(Warning there is attempted rape in this chapter. No worries, his neck gets snapped.
Snake and Wolf are on the helicopter. Wolf is sitting in seats next to the right window and she's cleaning her gun.
Mother Base, Seychelles Waters
Aerial Command Center
Ocelot:*Com* "Boss, major, maybe you've realized this by now, but... There's no other way to say it, Quiet's gone. She pulled her camo stunt and stowed away on a departing chopper. After pinpointing which she took, we figured out her destination. Afghanistan. Get after her. Only you two can do this."
Miller:*Com* "Boss, Major, I told you this would happen. I wish I could say 'Good riddance.' But Quiet knows too much about us. We can't just leave her out there! Remember what you told me when she first got here? 'One of these days we're gonna have to kill her.' 'When the time comes, I'll pull the trigger.' ....I'd say that time has come."
Snake pulls out his iDroid and he selects the Side-Op.
-------
Snake and Wolf are in the chopper; it's Mid-Day. Wolf is in the seats next to the right door.
13:45
Northern Kabul, Afghanistan
Snake stands up and opens the right door and sits down. Wolf looks outside from her seat.
The helicopter gets to the LZ and they jump out.
Pequod:*Com* "Be careful down there, Boss! Major!"
The helicopter flies off. Snake and Wolf head to a nearby outpost, that's in the middle of the objective area.
They see the outpost down the road and they pull out their binoculars and recon the area.
Snake and Wolf spot a few guards. Then they put their binoculars away and sneak over to the outpost.
Ocelot:*Com* "Quiet should be around there somewhere."
Snake pulls out his tranq sniper and he snips the guard in the tower. Then they both sneak over to the outpost and pull out their W.U S.Pistols and knock out the guards in the outpost.
They enter the building and it's empty.
Ocelot:*Com* "Quiet isn't there? COuld she have been moved somewhere?"
Snake spots some papers and he taps on Wolf's arm and points to them.
Wolf nods and they both head over. Snake pulls out his iDroid and scans the files. They upload to his iDroid and he sends them off.
iDroid:"Intel file obtained."
-----
Episode 45
A QUIET EXIT
-------
Snake and Wolf are in the chopper and it's around evening. Wolf is sitting in the seats next to the right door; she's readying her pistol.
Starring
Punished "Venom" Snake
Stalking "Maimed" Wolf
Ocelot:*Com* "Boss, Major, we've gone over the prisoner transport log you two found."
Benedict "Kazuhira" Miller
Ocelot:*Com* "Quiet was grabbed by the Soviets and moved to Lamar Khaate Palace."
Revolver "Shalashaska" Ocelot
Ocelot:*Com* "She's being held at Lamar Khaate Palace. Make your way there."
Enemy Combatants
The Soviet Guards Airborne Regiment
Snake stands up and he opens the left door and sits down. Wolf kneels behind him.
Guest Starring
Sniper "Quiet"
Ocelot:*Com* "They lost a lot of men to her."
Featured Mecha
Battle Tank "TT77 Nosorog"
Multi-Rocket Launcher "Zhuk RS-ZO"
Attack Helicopter "HP-48 Krokodil"
Ocelot:*Com* "Can't blame them for wanting payback. But why did she just let herself get captured?"
Code Talker:*Com* "I think it is time you knew. Quiet was carrying vocal cord parasites. The English strain, to be precise."
Miller:*Com* "The third English pair..."
Code Talker:*Com* "Skull Face was using her as a vector."
Extract Quiet
Code Talker:*Com* "An ace in the hole if his assassination plan failed."
Miller:*Com* "I knew it...."
Code Talker:*Com* "But, Quiet chose not to speak."
The Helicopter reaches the LZ and Snake and Wolf hop out.
Pequod:*Com* "Be careful down there, Boss! Major!"
The helicopter flies off.
Snake and Wolf begin to run to the objective.
Code Talker:*Com* "She told me the situation in Navajo, the only language to which the parasites do not react. If you found out, she could not remain among you. And yet she refused the Wolbachia treatment. Why? Because part of her still wanted revenge. Against you two."
Miller:*Com* "Revenge against the Boss and Major...?"
Code Talker:*Com* "In order to stay here, she took a vow. Of eternal silence."
18:00
Code talker:*Com* "But then, that sudden mutation showed this was not enough. As long as the parasites were inside her, she couldn't predict what might happen."
Ocelot:*Com* "And that's why she took off? Sacrificing herself, to make sure the English strain died with her..."
