Heart of a Dragon
By Karasuhato, the "Raven Dove"
(karasuhato@ecmail.i-p.com)
and
Ultima Mayu
(mayu_roxx@hotmail.com)
---
The "Metroid" series is copyright of Nintendo co. ltd.
"Rudra no Hihou" (Rudra's Secret Treasure) is copyright of Squaresoft and Graphical Corporations CROWD inc.
---
Karasuhato's Key/Legend to story elementals:
= A character's thoughts
italics=character's point of view
CAPITAL LETTERS= character talking loudly
---
TARGET: Hayley Kazhan (specimen AR905)
---
In only a few days, the Galactic Federation ships are now under control by the Naster Nothingness' beings that everyone thought have died from being gassed down that one day. The creatures have regained consciousness after doctors and scientists tried to experiment on them, only to be horribly maim, or ever worse yet, dead. Like the typical cockroach, the off-springs of the Nothingness were much more difficult to deplete of than most people would have ever thought. Gulim-Che ran up to specimen AR905 (Hayley Kazhan) and tried to reason with her.
"Why do you want to attack Planet Ashura?" Gulim-Che asks, running up to Hayley. "If there were wicked beings, many other people on different worlds would hear about it! How come no one has except us?" Hayley shoved over the young chozo and gave him a nasty look.
"SILENCE YOU! These creatures are out for us all, they will destroy us!" Everyone looked quite disgusted at the crazy woman, wondering what she was talking about.
"Mabye, those creatures are out after the Nothingness of Beyond." Dr. Rebine added. Hayley starts to eye everybody with her cold, mad eyes.
"LISTEN! We are on peace terms here." shouts Hayley. Chairman Kilmer looked curiously at her for a bit, wondering what these "Peace Terms" were.
"What are these 'Peace Terms' that you talk about?" Kilmer asks.
"Well, you do as we say, everyone on the GF will live in peace and we will spare returning the worlds to what they once were a long time ago......" explains Hayley.
"But if we don't do as commanded though?" Gulim-Che asks nervously. Hayley starts to have a wicked grin on her face.
"......Then, you will die and everything will be returned to barren nothingness! All worlds will start all over again! HA HA HA HA HA HA HA!!!" Everyone started to back off nervously, looking pale and uptight.
"Y.......yes ma'am!" Chairman Kilmer stuttered, backing off from the strange woman. Hayley kept on laughing cruelly, looking at everyone in the chairman's office.
"Good, good! I'm glad you gave in, dear chairman! OH HO HO HO HO HO!!!"
---
At last, the mother ship 'Hana-Nim', finally escaped from Planet Ashura and the rain of lasers that came from the ship above the planet. However, everyone had to think straight, since they could be under attack at anytime of the day. So after Samus' ship was 100% repaired, General Arvis and Kary requested her to go take the secret side entrance on the Galactic Federation, going undercover for the Aeonese crew.
Meanwhile, inside Captain Zoltan's office, the captain himself and Professor Jilde were going over some plans for Surlent, Scion, Riza, Dune and Ridley, whom are now in their Rudra forms.
"Okay everybody, listen up." Captain Zoltan announced. "In order for us to make it onto the main GF vessel, we have to send all five of you out there at once. However, take the side entrance, not the main entrance, because it is an easier way for the beings not to detect you guys coming onto the vessel. Got that?"
"Yes sir!" Everyone saluted in unison.
"Good! I also found a couple of now ex-Galactic Federation members that can help you guys out on navigating through the main vessel." Right besides Captain Zoltan and Jilde, were to everyone's surprise, Azrael and Xibalba, some of the few Aeonese dragons that have worked for the GF.
"Hello, I am Azrael." greets the silver being. "And next to me is Xibalba, my companion."
"Hello, we shall be your guides on this mission here." the black being adds. "Remember, when we get to the huge colonial ship, do not get separated from each other and do not give in to any of the force, okay?"
"Alright!" Everyone saluted as the guides and the warriors started to leave. Xibalba and Azrael were the guides, Surlent and Ridley were the ones in charge and following them were Scion, Riza and Dune. Jilde started to approach his daughter for a little bit.
