.
Shaken Trust
Samus, now in her suit—which they'd been very interested in until she'd warned them off in no uncertain terms—looked around the high-tech facility. She was admittedly impressed. Ridley skulked along behind her, wary and guarded. They were of like mind in that. "While I was stuck in that crater, I witnessed a few cicada migrations. One happened just the other day, but something interrupted it. A group of creatures like my, uh, dragondactyl here. I've never seen another like him before, and I've been… acquainted with him for a long, long time."
"Is he your pet?" the man asked. Ridley made an offended sound.
"He's my something alright," she dryly replied, rolling her eyes. "A pet is a stretch and a half. We have an… understanding we'll say."
"Ah, you're aware of his species' intelligence," the man said. "You say you've known him a long time. Doubtless then you've observed many of his behaviors."
"Not… as many as I could have," she admitted. She'd been too busy blasting him into oblivion and killing him over and over to bother with observation and research. At least until this whole canyon fiasco. "I never thought to. I'm a bounty hunter, not a scientist. I only started really observing him after getting stuck in the canyon with him."
"Now it makes sense how you got out of it and all the way here without dying. But you've observed, at the very least, his kind's intellect and behavior?" the man said.
"Until the other day, I thought he was the last of his species. Still, I'm well aware of his kind's semi-animalistic state," she said. "Half beast half other. They rely as much on their animalistic instincts as they do on their superintelligence." At least this one did.
"Are you then aware of how dangerous and unpredictable they can be?" the man asked.
"More than you know," she darkly answered, giving Ridley a cold look. He scowled at her and growled.
"So much so that I'm surprised he hasn't ripped you apart," the man said.
"Not for lack of trying. It took a lot of tangling before we reached our… understanding," she said.
"You've defeated it and survived multiple attacks?" he asked, sounding impressed.
"You could say that," she replied. "And Ridley is a 'him', not an 'it'. Not that I'm one to stand up for him, but don't insult his intelligence. It never ends well."
"You gave it a name?" the man incredulously asked.
"I don't know who gave him a name. I just know it's Ridley," she replied. "He's probably been around longer than I've been alive, and probably already had the name by the time I was born." She took careful note of the horrified and uneasy looks many of the researchers and scientists and soldiers here were giving Ridley. Their fear was palpable, and their distrust. He was feeding off it and returning the distrust in full, scanning them all ponderously. "It's not smart for your people to be showing this much fear," she said. "Hunters thrive on the fear and weakness of their prey, and animals can sense when they aren't trusted, so they won't trust in turn."
"We plan on containing him," the man answered.
Ridley stopped and screeched, going for a lunge, but Samus was quick on the draw and aimed her canon. "Don't even think about it, Ridley! Look, neither of us are going to be here long. Just settle down and run with it." She lowered her canon. "They might be able to fix your wing and your wound." Ridley growled darkly and hissed, looking around, before settling reluctantly down. Samus nodded and turned back to the head researcher. "Speaking of the wound, that group of dragondactyls I mentioned spotting. I saw them attacking the cicadas. While they were, they were shot down by something. Some kind of laser. A powerful one. It knocked them out of the sky. Killed almost every one of them it hit. Ridley was hit by a blast too. The wound was pretty bad. Do you know what caused it? I've never seen anything do so much damage so easily to him before. Was it a creature? Some defense system your people have set up?"
"The latter. On a planet as hostile as this one, defenses must be a priority," the man answered. "If it flies, it dies. Simple as that."
"Why was it that it only shot at the dragondactyls, then, and not the cicadas?" she asked.
"Because it can perceive threat level," he answered vaguely. "The 'dragondactyls', as you so eloquently call them, are the bigger threat. They spew flames and plasma from their mouths. Of course they'd be the ones shot down. For all we know, your ship might have been shot down by the defenses too. Speaking of, we'll send out a team to recover all they can from the canyon. Here we may be able to piece it back together again and send you on your merry way. By the way, we call this 'Ridley' and his kind pterosaurs. They aren't really, not as we know pterosaurs to be at least, but they're what he's most similar to, description wise. Some call them dragons for fun, but mostly it's simply pterosaur." She nodded in understanding. "Are you quite fond of your dragon?"
She was quiet, head bowed. "It's complicated," she finally answered. Her first instinct was to outright say 'no', but she'd worked too long and too hard to gain Ridley's trust now for her to throw it all away over something that… might not be quite as true now as it was when they'd first crash landed here.
"For him to not have eaten or killed you, he must trust you a great deal. Animals never give their trust lightly, but once it's gained, it's there to stay until something ruins it," a woman said.
"Well, he's not fully animal now, is he?" Samus said.
"Still, to some degree he must trust you. Especially if he follows you in here," the woman said.
"That thing the pterosaurs were shot down with. What is it? Why was it so effective against them?" Samus asked, desperately wanting to change the subject and not face the semi-truth in the woman's words.
"Military secret," the man replied. "One the Federation would kill to have."
"Probably literally," the woman dryly agreed.
"Where will you attempt to contain Ridley?" Samus asked.
"Not in a cage, if that's what you're afraid of. Or a chamber too small. There's a biosphere that should give him plenty of room to roam in," the woman replied. "You can visit him whenever you like. Even take him out for walks if you want."
"He's not a pet," Samus dryly replied. "Don't make the mistake of thinking he is. It'll cost you if you do."
"Of course. You're right. My apologies," the woman said.
Samus nodded and looked warily around. As accommodating as these researchers were being, she couldn't help but feel something was off. She didn't trust anything 'top secret' and never had. Not even when the Federation was monitoring it, let alone when they weren't. Just something about this whole facility… It didn't sit right.
"Where did they come from? The pterosaurs? Is this their home planet?" she asked.
"No, but we assume there's a planet very close by that may be," the woman replied. Ridley froze, making a curious sound, then narrowed his eyes warily. Samus put a finger to her lips and gestured for him to keep following. Reluctantly he did so.
Metroid
Ridley sniffed around the entrance of the biosphere, eyes narrowed suspiciously. Down below was the bottom of it. He'd have to fly or glide down. Samus stood nearby, a thousand questions rushing through her head. At last she looked at him. "This is it. This is where you'll be staying for a little while." Ridley growled in displeasure. "It's only for a while. They say they know how to fix your wing and wound," she said.
