Thank you for the review; it is appreciated.

Well, because it appears that someone is interested in what happens next... hence what happens next:

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Chapter 11: Zero G Revelations

...it seemed like only an instant later when a vibration in her ship's hull woke her up. Blinking sleep from her eyes, Samus glanced at her suit's clock... she'd slept almost five hours. She'd never needed a lot of sleep, though, that was probably enough to make her fully capable again. For however long she'd need to be awake, anyway.

The ship vibrated just slightly again, prompting Samus to glance around for the source. She was mildly surprised, though she hid it completely, when she saw Tal clamped onto the front of her ship. He was entirely encased in his armor, but she recognized him easily. By this point his variety of exoskeleton was almost familiar. Again he lightly knocked on the front of the ship with a fist, sending more of those slight vibrations. So that was what he was doing...

Getting to her feet so he knew she was awake, Samus made a motion telling him to wait, then headed to the back of the ship. The airlock sent air compressing away behind her, then deposited her on the side of the ship. Activating her magnet boots, Samus walked her way toward the front of the ship, where Tal remained perched on her cockpit.

Seeing her, he got out of his crouched position. The claws that served as his feet carefully curled around another part of the ship, anchoring him. Effective...

They glanced at each other mutely, neither sure what to say, if they had been capable of actually speaking to each other. Eventually, Samus made a motioning gesture and moved back across the ship to the airlock. Tal followed at a somewhat slower rate.

Only when they were both inside the ship and the airlock had closed did Tal retract his armor, returning to his fully human appearance. Brushing a bit of dark hair away from his eyes, he glanced at her and shrugged.

"Are we going to Station Emerald now?"

"That was my intention," Samus answered, turning to go to the cockpit. Tal followed, then leaned against one of the bulkheads behind her chair as she quickly pulled up the files he had given her. Within them somewhere was the location of Station Emerald, she just couldn't remember exactly what it was...

"Look up the file lab05r341," Tal answered her thought.

"Roger," Samus answered, quickly finding the location and setting the ship to fly there. How convenient she'd stocked up fully at Bounty Hunter Headquarters so recently; she'd be completely ready to take on whatever they had. Of course, their goal was to get in and find information, not just destroy it, but she had a suspicion they'd eventually blast the station to bits. That was what she suspected Tal had been doing at the Power Core of Station Sapphire.

When the ship was set on its course and flying on autopilot, Samus moved back into the main portion of her ship drawing up an extra chair next to the small table. Tal sat down opposite her, and the two didn't say anything for some time.

"So..." Samus eventually said. "What happened back at the Galactic Council Outpost?"

"I cleaned up the rest of the terrorists, then retreated all the aliens. They're on a nearby planet, and hopefully they'll just stay there. I'm not too certain how good my control is yet, I'm still just learning."

"This isn't second nature to you?"

"Not at all. I've been working through what exactly I can do slowly, discovering exactly what's... different about me. It's pretty tough handling nega-photons, and I can't quite get the hang of certain things. Part of my exoskeleton doesn't seem completely formed yet, either. This is all new."

Randomly curious, Samus slipped over to Darklight mode as he spoke. Interesting, all of Tal's body now radiated a bright blue color. He'd been green before... did that mean he had higher concentrations of anti-photons in his body now? Why would that happen...?

"What are we going to do when we get there?" Samus asked. Tal paused momentarily, apparently considering his response.

"What I've done on the other stations, I'd imagine. Due to the hidden placement of these stations, they only do a sensor sweep of the area on rare occasions, to avoid being found. These sweeps aren't too hard to pick up if you're looking for them, which gives us a chance to break into the station. From there, it's generally surveillance work until I find what I need, then I destroy the station."

"Is that what you were doing when we first met?" Samus asked, just to make sure.

"Correct. You accomplished the same thing, though. On Station Emerald, though, I'm going to have to be a lot more careful. They're probably on high alert, and I need to get all the information I can."

"I see. Well, the plan's effective in theory, at least. Before we get there, however, I have another question to ask you. Truthfully, what does your past have to do with all this?"

"To be honest, I'm not entirely sure," Tal answered. "I really don't want to tell you, but I guess it would be only fair. I wasn't really lying before: I did grow up around scientists. I've always been treated a bit differently, and I don't know why. They basically trained me only in science and martial arts. When I reached a certain age, though, something happened."

For a moment Tal paused, running a hand through his dark hair. "My memory blacks out at that point, though I've been able to retain some of it. I'm still trying to find the information I need to know what exactly is going on.

