Aliens: Intermission

by CrazyBirdMan59

Between the events of Aliens: Symbiosis and its sequel, Aliens: Insurrection, the Resistance finds itself a semi-peaceful intermission period to gather strength for the coming storm. M for violence, swearing, and probably lemons, seeing as you lot love them so much.

14. The Federation

A/N: Sorry for the long (almost eight month) wait, my new job has made it hard to find the time and energy to write, but I'm not ready to give up on writing yet, so without further ado, here is the next chapter.

"Tyler, what the hell have you gotten us into?" Jeica hissed furiously. "The Federation? Are you insane?" The USS Squire remained motionless even as the radar showed the Federation vessel sidling up to their port side, locking their hulls together magnetically to make docking easier.

"Maybe a little," Tyler admitted with a smirk. "But not stupid. Man, I have dreamed of joining the Federation for years; they're great, trust me." The hull vibrated with a low, ringing clang as the ships attached together side-by-side with their airlocks lined up. The radar technician gulped nervously at the image of their ship – an Anchor-class, one of the biggest vessels known to man – was dwarfed by the image of the Federation ship, which was almost thrice the size of them.

"Shit," Jeica muttered. She grabbed the handset for the ship-wide intercom and quickly spoke into it before the umbilicals were connected between the two ships. "Attention all personnel: we are currently being boarded by the Federation. Do not resist; we are surrendering. Repeat, comply with the boarding party and do not even so much as look at a weapon." She glared at Tyler again. "If we do get out of this, you and I are going to have a long talk. You better know what you're doing."

"USS Squire, Federation soldiers are now boarding your vessel and will be assuming command of your bridge. Once the command crew is secure, the rest of your staff will be placed under arrest. Please do not resist," the synthetic voice alerted them over comms. Jeica trotted over to the centre console opposite the entrance doors, folded her arms irately and leaned against the back of the control panel, waiting with an unimpressed scowl upon her face. Tyler simply sat down on Sal's lap, stroking his jaw idly while waiting for their pseudo-saviours to come and apprehend them.

Sure enough, the bridge door slid open, the thick bulkhead splitting down the middle and grating to either side, revealing eight armoured figures sporting the Federation flag across their breastplates. The armour was intimidating, to say the least, despite its peaceful white colouration. It was thick, sleek and shiny with small exposed portions over the joints, revealing the black skin-tight suit beneath, and the angular helmets were dominated by half-dome-shaped visors, polarised a dull grey so that the faces beneath were obscured. The short-barrelled matte black guns looked oddly similar to human weaponry, but most likely packed a bigger punch than any of the marines were used to.

All eight weapons immediately snapped to Tyler.

"Step aside human!" the leader commanded, his tinny voice crackling under a thin layer of static. The soldier next to them immediately tapped their wrist device and began speaking rapidly in their native language, prompting two more comparatively smaller ships to pop into existence on the radar. Sal hissed at them, not much liking having so many weapons pointed at his lover, his claws unsheathing. "Get out of the way or we will shoot through you!" the leader ordered aggressively.

"Whoa, calm down," Jeica cut in, stepping forward. "They're unarmed: we're surrendering."

"You stupid primitives have no idea what you're playing with," the leader growled. "The Scourge cannot be controlled by a pathetic little collar; it will destroy all of you without effort."

"I will destroy all of you without effort if you do not stop pointing your weapons at my Host," Sal shot back through the aforementioned translation collar.

"He's under control," Tyler cut in. "Even if he did want to hurt anyone, we're biologically linked; if I die, he dies, and vice versa." It technically wasn't a lie, considering how closely-Bonded he and Sal had become; they hadn't exactly tested the theory, but if Advena was right, even so much as getting too far away from one another could stop one or both of their hearts. "What's got you so worked up anyway? Surely the Federation wouldn't have a problem taking out Xenomorphs."

"I don't have to explain anything to you. Get on the floor; you and the Scourge Creature are going into quarantine." He barked an order at one of his lackeys and approached Tyler with a small wire frame which formed two loops, quickly using it to handcuff the human. In the meantime, the second-in-command stepped forward.

"Where are your leaders?" they demanded gruffly.

"That would be me," Jeica answered, much to the dismay of the USS Squire's captain. He'd probably been hoping to be a brave and selfless person and step forward in the Lieutenant's place. "Alongside the guy you're cuffing, and a Xeno named Advena. Her boyfriend likes to tag along too."

"You're the leader?" the second-in-command scoffed. "Well that's progressive. Your troglodyte society is finally letting females out of the kitchen?"

"Believe me, I know a thousand ways to put a knife to use, and none of them involve chopping onions. I'd be happy to show you whenever you feel like stepping out of the big boy suit you cower inside of."

