Disclaimer: Nothing belongs to me and I believe we're all lucky it doesn't.
Like many that have seen the movie I was waiting for some Engineer/Shaw action, and received none. So I decided to write my own take on the story. It will start with the canonical movie and then I will add some E/S romance.
Go ahead and and tell me what you think~
David made his way towards the Sleeping chamber that housed the last surviving Engineer, Wayland urging him on, impatient to gain the knowledge he so desperately desired. Shaw could only watch on, the pain from her improvised caesarean and the crude staples now fastening her skin, holding her wound together; they were making her body very soar. She could feel droplets of cold sweat slide down her temple, her feverish body making her shake ever so slightly, the hurt preventing her from staying up and she slid down to her knees, fighting to keep her eyes open.
She could not hear clearly what they were saying; annoyed she shook her head slightly, trying to lift the fog that had settled over her mind. It seemed to work and she was able to lift her eyes to watch David, now at the Sleeping chamber pressing on the pod's sides to make it open with a harsh metallic sound.
Inside was a very tall, humanoid figure, a breathing apparatus was fastened to its face and she could hear it breath in deeply, its massive chest lifting to once more accept the air in its lungs. Slowly it lifted itself from the chamber, the tubes in the apparatus being pulled away as it tried straightening its body. It then quickly pulled the breathing aid off of its face, bending down to hack. Shaw could tell it was slightly disoriented, perhaps a bit sick and it reminded her off when she woke from her own Hypersleep; it had not been a nice experience. It had made her vomit for a while and yet the alien was seeming to fair a lot better even though it had spend a lot longer inside its own chamber. Perhaps only she had such problems with it, no one else of the crew was having half as hard a time as she had...
Movement snapped her out of her thoughts as the Engineer attempted to get up from its resting place, the tubes connected from the chamber to its suit being pulled free as well. It straightened with a soft exhale of breath, its eyes opening fully to gaze at the unfamiliar sight in front of it. Shaw had to wonder if it found them as odd as they found it; surely not half as intimidating. Though, she could tell that its eyes harboured no animosity, just silent confusion and question, curiosity anyone would feel after setting eyes not on one's crew but on unfamiliar life forms.
She heard Ford gulp next to her, clearly scared. Shaw however did not find the Engineer frightening; on the contrary, she had to admit that there was something about its face that seemed...welcome, even attractive perhaps, she could not tell what it was. It may have been the similarities it shared with humans, she did not know.
Then it completely straightened its back with a deep inhale, finally seeming to be completely recovered after the slight haze of the thousands of years old hypersleep, now shifting its dark gaze on Wayland, who with an obviously hungry gaze stared right back. It stepped forward, maybe wanting to address the humans, maybe wanting to get out of its unintended prison but it never made it past the initial step. Shaw held in a gasp as the alien, still affected by its extended rest fell down on its knees, unable to walk just yet. Her body jerked slightly, almost wanting to help it but she was not sure if her sentiment would be seen as kindness or not, she was not even sure her body was able to move due to the stress inflicted upon it.
The crew did not share her affliction and hurried to help Wayland, asking if he was alright, even though the alien never touched him, not even brushed him as it fell.
The Engineer looked up, slight confusion still present and also something that seemed like annoyance, perhaps at itself for falling, perhaps because of the unknown creatures now in its sight. However, it did not try to get up once more; instead it stayed hunched over, supporting its massive body on its knees. Wayland did not seem to want to wait for it to recover and he urged David to speak to it, to tell the alien that they had come as it asked but Shaw did not allow the blonde to speak as she jumped in.
" Ask him where they're from!" she pressed, now using 'he' to describe the alien, just as the old man did. Still, she had a hard time keeping herself straight, the pain in her abdomen getting worse. The humans turned to look at her and so did the Engineer. His dark gaze shifted from Wayland to Shaw, seemingly interested in what they were saying.
"What are you doing?" Asked Wayland, not pleased in the least that she had spoken and interrupted his demand to David. The robot himself seemed intrigued that she had spoken out of turn.
"Ask him what's in his cargo, it killed his people." She continued, not heading Wayland's unspoken command to shut-up. There were more pressing matters at hand than what he desired; they had to find a way to destroy that harrowing black liquid and perhaps even stop the destruction of Earth, if that was indeed what the Engineers planned on doing all those years ago before they fell to their own creation. The last survivor of the aliens was silently gazing at her, studying her as one would something interesting, not shifting his eyes even as the old man spoke again.
"Dr. Shaw enough, David-" Wayland tried again but once more he was interrupted by her.
"You made it here and...And it was made for us...why?" Shaw wheezed, finding it hard to speak but she had to. Her tone became urgent as she spoke directly to the Engineer, as if hoping he would understand her if only she tried hard enough.
"Enough, for god's sake, shut her up!" Commanded Wayland and motioned to Jackson who quickly complied and jammed his weapon's folding stock violently against her stomach, making Shaw fall down to her knees with a loud and pained scream. Yet she did not stop speaking: "I need to know why...what did we do wrong? Why do you hate us?!" She kept yelling, all the time her eyes were fixed on the Engineer who silently stared back at her, puzzlement written on his face as he slowly got to his feet, now towering above them all. He was as curious about her as he was before yet baffled about what she wanted.
"If she opens her mouth again, shoot her!" hurried Wayland, ordering Jackson and turned to the alien once more: "David, tell him why I came." The android complied and as soon as he began speaking to the Engineer it was clear that he indeed understood what David had said to him. Obviously all that studying had bore fruit.
This man is here because he does not want to die. He believes you can give him more life.
For a moment the Engineer seemed shocked, if not slightly repulsed as he stared down at Wayland. The old man stared back, nervously awaiting his response, still hoping that he would receive what he came for. Shaw had a nagging feeling that that would not be so; there was no more serenity, confusion or curiosity in the Engineer's face, in its place was now an emotion that was close to contempt.
