Return to Coruscant [Exemplary]

[Samus Aran]

They were closing in on the gate. As they did so, lights converged across the city on their location.

“Adam, use everything! Burn out the ship’s thrusters if you have to!”

“Understood, lady. Already in process.”

Despite her gunship's outwardly impressive appearance, in truth it was like riding a paper boat out to sea. The only ones protecting the ship were them; Samus, Vitruvius, Adam. And Adam was driving the ship. They’d already used most of their ammunition escaping from their escorts.

A familiar voice buzzed through Samus’s comms system: “Samus, you've got a place to touch down here, if you do it fast enough.”

The Hunter scanned the area below them. She could see the gate, the roads of the city leading like stark ley lines towards it. Traffic was sparse, all but evacuated.

“Harry. You took out the guns?”

“Roger. You better get here fast, though.”

Samus looked over her shoulder at the real ships coming her way. “Yeah.”

“SAMUS!”

As digitally amplified as it was, it really sounded like the Judge was shouting at the top of his lungs. It was so loud that for a half-second the Hunter had actually believed he was close by; she’d rubbernecked despite herself, searching for the enemy. She saw only more lights on the horizon.

The Judge continued to speak. “Samus, you’ve had a lapse of judgement. I can’t believe you’re really willing to become enemies of the Empire. Think about what that means!” He stopped for a second, presumably to breathe. “If you have any sense left, stop now. Running is useless.”

Samus said nothing. Even if her voice would carry across the city, what would she have said? “Ignore it, Vitruvius. Stay focused.”

The next wave were faster. They must have been special ships of some kind, because the rest of the fleet submerged to allow them to pass. They effortlessly closed in. Samus fired off a volley of Gatling shots at the centre target and it moved vertically upwards, like a jump. She briefly caught a trail of blue. She cursed.

Meanwhile the other ships spread out and began to fire. Things exploded on the ship and Samus’s grapple beam barely held. She’d managed to snag Vitruvius’s arm in the crook of her right elbow and barely stopped him going overboard. “Adam!” she cried.

“We’re going down,” was all he said.

Samus shoved Vitruvius into the porthole like a piece of inventory before diving in herself against the hail of blue laser fire. Lights lit up her periphery; the ship was breaking apart around her.

“Harry, get through the gate. Now. We’re coming through.”

This is roughly the last memory Samus has of Coruscant.