Location: Southern Hull of Federation Carrier "Defense Runner", CDR-1
As I awaited the arrival of Miss Aran, I inspected squads seventeen and eighteen. Two groups of five each, and both composed of the most rag tag hunters in inner galaxy. I was to command squad eighteen and keep an eye on Samus and seventeen. As I finished calibrating the auto-lock mechanism on my arm cannon, Samus arrived at exactly 0900.
"Sleep well Miss Aran?"
"Let's just get this over with Jack. I didn't come here for the scenery." She seemed quite irritable for someone who was getting a very light sentence.
"Very well. I'll take command of the five on the right, and you'll be in charge of the rest. Any objections?"
".....no." Whenever I asked her if she had objections, she seemed to react in an unusual manner, as if it triggered something in her mind. I thought nothing of it at the time.
"Okay. Let's move it out." We began with a two point eight mile hike down the eastern ridge of the Tallon Canyons. The rocky structures were like the back of a Sheegoth. The spiked edges of the rocks were incapable of being traversed by normal means. It's times like these that I thank the lord for grapple beams.
"Yeehaw! This is the only way to getta round'!" The excitement of some of our motley crew was higher than others. Even the generous pay that the Federation was offering them, fear was still instilled in some of them. I opened a private communication channel between my armor and Samus'.
"Seems money not only makes the world go round..."
"Yeah. Also seems to remove fear." Her voice was a little more at ease. It must have been jumping down a cliff about three quarters of a mile above the nearest ledge that helped her unwind. "Tell me, why did the feds make another fusion suit?"
"They were pleased with the results of your mission to the B.S.L. labs. When they heard that you had managed to defeat the "Nightmare" project, they immediately set out to complete a perfect copy of your fusion armor. The results are a suit armed with the capabilities of Varia, Gravity, and newly developed Phazon technology."
"So what you're telling me is that your suit is on equal level to my own?"
"As accurate as research and development could make it. You still have the interior frame from your original power suit. We couldn't very well copy the Chozo original."
She looked down at the ground. We'd covered considerable distance, and we were ready to touch down. "Isn't this the target site?"
"Yes. From here, we're to proceed into the caverns until we reach the Magmoor region. HQ will send a team to set up a base camp for us down here." Samus and I landed and waited for the rest to follow. It was at this time that I informed all of the hunters to ready their Ice Beam technology. "Remember, this is a research mission. If we encounter any new and unusual life forms, we must provide the CDR-1 with as much intelligence as possible. This can aide any reinforcements we may require in the field. Before we enter the caverns, does anybody have any questions?" A small hunter raised his hand.
"Is there any truth to the rumors about these "metroids"?"
"Miss Aran can answer your question better than I can. Samus, you take this one." I stepped down to let her take the stage.
"Metroids are small parasitic organisms that are immune to conventional weaponry. However, they do seem to have a biological weakness to ice. If we utilize our Ice Beams, defeat shouldn't be an issue."
"If that's the only question, then we'll get started. Everybody, activate some form of light. It won't be a walk in the park down there."
Location: Two Miles into the Tallon Caverns
The caverns were darker than any I'd ever navigated. As we advanced, I started to pick up life signs growing stronger as we continued. Soon, they began to surround us. "Hold up. We're not alone."
"You've noticed them too?" Samus had clearly known about them for as long as I had, probably longer. The faint sound of squeaks began to move in. I didn't like the next word she said. "Metroids......"
"Arm your ice artillery! Their here! Keep your guards up and try not to freeze each other!" I remember the last time my men used Ice weapons. My legs couldn't move for a week.
And then I saw it. The small parasites that could wipe out an army in seconds were staring us right in the face. They quickly scattered and began to move in for the kill.
"Watch it! If they touch you, you're dead!" Samus warned them as she began launching round after round of Ice shots. In the same manner, I began firing my rounds in an attempt to stop the alien aggressors. Then I noticed it. The ground beneath our feet was unstable. Every time a man moved, I heard a hollow clanking noise. It finally hit me. The Metroids could have attacked us earlier, but they had lured us here. We'd walked right into their trap.
"Hold your fire! It's a trap!" I yelled my warning in vain. By the time the words were out, someone had already fired a missile. It missed it's target and slammed into the ground. The entire floor collapsed and took us with it for a very long fall.