She felt her weakened body begin to shake anew with foreboding as the alien's large, white hands fell on David's head, almost patting him with a sickening tiny smile on his far too calm-looking face. The Android, albeit surprised quickly smiled back. What happened next was indeed not signalling anything pleasant; the Engineer suddenly grabbed the Android by his neck, hoisting him up to his eyelevel, as if he wanted him to see his killer and with that promptly ripped out David's head off of his shoulders with a few practiced twists.
David gurgled as the fluid sprinkled from his wounds, still very much alive. Wayland did not get a chance to even scream as his creation's head was then smashed against his own, sending him flying to the ground, seemingly dead. Jackson quickly fired at the alien but to no avail, the bullets only did minor damage, not reaching deeper flesh. Ford was frozen solid from her fear, only moving after Jackson called to her but it was too late. The Engineer was already at her side and he spun her around as she tried to run, using his large arms to knock her away and send her body tumbling down the short stairs. Jackson was still trying to defend himself but it did not take long for him to get bested and the alien flung him against the far wall.
All this time Shaw could hear her crew mate's bones cracking from inside their bodies as the Engineer killed each of them off; she knew she did not want to stick around to find out what he would do to her. As quickly as her battered body allowed her she ran from the bridge, through the room with the many vases and down the hall. She did not know if he was following her or not but she did not want to turn around to see; her body was barely keeping her moving and she feared if she stopped running she would collapse only to not be able to stand once more.
She gasped and moaned in agony as she tried to escape the dome, stumbling now and then. She had to keep on moving but for a moment she allowed herself to peer back and to her surprise the alien was not following her, instead a loud shriek was emitting from the halls and only a second later a powerful gust of wind hit her, making her fall down. Shaw bit back the yell of pain as her abdomen hit the ground and she got up again, intent on not giving up.
Minor relief overcame her as she exited the dome structure, believing to be at least temporarily safe but she was wrong. As soon as she came outside the earth beneath her feat was moving, almost tearing apart to reveal metal beneath and she knew that this whole complex was about to open up, letting something out. She tried to jump from one moving metal plate only to barely grip the other one, once more hurting her already sore flesh. Shaw huffed bitterly, thinking that even if she did make it out, she would need a hell of a lot more of those staples.
Still, she climbed up and continued to run along the metallic plates, hearing more movement below the surface. Whatever was coming out could not be allowed to, if it was indeed one of those ships meant for Earth than that could be the end for humanity; she could not allow it to happen.
"Prometheus, come in!" she cried, hoping someone would hear her.
"Shaw is that you, copy?" she heard Janek respond and she was glad, they still had a chance for this to end well.
"Janek, listen to me, this ship is taking off!"
- 3 -
Thorga had the worst headache he had even remembered having. How long has he been sleeping? It must have been a lot longer than what the medics had been planning, never before had he trouble waking from hypersleep. He tried to open his eyes but he could not, his body was still too rigid, so instead he breathed in deeply as he was taught to do to reduce the numbness and the return the feeling to his limbs. Finally, his body allowed him to move and he slowly bent his bulk to rise but instantly he was overcome with nausea, and he tore his breathing apparatus off of his face in case he would throw up, bending himself over the chamber and coughing loudly.
As he felt his stomach relax he lifted his face to greet his brethren but his crew was not there.
Instead, there were five humanoids staring at him and he instantly recognized them as human. This confused him deeply, what were they doing on his ship, on this planet and where were his people? He kept the questions from showing on his face and he stood up, towering over the small humans his masters sent him to annihilate. He was sure they told him humanity was not yet ready for space exploration yet here they were, off of their planet and on his own, gazing at him. This needed investigation before he proceeded to give them their just end.
Exhaling loudly, he took a second to study the humanoids before him. One of them was holding what seemed like a weapon yet anything like what he would be using. That human appeared to be rather hostile and he noted in his mind to kill him first. Then to his anew surprise, there were two females standing before him as well. Was this something official? Females would not accompany a hostile delegation and indeed they were not armed. He could tell that the older female seemed tense, afraid and he let his eyes flicker away from her to not disturb her any further. Instead he looked at the younger one... This female too, was not comfortable; something was amiss with the stance of her body; hunched and low, as if she was bowing. She was breathing heavily, barely standing on her legs, sweat dropping from her temple. Perhaps these humans were here to seek aid for the female? If so, he would comply, naturally, he was an honourable man after all and they never turned away from a woman in need even if she was not Mala'kak.
Then Thorga shifted his gaze to the older looking human standing right in front of him. There was something off about his eyes...greed was mirrored in them and he found he did not like it. He would dispose of the ancient one second. The last human too seemed off...he could not say what. Ignoring it for now he tried to step out of the chamber to insist they state why they were here and where were his crew members but his legs were still too weak to keep his massive weight up and he fell down to his knees with a surprised huff. This had never happened before and he had been in and out of hypersleep many times...he could feel dread twisting in his stomach. Just how long had he been sleeping?
He could hear the humans conversing between each other and as he lifted his head to look at them again, he was surprised that the earthlings were huddled close to the ancient one, steadying him and all but ignoring the female who he was now sure was heavily wounded. This surprised and angered him; how could they not aid the female and instead help a male who could obviously stand on his own? Did the ancient one have no pride by letting them hold his body? This species was not guided by honour; he concluded and decided he would end all of their lives, even the older female's for her blatant disregard for her sister. He would spare the wounded one; there was no honour in killing a hurt being. If he could he would try to help her and then send her on her way. He still had to find his people.
Then he heard a softer, higher pitched voice than that of the ancient one; the female had spoken. Instantly he turned his head to her. He could not tell what she was saying or what she wanted from him but it did seem important to her, urgent even. He noticed that the ancient one tried to keep her silent but she did not relent and neither did his eyes stray from her. He still waited for her to somehow tell him what she needed of him.
Then the ancient one raised his voice and the male with the weapon hit the female in her abdomen, apparently hard enough for her to scream and clutch at her stomach. This infuriated him, how dare he hurt a female and not to mention at the area of her womb, the most sacred place on her? Then he caught a slight fragrance in the air...his still sleepy body must have been too out of shape not to have noticed earlier. There was a strong smell of blood coming from the injured female, now even more so than before and there was also something else...something familiar...and as soon as he recognized the scent his mind went red. What he smelt was amniotic fluid. This female had given birth only a couple of hours ago and yet here she was, injured, being hit further and still she was trying to communicate with him. He was impressed by her warrior spirit and even further disgusted with the rest of the humans. Death would come to them soon.
