PROLOGUE

It was nighttime at the bar. The old bartender, formerly a Zebes native, ran it based on three rules: take the fighting outside, never stiff the bartender, and no whistling at the girls unless you buy them some wine. He didn't usually have trouble. But his mind wasn't on the mug he was cleaning in his three-fingered, clawed hands. His insectoid face, beaked with huge eyes and armor over his body, looked down at his own reflection in the mug and he sighed. He'd removed his cloaked hood; it was getting musty and needed to be cleaned.

Where was she? She ALWAYS came in at 10:00 on the dot for a drink before heading home to get some sleep. Meanwhile, a jukebox played an old Earth song from years past as the bartender finally saw a good, dear friend come in. A good dear friend who also happened to be a good customer…and a d—n good bounty hunter to boot. When he saw that she wasn't wearing her suit though…and her expression…

If I had a dollar bill for every time I'd been wrong, I'd be a self-made-millionaire and you'd still be gone! So hand me down my best dress shoes and my best dress shirt! Cuz I'm goin' out in style…to cover the huuuuurt…

The blond-haired, well-built woman sat down on a chair in a popular bar. The chairs of the bar didn't have a single person in them…it was a VERY slow day today. Most people were at home or at the big game that was playing in the city. Most people. Not this woman.

All I wanna do all day is spend it in bed! But that's bad for the body, and even worse for my head! So I'll try and find a place where no-one will ask me a thing! It'll help me to forget…and help me to sing!

The bartender put down an offering for her. She shoved the mug of light brown liquid away, and it flew across the countertop of the bar, making the bartender wince. It had been a fancy glass mug worth at least half a month's salary, and she usually loved that brand of beer.

"I don't want a friggin' beer. Get me an absinthe and put in a little lemon!" She muttered.

The bartender whistled as he pulled down the drink from the countertop and began mixing it for her. "An absinthe? Was your day that bad, Sammy?"

Samus Aran gulped down the absinthe he offered a moment later. "YES." She muttered. "Yes, it…it was. It…it was awful."

Cuz nowww…I'm drunk again! A means to my ennnnd! And I'm scared of myself…cuz nowww…it's all the saaame! The faces and naaaames! And I'm scared of myself agaaaiiiiin…

Her mind kept racing back to that spaceship…back to that kid…back to that smile…

"What happened?" The bartender asked her.

She was quiet. Deathly so.

Have you ever wanted to wake up from your dreaming? It scared you so bad you couldn't control your heart or your breathing! Well walk out the door, with me on the floor, you don't care how I'm feeling! I guess I'm weak and tired of fighting man, it's no longer appealing!

He'd been smiling. That dumb, stupid kid…why had he been happy?…

"Samus, come on."

Cuz nowww…I'm drunk again! A means to my ennnnd! And I'm scared of myself…cuz nowww…it's all the saaame! The faces and naaaames! And I'm scared of myself agaaaiiiiin…

He'd been wearing a pretty little mood necklace. His hair, she remembered the way it's waves, how he'd brushed them back…and that smile…

"Come on."

Some people have a window reachin' right into your soul! They're finding a hole! And making it bigger! Sometimes I think I catch your eye and send you close smiles! And in a short while…you'll be my heart's grave-diggeerrrrr!

Stupid, stupid kid…went and saved both our lives…what chance did he have? He knew he was going to die, why smile?...

Well there's not much I can do…cuz I'm at the mercy of yooouuu! So baby I guess we're through!

"Talk."

Samus put down the drink. She blinked her blue eyes once, twice. She brushed her blond hair back as it fell down, no longer tied into a ponytail the way she usually liked it. She stared at the drink below her, then spoke.

Cuz nowww…I'm drunk again! A means to my ennnnd! And I'm scared of myself…cuz nowww…it's all the saaame! The faces and naaaames! And I'm scared of myself agaaaiiiiin…

"It was just another routine mission…I had to check out this asteroid that had part of an abandoned space station stuck in it. The Federation wanted me to give the place a look through to see if there was anything of value left on the station…they didn't give me the reason why it had been abandoned, I didn't ask…"

Cuz nowww…I'm drunk again! A means to my ennnnd! And I'm scared of myself…cuz nowww…it's all the saaame! The faces and naaaames! And I'm scared of myself agaaaiiiiin…

"But…I wasn't the only one there. I figured that out pretty quickly, and before I knew it, I was fighting for my life…"

"If I had a dollar bill for every time for every time I'd been wrong, I'd be a self-made millionaire, and I wouldn't be singin'…" A soft voice sang out from behind her, at a nearby table…


METROID:

TRUST

(Shot cuts to a stage. FLOW takes the stage as a brown-haired American youth who is also on the stage in front of them points to them in a dramatic fashion, yelling "HIT IT!".)

Kaki narase sonzai wo, Koko ni iru toooo...Arata na tabi ga ima hajimaruuuu!

(Scene cuts to show Samus standing on a floating platform, her back to Ridley, who glances over at her, then faces away from her again as the stars whiz by.)

Wo-oh, wo-oh, wo-oh, woah! Wo-oh, wo-oh, wo-oh, woah!

