Chapter 3

"-So that is basically the entire Metal Gear Solid Saga." Silva finished his explanation and faced Venom. As expected, his face was ice-cold... emotionless… nothingness.

If you did not know him, you would think he was going through shock. But Silva knew better, Venom is the final version of big boss that did not tarnish the name of the Boss. Nor did he try to take over the world. He died believing that his sacrifice would lead to a better future in Ishmael's, or rather, John's hands.

They have stopped at another abandoned village on their blunder to civilization; it was kinda depressing finding many of those, this is the seventh one. Luckily they managed to finally find a compass in the village, as well as a sign to Mistral's general direction which if the sign is to be believed, sixty point eight miles away.

Hoooooray.

The compass is still working well enough for them to find out they were going the wrong direction, as Mistral was somewhere northeast, and they were going west all the way. From there on though, it's a straight line to the city. Since before that they have been following the sun and moon, it is not entirely reliable to know where north and south are. Silva didn't, but Ahab usually knew his four cardinal directions without hesitation.

But now with this compass in their hands, it will make this trek much more manageable.

But speaking of the moon…

Why did this god think it was a good idea to smash through it when abandoning this world? How this world did not die to orbital bombardment from the leftovers of the moon and made the planet inhabitable for all life, Silva will never know. Because the brothers took all known magic from this world, and possibly protection against celestial bodies crashing into Remnant. So, at this point, it's not mystical, just sheer luck with some degrees of science. Possibly other things might have been able to get on this planet now the same way, or through other methods, means, and chances.

They decided to rest here again for the night a week after they met, which brings them to here and now.

As expected, a multitude of emotions flashed through, sorrow, disgust, rage. No, not rage. Something stronger. Something... Purer. Fury. Yes, that's it, Fury.

Silva could somewhat understand what Venom was going through. To be betrayed by the very man you admired and trusted. Mindfucked by a so-called friend of Ishmael that is named after a cat without the permission or knowledge of said man, and a man who is numbered zero came up with it. The same man who became an enemy in the end through skull face and was responsible for the creation of the Patriots. Who just allowed it, in the words of cat-man: "It's what he would've wanted."

Granted, Ahab would've, but not without his consent, he considered MSF his family, which included Kaz and Ishmael. Even Morpho and Eipales were family. Granted, he did know ocelot through his time with him and his 'memories'. But he never treated him as well as he had with the real 'Big Boss', he could easily tell the difference between both sets of memories. Between comradery and formality. But he did have his moments, but it seems it meant nothing to him.

But to be reborn somehow and finally learn, later on, that what Ishmael did was against the Boss's wishes, becoming a hypocrite and creating his own country. Treated his own soldiers, comrades, friends, brothers in all but blood, by doing the same as every other politician. And finally, wasting it all in the end. Treating them as pawns to further his perverted ambitions. Now he did stay true to his word and did not toss them aside when all was done and over. But he found an infinitely more horrible way, which is to use their deaths to further his goals, by any means possible.

Not to even mention it was all for naught when 'Ishmael' decided to completely throw away the ultimate smokescreen three years later. After being defeated by David, he was picked up by the patriots (and possibly the research from Outer Heaven) after having a close experience of what Ahab went through for him all those years ago. In which they injected him with nanomachines, making him a prisoner in his own body for fifteen years through a MIC coma.

The same way he lost nine years of his life in a coma (not that Ahab was in a real coma, only Ishmael the first time). To be further used to advance the goals of the patriots, the same system created by Zero to follow through his will in his interpretation of the Boss's will, as some kinda messiah. Then put back together again with the body parts of his clone sons, only to later die to them, not even remembering or even mentioning Ahab.

But Big Boss was worse. Waaaay worse.

It is admirable and understandable. Though not acceptable.

Like a hunter, he was never wasteful and kept finding a way to use them in his game with zero and the patriots. Only, the legacy he left behind with this practice, was a fate far worse than death.

Only Kaz was spared and was given a quick death, but it was intentional, and Naked Snake was not the cause of it but was rather the influence of it. Which through Silva's knowledge and experiences that he explained to Ahab, is the same as pulling the trigger.

Examples of this would be Grey Fox: Frank Jaeger, and Raiden: Jack.

But it does not change the facts, nor the harsh realities. All it did is add fuel to the flames, of which was already a blazing inferno, into an unstoppable force that can neither discriminate between friend and foe, civilians and soldiers, emotions and rationality, 'good' and 'evil'.

