Chapter 2: Grand Theft Metroid
"Incoming ship." A technician announced. Dr. Leonard Olvarey, head of Space Station Ceres, frowned upon hearing this.
"A ship? There's no Federation ships scheduled to come here today..."
"Excuse me, sir, but it's not a Federation vessel." The technician reported. Olvarey blinked in surprise.
"It's not? Then why would it come... here... oh, no... is it... the Pirates?"
"..." The technician was motionless for a moment, and then he shook his head. "Negative." Olvarey let out a sigh of relief. "It looks like a Bounty Hunter... it's Samus Aran."
"Samus Aran..." The doctor's frown stayed on his face. "What is she doing here? She has no business here, no reason to come here..."
"Er..." A young lady spoke up. "Dr. Olvarey, as you might recall, Samus Aran was promised regular visiting time with the... with Matrix."
"Well, yes..." Olvarey grudgingly conceded, stroking his beard. "That is true, Shelly. She did say she doubted that she would be using it, though..."
"Perhaps she changed her mind." Shelly suggested. "At any rate, she's here now, right, Tom?" The technician nodded.
"That's right. Samus's ship is moving towards docking bay 7. Docking... now." He looked up. "Are you going to go greet her, Doctor Olvarey?"
"I suppose so." The white-haired doctor rose from his chair. "Shelly, Tom, you two come along too. We must keep up appearances, after all." As he walked on and the others fell into step behind him, Shelly pointed at the doctor's back and rolled her eyes heavenward. Tom smiled and nodded. Before long, the three of them reached docking bay seven. A moment later, Samus Aran emerged from her ship and hopped down, removing her helmet.
"Hello. Dr... Olvarey, was it?"
"Yes, yes..." The doctor nodded, shaking her hand. "Miss Aran. It is good to see you again. If I may ask, what brings you here?"
"Oh, not much..." Samus smiled. "Just thought I'd check up and see how Matrix was doing... is the research coming along well?"
"Yes, very well." Olvarey cleared his throat as the four of them walked down a hall. "We have been studying Matrix almost nonstop ever since you delivered it to us. By doing so, we have made some fascinating discoveries. I'm sure you are aware of the Metroid's ability to drain the life force from other creatures?"
"Oh, yes." Samus confirmed. "I definately know about that... blasted things dented up my power suit."
"Well, upon study, we found that if used properly, a Metroid may transfer life force TO a person instead!" Olvarey's eyes shone with excitement. "A transfer of pure life force from a healthy person to one near death could save hundreds of lives!"
"Okay, what's the catch?" Samus demanded. "There's always a catch." Olvarey sighed as the group climbed down some stairs.
"Unfortunately, right now there is no way to control how MUCH life force is drained from a donor. Giving a little of your life force is on thing, but dying for a donation? It won't be very popular at all. We'll need to devise some way of controlling the Metroid before we can apply this."
"I see..." Samus murmured. Olvarey stopped outside the door to the bridge.
"I'm afraid I have pressing business to attend to right now. Shelly and Tom will be able to help you from now on." He strode off importantly. As soon as he was gone, Shelly and Tom both made rude noises. Samus raised an eyebrow.
"I take it you're not fond of your boss?"
"That's putting it mildly." Shelly growled. "He's a grade-A Federation flunky. Reports to them every week." She glanced at Tom, who nodded once. "There's something else you should know, Samus."
"Oh?" The bounty hunter asked, looking at the pair of grim faces.
"Yeah." Tom said. "Olvarey's up to something with Matrix. Every night he spends a few hours in there with it alone, and nobody else is allowed in on penalty of getting kicked off the station. He claims he's trying to get it to think of all humans as friends, but if that's true I'm an Evir's uncle. Everybody here knows he's running some kind of top-secret experiment for the head boys in the Federation, and you know politicians-it's probably not for the good of the Galaxy."
"Thank you." Samus's voice was steely. "I'm glad you told me about this. I think once I'm done here, I'll go have a chat with some Federation people. I'm sure we'll have lots of things to talk about." Shelly and Tom grinned viciously.
"Give 'em some cuss words for us." Shelly told her. "Now, is there anything else we can do for you?"
"Yes, actually." The bounty hunter's voice softened. "Do you suppose... you could let him out for a little? So I can play with him or something?" The two scientests looked at each other.
"He does need some exercise..." Tom muttered. Shelly nodded in agreement.
"He's been wriggling about a lot lately. I think it would be good for him."
"But Olvarey'd skin us alive if he found out." Tom frowned. "The loser has absolutely no idea how to handle lifeforms."
"That's if he finds out." Shelly reminded him. "He's probably off in his room reminding himself how important he is, and we don't have any other squealers onboard. Everybody else knows how to keep quiet."
"True... aw, hell with it. Okay." Tom looked at Samus. "We'll clear out the bridge. I'm sure he won't hurt you, but the rest of us would prefer not to take that chance. We don't have any armor; we'd die instantly."
"I understand." Samus smiled. Tom and Shelly went into the bridge, and Samus leaned against a wall to wait. A few minutes later, they came back out.
"All clear. Go on in. As soon as you're in, we'll seal all the exits for an hour, then open the container. When that hour's up, make sure he's back in the correct spot when the container reseals, okay?"
