Author's Note

Honestly, while writing this chapter I wasn't sure whether or not I wanted what happens in this chapter to happen now, or some number of chapters later.

But, I felt like it was the perfect time, especially with how the last chapter ended. I will say no more.

Uploaded

01/08/2023

LEGEND BELOW

"Chief, that's not a good idea..." = Normal speech.

''You're you, don't let it control you...'' = Normal thoughts.

Chapter 9

To trust again

Rated-M

M rating for blood, eventual mentioning of gore and other body parts, and language.

He was sure this was what death felt like.

One second he was being choked to death by a towering ancient Forerunner only to be thrown aside like trash. He was sure in that moment her broken a whole lot of things, if not from the Didact's strange spacial field controlling powers, then from how hard he'd hit that pillar.

Next thing he knew the orb that contained the alien suddenly powered up, a slip space signature lighting up the entire area.

He'd…

He'd tried to run, to get him and Cortana out of there. He was sure the alien woman he'd been traveling with wouldn't be too happy if he allowed himself to be killed, especially when he promised her he'd keep Adam safe from harm.

He'd probably made it no more than ten feet before the world went white, and he knew no more.

He was sure he'd died, killed by suffering from a point blank slip space rupture. Spartan armor was tough, insanely durable, but it did not make him invincible. Seeing that it was already damaged from hundreds of battles prior, and the fact that his shields were down, it took what little odds he had of surviving the wave and reduced it to zero.

And yet, something was wrong.

He'd been reduced to a simple gathering of thoughts and emotions, like an A.I. during its final moments as an artificial intelligence, just a gathering of dust and echoes. Nothing more then a faded memory of what once was the man they all called Master Chief, Spartan one one seven.

John…

Yet he still clung to this world.

He wasn't sure what kept him grounded, a single string of life keeping him from falling into the pit of endless darkness.

Then life was suddenly being pressed back to him by force. Unconsciously, he grasped onto that source of life with everything he had, pulling it closer.

He didn't want to die, he wasn't going to. He desperately took hold of that shining source of life and held it within his grasp, refusing to let it go.

His eyes shot wide open, sucking in a sharp gasp, air filling his lungs. His eyes quickly took in the wide glowing pink eyes inches from his, how alien and yet, strikingly human they were.

He didn't move, didn't breath, mind a swirling haze of thoughts that didn't feel real, memories of everything that led up to this moment slowly coming back to him as he officially returned to the world of the living.

His eyes blinked slowly, staring up inquisitively at the exposed face that he'd only once ever seen before, in the dark unlit halls of the Forward Unto Dawn.

The first thought that struck him was the fact that he swore her eyes were red, not this much softer less dangerous looking pink. Before he could even dwell on that, they reverted to that dangerous black and red glare that he'd often been on the receiving end of.

It took the man another moment to realize that he was no longer wearing his helmet, staring up at her, questions burning in his mind.

Why was she leaning over him? Why had she kissed him? What had she done with his helmet, and how had she even managed to get it off.

And the sky, the background behind her head of green tinted blond hair, was blue. The harsh dark colors of the planet's core had been replaced with a massive skyline, one he'd seen before.

Why was she seemingly fine in such a close proximity to him that she could touch him without killing him, seeing as it was something he'd not thought her capable of only hours beforehand.

All those questions and more had filtered through his head in rapid succession, but none of them had been the one question that he'd focused on, the one he found himself asking when her eyebrows tightened in unsuppressed emotion.

Why was she angry with him?

"What… happened…?" His voice was raspy, like it was the first time he'd spoken in years. His neck muscles tightened as he went to sit up, a feat that was slightly difficult without his helmet attached.

Samus stood up sharply, biting her lips as she turned away from him, lest he see the open look that crossed her face. That neutral shield she'd placed about herself had fallen, and she didn't want him to hone in on that open exposed weakness in her gaze, something she'd never shown and had gone to great lengths to keep hidden.

Unfortunately, she wasn't quick enough to hide that look before she turned, and her deeply troubled expression was burned into his mind, something he wouldn't forget.

Samus placed her hand opposing arm, just above her cannon, gaze glued to the horizon beyond. She could barely make out the outline of the Infinity above the mountainside it had landed beside.

