Dragon Hide
Samus looked at the newest addition to her suit, procured from the alien planet she was currently on. The planet in question was not in any databanks, but seemed to have an extremely advanced level of technology, though there was no trace of the original inhabitants of the civilization that created the technology in question. What she had found was listed as a distabalizer. A very unique weapon capable of twisting an object or creature's molecular structure to shrink or enlarge her target. Truly a great weapon. Of course, it had its limits. Certain creatures had a far denser molecular structure, making it far more difficult for the distabalizer to rearrange their build.
She stepped onto her ship, docked in a clearing a little ways away from the ruins where she had found the item in question. She moved into it, glad that she had gotten the expansion upgrade. The ship was now at least twice as large as it had been before, allowing more storage space, but the same mobility, which was good considering that it was a hunter class ship. She needed the mobility to keep up with her prey and also for melee fighting. She stepped inside and sighed. "Computer, activate scanner and search for any threatening life forms in the immediate vicinity."
The computer beeped a few times before answering. "No immediate threats detected."
Samus nodded. "Excellent. Activate shutdown mode for the next eight hours. We will depart tomorrow." She stripped herself of her power suit, sitting down on the semi-soft bedding nearby. She yawned and wiped a large amount of sweat from her brow. "I will be sleeping for the duration of the shutdown. Wake me immediately after power up." She set her arm cannon to the side, as she always did. It was a safety precaution she had developed while the ship was in shutdown mode. That way it was easy reach should anything come towards the ship without her knowledge.
The computer beeped again and slowly the lights started to fade as the shutdown commenced. "Understood. Sleep well, captain." The computer shut down completely now.
Samus yawned and smiled, laying down against the pillow, smiling. She closed her eyes, though one of her hands was drooping over the side of the bed, the arm cannon in easy reach.
Ridley flexed his newest body, smiling, his huge fangs glinting in the low light of the pirate frigate. The DNA duplicator worked wonders. It was as if he had never been blasted by her in the first place. Oh... but he had a burning memory of what it was like to have that beam of hers rip through him... first his wings and then his chest, and finally his head. Even with the metal body that had been created for him back at the failed Tallon IV assault, his favorite part being the missile launchers that had been placed on his chest. Even though he was back to his plain, old, red body back... it felt much better to him, to actually be able to feel without the mere mechanical crunching sound around him. His glowing eyes looked out the side window of the frigate, towards the planet. "You are certain that the hunter is there?" he asked one of his subordinates.
The subordinate, obviously uncomfortable in the presence of a dragon commander, almost twice his size. "Yes sir. We intercepted some radio signals from the federation that were directed at the hunter that detailed a mission they had for her, asking her to explore this little backwater planet. We are prepared to launch a full assault against her with every available hand on this ship. Just give the word sir."
Ridley's eyes remained on the planet. He thought back to every encounter with her... their fight on Zebes... the battle on Tallon... the attack from the X parasites... their second battle on Zebes... Every one of them had ended with the destruction of his body and the failure of the space pirate's operations there. His claws tightened and it took every ounce of his restraint to keep from roaring and tearing everything within reach apart. "Samus... Aran..." he growled.
The subordinate pirate backed away a step or two, careful to do so slowly so as not to seem disrespectful. "Sir?"
Ridley finally tore his eyes away from the planet where his enemy was waiting. "No!" he growled. "I will take a one-man pod of my size to the planet's surface and I will be the one to finish her." He had a score to settle... and by god he would settle it. Oh, he wouldn't kill her outright, oh no... he wanted her to feel the pain, the misery, the humiliation he had suffered a thousand times over... he'd take her apart, bit by bit, and let the pain sink in. He was skilled as much in torture as in combat... if he wanted to, he could drag her death out for a day and a half. "After I am clear of the ship, I want you to take the frigate and return to base."
The pirate frowned. "But sir... are you certain that you will not take even a single soldier? And to leave you alone against an enemy of that skill with no way to send you reinforcements..."
Ridley growled. "Are you saying that I cannot handle her?" he asked, spreading his wings.
The pirate shook his head. "N-no sir! I am merely saying, would it not be wise to at least have the frigate in orbit in case? It would be a prudent course of action."
