AvP
Seeds of Evil
Prologue:
The hunt is on.
The last light of the sunset shone in beams through gaps in the trees. Qui'aleen looked up; the crimson strands of light reflecting off his scarred mask. Birds were still in flight, their frightened calls ringing across the treetops; dust and dirt still clouded the air.
Qui'aleen turned around, gazing at his open shuttle, its nose buried in the ground. Thoughts were darting through his mind as he wondered if his decisions had been correct.
As the clan elder, he chose a select few to join him on a hunt. His clan had seen two new young bloods. Their first kills had been made but a few weeks past. Already Qui'aleen's nerves were running thin for their arrogant ways.
There was another young blood within his clan though, older than the other two. This Yautja – Vae'zan as he was called – proved to be a much greater problem than any other Qui'aleen had come across. After Vae'zan claimed his first kill, the taste for hunting grew stronger with each new slaughter. Soon, the hunt alone became insignificant to him, for it was the mere carnage that he venerated. Before long, the immutable codes of honour that bound the Yautja for countless centuries became but a hindrance to Vae'zan. He detested the laws, for as he saw it, if a creature was unable to fight back it should not live in the first place. He wanted power, strength, destruction, and to wallow in the writhing, bloodied bodies of almost anything that lived.
Qui'aleen saw this problem worsening with each passing day. He had beheld the sight of Vae'zan breaking the Yautja codes of honour on several occasions. Creatures which were wounded or sick from disease had been spared no benevolence from his baleful hands.
The problem had grown so great, that most elders would have reported such a young blood to the Yautja High Council, leaving the subject to their mercy. Qui'aleen was different though. He was a fierce warrior with a bitter anger when wronged, but he was compassionate and not only cared for all those in his clan, but respected each and every one of them too. He respected life in general, not just of his species, but of others too. Though he enjoyed the hunt, he clung fiercely to the Yautja codes.
He felt it was his responsibility to change Vae'zan instead of simply turning him into the council. He would give the young blood one last chance. Either he would change, or he would be forever exiled, hunted by his own people.
And so, to combat the problem, Qui'aleen thought he could change the young blood by teaching him while on the hunt. The codes of honour could be shown in full practice. Those among the species who were to die were not the strongest of prey, but they would put up enough of a fight to put across Qui'aleen's point.
The hunting ground chosen housed prey that would not only be worthy of killing, but some would be worthy of life. The hunting ground Qui'aleen had chosen was named Earth.
Qui'aleen breathed in the sights and sounds. The calls of birds were returning slowly, and distant crackles could now be heard. What they were, he did not know, but not even they could disturb the new sense of peace that had surrounded him.
Only moments ago he stood on the transport ship, addressing those chosen for the hunt. As well as the three young bloods, there were three blooded ones. Among the three blooded individuals was Kaur'an – the Yautja who was Qui'aleen's right hand, and his most trusted friend. Kaur'an was a good and honourable friend. He was harsh, especially on young bloods, but his heart was in the right place. Although he meant well – only acting strict so as to better teach those younger and less experienced than he – he often came across as being sour. He had a fearsome reputation and often inspired fear into those just learning to hunt.
The seven Yautja had stood together, the excitement building within them. With undying anticipation they entered the drop pods. As Vae'zan was about to enter his pod, he felt a hand come crashing down on his shoulder, its grip tight and threatening.
Kaur'an stood there, his eyes locked on to those of the young blood. He waited until all had entered their pods before speaking. "I will be watching you, murderer. You will adhere to Yautja code, or you will suffer. Where our great leader has mercy for all, I do not. Should you dishonour our clan again, I will tear off your head, and keep it as a trophy. Do you understand?"
An awkward silence ensued for a moment, filled with a complete absence of motion by either of the hunters. Vae'zan gave a nod. "I understand," he said in a contemptuous tone.
Qui'aleen's thoughts were disrupted as he heard the crackling of a breaking twig behind him. He spun quickly to the source of the sound. His nerves were eased as he saw it was merely his clansmen standing before him, awaiting further instructions.
More crackling could be heard in the near distance. With a quick growl, he set off towards the sound at a hurried pace, his party following closely.
