Metroid Equis II: Duality

by Flammenwerfer

6. Set in Motion

 
“Ummm… what exactly do you want me to do?” the Federation technician asked Samus, rubbing the back of his head. His lab coat was draped over his shoulders, revealing a plain-gray undershirt. Opposite him, Samus stood before the console, armored up save for her helmet, which lay next to her on the end of the desk. The Huntress’ arm cannon was connected to the console by a tangle of interface cables, linking the two systems.
 
“A lot of the weapons I have on me right now have too much capability to cause collateral damage should I need to use them. The Federation data they sent while I was on the BSL didn’t let me switch between beams; all of them were always on. I need that switching ability back. Save for the suit itself and a few other miscellaneous systems, everything should be Federation code. Think you can do it?” Samus cocked her head, frowning slightly as she considered what she asked. Up to this point, at the start of each mission, fate willed to deprive her of the equipment she had amassed over her prior mission. This would be the first time she sought a downgrade herself, and the irony of the reversal was not lost on her.
 
She had deliberated on this for about a week, but came to the decision that, since she was not alone anymore, she had to be much more careful about the possibility of collateral damage and civilian casualties, should she have to actually use her weaponry on the ground again. For example, her Diffusion Missiles with their enormous area of effect were not something Samus would want to use in a potentially populated area. By the same token, the Federation variants of her Plasma and Wave beams, with their properties of piercing enemy and structure alike, would render her ineffective around others. This, Samus reflected, was not even considering the Wide Beam rendering her incapable of precision fire.
 
In short, it all needed to go.
 
The technician blinked. “Uhhh, yeah! I think so, if you say it’s all Federation code. L-Lemme take a look,” the scruffy-haired tech replied, turning his attention to the monitor and tapping away at the keyboard, bringing up a code interface that displayed line after line of jargon which would be meaningless to the average person or pony. After a moment, the console beeped. “Would ya look at that…”
 
“Well?”
 
“It’s all Objective-F code. I can read this in my sleep,” the technician confirmed happily, scrolling through the code controlling Samus’ cannon functions. “…well, up to a certain point,” he admitted, scrolling further. “The lines after this point seem to be garbled… I don’t even think it’s English-based anymore.”
 
“Then that’s where the Chozo base software code begins. I’m gonna need you to start deleting the sections of F code one by one, because there’s some stuff I wanna keep,” Samus instructed with a nod. The slightly nervous tech pushed his glasses back and nodded in understanding.
 
“Okay. Let’s see ummm… under the weapons section, I’m looking at some code for ‘Diffusion Missiles.’”
 
“Take that out. Too dangerous in a crowded area,” Samus said, shaking her head. Her helper typed a few things before pressing the delete key, perhaps over-dramatically.
 
“Alright. Next is….jeez you weren’t kidding. This is just a single chunk of weapons code. Uh…” he commented as he leaned in, scrolling slowly through the display. “First up, wave and plasma beams. You want to keep them?” the tech asked, turning briefly back to her. Samus caught sight of an ID tag reading ‘Johnson’ swinging from his coat pocket. “Oh! Also, I’m reading an ‘Ice Beam.’”
 
“Let’s keep the Ice Beam for now… as for the others, take them out.” Samus shook her head. “Too high of a probability of somepony getting hurt; the Wave Beam goes through solid objects and the Plasma Beam can hit multiple people,” Samus explained. Johnson went right to work as he nodded, running a hand through his scruffy hair.
 
“Okay, I can do that. ...Now I’m seeing some code designated ‘Wide Beam.’ How ‘bout it?”
 
“Delete it, please. Don’t have a use for it anymore,” Samus affirmed. A few keystrokes and the code of her systems was again altered. “Also, the Charge Beam should be stacked with my standard Power Beam. Think you can decouple them into separate entities? Can you also do that to my Power and Ice Beams?”
 
“I think I can do that…” Johnson answered, flexing his fingers as he warms to his task. After a few more keystrokes and growing tension from the Huntress, he pressed the ‘Enter’ key. “Done.”
 
“Awesome. Under the Missiles section, what should be left is both Ice Missiles and Super Missiles. I want the Ice Missiles gone and the Super Missile ability decoupled from the regular missiles,” Samus instructed once more. She wished to control when and when not to use Super Missiles, citing principles of overkill and overall precision.

“Ummm… Yeah, yeah I see them. This might take a tad longer though, gimme a few minutes to work,” Johnson said, setting off to tackle Samus’ request diligently. The Hunter silently nodded and stood idly as she awaited the results, glancing around at the massive research lab that Princess Luna had built under the castle. It looked identical to just about every other research lab she’d ever been in, and only the presence of Equestrian personnel and the necessary concessions for pony anatomy highlighted the fact that she was not, in fact, on a Federation installation. In fact, looking around, Johnson was the only human in sight at the moment. Samus wasn’t sure what research this lab focused on, but given that this installation fell under Luna’s purview, it was more likely to be weapons research and development.
 
Samus’ musings were interrupted when her wrist console began pinging insistently, the pattern of the signal indicating that someone was trying to reach her directly. Samus could count on one hand the number of beings who had her direct line, and so she had no issues with plucking her helmet off of the table and jamming it right onto her head. When she answered the call, the window sprang open to reveal the anxious yet eager face of Twilight Sparkle.
 
“Hi, Twilight,” Samus greeted in her usual manner. The alicorn’s visage brightened visibly when she caught sight of the Hunter’s face.
 
“Samus! I thought you were going to the beach with us, where are you?” she asked worriedly. Behind her, Samus could hear the muted noise of the girls and Spike hurriedly packing their belongings for such a trip.
 
“I told you I had to go to Canterlot to get my suit worked on,” Samus reminded her. “I’m still gonna tag along, though, so don’t worry. Should be done here in...what, half an hour, I’d say?” she asked, turning her head to meet Johnson’s inquisitive gaze with her own. The tech paused, then nodded. “Yeah, I’ll come home in half an hour.”
 
“Actually…” Twilight thoughtfully began, tapping her hoof to her chin. “The transport we’re taking passes through the Canterlot Transit Hub on its way; you’re in the city already, want to just meet us there?” she suggested. Samus paused, reflecting for a moment. Canterlot’s transport hub, formerly the Canterlot rail station and now expanded to accommodate all manner of cargo and passenger transport vessels, was, as she had learned, not a fifteen-minute walk from the castle proper.
 
“Sounds like a plan. Send me the transport information and I’ll buy a ticket,” Samus agreedwith a gentle smirk. Twilight nodded and fired up her magic to aid in multitasking on her tablet.
 