Ridley decided that his rage would be better spent on Samus. He stood up tall. "Do not question me. After my pod is clear of the ship, I want you to head back to the main base. If I do not return within the next two moon cycles, send a search team out for me. I want all radio signals to the pod disabled and no communications shall be sent. I do not want to risk the signals being picked up by a federation ship... or by the hunter's ship either." He turned away and closed his wings again. "Those are my commands. Prepare the pod. You have five minutes."
The pirate saluted and motioned to the two other pirates at the door. "You heard him! Move out now! Prepare a pod for his departure and set a course for our base!"
The pirates saluted and left, leaving Ridley alone. He smiled again, his eyes closing for a moment. "At last.. it is time for your judgement, Samus Aran... and I am your judge, your jury, and your excecutioner." He turned and started towards the pods.
It was five minutes later, on the dot. A pod shuttle, designed for a pirate of Ridley's size, left the ship. Once it was a good distance away, at the very edge of the planet's atmosphere, the frigate that had jetisoned it disappeared into subspace, rocketing towards their home planet.
As the pod started to bounce and jump as it entered the atmosphere, Ridley's fists tightened and closed his eyes. Such things as this scared him to death, though he'd never admit it. Entering a planet's atmosphere was never safe in such a small ship, especially in a pod. Though it was built to withstand the atmospheric entrance, there were several different variables that could completely decimate a ship. Most didn't give it a thought, but when a person had died in a horrible death as Ridley had, even the most simple ways of dying worried him. His grip loosened and his eyes opened as the ship leveled and touched down on the surface of the planet, hidden amongst a few rocky inclines with sparse trees growing among them. He undid the safety harness keeping him against the chair. "Computer, scan the atmosphere and give me a full readout of all gases contained."
The computer began its scan. Just as there were many gasses that were poisonous to humans and other life forms, there were many that could poison a dragon as well. He needed to know now so he could equip the emergency oxygen tank located in the back of the pod. "Scan complete. Scans show that atmosphere is Nitrogen based with trace amounts of oxygen, almost identical to Earth. Breathable."
Ridley smirked. "Excellent. Now, I want a maximum range scan for a hunter class ship, liscenced to the bounty hunter Samus Aran." He sat back and waited patiently.
The scans finished quickly enough. "Scan complete. Ship found. Five miles northeast of current position. Current status of Vessel: in shutdown mode."
Ridley grinned. "Five miles? He could be there in ten minutes at the least. And if it was in shutdown mode, it could only mean that Samus was no longer active. It was the perfect chance to destroy her utterly, to competely wipe her from the face of this universe. "Open the blast doors, computer, and go into shutdown mode. Reactivate upon the sound of my voice when I return."
The computer beeped in response. "Understood, sir. All system shutdown commencing. Have a nice night." The doors to the ship opened and Ridley stepped out as the last of the light faded from the pod shuttle.
Ridley breathed deep the sweet night air of the planet. It was like nectar to him. After having been trapped for so long behind steel walls in the ship and in the pirate base, it was nice to finally be outside again. He stretched luxuriously, his wings and tail waving about in a slight excited manner. To be whole yet again... it was perfect. He could almost feel a tear forming in his eye from the feel of the night winds on his body. Every time this happened... every time he cheated death... he found himself enjoying the smallest pleasures he could feel. However, there was one pleasure he still had yet to feel... and he wanted to feel it badly. When his claws were soaked with the hunter's blood... he would at last be satisfied. He spread his wings and took a deep breath, lifing up into the air, turning to the northeast, his muscles rippling as he rose about the world below for the first time in ages.
He started to flap his wings, heading towards Samus' position. He grinned again. "No escaping this time, hunter... your luck has finally run out."
It was ten minutes later, exactly when Ridley managed to reach the clearing where Samus' ship lay still. He smiled to himself as he landed outside of it. It was still in shutdown mode, as his own computer had noted. Slowly, he approached it. This was going to be such a sweet victory. Now he realized that he had never been so close to her ship before. It was an odd feeling, being so close to an enemy vessel. He hopped up on top of it, trying to keep the clinking noise his claws made against the metal silent. He reached the top, where the main entrance was located. To his dismay, he noticed that it was far too small for him to fit in... he wouldn't have the pleasure of killing Samus inside her own ship. He had a better idea, however. He grinned and started to make as much noise as possible around the ship. Time to draw her out.
