Samus watched as the creature beneath her foot squirmed, desperate to escape but too injured to lift her weight. It was pitiful, really. She charged up her Power Beam, opting to end its life before it could retaliate once more. "I gave you fair warning," she said to the creature, who seemed to ignore her completely. "But you chose to end it like this." Samus let her beam charge up fully, and prepared to fire.
"Don't!" a voice cried. Samus turned around, but only saw the sword lying on the ground. "We surrender."
The creature wheezed. "Ahrah, what are you doing? We can't just-"
"There is no shame in admitting defeat, Dust," it interrupted. "It is best to surrender now and live than to hold on to stubborn pride and die."
Samus blinked. That sounded like something Old Bird would have said… She looked down at the creature. Its satgat had fallen off, revealing long, silver hair and light blue eyes filled with the determination to live.
Samus lowered her weapon, though she was still prepared to retaliate to any aggressive move. "I accept your, surrender, but only under one condition," she said.
"And what would that condition be?" the creature asked weakly, clearly trying to hide a snarl.
"You must have seen a large meteor crash earlier," she said. "I want you to take me to it. If you can't do that, take me to someone who can. Sound fair?"
The creature opened its mouth to protest, but the sword spoke before it could make a sound. "It sounds like a reasonable request. We accept."
"I suppose we do…" the creature said reluctantly. "But if I'm going to keep my side of the deal, I'm going to need you to get off my hand…"
Samus lifted her foot off the creature's hand, which it immediately cradled under its arm, obviously in an attempt to keep its mind off the pain. She almost felt bad about it. Almost. Samus extended her hand, but the creature ignored the gesture, choosing to struggle back onto its feet on its own. "Do I detect some bitterness?" Samus asked, earning her an angry glare from the creature.
"You did attack us," it spat as it put its satgat back on. "Without reason, might I add."
"Apparently, you don't understand the concept of a warning shot, do you?"
"Can we not get into another fight?" the sword chimed in. "The both of you are acting like children."
"Hey! That thing started it!" the creature protested.
"Case and point. Anyway, I'm certain 'that thing' has a name," Ahrah said. "Would I be correct in assuming such?"
"You would," Samus replied. "My name is Samus Aran. And you would be…?"
"I am the Blade of Ahrah, though I am known simply as Ahrah. The one you are facing is my master, Dust."
"A pleasure to meet you, Ahrah," Samus said, earning her yet another glare from Dust.
Dust frowned. "Why do you want to find that meteor? Did you have anything to do with it?" He made no attempt to hide his suspicion.
"Quick to distrust, aren't you?" Samus observed. "I suppose in your position I wouldn't be so willing to guide the one who nearly vaporized me…"
"Samus, please do explain why you are searching for the meteor," Ahrah requested. "Is there something there you are searching for?"
"If you must know, there is a toxic substance that arrived on said meteor," Samus sighed. "I've been asked to eliminate it before any permanent damage is done."
"By whom?" Dust asked.
"The Galactic Federation," Samus replied. Seeing Dust's expression of confusion, Samus quickly explained, "The Galactic Federation is the central government for most of the galaxy. Attacking an employee of the GF with a lethal weapon is normally grounds for lethal force, but obviously you're in no position to resist further."
Dust scowled, a light growl escaping his lips. "Had I not agreed to help you, I would have cut your tongue out by now…"
"While I'd love to see you try, I'd hate to end up killing my guide before he could even step one foot in the direction I need to go." Dust huffed angrily, bringing a strange satisfaction to Samus.
"Again, can you two stop bickering?" Ahrah said irritably.
Dust huffed again, but didn't say anything. After a moment or two of silence, Samus spoke up. "Well, now that we've gotten to know each other well enough," she said. "I suggest we start moving if you value the safety of the universe, or at the very least your planet." She stepped aside, gesturing Dust to move ahead of her.
"The sooner begun, the sooner done…" he muttered as he began walking. Samus followed directly behind him, sighing as her ship disappeared behind trees and shrubbery.
This mission would not be an enjoyable one.
Took me a while to finish this; between The Led Zeppelin Experience, school preparations, Dragon Age, and general laziness, I haven't been writing all that much.
Fun Fact For Those Who Believe Useless Information To Be Fun: this was supposed to be two separate chapters, but I felt like they both a bit short, so I stuck 'em together. Lazy? You know it. Prevent such laziness by leaving a review to condemn laziness in general. It won't help the obese population, but it might help me write more.
***Update 12/25/14: Rewrote a few part of this chapter as part of an attempt to clean up some of the earlier entries of this story. Nothing major, just adjusting a few details and spelling fixes. Made Samus less of a b!tch, and (hopefully) made the chapter seem more whole.