OK EVERYBODY IMPORTANT ANNOUNCEMENT! Recently while working on a new chapter of Asclepheus Expanded and the Asclepheus One Shot I'm doing, I realized something….I fucked up the timeline. With the time lapse between Aliens and Asclepheus I noticed that 20 years was NOT ENOUGH! Here is what I mean:
Erik and Norma were born during or after the Human/Yautja war, which in turn happened AFTER the creation of the Myrmidon Corps.
20 years was not enough to contain all 3 of those things. So here is my solution:
TIME RE-DO, FROM THIS POINT FORWARD, ASCLEPHEUS IS SET IN THE HUMAN YEAR OF 2255!
Eli is now 1485 years old.
Rezeal is now 1483 years old.
And there is now a 75 year gap between Asclepheus and Aliens, plenty of time to set up everything my AU needs (AU in this case meaning Asclepheus Universe).
If you guys want to be up to date with the new timeline, check out Asclepheus Expanded, I've put the new timeline there in the latest chapter.
Now, without further ado.
Asclepheus chapter 22
2 Mouths of Madness Pt 3
Darkness.
Absolute darkness.
The universe emerged from the darkness, it was the state of nothingness, it existed everywhere. Wherever there was light, darkness also existed.
Some say that every sentient species in the universe, even those of nocturnal natures had a built in fear of the dark. Primeval Humans huddled around their fires to escape the darkness, believing that the dark brought terrible spirits, demons and beasts from the depths of hell itself.
The truth was so much simpler; the dark was the unknown. Fear of the dark was the fear of not knowing what said darkness contained.
Sometimes this was irrational.
Sometimes…..it was far from irrational.
Eli knew this better than anyone as he walked through the dark of the Xenomorph hive. Xenomorphs thrived in the darkness like no other species, they didn't mind the dark and what came with it.
The Kamad had to be cautious about his surroundings. Xenomorphs had a nasty habit of blending into the walls, waiting for an unwary intruder to come blundering into their territory so they could pounce on them within a second. If you didn't know what you were looking for, you could be staring right at a Xenomorph curled into the wall and be completely fooled by the camouflage of their resin hives.
Eli had been walked in the darkness of the hive for quite some time, so far he had not encountered the Xeno-Myrmidon again. But he knew that the creature was waiting, stalking him, biding its time, waiting for the perfect moment to strike.
But Eli was a trained warrior and a predator in his own right, he knew how predators thought, he knew how they operated, he had stalked sentients before on missions, he knew what mistakes to avoid.
His stance was hardened, alert and ready for anything. He had one of his katanas drawn and at the ready, its steel ready to cleave through xenomorph carapace and flesh both.
His throwing knives were primed, ready to be drawn and hurled at the slightest hint of movement.
His dagger was primed, ready to be used to gut anything that got too close.
His armour and flesh had healed and reformed as good as new since his last tussle with the Xenos, his stamina had recharged and his body was in prime condition.
All in all, the Kamad prince was ready for a fight.
That being said he was a single Kamad in the midst of a hive full of Xenomorphs.
He had to stay on his toes.
Soon however, when Eli turned a corner he was faced with quite a gruesome site.
Piled human bodies, their limbs and torsos gnawed on, expressions of absolute pain plastered on their faces. Eli slowed his pace to look upon the grisly site in front of him, bodies of men and women, some wearing what was obviously Colonial Marine armour, others with tattered lab coats, and some in shredded underwear adorning what little flesh remained.
Even to Eli, this sight was horrendous, this was no way for any sentient to die, to be hived by Xenomorphs and to have their bodies desecrated, to become nothing more than fuel for the expansion of the hive.
The Kamad knelt down and put a fist against his chest plate, a silent salute and momentary prayer for the fallen marines. This was not a way for any warrior to die, for their bodies to rot and stink in the depths of a hive, no respect given to their passing and no sense of decency as their bodies were little more than carrion for the creatures they unwillingly spawned.
"Ancestors…. watch over these souls…. may your blades guide them to their ancestors as you were guided to yours" Eli whispered, his fist still clasped against his chest.
Eli sighed and removed his fist from his chest, he wished he could honour the marines in a way befitting their traditions. Then he noticed the dog tags, still hanging from their necks, he had learned from downloaded info that humans wore dog-tags to identify their dead, and these tags would be collected to confirm their deaths.
Eli began collecting the tags, yanking them off their necks and putting them into a pouch on his belt. He would have to remember to give these to Erik later, he would know what to do with the metal tags.
Eli understood how these humans thought, Kamads would do the same with their soldier, only instead of dog tags they had their weapons, every Kamad worth his salt had a unique weapon that was truly his. Eli has his katanas, Rezeal had his hook-blade, even Eli's brothers had their own unique weapons.
Upon collecting enough of the tags, Eli had ruffled enough of the bodies around that a few weapons came tumbling out from the pile. A couple of pulse rifles, a shotgun or two and a flamer unit, obviously weapons that the marines clutched close to themselves in their final moments, sometimes the Xenomorphs would simply throw the weapons in a pile, useless objects that could serve no meaning.
Xenomorphs saw the weapons as simple pieces of trash, as even the corpses of their victims could be converted into resin for the hive.
Eli picked up the flamer unit and examined it, it was far too small for him to use practically, it would be hard for a Myrmidon to use it effectively, it was downright impossible for a Kamad to use it. Not only that, but the barrel was bent and there was no way he could fire it without it blowing up in flames.
The Kamad threw the weapon back in the pile, the flamer clattering against the other weapons, none of which going off. Under close inspection all the weapons looked as if they had been broken apart.
The Xenos obviously didn't like their prey being armed.
Eli had thought he might find something worth using, then again human weapons like these were very ill suited to a Kamad. He hoped he would find a grenade or two to give him a trump card in a tight situation.
The only weapons Eli had on his person where; his throwing knives, a Swabbie style dagger, 2 Plasma grenades and his trusty Katanas. He had not come to the Asclepheus outfitted for all out warfare, if he had he would be feeling less inclined to scavenge what he could from corpses.
"The bastards put up a fight…that's for sure" Eli said, referring to the marines. He wagered that the marines at least put down a Xeno or two, which for regular humans was an achievement worthy of song.
The Kamad looked at the pile of bodies, he wished there was some way he could give the bodies a proper send-off. He could try setting the bodies alight with what was left of their Flamer fluid, it was a send-off that humans, Yautja and Kamads employed when sending off their dead.
But just as Eli bent over to reach the broken flamer units, he heard something.
Something that sounded human.
The Kamad prince quickly spun around, unsheathing his dagger and one of his Katanas in the blink of an eye, instinctively turning to a battle-ready stance, his katana in front with his dagger drawn back. If anything leapt at him he would block with the long blade of his katana and gut them with his dagger.
It was a tactic that worked well against quadruped enemies.
But the Kamad's golden orbs widened at the sight he saw.
"Dr Isenberg?" Eli's brow arched at the sight of the old scientist, plastered to the wall.
Eli hadn't seen the old scientist since he had arrived on the ship, to be honest he had almost forgotten about him, but Eli had an astoundingly good memory when he met people as it was one of the benefits of having a mind built to gain 10,000 years' worth of information. However, the state of the scientist was much different than what he expected.
He was still alive.
"E…Eli?" Isenberg asked in a groggy voice.
"Well….I didn't expect to see you down here" Eli replied, standing up straight and sheathing his katana.
"What…where…oh god" Isenberg opened his eyes to their fullest, realizing where the hell he was.
"Just realized huh?" Eli asked with an arched brow as he walked over to the scientist and analysed on what his condition was.
"I…I have one inside me don't I" Isenberg whispered, sweat already dripping down his skin. he knew what happened to those impregnated by Xenomorphs, and as a scientist who had studied and knew how Human anatomy worked, he knew he would be in for the most painful death imaginable.
Luckily for him, Eli was here.
"You may very well have…ah, here it is" Eli said, kneeling down and picking up the corpse of a Facehugger from the floor below Isenberg.
"This hasn't been dead long" Eli said as he examined the corpse.
"How can you tell?" Isenberg asked.
Eli sliced open its skin with one of his clawed gauntlet fingers and like clockwork its acid blood burning through his armour and flesh. The Kamad winced before throwing it back on the floor.