Miller:*Com* 'Maybe. Or maybe she only wants to infect the world. Whatever her plan, we can't let her go free. The vocal cord parasites are the last of Skull Face's legacy. It's up to use to erase it. Boss, Major, the targets are Quiet, and the English strain she's carrying. Your objective is to extract her, but if worst comes to worst, she may have to be eliminated. Both her and the parasites."
Ocelot:*Com* "We don't know for sure what Quiet's up to. But we need to secure her ASAP. She's being held at Lamar Khaate Palace. Make your way there."
Snake and Wolf get near Lamar Khaate Palace.
-----
Quiet, wearing a prisoner suit and hands cuffed behind her back walks out of a building. She looks back to the building then continues trying to get away.
A few soviet soldiers walk out of the building and one walks after Quiet and he grabs her, Quiet shrugs him off her and she tries to run away.
The soldier throws his gun on the ground and he grabs her and dunks her head into a bin that's full of water.
Quiet tries to get free but the soldier continues to drown her. After a little struggling Quiet acts dead. The soldier unzips his pants and then he takes off Quiet's pants.
Black marks appear around Quiet's eyes and she puts her boots on the guys neck and she snaps his neck and throws him away from her.
The dead soldier lands on another guard and Quiet kicks him away. She wraps her legs around another soldier and throws him away from her.
Quiet sees a soldier readying a gun and she slides over to him and kicks the gun out of his hands. The soldier tries to grabs her but Quiet bits his ear and rips it off.
The soldier screams and falls to the ground, clutching his missing ear. Quiet spits the ear on the ground.
Quiet looks to the side and sees a scared soldier. She raises her leg and brings it down on the man's balls, rushing them.
Off in the distance there are tanks and soldiers heading towards the palace.
Snake and Wolf are behind Quiet. Wolf walks up to her holding a knife and she's about to cut the retrains, when Quiet pushes Wolf to the ground and bullets fly over head.
Quiet runs at the three soldiers and she drop kicks one to the ground then she wraps her legs around another. The guy panics and he blindly fires his gun, killing the third soldier.
The guard on the ground gets up and he pulls a knife out. He slashes at Quiet puts her hands out and the knife cuts her restraints off.
The soldier tries to stab her again but she grabs the knife and twist the solder she's on around and she grabs the seconds soldier's arm and flips herself onto his back.
Quiet repeatedly stabs the soldier in the neck and blood goes everywhere. She slices his neck and jumps onto the other soldier and repeatedly stabs him in the crotch.
Quiet notices some soldiers coming out of a barracks building and she jumps off the soldier and picks him up. She pulls the pin on a grenade. The soldiers freak out and run back into the building.
Quiet pushes the body and the live grenade into the building. The grenade explodes and kills a few soldiers. Quiet kills the ones that are still alive.
A fire starts in the building. A body burst out of the window.
Snake and Wolf look to each other and then back to the burning building.
Snake sees the water tank next to the building and he grabs a soviets gun and shoots the water tank. Water bursts from it and it douses the fire.
A soldier crawls out of the building but he's shot in the head. Quiet walks out of the building and she's back in her original outfit. She's humming while holding her big sniper and a rocket launcher. She has another rocket launcher on her back.
Quiet walks down the steps and hands Wolf a rocket launcher and Snake the other.
Wolf:"You good?"
Quiet nods.
They hear a rumbling and they look out to the desert and the see tanks with soldiers following the tanks.
A tank fires and the shell flies through the air and hits the building next to them.
Snake:"Let's finish this."
Quiet nods and Black marks appear around her eyes and she walks to the building. Snake and Wolf run forward and they crouch down and pull out their binoculars.
Wolf looks up to the building and sees Quiet in a snipping spot. She looks back to Snake.
Snake:"Ready?"
Wolf tightens her bandna.
Wolf:"Snake, Let's go."
He nods and a tank fires a shell and it flies overhead.
Ocelot:*Com* "You're both surrounded. There's no escape. You two and Quiet'll have to take 'em out!"
Snake and Wolf separate as an APC fires onto them. Wolf aims her RPG at a tank and fires. It hits and the tank aims towards her. Then another rocket hits the tank and the tank blows up.
Wolf sees a soldier get his head blown off by a sniper round.
Ocelot:*Com* "Quiet's able to fight."
Wolf reloads her RPG and fires at another tank.
Ocelot:*Com* "She's back to her old self."
Snake and Wolf managed to take down another tank and Quiet snipes a few soldiers.
Ocelot:*Com* "Reinforcements! there they come!"
Wolf dives out of the way as a tank shell lands where she was standing.
Quiet jumps from her sniper spot and helps Wolf back up.
Ocelot:*Com* "Enemy to your left."
Wolf and Quiet see a soldier near them but he gets shot in the head by Snake.