He slowly got back to his feet, still gazing at the heavily injured female as he, to his outmost surprise heard the blonde male speak in his own tongue. What he had said to him was not so much a surprise. He was correct when he suspected their visit was not a good one. Apparently the ancient one desired to prolong his already honourless life and he believed he could give it to him. Laughable, no one was eternal and even if they were, who would wish to live in shame instead of being blessed with the glorious death amidst battle? He was now sure even more so than before that these humans deserved what the high council decided for them; liquidation.
Thorga turned to the messenger of the humans, laying his large, almost ghostly white hand on his blonde hair. It was fitting that no more ill words could leave his mouth and he promptly lifted him up by his neck and twisted and turned, as he would with an Uri, only to tear off his head from his shoulders. To his amazement, the blonde one was not human, he seemed to be mechanical, a robot of sorts. He heard the ancient one speak and now was a good time as any to quiet him as well. He used the head of his first victim to clobber the old one on his head, knocking him down, hopefully killing him as well. The other male started shooting at him and he was pleased to find that their weapons were weak; he hardly felt the projectiles push inside his body. He knew he would have to do minor patching on his skin later but nothing he could not heal in an hour's time.
He made a move to silence the last remaining male but the older female came in his way and instead of going after him he turned her around and pushed at her, breaking her ribcage and puncturing her heart. He did feel slight remorse in killing her but it needed to be done, this way she would regain her honour with the gods and later be reborn anew, free of her now pride less life.
The male tried to shoot at him again but this time Thorga was faster and he knocked the human away, the blow strong enough to propeller him into the wall, breaking his bones as well. He then turned to the injured female but found that she was nowhere to be seen. She must have ran, frightened that he would kill her too. He shook his head slightly, never would he do such a thing but perhaps she somehow thought he would harm her? He only killed the other female for her own sake; surely she had to have known that.
Either way he would find her later, after the ship had taken off and made way for Earth. He would have enough time to heal her wounds and hopefully locate her offspring to make sure it was safe as well. Then he would find his brothers and report of what he had seen and send in a complaint to the medics of his prolonged sleep.
Thorga could hear the last breaths of the ancient one and his robot as he passed them, making his way to the control panel. He signalled to the board to open the navigation module and instantly the centre of the elevated round structure opened, making way for the massive cannon-like machine to appear from beneath it. He climbed on it, sitting on an inbuilt chair and turning the navigator on. The star systems shone blue all around the room as he input the destination, Earth. It was time to finish his mission and return home to the home planet. With a pleased sigh the helmet came around his face, closing in the front to protect him from the journey through space. He would wake his crew after they left orbit, no need for them to rouse just yet.
The ship trembled and shook from the boosters reawakening after such a long time. The module showing to him that the hangar doors were opening and that there was a small ship right outside. It must belong to the humans he mused and decided to ignore it, there was nothing it could do to stop his ascend.
He was already looking forward to all the humans he would get to end as his navigator beeped to him that the human ship was starting to move but once again he paid it no heed. He should have though; the small vessel was suddenly flying his way, on a direct collision course with his own ship. He had obviously underestimated the humans, his perception of their honourless beings was seemingly slightly off as the human vessel collided with the side of his own, destroying the engines on the left side and damaging the connection to the ones on the left. Thorga grunted, impressed with their will to protect their species as the Mala'kak ship began falling back down on the planet. Within a second it hit the ground, splintering the outer shell of the vessel and igniting multiple fires within. The navigation was having trouble keeping up with all the damage but it still beeped to him that a fire started in the liquid cargo hold only a hall away from the bridge. He had to act fast, his crew was still sleeping in this very room and he refused to abandon them or any of his people residing on the now crumbling craft.
Even though the roof of the room started falling apart Thorga refused to move from the navigator, quickly sending commands to the machine to block airways and certain parts of the ship away to minimize structural damage and spread of fire. He silently apologized to the ones caught in the now sealed rooms, left to die. He would make sure they will all get a hero's burial. Just as he was about to seal the medical centre a part of the ceiling broke, a huge chunk of it crashing down on the navigator's cannon-like tube and crushing it before it fell down on the ground. He cursed, the machine was all but useless now as the blue lights died out yet the loud beeping of danger still remained. He got out of the navigator and quickly ran to the sleeping chamber of his second-in-command to wake him and pull him to safety but...there was a large hole in the hypersleep pod and it was not recent. Something had broken from within it rather than from outside as the bent material proved.
The air caught in his throat as he realized what had happened...the acid-blooded monsters had gotten to him and if he was dead then—Thorga quickly moved to the next pod and found it in the same condition and the next as well...if the black liquid had somehow gotten free while he was in his chamber, recuperation from his injuries than that meant that his whole crew that he had tried to save was more than likely dead. He howled with anger and grief over the body of his deceased friends. Had the humans set the liquid free and kept just one alive so they could control him more easily? They would pay for that, every last one!
He got up from the floor and away from the pods, down the elevation and into the hall that took him to the hangar. He would make it out of here alive and punish those humanoids for daring to do this to his crew. But as soon as he opened the door to the hangar, flames burst through and hit him on the face, burning his skin off. He screamed in pain and backed away but he knew this was the only way to the exit and he grit his teeth as he ran forward with a loud battle cry, right through the fire. It hurt like hell but he finally made it out of the cargo hold and into the hall. He tried not to look at the dead bodies littering the floor, their obvious states of decay and age. He did not want to think about how long he had been sleeping while his comrades were decaying only meters away.
Just as he was about to open the door to the hall leading to the exit the ship moved again and he was thrown around, the gravity changing and landing him on the ceiling instead of the floor. He grunted in pain, momentarily closing his eyes and succumbing to darkness but only moments later he once again opened his lids. Now the ship seemed still and he realized it must have capsized as it crashed back on the planet. He was thankful that he was still alive and would get a chance to seize revenge for his people. With a loud huff he got back to his feet, albeit a bit shaky at the start and slowly made his way towards the exit.