"That will be to their detriment, not mine," he answered, taking her by surprise. He spoke so rarely that it always startled her a little. Sometimes she forgot he even knew how.
"Is your home planet near here?" she asked. He shrugged. "I suppose it's not unlikely that the Space Pirates poached your kind from their home world long ago and stole you away to Zebes," she said. He was quiet. She looked at him. "Are you okay?" she asked after a moment.
"Something is wrong," he said.
"I mean with all this. Your home world just within your grasp, being so close to others of your kind again… You've been alone as long as I've known you. The only one. Surely it's a bit jarring. Even for an animal. Even for you," Samus said.
"Beasts know their own kind. You integrate. You learn. You assimilate. You survive. It is instinct. I don't know what humans do. Doubtless something stupid or incompetent or unnecessary," he answered. "Beasts have no such weakness."
"What's weakness to a beast is strength to a human," she replied. "It's both the reason we've lasted so long and the reason we keep screwing ourselves over at the same time, but still come out on top despite it."
"Hmm," he answered. "Be on your guard, Samus. Something is amiss here. At least for me. But then what do you care if it only troubles me?"
"I care more than you understand, Ridley. More than you ever could," she replied. "Humans, you see, can both hate an animal and pity it at the same time. Both hate it and still want to save it or protect it. But then I wouldn't expect you to understand that."
He huffed and flew into the dome, gliding down and perching on some rocks where he closed his eyes to sleep. Shaking her head, she left him alone to rejoin the researchers who would show her where she could stay until things were ready for her to leave. Perhaps from this facility she could contact someone. If she had to, that was. For now, though, all she wanted to do was relax for a while. Here was hoping the biosphere held Ridley. If not, though, she would be prepared. She always was. Tomorrow she would join the researchers and scientists as they tended to his injured wing and body. Just to make sure he didn't rip them apart, of course. And not at all to make sure they didn't wound or experiment on him. She grimaced. Ugh, she was going soft. She couldn't let her guard down around the anorexic pterodactyl. Ever. She always had to remember that. None of this was for his sake. None of it.
Metroid
Samus was awakened by an unholy shriek echoing through the facility. Gasping, she quickly lifted herself on her arms and turned her head quickly towards her door. In one deft motion she scrambled out of bed and sprinted to her power suit. Getting into it, she barged out of her room racing towards the biosphere. She would know that shriek anywhere.
She burst onto the observation deck, where she had stood with Ridley the other day before he'd entered the sphere, and gasped. Down below the dragon was thrashing and squirming beneath a large, heavy net made entirely of chain! Inside his enclosure were armored guards surrounding him, prodding him violently with barbed, electric prods.
"What the hell are you doing?!" she freaked before she could even think to stop herself. Everyone froze and all eyes immediately went to her. Ridley's included. His eyes narrowed at her. "You were to wait until I was present to attempt anything on him!" she fired. "No wonder he lashed out!"
"You were sleeping and we wished to let you get as much reset as you needed," the head researcher replied.
"As much as I appreciate the sentiment, you should have waited for me to get up before you tried to handle my Pteranodon," she fired back.
"Your Pteranodon, Ms. Aran? I thought you said he wasn't a pet," the man answered.
"He isn't," she hissed. "But if he can consider me his human, then I can consider him my dragon. Listen, I'm not here to argue semantics. It was agreed that I was to be here when you began tending to him. I wasn't, so he reacted. Now get him the hell out of that net, dammit!"
"You are very protective of him, Ms. Aran. I thought you understood what he was," the man replied.
"I understand more than you could ever begin to just what he is," she answered. "He is a cruel, vindictive, bloodthirsty reptile, but that doesn't mean we have to be. We're supposed to be better than that!"
"To what end?" the man asked. "Inevitable slaughter at the talons of a species that doesn't have the same moral sense?"
Samus bristled at the reply and narrowed her eyes warily. This didn't sound like they had any intentions of helping Ridley. "Let him go," she coldly said after a moment. "Let me go down to him, then let him go. I know how to handle him better than anyone. If he lashes out and things get violent, there's no person in this facility better equipped to face him than I am." The man said nothing. "What do you think you're even doing?" she asked through gritted teeth.
"We, Ms. Aran, are trying to help set your dragon's wing and mend his wound," the head researcher answered. "He chose not to cooperate, lashed out, and so was swiftly subdued for our own safety."
"Let me go to him. Do that and no one will get hurt by him," Samus said.
The man glared at her a long moment. "Very well," he at last relented.
The door to the sphere opened. Samus looked down then vaulted over the edge, landing on the ground not far from where the soldiers were. "Back away. Now," she ordered them. They glared warily at Ridley and slowly did so. Ridley screeched and attempted to impale one only to receive a potent electrical shock from the chain net itself that had him tossing his head back in anguish and bending backwards almost in half. "Stop!" Samus shouted before she could even think to stop herself. The charge was cut off and Ridley collapsed, wheezing breaths escaping his beak and eyes screwed tightly shut. The soldiers left the room warily.
Samus stared a moment at Ridley, whose chest was heaving quickly with strained breaths. They didn't remove the net. Swallowing, she approached him slowly. Sensing her, he opened his eyes and let out a shriek in her direction. She paused, heart sinking. That shriek was decidedly malicious. One she hadn't heard for a long time now. It meant regression, and regression was the last thing she wanted.
"Hey, I'm not going to hurt you," she promised. He screeched again at her, lunging, and the net was activated again. "Stop it!" she ordered furiously. "Get that stupid thing off him!"
There was whispering among the researchers, who looked to their head for direction. He nodded. Soon the net was lifted slowly off Ridley, who immediately reared up and began rampaging in wrath, tearing at the walls and foliage while trying to climb up to said researchers. A lockdown warning sounded loudly, and protected but transparent armored walls came down to protect the glass. Ridley reached them and began ripping at them in wrath, screeching his fool head off and unleashing his plasma. Aside from leaving deep scratch marks and scorch marks, though, his attacks did little damage to the shield.
