DISCLAIMER: I own nothing. Metal Gear is created by Hideo Kojima and owned by Konami. Genshin Impact is owned by miHoYo.

METAL GEAR SHOGUN

Episode 6
FORTUNATE SON

Ei sat in the back of the Jeep, slightly bumping around as it drove along the rough road. George had taken her out to send her on a mission, yet again. George was present in the Jeep, sitting in the passenger seat next to the driver. Apparently, he was performing his own operation that was somewhat nearby where Ei would be sent, and travelling together would be more convenient.

Ei wasn't alone in the back, either. George was also having Ryan come along with her. She had spent a long time fighting against him in George's "war games," and now she would be fighting alongside him. It was an almost surreal experience to not be fighting someone she was used to fighting. Though, a similar comparison would be going into battle with a sparring partner. Only, in this case, the sparring was often lethal for both parties.

"Are you holding up well back there?" George asked the child soldiers. Ei didn't give him an answer. She was just waiting for the ride to be over so she could get away from George for a while.

A few minutes passed, and the Jeep came to a halt. The driver turned back to Ei and Ryan and spoke. "Alright, time to get out." He said.

"Ryan, Jacqueline, do you remember the objective?" George questioned. Ryan then spoke up.

"We make our way to the processing station and take out any resistance." He answered.

George had already told them about their mission. They were to travel along the edge of the adjacent forest and arrive at a materials processing plant at its end. From there, they would silently eliminate any enemy forces present at the plant. The objective was to either capture or destroy the plant.

George took out an AK rifle and passed it to the back seats. Ei reached for it, but the Jeep's driver stopped her.

"Ah, ah, ah." He said, grabbing her wrist. "That one's not for you. You get the little one." He pulled a pistol from his belt and gave it to Ei, while the AK was given to Ryan. The two child soldiers got out of the vehicle.

"Now," George began again. "This shouldn't take any more than a day, at most. We'll complete our operation and meet up with you in around sixteen hours. Until then, you two are on your own. Good luck to both of you."

With that, the Jeep started up again and drove off, leaving Ei and Ryan alone.

"Come on." Ryan spoke, gesturing for her to follow. Ei trailed behind him, walking into the forest after him.

Ei and Ryan had been walking for several hours at this point. They had still not seen any sign of the processing plant they were ordered to infiltrate, but she thought they had to at least be getting close. She found this walking similar to the way she would approach her objectives during George's war games. As much as she loathed having to take part in them, she couldn't deny that they did somewhat prepare her for the missions George sent her on. Ryan hadn't said anything to Ei the whole time, almost as if he didn't even notice her presence. She decided to initiate a conversation, even if it was just a small one. After all, Ryan was still considered her comrade, and she did grow to care for him.

"Ryan?" Ei asked, still walking. Ryan didn't respond. "Ryan…!" She tried again, this time catching his attention.

"What?" Ryan asked, somewhat annoyed.

Ei stayed quiet for a few moments before she continued. "I would like to talk with you, Ryan."

"About the mission?" Ryan replied.

"No, I…" Ei began again. "I mean, if you want to. It's just that you never seem to speak sometimes."

The two stopped talking for a moment, the only sounds being the ambience of the forest. After a minute, Ryan finally spoke up.

"Once we get to the enemy station, we should see how fortified it is." He started. "From there, we should decide whether to take it or destroy it."

Ei gave a light sigh. She was glad she was able to have a conversation with Ryan, but he seemed to operate on a one-track mind. It was somewhat bothersome, talking with someone who had such a limited viewpoint. She tried again.

"And… what next?" She asked. "What do we do when we see how fortified it is?"

"We should wait until we see the station before we decide."

"But… It would be a good idea to think of a plan ahead of time, wouldn't it?"

Ryan stayed silent for a few seconds, vaulting over a fallen tree in their path. Ei climbed over it after him.

"Why are you talking so much?" Ryan questioned.

"Huh?"

"Answer me."

Ei paused. "I just want to talk with you." She answered. "I'm used to being alone, but… in this kind of place, with all the fighting going on… it's nice to be able to treasure the moments we have before they pass."

Ryan stopped. He looked at Ei blankly and asked again. "But why? There's no point in discussing these things. We're soldiers. Our commander tells us who to kill, and we kill them. They tell us to fight, and we fight. If we don't, we die. That's all we do." He turned back around and kept trudging onwards.

Ei tried to ponder Ryan's perspective for a moment, but couldn't understand. It didn't help much that Ryan was unchanging in his viewpoint. He was often emotionless, only following the orders he was given and never deviating from his instructions. Almost like The Shogun.

The Shogun – a puppet created by Ei back when she was still in Teyvat. She had created her as a vessel to hold her consciousness and tend to the daily affairs of Inazuma. When creating The Shogun, Ei had instilled a set of directives into her so deep, even she was unable to alter them afterwards. And after the first vessel she created shed tears upon its creation, Ei rendered The Shogun emotionless, only following the directives she had been programmed with. Ei began to draw comparisons between her and Ryan, and she began to feel a sense of guilt… But what did it mean?