"No problem." Samus agreed, walking past them. The bridge of Space Station Ceres was a low-ceilinged room filled with computers and chairs. At the front of the room was a particularly ornate seat-Olvarey's, Samus noted with a snort of amusement. And in the center, held in a container of what looked like glass but was really a transparent mineral from Draconis that was harder than any metal known, was a small, green creature that looked like a jellyfish with pincers. Matrix, the last Metroid. Seeing her, he began making an excited chirping noise. Behind Samus, the doors sealed, and the container dropped, releasing Matrix. Immediately, he flew towards her.
"Hey, Matrix." Samus held out her hand to the Metroid, who was flying circles around her head, chirping wildly. "How you doing here?" The chirping increased, and she laughed. "Yeah, I'm glad to see you too. I hope you're not too angry at me for leaving you here; I know it's not SR-388." Matrix settled down on her outstretched hand, being careful not to accidentally pierce her armor with his fangs, and his chirping slowed to a more steady rate. "I'll take that as an 'okay.' I suppose you want to hear about what your buddy Samus had been doing since I dropped you off here?" The Metroid quivered. "I thought so! Well, I went to visit Horzat... you remember me telling you about him, right? Former Space Pirate, bartender? Yeah, him. Well, like I said, I went to see him... problem is, some other unexpected guests showed up..."
***
"YOU SLAGBRAINED SONOFABITCH, I"LL KILL YOU!" Kraid screamed, struggling to break free of Ridley's restraining grasp.
"I'll take you up on a fight any day, fatass!" Draygon hissed back, similarly held by Phantoon. The Elocto looked at Ridley frantically.
"Do you have any idea what's going on here?"
"Not a clue." Ridley replied smoothly. "But whatever it is, it's got Kraid ready to tear Draygon's arms off and feed them to him, and your boy doesn't look that much calmer. Let's hustle 'em in to Mom before they start throwing us at each other." Putting aside their mutual enmity for the moment, the Draker and the Elocto forced their berserk comrades through Tourian into Mother Brain's room. The Pirate Queen surveyed the situation.
"What on Zebes are you DOING? Kraid, why are you so enraged?"
"Draygon... he..." Kraid sputtered. "He expanded Maridia into Brinstar! The tunnel connecting my Lair to the rest of Brinstar is completely submerged!" Mother Brain glared at her Evir underling.
"Draygon, is this true?" She demanded.
"It was an accident." Draygon defended himself. "As you know, part of Maridia is over Kraid's Lair, and the section over that tunnel... the rock seperating them just gave way, collapsed, and the water poured in. A complete fluke."
"Very well." Mother Brain growled. "This is what we will do. Ridley, has that shipment of Galdezium arrived from your planet yet?" Ridley nodded.
"Yes indeed, Milady. It arrived just a couple hours ago."
"Very well." She said. "Turn it over to Draygon. Draygon, you will have your clan members construct a tube-tunnel of Galdezium that connects Kraid's Lair with the remainder of Brinstar, through where the old tunnel used to be. There will be no further discussion of this, no more arguing, and NO death threats! Is that absolutely clear?" She glared at them all until they muttered agreements. "Good. Now then, on to more useful topics. Kraid, have you managed to persuade those Etecoons to teach our Zebesians the Wall Jump yet?" The portly Iz frowned and shook his head.
"I'm afraid not. They're being stubborn little creeps... refuse to even talk with the translator. I've got them locked away in a shaft in Brinstar for now." He chuckled evilly. "If they don't agree to work for us soon, I'm going to start... persuading them. I've got a number of interesting... experiments... that need test subjects, and those three are starting to look like prime targets to me. If they keep on refusing much longer, they'll wish they'd never been born."
"You sure you want to do that, Kraid?" Draygon questioned his colleague. "We all know I'm the best torturer in the Galaxy. Why don't you turn them over to me? I can guarantee I'll have them screaming for mercy within just a few days." Kraid's eyes flashed in anger.
"Butt out, Draygon. I can handle this fine, and I need guinea pigs. Stick to your own business, and be thankful I'm letting you live for encroaching into my territory."
"You'll have your own guest soon, Draygon." Mother Brain told the Evir. "We've captured another Far Sider with special abilities; a Dachura. They'll be bringing him here soon. Once he's arrived, I want you to do whatever it takes to have him teach out Zebsians the Dachura Ultra Jump." Draygon grinned viciously.
"Anything?"
"Anything and everything." She agreed. "Just get it done." She looked at Ridley. "Ezer and Garan are waiting for you up in Crateria, Ridley. They've got the ship you'll be taking ready. Get up there and get moving; I want you back with it by tomorrow. Understood?"
"Of course, Milady." Ridley smiled. "I shall follow your orders to the very letter, and woe betide those who attempt to interfere." He flexed his claws.
"Good." Mother Brain turned away from her lieutenants. "You're all dismissed." As they filed out, Ridley silently slapped a bullseye onto Phantoon's back without the Elocto noticing. Kraid laughed.
"Good one, Rid. Some dull-witted Zebesian's sure to take a shot at him."
"That was what I had in mind." The Drakar agreed. "I would have slapped it on Draygon-lord knows I hate him more-but he's unfortunately more sensitive to touch, and he'd know." Kraid shook his head.
"Pity. Normally, I'd go for Phantoon myself, but..." He left it hanging.
"You're still pissed about that so-called 'accidental collapse' into your territory?" Ridley supplied. The Iz nodded. "Well, then... I think I may have a way of payback."
"Really?" Kraid asked. "What?"
"Well, it goes like this..." Ridley leaned over to whisper in his partner's ear. As he talked, Kraid slowly began smiling, and it grew wider and wider until he cackled loudly and did a little dance.