“Done. Transmitting now. Oh, and Samus?”
 
“Yeah?”
 
“That’s the first time I’ve heard you call the Library ‘home,’” the lavender alicorn said, smiling smugly yet endearingly at the woman. Once the meaning of those words unpacked itself in Samus’ mind, the Hunter understood that she, indeed, subconsciously referred to it as such… something she was okay with, and relayed that fact with a well-humored huff and a soft smile.
 
“Which means…” Twilight continued. “…you really don’t have to keep paying rent, like... seriously.”
 
“Not a chance in hell, Twilight,” Samus replied immediately, moving her left hand to the side of her visor. “I’ll see you all in about forty-five minutes.”
 
“UGH! Damn it, Samus! See you soon.” Twilight acquiesced with good-natured exasperation and Samus ended the call while chuckling audibly. The grin plastered on her face and the warm feeling inside her took a little longer to fade. It had been about a month since she had set foot in Equestria again, and it was every bit as good as she left it. Everything was just perfect for her right now, especially since she had fallen into the same routines… as if she had not even left in the first place. Samus underestimated it before, but there was an indescribable, pleasant feeling that flowed freely through her body and mind at the thought of the word ‘home’; one she hoped to never have to part with again.
 
“Done!” Johnson shouted out, clapping his hands together in accomplishment and startling Samus out of her reverie. “Alright, you’ve got your Power Beam and Ice Beam, Charge Beam is now a separate ability, Missiles and Super Missiles are separate, and… I think that’s all we did so far. Was there anything else?”
 
“Okay, ummm,” Samus thought to herself, pulling her helmet back off and dropping it on the table with a bang, cupping her chin in her now-free hand “Let’s leave the actual suit abilities alone… I don’t think I wanna mess with those and frankly, I like what I have. Let’s keep the Speed Booster, the Morph Ball and all of its subsystems… I need a Grapple Beam but I’ll figure something out, I don’t think one can code that into existence.”
 
“So, whaddya think?” Johnson asked. “If that’s it, then I’ll deploy the changes. Of course, once I do, there’s no way to revert them. So, I’ll ask as a matter of formality: are you sure you want to do this?” he asked, his finger hovering above the enter button. Without even a moment’s hesitation, Samus nodded tersely.
 
“Do it.”
 
“Deploying.”
 
Samus slipped her helmet back on and, as expected, Samus’ suit responded immediately.
 

 
[Firmware update in progress…Please do not turn off your Power Suit.]
 

Heh.
 
At that point, all Samus could do was twiddle her thumbs and drum her fingers on her cannon as the changes were made, a window with a progress bar right in the center of her visor. Johnson watched a mirrored version of this deployment process on his console, and after what seemed like half an hour of awkward silence, the system beeped and went black.
 
“Alright, it looks like we’re finished,” he notified her. “The code is definitely much more Chozo than it is Federation.”
 
As he spoke, Samus’ systems completed its own installation of the revised coding and were quick to tell her.
 
“Looks like it. My suit’s going into diagnostic mode. Gimme a second.”
 

 
[Firmware revision complete. Main Power Restored. Multiple abilities have been lost. System Check Initiated…]
 
[Chozo Battle Suit Ver >>ERROR: MODEL UNKNOWN<<]

[Main computer: Online]

[Targeting System: Active]

[Arm Cannon: Active]

[>Beginning arm cannon diagnostic…]

[>Power: …… [OK] ]
[>Charge: ….. [OK] ]
[>Ice: ……….. [OK] ]

[>Fire Governor Status: Enabled (Recommended)]

[Armor: Engaged]

[Morph Ball: Engaged]

[>Beginning Morph Ball subsystem diagnostic…]

[>Morph Ball Bomb: Online]

[>Power Bomb: Online]

[>Spring Ball: Online]

[>Boost Ball: Online]

[HUD Suite: Online]

[Visors:]

[>Combat ….. [OK] ]
[>Scan: …….. [OK] ]
[>Thermal: …. [OK] ]
[>X-Ray: …… [OK] ]

[Missile Launcher: Engaged]

[>Super Missile: Online]

[Ammunition Module: Deployed]

[Speed Booster: Online]
 
[Space Jump Boots: Online]
 
[Screw Attack Engine: Online]
 
[Multiple Systems No Longer Present In Codebase…]
 
[All other systems online and functional.]

 
“Mkay,” Samus spoke up again. “Looks like everything took nicely. That’s all I needed, so thank you very much for your help, Mr. Johnson,” Samus said as she began disconnecting the cables from her arm cannon before eventually willing her Suit away in full. She extended her arm to the technician who put up with her, shaking his hand heartily.
 
“My pleasure, Samus. Do seek me out if you need any more software help; that was fun!” he offered, waving her off as the Hunter exited the lab. She seemed to have a barely noticeable, extra pep in her step as the exit doors opened up, revealing Princess Luna standing here patiently in her usual regalia.
 
“All is well?” she asked.
 
“Perfect,” Samus replied happily. “Thanks for letting me borrow your tech for a bit, Luna. I needed to get that done before I felt safe using my weapons again… if I ever needed to in a populated area.”
 
“Certainly, Samus,” Luna replied with a nod. “Johnson is one of our best human coders and technicians that work here. He was perfect for the job when you asked about this particular problem you had. Do come back if you have any issues; I’m sure he would jump at the opportunity to work with your Suit again. Moreover, your concern for the general populace is most appreciated,” Luna added warmly, leading Samus back out into the main castle arteries.
 
“Hey, this place is now my home, after all.” Samus smiled, her face lighting up warmly. “As much as I’d like to, I can’t stay and chat right now; I need to head out to the transport hub. I’m meeting the girls and Spike for a beach trip and I have to buy a ticket.”
 
“Say no more, Samus; I’ll help get you there in time. Come.”
 

 
It was several hours after the end of the duty day, and most of the fleet’s nonessential personnel had left their respective stations. After a particularly grueling training session, a notably-impressed Conway had granted Sam her leave for the rest of the day and the following day for recuperation and leisure. Following her exemplary performance during her hand-to-hand combat training regimen, the admiral had lifted a few more restrictions that had been in place. Notably, this time was the issuance of a restricted Galactic Federation identification. This essentially announced her existence to the ship’s systems, and granted her access to unrestricted locations and information, including more challenging training areas as well as the ship’s armory.
 