- 3 -
Shaw had just stepped into the pod Janek had released from the ship and had started to pack supplies into a bag. She would need the food and oxygen and possible medical supplies. She still had no idea how she managed to survive the ship falling on her but it seemed she had a weird mix of luck and unluck today. She gasped from the pain, the crude stitches must have gotten free and she was sure she could feel blood seeping into her suit. She needed to re-sew her wound.
Then she heard a loud bang coming from deeper inside the ship and she held the bag close, frightened. But there was nowhere to run, she knew she had to deal with this, she only hoped it was not what she thought it was.
Grabbing a slightly curved axe from the supplies hatch she stepped deeper into the pod. Inside, books and metal wires were thrown about, cabinets broken and glass on the floor. Still, the projection of a small girl playing a violin was eerily still playing. She ignored it and instead made her way to the medical room. The machines on the wall beeped caution and danger as she gazed into the sealed room.
The surgical pod in which she had been before was now closing and opening itself, the alien creature she had removed from herself nowhere to be seen. She almost dared to hope that it was dead but to her dismay, in that exact moment it hit the door with its tentacle, banging on it as if it demanded to be set free. Immediately she backed away, knowing she could not best the now very large beast with such a small axe.
"Elizabeth, are you there?" suddenly, David's voice was speaking to her over her comm. He was still alive. Because she did not answer, the android continued: "This is David." He said.
" Yeah, I'm here." She wheezed, gasping for air. She felt slightly better knowing that she was no longer alone, even if she did not fully trust the blonde. "You need to get out, immediately, he's coming for you." He then stated and went silent even though she asked who it was that was coming. Perhaps he could not keep the communication going all the time. Would make sense since he was now only a head, all the main batteries were probably in his body.
Then she heard another thump, this time from the opposite direction; from the doors. She turned quickly to see a large, white hand forcing itself between the doors, prying it open with sheer strength. Shaw gulped, aware that there was nowhere that she could flee to, she was trapped. The large Engineer looked slightly different this time, he had a large wound on his face and on parts of his body; burn marks. He lunged at her, grabbing her shoulders and pushing her against the wall with a ferocious light in his eyes. She knew he meant to kill her and without hesitation she opened the medical room's doors with a scream. As soon as she did, tentacles sprang from within, wrapping themselves around the alien's neck and pulling him in. The surprise etched on his face was soon replaced with terror as he saw what exactly was pulling him in. He rumbled with horror as the tentacles wrapped around more it his body, pushing him down and off of her. She quickly scrambled away, the growling from the Engineer loud above her.
She made it back to the main room and grabbed her bag, already made to leave but something stopped her. Slowly she turned her head to peer at the two aliens still engaged in combat and she suddenly had an urge to help him. For one, why did he not try to kill her in the ship even though he did everyone else? He could have easily caught up with her and end her life but he did not. He only attacked her after he had gotten hurt and his ship destroyed. If it was her, she would have been pissed too. Shaw cursed; she had no choice in her mind. She let the bag fall to the ground and she gripped the axe, lounging at her monstrous offspring with a battle cry every warrior would have been proud off.
The alien screamed in pain as the axe cut off one of its tentacles, sending it flying to the side. The Engineer rumbled again, this time it seemed less violent but just as loud, it must have been an exclamation of surprise as Shaw continued to hack at her brood. She screamed as the tentacles were being tossed about, liquid from the separated limbs melting the machines around and spraying on the Engineer, making him grunt in agony. After she separated three of the tentacles from the creature the Engineer gripped the rest of them and pulled them away from his face, making the alien howl in anger and open its mouth, desperately trying to seed the humanoid. But Shaw was faster; she brought her axe against the creature's teeth, making more blood spray and her offspring finally relented, letting go of the tall alien and slumping on the floor, the acid melting the floor bellow.
Shaw breathed heavily as she threw the axe away and fell down on her ass, too exhausted to stand. If the Engineer wanted to fight her she would not be able to defend herself. Lucky for her, he did not seem to have any interest in that. He was staring at her, he too gasping for air, tired from the struggle. His eyes once again held curiosity as they did back on the ship and he cocked his head to the side, studying her.
"You may thank me later..." she gasped, collapsing on the floor, her stomach too painful for her to keep staying hunched over. The Engineer hurried to her side, peering over her, his large hand brushing over her stomach and she tensed up, holding her breath.
He quickly retracted his hand and once again gazed at her face, perhaps trying to figure out if that had hurt her or not. Of course it did, she though as she tried to get up again, she needed to clean up her wound and close it before the antibiotics wore off and infection set in. Yet he stopped her with a gentle touch to her shoulder, keeping her on the ground. He then spoke to her, a gruff, deep voice that made her shiver slightly but it sounded gentle and comforting, nothing like before when he was growling at the now dead alien. She had no idea what he said but she understood, he wanted her to stay put.
He then got to his knees and wrapped his large arms around her shoulders and bellow her legs, pulling her up with him. Shaw gasped from the slight pain the action caused and from the act itself. It was something a groom did for his bride and she clearly remembered that Charley never held her like this. It made her blush slightly. The Engineer hummed and carried her away from the medical room and away from the gruesome sight of the dead alien on the floor. He entered the room that Shaw presumed was used by Wayland, since it was big and decorated in gold and what seemed like marble, the large bed took up half of the wall on the side and it too had gold-coloured sheets. The Engineer looked around the room and decided to set her down on the bed as he walked back outside, out of sight. She was thankful for the fluffy and comfortable bed and could feel her eyes fluttering close, the adrenaline slowly leaving her body now that the imminent danger was gone. She could not sleep yet though, she still had to take care of her wound and so she gripped her suit's zipper and pulled it down slowly.
She huffed as the suit opened, revealing the bindings completely soaked in blood and sweat. Just her luck, it was worse than she thought. Annoyed and in ever rising pain she knew she needed another dose of painkillers and antibiotics before she could hope to close the wound let alone clean up. She shrugged the suit off and reached for the nightstand, hoping Wayland had some medicine in there and to her delight she found a white box.