They continued to run towards the source of the sound, their pace quickening as they got closer and closer. Their eagerness increased with each footstep, as it soon became apparent that the crackling was the sound of weapon fire, thus meaning prey worthy of the hunt lay ahead.
The warriors ran with great vigour, their steps pounding the leaves beneath their feet. They came at last to a slope. Dense bushes and tree cover blocked sight of what lay beyond, but the gunfire was loud as thunder now.
Qui'aleen looked at Kaur'an, and with the flick of his head, he signalled for his fellow warrior to circle around the clearing. Kaur'an tapped one of the young bloods on the shoulder and instantly the two activated their cloaking devices and set off to flank their unseen prey. The second blooded warrior set off with the second young blood to cover the left flank.
Qui'aleen stood with the third blooded warrior and the impetuous Vae'zan. They each climbed separate trees, lest they make for an easy target bunched together in the case of discovery. Turning their cloaking devices on, they danced across the thick branches with acrobatic precision.
They moved silently among the leaves until at last they had a clear view of what lay before them.
A small village lay in the clearing beyond. Smoke and flames were rising from several of the houses, and the ground was scarred with battle damage.
There were several bodies scattered around the village. Qui'aleen looked further into the village and at last saw signs of life. There were several humans holding weapons, many of whom had their weapons pointed at unarmed humans who were kneeling on the ground. Qui'aleen made a quick tally and counted twelve unarmed humans kneeling on the ground. There were structures blocking his visibility of the armed humans, but he counted at least fourteen.
The humans were gathered close to the other side of the clearing, just next to the jungle's edge where the other Yautja warriors were waiting.
Qui'aleen gave the signal for the two warriors with him to follow his lead. He jumped to the ground in the clearing, and hastily leapt to take a position on the roof of one of the small houses. Vae'zan stuck to the ground, while the other blooded one followed the lead, jumping on the roof of another house.
It was only when Qui'aleen was much closer to the humans that he saw something disgraceful. Many of the humans who were kneeling in surrender were wounded, some were male, some were female, and some were burdened with sickness. There were even elderly in the group, yet still no mercy was offered to them by the armed humans. He noticed with a heavy heart that one of the females carried a baby in her arms. Tears ran down her cheeks, but it was apparent the group were to be executed, even the mother.
This gave Qui'aleen a greater zeal for the hunt which was to commence.
The woman holding the baby looked up at one of the armed men. "Please," she pleaded.
The armed man who appeared to be the leader stepped forward. "Someone in this village notified authorities of our activity. That causes a problem, 'cause our boss doesn't like being ratted on."
"Please, at least spare my child," she said.
He gave an evil smirk. "Do I look like a negotiator to you?" he laughed, then pointed his gun at her head.
One of the armed men next to him furrowed his brows in confusion. "Hey, you've got somethin' on your face," he stated.
Before the leader could see the three red dots on his forehead, a brilliant blue orb of energy tore through his skull. His lifeless body hit the floor as the armed men shouted in terror and began firing in all directions. Some of the bullets hit the unarmed humans, causing five to die on the spot.
Bolts of energy fired from all directions, tearing into the armed men who turned out to be easy prey. Qui'aleen noticed another group of armed men charging out of a building to his left. He and many of the others joined him as he made his way over to them. Plasma bolts cut into their flank, causing them to turn and exposing their backs to Qui'aleen and the blooded warrior with him. Their wristblades shot out and they charged the group, cutting into exposed flesh with ease. Havoc and confusion ensued for the humans. As the humans ran in terror, they scattered through the village. More armed humans seemed to be in the buildings, and the warriors set to the task of cleaning out each building one by one.
Vae'zan and one of the blooded warriors with him killed the last armed man standing next to the group of unarmed humans. They both deactivated their cloaking devices. The blooded one knelt before one of his fallen prey to claim his trophy. Vae'zan wanted more blood though. He turned his gaze to the unarmed humans who survived and slowly approached them. His wristblades shot out, alerting the blooded one. The blooded one quickly made his way to Vae'zan and placed a hand on the young blood's shoulder while shaking his head. "Not these ones."
