Cobra Barracks

[unsurpassedjoy.livejournal.com]

(Attention Cobras, Snake, and those brave enough to risk it)


The Boss was quite use to moving from base to base, and in all honesty, there was very little difference between Russian Barracks and American barracks. They both had that same drab feeling of uniform efficiency. Life on one military base was generally like life on another military base, regardless of location.

Her morning routine generally included a rather long run around the facilities but she decided deviate from her usual morning activities for a few days until the men on the base got use to the idea of her being around.

Instead she decided to check up on Jack before going to locate Volgin. She needed to have a talk with Snake to clear things up. And, unfortunately, she also needed to corner Major Ocelot and get information from him.

There was also the fact that she would probably need something other than her American Uniform to wear, but that was low on the priority list.

Comments

[naked-snake.livejournal.com]

It seemed like all of them were determined to harass him. Well, except for The Fear. Snake felt he'd prefer it if he stayed asleep. He already had two of the emotion-labeled freaks bothering him relentlessly.

"I slept fine," he responded, though he didn't seem happy about having to answer in the first place. He could have said nothing, but he was trying, for The Boss' sake, to be at least social, if not amiable. And he had slept well, but he usually did. He'd never had issues with insomnia.

Snake rolled his eyes as the cosmonaut drew closer, already having an idea of what he was going to bother him about. "He gave this to me last night, actually," he informed the man in a clipped tone. "And I doubt that he likes me." No, the German had seemed to dislike his attitude regarding uniforms and haircuts and whatever else. At least the Cobras weren't hounding him to get his hair trimmed. That was something to be thankful for.

[vostok-n2o4.livejournal.com]

“Last night. Hmm.” The Fury shook his head, and decided to leave all possible inappropriate assumptions about ‘last night’ and ‘Krauss’ to the imagination. “Looks good, kid. I like it. A bit too flammable for my tastes, but it’s a good color on you.”

Woolen uniforms were quite flammable, much to the cosmonaut’s delight, and much to the dismay of every GRU officer who crossed him on a bad day.

Briefly saluting the Boss, he stepped sideways to avoid hitting either of the two Americans with his jet pack in the narrow hallway.

The sociopath said nothing more as he reached the main door, even though he had a lot rattling around in his fractured mind. Plenty was left unsaid about the suspected nature of The Joy’s true mission, and what that meant for himself and the rest of the Cobra Unit.

It was just easier to go on like nothing was wrong, and find a nice, peaceful diversion.

Reports trickled in all morning about a truck stalled at the front gates of the fortress, just prefect for stripping down as spare parts. Volgin would be livid to learn the Krasnogorje flame patrol and their leader scraped a perfectly good military truck for the fuck of it.

Infuriating the Colonel was about as peaceful of a diversion as the Fury really wanted to occupy his time with.

“If anyone comes looking for me,” he stopped in the doorway, “they can find me easily enough in my laboratory.” Without another word, he disappeared into the cold, white morning beyond the security of Cobra barracks.

[unsurpassedjoy.livejournal.com]

The Boss smiled broadly at the exchange between her sons. She would allow The Fear to sleep, well aware of his nocturnal tendencies.

She was pleased to see that The Fury seemed to be accepting Jack, even if Jack didn't quite see the brotherly teasing for what it was.

Voyevoda remained quiet, happy to merely observe her small family.

"Well... Snake, it looks like we'll be having lunch instead of breakfast." She had almost slipped up there and called him Jack. Again.

[naked-snake.livejournal.com]

That had been a curveball. The cosmonaut had just complimented him? Unfortunately, it wasn't something he agreed with. Wearing Soviet cloth and colors felt wrong. There was a good chance The Fury would never see him in it again. Snake wasn't too guilty over that fact; the pyromaniac had been nothing but an annoyance since he'd first opened his mouth.

And he'd been hoping that the Cobras were quiet, methodical people.

Glancing at The Boss, he shrugged. "First meal of the day. It's breakfast." He wasn't arguing so much as stating a fact. Either way, it was food that would quell his stomach's complaint. He waited for her to lead the way, ignoring the only Cobra still in the hall with them.

[unsurpassedjoy.livejournal.com]

The Joy nodded to The Pain as she turned and headed for the mess hall. It was probably a good idea that Jack was with her, following her. She'd learned early on she had better credibility as a commander if she had someone under her command following her.

Being a woman in the male dominated military life could be difficult at times, even for a 'legendary soldier'. Too often men expected her to be much more docile and obedient. It was almost satisfying to prove that she was just as capable, and in many cases more than capable, as any man when it came to fighting.

It was inevitable that she would have to prove that she had earned her codename of 'The Boss'. She would also need to make sure that Volgin learned where she drew certain lines involving the chain of command. Voyevoda also needed him to realize quickly what happened to anyone who crossed those lines.