"After death, the acidity of their blood is neutralized" Eli explained before he stood up and locked eyes with the head of the Asclepheus project.
"My guess…. you have about an hour until that thing bursts through your sternum" Eli looked deeply into the eyes of the old human.
Eli recognised that look, the look of a man realizing he was doomed, there was no way that the Kamad prince could help the man. For one Eli lacked the medical equipment to perform a dissection, two Eli didn't know enough about human anatomy to perform one if he did, three Isenberg wouldn't survive from the pain alone, and finally Eli didn't have the time to attempt to save this man's life.
"How did you even survive this long? I would've expected you of all people to die first….no offence" Eli asked.
"I…I Hid from the Yautja in my quarters for as long as I could, but eventually they started going room to room, looking for survivors. I thought I could avoid them in the air vents, and for a while I did, until…well…"
"The Xenomorphs found you?" Eli finished.
"Yes, I have no idea how in god's name these things got on-board. We made sure to only take not parasitic lifeforms for research, there is no way a Xenomorph could have gotten on the ship by itself" Isenberg began sweating.
"That's a problem for another time. Right now, I'm concentrating on you…and the situation we've found ourselves in" Eli looked at Isenberg, a look of contemplation on his face as he unsheathed his dagger.
Isenberg began to panic as the Kamad stepped towards him, brandishing that very lethal looking dagger. Even in the dark of a Xenomorph hive, Eli's blades gleamed brightly. Isenberg thought about trying to reason with the Kamad, but he knew it would be pointless, if Eli didn't kill him now, then the creature gestating inside his chest certainly would.
Besides, Eli could him quicker than the Chestburster would.
"I…I understand…I'm dead anyway. Just make it quick" Isenberg took in a deep breath and closed his eyes, waiting for the release that came with Eli's steel.
But it never came, instead…
*Crack!*
Isenberg opened his eyes to see Eli slice open the restraints around his wrists. The Scientist was confused at what the Kamad was doing, and that confusion turned to panic when he realized what might happen.
"What are you doing? I would rather you kill me than this thing in my chest" Isenberg tried to explain, but the Kamad glared into his eyes.
"Isenberg….that name is Jewish correct?" Eli asked. Isenberg wondered how Eli, an Alien Samurai could possible know that, regardless he nodded.
"I would have thought someone whose people had a history like yours would give up so easily. How would you rather die? Begging to be put down like a dog? Or on your feet?" Eli asked.
Isenberg understood, he may be doomed, but he would rather not die plastered to a wall.
"On my feet"
"Good, besides I need someone to talk to" Eli replied as he finished slicing through the bonds.
Isenberg fell onto all fours, wincing in pain as he fell. He was not as young or agile as he used to be. Eli noticed that and plucked a Pistol from the pile of dead marines, handing it to the Scientist. The pistol was one of the only weapons that hadn't been destroyed, so it had to do.
"You know how to use one of these?" Eli asked.
"Just the basics, but why would I need this?"
"True the Xenos won't attack you, but they'll still attack me on sight, just try to take away their attention if you can, it'll give me a better chance in a fight" Eli replied as he sheathed his dagger.
"But….what if I hit you?"
"I wasn't expecting a sharpshooter; my armour is too thick for that thing to hurt me, it would take at least a pulse rifle to pierce Kamad Bio-Armour" Eli replied. Before he began walking towards his destination, unsheathing his katana and giving it a flourish as he walked.
"Where are, we going?" Isenberg asked.
"To the heart of the hive" Eli replied.
"What!? Why!? What reason do you have for going there? I know I'm going to die but that's suicide!"
"…Norma, these things took her and I'm going to get her back" Eli replied, still marching toward his objective, Katana in hand.
"Doctor Rockwell? She survived?" Eli nodded in response.
"Well…. She always was a tough one, and smart for a girl her age. It shouldn't surprise me that she was one of the ones to make it, who else made it?" Isenberg asked, hoping that he and Norma were not the only ones to survive the Yautja attack.
"Sophie and Dr Blair as far as I know, all the others are either dead or lost in space after evacuating" Eli explained.
"Oh…what about the Captains? Azarov and Grey?"
"Don't know. The Black Yautja aren't known for taking prisoners, but then again I still don't know what the hell the Black Yautja would want with the Asclepheus" Eli replied.
Then Eli suddenly had a brainstorm, Isenberg was one of the senior staff of the Asclepheus, the only people as knowledgeable as him were Grey and Azarov. Maybe if there was something about the Asclepheus worth knowing, something that would make the Black Yautja want it, Isenberg would know.
"Speaking of which, is there anything about the Asclepheus you would consider valuable?" Eli asked, looking over his shoulder at Isenberg.
"Apart from the Drive core and Energy core….not really, the engineers were only able to salvage about 30% of the original ship, everything else was beyond repair" Isenberg replied.
Eli scowled in frustration, the mystery of the colossal ship he stood in kept finding new ways of angering him. Despite being over 1400 years old, Eli was not a patient person, Kamads by definition were hot blooded, energetic and didn't like wasting time, Eli was not exception to this rule.
Ever since approaching the Asclepheus from space, Eli had been pondering what kind of ship it was or what race it belonged to prior to human discovery. Even when walking the hallways, he would try to spot anything that would identify what kind of ship it originally was, but to this day he still couldn't figure it out.
"Why do you ask?"
"The Black Yautja wouldn't risk this much on a worthless ship…. something about the Asclepheus make it valuable to them. The question is what"
Humans and Yautja, two species that had made it quite difficult to make an alliance with each other, regardless of how much the two-species had in common they continued to take one step forward only to take two backwards.
The relationship between Humans and Yautja to this day was just like pushing a Boulder up a steep hill.
There were exceptions to this rule, humans in the past that didn't meet their deaths at the hands of the Yautja, that earned the respect of the race either by defeating a hunter in single combat or fighting beside a Hunter.
There were even stories of a Human raised amongst the ranks of the Yautja since childhood.
But the Myrmidons were not typical humans, they could match Yautja on many levels, in speed, agility, vitality and in Vlad's case strength, but the aspect they shared most with the Yautja was a very big negative.
Myrmidons were just as stubborn as Yautja when it came to their wounded.
"You had better Fucking step off, Pussyface!" Ramirez shouted, finally on his feet after so much recovering, he needed Michael to help him walk around and the wrappings around his chest hammered in the fact that he still wasn't at 100%.
Han stood nearby finally at least fit to fight again, he wasn't at 100% but he was at least 90% able, his hand hovering over the hilt of his Katana.
Ramirez was right in the middle of arguing with one of the Yautja hunters that belonged to Zen'Tau's hunting party.
Arguing over what?
The Yautja didn't trust Sophie and Blair with the care of Yeyinde, and Ramirez was still in a foul mood after finding out that they had made a temporary truce with the creatures that almost blew a hole in his chest.
Tensions were high indeed. Another 3 Hunters flanked the main hunter, all of whom towered above the Myrmidons and were armed to the teeth, it seemed like anything could trigger a fight.
The Yautja snarled in its mother tongue, baring its razor-sharp fangs at the Myrmidon who stood his ground, unafraid of the towering alien.
Right now only Baako, Michael and Han could fight at an effective efficiency, but Myrmidons always fought against insane odds, this was no different. Backing down was never an option for a Myrmidon, especially for the members of Alpha Squad.
"Ooman….will…move or…..die" the Yautja growled in broken English.
"You can try Puta" Ramirez swore at the Yautja, standing his ground, clenching his fists tightly, getting ready for a fight. Hanzo kept his available arm close to his Katana, ready to draw it at a moment's notice to help his friend.
"What the hell is going on here?" Baako shouted as he rounded a corner with Michael following him closely from behind.
"Ooman…. will not move…..Ooman….wants to…die" the Yautja snarled, ready to extend his wristblades.
"We had an agreement with your leader, we don't want a fight" Baako tried his best to reason with the Yautja, all 4 of whom looked like they wanted a fight.
"Oomans are weak…. Want no fight…. They Cowards" one of the other Yautja growled in his caveman equivalent of English.
"Your friend is fine, I give you my word, once he has recovered…" Baako began but was cut off by the lead Hunter.
"Ooman Lies! Oomans recovered before Yeyinde….Oomans weak….Yautja strong! Why Yeyinde not recovered yet?" the lead hunter growled loudly.
