Chapter 38: Judgment Day
AN: Hey everybody. This chapter is my most graphic chapter to date, so let this be a warning. It is incredibly dark and possibly graphic. If that doesn't scare you off, then I hope you enjoy it.
***I don't own anything in this story, so please don't sue me.***
Virginia started walking and continued without stopping. She hated herself for what she did to the man named Shinon. She felt ashamed of herself and sick to her stomach; like there was a pit in her stomach. She finally made it to a river and she turned around to see the direction in which she came. She brought out her pokémon and sat down. She placed her arms against her knees and her forehead rested against her arms. She began to sob quietly and her friends came up to comfort her.
"I'm sorry…all of you." She didn't bother to raise her head. "I forced you to fight for me…I should never have done that. I'm so sorry." She finally looked up and saw her pokémon comforting her. K-9 licked her face while the eevee sisters all laid down by her feet. "I don't deserve to call you my friends." K-9 bumped his head against hers. She looked into his eyes and saw his loyalty and love for her. He didn't attack him because she told him to; he attacked to protect the person he loved the most. She hugged him and he licked her face.
"K-9…thank you." He quietly whispered before rubbing her eyes and smiling. She then glanced at the other three. Zap hopped into her chest and knocked her back. Virginia laughed while she began licking her face followed by an assault of kisses from Aqua and Torch.
"Ah! You guys!" She laughed harder and finally she rolled over onto her stomach. She stood up and rubbed her eyes once more before noticing a strange man standing nearby. There wasn't much about him. He was tall, slender, and most of his body was covered in either clothes or cloth. His eyes and ears were the only noticeable features on his face. His hair was dark brown and aside from that, he seemed to be shrouded in mystery.
"It's been awhile since I've seen a pokémon up close." He stated.
"Who…who are you? What is your name?" Virginia asked while her friends stood in front of her; prepared to strike at a moment's notice.
"Ten gold." He replied.
"Excuse me?"
"Ten gold. For each question."
"Ten gold?!" Virginia exclaimed. "Ten gold for each question? That's absurd."
"Take it or leave it." He stated.
"No. It's not worth it." Virginia scoffed.
"Fine." He dismissed her claims. "Actually…wait. How much would you charge for directions?"
"Depends. What do you need?"
"Directions to the nearest tavern." She stated.
"Twenty gold." He replied.
"Are you serious?" Her eyes grew big. "No way. Forget it." She shook her head and turned towards the river. She waited a few moments and turned around and he was gone. She sighed and watched the river flow.
"You're…Virginia, right?" She turned around and saw an older man who had light skin and green hair to go with his green armor and a beautiful brown horse following him.
"Yes…um…who are you?"
"My name is Oscar. I…ah…heard about what happened. And since I'm going to catch some fish, I thought I'd ask if you would like to join me?" He questioned and she nodded. He offered a hand to help her up and she came to her feet. "Do you know how to fish?"
"Yes." He handed her a fishing pole and he clicked his tongue. His horse followed him and the two of them went further upstream of their location.
"I actually wanted to talk to you. Titania informed me of what happened to Shinon."
"I'm so sorry. Please don't kill me." She didn't look at Oscar while she spoke.
"I know Shinon can be trouble, but…" He sighed. "You won't be in trouble from me, but our commander is probably going to want to speak with you."
"I will accept any punishment he gives me. What I did was a terrible mistake and I expect a serious punishment."
"I don't know what Ike has planned, but you seem to understand what you did was wrong. I'll try talking to him when I see him, but I'll leave judgment to him." Virginia nodded. "Well, with that out of the way, let's catch some fish." He stopped and looked around and took a deep breath before exhaling with a smile. She looked around and saw they were at a semi-large lake. K-9 and Zap were horsing around behind her, while Aqua ran forward and leapt into the lake to go for a swim. Torch remained by her side and played the role of bodyguard for the princess.
"Always a watchful eye, right Torch?" Virginia smiled as the fire pokémon hopped on her back two legs with her paws on her thigh. Virginia knelt down and Torch began licking her face.
"Silly girl." She laughed and she followed Oscar to a small hill near the lake. Oscar pulled out equipment from the pockets of his horse. He set up lines on both poles and pulled out an assortment of bait.
"Between the two of us, we need to catch…oh, I don't know…eight? Ten fish?" Oscar pondered. Virginia grabbed a piece of bread and tied it to her line. She casted in into the lake and took a set. Torch began to sleep next to her while she began fishing.
