Chapter 13

Disclaimer: I do not own Alien/Predator series or any characters and may not follow all customs and cultures found in Alien/Predator movies.

Na'tou-Va growled watching the females and his prey escape but thought of it as ironic, given that they would go against their honor and run like cowards was laughable. Must be the ooman who won that argument. He held in a chuckle, seeing the puny male ooman who had survived following them before disappearing.

"Hunt them down! Don't let any one of them live!" A few Yautja headed into the jungle, still firing and each blue plasma shot lit up the ground beneath the trees.

He sniffed the air and hissed when he saw who was coming up the hill, "Bhuh'kah . . ."

He was a mess, his second-in-command was battered with deep cuts and soiled in his blood. Na'tou-Va said nothing as he headed for him, already Bhuh'kah kneeled with his head lowered, "My apologies my Leader but—"

Na'tou-Va backhanded his subordinate and sent him into the mud like a dog, "But nothing. You should have killed them instead of playing with the ooman. You knew well the females were around."

Bhuh'kah debated to defend himself but he felt his Leader's stare bearing down, the silent rage that flagged a warning of the consequences that would come if he spoke. All he could do was lower his head in submission and wait for his Leader to make the first move.

After an intense moment, Na'tou-Va huffed and turned away, "There won't be a second time."

Na'tou-Va crossed his arms and Bhuh'kah grunted to his feet, walking to lick his wounds. The Leader's sights wandered through the vast expansion of the jungle decorating the planet in case he noticed a detail indicating the females' whereabouts, quiet as usual with the clattering mix of noises from the native beasts. Won't be long. Another follower came to his side, lowering his head in a bow, "What news?"

"My Leader. The deserter had escaped. I fear that he might do something reckless. Should we go after him?"

"No," Na'tou-Va said, "No use wasting resources to find him. He won't survive on his own for long. Besides, I have a feeling we might meet again."

There was no doubt in his mind that everything would come together, patience would be to his advantage and his prey would come out of the shadows soon enough. Soon . . .

Ethan had a hard time catching up, every step the females made took about four or five to make the same distance, not to mention pushing the pain of his injuries into the back of his mind, and now the trail of bombardment in the form of blue plasma blasts chasing them. A'sao was kind to stay by his side, deliberately slowing down while shooting arrows to stop the enemy.

"Hurry up, ooman. Having a hard time?" Nai'stip mocked him but it was the unexpected boost he needed to keep going. She wasn't having a perfect time either, limping with Vi'su to keep pace. Eat your wor—

Ethan could see ahead that they were heading to the edge of a cliff and the females didn't appear to slow down, more like they already decided their immediate action, "Wait! What are you doing!?"

"We need to jump!" A'sao hissed, much to his surprise, "We need to make sure they lose our trail!"

His heart nearly sank into his stomach watching Vi'su and Nai'stip jump, hearing the sound of water splashing from below. A'sao pushed ahead but he started to slow down, instincts of fear almost overwhelming him, and wasn't lost on A'sao, "Don't pause! Don't think!"

"But . . ."

She growled with a hint of annoyance, "Just do it!"

With little choice, A'sao grabbed his good arm almost forcibly and ran towards the edge. Ethan nearly screamed his lungs out as the momentum of the fall hit his senses, dropping at an alarming rate that he barely saw the river before plunging into the cold waters.

It was brutal as the current threw him around like a play toy, virtually hitting every rock as it felt to him, water entering his lungs that sucked a bit of oxygen slowly. Ethan held on to the hand that wrapped around his wrist, claws digging into his skin was some reassurance. At least I won't be lost . . . if I don't drown first.

After an excruciating minute, he was pulled back to the surface, gasping for breath before being dragged to the embankment. He had to punch his chest a few times to get the last drops of water out of his mouth and then fell onto his back, his body stinging with every movement.

"We have no time to relax! Come on!" A'sao had gotten his collar this time and tugged him to run yet again. Seriously!? Give me a break!

Everything went by so fast that Ethan thought this was all just a dream he was having, more like a nightmare, that he'll wake up and be back in his bed at the military base where he belonged, as puny as it was . . . but this was too real, especially with an alien female growling for him to follow. He had no choice but to push on, running on reserves to follow to some unknown location. Shit . . . I don't know how much longer I can keep up . . . He glanced to A'sao's back. Just what are you?