The Hunters all began to tense up at this latest comment, and all looked just as ready to draw their weapons as the Myrmidons. Baako was tempted to reach behind him for one of his combat knives, but he remembered that Erik trusted him to keep the peace, and that would be pretty hard to do with his knives stained with Yautja blood.
Suddenly the growls of the Hunters ceased as a large metallic hand landed on the shoulder of the lead hunter from behind.
Zen'Tau had just arrived, and he did not look happy.
"My Lord" the lead Hunter greeted in their native tongue.
"What is the meaning of this?!" Zen'Tau snarled, baring his mandibles.
"My Lord, these Oomans refuse to let us watch over your Nephew, they are untrustworthy worms, Paya knows what they are doing to him in there" the Hunter replied.
Zen'Tau's brow furrowed and he pushed past the Hunters and came face to face with the Myrmidons, Baako in particular. The Kenyan and the Yautja locked eyes and the Elder asked calmly.
"May I see my Nephew?"
"As long as you don't disturb miss Burns as she treats him" Baako replied.
"I won't, you have my word on that"
"…. Sure, all you had to do was ask nicely." Baako replied with a smile as he stepped out of the way, Han and Ramirez doing the same when Baako nodded to them.
"You may leave" Zen'Tau turned to the other Yautja, whom were looking at him with looks of shock. They half expected their leader to start a fight, not avoid one.
"But, My Lord… These Oomans, we can crush them now, they are weak" the Lead Hunter claimed.
"You will go back to your positions and do nothing…. Understand?" Zen'Tau got up close in the Hunter's face, his mandibles ready to flare at a moment's notice.
The leader hunter scowled before looking between the Elder and the Myrmidons, as if contemplating taking action, but as he looked back at the other Yautja, they clearly had looks of submission on their faces.
Zen'Tau was famous among his race for good reason, he was a veteran of the Human/Yautja war, an Elite hunter and even possessed a title bestowed upon him by the Yautja King. Zen'Tau Ironclaw was a name that many Yautja children grew up hearing.
"As….as you wish my lord" the lead hunter bowed before storming off, followed by the other Yautja.
Zen'Tau would straighten them out later, right now he didn't have time to deal with pissy hunters that wanted a fight, right now he had to check on his Nephew. When it came to Zen'Tau, family always came first.
Zen'Tau walked past the Myrmidons and stepped into the room, the first thing he saw was his son lying in the bed, his chest bandaged while rising slowly with each breath he took. Zen'Tau approached his nephew and took a seat on the edge of the bed.
"….Uh…..Hi" Sophie said, making her presence known at the head of Yeyinde's bed. The Elder looked at the young female and sized her up, taking her image in before replying.
"How has he been?" the Elder asked.
"…I don't know much about Yautja anatomy, but if I had to make a guess, he should be up and about within the next day" Sophie replied, hoping the Elder would be pleased.
"…I….I am in your debt for this" Zen'Tau said, looking up at the young female.
"Uh, don't thank me…Norma did most of the hard work early on, I'm just stabilizing him" Sophie replied.
"Norma…. she is the one that was taken with my Niece?" Zen'Tau asked.
"Yeah, she's pretty dam good at what she does. I suppose you could say she has a healer's touch" Sophie nervously smiled, trying her best not to seem like she was afraid of the Elder…. which she was.
"I must remember to thank her when she returns" Zen'Tau replied, turning his attention back to his Nephew, clasping his hand tightly.
"I never thought a Yautja could care for their own kind like this" Sophie blurted out almost absent minded.
"…. Is that what you think of us?" Zen'Tau asked. Sophie decided to just be honest, it wasn't like she was on good terms with the Yautja to begin with.
"To be honest…the war left a lot of scars" Sophie replied.
"Indeed, it did" Zen'Tau said, looking at his cybernetic arm and then at his fatherless and motherless nephew. Yautja were just as affected as humans when it came to the war, their dwindling populations put in a dire situation especially with their feud with the Black Yautja.
"I lost a fair bit during the war, my brother and his life mate, my arm and…someone very close to me" Zen'Tau remembered all he had lost to the war with the humans.
"I lost my parents during your people's assault on earth. My older brother and my uncle joined the military soon after…they never came back" Sophie replied, giving Zen'Tau the same look he had gave her.
Everyone had lost someone during the war, it was a terrible time for both species.
"To be fair, until recently I never saw your race as anything but a race of hateful, honourless apes… but within the last 48 hours an Ooman save the life of my Nephew and another is trying to save my niece…. Makes a Yautja rethink a lot of things, Elder or not" Zen'Tau sighed before he let go of Yeyinde's hand and stood up.
"I swear…. that you and your people are under my protection. I apologize for my behaviour up until now" Zen'Tau looked at Sophie, the young human nervously nodding in approval.
"I…I appreciate that" Sophie replied.
"…. What is your name young one?" Zen'Tau asked.
"…Uh….Sophie"
"…..That's an odd name" Zen'Tau replied with a raised brow.
"So, I've heard" Sophie chuckled.
As Sophie finished chuckling the doors opened wide and through the gap stepped the hulking figure of Rezeal. The Kamad scanned the room from left to right, his red eyes always looked a little unsettling, but Sophie had learned what kind of person Rezeal was, and she had no reason to fear the Kamad Warrior.
"You haven't seen Blair, anywhere have you?" Rezeal asked.
"Check those corners, they could be anywhere" Erik warned as he walked beside the hulking Dark Blade hunter.
The Myrmidons and the Yautja had been doing their best to follow the trail that Eli had instructed them to follow. Every once in a while, they would come across a few drops of Yautja blood, belonging to Sha'ra, a marker of their destination.
Ever since encountering the Diggers and the one Hybrid, the group hadn't encountered any resistance. The most they would find would be a Facehugger corpse, an empty egg or two, and every few yards a corpse of a human or some other alien creature with a gaping hole in its chest.
By the looks of things, the Xenos had been busy.
With Eli missing the group had to rethink their strategy, with the group of 6 now down to 5 it was impossible for their 2 by formation. Now Erik and Va'Tan in front, the Dark Blade taking Eli's place in the formation, next in line where Sasha and Cin'Tyr, while Vlad kept safe guard of the rear.
"Vlad, you getting any readings?" Erik asked the hulking Russian.
"No Major, everything has been quiet since the last attack" Vlad replied, checking his Helmet's HUD.
"Stay alert, you never know when the fuckers decide to pop up again" Erik replied with his pulse rifle raised, his eye lined down the iron sights, ready to kill at a moment's notice.
Sasha had to admit, she began to understand why the Major had taken an attraction to Sha'ra now that she was walking next to a young, physically attractive Yautja like Cin'Tyr. The female Myrmidon was known amongst Alpha squad for her taste in women, and Cin'Tyr had qualities that really got her attention.
A confident stance, a firm and commanding voice that felt as soft as velvet, legs that belonged on a gazelle, finely trained abs, a perfect waist to hip ratio and not to mention that amazing…
"Ahem"
Sasha looked up from said 'quality' and looked Cin'Tyr in her beautiful eyes….oh wait, that was bad thing.
"Why are you looking at me like that Ooman?" Cin'Tyr asked with a raised brow.
"Uh, just admiring your armour, I haven't seen Yautja armour this close before" Sasha tried to cover her ass immediately.
"…Really? Your memory must be failing because I recall you getting a good look when last we fought" Cin'Tyr asked, recalling the fight between her and Sasha when the Myrmidons engaged the Yautja. It was hard to forget, it was a hell of a fight after all.
"Oh…yeah…uum"
"She was checking you out" Vlad interrupted before Sasha could reply.
"Vlad!?" Sasha glared at her fellow Russian through her helmet.
"Just telling it how I see it" Vlad replied, smirking as he did.
"I don't understand this expression, 'checking me out' what does that mean?" Cin'Tyr asked.
"Vlad, don't you dare" Sasha glared at her fellow Russian.
"She thinks you are attractive and she wants to bang you" Erik shouted over his shoulder.
"MAJOR!" Sasha gasped, all the air escaping her lungs.
"Someone had to say it" Erik muttered as he returned his attention to the task at hand.
"You….find me attractive? In a sexual context?" Cin'Tyr asked before looking up and down at Sasha as they continued to walk.
"...da" Sasha replied in her native tongue.
