Metroid Equis
Chapter 6
Encounter
"Alright, Miss Aran… After resting and letting the healing magic do its job, your body shows no sign of injury. Your ribs have been healed and all muscles have been repaired, although you may feel a tad sore. You're not restricted from performing any heavy lifting or anything else strenuous but nevertheless I recommend easing into something like that, at least until tomorrow… although I'll leave that to your discretion. You're all set. If you experience pain, come back and we'll give you a more potent painkiller or administer another dose of MedMagic," The doctor said, looking up at the Zero Suit Clad hunter and handing her some medical paperwork.
"Thanks, Doctor," Samus replied curtly but respectfully. He nodded back with a smile and motioned for her to exit the room. Samus was able to easily find the main lobby, and like Twilight had mentioned, Celestia was waiting there patiently while conversing with one of the staff. The white Alicorn perked up when the only fair-skinned bipedal creature walked into the room.
"Feeling better?" she asked.
"Sore, but peachy. Just peachy," Samus replied. Celestia could sense the slight irritation radiating off of the blonde-haired human, most likely due to her recent battle which proved less than victorious on her part. She only nodded and said nothing more on the subject, allowing the Hunter to speak up once more:
"Luna said you wanted to see me?"
"That I did. Come. Walk with me," Celestia replied, beckoning Samus with her head as she strolled out of the hospital. Samus followed suit and fell into step with her, her ever stoic expression present across her features. She treaded just a step behind Celestia so she could lead her to… wherever they were going, yet nothing was said. It was a surprisingly relaxing walk for the Hunter as lack of conversation was never really a complaint for her. As they walked through the town, the town residents could be seen going about their business and would turn to look at the new creature that stood roughly around Celestia's height. Samus noticed they didn't look upon her with fear, but rather with curiosity. They would also look upon the Princess with reverence and bow their heads respectfully as they passed. Eventually, Celestia broke the silence as well as Samus's musings:
"Hungry?"
"I could eat a bit," she replied honestly.
"Then follow me. I know this new café at the other side of town that's owned by Griffons," Celestia answered with a perky smile.
"Not like I'm following anyone else." Celestia turned to Samus with a humorous smile, embracing the sarcasm. Once again, the two walked without much conversation to the other side of town. Samus, once again, didn't mind the extreme lull in conversation. The relaxing walk allowed her to see more of the town and point out/mentally map places of interest for the duration of her stay. Samus made note of the markets, the hardware stores, blacksmiths, as well as places such as Carousel Boutique and Sugarcube Corner, all in relation to the Library. Samus glanced upward and noted the change in sunshine; Clouds were steadily making their way over the area and the Everfree looked like it had decent overcast weather. Chances are it was going to rain soon.
Soon enough, the Princess and the Hunter found themselves taking a seat at a small café that was frequented by non-pony folk such as dragons, other griffons, diamond dogs… essentially those who ate meat.
"Get whatever you would like. We'll speak after a small meal," Celestia kindly reassured. So, Samus ended up opting for a rather large sandwich while Alicorn Princess requested a Garden Salad. Some idle chatter passed the time while the two ate, and on that note Samus was pleasantly surprised with how tender and juicy the meat was. After a short while, both parties were satiated.
"I gotta say, that was pretty damn good," the Hunter stated while pushing her plate away and subconsciously tapping her stomach in satisfaction. Her plate was devoid of any food and Celestia smiled.
"I'm glad you enjoyed that, but now…" the regal Alicorn began, "…there is something I wish to show you." Celestia levitated a few things to Samus's side of the table where the Hunter promptly took them; discovering that they were photographs by quick inspection. Samus began to thumb through the photos, which consisted of mortally ill or dead pegasi. Samus was unphased by the gore, but years of experience in bloody battle gave her odd attention to detail where it counted. She was able to pick out a distinct commonality between all of the victims: they all had parts of their bodies that had a blue sheen to them (not that that required any expert observational skills). Some had what appeared to be infection of the blood vessels with bright blue trailing every which-way on their bodies. Others had enlarged or completely mutated appendages, while some just had concentrated affliction. Samus looked up and the Princess had a face of many questions.