"Oh, that's PERFECT! I'm sure he'll know what happened, but he'll never be able to prove it! He'll be frothing at the mouth! You're a genius, Rid!" Ridley shrugged.
"What can I say? I'm gifted in the art of coming up with creative ways to torment my enemies."
"Nicely said."
"I also have a way with words." He grinned cheekily as they took the elevator up to Crateria. "Now, where are those two thugs..." Crawling through the tunnels, the two Space Pirate Leaders emerged onto the planet's surface. Ridley winced as he was sprayed with water. "Raining. Again. As always. Goddammit, is it ALWAYS raining on this stupid planet?!"
"95% of the time." Kraid supplied helpfully. Ridley glared at him, but didn't comment. Up ahead, leaning against the side of a spacecraft, were a pair of Zebesians. Their exoskeletons were completely coated with a metallic shine. Upon seeing Kraid and Ridley, they got up and walked over.
"Master Ridley. Master Kraid." The first said as they both bowed. Ridley nodded.
"Ezer, Garan. There you are." Ezer and Garan were twins, the two greatest Zebesian warriors after the fall of the Omega Pirate, Upsilon, on Tallon IV. They were Ridley's personal flunkies, and he had trained them in the same ways of natural physical combat that he himself used. They were incredibly strong, very fast, and almost impossible to kill, although they were still not the brightest bulbs, and remained basically thugs at heart. "Ready to go?" The Drakar stretched. Garan shook his head, and the two of them walked around behind the ship.
"Not yet, boss. We got something for you first..." When they returned, they were holding a trembling G-Class Zebesian in red armor between them. "This guy's the only survivor of the assassination team we sent after Aran on Magani." Ridley covered his eyes, sighing.
"I take it the assassination failed?" Ezer nodded. "Great. Just great. Did you at least get that traitor Horzat?" The surviving assassin shook his head. "Oh, lovely. A complete failure. Mom's gonna love to hear about this one."
"What do you want us to do with this guy, boss?" Garan asked. Ridley shrugged.
"Kill him. I have no use for cowards." The assassin tried to beg, but as he fell forward, Ezer efficiently lopped his head off. Ridley winced and turned to Kraid. "Oops, sorry, pal. That was inconsiderate of me; you said you needed some lab rats." Kraid waved a claw nonchalantly.
"Naw, it's okay. I don't like to use Zebesians as test subjects anyways. They tend to explode." Ezer and Garan showed no signs of hearing this. Ridley nodded.
"Awright then, let's get going. See you later, Kraid." The Drakar and the two Zebesians got into the spacecraft, then took off. Kraid watched the ship go until it was lost from view, then stomped away, brain working madly on his little surprise for that stupid Draygon...
***
"...So I just punched him right in the midsection, and he went down like a poleaxed cow!" Samus laughed, and Matrix chirped, not really understanding that much but glad that she was so happy. "I turned him in for a nice bounty. Stupid git deserved it." A red light flashed on her wrist, and she sighed. "Aw, dammit. Looks like our time's up... sorry, Matrix. You gotta go back in your container now..." Sadly, she picked the Metroid up and placed him on the correct spot, and the Galdezium container sealed it in once more. The doors around the room opened, and the scientests walked in, returning to their stations. Tom and Shelly came towards Samus.
"Did he have fun?" Shelly asked. Samus nodded, smiling.
"Yeah, he did. I think the little guy thinks I'm his mother or something... he's never even seen another one of his species in his life, let alone the Queen. He didn't hatch until every other one was... you know."
"Yeah." Shelly glanced over at Matrix, who had decided to go to sleep. "He's actually kind of cute, you know. I hope we succeed in making him-and his eventual kids-beneficial to the galaxy." She frowned as a sudden thought crossed her mind. "They are asexual, aren't they?"
"To my knowledge, yes." Samus assured her.
"Good." Tom grinned. "We'd be in trouble if he started getting horny." Samus rolled her eyes.
"Har har. Any trouble with Olvarey?"
"None at all." Shelly shook her head. "He's in his room watching a porno movie. Creep. I hope he retires soon and somebody who's actually good at their job takes over here."
"Well then, everything seems fine here, so I'll be going now." Samus walked towards the door. "If I stop by the Federation, I'll see if I can pull a few strings about that." Tom nodded.
"Hey, thanks. We appreciate it. See ya!" He and Shelly waved goodbye. Samus made it back to her ship without incident and took off into space. Once she was clear of the Station, the bounty hunter put it on Autopilot, then went into the back and removed her power suit. As she got a drink out of a small cooler, she looked into a small mirror and groaned.
"Not again!" Samus' Chozo Power Suit was the finest in the galaxy. It could incorporate technology other Power Suits couldn't even touch, and it was one-of-a-kind. It was also highly variable, and the way it incorporated weapons systems changed their effects often, which always helped get the jump on the Space Pirates. There was only one, odd downside: her hair. For some inexplicable reason, the color of her hair was affected by the power suit, and about once a year it would change. This time, her locks were now a light purple. She sighed.
"Well, at least it's unique..." Samus flopped down onto her bed and turned on her computer. "Let's see what Pirate Bounties are up..." She accessed the bounty database, and began flipping through them. Kraid's bounty hadn't been put up yet, of course. As the bounties passed by, she saw something interesting. "Wait. Go back one." The screen complied, returning to an insect-like Evir whose bulging head crest had been grotesquely warped so that it looked like human skulls were embedded in it. She winced. "That must have REALLY hurt..."
Name: Draygon
Bounty: 800000 (Dead) 1000000 (Alive) BONUS: Double pay this week!
