//------------------------------// // Aether: Addicted to Bloodlust // Story: Another Hatchling // by Tatsurou //------------------------------// Everyone listening stared in shock. "What?" Twilight gasped out finally. "Spike was...possessed by the Emperor Ing?" "Yeah," Spike sighed, looking away. "I was..." Samus put her hand on his shoulder. "Spike, for the last time, it wasn't your fault-" "Yes it was!" Spike barked out. "Every time I ate an Ing, they tried to possess me, and I was barely able to fight it off each time...and when the Emperor Ing infused itself into me, the residuals from all previous Ing I'd eaten surged out to meet him, overwhelming me! If I hadn't been eating everything in sight, I would have been able to fight off the Emperor Ing, and we wouldn't have had to fight! None of that would have happened!" Samus was silent for a time, at a loss for words as everyone stared. "You had no way of knowing that, young warrior," Luna spoke up. "You couldn't have known that the corruptive darkness you consumed would be cumulative. And even if not, this Emperor Ing was a powerful, ruthless being...much like the inner dragon you could just barely control at that time. For all you know, he would have overwhelmed you even without the aid of his soldiers remnants in your systems." "And if you'd resisted him longer, Samus might not have had time to beat you and get you both out of Dark Aether before the planet went boom!" Pinkie Pie pointed out. "She said the planet was gonna blow in 20 minutes. That's not a lot of time to fight a super powered giant dark dragon and get to an escape portal." "That's a valid point," Samus indicated. "Even with the Ing you'd eaten, it took two minutes for the Emperor to fully transform and control you, and ten minutes to fight you." Spike listened to their words - and the hugs the other ponies had started giving him - and managed a smile. "Logic doesn't make the guilt go away," he pointed out. "Preach it," Luna and Discord both muttered under their breaths, getting surprise hugs from Celestia and Fluttershy respectively. "So...we know you won and saved him, since he's here," Scootaloo pointed out. "So how'd you do it?" Chuckling, Samus picked up her mug for some more juice to wet her mouth. "Well..." Samus staggered backward as Spike's body transformed, expanding until it was even bigger than it had been when he'd fought Ridley back on Tallon IV. His scales darkened from purple to black, and the green of his underbelly turned as red as his eyes had become. Spikes sprouted along his back, arms, legs, and tail. The armor darkened as well, mimicking his color scheme as it grew with him. As he rose up, Samus quickly scanned what he had become. Recording to Logbook Dark Spike Spike has become possessed by the Emperor Ing, which has put him through a Darkling transformation. His draconic nature is now unleashed full force, making him an extreme threat. Capable of firing intense blasts of flame and darkness from his mouth. His claws are now sharp enough to punch through ship hull plating, and his strength exceeds any capacity to accurately measure. His body generates an aura of dark energy 30x as intense as that of Dark Aether's atmosphere, extending one foot around his body. This aura will rapidly eat through the Light Suit's defensive energy fields, and then the alloy of the armor itself. Avoid direct contact if at all possible. No vulnerable points detected. Dark Spike is able to reenergize himself from the Phazon in the area and the atmosphere of Dark Aether...or by consuming one of the lesser Ing that will come at his summons. Deep scans indicate that, while the possession is complete, the residue of the Emperor Ing is not fully anchored in Dark Spike. Theoretically, a strong enough burst of Light Energy could potentially force the Emperor Ing to evacuate its host, freeing Spike from his control. Then that's a plan, Samus thought silently, leaping to the side as Spike's tail lashed out at her, the now bladed tip nearly cutting her in half. Now, how am I supposed to get enough Light Energy into him to push the Emperor Ing out? She set her suit to calculations. Eventually, her on board computer beeped. Required Light Energy infusion calculated. Approximately 12 Sunbursts fired simultaneously will suffice. "Dammit!" Samus snarled. Even with every upgrade she could scavenge, she only had 250 Light Ammo, only enough for 8 Sunbursts before she was out of ammo. Her momentary distraction was enough for Spike to catch her off guard with a blast of dark energy from his mouth, slamming her back into the Phazon that edged the chamber. She struggled out, checking the damage. 450 units of energy depleted. She swore under her breath. That was nearly a third of her total energy shielding. Can't keep trying and hoping, she thought to herself. Gotta go for broke. Seeing that Dark Spike was taking a moment to laugh at her helplessness, she called up her suit settings. -Arm Cannon Settings -Power Beam -Light Beam -Dark Beam -Annihilator Beam [X]Charge Beam -Charge Combo -Disable Charge Limiter? [X]Yes [ ]No Warning: Overcharging can result in damage to Arm Cannon, Suit, and person! Confirm Disable? [X]Yes [ ]No ...Charge Limiter Disabled. Overcharge Combos available. With the systems changed, she switched to her Light Beam and began to charge. Dark Spike renewed his assault, but she managed to evade most of the attacks as she charged her weapon. Three minutes into the charge - when her suit started giving her warning signs about the likely damage she would take from discharging it - Dark Spike roared, summoning several Warrior and Hunter Ing to back him up. The added assault proved even more difficult for Samus to evade, and she took several bad hits as she continued to charge her weapon. Thankfully, the Ing were single minded in their attack, and they couldn't survive in the Phazon around the edges of the chamber, which Samus was quite happy to lead them into. When her suit alerted her to there being ten minutes left until the planet exploded, she received another alert from her arm cannon. Overcharge at Maximum. Super Sunburst will use 250 Light Ammo and 255 missiles. Warning: Chance of damaging Arm Cannon 250% Warning: Chance of damaging suit 150% Warning: Chance of internal injuries 99% Warning: Chance of death from firing 50% "I'm