Silva needs to stop him before he is completely blinded by red. Who knows what will happen by then? But right now, they need to get out of the village, their position is compromised, and the bright beacon that is Venom's rage might, no, did tip off any grim in the area to their location. From what he has seen in the game, and experience with Venom, it is considered legendary. In fact, it is one of those types of anger rarely, if ever, seen in a lifetime. The type of anger and hatred that is so ingrained into a person, that it's either the object of their hatred is dead or destroyed from this world, or the person dies. I am pretty sure there is a saying by the Chinese, but Jedi is just too lazy to find the exact one for me to find out.

But time is of the essence, and this world is not restricted by child ratings anymore, or rather, never was supposed to be anyway. It's a shitshow out here, and it gets worse by the second.

Silva needs Venom to snap out of it, and they need to get out, NOW.

"Boss!!!" Nothing. "Venom!?!" a twitch but nothing more. "Snake?!!" No reaction, except making it worse, whoops, anything related to Ishmael at the moment is a big no-no. What will get this man's attention? He lost his identity when he was in a coma that changed his mind, body, and soul. What could possibly be his current- Got it. "AHAB!!!!!" That did, Ahab finally snapped out of it and is realizing that there is desperation to the kid's voice.

They may have been together for a week now, but it was mostly training and awkward conversations, which can surmount to a fanboy starstruck by a very private actor who doesn't like having someone know all about their life. Now they are starting to build a relationship, but it is shaky at best, and with someone like Ahab, it will take a while to build that trust and have a true friendship, possibly becoming brothers-in-arms.

But that's going to take a while. Especially the events that caused Ahab to be this way, which Silva understands. And all good relationships start with a foundation of trust, thus why Silva decided to tell and explain the metal gear saga in one go. However, he did not plan for Ahab's burst, assuming that his training was enough to keep him cool.

Apparently, when Silva finished explaining how John at the end of his life didn't even care or bother to mention his sacrifice, it was enough to tip him over. For a man to know that his life's sacrifice was wasted is enough to bring any man into madness, but for a demon that became a monster, it is boundless rage.

"I know what you are feeling right now. I understand I really do, but right now I need you to shut off all emotions right now and help me pack up our gear as soon as possible. This location is compromised, the enemy will be arriving very shortly. Just trust me for now and get ready."

Silva said it in the most militaristic terms for it to get the point across through Ahab's fury. Thankfully Silva foresaw this, thus deciding to speak about it before Ahab could put any claymores down or that the both of them did not unpack much

'Trust Huh?' Thought Ahab. 'Last time I trusted someone, I died for nothing and was completely forgotten by the person who mattered the most. Then again…' He takes in the worried face of the kid. 'He knows my life story, not to mention he knows something about this world, especially the dangers. He could have left me behind to fend for myself from these strange creatures that apparently are attracted to negativity. Huh…'

Ahab had a faraway look. Taking a couple of moments in a matter of seconds, organizing his mind.

Silva did not understand what was going through Veno- Ahab. Ahab's Mind. He seemed out of focus for a moment's notice.

Ahab took a couple of moments before he focused back on Silva and nodded. He got up from where he was sitting to pack whatever they had with Silva doing the same.

When Ahab was focusing on packing up, he had at the back of his mind the thought of his entire life was just a game. His suffering and agony as entertainment. But like everything, there is more to it than it seems.

But right now, he is in danger, so one step at a time. He is not going to go over that with the kid, better to do it at a later date in a more appropriate setting.

Silva started packing supplies in the satchel that he found earlier. Luckily, it is in pretty good condition for the rough travels they will be facing in the future.

Nothing like his own of course, but it's better than nothing. Lien is useless at the moment, but the amount they have totaled more than fifty-seven thousand, so it'd be better to keep it in the off chance they will be able to trade it for items to help them advance further along with their lives...

Or emergency fire material...

Before they left, they made sure to find whatever they can that'll increase their chances of survival, no matter how minuscule. Mismatched clothes, some heavy clothing, a fur (from what appears to be the mayor's house), canned foods, and luckily low-quality to mid-quality dust, with some in some shell casings for some of the guns he managed to find and have. It's amazing what you can find when you are desperate enough to stop the metaphorical scythe swinging down or your neck. Especially when you know most of its literal proportions.

That's exactly how it is being thrown into this world with nothing to fend for yourself, proper clothes, and supplies.

He hasn't gotten the chance to examine their weapons and what their condition is. Only seven of them appear to be in working condition: three varying rifles, a pistol, a revolver (good quality, also mayor's house), and a lever shotgun (mayor again). They mostly need a tune-up to make sure it is in good condition from the neglect in nature and ensure it won't jam. And this is not counting Ahab's well-rounded, prepared, and positively modified loadout as well as the firearms he managed to find in the first village, the others just had dust or nothing worth mentioning.

