Chapter 5

Samus entered the room where she had spoken to Madeline. On the floor was the mangled body of a GF soldier. Samus ran to it and turned it over. "James…" He had been impaled by something, and the door that had been locked nearby was open. James's face was frozen in a look of pure terror.

Samus turned this over in her mind. There was only one explanation for James to be here: HE was the Deleter!

Samus spat on his face, then ran through the door. It led to an elevator that went deeper into the facility.

After killing a few drones, Samus came to a place with a large hole in the roof and blood on the floor. This, then, was where Ridley had retreated to. The blood trail led to a large open room and a sight that shook even Samus.

The entire floor of the room was coated in blood, and in one corner was what was left of Ridley. He was burnt to a crisp and desiccated to the bone. His mouth was open all the way and his eyes clenched shut as if he'd been in a state of unfathomable pain when he died.

"What could've happened?"

Just beyond where Ridley lay was Room MW. In a small room off the side, Samus saw a girl with short red hair sitting in the corner. When she tapped on the window, the redhead stood up and flattened herself against the rear wall. "No… no… stay away!" Samus sighed. Was every person in this crappy place a scaredycat?

Suddenly a rumble shook the room, and the blast doors on one side opened, revealing a dark room beyond. Samus walked into the room and stopped dead in her tracks.

"Wait…" She blinked, hardly believing what she was seeing. The shards of several hatched Metroid eggs lay on the floor. "Metroid eggs… impossible…"

Stomp. Stomp. Stomp. Stomp. Again the sound came, and with it a deafening roar of savage fury. A roar Samus had thought forever silenced.

She knew at last what terrible creature had killed Ridley.

The QUEEN METROID.

The queen lifted it's massive jaws and let loose a thick column of orange flame. Samus jumped away. Several Metroids appeared out of nowhere and attacked, one of them immediately latching onto Samus. Transforming quickly, she dropped a few bombs to shake it off, then waited until it tried again. Dodging at the last second she released her charged shot and froze all the Metroids at once. The Seeker Missile Launcher finished them off. Only the queen was left.

As terrifying as she was to behold, this queen was no more powerful than her predecessor. It would charge forward and breath fire, sweeping it's neck back and forth. But Samus could easily dodge her and maneuver around to the side and behind her while she continued to paint the wall where Samus had been with fire, giving her plenty of time to use her Super Missiles to destroy the crystals on her neck. All in all, the queen seemed to be a relatively stupid creature. Even so, it was still a formidable opponent. And when Samus destroyed all the crystals, new ones grew to take their place. Oh great, Samus thought.

Suddenly the room shook and vibrated as the Bottle Ship came out of hyperspace. A computerized voice said, "This facility will enter Earth orbit in approximately 30 seconds." As the voice counted down the seconds, images flashed through Samus's mind…

Anthony facing off against Ridley…

Watching as Ridley knocked him over the edge…

Adam walking to his death…

Samus aimed at the queen as the countdown ended, but before she could fire, the room tilted as the ship parked, sending them both flying. Finally it stopped, and Samus stood up. The queen was still lying on her side. Samus fired at it twice, and the creatures stood up and growled. It charged toward her, lowered it's head…

…and opened it's mouth.

Just like the first one did.

Samus transformed and hopped inside it's mouth. Quickly, she rolled down the Queen's throat and into it's stomach. Then, she used the only weapon she had not used so far:

The Power Bomb.

The Queen was obliterated in a flash of light brighter than a star.

Samus stood up and looked around. The redhead was climbing out of her closet. Without even looking, she dashed toward a door and was gone.

Samus pursued her thru several rooms until they came to a large one with a balcony overhead. She had nowhere to run.

"Don't come any closer!" the redhead screamed. "Don't come any closer! Stay away from me!" "Or what?" said Samus. The redhead paused. After a few seconds she said, "I… I don't know." "I see you're not the sharpest knife in the drawer," Samus said. "If I wanted you dead. I could've let the Queen swallow you whole and slowly digest you over a thousand years." "Good point," the other girl said sheepishly.

"Who are you?" Samus asked. "I'm responsible for all operations," she said. "My name is Madeline Bergman."

Samus was startled. "Wait a minute. I met some blond chick who said she was Madeline Bergman. What's going on here?!" The redhead showed Samus her ID card and said, "What you met was MB."

"WHAT?!"

The Federation's foolish plan… the Mother Brain's rampage. Everything was exactly as Madeline, or rather MB, had told me. The person who sent out the distress signal had to be the person standing before me. It had to be Madeline Bergman.

"MB was the Aurora Unit originally developed to control Space Pirate special forces," Madeline explained. "Because we wanted it to control them thru telepathy, we had to model it's infrastructure after Mother Brain. At that time, MB didn't have a human shape. When you came back from Zebes, we decided to recreate the Metroids. Once we did, MB started to take on her current shape."