"I.. found you in the caves." She said after a long moment, her voice decidedly level. "You weren't breathing…" She muttered, refusing to look at him. "I brought you back."

The man blinked, wordlessly staring at her backside. He sucked in a deep slow breath, surprised by just how easy it felt to breathe, and the complete lack of pain. He was sure he'd punctured his lungs from the Didact's attack, organs severely damaged, head trauma.

But now?

Now he felt fine.

In fact, fine didn't even begin to cover how he felt.

He felt like he was floating, filled with a wondrous sensation that he had never experienced before.

It was unnatural, it was exhilarating.

Knowing how he felt know, and what he was sure had happened before, he could only deduce that she had saved him somehow. Just how she'd done so had escaped him, and he wasn't sure how it was possible.

"What happened?" She asked after another long moment, her tone tighter than she wanted it to sound. "You were supposed to warn your people… You shouldn't have…" She grunted, cutting herself off with a short huff. "What went on down there?" She finally decided on asking, still facing away from him.

He finally stood up, watching her from a short distance. A breeze passed through, parting his bloodstained short brown hair. He debated not telling her the truth, leaving out the details of what happened down there. He knew if he told her the truth, that exactly what she was worried about happening would happen had indeed happened, she'd be furious.

And yet, he also came to the understanding that lying to her face would only serve to ruin the seemingly fragile relationship between the two of them.

So, after a moment, he spoke.

"You were right." He stated openly, his voice even gruffer sounding without the helmet to make it seem clear.

Silence rang out across the clearing, the Bounty Hunter not speaking a word.

"There was no satellite, it was a trap all along." He continued, blue eyes trained in on the back of her head. The Hunter had yet to put her helmet back on, her long green-blond hair extending down to her large armored thighs.

"When I realized it, it was too late to do anything." He said, hands clenched at his side. "I was powerless to stop him." He admitted, tone indecipherable. "You were right, and… I'm sorry that I didn't listen to you earlier."

He stood there, conflicted feelings flowing through the forefront of his mind. He'd messed up, and he'd suffered the consequences. Because of his mistakes, he'd unleashed a foe he could not fight, and had been unable to do anything to stop him.

He should be dead right now, having fallen in combat.

Yet here he stood, given a second chance to rectify those mistakes. It was a gift she'd given him, a gift he was sure to not throw away carelessly.

Yet still, she didn't say anything. Nor did she face him. Instead, she bent down, picking up his helmet. She stared wordlessly down at it, conflicted within a sea of emotions bubbling just underneath the surface of her heart. She took a moment, expression hardening before she finally turned to face him once more.

Her smooth black lips leveled out into a line, eyes hardening back to that resting position he'd come to expect from her. It had the unfortunate effect of making her always look she was contemplating hurting someone, even when he knew she didn't cater to that thought process unless it was a threat like the Covenant.

He'd even seen her spare Covenant that had surrendered to her, something he wouldn't have done.

Wordlessly, she handed him the helmet. He studied her face for a brief, yet to him long moment, before returning his helmet to its resting place. The moment it had connected to him, and a neutral connection was made to his suit, Cortana's broken voice spoke up.

"Chief…?" In that moment she sounded so small, like she couldn't even believe what was happening. "Y-You… You're alive…?"

"I am." The man confirmed, voice not transferring outside his helmet.

"Chief I…." Cortana muttered, the image of her standing up from where she'd been laying curled on the ground conjured up in his mind. "You were gone… You… A-All motor functions had ceased, you were gone…" She whispered, not believing what she was seeing. "The damage was too much, to fast, you shouldn't…"

"Cortana." The man said, cutting her off gently. "She saved me… She brought me back." He said decidedly. "I don't plan on leaving again." He muttered, trying to calm her down.

The A.I. was silent for a moment, trying to come to terms with what had happened. Even still, it wasn't something she could just understand so easily. "Okay… okay…" She breathed, closing her eyes.

The Spartan nodded to himself, tuning back into the waking world. Samus had moved, standing next to the mountain's edge. Thinking for a moment, he moved to join her.

She didn't say anything as he approached, her gaze locked onto the horizon beyond them both. His silent gaze scanned her, his eyes trailing down her armored midsection. He noticed with raised concern that her belly had increased drastically in size since the last time he'd looked only hours prior. Maybe she could've denied it before, but now it was obvious more than ever before.

