The Days of Corruption

II - THE DAYS OF CORRUPTION

Individuals may die, but their contributions, their actions and ideas, can abide long after death. Major Zero and Big Boss (Naked Snake's new name) chose to embrace the ideals that The Boss held dear. Her willingness to sacrifice all for the protection of her country left a lasting impression, and led to the creation of The Patriots in the early 1970s. This elite organization, bankrolled by The Philosophers' Legacy and dedicated to the protection of the United States, originally consisted of six founding members: Major Zero (the group's senior figure), Big Boss, Ocelot, EVA, Sigint (later known as Donald Anderson) and Para-medic (alias Dr. Clark).

In order to ensure the supremacy of the United States, The Patriots envisaged a radical solution: a process of imposing the political, economic and social model of the US on the rest of the world. By standardizing other nations through subtle manipulation, nurturing facsimiles of their own cultural and political landscape, they believed that they might prevent future opposition or outside threat. In doing so, they misinterpreted (or, perhaps, simply lost sight of) the true passion behind the principles of the woman that inspired them: her belief in individual liberty, which underpinned her desire to defend her nation at all costs, even at the expense of her own life. Where The Boss might have led by example, The Patriots (and particularly Zero) increasingly sought total control to achieve their ultimate goals; The ends, in their eyes would justify the means.

With the practically inexhaustible resources that The Philosophers' Legacy put at their disposal, the influence of The Patriots grew as banks, foundations, corporations and, indeed, governments came to rely on their investments. With the iconic Big Boss promoted as a living legend, helping to guide the opinions of the masses and the rich and powerful alike, The Patriots began to shape the development of the world's political and social landscape. As the organization's power grew, so too did the disillusionment of Big Boss, who felt manipulated and exploited by Zero, and repulsed by his methods.

Realizing the growing distance between the two friends, Zero secretly launched the "Les Enfants Terribles" project. Through the expertise of Dr. Clark (alias Para-Medic), an egg donation from her Japanese assistant, and with EVA acting as a surrogate mother, three clones of Big Boss were created in utmost secrecy: Solid Snake, Liquid Snake and, later, Solidus Snake. When Big Boss learnt of his betrayal, he came to realize that his friend attached little, if any significance to the founding principles of The Patriots, and that his thirst for power would eventually suffocate all freedom in the world.

The estrangement of the two friends was now complete. Where Major Zero dreamt of solely of control over minds and information, Big Boss began to obsess over freedom; A total, anarchic, furious freedom; The drastic removal of all constraints and rules, an open and permanent battlefield where men could let their impulses and desires flow recklessly. Zero desired total order, and Big Boss the very antithesis: total chaos, extremes of individual liberty.

Big Boss left The Patriots and disappeared for several years, enabling Zero to consolidate his power and influence. The games Metal Gear and Metal Gear 2: Solid Snake tell the story of how Big Boss (assisted by Frank Jaeger, alias Gray Fox) seized control of two [fictional] nations with an army of mercenaries - first Outer Heaven, and later Zanzibarland. On both occasions, Big Boss would be foiled by Solid Snake, his son (or, to be more precise, clone - though this was not clear to Snake at the time). Despite being unaware of their existence, Solid Snake unwittingly acted as a tool of The Patriots - and, specifically, Zero. Once Snake completed his mission in Zanzibarland, The Patriots secretly retrieved the bodies of Big Boss and Gray Fox. The former was kept in a state of perpetual coma; Gray Fox was made a test subject for experimental body enhancement surgery, eventually becoming the Cyborg Ninja.

For Zero, the perceived betrayal of his friend heightened his contempt for humanity. Rather than hand control of the organization to a subsequent generation of secret governors, he instead chose to initiate the development of a computerized system that would, ultimately, manage world affairs in accordance with his beliefs: in particular, his belief that society could only function through uniformity with restricted individual will.

The Boss's deeply human ideals of freedom and personal commitment were therefore profaned, neglected under Major Zero's command until they degenerated into a perverted and pathological obsession with control and order, a fear of unanticipated innovation or initiative, and a belief in the power of enforced conformity to engender perpetual, manageable repetition. Naturally, such an appalling betrayal of The Boss's legacy could not go unchallenged.