"Riza......" Jilde said calmly.
"Yes....." Riza said as she smiled at her father. Both of them started to hug each other, knowing that this is indeed an urgent mission and that she won't be back for a while.
"Good luck dear."
"Thank you." Riza replies. "Please take care!"
All five of the warriors and their guides made their way out of the ship and started to fly off to their main destination, the main GF colonial vessel.
---
It was hours since Samus Aran made her way onto the main GF vessel. The mighty space hunter shut off all the alarms or any devices that made loud noise, since the beings of Nothingness were attracted to loud noise. Samus shot, stabbed, blasted and dashed right through all of the strange mutations that raided the ship, reducing them to nothing but shredded up carcasses. Samus seemed to be more powerful, since Dr. Rebine gave her the vaccine to rid of the virus within her body.
As Samus started to clear one room after another, she noticed some civilians being tied up together with some sort of metal rope.
"Are the monsters gone?" some of the young hostages asked.
"Oh Samus, OH SAMUS! You are here after all!" cheered the older hostages. "Please free us!"
"Sure thing!" Samus replies, as she brings out a laser blade from her arm cannon. "Freedom shall be in reach here!" Samus sliced up the metal ropes and was being careful on not cutting some one on accident. Before everyone knew it, everyone was freed.
"THANK YOU SAMUS!!!" The hostages cheered. Samus waved back and hoped for the freed hostages to find safety. Now it was time to Samus to moved on, and had to tackle on her main target:
THE SAMUS CLONE SPECIMEN AR905!!!
---
Finally, Surlent, Scion, Riza, Dune, Ridley, Xibalba and Azrael made their way through the ship. The warriors did as they said and followed Xibalba, and Azrael through the corridors. However, this was only the beginning for what problems the party were going to face.
"Come on, as long as everyone hangs in there, we could all make it." Azrael said, trying to watch over the warriors and he and Xibalba led the way. As Azrael and Xibalba turned their backs for a bit, leaving to do their business briefly, the warriors started to feel some pain throbbing inside their heads, and collapsed on the floor at the same time. Their jades also started to flash violently like strobe lights.
"AAAAAAAAACK! NO, NO, I HATE THIS PLACE!" Ridley shouted at the top of his lungs in pain. All the warriors started to bundle up to each other, and embraced as hard as they could.
"It hurts, it hurts, IT HURTS!" cried Riza in pain, putting her hand to the jade on her forehead. Suddenly, all five of the warriors started to feel an evil presence around them. First target: RIDLEY!!!
"Ridley, remember this place?" the evil voice said to Ridley.
"Shut up! Leave me alone." Ridley whispered to the voice.
"That's right, I will leave you alone, but on one condition. Start slaying anyone on this ship whom is a part of the Galactic Federation. Complete Mother Brain's work and the work of the late Zebesian raiders! GYA HA HA HA HA HA HA!" With this, some flashbacks of Ridley's space raider days came to mind, as well as the raiding on the late Ceres colony and capturing the young Metroid to satisfy Mother Brain's purposes. As Ridley thought about it, it was like he was being treated like he were a robot and not like a living being.
"NOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!" Ridley screeched. The presence made it's way from Ridley to Surlent, their leader.
"Surlent, oh Surlent....." the voice taunted. "You are such a horrible leader. How could humanoids or any other living being rely on you? Remember when you doomed everyone you loved to die, such as Myun-Hi and your surrogate father, SORON! They died because of you." Surlent also started to have flashbacks as well. The day where Lazm "killed" him by tearing his chest open, inserting the "Re-Birth" jade into Surlent's left shoulder. Then, finding out the news that an evil entity named Clugan took Surlent's body away from him and went on a major killing spree, devouring souls of the living. Amongst these souls were Soron, the wise man of Mt. Torle.
"I'm sorry....I'm sorry...." Surlent whimpered to himself as the throbbing in his head gotten stronger and stronger. He clutched onto the crystal that was embedded inside his torso, pain reaching inside there as well. Scion also started to feel a wave of madness within him as well.
