liquid, but I think he's pretending to work for the Patriots and Sears as well. Besides, the Sorrow knows his true agenda."

"That ghost guy who hung around you?" Snake asked. "Who is he, anyway?"

"One of the Cobra Unit," Wolf said. "We'll talk about that later. Harry, do you think that FoxDIE vaccine Ocelot gave us is real?"

"If it isn't, we're dead, simple as that," Harry said. "Snake's had a chance to infect all of us by now, so theoretically, you and I should have died from its effects long ago. But it doesn't mean that Naomi or her superiors haven't put in some wildcard factor."

"Miller seemed suspicious about Naomi…" Snake started, before he saw Harry and Wolf looking at him. "What?"

"Miller's dead, Snake. Liquid's been impersonating him," Harry said. "Ocelot went and killed him ages ago. Liquid's been feeding you intel."

"It panned out," Snake said, apparently finding it hard to believe that Miller was dead.

"He was telling you what you needed to hear." Harry looked down from the gantry they were on to the glowing hot metal of the furnace. "But Naomi has her own stake. Gray Fox is her adopted brother."

"Jaeger is her brother?!" Snake demanded. "Does she want me dead?"

"I hope not. I thought I persuaded her otherwise when she helped Gray Fox escape," Harry said. "But it's possible she included you in the FoxDIE target list. Or maybe the Pentagon ordered you be on it. Or maybe, because, save for some genes, you're practically Liquid's identical twin, they'd kill both of you. I only heard rumours about how FoxDIE works. All that we can hope for is that we've got at least enough time to destroy Metal Gear REX and stop Liquid. Wolf's the best living sniper in the world, you've destroyed Metal Gear twice before, and me?" Harry gave a grim smile. "I'm Harry fucking Potter, the Boy Who Lived. An overgrown metal Godzilla is nothing compared to Voldemort. What is Liquid Snake compared to us? He's a whiny, petulant little brat with daddy issues up the wazoo. But the three of us are legends. And we're legends for a reason. We've been to Hell, and we've survived. More than that, we've come out stronger. We may have been tools of the government, or of the Patriots, or of Liquid, but we're not broken. At least we're not anymore. We are not broken tools."

That being said, he peered across the room, until his gaze came to the massive double doors. He looked at the guards and their patrols, before nodding. "Snake, Wolf, get a hold of me. This'll be a bit disorienting, Snake."

"What is?"

"Apparation. It's like a form of teleportation. It's what I used to get away from you in Emmerich's lab," Harry said.

"Can you take us to REX's hangar?" Snake asked.

"Theoretically, yes, but if we suddenly appear right in front of a guard…well, it makes a noise like a gunshot anyway, it's not really stealthy. Even doing it now is risky. We'll have to get through those doors quickly before the guards investigate."

Snake nodded. "Right, when you're ready."

Harry timed the Apparation so that the guards were further away, concentrating enough to try and mitigate the noise. Then, they were through the doors, and in a room with a cargo elevator very quickly. The three former members of FoxHOUND ran over to the cargo elevator, and Harry activated it. "Basement level, cold storage, crows, and weapons of mass destruction. Going down," he remarked facetiously.

As they descended slowly, a quartet of soldiers leapt out from the loading area, and landed on the elevator. Snake and Wolf, without hesitation, shot two, while Harry hit the other two with Cutting Curses, which had much the same effect when powered up. Well, as a shotgun blast point blank. Harry scowled. "Liquid must've thought to harass you by sending these four idiots to kill you," he muttered. He put a hand to his head. "These were probably Liquid's most loyal supporters, and he sent them here basically to keep you on your toes, knowing you'd probably kill them."

"Why his most loyal supporters?" Snake asked.

"Many of the Next Generation Special Forces were indoctrinated by Mantis. Others joined Liquid because their enhancements with Big Boss' genes were faulty, and had the potential to cause genetic disease. That's why they want Big Boss' body." Harry walked over to the railing of the lift. "Liquid still thinks Big Boss is dead, but the Patriots merely have him in a coma, although horribly burned thanks to your improvised flamethrower at Zanzibar Land."

"Saladin is still alive?!" Wolf demanded. "Why didn't you tell me?"

"I didn't know whether you'd believe me, Wolf," Harry said.

Snake walked over to Harry. "Liquid said something about a false Big Boss. Now, I was certain I killed Big Boss in Outer Heaven, but he turned up alive and well in Zanzibar Land. Was he a body double?"

Harry nodded. "I've talked to him through the Sorrow. He was once Big Boss' top medic in Militaires Sans Frontières, one of his first precursors to Outer Heaven. But a mission to rescue a couple of comrades went south, badly. Both Big Boss and this medic, call him Ahab for the moment, got injured so badly, they were in a coma for nine years. Ahab, as part of an operation to divert attention from the real Big Boss, was subjected to plastic surgery and hypnotherapy to make him look and think like Big Boss. Ahab became a new Big Boss, also known as Venom Snake. I won't recount everything that happened, but apparently Venom Snake was every bit as good as Big Boss was. In a way, they both were Big Boss, like a hydra. It was Venom Snake who you fought in Outer Heaven, while it was the original Big Boss who you fought in Zanzibar Land."

Snake looked at Harry and Wolf. "Well, they felt like the same guy," he said. "Liquid knew Venom Snake?"

"Both he and Psycho Mantis encountered Venom Snake for the first time in 1984," Harry said. "And Wolf has spoken to a sniper who worked alongside Venom Snake known as Quiet. Emmerich even has a connection to that time: his parents worked with Big Boss. A lot of us are bound here by threads of fate. Some of it genetic, some of it historic."

"Wonderful," Snake growled. "Anyone else I know who isn't dead?"

"Dr Madnar, apparently. He's somewhere in Eastern Europe, last I heard."

