The metallic clank of Samus Aran's Power Suit against the floors of rocky caverns and the abandoned inner-working of planets were more familiar to her than the clack of shoes across bathroom tiles.

Quakes and tremors had exposed one last unexplored area of SR388. Unsure of how much time she had to explore the caverns, Samus sprinted over the rocky, uneven ground, ignoring the aching muscles of her legs, the fire that burned in her chest and the taste of blood that came from the back of her throat.

Accustomed only to the sound of her metal-clad feet clanking against rock and the echoes bouncing off the cavern walls, a cracking noise caused her to skid to a stop.

Her head whipped around as she tried to locate the source of the noise. She could only see rock after rock in the deserted cavern.

A faint groan of 'wurr-naw, nur, wurr-nurr' came from somewhere in the rocks.

Samus readied her weapon, changing its charge to Ice, raising its barrel and turning her body in a circle. She could not see the Metroid, but she was ready for it.

As she turned, she heard the loudest crack yet from directly behind her. She spun around, and saw a tiny Metroid emerging from what looked like another grayish green rock. Its skin was translucent and tinged with emerald and cream blotches. From a small mouth, bordered by long white fangs, came a soft coo.

Samus kept her weapon targeted on the Metroid.

In all of her time on this planet, she had not seen anything like this. The closest things to experts on the species agreed that Metroids reproduced asexually through a process much like mitosis and fission. They did not hatch from eggs.

She watched the Metroid, weapon aimed, as it flew above her head. It should have attacked her by now; it should have tried to latch onto her Power Suit and sink its teeth in the metal and drain her life. It did not.

Samus took a few steps backward, carefully treading over the uneven rocks. The Metroid followed her and began to circle around her. Samus expected the larva to close in on her at any moment, but it didn't draw any closer to her.

Samus did not lower her weapon as she walked through the cavern, for the Metroid still orbited around her.

It appeared to be harmless. She had not killed it, even though her orders were to exterminate all Metroids on the planet. She thought of the scientists at the Ceres Station, begging the Galactic Federation for a live sample. Oh, did she have a Christmas present for them. . . .

Samus didn't want to half-ass the job. She was going to explore each room thoroughly, killing every living thing on the planet. If she got blown to pieces in the process, then at least she wouldn't have to listen to her stuffy old superior officers barking yet another order at her.

It seemed that she would have to half-ass the job or get blown up, as a jammed gray door blocked the way to the next cavern.

Knowing it wouldn't work, she flipped through the settings on her Arm Cannon. Three yellow beams shot out, but the door didn't budge.

"Wurr-nur," the Metroid larva cooed behind her.

Sheer orbs of dark purple shot out next, but rather than causing the door to open, the Wave beam went right through.

"Nur," the Metroid cooed again, its voice even louder.

She shot thin bolts of green Plasma at the gray barrier.

"Nur-wurr," the Metroid sang even louder behind her.

A spiky ball of Ice shot out of her Arm Cannon next. She itched to turn around and send a round at the cooing Metroid behind her instead.

"Naw-naw," it sang.

She shot a round at the floor instead and charged at the door, wondering if sheer force would un-stick it. Samus rammed it with her metal-encased shoulder, but rather than opening, the act just made her shoulder throb.

"Wurr-aw nur-nurrrr."

She span around, raising her Arm Cannon despite the pain in her shoulder. "I'm so done with you—"

Behind the panicked, cooing larva was a full-grown Metroid. Its time in the secluded area of the planet caused its body to shrivel from starvation. In its weakened state it moved slowly, but it was only a few meters from Samus.

Frantically, she shot several rounds of Ice at the adult Metroid. Its outer shell froze when it was only a half a meter away from her. She had had nowhere to run, with her back against a jammed door.

Five white missiles shot from Samus' Arm Cannon, one after the other. When the final one penetrated its core, it exploded, raining burning flesh and innards onto the ground and on Samus' visor.

"Wurr-coo," the larva sang, beginning to orbit around her once more.

