As Snake traveled, he received a call from Link and Fox.
"This is Snake. What's up?"
Link: "Hey Snake. Listen, Fox and I had been talking and we realized something."
"What's that?"
Fox: "Other than Marth, you don't know anything about the other three targets. Not even what they look like."
"Huh…yeah that…that seems like pretty important information. Care to fill me in?"
Link: "Of course, that's why we called."
"What've you got for me?"
Fox: "We'll start off with Roy. You'll best identify him by his red hair."
"Red hair? That's really all you can give me to go off of?"
Fox: "Trust me, it's really all you'll need."
Link: "Of course like the other members of the Committee, Roy is an expert with a blade. He uses a Rapier. Back in the second tournament his moves were very similar to Marth's. However, Roy relies more on sheer power and brute force as opposed to Marth's agility and finesse. That blade is capable of setting you on fire, so watch your ass doesn't get fried."
"Noted. What about Robin?"
Fox: "You can identify Robin with his white hair and he usually wears a black cloak."
Link: "Now Robin is different from the others. It'd be a lie to say that he's just a swordsman. He's also a master tactician. Not to mention his arsenal isn't limited to a sword. Aside from his sword, he's got a tome that he can use for magical attacks. Fire, lightning, wind attacks. The list goes on."
"Damn. Got any tips on how I can combat against that?"
Link: "Don't worry. He may have a lot of tools at his disposal, but he's got a weakness like everything. His weapons have a breaking point. If he uses one too often, it will break. He'll have to wait a while before he can reuse them. Use that time as an opportunity to get close and attack."
"I'll do that. So what about the last guy…Shulk?"
Fox: "Shulk's physical traits are nothing special. He's a young guy with blonde hair, and he wears modern clothing. Believe it or not, you'll be able to identify Shulk from his weapon."
Link: "The Monado…"
"Monado? Never heard of that type of sword."
Fox: "We didn't either until Shulk appeared in the fourth tournament. There's only one in existence, and it's the one that he has."
"Okay. What's so special it? What does it look like?"
Link: "For starters it's no ordinary sword. It's an energy blade. The surface of the blade is colored red, but when he needs to attack, the sword can change its shape and blue energy emits from the sword, taking the shape of a blade."
"Sounds fancy. But again, what's so special about it? We all used energy swords back in the tournament, and they acted just like a sword."
Fox: "Being an energy blade isn't what makes it special. It's the power that it allows Shulk to access. The Monado Arts. That power augments whichever ability he chooses for a certain amount of time. His jump, his speed, strength, durability. All of it can be enhanced with Monado Arts."
"The perfect blend of technology and a blade…"
Link: "I don't know of any weaknesses you can exploit. But even with all those powers, he's not invincible. You can beat him Snake!"
"I'll do my best. Thanks for the info."
Fox: "No problem. Fox out."
Snake and Link were the only ones left in the call. Snake was about to sign off but…
"Snake wait!" Link called out.
"What's up?"
"You wouldn't mind talking to Peach for a little bit would you?"
"Of course not. Is there something wrong?"
"Not really. She just wants to talk to you. She hasn't spoken to you since you left and I don't think we've been fair by not allowing her to speak with you."
"Why'd you do that?"
"We thought she might be too talkative and distract you from your mission."
Snake let out a small laugh. "Don't worry, she'll be fine. Set up a frequency for her. Maybe I'll need the moral support at some point."
"All right then. I'll give her a way to communicate with her knight in sour armor." Link joked.
"Very funny."
"For now, she's with Zelda so she's using her radio. I'll switch over to her now."
"Snake?" The princess called out from the other line.
"Hey Peach. It's been a while since we talked huh?"
"Damn right it has!" She barked with anger. Snake flinched when she rose her voice, but he felt he deserved it.
"I owe you an apology. I'm sorry that I just took off like that. That was very rude of me."
Peach sighed and regained her composure, removing the anger from her. "It's okay. I can't stay mad at you. And I think that freeing a group of over 50 slaves shows that you left with good intentions."
"Glad to hear that."
"Just talk to me. How have you been doing?"
"Well I'm not dead so that's a start."
"Hilarious. But seriously, are you alright out there?"
"You know me, I'm hanging in there. Doing the best I can."
"They've been keeping me informed on what's going on. I heard about Samus and Falcon…"
"Yeah…"Was all Snake could say in response.
"I'm sorry! I shouldn't have brought that up…"
"Don't worry about it."
"And then this whole…"Committee" thing! How could those four turn into people like that?"
"The end of the world and seven years can change people in many ways."
"Creating monsters, Coercion, wanting to assassinate you! That's so unlike them! How could they become so evil?"
"I can't say they're evil. That's a subjective term. In their eyes, what they're doing is for the good of the people, and that I'm the villain standing in the way. They're intentions were fair when they started, but their morals on what the right thing changed dramatically. Regardless, what they're doing is causing more harm than good, and they need to be stopped." Snake explained.