"I also heard your mother is doing well." Oscar pointed out and he casted his own line into the lake.
"…yes. We had a short conversation. I hope she recovers quickly." She casted her line, and waited. "Is that selfish?"
"Not at all." Oscar smiled. "You wish to spend time with your mother. I think it's rather sweet." He felt a bite and immediately pulled in his line. He caught a pretty decent sized fish. Virginia felt a tug on her line and she reeled in a fish the same size as Oscar. Both of them cast their lines once again and waited for the fish to bite.
"Oscar, could you point me towards the nearest tavern?"
"Why do you want to go there?" He questioned the princess.
"I…there's someone I need to meet."
"…at a tavern?"
"Yes." She felt a nibble, but not enough to bite.
"I…I guess if you're looking for the nearest tavern, it's northwest of the village." Virginia stared at him with a blank expression; she wasn't familiar with what direction northwest was at the moment. "Er…ah…it's that way." He pointed in a direction across the lake. "You'll see a well on the other side of the lake. One you get to the well, look for a building with a gold bell above the door and there's your tavern." He explained to the princess. She felt another bite and began reeling in another decent sized fish. Oscar felt another bite and he did the same. After casting their lines a third time, they were waiting yet again for a bite.
"May I ask who you are meeting?" Oscar asked.
"…I don't know."
"You don't know? You don't know if you can tell me? Or you don't know who you're meeting?"
"I don't know who I'm meeting." Virginia replied as she felt a bite. This wasn't like the previous fish that took the line, this was a big fish. "Woah!" She stood up and struggled to reel it in. "Nngh…this…this is huge!" She slowly reeled it in and once it got close, Virginia realized it wasn't a fish. She saw Aqua fighting the line as Virginia caught her pokémon.
"Nice catch." Oscar joked with her.
"Aqua!" Virginia called out and she dropped the line and ran to her friend. She swam out to her friend. Aqua whined as she tried to break free from the line, but she was caught. Virginia grabbed the aquatic pokémon and brought her back to shore.
"Aqua, you're not supposed to go for the bait." Virginia complained and checked her for injuries. Aqua continued whining, but Virginia smiled at the young pokémon. "It's alright if you want to swim, but no bait." She repeated and walked back to her line. Aqua followed her back and Torch barked angrily at her younger sister. Aqua lowered her head in shame.
"Torch, she feels bad, alright? Let's just drop it." Virginia insisted and Torch glared at her sister once more before going back to sleep. Virginia kissed Aqua's forehead and smiled.
"Give me a smile, please?" Virginia requested and Aqua complied with her order. "That's my girl." She smiled and picked up her pole. "Aqua, we love you. Torch loves you too. We don't want to see you get hurt, alright?" Aqua nodded and Virginia smiled once more. "Do you promise to stay away from our lines?" Aqua nodded again. "Then you can go swim." Aqua happily jumped up and looked at Torch like she was asking permission. Torch licked her sister's cheek and yipped softly. Aqua licked her back and jumped back into the water.
"She's a curious one." Oscar noted as he pulled in another fish. "You're lucky to have each other."
"I'm lucky to have them all." Virginia smiled. "Rescuing all of them was difficult. They all wanted to protect their younger sister, eevee. She refused to leave without the rest of them and so…with the help of my…" she gulped hard. "…ex. We managed to save them all. I brought them to the Aether Foundation where they've been together and happy." Virginia felt another bite and she reeled in another fish. Aqua returned with two fish in her mouth.
"Aqua! Good job!" Virginia praised the aquatic pokémon. Aqua chirped and returned to the water to acquire more fish for Virginia.
"You know, if you want to head to the tavern, I think I can manage to gather more fish…with Aqua's help." Oscar insisted.
"Are you sure? I could help. I don't mind-" Aqua brought up two more fish and set them down. She looked happy to have caught more fish for her ally and friend. "Aqua, can you do something for me? Pretty please?" Aqua tilted her head to the side to show curiosity. "I need to go somewhere right now. Can you catch more fish for Oscar? I need you to stay here. I'll be right back." Aqua whimpered, but Virginia patted her head. "I'll be right back. And Torch will be here too." This time, Torch sat up and whined. She didn't want Virginia to leave. "I'll be right back." She turned to Oscar. "Two hours. If I'm not back in two hours, send someone to come get me."