"…. You Oomans are strange" Cin'Tyr replied, looking away.
"Excuse me? What exactly is that supposed to mean?" Sasha asked with an aggressive tone. She went from being worried to insulted in the blink of an eye, it didn't take much to get the Russian Blonde angry, and backhanded comments about her sexuality was a sure-fire way to piss her off.
"You Oomans go from wanting to kill someone to wanting to have sex with them, among us Yautja that is considered odd" Cin'Tyr replied at the drop of a hat.
"What? No problems with us being both Female?" Sasha asked.
"No, us Dark Blades are very free with our sexuality, some of the other traditional clans don't look favourably at us for that" Cin'Tyr replied with a lax tone, as if Sasha's replies weren't phasing her.
Which they weren't.
"So….if you and I would….you know?" Sasha asked.
"If I find some time…maybe, you are quite short…. But then again I've never been with an Ooman before….it could be interesting" Cin'Tyr wondered out loud as she continued to walk.
Vlad was gobsmacked at that reply, Sasha on the other hand was pretty much elated, in the midst of all the crazy shit that was happening, the promise of sex with an exotic alien huntress was a bright spot.
"Oh, I wish I could see the look on your face right now" Sasha chuckled in reference to Vlad and his sudden silence.
"Lucky Bitch" Vlad muttered under his breath.
"Dam straight I am" Sasha grinned behind her visor.
Erik smirked behind his mask, Sasha could be a bit of a pervert when attractive women were concerned, he considered it lucky for him that her eyes were on Cin'Tyr and not Sha'ra. The Myrmidon Major's thoughts went back to the Huntress and whether or not she was safe right now.
'I'm coming Sha'ra' Erik thought as he gripped his pulse rifle tightly.
Blurry images, that's all she could see. Blurry blotches of blackness and a few spots of white.
The smell however was much more vivid. The smell of rotting flesh, a strong scent of blood and whatever the hell that god awful stench was.
And yes, a stench worse than that of rotting flesh or blood.
With each breath, she took she found herself overpowered with a new stench that made her nostrils burn and bring her closer to full consciousness.
Eli was right, with a powerful sense of smell came new smells that would render a human unconscious. The young Hybrid's eyes widened to their fullest, taking in her surroundings, and like her Yautja companion besides her…. she did not like what she saw.
"Oh my" Norma gasped at the sight of the massive Xenomorph Hive, the walls crawling with drones, warriors and various other variants of Xenomorphs; Crushers that could not climb the walls, flying Xenos that glided from wall to wall, small rat like Xenomorphs that lacked the lips that many of the others had and…..whatever the hell that was staring at her with the face of a human.
"I was beginning to think you would not wake" Linda smirked.
"What…. Where…" Norma stuttered at first, until the Huntress at her side answered her.
"We are in the heart of the hive, and this is…." Sha'ra began to inform her companion until the Xenomorph Hybrid cut her off.
"Linda, pleasure to meet you" she said holding out her hand before realizing that the Kamad Hybrid was stuck to a wall.
"Oh, I'm sorry, I forgot that you are in quite the odd situation" she grinned.
"Odd….I suppose that is one way of putting it" Norma replied.
"What is your name?" Linda asked, standing up and instantly closing the distance between the two of them. Norma swore she could feel the Hybrid's breath dancing on her face.
"Norma"
"Norma…. Oh that is a beautiful name" Linda replied, cupping the other Hybrid's cheek.
"Are…. are you coming onto me?" Norma asked.
Linda tilted her head to the side.
"Because if you are that's totally cool, I'm more into really tall and lean guys, but I'm into girls too, I once experimented with a roommate in college" Norma replied in her usual 'odd' way.
The Xenomorph hybrid backed away with a raised brow, her efforts to try and make the other Hybrid uncomfortable were failing. This Hybrid was…strange.
"What are you?" Linda asked with a raised brow.
"I'm human….at least I was….I think, I guess I'm about 50%...maybe more…I don't know I guess it's more like a 40-60 split" Norma explained her gears twirling in their regular fashion.
"You…..aren't afraid….aren't afraid that one of my children is growing inside you?" Linda asked.
"There aren't any dead face huggers on the floor, and I'm not feeling any of the headaches, nausea or intense hunger that Face Hugger victims report after waking up" Norma replied instantly.
…
…
Linda stared at the Hybrid, as if her thunder had just been stolen by this…. air headed humanoid.
"Hey I understand if you might be having a hard time with the whole 'Intimidating alien' thing, I get it might be hard. Listen, there was this one Yautja guy that stabbed me in the chest and he wasGUURK!" Norma was cut dead in the middle of her sentence as Linda grabbed her by the throat, her talons digging into her soft flesh.
Linda hissed aggressively in Norma's face, showing off her teeth and the tell-tale signs of a secondary mouth within her first one, red glowing blood seeped down Norma's neck as Linda's claws cut open her flesh.
Linda's second mouth extended slowly and stopped a hair away from her forehead. Norma shuddered in fear as the Xenomorph Hybrid breathed over her face, slowly the second mouth retracted back into Linda's human mouth.
"Intimidated now?" Linda whispered into Norma's ear. Norma having lost her bit of bravado now that the Xenomorph had lost her playful act.
"You are alive simply because I allow it, every single one of my children wishes to rip you to pieces, to stuff you full of young until you burst, for me to rip your throat out right now and watch you bleed all over the floor…the only reason you are alive…is because I require live bait" Linda whispered, withdrawing after licking the Kamad Hybrid's ear at the end of the sentence.
"Leave her alone!" Sha'ra growled at the Hybrid. Linda pausing before smiling and recoiling from her fellow hybrid.
"You'll get your turn Sha'ra dear, you are really anxious for my attention, aren't you?" Linda grinned at the Huntress. Sha'ra wished she were free, else she would have beheaded this abomination by now.
Sha'ra knew what Norma was like in the short time she knew her; she was smart, funny, caring and gentle, not at all material for a warrior or a huntress. Deep down Norma lacked that same killer instinct that Eli, Erik and Sha'ra had an abundance of, even her killing the Predalien on their first meeting was sheer dumb luck. This creature that called herself Linda could see that even though Norma loved to talk, she was not someone that belonged on the battlefield or in the heart of a xenomorph hive.
Norma would have been eaten alive if she had been born a Yautja.
The Xenomorph Hybrid retracted her hand from Norma's throat, slicing open the skin of her neck with her talons as she did. Norma winced in pain as her glowing red blood leaked from the fresh wounds. Norma's pain didn't last for long however as her newly acquired Kamad healing abilities kicked in, the wounds sealing themselves in a matter of seconds, leaving nought but blood trails dripping down her neck.
Linda took notice of this and tilted her head.
"You are like the white haired one…aren't you?" Linda asked.
"Eli...you know Eli?" Norma asked, desperately wanting to know what this creature's plans for her Kamad companion was.
"So, that's his name? Well it won't matter for much longer, my brother will soon return with his head once the deed has been done" she smiled, chuckling at the end of her sentence.
"You don't know him, he isn't afraid of you or your brother or whatever the hell else you have down here" Norma tried to put on a brave face in front of the Hybrid.
"Then he is a fool, we are many, he is but one, a single life in opposition to an entire hive. Once he is dead, then my brothers will work on separating the rest of your friends from each other…killing them off .one" Linda smiled.
"Others?" Norma asked.
"Erik, the Myrmidons, my people…we are being used like bait…to lure them to their deaths" Sha'ra answered, as Linda simply giggled and put a hand to her mouth. Seeing Norma slowly break down made her giddy.
"But….why? Why would you do that?!" Norma almost shouted at the Creature that stood before her.
"Why? well…you killed my children, an eye for an eye"
"Your children attacked us. You are sentient, and you speak to those things…why do they want this?" Norma asked.
"Oh, poor innocent child…. you don't understand, do you? As much as I like to converse with dear Sha'ra. You, her, your friends…you are all fuel, food and vessels for the future of the hive. My brothers and I are lucky enough to become a part of the hive…. you do not have that luxury…but don't worry, this will happen to you only after I have brought you your…. Eli's head" Linda smiled, slicking her tongue over her sharp canines.
Norma's head hung in defeat, that response seemed to suck out any hope that she had felt prior.
