Chapter 2: A Stronger Hive
Three years had past. Scarlet had created thousands of eggs to populate her hive. But most of the animals in the forest above her hive were far too weak to make good aliens. By now Scarlet had only ten aliens at her disposal: three warriors from her escape from the shuttle, three drones and four praetorian aliens she had made from some of the natural fauna. But she wanted stronger aliens.
It just so happened that a zoologist from earth had arrived at Scarlet's planet in search of new discoveries. He and his team of seven other scientists landed a dozen yards outside of Scarlet's nest, along with some pit bulls for protection. He wandered off into the woods while the others were setting up camp.
The scientist soon found the huge, deep burrow that was the entrance to the hive. He began his walk into the hive, unaware of what he had found. The warrior xenomorphs that guarded the entrance watched him carefully, hiding in the darkness. The queen had laid eggs in the tunnel itself, which made the journey into the main room of the hive even more dangerous. The zoologist soon discovered one of these traps and peered into it for examination. The egg opened, and soon the scientist was facehugged.
The warriors carried the comatose human to Scarlet. The queen looked at what was soon to be her newest warrior. If there was one human, then there were definitely more. Scarlet ordered the three warriors to find as many humans as they could.
Night had fallen. The research team was telling stories by the campfire, unaware of the fate that had befallen their leader. Something in the shadows stirred. The three warriors were watching, waiting to make their move. One human decided that she wanted to go for a stroll in the woods. She walked off as the others continued to chatter.
One warrior followed her as the others remained and watched. A few minutes later the third warrior returned, carrying his prey back to the hive. The two were alone again. They wanted to make sure they got every human there, and if they just invaded the camp some of the humans could get away in the chaos. The aliens then noticed the two huge dogs that the humans had brought. They wondered if the queen would like them also. One warrior quickly dashed towards the dogs, which were sleeping, and dragged them off to the hive. There was now only one warrior watching the humans.
Hours passed, and soon the humans began to worry about their missing companions. They split up into groups of two and began to search the forest. By now the other warriors had returned, and they also split up to follow their human prey. By daybreak the camp was deserted.
The disappearance of the research team, not to mention the team that had been sent three years earlier to capture a praetorian alien, had caught the attention of the United State military. A small platoon of marines was sent to the planet, and just a few moments after they set foot on the ground they were ambushed. Then another, larger group had been sent, and met with the same results. No group dared to go to the planet after these four disappearances. The planet now had a reputation as being haunted.
Meanwhile, the hive had grown tremendously. The numerous humans that had visited Scarlet's planet caused the warrior alien population to grow exponentially, making 43 warriors in all. They also brought some fierce beasts with them, allowing the hive to create even stronger aliens, most of which guarded the queen. The population of drones and other weaker aliens had also grown greatly, making an overall total of 167 aliens. But Scarlet was still thirsty for more power. She needed stronger aliens.
A clan of predators, led by a predator with hooks on his gauntlets, had heard of the "cursed planet" from which no traveler had returned. It was a planet that they had already hunted on. They decided to hunt there again, since there was some beast on the planet that could provide them sport. Besides, the clan leader wanted his son to learn the ways of the hunt.
The clan began their trek to Scarlet's homeworld