Wanted For: Space Piracy Grand, Kidnapping, Torture, Blackmail, Murder, Illegal Chemical Usage, Organized Crime.
Species: Evir
Dossier: Draygon is one of the leaders of the Space Pirates, and along with his partner Phantoon, steered the Pirates towards Tallon IV in the aftermath of the Zebes Disaster. Even before the Pirates enlisted him Draygon often worked with Phantoon, but his preference was for kidnapping and torture. After his demands have been satisfied, Draygon's victims normally turn up dead. Draygon is his clan leader, and following Evir law his clanmembers are also current members of the Space Pirates. Draygon is also a known user of the illegal steroid Sys-Gro. If you should encounter Draygon and wish to go for the "Dead" bounty (recommended), electricity is highly suggested. Above all, do NOT pursue Draygon underwater.
Last Seen: Galron
Home Planet: EV-42
"Whoo..." Samus smiled, sitting back. "I LIKE the sound of that double bonus... that's 2 million if I get him alive. Wonder what he did to get that... must've pissed off some high-ranking Federation Officer. Exactly the same as Kraid's, except Draygon's only good for a week. I may have to let Kraid slide for a little bit to get this guy in time... even though Kraid would be a much more personal bounty... decisions, decisions." She glanced out the window. Another ship was flying towards her; it looked like a Drakar vessel. She lazily looked away, then snapped back as she realized it wasn't making any movements to avoid her! And the Autopilot wasn't designed to cope with such deliberate stupidity under its current setting! Cursing, Samus lunged back into the cockpit and slammed the controls to the side. Her ship lurched aside as the Drakar vessel shot past, scraping her paint. Shaking her head to clear out the stars that swam before her eyes, Samus glared after it as it quickly disappeared.
"Whoever was driving that was either REALLY drunk... or they were trying to hit me on purpose." She talked to herself as she put the ship on Autopilot again, with instructions to avoid any oncoming ships this time, then returned to the back. "Another attempt by the Pirates, maybe? No, they would have swung around for another try... unless they had somewhere else to be..." She shook her head. "Ah, I'm jumping at straws. It was probably just some bum who had had too much alcohol." She flopped back onto her bed again.
"So, Draygon or Kraid. I've never met Draygon personally... or Phantoon. One would think that would lean towards Kraid... but come to think of it, I probably should go say hi to those two." She smiled darkly. "A meeting with Draygon is long overdue, and from what Horzat told me, where you find Draygon, you'll find Phantoon too. Done, then." She yawned and stretched. "Later, though. It's been a busy few days... a hot shower and some good sleep sounds really good right now, especially since the aftereffects of that Boris Yeltsin I had at Horzat's should be kicking in soon. With luck, I'll sleep right through it. Then I'll find Draygon-and hopefully, Phantoon too-and tell them just what I think of that little assassination attempt back at Horzat's." Leaping off the bed, she took a nightshirt out of her closet to wear after her shower and walked into the bathroom. Although she was on the ship alone and there was no way anybody else could intrude, Samus always closed and locked the door behind her.
"Probably from the time I spent with the Chozo..." She chuckled as she removed the black tank top and shorts she wore under her Power Suit; any more clothing and she'd overheat in that thing. "They were really nice folks, but oy, were they prissy." The bounty hunter stepped into the shower, turning the water on high and sighing as the hot liquid hit her skin. "Oh, that feels good..." Steam quickly filled the small room, and before long she was completely hidden from view.
***
"Ahem, ahem." Dr. Olvarey walked back onto the bridge, fussily straightening the tie he always wore with his labcoat, a piece of apparel which earned him a great deal of derision from the other scientests at Ceres. "Shelly? Tom? Where is miss Aran?" Shelly turned to her boss.
"She left, Dr. Olvarey. We told her more about the possibilities for medical technology, and she seemed very pleased. We chatted a little about our jobs, and then she left." Dr. Olvarey nodded and sat down in the command chair he usually occupied.
"Good. Now then, about those experiments. Have we yet managed to discover any possible way of controlling Matrix?" Tom shook his head.
"Afraid not, boss. He's not responding to any of our attempts to communicate one bit. At present, Samus Aran is still the only being that Matrix is confirmed to be non-agressive towards." Olvarey slammed his fist down on the arm of his chair in frustration.
"Damn! Still nothing! We need to find a way, people. Otherwise, the Federation will be VERY unhappy with us. Particularly since they don't exactly trust miss Aran all that much..."
"Excuse me?" Shelly glanced up from her staation in surprise. "What do you mean, they don't trust her? She's saved the galaxy from the Space Pirates twice, and made sure they'll never get their claws on more Metroids ever again! What's not to trust after all of that?" Olvarey coughed, uncomfortable.
"Well, miss Aran isn't a Federation officer. She's a loose cannon, a bounty hunter operating mainly on her own interests. The Federation has no way of controlling her whatsoever aside from payments, and those are hardly to be relied on. Samus Aran has proven to be a warrior beyond anything the galaxy has seen before. If she decided that her interests were different from those of the Federation, and went against them, then we would all be in a great deal of trouble. Especially if she brought Matrix-and possibly his children as well-along with her. I shudder to think of the absolute chaos that could be caused by such an event..."
"She wouldn't do that." Shelly told him confidently. "Samus is a good person... she's pretty intimidating, yeah, but she has a kind heart. There's no way she would turn on the Federation just to meet her own needs."
