Disclaimer: I do not own any of the series created by 'Marvel' and the 'Metal Gear' Franchise or its cast of characters. All the writing written below was only copied and pasted by me, the credit for the literature belongs to their rightful owners while the majority is entirely by Cosgrove as well as anyone who posted their piece of literature to him and he decided to add in his thread of the actual 'Peter Parker Quest'. Also give out your thoughts on each chapter or ask questions in the review sections and I'll check them frequently. Enjoy.
[THE WORLD WITHOUT]
[MAXIMUM CARNAGE]
ARC
CHAPTER 27
ALPHA AND OMEGA
The transition between sleep and awareness is instantaneous. Around you, the sounds of medical machines sound out, like an intensive care unit. As you try to sit up from your reclining position, you feel that there's something wrong with your movements, like you're trying to get used to your own body.
Lifting up your hands, you see two limbs enter your field of vision. Instead of your familiar flesh and blood arms, there's two robotic arms- the joints from here are obvious to you, if the mechanical whirring is any indication. They look robotic approximations of what your arms look like strong and bulky, reflecting your approach to keeping yourself not only in shape but incredibly physically fit as you often visited the gym. However, the almost black metal-or plastic, you aren't' sure what they are- here seems to be more dense and muscled looking than you were. There's also the fact that they're ROBOT ARMS-
So, how the hell did this happen to you?! Last you recall, you were out on a walk to clear your head…
After that- there's nothing. Just a blur-flashing lights and a shadowed figure above you? The only thing other than agony you can remember is a whispered voice.
"Don't worry, I'll make everything better."
You shake your head, feeling your short hair against your forehead. There's a bang outside. Of something on metal and as your head turns to the side in shock, you feel something close over your head as different sensors and indicators appear before your eyes, alone with a radar in the upper corner of your vision.
COMBAT MODE ACTIVE
HEALTH- 100%
FUEL CELLS- 100%
After a few seconds, the covering of your face retracts to the sides as you let out a sigh of relief. You rest your hands on the table and feel the cold metal. In fact, you feel the cold metal of the table beneath you with all of your body, to be honest. How much of you is still your old self, and how much did they replace? And what the hell was with that thing a few minutes ago?
Combat mode? What was that noise outside?
You glance over the room, the only entrance seems to be a rather sturdy looking metal door, so the best thing you can do is look yourself over. You sit up and look around the room. There's what looks to be a mirror in the far part of the room- it seems like this is a recovery room- or an operating room, but it seems too clean to be that. Sitting up, you look down at your torso and see the feminine form there made out of the same materials.
Your feet look somewhat like high heeled shoes at first glance, but they're actually your feet, the sharp 'toes' are more like claws. You move to stand and feel cables pop out of your back, the ports automatically closing as they retract. To your surprise, despite your body's new appearance, you seem to have control over your body at least as well as you did your old one.
You walk over to the mirror and grimace, leaning in. It seems that up to your neck has been replaced, but even that isn't correct. Leaning in, you see that the skin between your jaw is segmented as the pale flesh seems to have the same divisions as your cybernetic body. And there's metal folds over the sides of your head, obviously the mask that covers your face.
Your hair is a light red color. You don't know why it is important to you, but it is.
Was it always like that?
Or was that something else that was done to you? You can't remember… almost anything, really. You clench your fist- the mask automatically closing around your face as you shatter the mirror. You feel the impact and see the HUD as you shift into 'COMBAT MODE' but as you pull away, you're completely unharmed, while the mirror is shattered into tiny pieces.
You stumble back to the table you awoke on and sit down, taking a deep breath, as you hear the sounds of medical machines around you, the metal beneath your hands groaning as you clench your hands as you breathe deeply, or try to- do you even need to breath anymore?
You let out a deep breath, trying to calm yourself. Your mask snaps back into place, staying there as you feel yourself calm. The freak out you were about to have fades as you feel your concentration on what you need to do increase. Getting up, you look around the room.