"Ooh, the primate is threatening me commander, isn't that cute? Get on the ground with your hands behind your back; we'll see how chatty you are in interrogation."

~~~~~~~~~~()~~~~~~~~~~

Jeica tested her cuffs tentatively, finding they gave her a small shock every time she flexed against them. No doubt the volts would ramp up the harder she tried to escape. They were connected by a small steel cord to the table she was seated at, Tyler and Jacob in similar situations off to either side of her. Behind them, two reinforced containment cells held an irate Advena and a peevish Sal, flanked on either side by a pair of guards each, fully armoured in black-and-orange coloured armour which was much bulkier than the previous soldiers'.

"They must be the Quarantine Soldiers," Tyler muttered to himself, keeping his mind occupied by observing his surroundings. "They're probably a Xeno-specific force like our Bug Hunters – but that begs the question, why do they need a specific army division just for Xenomorphs? Surely they would have wiped out any infestations by now, if not made peace like we have."

"Tyler, please, keep it to yourself," Jeica huffed, longing to return to the oppressive silence while they waited for their captors' superiors to arrive.

"But Lieutenant, don't you see? The Xenomorphs must be a huge problem for the Federation in order to warrant such an impressive show of force. We happen to have the solution to this problem."

"A bargaining chip?"

"At the very least. Let me do the talking here, alright? I don't think you've got quite enough smug asshole in you to drive this deal."

"Hey, at least you're admitting it now." Abruptly, before Tyler could shoot back a retort, the door into the dark and spartan interrogation room slid open, allowing three alien figures to step into the room. The first, dressed in a pristine white military uniform, was a blue-skinned humanoid with pointed ears which curved back below his short, buzz-cut, ginger-streaked black hair, his eyes a void of inky black, lacking the coloured iris humans had. The second, clad in a long, white garb of thick protective lab gear was covered in ginger fur, kept short and neat most likely for lab safety. Its eyes were split horizontally like a goat's, glittering above an ugly under bite of a jaw, two thick fangs pointing up towards its stubby little nub of a nose. Its pointy ears which stuck up out the top of its head swivelled and twitched at every sound, like a cat of some kind. The last, wearing a simple business suit, was a human, his mouth a grim line of disappointment. All three seated themselves across from their prisoners, the furred creature slapping down a collection of folders.

"We took the liberty of doing a few scans," it announced, its voice scratchy and squeaky, "which confirmed your friends are genuine, unmodified individuals of specie-XG9-2241, more commonly known as the Scourge."

"And you want to know how we got them to cooperate for more than five minutes?" Tyler inquired rather rhetorically, smug to his word. "Furthermore, you've probably looked at the collar which lets them talk and are dying of curiosity as to how a primitive culture like ours could have possibly devised something like that. But of course, before I cooperate, I'm going to want to know what it is to you. Why do you care so much? I have it figured out, of course, I just want to hear it from you."

The human ambassador glared at Jeica irately.

"I thought you were in charge here." The Lieutenant simply shrugged and spread her palms in a 'can't help you' manner.

"He's the scientist here; there's not a lot I can tell you. Besides, as long as I'm cuffed to this bench, I think I'm going to rather enjoy watching him dick with your pride for a while." The ambassador scowled and dragged his hand down his face to recompose himself.

"You people are so tiresome…" he muttered through gritted teeth. "Just give him what he wants, Commander." The blue-skinned alien nodded and clasped his hands behind his back, humming in thought for a moment.

"The Scourge has been a constant strain on our colonies for centuries now. The harder we fight them, the more they adapt and overcome our technology. Several Scourge Colonies have even adapted to use our technology against us, learning how to fly our ships, operate our weapons, read maps – anything which puts them on equal if not better footing than us. Negotiations are unsuccessful; indeed, we assumed the Scourge was little more than a parasite lacking the ability to communicate intelligently. We have had to obliterate entire planets to try and push back the Scourge and stop them from getting footholds into the core of our society. We try to study them under the strictest conditions and protocols, but any knowledge we gain is meaningless without a fundamental understanding of the creatures. Their very structure is unprecedented, let alone their capabilities. Recently, we've been managing to hold our ground and keep their numbers steady; neither allowing them to grow stronger nor able to cull them back any weaker without taking risks we cannot afford. It's a sick stalemate, and as much as I despise to say it, we're willing to negotiate for any information which could help us make peace with them, or at the very least eradicate them from our territory."

"Just as I thought," Tyler announced with a grin, then his features shifted into a grim frown. "It makes sense, see? Why else would the Wey-Yu be so fixated on the Xenomorphs? Simply because the Xenomorphs are one of the few things that have a real chance of wiping the Federation out. And do you know what the Wey-Yu has wanted to do ever since they and the rest of America got kicked out of the Federation and cut off from all the miraculous technology? I'll give you three guesses." Nobody humoured him, obviously all getting the point. "It is of course up to you whether you want to try for some kind of alliance, Lieutenant, but either way I think it's for the best I stay here with the Federation." He turned to the three representatives of the alien law enforcement to explain himself. "I am, after all, the one who has done all the research on Xenomorphs and created the technologies which link to them. I can share my knowledge with you here, and we can give the Xenomorphs free from the Weyland-Yutani's grasp an actual chance at life."

"You keep mentioning this… Weyland-Yutani. Dare I ask what that is?" the human ambassador inquired tentatively.

"Corrupt and morally deficient company which basically rules America and is the reason half of humanity was kicked out of the Federation. They're also the ones who have been running ethically-void experiments on humans and Xenomorphs in order to get revenge for said kicking out. Right now, we're in the middle of a civil war where the poor and oppressed working class is fighting back against them in order to try and free themselves. That's us, by the way. We're the good guys."

"I would argue there are no 'good guys' in war," the blue-skinned officer put in, "only 'less bad guys'."

"Because a good guy never would have needed to start a war in the first place? Yes, we have philosophy in America too, and news flash, just because it sounds all deep and just doesn't mean it actually works. However, I agree that it would be nice to limit the body count as much as possible, because some of these guys are just brainwashed, not evil. But I digress, I believe the Lieutenant here was just about to tell us her thoughts on the situation?"

"Thank you, Tyler," Jeica grated out with restraint. "But I feel like we kind of glossed over the part where you ditch us to live in the Federation. Why don't you and I talk about that for a little bit before discussing our terms with our friends here?"

"What is there to talk about? Sal and I scooch on over here and live a better life where nobody is out to kill us and burn us at a stake for being gay. We help out the Federation on your behalf, and the Federation returns the favour by sending over supplies to you or something."

"Except we need you on Altin, helping us develop weapons and vehicles for the war, not to mention that little project with the Russians you're supposed to be leading. For God's sake man, you can't just abandon us halfway through, we need you. And don't give me that anti-gay shit, because I have been doing everything in my power to stop that – not to mention I've been pulling strings to get you out of shit that you deserve to be in because I believed in you."

"Miss Smith," the furred creature interjected calmly. "If I may, we will need to work closely with Tyler personally if he is the sole scientist in charge of Scourge research. The sheer complexity of understanding such an intricate organism will require physical –"

"Then you will be coming to us, not the other way around," Jeica cut them off. "You can set up an embassy on our colony, and you can watch as Tyler develops his technology for us and our Xenos."

"Miss Smith," the human ambassador spoke up, "the laws between our peoples forbid any presence which isn't explicitly approved by the United States government and –"

"Lieutenant Smith!" Jeica corrected him furiously. "Fuck the law! And fuck the Weyland-Yutani!" she yelled, slamming her cuffed hands against the table. "If they have a problem with it, they can kiss my ass! They've picked a fight with the American people, they've picked a fight with the Xenomorphs, if they want to pick a fight with the Federation too, then they can be my fucking guest. But one thing is for sure; I will not die without seeing every single one of those Corporate assholes wiped out. Have I done a satisfactory job of expressing my thoughts on the situation, Mister Doelle?"

Tyler smirked and looked down at the table as if in a half-assed attempt to hide it, chuckling softly.

"That works for me, Lieutenant," he said mirthfully. "When can we expect the embassy to arrive?"

"Mister Doelle, surely you're not –"

"I thought you thought she was in charge," he cut the ambassador off, rubbing salt in the wound with a mirthful wink. "If you want to talk about Xenos with me, you're gonna have to come pay us a visit. This will limit my options as to how much experimenting I can do with Federation tech, but perhaps in exchange for our generous expulsion of hard-earned information, you'll be willing to give me some toys to play with, especially considering I'll most likely be using them to further my Xenomorph research." The human ambassador sighed and rubbed his eyes warily. A brief pause ensued as he assumedly listened to instructions on how to proceed through his earpiece, before steepling his hands and frowning.

"You're making our lives a misery, but my higher-ups have agreed to your terms," he said in the tone of a man who had given up on trying. "As a show of good faith, we're giving the five of you temporary and honorary civilian status in the Federation, so that you may purchase some of these… 'toys' to experiment with. Believe me, not my idea, but I am merely the humble messenger. You kids have fun out there; we'll update you on the embassy situation before we let you leave. Un-cuff them, would you Gerinii?" The blue-skinned alien looked no happier than the ambassador, but did as he was told, running a small device past the Americans' handcuffs which caused them to power down and click open, releasing them. He paused, however, before releasing the Xenomorphs.

"Quinitshi 2-3 and 6-2 will be escorting your… 'alien companions'… to ensure the safety of both them and the citizens of this station. I trust that won't be an issue?"

"It's fine, but I reserve the right to tase them if they make any snide comments or mention anything to do with the words 'primitive', 'barbaric' or 'ape'," Jake jibed. The ambassador ignored him and ducked out of the room while the Xenomorphs were released, under close watch by the units dubbed Quinitshi 2-3 and Quinitshi 6-2, each a six-man squad armed with hefty, multi-barrelled rifles. Sal stretched slowly, keeping an eye on the nervous soldiers as he did so to ensure they weren't going to get jumpy and kill him, before shuffling closer to Tyler and hugging him gently. Advena was a little less sensitive towards the obvious fear of those around her, making a show of unsheathing her claws as she worked the kinks out of her muscles and dragging her bladed tail around in small circles, reminding these people that she was top of the food chain, and that they were lucky they had Jake around to keep her under control.

"Tyler seems to have talked these guys up a bit," Advena grumbled. "They seem kind of stuck up, irritating, and full-of-themselves. It's no wonder why the Xenos here haven't tried very hard to make peace."

"They're politicians," Jake reminded her. "I wouldn't exactly put them in the better half of any society." He threw a glance at the ambassador as he came back into the room, looking unimpressed. "Oops, did I say that out loud?" Jake drawled sarcastically. The ambassador continued to ignore him, wordlessly placing five plastic cards on the table, before promptly leaving. The sergeant gingerly picked one up, finding it filled in with a picture of Jeica, along with all her details such as name, age, gender, species, and something called a 'civil status', which apparently meant something different in the Federation, as the blank was filled in with 'Limited Guest – Restricted L3 Access'. He quickly passed the plastic cards around to their rightful owners, somewhat impressed to find they'd taken the time to print Sal and Advena an ID too.

"I think you guys made a mistake here," Tyler grumbled, flipping his card around. "I don't know what this is supposed to mean, but it doesn't sound like 'human' to me." Jake peered at where his finger rested, finding the scientist was drawing attention to the specie category. Jake frowned at the unusual mistake, just as confused over it as Tyler was. 'Species: Biological Artificial / Humanoid'. The furred creature took the card – which, incredibly, was swept by a wave of static which converted the words into the creature's native language – and peered at it, before handing it back.

"This is correct," it said simply.

"Yeah, but Jake's just says 'human' on it. We're the same species smart stuff, so why do we have different shit printed on our cards?" The creature looked confused and slightly taken aback.

"No… our scans showed a very distinct difference in your biology. You are not human, Mister Doelle. Close, but not quite."

"Oh please, I've been saying the same thing for months," Jake scoffed with a chuckle. After a few moments of nobody joining in, he leaned forward with a concerned expression. "Wait, for real?" The furred creature sighed, pulled a small tablet device from their coat, and brought up the scans the Federation had taken of the rebels upon their entry. The creature presented the screen to them, showing a side-by-side of a human body and Tyler's scan.

"The brain is different – not just because of the unusual node which has grown on all three of you, but because of the basic structure. Look at the streamlining, the shape. Different, unique. The muscle, tissue? Thicker, stronger. You have been engineered, Mister Doelle, created in a laboratory, likely in an attempt at creating a super soldier, if I had to guess. I apologise, I thought you knew." Tyler was silent, a grim frown plastered on his face as he thought deeply.

"Kind of ironic, isn't it?" Jake whispered to Advena. "He was literally made for war, and yet refuses to take part in it." This earned him a slap on the wrist courtesy of Advena's tail, which was followed up by a quick scolding.

"Not the time, Jacob." The marine just shrugged innocently. "Maybe you and Sal should go for a walk," Advena advised to Tyler. "Alone."

"Nah, I'm good," Tyler dismissed her with a lazy flick of his hand. "Surprising, but not exactly life-changing. Would explain how I've taken so many beatings without dying or even so much as breaking any bones, though."

"You mean it doesn't bother you?" Advena inquired curiously, though there was a hint of jealousy in her mind. "You're not upset that someone just… created you, for the purpose of spreading death and misery? It doesn't anger you to know that every move you make could potentially be exactly what your creator wanted in order to achieve their own sick goals?"

"Okay, number one, 'Vee honey, you sound like you're going through a rough identity crisis and your boyfriend isn't helping you work through that, so I'm sorry. Number two, there are a lot of people with sick goals, and they don't care who they use to achieve them. They'll be just as happy to control a naturally-born individual as they would an artificially-born one. So does it matter that I was made in a test tube? If my mother – who, thank God, is not my real mother – gave birth to me instead of adopting me from an assumedly failed experiment, would my upbringing and thus the person I am right now be any different?"