Despite a hard day’s work, Sam was not tired in the slightest, and in fact, was quite eager to explore the new areas of the ship she had just been given access to. Clad in her usual white and grey ‘pseudo-Zero Suit,’ she meandered around the two decks of the ship, trotting down major arteries and corridors, merely taking in all the new sights that had been afforded to her.

Sam lost herself for several minutes in one of the ship’s lounges, one hand pressed to the observation pane as she regarded the glittering vista before her. She shook herself, then turned and made her way out of the lounge, making her excuse as she brushed past a trooper on his way in. Glancing left and right, she made the right and headed down another drab, featureless hallway. One door in particular caught her eye; rather, the computers in the adjoining room did. She cocked her head and looked at the sign posted next to the door.

“Computer Lab…”
 
Whenever they both had a spare moment, Eisen took it upon herself to provide Sam with reading material to ensure that her mind received as much of a workout as her body. She took to it immediately, and was always excited to receive new books and other articles from the Commander. Not one to waste an opportunity, Eisen studied and monitored her mental progress, finding that the clone was able to not only retain and process everything she read, but also coherently engage in discussions based on the material. Eisen was quite pleased with this, as was Conway when he was apprised of the situation.
 
Sam stepped into the Computer Lab and let her eyes roam over the long rows of high-powered computers, all the monitors glowing placidly, headphones slung atop them clearly indicating their recreational purpose. There were only a few people in the lab this evening, and Sam decided to take a corner-seat, cautiously planting herself in a chair and running her eyes over the features of the machine. However, they settled on the large monitor, on which floated a simple prompt:
 
[>>Enter GFID<<]
 
Sam blinked a few times in quiet bemusement, but flicked her eyes downward at the keyboard, whereupon she noticed the familiar letters of the alphabet. Another foreign reflex took hold of her, and her hands seemed to settle into position on the typing device, her fingertips resting on the appropriate keys of the home row. Ensuring the machine responded, Sam slowly answered the emotionless request.
 
[SA2-93420-SAM]
 
[Enter]
 
After hitting the enter key, Sam was startled at how quickly the computer responded with another popup window.
 
[This is your first time logging in with this GFID. Please create a password…]
 
Another text box was highlighted and Sam stopped to think for a moment. She understood the concept of a password, but needed a moment to figure one out for herself.
 
[********]

[Please re-enter your password:]

[********]
 
[Enter]
 
[Password accepted.]
 
[Alert! This GFID has been provisionally assigned to you by your superior. Class 3 restrictions are in effect. Access to Level 0 classified information granted. Extranet filters are in effect in accordance with GFR 670-1.]
 
[Authenticating… Applying user settings. This may take a few moments.]
 
As the computer was temporarily indisposed, Sam glanced away from the computer screen. Her eyes fell on a mirror that a careless soldier had left leaning against the next terminal over, reflecting her bright, blue-eyed expression. As she looked at her reflection, she noticed anew something that had long irritated her:
 
These pesky locks…
 
Indeed, there were two vexing bits of hair that fell to frame her face; Sam did not care for them in the slightest. So, with two simple movements, she wove them back into the rest of her hair… only for the locks to fall once more to their original positions. She huffed and pursed her lips in determination, utilizing both of her hands to ensure that these two burdensome pieces of her blonde hair would forever mesh with the rest of her hairstyle. Sam had a stare-down with herself, daring the unruly locks to drop back down. They didn’t, and she smirked victoriously.
 
Turning back to her computer, she noticed that a message had popped up on screen, notifying her that her session had been prepared. Dismissing the notification, Sam was greeted with a standard desktop for a new user, with a host of applications and a rather drab wallpaper featuring the Federation insignia. At this point, she had little idea where to start, the icons completely foreign to her.
 
Then a particular application caught her eye: Encyclopedia.
 
Sam pressed her finger to the icon and was immediately greeted with a wealth of different links on either side of the screen; more prominently, however, there was a large banner which read ‘Get Started!’, along with a few links to popular articles and articles by genre. Under the ‘History’ section, Sam’s eyes were drawn to a link titled ‘Human History.’
 
Selecting it, that hub link ballooned up into a chronology of other articles, which started with ‘Sumer, Mesopotamia, Egypt, and Babylon.’ Sam pursed her lips in thought and drummed her fingers on the desk for a few moments.
 
Hmmm… okay!
 
Pressing her finger confidently to the link, she was greeted with a massive wall of text with some picture diagrams, much to her delight. With an eager smile adorning her complexion, Sam supported her head on her right hand and began reading, content to take in all the information she could until she fell asleep at the desk. That was almost the case actually, and this was only hampered when Eisen found the girl about to doze off; the commander escorted her to bed.
 

 
Conway and Eisen stood side by side and watched with keen interest as the combat exercise unfolded below them. Superficially, little distinguished this exercise from any other; however, one soldier in particular attracted the attention of the pair of officers: Sam. The decision had been made to include Sam in a regular training exercise to see if she were capable of bringing her tactical acumen to bear on a more traditional role.

The setup was rather simple. There were two teams of one hundred and fifty troops each, Blue Team and Red Team. Red team, the force Sam was allied with, would storm the beach and attempt to fight their way inland to Blue Team’s mock HQ. If Red Team made it to Blue Team’s HQ and captured it, they would be declared the winners. If, however, Blue Team eliminated Red Team or kept them from completing their objective for long enough, they would win. For this exercise, the soldiers were outfitted with heavy stun weapons, but otherwise carried their normal combat loadouts.

Unfortunately for the attackers, Blue Team had had plenty of time to get into position before the landing craft arrived at the beachhead, and they were throwing ludicrous amounts of firepower towards the invaders from an outcropping of four hills. Several Red Team attackers had already been removed from the exercise, and the remainder of the first wave had taken cover behind piles of rubble, pinned down by the overlapping fields of fire.

“Where the hell are our heavy weapons teams?!” one of the squad leaders demanded of his radio, crouching to hear the reply over the scream of gunfire. The troops around him flinched nearly constantly as rounds skipped off the rubble, pelting them with chips of rock. As if on cue, a second wave of landing craft made it to the beach, dropped their ramps and let loose their troop complements.

“There! There’re Gold and Arc Platoons!” another marine called out, pointing to two teams of soldiers sprinting across the killzone with shoulder-fired rocket-propelled stun grenades. Response fire from Blue Team picked off a few of the soldiers from each platoon, but most of them skidded into cover with their payloads intact.

Almost lost in Red Team’s eagerness to see their heavy weapons teams safely in, a lone soldier bearing no distinctive unit insignia made their way up the beach behind the advancing platoons.

