in the quiet loop. (solid snake x reader)

05 - loose ends

He looked up and then smiled. He tore the coat free, revealing the octopus-like tendrils of exoskeleton that hissed to life, clamping down around his waist and shoulders in an instant. The glint of his face, older and sharper, yet unmistakably Snake-like, shimmered in the midday sun. You knew that face.

George Sears. The 43rd President of the United States.

"No way..." you whispered. "It can't be."

Your heart skipped as it clicked. He wasn't just a political phantom, and not just a former president. He's a Snake – another one.

"What a pleasant surprise, brother," Solidus called up, voice amplified, tinged with cruel amusement.

Snake stepped forward, tension radiating from his frame. "Save it. You're no brother of mine."

Solidus cocked his head slightly. "Don't say you've forgotten me, Snake."

You instinctively moved closer to Snake's side, watching the exchange like a match pressed to dry tinder. Solidus turned his eyes on you now, sharp and intelligent, like he was scanning every thought behind your gaze.

"And there you are," he said. "The traitor to the United States government herself."

Your breath hitched. Snake shifted his stance slightly, protective in a way that didn't need to spoken. But your eyes stayed on Solidus, remembering shaking his hand once. You had no idea back then that behind the presidency was a man bred to be a weapon.

He chuckled darkly from the bridge. "Funny, isn't it? You thought disappearing would keep your record sealed. But you weren't the only one looking for freedom from the Patriots' leash."

Snake's grip tightened around his rifle. His tone dropped to something rougher, more protective. "Leave her out of this."

Solidus turned his back with theatrical flair, speaking over his shoulder. "Then you'd better catch me, brother. Before she ends up paying for your sins."

Snake leaned further out of the chopper and fired a burst from his M4. With a yell, Solidus activated his accelerator and sped away. The M4 rounds that Snake fired strike the access door instead. He aimed the M4 at Solidus again, but Solidus deflected the bullets with his elbow shield.

Solidus let out a dark laugh. "I'm a whole different game from Liquid!"

Solidus looked at Snake and activated his powered suit, letting out a yell as his suit started to swell rapidly. Snake then aimed a grenade launcher attached to the bottom of the M4, firing the grenade at Solidus, who snapped his steel collar shut and gets into a battle stance.

"That the best you can do, Snake?!"

Snake took an aim once again and fired the grenade launcher as Solidus jumped off the bridge just as the explosion took place. Snake stared down at the point where Solidus vanished.

Then suddenly, a Harrier 2 appeared from the blow in a rapid climb, with Solidus already standing on it. The Kasatka did a hard turn as Solidus deactivated his suit's powered mode, and dropped into the tandem cockpit. The Harrier fired a missile at the chopper. The Kasatka hovered over the connecting bridge.

Below, Raiden stood near the center of the bridge, his head tilted upward, wary, trying to make sense of everything that just unraveled. A missile streaked down the bridge with a screeching trail of smoke and fire. Raiden dove just in time, the explosion sending concrete shrapnel scattering in every direction.

Hal banked hard as you steadied yourself, bracing the mounted case of Stinger launchers that Snake had loaded earlier. He handed you one without a word, his own already slung into position.