Shows you how sad that these 'sheep' are dependent on hunters and 'shepherds'.

They also found some dust, but it was the common crap, none of the good stuff judging by rating the casings had compared to the chart within the munitions box. Silva also found out with some experimentation with Ahab, that bullets are way more effective and useful than dust, but only similar to specific kinds that would be an equal replacement. Silva filed that away for later when they had built a base of operations. A mother-base per se, or rearmament run.

The only melee weapon he found, or what could pass for one was an antique ax in excellent condition that he found in a rotting shack. It was left out of a hollowed part of the shack in what seemed to be what's left of a secret stash where the ax was in a medium container, with one end touching the floor, and the other end inside of what's left of the bottom of the stash with a good amount of medium Dust, grades four through six.

There were also rusted remains of what appears to be the mechanism that most likely has been the locking mechanism that seemed to protect the hidden stash. Because there was only a latch that had no lock on it. Which is stupid, because the wood in its prime is not a durable enough material to protect it in the first place.

But then again, the idea in the first place is to know where to look easily, enter the code, and retrieve the weapon as soon as possible to defend oneself as soon as possible.

The question is, was it worth it to spend all that effort and time just to hide the thing and get it in time to defend oneself?

The answer: a hard no.

When Silva first found the shack, he found the front door ripped open, with huge, deep scratch marks leading to the hallway that separates the rooms of the house. Even more mindless scratching to what could be the remains of the owner, which further down led to the spot where he found the ax.

He found the owner, or what's left of them, two pairs of legs. One was left longer and intact than the other, about right beneath the knee. All that was left of the other was a little above the ankle. The jagged, broken bone sticking out of the almost decomposed leg shows that it wasn't a clean bite, possibly prolonged the suffering of the shack owner.

The leftovers of the remains suggest that it was around a year ago, with the maggots having eaten everything worth eating. No signs of scavengers eating off the body thus giving an idea that the intensity of the attack was great enough to have the local wildlife be warded off from the village, thus becoming hallowed ground easily from the brutality and cruelty of the Grimm, or perhaps it becomes part of the territory of a big one, thus scaring the rest off until further notice.

The chomp was fatal, most likely through shock, which might have made being swallowed by the Grimm easier. A decent huntsman would theoretically not go down this easily without a fight. Much less not even give obvious signs of human destruction/battle.

And judging by how the legs were left behind, it seems the Grimm are not living beings, it seems it is fair to classify them lower than creatures for leaving waste. The owner was possibly an aura-infused civilian, never trained it seemed, most likely easily giving into negative emotions such as fear and panic. Thus, making the owner a big red target and exciting the Grimm enough to make this whole mess.

How can He deduct all of this without issue? As well as not being easily disturbed by the deductions?

His grandfather was involved in the military as well as a federal investigator, he also took on small-time crimes that the government considers a minor offense, murder, and the like. Helping the little guy out whenever he can. It was admirable. The rest he wasn't allowed to know because it was on a 'need to know basis'. Of course, that didn't stop his grandfather from dropping hints about it.

He had Silva's experience and practice all the skills and events that he is used to and dealt with on a daily basis. Why? Well, it was shown a use for it right now no? It may or may not have to do with the fact that he watched the old duo films with Jude Law and Robert Downey Jr. were in.

Anyway, at the moment, the weapons are usable yet unreliable. The rest of the firearms are damaged in different ways. Silva was lucky enough to find what passed a gunsmith/blacksmith's shop. It's considered passable because the shop's equipment is still in great working condition, though not set up. Even rags, what passed for gun oil, whetstones, grinder, hammers, you name it. Even some blueprints and manuals that looked promising instructed the unique science this world had into weapons and such.

He even found a specialized backpack to carry everything and stuffed everything into the pack as much as possible, in the right pouches and everything. He followed the manual that he found inside the lightly dusted backpack.

Sadly, he could not take the small anvil, the cute little thing weighs about 50 pounds. But it seemed everything he found managed to fit into the bag. Maybe it was a specifically ordered bag or something?

Maybe some people in this world do have common sense, albeit barely.

Most of it is still in its packaging. Most likely one of the reasons the village was abandoned was because they had no one to help repair and maintain weapons or were not prepared sooner.

Possibly never came, couldn't afford one yet, or was killed separately. One of the three.

Hopefully, his skills in blacksmithing and gunsmithing that his grandfather taught him would be adequate enough to dabble in this world's craftsmanship. He may be able to cannibalize the damaged weapons to improve the ones they had into more usable and preferable taste and reliability, especially against aura users and Grimm.