"Ridley!" Samus shouted. "Ridley, enough! That's enough!" Ridley began swooping around the biosphere, attempting to shatter it and break out, but to his surprise, as well as Samus', it held fast. Samus gritted her teeth and took shelter, waiting for his temper tantrum to subside or for him to exhaust himself. She could have ended it with a neatly placed plasma blast, she knew, or a missile launched into his stupid skull, but if she had done that, then whatever fragile truce of trust she had forged with him in the time they'd been stuck together would be lost. Gone in the blink of an eye just like that. Maybe she didn't want that… At least not right now.
For all the destructive power he unleashed in his rampage, he did nothing to hurt her…
Metroid
The tantrum lasted for some time before at last Ridley came to the conclusion there was no escaping this sphere and finally settled down on the ground, looking all around with narrowed eyes as if trying to find a way out. She stepped out from behind shelter. Growling darkly, he looked in her direction with eyes narrowed suspiciously. "I'm not going to hurt you," she said to him. He roared at her arm canon and she frowned. After a moment's debate, she at last disengaged the suit and stepped out. "Hey, everything's okay, alright? Everything's okay." He eyed her cautiously. "Please. Let them treat you. The sooner you get better, the sooner we can leave." Ridley stayed quiet and wary, watching her. "Look, I have something for you. Your favorite," she said, producing one of the fruits he seemed to like so much. He perked up a bit and stretched his neck towards it, sniffing. Suddenly he snatched it from her hands and consumed it quickly before flicking his tongue around his maw. "Good, good. Relax. That's right, relax," she said. Ridley tentatively seemed to lower his guard. "The scientists have to come in. They have to be able to set your wing and get to your wound. Don't attack them. Keep your jaws closed and behave. Please. I don't… I don't want to hurt you, not right now, but you know that if I have to I will." He screeched at her defiantly. "The sooner you heal, the sooner we go," she said. He grimaced, but he heard the truth in her words. Growling lowly, he lay down glaring at her. "Okay. We're getting somewhere then. Don't… don't be nervous or scared, alright? I'll be right here." He shrieked indignantly and hissed, baring his teeth at her. "Every living creature feels fear, Ridley. In some form or another, they feel it. Even if they don't immediately recognize it," she said. "Fear and its facets, like mistrust and caution, are what keeps you alive. You're gonna be okay."
Ridley settled at last, laying his head down on his talons and glaring at her. "It's safe to send in the doctors," she said loudly enough to be heard. After a moment, the lockdown measures were lifted. Ridley raised his head, growling. "I know what you're thinking. Don't. You know what I'll do to you if you try." He sneered at her but nonetheless obeyed, to her relief. The last couple days had probably taken quite a toll on him, so his energy levels weren't exactly optimum she'd bet. It contributed to how cooperative he was being, she knew, and in this case that was good.
The scientists entered, carting everything they would need. Ridley growled as one approached him with a large syringe. The woman from before. Ridley recoiled with a screech. "What's that for?" Samus asked.
"A numbing agent so he won't feel us working on his broken wing," the woman replied. "We have to set and splinter it. We have a cutting-edge method that can be injected directly onto the break. It'll wrap around and stabilize it while it heals. Eventually the substance dissolves away. By the time it does, the bone is healed. It's just there to make sure the bone doesn't get worse or move out of place in the meantime."
Samus looked to Ridley. "Samus," Ridley said. The scientists started. "Samus gives it. Samus prepares it."
Samus winced when she heard the researchers and scientists murmuring amongst themselves in shock. "He… mimics like a bird," she said, hoping to dissuade any investigation that wasn't necessary to carry out. It would placate them for now, but she wasn't naïve enough to believe it would continue to for long. That Ridley had chosen to speak in their presence concerned her. He wasn't the sort to invite further investigation either. Unless he already sensed that further investigation was already inevitable… In which case he had nothing to lose. His trust in her surprised her, though. He had been nothing but wary from the start. It was concerning that what it took for him to trust her implicitly was the presence of other humans…
They gave her curious looks, then turned warily to Ridley. "Samus," he repeated in a growl.
Samus took a breath and let it out slowly before turning to the scientists. "He doesn't trust you. Show me how to prepare what you need, then I'll administer it to him. By the way, before you get any bad ideas, I may not be a chemist, but I know enough about chemistry to be able to tell when something's off." They hesitated. "He won't let you close to him. You'll just be putting your own lives at risk for no reason. There's nothing you'll be able to do or say to get him to trust you. This is for the best. Believe me." The scientists relented and left to fetch the chemicals and other components needed to put together the dosages.
Metroid
Samus carefully followed the instructions she was given to put together the medications, paying close attention to the components they told her to add. Just in case. Nothing seemed out of the ordinary, but that didn't necessarily mean anything, she knew. She knew enough about chemistry to be able to tell when something was off, yes. As long as that something was relatively obvious and not some obscure concoction she wouldn't recognize. Ridley kept a close eye on things too, though, so here was hoping that if something was off, he would recognize it and sound a warning. Eventually she had put together the two agents and filled two syringes with the cocktails. She turned to Ridley, whose teeth were bared and eyes narrowed.
"Where do I inject them?" she asked.
"Both into his wing," the woman from before answered. "The green one closer to the base of it, the red one closer to the break."
Samus nodded and looked at Ridley. "Okay Ridley, it's almost over," she said, approaching him. He hissed warningly but allowed her approach nonetheless. He glared at the syringes spitefully and grimaced when she inserted the first one, wing shuddering ever so slightly. It was probably still very sensitive. "Easy big guy," she said. He growled a bit. After a minute or two, he looked at his wing seeming a bit puzzled and uneasy. Doubtless he wasn't a fan of not being able to feel it there. He tried to flap it and made a sound of surprise when it didn't move. He looked accusingly at her. "It's a numbing agent. It numbs the wing so you don't feel it anymore. That way they can work on it without hurting you," she said. She injected the next needle. Ridley started. "See? That one you didn't even feel," she said. She walked around front of him and frowned at the scientists. "Now what about the wound in his side?"
"We'll talk you through preparing the fix for that, Ms. Aran," the woman answered.