Vae'zan shook the blooded warrior's hand off and continued to his prey. The blooded one grappled Vae'zan's arm firmly. Vae'zan stopped, then without warning, he plunged his blades into the blooded one's chest, piercing the warrior's heart.
From behind a building another of the blooded warriors came into sight range, three trophies held by the spine were dangling in his hand. As he saw the dead Yautja and Vae'zan covered in his fallen comrade's blood, he dropped the skulls. He let out a roar and charged towards Vae'zan.
The two clashed and grappled one another as they kicked and slashed with their blades. The unarmed humans ran into the building next to them, hoping to hide from the monsters before them.
The blooded one punched Vae'zan, causing him to stumble. This attack was followed up by a vertical slash, which the young blood leapt backwards to avoid. He did not dodge fast enough, however, causing the slash to leave two symmetrical cuts down Vae'zan's mask.
Vae'zan kicked his opponent, then leapt upon him while he was down, stabbing his blades into the blooded one repeatedly. The blooded one stopped moving and Vae'zan stood up again.
He stepped into the building in which the humans were taking refuge, his wristblades still dripping with fluorescent green blood. The humans were huddled into a corner, their eyes wide with terror. The mother held her baby so that its face was pressed against her chest, thus that it could not see the horror which was about to ensue. Vae'zan approached them and showed them no mercy, slashing and hacking at the defenceless prey. As they tried to run for the door, he cut them down one by one. The mother still clung to her baby, and making a desperate attempt to reach the door, she ran. A blade sliced into her back and pierced through the other side. As the blade came out the other side of her body, it cut the baby's face, leaving a deep cut vertically down the right side of the babe's face.
Despite the grievous wound, the mother kept running, making it to the door and a few steps out before collapsing. When the screams had stopped inside, silence followed. The tapping of footsteps told her that the monster was approaching. With the last of her strength, she tried to drag herself away, the baby clutched in one arm. Vae'zan knelt down and grabbed her throat, preparing to plunge his blades deep into her chest before slaying the baby.
He heard a roar to his left and turned to see Kaur'an standing a small distance away, the rest of the warriors close behind. Kaur'an charged his plasma caster and prepared to fire. Vae'zan saw this and ran as energy bolts started flying past him, hitting trees as he ran. Sparks erupted around him and within seconds he was out of sight.
The warriors approached their fallen kin and knelt by the bodies, touching the foreheads of their brothers in sorrow. Qui'aleen saw that the woman was still alive, and so he knelt by her side, seeing the fatal wound through her chest. He looked at the crying baby who had blood smeared all over it. Most was from its mother but he noticed a cut on the baby. The cut ran from above the child's right brow down to its cheek. Luckily the incision did not reach the baby's eye itself, or even the eyelid.
The mother looked up at Qui'aleen, her breathing heavy but slowly failing. He placed a hand over his heart and bowed his head, then placed the hand over her forehead. She understood the gesture as a combined apology and deep felt sorrow. "Please," she said with a quavering voice. "Save my son. Don't... Don't let him die."
Qui'aleen looked at the child who was the sole human survivor. He gave the mother a nod and carefully picked it up, cradling it in his arms. "Thank... you," the mother managed to say before closing her eyes.
Kaur'an slowly walked over to Qui'aleen. "We cannot take the baby. Leave it here; we must pursue that dishonourable pauk!"
"He is already too far gone," replied Qui'aleen. "And I cannot leave the child. It will die if I do."
"That is not our concern," argued Kaur'an.
"I brought Vae'zan here! What kind of dishonourable fool would I be if I left the child to rot in the ground where it laid? I will take care of it myself."
"But..." Kaur'an protested.
"I have spoken!" retorted Qui'aleen, cutting Kaur'an off. "I will raise the child as if he were of our own blood. He is a survivor. He is worthy of our clan."
Kaur'an drew a breath, preparing to speak, but instead he simply nodded. "Very well. And as for Vae'zan?"
"We will find him one day. And we will destroy him!"
Kaur'an nodded and carrying the bodies of their fallen brothers, the pack set off through the jungle to find their pods. They would return home to their pack, but the day would come when they would search for the traitor Vae'zan.
The hunt is on.