Silva reviewed everything they gathered before he went on to tell Ahab what he knew of the events of his universe. He was thinking of camping here at this abandoned village when the sun was getting low.

But when Ahab figuratively exploded and sent a bright huge 'kill me here flare' through every Grimm's empathic senses, that idea went straight into the scrapper. Ahab's character in gaming history was one of the rare few that his rage was acknowledged as fury. Another good example would be Kratos.

And when Ahab exploded, Silva knew at least a big one would come here running to the negativity with a bunch of small ones. Which is in a literal sense, meant they are fucked If they stayed there like sitting ducks.

Silva knows they don't have anything heavy enough to deal with the situation at hand without worry or any issue. They are also not trained to deal with them. Ahab might have a chance to survive if he left Silva behind.

But it wasn't out of kindness and willingness to help a fellow man or out of his 'good heart' as a Samaritan. No... it was out of a man's desperation to understand how, why, and what happened entirely to his life that was basically wasted, created out of the mind of a creator who was possibly sadistic.

Silva understood and accepted that. He is grateful and even happy that his life will end, meeting and speaking with one of his favorite, if not best, video-game character. But he sure as hell doesn't want to die alone. Call him selfish, but a drowning man will always try and drag someone down with him. It ain't right, but the man is drowning.

Silva finished putting the last of the supplies in his duffel bag while Ahab had already finished packing up the materials and weapons. With the duffel bag strapped over his left shoulder. Silva explained that they needed to leave quickly and make as little to no sound as possible.

Thus, they needed to pack their items in a way that would make no sound in any way while moving at a high speed, so they both did whatever was needed to, tie down the zippers, compact everything like a puzzle, and even use rags on sharp or moving parts, anything to increase their chances of survival by relying on speed and silence. They would also make sure not to leave any describable tracks.

Ahab was already strapped with his weapons. It only took a little longer for Silva to strap on his gear properly before he picked up his share of their cargo.

Hopefully, by Silva's estimates, that if they put at least 5 miles from this location and keep going, the strengthened and mysterious physiology of the grim will probably not be able to track them down and kill them...

Probably...

Before the last rays of light ran out. He noticed a mountain in the distance and let Ahab know that the mountain in the distance is their best bet.

They needed to find a small cave on the surface of the mountain to have a choke point for small Grimm and keep the bigger ones out. While not too deep as to worry about watching their backs.

__________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Two Hours.

Two hours of antsy, dangerous, unnerving silence. For Ahab, it was business as usual. For Silva, it was an expected nightmare. He has gone through things like this, but not as intense as this because his life is now truly on the line with his companion.

He may have started stealth training, but he has just started. Not to mention Ahab put a greater emphasis on erasing all emotion and presence while keeping an absolute calm mind. Staying out of sight was the easy part, but the former is something extremely difficult to attain, and even harder to recognize when it's working. Especially if it can be extremely effective in avoiding Grimm, maybe to the point where they cannot see you at all like in that film After Earth. But then again, the Grimm still have their eyes and can use other means with whatever cheatsy evolution they picked up, or some bullshit factor the AOD (avatar of darkness, cause honestly, that is what he is) put in cause he thinks it is a funny prank that involves death would be the most hilarious thing.

And he wonders why his so-called brother, the AOL (avatar of light) has more people of their 'creation' come to his domain instead of his.

For now, it seems it was enough to follow the lead of an absolute pro like Ahab. It was pretty nerve-wracking for Silva. Especially since he couldn't listen to any music to help himself calm down. Some "Running through the Jungle" by CCR would calm his nerves now.

But to be honest, Silva wasn't that desperate to kill himself. To do so would be a death sentence, just because it would be impossible to be fully aware of the environment. Much less, pay attention to your actions.

And on they went, stopping when they needed to hide from Grimm, using the tried-and-true method of take 'em out or let' em pass. Except taking them out is just going to get them killed from alerting the rest of the Grimm in the vicinity.

Ahab did have silencers on his weapons, but Silva pointed out that it was wasteful to use ammo on expendable Grimm. Better to be conservative for the most part. And for fellow humans? They'll see when they get to it.

Ahab found that climbing a tree and sticking as close to it as much as possible an effective tactic, even though it looks childish with all the gear they were lugging about. Damn whoever thinks otherwise, they just want to live dammit.

Silva, on the other hand, needed assistance climbing up. But all the recent training has not prepared his body to carry about forty pounds up a tree. 'Apparently climbing a tree, or more accurately climbing the environment effectively, quietly, and safely is another thing on the list that I need to learn.' Thought Silva. 'It could be the difference between life and death, victory and defeat, the advantage, and the disadvantage. I can't tell how many times I have done so, not effectively on the story, but A LOT in the multiplayer. Hmmmm… Most likely need to add parkour onto the list, urban warfare is also important as well. As well as paying attention to the environment to use less effort and even the odds. Or to use them against the opponent. Maybe create gadgets to simplify things.'