Samus was jerked awake by something scraping against the top hull of her ship. She frowned and looked around her. The ship was still in shutdown mode... could something have wandered into the perimeter after she had fallen asleep? Whatever it was, it sounded big. She decided to check it out, just to be sure it was nothing too threatening. Grabbing her arm cannon, she dawned her power suit once again and headed towards the ship's entrance. She had to open it manually since the ship was still in shutdown mode and would not awaken again until the eight hours was up. It had a nasty habit of being extremely literal. The ship opened and she slowly climbed out, her arm cannon raised and her eyes darting from side to side, looking for anything that could possibly be threatening. She saw nothing. Perhaps whatever it was had just wandered off after finding the ship to be inedible. She decided to investigate further. Slowly, she moved to the edge of the clearing. She peered into the thick foliage, but saw nothing. "I guess... it really is gone."
She turned to head back, but was instead met by two glowing yellow eyes and demonic red skin. "Is it?" he asked, slamming into Samus before she could react. Samus found herself being pinned to the ground, both arms and legs pressed between the dragon's claws and the ground. "So, we meet once again, Samus. The one difference this time is I won't be the one getting torn apart."
Samus grinned in spite of herself. "Well, well, Ridley... How are you doing? I see that you have managed to pull yourself together, yet again."
Ridley rolled his eyes, a very strange gesture for a dragon to make. "Such a poor attempt at wit. You are a far better fighter than an intellectual, Samus." He bared his fangs, and his breath fogged Samus' visor.
Samus attempted a shrug, but failed considering her arms were pinned. "Stick to what you're good at, huh?" she asked. Though she would never admit or show it openly, she was deathly afraid of Ridley and his seemingly boundless confidence. No matter how many times she killed him, he always came back, never doubting for a second that the next time would be the time that he won. She had to admire that, if nothing else. "So, did you come all the way back to the hereafter to tell me that I have bad choice in words?"
Ridley shook his large head. "Of course not. You know my agenda here. I want to see you dead, hunter, and this time I will see it done." His claws tightened against her arms, the metal of her suit creaking under the pressure. "Now, the only question I need answered is how best to dispose of you? Human tastes horrible if not cooked properly and I have no such time or materials on my hands... Should I toss you down a canyon? Should I rip off your head? Perhaps a slower death through suffocation would be more appropriate." His tongue lolled out of his mouth and licked the visor.
Samus made a face of disgust as his tongue trailed across the reinforced glass. "How about none?" she asked. She manuvered her wrist from within the arm cannon. "It seems to me though, you just don't know how to stay down, do you?"
Ridley nodded. "I never will, Samus. I am far too invaluable to the pirates to merely let die."
Samus sighed. "Of course, the muscle of the group." She just needed to keep him talking for a little bit longer. Her wrist moved again in the arm cannon. She just needed to complete one single sequence. "But what happens when you're through with me?"
Ridley chuckled. "They will always need me, Samus, even after you are gone."
Samus smirked. "Will they? did you stip to think that maybe the only reason they kept you around was because of me? Obviously none of their grunt soldiers can defeat me and the high command of yours would never show their faces to me purposefully. You're the only one crazy enough to attempt and kill me."
Ridley growled, though her words held some truth. Every other bounty hunter he'd faced... he'd slaughtered. She was the only one ever to destroy him, defeat him. In defeating him, she had proven that she could easily handle even a small army of his soldiers. What WOULD become of him once she was dead. He didn't want to think about it, she was just playing mind games for her own sake. "Why would you bring such a thought up? Are you actually concerned about me?" he half teased, his tongue licking her visor again.
Samus needed just a few more seconds. "Oh not really... but I feel that I'm the only one who gets to kill you. No one else."
Ridley growled. "Quite a privilage, isn't it, hunter?" he asked, his claws starting to dig into her power suit. She was starting to make him angry. He hissed at her. "I grow weary of this game, Samus. I think the first think I'll do is rip out your tongue." His jaws closed around her helmet and he ripped it off quickly, tossing it to the side, her blond hair spilling out around her head. She gasped a little bit at the sudden breeze. Ridley had to admit that she was acceptable... for a human female. He brought his face close to hers, this time his tongue touching her cheek. "I have waited a very, very long time for this, Samus Aran."
Smum smirked at him. "Well, you're going to have to wait just a little longer, aren't you?" She twisted her hand inside the arm cannon and a hidden compartment opened within the cannon, a small electric prod shooting out into the palm of his claw, sending a slightly powerful jolt of energy up through his arm and into his spine.