"I'll see about getting something else for you to wear. I needed to speak with Colonel Volgin anyway... but that can wait until after we eat."

[naked-snake.livejournal.com]

As usual, Snake was at a complete loss as to what was on his mentor's mind as they made their way to the mess hall. He had always wondered, but he had never known. He was protective enough of his own thoughts--it made sense that she would be as well. Despite that, he was still curious.

He was also eager to know if she still thought well of him--or if he hadn't been meeting her expectations as far as performance, infiltration and socialization included. The fact was that he could only be himself; he could try as hard as possible to please her, but there were certain things he couldn't change about who he was.

...He shouldn't have been so hung up on it, anyway. He was his own person, after all. It didn't all have to be about her opinion of him.

"I wonder when I'll get to meet him," he said with a wry smile. It would certainly be an interesting experience, based on what he'd heard about the man.

[unsurpassedjoy.livejournal.com]

"Sometime today. I need to talk to him." The Boss looked at Snake as she spoke, glancing at the smile warily. "Be careful around him. He has absolutely no problem causing severe harm to his own soldiers. I don't think he realizes that I won't tolerate him harming anyone under my command."

'Under my command', it was a general statement. She had almost said her Cobras. But that didn't include Jack, not yet. She couldn't deny that he was family. He was actually fitting in very well with her violent, eccentric Cobras.

"Tell me about your fight with the Ocelots." It was a vague question, purposefully left open to interpretation. She had often posed the same question to her Cobras.

The Sorrow had always taken a philosophical, scholarly view of battle. His answers were always tragic and enlightening. Knowledge at the price of life and innocence.

The Fear had generally given vague, gory accounts of his battles. '...then the Nazi who'd been hiding behind an old log with some nasty smelling mushrooms on it fell over and began twitching...' He could often describe in great detail how they had died, but wouldn't have been able to remember if the soldier had been a Colonel or a Private.

Hopefully hearing Jack talk about his fight would give her some insight to what emotion best suited him.

[naked-snake.livejournal.com]

All Snake kept hearing in conjunction with the name Volgin was warnings - more and more warnings. He knew well enough to be careful around the man, but that didn't stop him from wanting to meet him. He couldn't help having some curiosity when he'd heard so much. He'd be careful, though he wasn't sure what he would do to upset the man that much in the first place.

Unless he was that strict about people wearing uniforms.

Her question--more of a demand, really--was easy enough to respond to. It had been just yesterday, after all.

"They surrounded me, but they didn't attack at first. Ocelot taunted me for a while and he thought I was you at first. I made fairly short work of them, though. I didn't kill anyone, though one of them had to take a tranquilizer dart to the arm." He shrugged. Some would have considered that sloppy, but it was what he'd needed to do at the time.

"I told Ocelot that he'd handle a Revolver better than that Makarov he was using." That was the truth. If there was one thing Snake knew more than enough about, it was guns.

[unsurpassedjoy.livejournal.com]

"I'm glad that you didn't kill any of them. If you had I'm fairly certain that the rest of the unit would be out for blood." Snake couldn't have known that he would be coming to Groznyj Grad in an impromptu, forced defection of sorts. "But beyond that, in most situation it's better to disable an opponent than to kill them."

There were all sorts of tactical reasons behind it, capturing them and interrogating them, and furthermore any enemy that left the battle injured consumed resources and took up space without being able to contribute to their sides efforts.

There were plenty of moral and emotional reasons to leave them alive as well, but thinking about those always lead her thoughts to The Sorrow...

She couldn't help but smile slightly in amusement at the knowledge that Snake had given Ocelot gun advice. "You have to be very confident to give advice to an enemy." The Joy didn't believe Snake was overconfident or arrogant, the statement was mostly to find out why he'd said that to Ocelot.

[naked-snake.livejournal.com]

"I know that," Snake responded, though not in a hostile manner. Obviously, as a soldier, killing was something he'd had to come to terms with a long time ago. However, being in infiltration, killing tended to be detrimental to the mission--and most sane people would rather not kill unless they had to. It had been easy for him to make sure they all lived--it was in dangerous situations that blood had to be spilled.

He shrugged. It might have been a bold move, but he had his reasons for it. "He's talented, but he'd be an actual challenge if he got good with a revolver. With practice, he'd become a better soldier than he is now. A much better soldier." He smirked, glancing at his mentor. "And I'd like to fight him when he's become that soldier."

There was some skewed logic in it, yes, but he felt that The Boss would understand. There was a certain type of exhilaration he got from a particularly good battle--and he hadn't felt it the day before. He wanted to.

