Author Note: I do not own Aliens. So yeah, I've done a Predator story (with a few chapters with a Predalien in it) and an Aliens/Predator story, but no Alien story. I've been meaning to do one for a while, and I came up with this one-shot idea. I freaking love Aliens but I've always been more of a Predator fanatic, so I guess that's why it took so long for me to do this. Still, Aliens rule! Enjoy!
...
It's warm and wet where I am. I'm coiled up snugly in this place. There's a strange beating noise above me. I don't know what it is. There's also something hard caging me inside. All of a sudden, this place feels cramped and hot. I shift, and feel something soft shift around me as well. I don't know or care what it is. All I know is that I want out.
I ram my head against the hard cage above me. It cracks but doesn't give the first time. Frusterated, I hit it again and bite through the soft substance. I hear something, a far-off cry of some creature, but ignore it. I beat the wall keeping me inside and break through.
Cool air hits me as I slither out of my prison with a screech of triumph. Around me, I sense others that I instinctively know are my bretheren. And in the far side of what I know to be the Hive is my Queen. My Mother.
She senses me and looks over in my general direction. 'Come to me, little one,' she says. Her voice is the most beautiful sound to me, especially after that horrid beating.
I comply and go over to Mother. 'Y...yes...?' I say, struggling to form words.
She seems amused. 'You will be more fluent with practice,' she soothes me. 'More fluent, indeed, than any of your brothers.'
'Why is that?' I ask.
'Because you are like me. A Queen,' she replied. 'At least, you will grow to be one someday. I shall have to teach you personally, my daughter. When you are grown, you must leave and start your own Hive.'
I felt sad that I would have to leave someday, but excited. I'd already sensed a difference between me and my brothers. Mother had simply told me what that difference was. I looked up at her in awe.
'I...I...wi...will be...like...you?' I said and was proud of myself for saying the words.
She regarded me closely. 'Of course.'
She looked so magnificent...so powerful that I couldn't believe that I'd grow to look like her. But I trust her words.
'But for now,' she said, 'focus on growing and learning.'
'Y...Yes, M...M...Mother,' I agree.
...
In a short time, I've tripled my size. I'm still not fully grown, and won't be for a while longer. My brothers that were born around the same time I was are smaller than me. But they'll reach their full size sooner. They are only Drones and Warriors, after all. I am a Queen.
The others in the Hive respect me. Not as much as Mother, but they know I will be like her someday. Mother has already started teaching me the ways of the Hive.
I'm just growing arms and legs but I'm still serpentine. So I coil up at Mother's feet and listen to her talk.
'You will one day be responsible for your own Hive. So listen closely,' says Mother. 'Your main priority should, of course, be laying eggs.' Here she gestures to her egg sac and the many eggs in the chamber. 'These eggs are the future of our race, little one. They are extremely important. You must not allow any harm to come to them, or to you and your egg sac. As a Queen, it is your responsibility to furthure our race. You understand?'
'Yes, Mother,' I reply. In the short time since my birth, I'm able to speak better. My brothers cannot even speak as well as I, not even the full-grown ones. I wondered why and asked her.
'Drones and Warriors aren't smart at all, my daughter,' said Mother. 'They are only smart enough to understand their Queen and obey. That is their role in life: protecting the Queen and the Hive, as well as bringing hosts for incubators.'
I said I got it, and she moved on. She told me that the future of our species is more important than anything else. If necessary, the Drones and Warriors would have to be sacrificed to ensure the eggs' and Queen's survival. Nothing was of higher importance, not even the lives of a Queen's offspring. I understood this but felt sad.
Sensing this, Mother said, 'Do not feel sad, little one. They know what their duty in life is. And they are quite happy to give their lives for their unborn brothers.'
I was still rather troubled, but decided to accept this. Mother explained the various strengths of our kind, especially the Queen. We were stronger than just Drones or even Warriors. If there was no other choice, we could fight, and almost no one could defeat us.
'But, Mother,' I said. 'Who would attack us? You make it sound like something would attack the Hive.'
She hissed. 'My daughter, there is something that would attack our Hive. But that is a story for a different time.'
So ended my lesson for the time being.
...
When I was nearly half of my full size, bigger than even a Warrior, I once again asked Mother about the beings that attack Hives.
She growled a bit, but not at me. 'I suppose you are ready to hear this,' she said. 'There are creatures we call Hunters. They stand somewhat taller than a Warrior and are as strong as one. They have weapons that can kill us.'
'Weapons?' I ask. I had never heard the word before.
'Yes. Like our tail-blades, claws, and inner jaws. Weapons are things you use to kill or protect yourself,' Mother explained. 'Only...a Hunter's weapons aren't part of his body. They are sharp blades and burning balls of energy that they can use to kill from far away.'
I was chilled by her description of the Hunter's weapons. They could kill from far away? Blades that didn't grow on their body?
'Why do they kill us, Mother?' I ask.
She growled so loud that the Drones hid, afraid of her fury. 'Come out, my children. All is well,' she said, and the Drones went back to their work. 'They kill for entertainment, as far as I know,' she snarled.
'Not for survival?' I ask. 'Not for breeding?'
'No, little one,' said Mother. 'They kill for fun.' She watched me closely. 'And the worst part is that they capture Queens. They use them to breed so they can kill her offspring.'
Horror filled me. They really did that? What kind of monsters were these Hunters?
'That's horrible!' I cry.
'Yes, it is,' said Mother. 'If a Hunter comes to your Hive, the Warriors and Drones must fight. They must kill the Hunter. And if the Hunter reaches you, so must you. Kill it at all costs. Understand?'
'Yes, Mother,' I said. I felt something I never had before: hatred. I hated and feared Hunters already. I prayed I'd never meet one.
...
After much skin shed and a lot more learning, I'm finally my full size. It's time for me to leave my home and make a new one somewhere else. I am now as big and magnificent as Mother. Not as wise, but wisdom, she told me, will come with years.
'It's time for you to go,' she said. 'One Warrior and one Drone will accompany you and take care of you while your egg sac grows. Remember everything I told you.'
'I will, Mother,' I said. I knew I'd never see her again. I was sad, but I had a future somewhere else. 'Who will come with me?' I ask.
'It's your choice,' she says.
In the end, I choose a Warrior named Dark and a Drone called Claw to come along with me. When I choose them, they immediately regard me as their new Queen.
We head out to search for our new home. It's time for me to carry on my race and take care of my own Hive. I'm excited to finally be on my own, despite the fact that I know I'll miss Mother. But I will have my own offspring for company, and I will lead my own life.
Today, my life as a Queen begins.
...
Please review! I hope you liked it. I've never done a story from a Xenomorph's point of view before, so if you have any suggestions or comments, please tell me. Maybe someday I'll do an actual story about a Xenomorph...Who knows? :)
