#metroiddeadzone

[samusatfacetroid]

The End

Even though he was infected, Ridley was still ferocious as he always was. The infection turned him feral. Samus kept on her toes. She wasn’t at full strength and couldn’t fight him with her current weapons but that wasn’t going to stop her. All the damage Ridley caused to the ship to lose orbit and plummet toward the planet. The place was falling apart around them but Ridley didn’t care. It was like he had a hunger he couldn’t control.

Samus had no idea if anyone on the surface was alive and this crash was going to leave a dent. She couldn’t stop it either. All she could do was try and survive the crash when it happens but Samus wasn’t sure she was going to. Ridley kept attacking. It was like previous battles before so she had the rhythm down. Falling debris helped as well. It kept them separated and he couldn’t really fly around. Samus used that to her advantage and Ridley was pinned down. The ship started to tear apart now and Ridley fell out of the ship and burned in the atmosphere. She wasn’t sure if he was dead, but she could check later.

The rest of the ship stayed intact but was going to hit the planet soon. She quickly scanned a console to see if there were escape pods left and luckily found a few that were unused so she rushed to get to them. Right before she did, however, she was confronted by U-Mos. He had cuts and marks all over him. She couldn’t tell if it was from their fight or from the ship collapsing. “You aren’t leaving,” he growled. His voice was becoming more feral. “I will not let you.” U-Mos tried to attack her but was having trouble. The virus was warping him even more than before. Whatever was making him different than the rest of the infected, it only seemed to slow the infection down. U-Mos couldn’t stay standing and almost fell on her. But he kept fighting. Finally Samus ended it and made sure once and for all.

U-Mos’ ship finally crashed into the planet and killed most of the infected below. The rest of the planet was untouched but they all felt the impact. A group of survivors gathered around a different area, though. They had no idea what had happened or if the infected were still around but came out of their hiding spots to get a glance. It was a small piece from the Luminoth ship; an escape pod. The survivors didn’t know what to make of it but suddenly were joyful when they saw Samus climb out of the pod. She looked around the area and at the destruction.

With U-Mos dead, the rest of the infected was finally mopped up and taken care of. Other Galactic Federation planets that weren’t attacked pitched in to help. There were not many survivors from the Federation council but they got together and all agreed to make Samus the new leader of the Galactic Federation. At first she didn’t want to accept but knew that they would need someone trustworthy. They needed a leader. Especially when the Space Pirates would attack. They fled the moment Ridley became infected, but they weren’t gone for good. Mother Brain was still around. Rebuilding the Galactic Federation was going to take time. It was going to take a lot of effort too. But Samus promised to not let Keaton’s or even U-Mos’ death be in vain. She was going to rebuild it and make it right.

[samusatfacetroid]

Finally, Samus was face to face with the infected U-Mos. Just like last time, he was expecting her. Several Luminoth jumped her but they didn’t keep Samus down. She was pushed back by a sudden push of force and slammed against the wall. U-Mos stood over her as she got back up. “You’re strong Samus,” he told her. “You will make a fine warrior on my army.”

“This isn’t an army,” Samus responded bitterly. “This is just a group of mindless monsters. You are killing innocent people.”

“What I’m doing is helping them. You’ll see it soon, Samus.” Samus pushed back against U-Mos and opened fire. His abilities were strong but it wasn’t as strong as she remembered. The virus weakened him, though Samus was surprised they were even still there. Something separated U-Mos from the rest of the infected. He was unique and could even control the other infected. He even was gaining back his powers. Samus overpowered U-Mos and he staggered back.

The ship started to shake. It seemed that the Space Pirates must have started to target the ship. But something seemed different. Samus’ attention was taken away as an infected jumped her from behind. She couldn’t see him but knew it wasn’t a Luminoth. She grabbed the infected’s collar and tossed him over her shoulder. Samus pointed her arm cannon and was ready to shoot him but then she saw who it was. It was Keaton. He was mindless and vicious. She kept him pinned down as he struggled to bite or scratch Samus. Even though she fought it, Samus knew what she had to do and fired. When Samus looked up, U-Mos was gone and Samus cursed. He couldn’t have gotten far.

