June 2016, London
Peter Weyland knelt before the Queen of England. She raised a small sword and placed it on each shoulder. "I pronounce you a knight of the United Kingdom," she said. As she did, dozens of reporters flashed their cameras.
Weyland stood up and faced the Queen. "Thank you for this great honor," he said respectfully.
"No, thank you. Your brilliance has solved the energy crisis and global warming. The world is in your debt," she smiled.
Weyland smiled, bowed to the Queen, and then departed down the hall with reporters behind him. Prince Charles came to greet Weyland and shook his hand. "I am happy for your company's success. Your formula for solving global warming was key to stabilizing global temperatures. Hopefully, your facility in Antarctica will become unnecessary in the coming decades."
"Unnecessary?" Weyland questioned.
"We are still pushing for zero emissions," Prince Charles said as if it were obvious.
"Why? I have already solved the problem," Weyland objected.
"You suppose the nations of the world can continue to emit carbon unrestricted because of your invention?" Prince Charles questioned.
"That is exactly what I am saying. The use of fossil fuels is essential for the development of poor nations many of which were under our dominion. Once they reach our development, they can then do go green but not before then," Weyland argued.
"Of course, we would advocate that first-world nations cut their emissions to zero before asking it of the poor nations," Prince Charles conceded.
Weyland gave the prince a smile and a nod as the two departed. "To think he will one day be King," he muttered.
Yautja Prime
Lex cuddled with her newborn son. This pregnancy had been rougher than the others, even the twins. The male fetus had aggressively kicked her from the inside. Like the others, the infant lacked the mandible jaws of the Yautja and appeared more human. Lex stayed in the medical tent and suffered through Earth's atmospheric composition. The Prince walked in and eyed the sleeping infant in her arms.
"When they gave you a medical scan right before the birth, I had one as well," he began.
"And?" Lex asked.
"I have a cancer," he said.
Lex stared at the Prince wondering if he was serious. "I shall depart for treatment in the mountains. If I am cured, I shall return to the palace," he said gravely.
"You are serious," Lex said stunned.
"To think something like this could defeat me," the Prince muttered.
"You should take time to be with your first wife before you go," Lex suggested.
"You are very understanding," the Prince noted.
The Prince stared at Lex as if studying her demeanor and then left the room. As he left, Kachina entered to watch over Lex. "What is wrong?" she asked Lex.
"The Prince has cancer. I can't believe it," Lex said.
"The Prince is twice your age. It is more common as one ages," Kachina said unconcerned.
"He said he was going to the mountains for treatment," Lex repeated.
Kachina barked a laugh. "What is so funny?" Lex asked annoyed.
"The cancer was merely skin cancer he received from a high-radiation planet. The doctors here destroyed the cancer a moment ago. He's going to the mountains to be with old friends," Kachina told her.
"He was testing me," Lex realized.
"From the sight of it, you didn't seem to care about the Prince's well-being even though you thought it might have been a lethal disease. Still, any hunter can read the smallest facial movement. You make your feelings obvious to detect," Kachina said.
"You were watching?" Lex asked.
Kachina pointed out the monitoring cameras. "It is all I do until you leave here," she said bored.
"All I feel is contempt, now," Lex said annoyed.
"Take this, it will eliminate the pain and reduce the swelling immediately," Kachina said holding a green vial.
"No, I don't want to make it seem like this was nothing. I want to feel it a little longer," Lex objected.
"Pain can help to remember those special moments," Kachina agreed.
December 2017, European Space Agency
Sir Peter Weyland watched the screen intently as his probe deployed into a new configuration. "You have just won the Noble Prize in Science," the female assistant told him.
"Yes, that is very nice," Weyland said disinterested.
The probe fired a rail gun projectile down towards Europa. The projectile slammed into the icy crust of the moon and punctured through to the ocean underneath. "So, there is an ocean under the ice," Weyland said amazed.
The probe took pictures of a large crater on the moon. A water geyser immediately erupted from the crust. The probe automatically descended towards the hole before it would freeze over. Weyland watched in anticipation as the probe descended under the surface into the ocean. The probe in the water then communicated with the orbiting probe.
"We have a successful link," the technicians said.
"Hopefully, we can keep it long enough to get the data," Weyland said.
The scientists at the Euro Space Agency busied themselves as data started coming back on Europa's oceans. Weyland knew that Mars was dead and had never sustained life. The Americans wasted billions on Mars probes when the real prize was on Europa. The probe to Europa was expensive and risky but who could argue with Sir Peter Weyland.
"We're reading organic compounds in the ocean," one scientist reported excitedly.
"Not just organic compounds. They're self-replicating. We have found life on another world," another scientist said stunned.
Weyland smirked. "Christmas has come early," he said to himself. He turned to his female assistant. "Prepare a press conference. How is my hair?"