only going to get one shot then," she muttered under her breath, ducking around the Ing as she charged Dark Spike. He lashed at her with claws and tail, but she was able to leap just as he opened his mouth to hit her with fire. "Get out of my son!" she roared, shoving her Arm Cannon down the beast's throat and releasing, firing the blast. She let out a scream of pain as the recoil from the massive burst of light energy sent her flying back against the wall to sink into Phazon. She was barely able to roll out of it, her body screaming in agony. As she lay there, gasping for breath against the pain in her body, her suit gave her a report of the damages. Arm Cannon Destroyed. Light Suit damaged beyond repair. All Energy Tanks damaged beyond repair. Seven cracked ribs, one broken rib. All bones in right arm broken. Bones in right hand shattered. Rebooting Suit defaults in attempt to stabilize life signs... Reboot successful. Varia Suit Online. Morph Ball Online. Morph Ball Bombs Online. Power Beam Online but unavailable. Replace Arm Cannon at next opportunity. Charge Beam Online but unavailable. Energy Transfer Module undamaged. All other systems lost. Suit has engaged paralytic functions on right arm to prevent further damage. "Well, that fucking sucks," Samus gasped out, coughing and staring at the red stain on the inside of her face plate. "Great..." Warning: Dark Aether atmosphere draining suit energy rapidly. Locate safe zone immediately. So this is how it ends... Samus thought to herself. Suddenly, light surrounded her. Safe Zone entered. "What?" Samus asked, looking up in shock. Standing above her was Spike...but he had changed again. His overall body shape and size was the same as Dark Spike, but his coloration was white and gold, with his eyes glowing white. At the end of each spike on his back and shoulders was a Luminoth crystal, growing from his flesh, making his entire body generate a safe zone. Samus could only stare as her suit scanned him. Updated to Logbook Light Spike With the Emperor Ing purged from Spike's body, he has absorbed and metabolized the massive surge of Light Energy, taking it into his body. Crystals have grown from his body with properties identical to Luminoth Crystals, generating a safe zone from his entire body. He appears to have complete control of himself, though his vocal chords are presently non-functional. His breath now has properties of the Annihilator Beam, being a mix of Light and Dark Energy, while also being compatible with Phazon energies if absorbed. Samus could only stare in amazement as Spike gently lifted her onto his back before blasting the floor apart beneath them, spreading six feathery wings to slow his fall to the ground. Everyone listening was staring in awe. "Wow..." Celestia finally said, the first to break the silence. "Yeah," Spike muttered, scratching the back of his head. "It was pretty impressive...I guess." "Can...can ya still take that form?" Applejack asked curiously. "No idea. Haven't tried since. And...I'd rather not unless I have to." "Given what happened next, understandable," Samus agreed. As all eyes turned to her once more, she continued the story. As Spike landed gently as a feather, he turned to force his way through the rest of Dark Aether to the nearest portal, only to find his path blocked by a rapidly growing wall of Phazon. Turning, both he and Samus caught sight of Dark Samus...but it had changed. Its body was now a translucent blue, though still the same shape. Inside, however, the nucleus of Metroid Prime was plainly visible, having reshaped itself to resemble Samus somewhat. As it lunged forward to attack, Spike lunged in first, seizing hold of the creature and slamming it to the ground. Spreading his wings, he began circling the area, dragging Dark Samus against the wall behind him. As he continued to use massive brute force against the creature, Samus couldn't help but wonder, Is this what it's like from Ridley's perspective when he's fighting me? "Seriously?" Spike asked sardonically. "Perspective only, not personality," Samus was quick to point out as the listeners giggled. After a time and heavy damage received, Dark Samus released a wave of Phazon, breaking free of Spike's grip as it proceeded to attack with waves and rains of Phazon energy. Samus' scans revealed that in this form, Dark Samus was only vulnerable to Phazon based weaponry. Spike, however, was way ahead of her. Taking a huge mouthful of Phazon from the wall, he chewed for a time before exhaling a blast of pure Phazon energy, tearing Dark Samus apart on the molecular level. In the aftermath of the battle, Samus checked her readouts. "Spike!" she shouted. "Two minutes until the planet explodes!" As Spike turned to flee, an endless wave of Ing swarmed in, blocking his path from all sides and above, all plainly seeking to destroy Samus and release the planetary energy, which would stop the planetary collapse. However, the destruction of Dark Samus had caused an unexpected reaction. A wall of Phazon had collapsed, revealing an active portal to Aether. However, the hordes of Ing were between them and the portal. "We'll make it Spike," Samus whispered reassuringly. "We've got...sixty seconds. Plenty of time. Plenty of time..." Spike, however, apparently had other ideas. He obviously knew he couldn't clear a path and make it to the portal in sixty seconds. Lifting Samus off his back, he tore one of the crystal formations from his back and used his breath weapon on it, supercharging it. He then handed it to Samus, sticking it in her left hand. Morph Ball triggered. "What-" Samus was unable to say anymore as she was forced into Morph Ball, the crystal inside with her, surrounding her in the supercharged safe zone. Before Samus could react, Spike had hurled her like a missile through the portal. The last thing she heard was Spike releasing his breath attack. When Samus unrolled from Morph Ball on the other side, actually caught by U-Mos, the first thing she saw was the portal she just came through exploding. "What happened?" she asked. "Someone destroyed the portal from the other side," U-Mos explained. "But Spike's still over there!" Samus shouted, clutching the crystal. U-Mos stared impassively, the very air around him palpable with the force of sudden grief. "Then he has chosen to die for our world..."