Samus looked at Ridley, then back at the researchers. Tentatively she approached and they began to list off what she needed. Ridley listened attentively. He sounded no alarm, so either he didn't recognize the ingredients either, or nothing was wrong. Samus was hoping for the latter. She finished the concoction and filled a syringe. She looked towards him, mildly concerned about how this was going to work.
"Don't worry. It won't hurt him," the woman said reassuringly. "It'll help close the wound and repair the scales and flesh. He'll be good as new by tomorrow."
"That's what worries me," Samus answered, looking at him again. Ridley at full power meant nothing good.
"The healing elements will take a lot out of him, they need to siphon the energy of his cells you see, so he'll probably be groggy and sleepy for a while, but I assure you the effects are only temporary," the woman said. Samus wasn't reassured, but nonetheless she nodded and injected it. "We should leave him be for now. Let the medications work on him. The less stress he's under, the better. We'll dim the dome and let him sleep a bit. Keep stimulus at a low.
"Alright," Samus said. The researchers turned to leave. She followed them but paused in the doorframe, looking back at Ridley who glared after her. With a sigh, she left. She turned around as dark shields came down inside the dome and saw him looking anxiously around, eyes fixed on the descending panels suspiciously.
Metroid
Ridley did not appreciate the lack of stimulus, it seemed. For hours now he'd shrieked and screeched and torn at the shields. His cries could be heard all through this portion of the facility. Clearly the biodome wasn't soundproofed. Samus, sans power suit, sat outside the dome silently, listening, and at last grimaced and rose, storming towards her room. She entered, seized her pillow, blanket, and night vision contacts, then marched agitatedly out again going straight to the second, lower door of the biodome. The one through which the scientists had entered. "Open it," she commanded simply.
"What? Ma'am, we can't…" the man she had spoken to began.
"Open the damn door," Samus darkly said. The man hesitated, grimacing, but soon did so. Huffing, she marched in and activated the night vision. She barely managed to dodge to the side in time to avoid a stream of plasma fired her way. "Ridley, knock it off!" she snapped sharply. He screeched at her and she was extremely glad she'd had the foresight to bring along the night vision contacts, because without them she would probably be toast. She dodged nimbly out of the way of an attack, barely avoiding it. Ridley screeched at her, looking about ready to charge. "Hey, it's okay! I'm right here, alright? They're not going to hurt you! Just sleep, dammit. Let yourself heal." Ridley roared that terrifying, low and slow roar that he so rarely used, but seemed to settle ever so slightly. "That's right. You're alright. I'm not going anywhere. I'll watch out for them, okay?" she said, continuing to coax him. Soon he let himself tentatively settle, though he continued to glare at her with narrowed eyes. "That's it. It's alright. I'm here. You know I'm not going to let them hurt you. If they can't recover my ship or repair it, you're still my only way out of here. I'd be an idiot to let them try anything with you." Ridley huffed and lay down, glaring at her a moment longer before resting his head on his talons and closing his eyes to sleep. "There we go. Good boy," Samus quietly praised. He screeched at her indignantly before huffing once more and laying down again. She smirked ever so slightly. Soon she saw his body rising and falling steadily, signaling sleep. She let out a relieved breath and approached him, checking on his side. He growled ever so slightly but didn't stir.
Sighing, she made herself comfortable next to him and leaned against his body. As long as he deemed her useful to him, he wasn't going to hurt her. She suddenly found herself feeling extremely tired. It was odd because she hadn't felt tired before, but maybe that could be blamed on the darkness of the dome. She let out a tired breath and looked warily around, but nothing seemed out of place. Shaking her head, she yawned, leaned back against her nemesis, and felt her heavy eyes drooping before there was only blackness.
Metroid
"Ms. Aran?" a voice said over a speaker, breaking into her unconscious thoughts.
Samus frowned a bit and groaned, stirring. She had no idea for how long she'd slept, she just knew it didn't feel like she'd slept enough. "Ms. Aran," the voice repeated, firmer this time and chastising. She grimaced and opened her eyes tiredly, looking up. There she saw the head researcher in the observation room high above, a deep frown on his lips. "You've been asleep for over twelve hours," he deadpanned.
She frowned. Over twelve hours? Then why was she still so sleepy? She frowned warily. Had she been drugged? Gassed? There was no other explanation she could think of for why she'd feel like this. That thought put her on edge, and suddenly she felt much more alert and awake. "Twelve hours?" she asked.
"Yes. Twelve hours," he answered flatly. "What are you doing in the biosphere, Ms. Aran?"
"I… He wouldn't settle down," she answered, blushing in embarrassment at having been caught. "He was nervous and panicking, so I came to calm him and make sure he didn't start lashing out at you or anyone else in this facility." The head researcher glared at her coldly, and she felt incredibly uncomfortable. Frowning, she stood up. "Don't give me that look!" she snapped. "I did what I had to and I couldn't give a damn whether you approve or not."
"Ms. Aran, what would your parents think if they saw you now?" he asked, shaking his head in disappointment.
She started, eyes widening. There was a beat of silence. "What?" she at last asked, tone like ice.
"Hmm… We need to talk," the man coldly said. "Now."
Samus was silent, weighing her options. He must have done some digging on her. There was no other way he would know who she was or who her parents were! Dammit… She didn't know what that meant for her, but she needed to be especially wary now. She looked back at Ridley and carefully rose from his side. He grumbled lowly in his throat, though still asleep. She left her bedding there and looked up at the man, eyes narrowed. "Fine," she said. "We'll talk." The man nodded and walked away from the observation deck to meet her in the dome.
Metroid
She stood before the head researcher in silence. She watched him warily and took the time to examine him. He was probably in his fifties or sixties, though at first glance he hardly seemed older than forty. He'd taken good care of himself. There was something about him, though, that just didn't sit right. He didn't speak to her and so she didn't speak to him. She looked back at Ridley, who was eerily still in his slumber. Almost unsettlingly so. He was still breathing, right? Nervousness came into her eyes.
"He's alright," the man said. "We should move to the observation deck."
She turned to the man quickly. Going to the observation deck meant losing visual on her nemesis, and she didn't like that idea one bit. Besides, she had told him she was going to stay. "We're just fine right where we are," she answered. If he pressed the matter, however, she couldn't risk refusing to follow him. If he'd done research and figured out who she was, she had to tread very, very carefully. Making demands or being belligerent was in no one's best interests at the moment.
