Disclaimer: Samus Aran belongs to NinTenDo. Master Chief and the other thirty two Spartans belong to Bungie.


As Samus picked herself up, she couldn't help but growl. She hadn't started this fight. Now, that stupid, green-armoured number had destroyed her beloved Varia suit. It would take weeks to repair the suit, and almost as long to calibrate her enhancements to let her summon the new armour.

Reaching into the ruins of her cannon, she pulled out the plasma core and trigger unit, glad of the modifications made the last time the suit had been inoperable. The gun wasn't as powerful without the focussing rings and beam modulators held in the barrel of the cannon, but it still had some functionality. Activating the beam sword cast a yellow glow over her features that she'd been told made her look quite demonic, which was perfect for her purposes. The green armour was backing away slowly, but Samus had found too much respect for this enemy to think it was fear. Her enemy was too strong to find this intimidating.

Samus leapt forward, bringing the sword around in a wide, horizontal arc. The enemy warrior with 458 stencilled onto its shoulder did one of those improbable backwards rolls and came up with a pirate cultist energy sword in each hand. They exchanged blows back and forth for a moment, parrying and blocking strikes with lethal speed, 458 being forced slowly back by Samus' longer reach. Eventually, she drove the green-armoured warrior back against a wall. Then, disastrously, 458 caught Samus' blade between the two prongs of one of the energy blades and twisted it, sending the yellow plasma sword spinning away. Samus was forced to back flip away before sprinting for the sword. Rolling like her enemy would have, she scooped the sword up and reconfigured it hurriedly before snapping off several shots from the plasma pistol, forcing 458 backwards and damaging its shields. Not giving the enemy a chance to recover, Samus sprinted forwards, jumping into the air and landing on the warrior, knocking it back so that it tripped on the steps and fell back. Now sitting astride her fallen foe, Samus raised the plasma sword above her head, ready to bring it down on her enemy...

The light glinted off the golden faceplate, suddenly, blinding her. She expected the enemy to use the chance to throw her off, but the green-suited warrior just lay there as though waiting for the inevitable. Come to think of it, the warrior hadn't fought back much since she'd lost her Varia suit...

Samus leaned forward, overcome by curiosity. If she could just get the right angle, she'd be able to see through that gold helmet visor... there. Her breath caught in surprise. Behind the mask was not the large, vicious traitor to mankind she'd expected to see. Instead, the angelic face of a girl, barely looking old enough to wear the armour she did lay there, eyes closed against her fate and a small, beatific smile on her face...