“Captain… who’s that?” A lieutenant nudged his commanding officer, pointing out the lone soldier who slid to cover behind the rocky outcropping next to them. Like them, they were clad in the usual Federation armor scheme; unlike them, their coloration failed to identify their unit and the visor was tinted so harshly that nothing of the soldier’s face could be seen. All that could be discerned was that the soldier, whoever they were, carried a rocket launcher and had an assault rifle slung to their back.

“Soldier! Identify yourself!” the captain demanded, waving the soldier down. Without even sparing the superior officer a look, they simply hefted the rocket launcher, leaned in, and sighted on the nearest of the fortified positions. They pulled the trigger, two rockets firing simultanously. The payloads circled each other on their approach, then flattened out and sailed into the pillbox’s interior, an electric blue glow visible from inside as the stun charge laid out the Blue Team troopers inside.

With the bunker’s incessant machinegun fire finally silenced, and a wedge driven into the hitherto-impenetrable no-man’s-land, the unknown soldier did the unthinkable: discarded the launcher, drew her rifle, and exhorted their comrades forward.

“Come on!!” a feminine voice screamed, beckoning her comrades after her, then ignoring them as she rushed forward, refusing to wait up for them. She stormed up the first hill and, as she reached its apex, she spied the forward line of the trenches and the ruined machinegun nest. A few Blue troops who by sheer dumb luck had avoided the stun charge suddenly turned to her in shock, but had little time to do more than gawk and grope blindly for weapons they would never draw before they were taken out of the fight by stunningly-accurate running fire. Sparing a backwards glance, Sam noticed friendly troops advancing somewhat more cautiously through the opening she created. That was all the convincing she needed to somersault into the enemy trenches.  

Crossing into a main artery, she fired a three-round burst into a Blue soldier on the right who tried to ambush her, then dove into a side branch just in time to avoid taking fire from her left. Turning around and catching sight of her would-be attacker, Sam put two rounds into the enemy’s head, dropping them like a ragdoll. Before she could move on, however, three more opposing soldiers charged over the top of the trenches and dropped down next to her. Time seemed to slow to a crawl partially by her own will, the soldiers moving as if through molasses as her body reacted quicker than thought. She swept a rising arc of fire up one soldier’s torso, then dropped her weapon as she stepped towards the next. Her hand quickly unsheathed a specially-modified stun knife and discharged it into her foe’s gut. She then followed up with a roundhouse kick to the third soldier’s hands, knocking his weapon away before unholstering her pistol, planting the barrel against his chest armor, and pulling the trigger four times.

With all of the immediate threats down, Sam picked up her rifle again and headed inland along the trenches, her just-crested allies bearing witness to the destruction she caused with utter disbelief. The recently-snubbed captain laughed aloud as he dropped into the trench network. “Well, whoever she is, we need more soldiers like her! Let’s go, before she gets all the kills!”

Red troops poured into the opening and with the new front line established, the first line of Blue Team’s defense had been broken. Sam advanced unchecked, cutting down any Blue combatants that dared stand in her way, and though she did catch a few errant rounds, her remarkable pain tolerance and physiological resistance to the stunning effect proved invaluable. Friendly forces advancing in her wake found only dazed, crumpled Blue troops strewn across their path, but no further sign of their mysterious ally.

Further ahead, Sam had gotten bogged down at that staple of ancient warfare: an opposing trench line packed with defenders. Naturally, due to sheer numbers at range, Sam had more sense than to cross immediately or expose herself out of cover in any way for extended periods of time. Still, she knew that she had to cross this little stretch. Realistically, Sam knew she should wait and regroup with the Red forces closing with her, but she needed this, the adrenaline rush of sole combat, combined with her developing personality exuding impatience.

Hunkering down behind the wall of the innermost trench, Sam double-checked her loadout, discovering that she had been issued several hand grenades; both smoke and stun. She bounced a smoke grenade in her palm, considering her options. A devilish grin broke across her face as she hit upon a viable, immediately actionable plan.

She primed two smoke grenades, hurling them out of the trench in opposite directions. As the dense smoke erupted from the canisters, the random fire from the Blue side of the battlefield slackened; her cue to make her move.

Not wasting her opportunity, Sam leapt out of the trench bearing two stun grenades, hurling them forward amidst the defensive line. She let her momentum bear her to the earth again, waiting for the sounds of the discharge, then leaping into the opposing trench.

The first two soldiers she saw were dispatched with simultaneous rifle and pistol fire. With no landmarks in sight, Sam proceeded inland, knowing that by end-running around the beachside bunkers, she was that much closer to Blue Team’s HQ, and her goal. Flattening herself against the wall, she was able to surprise three marines just turning the corner to investigate the silence. With a feral snarl, Sam flipped her weapon around and slammed the butt of the rifle into the lead marine’s face, shattering the visor and sending the female trooper reeling to her knees before spraying rounds into her two companions. On her way past, Sam drew her pistol and delivered the figurative coup de grace to the first, now-visorless soldier.

After her bloodlust faded, Sam began to notice that her comrades had closed the gap, as they were beginning to cross the no-man’s land. Squad leaders called for her to wait for support, but she paid them no heed. She answered only to Conway and Eisen; no one else. They had deployed her on her own and as such, she was on her own. Ergo, she would take the initiative however she pleased.

Reloading her now-spent magazine, Sam continued onward towards the enemy HQ, constantly changing paths in the trench network so enemy forces could not get a bead on her, all the while easily disposing of the now-token resistance arrayed against her. Any enemies that she missed or that slipped past her in a parallel trench were mopped up by her comrades. Sam did, however, wait for a couple squads of friendly troopers to help her breach the HQ, which went off without a hitch, and with minimal casualties (despite a last, furious resistance) due to Sam’s insistence of taking point and ‘borrowing’ grenades from friendly troopers.

The battle had been won, and it was won from the start once Sam seized the initiative on her lonesome. Much to her gratification, once the exercise was called, the soldiers that backed her up in the breaching operation all swarmed her and lavished praise on her in the form of cheers, hearty backslaps, and no shortage of enthusiastic applause and whistles.

“Trooper,” the first captain on the beach called. Sam turned to face him, expressionless helmet almost managing to look inquisitive. “I don’t know who you are, but you’ve got balls of steel bigger than Kendrick’s ego,” he said, jerking his thumb towards a trooper behind him, who managed to look mildly disconcerted, “and we need that in the GFMC. What’s your name?”

Rather than answer immediately, the victorious soldier disengaged her helmet and pulled it off, revealing the stunning face of Red Team’s hero. As if sensing that an odd form of propriety had changed, many soldiers followed suit.

