Thanks for reading the last chapter, special thanks to DeadlyShadows-KuroOni for the new Flame character. My offer still stands for those that enjoy my story and you can have your own self made character join in the mix if you like.
I DO NOT own the metal gear solid franchise or its original characters, enjoy...
_ Black Pitbull
When the day of the outbreak arrived, all hell broke loose. Many of the major cities in the world blocked themselves off from other cities in an attempt to keep the sickness from spreading into their streets. Unfortunately, their attempt of doing so failed when reports of blackened blood started appearing within their local and main hospitals. Within twenty-four hours, there were nearly five hundred reported cases of people falling victim to the mysterious virus. Many of the casualties consisted of the world's newborns and the elderly, which were the most vulnerable. Before they knew it, the death toll was quickly rising with no sign of stopping whatsoever. Several months into the epidemic, which was known simply as the OUTBREAK to the public, every branch of the Armed Forces of the United States was dispatched to every city, rural town and corner of the United States. And even though the U.S. saw it coming, not even they were ready for what was about to occur.
Thanks to the Armed Forces and the government, food rations and supplies were delivered to those who managed to avoid catching the virus and were living within the quarantine zones the military managed to set up before things went straight to hell. The once highly-populated metropolitans were quickly reduced into nothing more than ghost towns with abandoned buildings and streets that were littered with vehicles and the decaying bodies of the once living-dead. Corner stores with broken out windows stood forgotten, as one-story homes were left in favor for apartment complexes and other larger buildings that had better protection qualities.
Many who were still alive were terrified of what lurked in the shadows and roamed the streets mindlessly just outside their doors. Unfortunately, the cannibalistic living dead weren't the only major threats they had to worry about. In order to fight back this major threat, the military had no other choice but to use drastic measures. The drastic measures were the use of machines called Gekko. In addition to the Gekko, small air drones were also being used.
With the military in complete control and with hundreds of cities and towns swarming with machines, drones and cannibalistic humans, it seemed that there was no sign of hope left…
One year and six months later…
FLAME (NARIA)
"Eighteen months. It's been eighteen months since the shit hit the fucking fan. And ever since day one, things just went downhill from one point to the next." Flame thought privately to herself. "We've been lucky. We were lucky to survive this epidemic; it's as simple as that."
Flame continued to stare down at the streets below, watching the incoming cannibals making their way towards her location. But she didn't have to worry. From the first to the third floors, every door, window and any other small opening was boarded up, keeping those freaks away from her and her teammates. From her small vantage point on the roof, Flame took aim and fired. A single gunshot echoed through the silent wind with a satisfying explosion. The sound was quickly followed by the smooth sound of metal scrapping against metal as she expelled the empty, smoking shell from her gun.
About half a mile down the road, a lone cannibalistic man fell dead to the ground. Blackened blood stained the ground as it exited the lone bullet hole that was man in between the monster's eyes.
"Nice one, Flame." Raging Raven stated quietly as she marveled at the girl's quick work. "If I recall correctly, that would make… 1532." She adds in a slightly impressed tone.
Raging Raven's attitude had no doubt toned down some time after the OUTBREAK struck. The demolitions expert hadn't expected the emotion of guilt to strike her as hard as it did. Having no other choice but to kill innocent individuals that were nothing but human-eating monster really took a toll on her. Standing up, she snatched up her Type 87 Chinese Grenada Launcher and Beretta ARX 160 assault rifle from off the ground.
Ever since Flame and Raven became a team, Flame quickly noticed Raven's attitude change. And even though Raven became the closest thing to a friend Flame has ever had, she wasn't sure how she could help her adjust to their new life of surviving the OUTBREAK. Truth be told, Flame was having a difficult time adjusting to the new life she found herself in.
"At this point, the number of cannibals I kill doesn't even matter." Flame told her. "Right now, all I care about is moving to a new location. We haven't received any new orders from MSF and I'm getting fed up with sitting here like sitting ducks, waiting for survivors we might not even find." She growled as her Saudi Arabian accent voice picked up.
"Well, there's nothing we can do about it." Raven replied back. "We may know how to survive, but out there, out there is a different story. None of us know how to survive an epidemic like this, which means there's a slim chance that none of us will survive. So it would be best to stay put." She added. "Now let's forget about that for now. It's finally time for us to leave our post." She stated as she looked at the dirty digital watch that was around her wrist.
The two women have been stationed on the roof, scouting out and eliminating the infected, since 0200 hours. It was currently 1200. They have been on a solid ten-hour shift that didn't have an ounce of excitement.