"I'll have them inform you that your mother wants a word with you." Oscar nodded and pulled out another fish from the lake. Virginia nodded and looked back at Torch.
"Tell K-9 and Zap I'll be right back. Keep everyone together. I'm counting on you, Torch." Torch ran towards the others and Virginia ran in the direction of the tavern. She made it to the other side and squinted to try and see the well; there was, indeed, a well in the distance. She ran as quickly as she could towards that small well. It took thirty minutes to get there, but she made it. She looked around and saw a building with something shining in the distance. She took a few deep breaths and ran towards that shining light. She made it to the tavern and walked inside. There were many people in that bar; most intimidated her, but she remembered what David had told her.
'Tell the barkeep you've need of a fireman.'
Virginia approached the barkeep who was a fat slouch with a giant beer belly. His shirt had stains on it and he had a scowl that would've scared her right out of the tavern.
"What'll ya have?" He grumbled at her. Virginia gulped, but stayed collected.
"I've need of a fireman." She informed the barkeep. His expression changed as the color drained from his face.
"Yeah…um…h-head into the back. I know a guy. He'll be here in a bit." Virginia complied with the man's orders. No one bothered her while she waited and after forty five minutes, the same man she met earlier took a seat in front of her.
"You!" She exclaimed. "You're…you're that guy! From before!"
"Change your mind about my name? It's still ten gold." Instead of shooing him away, she recalled the second phrase of what David told her.
'The man who approaches you, tell him your name and tell him an old friend wishes to call in a favor. If he does not ask for the favor, ignore that individual.'
"My name…" She bit her bottom lip and closed her eyes; for some reason, she was incredibly nervous…and yet, she had no other choice. "My name is Virginia Hyrule. There's…ah…there's an old friend who wishes to call in a favor." The man folded his arms.
"Alright. What is the favor?"
"You…you believe me?" Virginia squeaked.
"I know who I owe favors to. Now what's the favor?" Virginia had to make this one count.
"I…hm…" She thought long and hard about her request. "Ok, I got it. Can you locate someone for me?"
"That's it?" He questioned her.
"I need to know where someone is and the quickest way to get there."
"Alright. Who is it?"
"Raine Sage. I need to know her exact location."
"Tomorrow. Eight in the morning. Come back here and I'll have everything you need." He stood up and left her alone at the bar. Virginia stood up and started to head out, but was stopped by five mean looking men. Upon seeing the five men, she knew who they were and she had hoped they wouldn't recognize or remember her.
"It's been a while." One man said and Virginia gulped hard. They remembered her. "What's a pretty looking thing like you doing here?" One of them asked with a nasty looking smirk on his face.
"I…I was just leaving." She tried to quickly make her way around them, but one man stepped in front of her.
"Are you sure you want to leave? Why don't you stay and-"
"Back the fuck up, assholes!" A buff looking guy walked in. "I'm looking for-hey! You must be Virginia, right? Come on, your mom wants to talk." Virginia remembered what Oscar told her and she grabbed his hand.
"Actually, she's-"
"What?" He bumped into the man who spoke up. "I'm taking her out of here. What are you going to do about it? I'll kick all your asses right now. You're lucky I'm in a good mood right now." With that, he left with Virginia and the two of them began walking back to the village.
"You know, you're pretty crazy. That tavern is a nasty place. Why'd you go alone?" He asked as they walked back.
"I didn't know…that was scary…" Virginia rubbed her arms and stayed close to the man.
"By the way, I'm Boyd. My brother sent me to bring you back home."
"They know me." Virginia began shaking. "They…they know me. I have to leave. I have to leave now!""
"Now hold on, what are you talking about? Those guys…they're not coming for you. They'd be insane to try and come after you. Not only would they need to fight all of us, your mom is there too. And if what I've heard about her is true, she'll kill them before they know what's what."
"I've…um." Virginia gulped hard. "I've never seen mother kill anyone."
"When your mom's angry, she's a mean one, that Samus…" Boyd shook his head and they walked in silence back to the village.
"Hey Oscar!" Boyd called out and he approached Oscar and his older brother and a red haired woman. Virginia quietly walked up to them.
"You found her!" The woman smiled. "Good work, Boyd."
"Virginia was recognized by some guys over there and she's a little spooked." Boyd told the others.
"We'll keep an eye on her. Anyone suspicious comes in, we'll escort them out." The woman replied.