The Xenomorph woman turned and proceeded to leave the area, her tail flicking behind her and a very seductive sway in her hips as she walked. Drones and Warriors followed her as she left, all attention centred on her and not on either the Huntress or the Young Scientist.
Norma looked up at Linda as she left, and gave her what could only be described as a death glare.
"No…. He'll bring you your brother's" she growled.
"You alright Norma?" Sha'ra asked.
"I'm fine, are you?" Norma asked in return, her friendly tone returning as she looked to the Huntress beside her.
"Well…. we are alive, I would say that is a plus" Sha'ra replied.
"How long have we been here?" Norma asked the Yautja Huntress as she struggled against her binds.
"I've been awake a few hours…that thing would not stop talking, I…I think she was trying to come onto me" Sha'ra replied.
"Erik is gonna whoop her ass then" Norma smirked, already seeing the Huntress' reaction.
"Oh haha, very funny. We are stuck in the middle of a hive, a single wrong move away from death and you still have a sense of humour" Sha'ra replied with an annoyed tone.
"Come on…that bitch can rip our throats out, rip our heads off, lay eggs down our bellies, but she can't take away our sense of humour" Norma replied with a smile.
"Fair enough" Sha'ra grinned with a chuckle.
The Huntress looked up at the Hybrid, if she were from another clan she would see Norma as an abomination against the gods, but luckily Sha'ra was from one of the more respectable and open minded Yautja clans. Oddities like Norma really intrigued the Huntress, as did Erik and Eli to a certain extent.
Sha'ra even remembered back in teen years, meeting a Human that had actually be raised by one of the other clans, her Uncle and his mentor were close friends during the war. His name escaped her as of this moment, something beginning with an A.
"You know Norma, you are one of the strangest beings I've ever met" Sha'ra chuckled.
"I've been getting that a lot recently" Norma replied, referring to Eli's comments on her.
Apparently, aliens found her to be strange. Then again, she wasn't normal for a human, for god's sake she joined the Royal Institute of Xenobiology when she was 13, one thing she always put on her resume.
"You have any idea what the hell that 'thing' is?" Sha'ra asked, in reference to the creature that called itself Linda.
"I…I have an idea. But I'm not 100% sure" Norma replied, the cogs in her head turning.
She remembered some of the things she had learned from research on Myrmidon Corps discoveries. She thought she might have an idea of what Linda was, but all things considered she hoped that she wasn't correct.
If so…. Eli and Erik were in trouble.
The red eyed Kamad walked down the hallway of the ship, his armoured hands inside the pockets of his Laar'Guar leather coat. Rezeal had been charged by his friend to keep a close eye on Dr Blair, to make sure he wasn't up to anything suspicious.
As of this moment, the Kamad had been following said doctor through the hallways of the ship, wondering why the doctor would stray so far away from the safety of the Myrmidons and Yautja. Rezeal had been very careful to be as inconspicuous as possible, contrary to what some might think, it wasn't that hard for 9-foot-tall alien samurai to be stealthy.
Rezeal peeked around a corner to see Dr Blair, the scientist was walking at a fast pace, trying to hurry without making too much noise to draw attention. Then again Blair didn't know that Kamads didn't require their hearing to track their quarry, their sense of smell was more than powerful enough.
Rezeal narrowed his eyes as he continued to follow the human scientist down the hallway, being sure to step lightly. After a few more yards the Red eyed Kamad noticed Blair walk into a room to the left-hand side of the hallway.
The Kamad was sure to close the distance in a few large strides. Upon closer inspection, the Doctor had hidden away in a small med-bay, at first Rezeal assumed it was to gather medicine as he thought Eli's suspicions to be no more than an annoyance at the doctor.
But then Rezeal made the decision to take a peek through the crack in the sliding door and listen closely to what was going on.
"I'm sorry about the delay, I had some trouble finding somewhere secure to make the call. Its extremely dangerous for me to even be doing this" Blair spoke at a hurried pace.
"Never mind that! What is the progress? Is the situation salvageable?" came a growly voice that sounded like it belonged to an old man.
"In terms of the Xenomorphs, I'm afraid not. The Hive has developed too far for me to recapture the Myrmidons, however there is something salvageable in this situation, providing that your man is still active" Blair continued the conversation.
"Go on"
"The aliens, the Kamads…I believe they hold the key to what you need sir" Blair continued.
"Hmm…very well, collect a viable blood sample and I'll inform my man on assisting you in your escape. When the time comes, let him do all the work, understand Doctor?"
"Yes sir, I'll do my best"
"Your best had better be worth it Doctor"
"Infesting the ship was the hard part, getting a blood sample will be simple. I have a feeling the red eyed Kamad would trust me enough to get close" Blair replied. Rezeal could see the smirk on his face.
'You son of a bitch' Rezeal growled within the confines of his mind.
Eli was right about something not right about him. This slimy son of a whore started the infestation aboard the ship in the first place. Rezeal's armoured fists tightened, longing to tear out the Scientist's throat.
"I look forward to meeting you face to face Dr Blair"
"Likewise, Mr Weyland" Blair smiled, feeling pretty good about himself. Smuggling the Xeno-impregnated Myrmidons on the ship was the hardest part of this venture, gaining the trust of most of the survivors was a bit tricky, but getting a blood sample from Rezeal would be easy.
Blair turned off the transmitter and stowed it away in his coat.
Blair wasn't stupid enough to ask Eli for one, the Kamad prince would sooner tear his arm off than give him a sample of blood. But Rezeal seemed passive enough, Blair could spin some BS about wanting it for 'medical research' and he would be in the clear.
The human doctor walked over to the door and pressed the panel to open it, but the moment the door slid open his grin evaporated.
Standing there, in the doorway, was the hulking 9-foot figure of the heavily armoured Rezeal. His arms crossed and a look of anger etched across his face, his brow scrunched and his serrated teeth bared.
Any angrier and his mandibles would have flared and revealed his tusks.
"Hello Blair…. how are things?" Rezeal growled the last part of that sentence.
Blair began to back up, his hands shaking and heart pounding. He would have been safer in a room with a hungry Tiger than an angry Kamad.
"How…. How much of that did you hear?" Blair asked with a shaky voice, full of fear from the look Rezeal was giving him.
"All of it…. You slimy, lying, back stabbing son of a whore" Rezeal growled as he stepped into the room, flexing his clawed armoured fingers.
"Now, stay calm Rezeal, I don't know what you think you heard, but…I'm not…"
"Not the one that started the infestation? Not a mass murderer? Not a backstabbing sack? Please… more Bullshit if you will" Rezeal growled, his eyes fixed on Blair's every move, waiting for an excuse to outright end this man.
Blair saw what Rezeal and Eli were capable of, they were killers to their core. Rezeal had the look in his eyes that one would find in the eyes of a Nile Crocodile waiting to devour a Wildebeest or a full-grown Tiger stalking a deer.
Blair couldn't outrun the Kamad.
He couldn't fight him.
He very much doubted he could talk his way out.
Blair was absolutely helpless.
"Eli was right about you…. You never did smell right, then again Deceit never does leave a pleasant aroma" Rezeal continued to stalk Blair, backing the human into the nearest corner he could find.
"Do you know how easily I could kill you?" Rezeal asked, still glaring at the human.
Blair gulped.
"I could tear your limbs off without even trying, I could crush your skull in my hand like an egg, but then I would be denying Eli and the others the pleasure" Rezeal growled as he pulled back the tail of his coat to reveal his sheathed hookblade.
Blair looked around, trying to find something he could use to defend himself. He saw a nearby emergency fire axe on the wall, and quickly grabbed it from its case and wielding it in both hands.
"Don't come a fucking step closer!" Blair swung the fire axe to try and make a point.
Rezeal chuckled.
"Really? You think you got a chance? Fine, go ahead, take a good old swing with that axe of yours. But be warned, you fail to kill me with your first swing and I'll take off your hands" Rezeal unsheathed his hookblade and gave it a flourish.
Blair swung the axe at Rezeal but in the blink of an eye, Rezeal caught the axe-blade with his hookblade and yanked it from the human's grasp. Once Rezeal had a hold of the axe, he flung it over his shoulder, causing it to lodge itself in the nearest wall.
"Well…. good effort. But don't worry, you won't bleed to death, Kamad steel cauterizes cuts pretty well" Rezeal stepped forward and grabbed a hold of Blair's left arm.
