Final chapter already? Dang, this story has flown by quickly. Well, here it is. I hope it stands as a solid conclusion.

Chapter 10: The End of the Beginning

The Next Day, Conference Hall

It was the suit and her personal reactor that saved her. Samus had been injured by the blast of electricity, but her armor and reactor had managed to take the brunt of the energy. Robotnik, lacking a reactor inside his body, had received a much larger portion of the charge than his nemesis. Not only that, but the massive surge had reignited her chest reactor, keeping her heart alive. After that, Samus had been rushed off the roof by some of Agent McCloud's colleagues, and taken back to her house to be patched up. Some of them had attempted to debrief her immediately, but Fox had shut them up, on account of Samus' recent services.

Now came the fun part; explaining this to the press. It wasn't like they could just sweep the incident under the rug, given that several dozen drivers on the highway had witnessed the battle, and the beam launching into the sky, and the explosion. The local police had a record number of calls come in from panicking citizens that night. Thankfully, Fox and his organization came through again on that front, putting together an irrefutable story that would keep people off their backs.

"Everybody's already heard our official statement on yesterday's events," said Anthony, "And we stand by it. A combat drone prototype, previously abandoned by Aran International, suddenly activated and became violent. The current cause is unknown, but under investigation. Damage to the Aurora Unit Reactor was sustained, but no one was seriously injured. One of miss Aran's-"

Olimar muted the T.V. to eliminate the distraction. Samus, Fox, and himself were currently gathered in the back room of the conference center, watching as Anthony laid the foundation for Samus' statement. Olimar himself was currently covering up Samus' various injuries with makeup, in order to make the cover story convincing. Samus, meanwhile, was reading the news about her late night escapade, which mostly consisted of speculation, although they'd somehow managed to get a photo of her.

"They're calling me Iron Woman?!" exclaimed Samus, "Who the hell do they think I am, Margaret frickin' Thatcher?!"

"Some of them are calling you Iron Man," said Olimar. Samus shot him a glare. "What? It's tough to tell in that suit!"

"It does have a nice ring to it," said Agent McCloud, holding an ice pack to his bruised face.

Samus thought for a moment. "I guess so," she answered, "Even if it is made of gold and titanium." She put down her paper, picking up the note cards with the crafted alibi Fox's associates had whipped up.

"Now remember," said Fox, "You were out for a late night ride on your private jet. Huge party, very expensive. We have a flight log and statements from multiple guests."

Samus eyed the presentation with skepticism. She knew these people were good enough to cover all the bases, but she still had a few questions. "Are you sure about this? It ignores Robotnik completely, and, well, the whole thing sounds way too convenient."

"Robotnik took a private cruise to relieve the pressure of work," said Fox, "His coworkers were concerned about him, so they convinced him to take some time off. Unfortunately, they crashed far off the coast. The wreckage won't be easy to find."

"You've done this before, haven't you?" asked Samus.

"You have no idea," responded the vulpine.

"What about the whole 'bodyguard' angle?" she continued, "Are people really gonna believe I can outfit my bodyguards with high-tech armor and haven't ever put it into production? And they'll want to know her name, when I hired her, if she'll endorse women's hair care products..."

Fox sighed. "It's simpler than it looks, Miss Aran. Just repeat it verbatim, and nobody who matters will question it." He looked at his watch. "I've gotta go early. I have another assignment." He got up to leave.

Olimar followed him to the door. "Thanks, Agent McCloud. We really are grateful not to have another PR nightmare on our hands. Especially now."

Fox smiled. "Just doing my job, Mr. Pik. We'll contact you again later. There's a lot more to discuss concerning Miss Aran."

"So we should check our caller I.D. for the State of..."

"SAFE, Mr. Pik," said Fox, "Look out for SAFE."

Olimar blinked. "That...really isn't the greatest name you could've come up with, you know."

"We need a better marketing department," agreed Fox, as he walked out the door.

Olimar turned back to Samus, grabbing her jacket. "Time to go to work," he said, slipping Samus' arms through it.

Samus herself was deep in thought. "It just seems like such a letdown. They'll all be disappointed it wasn't me in that suit. What if I just went out there, and I was like 'I am Iron Woman?'"

"You're not Iron Woman, you employ Iron Woman," said Olimar.