"Finally some luck..." she huffed and all but tore the box open but she was disappointed to find nothing but a couple of bandages, a bit of ointment for sore feet and something that looked suspiciously like Viagra. Well, that old coot. Frustrated she kept the bandages and left the other contents inside the box. She would need to get up and pass the dead alien to get to the machine and its medicine.
"It never ends..." she grumbled and attempted to get up from the far too inviting bed but as soon as she tried to get up the pain shot up from her abdomen and she laid back down. She realized she could not do this without some help. She contemplated calling for him but was he even still in the pod or had he left her?
"Um...Engineer? Are you still there? Hello?" she tried and to her surprise only moments later he came back into the room, a puzzled expression written on his face. There was something he was holding in his hands as he came to the bed to once again gaze down at her. His features twisted as he looked upon her wound, perhaps in worry, perhaps in disgust. She knew she would have been revolted if she had seen it.
He kneeled next to the bed, close to her abdomen to inspect it. His large white fingers slid down her body to her cut and he hummed as he bent down to grip what he had brought along. It was a large set of pliers, something that could have been part of the medical pod's laser and a leather bag with various tools he could have found in the maintenance box. She did not want to know what he planned on doing with all this and it seemed as if she would not find out as she felt herself drift in and out of consciousness before blissful painless sleep took her.
- 3 -
He had all intentions to end her life but for some reason she did not let his end. It surprised him to say the least. He had already expected to die as his crew did years ago, and part of him thought he deserved it for not aiding them when the crisis fell on their ship. Yet here he was, alive if not slightly battered and burned and deeply in her debt. She had spared him from the shame of dying outside of battle, by an acid-blood, no less. He had to repay her kindness, honour demanded it.
So when he picked her up to carry her somewhere safe so that he could have a look at her condition, he had nothing but her safety in mind. He did not intend to violate her modesty but he had no choice if he wished to help her. To his people, to have an exposed lower stomach or lower back was equal to being naked. It was partially due to the reproductive organs being there and partially due to the close proximity of the genitals. For females, the womb was the most sacred possession they had. The place around it was considered intimate, not something you showed to anyone. On the other hand, female Mala'kak had their breasts uncovered most of the time; it was nothing special to see females walk down the busy markets or streets, their chests bare. Of course it did not stop the males from staring.
When he came back to the weirdly decorated room he noticed that she had pulled down her body suit, exposing her wound. He had a hard time not blushing even though he could see the blood; it was still a place one usually looked at in certain magazines. And yes, he did possess some back in his house but his current heightening arousal for the small human woman disturbed him. It was not right feeling this way, he had a mission to fulfil and that was to save her, not bed her. Fighting off the lust he kneeled beside her bed, setting the instruments aside to inspect the damage. The wound was very deep but clean cut, probably done by some kind of surgical instrument. What really bothered him was where the wound was located. It was exactly where a Mala'kak woman had her womb and if their anatomy was as similar inside as it was outside, it was the same for her.
It would explain why he smelled amniotic fluid on her; it was all around her stomach and lower abdomen, soaked into the odd cloth together with the blood. Someone had cut her deep enough to sever her reproductive organ and take out the offspring. He was amazed she was even alive. This female was a true warrior. He silently bowed to her, honouring her as he set out to do his patching. He brought out his hand to touch her skin and to his amazement it was very soft, no wonder the humans bruised and died easily; their hides were half as thick as his own. A thought he confirmed as he slid his palm down to her cut; he could clearly see the width of her flesh. He grimaced again as he saw the barbaric way in which the skin was held together.
From what he could tell there were some kind of...small metallic wires in her skin. He grumbled at all the blood seeping from her abdomen, he had to hurry. Looking up at her he noticed she was out cold and he thanked whoever was listening that she did not need to feel this part. He took the pliers in his hand and kept his palm on her to keep her still as he carefully pulled the small metallic wires out of her flesh, one by one. Luckily, she did not steer and lucky for her he had basic medical knowledge.
Thorga hummed; pleased that he did not damage her further as he set aside the pliers. Next he pulled the laser he scavenged from the medical-looking chamber in the room with the acid blood was sealed in before. He pulled the lid off of the instrument and began to calibrate it, reversing some of the polarity. He was impressed with this piece of human technology, it almost rivalled their own and with only minor adjustments he could turn the laser into a connector; a device that connected skin through heat like a laser used heat to part it.
He turned it on and smiled as the blue light came from the device, slowly pulling her skin together. The connector was not like the ones from Mala'kak, this one left a scar wherever it touched and also it burned the skin slightly, smoke emitting from the now closing wound. He was sure she would be proud of it later when she woke; a scar fitting for a warrior.
As he finished, the wound now completely closed and no longer bleeding, he set the connector aside and on the ground. He examined his handy work, satisfied that it no longer endangered her and with that he thought about what he should do with the odd cloth wrapped around her breasts and hips. It was soaked with blood and sweat as was her entire body. It could not stay. He nodded and reached for her chest, grabbing the material and slowly tearing it apart. Her full, if not slightly modest breasts spilled from the bindings, her dusky nipples erect due to the chill of the room. He had to admit it was a very...pleasant sight.
Then he turned his attention to her abdomen. He should throw that cloth away as well but he was inhibited to tear it off of her. It was bad enough that he had seen her pelvic area without her permission but to see her genitals would be an all around offense. He could not do it...but he had to. She could not keep wearing these soaked and dirty clothes. He huffed loudly and hoped she would forgive him for this after she woke up. With that thought in mind he grabbed the cloth and tore it off as well.
To his wonder, Mala'kak females and humans had almost the same shape of genitals. There were only minor differences, the size of the lips, the colour and the small patch of copper hair on top of her mound. He shook his head; he should not be staring at her. He still could not help the tingle of arousal that sparked in his belly. It had been too long since he had been intimate with a woman. He would have to change that once he was back on his home planet. He got up from his kneeling position next to the bed and made his way towards the small side room near the door. He was glad to find that it was indeed a bathroom like he hoped.