“I’m Sam! Callsign SA-2, sir,” she replied, throwing her sharpest salute accompanied by a giddy, if victorious smile plastered on her face.

In the observation post, which still floated serenely over the war zone, Eisen and Conway stood impassively, continuing to monitor the exercise’s aftermath as screens around them displayed helmet-cam recordings of the assault. To say that both officers were pleasantly surprised at the wargame’s result would be a gross understatement: operating mostly on her own, Sam spearheaded an unorthodox assault which concluded the exercise in less than half an hour, with an efficiency rate hardly ever seen before.

“Well…” Eisen broke the ice first. “She’s certainly taken to her role nicely.”

“Indeed,” Conway agreed, nodding gently as he rested his angular chin in the crook of his right hand. “She may very well be ready for her armor soon enough… Well done, Sam.”

A gorgeous, sweltering day in one of Equestria’s largest cities heralded an onslaught of visitors, both foreign and domestic, to the famous beaches of Manehattan. Of course, this included the six Elements of Harmony, Spike, Sapphire, and Samus, the latter more than eager to catch some sun and water with her closest friends for the first time in too long. As much as the Hunter was more keen on overcast days, rain, and moderate temperature, she had to admit that there was something about these Equestrian beaches that made them much more special to her.

Perhaps it was just the idea of them being a part of her adoptive home planet and nation. That, and she absolutely loved how clear the water was.

Currently, the group was a bit spread out. Rarity, Spike, and Fluttershy (with Sapphire) rested comfortably on the velvety sand, more than okay with the idea of resting their eyes and taking in the rays of Celestia’s Sun; that left Rainbow Dash, Applejack, Pinkie Pie, Samus and Twilight splashing around in the water at Samus’ knee level and having a textbook example of a good time.

“Ahh!! Hey!” Samus mock-scolded Rainbow as the mare splashed her with a sizeable amount of water, the prismatic-maned pegasus laughing her heart out. “Damn, the water’s cold here!” the Hunter also remarked, getting a spontaneous shiver up her spine as she got used to the water temperature. The rest of the mares were already soaked completely in their one-piece bathing suits...a fashion choice which struck Samus as profoundly odd due to their coats; their manes stuck to their necks as they all smiled and laughed without a care in the world.

As for Samus, though, she was not fortunate enough to have a coat of fur to help ease the chilling effects of the water. Instead, she opted for her Zero Suit. Her usual attire’s modular capability allowed Samus to ‘remove’ certain parts for the occasion, namely the midriff, the sleeves up to her shoulders, and the legs below her upper thighs; every other piece of it was as it should have been. Her hair was in its normal fashion and overall, it was as if she was wearing her iconic two-piece that she, unfortunately, lost before the BSL incident, if only a bit more form-fitting.

“Yeah, but it’s refreshing, don’t ya think?” Rainbow commented before turning to talk to Applejack. The second she turned around, however, a torrent of water splashed down upon her, courtesy of Samus, who only looked away inconspicuously. She deadpanned at the Hunter while the others laughed at her expense, her mane dripping copious amounts of water. “Okay, you got me. Truce.”

“Alright, well,” Samus announced, stretching her arms over her head and loosening up her back. “I’m going for an actual swim under the water. It’s been too long since I’ve been able to without my Suit.”

“Okay!” Twilight replied, nodding and shaking some of the water off her face. “This section of the beach drops off fairly quickly, so it’s perfect for that.”

“Okie Dokie!” Pinkie readily agreed, continuing to bounce around the group and mildly splash everypony.

“Want some company, sugarcube?” Applejack asked, wringing out her mane.

“I swim fast. And I’ll be underwater the entire time. I don’t know how long ponies can hold their breaths,” Samus cautioned.

“How long can you hold your breath?” Rainbow asked, curious about that fact out of competition. Maybe she’d challenge the Hunter to a contest of how long each can remain underwater.

Samus paused to think. “Depends. Practically speaking, while swimming at a normal rate, the most I’ve ever done is about fifteen minutes¹; remember, augmentations and all that,” Samus answered, gesturing to herself to hammer home the idea. Rainbow’s jaw nearly dropped; there went any chance of her being able to stand up to the Hunter in a breath-holding contest.

“Right, right,” Twilight said, nodding in understanding yet still reasonably impressed at the assertion. “Have fun then! Be safe”

“Yup. If I don’t surface in fifteen, I was probably being stupid. See you all in a bit,” Samus announced, saluting her friends before wading as fast as she could, deeper toward the shelf. When she deemed it deep enough, she took a massive breath and slipped underneath the water, immersing herself entirely.

[Suggested Ambiance]

The initial shock of her mostly-bare body being instantaneously dunked cold water quickly wore off as she gazed around. Twilight was right, in the fact that the sea floor did seem to drop away suddenly about twenty feet ahead, and with Samus’ augmentations, she was able to see a bit more clearly in the water. Moreover, her eyes were a bit more resistant to the salt.

Utilizing the breaststroke, Samus glided through the bluish, crystal-clear water towards the dropoff, eager to see if there was anything interesting on the other side. As she cut through the water with relative ease, her thoughts drifted to the whole experience; most of her time in open water like this had been with the aid of her Suit, and usually to explore for something vital to her mission. This was the first time in a long while that she had been able to swim purely for her own enjoyment. It felt exhilarating, liberating…

...and she felt alive.

Samus checked her wrist console when it vibrated, and found that Adam was silently monitoring the CO₂ and SO₂ levels in her body, helping to give her an indicator as to how much time she had before she would have to surface for air. Smirking, she swam onward, over the drop and deeper downward. She didn’t think there would be much to see this close to the shore but Samus was in an exploratory mood, just eager to look around without being pressed for a mission or some apocalyptic scenario.

Samus continued to swim down the side of the drop off, seeing if it took her anywhere exciting. It leveled out a tad and she came face to face with a rock structure that was playing host to a small group of fish. A brief glance at her console showed that she was about forty feet under the surface. Having nothing better to do, she swam her way over to the towering formation and climbed over them, examining them for anything interesting. As she expected, there was not much to be seen, so she decided to continue farther and see if that changed.

A few more large rocks embedded into the floor made themselves known, along with small schools of fish but that was about it this far out and deep. Glancing around and floating in the water, Samus did not expect to see massive amounts of sea life and activity this close to the beach, but it was fine with her. In reality, she used her desire to explore as an excuse to just swim. She would have to check out the lake that was right by Ponyville if she wanted to go seeing any decent amount of other life. So at this point, Samus opted to swim to and fro, and just bask in the feel of the cool water surrounding her, at least until she was forced to swim to the surface for air.

