Well, I'm back for the next chapter. How are all of you doing? I'm doing well, expect I have to write school stuff... but, I decided to write the second chapter first (I should slap myself, but what's the fun in that?) Well, on with the second chapter. Enjoy!

Chapter two: What are you?

Samus opened her eyes, looking up. She had placed herself under a form of cryogenic sleep, as her ship entered hyperspace. Now, her ship had finally exited, she was awake. She knew she must have been asleep only for a few hours, because the star system which CDR10 wasn't to far off from the star system Norion was in, and it rarely took long to get there. Samus looked out into space, wondering what exactly had been in that video. It seemed humanoid, but wasn't. It wasn't pirate. No pirate wore that kind of armor. Maybe it was a bounty hunter? It seemed like a plausible idea. After all, the pirates had amassed an empire, and could easily pay someone to work for them, but hey would never do so. Unless this bounty hunter, if it was so, had some reason to do help them.

Space seemed so serene when she looked out through her ship, as it always had, even when in battle. Space... it was so large, that destruction could never truly affect it. Even if a star went supernova, there was some part of space unaffected. Samus clutched the arm of her seat, thinking back, seemingly for no reason. Looking out into space just seemed to have this affect on her. It made her think, and let her feel a range of emotions. Anger, joy, sadness, guilt; she them all and more, but some didn't make sense. Sometimes, she felt angry at the Chozo, sometimes she felt sadness for the pirates, but that seemed backwards. She knew she should be sad for the Chozo, and angry at the pirates who had killed her family.

She closed her eyes for a second, trying to forget all of that. She had a mission to do. She didn't have time to think of the past, although she did before every mission she had partaken in. She knew that she would arrive at her destination soon. She just wished she had someone to talk to. Of course, there was Adam, but he was probably still devoting his attention to driving through the solar system. Samus noticed that there was an asteroid belt, nearby. Heh, if that doesn't bring me back.It did. It reminded Samus of when she had crashed her ship into that asteroid near SR388. She was lucky she had herself ejected out of her ship, or she wouldn't be alive.

Samus noticed they were nearing the planet, CDR10. It was the same as when she saw it in the Marine's HUD, so that proved the obvious, that they were the planet's protection. The planet didn't look at all different. Her scanners picked up a large quantity of Nitrogen and Oxygen, so they air was breathable, but there was an area that was covered almost entirely in methane. Why this area, by itself, was covered, was due to the planet's weather, although the people on the planet did have a hand in it.

Samus had to read before she made it to the planet, as well. Some reports had filed that an object hit the planet in the center of a large city. The object, the Federation's dismay, was the same ship from the video. The pirate's set it on a course for the planet. It was burnt up in the atmosphere, but a chunk made it to the city. The heat given off from the falling object was enough to kill a good sixty percent of the citizens, as this planet was mostly made of humanoids.... most of which weren't able to stand the extreme temperatures. The rest were probably wiped out by the ensuing explosion caused by the object actually hitting the planet. If anyone was alive, the pirates had probably already laid waste to the city. Sadly, any GFS ships in te area had already been taken out by using stealthy tactics, and that humanoid creature.

The trip towards the planet was all smooth sailing, even though it was too quiet. The ship had already entered the planet's gravitational pull, and was nearing a dock. Usually, before landing on a dock, there would be a message that asked the ship to identify itself, but, oddly enough, there was none.

Samus' ship landed on a steel landing zone pad, covered in markings that designated for Federation use only. The hatch in the middle of the floor opened, but Samus didn't step on it so quickly. First, she closed her eyes, focusing. There was a flash, and, in an instant, Samus was covered in orange, red, and yellow armor. It was vastly different from her original power suit. Ever since she absorbed that SA-X, it had taken a sleeker image, not having the bulky shoulder pads anymore. She guessed it was because she had that other suit on before she regained the power suit. That 'Fusion Suit' as she had come to call it. She looked to the front of the ship and said. "Adam," with a nod. There was no reply. It felt odd, to Samus, that he didn't reply. Not even with a 'Good luck, Lady Samus' like usual.

She stood on the opened hatch, which lowered itself, letting Samus step onto the steel, making a clang.

She looked around. The area seemed desolate. She was at, what was supposed to be, a busy space port. There were all sorts of other ships in the area. All different kinds of colors, and sizes, and shapes. She guessed everyone was already dead.

She made her way into the actual city, heading for where the ship crashed. Considering it's size, there would be a crater the size of about five football fields. But, in a city this large, that might be a fifteenth of the area, if not much less

Samus walked through the streets, which were truly all pavement used for walking, as vehicles didn't travel on the road. A map appeared on her HUD, showing the city in a 3-D format. The crash site was nearly a mile east from where she was. There was a click as she turned on her speed booster, readying herself for a sprint. She bent down, before running at supersonic speeds, trying to keep herself on the walkways. But as she got farther, which took little time, she began to notice the building were now destroyed, all seemingly leveled by the ship's landing.

