Monday, May 11th, 2195

Glasgow Station orbiting KG-115

Day #5

So today was a pain in the ass for a couple reasons. Not like any of the others were much better. I got blacklisted right after my incident with the Brooke girl even though Keene decided to write the damn thing off as an "unavoidable accident".

I think she might be the only one to believe it. Harris and Samson avoided me like the plague and I hadn't seen much of any other marines.

Who am I kidding? These people weren't marines! They weren't even soldiers for Christ's sake. They were glorified police officers at best and mall cops at worst. I had seen that much already. I'd wager that was the first bit of killing any of them had even been close too.

Made a man wonder what else had gone unchecked here. I had asked Keene what she had meant when she said "again" when dealing with Brooke. She told me to just read the file, which I did in the cramped guard break room.

It was a small room just as you entered the rec/living spire of Glasgow, computer terminals and door controls on all the walls and each below a large window that watched the dim hallways. Still hadn't been outside that one at the time.

Turns out our girl Brooke was a bit of a trouble maker. Lots of minor stuff like smoking in the wrong places, loitering, and just being a nuisance. But there were a couple bigger charges, like the three counts of assault she had to her name, one just last week.

Was she dangerous? Definitely. Did she deserve to die? Probably not. Like Keene had said, she was just a kid who made a lot of bad choices. Too bad her last one cost her life. Could be a couple more on the station, but I ain't got time to be reading over old incident reports.

Oh no, I'm too busy helping carry live, illegal specimens into the science spire. Yup, you read that right. Still don't believe it myself but it's true. And for once, I can say it scares me.

It all started earlier today. I was on patrol, just checking out some of the maintenance tunnels below the habitation tower. I think the reactor core was down here somewhere, but I couldn't be sure. Hell, the station was almost twenty kilometers wide! Wide enough to be connected by a transit system, for fuck sakes.

I was down in the area where the three spires became a base, on Sub Level 2 and I knew I had 3 levels below me and god only knew how many above...probably 15 or so.

Regular people weren't supposed to be down here. Just the maintenance crew, engineers, and a security guard like me to make sure it stayed that way. Keene had run through the patrol routes with me a few days before, but the place still made me uneasy. Reminded me too much of the cramped corridors back on LV-611, my first posting. I try not to think about it too much.

Anyway, I got a call from Keene over my com. "Williams, we need you up in the science and medical tower ASAP. Level 6, genetics department." she had said. Sounded kinda urgent too. Maybe they had some patient who didn't want to take his medicine. I wish it had been that nice.

So I got to the nearest transit system, one level up from me. The stairwell was like any other corridor down here: dark and eerie. The air was stale as hell everywhere but especially in those cramped little stairways. The metal walls felt like they were closing in, but I knew it was all in my head.

The transit station was empty when I got there. It was almost like a really fancy subway, except in space. Imagine that. Both transit cars were there too so lucky me.

I won't bore you with the ride because it was just that; boring. Zooming along for a few minutes in a little pressurized casket wasn't what I'd call exciting.

So I get to the base of the next spire and immediately see that something isn't right. Keene is waiting for me, along with Samson who seemed twitchier than the last time I saw him. Between us, I think the kid might've been popping pills in his free time but who knew?

"What's the situation?" I asked as I approached Keene. Despite her smaller size, she stood like someone who knew they were in charge. Good. At least someone had some confidence.

Keene turned and started walking, motioning for me to come along. Samson turned and walked along with us in silence. " asked us to help with a transfer coming in off one of his supply ships. Says it's top priority cargo."

I rolled my eyes. "Some new kind of experimental miracle drug probably." I told her under my breath. Doctors, not medics, were always trying to find a better way to fix people. Pointless if you asked me. The ways they had now like the Reconstruction Chamber, SuperFlex, and all those other artificial repairs worked just fine to my knowledge. Why fuck with new stuff that could be dangerous?

"No, he's not a medical doctor." Keene explained turning to me. "He's a researcher. He came out here a couple months ago because there was a better chance he'd get his hands on some specimens."

A cold chill suddenly crept up my spine. "Specimens?" I heard myself ask. I hope to god she meant space rock samples.

Before she could answer, a door slid open ahead of us and we were there. The ride in the lift that took us up to Level 6 was barely a blur and as we stepped through the door and rounded a small corner to see .