The man frowned, but didn't protest. "Very well," he said, tone cold.
Folding her arms, eyes narrowed, she met his gaze. "What do you know about my parents?" she icily asked.
"More than you," he answered. He sighed, looking suddenly tired, and bowed his head, shaking it. He looked up at her once more. "My name is Doc. Your father was a dear friend of mine, once upon a time. Your mother as well. I met you when you were a child, though I was gone before you could form any sort of memory of me. About a year before the Space Pirates attacked, I was sent off on a secret research mission. The news didn't reach me until two years after the fact, but by then I had guessed they were dead. I figured as much when your father stopped responding to my messages. I was under the impression there had been no survivors. Until you gave me your name."
"A mistake I never intend to repeat with anyone again," she icily replied. Not that she'd had a lot of choices, of course, but that was beside the point.
He smirked somewhat bitterly and straightened up, folding his arms. "The name Ridley… that also was familiar, though I couldn't remember from where. So, I did a little digging. Lo and behold," the man said. He gestured to her to emphasize his unspoken words. "I'm glad at least some part of your father and mother survived that disaster." She let out a breath, closing her eyes and swallowing over a lump in her throat. "I admit, I'm somewhat puzzled now, though. What drove you of all people, the one who has killed that creature time and time again, to suddenly want to team up with him?"
"You're pretty dumb for a smart guy," she replied. "You haven't figured it out?"
"Hmm… Hopelessness. You thought there was no other way out," he said. "He was your lifeline and you were his. Under such circumstances, even the most loathsome enemies will put aside their differences in an attempt to survive. But he isn't your only way out anymore, Samus…"
Samus bristled ever so slightly. "What do you mean?" she soon asked.
The man looked towards Ridley, folding his arms behind his back. "We should leave the dome," he said.
"What?" she asked.
"He's going to wake up soon. Somehow I doubt he'll be pleased with my presence," the man replied. Samus looked back at Ridley, then to the man again warily. "If you want your answers, Samus, you will come with me. Because I won't give them here."
Samus weighed her options. "Fine," she at last said. The man nodded and turned, leading the way out. Samus looked back at Ridley once more, then followed the man warily.
Metroid
She found herself seated in his office across the desk from him, glaring as he poured himself a drink. The office overlooked the biosphere, so she made it a point to sit close to the window where she could monitor Ridley. Just in case. "Anything you would like, Ms. Aran?" this man, Doc, asked.
"Answers," she flatly replied.
"Very well," he said, turning to her and sitting. "Are you sure there isn't anything…"
"I'm good, thanks," she icily replied, cutting him off.
"Hmm. Stubborn like your father," Doc dryly said.
"You have no right to…" she began.
"I am the only one with a right to!" he snapped testily at her. "I grew up with the man for goodness sakes! You had barely formed memories of them before they were ripped away from you by the beast you so adamentlly defend now!" She flinched ever so slightly, narrowed her eyes, and glared darkly at him. "You are not the only one who lost everything that day," the man bitterly said.
Samus let out a breath, trying not to get angry. After all, she understood why he felt this way. It was the same way she had felt for so long. If his words were true, then he wasn't wrong to be enraged. They were all that was left… She had always hoped, in some far back recess of her mind, that she hadn't been the only one, but it had seemed an impossibility. Now here was another who had called her settlement home as well. He was alive and well… But it didn't feel half as good to find him as she had thought it would.
"Why are you showing the beast mercy? I thought you were less naïve than that, Samus. Do you somehow ration that he will show you the same kindness? Ever? Or that the Space Pirates will?" the man asked.
"No," she replied, shaking her head. "But no one has ever helped a wild animal, much less a predator, with any expectation of being shown the same mercy." If it happened, it happened. If it didn't, no surprise. He shook his head at her, mystified. "You're good at avoiding questions you don't want to answer, Doctor. You told me he wasn't my way out anymore. I asked you what you meant. You never answered. Only changed the subject and brought me here. So I'll ask again. What did you mean?"
"Hmm… In time, Ms. Aran," he answered, rising. "First there is something you should see." He gestured to the biosphere behind her and she frowned. She turned quickly to check on Ridley, who was still fast asleep, and frowned. Something was wrong. She felt it in her bones. She just wished she knew what. The man folded his arms behind his back and walked over to observed the slumbering Space Pirate Commander as well. "They call him the undying dragon," Doc said. Samus closed her eyes. "No matter what you do, no matter how much of him is destroyed, he always comes back… You thought you had destroyed him forever, didn't you? When you obliterated every last trace of him." He turned back to her. "Or thought you had." She opened her eyes and stayed quiet, not turning to face him. The man looked back into the dome. "But phoenixes rise from the ashes, and gods don't die. That's what he is known as, isn't it? The Cunning God of Death. I wonder at which point you forgot the word 'cunning' was in there."
"I didn't forget," she bitterly replied, fully aware the space pterodactyl was using her for his own gain. "And he isn't a god," she added.
"Isn't a god, hmm? Then why, no matter what you do, can you not defeat him?" Doc asked.
"Because that's just how things are," she coldly replied.
The man turned to her. "Just how things are, is it?" he said. Turning, he went towards a monitor and began inserting some commands. "I want to show you something, Ms. Aran. Come here," he said.
She hesitated a moment, but soon rose and tentatively approached him. "What do you want to show me?" she coldly asked. She could play along with his game for now.
The man brought up some archives and documents. Curious, she bent over to look. Slowly her eyes widened and she felt a chill running up and down her spine. "These are ancient Space Pirate relics. Take a look at them and tell me what you see." She was silent. It was a picture of an ancient carving. On that carving was the image of a legion of space pirates bowing low before a creature standing high upon a pile of corpses, wings spread wide and mouth open in a silent shriek. "Who does that remind you of?" Doc asked. Samus chose not to answer. "Did you know that an ancient Earth civilization called Egypt once viewed some animals as gods, or as links to the gods. One in particular was a favorite. The cat." She said nothing. "The Cunning God of Death… Little wonder now, is it? How he obtained such an epitaph." The man moved away from the monitor to look down into the dome again. Samus remained still, eyes glued to the artifact pictures. "The Space Pirates call him such because to them, he is. He and perhaps his entire species. There are also relics, you see, that depict many of them swarming the skies, watching over the Space Pirates. Always, though, there is a central one. The largest among them. Perhaps it is simply artistic license. Or perhaps Ridley has been alive far longer than either of us could begin to imagine…" She let out a shaking breath and Doc turned to her. "There is also the possibility, I suppose, that maybe there is a subspecies larger than all the others and more vicious. We can't say for certain yet, but we will. It's only a matter of time."
