(I was going to say something here, but I forgot what it was. Ah well. that happens to me all the time, sadly. Well, on with the fic! )

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VIII : Despair

Samus stared at the ceiling.

It was white synthetic plaster, smooth and unlined; her eyes looked dim, almost glazed, as if she wasn't really looking at it. She was lying on her back, long legs stretched out parallel to the cell's walls, hands at her sides. To all appearances, lifeless, only the slight rise and fall of her chest indicating that she was still breathing.

But behind her mask of dead, emotionless flesh, a terrible battle was raging.

Ridley is a liar, a filthy space pirate sympathizer. He's a cruel killing machine; you know that better than anyone. He can never know anything about...emotions. Caring. Friends... There's no way he could.

He's reasonable, even if his motives are corrupt. Everything he says makes perfect sense. All the evidence points in one direction, yet you still try swimming against the current. Adam must be working with the space pirates; there's no other logical conclusion.

--No! Adam was my friend, he was more than that.... To heck with your logic! I will never stop believing that there is some...better explanation. Something is wrong with this picture.

Samus, be reasonable. Ridley speaks the truth. You heard what he said about people. It was true. You've said so yourself many times.

Just because some of what he said was...true...doesn't mean all of it was! Not all people are like that. Adam wasn't—isn't like them. He understood me...he's different! I know him! You...you will never convince me otherwise!

Look, Samus, I know how you feel. He fooled me for a long time too. But that was then. Sometimes...you aren't perfect. Just admit it—Adam isn't the person you thought he was.

That...may...be...

You have to face it sometime. You made a mistake, Samus, that's all. It's time to put it behind you and move on. There's work to be done here. About Ridley...

You know what?! I'm tired of this! As long as I...believe...what you said—then there's no point in trying to do anything. I'm damn well forfeit! If—as you're so bent on convincing me—nobody cares about me, why should I care about myself? Why should I care about them? Riddle me that, you and your stupid logic! Why should I?

"Why?!" Samus cried, suddenly snapping from her state of stasis. She sat up, her face contorted into a savage grimace of frustration, as if trying to shake everything from her head. She stayed like that, frozen in place, for a second that seemed like an eternity, then gave a half-howl, half-sob and buried her head in her hands.

Deep in the tunnels of Kelta-Z, the Huntress cried.

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(I know that was a reeeeeeeally short chapter, so I apologize. I'll get working on the next one right away...

Somebody should sue me for cruelty to characters, shouldn't they?)