"I guess not…"

"If anything, it's kinda badass, and, as Jake said, ironic. The Wey-Yu created me so I can fight for them, and instead, I'm going to be enabling the group of rebels hell-bent on destroying them. Logically speaking, it's actually a good thing. I mean, how long would I have survived if I wasn't designed to be sturdy and hard to kill? I don't know and, frankly, I don't really care to know."

"You know, you can actually be quite the optimist if you put your mind to it," Advena chuckled.

"Either that or I'm just saying whatever will get you to drop the matter and let me explore any self-respecting scientist's wet dream. We are on a Federation space station! How are you not excited? I mean, the technology, the culture, the aliens! There's so much to explore I'm getting dizzy just thinking about it!"

"I could go for some food, before we start running around ooh-ing and ahh-ing," Sal put in quickly, before his boyfriend could get too carried away. He even placed his arms around the scientist's shoulders and physically reeled him into a loose hug in order to prevent him from running off. "There is plenty of time to explore, so why don't we just have a bite to eat and chat for a bit? Who knows, maybe we'll even get to talk to some locals."

"You guys go on ahead," Jeica said as she cracked her knuckles with a smirk. "I wanna see how these guys hold up against USCM special forces training. Not everyone gets to say they kicked an alien's ass in hand-to-hand combat."

"We'll catch you later then, Lieutenant," Jake chuckled.

"Aw, not feeling up to representing your country against a bunch of alien bigots?"

"Ha, maybe some other time. I'm with the big guy; dying to try some alien cuisine."

"Psh, suit yourself. So, am I getting escorted or are you just gonna let me loose?" One of the Federation soldiers shook their head at her and signalled a solitary guard to go with her. The armoured figure gruffly handed her a pair small devices and tapped their helmet where a human's ear would be. Jeica made a show of flipping her hair, but otherwise did as she was instructed, nestling the device in her ears comfortably. "What's this supposed to be?" she demanded. Her guard grunted something to her with a hand gesture, speaking a language which none of the humans could understand. Except, apparently, Jeica. "Well, how do I know it's working?" More strange grunting, along with a few guttural clicks which, even through the language barrier, were unmistakably irate. "Bullshit. There's no way that's even physically possible – right Tyler?" The young scientist pursed his lips and shrugged.

"I was only offered French in school," he commented dryly. "I'm guessing they're some kind of translation device?" he asked the soldier in charge – the one who understood American. It nodded, and motioned for the devices to be supplied to the rest of the humans, obviously not keeping anything in stock which would fit a Xenomorph. "Fascinating…" he murmured as he slipped the devices in. "The Wey-Yu has been trying to develop this kind of technology for centuries. They could never get the filtering technology to work properly. And to have it so small…"

"English is on our database, so other citizens will be able to understand you," the commander informed them.

"So… everyone in the Federation just wears these everywhere?" Jake asked confusedly. Surely that would be damaging in the long term.

"In a sense… Federation citizens have translator chips implanted in the base of their necks permanently, but this would be both unwarranted and unwise in your case due to the… temporary nature of your visit." Jake slipped the devices in, finding them surprisingly lightweight and clingy; he had to make sure they were still there a couple of times, and were surprised to find they didn't move around unless he specifically tried to pull them out.

"Intuitive," he murmured impassively. "So do we get like a tour guide, or are you just gonna watch us run around like headless chickens?" Jake couldn't see past the polarised visor, but the alien commander was still as a statue, so the marine imagined he was staring blankly. "You don't know what a chicken is, do you?" The commander shook his head.

"Regardless, my platoon has been stationed here for some time, so I'll be more than capable of taking you where you need to go. There are several human-run food establishments nearby, or I can take you to a Tsalarian or Arcturian joint if you're feeling adventurous."

"Why don't we discuss that on the way?" Tyler interjected. "I'm sick of sitting in this dingy room." The commander nodded and took the lead, letting his men fall in behind their charges. Advena stuck close to Jake's side, discreetly slipping his hand into hers as she glanced around the strange surroundings. They emerged into what could only be described as a police station of sorts, passing holding cells, offices full of projected, holographic, and glass-screen displays with all kinds of alien creatures milling around in matching, official uniforms. Advena nudged him, and pointed to the commanding alien's ass, which Jake scoffed at until he caught sight of the thick, green, scaly tail which stuck out from the alien's tailbone.

"Weird," Jake whispered, though he was more than a little intrigued. It seemed the Federation had been attempting to limit the culture shock by presenting them with the most humanoid ambassadors they could find, if the rest of the place was anything to go by. Now that they were loose, the Americans could observe the more unusual creatures the Federation had to offer. To Jake's shock, there was even a quadruped wandering around on all fours, holding a clipboard and a mug of coffee in what could be described as thick antennae.

Finally, they pushed out of the bright, orderly chaos of the police building and into the space station beyond. The first thing which struck Jake was how absolutely huge the place must have been. It was almost as if he was on a planet, the spaces were so wide open, with the ceiling towering so high above them that planes could whizz around unhindered, being mere specks that could barely be seen. The second thing which hit him was how pristine everything was; the light greys and whites of the ground and buildings were polished, litter was nowhere to be seen and the plants which sprouted proudly from their orderly grow beds were vibrant and healthy, some flowering or sporting fruit. There were benches and water features everywhere, and a bustle of people which gave off a busy, but not crowded atmosphere. It was nothing like a human planet, let alone a human space station, where one would have to manoeuvre and fight through crowds; the place was so open and expansive that even with an undoubtedly large population, there was always so much room.

And that wasn't even getting into the indescribable wonders which filled the shops and buildings around him. Jake could smell an exotic mixture of alien odours; food, plants, and just plain fresh air. Vibrant signs and neon billboards boasted intricate lettering he couldn't read and pictures of gadgets he couldn't possibly come up with a use for, as well as more familiar items such as clothes or what he assumed to be food.

"So like, who actually owns this place?" Tyler inquired as they wandered rather aimlessly, distracting them from their task of finding food. "I'm not really noticing a dominant species here."

"Nobody," the commander informed him. "Most Hub Stations such as this are funded, constructed, and owned by the Federal Council, and are thus neutral ground. Usually only planets are owned by one specific race. This Hub Station specifically is slowly becoming more of a military outpost, however, thanks to your people, who keep infringing on the nearby borders."

"My bad," Tyler uttered unsympathetically. "So, what species are you anyway? I've been staring at your tail for like five minutes now and I really can't help but wonder what the rest of you looks like."

"Mister Doelle, we just met," the commander gushed mockingly, causing the scientist to choke on air in a surprised fit of giggles.

"Holy shit, he has a sense of humour."

"But if you must know, I am a Kali, a 'lizard person' as your kind often describe us. Your kind as in non-Federation humans; Federation humans and Kali get along extremely well and, as a matter of fact, originate from incredibly similar planets, making them compatible in long-term situations. Not to mention we are… biologically compatible as well." The commander paused, leaned down to Tyler's level, and whispered in his ear: "And yes, before you ask, we have two."

"God damn. If I didn't have a boyfriend…" Tyler growled, leaving the threat hanging. Sal pushed himself between them, casting an irritated look at the Kali commander before hugging Tyler to his side protectively. The scientist laughed and patted his back reassuringly, much to the Xeno's chagrin. Jake rolled his eyes and scoffed as Tyler teasingly made a ring with his index finger and thumb, then proceeded to thrust two fingers into it, a gesture which Sal slapped away with annoyance.

"I think Tyler has a fetish," Jake muttered to his girlfriend, referring to the young man's unabashed willingness to get it on with aliens.

"What, and you don't?" Advena teased him. "I know the kind of girls you're into." Jake blushed and quickly glanced away to try and maintain some form of dignity, drinking in the sights of the alien space station to distract himself. Advena purred apologetically at him and draped her arms over his shoulders, resting her chin atop his head in a loose hug, which only made Jake blush more as he knew full well that every Federation citizen was gawking at them, due to the two hyper-deadly alien 'Scourges' which were strolling casually down their streets.

"So… non-Federation humans are getting into interspecies relationships now. That's new," the Kali commented idly. "Don't tell me you guys have actually progressed in the past few centuries."

"Need I remind you the only reason we're not in a cell is because you guys need our help?" Tyler pointed out with a raised brow.

"Touché."

"So, if Kali and humans are so close, we should be able to eat the same food, right?" Jake asked. "Maybe we could try out some of your kind's cuisine?"

"Oh no no no, that would be a bad idea. See, because our foods are so similar, Kali usually just eat at human establishments, because there are no human foods we can't eat. However, there is a lot of Kali food humans can't eat, and this food is instead hosted in Kali specialty establishments. Long story short, Kali food is human food, unless you want to try food that will poison and potentially kill you. Capeesh?"

"Right. Got it. So does that mean human places will serve any Kali dishes which are, uh, safe?"

"Potentially, yes."

"So it's not really a human food joint, it just happens to be a place which serves food edible to humans?"

"Er, no. Human food joints serve human food, but some also offer Kali food seeing as it is so similar – for example, some human dishes made with Kali ingredients or in a Kali style, or a Kali dish made with human ingredients in a human style." Jake pinched the bridge of his nose warily and sighed.

"Right, right. I get it," he said aloud, then privately to Advena: "I think my translator might be broken; this guy is making no sense at all." His girlfriend laughed and slapped his back with her tail playfully, alarming two of the Quinitshi soldiers with her sudden, stuttering hiss. The commander, to his credit, did a good job of exuding a calm and composed exterior, though nobody could begin to guess what his expression looked like under his helmet. Probably for the better. He motioned for his startled men to calm down without pausing in his stride, having to turn and take a few steps backwards in order to accomplish this, but the nonchalant manoeuvre did its job in getting the soldiers to lower their weapons.

"So you guys are supposed to be like, connected, right? If one of you dies, so does the other? How does that work?"

"Theoretically," Tyler admitted, only slightly guilty. "We obviously haven't tested the whole dying thing, and even then it only applies to certain people, like me and Sal. Jake here can separate from Advena just fine. Something to do with the fact that I haven't broken connection with Sal for like, what? Half a year? More? It's like an addiction in a way, I guess, where you get so used to using something that you can't function without it."

"And this connection is…?"

"Telepathic," Tyler said as he placed a finger on either side of his forehead childishly, as if preparing to use some kind of mind power in an 80's cartoon. "It's nice though. I've always had trouble expressing myself, but with telepathy there's a certain level of understanding, sincerity and intimacy you can never get any other way. Plus you get to do a bunch of cool stuff, like body-swapping and memory-sharing."

"Sounds one part fascinating, one part exciting, and three parts terrifying," the commander noted.

"Wasn't a huge fan of the mind-reading myself," Jake put in, "but it's way less intrusive than it sounds. You have complete control of what can and can't be seen. I suppose it helps to share the Bond with someone you trust, though."

The Kali commander stopped suddenly in the middle of a lively area which was home to strong smells of juicy meat, spices, sweet scents and earthy herbs. Tables littered the area between the vibrant, busy shops, each equipped with comfortable seats and decorative cloths which gave a rather homey vibe to the area, as well as a decent amount of privacy due to the thick hedge-like planting which closed in the court, aside from the two entrances. Astounded, Jake watched a child throwing small crumbs of food to an unusual-looking cross between a raccoon, a bat and a porcupine, which gobbled the treats up and promptly scrambled up the nearest tree. He craned his neck and, sure enough, a pair of birds circled lazily, ready to swoop down on any exposed consumables. He'd heard some of the more posh Wey-Yu stations had massive biodomes which could support a small amount of wildlife, but this Federation station seemed to have its own ecosystem.

"Here we are; the food court," the commander announced. "There should be something to your tastes here."

"I'm pretty sure Xenos can eat whatever, but you and I might have to be a bit more selective. What do you feel like checking out, Tyler?" Jake asked as his eyes flitted from café, to restaurant, to stall, to buffet house. So many different aliens manning the counters, so many strange and unusual dishes being sent out to customers. It was hard to take it all in. "Tyler?" Jake repeated, finally glancing back to his friend, who was staring off with a melancholy expression. Jake followed his gaze, finding his eyes resting on a reptilian creature – which was undoubtedly a Kali – and a human woman sitting next to each other on the edge of the water fountain, their laughter inaudible from their distance, but the happiness clear on their face. The lizard man wrapped his arm around the woman's waist and cuddled her warmly, almost smooshing his sandwich on her glossy black singlet. Sal touched Tyler's shoulder gently and brought his attention back to the group, where he acted like nothing had happened.

"Uh, yeah, yeah, um… I think I'll take the lizard dude's recommendation on this one."

"Auxiliary Lieutenant Kal'thun," the commander introduced himself. "But, it may be more comfortable for us all if you know me as Jalin." He quickly jabbed a finger at one of his soldiers, looking stern despite the helmet hiding his face. "That doesn't apply to you, smartass. Oh don't act offended, we all knew what was coming. As for food…" Jalin did a quick scan of the signage, trying to put himself in the shoes of a human unfamiliar with alien cuisine – something interesting, palatable, and preferably non-lethal. "Stenton, what would you pick?" One of Jalin's soldiers exhaled a long, slow breath while they tutted over the dilemma.

"I dunno Sir, can't go wrong with fast food though. Maybe Carlson's? They do alien stuff, right?" she answered finally.

"Worth a shot. Have you guys heard of 'burgers' before?" Jake and Tyler shared a look, trying to decide whether Jalin was messing with them or not, before finally deciding there was far too much sincerity in his tone for it to be a joke.

"Uh… yeah. There's not a lot of food which screams American louder than a burger," Jake answered honestly. Jalin shot Stenton a look, and she shrugged.

"Not to worry, they do other stuff as well. I'm sure there'll be something you guys haven't had before. At the very least, if Stenton eats there, you aren't going to die."

"Comforting," Advena muttered dryly.