"That's your mission here," she realized as she stood up straight and turned to him. "To study them. Learn of their origins and makeup. But why from here? This isn't their home planet." At least according to Ridley it wasn't.
"But it is within casual flying distance of it," the man replied.
"Then why set up shop here and not there?" she asked.
"You've seen the damage one can do. Imagine the damage a whole species of his kind could manage," the man answered. "Besides, despite how often they show up here, finding their planet is proving far more difficult than it should be. Unnaturally so. As if something shrouds it from sight. A sort of lost world, if you will. So, we must make due with whatever we can get."
"You study them," she realized.
"As often as we can," he confirmed. "Unfortunately, it isn't all that often we get them alive."
Her eyes narrowed. "Is that what you want with him then? To study and use as a live specimen?"
"No. As rare as it is that we manage to catch them alive, it does on occasion happen. I have no concerns over that. I have other plans for him," he replied.
"What do you mean?" she darkly asked.
"Hmm…" Doc said. "You should come here, Samus. We're about to wake him up."
"About to… what do you mean?!" Samus shouted.
"I think he's been sedated long enough," the man replied.
"Sedate… Oh god… I was drugged," she said.
"You weren't supposed to be in there at all," the man answered.
"What did you do?! What did you use?!" she demanded.
"A miasma. A tainted mist," the man replied. "Had you had a light, you would have noticed it sooner. Though perhaps you wouldn't have thought anything of it."
"How did Ridley miss it?" she asked aloud in a whisper. Or had he? He must have! He wouldn't have settled down if he'd known something was wrong. Or maybe he had sensed there was something off… Then she'd appeared. She'd appeared and he'd calmed down. What if her appearance had caused him to let his guard down? Caused him to start to think he was imagining things? If that had happened then… Oh no… Was she the reason he'd fallen victim to it? Her heart sank into the pit of her stomach.
"The miasma is without scent and without taste. Nigh undetectable. His restlessness implies he sensed there was something wrong, but he couldn't have known what," the man answered.
"You bastard," she said to the man, stunned and in disbelief that he would be so brash and bold as to try something this reckless.
Doc smirked bitterly and darkly. "They've finished with him. Now he's precisely where we want him. No need for him to continue slumbering," he said.
She started. "Finished with…? Oh god!" she exclaimed. Immediately she bolted from the observation deck, racing back down to the ground level of the biodome! There was no way that Doc would open the entryway on the observation deck, but she might be able to brute force the ground level entrance.
"Awaken the pterosaur," she heard the man command over an intercom. Her heart skipped a beat and her stomach dropped into the pit of her stomach. Oh god, oh god, this couldn't be happening. This couldn't be happening! Doc had baited her away with cryptic remarks about her past that had awakened her curiosity, and she'd followed him like a rat following the piper! She'd promised Ridley she would stay there and protect him, and instead she'd walked away with barely a second thought! How could she have been so stupid and careless? What had they done to him?! She wasn't sure she wanted to know.
Metroid
She raced towards the door and threw it open, bursting inside. "Ridley!" she exclaimed. She saw him just barely stirring, only starting to come to, but that was not what horrified her most. What horrified her most was how they had restrained him. His beak was completely encased in a metal casing, a muzzle of sorts, so firmly clamped around it that there was no way he could open his mouth. They had chained him to the ground, crisscrossing his body all over with chains so thick and heavy that they looked like they should have been used to anchor ships! His tail was rendered immobile. His wings were spread out and restrained, his arms and legs were locked down and his talons on every limb had been covered over with metallic casings rendering them useless. A heavy collar with spiked pointing inward was wrapped around his neck and attached to the ground, ensuring his head was little more mobile than the rest of him. He couldn't have moved if he tried.
She held her head in her hands in shock, mind racing a mile a minute to try and figure out how she was supposed to get him out of those restraints. At the same time another part wondered why she was so alarmed by this in the first place, because goodness knew he was dangerous. But he'd been docile. At least for a while he'd been docile! When he woke up to this, though… She shuddered to think what would happen.
His eyes opened and he lifted his head groggily to look at her, blinking in exhaustion. She felt a burning sensation in her eyes so foreign that she could scarcely believe they were there. Why had they come for him? Ridley tried to screech, but immediately realized he couldn't. She let out a gasping breath, covering her mouth. She knew what was coming next. Sure enough, he completely lost all control and began trying to shriek, roar, lash out, and attack anything within a country mile of him, thrashing violently and straining against his restraints in wrath. She could hear the screeches in his throat, though far more muffled seeing as they weren't escaping his mouth.
"What have you done?" she numbly asked Doc, uncovering her mouth. Ridley continued to thrash until suddenly a powerful, jolting electrical surge tore through his body causing him to shriek in agony. Or attempt to. "Stop!" she screamed automatically before she could stop herself. She tried to run to him but was seized from behind by Doc, who subtly caught his breath. "No, leave him alone! He's mine, not yours! Mine!" She elbowed the man viciously, breaking free without issue and running towards Ridley.
"Samus!" the man shouted, reaching after her. Ridley, spotting her coming, screeched and lunged at her violently. She gasped, falling quickly back with eyes wide and mouth agape in horror.
"Get away from him!" Doc shouted.
Samus stood there numbly, looking into Ridley's eyes in shock. In them she saw no trust. Only animalistic wrath. Doc approached her, grimacing and holding his wounded stomach. "He's yours, is he? You were the one who kept insisting he was no one's pet," the man spat.
