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“Oh god, Lady. What the hell happened?”
“Concussion blasts. Never seen ‘em like that before… enough phasing bullshit to bypass…”
“They got through the suit?!”
“Yes.”
She closed her eyes and exhaled through gritted teeth as the machinery removed the armor.
“Adam,” she said, voice shaking slightly, “Take the ship to the Comet Observatory.”
“Are you nuts?! You need to get this checked out back at medbay—“
“I’m not letting the damn Feds anywhere near me. Or my suit. Or my ship. Or YOU. Not after everything they’ve done.”
The not-so-artificial intelligence paused. She had a point— and a very good one at that. And from what he’d seen of healing abilities...
“Alright. En route to the Comet Observatory.”
~~~
The Lumas were a bit restless as the blip on the scanner drew nearer. Was it an enemy? Had the Observatory’s defenses malfunctioned? No— it was no enemy, Rosalina soon realized. The scanners finally showed an identification for the mystery gunship: it was Samus.
But as the ship docked, the Lumas only grew more agitated. Something was wrong.
More wrong than Rosalina had expected. Staggering, half-limping, out of the ship was a very haggard-looking Samus Aran, her Zero Suit partially peeled away to reveal huge blotches of disturbingly dark bruising. The Lumas whimpered at the sight, cautiously approaching her, Rosalina in tow. Samus turned to look at them, far too slowly for Rosalina’s liking, staring with eyes heavily dulled with exhaustion and pain. It hurt just looking at her.
“Samus?! What… what happened…?”
“Hey… y’know. Usual. Mostly. I just… need some healing. I’ll be fine.”
Rosalina maneuvered herself into a favorable position at Samus’s side, ahead of her just enough to be ready to catch her if she were to collapse.
“Here. You need to lie down and rest.”
A quick huff of breath, too weak and pained for Rosalina to truly consider a laugh.
“...I do.”
Her breathing was labored and ragged as Rosalina ushered her inside, the uncharacteristic admission of hurt echoing in her mind. Just how much pain was Samus in? A better analysis of the hunter’s condition could come soon enough. Right now she needed to get off her feet.
Samus stumbled to a halt as they entered one of the Observatory’s castle-like towers, bracing herself against the doorframe. Rosalina reached for her, stooping to slip under her other arm. Almost surprisingly, Samus obliged. With Samus now slumped against her, Rosalina continued to a spare bedroom, adjusting her pace to accommodate her injured friend.
“...Thanks.” Samus murmured as she was gently slipped into the soft bed.
The Lumas tentatively gathered around her, cooing sympathetically. Samus managed a weak half-smile.
It astounded Rosalina that Samus was alive, let alone conscious and walking around, in the state she was in. Her scans indicated a frankly disturbing amount of internal bleeding, deep, painful bruising, and even a few fractures on multiple bones. She probably had a splitting headache from the concussion whatever she’d fought had given her. And on top of everything, it seemed she’d kept fighting, THEN returned to her ship. She truly was a force to be reckoned with… even if the limp heap of bruises laid out on the bed didn’t outwardly show it right now.
But, ultimately, it was nothing that Rosalina couldn’t heal.
The aurora of Rosalina’s healing enveloped her, and the visible tension in her muscles began to ease. Samus sighed, eyelids drooping as the magic eased her pain. Safe and recovering, she finally allowed herself to drift off into long-overdue unconsciousness.
It occurred to Rosalina that she’d never seen Samus truly at rest. She was always ready to step in, seemingly constantly waiting for another mission. Rosalina draped a blanket over Samus’s slack body and withdrew from the room, letting the wounded bounty hunter rest and heal.
~~~
“Samus? Are you okay?”
“...Fox? Falco?”
Samus squinted slightly at her visitors, more out of it than they had ever seen her.
“We came as soon as we heard,” said Fox, stepping into the room.
“I’m fine, really,” Samus instinctively insisted.
“Really? Cuz you look like ya got ran over by a steamroller.”
“Falco—!”
It was true. And it made her uncomfortable. Human society took it as a sign of weakness. Men got medals and commendations for their wounds. Women got doubt cast on their abilities. Samus still remembered her first encounter with Adam, running in when the other cadets were running out, remembered Adam vouching for her to her superiors that her immediate action saved his life.
She was hope for so many people. She had to be okay.
“I heard somethin’ about concussion blasts? What’d you do, block ‘em with your abs?”
It hurt, but at the same time, it felt so good to laugh.
“Samus! Samus! I made you cookiiiiieees!”
Kirby was waddling in, carrying a large tray of chocolate chip cookies and two hitchhiking Lumas like Atlas. He pushed the cookie mountain onto the bedside table, smiling up at her before floating up to sit next to her head. Samus could see Meta Knight lurking in the doorway, as well.
“They’re nice and gooey!”
“Thanks, Kirby.”
Maybe, Samus thought as she bit into a warm cookie, surrounded by friends, recovering wouldn’t be so humiliating after all.