Finding the hidden zipper in his suit he pulled it down, the armour dislodging from his skin and peeling off like a second pelt. He hummed happily as he examined his own wound, finding that it was already healing. The armoured suit had protected him from most of the harm. Then he touched his face and sucked in a long breath as the skin stung; it was healing but very slowly. It needed more time. With his examination done for now, he turned to the shower and cocked his head to the side. Now, how to make water come out...he tried touching the cold metal, no...No body sensors. He then tried to press down on the red triangle next to the tubes and then hot water came gushing out, pouring over his burnt face. He grunted and quickly moved out of the way. He did not think it through well enough, apparently.
Next he pressed on the blue circle, this time keeping his distance and to his relief, lukewarm water came from the pipes. He sighed and wetted the cloth he tore from her breasts, turning the shower off again by pressing the same blue button. He returned to the bedroom to find the female had not stirred. Her sweating did appear to lessen though. He once again kneeled next to the bed and proceeded to wipe the blood and fluid off of her.
She moaned weakly, though from pain or from the cold he did not know. He rubbed the cloth over her chest, the water spilling from the material, between her breasts and down her ribs. He had to admit it was a welcome sight to behold and once more something stirred in his loins. He shook his head, trying to clear his thoughts; he had to stop all these inappropriate feelings about her. It was not correct, she would object if she knew of his lusty cravings. Not to mention that he would probably seriously harm her, perhaps even kill her if he attempted to copulate with her while she was injured. Thorga sighed; these speculations were taking him nowhere. He cast them aside as he continued to clean her body.
As he reached her scar he gently dabbed her skin, not wanting to upset or cause any further injury. He let his eyes shift lower to the red patch of hair...it looked so beckoning. He moved the cloth lower, over her curls and down the seam of her pussy, along her thighs...he brought his face closer and inhaled...well, she was clean now; he could no longer smell the amniotic fluid or blood, perhaps a bit of sweat but that was to be expected.
He hummed and stood up, moving to the end of the bed to pull the cloth over her. With a bit of rest she would probably recover sooner. In the mean time he had much to do. Firstly, he would get rid of the acid blood still laying on the floor, he had a bad suspicion where it came from; no, it was more than suspicion, his nose could not be wrong. He knew where the alien had originated. The female was lucky to be alive; his comrades did not share her fortune.
He grabbed the monster by one of its tentacles and dragged it along, no effort showing in his posture. He opened the door of the rescue pod and took a few steps out of it, not needing a breathing apparatus for such a short time. He flung the corpse aside, a few meters from the pod, out of her sight. Just in case she would go outside and see it. Thorga then promptly walked back inside but just as he was about to close the door, he heard a voice coming from the main room, he turned his head towards the floor. The female's helmet was beeping, a male's voice was coming from it; he recognized it, it was the android whose head he had ripped off.
He bent down to speak to the android more easily. "What do you need?" he asked in his deep voice and then waited for the answer. The other was still for a while; it appeared he had been shocked to hear his voice and not the female's. In his situation he would have been too. He decided to relieve the human creation of his worries. "The female is alive and well, she is resting." He added.
"I am glad to hear that." He android finally answered. "Perhaps introductions are in order; I am David. I was built by Mr. Wayland and have accompanied him and the crew of Prometheus to this planet. Apparently, we have been called here by your people. At least, according to Dr. Shaw; the female in your care."
This confused Thorga; he did not know anything about that. The last thing the council had asked of him was to annihilate the sentient inhabitants of Earth; they did not want any more contact. "I see...that is not, however what you have told me upon our meeting." He pressed. This sounded nothing like the wish for eternal life that the ancient one was striving for.
"Yes...Mr. Wayland had...more pressing matters he wished to discuss." Said the android he now knew was named David. "I do apologize if I said something unsavoury for your culture, I was merely conveying Mr. Wayland's wishes." he apologized and Thorga felt a knot of shame twist in his stomach; he should not have harmed a robot for simply doing what it was built for, it was not his fault his creator was who he was. Though, he did not know he was not organic when he attacked him.
"I must apologize as well; I believe it would be best to start anew." He said, bowing slightly in acknowledgement even though he knew the other could not see him. "I am Thorga of the west clan; I am the commander of this post..." He confessed, it seemed appropriate but still he paused for a bit; he should not disclose the military plans of his people, he did not know how long he had been sleeping but caution was needed. David did not seem troubled by his lack of speech however: "Pleased to meet you Commander." Said the android, his voice agreeable and then he added: "If I may, I would like to ask a favour of you." And Thorga listened.
- 3 -
Shaw's body was sore like hell; she moaned in discomfort as she shifted under something soft and warm. What-?
She opened her eyes and gazed down at the crisp white sheets covering her body. The same sheets, decorated with gold that were on the bed she had been resting on. She did not remember pulling them over herself. She gripped the covers and pushed them off of herself; she was shocked to find she was naked. Shaw blushed and quickly pulled the material back over her bare flesh. "What the hell is going on?" she murmured to herself as she contemplated her lapse of memory.
Did she faint? She believed she did but how did she then undress herself and what of her wound? Her wound! Swiftly, she threw the covers off again and to her surprise there was no more blood, no more staples...instead there was now a long, straight scar where the laser had cut her. She brought her hands down to her abdomen and gently rubbed the scarred flesh. It did not pain her to do so. Also, the blood on her skin was gone; it seemed to have been washed away because there were no marks left, no traces of someone wiping fluids away.
This confused her; she was sure this was not her work. The scar alone was proof enough but then that meant that someone had seen her naked, even worse, someone had washed all of her, some more intimate places included. Shaw's cheeks warmed even more at that realization. She stumbled down the bed, dragging the sheets along with her. There was no way she was going to prance around nude when there was obviously someone else in the vicinity.
As she straightened her back, she was glad to find that the moving did not sting. Shaw tied the sheets around her breasts as she stepped out of the bedroom, grimacing as she passed her discarded suit. She would get rid of it later.
