PAIN HAS HAD ENOUGH OF THIS 'EVIL COBRA' THING

[actuallyhornets.livejournal.com]

[BEEP BEEP
BEEP BEEP
BEEP BEEP]

[Everyone who Pain knows is not an Evil Cobra or one of their allies is getting a call on their radio or codec. Resistance, Soviet, dead peple (through Nexus magic!), other hall patrols, civilians, everyone who is not allied with or is an evil Cobra. ]

Hello, this is Pain from the hall patrols. There has been an invasion by the evil Cobra Unit that has resulted in death, destruction and chaos. I need your help to fight and destroy them. Please call me back or meet me in the theater on the seventh floor if you want to help. I'm not asking that you work with any of your enemies, just that you fight the evil Cobras. Avoid them and don't tell them anything if they catch you.

[He's been saying for a while that someone needs to stop them. That someone might as well be him.]

I'm counting on you. Please help me. Help us all!

 

Comments

[old-gunslinger.livejournal.com]

If we have the materials at our disposal, I'd suggest quite literally pulling the rug out from under them. That is, if we can sufficiently predict --or better, channel-- their movements. That is where insiders might come in handy, but barring that, Sorrow's ghosts may be just what we require.

I cede knowledge of the Cobra chain of command to you and the others on the team. Obviously, I haven't dealt with them in fifty years. And most hard data on your mission dynamics haven't survived Patriot cleansing.

[He can't remember anyone named Johnny. Hm, probably not important.]

...I don't think even a Cobra could take on a Metal Gear singlehandedly; do you? Provided they didn't have a rocket launcher. Or grenades... er. In any case, it may be more force than they're anticipating.

[actuallyhornets.livejournal.com]

Johnny says Otacon can create some technology to help us do that--invisible camoes and that kind of thing. If we split them up away from their normal groups--not Boss and Sorrow, or Fear and Fury and Pain, that would help. The End will be more difficult--he usually works alone.

Their Sorrow has some different powers over ghosts than mine does; for one, he can trap ghosts in one area. I'm sure he has more.

I'm not surprised at the Patriots; they tried cleaning up around us even before we died.

[He tilts his head.]

Depends on who it was and how they were armed. The ones most likely to would be the End, with a shot at the pilot, or the Fear, who would climb up the sides and then take out the pilot. Both would be rather long shots, but still plausible. Can you tell me some more about REX's defenses, or should I ask Dr. Emmerich?

[old-gunslinger.livejournal.com]

...Optical camouflage? It won't be effective against the trained eye --I recall the Fear had some prototype of the technology himself-- but it may grant us leverage for a time.

[A thought occurs to him.]

Bullet deflection technology, if I can manage to get a hold of it or find someone to build it, would be even more of an asset. But it would require tight coordination to prevent... mistakes... on the front line.

[He thinks back to Fortune briefly. So much of that smoke and mirrors performance depended on choreography. He hasn't the time or resources to orchestrate something like that here in the Nexus.]

Under normal operating conditions, REX's cockpit is impenetrable by conventional weaponry. Provided its radome is intact, Emmerich would be, in all probability, the safest man in the building. Lacking information on REX's one vulnerability, we might expect the Cobras to waste... oh... five minutes before my mother figures it out.

[He grimaces. He isn't yet seeing how this is meant to all come together, and that worries him.]

...You mentioned, before, about a Naked Snake that might be joining us. Have you been in touch with any of the Solids?

[actuallyhornets.livejournal.com]

It would be a good distraction, anyway. If we put it on someone fast enough...the problem is who here is faster than the Fear?

I know an Otacon. He may be able to help you. I"ll ask him about it when I see him.

...What is his weakness, anyway?

[He shakes his head.]

Not yet, but I've got someone out recruiting. I should have news on them soon. I'm hoping a Liquid or a Solidus will come too--they're both strong, from what I've heard.