"Really?" Olvarey looked amused. "My, aren't we presumptuous. You met miss Aran for what, a little more than an hour? And you think you know her better than the Federation. Are we trying to be a psychologist now, Shelly?" Shelly bit her lip, knowing she couldn't tell Olvarey about what she had seen; the way Samus had acted around Matrix, the way she had talked with the little Metroid, played with him, made sure he was doing all right... the look in the hardened bounty hunter's eyes when she watched the infant blob of goo... no, telling Olvarey that would mean revealing that she and the others had let Matrix out to play with Samus, and that would cause a great deal of trouble, possibly even getting them dismissed. Shelly looked downward.
"...I suppose you're right. I guess I was guessing too much, trying to look too much into things. Just... forget it, okay? Forget I said anything." Olvarey chuckled, still amused by the whole thing.
"My dear, consider it officially forgotten. Wait, what were we talking about again? I can't remember." He laughed at his own joke, and everybody else chuckled politely for a couple seconds before returning to their work. Olvarey harrumphed and began going through some papers. Work continued as normal for Space Station Ceres for about an hour; then Olvarey looked up from his work, checked a clock, and cleared his throat to get everybody's attention.
"Ahem... I believe it is about five o' clock again, and time to leave. I'm going to be conducting the solitary friendship exercises with the Metroid again now, so please exit. Feel free to have dinner and take a couple hours off until eight. There's nothing vitally important to the safety of the galaxy going on right now except for the Metroid here, after all." He smiled. Tom glanced at his screen for a moment, then immediately directed his full attention to it.
"Er, that's a negative, sir. We have another incoming vessel towards here; ETA five minutes." Olvarey scowled.
"What? Why on Earth would another ship be coming in this soon after Aran? Two unplanned visits in such a short time... very odd indeed." He thought for a moment. "What type of vessel is it?" Tom looked at the scans.
"It appears to be a Drakar Seeker-Class Gunship, sir. A Gurtin XI by the looks of it, although that's not confirmed; it appears to be heavily modified by the owner, whoever he is, with some definately odd parts."
"A Drakar ship..." Olvarey murmured, mind racing. "I've heard that recently, a Drakar was promoted to quite a high rank within the Federation... could that be him? Maybe he's come here on a surprise inspection?" He nodded. "Yes, that's got to be it. There's no other explanation." The white-haired doctor wished he was really as confident as he sounded.
"So, whatcha gonna do, Doc?" Tom asked. "Gonna go down there and meet him?" Olvarey sighed.
"Yes, I suppose I had better... go ahead and give him clearance to land in Docking Bay Seven. You two, come on down with me." He gestured at a pair of scientests. "We need to keep up appearances, after all." The three of them walked through Ceres at a fast clip, and arrived right as the Drakar ship arrived. The doors began to open, and the three scientests stepped up, Olvarey smiling widely. "Hello, and welcome to-" He saw the threat in time by a millisecond and dived backward onto his rear as the blistering energy ray whizzed over his head. The other two scientests were not so lucky; the beams pierced their skulls and they fell over, dead on the spot. From inside the ship, a noise came. Somebody in there... was clapping.
"Excellent reflexes, old man! Looks like that stereotype about all scientests being out of shape is officially dead!" The speaker walked out, revealing himself as a lean Drakar with an evil grin on his face. Flanking him were a pair of Zebesians with shiny metallic exoskeletons. The one on the left looked up at the Drakar.
"You want us to kill him?"
"Of course not, Ezer!" The Drakar reprimended him. "Our friend here was good enough to avoid the first shot. He's earned a chance at living to see tomorrow by settling this diplomatically."
"Who are you?" Olvarey demanded. The Drakar slapped himself in the forehead, still smiling.
"Silly me! Allow me to introduce us. My name... is Ridley. These are my associates, Ezer and Garan."
"Space Pirates..." The aged doctor whispered in horror. Ridley cackled.
"Got it in one, buddy! You are hot tonight! Since you're being so cooperative, I'll make this nice and easy for you in return." The Drakar stopped laughing, bent over and glared into Olvarey's eyes, all traces of humor suddenly gone from his face. "We're here... for the Metroid."
***
Samus was dreaming. Everything was swirling around in bizarre colors and patterns of neon, tie-dye and plaid. Planets and creatures swam by like fish, and she stood on a path of stars in her power suit, with Matrix hovering nervously over her shoulder. Samus smiled and stroked the Metroid, reassuring him. But then, in a brown flash, Matrix was gone. She started to turn, then choked as a brown tentacle wrapped around her neck. Chuckling, the owner of the tentacle came into view; an Elocto, holding Matrix in its other appendage. Now she was strapped to a table, her power suit stripped from her. Nearby was another such table; this one held Falcon's dismembered corpse. A green, insectoid Evir with its headcrest altered into the shape of human skulls advanced, cackling. It plunged a syringe into her arm, and the dream world span and span and span. When her head cleared, she was standing next to a huge, rough green blob. Samus looked up and choked; it was the foot of a humongous Iz, the size of a city! It looked down, saw her, and scooped her up, then waddled over to a counter and deposited her in a cage of the sort used for lab rats. A squeaking noise drew her attention to the second cage next to hers, where a giant rat crouched, its back to the bounty hunter. Then it turned, and Samus saw that it had Horzat's head. Screaming in horror, she fell back against the wall of the cage, and through it, into Space Station Ceres. Destruction and death were everywhere; in the place where Matrix had once been held, Shelly, Tom and Olvarey's heads were on stakes. A chuckle from behind made her spin to see a Drakar with a heavily scarred chest standing right in front of the bounty hunter. Samus tried to fire at it, then realized she no longer had her power suit, and was clad only in the tank top and shorts. The Drakar traced a line with a single claw across her belly, just a hair away from slicing her open, and stopped. One twitch, and she would be dead. A familiar noise came from the darkness over the Drakar's shoulder, and Samus gasped; Matrix! Then the Metroid came into view, and she gasped again, this time in horror. The creature's head was adorned with an enormous, pulsating, grotesque brain. The Drakar twitched...
