Author's Note: Well I'm glad that the first chapter got a good number of views, almost fifty! It may not seem much but I view that as an accomplishment. Now here is the next chapter of the story. I plan on updating this every week or so, and maybe a few times in that week if I get the time. I have a paper written copy of the story, however I have room for changes and tweaking. Also a warm thank you to the guest reader that reviewed the first chapter, it is much appreciated. So enough with my excessive talking and let's get to the story. ;D

I walked down the halls of the old pyramid and saw that everything seemed the same, however it was all very aged and breaking down. I let my hood down and let the chill brush across my head. I put my hand up to my hair and found that it had grown a good bit while I rested. "Well I guess it only slows the ageing process, not stopping it completely." I sighed out as I continued until I found the skeletons of our old hunting party. 'Pauk, all of them were slaughtered by the hard meat Queen's personal guard.' I thought with slight anger rising inside me. I examined their bodies as well and found that all of them still had all of their armor and weapons. "Okay, so no rescue or investigation team was sent here to remove the bodies or their armor." I pondered this, because the Yautja would never abandon a training ground like this without good reason. Usually when a hunt had failed they just destroyed the sight, leaving no evidence behind. I continued my investigation down from our holding quarters and went into the open confines of the pyramid.

I looked around and saw that the pyramid seemed the same here as well. This baffled me and worried me at the same time. I was confused due to the fact that this place just seemed abandoned, then I remembered what had caused this. 'The beasts must be prowling this place like it's their personal playground.' I thought with conviction and slight anger. I then placed my hood back on and walked across a small bridge that connected the living quarters to the rest of the pyramid. I gave a bit of thought about how I should deal with my fallen mei'hsweis. (Brothers) So I just decided on one possible action. I took a small charge from my gauntlet and set a small explosion to destroy the bridge. This was to ensure that none of their weapons, armor, or remains were to be discovered by anyone or anything. "Rest well brothers." I then tossed the explosive to the middle of the small bridge and ran down the dead halls of my home. I set the timer to about twenty seconds, enough time for me to get away from the blast. Then as a loud thunderous boom emitted from down the hall I looked around my surroundings to ensure I was not seen. I noticed that all of the doors were open and all halls were clear. This meant that the chamber to the Queen was wide open, I had assumed and hoped that she was still in her chains.

Then as I continued to creep down the hall way I was welcomed by an unexpected shake that caused me to stumble but not fall. Once I readied myself I looked around and waited for any movement at all. "Well, I guess that means I have visitors." I ran down the hall, knowing exactly how to get to the main entrance and find out just who was here. I had at first hoped it was hunters but then I had my doubts on how they would welcome the sight of me. 'I am still just a human to them. Will they see me and think that I am prey?' I thought worriedly what my encounter would be like with these unannounced visitors. Then I found where the sacrificial chamber was and began to creep low to the ground as I heard voices. I had turned on my cloaking device and my infrared scanner to reveal that humans had managed to gain entrance to the temple. I waited outside the door and peeked around to see that a group of them were coming this way. I immediately ducked around the corner and watched as a small woman lead the group of men into the hall. She was a dark complexion, almost like me but just slightly darker. They looked around the corridor and were reading some of the inscriptions that my people had written on the walls of the temple. They seemed almost, "primitive", in a way. Mostly due to the fact that they were wearing large amounts of cloths wrapped around then instead of the temperature regulating netting that I was wearing. One exception was that they carried weapons that I had never seen before. They resembled the plasma caster that the yautja used, only they were hand held and varied in size. They all seemed able bodied save for the oldest one of them. He seemed to be suffering from some kind of illness that resided in his chest. I watched them go down the hall and went into a door that would lead them into the armory. 'Pauk, if they get down there and tamper with the weapons they may accidentally initiate a chiva.' I thought quickly as I followed behind them, right behind the last armed man.