He wasn't what I expected at first. Short and pudgy, he turned to us almost as if our arrival had spooked him. His red hair was thinning heavily and two beady eyes looked at us from behind a pair of glasses.

"Oh, Sergeant Keene!" He seemed to breathe a sigh of relief in his gurgly voice. "Thank you for coming so quickly. You just missed my associates from off station."

To his left, I saw an airlock. My guess was his 'associates' had dropped off his package from there and then took off. That raised several more questions but I kept my mouth shut...for now.

I was more focused on the large stasis pod resting on the floor on 's right. There was nothing else it could be. I'd seen plenty of them before on ships, other stations, lots of places. This was definitely a stasis pod, and judging by its' smooth, curved edges, a Weyland-Yutani one.

"What's in the pod, Doc?" Samson asked. So, the kid did have a voice. Must've just been me he didn't like.

Jaevyn seemed to glare at the younger man for a second. His bushy eyebrows were pointed down sharply as if the question was in some way an act of disrespect.

But he quickly made it disappear before he gestured to the pod. "Merely some frozen samples. If you and...who are you?" had suddenly turned to me.

"This is Major Williams." Keene suddenly interjected. I didn't mind though. She was my CO after all. "He's new and I believe his experience may help whip our group into better shape."

That was news to me. I mean, a couple days ago she had mentioned some training exercises in the rec room while we were on patrol, but nothing more. That could be a bit of fun.

seemed to look me up and down before giving me a short nod. "Pleased to meet you. Now, if you'd be so kind?" He gestured to the stasis pod.

I looked at Samson and motioned for him to move to the far side of the pod so we could get this over. I didn't sign up to be a Marine just to carry some scientist's project.

In my grumblings to myself, I got lost in my train of thought and never bothered to try and seee what was in the pod itself.

Samson and I lifted the pod and followed Keene and Jaevyn down the hall for several minutes, avoiding the odd person while the doctor walked ahead of us proud as a peacock. Enough to make a man sick, you know?

Passing through the halls of Glasgow, we came to a large set of double doors that slid when Jaevyn approached them. Since I was the one walking backwards, I followed closely behind.

"Put it on the examination table." The doctor ordered, waving a hand at the closest flat surface.

I had to hand it to Samson, the kid was strong. The pod was liftable for me but it had weight and I managed to slide my end up enough so it rested on the table. But Samson heaved it up in his arms and placed it down like it was a piece of bamboo.

Might have to go weight lifting with him, see if he can spot me.

Turning, I saw Keene looking at and talking to Jaevyn in a hushed whisper. But she was anything but subtle, pointing back at the pod and then looking at him with an angry expression.

And that was about all my curiosity could handle. I moved to the pod again to get a better look at the front. What I saw sent a wave of fear through me I had hoped I would never feel.

The pod was mostly frosted over, preventing me from seeing inside. But there was one spot, near my end that seemed a little thawed. When I looked down I saw the back of a bulbous sac that ended in elongated ridges on the sides. To a normal person, it could've been anything. But the sight was all too familiar. I had seen a couple fellow Marines in the same situation as the person in the pod, whose neck I could make out beneath the mass I saw.

It was a Facehugger. Stupid name I know, but I never said the Marines were a bunch of geniuses. Regardless, that little creature, so ugly and spider-like in form, was the beginning of a parasite that would eventually lead to one of the most terrifying things I have ever seen. A Xenomorph.

Before any other thoughts could go through my head, I whipped around and took the few steps toward Keene and Jaevyn. I could feel my throat becoming drier, my face reddening and heart rate increasing. It had been a long time since I had seen one of those creatures and I had hoped it would be an even longer time before I saw them again. Guess I was shit out of luck.

It all started coming back to me, bit by bit: my first posting almost 13 years ago. LV-420. It had been a proto-colony back then, one mostly used for mining. Had almost two hundred people and a Marine security force of two dozen.

And then one of the miners stumbled across a cavern that had been caved in. And he and half a dozen others decided they should explore it without any security or without notifying any of the higher ups. Something about salvage rights.

What they found brought ruin to the whole colony. It started out as four of them, brought back with these ugly things on their faces. They were put in the MedBay and kept watch over. When the things fell off, everyone thought they were ok.