"Come on, don't tell me you buy that," whined Samus, "I'm obviously Iron Woman. I'm so obviously heroic, and brave, and selfless."

Olimar had to stuff his fist into his mouth to stop himself from laughing.

"Okay, fine," grunted Samus, "But, hypothetically, if I was Iron Woman, do you think I'd have a boyfriend who thought I was clinically insane, yet knew that I'd become the best person I could be? He couldn't bring himself to ditch me because I was just such a wonderful person, even though he was put in constant emotional turmoil? And that this inner conflict would just make him so obsessed with me he'd make his whole life revolve around me?"

Olimar just stared. "No."

"Worth it," said Samus. Then she remembered something about Olimar, and turned to face him once more. "I almost forgot to tell you, uh...sorry about that night at the party. I was gonna come back, but you know...duty calls."

Olimar chuckled. "What night? I spent that party drinking by myself, while you were at home dancing around to Black Veil Brides, with a bottle of vodka. I have the security tapes."

Samus' smile dropped. "That was months ago!" she complained.

"Not according to Adam."

Samus laughed again. "Okay, I guess I deserved that," she said, "Just don't post it on the internet again."

"No promises."

Samus chuckled to herself as she set off to the conference room.

"Good luck," said Olimar, as he walked away.

"Samus Aran herself will now give a statement," said Anthony, "No questions, please."

Samus walked up to the podium, note cards in hand, and turned to face the small crowd of reporters. She straightened her tie and scratched one of her back injuries, trying not to look too awkward. After all, nobody would believe a lie from somebody who stuttered their way through it, no matter how much evidence they produced. Although, this was unusual to begin with. Samus never wrote any of her speeches down before giving them. She didn't even start thinking about them until the drive to wherever she would be speaking.

"Thanks, Anthony," said Samus, shaking his hand, "Good guy. I've actually pre-written what I'm gonna say this time." She laughed. "I know, but today's not a monumental occasion, so let's just get this over with." She held up the first note, reading directly. "Now, there have been accusations of me being personally involved in the events of last night that resulted in-"

One of the assembled journalists suddenly cut her off, "Miss Aran, are you actually going to suggest that you now have a bodyguard equipped with technology that Aran International hasn't revealed, yet is capable of producing?"

Samus smiled. She'd predicted this line of questioning. "Well, after my experience Zebes, I felt there was a lack of proper security."

"And this person was able to arrive at exactly the optimal time?" continued the reporter, incredulity visible on his face.

"You know, if you're going to suggest that I'm either a superhero or a liar, you should just come out and say it," responded Samus bluntly.

The man had to cover his mouth in order to suppress his own laughter. The rest of the crowd didn't even try. "Miss Aran, I am from a respectable news source, not the National Inquirer."

Samus' smile fell a bit. She knew nobody would really believe she was an unselfish superhero, but that didn't mean she had to like it. Maybe she should work on her public image.

"Well, that's good," she said, "Because I'm not a superhero. I've got a lot of mistakes under my belt, many of which you people have personally witnessed. I'm just not a normally heroic person, and to suggest otherwise is ludicrous, and can be easily refuted." She meant what she said. Samus knew she wasn't exactly a role model. On the plus side, this would help keep her identity under wraps, because nobody would seriously suspect her of being Iron Woman.

Anthony leaned over and whispered in her ear, "Just keep to the cards, you're making yourself look suspicious."

"Okay, okay, geez," she whispered back. Samus held up the card, preparing to present her excuse to the eyes of the world.

"The true story of last night's events goes..." she began, but stopped. Every pair of eyes in the room stared at her as she looked at the card, not making a sound. After about a minute of this, Samus gathered up all of the cards in her hand, tossing them over the side.

"I am Iron Woman."