Samus scowled, looking sharply and darkly at him. "He is mine. My enemy, my nemesis, my dragon. Not yours," she said, voice wavering and breaking a little in both rage and something else she didn't care to acknowledge.
"How right you are," Doc bitterly said. He snapped his fingers. Samus turned quickly and guardedly. Cautiously some armored guards walked in, carting along a large case and laying it on the ground carefully before opening it and moving back. Samus' eyes slowly widened when she saw the weapons within. She looked quickly to Doc. "So, since he's your nemesis, treat him as such and finish him once and for all."
"No," she said quicker than she would have ever thought she would for Ridley's sake. "I need him," she added.
"For what? To get off this planet? You don't need him, Samus. Not anymore," the man said. Ridley started and narrowed his eyes darkly. "We've recovered the remains of your ship. We will be able to repair it and you will be able to leave freely whenever you please," Doc continued, holding Samus' gaze. "You are the one who has every advantage now. There's no further use for your parents' murderer. So be rid of him." She was silent and suddenly realized she was holding her breath. She let it out in a shaking stream of air, at a loss for words. Doc looked towards the weapon case. "They say gods can't die." He turned to her once more. "Prove them wrong. Samus, god slayer. It has a ring to it, doesn't it?"
She was utterly still, stricken for any sort of reaction. He was right, she realized numbly. She had no use for Ridley anymore… So why was she so reluctant to end him? "I… I can't," she finally said.
"That's never stopped you before," Doc answered.
She stared numbly at Ridley, who shrieked at her in his throat in wrath. She felt a burning in her eyes and willed it back. Doc was right. Being unable to kill him for good had never stopped her from trying before. This time, though, there was something else holding her back, and she wasn't sure she was ready to face what that was just yet.
"You've tried to destroy him again and again and again, no matter the odds against you. But he is different than the others of his kind. A subspecies, most likely. Bigger, more resilient, capable of regenerative capabilities beyond our wildest dreams… He, like a phoenix, always rises from the ashes no matter what you do. But what if I were to tell you that this time he wouldn't? That this time the undying dragon would die and stay dead?"
"I wouldn't believe you," she replied, eyes still locked on Ridley.
"Not until you saw it with your own eyes?" Doc said. She looked at him. He reached into a pocket and withdrew a vial, holding it up. She stared at it quietly. "For years we have studied his kind, gleaning what we could from corpses and remains and whatever live specimens we could capture. It has not proved fruitless. We've developed this. A serum of sorts, designed to cancel out the regenerative capabilities of the species and ensure their permanent destruction." He looked at Ridley. "If it works, then this destructive, unstoppable force before us will be no more, and goodness knows how many lives will be saved." She was utterly still, staring at the vial. "He is your nemesis. He slaughtered your parents, your people, took everything from you… He destroyed entire worlds in his villainous rampages. If this works, he will destroy no more."
Ridley screeched again in outrage and began thrashing violently again, straining and struggling against his bonds only to be electrocuted by them. The screech in his throat echoed loudly. Samus winced ever so slightly. "If, you said," she replied.
"If. And if it fails, then we will keep on developing it and perfecting it until at last he ceases to rise again."
"He would have to die. Over and over and over," she numbly said. "It could take years to perfect a serum that would keep him dead. He would live in a state of constant death and rebirth. He… he'd never be free again…" He'd never again spread his wings and take to the skies. He'd never again move from the spot in which he was trapped right now. He would wither away to a shell of what he was, but he wouldn't die. That goddamn pterodactyl just wouldn't die… He would waste away and suffer for the rest of his days, and goodness knew how long those would be…
"If he must die in agony again and again for the rest of eternity, so what? Would he not deserve every second of that suffering?" Doc questioned. "The lives he has shattered, the souls he has taken, the worlds he has destroyed… You know he is too dangerous to be allowed to live. You've seen what his kind are capable of. You've watched him time and time again commit genocide en masse, annihilating civilizations, driving species to extinction, massacring everything in his path leaving nothing alive in the wake. Except for you. You who he took everything from. You who he haunts no matter where you go, torments, psychologically wars with… He does not deserve to live, and I'm giving him to you now to do with as you please. Handing him over on a silver platter. You can avenge your parents, your colony, the millions on millions of lives he cut short. Everything. You can make it all right. It would be no more than he deserved anyway. Tell me you wouldn't be satisfied to see him suffer."
"And what of the rest of his species?" she asked.
"I would prefer to leave them be, but if they prove a problem, they'll be destroyed too. It's not like you're a stranger to eradicating an entire race," he said. "What's another one? Arguably one far, far more deserving of extinction than the Metroids ever were."
She was quiet, staring at him in disbelief and a measure of pain and guilt. "I didn't…" she began before trailing off. She couldn't say anything in her defense because there was nothing to be said. She had done exactly what he claimed… She stared at the vial in silence, torn. More torn than she'd ever thought she would be… At last she looked into Doc's eyes, her own narrowed. "There was a time, not even long ago, when I would have agreed to do this without hesitation," she coldly said. He frowned a bit. She shook her head and looked towards Ridley. "That time is passed now," she said.
Doc's eyes darkened. "Then the Cunning God of Death has outwitted even you," he icily said.
Samus sharply looked back at him. "The Cunning God of Death is an animal. Nothing more and nothing less. He is the only one of his kind anyone has ever seen outside of this solar system, and he should never have been taken from it in the first place. He's an animal ripped from its natural habitat goodness knows how long ago. An invasive species with no natural or rival predator, left to wreak unchecked havoc on the native population. An animal lost and alone and driven only by the need to survive by whatever means necessary." She looked to Ridley once more, her eyes tired. "Wiping out his species would be like slaughtering every last animal on an endangered species list because one of their kind killed someone you loved. It would be pointless and vindictive and cruel."
"Hmm… Even if that's so, and we let the notion of wiping his kind out go, at the very least this single man-eater among them will be slaughtered," Doc answered, looking at Ridley as well.
She looked down, closing her eyes. "If the man-eater needs to be slaughtered, I'll slaughter him on my own terms. Not on yours," she said.
"Then slaughter him," Doc said. Samus looked up at Ridley feeling numb. "Go on. The Cunning God of Death is at your mercy. Show the Pirates their god can die. His head would make you a fine trophy, I think, and send a resounding message to them as well. That they have no deity anymore."
