Original A/N: Boy, am I excited about my third fanfiction! This one's about the Metroid series (one I absolutely love, by the way), and it takes place after Metroid Fusion. Read the summary of the story and review it, please. Now here's the scoop: Samus Aran, the famed bounty hunter who saved the universe a coupla times has finally become a crook for disobeying top-priority orders from the Galactic Federation. Charged with felony and destruction of property. she is faced with a few options. She takes the worst one available, being a video game character, and meets its consequences. All Metroid song remixes and originals I found on the internet were highly inspirational, the best being from Newgrounds, VGMixes, and OverClocked Remixes. Also, the first part of the series will be "Escape," and the second part will be "Flood." This work is hugely influenced by G3Rain1, Kefka Floyd, and Insomniac by Choice's fanfictions ("influence" wouldn't do the authors justice; I'd actually say "inspired") - the first one listed is one of the better Metroid authors on this site, while the other two are the Gods of Metroid. Literally.
Yeah, this is my first Metroid fanfic. The original one wasn't really worth continuing. The direction I was taking it was nothing what I had planned, and nothing was as good as I'd hoped. Nevertheless, I hope to try again, and thus have remade the first chapter. After this, the story will branch off differently from the original work (which I still have and may post for readers' comparison). Anyways, here's the first chapter now.
Chapter I: The Many Faces of Death
Spire lunged at the Space Pirate, blasting at its energized battle shield. The shield's power flared as his charged Magmaul shot rammed into the shield. The Advanced Shield Trooper, aware of his burning shield, deactivated it and dropped its assault rifle. Smirking, the Pirate, one with a hefty bounty on his head, took out a hidden Battlehammer, and started to charge it. Spire, noting the waves expended from the tip of the weapon, rolled into his alternate form – the Dialanche. Acting quickly, the Space Pirate jumped to its feet, his finger slipping off the trigger. The shot missed Spire narrowly, and instead hit the rope holding the bridge together. Spire regained his balance from throwing his armour out at his opponent.
Spire's voice was a crackly voice, coming deep within his diaphragm. "Heh, nice try Viper. But your last mission of the Space Pirates will end in failure…"
With that said, Spire fired two missiles at the Pirate, who – with uncanny flexibility – twisted towards its right, and bent down. The homing missiles spun around it, and went past, careening out of control. But a split second later, they regained the heat signature and went full speed towards Viper. It activated its shield, which seemed to have more power than other Pirates. The first missile struck the outer left edge, and – without exploding – spun tip over tail past Viper, landing on the ground before detonating into shards of metal, which could not pierce the Space Pirate's superior armour. The second missile punctured the shield's center, and froze it; Viper glared at Spire's Magmaul, noting its ability to quickly change the missile type in less than a second. Viper tried to deactivate the shield, with no success – the ice had made its way to the controlling mechanism. He dropped the expendable piece of armour.
Viper's voice had a hint of mischief, almost like it was taunting Spire. With its nasally sound, Viper sneered, "I'm not going to be caught by the likes of you… bounty hunter." It spat out the two latter words, and Spire would later remember seeing the saliva coming out of its mouth. "And no-one… not even that great hunter of yours, Samus Aran, will ever come close to me again. Just so that's clear, I'll let you live… tell your friends that the Great Viper won't be caught by the likes of you. Oh – by the way, have fun getting back to Mondreus."
Spire was startled at the threat, and became alert. He changed his weapon to the Volt Driver, ready to scramble the vision of the Space Pirate at any second. But he never got the chance, as Viper unexpectedly shot with the Battlehammer at his feet, knocking him off balance. Smiling, Viper kicked his razor-sharp shield at Spire, its edges sharpened even more by the ice. Spire had no time to react, as the shield slammed onto his forehead, rendering him unconscious. Viper spared a glance at the singular sun, saw a ship-like shape in the distant west, and gripped Spire's limp arms with a left arm.
"Sir, reports of increasing bounty hunter activities are in. But there is nothing about Samus Aran, Commander Dane. However, we have-"
Fleet Admiral Castor Dane, approaching middle age, interrupted the male Federation Marine. With a sad look, he replied, "The specifics will not be necessary, Daniel. All I need to know is if Ms. Aran has been sighted in the Ooromine System. So, has she?" Captain Daniel Exeter shook his head, and the Admiral sighed.
