Night Owl calmly sipped his coffee as he watched ongoing traffic. It was quite a nice cafe, he would have to come here more often. Especially for the scones. Those alone were worth their exorbitant price. That's just where he was though, sitting in Tel Aviv with a cup of coffee, overlooking the city. Although he couldn't help but feel he was forgetting something.

"Worthless sack of shit! You were given a job to do and here you are relaxing away! Are you even paying attention!?"

Oh, right, Gecko. It was surprisingly easy to zone the man out. Maybe it was the cafe, or perhaps it was something in the coffee. Regardless Gecko continued his tirade for a solid minute, throwing every insult he could find at Night Owl. His face was nearly red with a visible vein on his neck. He only stopped when he ran out of swears.

"Are you done? Because I think you got spit on my scone."

Gecko, seeing he was getting nowhere, took a few quick breaths. Attempting to calm himself down, he sat in a chair next to Night Owl. Finally, the man looked him in the eye, averting his gaze from Night Owl's smug smile.

"You know, for someone so closely associated with heroes, you seem to scare a lot of children." Night Owl commented, motioning to a small family sitting across from them. The father was covering his daughter's ears while the son saying the first swear Gecko had spoken. Unamused, Gecko glared at him.

"What are you doing here?" Gecko demanded.

"Getting a coffee." Night Owl replied. Gecko tried his best to ignore the joke as he pressed on. Night Owl could see him fixing his tie again. It made him wonder why he didn't get a new suit.

"You're supposed to be back in Japan. Why are you here?"

"I told you, it's for the coffee. They just don't make it like back home."

He chuckled when Gecko changed to another shade of red. Finishing the last of his scones, he stood up and began walking away. Gecko quickly got up to chase after him.

"Where do you-!"

"Relax would you? I'm here for that natural gas convoy you're preparing."

Gecko sputtered back shocked, bringing an unseen glee to Night Owl.

"How did you-"

"Figure it out? Where did you think the gas was going? After all my experiments do require a lot of power. And you declined my request for a nuclear power plant."

"First, stop interrupting me, second-"

"No,"

"Second, that doesn't explain why you're here. My security is more than capable of dealing with whatever it is you fear."

"Is it," Night Owl replied, motioning to Gecko's pocket. Gecko was about to ask him what he meant when he felt the dive vibrate. Picking it up he found it to be a phone call. Night Owl took a sip of his coffee as Gecko felt the dread set in. He silently put the phone away, as Gecko glared at Night Owl.

"You knew," Gecko stated, clenching his hands into fists. Night Owl looked at him uncaringly, replacing his smug grin with a wide-open smile.

"I had suspicion and paranoia, nothing more." Night Owl replied. It wasn't an abject lie, he expected Snake to arrive much later than he did. He also expected Snake to win, but he wasn't going to tell Gecko that. For Gecko though, it was clear he wasn't going to get anything else out of him. He sighed, as his tensed-up hands straightened his tie.

"Fine, you want to make yourself useful then tell me, doctor, what is it you suggest?" Gecko spat, anger clear in his eyes. Night Owl chuckled as he threw away the last of his coffee. Just as planned, he thought.

"I have a contact in the area, one that will provide real security. Not these heroes you put so much of your confidence in."

Gecko was about to retort but he was silenced quickly, Night Owl shoving a card into his hands. Before he could utter another word, Night Owl began walking away. With Gecko too far to see him, Night Owl pulled out his phone. Opening up his contacts, he sent one message.

"Begin phase one."

The file was on the table when he got back, Miller nearly shoving him into the briefing room. He had followed the HPSC representative with the drone for over an hour before they finally found something useful. Night Owl was in Israel. That alone raised questions, why would a scientist be involved in a convoy op? More importantly, what did he have to gain from this? Their interrogation of the two new heroes told them it involved a natural gas convoy.

Which was strange. Natural gas was usually transported via pipeline, not the dozens of trucks the report was suggesting. It didn't add up. The only good news was that they had a time and date for when it was happening The heroes, however, did not know where the convoy was or where it was going. It was something they would have to find tomorrow though. Putting away the last of the report, they both made their way outside.

"I still can't wrap my head around it. It can play music on the go like a Walkman, but you can also watch movies or TV shows on it!" Miller said, holding a phone in his hands.

"Wait, I thought you said this was a phone." Snake inquired.

"It is! They somehow combined a TV, computer, Walkman, and telephone into one." Miller replied, "They even have specialized devices to wirelessly listen to the phone."

"Huh, I never thought this would be technology."