Wo-oh, wo-oh, wo-oh, woah! Wo-oh, wo-oh, wo-oh, woah!

Kawari yuku kisetsu no naka wo, Ikinuku tabi ni bokura! Chie to tsuyosa wo te ni ireta kedoooo

(Scene of Samus taking off her power suit's helmet, shaking her hair. She grins at the camera)\

(Just looks like a survival game!)

Nagareteku jikan no naka ni, Okizari ni shita omoi wo…Wasureta koto sura wasurete itaaaaa…

(Scene cuts to Ridley, standing on a tall spire inside Space Pirate HQ. His eyes narrow in a frightening fashion, then he takes off through the air.)

Kuzure kaketa toki…kodoku wo shitte! Deaeta bokura hitori ja nai!

(Scene of Samus running in her power suit through Zebes, with Ridley right next to her as a massive wall of fire rushes towards them both from behind them.)

Sarake dase kanjou wo, Banjou no omoi wooo! Namidame ga unmei wo kaete yukuuu! Yami ni uchi narase kodou wo, Kitto aeru yooo! Onaji itami no hata no moto de!

Wo-oh, wo-oh, wo-oh, woah! Wo-oh, wo-oh, wo-oh, woah!

Wo-oh, wo-oh, wo-oh, woah! Wo-oh, wo-oh, wo-oh, woah!

(Scene of brown-haired youth appearing on the floating platform from before. He salutes the camera with his middle and pointer finger on his right hand)

Utsuri yuku kioku no naka de, Kawara nai taisetsu na mono wo…Mitsuke dasou toshite samayotte itaaaa!

Boukyaku no hate de deaeta no wa…Wazuka demo tashika na nukumoriiii…

(Scene cuts back to Samus and Ridley running. Now the youth joins them, running in between both of them.)

Sarake dase kanjou wo, Banjou no omoi wooo! Namidame ga unmei wo kaete yukuuu! Yami ni uchi narase kodou wo, Kitto aeru yooo! Onaji itami no hata no moto de!

(Scene of Samus sitting alone in her room, clutching her head, tears falling from her eyes. Then there is a scene of Ridley alone on a mountaintop, tail curled around himself as he stares longingly at the moon.)

Sarake dase kanjou wo, Banjou no omoi wooo! Namidame ga unmei wo kaete yukuuu! Yami ni uchi narase kodou wo, Kitto aeru yooo!

(Scene now shows both Ridley and Samus on the floating platform. The kid pulls them both together in a shoulder hug and grins at the camera as both Ridley and Samus look up at him, then at the camera, finally breaking out into smiles themselves.)

Kaki narase sonzai wo Koko ni iru to...Hibike ano akatsuki no sora ni!

Wo-oh, wo-oh, wo-oh, woah! Wo-oh, wo-oh, wo-oh, woah!

Wo-oh, wo-oh, wo-oh, woah! Wo-oh, wo-oh, wo-oh, woah!

(Camera fades on that last scene to show the title.)

CHAPTER ONE

A single light-bulb flickered on and off in the smooth hallway of the abandoned space station. The walls looked old and creaky, but that was simply because the station had collided with a large asteroid of considerable size. Now the walls were fit to burst, as rock and dirt oozed out from cracks. The whole place looked as though it was going to break down into pieces at a moment's notice, yet somehow remained steadfast.

A long trail of blood led down the hallway where the light-bulb flickered on and off. If one was to follow it, it would lead up to a cursing individual who was using one hand to steady himself on the walls as he limped towards the end of the hallway, to an open door that led into the deeper recesses of the station, and the asteroid itself. The core of the asteroid itself was several miles away, but the individual's mind wasn't thinking of that…he had his thoughts on one person.

"That d—n bounty hunter!" The Space Pirate Lord Ridley hissed as he dragged his body through the hallways of the abandoned space station. He resembled a pterodactyl, or actually, a dragon. He had skeletal wings, a long, powerful tail with a sharp, barbed end of the color of dried blood, a long beaklike-face and a maw filled with sharp teeth, situated on a head atop a long neck. His body was covered in purple scaly flesh that were endurable and smooth, with strong, rippling muscles. He had large talons attached to his legs, three of them, and like the big claws on his hands, they gleamed the color of a slightly milky white. Three cord-like tubes led up from a fold on his throat up to his long head, this granted him control over flame which he belched freely from his maw. His pale green/yellow eyes gleamed as well, as thoughts of revenge filled his mind.

He was so SURE that nobody would find him there…he'd been positive that nobody would bother with the space station he was using to mine Afluorite. Alfuorite was a very precious metal that was used to charge up space ship power cells…and, more importantly, a substance that was just PERFECT for cloning purposes.

The Space Pirate's had numbers going for them…but quantity over quality wasn't something to be proud of when it came to trying to fend of a certain individual named Samus Aran. Her specially made armor suit, handcrafted by the ancient avian-type aliens the Chozo, had proven that one person COULD make a difference…at least when it came to ruining their plans! Entire battalions had fallen to her in a matter of minutes.