She went back to her ship but it was too damaged to take off. U-Mos must have taken one of the unused ships. There was a few left and she went for one of them but stopped as she started to hear rumbling in the ship. Something was moving through the ship and was coming toward her. It was then that Ridley tore through the wall near her. Samus barley made it out of the way as he attacked. “What are you doing?” she yelled at him. Ridley didn’t respond and it became pretty clear what happened. Ridley was infected.

[samusatfacetroid]

After a short while, Mother Brain got together the best of her forces together. Many Space Pirates filled ships to the brim and waited for the signal to take off. Besides Samus, there was one other who led Space Pirate army. “Who would have thought that we would work together?” Samus stood face to face with Ridley. He was just as she remembered him the many times she saw him before. Samus didn’t know how he was still alive after what happened during the Phazon Crisis, but here he was. He growled, almost like he was laughing a bit. But that all didn’t matter now. With the new army aiding the Federation, they would hopefully be able to stop this infection from spreading anymore.

Samus piloted the same ship she took back but even with the space between her ship and Ridley’s, Samus felt he was still too close. She felt as if he was watching her. But she needed to focus on the task at hand. It didn’t take long for them to finally reach the planet. Samus felt her heart sink when they reached the planet. She knew she didn’t have much time, but this was too soon. U-Mos was already attacking the planet. Once they noticed the Space Pirates, they engaged. Samus took note that Galactic Federation ships were mixed into the new fleet. His army grew even more and was laying siege to the planet.

The Space Pirates moved forward and fought the smaller ships and Samus slipped through. She was going to go to the main ship. Even though it was repaired, Samus could tell it was U-Mos’. She punched her way into the hull and crashed her ship in the docking bay. Samus didn’t wait for anything and rushed off to confront U-Mos. This was the end. This had to end. Space Pirate ships were falling but Samus didn’t care. She wanted to finally stop this.

[samusatfacetroid]

Samus wandered down the corridors. This new Tourian seemed to be very similar to the last one. She passed by Space Pirates who glared at her every time she got close. Their claws twitched and a few of them murmured in their native language. Mother Brain was in her glass container and had her eye fixated on Samus the whole time as she walked up toward her. “Ah, Samus. You seem well. I didn’t expect to see you so soon.” As Mother Brain talked, Samus felt a chill go down her spine. “I didn’t expect you to still be alive,” Samus replied. She had to keep her cool if she wanted to get out of this alive. “It takes a lot more to kill me, Samus. Now, what was it that you wanted? It would have to be very important if you would risk your life to come here.”

“Very. I’m sure you heard about what happened on Diaban?”

“Just murmurs. Nothing more. It was attacked, though?”

“Yes. And the ones responsible are not going to stop until they kill every living thing in the galaxy.” There was a pause. Mother Brain continued to focus on Samus. After a short while, she replied. “And you didn’t stop them? My, my, Samus. You are slipping.”

“These aren’t normal creatures. The Luminoth... they have been infected with some sort of virus.”

“I’m intrigued. Go on.”

Samus told Mother Brain everything that had happened. All the while Mother Brain didn’t move. Samus couldn’t tell what Mother Brain was thinking. There was nothing to go by. After Samus was done talking, Mother Brain went silent again. Samus took a quick glance at the number of Space Pirates around them as well as the exits. She wasn’t sure what Mother Brain was going to do with this info, but she also knew that Mother Brain was smart. And if there was a group that was force capable of taking down the Galactic Federation capital planet, she couldn’t afford to ignore it. “So you want to join forces and fight back the infected Luminoth?”

“And the many species that were also on Diaban, yes. Or at least something like that. You’re smart enough to realize there isn’t any other choice.”

“Very well. We will team up for the moment. But after we defeat this threat, you and I both know what’ll happen.”

“Yes.”

[samusatfacetroid]

Samus was right. Everyone in the room was in shock and some of them almost fell out of their seats. “You can’t be serious?”