"Neither did I, I remember Strangelove saying it had other uses too. But I can't… seem…" Miller stopped talking then. They were outside now, walking along one of Mother Base's platforms. Snake wondering why Miller stopped, looked over to him. He saw his eyes watching something, and Snake's eye followed. On the ground an asleep Midoriya lay, resting right next to a drawing. The both of them approached him quietly, trying not to wake him.

"What's this, the sixteenth time now?" Kaz asked. It had happened a lot at Mother Base, Midoriya venturing off somewhere in the large complex doing whatever knows what. Only for a member of MSF to find him asleep in a weird place. A mess hall table, on the railing of a walkway, Striker Osprey even found him on one of the helipads once.

No matter where they found him though, a small drawing was always with him. And the drawing always had some member of MSF on it. Pequod had almost cried when he found one of himself piloting his helicopter. The next day Snake found it and a whole bunch of others on a bulletin board in the mess hall. There was one of Kaz, Chico, Paz, and Strangelove, it was cute, to say the least.

Carefully, Snake picked Midoriya up as Miller grabbed the drawing. Kaz snickered a little causing Snake to look at him, but stopped when he felt the kid yawn. They both made their way over to the kid's room, passing by the night watch on Mother Base. The soldiers would salute and quietly walk away, seeing Snake with Midoriya. When they arrived Snake found something peculiar on the kid's bed.

"Kaz, what is this?" he asked holding up the plush toy. It was small and soft, like a teddy bear. Its hair was fluffy to the touch and the fabric felt nice to touch. The most glaring thing though, was its resemblance to Snake. An eye patch on the right eye, a beard, long hair, and his sneaking suit. Kaz snickered again before he answered.

"Heh, well you see Snake, I had the R&D team cook that up for Midoriya."

Kaz could feel the glare Snake was giving him, even with one eye. He held up his hands in defense as he continued.

"Hear me out. You said the kid was having trouble at night, and you seem to be a comforting presence for him. And since you're not always here I thought it might help."

Snake only looked back at the plush in hand. It…made sense when he thought about it. He wouldn't always be available if something happened so something like this was useful. It felt strange though, to have a plush of oneself. He gently squeezed the plushy, and a near-silent copy of his voice rang out.

"Kept you waiting huh?"

The detail for this thing was a bit much though, this was clear when he found he could look underneath the eye patch. He still sees the doll's own ruined eye. But if it helped Midoriya, then it was fine. He tucked the kid in and placed the plushy next to him. Subconsciously the kid grabbed it in his sleep. Leaving the room as quietly as possible, Snake couldn't help but smile as he left the room. For some reason though, Miller had yet to show him the drawing.

Pacifica was panicking. Everything had gone so horribly wrong. The day that she was to betray MSF had been arriving very quickly, with Cipher's informant telling them ZEKE would soon be completed. Then the portal happened, and they were transported here. The very people she had been about to betray were now here only support in this new world. And it was stressing her out. Pacifica feared that any day now she would be figured out, someone would come along and expose her.

She tried her best to squash these fears, to maintain her innocent schoolgirl persona, but it was taxing. Every day she could count how many near slip-ups she had. It led her to a new problem, who was she loyal to? In the beginning, she would have said Cipher, but now she wasn't sure. MSF was something different from what she imagined. An army of once enemies acted like a family. It had changed her as much as she was ashamed to admit.

In the beginning, she was willing to fight and kill for Cipher, to watch Snake die. Now, she wasn't sure. Cipher was gone, and to follow his orders now would only doom her. It wracked her brain with uncertainty about what to do. Especially when that kid got involved. Whenever Snake wasn't around, Midoryia would follow Pacifica, usually followed by Chico. Suddenly it became her job to watch him most of the time. It seemed like a moment of peace for her, someone she didn't have to hide behind a mask when near.

It provided some relief, more so since Midoriya couldn't speak Spanish. But it tugged at her heart when he showed a drawing of her. It was surprisingly good for a six-year-old but still amateurish. If she was going to betray MSF, she was making sure he got off Mother Base safe, that was for sure. However, that was then, now she had a new task.

"Ok Midoriya, this," she pointed at the book in her hands, "is a book, say book."

"Book."

"Great, now say it all together." she held out the objects to give him cues for what to say.

"I… see… a… book!" he exclaimed happily, a smile on his face, one that Pacifica returned to in kind.

"Very good! Let's do it with this now," and she began again trying her best to teach Midoriya English. Her newest job. He did well with basic sentences from what she gathered, the obsession with that blonde hero helping in some way. Everything about him screamed Westaboo.

"Costa… Rica… is… pretty!"

"Excellent!"