"YAAAH!" Samus leaped forward, breathing heavily, as she was awakened by sirens. She blinked; her nightgown was soaked with sweat. "What WAS that? And what the HELL is going on here?" Moving into the cockpit, she discovered that the sirens were being caused by an emergency distress signal. "Okay... let's see where it's coming from... probably just some poor stiff who ran out of fuel... what the?!" The signal was coming from Space Station Ceres! "I just came from there! Something's up... I'd better go check this out." Setting the ship to head back to Ceres, she went back and changed into fresh clothes, then got into her power suit. "This is going to be messy, I can tell. I suppose this was bound to happen eventually... more trouble." She chuckled grimly, checking her gun. "Hell, at least it's not boring." Nearing Ceres, Samus saw one of the upper docking bays was wide open. She frowned. "This is looking worse and worse..." She parked her ship and jumped out, looking around. The bay was completely dark; no signs of life.
"I don't like this." Samus muttered to herself as she descended the system of platforms. "This place gives me the creeps..." Reaching the bottom, she headed through a door into a hall, which was as dark as the docking bay. There were still no signs of life. Emerging from a tunnel into the stairwell that connected all the docking bays, however, finally yielded results. And immediately made Samus wish it hadn't. The dismembered and blasted corpses of scientests littered the stairs, lying on the floor, hanging over edges. Some were covered in fatal burn marks, others looked as if they had been killed by wounds inflicted by huge claws. The entire staircase was soaked in blood, and the stench of death was everywhere. Samus's eyes narrowed grimly and she spat out a single word.
"Space Pirates." Muttering curses, she strode down to the bottom of the stairwell, stopping for a moment outside the door to the bridge, steeling herself for the carnage that she knew laid within. But the reality of what awaited Samus was far worse than she had imagined. "Oh, god..." She choked the moment she entered. The entire room was covered with dead bodies, forming a horrifying floor. Right in front of her, she recognized Dr. Olvarey. Or at least... part of him. The half of the doctor that remained stretched towards the center of the room; he was running towards it when he had been killed. At a console, Samus saw the remains of Tom, one of the scientests she had met. His hand still rested on a large red button labeled "Emergency Signal." He had been the one to send out the call that had brought Samus here... right before some Pirate had removed the top part of his head for his trouble. None of the others were familar to her, thankfully... wait! One of them was moving! Samus rushed over and bent down next to the young lady, whose head and right arm were all of her body that was visible; the rest was buried under corpses. It was Shelly, the other scientest. As she looked up and Samus and coughed, the Bounty Hunter tried to pull her out. Shelly stopped her.
"No... don't. It's not a pretty sight... those claws..." She coughed again, this time expelling blood. "I'm done for, Samus... just like the rest of them. Only... a little time... left. Pirates... Space Pirates, three of them. The two... they killed us... slaughtered us all. Tom... Olvarey... everybody. But the leader... he went after... after..."
"After what?" Samus pressed. Shelly's eyes tracked over her shoulder.
"After Matrix..." Samus spun, heart sinking, and saw what she had been too preoccupied with all the death to notice earlier. The Galdezium tube at the center of the bridge was smashed and broken. Matrix was gone. "Haven't left yet..." The dying scientest continued. "When they saw what Tom did... went in back... the leader said somthing about waiting for you..." Samus nodded, eyes like ice.
"They're going to regret that decision very shortly... I promise. It's not much, but I swear I'll avenge all of you. Those butchers will pay for what they've done." Shelly smiled, despite the pain.
"Thank you... and... please..." She turned her head away. "Shoot... please... make it fast... I don't want to die... slow..." Slowly, Samus put her blaster against the back of Shelly's head, then looked away. She couldn't watch as she fired, once. Without looking down, the Bounty Hunter rose and walked to the back of the room, through the door, and the tunnel behind it. The room she emerged in was pitch-black, not even possessing the dim, indirect light that the other halls had held. The only thing she could see... was Matrix, wiggling in a portable green Galdezium container. Above it, an eye flashed.
"Now, I think..." The lights turned on, revealing that a purple Drakar held the container. For a moment, Samus thought there had been some mistake, that he was a surviving crew member who had somehow managed to get Matrix away from the Pirates. Then, she saw the creature's heavily scarred chest... the scars that she had inflicted... and she knew.
"RIDLEY!"
"SAMUS!" Ridley screeched mockingly in response. "Why, it's been ages! How have you been?"
"Cut the crap." She snapped. "Were you the one who slaughtered all those scientests?" Ridley recoiled, shock written on every line of his face.
"ME? Of course not, Samus! Why, I'm offended you would even suggest such a thing!" He grinned evilly, and thumbed over his shoulder at a pair of metallic Zebesians who stood by a computer. "I had them do it. I had more... important prey." The Drakar tossed the container with Matrix in it up and down. "Very cute. The last Metroid... that was very mean of you to kill all his family, Samus. And you were talking about slaughter. Pah. Well, might as well get down to business." He yawned. "Here's the deal. You want your little buddy back? Fine. Beat me, and he's yours." He grinned evilly again. "Of course, I don't think much of your chances with just a Level-1 Power Suit and your Power Beam, but maybe you'll get lucky. Or maybe I'll finally beat you. Only one way to find out, though! En guarde!" Shrieking a war cry, the Drakar warrior launched himself towards his enemy, claws flashing. Cursing, Samus took a pair of slashes on each arm and fired back, straight into Ridley's face.