Ridley shrieked and jumped off of her, back towards her ship, gripping at the prong in his arm and pulling it out. "YOU!" he shouted, baring his fangs at her as she stood. "I'LL KILL YOU!" he declared, dashing towards her.
By now, Samus was standing again, her arm cannon raised. She fired off a few shots from her power beam, but Ridley's movements were fast, and after several battles, he had obviously started to memorize her tactics. It was hard not to. She growled as he started to duck and weave between the tiney waves of energy that dashed at him. "Nice to see your reflexes have improved." she half complimented, jumping away as he smashed his claw down against the ground where she had been standing.
Ridley snorted as she dodged. "Perhaps you're just getting slower." He threw a hard backhand swipe at her and Samus ducked under it, switching her arm cannon over to the plasma beam and fired up, right through Ridley's wing, making a huge gaping hole appear near the bottom of the wing. He shrieked. "FUCK!!!" he shouted.
Samus jumped back as he crashed down, the wing folding and unfolding as quick as possible. "Slower, huh? At least I can still hit you at close range."
Ridley jumped back, rubbing his wing. "You..." he growled. "You won't win this time."
Samus shrugged. "Whatever you say." She knew that he was still quite capable of completely decimating her right now. She couldn't take that chance now. He was far too cautious right now, she wouldn't get many more cheap shots at him. She switched to her new distabalizer beam and aimed it. "I'm going to have to end the game here, Ridley." She needed to weaken him, now.
Ridley laughed. "One blast? You think one blast will do me in, Samus?" he asked, grinning. Even with a fully charged super missle, the most powerful weapon she possessed in her arsenal, There was no way she could kill him with just one... and it took far too long for her to recharge that type of weapon after it was fired. Had she had such a weapon, she wouldn't have announced it in such a manner... no, Samus was far more subtle than that. She would have used it when she had that opening before, not now. He decided to call her bluff. "If you're so sure that you can end this in one shot, go ahead and show me. Take a freebie, Samus." He sprad his wings, the gaping hole in his wing his only flaw. He could afford to take a shot from her here and now. A single shot wouldn't do much against him, even if it was a super missle. He was ready to dodge that if it happened.
Samus looked at him carefully. Her certainly was a good looking dragon. She had to admit that no matter how many times she scarred him, it left no marks against a chisled body. He definitely wasn't overly muscular, but the sleek build that he possessed was decievingly strong. She fought a blush that was threatening to rise to her cheeks and she reprimanded herself for even allowing such a thought to cross her mind. She took careful aim. "Power breeds ego as they say."
Ridley smirked. "Indeed it does. But then again, you know all about that, don't you, Samus, greatest bounty hunter in the universe."
Samus rolled her eyes, but something in her heart trilled at the slight compliment in his voice. "Quite nice of you to say so, dragon." She aimed and without another word, she fired. The distabalizer beam shot towards him in a huge range, almost like a spiderweb. The blue spiral shot towards him at a slightly slow rate.
Ridley's eye quirked at this strange new weapon. This wasn't in her usual arsenal. A new weapon perhaps? Bah, it didn't matter... there was no way this slow, gangly beam could be any real threat... but then it hit him. Immediately, he felt his entire body go into shock, as if something was tearing at his very fiber. The pain was so intense that he started to shriek as it spread through every limb on his body. Everything started to grow fuzzier. and then, he felt his world go black.
Samus panted a little bit and stood over a now much smaller, unconscious dragon. He was now about half of her height, and, she estimated, about half her strength. She adjusted her arm cannon for her super missle and pointed it down at the sleeping creature. She closed one eye and prepared to fire... and stopped. He rolled over in his unconcious state, whimpering in pain. Her heart softened. He looked... so much like a child right now. A red, lizard-like child, but a child nonetheless. Besides, the distabalizer was irreversable unless she fired it at him at a reversed frequency, so he was completely harmless right now. Still, he had tried to kill her. Her thoughts drifted for a moment before she had a very interesting thought. How would one deal with a naughty child? She grinned and disengaged her arm cannon and picked up the dragon, heading back to the ship.