"Er, thanks," Samus said, before turning to the now-open door.

Samus was in what seemed to be a ransacked and abandoned storage room: scraps of metal hung from wires still embedded in the walls, crates filled with gears were pushed against the walls, the light that hung from the ceiling flickered.

She froze in her tracks when she heard the caw around the corner. She squatted low to the ground. The Metroid's orbit around her also lowered.

She crept forward, keeping her body low to the ground. When she reached the corner, she had her weapon raised and ready to blow away any creature that stood in her way.

She saw an ashen gray Zebesian ahead of her, its back turned to her, squatting and banging at what seemed to be an ancient computer with its bludgeon-like arms. It cawed each time it struck the metal.

The metal-clad bounty hunter couldn't help but shake her head in disgust. She aimed her Arm Cannon at the back of its head, her Ice Beam Special charged. Four small, sharp fragments of ice zipped out of its end and began to float around her.

She knew she didn't have to wait long to get the beast's attention as the Metroid would soon let out a noise. It cooed "Wurr-naw" and began to zoom after one of the beads of ice.

The Zebesian turned, cawed a final time and charged at her. An ice bead caught his chest. It let out a moan as the sharp ice ripped right through its torso. Before it could even take another step toward her, another shard ripped a tiny hole in its head.

It loud out another whining moan as it fell to the floor. A moment later its body burst into flame, vaporizing the closest pellet of ice.

Samus cringed behind her visor, hoping that its burning flesh would not land on the larva. The little Metroid dodged the burning flesh and sparks with speed and grace as it chased the last pellet of ice through the air.

It didn't chase the bead of ice for long before the little thing fell to floor and melted.

The larva let out another coo "Wurr-wurr" and hovered over the puddle of water, but it remained lifeless on the floor.

The Metroid began to orbit around her once more, moving slowly and sagging in the air.

"Stop that," Samus said through a chuckle. "I'll get you another one to play with soon."

The yellow sheet of metal that had once blocked Samus' path faded into nothing and the echoes of Samus' power bomb sounded off of the walls. She walked through the door that brought her another room closer to escaping the planet unscathed.

The room was lined with rusting metal tables with rotted sheets of fabric more or less covering the tables' surfaces. Her breath caught in her throat as she saw a golden shape lying on the last table on the left side.

Was the Zebesian . . . sleeping?

The little Metroid that acted as her shadow cooed as it zoomed past her, rushing toward the golden Zebesian.

Samus Aran's voice rang through the nearly empty room as she screamed at the Metroid "Get back, idiot."

The little emerald and cream blotched blob raced forward. Samus chased after it, unsure of how she was going to stop a creature that she wasn't sure she could touch.

The Zebesian lifted its upper body off the table, twisting its head backward to caw at the approaching Metroid. It had only moved its torso centimeters when the little creature sunk its long ivory teeth into the Zebesian's body.

Samus stopped in her tracks. The Metroid larva was doing what it was bred to do: feed on energy.

She watched as the Zebesian slapped at the leech with its blunt hands, but the Metroid did not let go. A second later, it twisted its torso in a weak attempt to shake the Metroid off. Another second brought a scream from the beast's equestrian lips.

The Metroid released its body and began to orbit Samus once more.

She kept her eyes fixed on the little thing. Even though it had its first taste of life energy, it chose not to take hers.

"Why not me?" she asked it, knowing that it could not answer.

It flipped its body upside-down in midair.

Samus walked to the dead Zebesian on the table. Its once gleaming skin had turned sallow and was stretched tight over the bones inside. Its lips would remain parted in a scream until someone reached out and touched its body, turning it to dust.

"You're a creepy little thing," Samus muttered, turning her head to see the Metroid that was floating behind her. It had turned its body upright again. She would not kill it for this. But she would be sure to keep her weapon readied on Ice just in case.