Taking one last glance at the all-too-familiar landscape before her, Flame lifted her head from the scope, looking at the environment with only her normal vision. They were still based at Ghost's home. The once green lawn and neatly paved roads no longer looked the way they did nearly two years ago. The streets were stained with dirt and dried blackened blood and were littered with the dead bodies that had succumbed to the virus and were taken down. Many of the bodies were scorched beyond recognition while others were littered with bullet holes. And every now and then, severed limbs and others body parts were spotted around the area.
A rampart had been built around the homestead as well as a shallow moat, which was filled with gasoline, to help them have some sort of defense besides their guns. Gathering up her own weapons, Flame followed Raven back into the house. Not only has the outside changed drastically, but as did the inside of the structure. The carpeted floor was tarnished in different spot by black blood, broken glass laid underneath open windows, countless of empty shell casings littered the floors in nearly every room, and the walls themselves were covered in cracks and bullet holes. One of the walls had a large gaping hole that look as if a fireball had gone through it. There was no question as to who was responsible for that.
On the remaining sectional couch that sat in the room laid Buddy, Ghost's dog, who definitely grew in such a short amount of time. The once small dog looked as if he could literally take on an entire pack of wolves on his own and win that fight. Everyone was just either sitting around readying their weapons or preparing to leave to stand on their assigned posts.
Crying Wolf on the other hand was currently inside the broken area of the kitchen cooking bear meat she and Octopus managed to hunt down and kill. Even with the limited amount of supplies at her disposal, the African was able to cook the meat thoroughly with relative ease. Of course everyone was able to cook their own meal; however, Wolf took it upon herself to cook for everyone.
Spider was over inside the garage, tinkering with a military drone, as he smoked a cigarette to help calm his nerves. Spider, whose real name was Borya Demyan, had a handsome angular face with grey eyes, thin lips and a buzz cut. Secretly, Flame liked the Russian, however, much like Ghost; he wasn't one who was very open with his emotions.
Screaming Mantis was posted by the large hole in the wall and was joined by the other Russian that was a part of the team. Evgeni Fedor, mainly known as Mongoose, was a smart tactical man and was the only one who could make Mantis blush with his charisma, which was no easy feat.
Christian was leaning up against the eastern wall as he held a far off look in his blank green eyes. Laughing Octopus was sitting beside him with her head lying on his shoulder. The two had become a couple about a year ago, but their relationship became strained a few months ago when the young male came back one day covered in blackened blood. The sight of seeing Christian the way he was visibly shaken Octopus. The story on that…. was incredibly vague to everyone with the exception of Ghost, who managed to get information out of the two about the situation.
Ever since the incident, Christian had lost a huge chunk of his childlike personality, which was replaced by a much more stern, warlike personality. Octopus tries her best to get him to let her back in and hopefully get him back to his more cheerful self again. Unfortunately, she's haven't had such luck in completing such a task.
Meanwhile, Ghost was seated at a wooden table, sharpening his arsenal of blades he always carried on his person. To put it bluntly, the African was a walking butcher with a touch of juggernaut. Sitting her sniper rifle against the edge of the table, Flame pulled out one of the rickety chairs and took a seat. Raven did the same and laid her elbows on the dirty, lightly scratched surface.
"Did you two see anything out there?" Ghost asked as he kept his eyes on his machete as he continued to clean it.
"Nothing much, boss…" Flame grunted as she leaned back dangerously in her seat. "Not a damn thing."
With a shrill clang of metal, Wolf called out to the others, alerting them that the rations were done. Spider grunted as he continued his tinkering. Christian was still lost in the dark recesses of his mind. So Octopus stood up slowly to retrieve hers and her blond counterpart's food, knowing full well that Christian wouldn't eat anything at all if she didn't bring him something. Mantis left her post to get her and her partners meal for the time being, knowing Mongoose would do the same next time around.
Buddy got up from his place on the couch and prowled towards the kitchen, hoping he would get his share as well. As soon as he entered the kitchen, Wolf placed a large bowl of raw meat on the floor for the animal. As the food was passed around, they all came to a well deserved silence.
Each and every one of them was wearing a bluish grey exo-skeleton with thick black stripes across the knees and forearms that were edged with a gold stripe. The suit was made out of hard, breathable fabric that seemed to be molded to fit their bodies perfectly. It had suspender like straps, looping over their shoulders that connected across the chest and waist. The waist strap also doubled as a way to hold their utility pouches. A side arm holster was also strapped to their legs on the side of their dominate hand. But in Flame's case, she had one on each leg.