Throughout it all Midoriya seemed to have fun, and as she brought out the next few objects. Pacifica didn't know exactly what they would need so she brought whatever she found. A bowl of oranges, some random books, a gun, a knife, some C4, a pair of clothes, whatever she found around Mother Base.

"How about this? Ice cream," she said, pointing at the cone in her hand.

"Ice… cream…" Midoriya would begin, his determined face staring at the ice cream cone. Or maybe it was hunger, she thought. She pulled it away and swapped it for a paper card with 'is' on it.

"Is."

"Is."

She grabbed the next card and held it up. It was of a snow-covered mountain with a snowman nearby. Midoriya waited for a second before he understood what it meant.

"Cold."

"Cold."

She set the objects out and then motioned for Midoriya to go. And smiled when he excitedly shouted out "Ice cream is cold!". He looked over at her, proud of himself. Soon he began pointing at the slightly melty ice cream in her hand.

"Hungry… Ice cream… please?" he asked. Thinking for a moment, she eventually gave it to him. Pacifica considered it a reward for him doing so well, especially since it helped her keep her mind at bay.

In pain, Quicksand stirred awake. The light around him was blinding as he shut his eyes. What the hell had he done last night? He remembered the wine in the limo and the hotel, but the rest was a fog. When it finally seemed like he could open his eyes, a loud painful voice arrived.

"So you're finally awake. About damn time."

It sounded familiar, but he couldn't for the life of him tell who it was. All he could feel was pain. He could see sounds and taste colors, now he understood why the alcohol he bought had warning labels. Some called him an alcoholic, and for once he could agree. Finally able to open his eyes, he found himself in a small prison cell.

"Where the hell are we?" he groggily asked, every word feeling like pinneedles in his brain. He could remember who had spoken now, the voice of Turbulence becoming clearer. He also saw Fireball and Tidal Wave nearby in a second cell.

"Some nut jobs prison, maniac broke into the hotel and kidnapped us both."

"Ugh, I assume that's what happened to them?" Quicksand asked, pointing over to his compatriots. Turbulence only nodded.

"We got any water or something? My head's killing me."

"Either the sink or the toilet, and the toilet seems cleaner."

"At least point, I don't care what's cleaner. I ain't drinking outta no damn shitter."

Weakly he crawled over to the only sources of water in the cell. Quicksand then tried his best to lift himself to the sink but found his arms failing him every time. What the hell was in that wine? He got it eventually though, taking a few gulps from the sink. It tasted as if god had blessed it, as he felt the migraine lessening only slightly. What he would do for ibuprofen at the moment. His eyes fell upon another cell though, this one occupied by someone else.

He had a red hand Quicksand almost mistakenly believed was his quirk. He wore a long coat and dressed like an old college professor, and currently, he was reading. Seemingly uncaring to the heroes there.

"Who's he?" Quicksand asked.

"I dunno, dude can't speak Japanese."

"He was here before we arrived, that's for sure." Tidal Wave added, "Wait, is that a robot hand?"

"Huh, dude must be pretty well off if he could afford that," Fireball stated.

"Different hero maybe?" Quicksand asked.

"The very fact we don't know who he is answers that question for you." Turbulence countered.

"Would all of you shut up?"

They paused for a minute when they heard the voice. All of them turned to look at the man in the other cell, he was still reading, but they could see him visibly annoyed.

"I thought you said he couldn't speak Japanese?" Quicksand asked.

"The capability to speak, and choosing to speak are two different things." the man countered. He had closed his book by now, it became clear he wasn't going to finish it without distraction. His gaze shifted as he began looking at them, taking in every detail they possessed.

"Ok, wise guy, who are you?"

"I am Vladimir Zadornov, the rest is unimportant."

"Unimportant? Were trapped in some wack jobs prison in the middle of who knows where something has to have happened for you to be here. I'd say that's pretty damn important."

"What happened isn't what's important, for we are here in the now. But if you're going to keep pestering me with pointless questions, then fine, I will indulge."

This had better be good, Quicksand could understand kidnapping four pro heroes, even if they didn't have an exact reason. Some random Russian who dresses like it's the 1960s though, that was a bit confusing.

"I am, was, a member of the KGB. I was busy trying to start a revolution in-"

"Hold it, the KGB?" Tidal Wave interrupted.

"Ugh, yes, the KGB, now if I could continue-"

"Heh, nice try pal, the KGB's been gone for two hundred years."

Zadornov froze at that point. Confusion covered his face as he thought over his next words. It was odd to Quicksand it was as if Zadornov genuinely believed the KGB was still around.

"You're lying."

"Dude read a history book the KGB attempted a coup de tat on Premier Gorbachov on December 3rd, 1991. It was dissolved, and the Soviet Union collapsed with it on December 26th, 1991."