"I know one thing for certain, though: My ordinary memory starts with me being like I am now, without control of my abilities. In the beginning, before I got control of them, they would work sporadically. Living was pure agony. One way or another, though, I survived.

"After that?" Tal paused, thinking. "I've mainly been motivated by this quest to find out who I am and revenge. A bit melodramatic, no? But it's all I have. Beyond that I have no idea whatsoever."

"I see." Samus nodded for a moment, ingesting this data. It sounded like he still wasn't telling the whole truth, but she'd let it slide at this point. There was also the very real possibility that he simply wasn't capable of telling her the whole truth. In any case, what he had told her would do for now.

For twenty minutes they simply chatted about whatever applied, lapsing into silence when there was nothing to say. They outlined a plan to infiltrate the station pretty quickly, relying primarily on Samus' notoriety and Tal's knowledge of the other two stations. That sort of work really wasn't her type, but she'd do what she had to do to get some real answers here.

There was a slight tone that echoed through the ship when they arrived at the edge of the station's sensor perimeter. While it didn't appear to be actively scanning at the moment, Samus knew it was only a matter of time before they'd be close enough to be sensed regardless, soon, they could probably be seen with the naked eye.

Forcing herself out of her chair, Samus moved to the cockpit and began examining the situation. Nothing appeared amiss, but her ship's sensors couldn't yet reach the station. Like the other two, it was positioned in an asteroid field. She had cloaking technology, but if they could break it that would be difficult to explain. Furthermore, they'd need to dock with the station in any case, so it'd be best to go in keeping a low profile.

"Uh oh." Tal's words made her look up, and she realized why he had said them. The station was just coming into view out the front window, or, at least, it should have.

A massive hunk of metal floated in space, listlessly drifting. Most of the station was intact, but it was dark, only emergency lights on and invisible from this distance. Ordinarily the massive rings that simulated gravity were rotating, but this ring was completely still. No longer did the station hover in space, it drifted wherever the surrounding asteroid field pulled it. Part of the station had been broken off, most likely by one of the asteroids.

"Someone got here first," Samus remarked casually. It took a lot more than that to surprise her by this point in her life.

"Actually, I was thinking more along the lines of something." Tal's eyes were narrowed, and he nervously leaned forward, looking at the dead station. "They were pretty sloppy in their work, and they didn't bother to detonate the Power Core. Either there are incompetent humans..."

"Or that station was taken over by aliens," Samus finished. "These creatures have a tendency to rebel and destroy their creators, don't they? I suppose there is only one way to find out?" Already she was flying the ship closer to the station, scanning along the side carefully. Nothing appeared suspicious about it, not like a trap would feel.

"The evidence seems to point to the fact that it was destroyed from within," Tal added grimly. "If their experiments went awry... that's what happened on the other two stations."

Sitting down in the cockpit, Samus switched to manual control and began carefully circling the station. Fortunately, it seemed to have been built in a pocket with relatively few asteroids, so her ship was safe for now. How long was another matter; it would be safest to set the ship's computer to avoid them automatically. From the corner of her eye not watching her flying, she glanced at Tal.

"You're thinking they might have experimented on human life too, aren't you?"

Tal didn't respond with any words, he merely nodded tightly. The fingernails on one of his hands seemed to have elongated somewhat, or rather extended slightly from his hands. He's getting ready for battle, she realized. I probably should too.

"I don't want to dock with the station," Samus informed him, her tone business-like. "Even if that's possible, anything that happened to the station would happen to us. Plus, the aliens can probably travel in space, and the more distance I have between them and the ship the better I'll feel. I'll set the ship to orbit, and I guess we'll go there manually."

"That's wise." Tal nodded, then turned sharply and headed back into the ship. As soon as the autopilot was properly configured, Samus followed him into the airlock. The air hissed about them, and Samus activated her own supply. Tal's exoskeleton emerged from his skin again, covering his body. When they were released into space, Samus activated her jet pack and Tal spread his wings to balance himself on the side of the ship.

Directing herself toward the station and giving a short boost of power, Samus let herself drift toward the station. Moments later, Tal pushed off the ship and glided along a short distance behind. His wings served no useful purpose in a vacuum, and were now folded on his back. Oddly enough, Samus noticed that the foremost tips of his wings were pointed; the edges looked almost sharp. No alien had that, did they?

Their silent trip through space ended when they landed on the ship's hull. The instant she touched down Samus activated her magnetic boots; Tal gripped the metal with claw like feet and extended his wings for balance. Activating her highest intensity of laser knife, Samus cut a hole in the side of the station large enough to get through.