"Eat beam, psycho!" She shouted. Each shot that hit left a small scorch mark on Ridley's mug. He blinked, then laughed.
"Is that all you can do to me?! I forgot how pathetic your plain Power Beam is!" Flying back, he began spitting streams of fire. Samus jumped and spun, avoiding each one, even as it splattered against the walls, returning blasts all the while. "Ah, good! Even if your attacks are laughable, you can avoid mine! This might be fun after all..." Suddenly, he swooped around and speared her right leg on his tail, causing her to cry out and curse in pain.
"Damn!"
"Or not." The Drakar sighed. "This is just sad. I'm almost tempted to let you get away so I could kill you in a GOOD fight... but Mom would probably put me through a giant blender if I did. Sorry, Samus, but it looks like your time is finally up!" Wrenching his tail free, he flew back again. "I'll take good care of Matrix for you!"
"Hey, boss!" Ezer interrupted, calling from the computer he and Garan were sitting at. "We set the place to blow like you said!"
"Oh?" Ridley spat another stream of fire at Samus. "Well, that's good to-" Suddenly, the Drakar went completely motionless, with a strangled look on his face. He dropped out of the air like a statue and made a few choked grunting noises before slowly turning his head towards his underlings. "You... what?"
"Set the station to blow." Garan explained. "Just like you told us to right before we found out she was coming here." Ridley looked back towards Samus, scales turning white.
"Did they just say what I think they said?" Samus had also frozen.
"Yeah... I'm afraid so..." She moaned. "You two... how long did you set it for?" Ezer and Garan looked at each other for a few seconds until Ridley barked at them to answer the question. Ezer shrugged.
"About a minute."
"I see." Ridley nodded.
"All right." Samus agreed. And then, the bounty hunter and the Drakar screamed simultaneously. "CRAP!" With several more curses in his native tongue, Ridley grabbed the dimwitted underlings in the claw that did not hold Matrix, stretched his wings to their full length and blasted off like a jet-liner. Samus stared after him for a moment, then did an about-face and ran like hell. As she emerged into the outside halls, sirens began blaring and the now-active lights strobed red. She blasted through the bridge, whispering apologies to the dead, and began clambering up the staircase, knocking corpses down. Unfortunately, somehow the alarm system had ruptured some pipes, and blistering steam jets burst out in several places, impeding her progress further. Twice she recieved painful burns from them. When she reached the correct floor, Samus dashed into the hallway that led to her docking bay... and groaned. The entire hall ahead was a mass of blasting steam!
"Can't be more than thirty seconds left... no time to find another route." She muttered to herself. "Only one way through..." The bounty hunter took a few steps back, then ran and leaped forward, spinning through the steam in one colossal jump. For a moment, everything was white-hot pain... and then relief came, as she landed on the other side, still alive. Samus immediately moved on, not stopping for a moment to check herself; that could come later. She finally emerged into the tall vertical passage that held her ship at the top. But Ceres was breaking down; it was tilting dangerously aside, and the gravity stabilizers weren't working right; Samus' climb was a nightmare of sliding platforms and dangerous falls. "How much time left... how much..." She whispered. The seconds ticked down, seemingly slow as an hour each. Finally, she reached the top and practically flew into her ship. With less than ten seconds remaining, Samus' ship blasted away from Ceres, screaming into space. As it flew off, Samus gazed out a window and watched as Space Station Ceres sparked, tilted, and then exploded in one vast, firey blast that blinded her momentatily. When her vision returned, there was not a trace of the Space Station, and the atrocities that had been committed there, remaining.
***
"WHAT THE HELL IS GOING ON HERE?!" Commander Mark Todar of the Galactic Federation screamed at the top of his lungs. His office was silent, offering no response; all of his aides and underlings had long since fled. The furious commander glared around at everything for several moments, knuckles whitening, and whispering quite a few very nasty curse words. Finally, he returned to his computer and read the disturbing message again. There was no way of getting around it; the message was still there. Ten minutes ago, Space Station Ceres had been destroyed. Completely obliterated. There was nothing left. It was that simple statement that had brought Commander Todar to the brink of apoplexy. Slowly, he began to calm down. He could get angry later. Right now, he needed to find out as much as possible about the attack, and who was behind it; obviously Ceres hadn't spontaneously combusted. The most likely choice was obvious, of course; the Space Pirates. But Commander Todar hadn't gotten to his position simply by taking the obvious choice; he knew that he needed more. "Computer, run a check to determine all ships that were within one standard orbital range of Space Station Ceres at the time of its destruction."
"Acknowledged." The computer responded pleasantly. "Three ships were detected. The first is the Hunter-Class Gunship, the Chozo, built by the same. It is licensed to the bounty hunter Samus Aran."
"Samus Aran?!" Todar exclaimed in surprise. "What would SHE be doing there at that time?" The Federation officer frowned, deep in thought. "The only reason she'd be near Ceres is... Matrix..." A decidedly unpleasant theory was slowly dawning on him. "Samus Aran has been showing an unhealthy level of interest in that Metroid... and she's not a part of the Federation... is it possible that she...?" He shook his head. "Avoid the obvious choice. What about the other two ships, computer?"