Finally, he got the break that he desperately needed. A'sao screeched to a halt and dropped him to his knees, still tensed as she looked back with bow and arrow loaded. Ethan didn't care, he wanted silence even for a brief moment to allow his aching muscles to relax and get his breathing under control.

"It's safe now . . ." A'sao watched from above with curiosity, "Are you alright?"

Ethan nodded and swallowed, "For the moment."

A'sao chirped and lent a hand, gladly taking it to get to his feet, "Sure owe you my life. Thanks."

Her demeanor softened and then briefly turned gloomy, "Don't thank me. This isn't over . . . not by a long shot."

Ethan lowered his head, her words provided little merit and more of a warning. They weren't done as long as the enemy continued to hunt them and given the damage they inflicted, especially the ones he made. The hatred towards him was clear in the Bad Bloods and the small fragment of relief dissipated like mist. When A'sao walked away, he sighed and followed, holding his injured arm as they trotted away, staying near the river for some reason.

Thankfully, it wasn't a long walk as they reached another cliff edge that formed a waterfall at the bottom and a pathway, hidden well by fallen trees and mist, leading around the cliff and toward the bottom. A'sao stayed closely in front of him, clearing the way so Ethan wouldn't struggle to do the same, a gesture well-liked as his dislocated arm was beginning to throb although skidding down on semi-wet mud wasn't ideal. Reaching the end, he noticed a small opening near the side of the waterfall, barely visible with the mist created by the falling water.

"Inside. Quickly."

A'sao disappeared behind the liquid wall and Ethan hurried to keep up. He had to squeeze between but with a nudge, he made it through and into an enormous cave, spacious and dry enough to stay in temporarily.

He saw Vi'su with Nai'stip at the far end, already got a small fire going for warmth in the middle. Both of them made their way and just as Ethan expected, Nai'stip growled the moment she laid eyes on him, "So the impudent weakling made it. I should have known."

A'sao grunted, suppressing a growl or roar before walking to the furthest corner, away from Nai'stip but close that the fire proved some warmth. One thing he concluded was that her Leader was pushing her bottoms with every opportunity she had and he was the perfect excuse. Still, even if he could intervene, there would be repercussions that would no doubt end with him being killed. He followed A'sao and sat down, maneuvering to keep his distance.

"How is she?" A'sao asked Vi'su while she baked a cut with a clear liquid on their Leader's arm.

"Deep but superficial. She should be ready to fight at her full strength again in a few days. That trap the Bad Bloods had was impressive, to say the least."

"Don't give praise to beasts," Nai'stip growled and Vi'su hid her face in submission as Ethan could notice.

"Still, those 'beasts' managed to get the best of you and force us into retreat."

"We wouldn't have to retreat if you didn't follow the ooman's will!" Ethan held his breath as the tension and frustration shifted onto his shoulders, Nai'stip giving him a death glare and he wanted nothing more than to vanish out of sight if he had the chance.

"We had no choice," A'sao stepped forward with a low warning voice, shoulders tensed and Ethan scooted away an inch, not sure what they were saying in their strange language but from nothing Vi'su doing the same, he knew what was coming. Oh boy.

"If you hadn't charged in without thinking of a plan or the consequences that would follow, we wouldn't need to retreat. I'm starting to wonder how you got into the position as Leader of the Razor Clan."

"What did you say!?"

Without warning, Nai'stip had A'sao down on the ground, both rolling in a pile of dust clouds in a frenzy like animals. A'sao got the upper hand, maneuvering to get her feet below Nai'stip and kick her off, sending her crashing into the curved wall behind before running after her. Nai'stip rolled in time to miss the punch, grabbed her forearm, and spun her in the air and away, losing her mask when she landed.

Even injured, Ethan couldn't help but be impressed by the combat skills both females displayed, even though Nai'stip was a bitch but in no Hell was he going to be part of this fight. As soon as he thought about it though, the two females collided and tumbled, heading right to his spot. Oh no! Not this again!

A hand grabbed the loose fabric of his coat and pulled him out of the way in the nick of time, smacking his back into the rigid wall though but better than getting caught in the middle of a catfight literally. By the time he looked back, Nai'stip was on top of A'sao and had ripped her mask off as well. Both easing their mandibles in pure anger like cats.

"Sorry about that," He turned to watch Vi'su walking from behind, kneeling next to him.

"Is this normal?" He pointed to the fight.

Vi'su lowered her masked face, "Much more than you'd expect. Hold still. I need to treat your injuries."

