Hunting With My Brother

A Metroid/Sonic The Hedgehog Crossover Fan Fiction

by Derald Snyder

Prologue: A New Job

On a distant planet far away...

"What do you mean he slipped by you again?!" the army major yelled at his subordinates. "There were supposed to be no holes in the perimeter! He should have been detected long before he got anywhere near that jewel!"

"I'm sorry, sir! I have no idea how he did it!" the lieutenant said nervously. "There was no sign of any breach, but when we opened the vault, the emerald was gone!"

"Blast it!" the major slammed a fist on his desk in frustration. "Clearly we are out of our depths with this one. Perhaps it's time we called in a professional..."

"Do you mean the Bat, sir?" the lieutenant asked.

"No... that creature might have the commander's gaze, but I don't trust her. I was thinking of someone off-planet... an intergalactic bounty hunter."

"Bounty hunter?! Sir, with all due respect, wouldn't that be even more risky than calling the Bat?" the lieutenant dared to ask.

"Not if we hire the right one," the major shot back. "One who prefers to be paid in cash instead of precious gems, and has at least some sort of moral code... Technician, put in a call to the Galactic Federation, and tell them we want to make use of their bounty-hunting services."

"Yes, sir!" the technician nodded, typing away at the keyboard...

Meanwhile, on planet Earth...

Daniel Markson waved as his latest customer went off, gathering up his recent payment and taking it to the back of the garage, depositing it in the secure lockbox. Even if the money from his tech repair business was a pittance compared to what his brother was paid for his line of work, it was a labor of love for the engineer. Of course, what most didn't know was that he had actually gone along with his brother Donald on some of his hunts, having cobbled together a powered armor suit of his own... (Though it's been a while since the last time...)

Just then, he heard footsteps, Danny turning to see his brother, who almost seemed like a darker pallete-swap of the former... well, that and the fact that Daniel wore glasses while Donald did not. "Another satisfied customer, huh?" Donald spoke up.

"You know it, Donny!" Danny concurred, only for his happy mood to vanish as he saw the grim look on his brother's face. "...Let me guess, you got called in for another mission?"

"Yeah, some army guys from a distant planet want me to help them track down a notorious thief that's given them the slip several times," Donald elaborated.

"Really? So how long do you think you'll be gone this time?" Daniel asked.

Donny shook his head before replying, "Actually, I'd like you to come with me on this one. If this guy's good enough to give trained soldiers the slip, I'm thinking we might need enhanced detection systems, like your scan and x-ray visors on your suit..."

"Really," Daniel said, trying to hide his excitement. "Well, it's been a while since I last deployed, so I'm going to have to check all my suit components, make sure they're functioning properly..."

"You do that, then. In the meantime, I'll get my own gear ready," Donald stated, swiftly turning and heading back into the house proper. And so Dany went to a nearby locker, undoing the combination padlock before opening it, stepping aside as several parts tumbled out of said locker in a heap. "One of these days, I need to get a bigger locker so I don't have to stuff everything in," he muttered to himself as he began picking through the pile.

The chest armor was slid on first. Metal boots clanked on the floor. One arm, then the other was attached, the modified welder gun then strapped and wired into place on the right arm, the Nova power pack being installed soon after. Then the Power Grip and Grapple Beam were attached to the left arm, before Daniel slid on the helmet, watch as the visor's HUD booted up, running a self-diagnostic. "All systems green. Looks like we're good to go." He walked around a bit to get used to the extra weight, then headed outside, kneeling at the corner of the pavement, test-firing his modified welder gun, which left a small inconspicuous burn mark. "Okay, Plasma Beam is working fine." He didn't want to use his Nova Beam unless the situation truly called for it, since the power pack only had so much energy. Daniel then stood and walked to an open area of the driveway, crouching and jumping, before clacking his boots together, causing the Space Jump Boots to activate and propel him even higher-

But then he crashed to the asphalt in a heap. "Ow... didn't stick the landing." He then became aware of laughter from inside the house... "Oh shut up, Donny! This is exactly the reason I'm testing it!"

"Better get a handle on it quick, then!" Donny gasped between laughs, before shutting the window to mute himself to the outside.

"My younger brother... can't live with him, dunno what I'd do without him..." Daniel sighed to himself as he stood straight, before trying the Space Jump again... this time he managed to come down in a three-point landing, holding his gun arm up so it wasn't damaged by contact with the hard pavement. "That's more like it." He was no Samus Aran, but he'd already proven himself capable more than once, as Donald himself could attest.

After a few more practice Space Jumps, Daniel heard his brother coming out of the garage, turning to see him dressed in lightly-armored boots and a protective vest rated to stop laser fire, which had a section that draped over the crotch to provide partial protection from dirty tactics, so to speak. His default weapon, a beam saber, was strapped to his waist, a Grapple Beam much like Danny's strapped to his left arm. "So, are we heading out now?"

"Yeah, it's gonna be a long trip. Best to leave early," Donald nodded. "Don't worry, I've got plenty of rations on board for both of us, and your recon drone is already on board too."

"Well, I'm gonna want to check it before we leave, just in case," Daniel said. "Other than that, I should be ready to head out as well."

So after doing his checks on his drone, Danny strapped himself in at the rear of the ship, while his brother took the helm. The sleek black spacecraft came to life, slowly lifting off the ground, then picking up speed as it rose through the skies... Once it was clear of Earth's gravity well, the ship activated the warp drive, blasting off into space...

"So, do you know anything about the planet we're heading to?" Danny asked his brother once they were in warp.

"Its official designation is MB-105," Donny responded. "Similar size and biosphere to Earth. They used to have a formal name, but it was changed after the government was taken over by a military coup, according to what I was told. That's why it's the army there calling us for this job."

"Well, let's hope it's not a dictatorship," Daniel said uncertainly.

"We'll cross that bridge when we get there," Donald shrugged. "Hopefully it's a relatively simple job..."

"Let's hope you didn't jinx it by saying that," the older brother sighed...

The Beginning