And that’s exactly what she did. With a grin on her face, she swam wherever her mind decided to pull her.

Back towards the beach proper, Twilight, Rainbow, Applejack, and Pinkie were still horsing around with each other after a good ten minutes. Suddenly, Pinkie stopped, cocking her head as a particularly shrewd thought struck her.

“Hey girls, have you noticed how happy Samus is?”

“Well yeah,” Applejack commented as if it was the most obvious thing. “Samus has been in a good mood since she got back, after all.”

“Yeah, it’s like the six months after the Phazon Conflict. She was in much higher spirits when she was able to just relax,” Twilight added. Unconvinced, Pinkie shook her head adamantly.

“It goes beyond that,” she remarked.

“Whaddya mean?” Rainbow asked, bidding for clarification.

“I’m the Element of Laughter, girls,” Pinkie reminded her friends. “I know when somepony’s truly happy. She is! But something’s… different this time,” Pinkie asserted, glancing out towards the ocean where they saw Samus before she dove into the deep. “She was happy two and a half years ago, it’s true, but now, she almost seems…” Pinkie circled her hoof, frowning as she tried to come up with the appropriate word. “...Tranquil,” she concluded astutely.

“Come to think of it,” Twilight interjected again, rubbing her hoof to her chin pensively. “She has been acting like that… almost like she’s at peace with everything.”

“How d’ya figure?” Applejack asked, shaking some excess water off of her exposed coat.

“Well for one, she’s much more physical than she ever was, at least with me,” Twilight answered, flipping some of her mane out of her eyes. “In fact, the other night when we were reading, she put her tablet down, stretched out, and pulled me into a hug out of nowhere. I actually had to process what was going on for a while before it occurred to me to hug her back,” she confessed. “And when I asked what the occasion was, all she said was ‘No reason.’”

“Y’know, I think you’re right,” Rainbow chimed in. “Samus is as cool-headed and snarky with me as ever… but she does seem to be a lot more comfortable being close, at least in my opinion. She’ll randomly tousle my mane when we work out.”

“Then Ah think she really cares about us,” Applejack mused warmly.

“There was never a question about that, at least in my opinion,” Twilight added. “Honestly, I really don’t know what’s going through her head… none of us do; she’s made that clear and it’s completely true.”

The others nodded and bobbed their heads in agreement.

“She’s extremely difficult to read. Whatever the case and whatever her reasons, she’s become at least somewhat more comfortable with closeness and friendly intimacy,” the alicorn continued.

“Also…” Rainbow Dash closed in with her friends. “Now that all of this ‘Samus being at peace’ stuff is being brought up, I’ve also noticed that whenever I’m around her, I also feel a lot more… calm.”

“You too, eh?” Applejack weighed in. “It’s like she’s radiatin’ whatever she’s feelin’.”

Twilight cocked her head and opened her mouth to respond, but she was caught off-guard by a panicked scream before she could formulate a thought.

“AAAHHH!!” Pinkie screamed in fright as her left hoof was suddenly yanked backwards towards the ocean, causing her to faceplant in the water. Twilight, Applejack, and Rainbow Dash screamed in response but their fear died away when dripping-wet Samus revealed herself and stood up tall, holding Pinkie up by her hind leg as if she had just caught a particularly pink fish. Pinkie’s yells quickly morphed into uproarious laughter and giggles at her current predicament, which, of course, was contagious to everypony else. Samus wore an upturned smirk of victory and chuckled lightly as she set Pinkie down properly into the water.
 
“Have fun?” Twilight asked, seeing that Samus had indeed returned from her small absence under water.

“Oh yeah. We should go to that lake by Ponyville next time… for some reason, I’m eager to swim to the bottom of that now,” Samus said, thinking about exploring a fully contained ecosystem. “But for right now, I’m gonna take a little break and join the others on the beach.”

“Oh okay,” Rainbow Dash replied. “I’m getting hungry so we’ll probably join all of you out there in a bit.”

“Alright,” Samus acknowledged over her shoulder as she strode through the shallowing water and onto the beach itself. Free of the constraints of the ocean, the sopping Hunter’s feet sunk into the warm, soothing sand and finally making her way to the remainder of her friends who were just eating up the sun. Under a bright, multi-colored umbrella, Fluttershy lounged with Sapphire, nestled in a little hole under the towel. Right next to them lay Rarity and Spike, both with sunglasses on and resting under the rays of sunlight. Fluttershy’s demeanor brightened when she saw the Hunter coming ashore.

“Oh, hi Samus,” Fluttershy softly greeted. Sapphire turned towards Samus, floating a little higher and skree’ing in greeting. “How’s the water?”

“It’s pretty nice,” Samus replied, fetching her towel from their combined bags and drying herself off.

“I must say,” Rarity piped up, lowering her glasses as Samus dried herself, eyeing the human girl’s muscular form and in particular, her stomach arms, and thighs. “Removing parts of your Zero Suit worked quite fabulously. You look incredible in your makeshift swimsuit.”

“Thanks, Rares,” Samus responded while placing her towel on the sand next to Fluttershy, opting to use the alabaster unicorn’s nickname that Dash usually favored. “Told you it was better for me anyway,” she added, letting her hair down from its ponytail, wringing it out, then picking up her tablet and laying back.

“I suppose you’re right… this time,” Rarity said pointedly, making sure Samus knew that she would not be getting out of being made new clothes in the very near future. She placed her sunglasses back over her eyes and lay back yet again, the chatter devolving into easy silence. As for Samus, she decided to use her tablet to quietly look at listings for properties in the Ponyville area that she had made a note of. Living with Twilight was fun and had its many benefits, but eventually, Samus did want to get out of the unicorn’s mane. Equestria was her home now, and with permanent homes, she wanted a place to herself.

Such a place, however, would require quite a few modifications to suit her needs. Namely, larger doorframes, weapon-resistant building materials, and other sundry tasks necessary to adapt Equish buildings to human anatomies. There were also a few luxuries she wanted that she could easily afford, though they served more practical purposes in line with her personality.

This went on for a good twenty or so minutes, even after the rest of the mares came back from the water to eat their lunch. Samus exchanged pleasant words with her friends while her face was still buried in her tablet, but after a while, Samus realized that she was dozing, and opted to drift off into a little cat nap under the oh-so-comfortable heat of the sun. Placing her tablet under the shade of Fluttershy’s umbrella, Samus folded her arms behind her head and let her eyes drift shut, fully succumbing to a power nap on a beach… something she could never see herself doing if it were merely a few months prior.

