Please Don't Leave Me

The only sound in the jungle was the groaning of metal bearing too much weight and the pop of arcing electricity. Though the letters "ANTIOCH" could still be made out on the hull beneath the cockpit, the twisted hulk no longer even remotely resembled its former self. The aft quarter of the ship was gone, likely still in orbit. The cockpit was torn off just aft of the navigator's post on impact, and was now lodged between two enormous trees at the end of the shallow trench it dug. Half way up to trench, the rest of the craft lay on its side. The bottom two decks, and the eight men stationed on them, were now crushed against the floor of the command deck.

Scattered in and around the wreck lay fifteen hard-sealed combat suits. Each was emblazoned with the insignia of the Galactic Federation on the left breast, and each containing the body of one of the Antioch's crew. Most were either slumped at their posts or laying on what was left of the bridge. A handful lay scattered around the craft. One lay separate from the others, near the start of the trench.

Emerald green eyes slowly opened inside the suit.

******

The first thing Second Lieutenant Tara Clarke felt was pain. Her head was throbbing, and her body ached. She tried to breathe, but winced as searing pain shot through the right side of her torso. All she could see was dark red, and she had a metallic taste in her mouth. Her left hand grasped at the back of her helmet, searching for the release. When she found it, Tara used the last of her strength to pull it off and push it away. Exhausted, she collapsed, letting her head hit the soil. Her eyes closed again.

She was jolted back by the sound of limbs cracking. Instinctively, her head came up, and she tried to look around, but again all she could see was red. She wiped her eyes clean with her hand. Looking at her hand, she saw that the glove was stained by a dark, crimson fluid. She had her first coherent thought since the crash.

Blood. I'm bleeding.

In the distance, she heard the sound of footsteps on hollow metal. She had heard it constantly since she came aboard the Antioch a month earlier, but it sounded different this time. She could hear the familiar dull sound of a foot hitting the deck, but it was accompanied by a series of sharp clicks, almost simultaneous with each other. After a moment, she realized what it was: Pirates.

She froze, trying to think. Her right hand slowly slid to her hip, trying to find her sidearm. It found nothing. Put distance between yourself and the crash site. Her training began to kick in. I have to get up.

She brought her hands up and pushed, trying to get to her feet. But as soon as she tried to exert force, pain again tore through her flank, and she collapsed. Before she could catch herself, she cried out. The footsteps stopped.

Shit.

She lay motionless, listening. After a few seconds, she heard a low, scratchy growl come from the crash, followed by the sound of feet moving quickly over dirt. Tara closed her eyes and held her breath. I'm dead. Please think I'm dead. The footsteps drew closer and closer. Suddenly, she felt something take hold of her shoulder. She was lifted from the ground and tossed onto her back, crying out again when she landed. When she opened her eyes, she was face to face with a pirate. It turned and called out in a sharp growl. The pirate then turned back to her, bringing one clawed hand to her throat. It started to squeeze, crushing her throat.

Tara fought to breathe, clawing at the creature's powerful arm. Her vision began to fade, and her arms fell to her side. Then, the hand was gone. Coughing, she looked up. Another pirate, this one larger, had arrived. It stood over the first, its back turned to her. Slowly, she began to push herself away. As soon as she moved, though, the pirate turned and looked at her. It walked slowly up next to her and, with a low, growling laugh, kicked her head.

Once again, Tara lost consciousness.

******

She awoke to the sensation of cold metal on her back. Her feet were raised, and she was held by the ankles. Tara raised her head and looked at her feet. She was being dragged down a dark corridor by two pirates, each holding one leg. Oh God, no. She had heard stories of what the Pirates did to prisoners, and none of them end well.

"No, please no!" she begged. Her right hand felt a pipe and latched on instinctively, but as soon as she tried to hold herself in place, the pain in her side forced her to let go. She cried out in agony, and her eyes filled with tears. Her left hand went to the pain, and she held her side as she was dragged on. Tara struggled to calm herself.

They stopped at a door. One of the pirates pressed his hand to a panel, and the door opened. She was pulled into the room. She held her eyes shut, hoping it was a nightmare, willing the pirates away. When the doors closed, she felt the pirates drop her legs. Almost before her feet hit the ground, she felt her wrists being pulled together over her head, and metal lock around them. She tried to pull them apart, but they wouldn't separate. The doors opened again as the pirates walked out. When they shut, Tara was in total darkness.