"Phazon Exposure. I'd recognize it anywhere," Samus finally spoke up, still thumbing through the photos. Celestia nodded.
"Indeed, but that's not what is disturbing Luna and I," she replied. Samus raised her brow in curiosity while Celestia used the opportunity to continue:
"As you know, the impact crater lies in the Frozen North near the Crystal Empire. These photos were of victims who were in or resided in Cloudsdale, our Cloud City and Weather Center in the skies between Canterlot and Ponyville," the Princess of the Sun informed. This piqued Samus's curiosity and she leaned forward, resting her chin on her left hand; a million thoughts were running through her head once more.
That is not good.
"The Phazon can be spread very easily, but the fact that these victims had been exposed with no prior contact with the impact site is questionable. Do any ecosystems, which could have been contaminated, flow into Cloudsdale?" the Hunter asked. Celestia shook her head.
"No, not from the contaminated areas. I ordered the ceasing of any and all transfer of water from quarantined areas of the Frozen North," Celestia answered. Samus nodded in understanding and took a moment to collect her thoughts.
"Are you certain that everyone—erm… everypony who has had exposure to the Phazon has been quarantined?" Samus asked.
"To my knowledge, yes. However, I cannot be one hundred percent certain that nopony has escaped or evaded quarantine… or simply didn't report exposure," Celestia responded thoughtfully, taking a moment to process her thoughts before turning back to Samus. "What are your thoughts?"
"Phazon spreads through contact. It's essentially a viral corruption. Since no contaminated resource can make its way to Cloudsdale, and ponies are presumably still being exposed or rather being accounted for as mortally ill or dead, it's very possible that you have a rogue element on your han—hooves."
"Rogue Element?" Celestia asked for confirmation, fearing what she hoped wasn't the case. Samus nodded.
"Yes. Somepony who has survived the corruption may be spreading it. For what purpose… is anyone's guess." Samus theorized, leaning back in her chair with her stoic thinking face on. The Princess also looked troubled but obviously seemed to have something in mind.
"This malicious spread of Phazon among my little ponies is not tolerable. So, with that theory in mind, I come to the main reason I wanted to meet with you: I'd like to offer you a proposition; more specifically, a job."
"I'm listening…"
"You have all the knowledge of this Phazon… well, all that you are capable of knowing which is well beyond our scope. As well, your military expertise and your line of work as a 'bounty hunter' will prove most invaluable. As a result, you're the most qualified for this task, well beyond even Equestria's Special Forces. I would like to employ your services," Celestia spoke. "I would like you, after you take care of repairing your armor, to find this potential spreader or whatever the source is of this proliferation. You may use whatever means necessary to complete this objective and, of course, you will be compensated generously."
"I'm gonna need more to go on than just pictures, Princess," Samus pointed out. Celestia nodded and acknowledged this.
"I'm well aware of that. I'll grant you access to all the data and leads we have when you get your armor functioning again. But for right now…" Celestia trailed off as her horn lit up, levitating what appeared to be a small sack. She gingerly placed it on the table in front of Samus with the contents resounding with several jingles and clinks. Samus opened the small bag with one of her hands and found quite the amount of gold coins. Her eyes widened slightly in surprise and she looked back towards Celestia, who only smiled back determinedly.
"… a down-payment."
"This… is pure gold," Samus remarked in a slightly astonished manner, examining a couple pieces of the Equestrian 'bit.' Gold was still somewhat valuable within the Federation… although still definitely less valuable than Afloraltite and the new and popular Fuel Gel, it was still worth a decent amount.
"Indeed it is. I was worried that in your perspective, our currency would be essentially useless. I'm happy it has some value to you," Celestia remarked. Oh yes, indeed it did. Samus could exchange even this fair bag of gold for a nice sum of Credits.