"So you'll fight them? And you'll have to kill them?" She asked. Snake sighed grimly.
"I'd rather not…you know that…but I may have no other choice."
"I understand. Just know that…I believe in you. I know that you'll do the right thing."
"Thank you Peach…"
"Stay safe." She said quietly before ending the call.
Snake came across a PSC guard post. There were only two men posted to guard it.
Maybe I can squeeze some info out of these two.
As he began sneaking up on the two, they also listened in on their conversation.
"Can I tell you something?" The one guard asked the other.
"Yeah, what's up?" The other guard responded.
"Are we…doing the right thing?"
Snake became more interested with this conversation after hearing the guards' question.
"What do you mean?"
"I joined up because I was told that we'd be helping people, a-and that we'd be making the wasteland a better place."
"Yeah so did I. What's your point though?"
"When we're stationed at settlements, all the citizens seem to hate us. They're annoyed with us. But they look to the "Nomad" guy as a hero. And even though the chairmen our telling us that he's a criminal, I keep hearing about the stuff he's been doing. And I have to say he really does sound like a hero. I mean! Why aren't we going out there freeing slaves from those camps?"
"Huh…now that you mention it, I've kind of been wondering the same thing. And I've been wondering what exactly it is that the chairmen are doing by going to different towns. I asked Chairmen Robin about it before he left and he said we're "dealing with the mutant threat". That's kind of a vague explanation if you ask me."
Huh? Sounds like they're keeping the grunts in the dark. I know that feeling.
"I agree. And from the reports I've been hearing, the mutant threat has been getting worse since we've been doing these tours. I…I wonder…"
"Hey watch it man. I think you might be getting into conspiracy territory. Don't want the chairmen hearing about that." The other guard warned. Snake made his moves, using a CQC slam on the first guard and knocked his weapon away. The other guard attempted to aim at Snake, but Snake snatched his rifle from his hands and knocked him down with the butt of the gun. With the two guards neutralized, Snake held them at gunpoint for questioning.
"Oh god! It's him!"
"Where are the chairmen?! Start talking!" Snake demanded.
"We-we only know where Chairman Robin is. We weren't told about where the others are traveling! You'd have to ask a platoon stationed in another area." The guard nervously explained.
"Alright fine! Where's he heading?"
"He's heading to…uh Kanto. Yeah Kanto, it's a Pokémon settlement."
Satisfied with the answers, Snake decided to test the two. "What is he going to do there?"
The two guards looked at each other in silence. "Well?!" Snake yelled aiming the gun to threaten them.
"We don't know! They didn't tell us! We were just told it was about dealing with the mutants! I swear!"
"You poor fools." Snake muttered and lowered the weapon. "The Chairmen aren't trying to stop the mutants. They're creating it!"
"What?!" The two guards' jaws dropped.
Snake explained to them the truth that was being kept from them. The bioweapon, the mutants, the purpose. All of it. The two grunts looked shocked and ashamed. Ashamed that they had taken part in the horrible experiment. The two looked as if they had nothing to lose.
"If you're finished with us, please go ahead and kill us." A guard requested.
"We deserve it…" The other agreed. Snake aimed the rifle, and unloaded the rifle. After the clip was emptied, Snake dropped the gun.
"I guess my aim is pretty bad today." Snake commented. The two guards were still alive, as Snake emptied the gun at the ground around them.
"Why did you…"
"Consider this the beginning of your new life. I've given you two the truth, now I want you to decide what you'll do with it. You can stop being a part of this, and start fighting what you really believe in. Got it!" He asked them and the two nodded. "Listen soldiers, we all have made mistakes, but that doesn't mean we can't make up for them. No matter how low things get for us, there's always a reason for us to keep fighting. Remember that!"
The two soldiers stood up and to his surprise, saluted him despite him having no military authority whatsoever.
"Thank you sir! We'll never forget this!" The two said before leaving the guard post to begin their new lives. A small smirk grew on his face as he watched the two soldiers take off with hope in their hearts. He remembered his mission, and took a look at his map. The soldiers had marked Robins predicted route on it. He began heading toward the Kanto location in hopes of catching up to the target.
At the entrance of the Kanto tribe was the aftermath of a battle. Robin and four of his elite bodyguards were standing over an injured Mewtwo, with some corpses of other Pokémon around.
"Why? Why are you doing this!?" Mewtwo questioned as he lied in pain.
"Pokémon were meant to serve people, not to roam free in the wild. We have to bring that back into society." Robin coldly explained.
"You power-hungry fool! My people deserve to be free! During these seven years, we have not once brought harm to any innocent people. I have made sure of it! Why can't you just respect my people's right to freedom?"