And there we go! I gotta say, I didn't expect this story would be over so soon. I guess that's what happens when I don't have a lot of better things to do. I'd like to thank everybody who read, followed, favorited, and commented on this story. Special thanks extended to gamer4, who gave me the idea in the first place, and was really supportive throughout the entire experience. Anyway, here is the cast list, for anybody who cares:

Cast

Samus Aran (Metroid) - Tony Stark/Iron Man

Rodney Aran (Metroid Manga) - Howard Stark

Anthony Higgs (Metroid: Other M) - James Rhodes

Dr. Ivo "Eggman" Robotnik (Sonic the Hedgehog) - Obadiah Stane/Iron Monger

Telma (Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess) - Happy Hogan

Sparks Brushel (Ace Attorney: Apollo Justice) - Christine Everhart

Captain Olimar (Pikmin) - Virginia "Pepper" Potts

Adam Malkovich (A.I., Metroid Fusion) - Jarvis

Old Bird (Metroid Manga) - Ho Yinsen

Space Pirates (Metroid) - Ten Rings

Aurora Units (Metroid Prime 3: Corruption) - Arc Reactor

Weavel (Metroid Prime: Hunters) - Raza

Fox McCloud (Starfox) - Agent Phil Coulson

Death Egg Robot (Sonic the Hedgehog 2) - Iron Monger Armor

That brings our story to a close. Thanks to all of you, and I'll see you later.

The End

...Oh, come on, you didn't really think I'd finish this without addressing the elephant in the room, did you?

Samus' House, that Evening

Samus pushed open her front door wearily. When she'd decided to tear her cover off, she really should have considered the ramifications. Honestly, it was like she'd proven herself to be the second coming, or something as monumental as that. She'd already gotten calls from comic book companies asking to adapt her story, not to mention the movie producers. She really felt bad for Olimar at the moment, having to ward off all those nutjobs.

However, she wasn't concerned. This wouldn't be a problem, and she'd definitely enjoy it before too long. At the moment, the biggest question in her mind was how cool it would be to fly in to give lectures and speeches. The merchandising rights alone would make a fortune, and she already had plenty of those in her pocket.

"Hey, Adam?" she called out, "Clear out my schedule for the next few weeks. Maybe a month, to be exact. Get ready to fill it up with new meetings that I'll miss. Oh, and open up a Mark IV folder."

There was no answer. Samus immediately tensed. Adam couldn't possibly be malfunctioning. She'd built his systems herself, and he'd never break down. The only other possible explanation was that some outside party had tampered with his systems. Looking around for a weapon, Samus' thoughts were interrupted by the sound of slow clapping.

Turning towards the sound, Samus noticed a figure in the living room, standing in front of the windows. She could make out no features, as the person was hidden in the shadows. The only thing she could tell was that it was a man, judging by the build.

"'I am Iron Woman?'" laughed the man. His voice was deep and scruffy, but not threatening. He didn't seem to be malevolent, but then again, neither had Robotnik. "You really blew that one out of the water, didn't you lady?"

"Who are you?" asked Samus, cautiously, "What do you want?"

The man turned around and started walking into the light. "The thing is, Aran," he continued, "This whole schtick you got goin' on is an even bigger deal than you think. You're not the first of your kind."

He finally stepped into the light. The man was dressed in simple black clothes, and they showed his developed muscles. His skin was wrinkled, and he looked like he was in his sixties at least, even if his voice sounded younger. He had a simple black eye patch over his left eye, and his grey hair was slick and flat on his skull. He had a thick mustache of the same grey color, and a dark bandanna tied around his forehead.

"David Snake, Director of SAFE," he introduced himself, "Call me Solid. I'd like to introduce you to Project Avengers."

Yep! Solid Snake is Nick Fury! I considered making him Captain America, going by the whole Super Soldier thing, but Snake's personality doesn't fit Steve very well. He's not quite at Nick Fury level, but he's pretty close.

Announcements regarding the Marvelous Smashing Universe as a whole: I'll be starting up a deviantart account, in which I'll draw characters as they appear in this stories. I'll post a link on my profile as soon as I do, so keep an eye out.

I'm gonna go back and revise some of the earlier chapters, because there are some things that bother me. Hopefully, if you come back to this story, it'll be better than it was to start.

I'll be taking a short break to work on The Legend Reborn for a while, but only a little. I want to get out one more story in this franchise before I really focus on that again. Don't expect updates as often as there were on this, though, because I'm going back to college, and working, so I'll have less time. But I will be working on the next installment soon.

Coming Soon: The Incredible Kong

Yep. I went there. Donkey Kong will be the Hulk, but not Bruce Banner. You can probably guess who will take that role.

Once again, thanks to all my readers and fans. See you later!