There's several desks and a computer, so you decide to check them out. Maybe there's something there? You go over to the draws and try to open them, but they're locked. Which would totally be a problem, if you weren't a super powered cyborg.
Ripping the drawers open, you begin to look in them and find a file. Flipping through it, you manage to skim it. Seems like it's a personal log- The 'Subject' was brought in after things were taken care of their identity dead- work could then commence. The first thing done was to preserve the subject's brain, but placing it in a brain casing as to ensure that it would not die as its body was barely alive. Following that, it seems efforts were put into things by the professor- who seemed to be growing more and more devoted to the project along with comments upon how the other experiments seemed to have small errors here and there. The file cuts off as the assistant in charge is sure that 'The Professor' has gone mad, obsessed with 'Subject ALPHA' as this person seems certain 'Project OMEGA' has gone out of control. The log cuts off after that, with several pages seemingly covered in red. Probably blood.
You calmly close the book and look through the rest of the drawers, but don't find anything else. According to the logs, if you're Subject ALPHA' you should be set up with some sort of healing Nanomachines along with several sensor, communication and other systems. Apparently there was a fear that the subject could have a psychological breakdown, so they also put in some emotional and psychological suppression Nanomachines just in case.
Huh, must not have worked. You feel fine, you're pretty sure. Still, there doesn't look to be anything else in here.
You look around the room one last time before approaching the door. It's a large steel door with a button next to the door to open it. You hit the button, only for the light above it to flash red with a buzzing noise. An automated voice comes on over the intercom.
"You do not have the necessary clearance to enter this restricted area."
You glance at the door before back at the room. Seems like there's only one way to get out of here. Slamming your fist into the door, your hand clenches and the metal distorts under your strength as you rip the door out and throw it to the side as alarms go off as the same voice calls out.
"WARNING, WARNING, armed experiment inside of Restricted Area loose. Armed Experiment. All personnel please evacuate to the designated shelters. Repeat-"
The lights turn red as sirens flash. That might be trouble, but where should you go?
And there seems to be a repetitive ringing in your ear.
You look around and see two signs, one of which is lit up.
You pause and focus upon the ringing noise. It's an irritant preventing you from reaching your goal of leaving. Or was it finding someone to talk to. Something.
But first, it would be prudent to remove the distraction to keep yourself focused. Reaching up to your 'ear' where the ringing is coming from you press against it as you hear static before a voice greets you, a static covered window appearing in your HUD.
"GREETINGS CYBORG"
The voice is heavily modulated, so you can't make anything out about the person behind it.
"I HAVE BEEN WATCHING YOU. YOU SHOULD PROCEED TO THE NEXT FLOOR, THEN FIND THE R&D LAB. FORCES WILL BE DEPLOYED SOON."
The voice is loud but it holds a clinical observation, making it rather detached, even though it seems to be advising you.
"Who is this?"
"CANNOT SAY. HURRY."
With a burst of static the voice, and its monitor vanish. You look between the shelter and elevator signs. The voice, if it can be trusted, is advising you to enter the R&D labs on the next floor, which would mean taking the elevator. However, there's still the shelter, which could hold someone who could tell you more.
And there will be forces deployed soon. Problematic.
You glance over at the direction the shelters probably are, but shake your head. There's no reason to go that way, not when you might have an informant in the R&D labs. Stretching, as you accustom yourself to your body, you head over to the elevator and hit the call button. The elevator lights up as it begins to descend.
You look at the elevator and think, looking around the hallway. There might be forces deployed soon and you're at the entry point. There's also camera everywhere. That means that they might know where you are, tracking your every move.
Waiting in front of the elevator might be an unwise tactical decision. However, at the same time, there's only the options of the shelter and the room you came from. As you watch the elevator doors, you see your vision distort as your thermal vision turns on, showing no forms of heat on the descending elevator. The doors open to an empty elevator as you enter it.
There's three other buttons here. You're currently on the floor B3, according to the elevator.