No air rushed out, indicating that this part of the station had already been drained. How much of it was still intact? Tal followed her a moment later, and they found themselves floating in the corridor. They were still within a vacuum, which meant navigation was difficult. While she could have used her jet pack, Samus preferred to save that energy for when she needed it.

Floating down the corridor at what seemed a terribly slow pace, Samus actually folded her arms and waited. After what seemed like an eternity, both of them bounced around a corner and found an even longer hallway before them. Rolling her eyes, Samus glanced at Tal. She made a motion to go faster, and he nodded.

Moving back to the wall, Samus leapt off it as fast as she could, propelling herself down the corridor. Tal did the same soon after, speeding after her. This trip was far more her style, and they soon found themselves nearing the end of the corridor, which opened into a much larger room.

Turning in midair, Samus used just enough of a pulse in her jet pack to slow her down. Tal dragged himself to a halt by putting two fingers to the side of the wall. At the exit, they carefully glanced out into the larger room.

It was an atrium, Samus instantly realized. The bounty hunter hadn't been in many science faculties before, but she knew the basic design of this manner of station. Everything was stark and sterile. Normally she was in favor of efficiency, but efficiency didn't have to be so... boring. There appeared to be a corridor on from the room that had an airlock of some sort.

Raising a hand, Samus indicated that Tal wait a moment. Something seemed wrong about this room, something that she couldn't put a finger to. It was only intuition, but that had served her well in the past. Flipping through the modes on her visor, Samus discovered that the room was relatively heatless and steeped in nega-photon radiation. Nothing seemed amiss... unless that was too much radiation. Actually, it seemed like it was shifting, but it could also have been a trick of the eyes or radiation movement.

Because they were close enough together for Tal to see through Samus's visor, Samus gestured to the room and raised an eyebrow. He nodded slightly, confirming her suspicions. There was something up. Indicating she'd go in first, Samus gestured for Tal to wait, then pushed off into the room.

For a while she just drifted, in the complete silence of a vacuum. Suddenly something launched itself through the air toward her. Immediately activating her jet pack, Samus swept up out of its path. She landed on the ceiling and fired down at the alien, destroying it before she could get a proper look. There were things hiding in here, then...

Aliens launched themselves from a number of places on the ceiling, careening toward her. They took Samus mildly off guard, though not enough to worry her. She didn't even have to make an effort in this case, as flares of energy shot from where Tal was positioned, frying the creatures.

Emerging from the corridor, Tal flipped himself up to the wall above it. Neither of them believed that there were no more monsters in this room. Both of them were correct. Moments later, knowing their ambush had failed, several groups of aliens launched themselves into the room as well.

Pushing off the ceiling, Samus let herself drift down into the room as she picked off aliens. One of the creatures leapt from the ground to slash at her, but Samus smashed a heavy boot directly into its face. The force sent the creature tumbling back in the direction it had came, and sent Samus rocketing through the room. Several of the creatures dove at her, aiming to take advantage of her moment of weakness.

Unfortunately for them, Samus was a veteran of fighting without gravity. The instant she had an object off which to push, she turned in midair to face them, her guns blazing. Using short bursts of her jet pack, she had a significant advantage over the aliens, which could only predictably drift where their momentum took them.

As she fought, Samus kept an eye on Tal. Not that she expected that he'd need too much help, more out of curiosity. He had changed since she had first met him, and she wasn't certain what exactly he could do.

His fighting style was somewhat unsteady, as he'd probably never had to fight in zero-gravity before. Mostly he leapt from place to place in the room. Though he didn't use them often, the flares of energy that he could shoot from his hands always hit their mark. Just from what she could see, she estimated they were about as powerful as a standard plasma cannon, possibly a bit stronger.

One of the creatures attacked from above while Tal was dealing with several others and managed to actually connect. The blow bounced off Tal's exoskeleton, though it sent him hurtling down toward the floor... or toward the wall, rather, but it was all the same. Somehow landing on his feet, Tal leapt off the surface, destroying the creature before it could reach another object and jump away.

Blinking, Samus found herself distracted enough that a creature actually managed to deal minor damage to one of the legs of her bio suit. Blasting it away with a focused laser, she glanced back at the place where he had pushed off of. The walls of the room were metal and quite strong, but where he had leapt from there were massive claw marks. Quickly she mentally calculated how physically strong someone would have to be to do something like that and raised her eyebrows. Tal would be fine by himself.