"So…" Celestia spoke once more, garnering Samus's attention. "Do you accept?" she asked for formalities purposes. Samus technically was ordered by the Federation to render any and all assistance to the Princesses if at all requested. Hell, the Princesses themselves completely knew of this. Making bonus off of that wasn't a bad thing in the slightest, especially if the Princess was offering. Samus let a small grin show and she extended her hand towards the Sun Princess, who extended her right hoof in response. They shook on it.
"Deal."
Samus strolled into the library with the Princess following behind her. Twilight briefly greeted them although Samus did not really reciprocate, making a bee-line straight to her room.
"Is she okay, Princess?" Twilight asked.
"She's just fine, albeit in the mood to fix her armor. She needs to take it to her ship back in the Everfree so she can repair it. She will definitely need it for some work I'm having her do."
"What kind of work?" Twilight asked curiously. Celestia shook her head.
"I'm sorry, Twilight. As much as I can trust you, this information is completely classified. The fact that I told you anything is a breach of some regulations. I hope you can understand, my faithful student," Celestia explained in a somewhat saddened tone. Celestia and Luna didn't want this accidentally spreading out and alerting the public to possible perpetrators of Phazon proliferation, if that was even the case.
Twilight felt a tad hurt but understood completely. Those feelings left as soon as they came and she smiled in understanding once more.
"I understand completely, Princess. No offense taken."
Meanwhile in Samus's room, she was prepping herself for the several mile trek back to her ship. She found the pieces of her mangled suit placed and organized neatly by her bed and she gathered them up in the large duffle bag that she brought with her, making sure it was all neatly organized and packed in there before setting it down. Samus then removed the metal case from under the bed and opened it, retrieving her GF Assault Rifle as well as her Paralyzer Pistol; the latter of which she holstered to her hip. She strapped the duffel bag securely to her back like a backpack and picked up her rifle, checking her ammunition count. Satisfied, she strolled out into the common room, rifle in hand. Twilight, Spike, and Celestia all looked up to greet the Hunter.
"I'll return later," Samus stated as she casually walked to the front door. She looked a bit weighed down by her load. Celestia charged her horn.
"Oh, allow me." A small amount of magic from the alicorn's horn surrounded Samus's cargo on her back... and she suddenly felt like she was not carrying anything. Another (inwardly) astonished check of her materials showed that the pieces of her suit were indeed inside, but had no weight to them.
"A 'weightlessness' spell? Interesting..." Samus spoke, looking back at Celestia.
"In a sense... yes. As well, do you want some company? I could commission a Guard or two…" Celestia offered. Samus shook her head.
"No thanks. I'll do this on my own," she declined. The Princess nodded in understanding.
"Very well. Just be careful when you're that deep in the Everfree. The rain just started both here and over the forest so most of the dangerous creatures should have sought shelter. Nevertheless, be on your guard," the Sun Alicorn slightly lectured.
"Indeed, mother. I'll be back before supper," Samus replied with sarcasm, which the Princess slightly giggled and rolled her eyes. She was beginning to go as far as to say that she enjoyed the Hunter's presence. Samus nodded to Twilight before exiting the door, lifting her hand up and giving her two fingered wave/salute as she walked out, closing the door behind her. Being honest, Samus was starting to ever so slightly enjoy the Princesses presences… as well as the other ponies.
As soon as she closed the door, she let the bottom of her rifle fall into her left hand, holding it at a passive stance as she glanced at the sky, completely overcast and a moderate rain falling on the land. She pushed a lock of her hair out of her face and proceeded walking towards the Everfree. The few residents still outside in Ponyville who had met her beforehand gave gentle waves as they hurried to some shelter, to which Samus reciprocated with a gentle nod. She continued a brisk walk until she reached the edge of the Everfree, taking note that the rain was holding steady with no sign that it would end soon.
With that, she began trudging into the forest, the refreshing smell of ozone and the forest mixing together to form a somewhat of a relaxing scent. This reminded her of her time on Tallon IV when she first landed there, exploring the Overworld and how peaceful she found it.