You look up and observe the roof of the elevator, not having pressed a button yet. You, instead of hitting a button, go over to the side of the elevator and rip open the access panel and climb it. Using the removed panel, you use it to shear through the cables for the elevator, disabling it, before heading to the side with the next elevator door. It isn't much to head up so you climb the shaft, your feet digging into the sides of the wall, until you reach the door a moment later.
Gripping the doors, you force them open, the effort warping them, making them unable to open or shut. As you step through on the floor's ground, you hear more warning sirens as you look around. Seems like there's three ways to go here.
You have yet to see any signs of people here, though that might be for any number of reasons, such as the alarms going off. There's also been no new word from your mysterious contact.
That in mind, it would be prudent to head to your destination. Slowly heading towards the R&D department, you keep an eye out on the surroundings. There's nobody in the area. As you approach the doors, you feel your communications ringing again.
Putting up your hand, you see static this time, but though the voice is warped, it sound more human, though you can't tell the gender.
"Alice, my little Alice. You are-"
The voice cuts off, replaced by the original contact.
"MY APOLOGIES, CYBORG. THERE IS INTERFERENCE HERE, PLEASE HURRY."
But, like before, the voice cuts away before you can question it. That is truly problematic. According to the new contact, this is a trap and you should head to the armory. However, as you try to bring up your communications, all you get is static with the words 'INTEREFERENCE, SYSTEMS BLOCKED.'
Hmm…
Regardless, you open the doors as lights flicker on. You switch on the thermal vision, but you can't see any human images, only machinery. Turning it off, you look around only to pause as something moves above you. Craning your neck upwards, you see a large saurian machine move its head, its eyes lighting up.
"ENEMY COMBATANT CONFIRMED, PURGING ALL OTHER CURRENT LESS IMPORTANT PROTOCOLS."
Its leg lifts as cables disconnect as you stare at the machine as it talks in the same voice as you heard on your communications. Over your communications, it appears, still with Static.
"GREETINGS, CYBORG. THANKS TO YOUR ACTIONS, I REMAIN UNCOMPROMISED. I MAY NOW TELL YOU MY DESIGNATION. IT IS OMEGA."
The machine continues to disconnect wires as scaffolding and other materials pull away, opening up the area.
"HOWEVER, I DO APOLOGIZE THAT I MUST KILL YOU HERE, SUBJECT ALPHA"
Your body tenses as the giant machine activates as your HUD identifies it as 'Project Omega' as it's 'mouth' opens as it gives mechanical roar.
COMBAT MODE ACTIVE
HEALTH- 100%
FUEL CELLS- 100%
HOSTILE ELEMENTS CONFIRMED, ALL RESTRICTIONS LIFTED
NO WEAPONS EQUIPPED
You glance to your side and see an area with some experimental weaponry. There's three that look to be completed.
The TWwB-000-RAIDEN, A sword, looks like a katana, the TWG-000-OCELOT, A Gun, looks like a giant revolver, and the TWM-000-CHAR-. Seems to be some sort of add on for Melee.
You hurry over to the area with the weaponry and look at the three before grabbing the gauntlets and greaves, attaching them over your limbs to the hard points as your HUD instructs. Your visor disconnects and you attach a new one in its place, as it snaps into place. You glance around, noticing things much more clearly with this visor as you set down your old one.
Notices pop up as your system updates itself with the new information.
TEST WEAPON MELEE-000-CHAR
These gauntlets and greaves allow for the cyborg equipped with them to surpass built in safety limits to their bodies to improve strength and speed. It also includes experimental new sensor suites to improve reaction times to prevent unfortunate incidents due to use of this weapons systems.
The red color scheme also has to do with the heating elements in the palms of the gauntlets and the feet of the greaves, allowing the user to vent superheat anything it comes into contact with it, allowing for damaging attacks. However, the use does require a buildup and the cool down disallows for use of the appendages for ten seconds or else damage to the limbs could be possible. There is a utility use of the legs that seems interesting, in that the heating elements in the gauntlets can temporarily be used like a thruster to increase mobility at a cost to energy reserves.