[unsurpassedjoy.livejournal.com]

The Joy nodded in quiet understanding as Jack admitted he would like to fight the Ocelot Major when he'd improved. Honestly, she felt similar about Snake. When she had first found him, she had somehow known that if anyone would ever surpass her, it would be him.

Voyevoda had been looking forward to that day since she had started teaching Snake, and she was beginning to think that she wouldn't have to wait too much longer.

"It's natural to desire a challenge." Most people, however, assumed that if they could defeat a person once, they could always do so.

"And you're right about Major Ocelot." He would become a much better soldier, she was sure of that.

The Mess hall was mostly empty when they arrived, still too early for most to be eating lunch.

[naked-snake.livejournal.com]

Snake had to wonder why it was natural to want to work so hard for something instead of it being easy. It didn't make sense, though challenges provided the only way one could improve.

And when it was all based on survival of the fittest...

It made some sense, then.

"We'll see if he listens to me," he said with a smirk and a shrug. He was surprised the young man hadn't tracked him down yet to give him a tongue lashing for the stunt he'd pulled the day before, but maybe the kitty was still licking at his wounds.

They'd run into each other eventually.

Snake was pleased to see how empty the mess hall was. Nodding to his mentor, he moved away from her so that he could quickly grab a tray and gather some food.

[unsurpassedjoy.livejournal.com]

"I think he will," She said, smiling at Snake. He had grown up a lot since the last time she had seen him. The Joy moved at a more relaxed pace as she grabbed a tray to get food.

Partly because she was really not in any hurry, and partly because she did not look forward to more Russian military food. Then again, American military food wasn't any better.

"What do you think of Groznyj Grad so far, Snake?"

[naked-snake.livejournal.com]

What was there to think of it? It was a base--there wasn't anything particularly special about it, as far as he knew. Then again, he hadn't exactly seen much of the base. He wasn't sure if he was allowed to simply go wandering around. Certain areas probably required specific authorization levels and so on...

He shrugged. "I haven't seen much." He didn't want to speak badly of the place, since he wasn't sure what The Boss' feelings on it were. He didn't enjoy any of the people thus far--the German and the Cobras had irked him more than anything, but he knew his mentor would frown if he mentioned that.

No, it was best to keep quiet. With his tray full of food, the soldier quickly sat down at a table and started to eat.

[unsurpassedjoy.livejournal.com]

Had Jack always been this... withdrawn? Perhaps apathy did suit him best, but that wasn't how she remembered him... then again, it had been several years.

"I think The Fury is starting to accept you." The Joy said quietly as she sat down at the table as well. "They take some getting use to..." She smiled fondly, remembering when she had first gotten them all together.

They were difficult to deal with on their own sometimes, but all of them together... It was a wonder that the Unit had grown as close as they had. Family...

"Do you want to be a Cobra, Snake?" It was best to ask him before she tried to start the process. "You're my student, and if you didn't know it already, my Cobras often called themselves 'The sons of The Boss'... they're like family to me." Voyevoda paused for a moment to let it sink in before continuing.

"Because you trained under me, you have the right to be a part of that family as well." Honestly, she didn't think her Cobras would give him much of a choice. The Fury seemed oddly insistent in his own way that Jack become part of the family.

[naked-snake.livejournal.com]

It was true that he wasn't always quite so quiet, but being in another country, expected to conform to the Soviet way... It put him on edge. He would have been a bit more vocal if he could have spoken of his some of his complaints about the place and the people in it, but he wasn't sure if The Boss would approve of that... And he didn't want her thinking badly of him.

"Accept me? He doesn't exactly know me," he responded with a frown. Then again, who did? Well... if there was anyone, it was The Boss. Maybe she would understand the cosmonaut's behavior, but he certainly didn't.

As for her question, it was difficult to answer. The truth was that he didn't exactly want to be part of that group, but he wasn't sure if she would really consider him at part of her family if he didn't. However, being a Cobra seemed like a lifelong commitment... And he was only planning to be here as long as the mission required it. (Then again, he had no idea what was happening with that... And this limbo he was in was making him more and more uneasy.)

"I..." He sighed and stared down at his food. Where the hell was his appetite? "I don't. Not really." He was wincing inwardly, worried about how she'd respond. He didn't want to lie to her, but he didn't want her scorning him, either.

[unsurpassedjoy.livejournal.com]

The Joy nodded slightly, staring intently at Jack and doing her best to figure out his emotions, as hidden and suppressed as they were.

"I understand," It was a big thing, really. Her Cobras had given a vow to follow her till the day that they all died. And the way they had said it gave the impression that they firmly believed they would one day follow her on a mission from which there would be no return.

Particularly with that sad smile The Sorrow had on his face as he said it. The Boss blinked slightly as she looked away from Snake towards a window. It was raining outside, heavily.

