Lean On Me
Chapter Four: The Hunt Begins
It didn't take long before Alastor had started putting the son of Big Boss to work, setting the blonde lion up for bodyguard jobs and assassinations, but Liquid Snake did each and every job flawlessly, without complaint too. Soon enough, he had a steady supply of Seraphim Steel coming in, all delivered to Huey's shop, of course. Speaking of the weasel, the formerly paraplegic sinner was put to work, Liquid having him craft weapons out of the metal, mainly a combat knife and bullets. As much as Huey knew the rogue to be up to no good, he knew better than to attempt to argue. Not to mention, he was being paid in what spare cash Liquid was willing to offer, so he couldn't complain too much.
Eventually, after some plotting and gear preparation, Liquid decided to make his move.
At Emmerich's Shoppe, Liquid was making some last-minute preparations, loading up an assault rifle with Seraphim Steel bullets, before strapping the rifle on his back, loading his pistol with the same Steel rounds before holstering it at his side, his newly forged combat knife near the collar of his coat, his extra magazines of ammunition strapped around his waist, as well as some syringes of health restoration in a pouch on the back of his pants.
His equipment loaded, Liquid looked out the window onto the streets of the city.
"I'm now ready to begin my hunt." He said to himself. "But where do I start?"
After some pondering, Liquid opened the book, looking through the book titled False Monarchy of Demons, looking through one demon after another, and after a few minutes of browsing, he found a suitable target.
Valac was one of the Presidents of Hell, with thirty legions of demons at his command, a demon that can find treasures and see hidden serpents. While considered not nearly as strong as the Princes or Dukes, Valac was not one to be trifled with.
His target decided, Liquid closed the book, a wicked smile on his face.
"Time for the hunt to begin."
His gear and goal set, along with an unshakable will, Liquid left the shop and hailed a taxi, the car pulling to a stop in front of him before he got in the back.
"Where to?" The cab driver asked.
"Valac's estate." Liquid replied dryly.
"Right." The driver said before doing a double take. "Wait what?"
"I did not stutter." Liquid said with a frown.
"Is this some sort of prank?" The driver asked, not believing him. "Am I getting punked? Where are the cameras?"
Just then, Liquid latched his claws behind the neck of the driver, before presenting him a stack of dollar bills.
"I'll make this easier for you." Liquid said in a warning tone. "You either accept this bribe and take me to my destination, or I end your existence and drive myself there. The choice is yours."
The imp looked at the stack before saying, "You drive a hard bargain, mister. Mind if I ask why?"
"Let's just say that I have a business proposal for him." Liquid said vaguely. "One he literally can't say no to."
The cab driver thought for a minute before pocketing the money, the lion sinner letting go, "You got it, boss."
"Glad you see it my way~"
With that, the cab took off, and after a rather long drive, they arrived at their destination.
"Remember, you never saw me." Liquid warned.
"Right." The cab driver nodded.
The cab then drove off, leaving Liquid in front of the large and imposing fortress that could make any other mansions look like small houses in comparison, as well as having a rather large front yard with large stone walls towering over the street.
"I see the Ars Goetia spare no expense." Liquid quietly remarked.
Undeterred, Liquid approached the wall and scaled it, using the bring that were sticking out, jumping down on the other side cleanly before ducking behind a bush as a servant of the mansion walked by, oblivious to the intruder that just happened to be behind the bush. Liquid proceeded to duck behind one bush after another before finally reaching the window, lifting it upward before hoisting himself through and into the house.
He was now inside his targets house.
Sticking to stealth, Liquid crept towards the nearest corner and peeked, not seeing a single hint of security in sight. 'Too easy,' he thought to himself. He would make Valac pay dearly for such a mistake.
Regardless, he needed to be careful, lest he run into any potential security measures hidden from the naked eye.
Continuing his way, the Snake snuck around one corner after another, going down several hallways before reaching a large set of double doors. Pushing one open, he entered what looked like the master bedroom, although calling it the 'master' bedroom would be an understatement, with the wide space and the biggest king-sized bed that could be labeled emperor's sized, and a large closet with many assortments of clothes. And then there was a baby crib near the window.
The demon's room, yet no sign of Valac himself. Could he be out today?
Thinking he had just wasted his time, Liquid turned and made to leave, but stopped when he heard footsteps coming his way, outside the room. Thinking quickly, Liquid slid under the bed and hid, seeing the bedroom door open and shut, the legs of what he could only assume to be the one he was after. Watching the legs walk, Liquid saw the demon approach the crib, assumedly putting a baby to sleep before then approaching the bed and laying on it, the snoring making it obvious that they were going to sleep.
A mistake they would come to regret too late.
Sliding out from under the bed, Liquid stood over the sleeping demon, which seemed to look more like an imp. Despite his disappointment, Liquid proceeded to pull out his pistol with a silencer attached and pointed it at the head of the imp. With a savage grin, he pulled the trigger and shot the imp in the head, instantly killing it.
His target seemingly dead, Liquid turned and made to leave, his hand nearing the handle…
"Leaving so soon?"
Liquid froze in place when he heard that, the deep voice sending a chill down his spine. Looking back, he stared at the bloody corpse, the body unmoving and definitely dead.
"Over here."