But then Rezeal got a whiff of something, something in the air.
The Kamad turned when he heard the sound of pattering across metal.
Everything went black.
"Feeling tight in the chest there, Doc?" Eli asked as he helped Isenberg to his feet.
"Yeah, how much time do you think I have left?" the human doctor asked as he stumbled to his feet.
"By the looks of you, not too long. Still, just let me know when and I'll make it quick" Eli replied.
"Don't count on it. If it comes to that, ill end it myself" Isenberg chuckled.
The old Jewish Doctor wasn't looking too good, his skin was going pale, his eyes were pretty bloodshot, he hadn't begun to cough or show any real breathing problems, so he had a while before the creature in his chest would emerge.
"Just try to keep up ok?" Eli said as he went back to leading the way.
"So, tell me, I'm curious… Why do you want to save Dr Rockwell so much? I know she is a good girl, but why would you care?" Isenberg asked.
"I'm not sure if you know this, Doc. But being who I am, a first-born Prince, a future Emperor of my people, is not as glamorous as you think. Ever since I was a child I've had these expectations put upon me, that I must become this great leader, the greatest warrior amongst my people, a symbol to be looked up to…. Needless to say, it's a hard way to grow up"
"In human history, emperors, kings, shoguns, lords, they don't usually live hard lives…they sometimes are born with silver spoons in their mouths" Isenberg replied.
"Oh, trust me, with Kamads it's not like that. If anything, the higher our position in society, the harder we have to try, to survive to get better and to progress. Ever since my great ancestor, the one who founded the Empire…we've had to be strong, to strive, to struggle against the odds" Eli replied.
"Your ancestor?" Isenberg asked, wanting to learn more about Eli's history.
"My great ancestor, generations ago before the Kamads were a united people, before we travelled beyond our own atmosphere. Our planet was invaded by creatures from the stars, ones that wanted to enslave us, to put us in chains and make us their slaves… my ancestor suffered at their experiments, one such experiment caused my eyes to look like this" Eli gestured to the golden shine of his eyes.
"He was torn to shreds multiple times, the last of his clan. He withstood the worst pains a being of flesh could withstand, but he withstood it every time… In time, he led the Kamads against the invaders and founded the Empire. The Emperor had to learn those pains…to be more than flesh and blood, to be a symbol of strength and fortitude. I understand that, but it leaves little in terms of individuality, Norma however saw past that, she looked at me like a person, as Eli" The Kamad prince grinned behind his red bandana.
"She always did have a way of looking past the skin" Isenberg smiled. He remembered how Norma would even treat some of the alien specimens like people, smuggling them food despite what the others thought, giving some of them names.
Norma was one of a kind, and Isenberg could see why Eli would want to risk his life to save hers.
It gave Isenberg a small glimmer of hope. Perhaps Humanity and the Kamads could have a future together, if Norma and Eli were to survive this ordeal.
"I just hope I can get to her in time" Eli replied.
Eli and Isenberg continued on their way through the fleshy, resin covered tunnels. It was at least 10 minutes until they came across a large open area, an area that Eli was not stoked about passing through.
A room filled from wall to wall with Xenomorph Eggs, the majority of which were unhatched. To anyone that knew anything about Xenos, this was a dicey situation. The only positive thing about this was that they had to be nearing the heart of the hive, Xenomorphs never carried eggs too far away from the queen, who was always at the heart of the hive.
"Shit, well… this is a problem" Eli said as his helmet covered his head, the cybernetic plates revolving around his face as if the helmet came to life.
"Will that help?" Isenberg asked, referring to the helmet.
"A little, but not too much. If one of these little fuckers leaps out and tries to latch to my face, this helmet will stop them for a couple of seconds… that's about it" Eli replied.
"What about me?"
"They won't bother with you, you've already got one inside you" Eli replied as he began to walk as carefully as he could through the field of eggs.
If the Kamad prince had to estimate, he would say there were about 30-40 eggs in there, about half of which had already hatched. But even one or two eggs would give him trouble if they sprung open.
Eli's armour plated boots were not made for stealth, by nature he was not a very stealthy person and the armour didn't make it any easier. The Prince kept his free hand hovering over the handles of his throwing knives, ready to hurl one at the slightest sign of trouble.
Eli didn't really have to worry about running out of knives, they were technically extensions of his self-repairing Bio-Armour, but his stamina and accuracy did have limits. If those eggs opened themselves up, he would have mere seconds to retaliate, no amount of throwing knives would get him out of that situation.
The Kamad Prince and the human scientist continued on their way, making it almost halfway through the chamber, when suddenly Eli heard a deep chuckling from somewhere in front of him.
About 10 feet in front of him, squatting down on its hind legs was the Xeno-Myrmidon that had attacked him earlier. Its claws bared, its maw drooling, its tail swinging from side to side showing off the bladed appendage at the end of it. It was defiantly the same one that attacked him as it still had that seeping wound in its shoulder, courtesy of Erik.
"Doc…. Back up. You don't want to get caught in this" Eli growled.
Isenberg quickly began to back up, but promptly stopped when his back bumped into something. The Doctor turned to be met with the eyeless visage of a Xenomorph, a big built one with a huge head-crest and what looked like Dreadlocks hanging from its head.
One of the Predaliens had been following them. and now it was cutting off their only means of escaping the room. A Predalien cutting off one entrance, a Xeno-Myrmidon cutting off the other and a chamber full of Xenomorph eggs.
Eli looked back and forth between the Xenomorph Hybrids and in response, cracked his neck, flexed his fingers and stood his ground.
The Predalien stood up on its hind legs, standing at its full height, around 10 foot high. A full foot above Eli, an imposing hulk of a creature that looked ready for the kill.
Isenberg was frozen with fear, not able to move, standing a literal inch away from the hulking Predalien. The hulking monstrosity let out a bone chilling screech, his secondary mouth extending from its mouth.
Eli growled like an animal in response, flourishing his katana in response. Isenberg could see that he had no place being caught between these three, as soon as that thought crossed his head, the Predalien backhanded him out of its way, the doctor flew through the air like he was nothing and crashed shoulder first into the wall.
Leaving the path to Eli clear for the Predalien.
Eli looked to the doctor; he looked unconscious, as he should after taking a hit like that.
"Alright…. Let's dance" Eli growled in preparation. He bared his katana and in a single, fluid movement, he spun around and sliced the eggs in his immediate vicinity to ribbons, killing the facehuggers within.
The Predalien roared and the Xeno-Myrmidon snarled at the display of defiance that Eli showed them. The Hulking predalien charged at the Kamad, running all fours at full pelt like a bull, but the Kamad was ready, he dashed to the side and kicked the Predalien's feet from under it.
The bull tumbled and fell flat on its face. Eli quickly took advantage of the situation, ramming his katana into the ground so he could use both his hands. Grabbing a hold of the Predalien's tail, Eli began to pull, lifting the Predalien's hulking form from off the ground, until he was literally swinging the creature like a flail.
The Xeno-Myrmidon was kept at bay by the huge form of the predalien, screeching its lungs out as Eli swung it in cirlces.
The Kamad let the Predalien go, sending it flying into the eggs nearby. The sheer weight of the predalien crushed the eggs and the facehuggers within them, many of the facehuggers managed to scurry away in time, leaping from their eggs and scurrying away from danger.
Eli swung his head towards the Xeno-Myrmidon, but was met with a swift boot to the face, followed by a claw swipe to his mid-section and a lash of its tail. The bladed tip of the tail cut through the gaps in Eli's bio-armour and sent him falling to his back.
Glowing blue blood splattered across the floor as the Kamad quickly kicked himself back up onto his feet. Double handing his Katana, Eli went into the offensive, trying to slice the xeno-myrmidon to ribbons.
But with every swing, the Myrmidon bobbed and weaved around the Kamad's blade. Flowing like water around a rock, the Myrmidon evaded every strike that the Kamad attempted.
Eli had to admit, the speed and agility of this thing were impressive. Especially since it had time to snarl and hiss after every dodge it performed.
Eli tried to change up his strategy by closing the distance, make it harder for the Myrmidon to dodge his sword strikes, but the Myrmidon had this strategy pegged and backed up, maintaining the distance between the two of them.
"Stay still dammit!" Eli growled.