Befuddled by the rapid growth of her unborn children, he wondered just what caused the increase in size and how it could come about so fast. He wondered not for the first time if it had something to do with her massive increase in energy consumption since their time alone on the Forward Unto Dawn.

"Are you alright?" He finally found himself asking, glancing up to her bright red visor. He wasn't sure when she'd put it back on, nor how she'd managed to get all her hair back inside of her armor so quickly without him noticing.

That question seemed to gain her attention, the woman turning to him. "What do you mean?" She asked, a little defensively. He stared her through her visor, gaze locked on her bright red eyes. "I'm fine." She lied.

"You're pregnant." He decided to stop beating around the bush and state the obvious question on his mind. He didn't miss the flinch in her stare, and how her visor suddenly became only one way, blocking his perception of her face.

"I don't know what you're talking about." She found herself responding heatedly, denying his words.

"Samus, don't shut me out." The man said. "I'm not blind. I've known for a little while now." He admitted. "I want you to trust me. If you can't trust anyone else, then trust me." He said genuinely.

The Hunter took a step back, suddenly flighty. He was afraid he'd pushed too far too soon, but then she paused. She didn't say anything, staring him down with an expression he could only assume with her visor blocking out all ability to read her emotions.

Then, finally she relented. Her shoulders slumped heavily, arms falling to her sides. "How did you know?" She asked in a quiet voice. Instead of answering verbally, he merely turned his gaze down to her stomach, noticing the bulging armor where it was once a flat smooth surface. "Right… Of course." She muttered, feeling just a little bit silly.

"You can't give birth here. We need to get you off world." He stated, not realizing the can of worms he'd just opened. She tried not to, but something about it just set her off.

Samus bristled, hand clenched at her side. "You think I don't know that?!" She snapped, voice carrying across the empty mountaintop. "You think I've been traveling with you this whole time just to find a good spot to have them?!" She exclaimed indignantly.

"…"

"I've been trying to find a way off this god damn planet since I fell from space! But one thing led to another and here we are!" She shouted, finally letting out everything that had been bothering her. "You said we could use your ship that was coming to save us, but now it's also stuck here, crashed into a mountain miles from here!"

"…Samus."

"You think I haven't been spending this whole time thinking about a way off this rock?! Even if I do get out of here, where can I go?!" She shouted, voice cracking. "I don't belong here! I don't belong in the middle of this stupid war, on this stupid planet. I don't have anywhere to go, I don't know anyone. You're the only person in this universe I know, and you went and got yourself killed!"

"Samus."

"What would they do if I showed up to the Infinity with a corpse? You think they'd just let me come aboard, hitch a ride out of here? What am I supposed to do if you leave me?!" She wasn't sure at what point she started screaming, tears filling here blaring red eyes. "I don't have my ship, I don't know anyone, I don't have anywhere safe to stay! What the hell does power armor do for me if I'm giving birth in the middle of the forest?! I'm not even sure I still have Adam!"

Samus shook, her entire armored body shaking with emotions that she's felt this whole time yet had kept under wraps up until now. She was afraid, afraid of being forced to have her children here on the warring planet. Afraid that she'd be forced into a situation where she couldn't defend herself, left without help and protection in her time of weakness. She was afraid that she wouldn't be able to defend them if aggressors came after them, or her.

But most of all, she was afraid that she didn't have anyone to trust. She was the very last of her kind carrying the only Metroid's left in existence, for either universe, either his or her own. She was afraid of what knowledge of her power would mean, that if the information of her abilities and the powers she and her newborns would have reached the larger known galaxy that she'd suddenly have thousands if not hundreds of thousands suddenly bearing down on her just for a chance to steal her newborns and abuse their powers.

Or worse…

She was afraid…

No…

Terrified, of the reality that if some darker power decided that they wanted to use her as a breeding dog for a new Metroid army, that was a very real possibility.

She'd only barely escaped that fate on ZDR, and she knew that Raven Beak wanted nothing more then to keep her locked away, forever producing an unstoppable army for him to use to conquer the known galaxy.

That was why she was afraid. Because if there was ever a moment where she'd be at her weakest, it would be during childbirth.