Zadornov became flabbergasted. It was becoming clear that this was not an act. Quicksand saw him become red with anger as he punched the wall with his red hand.

"Your lying damn it! Nothing but capitalist propaganda!"

"Hey, I don't know what to tell you," Tidal Wave held up his hands defensively, "Soviet Union's gone pal."

They heard him go quiet then, his red hand still implanted on the wall. He removed it from the wall and a large dent was visible. Quicksand couldn't tell if was due to the strength of Zadornov, the weakness of the wall, or the sturdiness of the hand. It gave him some sort of suspicion though.

"Fine, assuming you're telling the truth, then what happens to the USA, to those damn Yankees."

"If you're hoping they're gone too, then I'm sorry to say otherwise."

Zadornov sighed, "What year is it?"

That immediately got their attention. What year was it? Why would someone ask a question that pertained to the most common knowledge society had? Already they could see the puzzle beginning to come together.

"2274…"

"Are you saying, you're from the past?" Fireball inquired. Zadornov didn't answer at first, instead, he focused on his hand. He fiddled with the bits of metal as he remembered past events. Oh, the things that had led him here.

"Something like that, there was this strange event a few months ago. I assumed it was the guards attempting some form of psychological torture."

"Event?"

"I heard shouting throughout the halls, and the guard that usually patrols here started floating. Soon I was floating as well and neither of us had a clue what was happening. Next thing I know there was a bright orange light, and I fell back onto the ground."

That was worrying, to say the least. It also opened a whole new can of worms. Who were these guys? This MSF as Zadornov would tell them? Who was Snake? Yet as soon as he tried to think of answers, his migraine came roaring back. Quicksand decided to then leave the discussion to his partners, he hoped a nap would be good for his head.

Snake approached the helicopter as Miller followed him. In his hands was a simple list of targets, only they weren't human.

"The conservation platform should be finished when you get back Boss. Now the contract states that they want as many endangered animals extracted from the hot zone as possible. So no feasting on the wildlife."

"If it's not food Kaz, then why's it so delicious." Snake joked. He carefully entered the helicopter, doing a last-minute check-over of his weapons. Meanwhile, Kaz kept giving him information on the nearby area. Northern Kabul, Afghanistan. His targets were several species of wolves, bears, and birds that were being killed off in the area. So for the majority of his equipment, he had tranquilizers of stun rounds, and his usual sneaking suit was replaced with camouflage.

Finding himself ready he found Pequod starting up the helicopter. The blades sped up quickly, soon lifting the vehicle off the helipad. Miller now backing away from the helicopter, shouted out "Good luck out there!", before the helicopter began flying away. It was going to be a long flight to Afghanistan, so Snake decided to take a quick nap as he fully entered the helicopter and closed the door.

Was it the greatest idea? No, the chairs in his helicopter weren't made for sleeping in, and Snake was pretty sure he was going to feel it in the morning. But there wasn't anything better to do, so as he dozed off, he could have sworn he saw a tuft of green underneath the other seats. His dreams were not pleasant.

Every few minutes he was back there, in the fields of flowers. Gun in hand, the Boss's body on the ground. The once pure white flowers shifted to a blood red. He would come back to it over and over again. It shouldn't have hurt him as much anymore, she betrayed him, and what they stood for as soldiers. It didn't matter, the scene playing over and over again. It was always the same scene. He could hear the gunshot even as he startled himself awake.

Pequod who looked over to him worried asked, "You good Boss?"

His only response was a silent nod. Snake could feel the sweat running down his neck, and attempted to wipe it away. Noticing it land outside the window, Snake opened up his Idroid. Looking at the map he found they were only half an hour away from the landing zone. Seeing how close they were, Snake was about to put it away, when his codec started ringing. He answered it expecting some other debriefing from Kaz only to hear shouting.

"Snake, the kid! We can't find the kid!"

He very nearly leaped out of his seat. He felt fear immediately course through him, as he ran up to Pequod.

"What do you mean you can't find him!?"

"He's not here! We searched every platform after you left!"

The shouting was loud enough for Pequod to hear Kaz now. It was even clearer what was happening in the background. It sounded as if every member of MSF was tearing the base apart. Snake was pretty sure that was what was happening though, especially when the first explosion sounded off.

"Did we check the walls!?"

"How the hell would he be in the walls!"

"I don't know but did we check!?"

"Shit! I'll be right back with some tools!"