I am going to die. They are going to torture me, and I am going to die .She waited in the dark, preparing for what she knew was to come.

After a few minutes, the doors again opened and a pirate entered. She recognized it as the one that had kicked her. Behind him came two others, both armed with plasma rifles. The leader crossed the room and activated a control panel. A light came on above her head, blinding her. She felt a tug on her wrists, and they were pulled towards the ceiling. She could see metal cuffs around her wrists, holding them together. They were connected to a chain that ran up to the ceiling. The chain continued to pull, dragging her up. As it did so, more and more weight was placed on her injury. She screamed in agony as she was pulled to her feet. The lead pirate motioned to the guards, who nodded and moved towards her.

The pirates grabbed her and began removing her hard-suit. As Tara struggled helplessly, they removed her gloves, bracers, and wrist computer. Next, they removed the shoulder pieces and chest plate, letting them fall to the floor. The plating covering her groin and thighs were ripped from the suit and tossed aside. She was then raised off her feet. As she cried out in pain, the guards pulled the leg protection past her feet. Finally, she was lowered until she rested on her knees, her hands between her legs. The only clothing she still had on was the thin sleeveless shirt and knee length briefs containing the sensors for the suits vital signs monitoring system.

Tara gasped for air, dizzy from the agony. A hand gipped her red hair and pulled her head up. She stared into the face of her captor blankly, oblivious to anything but the slowly receding pain. As her mind came back to her, the pirate turned to the interrogator and nodded. The interrogator typed commands into the panel, and a small screen was lowered from the ceiling in front of her. Bold red letters appeared on the black screen.

YOU ARE OURS. YOU WILL TELL US WHAT YOU KNOW OR YOU WILL SUFFER

After a moment, they were replaced by more.

WHAT IS YOUR NAME?

She dropped her head, struggling to speak. The interrogator waited patiently for a few moments. Finally she was able to form words.

"Tara," she whispered. More letters appeared.

YOUR FULL NAME

"Please, I don't know anything," Suddenly, the chain pulled, and she was raised up to her feet. Tara screamed again as pain shot through her side.

YES YOU DO. AND YOU WILL TELL ME. YOUR FULL NAME

As she read the words, wondering what the pirate meant, she was struck in the right side. Normally, it would not have been hard enough to do more than annoy her. With her injury, it sent waves of agony through her body. "TARA CLARKE!" she cried through her tears. When she did, she was lowered to her knees again.

RANK AND STATION

"Please," Tara begged.

She was swiftly yanked to her feet, and then off of them. Tara twitched and writhed silently, the pain taking the ability to scream from her. After a minute or so she was again lowered, but only to her feet. In front of her, a light came on. Tara saw that the wall facing her was reflective glass. She looked at herself in the mirror. Her shirt was stained red on her right side. She was covered in sweat, and her eyes were red and filled with tears.

REMEMBER THIS SIGHT. IT WILL BE A FIND MEMORY WHEN WE ARE FINISHED

The light went off, and again the wall was black. More letters began to appear.

GIVE ME THE ENCRYPTION CODES FOR FEDERA

The letters stopped mid-word and the interrogator looked at the ceiling. Tara forced her breath to quite, and heard a faint rumbling. It approached quickly, moving past the room in the ceiling. A shaft of light appeared on the other side of the glass, and a small, red-orange metal ball fell through it in the other room. The light disappeared and there was silence.

The interrogator barked out an order to the guards, who immediately left the room. A moment later, Tara saw them enter the other room, illuminated by the corridor light through the door. When the door closed, everything was dark again. She waited silently for several moments.

Without warning, the wall in front of her exploded. The blast sent glass flying into the room, cutting into Tara's skin. One of the pirates flew past her, striking the wall behind her with a crunch. A blade extended from the interrogator's forearm, and he jumped through the hole with a snarl. There was crashing, followed by an animal scream, then silence. Smoke was pouring through the hole in the wall, blocking Tara's view. Through the smoke, a tall figure emerged.

It can't be.

