A Metroid Among Zoanthropes
A Metroid/Bloody Roar Fan Fiction Crossover
by Derald Snyder
A/N: As far as this continuity is concerned, the events of Bloody Roar 2 occurred pretty much the same as in canon, with the exception of Samus being captured in Mitsuko's place.
Part 1- XGC
*Senate Building, Planet Zan*
Samus' starship set down in the parking lot adjacent to the government building, the hunter beaming down not long after. Forgoing her Power Suit, Samus was instead dressed in a deep blue muscle shirt that showed her belly button, with matching exercise shorts and boots. Her blonde hair was put up into a ponytail, which swished back and forth as she marched to the main entrance, her face set like granite.
After going through security, she made her way to Gado's office, gently knocking at the door. "Come in," a gruff voice answered, Samus promptly pulling the door open to reveal Alan Gado, his hair still styled like a lion's mane, though he was dressed in a clean-pressed tan business suit with a black tie. "Ah, hello, milady. I see you got my message."
"What's going on, Alan?" Samus asked, shutting the door behind her. In response, the senator pulled up the sleeve of his suit, revealing what appeared to be an elaborate lion-themed tattoo, though it seemed to shimmer with an unnatural light. "...I'm assuming that's not a normal tattoo."
"It isn't," Gado confirmed, "It's the mark of the beast. According to legend, this mark appearing on a zoanthrope's body is a sign of impending death. And this mark has showed up on zoanthropes all over the world, including most of the WOC. People believe this is a sign of the imminent apocalypse."
"Does Uriko have this mark?" Samus asked pointedly.
"That, I don't know. Alice and Yugo would probably know," Gado replied, pulling his sleeve back down. "Thing is, WOC doesn't have access to interplanetary communication, but the senate does. That's why I was the one who sent the message. I've already scheduled a press conference to try and tamp down the public's fears... but I'd like you to assist Yugo and the others in investigating this mark, why it appeared, and possibly eliminate the source."
"Say no more. I'll do it for Uriko's sake," Samus agreed. "Speaking of which, I should probably go home first and check on her before I start this job."
"Well, don't let me stop you," Gado chuckled. "Oh, but next time, could you park your starship at the nearby airport, instead of directly next to the senate? There are safety protocols that have to be followed, you know."
"Duty noted, Senator," Samus deadpanned, though there was a small smile on her face as she left.
*At the Aran-Nonomura residence...*
"Mommy, you're home!" Uriko Nonomura exclaimed in joy, hugging Samus around the waist. "Did you get the bad guy?"
"Oh yes, I got him," Samus smiled as she warmly returned the embrace. "He went directly to jail, do not pass go, do not collect 200 credits. And he'll stay there for a long time."
"Yay! I knew you'd get him!" Uriko squeed as she separated from her mother. "Just you wait, when I grow up I'm gonna hunt down the bad guys along with you!" She took a fighting pose, making a few punches and kicks.
"I'm sure you will. How's school going?" Samus asked.
"Great! I got a C+ on my math test! I never got a grade that high before!" the 12-year-old-girl replied. "I'm getting smarter, right?"
"Good girl," Samus gently patted her on the head. "Let's try and get a B next time, okay?" She looked up to see another girl, who's face had a passing resemblance to Uriko's, her purple hair done up in long twin tails. "I hope she hasn't been too much of a handful, Alice..."
"Not at all, other than wanting to spar instead of doing homework," Alice Tsukagami shook her head. "I assume Gado filled you in on what happened?"
"That's right," Samus nodded solemnly. "So does Uriko have the sign?"
"Yeah... and so do I." Alice pulled up her shirt to reveal a glowing bunny tattoo.
"Yeah, who put this stupid tattoo on us anyway?!" Uriko complained, pulling up her left sleeve to show a cat tattoo, though it seemed to have horns as well. "I tried to wash it off, but it didn't work!"
"Don't worry, I'm going to find who gave you these tattoos, and make him or her take them away," Samus vowed.
"And then you'll throw him in jail?"
"Most likely. But first we have to find them..." Samus then turned at hearing a knocking at the door, promptly heading over and looking through the peephole, before opening the door. "Hello, Shina."
"Sam! Good to see you," Shina Gado greeted with a grin. "I guess you got Father's message, huh?"
"I did. What's the situation at WOC?" Samus inquired.
"Well, Yugo's got Kenji and Jenny out in the field looking for intel," the Fighting Marvel replied. "We just got a call from Kenji, he might've found a lead... he's going to meet up with us at HQ."