“We don’t have a chance on our own and this is something that threatens the Space Pirates just as much as us. I know I can convince them.”

“Even if you do, Samus, what would keep them from turning on us after we beat this?”

“I will deal with them.” Some of the members actually laughed after that. “You don’t expect us to believe that, right? We’ve all heard the rumors about how you drove the Space Pirates out of Zebes, but even you can’t do this.”

“I can and I will. Either way, we are out of options. Like it or not, the Space Pirates would be our best hope.”

“It would be a great way to keep our men from being killed,” suggested one of the members. After a while, the rest of the members finally agreed. There was only one condition. “You have to be the one to convince them.”

“Alright,” Samus replied. “I’ll do it.”

Samus was told the Federation had believed the Space Pirates went back to Zebes. It was also assumed that Mother Brain was alive. But since the Space Pirates didn’t do anything, Samus didn’t bother to check them out. Now as a good time as any to see if the rumor was true.

Zebes was roughly the same as she remembered it last time though the scars from her last visit was evident. Samus had gotten here with a small ship the Federation loaned her and she felt uncomfortable in the seat. The controls weren’t built around her arm cannon either. But she made it there and found no responses from the Space Pirates. She started to wonder if the Space Pirates were even here.

Samus made her way down to where Mother Brain used to be. She wanted to be sure just in case. The caverns were rundown and overgrown. This didn’t seem like a Space Pirate base. Then, suddenly, she was surrounded. Space Pirates were everywhere and she had to fight for her life. Taking care of the Space Pirates was easy though so there was no worry there. It seemed that the rumors were true. Leaving one alive, Samus got the info she needed. Mother Brain had set up a new Tourian and had it locked down tight but Samus knew that Mother Brain would open up once she heard what Samus had to say.

“Mother Brain!” Samus said into one of her many eyedrones. “I am not here as an enemy, I’m here with a warning. And this is something that you need to hear.” There was a long response. It didn’t seem that was enough for her. “What I have to say is important. The Space Pirates and even you are in trouble.” Finally that seemed to intrigue Mother Brain enough to have her open the door to the new Tourian.

[samusatfacetroid]

“Samus, you okay?” asked one of the soldiers on the ship. “Yeah,” she replied though she knew that wasn’t the case. No one was. The planet they were going to was already prepared for their arrival. It wouldn’t be long before every Galactic Federation controlled planets would know what happened to Diaban and how. Each planet would take the proper defenses but Samus wondered if anyone would be truly prepared for this.

This planet was a resource planet. What it lacked in suburbs, it made up for in farms and other buildings of that nature. They littered the planet but would have enough room to hold most of the refugees. The rest would go to other planets.

Once things got settled, Samus found herself in a meeting room. She was surrounded by Galactic Federation members. Since news spread about Keaton’s fate, other chair members wanted to discuss who would take his place. Word also got around that Keaton named Samus as his replacement, more or less, but that didn’t sit well with them. Some didn’t think a bounty hunter would make a great leader of the Galactic Federation, while others thought it would be a better fit than those who were already being named to replace him. There was even a small number who didn’t even know that Samus existed.

Besides finding out the new leader for the Galactic Federation, another subject was what to do with the infected. It was an important factor since it was only a matter of time before the infected Luminoth, and now to be assumed Humans, found other planets controlled by the Federation. Or at least populated.

“We need to focus on defending what we have,” said one the members. “We need to focus on fighting them before they can continue to grow,” said another. Samus remained quiet throughout the meeting as they continued to bicker. “We don’t have the resources or the manpower to fight back against this threat,” replied the first member. Samus knew that was true. Most of the Federation died on Diaban. Finally, people looked toward Samus for an answer. Samus knew what would work but also knew that it wouldn’t be a popular idea.

“We need the Space Pirates.”

[samusatfacetroid]

With the majority of civilians offworld, Samus breathed a sigh of relief. There might be hope yet, she thought. There was still the case of the soldiers and troopers who were defending the HQ building. They were doing all they could to keep the infection from reaching inside but Samus didn’t know how much longer they would be able to do that. It was then that she was answered. The infected humans and Luminoth tore through the building’s front door and any other opening they could find and started to pile in. “Samus! You have to get out of here,” ordered Keaton. “I can’t leave you here, Keaton.”