Half a mile in, she pulled back a large branch of some sort, holding her rifle out with her right hand and ensuring a safe transition out of the brush. She bounded over a downed tree and spied a few animals scurrying for cover, while some looked at her curiously. Samus wouldn't get used to the fact that a lot of docile wildlife here was quite the more inquisitive than on other planets she has been on. Samus had to admit, she definitely preferred Equis to Aether… even when she was in the Torvus Bog. She would have tolerated Torvus more if it wasn't for the fact that every area she went, she was assaulted by Grenchlers.
Samus looked over her shoulders as soon as the thought of Grenchlers entered her mind. They were seriously a pain in the ass. Samus felt like Sheegoths were so much easier to deal with, almost a walk in the park in comparison, to Grenchlers.
Those fuckers could swim too! Then again, as water based predators, I don't know why I'm surprised.
Samus shook her mind clear of the beasts, getting a running jump and rolling on the ground after she jumped over a trench in the ground.
Screw them.
The trek was halfway over, as her map was showing on the console that she had on her wrist. The rain picked up a bit but it didn't bother her. Samus's Zero Suit was water-proof and she liked the feel of rain on her face. Granted, her blonde hair clung to her face and neck somewhat but once again, it didn't bother her that much. She checked her ammo count once more on her rifle for the umpteenth time and pushed some hair behind her ear as she continued on. The brisk traveling was continually relaxing even though she was about an hour into it. Just then, the console on her wrist vibrated and sounded.
"Data Received."
Samus rubbed some water out of her eyes and raised her left hand to her face to read the notification.
[Two unknown objects have penetrated Equis atmosphere and descended upon the Everfree. Scanners detect a landing within a mile of your ship.]
Samus pursed her lips and dismissed the notification, bringing her rifle to a semi-passive aiming stance and continuing onward.
Their arrival is a bit sooner than I expected. Thought it would take them a week to get organized.
The Hunter stopped for a second to ensure her equipment was secured tightly to her back before she took off into a brisk run, performing acrobatics through the natural forest obstacles that only one with years of experience could muster: Bounding over downed trees, kicking off of other tree trunks and somersaulting over other obstacles… using nature to her advantage. After another three-quarter of a mile, Samus came out of a roll in a battle ready stance, her eyes trained down the sights of her rifle, just in case something was waiting for her. She calmed her breathing, using the rain to help her cool off. The water accumulated on her Zero Suit and easily slid off to the ground as the Hunter briskly walked with her rifle up, barely making a sound and using the heavier rain to mask her movements.
Checking her wrist console, she was about a quarter of a mile away from her ship, and that's when things got a bit tenser. She stopped for a minute to hunker down and catch her breath. In her experience, she always thought it was best to assume that she was being watched the entirety of her journeys. Whether it be when she was being stalked by Chozo Ghosts while exploring shrines on Tallon IV or being trailed by the Ing and Dark Samus when walking through Dark Aether, she was better off ensuring a low profile no matter what… as low of a profile as a colored-armored bounty hunter could keep.
Things were going as planned… until Samus heard something move and break about a hundred feet from her. Her hair stood up on the back of her neck and she kept low, keeping her rifle at the ready.
Samus moved while low, hearing a few twigs snapping and leaves rustling in the near distance. She knew exactly what was out there; even more so when she heard the distinct communication between the entities traversing the Everfree near her position. She pulled the charging handle on her rifle and continued on, not favoring a confrontation right now.
Samus continued on, even with the noise in the background. The rain couldn't hope to drown out the footsteps and constant 'talking' between her adversaries. They were getting close to her now; there was no denying that, even as she was moving forward. As she moved silently, she accidentally stepped on a twig. Samus immediately dropped prone on the wet, grassy forest floor as a growl resounded, as if something was alerted to a presence. After a few tense moments of silence and the white noise of the rain, the interest of her aggressor died out.
Great… just great.
Samus was barely an eighth of a mile from her ship and she couldn't move without risking getting attacked, and she had barely a smidgeon of an idea where her enemies were. Samus would think she knew the direction, but then another grunt, growl, or however they communicated would sound elsewhere. Samus could effectively consider herself surrounded.