"Can I come with you, Mommy? Please?" Uriko begged.
"...Yes, you can come with us to WOC headquarters," Samus agreed. "Just remember to be polite, okay?"
"Okay! I know almost everybody there, anyway!" Uriko said.
"I call shotgun!" Alice exclaimed.
"Fine, I'll ride with Uriko in the back," Samus said with a slight smile.
"Alright, let's get moving, then!" Shina nodded...
*Yugo's Office, WOC Headquarters*
"Hey Yugo, I've brought Alice and Uriko," Shina greeted as the group entered. "And Samus is here, too."
"Hey, you made it!" Yugo greeted the hunter. "Good to see you. I assume Gado's given you the gist of what's going on?"
"He did," Samus nodded. "Have you found out anything?"
"Kenji's on his way here, though I'm sure Shina told you that already," Yugo responded. "But we've done some analysis on these marks... turns out, they're not just for show." He gestured to the wolf tattoo on his right wrist.
"How's that?" Samus inquired curiously.
"Well, the proper name of the mark is the X-Genome Code, or XGC for short. A zoanthrope that possess this mark can draw upon it's power to boost the abilities of their beast form... but the boost doesn't last very long, and overuse risks the user's life."
"So it should only be saved for a life-or-death situation," Samus concluded.
"Right. And we still don't know why they suddenly appeared... but hopefully Kenji will shed some light on the subject when he gets here," Yugo said.
"I sure hope so. It's been too long since I've gotten to cut loose!" Shina smirked, punching her fist into her hand. "So don't steal all the fun, ok Sam?"
"Perish the thought, Shina," Samus gave a small smirk. "I may be the best in the business, but I'm still only one. I can't be everywhere at once, so I'm sure you'll get a piece of the action."
"Oh, guys, I think Kenji's coming!" Alice spoke up, looking down the hallway. Sure enough, a minute later, in walked a young man with wild brown hair, dressed in classic ninja attire with a red scarf.
"Hey bro, everyone!" Kenji Ogami waved in greeting. "...Miss Samus."
"Hello, Bakuryu," Samus greeted, crossing her arms. Relations between the hunter and the ninja were slightly frosty, due to Samus' memories of fighting the original Bakuryu, not to mention the fact that Kenji had been caught and brainwashed during the ZLF crisis. Despite Yugo insisting that Kenji was one of the good guys now, Samus still kept him at arm's length out of mild paranoia.
"You can call him by name, you know," Yugo sighed in annoyance. "Anyway, Kenji, what have you got for us?"
"Well, nothing on the XGC yet, but I thought you'd want to know... Hajime Busuzima escaped from prison." Immediately Samus and Alice's faces contorted in disgust, while Uriko was confused. "He used his chameleon form's camouflage ability to trick the guard into thinking his cell was empty, then beat him up and snuck out before the alarm was raised."
"Wonderful," Yugo sighed. "Was this before or after the XGC mark appeared?"
"Just before, from what I found out," Kenji replied. "Of course, it could just be a coincidence, but..."
"I don't believe in coincidences," Samus spoke up. "Whether he's responsible or not, he needs to be found regardless."
"Oh! Oh! Maybe he went back to where we found him before! That ZLF place!" Uriko exclaimed. "You said that the culprit always returns to the scene of the crime, right?"
"But we stripped the ZLF headquarters of everything useful after Shenlong and Busuzima were taken down," Yugo countered. "There's no reason for him to go back there..."
"But does he know that?" Alice pointed out. "Not to mention, what if he had some secret compartment somewhere that we missed?"
"I doubt it. The military searched that place throughly," Yugo shook his head.
"Even so, it wouldn't hurt to check it out again, just to be safe," Shina suggested. "I mean, Sam's equipment is way more advanced than anything we've got, so she might find something they missed!"
"All right, then. I'll go investigate," Samus agreed.
"I'm coming too!" Uriko cried. "I've been there before, I know where everything is!"
"Uriko..." Samus sighed.
"Please, Mommy?! I promise I'll stay close to you!" Uriko pleaded, clinging to her mother's shorts. "Please...?!"
"...Oh, all right," Samus caved. "But only if Alice comes along too." The two women exchanged a knowing glance, the unspoken message clear.
"Yaaaaaaaay!" Uriko literally jumped for joy. "I call shotgun!" She stuck her tongue out at Alice, who simply rolled her eyes and smiled.
"You can take my car," Shina allowed. "Just make sure you don't get it shot up by bad guys, okay?" she winked.
"Right," Samus chuckled in response.
*To be continued...*