Wolf looks to Snake and gives him a thumbs up.
Quiet jumps up to a new sniping spot.
Wolf aims her rocket launcher at a tank and fire. The rocket hits the tank and it stops moving and catches on fire. Wolf goes to reload her RPG but she's out of rockets.
Wolf:"Snake!"
Snake:"On it!"
Green smoke pops out near Snake.
Miller:*Com* "Supplies inbound."
Wolf pulls out her M60 and fires at a bunch of soldiers. A shell lands near Wolf and he flies onto her back.
Wolf:"Fuck!" *She growls and gets up.*
Wolf looks to Snake and he takes cover as bullets fly over his head.
The supplies land nearby and Wolf gets up and runs over to them. She grabs some rockets and ammo.
Ocelot:*Com* "Damn, there's more of 'em...! Are you ready?"
Wolf reloads her RPG and aims it at an APC and she fires. The rockets hit and the APC explodes.
Snake gets out of cover and he runs over to Wolf and grabs some ammo.
Snake:"You good?"
Wolf nods.
A few bullets fly over head and Quiet kills a few soldiers.
Ocelot:*Com* "Enemy in front! take 'em out!"
Snake and Wolf look head to see a missile APC.
They both aim their rockets and fire. The APC manages to fire off a few rockets before it explodes.
Wolf and Snake separate as the rockets land where they were standing.
Ocelot:*Com* "More coming!"
Wolf takes a big breath and she reloads her RPG and shoots another tank. The rocket hits and the turret turns towards her and she quickly reloads and fires again.
The tank blows up. A few bullets strike the ground next to her.
Wolf moves from her spot and she sees an APC rolling up to the palace.
She aims her rocket and fire. Her rocket hits and another rocket hits it.
The APC catches on fire and Wolf reloads her rocket and fires again, Blowing up the APC.
Wolf pulls out a re-supply grenade and she tosses it to the side.
iDroid:"Supplies requested."
Wolf pulls out her M60 and she takes out soldiers out in the dunes.
The supplies land near her and she grabs the ammo she needs. Snake comes over and grabs the ammo he needs.
They see a tank and they both fire onto it and it explodes.
Miller:*Com* "The enemy's almost finished. You both can do this, Boss. Major."
Ocelot:*Com* "Airborne enemy approaching!"
Wolf looks to the sky and sees a helicopter and she hits Snake on the arm and points up.
The helicopter fires missiles at them.
Ocelot:*Com* "Look out!"
Snake and Wolf dive to the side and the missiles fly past them and hit the ground a little way behind them.
Wolf gets up and fires her RPG at the helicopter.
Wolf:"Quiet."
Quiet hums on the radio and fires on the chopper. It begins to smoke.
A rocket flies through the air and hits the chopper. Wolf aims her rocket at the chopper and fires. It hit the helicopter and it begins to spin out of control and fall to the ground.
Miller:*Com* "No sign of reinforcements. Almost done."
A few bullets almost hit Wolf and she takes cover. Wolf takes a few breaths and she reloads her RPG and gets out of cover and fires at a tank.
She takes cover again and then she hears an explosion. She peeks out of cover and sees the turret of the tank land next to the tank.
Everything goes quiet and Wolf stands up and heads over to Snake.
Snake:"Good?"
Wolf:"Good."
Wolf looks up to the building and Quiet jumps off the roof and lands near them.
Wolf laughs and goes over to her and they both go to shake hands. Suddenly Quiet grabs Wolf's RPG and pushes her to the side.
Quiet aims the RPG at a still operational tank and fires, but so does the tank. the shell hits Quiet. Everything turns white.
Snake:"Wolf! Quiet!"
A few minutes later.
Wolf wakes up and sees Snake holding her up.
Snake:"Wolf?! Wolf?!"
Wolf coughs and she begins to panic.
Wolf:"Quiet?"
Snake helps Wolf up and he walks her over to Quiet. She's laying on the ground.
Wolf gets out of Snake's grasp and kneels down to her. Quiet has a big purples mark on her right side.
Wolf:"Quiet?"
Quiet gives her a thumbs up and Wolf sighs in relief.
Wolf pulls out her iDroid and tries to activate it, but she gets a bad connection. She looks at Snake and he pulls out his iDroid, but his won't turn on; Snake sighs.
Miller:*Com* "Bo...do y..."
All they get is static and Snake puts his iDroid away.
They look up and a dust storm is rolling in and they see a few lights in the storm.
Snake:"We're gonna have company."
Wolf looks down to Quiet.
Wolf:"No water... No sun..."
Wolf picks Quiet up in a fireman's carry.
