-Note to readers-
I know this took a while, but I've recently gotten sucked into the Doctor Who series. I LOVE everyone that reviewed my stories! Even if it may take a long time for me to update, at least it's worth it!
The drone seemed to be more comfortable crawling on all fours as we traveled through the long hallways and corridors. Some of them were only faintly lighted, while others were completely dark. In the case of there being no lights, the queen allowed me to keep my hand on her side.
After a few turns, the xenomorph in front of us stopped. 'They're close.' The queen strode forward and into the nearest room. It was the cafeteria. Almost all of the tables were knocked to their sides, and a few were nearly shredded.
The queen sent a short, loud screech that echoed off the walls of the empty room. 'I know you're in here. I am your queen. Come forward now.' she ordered.
Sure enough, a xeno jumped up from behind the counter. I noticed that this xeno had a much smaller build. It's dome head was still fleshy looking, and slightly pink. It was clear that this xeno was younger than the last one we met.
The queen lowered her head, and sniffed the younger xeno. It made low clicks, and moved closer to her. When she knew she was close enough, the queen rested her head against the xeno. The same sensation happened in my head once again. The sudden clicking. Like another mind came into my own. 'Do you know where your sisters are?' The queen asked.
The younger one shook its head. 'They both left. I think they went in the other room over there.' She flicked her tail out the door and pointed to the room across the hall.
The queen dipped her head, and turned to me before going to the next room, as if knowing I had something to say. 'I haven't seen a warrior drone yet. My guess is that they were the first to be born. They're both probably in that room.'
The queen nodded, and padded out of the room. Before I followed, I knelt down to the younger xenomorph. 'Hi there. I'm Cassie.' I held my hand out to stroke it.
Unlike the last xenomorph, it instantly rubbed my hand without hesitation. 'You're friendly. Come on. Let's go find your sisters.' She bounded happily along my side as we went into the other room.
The queen stood in the middle of the room, which turned out to be one of the research labs. 'I am you're queen. Come forward now.' she roared.
Silence.
'I command you as your queen. Come forward now!' She hissed quietly as a warning.
From the corner of my eye, I saw movement. It was only for a second.
When I turned to see what it was, it was gone.
'Over there. I saw something.' I pointed to the dark corner. Before the queen could turn, another xeno from the other side of the room made its presence known by crawling across the floor. It bowed its head to its queen, and raised it when the queen took a step towards it.
The two xenomorphs made contact with each other, sending the telepathic link between them.
A sudden force push me to the ground. I choked on my words as the air was knocked out of me. The floor provided no soft landing. I felt it when my shoulder dislocated, snapping out of place. I barely had time to process the pain as my head hit the hard ground also.
The blood was pounding in my ears, and I tried to scream out, but before I could, I started going in and out of consciousness. Every now and then I would hear jumbled words and noises, but they were too distant for me to comprehend.
I felt something touch my head and move it to the side. With all the strength I had, I turned my head to see what had pushed me. It was a blur, but I saw the outline of the queen standing over me. 'Cassie! Are you okay?' she asked franticly. I lifted my arm and placed it on the side of her head. 'I-I'm alright. But… I-I think my shoulder's dislocated.' She huffed out in relief. "What happened?" I said aloud.
'She attacked you from behind. I had to bite her to get her off of you.' I brought my attention to her now, slightly dissolved teeth. The acidic blood had eaten away at the frontmost teeth, leaving them dull. On her forehead, there was a deep scratch that ran along down to her lower jaw. 'You're hurt.' I reached for the cut, but stopped short when I remembered the blood would burn through my hand.
'It's only a scratch. It will heal quickly. But you are only human, and you said your shoulder is hurt. It will take far much longer for you to heal yourself than I will.' She leaned closer and sniffed the wound to my shoulder. Ever so gingerly, she used her secondary arms and lifted my arm. Her grip was more careful and soft than I would have thought possible for a xenomorph. 'I'm going to have to place it back correctly. Are you ready?' I nodded and waited for the pain.
Just as I thought, the pain seared my entire arm. A soft 'click' was heard when my shoulder joint was put back in its hinge. I grabbed my arm and rose to my feet. 'Does my head look alright?' I asked.
I saw her nod slowly. 'There is only a small amount of blood.'
I ripped off the lower sleeve of my lab coat, and wrapped it around my shoulder. 'Where is she?' The queen hissed and pointed her tail behind me, where another, hissing xenomorph crouched. It was in a defensive position, with its tail raised above its head, teeth bared, and inner mouth snapping in and out of its larger mouth.
'She is the oldest. The most intelligent. And the most experienced. She was born before even I was. She guarded every single one of her sisters when they were born themselves.' I didn't attempt to approach the xenomorph, seeing as it probably wasn't even possible.
'Have you already connected with her?' She nodded.
'So this is it then? Right?' Again, she nodded… but then she turned to the dark corner the oldest xenomorph had hidden in before. 'There's something else.' I searched through the cabinets until I found the emergency flashlight. I shone it straight into the corner, and found a body.
A breathing body.
"She was protecting her sister…" I said aloud. The body moved without awakening.
A small, but distinct snapping noise was heard. The chest began expanding outward in short bursts. Each time it got stronger. The queen crouched to her hands, and sniffed the body. As she did so, the skin above the ribs broke. The chestburster screamed out for air, and fell to the floor.
The queen rubbed her head against it's side, and connected with its mind. 'She is the last.' The queen pushed herself off the ground, and took a few steps over to the older xenomorph. 'You have loyalty to your sisters. You are willing to protect them with your own life. Are you willing to do the same for me?' She demanded the question to be answered.
The xeno rose from its position, and bowed her head. 'Of course. I was only protecting my sister from the humans.' I felt the queen resisted growling. 'THIS human, is NOT to be harmed. She was my host. She protected me from the human warriors, and I she is to be treated as part of this hive. I hope that there will no longer be a misunderstanding in the future.'
The xeno hissed slightly, but nodded. 'I understand. I will serve under YOUR rule alone.' She turned her head to me. 'But I refuse to obey a weaker species.'
The queen began walking out of the room. 'Cassie… Where do we need to go?' I moved to her side. 'The Genetics Testing room. All the tools I need will be there.' I winced as my shoulder burned. 'We should start moving then.'