After chatter seemed to die down and she was sure the rain would mask her movements, Samus placed her rifle in the crevice of her arms and crawled forward, being sure make as little noise as possible. Listening to the chatter around her, her adversaries had moved collectively past her, forward towards her ship. There was a high probability that they could find it if they trekked straight, and if they found her ship despite its radar/signal cloaking, that would complicate things more than they were already.
Samus knew that she would have to confront them now. If they left or radioed back to their command, a whole army could be dispatched; even worse if they found Ponyville or any other area: a fleet. With that in mind, Samus got into a crouching position and moved forward, gently pushing through the rainy brush. After she pulled the largest leaf aside she immediately set it back and dropped low, ensuring she was in a prone position and had ample view of the small clearing.
Samus spied four Pirate Troopers, just as they were from Aether, closely conversing with one another. Since she didn't have her helmet on, she couldn't translate what they were saying, but she could gather from their body movements, such as pointing and surveying with their arms, that they were most likely talking about exploring towards her ship. Immediately after that, another figure stepped in through the brush: A Pirate Commando.
Most likely the Squad Leader.
Samus moved her rifle to her face, aiming down the sight at the Pirate Commando as she lay prone. As she waited for an opportune moment to strike, Samus began thinking about the specifics right now. The Pirates had some armor, albeit nothing that would really hinder her abilities with her weapon. It tended to be weaker on their backs, especially in the case of the Pirate Commando. Samus decided to attack when the Commando turned around. If he didn't, then she'd think of something else. Samus's gaze turned steely and resolved as she moved her eye back to the sights. This had to be done right. If things went south and she was forced into melee combat, it would prove more dangerous without her Suit. As augmented by Chozo DNA as she was, her human body still had its limitations.
Come on, you bastard… turn around…
After another tense minute of waiting, the Pirate Commando turned around and gestured to the forest while speaking to his subordinates.
One firm squeeze of her trigger later, six rounds from her rifle found their way trailing up the back of the Commando and out his chest. He cried out in agony before dropping on his front. The four pirate troopers immediately turned to random directions, not seeing where the shots came from as they were also turned, and began firing into the forest. When one of the Pirates turned in her direction, Samus put several rounds in his chest and neck. He fell backwards clutching his wounds. The Hunter used this time to roll to the side and take up cover next to a tree. The rain was also doing well to obscure her presence.
A random shot from one of the Pirate's Accelerator Cannons singed the bark of the tree Samus was using to take cover. She recoiled slightly before turning her cover and returning fire. One of the other pirates managed to find where the bolts were coming from and notified the other two. Samus shot him next. The remaining two Pirates immediately scurried to cover behind some trees, obscuring their view from the Hunter.
Samus's breathing increased as she checked her ammo, ensuring a plentiful supply. She gingerly peeked out from behind the cover, seeing nothing but the forest and the heavy rain.
*BLAM*
Samus ducked behind cover immediately as the tree bark right next to her face exploded. She was unharmed, but the backside of the tree took about seven rounds of Accelerator Cannon fire. Samus leaned out the other side and let loose her own barrage, courtesy of the GFMC. She ducked behind cover and made a mad dash for the next few trees. After a few iconic screeches and growls from the Pirates, they began to track her. Samus was disappearing behind numerous trees as enemy fire trailed her path. Samus did her best to return fire on the move. She eventually ceased fire as she sprinted forward, hopefully losing her chasers as crossfire thinned out to nothing.
Where the hell's my goddamn sh—AH!
Two Pirate Troopers broke through the brush in her path. Samus instinctually shed her duffel bag-turned-backpack, dropping it, and went into a roll in between the two troops before coming out of it and sweeping her leg out to her right, taking the right-most Pirate off of his legs. Looking over her shoulder, Samus parried her assault rifle with the second Trooper's energy scythe and kneed him in the stomach. The Hunter lowered her assault rifle to fire but her ankles were grabbed and yanked out from under her by the downed Pirate as she pulled the trigger, forcing her to the ground in a face plant as her gun fired wildly. She immediately shrugged off the vertigo, kicked backwards, and rolled her body to the left just in time to avoid being stabbed in the gut by another scythe. She quickly flipped up to her feet and found herself face-to-face with the barrel of an Accelerator Cannon. Screaming out in exertion, she swung her rifle forward and knocked the barrel out of her face by pure adrenaline and used the sideways momentum to initiate a roll. Coming out of it, she aimed and sprayed rounds out of her rifle at the two Pirates point blank. The lead one took about twelve rounds to the chest and collapsed lifelessly. The second one was only lightly wounded and swiftly knocked the rifle out of Samus's grip.