"Oh Scion, guess what? Everyone you once trusted turned against you! They are planning to kill you and take your Life Jade away from your body." The voice told Scion. "Protect yourself from those infidels." Scion just calmly nodded his head silently, as the dreaded presence made it's way inside Riza.
"Riza, though you were born out of chastity, you are still an unwanted birth, nothing more than a mere accident!" The voice told Riza loudly. "Everyone just wants to use you. No one loves you, you have no friends! HA HA HA HA HA!!! Remember your mother, Aqua?"
"What about my mother?" Riza asked bitterly, clutching onto her head with her wings, her talons started to knot up like a stiff fists.
"........The demons devoured her soul once at the spirit temple near Mt. Mantra. The reason why they did this was........BECAUSE THEY CAME FROM YOU! YOU, RIZA!"
"STOP IT! Don't say such things!" Riza wailed in pain, throwing herself on the ground. Then, the being had enough with Riza and decided to toy with Dune's mind for a bit.
"Dune, pull out your gun, and aim it towards your comrades here." tears started to form from the Treasure Hunter's eyes.
"But, but....they are friends? Why would I want to kill the people I care about?" Dune groaned as he held onto his gun he got out from his web like armor.
"Oh really?" The voice cackled. "Then how come they separated you from your dear friend, Kidd?"
"DAMMIT, KIDD CAN TAKE CARE OF HIMSELF!" Dune yelled.
"Face it Dune, you are just their puppet. Kill them and you can be freed!" The voice said in a convincing tone of voice. In a fit of madness, Dune pulled out his gun, Surlent summoned out the "Tori-Shi" ("Death Sending Bird") scepter he inherited from Houzhen, Scion pulled out his huge Apocalypse blade, Riza's feathers on her arm/wings started to turn into razor sharp blades and Ridley's onyx black claws started to grow quite long, ready to stab anyone or anything.
"DIE DIE DIE! You will all fight till all dies and one lives! GYA HA HA HA HA HA HA HA!!!" the voice told everybody in the room. Everyone circled each other, raised their weapons and started to brawl.
"DIE DIE!" Everyone screamed in rage and insanity. Everyone started to fight like lions, using combination of their weapons, mantra spells and their own fists. Being alarmed to hear the loud shouting and screaming, Azrael and Xibalba rushed out of the restroom and decided to check up on the warriors, being introduced to a grisly surprise.
"EVERYONE, STOP ALL THIS MADNESS!" Xibalba shouted, trying to shake everyone around, trying to get them back to their senses, making them let go of their weapons of distract them from further attacking. Azrael started to use his mind transmitting tool on the warriors, picking of some strange signals from the warriors' minds.
"Oh dear...." Azrael groaned. "Some force on this ship is trying to warp everyone's minds here. That is why the ones with the sacred Jades were brawling." This gave the Aeonese a plan.
"Stand back Xibalba!" warned Azrael as he started to use some bolts of holy light to rid of the evil aura that dwelled inside the minds of the Jade Warriors. Surely enough, the presence left their minds and evaporated, leaving the companions totally clueless on what has been happening.
"Ugh....." Surlent started to look around the place. "What HAPPENED?"
"Are we there yet?" Ridley asked, feeling slightly dazed.
"Well, no time to explain, we must get going!" cried Xibalba as he, Azrael and the others started to join together though the corridors that led to the main office. Suddenly, a scream of rage started to pierce the hallways.
"SAMUS!!!" cried out Azrael.
"Come on everyone, let's roll." Dune shouted as everyone started to drift as fast as they could down the corridors. Ridley broke the door off the hinges and witnessed a great battle going in the chairman's office.
"Oh great, there are TWO Samuses!" cried out Ridley. "Now WHAT ARE WE TO DO?"
"Listen Ridley, listen closely." Xibalba explains. "You have seen Samus' new armor and spaceship, right?"
"Yes, indeed I have."
"Okay. Well, Ridley, eventually, there was a clone of Samus that the X-virus created from the remains of the mutations that were gassed down weeks ago. The clone used Samus' old armor and ship and is trying to pass off as a warrior for the GF" Ridley looked stunned.