From her belt, Vi'su held out a tube filled with a clear, strange liquid that bubbled as it swirled inside, but the needle is what made Ethan widen his eyes and force his heart to beat faster. It was long, thin, and had small points on the end, reminding him of teeth you found on leeches. When she stepped closer, intention clear as she grabbed his wrist, he yanked away and the motion brought a new pain from his shoulder.

Vi'su paused as she witnessed it, "Have no fear, Ethan. This will help with the pain, especially with what I have to do to heal you."

Her voice and then the purrs she emitted were soothing, peaceful in a weird sense given what she and her kind were capable of. After an unsure minute, Ethan relaxed and took a deep breath as Vi'su proceeded. As the needle pierced into his skin, he barely felt the pain and then the cool sensation flowing into his veins ceased all the agony his body was enduring from the previous confrontation, even the pain in his dislocated arm was gone and he felt relaxed, slumping against the wall with his eyes closed. What is that stuff?

Ethan was so at ease that he didn't notice when Vi'su twisted his arm and effectively popped it back into place, barely feeling the string of it. He opened his eyes and was able to move his arm again, and much to his surprise, the cuts and bruises began to fade and left no scar behind, not even a bump as he caressed his arm where a large cut was, "How did you?"

Vi'su chuckled, "It's lu'baik. Liquid anesthetics and healing cream that is used in ci'kitsa for warriors like us but I made this one with improvements."

"You use this?" He pointed.

"Yes but it's a prototype and a lower dosage to fit your biology or else you would die, more peacefully than other ways. Still, it needs improvements."

Ethan smirked, "An inventor in a way?"

Vi'su paused, turning her head as the fighting between A'sao and Nai'stip subsided, both huffing and puffing from exhaustion, only receiving scratches and bruises from both sides, "Ils n'apprennent jamais. (They never learn)"

Ethan tilted his head, "Tu parles français (You speak French)?"

She chirped in surprise, "J'ai appris la grande majorité de la langue de votre planète, bien plus que Sao. En plus, c'est mieux car elle ne peut pas comprendre," She nudged her head in Nai'stip's direction and Ethan gave a phantom smirk. Clever.

She sighed, almost out of frustration and annoyance, "But I swear . . . If they keep this up, the Bad Bloods will pick us off little by little."

"Why do they do this? All this bickering . . ."

Vi'su sighed, "Opposing opinions. This behavior wouldn't be tolerated by Nai'stip or any leader for that matter. The only reason she hasn't killed A'sao is that her clan is one of the most prestigious and ancient, and she's the next in line to be Leader . . . and we need all the help we can get."

Ethan sighed, "Cela semble compliqué."

He watched as A'sao and Nai'stip finally ended the fighting, both sulking away until they sat in separate corners to tend to the newfound injuries they received from each other. As much as he wanted to help, he thought it was best to leave A'sao alone, glancing from the corner of his eye to Vi'su, "Thank you."

She didn't say anything at first but he purred softly, "You're welcome."

Vi'su scooted away to make room to lay down with her back turned against him, "Get some rest. We can't stay here for long so we'll wake you when the time comes."

"Okay."

Ethan got comfortable, making sure his back molded with an indent on the wall until he felt just right as he heard something cracking. He reached into his pocket and realized it was his MP3 player. At least I have this. He debated whether to listen to it, but with the apprehension still lingering, despite the calmness it would bring, it was best to keep it hidden. Later.

Ethan stuffed it in his jacket for safekeeping and closed his eyes to allow sleep to take over, for whatever good it might bring. Between the nightmares in his dreams and the ones within reality, there wasn't going to be much.

Hi everyone!

My apologies for the late update of this. I was expecting to post this on Halloween but so many kids came that my hands were tied and gave out all the candy I have lol!

But I hope the wait was worth it as I finally finished this chapter and lots of moments between Ethan and the females.

Enjoy and Good Hunting! :))))))

Normal = Human speaking human (and other languages too)

Bold = Yautja speaking ooman (human) language

Bold and Italics = Yautja speaking Yautja language

Ci'kitsa = Medkit

Lu'baik = Healing substance (found in Yautja medkits)

Translation (in order of appearance):

Tu parles français? = You speak French?

J'ai appris la grande majorité de la langue de votre planète, bien plus que Sao. En plus, c'est mieux car elle ne peut pas comprendre = I learned the vast majority of your planet's language, much more than A'sao. Plus, it's better since she can't understand.

Cela semble compliqué = Sounds complicated.