She stopped as she neared the crater, jumping behind hat was left of a nearby car. She kept her X-Ray visor on, trying to find any hidden pirates. None. That seemed suspicious to her. After all. They had taken out what was protecting this planet, although Samus didn't understand why there were few ships surrounding this valuable rock in the first place. It could be said she didn't know much about anything that was going on. The federation didn't make any sense, ever since that fiasco on the BSL station, and the pirates... well, they never made sense.

Samus guessed that whatever pirates were on this planet had moved, to go destroy another city, and find whatever tech had been stolen from them, and steal it back. Or, at least, destroy it.

Samus slowly made her way out from behind the automobile, Looking left and right as she switched back to her normal, combat visor. Going into the crater wasn't all that hard, considering it was like walking into a steep glass bowl. Except there were rocks scattered everywhere, as well as rubble, for Samus to jump around, making the journey seem shorter, as she stopped outside the crashed Anhur-Class Ship.

"So, this is it? I was expecting it to be a bit smaller." She was right to say so. Most of the ship should've been destroyed, but it seemed more intact than the reports had found. Most of the ship was still intact, the ship looking as tall as a five story building. There was a blast door on the ship's left. Samus could tell the door wouldn't work. It wasn't glowing that pale blue like other Federation blast doors. It just stayed grey. She walked to the door, knocking on it. It was still sturdy, even through that fall. She would need to find another entrance, it seemed. After all, there could be numerous things inside the ship that could prove useful. Hopefully some data logs.

Samus found her entrance on the other side of the ship, in the form of a broken window. It was a small window that led into a hallway. The glass must have broken, as there was glass everywhere. Inside the ship and out. She also noticed scorch marks on the glass that, miraculously, stayed intact.

She looked both ways down the corridor, choosing to head down to the left. This would lead to the ship's central control system, where, undoubtedly, there would be the ship's AI. As she walked, she noticed the fallen bodies. They all seemed to have busted HUDs, smashed by look of it, as pieces of the HUDs, which were made of a synthetic material, similar to Plexiglas, except it wasn't thermoplastic, and so was much harder to heat, were sticking out of some of the marine's faces. She guessed , from the ending of that video, that that creature had done this.

Samus switched to her scan visor, just to check this out. She glanced t a dead body, and a screen came up. 'Loading' was on it for only a millisecond, until a picture appeared on her visor. It was of the marine, the HUD still smashed. Below the picture, there was a description.

'Marine Status: KIA. Cause of Death: Unknown. Possibly by unknown pirate tech that latches onto your face, then drains you of every drop of your energy, until you are dead. There appears to be no marks on the Marine's face, except for pieces of his HUD.'

Samus almost cringed as she read that. She didn't like the sound of this. It felt odd to her, but that description seemed to fit, perfectly, with the profile of those that were killed by Metroids; Their energy drained, yet no marks.

She kept herself on track, heading down the hall, until reaching a large door. There was a scanner on its left, still active, as a fuel cell was stuck on the other side of the door. This was the Federations way of keeping the doors operational, even when the ship wasn't. Samus put her left palm on the scanner, the scanner glowing green for just a second as the door opened from the side. Samus kept her arm cannon up as she entered the central control station.

The room was large and circular, large machines lining the walls, and a platform into the middle of the room, where the AI was stored. Samus knew protocol, and, if the AI was still intact, Samus was to bring it back with her. Hopefully, Adam wouldn't mind a friend.

There were sparks of electricity spitting forth from the machines, spasmodic and fitful as if they were dancing an odd, and erratic, dance that they had just made up. The sparks were an annoyance to Samus, but there was little she could do. And nothing she could that would not harm the AI. Samus made her way, standing on the metal platform, which stood still, even though they were supposed to rise, so the person standing on the platform could be at eye level with the machine.

There was a blinking yellow light coming from the center of the room, on top of the slender machine, which resembled a slim pyramid, although, at the top, it was circular. This was where the blinking light came from.

"Sam...ration.... end.... you." There was a scratchy voice over her intercom. It must have been that AI, trying to communicate with her. "Carefu... unkow.... form.... etected." Samus wasn't sure what was being.

"Adam, can you hear me. I have found the ship's AI. I repeat, I have the ship's AI," She told him, connecting to him through the intercom as well.

"Yes, Lady Samus, I can hear you. " He wasn't being sarcastic, although, if anyone else had said that, they would have been.

"Good, you've been silent lately," She commented, before changing the subject to the matter at hand "I've found the AI. It has sent me a message. I can't understand it. Are you able to decipher it?"

"I can try, but I cannot guarantee success... It seems the AI has taken damage. Not from the fall though. It was attacked. Pirates, no doubt. I can't decipher everything, but I do know it is a warning."

Samus nodded, glancing, just for a moment, at her radar. A warning? Then... something was here? She quickly spun around, believing she had heard something. There was nothing behind her. But she did hear something. It was like a creaking noise. Like what you hard when you stood on an old wood floor.