Ghost on the other hand had extra holsters to house his collection of knives. He made this work by equipping a stylish holster that was made for carrying them all together. Their knees and elbows were padded, and the boots of the suit were light weight but were tough enough to protect them from the harsh elements. The long sleeves attached themselves to thin but strong hand gloves. As for Spider and Mongoose, they had an added metal plated face mask.
On each of their left shoulders, an insignia of a white broken skull that was inside a split background of black and yellow was bared. Old Snake pointed out that by going in with mixed matched fatigues wasn't a good idea and would only cause trouble. Especially if some of the Coast Guard soldiers were still roaming about.
During the meal Ghost reached up to his ear and paused for a moment.
"Ghost, speak…" Ghost stated in a low but stern tone. This was always his way of acknowledging whoever spoke on the other end of the codex, nothing more nothing less. Another pregnant pause came from the African. "When does it touch down?" Ghost asked as he ripped off a chunk of meat, throwing it into his mouth.
Taking his hand away from his ear, Ghost turned his head slightly to look towards his platoon in an appraising manner.
"Oct, get Chris' ass off the floor! We're moving out!" Ghost quickly ordered as he started to down his meal in a hurry. "I just received word that Gekko are heading straight to our location and will be here within the hour." He added as he started sheathing his blades into their holders. Once the task was completed, he hefted his AK-74 assault rifle. The gun looked old and worn out, but it worked and that was all that mattered.
Flame only knew that the rifle Ghost was grasping was the very same rifle that had taken away Ghosts' family. They were rushing now, going up and down the ladder of the arsenal room in order to get ready for the Gekko that were heading their way. Their transport wasn't going to get to them for at least another half an hour, and they could thank the drones that were ruling the skies around them. The bird had to slip its way through to them and make sure they weren't detected.
After everyone gathered up inside the main area, each of them turned off the safety to their weapons and got ready for a war. Spider donned a FN FNC assault rifle and grabbed the control pad for their own out dated ground drone as he fixed his mask back onto his face.
Mongoose was back to manning the hole in the wall with Mantis next to him. After a few explicit words of choice from Ghost, Christian finally moved and grabbed a hold of an EM-2 rifle and a P90. He strapped the P90 to his back as his girlfriend armed herself with an M-16A1. Flame herself took an akimbo CZ Scorpion EVO 3 SMG's and Wolf grabbed, surprisingly, an MK46 light machinegun and had no trouble hefting it either.
"Gekko approaching! Approximately ten meters out!" Mongoose barked out.
"Massive hordes of Dwarf Gekko are heading our way as well." Mantis added on in a more calm tone rather than using the same tone as Mongoose.
Quickly setting down his gun, Ghost lifted the dog off the ground and pushed the poor animal into a cage before taking it up the ladder somehow. The rest of the team quickly followed him and prepared themselves for the impending threat that was slowing closing in on them.
"Spi...I want that drone meeting that horde of Gekko in the middle. Take out as many Dwarfs as you can..." Ghost ordered harshly as he stared at the slow approaching wake of machines.
With that order, the Russian pulled out the control pad and powered it on. Tapping away at the controls, the small motor sounded and the treads promptly started moving. The little drone moved out the hole in the wall and followed its electronic commands. With a few quick swipes from Spider, the robot fired off grenades and let out a stream of bullets that rained down upon a patch of machines.
With a few more moves of the hand, the drone swerved skillfully as it dodged the foot of a Gekko. After avoiding a near collision with the Gekko's foot, the small machine immediately started shooting out more grenades. Suddenly a trio of Gekko used a tether line to trap the small robot. Spider furiously tapped and swiped at the control, forcing the little machine to fire off bullets and grenades at random like a trapped animal. The Gekko did receive a single scratch as the lead continued to bounce off them. One managed to lift a heavy foot and crushed their obsolete brother into a broken heap.
"блин!" the Russian growled.
"It's fine Spider. Alyona did her best out there and held her own for a while..." Ghost sympathized for the mechanic as he did make an outdated robot match a Gekko team, which was not an easy feat to accomplish. But thanks to the mechanic, he caused the robotic monsters to regroup and fall back into formation.
Noticing the machines beginning to advance once more, Ghost thrusts out a palm towards the shallow moat, causing the liquid to ignite.
"Stand fast and OPEN FIRE" the African male barked as he rained hell on a patch of dwarfs as the hole in the wall burst with bullets from Mantis and Mongoose.
The members of the platoon open fired without mercy, pushing back the dwarfs that were climbing their way up the steep rampart hills. After running dry on a clip, Ghost resorted to using his fire abilities, which forced a Gekko that was getting to close to implode. The burning machine fell back and rolled loudly onto the bottom of the homestead before exploding into a blazing heap. The same happened to another until he reloaded and fired off bullets again.
