Chapter 17
Disclaimer: I do not own Alien/Predator series or any characters and may not follow all customs and cultures found in Alien/Predator movies.
Ethan braced within A'sao's grip as the explosion sent them flying across the cave, slamming into the hard, uneven surface of the wall before sliding down to a stop on the floor. Shit. The whole side of his body felt like it was on fire and one blurred look at his forearm was a confirmation, the entire skin had blistered while the rest of it stung to the touch. Can't we get a little break!?
"Ethan. Are you okay?" A'sao checked his arm and hissed in aggravation, "This isn't good."
"I'm fine," He shrugged her off and also noticed her skin was also burned, and pieces of her scales were crumbling to dust on the edges, "What about you?"
"Nevermind me . . . We need to get out of here befr—"
"A'sao!"
No sooner did Vi'su call to her that Ethan's vision returned, only to be met with a knife slicing through the smoke and coming right between his eyes. He ducked as fast as he could but not enough as A'sao deflected it with her gauntlet, took it midair, and threw it back to where it came from. A shriek echoed before a Yautja body fell face first in front of them. There was no mistake, from the dark armor and wild appearance, that this was a Bad Blood and the attack was nothing more than an ambush.
"Get out! Now!" Nai'stip screamed from somewhere, roaring with such fury as she charged through the smoke and out into the open with no regard for her safety nor stopped to form a plan in this madness with a reluctant Vi'su following behind no doubt, their massive shadows fading from view.
A'sao paused, almost as if hesitating on whether to go before growling, "Come on, Ethan!" She grabbed his wrist before he could protest.
"Wait! This isn't a good idea!"
Ethan had no choice but to follow A'sao into a bloody battlefield with no full scope of the carnage, how many enemies came, and what other 'fun' gizmos they called weapons they brought. This reckless decision could only come from Nai'stip of all females, a stubborn warrior who only thought of fighting like a beast than planning to live for another battle. How A'sao and Vi'su follow her . . . I'll never know.
As soon as they passed through the entrance to the cave, the high-pitched sound of battle echoed in his ears and the smell of burning flesh hit his nostrils, both almost making him throw up from the initial contact. A'sao kept tugging on his arm, attempting to lead them somewhere but with the smoke and the darkness of night, he couldn't even see three feet in front of him.
"We're almost there!" A'sao roared, "Once we hit the tree line, run southwest towards the river. I'll buy you some time to—"
Something rammed A'sao from the side, the force ripping away the grip she had on him, inadvertently cutting her claws deep into his arm made him scream from the pain before being cut off as he hit the ground. Ethan's vision went blurry for a moment as he lifted himself back on his wobbly feet, gasping as he witnessed a Bad Blood pin A'sao to the ground between his legs like a boxer. She roared in his face before twisting her torso to gain momentum, flipping both until she gained the upper hand and unsheathed her wrist blades. The Bad Blood did his best, blocking her attack with his own before she cut his throat, two warriors growling and roaring like fighting lions ready to kill each other without hesitation.
Although she was bigger than the male, there was only one of her. Out of the corner, another Bad Blood came to aid his comrade, jumping on A'sao and wrapping his thick arms around her neck, and jerking back. A'sao thrashed but the enemy underneath kept her from throwing herself back and the chokehold grew tighter. After a minute of struggling, she began to gasp for air to no avail and the Bad Bloods clattered as if chuckling that they got her.
Ethan bit his lip. Oh no, you don't! Not on my watch!
He aimed his rifle and fired at the Bad Blood on top, the bullet miraculously ricocheted on the underside of the armor and pierced through the neck, and severed the spine. It gave A'sao the upper hand and throwing the dead body aside, she swiftly ended the other Bad Blood by slitting his throat, green fluorescent liquid decorated her mask and body.
Although he'd seen worse bloodshed, seeing her standing there with such hatred after slaying their enemies, a cold chill ran through his veins. A'sao? She glanced at him and in an instant, she froze as if she was the one who was spooked by what she saw. He held his breath and kept his gaze on her for what seemed like forever.
He saw something from the corner of his left eye, "WATCH OUT!"
A'sao hissed in the direction and braced for the attack coming in the form of a sword, piercing right through one of her gauntlets and into the joint of her shoulder. She screeched, throwing her head in sheer pain and agony as a Bad Blood rammed the tip of the weapon into a tree trunk, effectively pinning her in a trap. Ethan prepared to come to her aid until he stumbled on the scar crossing the forearm, his body stopped on its heels and his breath caught in his throat. It's him!
"Hello A'sao," The Bad Blood chuckled.
A'sao growled, "Na'tou-Va. So you finally came out of your rathole, did you?"
Na'ou-Va twisted the blade through her flesh and she held a breath to obscure the pain. Despite the repercussions that would follow, she grinned under her mask, "And still a Ki'put like the last time we met."