Eli swung downwards with a particularly powerful swing, but the Myrmidon side-stepped the blade. The sword lodged itself in the ground, Eli would have been able to retrieve it if the Myrmidon hadn't leapt on top of the blade, adding its own weight to the blade.
The Myrmidon ran of the length of the blade in order to deliver a running knee to the Kamad's face, sending him reeling and tumbling to the floor. Letting out a grunt of pain; Eli quickly shook his head and got back in the game, leaping to his feet, his chest wound already healed.
But the Kamad's eyes widened as the Myrmidon tore his Katana from the ground and balanced it on its shoulder. The size difference was apparent as Eli's Katana resembled a greatsword when wielded by a Myrmidon sized enemy.
However, that was the least of his worries as Eli saw 5 Facehuggers scurrying his way at full speed. In the blink of an eye Eli drew 5 throwing knives, and threw them all in quick succession at the approaching parasites.
4 hit their mark, impaling the creatures onto the floor. But one managed to dodge out of the way and leap towards Eli, intent on clinging to the Kamad Prince's face. Eli quickly reacted, reaching out to stop the creature from latching itself around his helmeted head.
Eli's hand wrapped around the creature but he couldn't stop its tail from wrapping around his neck and squeezing, hard. The Kamad stumbled around, trying to pry the Facehugger away from his face. If the creature made contact with his helmet it wouldn't immediately render him unconscious, but it would render him blind to everything around him, then the Myrmidon and Predalien could kill him at their leisure.
Eli grunted and reached behind him with his free hand, grabbing the hilt of his swabbie dagger "Impregnate this!" with a single fluid motion, the Kamad sliced the Facehugger in half.
But in doing so the Facehugger's acidic blood splashed all over the Kamad's helmet, sizzling and burning away at the armour plating. Eli roared in pain as the acid burned through the helmet and made contact with his face, his eyes in particular.
Eli was lucky that he had a high pain tolerance, because the pain of having molecular acid burn through your eyes wasn't a pleasant feeling. To the outside looker, Eli's face was not looking good, his eyes and eyelids were burned to their sockets, his skull could be seen and part of his right cheek was missing.
Kamads were tough however, and his healing abilities would take time to grow back his eyes.
Now blinded by the Acid and losing the protection of his helmet, Eli stumbled, around, holding his dagger in a reverse grip in front of him. Though the pain he was feeling didn't help his concentration.
The Xeno-Myrmidon snickered as he circled the Kamad, still balancing Eli's Katana on his shoulder. The former Myrmidon decided to have some fun and began to take a few swings at the Blinded Kamad, the first cut open Eli's right knee, causing him to fall to his other knee.
The next cut sliced open Eli's chest and the next came from behind, a strike that sliced off the tip of Eli's tail.
"GAAAAGH!" Eli roared at the top of his lungs. His glowing blue blood pooling on the floor beneath him, his tail was a very sensitive part of his body, valuable for balance and full of nerves.
The Xeno-Myrmidon gave its best imitation of a smirk, its black, slathering maw on full display as it gave a guttural chuckle, watching the Elite bleed.
Eli's wounds healed at a slower rate than what he would have hoped. He could hear the chuckling of the Xeno-Myrmidon, in response the Kamad unsheathed his other Katana and balanced himself on it, standing slowly as he balanced his whole weight on the tip of his katana.
The Xeno-Myrmidon chuckled as it continued to circle Eli, toying with him. Erik was right when he told Eli not to underestimate this thing, it had all the skill and strategic knowledge of a Myrmidon and all the speed and agility of a Xenomorph.
Eli came into this fight thinking it was just another Xenomorph, he underestimated what it was capable of, what it could do. If he had treated it like another sentient, like another warrior he wouldn't be in this situation.
Eli had to win, he couldn't lose here. He had to save Norma, no matter what. She was unlike anyone he had met in his life before, he couldn't let these monsters kill her, make her birth an abomination. The thought of failing Norma destroyed him, and he couldn't go berserk against this thing, if he did it would take his head clean off.
Inhale.
He had to let go of anger.
Exhale.
He had to let go of rage.
Inhale.
Trust his senses.
Exhale.
He couldn't think of himself as a Prince.
His knee sealed itself, the muscles and tendons reattaching themselves.
He couldn't think of himself as a Kamad.
His Tail tip grew back, the bones and muscles returning with a newfound strength.
He couldn't think of himself as an Elite.
Inhale.
He had to think of Norma.
Exhale.
He had to save her, no matter the cost.
Inhale.
His eyelids grew back, covering the vacant spaces that were his eye sockets.
Exhale.
He took a long sniff of the air before standing up straight to his full height, sheathing his swabbie dagger and two handing his Katana, taking a Ko Gasumi sword stance.
The Xeno-Myrmidon tilted its head, confused at the way the Kamad seemed to shrug off its earlier attacks. But it scoffed and readied Eli's other Katana in its hands.
'Find my centre….harness my inner strength….and let my enemy dig his own grave' Eli thought, as he steadied his breathing, blocking out all distractions. Focusing all his concentration and strength into his next action.
Isenberg opened his eyes to see Eli with his eyes closed, standing there as the Xeno-Myrmidon leapt at him with his own Katana. The doctor didn't have time to call out, to warn Eli of the creatures coming attack.
Little did he know he didn't need to.
Eli, with all the grace of a Samurai, blocked the Xeno-Myrmidon's attack. Kamad steel met Kamad steel, and a shower of sparks filled the air. The Xeno-Myrmidon's eyes widened in shock as Eli still had his eyes closed. With another swift and precise swing of his blade, an arc of green Acidic blood flew through the air.
The Xeno-Myrmidon screeched at the top of its lungs as its left arm was cleaved off at the elbow. The severed limb still had Eli's Katana locked in a death grip, its nerves going haywire as they couldn't sense the rest of the body it should have been attached to.
Eli stepped on the severed limb as it flopped like a dying fish on the floor.
The Xeno-Myrmidon flailed as it grasped the stump of where its arm used to be, acidic blood dripping through its fingers, immune to the burning effect of its own blood. The screeching echoed through the chamber, as the Xeno-Myrmidon tried to stop the bleeding.
The Predalien made its presence heard as it let out a loud roar. Eli turned to the creature, baring his Katana once again, readying it in a forward-facing grip. As he did before he concentrated on his surroundings, letting his smell, hearing and the flow of the air do the work of his eyes.
The Predalien snarled, slathering mucus hanging from its maw of a mouth. The creature kicked the ground beneath it, ready to charge like a bull, planning on crashing headfirst into Eli, to crush him against a wall.
The creature broke into a sprint, expecting Eli to try and move or charge in turn, but the Kamad stayed in his tracks, gripping his Katana.
Just as the Predalien was within range, Eli side stepped the creature to the left and cleaved through it. He cut off the creature's front claws, a segment of its head crest, and left a nasty gash along the left side of its body.
Now having lost its front claws in the blink of an eye, the Predalien tumbled to the floor, crashing into the floor with an almighty thud.
Eli tilted his head before grimacing, that nasty tumble probably added to the damage that the Predalien sustained at his hands. Eli swung his Katana, an arc of acidic blood leaving the blade of his sword.
"You missed" Eli shrugged at the Predalien as he marched towards it, flourishing his Katana as he did.
The Predalien gave off a whine of sorts, the pain the creature was going through actually made Eli feel the slightest bit of pity for it. The sounds it gave off told Eli everything, it was barely able to stand without causing itself a gargantuan amount of pain before tumbling back to the floor.
It sounded pathetic. And it looked pathetic as well.
The Predalien hissed at the Kamad, lashing its tail to try and keep him at bay. Eli however simply two handed his Katana and sliced through the Predalien's tail, causing it to spray acidic blood everywhere. Eli rolled in closer to the creature, narrowly avoiding getting splashed with more Xenomorph acid.
With his eyelids still closed, Eli took a deep inhale as he took his Katana in both hands before driving his Katana blade deep into the spinal column of the Predalien, cutting off all circulation, killing the creature quickly.
The Predalien went limp, its head tumbling to the floor as Eli had successfully put the creature out of its misery.
However, Eli's work was far from done.
He could still hear the Xeno-Myrmidon hissing in pain over the loss of its arm.
