HICKS
'So this goes on the record then – your explanation for the destruction of our entire facility is because of a faulty nuclear reactor?' Burt Lancaster loosened his tie and ran a hand through his thinning hair nervously.
Corporal Hicks looked back at the man, his gaze steady. He said nothing.
'Corporal. He asked you a question. I suggest you answer it.' Hicks looked up at Major Truman. He really had nothing against the Major personally – it was the Company representative he couldn't stand. And the fact that the military was now acting as a lackey to them, it made Hicks nauseous inside. He wished that for once, people could stand firm by their morals. If that were so, he wouldn't have to lie like this.
'I believe that I've already answered that question.' replied Hicks, not lifting his gaze from Lancaster.
The man shifted his feet in anxiety. A lot was riding on this. If he could get the military to claim that the deaths of all those families was due to reasons unknown, he would be rewarded – perhaps even promoted, because then they wouldn't have to pay millions to the relatives of the deceased. The Company would then be proven to be not responsible for such unforeseen, yet obviously terribly sad, circumstances. But since the reactors were all designed and manufactured by Weyland Yutani, the reactors' flaws would be the Company's downfall. Not in terms of money – the Company could easily afford to pay the millions due, but if news of this leaked to the press – and Lancaster was sure it would – the media would sink their claws into it and wouldn't let go. The bad publicity could ruin everything.
He had to think of something. He pulled out a thin file from his briefcase and looked through it to check to see if there was something he had missed. He paused on page three and looked up from his papers. 'Um...I have here a statement made by one of our own – by that I mean Weyland Yutani's... He was with you on your rescue operation,' he paused emphasizing those two last words ever so slightly to see if the Corporal would react to it. He didn't. Lancaster continued. 'Burke. You might remember him.'
'How could I forget?' said Hicks.
'Well um...he claims that you were attacked by unidentifiable organisms. And those are what killed the colonists as well as many of your comrades.' finished Lancaster.
Hicks stood up from his chair, temper rising. He knew exactly what the man before him was trying to get him to say. But there was no chance in hell he would say it. He would lie like he'd never lied before to keep the secret of LV-426 safe. 'Is this a joke?' he looked at Major Truman incredulously. 'My people died as well as all those families and you want me to say that little green men were behind all of it?'
Hicks watched, inwardly pleased, as Major Truman glared at Lancaster, who was growing increasingly nervous by the minute. He was treading on thin ice. Hicks continued. 'My people died trying to rescue those families. They were crushed by a tower that had begun to crumble due to a problem with your construction. Now I can repeat this to you and your damned cronies as much as you want – but there's no way I'm going to let you dishonor their memories with this ridiculous half-assed story!'
Lancaster felt as if he needed to assert himself. He stood up straighter and said, 'So you're saying that our Company representative is lying?'
Hicks shook his head, as if in frustration. 'Your friend possibly took a blow to the head because of your falling debris, and he just might've dreamed up everything that you're now conjuring out of your hat of excuses. Now I'm not gonna sit around here any longer listening to this crap.' He looked at Major Truman. 'Are we done here?'
'No, no we aren't-' began Lancaster before he was interrupted by Truman.
'Yes, Corporal. Thank you for your patience. You're free to go.' He then turned to Lancaster as Hicks left the room. 'We've done everything we can; we've volunteered our time and our people to assist you in your investigation in every way possible. There's nothing more here Mr. Lancaster. Go home.'
'But what am I going to put in my report?'
'The truth – that Weyland Yutani screwed up big time.' said Major Truman as he turned his back on Lancaster and walked out.
* * *
Hicks sat at the bus stop, inhaling the damp air, as small droplets of rain began to fall around him. He enjoyed the rain more than he ever had before. He hadn't realized how fresh it could smell when it fell down and bathed the earth. He stuck his hands deep into his pockets and sighed.
A week ago, he had spent a considerable amount of time with Velko...before he had left. He felt as if he had to give the kid something, something to hold onto after everything they had gone through together. Hicks was no shrink, but he knew the signs of depression when he saw them. The kid had refused food for the first few days – simply living on water and some tasteless crackers. Hicks had offered his own flat for the kid to come stay in – at least until he recovered. He had heard Velko talk loudly in his sleep – nothing unexpected, given the trauma they had both been through – but his dreams weren't of the aliens. He was dreaming of Call.
Hicks had confronted him, forcing him to talk about it. He said it would be good for him to let it all out. The façade of being macho was something tiring and unimportant especially when one really got down to what life was really all about. It was difficult for the kid to begin, but once he did, he had broken down. He had cried all through the night. Hicks felt like he'd gotten close to someone outside the combat zone for the first time in a long while. When morning came, it was apparent that Velko was getting better, and a few days later he'd begun to regain his appetite. Call was a special person, Hicks had said. But there are still other special people in your life who need you now. Life's too short for regrets. You'd think we'd learn that after what we went through, Hicks had said with a laugh.
Two days later, Velko left. To go back to his own home, his own time. He needed to see his family, he said. Hicks missed him and again thought about his own words. Life's too short for regrets.
When he got his military leave, he decided he would go pay Ripley a visit.
RIPLEY
She stood in silence, enjoying it, savoring it. She looked at the tree – realizing at the same time that it was real and that it had been such a long time since she had last seen one. It was an Oak tree, just a few feet high – but it held promise.
'Ripley!' screamed a voice behind her, causing her to turn.
The little blonde girl ran faster than her legs could carry her towards Ripley's open arms. 'You kept your promise!' she shouted.