Then there a screech-like noise, and Samus sun around again. Only this time, something her. Something hot, like plasma, but not like the shots fired from her plasma beam. No, this was closer to a physical weapon, like a sword, or knife, as it had slashed her left shoulder. Samus leapt back, looking at what had attacked her. A red visor. That was all she could see, as she was tackled to the ground. This... this thingwas incredibly fast. On its left forearm, a plasma scythe had been ejected from a small mechanism, but was retracted. The creature had pinned Samus' legs with its own, and Samus' arms cannon with its right arm. With her free arm, she tried to swat at it, but soon found her enemy grabbing her wrist. The creature seemed... confused, as what to do next. It had to use its legs and arms to keep Samus from using her own, so what could it attack with? Of course, that was a bad question, because what could it attack with? The creature then let go of her arms, slowly standing up. Samus didn't quite understand this. Is it letting me get up? Maybe it has some kind of honor.No, that could not have been ut. She realized this as it pounded her, mid-chest, with its right arm. Samus found herself flying back, hitting the pyramid shaped machinery that the ship's AI was held in. There was a jolt of pain in her back, her suit not absorbing all the attack.

Samus slowly stood, pointing her arm cannon at the creature. The creature seemed to understand this was her primary weapon, as it ducked behind one of the room's many machines. Samus fired a missile at the machine, pieces of shrapnel, and electricity flying everywhere. She wouldn't fall prey to some foolish attempt at a surprise attack

The creature took a step back, seemingly surprised, as it raised it's right arm at her, opening its palm. In the middle of his hand was what seemed to be a hole. But, the hole was glowing. Samus knew this could only mean one thing; plasma. She knew pirates had plasma tech, so why not give some to this thing? The glowing light seemed to be forming a spherical blob of plasma. The creature moved slowly to Samus' right, seemingly trying to head for the door. Was it trying to escape?

Samus raised her arm cannon, charging her own plasma beam. She knew pirate tech; It was never on par with her own. He took a step forward, and the creature took one back. Now that it was in front of the door, it could escape. Of course, that would mean it had to open the door. Samus decided to use this to her advantage.

She fired the plasma beam, running towards the creature. But, as she fired, so did the creature. The plasma hit each other, the heat given off, as well as the energy, was enormous, and Samus had to stop running, jumping to her left, and entering morph ball mode. As she entered, she scowled. This creature seemed skilled. If it wasn't, truly, a pirate, it was a bounty hunter. As she looked to where the creature was, which wasn't hard because she could see everything around her, in a 360 angle, she saw that the creature was gone. She doubted that it had been disintegrated, as there would be some ashes left. What was there, though, peaked Samus' interest. Some kind of cylindrical item. It was black, just like the creature's armor, with red lines running across it, giving it an almost runic look. Samus left her morph ball mode.

As she slowly walked towards the object, she felt a sense of.... familiarity. It was odd, but that was how she felt. As she neared it, she crouched down, scrutinizing it She kept her arm cannon on it, ready to fire if necessary.

She changed to her scanner. A load screen appeared like a blip before information appeared;

Logbook entry:

This item appears to be another Space Pirate Attempt at copying Chozo technology. Namely, the morph ball. Strangely, unlike other attempt, this one seems to be partly successfully. Including not killing the creature inside it.

Samus took a step back as she read that. A space pirate attempt at the morph ball? Then that meant that.. Thing. It had her own tech. But... that's impossible....Samus kept her arm cannon aimed at it, ready to start firing plasma at the ting. She couldn't believe this. It had a morph ball mode? How? The space pirates had failed every attempt they made. The outcome was always gruesome.

The cylindrical 'morph ball' began to glow, and Samus knew, instantly, what was going on. Speed booster. She began to fire, but it was too late. By the time any plasma had left her arm cannon, the 'morph ball' had already charged at her, leaping into the air, and crashing into her, mid-chest.

Samus was knocked back, landing on her back, as the creature left its version of morph ball. It kneeled down, net to Samus, who was in shock, and in pain. That attack had done extensive damage to her suit. And the power suit couldn't cushion the blow; She even believed that a rib was cracked.

"It's too bad the boss wants you alive..." The creature spoke. Samus was slightly surprised at this. She was expecting some foreign tongue. Then again, many pirates could speak the Federation's language. This just fueled Samus' 'it's a bounty hunter' theory.

"W-who are you?" She asked, in pain, and out of energy, already. But... why was she out of energy. It took her a second to realize it had a hand grasped onto her left arm. It was using the same technique it had used on those marines. It was draining her of her life energy.

Who is this bad guy? Why is it working for the space pirates? How can it do those things? And, the most important question: Why is Samus wanted alive? You'd think that this creature would be ordered to kill Samus, wouldn't you? I dunno.... sounds kinda fishy. Anyway, I'll stop boring you... by asking you to review.