Silva realized where his line of thinking went and immediately realized something. That this world's hydraulics and mecha-shifting can finally allow him to make what he wanted to make for so long, just because they can leave the hands empty more often along with more actions with less effort.

'...'

'I'm SO going to make hidden blades. I'm not going to even stop there.'

As you can tell, they did have some pretty close calls. Some of them forcing Ahab to literally jump off the tree to plunge his blade into the nape of the Grimm, resulting in an instant kill. Thankfully, it counts as a lethal blow and causes just the Grimm to be paralyzed from losing complete control of its body and falling down, the only sound was the body dropping. Followed by it dissipating.

'He could've just stabbed with the blades and moved on, instead, he has to clean it well, then sheath it. With the blades, just stab it and go. I am pretty sure the blades were perfected to such a state where there was no need to worry about blood staying on. Rusting and damaging it along with the mechanism. In fact, I believed they were built in a way to have the blades be slick in a way to not have the blood stick on it and to be used for a long time with the worry of maintenance.'

The idea and use of the blades as well as other gadgets thought to be non-plausible from other games, books, and films were starting to become more and more of 'a promising aspect.'

Ahab was in thought as well seeing the creature dissipate into nothingness again.

'If only bodies disappeared the same way. The things I could've done, the things I could've gotten away with. Heh, even Kaz would think it'd be such bullshit.'

They only had issues with the smaller ones, mainly Beowulf. Luckily, nothing big. Silva, when climbing the trees, also remembered a ninja tool that was used to assist in climbing any surface, usually wood, as well as effectiveness in martial arts against weapons. As in the Edo period, most infrastructure was made with wood, rarely with stone.

He could not remember it; it was at the tip of his tongue. Oh well, he could file that thought away. As well as to keep in mind that all gadgets, tools, weapons, and such need to be modified to leave no trace of anything whatsoever. The people of this world may be stupid, but the creatures and people are way more sensitive and nosier to details.

'As Sun Tzu said: "So in war, the way is to avoid what is strong, and strike at what is weak." Or simplified would be to find the path of least resistance.' Thought Silva

One can never be too careful, especially when all your advantages are key to your survival.

As they moved along in a deformed cohesion. They continue on, making minor detours to avoid breaking anything that could easily be broken. Until they came across a riverbed, in which Ahab raised his hand and made a fist sign.

He went on to survey the area for any hostiles, points of entry, and possible blind spots, while Silva was waiting, doing nothing.

"..."

"Oh, does that mean stop?" Whispered Silva.

"..."

"... (sigh)… yes..."

"..."

"..."

"..."

"..."

"Sorry..."

"...(heavy exhaling)."

"Judging by how we are not being swarmed by mauling soulless creatures, it seems to be clear for now." Ahab whispers back.

"Huh," Silva spoke in a more normal tone. "Sarcasm. Never heard it from you before. Doesn't suit you. In fact, it sounds wrong to hear it come out of your voice."

"First of all, you do not act whatever until you or the one in command at the moment gives the 'all clear', otherwise you risk everything and everyone with you. "

"Sorry." Apologized Silva.

"Second, I can do sarcasm whenever I want, why would it be an issue?"

"Never heard you use it." Replied Silva. "Only John and David used it. It also appeared that you were not the type of person to use it. Much less the voice to have it."

"Hm, fair enough. And thirdly, don't say sorry. All it does is make you look like an underfoot figure. Instead, apologize. And don't apologize for something you didn't know. Just understand and move on. Otherwise, it inflates in value and makes your apologies worthless. Say it once or don't say it at all. We are not perfect, but when you say it, mean it." He explained.

"You are also starting to make me hate that word, all throughout training the past week. If you really are, stop saying it, be quiet, and learn from it.

"So- "Silva stopped himself in time. Then he looked at Snake and nodded in understanding.

"Good." Ahab looked out back at the river.

"We'll rest here for about an hour, get some water." He gestured in the direction of the mountain that somehow grew in size as they got closer. "We will need to get to that mountain as soon as possible before night falls if we want to make it through the night."

'The sass is unexpected, must be the anger showing through.' Silva thought. 'Still doesn't look right. Maybe it's only because I was only allowed to see him serious all the time? Damn it Kojima, why couldn't you give more fluid human emotion than just singular moments of pure badassery!?'

Silva and Ahab placed down their bags on a tree nearby the river.

