The snow crunched under my feet as I waited by the bushes, hiding the cave Michael had spoken of. There were few sounds to be heard, and the sight of the frozen wasteland all around gave the land a feeling of death. It was as though the only life left in this land were the Space Pirates inside the base.

"Samus."

I turned around, only to find Michael waiting by the cave entrance. He was pushing some bushes aside, allowing light to enter the cave.

"We're in business. It's just as it was years ago."

"Then we should get moving, otherwise the Space Pirates might realize that we're already."

"Come on."

I walked into the cave, carefully watching my footing. Once past the bushes, Michael let go of them and started leading me through the dark cave. Three lights were coming off of him, two from his boots and one from his right shoulder. I currently had my headset lighting the way in front of me, though his lights were brighter then mine.

Michael seemed ignorant of his condition; he was practically covered in snow, and most people wearing his clothing would have begun getting hypothermia in less then thirty minuets.

"Michael, aren't you cold?"

"Actually, I'm fine," he said cheerfully, looking back at me for just a moment. "Though there is snow in here, it feels pretty nice."

"But its thirty degrees Fahrenheit!"

"Well, I got used to the cold," Michael said, still cheerful. He looked back at me again, a grin on his face. "After all, it can be a lot colder in space."

"What do you mean?" I said, confused at his last statement.

"Space is very cold, Samus."

Just as he finished this, he stopped, and then took a careful step downwards, onto what seemed to be a low ledge. After he got down, I did the same, and then followed him through the cave.

"You've been in space with just that on before!"

"Twice," Michael said, laughing it off as if it were a small feat. "Can't say I was very fond of doing it, but I managed."

"Michael, you're crazy."

"I've been told that before."

There were many more turns within the cave, each giving there own mystery to the darkness. We would often head around walls and obstacles when going straight would be easier, and I often told Michael about it. He would reply that it was a dead end, or that it just curved back to another part of the cave. I trusted him though, considering that he had been here before, and I hadn't.

"Stop," Michael said, raising his hand up to warn me. I stopped and looked at him oddly. "There's a big pit in front of us. The only way down is to jump."

"How far does it go?"

"Samus, have you ever jumped from the twelve floor of a major hotel?"

"No, why?"

"Have you ever jumped a hundred feet before?"

"No."

"Then you can't jump this one."

"Is it really that far of a jump?"

There was a pause, and it became very quiet in this cave. Nothing could be heard moving, not even the air around us. Soon, after what appeared to be a moment of deep thought, Michael continued.

"I'm going to have to carry you there, alright. It's about a hundred and fifty feet down, and I don't know if you can take the jump."

I sighed for a moment, and then nodded to Michael. "How are we doing this?"

"Just stand there a moment."

Michael walked to my side, and then went to one knee. I looked at him as he did that, wondering why. When he said "Lean back," I understood why he was in that position. I noticed him put his right arm just behind my knees, which would allow him an easy carry once he had his arm behind my back.

I turned to my left, then did as he instructed. Trusting him blindly, I fell backwards, and just as I thought he was going to drop me, I felt myself stop in mid air. I looked over to him, finding that his arms were firmly under my body.

"Now just hold on, this might be a bit bumpy."

"What do you mean, bumpy?"

"Well, I have never really done a jump this big with a person with two hundred pounds of armor on."

"You better not drop me," I said. I wasn't kidding either; if he dropped me, the armor for the suit might break, and I might not make it if the force is too strong.

"Don't worry, I may be getting old, but I am more then strong enough to handle your weight."

With that, I nodded gently. I could tell that he was being sincere, as we were looking each other in the eye. Then, Michael carefully stood up, and then slowly walked forward to the edge of the cliff. Michael paused for a moment, and as I was cradled in his arms, I could feel a bit of fear in my heart.

'Oh yeah, jumping into the bottomless pit. Maybe I'm afraid of heights.'

I decided to tell Michael to put me down and then find another way down, but it was too late. Just as I turned my head to look at him, he decided to fall forwards into the pit.

"Down into the black abyss we go," he said, though I barely heard him; I was too busy screaming my head off to care.

"Samus, you alright?"

"Y-yeah…"

Samus got off of my arms and stood on her own two feet again. She took off her helmet, and then started to brush her brow with her left hand.

"Hey Samus."

"Yeah?" Samus looked back at me, and I noticed how pale her face was. Sweat seemed to pour down her face, and I could see the pure terror on her face. Samus was breathing heavily, constantly breathing in and out. Her heartbeat must have been racing, so it was a good thing we were resting.

"Are you afraid of heights?"

"Not really, but I have never really been one to jump into darkness without knowing what's next."

"I suppose it would scare the living daylights out of most people."

I reached into my jacket, and found one of several pockets inside. My left breast pocket housed a handkerchief, which I am sure Samus could use right now.

"Here," I said as I pulled it out. I held the handkerchief in front of her, though Samus seemed a bit frightened of it at first. "Don't worry, it's just a handkerchief."

"Thanks," She said, slowly taking the cloth from my hands. She then began to dry her face off with it, then down her neck, and back up to her forehead. She handed it back to me when she was done, and I simply put it back into my breast pocket.

Just then, a sharp pain came to my right chest. It wasn't very strong, but it felt out of place. I rubbed my chest for a moment, which seemed to confuse Samus.

"What's wrong?"

"Nothing, just a small bruise left from your hand."

"What!"

"When we came down, I felt you place your hand onto my chest while you closed your eyes and screamed. You must have taken quite the grip, as it just started to hurt."

"I'm sorry…"

"Don't worry about it; I can take quite the beating. Besides, we're almost there. Now lets just rest here for a while, you need to catch your breath."

"No, let's go."