It sounded like pure pandemonium on the other end. Snake didn't even have to order Pequod to turn around when he felt the helicopter change direction. He was very nearly panicking, where could the kid have gone? He ran through where he normally was in the day. Last night he was found asleep in the mess hall, at lunch he was with Paz learning English, and in the morning he would say bye to Snake when he left for a mission.

He froze. He didn't say bye today. He wasn't there. Snake berated himself for not noticing this sooner. How could he have missed this? He sat back in his chair, worriedly taping his foot in the helicopter. Maybe he had fallen off the side? Washed away by the waves of the Pacific. He couldn't stand to think of it. Especially with that damn snickering going… on…

"Pequod, do you hear that?" he asked, the snickering sounded like it was coming from somewhere in the helicopter. The pilot paused for a minute trying to hear the noise.

"Hear what… Boss?" he was hearing it too. It was in the helicopter. The snickering was quiet and shockingly childlike. It was coming from the other chairs in the helicopter, the ones off to the side. More specifically underneath it, where a small compartment was. Snake opened it hopeful he was correct.

"Suprise!"

Snake let out a breath he didn't know he was holding. His legs felt almost weak as he found the missing six-year-old. Midoriya giggled finding his surprise to have been a success, unaware of Snake's true thoughts. Because right now, he was pissed, relieved that Midoriya was ok, but pissed.

"Kid," Snake began, trying his best to calm down, "what were you doing in there?"

Some of his anger was alleviated when the kid smiled, but not all.

"I wanted to come with you! You were always going out on hero missions and I wanted to see one."

Snake's anger was mostly gone when he activated his codec.

"Kaz, I found the kid. He snuck aboard my helicopter."

"Oh thank goodness, Strangelove was about to tear apart ZEKE looking for him."

"He might be in the AI pod!" he heard Strangelove shout, followed by the banging of metal.

"We found him! Stop!"

He hung up the codec then, looking back over to Midoriya. He was still smiling and even started bouncing with excitement. Was he this determined to accompany him? If so, he was gonna have to start strip-searching the helicopters. Maybe even put them under heavy surveillance. Then again putting a camera on the kid seemed easier.

"Don't do it again, you scared us half to death kid," Snake said, looking over at the kid. His words had an unintended effect, as Midoriya teared up. He felt the kid charge into him with a hug, all the while crying.

"I'm sorry! I just wanted to surprise you, I won't do it again!"

"It's ok kid, we were just scared that's all," Snake replied trying his best to comfort the boy.

"N-no, it's n-not! I m-made everyone w-worried! I d-didn't want t-to scare anyone!"

"I know, I know buddy. Here, just take a few deep breaths for me, ok?" Snake asked. He did so, Midoriya trying his best to calm himself down. It was clear Snake had made a mistake somewhere in how he phrased it. Slowly though the tears stopped, both of them now sitting on the helicopter's chairs. It left Snake deep in thought. Midoriya wanted to join him on a mission. Should he allow it? His immediate response was no, but this was an animal conservation mission. There weren't many safe contracts out there but Snake considered this one of them. Still, this was Afghanistan they were talking about.

Even if it was a mission to pick flowers, there would be something that could go wrong. He could barely count every possible way the kid could get injured, or worse die. Every time he looked down at the kid Midoriya would look at him with pleading eyes. There was something else there too. Determination. He should know, the Boss said he had the same look all those years ago. There would be no convincing him, the kid was dead set on going with him.

Snake grumbled when he turned toward the kid, "Alright, you can come."

Immediately Midoriya's excited attitude returned, a little light appearing in his eyes as Snake continued.

"But, there's going to be some ground rules. Every time you want to go with me, you need to ask. A lot of my missions are very dangerous, and we don't want you getting hurt. So I'll tell you when it's safe or unsafe to go with me."

Midoriya nodded his head quickly, paying attention to every word Snake spoke. Good, Snake thought, seems he'll listen then.

"Now, in the field when I tell you to do something, you do it, ok?"

"Ok," Midoriya replied, giving him a small salute. It was cute, even though it was done incorrectly. So giving him a small smile, Snake returned the salute. The rest of the journey was haphazardly done, Pequod yet again turned the helicopter around heading back towards Afghanistan. Then Snake dug around his helicopter's compartments, searching for anything useful. Finding it, he pulled out one of his spare desert camo uniforms.

It was far too large for Midoriya so Snake started tearing pieces of it off. After a while, he created a suitable poncho for the kid. It would fit decently and provide some sort of camouflage, not the best but good enough. He then grabbed his face paints, and put some on the kid's face. It was sloppily done, with the kid struggling to sit still when Snake painted, but like the poncho, it was good enough. Then the moment of truth arrived, the helicopter arrived at the LZ and Snake stepped out.