Silva stretched his body to at least alleviate the soreness in his body carrying the supplies, while Ahab checked both the conditions of both their bodies.

"... something is not right…"

For Silva, he seemed unsure. He worked quite a sweat, the trip may have been keeping him on his highest alertness, as well as the untamed forest with all its dangers and unknowns. The type of exercise he did to keep in shape that his grandfather instilled in, was bordering on the extreme, starting with waking up at four in the morning. So, this kinda thing was something he was already used to... So why did he already have to change his underwear?

For Ahab, he has been through worse, hell, lived through worse. He has yet to find his limits, never once did he find it in all his missions that he completed. Yes, he did lose to Solid, but that didn't count. His old age was forcing his limit to be brought down at what was basically his weakest level. Fair to say he wasn't at his prime anymore.

He had a prosthetic to support his leg with mobility for crying out loud.

'Yet, it is a loss, that is indisputable.' No matter how he may argue. 'At least it was a warrior's death.'

So how is it that now, he has already become way more worn down than when he does so at his digressed prime? It isn't old age. He doesn't have the old aches that came with age. So, he must be younger than his actual age now. But that still doesn't explain it.

'Why is my body way weaker than it was supposed to be?'

He would have to see with Silva on why that may be. Maybe the kid with his otherworldly knowledge can come up with something.

For now, they should clean up and rest

He took a knee by the bank and reached for the water while Silva was safely putting their cargo underneath a tree nearby.

'Huh, Silva is pretty short, must be a kid by his size. Especially since this environment is abnormal and the trees are bigger than the regular ones seen on earth.'

Ahab kept that in mind as he bent his knees toward the river. He put his hands under the water, being unfazed by the cold yet temperate water. Taking some water in one hand started cleaning the muck off his bionic arm.

When he was washing his arm. He noticed another peculiarity. He somehow could feel the sensations of scrubbing through the bionic arm. Ahab finishes cleaning it. 'Another one of those "phantom sensations" again.'

'Ugh… why did the human body develop this sort of thing? Makes no sense when you no longer have it. Is it some type of yearning?'

Ahab finished scrubbing the muck off of his bionic arm. He noticed another peculiarity. 'Was my arm always this streamlined?' He started examining his arm in detail. There were no stocky parts, nor sharp edges. Just a smooth, accurate, and proportionate arm in reference to his body.

'I could've sworn this was not that streamlined. I kept having it updated multiple times by R&D. may need to check and see if any of the gadgets are still there.'

Ahab leaned kneeled down on one knee and scooped some water with both hands to clean his face. Rubbing his face intently of any grime and accumulated sweat. When he finished, he waited for the ripples of the water to still to see the condition his face was in, to see if he missed any spots.

When the ripples finally stilled, he stared at his reflection.

'...'

'WHAT THE-' "HELL!?!?"

Ahab fell on his backside in surprise. In which he wasted no time scrambling back on his knees to take a more accurate look at his face.

He turned his head back quickly. "HOWARRRRRRD!!!" And went back to being more familiar with his face.

The issue?

He was young.

Waaay too young.

His scars were still there as well as his 'horn'. His beard could be described as newborn grass. A far cry from grace that his majestic beard used to be.

"HOWAAAAAAAAARD!!!! GET YOUR ASS OVER HERE!!!!"

"I'M COMING!!! I'M COMING!!!"

'Ugh,' Silva blanched 'Man, it still uncomfortable to say that. Phrasing is annoying'

Silva jogged towards Ahab as soon as possible until he reached by his side.

"What happened? It didn't sound like you were in pain. Unless you were corner or- "

"Kid, shut up." Ahab interrupted, "Look at my face."

"O~k? Why?"

"JUST LOOK AT IT!!!"

Silva did so. He looked at Ahab's face to see what exactly the issue was. Looking carefully at every mark, and strangely, the telltale signs of someone heavily influenced by nonstop combat. Ergo: multiple creases in the skin, dark eye bags, or extreme fatigue. Minus the dead look in his eyes.

Silva's eyes widened in realization.

"W-Why do you look younger than you're supposed to be?"

"That's what I want to know, kid."

"KID!?!?!? I'm- wait... Don't tell me."

Silva quickly scrambled to the bank and looked into the river to see his reflection.

"No... no no no no no no no no NO NO NO NO!!!!!" Silva was in complete disbelief at his appearance.

"I JUST STARTED GROWING MY BEARD!!!"

"Really?" Ahab deadpans. "We are way younger than we are supposed to be and that's what you're worried about?"

"Says the guy who had a beard for over eighty percent of his life."

Ahab chose to ignore that.