Ridley groaned loudly as his senses returned. He could smell metal... and his own sweat, but that was about it. But wait, there was another smell... the hunter. He could never mistake that scent. His eyes started to open up and he saw... someone in front of him... a human in a purple jumpsuit. Wait, could it be... tat was Samus! She was shedding the last few pieces of her power suit, leaving her in only that strange jump suit that hugged her body so tightly that he could distinctly make out every curve of her body. He felt his stomach float a little bit when he saw her from the back. He licked his lips, in spite of himself. After the fog cleared from his brain a little more, he realized that he was alone... with Samus... in an enclosed space... there was no escape for her with her back turned like this! He grinned and tried to lunge at her, only to find himself tied down to a bench where he was. "What the hell?" he shouted.
Samus started at the noise and turned around, a slight smile on her lips. "Oh, good, you're awake. Did my little dragon sleep well?" she asked in a teasing voice, coming close to him.
"You little... little..." he stopped as she neared. Why did she look so large now? Wait, how was he able to fit onto this thing, where he was tied down? How was he able to fit into her ship!?" He took her in and then looked over his shoulder at himself... he was freaking tiny!
Samus laughed, the expression on his face was priceless. "Who's little?" she asked him, sitting down in the chair in front of him, just out of range of his teeth. "Feeling a little... little, Ridley?"
Ridley growled. "What did you do to me, bitch?" he asked. He struggled against the bonds that tied him and examined them. It was nothing but simple woven rope, highly primitive for this day and age. How was he not able to break them? Had his alteration in size also affected his strength as well? He hissed at her. "Change me back, NOW!" It was at this point that he realized that his voice had grown higher... it was now more of a high tenor pitch, bordering on alto.
Samus smirked. "I don't think so, Ridley. I could have shot you dead when you were unconcious. I figure that since you're nothing but a little brat now, I should punish you like a little brat for trying to kill me." She smirked and brought her head closer to his. "Unless of course, you want to be blown to bits... again."
Ridley thought about it for a moment. It would be nice if he could keep his life... for once, after meeting with Samus. But what did she mean by punishing him like a brat? He could only guess, he had studied very little on the ways of humans. He didn't know what to expect. "What are you planning?"
Samus shrugged. "Make your choice if you want to know." she told him.
Ridley sighed. He had no wish to be destroyed, only to be rebuilt again. "Very well... I will take the choice that doesn't end with me being strewn about on the ground in a million pieces."
Samus nodded. "Good, good." She stretched a little bit and tapped his back. "I'm warning you, Ridley... don't make this hard for me, or it'll be harder for you."
Ridley rolled his eyes. "Just get on with it so that I may leave and find a way to reverse this... this damn condition you've put me in."
Samus chuckled and undid each knot holding him down, with one hand kept firmly on his back so that he could jump up at her. When the last of the bonds had fallen from him, she gripped him tightly and pulled him over to the spinning pirate seat. She sat down and pulled the miniaturized dragon over her knee, pinning his tail against his back.
Ridley gasped loudly. "Wh-what the hell are you doing?" he asked, feeling really nervous now... he was over Samus' knee! He could only guess what was coming next. He stopped when he noticed a small red light out of the corner of his eye. But the ship was in shutdown mode... only the backup lights should have been on right now, which they were, but there was something else on... "What is that?" he asked.
Samus grinned. "A portable recorder."
Ridley's body stiffened over her lap. A portable recorder! She was recording this whole event! He growled loudly and it took all the willpower he had not to bit down as hard as he could into her leg. "You bitch! How dare you?!"
Samus chuckled and rested a hand on his buttocks. "You'd best watch yourself, Ridley... or this recording might just find itself beamed across the known universe."
Ridley wanted to growl, but he thought better of it, seeing that Samus was in just the kind of mood to make good on her threat. He bit his lip.
Samus nodded at his silence. "That's what I thought." She raised her hand and brought it down on his bottom with a hard, loud SMACK!
The dragon had been unprepared for this, not really knowing exactly what was going to happen. He gasped and gave a small wiggle of pain, unable to understand how it had hurt so badly. So, he had lost his size, his strength, and his endurance. "Ah! What the hell?"
Samus smirked. "This is your punishment, Ridley. You are going to be spanked." SMACK SMACK SMACK SMACK SMACK SMACK SMACK SMACK SMACK SMACK SMACK SMACK SMACK SMACK SMACK SMACK SMACK!
Ridley started to pant, unable to stop himself. He had never felt such pain in such a tender area before. When a dragonling acted up, the parents of the hatchling usually gave it some very harsh words and threw it against a stone wall. They were enduring and not easily hurt and it was an effective punishment... but something told him that this would be far more effective in his current state. "Ah! Ah!"