The millisecond time of being stunned allowed the remaining Pirate to back-hand her across the face with his arm-cannon, sending her flying off of her feet and hitting the ground hard. Fortunately, she landed with her rifle; unfortunately, her chest collided with it when she hit the ground. Samus gritted her teeth and rolled out to the side, rifle in hand, just in time as her Zero Suit was singed with several beam attacks from the Pirate. She rolled onto her back, rifle aimed outward, and squeezed the trigger. The Pirate was right on top of her when she fired her weapon and she only managed to score another two hits into his outstretched cannon, disabling it and lightly injuring the Pirate himself, much to his enormous frustration.
With a quick execution out of the question now, the Pirate Trooper brought his fist in for a devastating punch, only for Samus to deflect it into the ground. She used the opening to circle his head with her legs and constrict his neck, forcing him backwards as she angled her body backwards towards the ground. The two hit the ground hard, Samus having the upper hand, and she quickly righted herself on her feet and stepped harshly on the Pirate's arm that had the scythe, fracturing it. The Trooper screamed out in agony as Samus ripped the scythe from his arm. She was forced off as the Pirate shakily got to his feet; Samus now having the melee weapon attached to her own arm. Hearing some activity beyond the rain in the distance, Samus realized she didn't have much time before the rest of the pirate forces in the area closed in on her. This battle dragged on longer than it should have.
Samus caught her breath quickly while the Pirate gave one last attempt to start his damaged cannon up. The Hunter dashed forward with frightening speed and slashed upward with great force. The would-be death blow was parried skillfully by the wounded Trooper and he landed a solid punch to Samus's side. She recoiled at the nigh-direct kidney shot and the Pirate advanced on her, bloodlust and revenge in his eyes. He played directly into her plan when he went in for the side-kick. Samus expertly contorted sideways and cleared the channel, bringing her scythe-clad arm up and cutting a nice swath through the Pirate's back-side, before twisting once more with great finesse and plunging the blade through is back and out his chest. The Pirate gave a loud roar of anguish before Samus yanked the blade out, allowing the Pirate to collapse on the soggy ground and ending the brutal melee confrontation.
Samus didn't risk staying to catch her breath as she sprinted forward, grabbing her rifle and duffel bag off the ground and hauling ass towards her ship. Listening through the rain behind her, the other two remaining Pirates (and possibly more) that she had lost the first time around had managed to track her previous position. Seeing her sprinting away, they fired after her with little success due to the trees and other foliage. Samus lifted her arm backward once to return fire, which expended the ammunition in the rifle.
"Damn…" Samus muttered to herself, still somewhat out of breath. She grunted in exertion and somersaulted over another large sump, which turned out to be higher than the ground in front of it. Samus landed in a hunched position and used the small hill to hunker down for a moment. The Hunter pressed a release on her rifle and tossed away an old ammo core, inserting a new one that was stored in her holster. The barrel lit up once in acceptance of the new ammunition supply and Samus pulled the charging handle; sprinting up from her position and dashing through the remaining foliage.
[Space Pirate forces closing in on your position.]
Right as her console notified her, a familiar arc of trees came into view and once she passed that, her ship lay in perfect condition. Samus got a sprinting start and launched herself upwards. The ship sensed Samus without any aid of her suit and distorted the gravity around it, letting her complete her spin-jump and land perfectly on the elevator, which promptly lowered her inside.
Had Samus not had a small force of Space Pirates inevitably surrounding her ship within the next minute, she would have collapsed for two to catch her breath. There was no time.