Samus, though shaken up, seemed determined to keep going. She was lifting her helmet to her head, but I started to speak again.

"No Samus. We rest here for now."

"But-"

"No buts, Samus. You need to catch your breath, and we still have plenty of time until we have to finish this mission."

"So what, we just stand here and wait for the Space Pirates elite guard to come here and kill us."

"Actually, the chance that they heard us is slim. We are still about three miles away from the base."

"And what's this about almost being there?"

"I was trying to put you at ease."

I began to feel a bit hungry after the eight miles I have traveled so far. I had yet to eat, so I decided to pull out one of the rations I had in my jacket. It was relatively small, as it was an air tight package, as well as an evaporated food, meant for light travel. This dry and compact food allowed soldiers on the front lines to carry several days worth of food in just a single cargo pocket.

"What is that?"

"This? It's a ration from the war. Want one?"

"Not sure if I do. Are they any good?"

"Well, taste wise, not really. But they aren't eaten for taste, they are eaten for nutrients. Here, take this one."

I handed Samus the ration that was in my hand at the moment, then reached into my jacket once more and pulled out another one for myself. I could see Samus reading the instruction on the packaging, all the while I just tore it open and took a small bag out. Once out, I grabbed a handful of snow and put it into the bag. Then I tossed another of the small bags into the one with snow and then placed the bag onto my foot.

"Ok, these instructions are weird."

"Open it first." She did as I said, then looked at me again. "See that empty bag, just put some snow in it, then put the other bag in and wait about five minuets."

"That's it?"

"Yup. The stuff in the bag then heats up, and increases in size as it absorbs steam."

Samus did as I said, then started talking to me again. "So you had to eat this while you were here the last time?"

"I had about two bags, but I got inside the base later, so I just dumped the rest elsewhere, and then blew up the base. Then I got picked up by a rescue team, and I had cooked food back on the ship."

"Sounds exciting."

"Not really. I stayed in the shadows most of time, so I didn't kill too many people while here."

"That's mean."

"I was a cold hearted guy back then," I said, laughing a bit. Though I was being serious, I preferred to not think too badly of myself; otherwise I won't do a good job.

I looked at my ration, finding it to have fully grown. Immediately, I looked at Samus', finding it to be finished as well.

"Samus, the foods done."

Samus picked the food up into her hand, and then peeled off the top zip of the bag, just as the instructions had said on the bag. I did the same, then reached into my jacket and pulled out two forks.

"Here, us this."

"A fork? Why do you have one of these in your jacket?"

"Well, the military didn't give these out. They expected their soldiers to suck it out like it was a big straw, but that doesn't help when you want to eat fast and the food is hot. Fortunately, we aren't under fire, so we have time to enjoy this."

"Actually Michael, you don't."

The small buzz in my ear was Cassandra, giving me another helpful tip that I didn't want to hear.

"What do you mean, Cassandra?"

"A two man patrol is on their way to your location. They aren't moving very fast, but they are only a mile ahead of you."

"Do they know we're here?"

"From what I'm hearing on their communicators, I don't think they know you are there yet. But they will find you soon if you don't move."

"Alright Cassandra, try and block their radio signal from the base. After that, I will take care of them, and then destroy their communicators."

"O.k., be careful."

"Their coming, aren't they?"

"Yeah, but it's just two of them," said Michael, who talked easily, as though it was nothing important. "They shouldn't be too hard a challenge, so just stay here and eat."

"But-"

"No buts, Samus."

Michael then stood up, and then quickly ran forward into the darkness. His footsteps echoed in the cave for a moment, but it vanished from my ears. I was alone in this cave, and there was little I could do about it. Sure, I could go in the same direction that Michael had gone, but my radar was useless in this cave without a direct link from Michael's ship, and other then that, I knew nothing of this cave.

With few other options, I decided to wait here and eat my food. Carefully, I took my fork and jammed it into the steaming food. I then raised what looked to be a junky goop and put it into my mouth. Though lacking in flavor, it was not bad.

I took another forkful into my mouth, and then noticed Michael food lying in the snow. Feeling sorry that Michael might miss his meal, I picked it up the bag and placed it on my thigh. I hoped that keeping the bag close to me would at least keep it warm until he came back, or until I found a way to get to him, which ever came first.

Minuets passed, and my bag of food was almost done. And though the bag was somewhat small, it would seem all the nutrients inside were more then enough to give me a good feast. I looked at the package once more, and noticed that it said that the bag was biodegradable within one year, which was a relieve to me. I tossed the bag to a far corner of the dark room, along with the used fork. I then held Michael's bag in my left hand and began to move to where Michael had run off to.

No more then two steps forward, I heard to gun shots. It sounded as though someone was using an antique pistol, like the ones used back on earth during the twentieth century.

"Cassandra, do you read me?"

No answer.

"Cassandra, do you read me? This is Samus Aran, do you read me?"

No answer again.

'One more try if not, I'll just have to find a way to Michael on my own.'

"Cassandra of Michael Lindel's ship, do you read me? This is-"

"I read you loud and clear. It took a moment, but I managed to lock onto your signal."

"How is Michael, is he alright?"

"Yes he's fine. He just took care of the two patrolmen that were coming your way."

"I see. Can you give me a map that will lead to him?"

"Sure, just let me uplink it to your visor."

"Thanks Cassandra."

'And thank you, technology.'

I put on my helmet, and then locked it into place with the automatic latches on the side. The visor became active once more, and then a new message and a map revealing Michael location appeared. The message was from Cassandra, saying "here you go". The map had several blue lines in it, showing paths leading to him. A red line was also among the blue lines, showing the fastest route at the moment.

I ran forward, headed towards Michael. I would find him soon, and I am sure that Cassandra would tell him to wait there for me.