She wondered where the Engineer was, she could not see him. He was not in the bedroom nor was he in the main room...where could he be? He must have been the one that took care of her wound and also the one that undressed her. It made her feel very displeased to know that he had seen her naked, washed her body. It upset her; she was not happy with her body, not at all. In her opinion, her breasts were too small, her legs and arms too muscular to be feminine...Charley had told her that once, not with words but she could see it in his eyes, the way he looked at her when she undressed for him. It was the first time they got intimate, the first time he had seen her naked, after that she did not undress in front of him again.
She shook her head to clear her mind; she did not need to think of this now, of him. Charley was dead, as was the rest of the Prometheus crew...no, David-David was still alive! She hurried down the hall to the exit, discarding the covers, the cold air inside the pod pebbling her nipples but she ignored the chill. She needed to find a spare suit and go back to the crashed ship, find David and then she would see from there. It was apparent the android could operate the Engineer vessels; perhaps he could help her find a way off of this planet. She only hoped his battery was still working.
Shaw cursed as she rummaged through the supply lockers near the exit doors. There were spare suits but they were too big, Vickers was a tall woman after all and the other ones were for males...she could not use either of them. She huffed, annoyed. She really did not want to put the bloodied suit back on but it seemed she would have to; she could not survive outside without it.
Then she heard a soft thumping, someone walking outside. It must be the Engineer, she figured and quickly she hid behind the second doors which were broken before by the alien, forcing his way inside. The thumping got closer and closer until finally the doors opened and a strong gust of wind blew inside the pod, the air from outside mixing with the oxygen rich human one. The engineer stepped inside, swiftly closing the doors behind him and he appeared to be carrying something on his shoulder. She peeked from behind her hiding spot and realized that he was carrying David and his body!
"David!" she called to him and hurried from the safety of her hiding spot, glad he was alive. The head of the android that was nestled between the Engineer's arm and ribs, smiled at her. "Dr. Shaw, I am glad to see you are all right." He greeted, his voice and face as serene as ever. Shaw grabbed the android's face from the alien's hand and held it up to her own eyes, chuckling at the blonde's charm. "I am glad to see you're alright as well." She said, as long as his memory chip was fine, she could patch him up.
The Engineer hummed beside her and she looked up to him, forgetting for a second that he was there. To her surprise, the wound on his face was smaller, the gun shot on his chest almost not present. His healing abilities were amazing. The tall alien stared back at her, blinking and exhaling audibly, his face darker than it was before. She wondered why, the skin on his cheeks was slightly redder than the rest.
Then she remembered; she was still naked and hiding absolutely nothing from his gaze. She shrieked, throwing David's head away as she ran back behind the doors to hide. She could hear the android huff as he was caught by the Engineer, saved from the indignity of being dropped on the floor.
"Stay there, ok? Stay while I go dress..." she tried, showing the alien her palms, somehow wanting to convey that he should not move from his spot. It did occur to her that she was talking to him as if he were a dog and that made a small smile creep on the edges of her lips. He did not seem to understand her, of course; he cocked his head to the side again and rumbled, the sound similar to what humans made. He was confused.
Shaw had an alternative plan; however she did not completely trust David yet, even more so since she had the slight suspicion that he had knowledge of how Charley got infected. Still, he was here and he could speak the language of the Engineers and she would have been dumb not to use that. "David, I need you to translate for me, can you do that?" she looked over at the blonde head once again nestled in the giant's arm. The android did not seem to hold it against her that she dropped him only moments ago and he smiled at her: "Of course Dr. Shaw."
Shaw nodded, pleased with the answer. "Alright, tell him that he should stay here while I go dress myself." She said and waited for David to communicate her words to the Engineer. The alien's eyes shifted to the blonde and then back to her as David finished his translation and he bowed slightly to Shaw, telling her without words that he understood.
Satisfied, she disappeared behind the doors, going back to the bedroom to fish for some clothes. Vickers had to have something she could wear and she indeed found something; a long, white robe not unlike the one she wore to bed but definitely of better quality. She wrapped the robe around herself, tying it together in the front to prevent it from slipping.
Now that she was healed, dressed and safe for the time being she had to find a way to get off the planet. She had heard that the rescue pod was stocked for about two years so she was in no hurry or life danger. Still, there was no time to dawdle, she had to find out about the Engineer's plans for Earth, were there more ships, more posts, was Earth still at risk? If there were more ships, could she use one of them to leave the planet?
When she went back to the main room she was surprised to see that the Engineer was still standing exactly where she had left him. Well, at least he held what he promised, she mused. When he saw her, his posture relaxed and he stepped away from the doors and into the living room, placing David's head onto the counter in the edge of the space, his body on the couch. Now that she was no longer worrying about her being naked, she noticed that the alien was not completely dressed himself. She had no idea how she was able to miss it before but she had other problems then. And yes, Wayland was right, he was definitely a he.
The gray, rubber-like suit he had been wearing was gone; instead, his chest was bare and she had to admit he was built like one of those muscled, marble statues. Her eyes roamed lower and the suit was gone from there too, instead there was a soft-looking white cloth wrapped around his hips; she fought a blush creeping on her cheeks as she examined his...other gifts. Quickly she looked away; it was not right to be ogling an alien between his legs, no matter how big he may be and how scantily clad. But a part of her felt entitled; he did see her naked so it was only fair. Actually, it would have been fair if she got to see him uncovered in return.
The Engineer did not seem to mind her inspection, not in the least; as soon as he noticed her staring at his anatomy he hummed and puffed out his chest, making himself seem even bigger. It reminded her of a certain animal back on Earth and she fought a giggle. Was he trying to impress her? She could think of no reason why, though it did make her wonder if Engineer females looked similar to human ones, since the males obviously did. If they did, he had seen far too much for her taste. It was easier to think that they differed, and then her embarrassment subsided, if only for a bit.
Still, she had not thanked him for helping her, possibly saving her life. "Thank you...for helping me." She said to the tall alien, nodding to him in gratitude, hoping he understood. The Engineer let out a soft thrill but said nothing. Shaw turned to the android: "David, can you tell him 'thank you' from me?" she asked, her eyes never leaving the alien's dark ones.