"You got it, Titania." Boyd stated as he and his brother saluted the woman.
"Where are my friends?" Virginia questioned the green haired man.
"They're with Mist. She was reading them a book."
"Is there a bed I might be able to use for a bit? I'm…" Virginia yawned and stretched her arms out.
"There's a bed in a small hut over here." Oscar pointed out. "If you'll follow me." He began walking and then stopped. "Do you have objections to sleeping on the ground?"
"Oscar, find a bed inside. We can't take any chances." Titania ordered. He nodded and led Virginia towards the hut. He led her to a bed and she quietly laid down.
"My pokémon…where are my pokémon?"
"Do you really want them here? They're safe with Mist. Just…get some rest and then, I promise…I'll bring them to you." Oscar promised her. He seemed trusting enough, so she nodded her head and closed her eyes. In what seemed like a couple hours, Virginia woke up to a full moon in the sky.
'How long was I out?' Virginia thought to herself as she stepped outside. Suddenly, she felt someone pulled her to the side and place a hand over her mouth. She screamed as loud as she could, but due to the hand over her mouth, it was muffled.
"Sh, sh, sh…stay quiet. It's much easier that way." He began walking away from her home. "You scream, you die." He whispered. Virginia, scared out of her mind, nodded in understanding. He silently walked around Boyd who was to be on guard, but he was fast asleep. "Make a noise and I'll gut you like a pig." Virginia was too scared to make a noise, so she nodded her head once again. He led her towards the lake where the other four men that she saw at the tavern were waiting.
"It's about time. I thought you were going to take her for yourself." One man said as the first guy tossed Virginia to the ground.
"Please…I-I don't want any trouble…"
"No trouble?" The man who kidnapped her laughed. "You know that bitch cop arrested us? Do you know how long we've been looking for you?" He questioned her. "You owe us."
"Please…no…" She began crying and she tried backing into the lake, but he grabbed her by the hair, pulled her away from the lake, and forced himself onto her. She tried screaming, but he covered her mouth with his hand once more.
"I like a little fight, bitch. Keep resisting…that's what daddy likes." She felt something press against her crotch and she closed her eyes and cried harder.
"No…please…stop…" She began sobbing; helpless against the individual on top of her. He tore her shorts and panties off her body before pulling his own pants down; exposing his groin.
"I'm going to enjoy-"
BANG!
The sound of a gunshot froze everyone as the man who was on top of Virginia now collapsed on top of her.
"Someone! Please! Help me!" She screamed and she managed to roll him off of her and look in the direction where she heard the gunshot. Her mother was standing across the way with a gun in hand. Though her face still looked bruised, her expression was anger.
"I'm going to kill you…each…and every…last…one of you." Samus said in a quiet, fierce tone. "Virginia Lynn Hyrule. Get over here, now!" Samus instructed and Virginia got up. Before she could make it to her mother, a man stuck his arm out and grabbed one of her breasts.
"You're soft." He smiled as she pushed him away and whimpered.
"You're next." Samus informed the man who felt up her daughter. "No one…and I fucking mean no one…fucks with my family."
"There's four of us and only one of you. And, if I'm being honest…you look like shit."
"You have no idea who I am." Samus sternly informed them. "I am…" Samus unloaded the magazine and reloaded a new one before cocking the gun. "…Samus Aran." Two of the men took a step back.
"Alright, how about this…" One of the other men tried to bargain. "We just…you know, forget this whole thing happened. You know…accidents happen."
"Oh sure. Accidents happen…" Samus put her gun away and pulled out a hunting knife. "Like you accidently ran into my fucking knife fifteen times."
"We can still take you." One man replied with a smug attitude and took a step forward.
"Think so?"
"There's four of us."
"Better count again." She tossed the knife at the man who grabbed her daughter. The blade was driven right into his skull and he fell to the ground. "I count three." The three remaining men charged her and this would be the first time, Virginia had ever seen her mother fight outside of the stadium. It felt…different than the stadium. Samus punched the first guy in the face and elbowed the second guy in the face followed by a roundhouse to the last guy. The first guy got up and tried to punch Samus. She put her arms in an X formation and blocked his attack before quickly grabbing the sides of his head and bringing it into contact with her knee. He groaned in pain and before he fell over, she grabbed the collar of his shirt and she frog punched him in the eye. He screamed in pain and she turned her attention to the second man. He swung at her, but she dodged his attack, grabbed his arm and broke the bone. He yelled in pain before she flipped him on his back before stomping on his neck; crushing his larynx. Virginia could only watch in horror and fear as her mother was not only defending her daughter, but brutally beating these men.