~~~~~~~~~~()~~~~~~~~~~

"I can't believe you ordered a burger," Tyler said for the fourteenth time when he spotted the offending food being placed down in front of Jake by an unusual insectoid creature in an effeminate pale pink apron.

"Getting old now, Tyler," Jake harrumphed, prodding the so-called burger tentatively, peeling back the fresh, warm bun to take a peek at the contents. "Besides, just because it's a human dish, doesn't mean I have any idea what the hell any of this stuff is. Like, what meat is this?"

"Hendruin," Jalin informed him casually, before thanking the ant-like waitress for his food. Jake noticed Tyler lean forward eagerly in his seat, momentarily forgetting he was in the middle of grilling his friend for being a coward. Jalin reached up and unclasped his helmet, slipping it off his head gracefully and placing it on the floor by his feet. For the first time, the rebels were able to gaze upon the Auxiliary Lieutenant's face. His head was reptilian, there was no mistaking that, covered in scales right down to his short, thick muzzle filled with pristine, curved white fangs and a long, slender forked tongue. His eyes were golden in colour, slit vertically by an ovular pupil and his head adorned with two short, ivory horns which stuck out the back of his skull, alongside the small, bumpy spines which ran between them and down his neck, disappearing beneath his suit and likely lining his spine right down to his tail. Two scars ran down from his left brow to his cheek, raw and red, but his eye seemed perfectly functional, obviously avoiding whatever blow could have done such damage to the tough-looking scales.

Jake scoffed at Tyler, who seemed to be nodding approvingly as he leaned back in his seat. He nudged Sal, obviously making some kind of flirtatious comment privately, causing the Xeno to act flushed and quickly find something interesting to look at away from the faces of his peers. Jalin winked at Tyler, and that was the last straw for the marine, who somewhat irately broke the silence of the table.