It was just too much to handle all at once, and she'd not once had the chance to rest or put her worries to rest since her first encounter with the damnable Chozo warrior on ZDR. That coupled with everything that had happened leading up to this moment was simply too much to handle without something giving, and with the added stress placed upon her from her pregnancy and impending childbirth on a hostile planet with no one to stand by her side, she finally snapped.

She wanted to blame the hormones running rampant in her body for her breakdown, but she knew that wasn't all of it.

No matter who you were, there was only so much stress a person could handle before it became too much, and suddenly your head which had been barely kept above the surface was suddenly pulled under, and calm rational thinking devolved into quiet suffering panic.

And right now, she had been pulled under the surface.

"Samus, look at me."

The woman's gaze snapped up as the Spartan called out to her once more, the man standing right before her. At such a close proximity, the foot he had over her in height became noticeably apparent as she was forced to crane her neck to look up at him.

So close, she wanted to run, put some distance between them. She was on edge, he was within her bubble, and she was afraid. She went to step away, but he stopped her by grabbing her hand, the same one that held the power to end him within moments.

"What are you doing? Let me go." She hissed, trying to pull away frantically. "I'll kill you, let go." She muttered in warning, a small panic in her voice.

But he didn't leave. He stood his ground, an unmovable wall that stood to support her.

"Samus. You can trust yourself not to hurt me." The man started after a moment. The Hunter froze in her attempts to pull away, eyes staring up at him. "If you didn't trust yourself enough around me to resist your base urge to kill me, even when I'm right here, unarmed, then shouldn't I be dead?" He asked, posing her with a question to get her thinking. "But I'm not dead, because you trusted yourself not to hurt me."

He cast that safety net, providing her something with which to pull herself up to the surface again. All she had to do to stop drowning below it was take hold of that net.

"If you can't trust the UNSC, and you have no one to return to, then you can at least trust me." He said finally. "My duty as a soldier is to protect humanity, whatever the cost. And I see no reason to see you as anything other than a human, and that places you under that protection."

With his piece said, he waited patiently for her response. Even then, he knew there was a large chance that she'd still reject him, and lock herself down harder than she had before. But if they were to continue relying on each other, and this companionship they'd built while together was to last once they'd made it off world, then she needed to trust him to help her.

She stared up at him, a battle warring within her eyes. He could see it, who she was at heart, wanting to refuse help, not wanting to let anyone in. He wasn't sure what had happened in her life to make her build such strong walls around herself that she seemingly couldn't trust anyone in the universe but herself, and he wasn't sure if he'd ever be deserving to know.

But that didn't matter, because when her eyes settled, he knew what she'd decided. Her shoulders slumped, the tension she had bottled up for however long she'd held onto it finally letting go.

"Okay…" She said after a moment, voice soft. She was taking a huge risk letting someone new into her life, allowing him to get close to her. It would mean letting him find her secrets, understand who she was, and give him all the ammo he'd need would he ever decide to betray her.

She knew she was taking a risk, trusting anyone in this new unruly universe with her life and her children. But it was a risk she realized that she needed to take to survive it, and if she had to choose, she would choose him.

Knowing that he'd finally won her trust, he was going to be sure not to do something to break it. The trust between them was fragile, and he'd have to do his best to continue to strengthen that trust.

With that established, they needed to decide on their next plan of action.

Together.

"What did I miss while I was out?" He asked, finally stepping away to give her her space.

The Hunter closed her eyes, taking in a deep breath, before letting it go. When she opened them again, the eyes of Samus Aran, the Intergalactic Bounty Hunter, had returned.

"I brought us out from the planet's core. When I arrived here the Infinity had just broken reentry." She explained efficiently, tone neutral, as he'd come to expect from her when she was focused in combat. "It passed overhead, coming into a final resting position twenty miles from here down in a valley beside that mountain." Turning from the cliffs edge where she stood, she pointed off into the distance, the top of the ship visible from where they stood.

"Did it survive the landing?" The Master Chief found himself asking.

"I tracked its descent. I've picked up multiple distress signals from its location, but nothing mentioning the destruction of the ship." She explained.