"Command! Auto-defenses online!" Samus shouted as she dumped the damaged pieces of her Varia Suit in the rear storage area where it was assembled on her body. The anti-gravity pad accepted it immediately.
"Command Confirmed. Auto-defenses active. Space Pirate Troops have breached clearing perimeter," her ship's computer sounded out and beam weapon fire immediately erupted from her ship's guns. Samus could hear Pirate beam weapons being deflected off of the ship's energy shielding as they were being either cut down or suppressed by her gunship's mighty weapons… literal definitions of the word "cannon."
Samus watched impatiently as the pieces of her suit were suspended in the anti-gravity and the tools went to work. The Chozo technology was working fast to repair all the damage, using the work of lasers and other forms of energy that the Varia Suit would readily accept for repair process. Ten seconds turned into thirty, which turned into two minutes. The battle was still raging outside and her suit was nearly complete and ready for donning and alignment. Samus felt like it had been an hour before all the cracks, singes, dents, and what not were fully repaired with no sign of any battle on them. She immediately stepped into the anti-gravity and let herself be suspended. The process soon repeated itself from when she first donned the suit on Equis as it realigned and fitted itself to her body. Not soon enough for her, the Varia Suit was fully functional. Samus was lowered to the ground with a familiar 'clink' in her step and she grabbed her helmet, forcing it on her head with the resounding 'hiss' and checking her ammo and energy.
[Rebooting…]
[Varia Suit Online]
[Performing System Diagnostic]
.
.
"Come on!"
.
[Morph Ball Systems Online]
[Space Jump Boosters Online]
[Speed Booster Online]
[Screw Attack Online]
[Grapple Beam Online]
[Kinesis Beam Online]
[Visor Systems Online]
[Arm Cannon: Error! Error! Weapon Systems Missing or Corrupted: Wave Beam/Plasma Beam/Ice Beam/Missile Launcher cannot be located. Reverting default schematics]
.
"That's just GREAT!"
.
[Power Beam Online]
[Charge Beam Online]
[Varia Suit Functioning to Battle Ready Capacity]
Samus dismissed the onslaught of notifications and made sure her HUD booted up correctly and quickly made her way to the top of her ship. She aimed her cannon out to attack as her ship's guns continued their defense. To add to everything, the rain refused to let up. There was even a flash of lightning in the distance.
[Remainder of Space Pirate Expeditionary Force in the landing area.]
That was the first good news Samus heard today. Her scanners had picked up that the Space Pirates that landed were a recon force, thus few in number. Samus bounded off her ship and proceeded towards the nearest suppressed Pirates, who were firing back to no avail. Samus let off an onslaught of power beam rounds towards their cover before running and bounding over, meeting three Pirate Troopers hunched up low behind some angled trees.
"The Hunter is here!" one of them shouted in surprise, Samus now being able to understand the Pirate's communication with her helmet's translator.
They turned at the same time and Samus decided to use her new abilities right at that moment. She activated her Kinesis and forced the head of one of the Pirates to collide harshly into the tree. She lifted her Cannon and unleashed five rounds into the chest and abdomen of the second Pirate at nigh-point blank range, dropping him. She grabbed the first Pirate's body with her Kinesis and (to the best of her ability) shoved him into the third Pirate as he attempted to fire on Samus. He shoved his comrade aside and went in close and personal. Not hindered by her lack of Varia Suit in melee combat, Samus easily parried his scythe with her arm cannon and, with the strength bonus of the Suit, socked him with a left hook square in his cheek. The Pirate stumbled and dropped to the ground in an enormous daze. Samus aimed her cannon down and finished the job with three well-placed rounds from her power beam. The first Pirate began to stir and the Hunter gave him a swift and enormous kick in the neck, ending him.
Samus took an Accelerator Cannon shot to her pauldron and she immediately took cover. With her ship's auto cannons firing once more, Samus charged her beam and aimed to where four Pirates were entrenched, one of them being a Commando. She quickly aimed towards him as he moved to take a shot at the Hunter and released the charged beam. It struck his exposed head with pinpoint accuracy and high velocity, the impact carrying his body backwards several feet. He was dead as soon as the charged shot slammed into his cranium, and Samus was a tad surprised that it didn't rip his head off entirely.