Raven thoughtfully fired grenades, causing them to land right at the feet of Gekko. The tactic was successful and was able to eliminate at least three at a time. Christian and Octopus covered each other, switching out as one fired while the other took a short break. Spider was yelling Russian curses in the name of his lost little "girl" Alyona as he fired randomly. All the while, Wolf was firing off her "light" machinegun, acting like Rambo. Needless to say, the tactics were undoubtedly beating back the clumps of dwarf with ease. As they continued to fire, the Beauty found herself turning towards the sky.
"DRONES!" Wolf sounded off as she turned her gun towards the cloudy sky, aiming her bullets straight at the forthcoming drones.
"блин... these bad little toys were sent here for a reason. It's the only plausible explanation as to why so many are heading right for us" Spider growled, his accent showing greatly in his speech.
Flame ignored her crush for the moment in favor of annihilating the machines that were determined to overrun them. To the side, Wolf lifted her hands to the sky and pulled them together. The action caused a whole flank of drones to smash into each other, forming a clump of metal in the process. Wolf then flung the clump of metal HARD into a Gekko. The Monster's head acquired a crippling dent before crumpling to the ground.
It was in that moment that Flame feared Wolf just as much as she did Ghost. To witness how much damage she could easily create caused a shiver to run down her spine.
As bullets continued to fly from both sides of the battlefield, plenty of Gekko, Dwarfs and Drones were either getting crushed, ripped to pieces or exploding into burning heaps. Before long, an Osprey was spotted coming from the Northwest. The plane/helicopter hybrid hovered next to the roof with its bay doors wide open. Calling for Mantis and Mongoose, the platoon quickly started hopping onto bird.
Ghost was the last to hop onto the carrier after making sure everyone else got on safely. Grabbing the dog cage, the African tossed it on board and quickly got on himself as the Osprey raised itself to take off. However, the machines weren't going to let them get away so easily. A couple Gekko teamed up and tethered the plane's wings as Dwarfs moved forward to invade the bay area.
"WOLF!" Ghost barked at the woman.
Taking the hint and without stating a single word, Wolf acted quickly, and with an invisible force, she pushed back all the dwarfs in a fluid motion, clearing the bay but still leaving the Gekko. Thrusting his hands and then clinching them together, the heads of the duo machines imploded, causing the lines to release the plane.
Seeing this, the other machines tried shooting them out the sky collectively. But before any of the bullets could reach them, they struck an invisible barrier instead. Looking to his right, Ghost found Wolf standing beside him with a single hand held out before her. With an opening made, they took off as the door closed and shrouding them into complete darkness. They were in darkness for a few seconds until a few lights turned on. Finally out of danger, the platoon could finally relax.
"I don't know what you did back there, but we're in the clear for now guys. So just sit back and we'll get to the LZ. ETA in 48 hours..." the pilot told them all as he swerved the carrier slightly.
As he crashed into a seat, Ghost lifted his hand to his ear, "We Made it Snake...So what now" Ghost stated to their leader and the commander over all the teams.
Silence engulfed the air as the aged soldier spoke to him.
"Fine... I'll do it" Ghost said in a low growl as he said some sort of curse in Swahili.
"From the sound of your tone, whatever he told you doesn't sound good." Wolf stated in a quiet yet stern tone.
Taking his hand away from his ear, Ghost fixed a few kinks in his gun and pulled out his sharpening granite and started back onto his collection of knives.
"Where are we going Ghost?" Christian was the one to break the crushing silence as he showed some signs of still fighting his inner demons.
"An oil plant outside of New York. Some place called the Big Shell." Ghost answered nonchalantly as if it was unimportant.
In fact it was important, since two members of their team actually knew of the location.
"The Big Shell... the same place where the Sons of Liberty incident and Tanker accident took place?!" Mongoose exclaimed in a way he sounded like he...feared the place.
"Yeah. What about it Goose?" Ghost asked as he went through more of his knives.
"Well, it's just a rumor, but I heard someone state that that entire place is said to be filled with the souls of soldiers still following their leader even in death. Any soldier foolish enough to go there will soon find themselves within their ranks too" Mongoose explained.
"...Souls you say..." Ghost questioned with a raised eyebrow.
"Great. He's got that look in his eye." Wolf stated under her breath as she let out a low, soft sigh.
Thank you Kazumi silverwolf for beta reading and tweeking my story when it needed it and I honored to have you help me so far.