Title: Leave the Nest
Summary: It's time to battle the aliens her way. And yes, the idea of this being a weird rite-of-passage that Fate has cooked up for her family has occurred to her.
Rating: M for violence, graphic descriptions and sexual references
Disclaimer: Oh, how I wish I owned an Alien sometimes. The things I could do to the assholes I deal with…
Author's Note: If this were an actual film script, I think I would call it "Alien: Warzone". But this is not a film script, so I can name it whatever I so please. Ah, the freedom of fanfiction.
"Miss Hicks." The university chairman stared down at her from his seat. The girl in question tucked a stray lock of blonde hair behind her ear. She'd cut off the long strands, which had been down to her waist, about four years ago but she still couldn't manage to style it so that it didn't get in her face, despite being just shy of her shoulders in length.
She forced herself to remain focused on the professors and board members in front of her. Her entire academic future lay with them, and she had just one chance to impress them.
"We are assuming that you are familiar with the book Engineer, the magnum opus of the professor for which this scholarship is named."
"Dictated to her son in the last years of her life and considered a controversial work that had divide the scientific community for years, yes." The girl replied. "It's one of my favorite dissertations on mankind's origins."
"Is it now? Is that because you agree with it?"
"I never said that." The girl said calmly. "Whether I agree with the late Professor Shaw's theories is beside the point."
"And what is the point, Miss Hicks?"
"The point is that it makes you think. As scientists, we struggle to try and understand the universe around us. Whether created by God or nature or something else, all that we can do is observe, document, and draw conclusions where we can. One of the most important traits of a scientist is that he can think. He must have an open mind and be able to revise his ideas and beliefs based upon what he learns. Whether correct or not, the theories that Professor Shaw presents in her book make you think. They challenge you; in fact, they practically dare you to challenge yourself. You have to open your mind and either abandon your old views on the universe, or strengthen your original views. That is why it is one of my favorite works."
Some of the men on the board nodded, but in agreement or not, the girl didn't know. Another man piped up.
"Miss Hicks, may I ask why you chose this specific scholarship?"
The girl gave a self-deprecating smile. "I won't lie to you, sir; I need a scholarship to get through university – especially with the degree that I want. You join the Marines or become a pilot because you want to, not because you want to get rich, and while my parents have always done their best by me we certainly don't have enough to get me through without financial aid. I was drawn to this specific scholarship because of the respect and admiration I have for Professor Shaw. She returned as the only surviving member of her expedition, years after she had left, all of her friends and family long dead. She could have been bitter, but instead she was loving and hopeful. She made this university into what it is today – a center for learning and enlightenment, be it through science, her own particular field, or the arts or humanities, the liberal arts, or even theology. In fact, this is the only university with a mandatory theology course. She felt it was so important that people understand the different religions and cultures of the world that she made it a mandatory study. I admire her immensely, and I hope that I can someday make at least a fraction of the impact that she made upon the scientific and academic world.
"That goal, sir, that bar that I set for myself, is why I chose this scholarship."
"And not the fact that it is also full-ride?"
The girl smiled again. "I did say we needed the money."
The man settled back, and one of his colleagues spoke up.
"It says here that you studied, among other things, anatomy, biology, chemistry, physics, and engineering. That's quite a wide field, and we're only touching the surface."
"I have a wide range of interests."
"Tell me – with anatomy, did you actually participate in dissection?"
"I have performed autopsies on various animals as well as human cadavers."
"Says here in your personal file that you once performed emergency surgery and saved your friend's life at a party. How did that happen?"
"She's deathly allergic to peanuts, and while she didn't eat anything with nuts, she got a little drunk and made out with a guy who'd just had a peanut butter cookie. She had a severe reaction and I had to perform an emergency tracheotomy."
"I take it that it was successful."
"She's in her sophomore year of studying law at Yale."
The original board member that had been interrogating her now spoke up again. "There is one indiscretion on your record that we must, unfortunately, attend to. It says here that at the age of sixteen you joined in with a few other students at your high school in setting fire to a Weyland-Yutani factory."
"That was an accident." The girl took a deep breath. "We didn't mean to set it on fire. I will, however, plead guilty to trying to shut down the factory."
"Can you give us a reason why?"
The girl stood firm, her shoulders back and down, her head high, her back ramrod straight. Military straight, just like her father had taught her.
"I've seen the way that WeyYu treats people. It had no respect for human life, and will do anything to turn a profit. It is after power, and will stop at nothing to squeeze every last drop of coin it can out of whatever it feels might be profitable. It goes beyond basic negligence – twice that I know of, someone on orders from WeyYu executives have taken action that has caused, or would have caused, the death of several people.
"I'll admit that I was young and foolish. What I did was wrong, and the ends do not justify the means. I promise you that whatever my feelings towards that company, or any other corporation, I will never do anything that will reflect badly upon your school. I will conduct myself with the utmost honor and responsibility. You have my word."
The men considered her for a long time. She stood calmly, staunchly, but not disrespectfully. They whispered back and forth to one another for a minute or two before facing her once again.
"Miss Hicks." The head member said. "After much deliberation, we have decided that you are the most deserving candidate for the Shaw Scholarship."
The girl looked like she just might burst with excitement. "Thank you!" She said. She calmed down and cleared her throat, speaking more evenly. "You have no idea how much this means to me. Thank you."
She nodded respectfully, and then exited the room.
As she made her way down the hallway, she heard footsteps behind her. She turned and saw one of the professors from her examination – the one that had asked her why she'd chosen to apply for the Shaw Scholarship.
"Miss Hicks?" He said.
"Yes?" She replied.
"I'm sorry to bother you, but I must say, I was quite impressed with your examination. And the essays that you submitted." The man stuck out his hand. "I'm Professor Charleston, by the way. You'll be attending my some of my classes this semester."
"Thank you. It's a pleasure to meet you." The girl replied.
"Is it all right if I call you Rebecca?"
The girl shook her head. "My brother called me that."
"Oh. No one else?"
"No one." The girl looked sad. "He died a little over nine years ago."
"I'm sorry to hear that." Professor Charleston looked genuinely sympathetic. "What, then, may I call you? I like to be on a first name basis with as many of my students as I can."
"Newt." The girl replied. She smiled. "Everybody calls me Newt."
You probably all saw that coming, but I just couldn't resist holding back her name until the last second.
Also, I don't like Alien 3. And I am pretending that the Alien films after that do not exist. So this is my own "Alien 3". In this one, Ripley, Newt, Hicks and Bishop arrive safely back on Earth. As you can tell, the events of this story take place roughly nine years after the events of "Aliens".