"Look-" He gestures to the river. "I have no idea what is going on. Nor does it seem that either of us expected this. I cannot come up with anything. Do you have any plausible way to explain what's going on?" He gestures to the here and now.

"Also, can you scream a little louder and give in to your emotions? I'm pretty sure you're sending a 'please kill me' sign for all the Grimm to sense."

Silva immediately calmed down in reminder of the threat that was all around them. And went into a more neutral face as he let go of his anger completely... even though it was about the beard. Now is not the time.

Silva started rubbing his head and starting to think really hard of the possibilities. It took a while before he finally opened his mouth to give his input.

"Uuuuh... ok I got it. So, you clearly remember dying right?"

"Uh, yes?"

"Ok, so one of the best possible explanations I have that is plausible is that when we died. Our souls were transmigrated, or specifically were spatially, and possibly temporally transported to this world."

"Can you explain? I do not follow." Asked Ahab.

"Ok, so imagine this-" Silva made the ok sign with his right and started to explain. "Imagine a grid line, and at the center of it (gestures to his right hand where his thumb and index are touch) "-is the center of where you are. The exact time, plane, space, and so on. All the measurements to pinpoint that exact place and time of your current position."

Ahab nods in understanding and gestures to go on.

"Now imagine intersecting a grid line, and in the center of what you can see of it is where you are right now. So, for simplicity's sake, let's just say that there is always no end and no beginning. As existence is always expanding and never-ending."

"Ok...."

"The center is basically your home point. And in between the grids, would be alternative timelines, intersecting dimensions, and so on."

Silva paused to take a breath and allow Ahab to process this information.

"That is as simple as I can make it. If you need something simple to remember when dealing with the creation of all of existence, is probability X possibility equals infinity."

"How exactly would that work?" Questioned Ahab?

"Well, the idea is that every possibility has a probability of happening. And for every probability, there is a different probability of happening. No matter how small."

"How would that work? Isn't possibility and probability the same thing?"

"Well, when my colleague introduced this to me. He explained it simply: 'A possibility is a hard number, between 1 out of 10 times and so on, it is based around the hard facts. Like for example one out of ten people will have been inflicted with headaches at a young age."

"So, it's something that will happen no matter what?"

"Correct. It is something that will happen no matter the place, time, and so on."

"Now for probability, it would be based on a percentage of an event or action to happen. Which is like a percentage for so-and-so to happen. For example a person is bitten by a blood bat, then goes through a radical evolutionary change and becomes a natural vampire. The percentage of that happening is practically nil, so nonexistent in fact that it can be considered impossible. But it still is possible, no matter how small."

"That is how it equals infinity. That anything can happen, no matter how small. If not this time and place, then somewhere else. Of course, there are rules it must follow, but those are not important at the moment."

"It can also be applied to say you had two choices. You took the right one, but in another, you took the left one. It's all in the details."

"So then how does this apply to this situation?" Questioned Ahab. "This is fine and all on a crash course on whatever situation we are in- "

"Omniverse theory." I cut in. "Or for simplicity I call it infinity."

"Right. Whatever."

Silva frowned for a moment at that.

"How does that Address our situation? I get that we were transported here somehow. But how does that explain that we are way younger than we are supposed to be? Or if these bodies we inhabit by what you're implying."

"I'm getting there." Silva gritted out. 'Was he always this inquisitive? We were only shown the events that transpired, as well as memorable and meaningful moments. Kojima really played him out well enough to fool anyone into believing he was John but leaving just enough to actually prove that Ahab's mannerisms were completely unique only to him. Maybe I'm missing something. Ooooor this is how a trained professional in his field would act when he is way out of his depth, no contact, and no back up.'

'...'

'I'm willing and hoping it's the latter. I really don't think Kojima showed the entire picture, just a big part of it. Or it is most likely showed specifically what needed to be shown. I know that Kojima would not and could not discount the importance of self-awareness on the battlefield. It is the most important step in being alive and taking the initiative. Although, I do not think Kojima would account for the possibility of Ahab or any of the other characters starting over again right at the beginning of their teenage years.' Thought Silva

'All this sci-fi crap is giving me a headache...' Ahab internally groaned 'Who comes up with this anyway? Probably some folks in some R&D facility of some big agency with waaay too much time on their hands. I even heard NASA had some former Nazi scientists on payroll and were openly doing coke. Hmmmmmmm... I'm not entirely sure if it were the times or so… I wonder what Kaz would make of this?'

"I have only three possible explanations on how we are here." Continued Silva

"Three? Isn't it supposed to be infinite?" Countered Ahab

"Well, it's discounting all the other possibilities that are stupid, non-existent, and otherwise completely unfavorable to think and consider a possibility."