Until a little while later when four creatures come from inside those miners. For the next seventy hours, the planet was hell. People killed and snatched away as more and more of those bugs made themselves known. It was a lot for a twenty year old Private, but that's what I went through.

Major Vicks was the one who really saved us. He went back into that mine when we had trimmed down those numbers and blown it to kingdom come with a pair of charges. He took himself too. Didn't see a point to go on when the bugs took his wife and kids.

When it was all said and done, there were about eight of us Marines left and maybe twenty five colonists. The company decided to abandon the place after that. I heard they paid out a lot of settlement money to keep the survivors quiet.

Those memories made me realize something: I wouldn't let that happen here and I strode toward the doctor and Keene.

Keene saw me approaching, a worried look on her face. "Williams, what ar-"

I didn't even acknowledge her, slapping a hand on the shoulder of . Surprised, he turned quickly as I drew myself in closer to him, the rage and fear building in me.

"What the hell did you bring onto this station?" I snarled, his eyes widening with surprise. "Answer me!"

, after his initial reaction, quickly recovered and stared back at me with disgust. "Get your hands off me!" He yelled, bringing his own hands up to try and ply my hand off his coat.

But I held firm. "I've seen those things cause more death than anyone could dream. Get that goddamn thing off this station!"

He kept struggling and I finally let him go out of courtesy. Maybe he'd start to listen if he calmed down. I was wrong there.

"Get rid of it?" He fumed, fixing his collar where I had grabbed him. "Likely. I've struggled for months to find a specimen and I'll be damned if some jacked up security guard balls it up for me!"

I wanted to kill him. I wanted to wrap my hands around his neck and throttle him until he turned blue. And I might've had Keene not stepped between us.

"Hey!" She hollered, her voice deepening several octaves. I straightened up and tried to calm my trembling hands. I was trembling? I cursed myself. "I was just discussing this with , Major. Stand down."

Regretfully, I did as ordered. She then turned to him and began to speak louder. "Bringing an alien life onto a Weyland-Yutani station is strictly prohibited, doctor. Furthermore, you've ignored all quarantine and containment protocol by transporting it via a hypersleep pod. Unless you have special clearance, it will be going into lockdown."

That was more like it. I found myself looking at Keene in a better light now. She may not have experienced XT's before, but she definitely knew the dangers.

At first, looked madder than ever, his fists held tight by his sides. But he took a deep breath and turned to a counter behind him, producing a data pad quickly and holding it out to Keene.

She took it and began reading. Within a minute, her features fell and she handed it back to the scientist. "Thank you, doctor. Private, Major, let's go."

I was dumbfounded. So much so that followed behind her without question as we left the lab and had walked about five minutes away and had entered more dimly lit hallways.

"Sergeant Keene, I don't understand. He broke every rule he could've when it came to what he was doing. Wh-"

Keene suddenly stopped walking and turned quickly to face Samson and I. For a second, I thought I was in for a tongue lashing about stepping out of line. But it turned out to be quite a different case.

"Believe me, Major," she sighed deeply, closing her eyes. "But it is out of my control."

"On that data pad," she continued. "Was a message from both Director Crenavi and the Weyland-Yutani's own board of directors. They basically said that when it came to that specimen, was the sole authority on it. He is untouchable and if any of us were to intervene or disrupt his research, the company would see to it that we be discharged and sued."

My heart sank. This wasn't just one careless scientist. This was a company not caring how it got ahead. I shouldn't be surprised I guess. Any other time I had dealt with these things, Weyland-Yutani always seemed to have been involved somehow. I was just starting to see how much.

Samson hadn't said a word but he was about to. "What exactly is it? The thing he has?"

I turned to look at the young man. I felt pity for him. Or maybe admiration at the fact he hadn't had to deal with anything like this before.

"Pray to god you don't find out." I told him.

So now I'm back in my quarters. It's late and Keene told me she'd keep me informed. She's smart. But I still can't stop my hands from shaking.

Maybe I'll reassemble Jezebel. Might help me calm down. But I just can't shake the feeling that wherever those bugs turn up, nothing good ever follows. I'll keep this updated. Williams out.

Major Butch Williams

#713990

Glasgow Station, KG-115