Was it really possible that Samus, a hero of the human race, was a criminal? It seemed impossible… yet Dane knew the finer details from the Federation's reports. Hefting his heavy, black boots into a more comfortable stance, he excused the Marine and went back to his paperwork.
"Samus, we are now approaching the Tetra Galaxy. Are you sure that is where you wish to arrive?" Samus nodded. "Well, as you command, milady," Adam answered.
Samus leaned back on her leather seat as Adam processed the command into the ship's computer guidance system, fully aware of the Etecoons and Dachoras behind her, studying her Power Suit. Samus' skin-tight suit, interestingly named "Zero Suit," stretched all over her body, with a few glowing, pink spots on her back. She carefully placed her stun pistol into its holster, and put the ship on autopilot once Adam confirmed the command. It had only been two days since her escape from the Biologic Space Laboratories research station, and so far, there were no signs of the Galactic Federation's ships tracing her – which Samus found discomforting. The Federation usually had much better planned emergency plans, and would probably have thought Samus would disobey her orders. She was worried, yet grateful at the same time for the absence of Federation ships.
Samus gracefully slid off her blue chair, and made her way for the computer a few meters behind her. Samus' foot was caught in a wire, and she bent down over the ground. She noticed the Etecoons had dragged the wire out, either to find something or to make a space. She studied it for a while longer, seeing how the Etecoon was burying itself into a small area underneath the control panel. She shook her head, amused once again at the Etecoons' intelligence and innocent nature, and went over to the computer. She accessed her data entries, noting that the logs were from weeks back. She took the next few hours to input all her experiences with the X Parasite. After she was done, she noticed a small section she had nearly forgotten about, over time – a small area labeled "Bounty Hunters."
She quickly accessed the files, and saw six of the most deadly hunters she had ever encountered. Her mind raced back to when she first came across the bounty hunters – that was when her search for "the Ultimate Power" in the Alimbic Cluster. Her hands ran across the keyboard, and the computer selection skimmed from Kanden, Noxus, and Spire; but just as she was about to open the file on Sylux, Adam chirped in.
"Madam, we have reached the Tetra Galaxy. Which planet do you wish to visit?" Samus carefully thought about her choices… and answered.
"Actually, Adam, redirect the course to planet Bes III. I have a few errands there I would like to take care of first."
Adam almost sounded hesitant, but being a computer, complied with her order. "I would not recommend going there, lady, as the Galactic Federation is most likely searching on planets you have been to. But as you wish" But upon his suggestion, a sound was heard, and Adam reported damage. "Negative, Samus. We seem to have an enemy approaching the ship – not Galactic Federation, but it is certainly their equipment."
Samus stopped, that last phrase sticking out the most. "Adam, redirect all energy to shields and thrusters – and get us out of here!" She went over to the tube suspending her armour and opened it, and donned the Power Suit without the use of her usual method. She quickly accessed the computer again, and began a quick downloading procedure. "Status, Adam?" The computer told her about her pursuer's aggression, and recommended return of fire. "Negative, Adam, refrain from doing such an activity – we could further intimidate the enemy, if that's even possible at this stage."
Samus was alerted that the download was complete, and quietly sat in the cockpit. But before she could do anything more, her vision blurred, and she fell to the ground. She called for Adam – or was it just her imagination? – but he did not respond. Samus turned around and faced her attacker, but found no one to retaliate with. Who would even dare to track me down? Other than the Galactic Federation, nobody else would have the nerve to try infiltrating my ship… unless they held a grudge against me. Samus switched to her scanning visor, but found nothing other than her own ship to scan. Samus cursed herself for not having explored the B.S.L. research station more thoroughly two days ago; if only she had her x-ray or thermal visor right now!