"Mother-" Virginia quietly called out, but Samus was more focused on the other two men. The third guy charged her, but Samus jumped over him and pulled him close to her as she was now standing behind him and in one quick motion, she pushed him down and pulled the knife that was embedded in the first guy's skull. The man turned around and Samus stabbed him once in the chest before pulling the blade out and stabbing him four more times and finishing it by slitting his throat and letting his lifeless body collapse underneath her. Finally she dropped the knife and pulled out the gun before grabbing the first guy's hair. His eye was now red as Samus broke multiple blood vessels in his eye. She tossed him into the lake and held him underwater; He struggled to get air, but Samus refused to let him up. He tried to fight against the queen, but his strength was nothing compared to hers. After a few seconds, he stopped struggling against her. As she stood up, he remained motionless in the lake. She fired twice at his head and his blood began contaminating the lake. She walked to a clean part of the lake to wash her hands and used one of the men's shirt to dry it. She rushed back to her daughter and hugged her while Virginia sobbed loudly and tightly hugged her mother.
"Don't let go…I'm so scared…mother-"
"I'm right here, sweetheart. Mom's got you." Samus hugged her child and the two were locked in a hug.
"Mother…" Virginia broke the hug and sniffled.
"It's alright. I'm here for you, kid." Samus smiled. "You know, if you keep crying, then I'm going to cry." Samus wiped away a tear from Virginia's face. "Let's see that pretty smile. Please?" Samus requested. Virginia gave her the best smile she could and Samus smiled back with a few tears running down her own face. "That's my girl. I love you, Virginia. I'll never let anyone hurt you." She looked up and saw the mysterious man standing in the distance. "If you've come for my daughter, you'll join them soon enough."
"I have information for her. At her request." He replied. Samus turned to her daughter.
"What do you want to do? If you want me to hear him out, we can bring you back to the village and I'll tell you everything he told me."
"No, just…stay with me." She quietly said as she rubbed her eyes. Virginia saw a few others sprinting towards them while they hugged one another. From what Virginia saw, it was Titania, Boyd, Oscar, and Soren.
"What's going-" Titania questioned as she saw the carnage around. "What happened?" Samus broke the hug, but Virginia was still clinging onto her mother. Samus was still holding her daughter's hand as she looked up at the red haired woman.
"I took care of it."
"There are five dead bodies, Samus."
"They were going to rape my daughter. I'd say they got off easy."
"You killed them?" Titania questioned the queen.
"I released them from life." Samus calmly explained as she heard the beginnings of a thunderstorm in the distance. "Oscar, you feel like going hunting?" Samus asked.
"Hunting? I…suppose I could."
"Good. Here's the plan. Oscar, go get a large animal. Moose, elk…I don't care what it is. It will help us explain why there's blood in the lake." She pointed to the red color inside the crystal blue water. "Titania, I need you to go back to the village and find any kind of full length skirt for my daughter. Preferably in black, but any color will do. We will compensate anyone who provides. Boyd, gather all of Virginia's pokémon and escort them to the cottage I'm staying in. There's a second bed that Virginia will occupy and she'll be sleeping with me. And you…" she pointed to the strange man Virginia spoke to earlier. "Come to the cottage at noon. No earlier than noon. And finally, this goes for all of you…under no circumstance are any of you to wake us up before noon. I don't care if there's a plague, or the village is on fire. If I'm dying, no one is to open that door."
"Rhys will be upset." Soren noted.
"He can yell at me later." Samus dismissed his statement before glancing at the stranger. "Get rid of the bodies."
"Five thousand per body." He said quietly.
"I didn't ask for a price." Samus spoke in a deep tone. He nodded to show his understanding. "Alright, Virginia, let's go." Virginia wiped her nose and followed her mother. She placed her hands in front of her groin to try and hide her embarrassment and shame. Samus took off her shirt, exposing her chest and wrapped it around her daughter's waist.
"This should be good until we get you something."
"Samus-" Boyd had a stupid smirk on his face as his older brother began heading back to the village to retrieve a weapon to hunt for something.