One of the remaining three Pirates attempted to return fire and was subsequently decimated by Samus's ship as he exposed his torso out of cover, suppressing the now two remaining Pirates. Samus used the opportunity and bounded out of cover. She began sprinting towards their cover, cutting a chord through the circular forest clearing. Soon, her speed increased enormously and her suit enveloped itself in a bright light as her sprint nearly quintupled in speed. She slammed into the enemy cover and directly into one of the Pirates pauldron-first, taking him with her as she slammed him into another tree with enormous velocity right before deactivating the speed boost. The Pirate never saw it coming and he was dead on impact. Samus immediately dove into a roll but didn't walk away with anything less than three shots to her side from the lone remaining Pirate. Her energy shielding protected her well.
"You'll receive more where that came from, Hunter!"
Remaining in cover, she activated her Kinesis on a fair-sized, downed branch and slammed it into the Pirate's face as he wandered close and out of the ship's targeting zone. He doubled back in pain if his anguish-ridden growls were anything to go by.
"AHH!"
Samus ducked out of cover and unleashed a small torrent from her cannon. The Pirate convulsed as each round struck his torso and he fell backwards, dead.
Samus checked her energy reserves. She had sustained some damage but nothing she couldn't take care of. Scans indicated that this was the last of the Pirate recon force, and since their Command wasn't going to hear from them any time soon, that meant that Samus as well as Equis could expect more of them, and soon.
She strolled back to her ship and restored her energy before composing a message to the Federation High Command.
[Compose New]
[A Space Pirate reconnaissance force had landed on Equis. I dispatched them with haste but they will certainly return. Requesting orders as well as the original supply…]
*BLAM!*
A loud thud echoed outside of the ship, as if something made impact, and Samus quickly went outside to investigate. She found a medium sized metal crate that had a parachute attached to it.
Well… there's the drop.
Samus kicked the GFMC insignia-adorned top off the crate and peered inside. She quickly removed the object before it could get wet and found it to be…
"Hey a Missile Launcher!" she exclaimed, a bit happy to have it replaced on her arm cannon. But wait… that meant that…
"They were gonna send me a useless missile launcher when I already had one?!"
Samus huffed in annoyance. It wasn't like she could complain anyways. It was merely irony at its finest. The Hunter promptly installed the Missile Launcher and replenished its ammunition. As she entered her ship once more to complete the message to High Command, Samus felt a tingling in her head… it was like her brain was itching…
Wait what?
A small huff of amusement sounded through Samus's mind. She was definitely feeling weird now.
"Relax, Samus. It's Luna. I was merely inquiring on your progress in repairing your Suit?"
"It's done, and I ran into some complications in the Everfree which we all need to discuss. Although being honest, I'm not so sure I'm comfortable having you in my mind," Samus commented.
"It is not a permanent thing. It is only for communication purposes only and I cannot read your thoughts unless you explicitly state them in your mind," Luna explained. "And what were these 'complications' you spoke of?"
"I ran into a Space Pirate Expeditionary Force. I dealt with them swiftly and there are no survivors, but they're going to come back and with much greater force."
"… I see. Do what you must back at your ship and make haste to Ponyville. We will discuss everything in the presence of Celestia, me, and the Elements as well as Military Leaders. As well, a new development has been made in the case of potential Phazon spreading," Luna added. Samus nodded to herself.
"Alright. I'm heading back now."
"See you then."
The connection in her mind was cut and Samus checked her suits energy and ammunition one more time before finishing the message to High Command and heading back to Ponyville. With the Space Pirates landing so soon, things were taking a turn for the worse sooner than expected. Samus really had no idea when she could expect Pirate reinforcements to arrive but what was certain was that if things got out of control, she'd have to request direct intervention by the Galactic Federation.
Equis could potentially turn into an enormous battleground, Phazon was spreading faster by unknown means, she had too much to learn with her new magical abilities…
…and the stoic-gazed, blue-eyed hunter was not liking the scenario one bit.