Wolf:"Don't you dry up on me."
Wolf looks at Snake and nods. They begin to walk through the sandstorm.
Miller:*Com and stadicy.* "Boss! Major! Do you copy? Boss, Major, do you know where the landing zone is? Head for the LZ."
The sandstorm picks up in intensity.
Miller:*Com and stadicy.* "Another mechanized unit is approaching your area. Watch out. Don't let them find you. Boss! Major!"
The wind gets so bad Wolf puts up an arm and slowly walks.
Wolf looks around and she doesn't spot Snake.
Wolf:"Snake?"
Wolf looks around and she still can't find Snake.
Wolf: "Snake?! Jack!"
Wolf gets no response.
Wolf:"Damn it!"
Wolf keeps moving when suddenly Quiet struggles and falls off Wolf. She lands on the sand and holds her side in pain.
Wolf kneels down to her and rolls her onto her back. Wolf puts a hand on Quiet's cheek, but Quiet starts to swing her arms around. Wolf grabs her arms and stops Quiet.
Wolf looks around then she starts to drag Quiet to the LZ.
As Wolf is dragging Quiet they pass by a snake and it looks at them. Wolf stops and she looks off into the distance and sees some soldiers heading in their direction.
Wolf drags Quiet behind a rock and holds her to her chest. She hears the rumbling of Tanks pass by. Wolf rests her back against the rock. She hears some footsteps approach and Wolf holds Quiet close to her.
Quiet suddenly begins to struggle in Wolf's grasp. Wolf grabs her head and puts it on the top of her chest and puts her right hand over Quiet's mouth. Quiet calms down.
The soldier stops and slowly takes a few steps to them. He opens fires and he uses his gun to pick up a dead snake. The soldier the drops the snake and walks off.
Wolf sighs, Wolf hears a rattle and a hiss. Quiet begins to panic again.
Wolf sees a second snake approach them. The snake lunges at them and Wolf holds her left arm out and the snake latches onto her.
Wolf slams the head of the snake onto the rock and it lets go of her. She grabs the snake and slams its head on the rock again, and it falls limp.
She tosses it to the side. Wolf looks to her arm and sees some blood fall from the bite marks. Wolf tightens her fist.
Soldier:"Hey, keep up."
Wolf hears the soldier run off. Her vision starts to darken and she falls over, holding onto Quiet tightly.
Wolf partially comes to and she sees Quiet treating Wolf the best she can. Quiet notices that she's awake, she puts a hand on Wolf's cheek.
Wolf's iDroid goes off.
Pequod:*Com and static* "This is Pequod. Do you read me? Ahab, Wolf, what is your position?"
Quiet grabs Wolf's iDroid.
Pequod:*Com and Static.* "We can't stick around any longer... Talk to me, Boss! Major!"
Quiet speaks but in Navajo
Quiet:"The Major is here. Hurry.'
Pequod:*Com and static.* "Major, I can't copy your Transmission. Repeat."
Quiet:"Hurry. The Major is dying!"
Pequod:*Com and Static.* "Again, I cannot copy. Can you repeat in English?"
Quiet looks down.
Pequod:*Com and static* "This is Pequod. Wolf, Wolf, do you copy?"
Quiet looks down to Wolf.
Pequod:*Com and static* "Do you understand English? Hey, do you copy?"
Quiet looks to the iDroid.
Pequod:*Com and static.* "We can't stick around any longer. We have zero visibility. We're gonna have to pull back. Cutting transmissions..."
Quiet sets down the iDroid and she tries to pick up pick up Wolf, but she grunts in pain and stops.
Quiet looks down to Wolf with a Sad look.
Quiet grabs the iDroid and speaks into it. In English.
Quiet:"The Boss is with me."
Wolf struggles and tries to get up.
Quiet puts a hand on her and Wolf calms down. Tears flow from Wolf's eye.
Pequod:*Com and static.* "Major? Wait, who is this identify yourself..."
Quiet:"There is no time. Hurry!"
Quiet looks down to Wolf.
Pequod:*Com and Static.* "Where are you? What is your location?"
Quiet stands up and looks off into the distance. Then she kneels back down to Wolf.
Quiet:"No, you're moving away from us. Circle back to your 8 o'clock."
Pequod:*Com and static.*"Copy that, guide me to your location."
Quiet closes her eyes.
Quiet:"Proceed to your 10 o'clock."
Pequod:*Com and static.* "Understood."
Quiet:"Come back toward your 1 o'clock."
Pequod:*Com and Static.* "Copy, 1 o'clock."
Wolf's vision blurs for a few seconds then it returns to normal.
Quiet:"Shift slightly to your left. Now proceed straight."