At least their cloning technology was superior. The stupid Galactic Federation would like nothing more than to get their hands on the specially-developed tech that the Space Pirates used to bring back their most worthy warriors. Unfortunately, the process took some time, and more importantly, a LOT of alfluorite. Even he, who could regenerate his body by consuming other bodies, had to be revived in such a manner sometimes...it was degrading, but less strain on his head then his normal regeneration, which played havoc with the memories of his head. He would continue to forget what was said, the reason why, when or where his battles took place...he was only remembering the pain, the blood...most of it belonging to him.

Was that all that mattered, in the end? Did he really NEED a reason to hate that hunter?

But he was getting tired of being revived through the space pirate technology...not that he didn't appreciate their keen use of afluorite. They stretched it whenever they could, but eventually they did run out and had to get more.

Luckily Ridley had found this asteroid, and had discovered, while travelling en-route to the main base, the space station stuck in the asteroid. Presumably the space station's crew and scientists had jumped ship when the asteroid hit it, and never discovered the wonders within the core of it…afluorite EVERYWHERE, lining it from tip to top, shining brightly and ripe for plucking.

He'd sent several dozen shipments out, and things had been going well, but Ridley had barely scratched the surface of mining when BOOM, who should come to investigate the space station wreckage but that meddling bounty hunter, Samus Aran?

Aran was Ridley's rival, a rival for LIFE. The two were destined to meet each other and fight, it was practically written in the stars. The Space Pirates had given her a lot of grief on her many missions, had killed a few of her friends, had kidnapped her precious "Hatchling", a baby specimen of the Metroid race she'd named and grown to care for like a mother for a child. And the Space Pirates hated her for good reasons to: she killed them over and over, ruined their plans on conquering worlds and most of all, had blown up their leader, Mother Brain…MORE than once!

Ridley spat blood on the ground. She'd wounded him badly. He remembered he'd heard someone walking through the hallways…he'd intended to take the intruder by surprise, but upon sneaking up from behind, when he'd gotten close enough and seen it was HER…

"Aran…" he'd cackled.

Samus had whipped around, seeing him. He was sure her eyes had widened beneath that visor on her helmet. Her armored suit immediately reacted, activating her plasma buster as she raised it at him. "Ridley." She spat. "Scourge of Zebes. Should have known YOU'D be here! You're following me around, aren't you?"

"I could ask you the same thing, bounty hunter." Ridley had laughed. "Tell me, is my sexual charm having an effect on you yet? You always seem to come crawling back to me!"

Oh, now THAT had been a harsh blow on her pysche. He'd had the pleasure of seeing her shudder before she snarled "You're not my type" at him.

He'd shrugged, then his eyes had narrowed as he licked his lips with his tongue. "I think we both know your life will end in by my hand. With you defenseless, naked, alone…with ME. So then…" His gaze had turned steely. "To business as usual…"

It had started out well. Slashing claws had struck her shoulder, then he'd managed to whack her into the wall, and before she could even stagger back, he'd slammed his tail into her gut, laughing as he drew back. He licked the blood off of the tail, enjoying it's sweet taste. "Mmm…" He murmured. "You taste like cherries…"

Samus was panting, clenching her fist. Ridley spread out his arms in a mock hug. "Aww, you're not giving up ALREADY, are you Sammy g-"

He'd forgotten one of the foremost rules of fighting: don't gloat over your enemy's body unless you're sure they're dead. It pained him to admit it, (far less than the horrible nearly-broken wing did) but he'd gotten careless. She'd been more prepared than he had thought she'd been…missiles, how had she gotten ahold of super missiles? He'd barely gotten away with his life! And now…

He felt so tired. He reached the door and staggered through, entering the rocky folds of the asteroid, hiding in a nearby crack in the wall that was big enough to fit him. Just…just a moment's rest…

Something came to mind. Hmm. Aran. It was an uncommon name. Not too uncommon, but still…

He'd heard it somewhere before. Hmm…hmm

Deep down in his head, a part of him might have known the answer that contined to be buried every time Ridley devoured others to keep his own cells alive…but Ridley was pretty d—n good at denial, hadn't he convinced himself over and over that he could bring "death to the hunter"? Still…if only he could be sure, 100 sure, if there was some way-

"OW!" He shouted suddenly. He'd bonked his wing against the wall and now fiery pain shot up. It was broken, broken…he was limping, his chest was bleeding away, his left wing was broken and he had chunks of flesh blown off of his arm. He was sweating, his sweat falling into the small pool of blood that was forming beneath him, as the two liquids went "dra-drip, dra-drip"…

"I'm going to die here." He thought. If the Space Pirates could recover the tiniest part of his body, just enough for a DNA sample, he could survive, but he knew…he was doomed. They weren't supposed to check up on him for another five hours, and by then he'd be too far gone. Once Samus found his body she'd probably burn it until there was only ash, or…or worse, maybe toss him into one of the many acid pits here in the asteroid…

"I'll die here…I'll die here…" He whispered as unconsciousness gripped him.

I'm going to die. He thought.

I'm going to die…

I'm going to…die…

I'm going…to…die…

I'm…going…to…die…

I'm…

I…

I die.