"Oh boy." Ahab 'cheered'.

"Yep, it makes you feel really small and shitty in the infinity doesn't it? Anyway, #1. The simplest one: R.O.B.'ed."

"R.O.B.'ed? You say that like I should know what that means."

"Sorry, I forgot that you lived and died in the twentieth century. R.O.B. stands for "Random Omnipotent Being". It could be an entity, being, person, creature of any kind with enough power to not be chained to the normal laws of space and time."

"But why? What reason could they possibly have to do so?"

"Simplest one of all, and possibly the most common. They were bored."

"They were… BORED!?"

Silva expected that reaction, he was prepared for it. He didn't like it either, but it seems for Ahab it might be his new fuse for anger when choices are taken, then forced upon him.

"Look…" Silva deadpanned "You were supposed to be dead, but you aren't… again. Would you really complain about the new life you have that seems to have no strings attached whatsoever?"

What Silva did was metaphorically lick his thumb and index, then pinched the burning fuse that was Ahab's temper abruptly.

"...Fine." Grunted Ahab "When you put it like that, it would be the case. What are the other two?"

*BOOOOOOM*

*HISSSSSSSSSSSSSSS*

*RAAAAAAAAAAAH*

Before Silva could continue, they abruptly turned towards the direction where two big things were meeting at the abandoned village. Where thrashing and animalistic sounds were heard.

"Damn…" Muttered Silva "Let's head to the mountain first and set up camp. I would like to already get started on some of the guns into optimal condition. The only ones besides the revolver are of a lower caliber, they won't do shite against bigger ones. I will tell you more when we are situated in a more favorable place to speak."

Ahab could only grumble and nod, but even he knew better than anyone that there is a time and place for everything. Ignore the pun, but they're not out of the woods yet.

Both of them went up the bank back toward their Belongings while the fighting of the big things could still be heard.

*ERAAyeheRR*

Scratch that, two big things, and one very BIG thing were fighting.

Both of them looked at each other then put more pep in their step sprinting up the bank and strapping their belongings on as quickly as possible and moving out of the area as their lives were in the reaper's sights.

Jedi: Hello everybody, I am Thefallenjedi66, I will be assisting Seike as the co-author in this story. Basically, when a mommy and daddy love each other very much-

Seike: They do things that will not happen (Jedi: yet) in this story. I am Seike. I am very happy to have Jedi with me in this story as we will make something out of this. I look forward to working with you Jedi!

Jedi: Me too. And well, not everything is absolute, and this IS an MGS based story (looks up at the T rating) so that has to go sooner or later. Because we must be realistic, and remove all restrictions, and we all know that we all want some juicy red stuff all over, just like in the games... and you know, un-alive people that honestly, needs to go. But we will be trying to be as close to the source material as much as possible and try to avoid taking lives as much as possible, and avoid confrontations, as well as keeping true to the boss's dream. But, then again, this is a new life, free from any influence and interferences at the beginning. So, they are allowed to be more ruthless in their decisions, and end the lives of, let's say bandits who are just a bunch of schmucks who are a parasite to humanity and make it easier for the Grimm to prey on villages.

Seike: What we want to do here is not to follow cannon material like others or insert Venom to Beacon as a student or a teacher. We want them to have their own path and plans for the future. Silva watched the show so he knows what will happen in future, he will try to prevent it but will not mess with cannon early since both Silva and Snake are free from the restrictions of their old worlds, they will try to fulfill their dreams, etc. There will be changes in future of course but do not expect Venom to join Beacon. They will after all create a new PMC from the ground up. Venom will do it to live his own life, Silva will do it to survive. And we all know that Snake is not a Saint.

Jedi: Yeah, and he ain't exactly easy to fluster, fool, or betray. And it will be undoubtedly harder or even impossible for others to do so. After all he is basically a carbon copy of Naked in all but Blood, so he is the legendary soldier, which means no blabbing, no "let me tell you my life story", no "I sympathize with the white fang", and definitely no "we don't kill the 'bad guys' and because we are hero's''. Feh, heroes and villains. Good and Evil. A comforting lie for Simpletons who cannot fathom the muddled gray of the real world. There is no Rulebook. Only Choices. And when venom died, it is when Big Boss truly died. Not when John died, he gave it up, and that was it. Welp, hope you enjoy this story, hopefully it will get some traction and have more viewers, until then, review and let us know if there are any mistakes, 'holes', and etc. that needs to be, or are needed in the story. Now enjoy the show.

Memoir: This is to keep in memory of the beginning that me and Seike started. Hopefully, there may be a time when we can write together again when our lives are not so busy