"Say something stupid, Boyd. I fucking dare you." Samus glared at the man. Boyd gulped hard and kept his mouth shut. "Go." Samus tilted her head and Boyd quickly ran off along with Titania to perform his job as instructed by the queen and former bounty hunter. Samus quickly made it back to the cottage and she tucked her daughter into the second bed. Samus slipped on a tank top and sat on her bed with the door open; waiting for Titania to return with a skirt.
"Mother…"
"Yeah?"
"Thank you." She sniffled and rubbed her eyes once more.
"I'm your mother, sweetheart. I'm not going to let some two-bit assholes try anything with my precious little angel."
"Were you scared?"
"No." She replied before pausing. "I never did tell you that story, did I?" Virginia shook her head and Samus sighed. "Alright, um…" She placed a hand on her forehead. "What were we going to talk about?"
"Mother wanted to kill someone."
"Ah. Right." Samus snapped her fingers and pointed at Virginia. "So, this was immediately after I proposed to her…" Samus insisted and Virginia smiled. Boyd returned along with Virginia's five closest friends. They rushed her and snuggled up next to her and laid on top of her. Virginia laughed and hugged her friends before K-9 rested his head on her knee and she rubbed it gently.
"Thanks Boyd." Samus stated and he nodded his head before quietly walking away. "So, anyway…at the church in Hyrule…I proposed to your mom. It wasn't glamorous or fancy…but I did it. The smile on her face…" Samus' cheeks turned a light red as she recalled that night. "That was one of the greatest nights of my life." Virginia smiled to see how happy her mother looked. She sniffled again and continued listening to her mother. "She went to the bar in town and told everyone. All our friends were there. Fox, Krystal, Elincia and Geoffrey, Lucia and Bastian, Sheena and Lucina, Link and Malon-"
"Ok, I get it. There were a lot of people there." Virginia seemed annoyed that this is what her mother got hooked on this.
"Right. Sorry." Samus' face blushed a light pink before she cleared her throat and continued.
"So there were these guys…and this one dumbass who felt that he was owed something from her after the two met at a shady bar called 'The Cauldron' way out in deep space. This guy was going to kill your mom and I…" Samus sighed. "I was scared. He had her at gunpoint and I was scared that I might shoot her."
"What happened?" Virginia asked while shaking. K-9 moved his head closer to the princess. Virginia hugged her friend's body.
"He shot me."
"He what?!" Virginia exclaimed with surprise. Samus pointed out a mark on her shoulder. There was a small circle outline on Samus' shoulder.
"The guy shot me…and your mom was pissed. Her eyes were red with anger. I've never seen her that mad."
"Mother?! She…no…" Virginia shook her head.
"Yeah, it was a clean shot…I'm lucky. But your mom…I'm talking she went crazy. Full on cursing and everything."
"But mother never curses."
"If she gets angry, she does." Samus remarked and noticed Titania returning with a set of gorgeous looking skirts.
"I managed to acquire a couple. Only one black though." She handed them to Virginia and she gulped.
"Um…c-can you both…" She motioned with a finger for them to turn around. Titania turned around while Samus lowered her head and closed her eyes. Virginia got out of bed and changed into the skirt. To her surprise, the black skirt was a bit tight, but not enough to constrict her breathing.
"It'll work." She smiled and twirled around to show it off.
"Looks a little tight." Samus noted. "It should be fine until you get to the nearest city. Here." Samus handed her daughter a couple hundred dollars.
"Mother, I can't-"
"I'm not taking it back, and you're not giving it away." Samus informed her daughter. "Unless you want to wear a skirt that's a bit tight on you." Virginia didn't want to admit it, but she did want something more comfortable than what she was wearing. "Who donated the skirt?"
"Meg. Er, Brom's daughter. She had a few articles of clothing that she was planning on donating…and before you try giving her anything, she's going to refuse. She doesn't like receiving rewards for donations." Titania informed her. Samus smiled before heavily sighing.
"…fine. I'll figure something else out." Samus thought for a second. "Can I make a sizable donation to the Greil Mercenaries?"
"We would appreciate that, but-"
"How's fifty k sound?" Samus inquired. "My checkbook's over there, but I'm too lazy to get up and go get it." Samus lazily pointed towards her equipment.
"That…that amount of money is ludicrous." Titania shook her head with disagreement. It was a sizable donation, but it was too much.