"So, Stenton. Human, right?" he asked. The Federation trooper nodded, and Jake embarrassedly directed his eyes to her, rather than the identically-armoured soldier he'd been making his impression of eye contact with. "So what's it like being a Federation soldier? Like, clearly there are a lot of aliens here who are just naturally stronger than us."

"What we lack in natural strength and agility, we make up for in ingenuity and perseverance. You'd be surprised just how sturdy we can be when we push ourselves. Beat the hell out of a lizard in an arm wrestle just the other day, in fact. Now he has to do my janitorial duties." Jalin cocked his head and glanced over his shoulder at her.

"Stenton," he growled warningly.

"Ah-ha-ehem, I mean no, that would be, uh, dishonest and stuff. Nobody gambles in the barracks with menial duties as the stakes. Only the upstanding-est soldiers here, Sir."

"I should hope not," Jalin said, his golden eyes narrowed into malevolent slits. He gave Stenton one last searching glare, before turning back to his rebel charges. One of the other soldiers punched Stenton's arm lightly as soon as their superior's back was turned, and a silent argument of wild hand gestures promptly broke out between them, which Jake did his best to shut out. "Something wrong with your food, Mister Doelle?"

Tyler glanced up at the mention of his name, suddenly realising that he'd been pushing around his strange alien vegetable balls for the past five minutes without actually eating anything, so lost in thought as he was.

"No, no the food's fine. It's great in fact."

"Is there… something else bothering you?"

"It's just so peaceful here," the scientist huffed dejectedly. "I mean, Jeica's right; the Resistance is royally screwed without me; I can't stay here. But just look at this place. No fighting or worrying or struggling. No racism, sexism or homophobia. It's paradise. Did you see that couple back there? Nobody even spared them a second glance, because nobody gives a shit about people being who they are or loving who they want to love. I want that, Jacob, don't you?"

"Of course I do. But I want that for everyone, not just us. Now is a confusing and frankly chaotic time for everyone; the power has shifted in our favour, but it won't be forever. Soon, the Corporation will master the art of manipulating Xenos into fighting for them, and their grip on our nation will be stronger than ever. This could be the last hope for dismantling the Weyland-Yutani Corporation; we have a duty to the people to fulfil."

"Maybe you do," Tyler muttered, folding his arms moodily. "In case you've forgotten, the only thing 'the people' have done for me is abuse me, manipulate me, take away the people I love, try to use me and attempt to kill me. What the fuck do I owe them?" Jalin grimaced as his eyes darted between the two humans, feeling more than a little awkward at being forgotten about in the exchange. The Americans didn't seem to notice his discomfort however, and continued their argument in low voices.

"By that logic, why haven't you given up on pacifism? If you're alright damning billions of people to being at the mercy of the Wey-Yu, you might as well have the decency to put them out of their misery while you're at it." Tyler laughed loudly and mockingly, his bitter tone void of any mirth.

"Is that what you tell yourself? Is that what you told yourself when you shot me out of a fucking airlock? The only misery I was in was caused entirely by you!"

"Oh, you're just gonna bring that up again huh? Well, if we want to turn back the clock, Queen Asphid had a few stories to tell about your days experimenting on her Hive. Namely –"

"Let's not do this right now, in front of the aliens," Sal implored, placing a hand in front of either human's face, as if blocking their view of one another would put an end to their argument.

"Whatever," Tyler scoffed, standing abruptly from his seat before storming away as per usual. Sal quickly bolted up after him, followed by two of Jalin's soldiers, leaving just the lizard himself and Stenton with Jake and Advena.

"That guy sounds like he needs a hug and a warm blanket," Jalin noted somewhat awkwardly. Advena nodded in agreement while Jake raised a brow at the comment.

"That's… not something I expected to hear come out of a military officer's mouth, while on duty no less."

"What, soldiers are trained to lack compassion where you're from?" Jalin queried, a little taken aback at how quickly the conversation shifted away from Tyler. It was disconcerting how nonchalant Jake was for someone unfamiliar with the frequency of Tyler's outbursts.

"Supposed to make the job easier, I hear." Jalin laughed bitterly, something which couldn't be translated, so the sound came out as a grating, chuffing noise which simmered down to a sharp series of hisses towards the end.

"Our cultures employ soldiers for very different reasons, it seems."

"Probably because you're not in the middle of a civil war."

"Just because you're at war, doesn't mean you can't conserve life. It's not always about destroying the enemy, such as the brief war with the Glaax about a century back. We took nineteen prisoners for every one enemy casualty, and the prisoners decided that even as POWs, life was better in the Federation than their own government. Combine that with the fact we vastly outnumbered them and held an enormous front with ease, and you have an entire species of shattered morale. They surrendered two months into the war."

"He has a point," Advena agreed. "Showing America that we treat our prisoners better than the Wey-Yu could help dispel our unfavourable reputation as bloodthirsty terrorists. Once we have Jeica's prison colony set up, we could let all the prisoners send a message home, let their families know they're alright. The media would love that."

"So weird…" Jalin muttered under his breath as he watched the silent exchange. He could see Jake was listening to her by the way he turned to face her and held an attentive expression, but it was just deafening silence from his perspective. It was mind-boggling that two people could just communicate with their minds, even to a conglomerate as advanced as the Federation.

"We'll take it up with Jeica once we're back on Altin," Jake replied, not hearing Jalin's quiet words. "For now, I think there's an alien space station calling for us to explore it." Jalin slipped on his helmet and deftly flicked the clasp back into place, before sliding out of his seat and lazily retrieving his rifle from where it had been resting against his seat.

"I'm actually quite surprised at how calm everyone seems to be," Advena noted as she shuffled out of Jake's way, allowing the marine to sidle along the booth seat until he could get up. "On a human colony, seven people would have tried to kill me by now, and the rest wouldn't dare take their eyes off me, if they didn't just scream and run away upon seeing me."

"And no press, either," Jake noted. "A stir like this would be crawling with cameras in a human settlement."

"Oh, there are cameras alright – your leader just happened to be the first to run into them. But Geralt knows what's going on, so they should be able to handle things without my help," Jalin informed them. "And don't worry about being thrown in with the other lot – my men will make sure to very clearly express the distinction between your vessel and the ones which attacked us."

"You guys just give out military information like that? Immediately after the fact?"

"We don't keep secrets here, Sergeant. The people deserve to know what's happening in their nation – especially when it involves threats such as you or the Scourge."

"And you're not afraid the media is going to manipulate the information they're given to create drama? The last time the USCM let the media in on a military operation we had hippies rioting in the streets saying we nuked American citizens. We didn't, of course – the nuke was aimed at a colony where the only living creatures were our then-enemies, the Xenomorphs – or the Scourge, as you seem to keep calling them."

"The media has a duty to the people," Jalin informed him peevishly. "They exist to protect the good citizens of the Federation just like the military does, only instead of guns and armour they have cameras and information. Misinformation causes chaos and costs lives; anyone found intentionally twisting the truth or falsifying news priorities has their broadcasting licence permanently revoked and faces correctional time."

"Sounds fair," Advena noted. "I think I'm starting to agree with Tyler more and more about this place: in comparison, 'free humanity' kind of sucks – no offense, of course."

"None taken. If I wasn't aware of how much free humanity sucks, I wouldn't have joined the rebellion dead set on changing it." Jake quickly glanced over to Jalin, slightly embarrassed about admitting how terribly humanity was faring without the guidance of the Federation, but was relieved to find the alien preoccupied with talking quietly into his radio. "Speaking of how much better the Federation is: what do you want to take back with you? The ambassador said we were allowed to do a bit of shopping, after all, so we might as well put some thought into it."

"Well… assuming they're not going to let us take weapons or armour back to America, the next best thing would be materials and tools which we could give to Tyler so he can make said weapons and armour himself. While most likely not as good as Federation gear, chances are he'll be able to make something better than anything the Wey-Yu can produce." Jake nodded, not really knowing what he'd expected to hear.

"So… nothing for yourself then? You don't have any interest in anything –" Jake paused, cast another glance at their company, then switched to telepathy. "You don't have any interest in anything non-weapons-grade?"

"I've got friends, family, video games, and a lover. What else could I possibly want for myself?"

"A really, really big TV," Jake quipped sarcastically. Advena frowned at him and folded her arms with a pout. "Like, at least this big," he continued, spreading his arms as wide as he could. "I bet the Federation has really really high definition." Advena scoffed at him and gently placed a hand on his chest, before shoving him softly, the slight movement enough to tip him off-balance due to his ridiculous pose.

