Author's Note: Here is the gift fic for our winner, PocketSevens! Once again, we've been supplied with an awesome character to play around with. She is awesome, and fun, and it will be a party and a half. Roll film!
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Child's Play
Aniko walked along, eyes sharp. She'd been with this caravan for awhile and so far she'd succeeded in keeping them all alive. They were almost to their destination, but that was no reason to get careless. Military training and surviving the years of the Xenomorphs had taught her to be the most cautious when your goal was in sight. That's when things were most likely to go horribly wrong.
All of a sudden, Aniko stopped. In a flash, the caravan was set upon by a group of Xenomorphs. Aniko immediately pulled her gun and blasted one of the aliens away, leaving it twitching and writhing nearby. Pulling her other gun, she scanned the other defenders, seeing if they were holding the line of defense.
The other six were doing well. More Xenos were falling and the caravan kept moving pretty quickly, avoiding any issues with Xeno blood. Two more charged her and she aimed her shots carefully. There had been a few attacks previously and they were getting dangerously low on ammo. Aniko made a mental note to trade for some more when they reached their destination.
With the defenders training and calm, the Xenos were finished quickly. Aniko picked off one final alien as it tried to flee, blasting a hole in its torso and launching it into a nearby tree, which began to hiss and sizzle and creak alarmingly.
As Aniko tried to hurry the caravan up just a bit to avoid the potentially falling tree, she paused. She had thought she'd heard something from the woods nearby. Listening carefully, she cautiously inched towards the woods, trying to zone out the excess noise coming from the caravan.
Her eyes snapped open and she charged into the woods, yelling over her shoulder. "Kyle! Move up and hold my post! Keep them moving! And be extra careful until I get back!"
Kyle ran up as she darted off, calling after her. "Wait! Where are you going? What happened?"
He barely caught her reply.
"I heard a child scream!"
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Sprinting through the trees, Aniko barely kept up with the charging monster ahead of her. Sometimes she lost sight of it, but she kept on her path and would find it again. Finally, she tore into a clearing, where the Xeno was advancing upon its hapless prey.
The little girl couldn't have been more than 11. She was a wisp of a girl, but speedy, if she'd been able to keep away from a Xeno for so long. But, from the way the little red head was clutching her ankle, she'd tripped and twisted it, giving the Xeno a chance to catch up.
Aniko marched forward, readying her guns. The child wouldn't die. Not while Aniko was still breathing. She aimed her guns and pulled the triggers. The shots were enough to distract the Xeno, but it moved quickly enough to avoid getting hit anywhere too vital.
She hit the triggers again, running forward to put herself between the monster and the child. Then, an ominous click. Cursing, she dropped her smaller gun and smacked the Xenomorph in the face with the other one as it lunged. The beast veered off, shaking its head a bit, before turning and hissing at Aniko.
Dropping into a stance, Aniko raised her arms defensively, watching the beast pacing before her. It lunged again and she twisted, slamming her heel at the point where the jaws opened, effectively dislocating the Xenos lower jaw. The monster screamed, the smaller mouth lunging out, but flopping around rather pathetically.
Hissing and spitting drool everywhere, the Xeno became even more cautious, circling around Aniko and the girl. But, Aniko always kept herself between the beast and the girl. After waiting, it darted its tail at her, trying to skewer her on it. She knew she had to get this fight over quickly. Who knew when more would come? She couldn't take on any more of the things bare handed.
She threw herself to the side, snatching up her gun again. The Xeno followed her, clearly intent on getting some revenge for the shattered jaw. She grinned and, with extra flourish from her martial arts training, slammed the weapon into the monsters jaw again. With a sickening crunch, the jaw effectively separated from the skull, blood spraying wildly.
Before her gun melted, she continued bashing at the beasts head, knocking out teeth, the inner mouth, shattering bone. Panting, she backed up, dropping the gun before the oozing blood and melted metal hit her hands.
The Xeno swayed, trying to step forward, before stumbling and falling, face beaten beyond almost all recognition. Aniko grabbed the girl, picking her up and holding her bridal style. Carefully inching back, Aniko and the girl watched the final death throes of the Xeno. When Aniko was certain it was dead, she turned and ran, trying not to jostle the girl's leg very much.
Sweating, Aniko cursed the fact that the caravan was probably a far ways off and she had to run the whole way carrying the kid. AND her guns were gone, so she'd probably have to trade for some new ones, or use some loaners. Which she HATED doing. She sent up a small prayer, hoping that nothing else would happen to find her on her trek back to the main group.
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D'bravko jogged along, mildly distracted. He needed to finish up this scouting mission and return to the females. Who knew what they were plotting while he was gone? It was imperative that he remain in their trust. Faru'qi and Dai'za'te were counting on him.
He slowed. He was nearing an Ooman caravan. Caution was called for. As he slipped through, he caught some of the rumblings of the encampment. From what he could pick up, one of their own had accomplished some amazing feat of daring do. He paused, listening more carefully, calling upon the Ooman he had managed to pick up from his time with the others. A few more details emerged. The warrior had been a female, and she had managed to defeat one of the Kainde Amedha single handedly, without weapons!
This bore investigating. Stalking through the camp, he prowled about for the one the Oomans called Ah'na'kho.
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"For the last time, I did NOT beat the damn thing bare handed! If I did, the blood would have melted any body part of mine I was attacking with! I beat the stupid monster with my gun! Just cus it's out of bullets, doesn't make it any less effective as a weapon. Now will you PLEASE stop spreading that stupid rumor?"
