Chapter 3: Aboard the Station
Samus and the others had finally arrived at Chauda Station after having
to merit clearance of a Lirran scrap dealer -and- escort the merchant
back to Alpha Centauri. They had a surprise pirate attack, but it was
too small and disorganized. Probably caught wind of an unarmed
salvager passing by, not expecting an escort. After that was out of
the way and being given a few missile tanks for thier trouble, they
headed to thier original destination. They weren't even given a stop
for clearance until they left the docking bay. Ridley was the least of
thier worries right now. They were upset because of thier findings
about activity on the surface of SR388.
"Is it Metroids?" The scientist being asked looks at Samus and then
walks to a display.
"I wish that it were...we don't know what these things are. And there
is a woman standing amongst them...I-it can't be...Royce?!"
-------------------
Samus tried to bring the ship as close as possible to Royce was. She
was standing in a relatively clear spot, one where seldom a gelatinous
blob would pass. Royce was hurriedly escorted in and the ship left
without a hitch.
'But she doesn't know that she's carrying the one who she so-said
defeated. I had faked my death to escape that one last missile that
would have really killed me. While she had her back turned and was
leaving with my last child, I transformed and began to hunt those
infernal blobs with a passion. But thier breeders were still more
elusive than my predatorial talent. They fear us, the Metroids. They
went into hiding and tried to disguise themselves as something that
they thought would kill us. They have found the one...they just need
her...Samus Aran...' Royce sat off in a corner, scowling at Samus the
whole time.
'But she was cautious, and so am I. I will not let them have her.
They will not destroy us. Her or me. I hate to rely on an enemy. I
hate it more than what any of my children felt. But she wasn't a
totally heartless person. My baby...she wanted to save my baby from
the pirates...I don't know what to think of her, should I hate her
even more than now for taking my child to be in a sterile tomb, or
should I secretly thank her for trying to preserve us?' Royce got up
and began to pace back and forth.
'I don't know what to think. Who is her enemy? Who is she a savior
of? What is her motive? What does she feel?' Royce stopped and
looked at Samus, who returned glance.
"...What is it, Royce?" Royce stiffened.
"...Thanks..." Royce's single word of thanks confused Samus. What was
she being thanked for? Getting her away from those...those...floating
things? Yeah, maybe she was being thanked for escorting Royce off of
that hot bed of actions unknown.
"You're welcome...I guess..."
-----------------
Everyone aboard the station was relived to see that the mission was a
success. Royce was back in the Federation fold again, and Samus and
the others were about to take Royce to Alpha Centauri so that she
could be questioned as to why she disappeared after the report 11
years ago.
"Oh, Royce?" Samus moved to ask before the ship left. She set it
onto auto-pilot.
"What is it?" Samus holds out a recorder.
"The Federation Police are lazy, so if I give Hardy a recorded
interrogation, they will bypass interrogating you personally. How
does that sound? You look nervous about sitting in front of Hardy
and telling the truth there." Royce looks at Houston and Ridley.
"If they leave. I want this to be private." Samus looked behind
Ridley and said to them,
"There's a room that you boys can sit in while Royce is questioned.
Behind Ridley is where the door is." Houston opens the door. A
modestly sized bedroom on a spaceship this 'small' seemed impossible.
Apparently Samus had room for everything that she needed, and a few
things that she wanted. Houston and Ridley walk inside and the door
shuts behind.
"Now..." Samus clicks the recorder on. "Tell me, why did you vanish
from the B.S.L. lab that was on the planet SR388 at the time after
giving a status report that said that the station was attacked?"
"...Here's why. The Metroids avoided me because...I, too, am a
Metroid. In fact, I am Queen Metroid." Samus snickers and then
starts to laugh.
"Queen Metroid is dead! I'm Marie Antoinette if you really are!"
Royce frowns.
'So, you don't believe me, do you? I'd like to strangle you and drain
you into a pile of dust, but that won't keep you alive. You'd still
be safe from the parasites, though.'
"A-anyway, let's give out a real reason, now." Royce gives a sharp
look and says in monotone,
"I gave you the real reason. You don't want me to make you believe
me by force." Samus holds back on laughing this time, but still can't
believe what Royce is saying. If she really -were- Queen Metroid, why
doesn't she just attack them then and there?
"Alright...next question. How did you elude me on my mission to find
and return you to the Federation?" Royce loosens slightly and
answers.
"You didn't know that you found me in the first place. While on your
mission, whatever it was, all Metroids save one were 'killed'. I
would rather say that two survived." Samus waved a hand.
"It was an assignment that I was reluctant to take. I knew how much
danger going after Metroids was. Besides...-if- you really are Queen
Metroid, then my mission was something that I should have refused."
Royce stands up angrily.
"If, huh? So you still don't believe me. You think that it's a
lame scapegoat that no one, not even Hardy would buy? I faked death
to escape you, Samus. You actually wanted to kill me. Why don't you
want to now? Well?" Samus sets the recorder down.
"If you really are Queen Metroid, why didn't you make up a scapegoat
to hide yourself? Or why didn't you assault me while I am alone here
with just you?" Royce moves to the back of the ship.
"I...don't know what to think of you. You kill all but two Metroids,
and take one of them with you just because it thinks that you're its
mother. And then you try to save it from the pirates. I don't
understand you." Samus turns off the recorder and puts it in a
pocket, walking back to check on the distance between them and Alpha
Centauri.
"Then we don't understand each other."
-------------------
Both Samus and Royce were bothered with each other by the time that they
got out of the ship. Hardy greeted them all and accepted the recording
along with Samus telling Hardy that it was all that she could get from
Royce.
'A job well done? We'll soon see.' Samus thought...