Mmm… this is nice…

Samus did not know how long she was asleep, being only dimly aware of her immediate surroundings and more focused on her exposed skin being bathed in the warmth of the sunlight. At this rate, she would probably get some tan lines, and her face would, naturally, darken slightly… but that did not bother her. It would all return to normal once she donned her Zero Suit again on a regular basis, which she tended to do anyway. On the precipice of falling into a deep sleep, Samus could have sworn she felt a cool touch to her left tricep, along with a gentle purr.

Then she heard her name being called.

Fluttering her eyes open to see who disturbed her, the only thing that took up the entirety of her vision was ‘metroid.’ Old adrenaline shot through her, her nerves jangling and her pupils shrinking to pinpricks as she saw herself face to face with a deadly foe.

“Samus!”

“GHAHHH!!” the Hunter cried out fearfully, flailing her arms and legs aggressively and causing a an equally startled screech from Sapphire as well. Everypony suddenly jerked their heads to see what the commotion was about, and were greeted with the sight of Samus suddenly several feet to the left, right arm thrust forward as if she were wielding her cannon. She was hyperventilating but quickly calmed down and regained her composure when she saw that everypony was looking at her curiously. Rainbow Dash and Applejack, however, were doubled over in laughter.

“Don’t. Sneak. Up on me, Sapphire!” Samus commanded, calming her heart rate and rejoining her friends, the rest of them clearly having regrouped from the water. “I like you but... please, just… don’t do that!”

“S-Sorry…”

“Are you okay, Samus?” Fluttershy asked, trotting up to the Hunter as she took her seat again.

“Yeah, don’t worry, I’m fine,” she replied, pinching the bridge of her nose before deciding to sit up and be a bit more social with the others. She certainly did not feel tired anymore after that awakening. With a gentle smile returning to her features, Samus sat with her friends as they all ate lunch together (including Sapphire; it was Applejack’s turn to feed her today). Sandwiches all around, prepared by Pinkie, were greedily gobbled down while talking never seemed to end. What’s more, Samus was not second-guessing the way she carried herself anymore, at least, in a way she had been obliged to in the past.

A life of constant fighting would do that to anyone.

After a while though, all the mares and Spike decided to hit the water again. Samus was enjoying the sun, so Sapphire was left in her care, though the metroid was entertaining herself by drawing things in the sand with her talons. Samus observed her curiously, noting that Sapphire was able to trace coherent things. One such example was six crudely drawn stick-ponies. The Hunter, leaning back in a beach chair and having her arms folded behind her head again, watched over Sapphire with keen interest, only annotating the experience with her thoughts.

That’s impressive…

Gurgling happily to herself, her gelatinous layer glowing a deep, almost midnight blue, Sapphire continued her little portrait in the sand, adding a smaller bipedal stick figure to represent Spike as well as a lopsided circle with two sticks pointing outward in different directions under it; representing her. Lastly, Sapphire added a tall figure in the middle of the group.

That’s...me… This metroid is something else…

“Nice picture, Sapphire” Samus commented, Sapphire turning around to ‘face’ her when she heard her name being called.

“Thanks!” she replied jubilantly, but before she was to turn back to her work, Sapphire perked up with an adorable-sounding squeak, as if she remembered something.

“Look at this,” she said softly, floating over to Fluttershy’s bag which contained all the beach essentials for her and Sapphire (but mainly for her). Samus, curious at the metroid’s antics, leaned forward and observed her actions.

“What is it?” she questioned, and wordlessly, Sapphire used her talons to gingerly rummage through the various things in the bag, searching for something. Finally, she came across something that definitely did not belong. The metroid grasped it and dropped it onto the beach blanket in full view. To Samus, it looked like an evil appendage of sorts, an inverted triangle with a blood-red pendant in its center, topped off with a silhouette of an alicorn; definitely not an inviting look. “Okay… what is that?” she asked cautiously.  

“Secret. Alicorn Amulet. Its magic tastes gooood~; Spicy!” Sapphire answered honestly. The amulet began glowing softly, and Samus glanced up and around her to see if anypony else was seeing what she was seeing.

“Does Fluttershy or anyone else know you have this? And why is that in the bag?”

“Nopony knows. I put it in bag when Mama not looking. Don’t tell her, okay?” Before Samus could say anything in response, Sapphire picked up the amulet and absorbed the residual magic it let off, the amulet glowing bright red as it filtered into the metroid. After a few seconds, Sapphire dropped it, began quivering, and then belched out a bright, red laser which shot right into the sand next to the blanket, causing Samus to nearly fall over in her chair from recoiling. The Hunter looked in nascent horror at where the laser struck the sand, and then back to Sapphire, who seemed to giggle happily, bobbing in place.

“Y-You may wanna put that back before Fluttershy finds it…” Samus suggested, shaking her head in bewilderment and glancing again at the charred area of sand. Fancying a look around, it did not appear that anypony else had witnessed the spectacle.

“Okay!”

Just when I thought I’d seen it all…

While Conway had an infinite amount of patience—at least by his standards—,one thing that he had absolutely no tolerance for was politics. However, his ability to politic his way around ensured that he maintained his favorable impressions and esteem among the upper echelons of the GF military, which came with a slew of benefits including the near limitless resources of the Galactic Federation military-industrial complex. Moreover, his intimidating but still charismatic personality allowed him to slip and slide by certain bothersome regulations… not that he had exercised this ability for anything outrageous, at least, until quite recently.

Project Duality was, so far, an astounding success, and Sam had made incredible progress towards the goals set for her by Conway and Eisen. The first and second steps to Conway’s plan of ‘securing’ the Galaxy from further threats including Samus Aran were being conducted simultaneously: train up a clone of her, with DNA already ‘built’ to withstand such brutal and draconian methods, while personally lobbying the Galactic Senate for the ability to move his fleet and its resources near Equis. Sam’s overwhelming success in the wargame marked a massive milestone of her training, although it would still be a month or two before she would be deployable.

The latter was just about complete. Conway was able to convince a large majority of the Senate of the soundness of his plans, and a vote was to be called in the coming weeks. Conway was sure of success, especially since the intelligence about resurgent Space Pirate forces that he used was rather convincing… this being the case because it was partially based on fact. The Admiral was suspicious of the Pirate force’s disappearance following the battle on Phaaze, especially since there was evidence of multiple homeworlds. The Unknown Regions of Federation Space were where most reports of covert Pirate activity came from, and coincidentally, Equis fell right on the fringes of this purview.