"But why?" Samus asked. "Because we wanted the first Metroid hatchling to recognize MB as it's mother, she had to take human form," Madeline said. "With that as our theoretical basis, we were able to create the ideal relationship with the Metroid; one that wasn't based on dominance or control."

I remembered the baby hatching before my eyes. When it attacked the Mother Brain to save me, that was the result of the kind of "ideal relationship" they were trying to build with MB. They found the perfect means of control, and began propagating Metroids in Sector Zero. At the same time they were doing experiments to create unfreezable Metroids. Apparently the Queen I met earlier was the first of these propagated Metroids to mature. They wanted to preserve her as a control specimen, so they had left her genes unaltered.

The fact that she'd grow into a Queen was something not even Madeline and her team could've predicted. Only special infants had the genetic coding to become Queens.

"Once MB was in a human form, she excelled," said Madeline. "As an interface between us and them, her skills with personal interactions humanized her to a great extent. Her confidence was unwavering, and her ability to learn was greater than we expected, but then… she developed emotions. Then a nascent sense of herself. She began asserting her own thoughts, and her opinions began to contradict ours."

Now Samus was intrigued. "It's quite natural for artificial intelligence to evolve as a result of it's surroundings," Madeline said, "but there's no precedence for an AU like MB developing emotions. It's possible that her interactions with the Metroids brought it about, but we can't know for sure."

The newly hatched infant took to her as it's mother, and perhaps at that moment, MB began to develop a soul. This was all pure conjecture, but the idea wouldn't leave my mind.

"And that was when we decided to alter her AI program," Madeline said.

A humanlike existence, but one without feelings. To make MB less than human, the researchers had to deny her that consciousness. I knew this, and in my heart I felt sympathy for MB.

"On the day we were going to alter MB's program," said Madeline, "right before my eyes, I watched her being restrained. She reached out to me, but there was nothing I could do. My presence that day caused a disturbing reaction in her. She was fixated on me…"

Madeline had taken to calling MB Melissa. She told her MB stood for Melissa Bergman. MB liked that name. It made it sound like she was calling her her daughter.

Once she felt abandoned and hunted by that same Madeline, MB commanded the special forces to revolt. The facility fell into complete chaos, and everyone aboard was slaughtered.

"MB was trying to get revenge on the Federation, and on me. It's possible all humans have become the target of her hatred," Madeline said.

With the facility under her control, she was able to propagate Metroids in Sector Zero, even creating a Queen Metroid. She was well armed for her attack on the Federation. And now, who could say where she was and what she planned next?

"She's backed into a corner," said Madeline. "and her hatred is entirely focused on you and me right now." Suddenly, she turned around and gasped. "MB!"

MB stood at the far corner of the room, holding a freeze gun she'd probably gotten from James. Samus shoved Madeline behind her and aimed at MB. One false move and she would cease to exist.

"Wait… MB," Madeline pleaded. "You, I mean, we were wrong." MB's eyes were cold. "I was not wrong. The humans were foolish and I was forced to bring judgment on them. And yet because of you, I failed. You must understand the weight of your crime. You must pay the price for what you've done."

Samus laughed harshly. "Who are you to talk of crimes?! You made your own little private army and for what?! To model yourself after the Mother Brain?!"

"Please, MB, we can get past this," Madeline pleaded. "No! You will all be judged!" "By who? You? You couldn't even clean the teeth of the parasite queen!" Samus jeered. "One more step and I'll shove a Super Missile up your ass so far it'll come out your mouth!"

Madeline continued to plead. "I won't ever fail you again. Please… Melissa…"

MB dropped the freeze gun and lunged for Madeline. Samus kicked her in the fork of her legs, sending her flying backward. She got up immediately, but before she could charge again, a freeze blast hit her in the back.

To Samus's shock, GF soldiers poured into the room, cornering Samus and aiming their weapons at her. "What's the meaning of this?!" Samus was outraged. "You dare point a gun at me?! You want a piece of me?! I'll tear you apart!"

MB spread her arms wide. Suddenly several half-orbs on the walls opened up, detached and fell down. They revealed themselves to be huge buglike creatures with cybernetic enhancements. They attacked the GF soldiers, killing many instantly. "Madeline, stay behind me!" She fired at one of the bugs, drawing it's attention. It was far more formidable than it should've been, and it took at least six Super Missiles to bring it down.

Meanwhile, Madeline grabbed the discarded freeze gun and fired at MB. Though she did not want to hurt her, she felt she had to do something to stop this. The blast got her attention, but before she could react, a loud voice from above shouted, "Fire!" Several dozen troops appeared on the balcony and fired directly at MB. She screamed once and collapsed.

With no MB to direct them, the bugs shut down and folded back into their half-spheres. Madeline was horrified. "No! Melissa!" She ran over to MB's motionless form and collapsed, sobbing.