"The second was a Merchant-Class Commercial Ship, the Eye Of Drihos, of Elocto design. It's registered to Captain Juntor, a licensed trader with a good reputation and sizable funds."
"That seems to check out..." Todar muttered. "And the third?"
"A Seeker-Class Gunship, the Spacewing, from the Drakar. The registration is to one of their planet's government officials, Admiral Dilyer."
"Seems good as well..." Todar's face darkened. "Everything's pointing at Aran... looks like that lady's gone rebel on us..." Then he remembered everything she had done for the Federation, and sighed. "I'll give her the benefit of the doubt one more time, then I'm having her brought in. Computer, scan the database to see if Captain Juntor or Admiral Dilyer have any sort of record with us." He sat back in his chair and awaited the results; however, less than ten seconds had passed before the computer emitted a shrieking blare and a burst of red light, surprising Todar so much that he fell off of his chair. "What the-?"
"Alert! Alert!" The computer informed him. "File found on Admiral Dilyer in the NOC division!"
"NOC?" Todar wondered. "The top-secret stuff? What do they have on him?"
"The file reports that Admiral Dilyer is nonexistent, and in actuality a known alias!" Todar leapt to his feet.
"Here's the billion-dollar question, machine. Do we know who he really is? Who uses that alias?"
"Yes." The computer showed a picture of a large Drakar with a heavily scarred chest. "He is the Space Pirate Commander... Ridley!"
"Ridley?!" Todar accidentally knocked his chair over. "He was reported dead! Slain on Tallon IV by Aran!"
"He was also reported to be terminated during Samus Aran's infiltration and sabotage of Zebes, before the battle of Tallon IV." The computer reminded him. 'The Space Pirates have a great deal of technology we do not understand, both mechanical and medical, mainly thanks to their chief scientest, Kraid. Considering how far medical technonology has advanced for the general public, it is possible that Kraid has discovered a way to heal and revive lifeforms that have suffered fatal injuries."
"I suppose that's true..." Todar admitted. "Very well, Ridley has returned. Now, it is apparent that HE is the one behind this crime. Contact the BNT Division, computer. Get me Commander Jargol, immediately. Code 251511159."
"Acknowledged." The computer was once again silent for several moments as it processed his request. Then, a vidlink opened, showing a rather pudgy, balding officer sitting behind a desk.
"Commander Todar, what can I do for you?" He greeted Todar nervously.
"No time for small talk." The angry commander snapped. "The Space Pirates have attacked Space Station Ceres and stolen the Metroid!"
"WHAT?!" Jargol went pasty white.
"You heard me. The perpetrator was Ridley; yes, he has returned again. I want a bounty out on him ASAP, and make it at least a million and a half. Computer, did 'Admiral Dilyer' have any other passangers?"
"...Yes." The computer replied after checking. "Two identical Zebesians, whose exoskeletons were strangely metallic. This matches the description of Ezer and Garan, two specifically wanted Pirates."
"What are the current bounties on Ezer and Garan?" Todar demanded. Jargol fumbled through some papers.
"Fifty thousand dead, a hundred grand alive. They hadn't committed any major crimes for a few years now."
"Double it." Todar ordered him. "And after Ridley's bounty is out, I want you to put out the word that we're going to be doubling again on any and every Pirate Bounty until Matrix is recaptured." Jargol went even paler.
"Commander Todar, that'll drain the Federation treasury!"
"That doesn't matter now, you fat fool!" Todar shouted. "We NEED to get that Metroid back, and we need it ASAP! Everything else is of no moment! Do it, Jargol!"
"Excuse me, sir, but there's an incoming call." The computer interrupted. "It's from PR. They say it's Priority One."
"Priotiy One? From PR?" Todar blinked in amazement. "There hasn't been a Priority One from THERE in ten years! Might as well put it through..." A second vidlink opened, showing a young Federation soldier. He saluted.
"Sir, it's Samus Aran! She called us up and demanded to speak with a Commander!" Todar groaned.
"It was only a matter of time, I suppose..." He sighed. "Well, put her through. Knowing her, she'll get through anyways; might as well stop her from breaking anything." The soldier nodded, and his vidlink changed to Samus Aran, dressed in her power suit with her helmet off.
"Commander Mark Todar?" She inquired. He nodded. "Thought so. Enough chit-chat. Less than half an hour ago, Space Station Ceres was-"
"Attacked and destroyed by Ridley. I know." Todar told her. She smiled grimly.
"Good to see you guys doing your jobs. He got away with the Metroid, Commander. He's kidnapped Matrix. I don't need to tell you how bad this is..."
"Obviously." Todar snorted. "We've already put out a bounty on Ridley, as well as doubled Ezer & Garan's bounties and redoubled all Pirate bounties. Next, we plan to call in the Egenoid Star Marines-"
"Don't bother." Samus waved him down. "I'm going in. I've taken the Pirates down twice before, and I'll do it again."
"That won't be neccessary." Todar said grimly. "You're not a Federation officer, miss Aran. You are not allowed to simply declare a one-woman war on the Space Pirates just like that."
"You know what, Todar?" The bounty hunter snarled. "I don't care. This is a personal fight now. Think of it this way; you're going to get spared a lot of money. Except, of course, for the shitload of bounties you'll be paying to me. Just relax. I"ll handle everything."
"Wait!" Commander Todar yelled. But it was too late; the connection died, leaving him to invent new swear words on the spot.