He helped Midoriya out of the helicopter and then they went to higher ground. Finding a good spot Snake laid down, with Midoriya following suit. They sat on a large rock, overlooking a low marshy valley. In the sky, Snake could see several birds flying around. It seemed like the best place to start. He grabbed the sniper rifle off his back and aimed at a lone bird. It was standing in the water, having a drink.

An oriental stork and dozens of others littered the area. He aimed with the Renov rifle and lined up his shot. All the while Midoriya watched him move, entranced by what was happening. He took note of all of Snake's actions. Then Snake fired. The hit dead center and the stork groggily fell over, the anesthesia in the round acting fast. He aimed at another bird, finding this one to be closer than the others.

He adjusted his scope for the birds' differing distances and then fired. Just like the last stork, the round made contact with the animal, and the bird was knocked out. Satisfied Snake decided to check on Midoriya. Turning around, Snake found Midoriya mimicking him. The kid held a branch like a rifle, having a small leaf on the end act as a scope. Snake didn't know how to feel about it. It was adorable to watch him, a small child playing soldier. He was so hyper-fixated on copying Snake, getting the position just right. However, it had alarm bells ringing in his head, as the kid treated it somewhat like a game.

"Midoriya," Snake called out. The kid turned and saw he was being watched. It was hard to see under the face paint but the kid turned a bright shade of red when he realized Snake had been watching him. Snake, then gently held out the Renov to Midoriya. If the kid was going to mimic and copy, then he was going to teach him to respect what he was copying.

"You wanna shoot it?" Snake asked. A little too eagerly Midoriya grabbed it. It was a good thing that A, these were tranq rounds, and B Snake had cleared the chamber. With the rifle now in Midoriya's hands, Snake began making adjustments to his posture. It was only a few adjustments, the kid seemed to understand what Snake was doing just by watching him.

"Now, rule number one of firearms, unless you're going to shoot something, keep your finger off the trigger," Snake told him. Midoriya nodded in acknowledgment, removing his finger from the trigger guard.

"Next, make sure the chamber is empty." Snake continued motioning to where the bolt was on the gun. Midoriya the quick learner he was, opened the bolt and looked inside. He then looked back at Snake confirming he checked.

"Good, I want you to look through the scope." Midoriya did so, looking through and spotting a bird on the other end. Seeing him ready, Snake asked, "Can you see the reticle, it should be the lines in the scope."

"I can."

"Ok, now this reticle should already be adjusted for this range. I want you to put the reticle slightly above the bird's body."

Midoriya followed the instructions given. He lifted the rifle slightly, aiming just above the bird's torso. He tried his best to keep it steady, but he couldn't handle the weight. Seeing this, Snake grabbed a nearby rock. He placed it under the rifle and Midoriya set the Renov on top. From there Snake would cycle the bolt, loading a new round into the gun. He then looked back over to Midoriya.

"Fire whenever you're ready kid," Snake said. Midoriya took a deep breath, a little nervous at the next action. He ran through everything Snake told him again and looked through the scope. One final breath, and he pulled the trigger. The round flew forward nearing the bird with astonishing speed. It hit slightly to the left of where he was aiming, but Midoriya celebrated nonetheless.

"I did it!" He cheered out, a wide smile on his face, "I did it! I did it! I did it!"

Snake let out a small chuckle as he watched the kid celebrate, "Good job kid." He then pulled out a cigar and lit it taking a quick puff. Enjoying the flavor as he looked over the valley, and watched the kid celebrate. When the kid finished his celebrations, Snake asked, "Want to try it again?"

"Yes!"

So he went again, aiming at another bird and firing. Some hit, others didn't. Midoriya didn't seem to care about what Snake saw. If he missed, he would adjust and try again, always learning from his mistakes. Hours passed as Midoriya fired and Snake began extracting the animals. They only stopped once Snake had run out of ammo, to which Midoriya put up a little fuss. He finished extracting the last of the birds pretty quickly and soon made his way to the LZ Pequod would meet them. With the sun setting behind them, something shiny began reflecting off the rocky terrain. It was small and getting closer as they moved forward. He wondered what it was only for Midoriya to run up to it. Snake ran after him to catch up, finding him with a puppy in the sand.

Its fur was a light grey on top with a more white-looking coloration on the bottom. He couldn't tell what breed it was though, it looked to be a husky but also had some wolf characteristics. The pup's eye was visibly damaged as well, if not gone. The shiny object he spotted, was a diamond in the puppy's mouth. Midoriya with no hesitation or seeming fear, started petting the puppy. The puppy liked the affection as it rolled over to its stomach, diamond still in its mouth. With pleading eyes Midoriya looked up at Snake.