"Not wise to piss me off when I have you," The thick musk of anger hung in the air, emitting from Na'tou-Va like a cloak that stunk the place, an inner delight to see the Bad Blood Leader lose his nerves. It lasted a moment as he took a breath, glanced down, and then drove his knee into her stomach. She doubled over before having her dreadlocks yanked the other way, the pain from the sensitive appendages made her cry out, only pleasing the Bad Blood Leader.
"Don't worry. I'll make your thei-de painless since I don't have time to mess wit—"
Na'tou-Va roared, a pain ripped through his shoulder like a hot iron, burning the adjacent skin and muscles, causing him to thrash and throw A'sao to the other side. When he looked at the wound, he saw a hole running through his body and turned in the suspected direction. Much to his aggravation, the attacks came from the male ooman standing with his weapon puffing a small stream of smoke.
He growled, "Again with this, ooman?"
"Leave her alone,' Ethan raised his rifle, "Pick on someone who can fight back."
He stood his ground, even as his legs fought to tremble as the Bad Blood Leader turned to face him. All his instincts screamed for him to run, find a hiding spot and pray to God for a miracle of some sort. By the time he contemplated that idea, Na'tou-Va was right in front of him and reached to his throat.
Ethan choked but forced his arms to raise the barrel of his rifle at the Bad Blood's chest and fired. The bullet missed its mark by inches, bouncing as it made contact with the ground.
Na'tou-Ava's chuckled, "Is that all you got?"
He glared at Na'tou-Va before being catapulted to the other side, his weapon thrown away as every part of his body took the hit of the force and when he came to an abrupt halt, he blacked out for a few seconds. Dazed, he saw Na'tou-Va walking towards him, saying something but unable to hear clearly. Damn . . .
"What a pity," Na'tou-Va hissed in disappointment, "I was hoping for a fight well deserved from my prey. Oh well, at least I'll still have your skull at the end of the day. Think of it as payback."
The Bad Blood raised his wrist blades between Ethan's eyes when he met his gaze. Something inside him made his blood boil, a deep hostility that he hadn't felt in a long time at such a monster. He kept his glare on Na'tou-Va as he waited for the attack.
In a split second, the Leader howled and was pulled back by a sudden force revealed to be A'sao, having stabbed him with her blades through his chest and grabbed a fistful of dreadlocks, a few ripped off and green ooze flowed through.
In retaliation, he swung a right hook and hit A'sao in the face, knocking her mask off and pushing her on her back. Na'tou-Va revealed a tiny gun from his belt and shot a ball right at her, which opened into a wired net, ensnaring her against a boulder. She roared like a wild animal but her attempts at freedom only dug the wires into her skin deeper to the point of bleeding.
The Leader snarled as he turned to face Ethan, "You're becoming more trouble than your worth. I'll finish you after I'm through with this lou-dte kalei."
Ethan's eyes widened in horror as Na'tou-Va headed to the trapped A'sao, still fighting her restraints with all her might until the Bad Blood kicked her in the stomach and then again when she retaliated with a roar. He could see in Na'tou-Va that he enjoyed the beating of the female, chuckling mixed with hisses of pleasure while A'sao took the brute force of the attacks.
Get up, you fool! Ethan grunted through the pain, raising himself with his hands but the weight of his body was too much and he fell to the ground. Shit . . . I can't move. His muscles spasmed when he heard her cries and one look saw Na'tou-Va stabbed her in the stomach, her head rolled back as she was hit again and again.
No. His heart grew heavy and something hot burned inside him. Leave her alone. He bit his lip as his fear and dread morphed into a blind rage that dulled the pain. Leave her alone, you fucking bastard!
He jumped forward and ran at the two of them. Using all of his might and body, he rammed into Na'tou-Va, enough to make the Bad Blood trip on his feet in shock. When the enemy got back to his feet in anger, Ethan stood between him and A'sao with his arms held out.
"You . . . will," He huffed, "Not . . . touch her."
"Ethan . . ." A'sao struggled to speak, "Don't . . ."
Na'tou-Va growled, "You certainly have a death wish. I was going to savor killing you but I had enough of your interference!"
Suddenly, something on Na'tou-Va's shoulder emerged in the shape of a small gun, twisted over before aiming at Ethan. He swallowed hard as he saw a blue light glowing brighter within the barrel, the hum of energy growing louder as time passed.
"Ethan!" A'sao roared, "Get away from here! Now!"
Despite her pleas, Ethan refused to move and tightened his stance to which he heard Na'tou-Va chuckle, the blue light almost obscured the visibility that was left through the smoke. A'sao roared over and over again but his hearing was muffled by the throbbing of his heartbeat.
He took a deep breath and closed his eyes. Not this time.
A moment passed and he waited for the blast of heat and fire but there was nothing until a shriek of pure agony sounded through the air. He opened his eyes to a shocking scene, one he didn't think in a million years he would witness.
