Corruption of Heart Ch 9
Injury

(Samus' POV)

I couldn't believe what I had just heard; my greatest enemy stood before me and offered me his power. My imagination was abundant with thoughts of what I could do. I almost had to force myself to stop these thoughts. I found it disturbing the pleaser I took in imagining myself so powerful...
He held out his hand, offering me a handshake.
"Do we have a bargain?" He asked.
I almost wanted to say yes; but I held myself back, reminding myself of who had made the offer. I knew he couldn't be trusted.
"...No" I said restraining my thoughts "I cannot accept your offer"
He lowered his hand, as if disappointed.
"Very well, woman" He said threateningly "Pray that you don't regret that decision..."
Suddenly light erupted from below me, but this time it was not of his doing.
"What's happening?" I asked almost panicking.
"It seems that your allies are trying to bring you back..." He said calmly.
The light suddenly became stronger, enveloping me in a number of moments.
"Heed this waning woman" He said as he disappeared into the light "If you don't want what occurred at the pirate base to happen again, don't die before our next meeting"
"Wait, what are you taking about?" I asked mystified "What happened at the base?"
"Our time grows short, woman; you will see me again soon..." He said breaking off.
"Wait!" I cried out wanting to know more.
But it was too late; everything faded away, becoming darkness once more. Then something happened; I felt a sharp, powerful shock go through me. I suddenly coughed, inhaling my first breath of air since the accident. I could tell I was no longer dreaming; I had returned to reality. Then something came to my ears.
"She's breathing!" Said a voice I didn't recognize "Her heartbeat's back too; she's alive!"
I could her multiple voices speaking in the background, none of which I recognized. Many were asking questions about me. I tried to open my eyes, but I wasn't able to. I could feel great pain coursing through me; it was so painful I didn't want to move, even if I could.
Something suddenly touched my body; it felt like multiple people were carrying me. I was soon set down onto something soft; although I was still in pain, it felt much better then lying on the ground. Suddenly more voices reached my ears.
"She's good; were taking her to the Olympus!" Called one voice.
"Roger; we'll remain here and recover her suit and ship!" Said another.
I suddenly heard a door behind me shut; people rushed around me. I could barely understand anything they were saying; dozens of medical orders I had never heard were given to the people near me. I could feel multiple syringes breaking my skin. Soon I felt woozy; the voices slowly faded, and I drifted off into sleep.

* 3 days later *

I had been asleep for some time now. And for the first time in weeks, no nightmares appeared. I could feel myself slowly growing stronger. Then I found that I was able to move. Feebly I opened my eyes, and looked at my surroundings.
I was lying in a bed, in what looked like an infirmary. I weakly raised myself from the bed, barley able to even hold myself up. I looked down at my body to see bandages covering it. I winced out of agony; my chest, stomach, and right arm burned with pain. I let my body gently descend back to the bed, trying to avoid any further injury. At this point I realized that I had been heavily drugged; my head was spinning. I struggled to keep conscious.  
My mind soon became accustomed to the disoriented sensation I felt. I looked to my left arm to see I was connected to I.V. and all manor of machinery. And my right was wound in a cast. My chest and stomach were wound in bandages, covering me like clothing.
I heard a door to the infirmary open; weakly I looked up. There was Rundas standing in the doorway.
"Samus!" He said as he rushed to my side.
"Hey..." I said dizzily "Where am I?"
"The infirmary on the G.F.S. Olympus" He answered "I called for help after I found you"
"How long have I been out?" I asked.
"Three days" He said "What the hell happened out there?"
I had nearly forgotten what he was talking about. My memories of the base returned to me, as well as the ones from my talk with Dark Samus. One question ringed through my head; I had to know.
"What happened to the base?" I asked.
Rundas relieved look was replaced with one of unease.
"...It was completely destroyed" Rundas said hesitantly "Not one of the pirates within the base were spared; they were all killed. Most were destroyed in one massive explosion; but many of them were taken out one by one. As for what did this, we don't know... We were hopping that you could tell us"
I shook my head not remembering anything about the base after I was stabbed. I asked my next question, half of me not wanting to hear the answer
"...What happened to me?" I asked.
"I have no idea... I arrived at the base and found you in the exact center of it lying in a pool of your own blood" He said "The doctors that cleaned your wounds believe that you were stabbed in the chest; normally this would result in a nearly instant fatality... But for a reason that's impossible to explain, your wound had stopped bleeding and was already starting to heal by the time the medics got to you"
"They have no idea how I survived?" I asked a surprised.
"Samus, every one of the Meds that that looked you over couldn't come up with one plausible reason that you lived; especially since the stab wasn't the only major injury" Rundas said "The fact that you're speaking to me right now is nothing short of a miracle"
"What are you taking about?" I asked "What else is wrong with me?"
"Let me put it this way; I've seen solders die in better shape then you are now" He said sitting in a chair next to me "You have multiple gashes all over your body; the amount of blood you lost was over 60%; you have a total of 11 fractured bones; and your entire right arm from the elbow down has a 3rd degree burn"
I lay there for a moment taking in what he was telling me.
"We have no idea how your still here" Rundas said "Do you have any clue about how you lived?"
Still light headed from the drugs I blurted out the first thought that came into my head.
"It must have been..." I stopped myself from saying the next words.
Rundas looked down on me; he had heard what I was beginning to say.
"What Samus?" He asked sounding more serious.
I remained silent, knowing that saying what I thought could only bring more trouble.
"Samus, any piece of information regarding what happened would help us greatly" Rundas said encouragingly "If you know anything, please tell me"
I turned my head and averted my eyes, trying to hide what I was thinking. He must have noticed my discomfort. He suddenly put his hand on my head, gently stroking my hair.
"Never mind; if you don't want to talk right now you don't have to. You should rest" Rundas said comfortingly "Recover for now; we'll worry about what happened at the base later"
He walked to the door and opened it; he stopped half way and looked back at me.
"Samus, regardless of how it happened, I'm glad that your alive" Rundas said "You must have an angel looking after you"
The door shut behind him as he left, leaving me alone.
"Perhaps I do have an angel looking after me..." I thought to myself "One that has fallen..."



To Be Continued...