“You are the only one who has a chance at stopping this! If anyone needs to live, it’s you.”

“I’m not going to run away.”

“Don’t make me force you on that ship, Samus! These people, they are scared and alone. They are going to need a leader. I want that leader to be you.”

“I’m not sure I can do that. You know I always work alone.”

“Yes I do, but I also know you can do this. You were probably the only one I trusted, Samus. Now go.” Samus felt her stomach turn. She wanted to stay but knew Keaton was right. “What about the others?” she asked, already knowing the answer. “They will fight to the bitter end. I couldn’t ask for anything more.”

Samus and the last few Galactic Federation soldiers marched on toward the last evac ship. This one was for Keaton but Samus was going to take his place. Before they got there, she could hear gunfire coming from Keaton’s office followed by a scream. It was obvious what happened. She wanted to go back, but it was too late. Samus cursed under her breath as she got into the ship. They were going to get off and join the rest of the ships, but was there any point?

[samusatfacetroid]

Once Samus made it outside, it was back to aiding the Galactic Federation at the HQ. She had a few questions answered, even though she didn’t want to believe them, but there were still a few more questions left unsolved. As she left, the Galactic Federation patrol ships continued to bombard the Luminoth ships. It was at that point that they started to fight back. The Luminoth were not much for combat so the weapons seemed hastily put together. It didn’t make too much of a difference, though, as they took down a few patrol ships. The ships also spilled open with infected Luminoth who joined the humans who were infected. The current force got a lot worse.

The Federation HQ was almost out of ships but the majority of people on Diaban made it out alive and uninfected. That was good, Samus commented. She met up with Keaton at his office. She knew he would stay to make sure everyone who could get off, would. He was happy to see Samus, but also seemed a bit surprised. “I should have known you would have stayed,” he told her. “Same to you,” was Samus’ reply. “I heard you went off to see the ships, sorry if you were caught in the crossfire but I couldn’t hold off any longer.”

“It’s alright Keaton. Something has happened though. The infection seems to evolve somehow.”

“Oh, that’s wonderful. How so?”

“The one who was leading the the attack was U-Mos.”

“Really? But I thought U-Mos was an ally.”

“He was. He got infected as well and says he is going to lead the whole new ‘race’ of infected.”

“Does he? Well I did some digging while you were gone and found out that this started from here. It was a last ditch effort to try and ‘cleanse’ the galaxy. Obviously it’s working too well.”

“And it is who you thought before?” Keaton nodded then pointed to a man in custody and surrounded by Galactic Federation officers. Samus felt herself overcome with rage and marched up to the man. It kept everything in her power not to snap his neck. “How dare you?” She asked him. “You saw first hand what they were capable of.” He didn’t sound a bit regretful about his choice. “That doesn’t give you the right to kill them! They were peaceful. U-Mos just wanted to rebuild his world.”

“And what would have happened if they decided to abandon their ‘peaceful ways’ and become an enemy? That seemed to have happened already.”

“That was your doing.”

“Ha! What I did only furthered my reason. No one race should have that much power.”

“Except for Humans?”

“That’s how it was until Humanity decided to branch out into the galaxy. But it doesn’t matter now. If you hadn’t shown up during the Phazon crisis they would have died then.”

“You knew what was happening and you didn’t send anyone?”

“Of course I knew. It was only by luck that a patrol found out. Even now, it was only by luck. This virus was meant to kill them off. They weren’t supposed to get a distress call out and spread the virus!”

Samus couldn’t deal with this anymore so she punched him in the gut. It didn’t kill him, but he was going to live with that pain for a long time. He fell to his knees before being escorted away. “I know it’s protocol to put him on trial, but I wouldn’t have been upset if you had killed him,” Keaton said coldly. “What’s going to happen?”

“Oh, he will face trial then he will get what’s coming to him. If only I found out sooner, this wouldn’t have happened.”