Three needle-thin gold beams shot out of Samus Aran's Arm Cannon and punctured the spiky shell of the last Geemer. Its body slumped on the rocky floor and a second later, burst into flames.

Samus waited for the fire to die before walking over its smoldering remains.

"Wurr-naw," the Metroid larva behind her cooed.

"Ner-nah," Samus mimicked as she switched her beam to Ice once more.

She walked the distance of the rocky cavern, her chest burning too badly for her to run.

"You know," the bounty hunter said, looking at the Metroid that floated in front of her face. "My favorite member of the Galactic Federation told me that every single person sent to SR388 wasn't heard from again. Then he told me what job he had for me next. Guess what."

Samus liked to think that the coo that came from the Metroid was sympathetic.

"And do you know what one of my many superior officers told me? He told me that I need to breed because I 'could contribute greatly to the gene pool.' I get what you're trying to tell me, Adam, but not with you."

Samus' pace quickened. She wasn't sure what she was trying to achieve by complaining about work to the Metroid, but it felt nice to complain to somebody.

As she climbed over a large boulder and made her way to the blue sheet of metal in the distance she had one last complaint:

"There's a Metroid, a creature that kills without thought or mercy following me around. And I'm talking to it. I think I need a social life."

She shot a charge of Ice at the blue door, carefully aiming around the Metroid that flew in front of her face.

A hole grew in the center of the metal, eating it to its edges.

Samus watched the Metroid zoom through the opening before her. She looked at the rocks below her feet, finding them just as uninteresting as any other rocks. She took a deep breath before changing the beam of her weapon. The powerful and dangerous woman in the universe could easily change it to Ice if need be, right?

She was tired of not trusting the only creature on this planet that had been around her for more than five minutes and hadn't tried to kill her.

Samus Aran climbed through yet another door and found herself—thankfully—in the open air. Daylight lit the surface of SR388. She pushed her body onto the ground, climbed to her feet and took off in a run.

Only 76 seconds remained before the destruction of the planet she was on. Her ship was ten meters away. She could make it to her Gunship in a second flat, but the Metroid lagged behind. It was tired and was only emerging from the opening in the ground.

"God damn it," she screamed. "Hurry up."

But her scream only caused the Metroid to float farther away from her.

She thought of how many times they had played together with the little beads of ice that came from her Ice Beam Special, but she had no more Power Bombs to charge it with.

She could just imagine how easily it would be to herd the Metroid into her Gunship by dangling a Geemer on a stick.

She was, however, short on Geemers too.

With 58 seconds left, the Metroid began to float closer to her, resuming its usual place floating around her.

When she walked to the Gunship, keeping her pace slow and controlled, it did a loop-de-loop rather than follow her.

Utilizing the power of her Space Jump Boots, she leapt into the air, curled her body into a whirling ball and began to Space Jump. She zigzagged through the air toward the Metroid and landed on her feet below it.

"Please?" she muttered, but she had hardly gotten the word out when the Metroid began to move exactly like she had. It twirled its body gracefully through the air, making a zigzag pattern.

Samus jumped into the air again and whirled toward her Gunship. She could hear the Metroid behind her, cooing loudly.

Within half a second, it overtook her and shot past the Gunship. Samus landed on its top. The little blob zoomed back to her at a breakneck speed and stopped only a few centimeters before Samus' visor.

"You're getting cheeky." Samus said. "Er . . . even though you don't have cheeks."

Seventeen seconds remained for Samus to escape the planet. While she knew that she wasn't supposed to understand the playtime of the organisms she was supposed to exterminate, she understood that seventeen seconds was pretty much the better part of minute.

Seventeen seconds was plenty of time for her to launch herself in the air, curl her body and begin to orbit around the Gunship just like the Metroid always orbited around her. This time, instead of orbiting her, it followed behind her, cooing loudly as they raced.

With only three seconds left, Samus and the Metroid landed on the door of the Gunship and waited for it to bring them into its interior. With only one second left, Samus sprinted to the control panel and frantically pressed the right combination of buttons for the Gunship to take to air.