Samus smiled slightly at his little wriggling figure. She had to admit, he was cute like this. He was so much like a child right now. SMACK SMACK SMACK SMACK SMACK SMACK SMACK SMACK SMACK SMACK SMACK SMACK SMACK SMACK SMACK SMACK! "Bad little dragon!" she scolded.
Great, now not only did he look like a child, but she ahd to treat him like one as well. He clenched his jaw to try and stop himself from panting and gasping anymore, and his claws clenched as well. The little red light he saw out of the corner of his eye only reminded him throughout the punishment that this entire event was being recorded for Samus' personal use. Mentally, he shuddered at the thought of what she was going to do with the recording when this whole thing was finished.
Samus landed ten more hard slaps on Ridley's backside before she reached underneath the pilot's control panel and pulled out a heavy paddle. "Time for part two, Ridley." She rubbed the cool wood of the paddle against his behind as she said this, letting him know what was coming.
Ridley's body stiffened up. "Samus, no!" he shouted, squirming a little bit now.
Samus shook her head and gripped him more firmly. "You have no authority here, Ridley, don't you dare try to say no to me." She grinned a little bit and raised the paddle. "Hopefully, bad little dragon, this teaches you a good lesson." SMACK SMACK SMACK SMACK SMACK SMACK SMACK SMACK SMACK SMACK SMACK SMACK SMACK SMACK SMACK!
Ridley hissed, both in pain and in anger at her comment. A lesson? This was supposed to be a lesson against trying to kill her after the multiple things she had done to him beforehand? He squirmed again, unable to move away from her grip. He kicked out as the paddle slammed down into him harder. He started to pant, unable to stop himself anymore. The pain was intensifying. "STop..." he hissed, meaning it.
Samus shook her head, examining his bum. His skin was red all over, which made it completely impossible to tell just how much damage she was doing. The only telltale sign that she was doing anything to him was the fact that he was squirming and hissing. Soon he'd break, she was sure. SMACK SMACK SMACK SMACK SMACK SMACK SMACK SMACK! "I don't feel like stopping, Ridley... not yet." SMACK SMACK SMACK SMACK SMACK SMACK!
It definitely wasn't the pain that got to him first... no, he could have gone a while longer before succumbing to the pain. All the same, a sob escaped his throat and a small tear started to form in his eyes. He had been exploded, blasted, burned, frozen, defrosted, recreated, and rebuilt only to have the entire process repeat itself time and time again. Though he was a high-ranking commander in the space pirates, he was a laughing stock now, a joke. His prowess as a warrior and his ability in combat meant nothing after he had been blasted to bits by Samus again and again. And now, as if the humiliation before was not enough, now there was THIS! He was being treated as a human child by the very woman who had killed him all those times. Nothing mattered anymore. He had no more respect and his confidence was completely gone now. His life... every life he'd lived so far... had been meaningless, devoid of accomplishment. He wanted to be dead now... and he wanted to stay dead. "I'm sorry..." he sobbed finally.
Samus' hand froze in mid swing and the smile vanished from her face. Had she heard right? Ridley was... apologizing to her. Was it a trick? Was he trying to gain her sympathy? "What?" she asked. She had to readjust herself to unstick him from her lap a little bit. her legs were growing sweaty from having him there.
Ridley sobbed again. "I'm sorry, Okay?" he shouted at her, tears streaming down his face. "Just kill me and get it overwith! Or broadcast that damn recording all over the universe! Destroy what little respect I still hold! Nothing matters anymore!"
Samus set the paddle down and rubbed his back slowly. "Ridley, stop it, please... stop acting like a child."
Ridley sniffled a little bit. "Why not? You seem to enjoy treating me as one."
Samus winced at that. She slowly lifted him off her lap and set him down on the bench where he had been tied before, running a hand over his undamaged wing. "Ridley... I..." Well, she'd succeeded in one regard. She'd finally destroyed him. Not physically, but mentally and emotionally. She should have been happy. But she wasn't. He was a wreck, everything that had happened to him ever since she had met him had finally come crashing down on him after everything.
Ridley growled at her. "What? You what, Samus?" he hissed, rubbing at his buttocks, still crying hard.
Samus sighed and hung her head. "I am sorry." she said. "I thought that.. this would be my greatest victory over you. Maybe I am way too soft, but I... I feel horrible for doing this to you."