As I awaited the arrival of Miss Aran, I inspected squads seventeen and eighteen. Two groups of five each, and both composed of the most rag tag hunters in inner galaxy. I was to command squad eighteen and keep an eye on Samus and seventeen. As I finished calibrating the auto-lock mechanism on my arm cannon, Samus arrived at exactly 0900.
"Sleep well Miss Aran?"
"Let's just get this over with Jack. I didn't come here for the scenery." She seemed quite irritable for someone who was getting a very light sentence.
"Very well. I'll take command of the five on the right, and you'll be in charge of the rest. Any objections?"
".....no." Whenever I asked her if she had objections, she seemed to react in an unusual manner, as if it triggered something in her mind. I thought nothing of it at the time.
"Okay. Let's move it out." We began with a two point eight mile hike down the eastern ridge of the Tallon Canyons. The rocky structures were like the back of a Sheegoth. The spiked edges of the rocks were incapable of being traversed by normal means. It's times like these that I thank the lord for grapple beams.
"Yeehaw! This is the only way to getta round'!" The excitement of some of our motley crew was higher than others. Even the generous pay that the Federation was offering them, fear was still instilled in some of them. I opened a private communication channel between my armor and Samus'.
"Seems money not only makes the world go round..."
"Yeah. Also seems to remove fear." Her voice was a little more at ease. It must have been jumping down a cliff about three quarters of a mile above the nearest ledge that helped her unwind. "Tell me, why did the feds make another fusion suit?"
"They were pleased with the results of your mission to the B.S.L. labs. When they heard that you had managed to defeat the "Nightmare" project, they immediately set out to complete a perfect copy of your fusion armor. The results are a suit armed with the capabilities of Varia, Gravity, and newly developed Phazon technology."
"So what you're telling me is that your suit is on equal level to my own?"
"As accurate as research and development could make it. You still have the interior frame from your original power suit. We couldn't very well copy the Chozo original."
She looked down at the ground. We'd covered considerable distance, and we were ready to touch down. "Isn't this the target site?"
"Yes. From here, we're to proceed into the caverns until we reach the Magmoor region. HQ will send a team to set up a base camp for us down here." Samus and I landed and waited for the rest to follow. It was at this time that I informed all of the hunters to ready their Ice Beam technology. "Remember, this is a research mission. If we encounter any new and unusual life forms, we must provide the CDR-1 with as much intelligence as possible. This can aide any reinforcements we may require in the field. Before we enter the caverns, does anybody have any questions?" A small hunter raised his hand.
"Is there any truth to the rumors about these "metroids"?"
"Miss Aran can answer your question better than I can. Samus, you take this one." I stepped down to let her take the stage.
"Metroids are small parasitic organisms that are immune to conventional weaponry. However, they do seem to have a biological weakness to ice. If we utilize our Ice Beams, defeat shouldn't be an issue."
"If that's the only question, then we'll get started. Everybody, activate some form of light. It won't be a walk in the park down there."
Location: Two Miles into the Tallon Caverns
The caverns were darker than any I'd ever navigated. As we advanced, I started to pick up life signs growing stronger as we continued. Soon, they began to surround us. "Hold up. We're not alone."
"You've noticed them too?" Samus had clearly known about them for as long as I had, probably longer. The faint sound of squeaks began to move in. I didn't like the next word she said. "Metroids......"
"Arm your ice artillery! Their here! Keep your guards up and try not to freeze each other!" I remember the last time my men used Ice weapons. My legs couldn't move for a week.
And then I saw it. The small parasites that could wipe out an army in seconds were staring us right in the face. They quickly scattered and began to move in for the kill.
"Watch it! If they touch you, you're dead!" Samus warned them as she began launching round after round of Ice shots. In the same manner, I began firing my rounds in an attempt to stop the alien aggressors. Then I noticed it. The ground beneath our feet was unstable. Every time a man moved, I heard a hollow clanking noise. It finally hit me. The Metroids could have attacked us earlier, but they had lured us here. We'd walked right into their trap.
"Hold your fire! It's a trap!" I yelled my warning in vain. By the time the words were out, someone had already fired a missile. It missed it's target and slammed into the ground. The entire floor collapsed and took us with it for a very long fall.