Yautja Prime
Lex was with her daughter Naira and the twins as they placed trinkets on a large tree near the palace. The tree was wrapped around with lights that made it appear like a beacon of light. "Put this on the top," Lex instructed Naira.
Naira took the star and then swung through the trees towards the top. If she were human on Earth, she would be the greatest gymnast. She gracefully went from tree branch to tree branch until she reached the top. Sitting there, Naira could see the capital city below.
The Prince walked over and watched as the Christmas tree was being decorated. "These lights will not only make it the brightest in visual light but in infrared too," he said.
"Thank you for your interest," Lex said.
The Prince had added his own trinkets to the tree, skulls of large beasts he had killed. Lex had to stop him from putting any human skulls on the tree. He had said that the human skull was perfect for placing a light inside. Lex had to remind him that this was more appropriate for Halloween.
"Of course, as we agreed, you will participate in the next Yautja holiday," he reminded her.
Lex sighed. He was referring to the religious ceremony to commemorate the fertility goddess. It entailed all of the Prince's wives dancing naked for him in the throne room. Lex had either ignored the event all together or simply stayed in the corner of the room fully-clothed. The Prince was not overly religious, but he did enjoy following his father's traditions especially if they were entertaining for him.
"Curious you would celebrate the birth of your god. I always thought he was one with the father, not made but begotten, always existing even before the foundation of the universe," the Prince said.
"We celebrate him revealing himself to us in the flesh," Lex reminded him.
"Pity, he did not reveal himself when we created the human religions tens of thousands of cycles ago," the Prince said.
"One human man dominates the religions of the planet. No one remembers the gods your kind created," Lex shot back.
"It seems a corner of your world isn't religious at all. Perhaps, we should visit to remind them," the Prince said.
Lex shrugged and saw Naira on top of the tree. "Come down," she said protectively.
Naira swung through the trees making her way down. The tree was not like anything on Earth. It resisted the lights and ornaments as if it were alive. The weather was also different. It never snowed and it was always in perpetual summer. Naira finally jumped down to the ground and walked over to her parents.
"Which is right? The gods of father or the god of mother?" she asked boldly.
"You shall honor your mother's god while at the palace, but your father's gods elsewhere," the Prince replied.
"What is the truth?" Naira pressed.
The Prince and Lex looked at each other for a moment. "There is one true god, but he has many subordinates to do his bidding. Your mother calls them angels, but I call them gods. They are the same thing," the Prince said.
"Why does god need subordinates? Why can't he do it himself?"
"I give you, your siblings, and the servants tasks so that they can learn to do them by themselves. A god that does everything for you is a god that will have a lazy and stupid people. God can do all things, but he is a master teacher, and you are the student," the Prince explained.
Naira nodded understanding. "Remember child, god helps those who help themselves," the Prince continued.
Lex sighed at the Prince's explanation of theology. "Run along, now," she said to Naira. Lex turned to the Prince. "You becoming a convert?"
"No, I merely find it distasteful to have strife in my household," the Prince said dismissively. He looked at the tree examining it. "It needs more lights."
European Space Agency
Sir Peter Weyland took to the podium and smiled at the cameras. "Today, we have discovered primitive microorganisms in the oceans of Europa. This is the first discovery of life outside the Earth's biosphere. I am happy to say, we are not alone. Not only did we find one microorganism, we found a sea filled with them. I can only speculate, but I think these organisms were protected from Jupiter's radiation by the icy crust and fed off the energy created by the tidal forces between Jupiter and the moon. We will continue to study the results and hopefully we will be able to collect a sample to bring back to Earth for further study."
The American President watched the press conference on TV as Peter Weyland continued giving out the details of the discovery. "May Great Britain be remembered as the nation that discovered alien life first," Weyland said proudly.
"This is bullshit. We have known for over a decade," the CIA director said displeased.
"Let them have their moment. When it is time to reveal everything, we will set the record straight," the President said.
"What should our space policy be now?" the CIA director asked.
"We will look foolish if we send more rovers to Mars. Let's concentrate on getting back to the moon and creating a colony there," the President said. "What do you think of this Weyland? He's been very successful these last few years."
"He has very tight security. We haven't been able to crack his files, yet. My guess is that someone is telling him how to make these inventions," the CIA director concluded.
"Who? The Russians? Chinese? How could he develop this technology so quickly unless...," the President considered.
"We'll get on it," the CIA director said realizing the implication.
Sir Peter Weyland went back to his desk after the press conference. "You have solved the energy crisis, solved global warming, and discovered life on the moons of Jupiter. You're like a god, Mr. Weyland," his assistant remarked.
"You give me too much credit. The company my grandfather built deserves the honors. That will be all," Weyland said dismissing her from the room.
As she left, Weyland looked at his laptop and saw red dashes on his screen. "No, I am not a god. I am merely the man that received fire from the gods. Who are you...Prometheus?" he said as his computer raced to download more files.