" Certainly..." he answered and then proceeded to converse in the guttural language of the Engineers. The tall alien's orbs shifted from her for only a second to listen to David and then he said something to her, his deep voice sending pleasant chills up her spine. She waited for a translation and she did not need to wait long.
"Commander Thorga said it was a pleasure. Apparently, in his culture it is natural not to harm females unless the necessity arises. Also, he asked me to tell you his name, which I did. He said it would be only right, considering he already knows yours." David smiled, amused by their conversation. He seemed to think it as a fascinating experiment of sorts.
Thorga...she repeated the name in her head, liking the sound of it. It fit him somehow, but... did he say commander? "Then, he was in charge of that ship?" her suspicions and interest aroused she stepped closer to the man who was patiently waiting for her to finish speaking. "You were about to leave for Earth, why? Were you going to attack us?" when she said 'us' she meant the whole of humanity; if the ship had left with the cargo all those years ago then no one would have survived.
Thorga answered her with his head held high, as if what he had said was just. David translated his words to her: "They were leaving for Earth to punish all sentient life. In his words: 'humans strayed from the right path, destruction was the only solution'." His words made her angrier than she had been in a long while, how dare he judge humans, while he killed her crewmates with such ease.
"Why, what did we do that was so terrible? Why try to destroy us now, after so much time has passed?" her voice grew louder as her anger rose.
The Engineer's own voice was as calm as before though, their line of conversation was not upsetting him, perhaps he knew she would ask this. All the while, David obediently kept translating: "You misused the gifts you have been given, using the knowledge of my people to kill each other, perverting it. You deserve annihilation by the Black liquid." Thorga's words were accompanied by stiff hand gestures, rigid body language; it was as if he was disgusted with humanity and by proxy, her.
"You wanted to unleash it on us and then it killed you..." Shaw said, bitterness creeping into her words. She came all this way to meet the Engineers, the creators of life only to find out that humans were meant for destruction by the very beings that created them. This did not sit well with her, this scenario was nothing like she had imagined and while it was no one's fault that reality did not live up to her fantasy she was still upset. She could feel her eyes burn slightly; she was about to cry from the frustration of the whole trip, the deaths, her inability to have children only to so cruelly later birth a monster. It was as if someone was making fun of her.
Her words did have an effect this time and Thorga frowned down at her. He said something to her; he seemed to have a hard time speaking. "I am unsure of what happened myself, when I went into stasis everything was well. When I woke, you were in front of me, my crew was dead and I had no feeling for the time that has passed." Saying this was not easy for him, she could tell, for a moment he had a faraway look in his eyes but which part saddened him she was not sure.
"A lot of time has passed Commander Thorga..." she decided to add his standing to his name, she did not know what was considered polite and what not and after what he had done to Wayland and the others, she would not take any chances. She blinked her tears away, now was not the time for them; when she would be alone, she would cry herself to sleep if need be but not now: "You've been sleeping for about two thousand years, humanity has changed." She tried.
As soon as David translated her words to him, she saw his face transform. His eyes pierced her with their intense gaze of terror. He stepped towards her, his large hands grabbed at her shoulders as he pulled her closer, all but shouting something at her. It scared her and she flinched away but he was too strong and she feared hitting or pushing at him, she feared his anger.
"He is asking if you are sure about the elapsed time, rather urgently might I add." This time David did not literally tell the Engineer's words to her and had it been any other situation she would have found his expression amusing. Now however, being manhandled by this giant, being shouted at and with the memory of his brutality still fresh in her mind she found it all but.
"Y-yes, I am sure. We've done carbon dating on the bodies. The Engineers have been dead for around two thousand years, killed by the black liquid." Shaw explained, she refused to back down; she was not the type to run from danger if it was staring her in the face. The blonde android quickly told her answer to the alien.
Thorga rumbled as he released her, he stumbled to the counter David's head was currently resting on, his large, white hand covering his mouth. He looked completely devastated and she could tell why. He had been sleeping for so long that all of his crew had died, dependant on his leadership. Any relatives, friends, even lovers had probably passed on many years ago. His whole world had died as hers had. Suddenly, she had a strong urge to comfort him, to comfort herself. The tears that she had been fighting were threatening to return in response to seeing his obvious grief.
Maybe she should not have but she still reached out to him, her significantly smaller hand brushing against his back; she was not tall enough to reach his shoulders. His body stiffened at her gentle touch and he turned to look at her with questioning eyes. Shaw smiled feebly up at him. Even though there were no tears in his eyes, they were sliding down her cheeks, she could feel their path from her eyes to her lips, taste their saltiness on her tongue. He blinked at her, much like he did back on his ship; by the way he was looking at her made her wonder if Engineers even cried. But then he turned to face her completely and said something to her, his eyes held no malice or anger anymore.
"David, what did he say?" she asked, never looking away from him. "The commander said that his people are referred to as Mala'kak, not Engineers." And Shaw could not help herself, she laughed. The improbability of the whole situation, her finally getting to meet humanity's creators only to be severely wrong about their intentions, everyone dying and then getting stuck on this godforsaken rock, years away from Earth.
The alien smiled at her, it looked out of place, bitter as his eyes. This time his hands touched her and he pulled her in by her shoulders, hugging her. Shaw was surprised to find herself embraced by him and she gasped as her wet cheeks were pressed flush against his body. His skin was a lot softer than she imagined and she unconsciously snuggled closer, needing comfort.
Soft humming was coming from his chest, vibrating against her, making her shiver and she realized he was trying to soothe her. Shaw hiccupped, her hands going around his massive torso, grabbing at his back as the dams broke and she let it all go. Her failing relationship, her broken body, her false convictions and dreams, the mission, the alien inside her...all of it. She cried onto him, wetting his body and he did not seem to mind, instead he hugged her even tighter, keeping her safely tucked inside his hold.
She heard him speak to her through her weeping and for a moment, she could have sworn she understood his words; everything will be alright, I am here for you now. And she cried even harder, glad that he was here, soothing her, holding her, being there for her like no one else had been till now, glad that she did not need to be strong for once.
That is it for chapter one ~~
In chapter two there will be:
-Some background on Thorga
-How the black liquid got free
-More naked Shaw