In the meantime, Conway wanted a small footprint on the planet, which was one of the main reasons he called a meeting in one of the many briefing rooms between he, Eisen, and six specific soldiers.

“Spectre Squad. Thank you for joining me today, ladies and gentlemen,” Conway began the meeting in earnest, smoothing out any wrinkles in his uniform before firing up the holographic projector. Eisen stood rigidly by his side and remained silent, only observing. “I have called you six here because as of right now, you are the best squad of Federation Stealth Troopers we have.”

“Sir, thank you, sir,” the leader, Captain Igor Butenko spoke on behalf of them all. No defining features of any of the troopers could be made out through their armor, so black that it seemed to absorb the light around them. The design of the Federation Stealth Soldier was similar to that of a Galactic Federation Marine, but apart from the obvious color scheme difference, Stealth Troopers sported more streamlined armor, as well as the most advanced tech the Federation could put on a single soldier. They were the best-trained fighting force anywhere in the Galaxy, and even the least-capable Stealth Trooper could go toe-to-toe with a Space Pirate Commando. The visors themselves were also a slightly lighter color than the blackness of the armor, evoking the ancient tale of the Grim Reaper, the embodiment of death.

“You are no strangers to covert, suicidal missions against Space Pirate forces. Your unit alone has one of the highest kill-counts to date, especially of high-value targets amongst Pirate ranks,” Conway praised, pacing gingerly up and down the opposite end of the holographic projector. He then sharply turned to his audience. “However, the mission I have for you is like none you’ve undertaken before… if you’ll pardon my choice of dramatic words.”

The six soldiers remained silent as the grave, and Conway continued after a moment.

“Intelligence afforded to us by the boys upstairs indicates there may be an upwelling of Pirate activity in the 51st sector; likely near the newest addition to the Federation: VK109H, colloquial designation ‘Equis.’ More specifically, we’re interested in this particular nation.” Conway brought up a holographic representation of the planet, zooming in on and highlighting the nation of Equestria.

“This goes further than that, though. We have reason to believe that Samus Aran...” Conway brought up a few images of the Hunter, masked and unmasked. “...may know something about this. While, true, Samus has been an invaluable asset to us in our war against the Space Pirates, she has also caused untold destruction of Federation property and decades of research since the destruction of Phaaze.”

“Sir, with all due respect… the Samus?” one of the Lieutenants interjected. Interestingly, Samus’ work in mostly clandestine operations meant that she was not well known throughout Federation Space for her roles in those missions, especially when she would disappear after assignments. But, at the same time, her name was thrown about, reported on, and her armor was iconic. She was, to many, a symbol of the Federation’s might and a pillar of morale, but to others, merely a mythical creature. Naturally, this raised the aforementioned, natural question.

“Indeed; A well-trained mercenary who has worked for the Military in times of extraordinary crisis. However, she is still just that: a mercenary. She has no loyalty to anyone but herself. Forensic investigations of the top secret BSL records suggests that Samus Aran is in possession of a full history of the work being done on the station that she so-nicely plunged into SR-388’s atmosphere. This information could prove catastrophic if she were to cash in by selling it to a hostile entity. Samus is an unknown, unpredictable; if she were made a good offer, who’s to say what she would do?

“Yes, sir,” Captain Butenko nodded curtly, if with a bit more aggression in his voice at the mention of the potential sale of dangerous intel. Conway nodded in return and highlighted a few key points in Equestria in red.

“For now, your mission is simply reconnaissance. You are to track down Samus; she is rumored to have taken up residence in this nation. With no active conflict, Samus’ behavior is impossible to predict. Figure her out.”

“Yes, Admiral. We’ll head out immediately,” another Lieutenant spoke out stoically, this time with a feminine voice.

“Very good. One final note,” Conway added, pointing at the commanding officer. “Samus is a force to be reckoned with...if you underestimate her, it will be the last mistake you ever make. That said, it’s only my preference that she be taken alive. If she comes peacefully, so much the better… though it’s nigh certain she won’t. In that case...well, the essential data I want will be on her body or in her residence.

“Reiterating in conclusion…” Conway continued, emphasizing his last phrase and gesturing pointedly at the squad of six before continuing. “Samus is not to be taken lightly in any sense of the word, but if she is routinized, and you are in any position where you feel you will have the upper hand on her in battle, your orders are to terminate her and obtain the stolen data. Until then, just watch her and report your findings. Have I made myself clear?”

“Understood, sir. Crystal clear,” the captain replied tersely, and the rest of his squad nodded. Conway returned the gesture.

“Very good. Everything is set up and if you leave now, you should arrive on Equis in about two weeks, which gives you around another week to set up before deployment. Dismissed,” Conway concluded with a sharp salute, one which was returned by the six Stealth Troopers.

“Yes sir!” they all responded before filtering out of the briefing room one by one and heading to the hangar to embark on their mission. Before he could reflect on his orders to the elite soldiers, Eisen cleared her throat.

“Admiral, if I may…”

“Stop with the ‘if I may’ stuff. The answer is ‘yes’ and will always be ‘yes.’”

“Do you truly feel that Spectre can kill Samus?” she asked seriously, not entirely sure on every step of Conway’s plan, since he did not share exactly everything with her.

“No,” he replied confidently without missing a beat, shaking his head. “They will observe Samus and report her movements back to us. In a perceived moment of vulnerability, they’ll engage her; Samus will kill them. In fact, she’ll most likely slaughter them without breaking a sweat,” he remarked with chilling callousness. “But from there, we use that incident—which will get reported heavily on the Equestrian side—to further our cause to ‘investigate.’”

It was a testament to Eisen’s self-control that she didn’t immediately, instinctively object to her commanding officer admitting, bald-faced, to sending six of his best troops on a mission intended to kill them. Upon reflection, she realized, grudgingly, that it was an inspired move: reports of the death of a squad of the galaxy’s elite would, almost certainly, prompt a decisive response. The fact that Samus killed them would only further Conway’s aims.

It was a despicable move, but she could not deny the sheer, underhanded genius of the plan.

“I see…” was all she said, her inner thoughts going unvoiced. “Well, then... all we have to do now is collect information and wait it out.”

“Quite so,” Conway replied before beckoning Eisen to follow him out of the briefing room. “Now, let’s get something to eat. I’m starving.”

¹The world record for a human holding their breath underwater, having hyperventilated, breathed pure oxygen beforehand, AND NOT MOVING AT ALL, is about 22 minutes. I based her ability on that.