Damn, that might be the goriest use of the Ice Beam I've ever seen. Just...like...damn! I was kinda hoping for the BS with the mass killing on the ship to be the resolution, but I guess Samus finally being at peace was the resolution. Keep up the good work!

I like how this has a "Last Gunslinger"/"Old Man Logan vibe. And those little attentions to detail, like cold deeply hurting Samus, make this a great fic. I wonder if the incident that got her put behind a desk will be revealed as some sort of inside job. Hmmm...
This is so great, you are great!

so did she die?

Yes! I found this story again. Must have read it, what? About six years ago now?
A fan-tas-tic gripping short story, with some great ambiguity at the end. Is Nuvwick lying about the captive Chozo? Probably... Does Sam freeze to death or go on to have even grander adventures? The legends around her are ever changing. This is a timeless piece for Metroid fans.

My only gripe is that I wish you would correct some of the typos. "With on own hands." ruining what should be a blood-chilling threat, or is that Aran's own grammatical mistake? What with being raised by the natives and all.

Two of my most favourite aspects of this novella have to be the inclusion of another Space Dragon in the employ of the Federation and the realistic depiction of being hit with a Bose Einstein Condensate energy / gas beam in all its grisly glory. Seriously, some joke writers seem to think you'll be encased neatly in a block of ice; well its a description I'm looking forward to paraphrasing in your honour in my own Metroid stories.

I tip my hat to you, Mild Guy. Bravo, sir! Bravo!

Oh my gosh, that was friggin amazing. I can't believe It took me so long to find this. I usually shy away from M rated stories, and that is a terrible habit, because this story is so great, it would have been terrible not to have found it.

It was so darn emotional, and tense. Oh yeah I was tense. Like through this whole thing. Tense and like 'oh noes' and 'die scum'. Loved it, it was so awesome.

I had a slight freak out at the end, but it also felt beautiful and genuine. I felt like I didn't want this to end too...

Just fabulous job in general, this was a real nice fic. I enjoyed it a lot. :)

Wow...just...wow. That was an amazing story.

Wow this has got to be one of the best metroid fics, it's also good to see a Samus that’s not emo/happy but a cold hearted killer like I've always pictured her. I really like that she can't let go of her hate for the space pirates, very human. Hope you decide to write some more metroid in the future, there's not enough good fics.

Are we allowed to review old stories? I just wanted to say that I found this piece to be very well-written, graphic, honest, and overall a good read. I can't offer much criticism. Sometimes you lapsed into exposition in the first two chapters. All nicely worded, but not always necessary. I liked that the mission objective was a more personal one to the character of Samus Aran, yet the plot still offers more than enough action to stay true to the games. What is different though, is that the morals have become a bit shaded; Aran is a killer at heart, but that you carry through with it, makes it more honest than a lot of other stories I've read, and grants it all a lingering impact.

Criticism comes a couple years too late at this point. I can only say that the battle in the corridor didn't seem like close-quarters fighting. It felt like it would have needed more open space to happen the way it did. Beyond that...I'll remember the cheese grater for some time. That was a nicely horrific touch, and yes, it is something that is actually used in surgical procedures such as skin grafting for patients with severe third-degree burns. Only problem is that the skin would come off in small flakes. Maybe something more like a paring knife would have worked better in this case. I should say though, that the visuals you provided in that scene were very good.

And I applaud the ending.

Wow...amazing...wow.

Well described scenes...fights that flow smoothly...this fic definately deserves more reviews. Very, very nice.

Yup, that was an awesome story. All of the fight scenes sung. The dialogue was crisp and the characterization spot on. Not very much could have been done to make the story better so I'll leave it at that.

Great job.

I'm liking this story very much so. The action was well done and I like how Samus' age was affecting her combat skills. The fact that she recognized that was what it was, but kept on doing what she does was also a benefit.

I would have liked to see more of what Samus' life-in-exile was like to give greater credence to how depressed and desperate she was.

I'll finish reading the rest at a later date.

Wow...just. Wow

Nice! This is an amzing work youve done!

I started by reading this and thinking, not another story with a happy ending but this is incredible! Keep up this work!

I'm so glad you posted this here. This is probably in the upper eschelons of Metroid fanfiction and deserves far more reviews than it has, but such is the way of things; oftentimes truly great writing is bypassed. This is a truly great story, and I've always thought that from the first time I read it (I'm Moonlight Sonata on SCU, and I need to get some fics up on the site before any more time goes by!). Your work with this piece blew me away then, and it blows me away now. I bow down to the keyboard you type upon. Excellent, excellent work.