route_1065 | //you could hide beside me maybe for a while

Entry tags:

//you could hide beside me maybe for a while

Who: Hal Emmerich (

philanthrotaku), Liquid Snake (

imthe_shit)
Where: Outside Sprout Tower
When: Early afternoon
Summary: IT'S THE FINAL COUNTDOOOOOWN
Rating: ...yeah, let's go with T on this one because Liquid has a dirty mouth :|a
Log:

There was a pile of Pokemon and trainer under a tree very near Sprout Tower. Otacon hadn't been sleeping much, with the stress of an imminent fight weighing heavy on his shoulders. At this particular moment, however, the engineer was fast asleep using his napping Arbok's thick coils as a particularly comfortable cushion. On top of Otacon was Asimov, little pink sheep on its stomach with his back foot twitching every now and then. He may also have been chewing on the sleeve of Otacon's kimono, but that was beside the point.

The point was that for a single moment, despite circumstances and weather, everything was tranquil and calm. The inevitable confrontation was a million miles away, and life in Johto really wasn't half bad at all.

But when you associated with the two most dangerous soldiers in the world, 'calm' was all relative.

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"You're both being stupid!" Kotai hissed at Liquid, providing a particularly angry barrier between him and the other two. Otacon adjusted his glasses, Asimov at his feet ready to shock someone into submission.

"Honestly, you're acting like kids! Why would you fight here of all places, there's no reason to!" The engineer sighed, looking completely worn out. "I'm not asking you to get along or even to look at each other twice, just stop fighting!"

And Liquid glared daggers back at the Pokemon for daring to interrupt his fight.

"There is always reason for me to fight my dear brother."

He couldn't be so close to Snake and just let him get away; he had to fight him. There was a score between them that had to be settled, whatever the cost.

Snake looked to the cobra, then to Liquid, then to Otacon.... before he slowly stood up...

And turned away.

"Come on, Sunny." the old soldier said softly, picking her up and cradling her in his arms, "Sorry for scaring you."

"No, there isn't, becau--Snake? Snake, where are you going?"

"Brother!"

He rolled easily back to his feet, shifting his attention to the elder soldier.

"Where the hell are you going? Don't turn your back on me!"

"You're just a shadow of my past, Liquid... If I fight with you here, I'll be caught in that endless cycle, over and over... And so will you." Snake spoke softly, walking towards Sprout Tower.

"Sorry, Otacon. I'll leave you with him."

From the way Otacon was looking at Snake, someone might think he had just been slapped in the face.

"But...I just..."

No. No, this couldn't be happening! Snake couldn't just walk away from him!

"There's only one way to break this cycle, brother!"

His hands clenched into fists at his sides. They had to fight, because if they didn't then he would never be able to prove his worth, and their father would be proven right.

"If you run from me, I will hunt you down. Wherever you go, I will follow you-- I am your shadow, you can't outrun me! As long as we both draw breath I will never stop, not until we end it!"

It was clear that Liquid wouldn't stop until he was dead.

Snake stopped walking, and turned to look at Liquid.

"If you want to break away from your destiny, Liquid, then walk away. Walk away from it. Your genes don't determine who you are, it's your will that decides that. If you can't break away from it yourself, then stop blaming it on something like fighting..."

He shook his head, "I've seen people die too many times in worthless battles... If you're my shadow, then I'd rather not fight with you. I'd rather walk with my shadow by my side."

"..."

Otacon didn't speak, staring at the ground in silence. He couldn't really figure out why, but...something about this just hurt.

"Fighting is in our blood, it's what we're made for. There can't be two perfect soldiers, only one of us can inherit our father's legacy! If we don't fight, dear brother, then what are we good for? What is our purpose if it isn't war? We are killers, through and through, and denying it is simply delusion."

He didn't know how to be anything other than a weapon.

"Our destiny isn't something that we can break. It's been encoded into us, it's a part of us. It's inescapable. And why would we even want to escape it? We're weapons, brother, and what else does a weapon want but a field of battle? Endless warfare isn't a hell for us, it's a heaven. Even you enjoy all the killing, however much you may deny it!"

Snake stopped, that line hurting him. He felt sick just hearing Liquid tell him that... So he turned to look at Liquid again... and began to walk towards him, Sunny hugging his chest. His expression is somber, cold.

He stopped, a few feet from Liquid.

"Shut up. I've found a life outside of battle... I've found a way to live... Even if I'm called on missions again, I know there's somewhere I can go... People that I care about are waiting for me. What do you have waiting for you, Liquid?" Snake asked, narrowing his eyes, "If you can't answer that... Then you should find something. If you honestly believe that we can't escape our fates, that's your problem. Fighting me won't change what you believe. Nothing will."

He looked to Otacon, then to Sunny, who was wibbling up at him.

"... If I... If I could have known you when we were younger... If we didn't have to be enemies back then... This 'perfect soldier' crap wouldn't have to exist..." He hated it. He was so tired of fighting with Liquid... chasing this man across the globe. And for what?