"Really? How odd." Ridley responded, sounding calmer than ever.
"The X-virus also started to resurrect the dead mutations as well. " adds Azrael. "But luckily, if we all keep fighting like this, we could all eliminate the beings." Then Surlent, Scion, Riza and Dune made way and started to get into the battle scene between Samus, AR905/Hayley and the resurrected mutations.
"Samus, we gotten everything taken care of here." Scion announces to Samus. "Try to get everything ready for the people to safely evacuate, okay?"
"Okay! I think the colony is sadly, far from recovery." Samus says, heading out of the room, rounding up civilians to escape pods that led to worlds rich with life. Ridley also started to make his scene, his body sweating out magma and igniting him in flames.
"I'm your worst nightmare bitch." snarled Ridley, the dragon Rudra. "Prepare to DIE!"
"That's what you think. HAH HAH HAH HAH HAH!" Now, the vessel was a battle field. It was Surlent, Ridley, Scion, Riza and Dune against AR905/Hayley and a horde of strange mutations. Ridley engulfed himself in his magma flames and started to ram himself into the monstrosities, roasting them into just mere ash. Scion ignited his sword in thunder and started to slash up more of the twisted beings, having them explode as they touched Scion's blade.
"NO, NO! WHAT ARE YOU DOING!?" Hayley shouted in rage as she grabbed out her missiles and started to aim them at all the Jade Warriors! "Eat missiles! HA HA HA HA!!!"
"Crap!" Surlent shouted as he saw the missiles coming. He flew up into the air and grabbed the missiles. "Ha ha, tables have turned!" Surlent casts a deadly earth elemental mantra on the missiles and threw them at more of the mutations, petrifying them in place. Surlent then summoned the "Tori-Shi" (Death sending Bird) to break the petrified beings into nothing but mere dust. Riza's feathers on her arm/wings turned to razor-sharp blades and started to fly through the air frantically, slashing every mutation up until they were just a bloody, gooey mess. She shook the blood off her arm/wings and restored them to a clean state. Dune started to summon the "Death Star" towards the mutations he was dealing with, sucking all the life force out of their bodies and transmitted them to energy.
However, Hayley was not even close to quitting. She started to distract the warriors with her grappling missiles, spreading them apart from the mutations.
"Now, what is the meaning of this?" Hayley sneered, eyeing the five warriors. Ridley stood up and towered over the twisted woman in armor.
"You, YOU were the one to start this madness!" Ridley shouted, lifting Hayley off the ground by her chest. "We, however, are going to stop this madness!" Ridley then started to whip Hayley with his razor sharp metal tail, and threw her up against the wall with full force, strong enough to break off some of the armor.
"We are just trying to protect the innocent and rid the enemy." Riza said calmly, as she summoned her "Blade of Light" rapier from her mouth and shot it right into Hayley's chest.
"You're days are almost over!" Scion snarled, pummeling the weary creature. Hayley started to wheeze and her breath started to get heavy, showing signs of wear all over her face stained with indigo blood.
"What shall my master say about this!?" cried out Hayley. "Anyways, I'm only doing what Master Nothingness tells me to do." This started to enrage everyone even more.
"Your master is the NOTHINGNESS?!" Surlent shouted out. "I should have known!" Surlent started to summon liquid tendrils from his Re-Birth crystal, holding Hayley in place.
"Now, now I can explain here." Haley pled. Everyone stared at her warily.
"What is it you need to say?" Ridley asked, feeling suspicious. Hayley, in her shattered armor started to breath hard some more.
"I am only commanded to return everything to the beginning of time. Y'know, nothing lasts forever....."
"True." Surlent responds. "But still, the worlds here are not ready to return to nothingness yet, and it should be up to us, and the supreme beings to take care of that."
"Yes, you all have no right to toy with things like that." Dune added.