"Can we take him with us? Please?" Snake was about to speak when he something wet on his shoe. He looked down to find the pup had set down the diamond and was now licking his foot. He crouched down to the puppy and like Midoriya, gave it a gentle scratch. It didn't take long for him to break.

"Alright, it can come with us." But Millers going to train it, Snake thought.

"In other news, a villain organization calling themselves The Final Truth launched a raid on Genetitech Industries in Bejing, stealing over seventy billion dollars worth of financial data. Authorities are still attempting to find the perpetrators but have so far found no information on their whereabouts. Heroes on the scene are asking anyone to-"

The President of the HPSC turned off the TV in the room, looking at all the members present. The other representatives could feel the contempt flowing from her. Many attempted to avoid her glare as she looked at them.

"Anyone care to explain, why an unauthorized raid is currently in progress?" she demanded. The Final Truth was one of the many Triades in China under the HPSC's control. Taken over by the President pre-dating her by almost a century, The Final Truth was one of their most loyal groups. They didn't breathe unless the HPSC allowed it, so what were they doing raiding a genetics research lab? Someone had to have authorized it, and it most definitely wasn't her.

"No one? Well, that's odd, seeing as someone had to have ordered them!"

"Madame President, I can assure you we will get to the bottom of this," Gecko replied over a video call, trying his best to not reflexively fix his tie. The President could already see them all squirming. The problem was she couldn't tell if it was fear, or if they were guilty. It seemed something would have to solve this matter quickly.

"Effective immediately all of your assets are being frozen," she announced, a hidden look of shock taking over the room, "they will remain that way until the perpetrator is dealt with. That is all."

She could everyone in the room wanted to argue against, but lacked the guts to genuinely do so. One by one they left to room, leaving it eventually empty. The President soon followed them out, heading to the computer room in the building. There she found Techno, watching over every computer.

"Anything?"

"Nothing, by all looks of it, our blonde friend hasn't been seen out in the open in weeks."

"Hmph, what a waste of money."

"I did find something else though, security footage of our mystery infiltrator."

He barely moved as the computer changed screens to a security camera on the outskirts of some large building. A helicopter flew by and dipped behind some trees before flying away. A few minutes later a man with an eye patch, brown hair, and that skull logo walked out of the trees.

"I'm afraid that was all I could find," Techno stated, looking over at the President. It was good enough for now, finally giving a face to their main infiltrator. That also gave them some other information.

"Run a search for reports of this man. Hell, I'll accept rumors at this point."

Techno did so thoughtlessly, remaining entirely still the entire time. She could see the nearby computer flickering past screens at lightning speed. Each tab only remained for half a second before disappearing and being replaced by another. Yet eventually she could see grainy video footage appearing. Some of the footage was in Arabic, others in English and Russian. All held one of two things, a different individual with a balaclava but the unmistakable skull logo, or the man in the eye patch. They were spotted in Iraq, Afghanistan, Iran, Saudi Arabia, Syria, Lebanon, and most recently, Israel.

The exact country the last two Elementals disappeared in. And where the natural gas was being transported. They were going after the convoy, it was far too obvious now. This group had been the ones sabotaging their pipelines, raiding their convoys. She had her suspicions but now she had no doubt. Throughout it all a name was beginning to form, nothing more than a possible rumor. The Militaires Sans Frontieres. A military without borders. She angrily pulled out her phone as she began leaving the room.

"I want a report on everything you find," she ordered Techno. The man nodded as he continued his search, going through hundreds of files a second. The President of the HPSC meanwhile called someone else.

"The convoy is going to be attacked. I don't care if you have to assign every pro-hero in Israel! But you will protect that convoy!"

The men had their orders, as they all checked their weapons one last time. Move in, intercept the convoy, and get out. All they had to do was wait. The electric mines were already in place, all they needed was visual confirmation. So Snake watched the long stretch of abandoned highway, it was closed for construction. They knew the real reason. Still staring out at the road, his men confirmed that they were ready. Fifty soldiers stood by him, all in standard-issue battle dress.

Two Krokodil helicopters were on standby for air support, and two Stout IFVs were hidden nearby. One Stout had a basic autocannon, and the other had a 105mm gun. Everything was ready to go. And Snake could see it now, the first trucks were approaching the trap. They were disguised as civilian semis, transporting an assortment of goods as a cover. Moving together in three rows, Snake could count dozens of them. There were also APCs accompanying them, more than likely transporting their security detail.

Slowly they neared the trap, unaware of the soldiers nearby. The first truck crossed over a mine. Its engine and electronics were shorted out forcing it to stop. Then the second and third trucks crossed the mines, stopping dead like the first.