At last the aliens had been destroyed, or at least no more felt bold enough to attack them. Activating her magnetic boots again, Samus walked down the side of one wall and toward the corridor that moved on. Tal struck the ground hard, but dug in his claws to prevent himself from bouncing away. Pushing off the floor at an angle, he floated to the airlock as well.

Tapping at the computer, Samus discovered that it was still operational. How fortunate; air would be useful. The airlock opened for them, and they stepped inside. Not long after, they found themselves in a corridor with air once more. Almost subconsciously Samus checked if the air was untainted, then set her suit to run from it and refill its stocks. Who knew the next time she'd have an actual air supply?

"Talking is... convenient," Tal reflected, voice emerging from the exoskeleton. "At this point, we really have only two objectives. We need to get all the files from these ship's computers and destroy the Power Core."

"We'll split up," Samus decided for both of them.

"I'll handle the files, I brought a data storage device with me. Give me ten minutes before you set the charge on the Power Core and I'll meet you back at the ship."

"Good." Before Samus could say more, sounds began echoing through the hallways. Many of them were vague scuttling noises, others sounding like feet. Wordlessly Samus and Tal glanced at each other, then rolled their eyes. Turning, they began moving down the corridor, even as the swarms of monsters came to greet them.

The stupid things must have heard us talking, Samus thought as she fired her cannon through the first of the beasts. I had hoped we'd killed them all earlier, but I guess this station did a lot of experiments. Ducking, Samus avoided a creature that foolishly launched itself at her and blew it apart as it floated over her head. It didn't seem to remember that they still had no gravity.

Everything was really almost too easy. The monsters were more intelligent than ordinary aliens, that was true. However, they were still mentally very young, and hadn't done anything other than kill the scientists on the station. None of them were very powerful, so she could take them out without much trouble.

This left her time to observe what Tal was doing. Now that they were in air, he had expanded his wings and was using them to move himself. Because of the way he flapped them, it almost seemed as he was just running along the floor or walls. It was interesting to watch him because he didn't really fight like a human. More like an alien, or one of those martial arts masters that occasionally appeared in old movies. Whatever the case, he seemed to be extremely highly trained... but also alien.

Each of Tal's arms had become a weapon of hard exoskeleton tightly over muscle. His fingers had a layer of black exoskeleton over them, and the ends moved down into very sharp points. They were really like knives, almost as if they had been designed that way. And while Tal couldn't use a gun at all, he was a master of his own claws. There was a sphere of Tal's striking range, and anything that entered it was sliced apart.

After so many years at her job, nothing could really scare Samus Aran. She'd seen too many horrible things to be unnerved by any sight. Yet in a disinterested way she noted that this was mildly disturbing. Tal fought like a monster, not like a human. What was he really?

Quickly they parted ways, leaving a few of the surviving aliens trailing behind them. Samus discovered that this station was almost exactly like the other one, in design and structure. A few of the experimental labs appeared to be different, but she didn't have time to examine them. Did this station have a Metroid specimen as well? Had there been Metroid instances she'd never even heard about?

Touching a panel and opening a door, Samus found herself quite startled by a grisly sight. The body of a dead scientist floated in midair. A gash had been ripped through his chest; blood floated in the air in perfect spheres. Vacantly the scientist's dead eyes stared into nothingness, but they were far too close to looking at her for comfort.

Samus took in all this in an instant and reacted before she had time to think, blowing the corpse's head off. The energy from her cannon cauterized the wound, and actually decreased the amount of blood in the air. Somewhat disgusted, both at what she saw and at herself for reacting so poorly, Samus shoved the corpse aside and continued on.

She ran into more bodies, but few aliens. The former she ignored, the latter she blew away. By this point she had almost gotten to the Power Core itself. Only four minutes elapsed so far... Tal had underestimated how fast she could move. Perhaps he'd need more time... she couldn't expect anyone to be able to keep up with her.

Blowing away the final wall in her path, Samus entered the Power Core of Station Emerald. This power core was broken, its energy drained away. There were incredibly high levels of radiation all throughout the chamber, and they immediately flooded over her. Automatically her suit shifted to a mode that defended her against any radiation damage.

Grateful she'd saved power in her jet pack, Samus flew into the chamber and landed atop a catwalk. Calmly she walked toward the dark Power Core, gaze flickering to the clock in her bio suit. Still a long time to wait yet. Finding a bomb, Samus fiddled with the lock but didn't arm it. Tal had said ten minutes and she'd give him exactly that.

Leaning against a catwalk, Samus glanced up at the same time the massive alien launched itself down at her.

-

In retrospect, there are more cliffhangers than I remembered.