The figure was clad head to toe in armor. It was the same color as the ball except for a red chest plate and helmet. The stomach and thighs had a more yellow color, and on the shoulders were two large spherical structures, each larger than the helmet. From the elbow down, the right arm was a large, green cylinder. Steam was rising from the end. Though she could not see through the opaque green visor, Tara knew immediately who stood before her. Every Marine would recognize the sight.

Samus Aran.

******

Samus walked up to Tara, looking her up and down. "You have fractured ribs, and are bleeding internally. You need to get out of here. Can you walk?" Her voice was soft and calm, but firm and powerful. Tara found it comforting.

"Yes," she said, though she was not sure if it was true. Samus hesitated. "Please help me," Tara begged.

Behind the green visor, eyes narrowed. A deep, cold rage was building in the bounty hunter's chest. She knew the pirates. She knew how they thought and what they did. She had experienced it first-hand. They hadn't done this for pleasure. They never do. They want power, and this is how they get it.

"Look at the floor and close your eyes" Samus stepped back, raising her cannon. She fired a single blast into the ceiling, and the chain fell to the floor. Tara fell to the ground. "Now for the restraints," Samus said calmly. Her visor shined for a moment and the cuffs fell away. Samus extended her hand to Tara. The wounded Marine hesitated, spellbound by the image before her.

An alarm sounded, pulling Tara back to reality. "Okay. Hold onto me. It's going to hurt," Samus said. Taking Samus's hand, Tara pulled herself up. She wrapped her right arm around the power armor, trying to hold on without a good place to grab. Samus reached behind her, grabbing hold of the waistband of Tara's pants. Tara was half-dragged out the door into the corridor, which now illuminated by red lights. She was immediately lost. Samus was going too quickly for her to keep track of the turns.

As they rounded a corner, Samus stopped. If front of them was a door. "Wait here," she said, gently setting Tara down next to the door. The wounded soldier desperately wanted to hold on.

"Don't leave me," she begged. Tara tried to hold on, but Samus slipped away. As soon as Tara was down, Samus went to the door. She hit the control panel, sliding out of the way as a storm of plasma came through the doorway. Using her left hand, she pressed a button on her cannon. The weapon immediately began to shift. The barrel extended and widened, several vents opened on either side, and the whole of the weapon slid forward on her arm.

Samus slid through the doorway, her weapon raised. As she disappeared through the opening, Tara heard a series of loud, high pitched cracks. These were accompanied by the cries and screams of the now-outgunned Space Pirates. Then, a terrible, deafening roar spilt the air, forcing Tara to cover her ears. There were more of the high-pitched cracks, accompanied by explosions, crashing, and more roars. There was a massive explosion accompanied by the cry of something very big, very angry, and very hurt. Chunks of debris flew through the doorway, followed by Samus.

"Let's go," she said, calmly picking Tara up again. Tara was in awe. She had never seen anything like Samus. She had heard the stories, of course. Everyone knew who Samus Aran was: the last survivor of K-2L, the destroyer of Zebes, the metroid hunter, the savior of the Federation. But seeing her in action was surreal. Every movement had purpose, every action was planned. She was powerful and confident. Tara couldn't help but admire her, and the sight caused powerful emotions to stir inside her.

Samus carried her through the doorway. On the other side was a large bay, filled with the remains of crates and loading equipment. Scattered among them were pieces of pirates. Tara couldn't tell how many, but was sure there were at least a dozen. In the center of the room, the body of a large armored dragon-like creature lay motionless. A large whole was gaping in the roof, and Tara could see blue sky through it. As she watched, a craft descended through the hole, coming to a stop just in front of them.

"Is that..." Tara pointed at the vessel.

"Yes," Samus cut her off.

Then, looking at the creature "And that is..."

"Yes."

"And he's dead?"

"For now," Samus said.

"I feel very tired," said Tara as she passed out.

******

She awoke on her back. Feeling cold metal on her back again, she started to panic. No, please no! She could almost feel the pirates dragging her.

But something was different. There was a soft, dull roaring sound in the background, and she could feel vibrations through the floor. At last, she remembered her rescue. "I need to move you," Samus said entering the room, still in her armor. Tara nodded, finally relaxing. Samus lifted her up and led her to a small bunk that slid out of the wall of the small room. "Lay down," she said. Tara obeyed, resting her head on the pillow. Samus moved to a control panel. Several sensors extended from the wall.