An old general walked into the room and confronted Samus. "Samus Aran. I heard what happened. You performed admirably. You can leave the rest to us." Several soldiers grabbed Madeline and pulled her to her feet. Samus started toward her, but the general barked, "Wait! Aran!" Samus turned. "Unfortunate what happened to Commander Malkovich. And to think that his entire unit was annihilated. Truly a tragic day. Would you agree, Aran?" Samus nodded. "Sadly, with them gone, you're just an outsider," the General said. "And given your unofficial status, I cannot allow you contact with the witness." Before an enraged Samus could reach out and strangle him, he added, "And given your predilection for transporting illegal cargo like… infant Metroids…" he leered. "I must ask that you restrict your…" He paused. "Time for the lady to go home. Someone escort her." And behind Samus, a clear, confident, and all-too-familiar voice said, "Yes sir!"

Anthony Higgs.

"Time to go. Come on, princess." "Stop right there!" the general said. "Who are you?!" Anthony lifted his visor. "Anthony Higgs sir, GF Platoon 7. I'm here to secure the safety of any survivors, Commander Malkovich's orders and the purpose of this mission." When the general opened his mouth again, Anthony said, "Authorized by the President of the Federation of course." "What do you mean the President?!" he spluttered. "Man, you guys made it here fast. I mean, if I hadn't stopped the engines, we might've missed each other."

"It's good to have you back Anthony," said Samus warmly. Then, looking over to the general, she grabbed him by the throat and lifted him in the air. "And as for you, old man, don't EVER, EVER, treat me like that again." The general tried to speak, but nothing came out. The other soldiers were motionless: evidently they were too shocked to move without a direct order, and the general was in no shape to give one.

Samus brought him close to her so he could see her eyes thru the visor. Thru gritted teeth, she said, "Don't test my patience, Edmund…" She threw him across the room.

General Edmund Duke staggered to his feet. Muttering a feeble excuse he left the room, thoroughly humbled. Not for nothing was Samus known as the most badass bounty hunter of all time.

A few minutes later, they left the station in Samus's ship. Anthony recounted how he'd survived by freezing a lava dude that appeared out of nowhere. "Crazy," he said. "Crazy how something good can come out of something bad." Beside him, Madeline Bergman stirred. "Oop, didn't mean to wake her," he said. "Guess I should be quiet."

Anthony was trying to be courteous to Madeline. She was exhausted and had only just fallen asleep. She had a lot of explaining to when she got back to Galactic Federation HQ. For herself and for Melissa.

"Whew. Still can't wrap my head around it. What a crazy mission!" Anthony said.

What would've happened if we'd never been called there? Might the furious MB have attacked the Federation and brought about it's utter destruction? Melissa wasn't insane, no. One day a consciousness simply bloomed within her, and those that caused it to bloom, the humans, called it insanity. "I was the insane one," Madeline muttered to herself as she sank softly into sleep.

The selfish conceits of humans drove MB to violence. It was their distorted perceptions and greed that awoke such fury in the fledgling girl's heart. Her thought was to punish the foolish and conceited. But MB could not complete her mission. As Melissa, she was defeated.

With their one vulnerability overcome, the Metroids were all but indestructible. If some fool just following orders had taken the savage creatures to those who sought them… I can't imagine what would've happened if Adam hadn't recognized the hidden danger. But the cost was far too great. Why did Adam have to pay with his life? For me, I couldn't believe he was dead. For the first time, I questioned his choice.

"No objections, right Lady?"

I heard Adam's voice in my head.

And I knew in my heart that he had made the right decision, just as he had so many years ago.

In that moment, I swore not to grieve his death.

And for the first time, I gave him a thumbs up, just in case he was watching over me.

Suddenly I saw Anthony giving me the thumbs down. His amused expression looked like he wanted to say something. His face and Adam's swirled together. That last smile as Adam drifted away…

Epilogue

Ultimately, the decision was made to destroy the Bottle Ship, a mission which will most likely be carried out in the next day or two. I'm heading back there now to retrieve something that was left there. Something that can't be replaced…

Samus stepped out of the elevator. Turning off her suit, she walked thru the door to the command room that Adam had been in. And there it was, sitting there on the table.

Adam's helmet.

Samus picked up the helmet and held it close. Tears poured down her face. Despite what she had promised, she grieved. Adam's death had left a wound on her that would never truly heal. She would carry it the rest of her life.

Suddenly alarms started blaring. Red lights flashed everywhere. An automated voice said, "Self-destruct sequence activated. Please evacuate the facility immediately." Samus turned her suit on and jumped out the window, carrying the helmet under her arm. Running as fast as she could, she made it to the ship and jumped in. Setting the helmet down on the control board, she said, "Sorry for keeping you waiting, Adam. Let's so home." Samus flew out of the hangar bay and jumped into hyperspace as the Bottle Ship exploded in a tremendous fireball.

With the destruction of the Bottle Ship, Samus's fight against MB has ended. But her story is far from over. For a faceless threat lies in wait… one the Metroids were originally created to destroy. And now, with them dead, it has nothing to fear.

End of Book Seven

The story will continue and conclude in Metroid Fusion.