Samus and the others had finally arrived at Chauda Station after having
to merit clearance of a Lirran scrap dealer -and- escort the merchant
back to Alpha Centauri. They had a surprise pirate attack, but it was
too small and disorganized. Probably caught wind of an unarmed
salvager passing by, not expecting an escort. After that was out of
the way and being given a few missile tanks for thier trouble, they
headed to thier original destination. They weren't even given a stop
for clearance until they left the docking bay. Ridley was the least of
thier worries right now. They were upset because of thier findings
about activity on the surface of SR388.
"Is it Metroids?" The scientist being asked looks at Samus and then
walks to a display.
"I wish that it were...we don't know what these things are. And there
is a woman standing amongst them...I-it can't be...Royce?!"
-------------------
Samus tried to bring the ship as close as possible to Royce was. She
was standing in a relatively clear spot, one where seldom a gelatinous
blob would pass. Royce was hurriedly escorted in and the ship left
without a hitch.
'But she doesn't know that she's carrying the one who she so-said
defeated. I had faked my death to escape that one last missile that
would have really killed me. While she had her back turned and was
leaving with my last child, I transformed and began to hunt those
infernal blobs with a passion. But thier breeders were still more
elusive than my predatorial talent. They fear us, the Metroids. They
went into hiding and tried to disguise themselves as something that
they thought would kill us. They have found the one...they just need
her...Samus Aran...' Royce sat off in a corner, scowling at Samus the
whole time.
'But she was cautious, and so am I. I will not let them have her.
They will not destroy us. Her or me. I hate to rely on an enemy. I
hate it more than what any of my children felt. But she wasn't a
totally heartless person. My baby...she wanted to save my baby from
the pirates...I don't know what to think of her, should I hate her
even more than now for taking my child to be in a sterile tomb, or
should I secretly thank her for trying to preserve us?' Royce got up
and began to pace back and forth.
'I don't know what to think. Who is her enemy? Who is she a savior
of? What is her motive? What does she feel?' Royce stopped and
looked at Samus, who returned glance.
"...What is it, Royce?" Royce stiffened.
"...Thanks..." Royce's single word of thanks confused Samus. What was
she being thanked for? Getting her away from those...those...floating
things? Yeah, maybe she was being thanked for escorting Royce off of
that hot bed of actions unknown.
"You're welcome...I guess..."
-----------------
Everyone aboard the station was relived to see that the mission was a
success. Royce was back in the Federation fold again, and Samus and
the others were about to take Royce to Alpha Centauri so that she
could be questioned as to why she disappeared after the report 11
years ago.
"Oh, Royce?" Samus moved to ask before the ship left. She set it
onto auto-pilot.
"What is it?" Samus holds out a recorder.
"The Federation Police are lazy, so if I give Hardy a recorded
interrogation, they will bypass interrogating you personally. How
does that sound? You look nervous about sitting in front of Hardy
and telling the truth there." Royce looks at Houston and Ridley.
"If they leave. I want this to be private." Samus looked behind
Ridley and said to them,
"There's a room that you boys can sit in while Royce is questioned.
Behind Ridley is where the door is." Houston opens the door. A
modestly sized bedroom on a spaceship this 'small' seemed impossible.
Apparently Samus had room for everything that she needed, and a few
things that she wanted. Houston and Ridley walk inside and the door
shuts behind.
"Now..." Samus clicks the recorder on. "Tell me, why did you vanish
from the B.S.L. lab that was on the planet SR388 at the time after
giving a status report that said that the station was attacked?"
"...Here's why. The Metroids avoided me because...I, too, am a
Metroid. In fact, I am Queen Metroid." Samus snickers and then
starts to laugh.
"Queen Metroid is dead! I'm Marie Antoinette if you really are!"
Royce frowns.
'So, you don't believe me, do you? I'd like to strangle you and drain
you into a pile of dust, but that won't keep you alive. You'd still
be safe from the parasites, though.'
"A-anyway, let's give out a real reason, now." Royce gives a sharp
look and says in monotone,
"I gave you the real reason. You don't want me to make you believe
me by force." Samus holds back on laughing this time, but still can't
believe what Royce is saying. If she really -were- Queen Metroid, why
doesn't she just attack them then and there?
"Alright...next question. How did you elude me on my mission to find
and return you to the Federation?" Royce loosens slightly and
answers.
"You didn't know that you found me in the first place. While on your
mission, whatever it was, all Metroids save one were 'killed'. I
would rather say that two survived." Samus waved a hand.
"It was an assignment that I was reluctant to take. I knew how much
danger going after Metroids was. Besides...-if- you really are Queen
Metroid, then my mission was something that I should have refused."
Royce stands up angrily.
"If, huh? So you still don't believe me. You think that it's a
lame scapegoat that no one, not even Hardy would buy? I faked death
to escape you, Samus. You actually wanted to kill me. Why don't you
want to now? Well?" Samus sets the recorder down.
"If you really are Queen Metroid, why didn't you make up a scapegoat
to hide yourself? Or why didn't you assault me while I am alone here
with just you?" Royce moves to the back of the ship.
"I...don't know what to think of you. You kill all but two Metroids,
and take one of them with you just because it thinks that you're its
mother. And then you try to save it from the pirates. I don't
understand you." Samus turns off the recorder and puts it in a
pocket, walking back to check on the distance between them and Alpha
Centauri.
"Then we don't understand each other."
-------------------
Both Samus and Royce were bothered with each other by the time that they
got out of the ship. Hardy greeted them all and accepted the recording
along with Samus telling Hardy that it was all that she could get from
Royce.
'A job well done? We'll soon see.' Samus thought...