"Now!" Snake ordered, and they all rushed toward the convoy. The men in the front shot out the tires of the first three trucks, ensuring they were trapped when the mines wore off. Then the Stouts moved in from the rear, cutting off their escape from behind. Snake could see heroes exiting the APCs now, hundreds of them all of varying ranks. The lower-ranked heroes were cut down in an instant by the MSF soldiers, their assault rifles making quick work.

The higher-ranked heroes, however, proved to be a bigger nuisance. Snake watched as one of them encased five MSF members into ice. Snake found the hero now turning towards him. He raised his rifle quickly, firing a quick burst of bullets. They were stopped as the hero raised a wall of ice, barely stopping the bullets in time. The hero then destroyed the wall, launching shards of ice at Snake.

Snake rolled out of the way, feeling the shards graze and scratch his battle dress. Standing back up, he tossed a grenade toward the hero, which was then frozen. It only made it worse as the grenade exploded, sending out fragments of metal and ice. The hero's costume was torn and pierced as shrapnel tore apart his chest. The hero defiantly stood up, clutching their ripped chest as he threw out another wave of shards. Snake leaped out of the way, the shard impaling themselves on the pavement before he turned back to the hero.

They fell dead, succumbing to his wounds. Snake shifted his gaze to the next hero, finding them behind the engine block of a car. They had no discernible range power, so it meant they were melee-based. Looking around Snake found similar occurrences, several heroes with no ranged ability to protect themselves. Unable to get close to the soldiers of MSF. It almost felt unfair. Almost.

Snake tossed a smoke grenade at the hero. The hero panicked and leaped away from the grenade, only to start coughing as smoke blanketed the area. Snake then put on his Night Vision as he entered the smoke. He found the hero making his way out of the cloud, and before he could leave Snake grabbed him. The hero struggled, attempting to elbow Snake to escape. It didn't last long, as Snake restrained him and choked him out quickly.

Exiting the cloud of smoke, Snake saw the Stout fire its 105 mm gun at a mountain of a hero. They were the size of one of the trucks and fell backward when the round hit him. Yet he was somehow still alive, his costume was torn and ruined but an almost concrete substance remained where his skin would be. The hero ran at the Stout grabbing the barrel of its gun. The Stout fired again, the shell cracking the skin of the hero's arm. Yet the hero kept going, bending the barrel back as the other members of MSF began firing.

Everything shrugged off the hero, 5.56, 7.62, the 30mm of the remaining Stout's autocannon. The hero continued like it felt nothing, flipping over the ruined Stout. He then turned and slapped away the soldiers on the ground, the plates on their battle dress breaking as they fell. Quickly Snake activated his codec as he watched the hero slap away another ten soldiers.

"We need air support!" he called in. He heard the rotors of the gunships as they made their approach, swiftly arriving at his call. They fired their 30mm autocannons, drawing the hero's attention away from the soldiers. The hero now looked at the helicopters, trying to shield his face with his arm. The rounds kept coming as they lured the hero away from the convoy. A safe distance from the trucks, the helicopter launched everything. Missiles flew forward and collided with the hero. His seemingly impenetrable skin finally broke as a missile tore off his arm.

All their missile pods were spent, and the hero finally collapsed dead. The rest, seeing their comrade fall surrendered, in hopes of living. It was a taxing battle, thirty-five men were heavily wounded or dead, and a Stout was damaged, but they had secured the convoy. One by one, they began extracting the prisoners from the area, Fultoning them into the sky. It was here they turned their attention to the trucks. Snake approached the first truck they had stopped, finding its sides detailed in Hebrew, advertising some wine company.

Making his way to the back, he opened it slowly, careful so as not to damage the gas. He found dozens of containers in the truck, all lined up in the back. He heard other soldiers confirm it as well. Snake was about to make the order to extract it when a soldier called out.

"Wait a minute… it's empty!"

Snake visibly froze, taking in what was just said. He looked back at the containers in the truck and began inspecting them closer. He opened one only barely, expecting to find the usual propane smell. Nothing came. He closed it and opened another, finding no gas. He opened another and found the same. He went back to the entrance of the truck and loudly yelled out, "Check the containers!"

One by one the replies came from his men.

"Truck two is empty! Same for truck three!"

"Four's empty!"

"There's nothing in five! Not even a container!"

They'd been fooled, there was nothing here. Every truck was empty, and people had died for it. Snake angrily tossed out a propane tank, the tank crashing onto the ground. They had the intel about the convoy, was it all just a distraction? It must have been, they must have known they were going after the convoy. But that begged the question, where was the gas?