Samus was quiet, meeting Ridley's narrowed eyes. He was breathing heavily in wrath and exhaustion, energy spent on his struggle but still every bit as vindictive and violent and vicious, ready to lash out at a moment's notice no matter how tired he was. "No," she heard herself say.
"What?" Doc darkly asked.
She turned to him, eyes narrowed. "No. I'm not going to kill him. Not here, not now, not ever. Not on anyone's terms but mine."
"Make them your terms," Doc said.
"Leave him alone," she hissed.
"I suggest you rethink your answer," he said.
"No," she repeated, shaking her head.
"Why not? Whatever understanding you've forged with him is in ruins now, if he no longer trusts you. There'll be no winning it back at this point," Doc said.
"I don't care. I'm not playing your game, you psycho. You've lost your mind. You haven't begun to comprehend the meaning of cunning when it comes to him. He was outsmarting scientists like you in his larval stage! You've as good as doomed everyone. The Space Pirates will come for him, and not even your defenses will be able to stop them."
"Then it's your job to prevent that. As little as you may like me, Samus, no one else here deserves your ire," he said. "They're just doing their jobs. No more no less. Ridley dies whether you're the one who kills him or not. For our own safety."
Logically she knew that would be their best move, the smartest option they had left to them, but it didn't mean she was keen to see it happen. "I promised him I would help him escape this planet," she said.
"What does an animal care for promises? And even if you do succeed, where do you go from there? He'll only go straight back to terrorizing the galaxy all over again. How many more lives need to be lost before you accept once again that he must die?"
"If my theory is correct, none," she replied.
"And what is that theory?" he asked.
"That if he's returned to his natural habitat, introduced to the world he should never have been taken from, he'll be satisfied and stay," she answered.
"What if he doesn't?" the man asked.
"If he returns to terrorizing the galaxy, then I'll do whatever I have to, to ensure he's destroyed. Even… even if it means this," she said. She wouldn't be happy about it, but she would do what had to be done, to spare the galaxy Ridley's wrath. Sometimes… sometimes animals were too dangerous to keep alive… Sometimes euthanization was the only option.
Doc stared at her, his lips pursed. At last he sighed, shoulders slumping as he bowed his head and shook it. He massaged the bridge of his nose then looked back up at her, eyes narrowed. "That is your mother in you," he said. "That mercy." He looked towards Ridley, who was growling lowly and watching him spitefully. If the creature ever got the chance, it would kill him without question he knew. He frowned and turned back to Samus. "Very well. Do with that beast what you will. But be careful you don't regret your mercy. Go ahead, Samus. Try and save what cannot be saved or rehabilitated. See where it gets you." Samus turned her head, looking exhaustedly at Ridley. Huffing, Doc turned and left the room without further comment.
Metroid
Samus closed her eyes when she heard the door to the dome close behind him, then opened them once more to look at her enemy. He watched her darkly and warily. There was no point in talking to him, she told herself. She might as well assume they were back at square one and try to build up from there. Considering she even could anymore, that was. "I won't let them hurt you anymore, big guy. I promise," she said. Her words probably meant nothing to him, but they were all she had right now. Actions spoke louder than they did, yes, but actions took time and opportunity. How much of the latter she would have was anyone's guess.
"Stuck for what to do, Samus?" she heard Doc say over the intercom.
She set her jaw. "No one touches him again. Ever. Not with syringes or tranquilizers or anything. No one goes close to him but me from now on."
"Of course, Ms. Aran. He's yours, after all," the man answered. "Every bit as much as you are his. His enemy, his nemesis, his human."
"Damn right," Samus answered, refusing to be shaken or thrown off. Doc huffed but said nothing. For that she was glad. Despite it all, though, she was in some way grateful to him. He hadn't told her how disappointed in her, her parents would be, after all. Or the Chozo. Or anyone else. He hadn't attacked her still raw and open emotional wounds either, though he had plucked a bit at the strings. He'd said and done nothing to directly hurt her or tear her down, though he had every right to if he'd really been close to her mom and dad. After all, if that was the case then, like her, he had every reason to hate Ridley. Yet despite that he was still willing to turn the space dragon's care over to her. "Ridley?" she said quietly. Almost pleadingly. He glared darkly at her and didn't respond. She let out a breath, bowing her head.
"We can't release him from his binds unless he's sedated, you know. He would rip us apart," she heard Doc say.
"No more sedation," she darkly answered. "I'll figure it out for myself." She looked up at her imprisoned nemesis once more. Doing it zerosuit, though, would be the peak of stupidity right now, so power suit it was. "I'll come back for you," she promised the space dragon. He screeched at her in rage. She winced. Part of her didn't want to leave, to gain an animal's trust you had to show them you trusted them yourself, after all, but in this case, she was probably wise to make an exception. She could build trust again fully suited up, thank you very much. He roared again, sounding almost pleading and pitiful, and she paused at the doorway.
She heard Doc sigh over the intercom and looked up at it. "I'll order your power suit to be brought here," he said to her.
Samus was still and didn't respond, just turned back to Ridley and soon approached him again as gingerly as she could. She reached out for his head and paused. It was still somewhat mobile, and if he struck her with enough force behind a headbutt, he could do some serious damage. She weighed her options then pressed onwards with a determined frown, placing her hand on the metal casing. Her mouth quivered and she felt tears misting her eyes, but she fought them back. Like always. Closing them, she leaned forward suddenly and rested her forehead against his own, nuzzling the scales gently. He rumbled lowly. "It's okay boy. We'll get you out of this soon." He growled darkly and threateningly, sounding put out by the 'it's okay boy' statement, but he did nothing to harm her. He had caused her to let her guard down once before. She had never meant to make that mistake again. But now she couldn't help but wonder if Doc was right… What if this was all just an act after all? She sighed, withdrawing from him. If it was, then she probably deserved whatever came to her for falling for it again. Why was she such an idiot? Why did it feel like every choice she made was a bad one? Gently she rubbed the bridge of his beak with the back of her hand. "I'm a fool, aren't I?" she asked. She could have sworn she heard him darkly chuckle.