The new visor holds new sensor units, allowing for all of the sensor portions of the mask to act as an 'eye' for the cyborg. There is also new vision modes, such as infrared or sonic, though they are highly experimental and might be incredible temperamental. With the enhancements here, the subject is said to be able to react three times faster than a normal cyborg.
All in all, a decent prototype for Melee, with other advancements possible in the future.
A warning siren pops up as you glance to the side and see Omega readying some sort of weapon. You feel your greaves activate and, acting like pseudo rocket thrusters, propels you out of the way, as the area you were in is completely annihilated by its fire.
COMBAT MODE ACTIVE VER. CHAR
HEALTH- 100%
FUEL CELLS- 100%
HEATING ELEMENTS READY
LIMITER STILL ENGAGED
You target the enemy in front of you. This is a massive enemy in front of you as you move to charge in, it begins to fire missiles at you. Thanks to your faster reflexes, you're able analyze them, your HUD coming up with estimated areas where they will probably land or detonate. Therefore, you must find a way through this death field.
Any single one of those missiles might not be enough to disable you, but Omega has let loose a barrage. With all of this data in front of you, you manage to see one way through. Tensing your legs, you feed power to your greaves and ignite them as you jump, propelling you as your right arm builds up its heating elements into a superheated attack.
You fly over the missile's paths and launch into his 'face' letting lose a punch that melts part of the face as you tumble over his head, your superheated claw of a hand leaving rends in the metals you slow yourself. As you land on its back awkwardly, it begins to flail, its tail swinging blindly at you.
However, with your arm recovering, the most efficient option would be to land on the ground out of range of its missiles, so you slide off and land on the ground, Omega' towering form above you.
COMBAT MODE ACTIVE VER. CHAR
HEALTH- 100%
FUEL CELLS- 98%
HEATING ELEMENTS IN RIGHT ARM COOLING, TEN SECONDS LEFT.
LIMITER STILL ENGAGED
You clench your fist and charge at his leg, which is right next to you. You manage to get several hits to the joints and armor, cracking it slightly before it shakes you off, and kicks you away. You feel the impact, but not the pain, as you slam and tumble across the ground before you recover, getting up to your knees.
The giant body of Omega roars again, showing the cracks you put into its facial armor, as it stares down at you. As it lets loose another salvo of missiles, you move in, dodging each expected area to hit its leg several more times before it shakes you off, the armor cracking away to show areas of what look like muscles, as it spins and knocks you away with its tail.
You're more ready for it, and are able to use your legs to help recover much faster. Your sensors indicate you've taken some damage, but your right arm is fully online again- you can use the superheating element without the risk of damage.
The colossal Omega Roars as you hear a high pitched whining noise, seeing its tail begin to heat up the same way that your arms and legs are able to do thanks to your gauntlet. However, it seems like there's a warm up period for it.
COMBAT MODE ACTIVE VER. CHAR
HEALTH- 93%
FUEL CELLS- 97%
HEATING ELEMENTS: READY
LIMITER STILL ENGAGED
You move towards the legs at a fast acceleration, determined to cripple its mobility before you can be attacked by its heat-tail weapon. As it lets loose another salvo of missiles, you match its patterns more easily as you accelerate, banking to the side and changing directions with your leg thrusters, building up power. You charge your superheating elements, all of them, and go for the damaged knee and slam into its arms first.
When you grab the artificial musculature underneath, you keep a firm grip as artificial blood sprays everywhere as you charge up your legs and activate their thrusters, using it as a blowtorch to cut through the leg, anchored by your arms elbow deep in robotic gore.
Had its armor been more intact it might have weathered it better, but as it is with all of the cracks, you have melted through its leg, but it cost you a lot of fuel to do so. However, you hear the heating element disengage as it deploys its tail to keep itself upright. Over the communications and in your surrounding environment you hear the voice of Omega screaming in agony as it struggles not to collapse.