The other guards eyed her skeptically. Kyle sniffed, crossing his arms. "Well, that's not what WE heard. But, if you say so…"
Aniko sighed. "Yes, I say so. Believe what you want, but I'm telling the truth. Anyway, I need to go use the ladies room before we move on again."
She turned, trotting off behind a small stand of trees. After relieving herself, Aniko suited back up and stretched with a groan. The long nights were getting to her. Suddenly, she paused. Something wasn't right. Turning, she scanned the area around her, slowly reaching for her pistol. She couldn't tell WHAT was wrong, just that it WAS.
She caught the barest hint of a shimmer on the edges of her vision. Whipping around, she gasped as she came face to face with what she could only call a giant. The THING stood before her, gazing down at her impassively from behind a strange metal mask. She set it in her sights and waited. It hadn't attacked her. Yet.
It held up both hands, showing it was unarmed. Then, it tapped at a strange computer device on its wrist. A strange, female voice came from it. It was clearly human, though. The recording resounded in the awkward silence.
"I challenge you to a children's card game!"
Aniko blinked. She didn't drop her guard, but she was definitely confused. "What are you even SAYING?"
The thing scratched at its head, then tapped some more buttons. A different female voice spoke again. "Resistance is futile! All your base shall belong to US!"
Aniko took a cautionary step back. "Hey, I don't want a fight or anything, you… You. You just turn round and get away."
Unfortunately, her angry tone seemed to confirm something for the monster before her. He crouched into a familiar battle stance, then charged her. Cursing, she holstered her gun. She couldn't shoot an unarmed opponent, especially a fellow martial artist. She dodged out of the way of its first attack, dancing backwards to better assess the situation.
It… HE wheeled, setting his stance again. He was clearly no amateur. Indeed, he moved with all the ability of a martial master. He was attacking her, but Aniko couldn't help but appreciate the skill level of her opponent.
He darted forward again, a flurry of fists. She dodged most, but one broke through and she barely managed to block it. The hit sent her flying and her arms ached. What kind of monster had that much strength? Getting up, she grew even more wary. This was going to be a dangerous fight. She needed to launch a counter attack, or she was doomed.
With a shout, she ran forward, ducking under a well aimed punch, and landing a flurry of blows to the male's midsection. It was similar to punching a tire. But, the beast let out a grunt and dodged backwards, so her attacks had done something. She pressed her advantage, putting him on the run. Her fists and feet flew, blocked or dodged by her opponent. She waited for a hole in his guard.
He gave it to her. With another sharp shout, she sent her hand darting forward, spear handed instead of the usual punch, and stabbed for where she believed his solar plexus was. He gasped and grunted, stumbling back.
Before she could land a final drop kick to his midsection, he rolled backwards, recovering well into a defensive stance. She waited, watching. Maybe her blows had convinced him to leave.
Aniko was startled from her thoughts as the device on his wrist began beeping. She stared at it as he answered it, speaking in a strange tongue. It sounded more like the sounds an insect would make, rather than a person. But, given his size and coloration, this was clearly NOT a person. Not a human person, anyway.
Nodding to himself, the male turned to her, then bowed. She blinked, but her years of training had her returning the gesture instantly. In the blink of an eye, the being was gone. Simply vanished. She thought she saw a strange shimmer darting away through the trees, but she couldn't be certain.
Looking around, she propped her hands on her hips. "Well. That was an interesting trip to the bathroom. I think I'll just keep this to myself."
With that, she turned and got back to the caravan, that was getting ready to move on once more, pushing the thoughts of the strange new alien to the back of her mind. Her first priority now was the safety of her group. That was all that mattered.
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D'bravko approached the command ship, mentally grumbling to himself. He was sick of these mindless missions. He knew the females were sending him on them simply to test his loyalty and skill, but still. It was almost offensive.
He stopped before entering, calming himself down. He couldn't let on about his thoughts. He NEEDED the females to trust him. It was how he could be useful to Dho'mago'te and Tvrtko, and his Ooman allies.
Thinking on Oomans, he remembered the female he'd come across a few days ago. The bruising on his torso had come and gone quickly, but he was deeply impressed. Unlike Dai'za'te and Faru'qi, she was clearly highly trained. The other females were amazing warriors, yes. But, in the end, the others had come to their skill through mere survival. However, the one he had found… She was a TRUE warrior. Clearly someone had trained her from a young age, just as his kind were trained.
For a moment, he pondered on how fun it would be to battle her again. With an angry huff, he shook his head. He had to avoid any and all contact with Oomans that he could potentially come to admire as fellow warriors. To do so would be his downfall. Straightening, he marched into the ship, forcing the thoughts of the short, black haired female from his mind. His mission came first.
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End Author's Note: According to our winner, PocketSevens, Aniko is "the only human to have killed a Xeno barehanded." Well, Mr. Presumptuous, we have someone who would like to speak with you.
Patches (holding a dirty hanky to his empty eye socket, snuffling pathetically): She is NOT! DINGO did it TOO! And he did it COOLER! Cus he ripped off the Xeno's tail and stabbed it to death! With its own tail! Cus he was that MANLY. Why doesn't anybody appreciate Dingo's MANLINESS? He wasn't THAT bad! Well, maybe he was… But that's not important!
Predtards: See, P7? See what you have done? You've gone and hurt Patches' feelings. And he's about to become an important character, so you shouldn't go about upsetting him like that. Don't worry, we still like you. But, Patches is right. If you go back and read Chapter 6 of Hero is a Cheap Label, at the end, then you'll see the truth.
Also, a side note that we are pleased with. We realized we were becoming like Star Trek and the Red Shirts, except we were killing off all the gingers. So, we made this red head live! We want to save the gingers! So, yay personal triumphs! We saved a red head!