"What do you 'supreme deity beings' know anyways?" Hayley spouted in a snobbish tone of voice. "Master Nothingness knows more than any of you! HA HA HA HA" Then, Hayley's armor started to burst and she became a horrible monster that resembled an un-comfortable mixture between a jelly-fish, a protozoa and some tree fungi. The strange being started to force the other mutations to fuse with her, making the glowing neon red mass grow bigger and bigger. All the warriors were knocked to the ground.
"KYA HA HA HA!!! I am Specimen AR905, THIS here is my real form! You are all no match for me, nor my master!" All the warriors gotten up and pre-pared to attack.
"So, this is your game, huh? We'll see about that." Ridley yelled, sweating out magma and turning into his fire being form. "Do your worst!" Ridley started to use his whole body as a weapon against AR905, burning holes within her and ripping apart the slimy, gooey flesh. Suddenly, as Ridley became his normal Rudra form, AR905's tentacle lifted him off the ground by his four wings.
"Okay, I will *do my worst*!" cackled AR905 as she let go of Ridley and started to absorb him with her lasers that traveled from tentacle to tentacle, draining the dragon Rudra. He started to toss around and shake nervously, feeling weakened by the laser's full force. Riza came by and flew into the scene, ripping the tentacles apart, one by one, with her talons. As Ridley started to fall, Riza caught him in her arms and safely flew down to the ground. "What are you doing here?"
"Do I have to say?" Riza said, smiling. She then summoned her light rapier again, grabbed it with her talons while flying up to AR905 and dropped the rapier on her weak spot, the nucleus in the center. Suddenly, AR905 bled out some humanoid and reptilian forms out from the nucleus.
"I'm not as easy as I look." cackled AR905. Already, the forms started to take on the Rudra forms of Scion, Surlent, Riza, Dune and Ridley. "Say hello to specimens SC906, SU907, RZ908, DN909 and RY910! KYA HA HA HA HA!!!"
The clones started to charge their flesh and blood counterparts, using the same techniques as their counterparts. Now it was time to fight fire with fire. Scion and SC906 were dueling each other, using their most powerful sword techniques against each other. Surlent and SU907 were casting their most powerful mantra spells, but with one problem: BOTH HAVE THE SAME ELEMENTAL STRENGTHS AND WEAKNESSES. Riza started to tackle and slice up RZ908, however, RZ908 had her own ideas as well, and counter-attacked with her magnetic energy orbs she shot out at Riza. Dune started to fight specimen DN909 with his gun-power and combining mantra with bullets, while Ridley used his firepower, darkness elements, claws and razor tail against specimen RY910. All of the sudden, in the middle of the bloody battle, Dune came up with a plan.
"Hey, hey, I get it now!" Dune exclaimed.
"What is it?" wheezed Ridley, trying to put a death grip on his struggling clone.
"Try using the opposite elements against our doppelgangers. If we keep fighting like this, AR905 will surely give up!"
"Sounds great Dune!" responds Surlent, having a series of thoughts. But now, he had to think deeply, casting the mantra that dwelled on the enemies' weaknesses. Everyone fought as hard as they could against their clones, using their best weaponry, abilities and whatever it would take to rid of such horrible beings. Scion dowsed his saber into Ridley's darkness elementals and used the saber to fight against SC906, Surlent used thunder and lightning spells against SU907, eventually sending out his thunderbird to take of matter, while Riza and Ridley swap their elementals for a temporary amount of time and each one took turns on taking on RZ908 and RY910. Dune, on the other hand, just continued to absorb his bullets in various elementals, since specimen DN909 kept switching elementals on him. While the clones were weakening and retreating inside specimen AR905, all attention turned to AR905.
"What did you just do here?" shouted AR905. "Those were my best specimens!" The monster was weakened, but still was willing to fight on. "You'll pay!"
AR905 started to spray out poisonous bile all over the place, eroding everything in site, but strangely being reflected off of the Jade Warriors.
"Hey guys, I have an idea!" Surlent whispered to his friends. Everyone gathered closer to Surlent, listening to what he has to say. "Okay, listen up! Once you guys use your special abilities, I'll will send the Tori-Shi (Death Sending bird) to the center of AR905's body. Okay?"