"I'm good for it. Name your price and I'll comp." Realizing she wouldn't be able to talk Samus out of it, Titania nodded her head.
"Fifty would be fine, thank you. Is there anything else you require?"
"I just need a couple more days here. Is that alright with Rhys?"
"I'll send him over at noon." Titania bowed her head and shut the door.
"Alright, kid. Let's get some sleep."
"Mother?"
"Virginia, we need to get some sleep."
"Please…can you tell me another story? Another story of you and mother? I love hearing about you two." She begged.
"Virginia, as much as I want to keep talking. We both need to get some sleep. Don't make me use my motherly voice." She insisted to her daughter and she sighed.
"You're right…" She inhaled and exhaled. "You're right. Maybe in the morning? I'd love to hear more about you and mom."
"In the morning." Samus nodded and went to sleep. Virginia smiled and she laid down. She placed both hands under her pillow and the three eevee sisters snuggled up next to her while K-9 slept right next to the bed. Tonight was one of the scariest nights in Virginia's life. But she also saw a side of her mother she didn't know existed. She wasn't sure how to feel, but she was happy that her mother would do anything to keep her safe. Meanwhile, while Samus slept, a memory of her past appeared in front of her. She was showing her pregnancy while Zelda sat with her in the dining room.
"Samus, why are you crying?" Zelda questioned her wife with concern. Samus sniffled and rubbed her stomach.
"What if I'm a terrible mother? What if I can't do this? Zelda…"
"Alright first…it's a little late to be having second thoughts." Zelda joked, but Samus wasn't laughing.
"Zelda, I'm serious. Help me, please." She bit her bottom lip and sniffled.
"Samus, you're going to be a beautiful mother. We're going to have a beautiful daughter, I'm going to win my preliminaries and then we'll wait and see where I end up. I've got a good feeling about this year. Remember our promise? Five years…remember the new bet? Five years and if I don't win, then we wait next year. We're getting married, Samus. I'm calling right here, right now. I'm going to win this year, have my night with Snake, get pregnant, and then we'll get married. Hylia forbid anything crazy happens." Zelda chuckled.
"I'm supposed to be the strong one." Samus stated with worry.
"Hey, come on…we're a team. You're strong. You're my rock, dear. And I'll always think you're beautiful."
"Really? You still think I'm beautiful?" Samus gulped hard. Zelda pressed her lips to Samus' before giving her belly a kiss.
"I love you…and our unborn child. She'll be perfect…just like her mother." Samus smiled and held a hand up.
"Please help me up." She requested. With an over-the-top gesture, Zelda bowed before her spouse.
"As you wish…Queen Samus." She winked at the woman and carefully helped her to her feet. Samus smiled while watching the memory play out in front of her.
"I miss you, my queen. Each and every day." Samus stated while it faded to black.
"The great Samus Aran…what an honor." The bounty hunter turned to face a gorgeous woman with platinum blonde hair and immense beauty.
"Um…hi." Samus said with concern. "Who are you?"
"Who I am does not matter. I have come to speak of your future, Samus Aran."
"What are you talking about?"
"You will receive a call from an ally…speaking of a portal of sorts. Then, when the time comes, you will fail the first time around."
"Excuse me?" Samus scoffed. "A call from an ally? Portal? And failing? What the fuck are you talking about? I do not fail."
"There is a first for everything." The stranger smiled at the now angered bounty hunter.
"Who the fuck do you think you are? You stand before a fuck mothering badass and one of two queens of Hyrule."
"I know your title, Samus Aran. Daughter of Rodney and Virginia Aran."
"Do not speak their names." Samus scowled. "And I demand clarification about that whole, I will fail the first time around, thing."
"Happiness will come after. Happiness unlike any you have ever known."
"So you're telling me that I'm going to fail…but I'm going to be happy, after I fail?" Samus scratched her head. "Look, can you answer one thing for me?"
"Certainly."
"Am I going to die?"
"I have answered your question."
"No you didn't. You-" Samus paused as she realized the stranger was referring to her asking if she could ask a question. "Seriously, you're an asshole."
"Samus Aran…I speak the truth. Your time will come to an end…and true happiness will arrive soon after." The woman then disappeared and left Samus alone. She sat upright; wide awake, and sweating. She looked over at Virginia's pokémon and her daughter who were all fast asleep. Samus sat and quietly tried to process what she was just told.
'Tomorrow is my last day alive…fuck, man…fuck.'