"You are such a child." Jake glanced up at the confused and worried faces of the Federation aliens, who were now staring at him, and quickly leapt to his feet and dusted himself off.

"Yes, yes you're right Advena, we should get going. Plenty of things to see, shops to browse, emotionally-unbalanced companions to locate." Jalin nodded and stood, giving his team a quick glance to ensure they were ready to move.

"The others aren't far from here," he reported. "We can go meet up with them if you like, or we can browse elsewhere."

"We should probably go make sure Tyler doesn't do anything stupid," Jake decided. "He tends to let his emotions dictate his actions a lot." Jalin refused to give a reaction, instead wordlessly leading them out of the food district. He and his fellow Federation soldier stayed a few steps ahead of the duo and began talking in low voices, probably about something grave and serious if their tones of voice were anything to go by. Jake tuned them out, and instead concentrated on the awestruck dribble of thoughts coming from his girlfriend beside him.

"Oh look, that one's all see-through – I can see their organs," Advena gawked, raising a hand to point at the creature in question. "It's like it's made of blue jelly or something. So weird. Oh, and that one! I wonder how it uses computers with pincers like those…"

"Let's stop pointing and gawking at the aliens, shall we?" Jake grated out embarrassedly, pulling her arm back down to her side. He gave an apologetic look to the somewhat offended passerby she'd been assaulting with her finger and quickly steered her attention elsewhere. "Look, there's the Federation soldiers, and Jeica too," he continued, mildly surprised to see her back with them so soon. "Don't see Tyler anywhere though."

"There," Advena announced, pointing at a store which looked like some kind of circus. Unusual animals of all kinds roamed around freely or nestled within cosy habitats, some cracking an eye open to stare at the approaching aliens, some pining for their attention, and still more simply continuing to laze about.

"A pet store?" Jake asked quizzically. Jalin nodded the affirmative, and headed over to his soldiers for a chat.

"You can't seriously expect me not to –" Advena began, but Jake cut her off with a wave of his hand.

"Gawk away; I'm gonna catch up with Jeica." Gleefully, the towering alien pranced over to the store window, pressing her domed head against the glass to get a better look at the curiosities within. Jake chuckled and shook his head at her antics, before slowly making his way over to his commanding officer, who was observing the store from a distance. "Hey Jeica, how'd it go?" he asked casually, flicking his friend a small wave. Jeica smirked and flexed a bicep triumphantly.

"Beat a lizard at an arm wrestle, then beat him again in a sparring match, so that was pretty cool. Then I had a look around at the tech district and found these hologram things but – get this – they're freestanding."

"What do you mean? Like, portable?"

"Well, yes, but not like what you're thinking. They don't need projectors or anything. Something-something dual-state-particle something-something nanomachine, all the little pixels which make up the holograms just float around on their own." Jeica rolled her eyes and batted a dismissive hand at Jake's lost expression. "I'll have to show you for you to understand, but I thought Tyler would have a field day with these things, so I grabbed a bunch of them."

"Yeeah…" Jake folded his arms as he stared through the shop window before them. Within, Tyler was beaming, pointing out a cat-like creature to Sal, laughing with innocent, childish glee when the pet store's attendant fetched the animal and let the young man hold it. "Do you think you… made the right call back there? Tyler doesn't really owe us anything; all we've really done is drag him around and force him into situations he's not comfortable with. He's been happier in the few hours he's been here than I have ever seen him before; this place is his dream come true. Do we really deserve to take that away from him?"

"Jacob, we will never find another person like Tyler. Even if another person of his intellect was willing to ditch the millions of dollars they're rolling in to join the Resistance, Tyler knows more about Xenomorphs and telepathy than anyone else in the universe – let me stress that again – the universe. Not just our sad little nation, not just our broken species, but the universe. We can't afford to give that up for anything. Sometimes, people have to make sacrifices for the greater good."

"That's not your sacrifice to make; it's his. He's not just another asset for your war, he's a human – er, human-ish – being. And need I remind you, your friend." Jeica sighed irately and placed her hands on her hips, taking a moment to choose her words before speaking again.

"Tyler's obviously been… 'talking' to you, but he's a man who doesn't take orders from anybody, least of all me. If he wanted to leave us, he would have done so already, but the fact of the matter is he cares about us and doesn't want to lose what few friends he has. In short, it's not himself he's trying to convince to stay, and so long as he has to choose between us and the Federation, he won't be going anywhere." Jake grimaced and glanced over to Advena, who was thankfully busy window shopping with Jalin.

"And does he have to choose? He can still help us long-distance..."

"Not in any meaningful way he can't, and you damn well know it. With the addition of Xenomorphs in our numbers and, if Tyler is right, in the Wey-Yu's numbers soon, the way we fight our war is going to change rapidly over the next few months. If we don't have a capable science team, our enemy will stride ahead of us and outgun us as well as outnumber us. Seeing as Tyler is apparently the only scientist of his calibre dumb enough to join a rebel movement, he's all we've got standing in the way of being wiped out. So yes, he does have to choose between us and the Federation, because if he's gonna sit here with our best chance of success wasting away with him, then quite frankly he's not the kind of person I ever want to speak to again." Jake was stunned into silence for a moment, having never heard Jeica speak with such vehemence and conviction before.

"That's cold, Jeica. I mean, wow… that, is cold." Jake shook his head before he could repeat himself again, and quickly ducked away, strolling over to his girlfriend with a fake smile. He didn't know what to take away from that exchange, and he sure as hell didn't want his oft rash, stubborn and strongly-opinionated partner figuring it out for him. "You know you're allowed to go inside and get a closer look, right?" Jake chuckled as he neared, almost forgetting his troubles as soon as he caught sight of his lover stretching her head in every direction, trying to get a better look at the animals. Advena immediately perked up and turned to him.

"I was waiting for you! Look – I think Tyler's actually planning on picking something up here! Maybe instead of that 'really big TV', you and I could get a pet too? Nothing fluffy or feathery though – maybe one of those lizard thingies – or that big bug-looking critter. Ooh, take a look at that one! The one that looks kind of like that shark from Jaws, but smaller… a lot smaller. And I don't think the one in the movie had legs either..."

"Is that… a robot dog?" Jake wondered aloud. "I don't know whether that's cute or just plain sad."

"Considering the fact that it was designed for people too irresponsible for organic pets?" Jalin piped up. "Mostly sad."

"Here he comes – wow, just look at that thing!" Advena exclaimed excitedly. Tyler shook the store attendant's hand before sweeping out of the store, new pet in hand with a wide smile adorning his lips. The creature on his arm was enormous, easily as big as the young man's torso – and that was without its wings spread, too. The creature seemed like a pretty standard bird; two scaled legs ending in five claw-tipped toes – three to the front, two at the back – and an elongated, hooked beak. Its lengthy flap of tail feathers dangled over the side of Tyler's arm, probably reaching close to a foot in length, and a row of small feathers running from the top of its head down to the base of its skull raised and flattened like a crest, showing off the creature's uncertainty. One of the oddest parts of the creature, however, was its colouring; it was a deep magenta for most of its body, bar the shiny blue feathers which made up its crest, the stripe of black which ran across its face from one eye to the other like a pair of goggles, and the crimson which made up the underside of its tail and its wings, hidden for the most part until it stretched its limbs out.

"It's, uh, cute," Jake commented, nervously eyeing the hefty beak which, if it was anything like the parrot it resembled, would be well capable of crushing bone.

"He's a Preagle," Tyler informed him helpfully. "A semi-common sub-species of omnivorous parrots but, get this, his colouration and calm nature come from genetic engineering, because he was born in a lab. You know, like me. I thought it was poetic, plus he's kickass, and very intelligent – number seven on the most intelligent common sub-sapient lifeform list. We have a lot in common – I was thinking of naming him Gemini." Jacob quickly made sense of the tidal wave of words which had just hit him, and raised a sceptical eyebrow.

"So, you're really just… okay with this whole 'genetically engineered' thing?"

"As I said before, it's less of a 'oh my god everything is different now' and more of a 'oh, so that's why everything was so different before'. And, honestly, if my brain is structured differently to a human's, then that would solve one of my most recent conundrums of why telepathic rules which apply to others don't seem to apply to me. I'm like, a different species, and every species probably has its own set of rules – like how Xenomorphs can telepathically access their subconscious and humans can't, but that's a whole 'nother thing. Wait, does that technically make me an alien? That's pretty cool."