Her thoughts were interrupted by the sound of gunfire. She made her way over to Ryan, hiding behind a bush. The two of them saw the ruins of a village, occupied by enemy soldiers. There were more there than the two of them could take on by themselves, so they would have to sneak past them. The downside was, a river ran through the forest, meaning they could not continue through the trees. They would need to go out into the open.

"Ryan…?" Ei whispered. "How do we make it past them…?"

Ryan was silent for a moment. Looking further, he spotted a bridge a distance away from where they were. And even farther away, next to a small mountain, was the processing plant they were ordered to infiltrate. Finally, he spoke up.

"We stay low." He began. "We crawl as far as we can away from the guards, towards the bridge."

Ei thought. It was dangerous, but what choice did they have? "And what if we're spotted…?"

"Then we run. It's best we don't think about that scenario."

BGM:

Metal Gear Solid V: The Phantom Pain – Encounter on the Plains
By Ludvig Forssell

Ryan got down on his stomach and began slowly crawling out of the woods. Ei followed suit, getting low and crawling behind him. The two stayed close to the river, it being the furthest point from the enemy soldiers. They kept crawling for several minutes, inching closer to the bridge. That is, until they heard something.

"Hey, what's that?" An enemy soldier spoke up. Ei began to panic slightly. Ryan, however, stayed calm and quiet. Ei did her best to stay as quiet as possible as well. Then, they were found. "It's the enemy!" The soldier shouted.

"Run!" Ryan shouted to Ei.

The two child soldiers immediately got up from their prone position and made a beeline towards the bridge. The enemy soldiers began to open fire towards the two. Ryan looked behind himself and let off a burst of fire from his AK, wounding a few soldiers.

Ei took the pistol she was given out and aimed at the soldiers behind her. It was difficult, considering she was moving rather quickly. She pulled the trigger a few times, hitting two soldiers square in the chest, and another right in his head.

Ei and Ryan kept running and now found themselves a few meters away from the bridge. A soldier managed to grab hold of Ei's hand, but was quickly killed when she stuck her knife into his jugular. The two finally made it to the bridge, but couldn't get much further. A grenade landed ahead of them, about to explode.

"RYAN!" Ei shouted, tackling him off the bridge and into the water. The grenade exploded, blowing up part of the bridge. The soldiers looked down at the river, checking to see if they had survived.

BGM end

[Control here, what happened? Over.] One of the soldier's radios beeped.

"This is Zulu 3," The soldier answered. "There was a bit of a problem, but it's under control now. Over."

[Copy that, Zulu 3.] The radio crackled. [Report back to HQ immediately. Over.]

"Affirmative. Over and out." The soldier put away his radio and ordered the rest of the troops. "Alright, time to head back to HQ." With that, the soldiers all began making their way back to the processing plant.

Meanwhile, a short distance downstream, Ryan began to climb out of the river, carrying Ei out with him. She coughed, expelling murky water from her lungs. Eventually, Ryan pulled Ei over behind a large stone, obscuring their presence from any enemies.

Ei opened her eyes and coughed lightly. "You…" She sputtered. "You saved me…?"

"Yeah…" Ryan responded, coughing lightly.

"Why…?" Ei asked him.

"Because we're not enemies." He responded, bluntly.

Ei processed his answer for a second. "Is that the only reason?" She asked.

"Yes."

"Somehow, I doubt that." Ei gave her opinion. "There is more between us than just being allies, isn't there?"

Ryan paused. Ei began to think that she had reached him, that she was helping him express himself more than just "being a soldier." Unfortunately, her hopes were dashed seconds later when Ryan changed the subject.

"You could use a towel." He told Ei.

Only then did Ei realize she was soaking wet. Then again, it was much better than being blown to smithereens by a grenade blast. She looked over to Ryan and noticed he was also drenched.

"So could you." Ei responded.

Several hours had passed, and night had fallen. Ei's clothes were drying next to a fire, ignited by scraping her knife against a piece of flint. She sat in her undergarments, huddled close to its warmth. The chill of the night brushed against her back, making her shiver slightly.

Ei felt disappointed with her talk with Ryan. She felt as if she could help him open up about himself. However, her efforts came up empty. Ryan remained as stoic and emotionless as he ever was.

With almost perfect timing, Ryan returned back behind the stone by the fire. The first thing she noticed was the fact that he wasn't wearing his shirt. Obviously because it was wet from the river, but it was still somewhat embarrassing. Moreso for Ei, who barely had anything on at all. She blushed and turned away. She obviously didn't have any romantic feelings for Ryan, as she was not attracted to children, but the situation was still very awkward.

