Disclaimer: I do not own Metroid, but all original characters belong to me.

It wasn't until late at night when Samus returned to their apartment. Getting through the Federation paperwork was excruciating, to say the least, and she had been stopped many times to discuss different rumors and theories for the Hamboski case. She let herself into the apartment, and the first thing she noticed was a post-it in the kitchen.

Left to get some grub. My research is on the computer desk if you want to check it out. Shouldn't be out too late.

Rista

Samus scrunched it into a ball and let the thin piece of paper fall to the floor. She was not hungry. Her interest was immediately attracted to whatever details Rista had sniffed up. She found the stack of papers exactly where Rista left it. It consisted of only a few sheets, but Rista had a knack for picking out the most important points of interest. All the other fluff was left alone.

Samus settled herself onto the couch and began reading it, slowly in order to absorb every bit of it. She was roughly halfway through it when Rista barged through the door.

"You here?" She called out, the familiar thump of her bag on the floor accenting her arrival.

"Yeah," Samus answered. She stood to greet Rista, who looked excited for some reason. "What's going on?" Rista threw her a small paper bag. As Samus poked through it, Rista began to tell her the news.

"I had the strangest encounter at the bakery," She said as Samus pulled out a croissant. As if on cue, her stomach began to rumble, and she peeled off a bit of the flaky crust and savored it in her mouth. "I was paying, and I was out of cash, so I had to use my card. Well, this man accidentally bumps into me, and I dropped it. So, being a gentleman, he picks it up for me, and he can't help but to read my name off it."

"Did he know you?" Samus asked. Rista shook her head.

"Not me, but he went crazy. Apparently, he knew a Rista Nevaria, an old crazy hag. Ring a bell?"

"Our crazy spinster Great Aunt that Mom and Ream loved to reminisce about?" Samus guessed, taking another bite of the croissant.

"Yep," Rista agreed. "He finally collected himself and apologized for the incident. Left the bakery mumbling about going insane or something."

"What did he look like?" Samus asked. This intrigued her. If he was indeed talking about their Great Aunt, then he had a connection to the Nevaria family, and perhaps he could prove useful in the hunt for details about Project Nevaria.

"Tall, pale skin, neat brown hair," Rista listed them off. "I can't determine his age. He was obviously old, but he had aged so gracefully that it was hard to tell. I didn't recognize him."

"And we all know what a great memory you have," Samus stated. It was a compliment to Rista, and she took it as such. She was proud of the fact that she could still recall vivid memories from when she was five. "Did he look like he was around here?"

"No, but he was well-dressed. If he was a tourist, he was a rich one. My guess is that he's staying at the Gremock's." The Gremock's was the only quality hotel on Taras.

"I think I'll pay him a visit," Samus announced.

"Tonight?"

"He might be gone by morning."

"Good point. Keep in contact, alright?"

-----

She spotted the man in the lobby, idly talking with one of the bellboys. Why he would want to do such a thing was beyond Samus. The bellboy was a teenager, probably doing it for extra cash for the summer. He had an odd, phased out look on his face as the man lectured him.

Cautiously, Samus approached him.

"Excuse me, are you-" She said it in her best, charitable voice, but the man almost instantly cut her off.

"Thomas Miller? Yes I am. You must be Melinda." Melinda…well, at least she'd be Melinda for the next few minutes. So Samus just nodded. "I didn't expect you tonight, but that's probably for the best, since there's been an emergency at home and I'd like to be back early tomorrow."

"Can I talk to you privately for a second?" Samus asked. She hoped she had the right man, but he matched Rista's description perfectly.

"Of course. Let's go up to my room." He smiled at the bellboy. "Just remember what I told you son. You can rise up from the darkest abyss and live a happy life." The boy nodded, a strange expression written on his face. As Samus and Thomas sped up the elevator, he tried to talk to her, but she always interjected with a "wait until we reach the room".

"So, what is so urgent and confidential that we can't talk about it in the elevator?" He asked, as if he really was on to Samus. "Care to share Melinda?"

"I'm not Melinda," Samus laid it right out. His face fell.

"Ook, then who are you?" He asked. His hand darted around the hotel bed stand for the remote, a pen or something else to chuck at Samus' head.

"Relax Mr. Miller," Samus said. "You ran into a woman named Rista Nevaria earlier, correct?" Thomas looked nervous.

"If this is about that, I am sincerely sorry for being so rude and I-"

"Were you a friend of the Nevarias on T08 and the Arans on K2L?" Samus inquired. She decided to skip around all the unnecessary chitchat and go straight to the main point. The blood drained out of Thomas' face, and he began to perspire heavily.

"I guess you could say that," He mumbled.

"Do you know anything about Project Nevaria?" The man sighed a breath of relief.

"Never heard of it. Is that all?"

"Not quite." She approached him, trying to read his face. His expression matched that of Rista's when she had been haunted by her past. "Why are you so scared?"

"I had to give up everything to live, and if he finds out, I'm a dead man," He whispered. "My life is on the line. Finally, everything has been going good for me, and I will not have that snatched away from me." He backed away from her against the nightstand, almost knocking the lamp off it. "You're one of his spies aren't you? You're here to kill me at last. Why me? I was his friend. I helped him!"

"He's dead," Samus revealed to him. She had a good feeling he was talking about Bill Werster.

"No, he's not. He only wants me to think that!" Thomas growled. His knuckles turned white as he clutched the edge of the stand. "That way, I'll let down my guard, and he can swoop in and kill me."

"You're a raving lunatic," Samus said. "I don't want to hurt you. I'm just looking for some connections here to help me out a little. Or else I'm a dead woman, and if I'm going to be a dead woman, then I will get very mad, and you don't want that. Do you?" He shook his head, his Adam's apple twitching as he gulped nervously.

"How do you know he's dead?" He asked.

"You said you were a friend of the Arans? Then I suppose the next part of this will be bit of a surprise."

"What is it?" His voice was filled to the brim with anxiety.

"Because I, Samus Aran, personally saw him die." For a second Thomas did not respond. Then, his body crumpled to the ground as he fainted. It was a ruse, to throw her off and maybe to see what she would do to him. There was no way this was Samus Aran.

He simply heard her walk away and close the door behind her. When he finally opened his eyes, he decided that he needed to return to his therapist.

Author's note: The inspiration for this chappie just struck me. I personally think Thomas is kind of obvious, but I don't think any of you guys will pick up on him. You could always surprise me though. Review! Review! Review! Or I shall not update.