The man nodded, setting a waypoint on his HUD. "Good. Then we should head there, offer backup if they need it, and help get the ship up and running again. From there we will help you find a safe and secure location for the infants, and I'll see if any engineers aboard and repair your A.I." He said, reaching around to pull Adam's case from his rear plate.

"He's suffered damage, but Cortana is sure his data center is intact. He won't be able to make contact with us until we fix him." He explained, returning the A.I. to its resting place.

Samus seemed pensive at the notion that Adam was damaged, but there was little use in getting upset about it now. The man had already promised to see to it that he was repaired, so she'd leave it at that for the time being.

He turned to her to see if she agreed to his plan, and seeing as he had to make a move, she realized this. "I agree." She said.

He nodded, turning towards the direction of their new destination. He wasn't sure how they were going to be able to get there fast enough to help, but he was hoping she had a plan to combat that issue.

"Chief…?" She spoke up suddenly, voice soft again. He didn't say anything, turning to face her. She seemed to struggle with something, before settling on what she was going to say. "Thank you." She said, not elaborating further.

He stared at her for a moment, seeing if there was anything more she was going to say. When he realized that that was it, he merely offered her a solid nod, not sure what to say in response otherwise.

She stepped up behind him, turning her attention to the crashed form of the Infinity miles out. They could both pick up distress calls coming from multiple locations, and the one nearest them was still a large distance. They'd never arrive soon enough to provide the backup they needed if they moved on foot.

"Do you have any way of getting us there quicker?" The man asked, turning a questioning eye to the Bounty Hunter. She turned to him, raising an eyebrow at the question?

Could she get them there faster?

Absolutely.

Just one question for him, however.

"Do you gain motion sickness easily?" She asked without explanation. He raised an eyebrow, not that she could see.

"No." He responded. "Why?"

"Do you want to arrive there in a few minutes, or an hour?" She asked shortly.

Obviously, he decided that a little bit of discomfort was worth it if it meant they arrived sooner. "Point taken." He grunted.

She seemed pleased.

"Good." She said, sounding pleased. Then she turned around and bent over slightly. She glanced over her shoulder, looking him in the eye. "Climb on."

"…"

"Don't ask me if I'm strong enough to carry you. I said climb on." She muttered lowly, tone irritated at his delay. She held her arm and arm-cannon up behind her, as if to support him. Deciding to humor her instead of argue about it, he stepped forward, sliding his arms over her shoulders, grabbing onto her breastplate for support, resting his knees on her arms. He did have to admit, he didn't think she was strong enough to hold a Spartan so easily.

"Good. Now hold on, I don't want you to fall." She grumbled, turning towards the forest that lay between them and the Infinity. Atop the mountain where they stood, they were an easy two hundred feet above the top of the forest, giving a clear view of the terrain.

The woman's eyes narrowed, Speed Booster charging up. She was sure his suit could take the heat from the thrusters on her back, at least long enough to gain good speed.

"What are you planning on doing?" The man found himself asking, speaking louder as to allow his voice to bleed over the sound of her active thrusters.

"Jumping." She stated.

Before he could ask the multitude of questions that surfaced from her response, she tore off in the direction of the mountain's edge. There was only a few hundred feet before the edge, but by the time she had reached the edge she had already gained up to three hundred miles an hour. She couldn't gain any more speed with his body blocking the full use of her thrusters, and lack of runway.

When she reached the edge, she jumped. Flying through the air, they were hundreds if not thousands of feet above the ground, below them the forest between them and the Infinity.

When they finally began descending, what with gravity's effect on the body, she seemed to kick off of an invisible platform, jumping forward again, maintaining that three hundred mile an hour speed. She kept repeating that, switching from her left leg to her right, jumping from nonexistent platforms, maintaining her speed.

"Fast enough for you?" She asked over coms, the wind blasting by them.

"What.. How?" He asked, befuddled at what he was experiencing firsthand.

He could almost feel her grinning.

"You didn't honestly think you knew everything I was capable of, did you?" She asked, continuing to fly through the air at inhuman speeds.

Wisely, the Master Chief chose not to respond, choosing not to distract the woman currently responsible for keeping them in the air.

"Chief, you sure do know how to pick them." Cortana muttered, commenting on their current state.

"I chose you." He replied to the small blue woman living in his head, the A.I. going oddly silent.

Chapter

9

End