Ridley managed to roll his eyes through his tears. "Yeah right. You've wanted to see me like this ever since we first engaged each other."
Samus sighed gently. "I didn't want it like this. This was too low, Ridley." She closed her eyes. "Listen... we have a bond, Ridley. I cut it today and for that I'm sorry."
Ridley eyed her, starting to calm down. "A bond? What are you talking about."
Samus sighed. "When we first met, we didn't say much more than a formal 'die fool' before attempting to blow each other's brains out. but as time went on... I grew to respect you. In a sort of twisted way, I sort of... considered you a friend."
Ridly wiped his eyes with his claw carefully. "Friends? I tried to kill you... and you did kill me. Does that make us friends?"
Samus smiled slightly. "What about all those conversations we had with one another before all of our battles after our first. During the encounter on Tallon... when you had that robotic body, remember? We spent a full two hours talking before we finally fought."
Ridley smiled slightly, his breath calming, though his bottom still hurt. "Heh, I remember..." He closed his eyes and thought about this woman, this Samus Aran. She was quite a woman. "Then, as a friend may I make a request of you?"
Samus raised an eyebrow. He'd never tried to make a request before. "What? What is it?"
Ridley sighed. "Kill me. Kill me and make sure that no one can find anything upon my body. I don't want to survive this time."
Samus' eyes widened. "What? But Ridley... why would you ask me to kill you."
Ridley closed his eyes. "I'm dead no matter what happens. By your hand, through embarrassment... or from my superiors. If I go back without completing this mission, they will excecute me on site. If I must die, I want to die by the hand of my eternal rival... of my friend.
Samus' eyes clouded with tears for a moment. She swung at him and hit him across the face. "Dumbass!" she shouted as he held his face. "I'm not going to kill you. there are other alternatives."
Ridley rubbed his face. "With all due respect, what would be the point? I am literally a shell of my former self."
Samus smiled. "I can help fix that if you wish."
Ridley looked up at her. "What?"
Samus smiled and picked up her arm cannon. "Hold still... this'll knock you out for a while, but at least it'll help make amends for what I've done a little bit." She aimed it at him.
Ridley frowned. "What are you doing?"
Samus winked and fired at him. His eyes widened when he saw that very same spidery light that had put him in this predicament in the first place. He had no time to dodge. The light hit him, he shrieked and fell asleep again.
Samus frowned again. Why had he stopped growing there. He was only about as tall as her now, maybe a little larger. She checked the arm cannon readout. It read low power. "Shit..." she groaned. The power was far too low for the distabalizer to put him back to his full height. She sighed. "Oh well... he's not cute, but he isn't intimidating anymore..."
Ridley woke up an hour later, in a bed... he groaned and examined himself and... wait, was that samus next to him?!" His red skin turned even redder. She was smiling at him. "Uh... hello?"
Samus sat up. "Hey... look, I... I'm really sorry about what happened. I tried to get you back to your original size, but... the power on the distabalizer ran out. I can't figure out how to recharge it The technology seems incompatable with most other modern chargers."
Ridley smiled down at himself. "Samus, I think... I think that it's the thought that counts. Besides... I'm not super small anymore and this will make it easier to fit through doors and such." He smiled. "I still can't go back though."
Samus nodded. "You aren't asking me to kill you again, are you?"
Ridley smiled and shook his head. "No. I want to go with you."
Samus nodded. "I thought as much. Are you interested in the bounty-hunting business?"
Ridley shrugged. "I figure I can give a try when I have such a good teacher... and a good friend."
Samus blushed a little bit. "Yeah... but let's start a little while later. I'm still tired for you waking me up and the ship will still be in shutdown mode for another few hours... and you'll probably want to rest too aftter what happened."
Ridley nodded and brushed a few hairs out of her face. "Yes... thank you, Samus... for... for everything. I guess I needed that to wake myself up a little bit."
Samus chuckled and lay down again. "Any time, Ridley."
Ridley's eye cocked a bit. "You mean that?" he asked.
Samus blushed. "I... I suppose." She gasped as she felt his claws wrap around her and hold her close.
Ridley smirked. "Very well then. I'll see you when you wake up, Samus Aran."
Samus nodded. "You too... Ridley." She grinned and cuddled closer to her, falling asleep soundlessly.
THE END