Everything starts to become muffled for Wolf, she's slowly losing consciousness.
Quiet:"1.5 miles. Slight right, a little more. Yes, there you go. One more mile. Strong wings approaching quick, adjust to your right! Left. A little left... Yes. Now hold your position and proceed straight! Half a mile to go."
Quiet turns around and stands up.
Quiet:"Pequod, I can see you."
Quiet waves her arm.
Quiet:"I have a visual."
Pequod:*Com* "There you are, Major! Visual confirmed!"
Quiet waves her arm again.
Quiet:"Pequod, hurry! This way!"
The helicopter is close and Wolf can hear it.
Poquod:*Com* "You're.... I didn't know you can be so talkative, Quiet."
Quiet:"The Major is here. Hurry Pequod, Please."
The helicopter flies right over head and a light shines down onto them.
Wolf's visions starts to darken and Quiet kneels back down to Wolf and gives her a kiss on the lips.
Quiet:"Thank you."
Wolf passes out.
----
Wolf waves up and she sees Snake hovering over her.
Snake:"Wolf! Isla!"
Wolf fully comes to.
Snake:"You were given an antivenom..."
Wolf:"Where's Quiet?"
Snake sighs and helps Wolf off the ground. Wolf sees three soldiers walking back into the helicopter.
Wolf looks around and she spots footprints in the sand. Wolf kneels down and gets a closer look.
Snake:"Wolf?"
Wolf sees a trail of footprints and she follows them.
Snake:"Wolf?"
Snake follows after Wolf.
Wolf follows the tail of footprints and sees a tree with a cassette tape hanging off a branch.
Wolf goes over and grabs the cassette tape and she grabs her walkman and inserts the tape.
Snake walks up behind her.
Wolf pulls out her iDroid and she starts the tape.
Quiet:*Tape.* "I did not choose to be Quiet. I wanted to express my feelings to you."
Wolf looks out to the desert.
Quiet:*Tape.* "If only we shared a common tongue."
Snake puts a hand on Wolf's shoulder.
Quiet:"Vengeance was what drove me to them.... The only language left to me, revenge. But the words we shared... No, that was no language at all. That's why I... I chose the language of gratitude instead, and go back to silence. I am Quiet.... I am... the absence of words."
Wolf falls to her knees and she slams her fist into the sand.
Wolf:"Fuck!"
Wolf lets out a loud sob and Snake kneels down to her and hugs her.
Wolf:"Why? I know I'm not supposed to but, I just wanted to feel happiness, just once!"
Wolf buries her head into Snake's chest and cries.
A Blue Morpho butterfly flies past Wolf.
Snake pats her back.
Snake:"Let it out. Just, let it out."
Snake sheds a single tear.
Snake:"It's okay."
Wolf lets go of Snake and she sits on the ground and puts her head into her hands.
Snake looks over to the tree and he sees something shining in the moonlight. Snake walks over and picks it up, then he walks back over to Wolf and kneels down to her and holds it out.
Wolf looks up and she sees a sniper bullet in Snake's hand.
Wolf grabs the bullet and she looks at it. There are engraved words on it.
Remember me
Wolf turns the bullet around.
Quiet
Wolf clutches the bullet and she brings it to her chest.
Wolf:"I will. I will."
-------
Miller:*Com* "You have the results of Quiet's scans?"
Code Talker:*Com* "Yes. As I suspected her entire body underwent parasite therapy. The parasites compensated for her burned epidermis, and provide her blood with oxygen through cutaneous respiration instead of pulmonary respiration. In addition, they replaced the digestive organs she lost, and she receives carbohydrates through photosynthesis."
Miller:*Com* "Was Skull Face responsible?"
Code Talker:*Com* "There is no other possibility."
Miller:*Com* "Skull Face ordered Quiet to assassinate Snake, only she got set on fire instead when he woke up in that hospital. But then Skull Face revived Quiet through his parasite therapy. At the same time, infecting her with the English strain. That way, even if the assassination failed again, she could still kill all of us just by coming here."
Code Talker:*Com* "That was the third English mating pair - correction, the first and only English pair to be carried by a person."
Miller:*Com* "So either because she wanted to get even with Snake, or because she was working for Skull Face, Quiet approached Snake again."
Code talker:*Com* "Though in the end, for whatever reason, she did not complete her objective. Some change of heart perhaps? We won't hear it from her."
---------
Wolf is in her room and she's looking at some photos of her and Quiet.
Wolf:"I'm sorry."
Wolf sighs and she grabs a necklace and puts it on. The Quiet's bullet is hanging from the necklace.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
04-08-2022
3849 words