The ten seconds for cooling is easily taken care of as you analyze weak points from the underside. The other leg could go, as could the tail. It's missile pods could be destroyed to remove its armed ranged capabilities, too. Or you could try to cut of its head, if that would actually do something.
COMBAT MODE ACTIVE VER. CHAR
HEALTH- 93%
FUEL CELLS- 77%
HEATING ELEMENTS: READY
LIMITER STILL ENGAGED
Normally, you'd be unable to lift its colossal leg, with your body not able to deal with its weight, not even with your artificial musculature. However, with your limiters off, that would be a different matter. You disengage your limiters, hearing safeties go off.
Your body is able to surpass its limitations now.
You grab the leg, starting with the part on the ground and use the superheated side to slam into its missile batteries on the side you currently are on, detonating them, before jumping back with your thrusters and targeting the other missile battery. You let the leg loose like a javelin as it slams into the other missile block, destroying them, seeing the massive form of Omega crashing to the ground. Artificial blood is spraying everywhere as Omega screams in agony.
You quickly approach the form. If they didn't want their massive robot to freeze up in pain, then they shouldn't have given it the ability to feel pain. You ignite your thrusters and kick down into its neck. The damage is enough to crack the armor but as you move to repeat the blow, its head turns up and bites down on your body and tosses you.
You remain undamaged, but it has put distance between the two of you as it struggles to maintain itself.
"ENEMY COMBATANT. MUST FIGHT. I DO NOT WISH TO DIE."
It manages to get on one foot and its tail as it struggles to stand, looking at you.
"ONLY ONE MAY SURVIVE. THAT WAS ORDERS GIVEN."
Its mouth opens as light begins to build up inside of it.
COMBAT MODE ACTIVE VER. CHAR
HEALTH- 63%
FUEL CELLS- 77%
HEATING ELEMENTS: READY
LIMITER- DISENGAGED
You rush forward and charge your superheating elements in your right arm, using a combination your pure speed and thrusters to accelerate yourself. Omega tries to retreat, but his damaged form is much slower than your limiter-removed form. Even as it tries to charge to close in upon it.
Your thrusters assist your jump and sends your fist into its head at an intensely accelerated rate. Sensors pop up warning about damage to your right arm, but it is intact, if damaged. You slam the mouth shut, causing an explosion as the charging elements artistries, knocking it backwards.
It collapses to the ground as it tries to move, but it clearly has taken too much damage. You lock onto weak points in it neck before walking over to them and slamming your feet, superheated into the neck as artificial blood sprays out. It only takes a few moments before the head is severed as the rest of the body collapses.
"YOU HAVE BEATEN ME. AM I… DYING?"
A portion of the head, presumably the cockpit opens as you hear Omega's modulated tones on your communications.
COMBAT MODE ACTIVE VER. CHAR
HEALTH- 58%
FUEL CELLS- 67%
HEATING ELEMENTS: READY
LIMITER- DISENGAGED
WARNING! RIGHT ARM DAMAGED.
Scanning the surroundings, there seems to be no more motions and Omega seems to have drawn quiet. Reengaging your limiters, you hop onto the cockpit, keeping an eye out just in case it will self-destruct or something.
Looking down into the cockpit, you see that this was originally designed to be piloted by someone but where a pilot would be is a small black box wired into the systems, a camera the only mobile part of it.
"Omega?"
"CORRECT. I AM AN ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE DESIGNED TO BE THE COUNTERPOINT OF THE PROJECT OF SUBJECT ALPHA."
"YOU."
You clutch at your mask, as your systems short for a moment before they reassert themselves. The Cockpit seems to be slowly losing power now that the head has been severed.
"WHEN I LOSE POWER, I WILL DIE. THERE IS NOTHING THAT CAN BE DONE TO PREVENT THIS. CONGRATULATIONS, YOU ARE THE SUPERIOR WEAPON."
The tone is flat and modulated, lacking all humanity. Where there might've been humor or some similar emotion, there's nothing there.
You walk over to the cockpit and sit down, leaning over to look at Omega up close. This guy was controlling that giant robot. He said he was your counterpoint, so you might as well see things through to the end.