Once they entered the armory I stayed directly behind them and waited to see what they would do. Then my attention was drawn behind me when I heard extremely light footsteps run behind me. I turned around and stood at my full height of about six and a half feat. I waited for more movement to come,then I saw a slight shimmer in front of me. I turned my heat scanner on again and saw that it was a yautja stalking the humans in the next room. I leaned back to check on them again and saw that they were just looking around the room, not knowing how to raise the weapons. I returned my attention to the figure before me and stood directly in front of him. I knew I was only a human, well technically a hybrid, but I still carried authority and was highly skilled compared to the average yautja. I was sure I was able to be considered an Elite, maybe even an Elder due to my age, but that was unimportant in my current situation. "Stop." I spoke loud enough to get the attention of the yautja, but not the humans in the other room. He stopped dead in his tracks and extended his arm blades while looking around the room. I tensed, then relaxed my muscles as Cane had taught me. He looked around until he looked directly at me. I stood up straight and broad in front of him. He stood still and waited. I dropped my camouflage and stepped forward. "Sheath your weapons Young Blood. I am clan, and mean you no harm." He took a moment then uncloaked as well and took a good long minute to retract his blades. However once he did he still stood tensed, as if waiting for me to attack. I just sighed aloud and stepped to him with confident strides. "At least I hope you are one of the Crescent Moon's warriors." I spoke as I stood about five feat away from him, enough space to react if he attacked. He seemed to relax after I approached him calmly. Then he slacked and began to look me over.

"You are not Yautja, however you are presented like an Elite. Tell me ooman, who are you?" I inwardly smiled at the fact that he was giving me a chance. "I was an apprentice to the Elite named Cane. He had trained me vigorously and shaped me into the warrior that stands before you. I was placed inside a incubator after a hunt failed over a thousand years ago, however it seems that I have been in there longer than intended." I let that sink in for him before I spoke again. "Tell me, when was this installation abandoned and why?" He took in a sharp breath then nodded slowly, more to himself than to me. "The Ancients deemed the pyramid over run about ten thousand years ago. They did not cleanse the installation, however they did encase it in suspension, until the planet naturally covered it in ice." I stood wide eyed at what he had just told me. Thankfully I had my mask to cover my face from him. 'Over ten thousand years!?' I thought to myself not believing an ounce of it. 'The incubator must of had it's own source of power for it to last this long, and Cane must have entered in the wrong amount of time to keep me asleep.' I heaved a heavy sigh at my realization. The ancients must have wanted to starve out the hard meats so that they could save the installation. That made sense, however I was still astounded at how long I've lived. "Tell me, what is your name Young Blood." He shifted slightly at me, "My name is Celtic. I have came here with my two hunting brothers Scar and Chopper." Once he said this I nodded. "I am named Pax." He nodded and pounded his fist over his chest. I returned the greeting, however it was short lived when I heard an ever familiar sound of a platform being raised in the armory. I rushed to the door, activating my cloak and saw that the humans had raised up three plasma casters and had taken them out of the container, causing the chiva to begin unprepared.

I looked up at the sounds of screams and knew that the people up there were at the mercy of the facehuggers. I felt air swish by me as Celtic had shot a net at one of the men and proceeded to spear him in his gut. Once he was dispatched another Yautja emerged out of no where and attacked the woman holding one of the plasma casters. He batted her against the wall but she stood defiantly against his blow. He was about to finish her off with his wrist blades when a black figure dropped down behind him and drove it's tail through his chest. He gasped as he looked down at the tail through his chest and behind him at the hard meat. The hard meat was only a drone, the weakest of all. It leaned forward and finished him with a head bite. "CHOPPER!" Celtic roared as Chopper's dead body was thrown down to the floor. Then the two engaged in mortal combat. I wanted to assist, however a hiss alerted me to look behind me. I drew R'ka and slashed out as I ducked underneath a piercing tail. I looked up and saw that I had slashed the drone in half, it let out a creaking sound as it's upper half fell back and the lower half forward. I great roar alerted me that Celtic as struggling and needed assistance. I rushed in the other room and saw a great hole in the floor. Inside it I saw Celtic meet the same fate that Chopper had, I was a moment too late. I roared and threw a smart disc at the tailless drone with the net marked head. I barely missed as it dove back and scurried away. "Damn, not again..." Then the sound of a man gasping and letting out a croak caught my attention. I investigated and found that man human bodies littered the floor, accompanied by a yautja and a drone's bodies. The dying heat signature from the ill old man against the wall made me catch sight of the last yautja following the human woman and a man down the hall. I followed, hoping to save the last of my intruders from the vicious hard meats and to make sure the last hunter made it out his chiva alive.