"Yes." Everyone responds, smiling. "We are ready! HA HA HA!"
"Oh really?" AR905 wondered. "We'll see about that!"
"NOW!!!" Surlent shouted loudly. Scion pulled out some little blades and ignited them with blue fire, Riza started to shoot out some lasers from the crystals on her wings and chest, Dune summoned the 'Nagasu' wave and Ridley shot out a huge fiery blast. Suddenly, Surlent summoned the Tori-Shi to swallow up all the elements and head right to AR905's nucleus, sending the jelly-like monster to act up.
"AAAAAAAAAAAAAUGH!" the twisted creature yelled. "Nooooo! I'm disintegrating!" All of the sudden, AR905 was no more than a semi-dried puddle of slime.
"Sayonara! HA HA HA HA" Ridley laughed as he sent a flaming spear on the remains, eliminating the threat. Scion, Surlent, Riza and Dune started to opened up the locked door that imprisoned Chairman Kilmer, Gulim-Che and Dr .Rebine.
"What are you guys doing here? It's dangerous!" cried out chairman Kilmer.
"Don't worry, she's gone." Surlent coaxed as he, Scion, Riza and Dune helped the others become freed from their chains and help them get out of the office. Suddenly, the sirens started to go off frantically.
"ATTENTION! ATTENTION! THE GALACTIC FEDERATION VESSEL WILL SELF DESTRUCT IN APPROXIMATELY TEN MINUTES! ALL CIVILIANS AND OFFICIALS EVACUATE AT ONCE!"
"COME ON, WE ALL MUST GO!" cried out Xibalba and Azrael as they helped the civilians and officials to escape the main GF vessel. The Jade Warriors also helped out with setting up escape pods for everyone as time started to pass.
"Please! Don't panic, just get into the escape pods, at once!" Riza announces as she and the others helped everyone onto an escape pod. Samus also started to make her scene alongside the Jade Warriors, as well as some of the Hana-Nim crew members.
"You guys okay?" Samus asked. Everyone nodded.
"Yes, we just helped out many people here escape." Surlent responded.
"THREE MINUTES UNTIL SELF DESTRUCTION!"
"Shit, we must go, and at once!" Ridley shrieked as he gathered his companions and followed the Hana-Nim crew and Samus out of the GF vessel and back to their mother ship and Samus' ship.
As everybody left the GF colonial vessel, whether in an escape pod or relief ships, everyone gotten to witness the huge explosion of the GF colonial vessel from a distance in space.
"Oh no! My home, my home! What shall we do now!" chairman Kilmer shouted out in sadness on the Hana-Nim. Kary came up to the former chairman and tried to comfort him.
"Oh, don't worry Kilmer. The important thing was that you were saved." Kary responded softly, wrapping her arm and wing around Kilmer.
"Well Kilmer...." Gulim-Che says in a satisfied voice. ".....I guess you underestimated the people of Dai-Chi and Ridley." Kilmer's yellow eyes were full of shock.
"WHAT???" Kilmer cried out. "RIDLEY WAS BEHIND ALL OF THIS? I SHOULD HAVE....."
"No no Kilmer....! Ridley happened to save our lives. Him and the people of Dai-Chi" explains Gulim-Che. "If it were not for them, we would have either died in the explosion or be devoured by the strange mutations." Kilmer started to blush hard, feeling ashamed of what he said about them before.
"So sorry I did not listen to you or Dr. Rebine." Kilmer sighs. "I guess you, Samus, Xibalba and Azrael were right, Ridley did change, and all for the better!" As some of the former GF members and the Aeonese Hana-Nim crew were helping out each other, they started to approach a familiar planet once more.
"HELLO EVERYONE, THIS IS CAPTAIN ZOLTAN! WE ARE NOW GOING TO ARRIVE ON THE PLANET DAI-CHI! WE ARE GOING TO FUEL UP AND REST UP BEFORE ONE MORE THING HAS TO GET DONE BY OUR HEROIC JADE WARRIORS!"
Finally, it was home sweet home for the heroic team for once. It would a rest well deserved.