"Your people? Ha! Need I remind you that you aren't a Pokémon created by nature? You were created in a lab with the DNA of another Pokémon. You're a clone! A science project…and a failure at that." Robin taunted. "However when we use the mutant strain on you, you'll be a success. You'll become the ultimate weapon, the perfect monster!"
Mewtwo released a small laugh as Robin spoke.
"What the hell's so funny?"
"So that's what this is about? My, how pathetic you and your group have become." The Pokémon sneered. Not wanting to hear another word, Robin kicked Mewtwo while he was down, and then ordered his men to tie him up to have him taken back to their lab. Four pistol shots rang in the distance. Four bullets came, each one killed Robin's bodyguards. Robin looked around in a panic, and was shocked to see the shooter. It was Solid Snake.
"He's right you know." Snake said in reference to Mewtwo. "You and the other three are acting like children. You want to play the role of "the hero" but there's no Big Bad in your story for you to fight against. So you have to go ahead and make one."
"S-Snake! So we finally meet!" Robin arrogantly smirked although having small signs of fear. "You don't know us! We do what's needed for the good of the people!"
"Creating mutants that only want to kill and enslaving a species is all for the good of the people? That's not in the people's interest…that's for your interests."
"Shut up! You know nothing about what the people need!"
"And you do! Tell me, what do you hope to accomplish with my death? What will that do for the people?"
"You've become a false idol in the eyes of many. You're a terrible influence, showing people the wrong way to live! With you gone, we'll finally be able to show the people the right way of living." Robin explained.
"You think you and your little club are the ones to decide the fate of this world? You can't force your beliefs onto people. The people should be allowed to decide their own fate! Their lives aren't meant to be handled by four kids!" Snake retorted.
"I won't be lectured by YOU!" Robin screamed and charged at Snake with his Levin sword in hand. Snake smashed his fist against Robin's jaw, sending him flying back. Snake turned to Mewtwo who was still grounded.
"Are you okay?"
"I'll be fine! But you have to stop him!" Mewtwo pleaded.
Snake turned back to Robin in time to dodge a firebolt launched at him. "C'mon kid, come to your senses! What you're doing isn't right. There's no need for bloodshed. I'll give you a chance to stand down."
Robin did not acknowledge Snake's offer and rushed towards him and sliced at him with his blade. Snake dodged the flurry of attacks and rolled away from his opponent.
Looks like I don't have a choice.
Snake drew out his combat knife and began clashing blades with Robin. While he couldn't get his blade in contact with Robin's flesh, he landed strike attacks against him whenever he got an opening. Robin launched Arcfire at Snake, briefly setting him ablaze. Snake remained calm, knowing it was magic and would got out on its own, despite the massive pain it caused. He wrapped his arms around Robin to catch him in a bear hug, causing Robing to feel the burn along with Snake. After the fire went out, Snake tossed Robin aside and fell to his knees, catching his breath after that painful experience. Robin launched Elthunder at the recuperating Snake, throwing him several feet back. The electric shock was painful but it was nothing compared to Ocelot's torture. Robin continued casting spells as it seemed to be working for him, but Snake caught on and evaded spell after spell. Snake remembered Link's advice, and how Robin's weapons had a limit to how much they could be used. Robin got too carried away with casting spells that his tome was now useless. He could only use his blade now. Charging at Snake, he began combating him with the Levin sword, powering it with electricity when necessary. Frustrated with being unable to hit Snake with his sword, he bashed his fist against Snake's "horn". Snake held his hand against his head, as he began to feel immense pain. He suddenly became very angry, which was unlike him. He had always tried to remain calm and collected, even during battle, but that blow just brought out his rage. He fighting style started becoming much more violent. He smashed his fists against Robin's face repeatedly, each one more powerful than the last. Robin panicked at Snake's sudden boost of momentum, and attempted a slow but powerful finishing blow. Time seemed to slow down as Robin swung his blade down. Snake caught the blade with his hands, yanked it from Robin, and then impaled him with his own sword. The anger subsided and Snake returned to his collected personality. Robin began coughing up blood and fell to the ground. Snake knew he was finished.
"I…I lost?!" Robin asked himself still stunned at his defeat.
You don't have much time left. You've got anything you need to get off your chest?" Snake asked.
"We…we lost everything that day. Friends…family…our way of life. The people looked up to us as heroes. But after that they had no hope. I wanted to help…but seeing the way they admired you when we were working so hard to help them…we felt betrayed. Your version of justice is so barbaric. I don't see why people admired it."
"I never claimed to do it in the name of justice. I wasn't trying to be anyone's hero nor was I trying to change the world."
"But this world needs changing!"
"Maybe so, but I won't allow four people to decide how it needs to change." Snake began to notice Robin's skin was rapidly losing color. He was out of time. Snake pulled out Wolf's blaster and pointed it at Robin's head. "I'm sorry kid…"
With those words, Snake pulled the trigger and took the life of the tactician. One down…three more to go…