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The clone of the Space Pirate known as Ridley was inadvertently created by the ringleaders on the BOTTLE SHIP during their bioweapon breeding program. This clone was seemingly feral in comparison to his predecessor.
History
Little Birdie
Though the original Ridley's remains were incinerated in the destruction of planet Zebes in Super Metroid, some of his DNA still remained on the Power Suit of Samus Aran, along with that of other creatures she had defeated on the planet. After her mission, a faction of Galactic Federation scientists secretly obtained this DNA and used it in their illegal project to breed various life forms for use as bioweapons, including an army of cyborg Zebesians under their control. However, Ridley's juvenile form was unrecognizable from his mature form, so the researchers were confused by the white, fuzzy creature they inadvertently created. Dubbing the small creature "Little Birdie", they chose to keep him as a pet, believing he lacked potential as a bioweapon. At some point prior to the arrival of the 07th Platoon and Samus on the BOTTLE SHIP, the cloned Ridley tricked a Lab Worker into releasing him from his cage by playing dead; once the cage was open, the immature clone mauled the worker and escaped.
Samus Aran first encountered "Little Birdie" after she left the Breeding Room in the Biosphere, watching him as he tried to get on top of a fruit. He scurried off after noticing Samus' gaze, but as she turned to walk away, he emerged from the brush once more, staring at her.
Little Birdie violently devours the Kihunter's honey.
Later, a piercing howl was heard in the Kihunter nest, sending the surrounding Zeros into a frenzy and enraging a swarm of Kihunters into protecting them and attacking Samus. After she destroyed the hive, "Little Birdie" appeared and began gorging himself on the honey from the broken nest while roaring at Samus as she walked by. The hunter was disgusted by his gluttony and how he used other creatures' strength to his advantage.
The Mystery Creature
At some unknown point after Samus departed, "Little Birdie" entered the Biosphere Test Area, where he shed his fuzzy juvenile form and developed into a much stronger adolescent form. Lyle Smithsonian then happened upon this "mystery creature", which promptly tore him apart. When the rest of the 07th Platoon later investigated the area, the adolescent clone attacked the troopers, then ambushed and pinned down Samus when she rushed in to help the soldiers. The soldiers tried to give backup, but were distracted by swarms of enemies the creature summoned, including Reos and Griptians. Samus attacked the lizard's tail as it attempted to strike her head, holding it off until Anthony Higgs wounded the creature with a burst from his Plasma Gun at the creature. Anthony attempted to fire again, but it escaped by crashing through a wall which was disguised by the holographic scenery. Soon after, the 07th Platoon found Lyle Smithsonian's mutilated body, and Samus found a trail of green blood leading to the discarded husk of "Little Birdie".
The Mystery Creature wrestling with Samus
Samus was given orders to chase the monster, but found only a trail of blood. Adam instructed Samus to follow the creature to Sector 3, the Pyrosphere, though she was soon redirected to hunt for BOTTLE SHIP survivors in the Cryosphere instead. During her search of the arctic area, the beast's cries caused the other creatures to become extremely aggressive.
The Mystery Creature's cocoon.
On a later journey to the Pyrosphere, Samus discovered the creature's remains as an empty husk stuck to a wall above a door, its back ripped open from the inside.
Final Form
Samus continued through the darkened room, anticipating a fight with the beast's next form. She then met up with Anthony again, who was trying to fight an unseen flying creature. After the magma flow in the chamber was reactivated, the glow revealed to Samus' horror that the creature had been a clone of Ridley all along. The shock caused Samus to relapse into a PTSD-induced panic attack, allowing the duplicate Ridley to attack her with ease. Anthony attempted to lure the monster away from Samus, but got knocked off the edge of the platform for his trouble. However, the distraction gave Samus enough time to regain her composure, and she promptly fought and defeated her reborn nemesis. The wounded clone collapsed to the ground, but reawakened long enough to flee, hurling himself through a nearby wall and escaping to the Bioweapon Research Center to lick his wounds.
Death and X Mimicry
Shortly before killing himself and the Metroids in Sector Zero, Adam told Samus to destroy the Ridley clone, stating that he was "as much of a threat as the Metroids". However, this final confrontation never came to pass, for the wounded monster soon found himself at the mercy of a cloned Queen Metroid. Too weak to fight back or escape, Ridley was a sitting duck for the Queen; by the time Samus investigated the area, all she found was the duplicate Ridley's grey, drained husk, jaws frozen in a silent shriek.
After the destruction of MB, the cloned Ridley's corpse was retrieved by members of the Galactic Federation, who transferred it to cold storage on the Main Deck of the Biologic Space Laboratories research station. After the station was overwhelmed by an outbreak of X Parasites, Samus would encounter this ice-encrusted husk once more, locked behind a barrier. Sometime later during her mission, the cadaver became infested by a Core-X, which would use Ridley's DNA to create an X-mimic of him in the Tourian-based area of Sector 1.
Characteristics and Traits
The Zebesian Space Pirates kept within the BOTTLE SHIP for the bioweapons project were purely feral, and lacked the intelligence of the sentient and organized Pirates seen in Samus' prior missions. Ridley's clone, on the other hand, retained at least some of his template's intelligence which, as described above, allowed him to manipulate certain events to his benefit.
It remains unclear whether he retained the original Ridley's memories; while it is unlikely, the clone appeared to take a special interest in Samus. However, this may have been because he perceived her as the greatest threat among Adam's squadron, especially after he witnessed Samus' victory in the Kihunter nest. Whichever the case, his malevolent and sadistic personality was evident, along with basic tactics and leadership which seemingly stemmed from an instinctual level.
Gallery
"Little Birdie"
"Mystery Creature"
Mature Form
References