"Biologically, yes, but politically, you were born in an American lab on American soil and therefore are an American and not an illegal immigrant so eat it; you're one of us now."

"Holy shit, you're right – you're actually right. I mean, you're an absolute moron and everything, but if I was born in a Weyland-Yutani lab, there will be records, records I can follow to find out who my real parent or parents are!"

"Remind me why you would want to do that again?"

"Closure, Jacob. Why did they create me? Why did they give me up? Maybe I was built to serve some greater purpose and hidden away until the time is right, or maybe I was a failure of an experiment and abandoned. If I don't find out, I'll have to live with those questions for the rest of my life. And even if the answers are disappointing, at least I'll know, and at least I won't be up all night wondering."

Jake nodded his understanding, giving Tyler an encouraging pat on the shoulder.

"You do what you gotta do man. If you want to talk about it, you know where to find me." Tyler flashed him an affirmative thumbs-up as he danced away, already pulling his PDA from its holster on his hip. His new pet shuffled nonchalantly on his unoccupied arm, eyeing its surroundings coolly. Jake watched the young scientist find an unoccupied bench seat to flop down on. "That's a big fucking bird," he murmured to Advena as the bird in question hopped down onto Tyler's lap, cocking its head curiously at the device in the young man's hands.

"It's awesome," Advena replied approvingly. "How come we don't have cool alien creatures on Altin?"

"Because humans have a long history of paranoia against anything which doesn't come from Earth. The whole Federation incident didn't really help matters – for those who left, anyway. I'm sure the humans here are pretty damn content with their lives."

"Hopefully by the end of this war, humanity will be a lot more welcoming of at least one alien species. If we can resolve the Federation's Xeno conflict too, then that'd be a bonus."

"Speaking of," Jeica butted in, Jalin in tow, "I was just convincing Jalin over here to let us speak to the Xenos his group has captive here."

"You have Xenos here?" Jake asked quizzically. For all their talk of how dangerous their Xenomorphs were, they certainly seemed to have no trouble keeping them in heavily-populated civilian metropolises.

"Xenomorph attacks are more common on border settlements like this one; we took a few alive for study in our last skirmish. You will get to speak to them and nothing more; they will not be leaving their containment cells for any reason. Am I clear?"

"Well, you never know," Jake began. "If things go well –"

"I'll tell you what I do know," Jalin cut him off, taking an aggressive step closer to Jake. Advena hissed and lowered her posture into a more threatening stance to match the alien's movements, but he seemed unfazed. "I know that your Xenomorphs are about as threatening as Uiychin compared to ours; the Xenomorphs my people deal with are faster, stronger, deadlier and smarter. They would relish in the opportunity presented to them by a bunch of naïve do-gooders to manipulate us into lowering our guard."

"I don't know what a you-ee-chin is, but I feel insulted anyway," Advena huffed.

"Jacob, behave," Jeica scolded him. Jake scowled at her, but his ingrained loyalty to the chain of command forced him to suck it up and fold his arms with an expression of annoyance. "Of course we, as guests in your territory, will respect your rules," the lieutenant assured Jalin graciously. "I'm sure meeting these Xenomorphs will help Tyler's research immensely regardless of whether they're in containment or not."

"Tyler's on a personal quest right now. Advena will be more than capable of taking notes for him – she's actually the most qualified anyway, being a Xeno and all. Wouldn't you agree, ma'am?" There was a tense pause in which Advena shuffled uncomfortably, not quite understanding what was happening. Jeica took her time formulating a response, staring Jacob down to see if he'd back out of their silent stand-off, before rolling her shoulders in a lazy shrug.

"Yeah, I guess so. You feeling up to it 'Vee?" Without giving it a second thought, Advena agreed. It was too comforting seeing Tyler relaxed for once for her to interrupt him with more work. Jalin gave a single, satisfied nod, and began leading the way, soon slipping into a conversation with Jeica while Jake and Advena hung back by a few metres.

"Alright, what's going on here?" Advena demanded in whisper-telepathy. "You and Jeica are being weird." Jake grimaced, keeping his eyes forward, incidentally upon the back of the human in question.

"She's been acting different lately," he replied, following her lead and keeping their conversation private. "She's been more open, honest and vulnerable. And I think she might be losing faith in our abilities." Advena could tell there was more to it than he was divulging and leaned in closer, as if studying Jake's face for any indication of what the whole truth might be. "She's the one holding our whole operation together 'Vee, if she gives in to hopelessness we're done for, and that's as much as I'm saying on the matter." Advena huffed and allowed her face to be pushed away so she wasn't infringing on her boyfriend's personal space so much. "And don't tell anyone this, but I think Queen Ashpid might have been the cause. It was right after Jeica Bonded with her that she started acting weirdly."

"Well, the Queen's mind is quite strong and humans are, er, not… quite as?" Jake shot her a look, which she rolled her figurative eyes at. "My point is, a Queen and a human have, to our knowledge, never Bonded before, so there's really no telling what effects it could have. Hopefully, it'll just be a temporary thing, like that personality-switch you and Tyler did was."

The group arrived at a heavy bulkhead door, guarded by two heavily-armed Federation soldiers, who dutifully gave way to Jalin and Stenton and allowed them to unlock the electronic lock. A fierce hissing noise filled the air as the door's mechanism hauled it open slowly, the sheer weight of the thick, alien steel close to outmatching whatever advanced form of hydraulics the Federation had developed. The five unlikely allies stepped inside, and began following the rustic grey corridors down to the holding cells.

"Yeah, hopefully," Jake agreed finally. They remained quiet for the remainder of their journey, each one anxiously anticipating the upcoming encounter for their own reasons. Jalin opened the final door which kept them from their destination, having to go through three different verifications of identity before being allowed access.

"Just one?" Jake asked, surprised that there would be so much security on one holding cell. Before them, a single tank which would only just be able to fit a creature slightly bigger than Advena stood, its contents hidden from view by an armoured plate, cast into a glow of green by indicator lights. It was bolted down, monitored by a plethora of computers, and reinforced with strong alien alloys.

"In this room, yes," Jalin informed him. "We keep them separated in an effort to prevent communication between captives."

"Yeah, I don't think whatever this stuff is is thick enough to prevent that," Advena commented unenthusiastically. She didn't know why, but she'd been hoping that the Federation would treat her kind a bit more humanely than the Weyland-Yutani Corporation had. Somehow, it seemed Xenos here were kept in even worse conditions.

All three of the non-Xenomorph occupants of the room jumped slightly at the sudden, shrill, muffled screech which came from within the tank, accompanied by three loud clangs.

"I think they heard you," Jake murmured quietly. He glanced over to Jalin, who hesitated before tapping a few commands into the accompanying computer array. The armoured plate covering the front of the tank slid aside unceremoniously, allowing the light of the room to illuminate the dark shape floating in the clear liquid within.

"Ho-ly crap," Jeica breathed. The Xenomorph was, first of all, taller, leaner, and yet somehow more muscular than Advena. Its body was more humanoid, less hunched, and covered in patches of sturdy spikes on its shoulders, spine, heels and elbows. A single line of the same spikes ran down the centre of its domed head which, like the rest of its body, was coated in large, intermeshing armour plating, like large scales shifting over its body. A single clawed hand pressed against the glass – it was disproportionately small, looking much like a human's, except with only three fingers and an additional thumb in the place of a pinkie. However, the bones of the hand seemed to shift, the digits becoming thicker, longer, and tipped with wicked claws, thus making them resemble Advena's much more closely. A quiver ran along the creature's adorning spikes, the strange appendages momentarily flattening themselves against its body before frilling back out again. Then, as if the movement was meant to serve as a forewarning for the next event, the most surprising thing happened.

Four slits, two pairs on either side of its face, split open, revealing four crimson-splashed eyes, complete with dilated pupils which speedily narrowed into reptilian slits.

"FU-ck me," Jake yelped, taking a step back. However, the four crimson orbs ignored him, instead settling on the stock-still form of Advena.

"Niir dueir aa min?" it demanded, confusion clear in its mental voice. Advena's mind raced, searching for something to say while simultaneously reeling at the realisation that they didn't speak the same language. Of course they wouldn't! They were raised in an environment where American wasn't spoken, so why would they know the language? She didn't have a translator, and Jake's earpiece couldn't pick up the telepathic words, so she couldn't use his ears either. The strange Xeno's confusion quickly turned to anger at her silence. "Niir dueir jammu kaal-trat!" It slammed its other fist against the glass in a fit of rage, its lips peeling back to show off its fangs.

"Advena…" Jake urged her, trying not to let the fear creep into his voice.