The Kamad turned towards the sound, by the sound he could hear it scrambling on the floor. it was trying to get away from him. It was whining between its hisses.
It was afraid of him.
The Kamad slowly walked towards the former Myrmidon. His blade at the ready, his senses peeled, his eyes almost completely healed behind his eyelids.
"I don't know if you can understand me or not, but if you can… I'm sorry… I can't undo what these things did to you. May you find your place amongst your ancestors" Eli raised his Katana, ready to deliver the finishing blow to the creature.
But when Eli's blade reached it Apex, the Xeno-Myrmidon smirked and leapt at the Kamad, tackling him to the ground.
The fucker was faking it.
In the tussle, Eli dropped his Katana to the ground with a metallic clank. The Xeno-Myrmidon rammed the stump of its severed arm into Eli's chest, burning through his armour and into his flesh.
"GAAAAGH!" Eli roared in pain as the acid burned his skin and began to eat through his flesh.
The Xeno-Myrmidon rammed the claws of its right hand into Eli's left hand, effectively impaling it to the floor. the Xeno-Myrmidon's tail then flexed, showing off like a Scorpion stinger before it drove itself deeply into Eli's right arm.
"AAAAAAGH!" Eli screamed as the bladed tail sliced through his elbow and severed his arm from the rest of his body.
The floor began to glow blue with Kamad blood.
The Xeno-Myrmidon chuckled with a guttural laugh as it raised its tail once again, ready to strike. This time its tail was aimed at Eli's neck.
It was getting ready to decapitate him.
*BANG!*
The Xeno-Myrmidon looked up to see where the missed gunshot had come from and there lay Isenberg, aiming his pistol as best he could.
*BANG!BANG!BANG!*
Two of the three shots missed, but the third hit the Xeno-Myrmidon's good arm, causing it to recoil, freeing Eli's arm.
"RAAARGH!" Eli roared, punching the Xeno-Myrmidon off of him with a powerful haymaker. The strength behind the punch knocked out a few of the Former Myrmidon's teeth.
The Xeno-Myrmidon fell to the floor, grasping its mouth with its free arm. Eli stood up, holding his severed arm and placing it on the stump where it used to be.
"Grr….aaaaaagh….AAAAAAGH!" Eli roared, forcing his healing ability to reattach his arm. Within a few seconds the flesh and tendons reattached themselves, his skin and armour reattaching afterwards.
Now with both his arms in working condition, Eli cracked his knuckles before cracking his neck from side to side. His eyelids slowly opened, revealing a fierce look in his newly regenerated eyes. The golden gleam restored to Eli's eyesight.
The Kamad reached behind him and unsheathed his swabbie dagger as the Xeno-Myrmidon lashed it tail out at Eli. The Kamad grabbed the Former Myrmidon's tail and lopped it off with his dagger, the creature gave a hiss of pain as Eli crippled the beast.
With an earth-shattering roar, Eli shoulder tackled the Xeno-Myrmidon into the wall, wrapping his clawed gauntlets around its throat.
"You jumping, slippery bastard…I've got you now" Eli snarled, glaring into the Former Myrmidon's eyes before he began to squeeze as hard as he could.
The Myrmidon kicked and struggled to get free, slashing at Eli's arms, gasping for air, kicking its legs out with desperation. Eli kept his grip and continued to squeeze, his grip getting tighter and tighter with every second.
*SNAP!*
With an ear-wrenching snap, Eli snapped the Xeno-Myrmidon's neck like a twig. Its body went limp in his grip and its eyes rolled back into its head. Eli let the Xeno-Myrmidon drop to the floor, taking a few steps back he winced in pain at the sizzling flesh of his chest, the acid blood still burning him.
"Doc!?" Eli's eyes widened as he remembered Isenberg. Quickly running over to where he last saw the doctor.
"Eli" Isenberg weakly replied as Eli dropped to his knees beside the Jewish doctor.
The doctor was not looking good, his skin was pale yet he was dripping with sweat. His eyes were bloodshot and his nose was dripping blood, the way his legs hung limply on the floor was not a good sign.
"I can't feel my legs, Eli, I can't feel my legs" Isenberg weakly said, as he grasped his useless limbs. That strike from the Predalien had broken his spine, rendering him paralyzed and unable to walk.
"Shhh, it's ok Doc, I've got you, I've got you" Eli whispered to the doctor, cradling his head in his lap.
"Eli…I…I'm sorry I couldn't help you more"
"Hey, it's alright. You helped plenty, I've still got my head attached to my shoulders thanks to you" Eli replied.
"This mission…this project…so many dead. Soon I'll join them" Isenberg said, his eyes tearing up.
"Death is natural Doctor. We all die sometime, this is just another part of life" Eli comforted the old doctor.
"Promise me you'll protect them Eli. Norma and Sophie…if anyone deserves to survive this its them" Isenberg pleaded with the Kamad.
"I will…I give you my word" Eli replied.
"Huh…. ever since I was a child, I dreamed of meeting an alien" Isenberg laughed, tears falling down his face. The pain was beginning to addle the doctor's mind.
"Eli…I'm scared" Isenberg cried reaching out he grabbed Eli's hand in his.
"Don't be…you die a hero. You helped me get this far to save Norma, I'll make sure your people remember you for this" Eli whispered to comfort Isenberg.
"What…what happens…" Isenberg's voice began to die out.
"My people…we believe that we meet our ancestors, all of those that came before us in what you would call an afterlife. You would meet your mother, father…grandparents, all the people that you love…you would go to meet them again, and you would find peace" Eli replied.
"I…I like the sound of that" Isenberg cried. Closing his eyes as his nosebleed worsened.
"I'm…I'm ready" the doctor said.
Eli let go of the doctor's hand, reaching behind him and drawing his swabbie dagger. The blade was sharp enough that one could shave with it. The Kamad Prince closed his eyes and placed the dagger behind Isenberg's head, the tip pressing against the back of his neck, at where the spine met the skull.
…
…
…
…
The act was done as crimson blood stained Eli's dagger.
The Prince placed the dagger flat against the Doctor's chest.
"…Ancestors…. guide this one to his family, he has witnessed terror and turmoil unfathomable to his people. May he walk with his head held high in snowy fields amongst his kin, may he know the peace that he has earned through his hardships…guide him as a brother…as a martyr…as kin" Eli whispered in respect before he gently laid Isenberg's body on the ground.
The Kamad stood up and wiped his dagger clean before sheathing it.
Walking over to his Katanas, Eli picked them up with care, wiping the blood from their blades before sheathing them. The Kamad rose to his full height and took a deep inhale of the air before looking over to the corpse of the Xeno-Myrmidon, noticing a metallic shimmer around its neck.
Eli soon found that the shimmer was the shimmer of metallic dog tags…. Myrmidon Dura-steel dog tags.
They read:
Sergeant Brian Miles
Myrmidon Theta Squad
Eli yanked the dog tags from the broken neck of the former Brian Miles, pocketing them where he kept the Marine dog tags from earlier.
Eli pressed his fist against the chest of the fallen warrior.
"You…were a skilled opponent even in the corrupted state that these creatures put you in. May your ancestors lead your soul to the halls of your forefathers…may you rest as a man…not a monster" Eli gave the fallen Myrmidon a prayer.
Taking one last inhalation the Kamad stood up, with a newfound sense of purpose. He unsheathed both his Katanas and gave them a flourish, his helmet emerging over his head.
"I'm coming Norma" Eli growled before he dashed out of the chamber, running at full speed through the tunnels, to find his way to Norma.
The Kamad was on the hunt.
OH, MY FUCKING GOD THAT TOOK LONGER THAN I WANTED!
Hopefully this was worth the wait you guys, I promise you that the next chapter will be the last one set in the Xenomorph hive. And oh my god….it's gonna be a fucking blood bath! Action, action, blood, murder, mutilation, more murder, more blood, more action, and did I mention blood?
I hope that you guys understand that I try to get these chapters done in a way that means they aren't rushed or full of plotholes.
Remember, Those Reviews are what keep me motivated and I want to get Asclepheus done in the near future (This story has been my baby for the longest time, and I want to get it done so I can shift my concentration towards Al'Dan and the inevitable sequels)
Please remember to Review and tell me:
What did you like?
What do you want to see more of?
And make them detailed please!
Thank you all, Dakkaman777 out! Peace!