Slowly looking up, Liquid turned his gaze over to the baby's crib, and sure enough, the baby was sat up, staring directly at the Sinner.
"It's not often some Sinner tries to break into my abode." The baby said in a deep voice. "But to dare try to assassinate a member of the Ars Goetia? Insanity."
Liquid blinked once, then twice, unsure how to react at first, but then smirked.
"I shouldn't be surprised, really." The Sinner said. "Given this is Hell, it's only natural that talking babies would be a thing."
"Sinners and demons take all shapes down here." The baby said. "The members of the Ars Goetia are a whole different breed."
There was silence as the Sinner faced the baby before walking forward, pistol in hand.
But before I subject you to a fate worse than death, tell me," Valac said as the Sinner loomed over him. "Why have you gotten the foolish idea of attempting to kill me in the first place?"
"I seek a way to the land of the living so that I can continue my quest for vengeance." Liquid said, aiming his gun at the demon's head. "And right now, you just happened to be the first on my list."
The baby only stared blankly, not even bothered by the firearm being pointed in his face, before chuckling.
"So, you're one of those Sinners who seek to wreak havoc in the realm of the living."
Bang!
Liquid pulled the trigger, aiming to shut the brat up…
…but the bullet didn't make contact. In fact, it looked like it just phase right through him, hitting the bed of the crib instead.
"It seems you don't belong in this circle, or any of the others."
Liquid felt the atmosphere of the whole room grow cold, then heard a sharp hissing coming from behind the crib. Looking up, he noticed two pairs of red eyes glowing among the air.
"In fact, I think Sinners like you…"
Liquid jumped back in time to dodge an invisible force crashing into the spot where he once stood, the Sinner looking up to see the unseen force take shape, appearing to be a large two headed dragon, both heads sporting rows of razor-sharp teeth.
And the baby form of Valac sat in between the monster, staring down at the Sinner.
"BELONG IN OBLIVION!"
The beast roared before raising a massive claw and swinging down, Liquid ducking out of the way before opening fire, aiming at the brat in between the necks of the beast, but none of the shots seem to connect, be it the beasts thick necks blocking the bullet fire, or the shot just phasing through it.
The beast whipped its tail at the Sinner, Liquid then smirking as he jumped to the side, the tail crashing into the floorboards, the son of Big Boss then climbing onto the tail, using his knives to dig into the flesh of the tail and climb up and towards what he assumed was the core of the beast; the brat himself.
"DID YOU THINK IT WOULD BE EASY?!"
Suddenly, Valac was raised from his spot before he held up several spears, throwing each one at the Sinner, Liquid either dodging them or shooting them from the air with deadly accuracy.
Good thing he retained his military training, even in death.
Finally, once he had his footing on the beasts back, the Snake ran towards the demon, dodging one spear after another, before finally getting his hands on the brat, then started beating him to death with his bare hands, before shooting into the cords that connected the demon and his beast, the monster roaring in pain, before Liquid that pulled him loose from place, the beast falling dead without its core, the Sinner jumping down and throwing the brat to the floor.
"Powerful demons, my eye." Liquid chuckled. "It seems your might is overexaggerated."
The weak form of Valac coughed, staring up at the Sinner with a glare. "Just what do you hope to achieve with this foolishness?" The demon demanded.
"I already told you; to claim my revenge against my brother." Liquid said with a sneer. "And to do that, I need a way back to the surface world."
"Fool! Such a thing is restricted to the Ars Goetia and Lucifer himself!" Valac coughed.
"True, and since I have no intention of going after the devil himself, I'll settle for the Goetia." Liquid said, grabbing the demon by his little leg and hoisting him up, while pulling out a Seraphim Steel dagger. "Starting with the weakest of the lot."
"You're a madman! Such a thing will bring the end of us all!" Valac yelled.
"Then prepare for your end."
With that, the former FOXHOUND plunged the dagger deep into Valac's head, killing him instantly, then proceeded to rip the head from the shoulders, then tossed both to the side. The corpse then turned black before exploding with demonic essence, the essence then flowed to him, the Sinner absorbing it, gripping his head in pain, falling to his knees. Breathing heavily, Liquid opened his eyes and saw a golden glow emitting from his arm. Extending his arm, his eyes widened when a snake leaped out, before slithering off into the closet. Getting up and walking to the door, he pulled it open and saw the snake pulling a large safe from behind the clothing. Curious, Liquid proceeded to rip the safe door off, revealing a wealth of fortunes inside.
He looked at the snake before lowering his arm, allowing the snake to morph back with him, flexing his fingers with a smirk.
"Well, this will be interesting."
Satisfied, the Sinner picked up the wealth and snuck back out of the mansion, schemes already forming in his head.
Little did her know, or care, that this course of action would have severe consequences.
And here we have the first boss fight for Liquid! Yeah, sadly this wasn't very long, but given Liquid's background and experience, he would easily analyze the situation and quickly dismantle it in the most violent way, as shown. And Valac is the first to go down, Liquid gaining the ability to summon snakes to seek out treasures. And he's bound to gain more powers before he meets Stolas.
And with that, I hope you look forward to more, and I apologize for keeping you all waiting, as I've been busy with other stories on my to do list, I hope you understand.
And thus, I'll see you guys later! Reviews are greatly appreciated!