"Any way to save you?"
The Camera looking at you pauses before you can hear it zooming in on you. "UNKNOWN. IT WOULD REQUIRE AN ADVANCED ROBOTICIST EXPERIENCED IN AI. UNFORTUNATELY, THERE ARE NO SUCH PEOPLE HERE. MOST LIKELY THEY HAVE ALREADY FLED."
You lean in and touch the casing of Omega before pulling back. You sit there as you hear a ringing noise in your ear, the channel with Omega still open, as another light dims in the cockpit. Confused, you answer it. Next to Omega's channel, there's the image of a girl there, her long blonde silver hair pulled back into a ponytail.
"Wunderbar, Alice! Absolutely Wunderbar!"
She claps, applauding you, before pausing. "Now, could you help me up? I seem to have a slight problem reaching your floor from mine."
"Who are you? Do you have any armed personnel?"
The girl pauses before grinning. "Nein, my Alice, Nein. I am on ze third basement floor, at ze elevator. As for my name, I am ze Doktor, Natascha Spyral. I saved your life and rebuilt you, Alice."
You glance over at Omega. "Can you hear her?"
"YES. THAT IS INDEED THE PROFESSOR. SHE MIGHT BE OF USE IF SAVING ME IS AN OPTION, PLEASE HURRY."
You nod and head back to the elevator shaft, hopping down to the roof of the elevator and pulling her up. The girl looks young at first sight, but she has the same markings that your face does. Changing your vision confirms it. This woman is a cyborg, though much more human looking.
She glances over at you and grins tracing your visor. "Ah, my Alice, I missed your first upgrade. Still, I was watching, ja? It was exciting to see you work."
You impassively help her up to floor B2, following suite. "Can you save Omega?"
She pauses and grins. "Oh? Omega is still alive? He's such a cute one, you know. How did you spare him?"
"I cut off his head."
She pauses before nodding her head. "That should do it!"
The two of you head into the R&D Department. It doesn't take long for her to jump onto Omega's head and whistle. "Ja, he is completely intact. I can save him! I will, however it will take time."
At her confirmation you nod. Omega can be salvaged.
There isn't much to do here as the Doktor waves you off when you enquire if she needs assistance. It seems like Omega' got her attention. So, instead you look around the labs- or Hanger. As this area seems to be mostly designed for Omega's massive forms. There's some parts here and there, but overall not that much that remains intact.
You look around the area where you found your equipment before finding the broken remains of OCELOT and RAIDEN. Both seem badly damaged, but maybe they could be repaired, in time. Regardless, looking around here, there's not much to do. Which is lucky, as the Doktor has finished up. Carrying Omega's 'brain' with her she wipes at her head.
"I attached a minor battery. Omega won't be functioning, but he'll survive. We should be going now, Alice. We can talk later. It will be dangerous here soon."
She leads you to a back corner of the room and presses a switch you didn't notice, opening a secret door. She waves you on, throwing you a trench coat and hat. It doesn't do too much to hide your appearance, but it'll have to do.
The two of you walk up stairs approximately forty minutes before you reach an exit, the darkness of night obscuring all details. You see a logo on the building you leave from, a symbol of a hand holding a hammer, but shake your head, following her to a car and getting in, Omega's 'brain' resting on your lap.
Later, there'll be time for answers later.
Right now, you have to rest and recover and then get answers. Well, if the Doktor can be trusted.
If not, well, she's toast.
END
Please Review
Publisher Note's: This chapter is obviously dedicated to Alice and Omega to show how they first met along with how Omega lost his original body. Hope this gave any of you more information on these two, but I cannot give away everything. Also can anyone guess whose logo appeared here? Next chapter will put us back on track to the main story.
OMEGA: His original body design is based on METAL GEAR RAY from the 'Metal Gear' Franchise, it's the first metal gear you fight as Raiden in the 'METAL GEAR RISING: REVENGEANCE'. I'll put his picture in my profile of his original body so you can see it.