'And what made you think I wouldn't? You didn't have enough faith in me, I see.' teased Ripley. She picked the girl up and carried her. 'Whoof! You're heavy! What have they been feeding you since I left?'
'Ha ha...' mocked Newt jokingly. She pulled at one of Ripley's curls, twisting around her fingers. 'Where's Hicks?' asked Newt.
'He had to go back to answer some questions, kiddo.'
'About the...monsters? Is he going to tell people about them?'
'No. He's going to say that the reason why the people died is because of a broken reactor that blew up.' explained Ripley.
'But that's lying,' spoke Newt, unsure of whether this was a good thing.
'Sometimes we lie to protect someone – for their own good. That's what he's doing.'
Newt nodded, understanding. 'Is he also going to lie about the new people? Where are they anyway?' asked Newt, looking around.
'They're not here...' answered Ripley, not sure of how to explain this to her.
'I can see that, silly...where are they now?'
Ripley smiled at her retort. 'They went home.'
'Can we go visit them? To say thank you?'
'No. I don't think so. Their home is far away. Too far for us to visit. But we can go visit Hicks sometime in a few weeks. He gets military leave then.'
'But how will the new people know that we want to say thank you? They'll start to think we're very rude. How can they know we're grateful?' said Newt with a frown.
'You know something Newt,' she looked up the sky. The sun had begun to set, leaving purple and orange clouds as traces of its presence, 'I think they already know.'
VELKO
PRESENT DAY
ILLINOIS
'Look kid, it's like I said – I don't know of anyone with that name in this block! I'm the bloody landlord! I've been the bloody landlord here for over ten years!' The stout man puffed heavily as they climbed the stairs to the seventh floor. His bad mood wasn't eased by the fact that the elevators in his building had broken down due to a power outage.
'I just need to make sure.' said Velko as he followed the man. He pulled his black coat close about him. Apparently there was no heating either.
'I don't know why you need to see – especially if you ain't even considering renting the place.' He muttered something else under his breath. Something Velko preferred not to hear.
They finally reached the apartment, and the landlord pulled out a bunch of keys, cursing softly to himself. He stuck on in the door lock and turned the key with some difficulty. He held the door open for Velko. 'It's the worst apartment in this building. No heating, plumbing sucks...no one's lived here for seven years. And the last tenant was a Carlos Ruiz – I definitely ain't heard of no Helen Ripley.'
Velko sighed as he began to walk inside. 'It's Ellen Ripley.' He looked at the man. 'Mind if I take a look inside?'
The man shrugged. It made no difference to him now.
Velko walked inside and looked at the small living room. There was hardly anything save for a lonely couch and a moldy side table, keeping it company. He checked the one bedroom but saw no signs that anyone had been living there. The mattress frame was devoid of a mattress, and there were at least two layers of dust covering the floor. He came back out and sighed.
'You wanna check the kitchen cupboards too?' sneered the landlord sarcastically.
'No.' He smiled at the man. It wasn't a sincere smile. 'That won't be necessary. Thank you for your time.'
Velko walked down the poorly lit stairwell and smiled to himself. He hoped that Call knew – wherever she was now – that she had accomplished what she had set out to do, and had given them all – past and future generations included – a second shot at life. He gave a small laugh as he remembered how he had suspected Call of more sinister intentions just before he had left the Amadeus. But his laugh fell short as he reminded himself of what she had given up so that he and so many others could live. Her 'sinister intentions' could not have been any nobler. But he wished it didn't have to end this way. Velko wanted someone to share the pain with, someone who understood – someone who had been there with him.
He had gone to see Bohr when they had arrived back at their own time while she was recuperating in hospital. The doctors there believed that she could be discharged within a week. He had waited for her to return home to tell her the news about Call. She had asked him to leave – she needed time to comprehend and take in everything that had happened to them. Then, two days later, she contacted him and asked him to do one last thing that she believed Call would have done herself.
"Go see her," she had said.
"You mean...if she's still here,"
"Call did say that she didn't want her to suffer any more. She would want to make sure, don't you think?" asked Bohr.
"I do." he had answered back, understanding.
He opened the front door to the building and welcomed in the fresh air. He walked onto the sidewalk, breathed in deeply, and was grateful that he was able to do so.
It had been two weeks since he had last seen his family. Two weeks too long.
* * *
The landlord watched from the window as Velko walked away from the building, pulling his collar up to keep the wind out. The man walked around the apartment – he wanted to make sure the kid hadn't touched anything while he wasn't looking. Not that there was much of anything to touch.
The bedroom looked the same. He walked over to the couch and squinted at something that caught his eye. It was an uneven hole – that looked as if it had been burned in. But on closer inspection, it looked as if the hole ran very deep – almost completely through the couch. No fire burn could have caused it, he noted. Naw, it was something else. He shook his head and stood back up, deciding to forget about the matter. Some of the freaks that lived in his building... Boy, did he have stories to tell...
AUTHOR'S NOTE (14/03/04):
Hey guys – I realized that one thing that I had so thoughtlessly forgotten to do after I finished this story was to thank everyone for their reviews. They really helped me make this story better. I'm rather happy with the fact that I've actually managed to complete a story – usually I only get about three quarters of the way through. Let's hope this doesn't turn out to be a one-time thing!
For those of you interested – I've actually started another story about a week ago – I'm a big fan of the X Men comics and movies – so if you would like to read my story, entitled "Two Soldiers" feel free to do so.
Alrighty then, I bid you folks farewell, for now.