Though, she began to think. Ei was technically centuries old, yet the body she possessed was that of a child. As far as everyone else could tell, she was nothing more than a child. But Ei wondered, was she truly a child, or a being inhabiting the body of a child?

Her contemplation did not last very long, as Ryan began to speak.

"I've just come back from scouting." He said. "There's a lot more resistance than we first thought. We aren't gonna be able to take it on our own."

"Then… what are we going to do?" Ei asked, slightly flustered.

Ryan didn't speak for a few seconds. He sat down next to Ei, who looked over to him, wondering what he was thinking.

"Do…" He muttered. "Do you want to talk?"

"What?" Ei said, confused.

"I asked you if you wanted to talk." He said again.

"You mean… about the mission, right?" Ei responded.

"You said you wanted to talk a while ago." Ryan began. "What is it you want to talk about?"

Ei began to wonder if her efforts to reach him truly did work. "Why do you want to talk with me now?" She asked. "What makes you want to do this?"

"Jacqueline, you've been with Father for a year and a half." Ryan spoke. "Maybe I'm wrong about this, but I thought you would see things differently after going through everything you did."

"You mean the war and fighting?" Ei retorted. She sighed. "I've seen enough war for an entire lifetime, let alone an eternity. But you still said all those things about 'being a soldier,' and 'following orders.' I just want to know what reason you have to think that way."

A few moments passed, and then Ryan began to speak.

"When the war started, the village I lived in was destroyed." He spoke. "My parents pleaded with the people who attacked, but they killed them anyway. They didn't care about showing mercy to anyone."

Ei thought about the things Ryan was saying so far. Many of the child soldiers in the Small Boys' Unit – herself included – had lost their homes and families to the war. She wasn't surprised by the things he was saying, but was still horrified by them.

"Then Father came and rescued me. I was starving in a ditch, and he gave me food to eat. He took me in and taught me how to defend myself. He told me that I was good at killing, and that I shouldn't waste my skills by not using them. I'm very fortunate to have been found by him."

"So… what?" Ei asked him. "You are grateful to George for saving you? And you do what he tells you to because of it?"

"It's not that simple, Jacqueline." Ryan answered. "How do you think I felt when my parents died? Angry? Scared? Sad? Father told me how to use those feelings to fight, and that's what I do for him. After all, fighting is the only thing I'm good at."

Ei pondered what Ryan had just told her. She then said, "I don't think fighting is the only thing you're good at. Maybe you just haven't found something to believe in."

"Something to believe in…?" Ryan asked.

"Yes… something that you strive for, an ultimate goal to accomplish. Or maybe it's an ideal, or even a person. You won't know what it is until you find it."

This time, it was Ryan's turn to think about what Ei said to him. A minute later, he asked, "What about you? What do you believe in?"

Ei paused. Her ultimate goal was to reach Eternity, but what did it matter in this world? She had come to this world to find the answers she needed to finally reach Eternity, but was not any closer to the goal she wished to achieve. Not to mention, there was no one in this world who even knew about her Eternity except for herself. Ryan certainly wouldn't understand if she told him.

"It's complicated." She muttered. "Just tell me about what you found when scouting."

"Well, the river we're close to is connected to the plant." Ryan answered, switching back to his usual cold self. "It probably powers some of the machinery. It's probably a good way to get inside."

"I see." Ei said. "And what do we do when we get in?"

"My guess is they have some kind of armory in there. If we can get in there without being spotted, we can take some explosives and destroy the plant."

Ei hummed in acknowledgement. "I can enter through the way by the river. It will be better if we go during the night. That way we can hide easier."

Ei then picked up her clothes, which had finished drying, and dressed herself again. She grabbed the pistol she was given and her knife and put them in her belt before making her way over to the water.

"Hey!" Ryan shouted over to her.

"What!?" Ei responded. Perhaps their talk just now gave him more to think about?

"You're gonna get wet again!" He said.

Apparently not.

Ei then dived into the river, landing with a splash. She let the current carry her closer to the processing plant, and towards her objective. Though her conversation with Ryan did give her something to think about. What did Ryan believe in? Did he even find something to believe in? Could he even believe in anything at this point? However, she also questioned things about herself. Could she believe in anything in this world, herself? But now wasn't the time to think about these things. She carried on, being carried closer to the station, ready to kill once more.

Thanks again for reading! Ryan and his decisions are going to be a major part of the next two chapters. I decided to take this turn for this chapter because I wanted to portray a different viewpoint born from the same kind of circumstances Ei (or I guess Raiden) was put through. Besides, it is stated in MGS2 that Raiden was unique among Solidus' child soldiers.

KenjiApex: While that does sound like an interesting idea, that is not the case. Though, if we're talking about a complete version of this hypothetical novel, Yae Miko may become jealous of someone who will become a large part of Ei's life later on.

Anyways, make sure to leave more reviews and feedback! I'll get back to writing up the next chapter!

-Azzy Asbourne

Music: watch?v=ZFOd5S3sn10