Another shot came from the other end of the ship, but this time Samus was prepared. She nimbly sidestepped the shot – and walked right into a trap. Two balls had been placed on the ground, and she saw a third one being laid by an irregularly shaped robot. The third one completed a triangular, electrical current and shocked Samus. As she succumbed to unconsciousness, she caught a glimpse of a shining purple and green figure transformed from the pronged robot, which seemed to be walking towards her at a casual pace. The last thing she saw before her eyes fell was a flash of blue emitting from the figure.
Noxus shot Viper a few more times, to no avail; the Judicator bounced harmlessly off the Space Pirate's energy shield. In his frustration, Noxus lashed at Viper in close range with a left-handed strike, hitting nothing but the energy shield. Viper reacted by forcing Noxus away and exposing his back; the Pirate charged a Battlehammer shot halfway and released it, hitting Noxus' backside with a loud smack. The icy hunter was knocked onto the ground, but not before his hand clutched onto the edge of the shield. He grabbed it and pulled it down with him, leaving the Space Pirate with naught but his trooper-level armour.
Noxus flipped over to his front and hit Viper with a Shock Coil, successfully draining the energy from the Pirate. Viper's H.U.D. showed his energy level plummeting at a perilous rate, but could do nothing – try as he might, his gun was jammed, and his weapon would not fire; as a result, he dropped the firer. True to his name, Viper revealed two fang-like blades imbedded onto a single handle in a right wrist compartment. Taking out the double-bladed dagger with his left hand, Viper made an unsteady stab at Noxus and struck his target. The Shock Coil instantly stopped as Noxus' cannon stopped firing, and the bounty hunter gasped for air, the toxin within the knife already spreading throughout Noxus. The Vhozon grasped at the handle of the dagger and pulled it out, his hands trembling from the fatal poison that already claimed his failing legs. Viper wheezed harshly, taking no notice of Noxus' failing condition.
"You know, that poison has similar effects as those of Phazon: the corruption will complete within weeks, and go mad from the effect. Before such an event, you'll often be racked with temporary unbearable pain, and you will definitely find it harder to do works that require athletic skill, such as bounty hunting. But don't worry; you'll probably die before any of this happens to you," Viper sneered. "I just love Space Pirate technology; don't you?"
He snatched the knife back, and just as he was about to place it into the compartment, Noxus blasted it with whatever strength he had left, freezing the dagger. Viper cursed Noxus and threw the blade down, picked up his gun and battle shield, and departed from the scene without a word, heading for his ship in the Agon Wastes.
"Hey, why are you leaving so soon? The party's just getting started," Spire hollered.
Viper took an alarming glance in the ship's direction and saw Spire's hulking form gone from behind the rock where he had left him. Dang. Had the Vhozon really delayed me long enough for the Diamont to awake? Well, I'm not a fool to take on another of the hunters so soon. I guess I won't be able to drop Spire off at Phrygis as planned, but that's not important. All I have to do is make it back to my ship, and everything with proceed as planned… Viper thought. He gave a quick smile at Spire and ran off.
Spire ruminated over whether or not to give chase to Viper, but thought better of it and attended to Noxus' wounds. His partner for the mission had gotten hurt, and if the mission was to be completed the both of them had to stay alive. Noxus could die later for all he cared, but not until completion of the task.
Their hirer, a Martian named Charles Keaton, required Viper killed for revenge, and had employed the two bounty hunters for the job. Viper had proven to past hunters that he was more than a minor nuisance, by killing the hunters themselves. Trayne, a renowned bounty hunter who came from Twin Tabula, had only a disembodied head when found on Oormine II. Another skilled hunter, a former inhabitant of Bes III called Damien, tried capturing Viper to no avail – he went mad after the encounter, apparently due to Viper's special toxin. Deciding to think on the topic no more, Spire helped Noxus to his feet, which collapsed almost immediately.
"I'm in no condition to chase after him now," Noxus said as coolly as possible. "Just go after Viper first, and I'll catch up."
"You mean you haven't heard of the stories about Viper? He's one of the toughest mercenaries around. I couldn't care less if you died, but only after this mission."
Noxus grimaced but managed to turn it into a small smile; he was thankful for a temporary companion. If only Noxus knew for sure what type of poison Viper had given him; then he could treat it and go after the Space Pirate.
Okay. Now I'm gonna finish editing the second chapter, alright?