[old-gunslinger.livejournal.com]

...I don't suppose we have a Running Man? A Gray Fox or Cyborg Ninja might also be effective. At the very least, they'd provide the Fear with better entertainment than most.

[His new arm twitches imperceptibly beneath his sleeve.]

REX's weakness? "He"? I've been over it-- the radome. Without it, the cockpit navigation systems are completely blind, meaning that our pilot would have to open the cockpit and drive clear in the open. Never mind the End; a mere grunt could take our man out in that situation.

[Having had decades to perfect a still expression, and not having recent trauma to throw him off balance, Ocelot's lip doesn't even start to curl at the mention of Liquid.]

Solidus would be excellent. Refrain from mentioning my name if you happen to meet with him, however. Depending on his arrival point, he might not wish to work with me.

[Read: want to kill him. But at least Solidus is useful. Liquid, at best, is a wildcard. And will want to shoot him in the leg again, something that is not productive at this stage.]

Can you tell me more about the Other Cobras' defense set-up? Their fortifications, the present run of their territory?

slow :9

[actuallyhornets.livejournal.com]

I'll look for them. They could be very effective against Fury as well.

[Nod, nod. REX is a he since the sex virus, as Pain does not sleep with inanimate objects. The bedtime story helped too.]

We may need to find some more defense for there, then--we don't want anyone killed unless it's a necessity. And what about RAY?

Ah, you still have to explain what was going on at Big Shell and the Tanker. I assume he was backstabbed at some point?

[To the point.]

They have no base yet as far as I know. I've heard reports of them everywhere, but mostly large rooms and enemy territory. Their attacks are relentless. They will need a base soon; maybe we can funnel them into one of our choosing?

[old-gunslinger.livejournal.com]

[Oh, the things that Ocelot never needs to hear about...]

...There's a RAY as well? I suppose I shouldn't be surprised. Autonomous, correct? [He recalls the masterless Dwarf Gekko he encountered on his first day.] If it can be swayed to our side, those two against the Cobras might... adjust our odds marginally. Let's not be falsely optimistic, of course. But I imagine those Metal Gears are the closest we'll be getting to a pair of aces, given the odds of the house winning.

[Have an exasperated look at the 'backstabbing' remark. Contrary to popular belief, it isn't a medical condition. It's just the best way of keeping things tidy.]

If you must put it that way, then yes, he was. So bring him in gently, if you would, please.

Cornering the Other Cobras seems too much to ask for, but we might 'politely suggest' a rear position for them to withdraw to if we manage to turn the tide in the course of the assault. Some well-chosen blockades before offering them what appears to be advantageous ground, but the floor of which we've already rigged with explosives. What would your group's predilection be for something of that nature?

[actuallyhornets.livejournal.com]

Sentient, yes. There are a few others as well, but I don't know their official names. If we have them on our side, they could be very useful.

[Nods.]

Sorry; I'm not good at the subtle spy thing; I was more medic or muscle. I'll be careful, don't worry.

Each of us has different tastes, but the woods hold an appeal to us overall. Easy to camoflage and fight in, most of us can use our specialties there, and if we need to split up, we can easily. There's an open forest room in here, I think, so we could use that.

[old-gunslinger.livejournal.com]

Throwing them out there in the open is not enough, in any case. The Other Cobras won't take the bait so easily. Better if we found some way to use the Metal Gears to herd them into their fallback position. Or alternatively drive a wedge between them. We need their Boss under our thumb more than any of the others.

[Scratches chin.]

Do you have a floorplan of this place? I, er, gave mine away...

[actuallyhornets.livejournal.com]

They aren't going to waltz up and try to steal one, no. Maybe one would try to sweet-talk an ignorant Otacon, but no outright theft. They're too smart for that.

We should try and start figuring out other ways to funnel them towards the forest, then.

[He nods and hands Ocelot a copy of the map Alek made for him earlier. The rooms are labled in English and Russian.]

This has all the rooms on it and such. It should be accurate for all rooms up to a few days ago. Feel free to give it away; I have more.