"Where am I?" asked Tara.

"My ship. You passed out,"

"Where are we going?"

"The nearest Federation outpost, on Shadow. We'll arrive in 48 hours."

As Tara watched, Samus's face grew pensive. "What's wrong?" asked Tara nervously, still in pain.

"You have a broken rib. Compound fracture. It needs to be set." Samus then turned to look at Tara "This will be painful." Her voice was reassuring, but the constant, emotionless stare of the helmet was not.

"O-okay," Tara stammered. Please, don't hurt me. The words crept through her mind.

Samus stepped back into the center of the room. A pale blue light encompassed her, and her suit was encompassed by it. As the light faded, Tara could see that something had changed. The suit was gone. There was no visor and no helmet. The weapon was gone. There was no hint of metal at all. It had been replaced by the most beautiful sight she had ever seen.

The figure was encased in a blue skin tight jumpsuit. Tara had seen technical descriptions of Samus's Zero Suit, but the sight in front of her was nothing like what she had pictured. It clung tightly to Samus's sleek, toned legs. Past the gentle curve of her hips, on the right side of which rested an unusual looking pistol, Samus had a tight, flat stomach. Her breasts were ample, though not especially large. Her muscled yet thin arms hung at her side. The suit extended over her long fingers, and pink lights glowed on the back of her hands and over her left breast. Tara could see that the Power Suit did not add as much height as she thought. Tara was relatively tall at 5'10", but Samus towered over her. Tara guessed that she was about half a foot taller.

The only part not covered by the suit was the head. Sitting atop a slender neck, her face was neutral, but not quite emotionless. Her mouth seemed slightly small for her face, with delicate looking pink lips and the slightest hint of an overbite. Her nose was slightly upturned at the tip. The skin was pale, and flawlessly smooth. Her face was framed in golden blonde hair, which was tied into a shoulder length ponytail, save for two locks on either side of her face, partly obscuring her ears. The center pieces lay under two dark, thin eyebrows. Her eyes sat in shallow sockets with large black lashes. They were large, gentle, and shone a brilliant blue with a faint hint of green.

Tara's gaze was fixed on Samus's eyes, and her breath caught in her chest. Those blue gems shined with strength, but also deep sadness. She looks so lonely. Tara's heart immediately went out to her. The sight almost drove her to tears. Samus walked up to Tara, and she could see that powerful muscles hid just beneath her flat stomach. Indeed, it was clear as she moved that Samus's slender figure concealed a powerful body. She was built for the perfect balance of agility, speed, strength, and stamina. Tara felt a familiar tightness in her abdomen as Samus leaned over her.

"I need to realign the bones so you can heal. To do this, I have to push hard on your side. It will hurt at first, but when I am done, you will feel better. I have some compounds that greatly accelerate bone remodeling. I am going to give it to you with a sedative. Then you can rest."

Tara looked up into her savior's face. It was soft and calming. The strength and loneliness were still there, but they were covered by a look kindness. "Okay," Tara breathed. Samus nodded and stood, examining Tara's side. She gently placed her hands above the injury. Tara was about to tell Samus she was ready when the tall woman suddenly pushed down. A blinding pain enveloped Tara's body, unlike anything she had felt before. She heard and felt the bones in her side shift, and Samus removed her hands. Tara grasped her left hand as she fought through the pain.

"Breathe. It's okay, just breathe," Samus whispered gently into her ear. Tara's eyes were clamped shut, filling with tears. "Shhh. It's over. I'm done. Try to relax," said Samus, bending down until her face was a few inches from Tara's. The redhead reached her other arm around Samus and held on tightly. Tara buried her face in Samus's shoulder, desperately trying not to cry. Using her free hand, Samus withdrew a small syringe from a drawer beneath the bunk. She stuck the tip into Tara's leg and pushed the plunger slowly. "Shh. Go to sleep," she whispered. Tara's vision began to fade. Her head felt heavy, and she fought to keep her eyes open. She could feel herself start to lose consciousness. No, not again. Not now! Tara's eyes were wide with panic.

"Please, don't leave me." Tara breathed before passing out.

"I won't," Samus whispered.

******

"Lt. Clarke, report!" The captain's voice was barely audible over the alarms.

"Unknown contact, bearing 199 by 38," Tara called back.