Not for the first time she wondered if The Sorrow had known, even then, and agreed anyway. "I didn't expect you to say yes."

Jack was too pure, too young to be a Cobra. He hadn't yet learned what it was to carry an emotion of his own into battle. To embrace the strengths and weaknesses inherent to emotions.

[naked-snake.livejournal.com]

She understood. But did that meant she liked the answer? Then again, picking apart everything she said was just going to give him a headache. Or perhaps an ulcer. Neither of which he particularly wanted.

Even if Snake didn't understand everything about what it meant to be a Cobra, he knew enough to realize that it was a lot of him he'd have to give to his mentor. Then again, so many others had been willing... Why wasn't he up to it?

And why had she expected him to refuse? He frowned, not exactly pleased with the situation, even if she hadn't been disappointed. He picked at his food and decided that a change of subject might be a good idea.

"Any plans for the day?" He hoped there was. He didn't like having nothing to do, especially when he felt like he was supposed to be accomplishing something. But he was simply waiting for her word at this point... Or maybe someone from back home would get in contact with him.

It was becoming more and more obvious that his life was based on listening to the instructions of others.

[unsurpassedjoy.livejournal.com]

"I need to speak with Volgin, and probably Major Ocelot as well. You can accompany me if you wish, if not, I suggest you get familiar with the base. The Fury informed me that there are a surprising number of under ground tunnels and similar interesting things..."

"But don't wander off too far, I might need you to help me with a few things later." Like sabotaging the shagohod, for instance. That was a big job, and while it could be done single handed, it would be simpler with help.

She had eaten all she wanted of the less than appetizing food. "Snake... stop worrying. I'm not unhappy with you for not wanting to be a Cobra. Being a Cobra or not, it doesn't change very much." That was more or less true, she would likely continue to see him in the same manner if he was a Cobra or not.

"I know I've practically turned your world upside down in the last twenty four hours." Strange, earlier she was thinking how much he was changed, now he reminded her of how he was when she first started training him.

She leaned forward until her forehead was almost touching his. "If you really want something to do, why don't you go ask The Fury what he thinks about the Shagohod? Just don't be surprised if he entertains fantasies of seeing it blown up and on fire." A subtle message in there, hopefully whatever sabotage occurred would be a lot less obvious than that.

[naked-snake.livejournal.com]

Tunnels? It might be a good idea to look into that if he ever had to sneak around the place--or sneak out. Still, if The Fury knew about them, who knew how many other people did as well? It had to be better than sneaking above-ground, though. "I could come with you," he replied with a shrug. "I'm not sure what parts of the base I'm allowed to be in and what parts I'm not." Usually that wouldn't be a problem, but Snake tended to end up in high-security places without meaning to because he was naturally quiet and inconspicuous.

Help her with a few things...? "Like what?" He didn't see any harm in asking if she had mentioned it. No one was paying them much attention, anyway.

Dammit, why did she have to be so good at reading him? He sighed and nodded. If there wasn't much difference between being a Cobra and not being one, then he'd much rather not be one. Signing himself into a group like that would have felt... suffocating.

"I'm used to that sort of thing," he replied. Getting his world turned upside down tended to be part of the job description. Things often went the way he expected them to. At least she was here this time.

"Why would I want to go talk to him?" he asked with a scoff, resisting the urge to pull away from her as she leaned in. "I'd rather go with you or wander around on my own... So long as I know where I can or can't be."

[unsurpassedjoy.livejournal.com]

She was almost disappointed that Jack hadn't managed to string together the clues that she'd dropped. Then again, he did alternate drastically between dangerously insightful and painfully dense.

"You might like to get to know him. It was just a thought. Despite his eccentricities The Fury is always a good person to have as an ally. He's also quite intelligent, a genius even... but don't tell him I said that, he has enough of an ego already."

She got up from the table. "But you're welcome to come with me if you like. I would enjoy the company." It had been so long, she really had missed her youngest.

"When we talk to Volgin, we'll find out what parts of the base are off limits."

[naked-snake.livejournal.com]

Strangely enough, he hadn't eaten much. It wasn't that the food was bad. He didn't mind it that much. He'd just been occupied with other things and with the conversation. He stared down at the food and took a few quick bites before standing.

As much as The Boss spoke well of The Fury, Snake wasn't sure if he liked him. All he'd done thus far was irritate him. Maybe he took some getting used to, but Snake didn't have the time or effort to put into that. He also didn't care enough to bother with it. Though he got the feeling that no matter what he did, the cosmonaut would probably bother him.

Going with her seemed like the best idea at this point. He'd wanted to meet Volgin, anyway. "When was the first time you met him?" he asked curiously. They had seemed to know each other pretty well back on that bridge...

He wouldn't be nervous about it. That would be stupid.