fandomweekly | [#016] Final Report (Metroid Prime)

Theme Prompt: 016 - Fourth Wall
Title: Final Report
Fandom: Metroid Prime
Rating/Warnings: G / None
Bonus: Yes
Word Count: 879
Summary: In the wake of a successful mission, Samus Aran sends a classified mission report that she hopes will double as a warning.

EXPANDED MISSION REPORT: TALLON IV

CLASSIFIED

FOR AUTHORIZED ACCESS ONLY

ENTER SECURITY CLEARANCE CODE TO CONTINUE

__

The space pirate bases on the planet Tallon IV have been destroyed, and there are no space pirates remaining in the system. The planet suffered severe damage, but it has the potential to recover if left to itself with no external pressures. However, while the immediate threat is contained, the danger to the universe as a whole is far greater than anticipated.

You requested a detailed analysis of the substance infused throughout the meteor that struck the planet. I have attached visor scans and images, but cannot provide a sample due to the extreme danger involved in handling phazon, even with my suit's full protective capacity. While I cannot determine your next course of action, I strongly advise against any attempts to retrieve samples from the remnants on the surface of Tallon IV, or track down the origin of the meteor.

The space pirates were not responsible for the phazon contamination on Tallon IV, though they likely constructed their base there for the purpose of studying it. It was the primary cause of damage to the water systems and local fauna.

**

A gloved finger tapped the recording button, pausing it. Samus Aran pushed a hand through her hair and stared at the tiny audio stick, and at the starfield visible through the window behind it. She would include images of the contamination in the Chozo sites with the final report package, but she would prefer not to think about them, let alone talk about them aloud. It was difficult enough to sound confident and precise in Galactic Standard, even with her suit's vocal synthesizer providing correct pronunciation and minimizing her accent. If she had been signing, perhaps she could have discussed the destruction of her adopted people's homes and the desperation of their ghosts calmly, but there were only so many social customs she could observe at once. Something had to give, and in this case, leaving out the information was the lesser of two difficulties.

And she could not explain the damage the phazon had done to her. There were still faint hints of burns on her forearms, a painful reminder of the hazards of stumbling into the stuff--it was too dangerous to record, no matter how heavily she classified the report. It could still make its way into the wrong hands, and the last thing she needed was that fact making its way back to the space pirates, or someone else who had reason to hate her. It was a vulnerability she did not want to offer them. Besides, she did not fully understand what it had done to her suit yet; she would need to analyze that and study the remaining readouts before she could even make a preliminary report.

But how else could she make it clear that this was a hazard beyond anything else she had encountered? That the reader of her report, whoever they might be, should not, under any circumstances, try to find out more? Whoever read the report, authorized or not, would learn details about a powerful, nearly limitless source of energy, and there were entirely too many beings in the universe who would be happy to misuse it, discovering the cost too late.

**

It seems to have something like a life of its own, and it spreads exponentially quickly. If phazon were to escape into the galaxy at large, the results could be disastrous.

**

She thought about that sentence for a moment, then erased the last few seconds of recording.

**

If phazon were to escape into the galaxy at large, the results would be disastrous. I must strongly urge anyone who views this report to steer research away from the Tallon IV area until any remaining inert phazon has disintegrated and the planet has had time to recover. Do not attempt to develop or use the phazon, even in its inert form. Do not attempt to touch it, even with protective gear; it has severe corrosive effects on most objects, organic, mechanical, or otherwise. The standard precautions are not effective against it. I witnessed its effect on contaminated sentient beings and believe that prolonged contact with it would be detrimental to both mental and physical health.

If this substance spreads beyond Tallon IV, we are all in danger. You are in danger.

**

She paused the recording again and played back the last two sentences. Too much?

Probably not enough. But there was only so much she could do, and if the hypothetical listener failed to take it into account--well, she would be there if they called for help.

Assuming she wasn't on a different hunt, or dealing with a different enemy. She was only one woman in a very large universe. Protecting every corner was impossible. The hypothetical listeners would just have to remember that.

Samus saved the recording to the audio stick, tucked it into a protective case for transmission once she was back in range of the Galactic Federation, and activated her full suit. Her ship’s holographic controls appeared as soon as the helmet closed over her face, the lightspeed engines rumbled to life, and Tallon IV vanished into a tiny speck behind her.