"I met our mother, Liquid. She loved us both... Not just me."

"...?!"

Otacon was starting to feel like he was intruding on this whole thing. The proverbial third wheel, standing by as a spectator with nothing worth contributing.

"..."

Liquid had a prison cell waiting for him, a small room filled with fear and pain. He didn't have anyone waiting for him, anyone who cared for him-- Snake did, but how was that surprising? Of course he did, he was beloved, superior Solid Snake. Liquid had long since accepted the fact that all anyone wanted from him was to use him until there was nothing left.

"What would have been different if you'd known me then? I would have wanted to defeat you still, and you would have been our father's favored son. None of it would have been different!"

He sneered and shook his head at the mention of their mother. "We don't have a mother. Whoever told you that was lying to you, brother. We were grown in an artificial womb... I saw the photographs of them. I've read the reports. The closest thing to our 'mother' is a Japanese woman who donated the egg cells used to make us."

"Liquid...stop. Please."

For some inexplicable reason, hearing all this was starting to sting just a bit.

"Her name is EVA. She was our surrogate mother." Snake continued, not even sure why he's wasting his time on this guy. ...But then he remembered... it was for Otacon's sake. He wanted to at least try to make things passable, believable.

Even if he just wanted to smash the man's face into the ground, and be done with it.

"And what if it was different, Liquid? What if we could have been brothers, and not enemies? I didn't even know I was a clone until I met you... I didn't know I had a father until I had to kill the one that tried to kill me. I didn't know I had a mother until you started your insurrection in my time... We're both used, for different reasons, so people can keep playing their games." Snake sighed, growing frustrated, "If you want to prove that you're more than what they made you to be, then break away from their games. You've got people here that cared about you, so forget I even came to Violet. Forget about me, stay happy with Otacon and Heather."

It hurt. He wanted to stay, but he knew it couldn't work that way. How could it? They were doing much better before Snake showed up... That's the feeling he got. Maybe the next town over would be more suitable...

"You'll learn to realize there's more to life than war... Sure, it's what we were created for, but it's not what I'm gonna die for."

"There was no one named Eva in any of the records."

Maybe the records were false, maybe Snake was. Either way, did it matter? What did it matter if he was of woman born? He shook his head as though to clear it.

"It doesn't matter. Even if we did have a mother, she wanted nothing to do with me. You can't love someone you've never met, brother-- don't try to feed me bullshit."

If she was really their mother, it didn't surprise him that she made herself known to Snake and not him.

"I don't need to break from the game. I need to beat them at it."

Had Big Boss come to him with the promise of Outer Heaven, Liquid would have helped him without hesitation. He would have brought the world to its knees for a place like that, somewhere where he would have finally really belonged.

"Indulge me, brother. What have you found that's so much more fulfilling than the bloodlust of the battlefield? What does the perfect soldier want to die for?"

"Liquid--there's more to life than fighting. I promise there is."

Damn it. Damn it, damn it, damn it. What was he supposed to do here?

"There's no reason to live like that. Not here or anywhere else."

He sighed.

There was nothing he could do. Liquid Snake was too far gone, and just talking to him was making Old Snake want to break his jaw. But that's what Liquid wanted, of course... Two brothers meant to fight to the death.

"I found a family. People that accepted me, even as an old killer. People that will wait for me when I return, with open arms."

He stared at Otacon, quite pointedly, his eyes saddened, "... And that's good enough for me. It's more than I deserve."

"...Snake, I..."

There was another verbal slap to the face. He wasn't sure how, but Otacon knew he'd screwed something up. Badly.

Liquid didn't know of any other way. He thought that whatever path he was on now, and to whatever end, it was the only one that he could walk. What did a weapon need or deserve of happiness or family? What could a weapon do but fight and kill as it was made to do?

Liquid had always been told that he was a weapon. And, worse, he believed it, too.

He had the impression, though, that things had suddenly become rather... awkward.

"Him? He's what you would die for?"

His voice was filled with incredulity.

"Yeah."

He looked at Otacon longer, then looked to Liquid, his expression remaining the same, "I would."

"..."

A long pause. Otacon's hands curled into fists at his side, and he looked up with newly discovered determination.

"I...I'd die for him too. Snake's the only family I have--that's why I can't let you fight him, Liquid."

"I never thought that the perfect soldier would go soft over his pet engineer."

Why was it that Otacon's attachment to Snake and his determination made Liquid hesitate in striking out at the other soldier? One punch, and the fight would start; his brother would defend himself if attacked, Liquid was sure of that.

"Nor that you'd leave your lover in the hands of your enemy."

"You don't know me as well as you think, Liquid. All you know is your hatred for me. But now you have to find something else to drive you... Something else to keep you going." Snake responded.

"You haven't hurt Otacon yet, and hell, I hate the fact he's traveling with you, but if you haven't hurt him yet, then fine. I can deal with that."

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//you could hide beside me maybe for a while

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