A wave of lava spewed from the mouth of the volcano, coating the former parking spot of Samus' Gunship and the door she had escaped from less than two minutes ago.

Miles and miles above the now-destroyed SR388, Samus parked her Gunship and walked to her storage cabinet. Each step of her Power Suit against the metal floor echoed off the walls.

By now she would have tore off the clunky metal she spent most of her days in. Her bare feet would only make a soft slap against the floor.

But she was not used to having the last living Metroid in the universe as a guest. She was not sure how the Metroid would act around unprotected meat.

The metal cabinet squeaked as she flung open its doors. Samus sent several glass jars tumbling to the floor as she grasped one just large enough for the Metroid.

She raised her other hand to unscrew the lid, but her Arm Cannon offered her no way to. She threw the jaw onto the metal floor. As it shattered its shards mingled with the fragments of the ones she had dropped a minute before.

The Metroid zoomed close to her as she walked back to her control center.

Her Power Suit made her body too large for the main chair and the Metroid blocked her view as it floated in front of her screen.

"Nurr-wurr," it cooed.

"Why do you have to follow me?" Samus said. "I kill Metroids for a living. I killed every single one except you."

She slammed her fist on the soft fabric of the chair.

"I'm not who I think I am; I'm not who you think I am; I am who I think you think I am. I'm not your friend—I came here to kill you. I'm not your mother. I probably killed your mother today. And your father too, if you have one. You know what I think you think I am? Another source of energy waiting to be drained."

The Metroid didn't even answer with a coo as it floated around her in a circle.

Samus hung her head and placed her metal-clad palm against her visor.

"Wurr."

She moved her hand and looked down at the control center. A moment later her fingers were setting the coordinates to the Ceres Station and the Gunship was in motion.

Knock knock.

Samus' metal-encased fist pounded on the five meter tall door of Ceres Station.

She turned her head to the top of the building where a voice poured through the intercom. "Look behind you!"

But Samus could tell by the constant cooing that the only thing behind her was a hungry Metroid excited by the scent of life. She nodded.

The voice came again, this time screaming. "So you meant to bring a Metroid here?"

Samus looked around at the Ceres Station, snarling as she looked the wreathes that hung on the metal doors, the bowls of holly and poinsettias that were draped over the white brick walls and the Christmas trees that stood on either side of the door. So many people were dying, so many planets burned and razed to the core and the scientists at the Ceres Station had put up Christmas wreaths.

"Well?" the voice demanded.

"Get a jar," Samus spat.

"Wait, what? Guards, don't fire yet."

"Get a jar. I'll freeze it if you catch it."

"No offense, lady, but how do I know that you'd really freeze it? None of these men and women are risking their lives. Instead, we'll shoot you down from here."

"I am Samus Aran. I was sent on a mission by the Galactic Federation to exterminate every Metroid on SR388 and thus, the galaxy. I have completed this mission and brought back to you the last living Metroid for you to use in your experiments." She had fought to keep her voice calm, but had shouted the last sentence.

"Wait, you're Samus Aran? I'll be down personally at once, ma'am."

Samus stepped back from the door, twisted her body around and turned her Arm Cannon on the Metroid larva.

"I'm sorry," she whispered.

It wove in the air quickly, almost frantically. She could hardly keep her weapon lined up with its body. Its coos grew louder and louder and turned into shrieks.

It was only when she heard the creak of one of the metal doors opening that she remembered to change her beam to Ice.

A man in a white suit emerged, his skin covered head to toe. She flinched as her Ice beam hit the little Metroid. A thin film of ice spread from the point of impact, coating the Metroid's body.

Samus turned and began walking down the white-brick path to her Gunship. She could hear the shuffling of many footsteps behind her and a triumphant cry of glee.

"Thank you," the voice that she had heard booming from the intercom called to her as she walked.

"The reason for the season is to please," she hissed. She did not turn around to speak to the man or get a last look at her Metroid.