"You're pathetic, ooman. Always getting into trouble."
Standing between him and Na'tou-Va, a female with a spear covered in green fluorescence that made it seem like it was shining, unsure if it was from the enemy or her own, "Nai'stip?!"
The Leader hissed, "You're lucky that our target was your opponent, or else I would've let you die."
Nai'stip kept her gaze as Na'tou-Va struggled to his feet, his mask knocked off and now a bloody claw mark etched on the right side of his face, "Damn, you female!"
"Not sorry. That look of yours appears to be an improvement."
Na'tou-Va didn't hesitate and charged at her, only to be kicked from the side, throwing him off balance that he scrambled onto his feet for a moment. To Ethan's surprise, the object that got the Bad Blood lept so high and landed with little effort by Nai'stip's side.
"Took you long enough, Vi'su. What's the damage?"
"The initial attackers have been dealt with," She huffed to get a decent breath through her exhaustion, "But more are coming."
Nai'stip grunted before looking back, first to A'sao and then to Ethan. He could tell she was thinking for a moment, unsure if it was to form a plan or something else.
"Go and help A'sao. I'll deal with them."
Ethan saw the long hesitation in Vi'su and then clicking in erratic behavior, which made A'sao do the same after a minute of listening, thrashing harder that only made the net dig into her more. What are they saying?
It didn't take long before Vi'su lowered her head and ran to A'sao, frantically working on the net while Nai'stip ignored whatever was said between them, making Ethan that much more frustrated.
"Hey. What are you planni—"
To his horror, more Bad Bloods appeared to Na'tou-Va's side, all armed to the teeth and fresh for a battle. We just dealt with the first wave and now this!? This isn't good.
"We need to get out of here!"
He turned around toward Vi'su and A'sao but he was stopped by a firm grip on his shoulder.
"No."
Ethan was baffled, "What do you mean!? We can't fight all of them. We'll be massacred!"
"Don't play funny with me, ooman."
He couldn't understand why this female was determined to fight when the odds were stacked against them, even more so as he got a closer look at her injuries. There were more gashes all over her abdomen, arms, and legs, and they were all bleeding profusely. Nai'stip was still recovering before the attack and now she barely had the strength to stay upright, favoring one leg over the other.
Ethan growled, "You think this is funny!? You're close to death and none of us are fit to fight and you know it!"
Nai'stip turned, ignoring him as the Bad Bloods crept closer.
"Do you hear me?!"
"Listen to me, ooman."
Ethan froze, staring at her back as she raised her arm and began to press on it, beeping sounds echoing in his ears.
"Although it disgusts me to stop this low, I need you to do me a favor."
Nai'stip's head tilted so part of her mask, especially where the eyes would be, was visible, "I'm not about to go run away like a coward but I won't allow my team to die without completing the mission . . . not after all the deaths this Bad Bloods left in their wake. So make sure that those two stay alive until then."
Ethan paused in shock. Did I hear what I just heard? He stepped closer, a hand raised to her. Does she intend to . . ?
"GO NOW!"
The sheer shock and terror from her tremendous scream kicked up his instincts and without thinking, he ran to A'sao with Vi'su carrying her by the arm. They didn't think twice and followed Ethan closely behind.
Why is this happening? Why?
He heard the shattering of metal mixed with battle cries that were more like beasts fighting each other for survival. Ethan dared to look back as he ran with the other females and saw the Bad Bloods encircling Nai'stip into a death. Yet, even so, she roared in defiance and cut down those that got too close . . . but it didn't last long.
Each time she cut down one Bad Blood, another one would cut into her, her green fluid splashing everything, her cries of pain kept coming in waves, one after the next until she fell to her knees. The last he saw of her was being overwhelmed and her hand reaching out in the air, letting out one more roar as her gauntlet lit up.
In an instant, a blue explosion engulfed them, the ground shook and almost threw him off his feet and the trees trembled violently until everything went silent. By the time he composed himself to look back, nothing remained but clouds of smoke.
Ethan bit his lip and kept running, a small tear dropped from his eye, left with a deep sense of dread. Fuck you . . .
Hello my fellow readers!
This new chapter took some time of editing and such for a while, given that this is the longest chapter for this story up to date lol. But a lot of epic moments for all of you to enjoy, lots of awe and shock that I couldn't keep out of this chapter.
And of course, lots of questions after what will happen next. But definitely can feel that a lot of anger is coming for the Bad Bloods and Na'tou-Va, not just from the characters in this story o_o lol.
Thank you and Good Hunting to all!
P.S. Please give blessings for the kids and teachers in Texas that have lost their lives to an unfortunate tragedy. May everyone stay strong and safe in this difficult time :(
Normal = Human speaking human language
Bold = Yautja speaking ooman (human) language
Bold and Italics = Yautja speaking Yautja language
Ki'put = Asshole
Lou-dte kalei = Child-maker (insult)
Thei-de = Death