"Huh."

They had to switch to another cargo elevator, and then, Snake had to take a Codec call. After a while, he hung up, and turned to Wolf and Harry. "That was Miller, well, Liquid. Naomi made a comment earlier about her Japanese grandfather being part of the FBI. Miller just pointed out that J Edgar Hoover, who was head at the time, was a notorious racist, and the anti-Mafia operations the grandfather was supposed to have participated in started in Chicago in the 60s, not New York in the 50s. He hasn't said anything further, though."

"Liquid's trying to stir up trouble. You already know she's Gray Fox's adoptive sister. And you know she's the one who created FoxDIE. If we're lucky, she's decided not to take revenge."

"And if we're not…Harry…Wolf…I need you to finish the mission. Stop Metal Gear REX and Liquid, and make sure Meryl and Otacon are fine," Snake said. Then, he frowned as ravens began to fly overhead. "What's this?"

"Shit," Wolf muttered. "Raven's waiting up ahead. He likes hanging out in the refrigerated areas."

"That guy from the tank, right? I saw the files on him," Snake said. "Is it true that he can wield a Vulcan gun from a jet?"

"Complete with ammo barrel," Harry said with a groan. "I'm pretty sure he once worked for Big Boss, too. He's one of the saner members of FoxHOUND, present company excluded obviously, but he loves a good battle. He's also a smart cookie as well. If we're lucky, we can negotiate with him. But if we're unlucky…"

"Yes," Snake said, checking his Socom pistol pointedly. "I know. Harry, Wolf, what about Meryl?"

"She's alive as far as I know," Harry said.

"She'd better be. Ocelot might be against the Patriots, but he made me go through torture. If I cried uncle, her life would be forfeit. I didn't dare give him the satisfaction. If she's dead, then anti-Patriots or not, I'm making sure he follows her into the grave."

Once the cargo lift had stopped, they made their way into the refrigerated Warehouse. There, perched on top of a shipping container, surrounded by dozens of ravens, was Vulcan Raven himself, kitted out with his Vulcan gun. He stood, and looked down at them. "Welcome, Kasack!" he said to Snake. "This is the end of the road for you, right, my friends?"

He was referring to the ravens rather than Harry or Wolf. As they cawed in apparent agreement, Harry looked up at Raven. "So you're the next meatshield Liquid's put in the way?"

"A rather unflattering description, Griffin. Or should I call you by your birthname, Harry Potter? Liquid told me he was sure you and Wolf were dead."

"He thought wrong, Raven," Wolf said. "He has turned his back on Saladin and his ideals, Raven. Do you want to abandon them yourself?"

"That is not my desire, Wolf. We intend to test Snake's true mettle."

"Nice pets you have," Snake remarked.

"Indeed," Raven agreed. "Ravens are not mere scavengers as most people believe. They return to the Earth what is no longer needed. They will sometimes attack wounded foxes."

"All is One, and One is All," Harry remarked, remembering when Emmerich managed to get him to read the manga of Fullmetal Alchemist.

"Indeed."

Snake peered up at Raven. "That tank must've been a tight fit for a big boy like you."

Raven laughed heartily, before saying, "But that was no true battle." He leapt down, his impact hitting the floor causing a brief tremor through the floor. He was a towering giant, complete with minigun, ready to wreak havoc. "The ravens and I were testing you, to see what kind of man you really were. The judgement has been decided. You are a true warrior. Now the real test begins."

To Harry's shock, the raven tattoo on Raven's forehead flared, and then seemed to fly towards Snake. The three couldn't move as a raven flew down to Snake's shoulder. "Am I…hallucinating?"

Harry looked at Raven. "Is this your people's magic?"

"Of a sort," Raven said. "I do not need a carved stick for my power." To Snake, he said, "The Raven has put his mark of death upon you. Blood from the East flows through your veins. Ah, your ancestors too were raised on the barren plains of Mongolia. The Inuit and the Japanese are cousins to each other. We share many ancestors, you and I."

And then, suddenly, as if a switch had been flicked, the paralysis ceased. Snake snarked, "I would have known if I had crows in my family tree."

"I'm not fond of snakes myself, but your kinship overrides such concerns. After all, one can choose one's friends, but not one's family." Raven approached Snake. "You live in Alaska too, I know. You are aware of the World Eskimo-Indian Olympics?"

Snake smiled. "Yeah. You'd be a shoe-in for the Sled Pull and the Four-Man Carry. Do you do the Muktuk Eating Contest too(1)?"

Raven laughed. The hearty laugh was filled with good humour, and not the laugh of a man about to try and kill another. "Of course. But there is another event I excel at: the Ear Pull."

"Oh, Merlin," Harry groaned, facepalming. "Isn't that the one where you tie dental floss or something around two people's ears and have them do a tug of war that could rip their ears off? You showed me a picture of that once. Ugh, the blood!"

Raven scoffed at Harry's exclamation. "For one who has gone through such hardships as yourself, you are remarkably squeamish. And you miss the point. They do so while enduring the cold, as a test of physical and spiritual strength."

"I don't have any dental floss on me," Harry snarked.

"That is not necessary," Raven said. "The form shall be different, but the principle will be the same. Rejoice, Snake, for ours will be a glorious battle."

Snake's face twisted in anger. "Violence isn't glorious or a sport. It's just plain killing!"

"We'll see if there is iron in your words," Raven said.

"And what of us? Are you going to fight us?" Wolf asked.

"If you interfere, then yes," Raven said.

"Well, what can I say?" Harry sighed, taking his wand from his jacket. "I have a bad habit of interfering."

CHAPTER 11 ANNOTATIONS:

Nothing much to say here, really. Hope you enjoy. Last chapter for a while, frankly.

1. I combined the lines used in both versions of the game.