"Hold on… Let's try a more universal language, shall we?" She paced closer, extended her arm, and placed her palm over that of the other Xenomorph's. Were it not for the layer of thick, transparent material between them, they would be sharing an uncomfortably long hi-five. Advena leaned the front of her dome against the glass-like substance to accompany her hand, and began concentrating on searching for the other Xeno's mind. She felt the other creature beckoning to her, welcoming her connection. To her surprise, the other's mind was much more powerful than her own. Without the help of a Queen, the stranger was able to forge a temporary Bond which rivalled the strength of Sal and Tyler's.

Advena caught a glimpse into chaos, massacres, destruction on scales that made nuclear weapons look like a slap on the wrist. Entire star systems wiped out, bodies dropping by the millions. Desperation, despair. Centuries of constant struggle.

In return, she gave up memories of Jacob; his mission which started this all, their training together, their escape, the first time they had sex, the leisure days they'd spent on Altin. When the brief Bond ended, both parties withdrew from the glass placidly, mulling over what they'd just seen.

"She's suffering," Advena stated sullenly in a private conversation with her lover. "So much pain and loneliness… and these aliens, they've kept her here, isolated, for so long, depraved of all her senses in this… thing. It's torture. We can't leave her like this!"

"'Vee," Jake called to her sympathetically, "we can't interfere with the Federation's business – you heard how adamant Jalin was about keeping her in here."

"Please Jacob, you know this is wrong. You promised me that the Resistance isn't just about America, or humanity, but Xenomorphs as well. You promised us all that you would do everything in your power to free us from labs, cages, and our unfavourable reputation. We can help her; I know we can."

"Advena, I wish we could. I really do, but if we tried anything, the Federation would end us – the Saints, the Resistance, everything. And then there would be zero free Xenomorphs forever. The best thing we can do for her right now is convince the Federation we can be trusted." Advena hung her head, but silently conceded. Jake hugged her comfortingly, but she dejectedly refused to respond to his touch. The Xenomorph within the tank gathered what was happening and demanded another link with Advena, which she hesitantly accepted, guilt welling within her.

Advena went rigid, her posture frozen unnaturally while her mind went completely blank. Jake's heart pounded fearfully as realisation dawned.

"Oh shit," he whimpered pathetically. Advena whipped around, her tail sweeping Jake and Jeica off their feet and tumbling painfully onto the floor while her hands ripped Jalin's gun out of his hands and slammed the butt of the weapon into his helmet with enough force to shatter the visor, before hurling the weapon at Stenton with enough force to send her crashing into the far wall. The Xenomorph in Advena's body deftly swept her hands over the control console next to the containment chamber, grinning an ugly tooth-filled grin when Jalin stumbled back onto his feet, before snatching him up with her tail and slamming his face against the retinal scanner. Alarms blared. Footsteps echoed from farther down the corridor as reinforcements rushed to their position. The fluid in the containment chamber began draining as the transparent barrier slid slowly open.

Advena collapsed as she was released from the freed Xeno's control, shuddering uncontrollably. The two guards from outside burst into the room just in time for the freed Xenomorph to leap between them. With a flick of her tail, the Xeno unleashed two of the quills which lined her body, one embedding itself into each of the guards' chestplates and throwing them against the walls with the momentum of the sharp objects. And just like that, the Xenomorph skittered off, out of sight in a flash.

"Well… shit," Jake groaned as he picked himself back up off the floor.

"You wanna tell me what the hell just happened?" Jeica growled. She glanced over to Jalin, who was propped up on an elbow barking orders into his radio, thankfully not feeling particularly vengeful yet.

"It was like… a body-swap, but, she forced me to do it, and-and I didn't get swapped anywhere…"

"Like… mind control?" Jeica asked hesitantly. If that was the case, this creature would be even more dangerous for the Saints than it was for the Federation. Advena nodded shakily, still on the floor reeling from the sudden and aggressive violation of her mind and body.

"I didn't think that was possible," Jalin admitted, groaning as he hauled himself to his feet and sounding somewhat guilty – though because of what happened to his American allies, or because of the consequences it would have for his own people was unclear. "Sometimes when we manage to extract Scourge embryos safely, the soldier it was removed from can be controlled by the creature – that's why we retire any embryo survivors from Scourge Defence Units. But I've never seen a Scourge creature control an unrelated individual." He paused, cocking his head for a moment, before beckoning for the others to follow him as he jogged out the door. "Radar just got a hit – the Scourge creature is heading retrograde through sector thirteen – that means it's heading for the docks."

They burst out into the 'streets' of the Federation station, finding them deserted – though it didn't take the humans long to figure out why. Neon signs everywhere which usually displayed advertisements and such were instead filled with amber lettering which undoubtedly served as some kind of station-wide quarantine alert. "Damn, we lost it. It's disguising its reading somehow. Trivioskizt, track all the emergency shuttle ports in docking bays Sistrei twenty-two through ninety."

Thanks to the Federation's strategic layout of the station, the docks, military garrison, and holding facility were very close together, allowing the five soldiers to arrive at the docking platform in a matter of minutes. Jalin tossed his sidearm to Jeica and levelled his own rifle, his slitted pupils narrowing visibly through his broken visor. Jake made a dramatic show of how empty his hands were as he watched Jeica quickly study the alien pistol, finding it functionally similar to an American weapon, though the magazine wasn't obvious, if not outright missing.

"Oh get a grip; you have Advena to protect you," Jeica scoffed, noticing his theatrics out the corner of her eye. They swept the room, every corner, nook, vent and inch of ceiling, slowly making their way past the rows of sealed airlocks. Jalin stiffened at something which came over his radio and quickly yanked Jeica towards him moments before every single airlock hissed and opened. Advena sunk her claws into the metal below her and wrapped her tail around Jake in a heartbeat, anchoring them to the floor in a less sophisticated fashion than Jalin and Stenton's magnetic boots. Their ears were assaulted by the howling of escaping air and – barely audible – screaming alarms which accompanied the flashing orange lights all around them.

And just as suddenly as they'd snapped open, they slammed shut once more, instantly plunging the room back into silence.

"Hull integrity stabilised; restoring air pressure," an artificial voice informed them over the dock's intercom. "Lockdown disengaged." Jake broke away from Advena and turned to face the quiet hiss of decompression. The umbilical connecting the USS Squire to the Federation station slid its doors open of its own accord, likely in accordance with the AI's lockdown disengagement.

"Oh you clever little shit…" Jalin muttered. "Trivioskizt, get the crew to power up lil Charlie." The Americans were clueless as to what had upset him so much, but Jalin knew full well what their elusive captive had done – by opening the airlocks, she had caused the emergency protocols to take over, locking down the section to minimise air loss from the rest of the station. When Trivioskizt closed the doors remotely, the emergency ended and the protocols shifted everything back to standard operation mode, meaning everything they had locked down to prevent the Xeno's escape had just been unlocked, even if only for the second it took for Trivioskizt to re-seal everything.

"Emergency Evacuation Shuttle Degrato-Six is now departing; please stand clear," the AI droned helpfully. Jalin straightened out his posture, anxiously tapping his claws against his armoured gauntlet.

"Come on… Come on," he muttered under his breath, a silent clock ticking away, counting the seconds until EES Degrato-Six left effective weapons range. He jumped suddenly, then pressed his fingers against his earpiece intently. "Yes, lock target EES Degrato-Six. Fire." He held his breath a moment, the silence which ensued being interrupted by a gentle rumbling which reverberated through the entire station, before the lizard sighed in relief. "Thank you Trivioskizt. Well done." He turned to his American companions, who were piecing together what had just occurred through the one-sided conversation and announced proudly: "We got it. But we'd better do a sweep of the area just to make sure that shuttle wasn't a decoy."

~~~~~~~~~~()~~~~~~~~~~

"Thank you so much for having us, Lieutenant," Tyler said graciously, shaking Jalin's hand in a rare display of civility. "Even in the short amount of time I've spent here, I've been given plenty to think about."

"Likewise. There may be more to you Outsiders than I thought. Good luck with your rebellion, Americans, and we'll be in touch soon." Jalin dipped his head at the humans, before leaving them alone at the airlock to their ship. The five companions gradually made their way down the short pressure-sealed walkway, a thick pane of Federation glass all that separated them from the unforgiving darkness of space beyond.

"So…" Tyler began awkwardly. "Jeica, I have a favour to ask of you…" Jeica gave him a sidelong glance, praying internally that this wasn't going to be about staying with the Federation again. "I was doing some digging earlier while you guys were causing intergalactic catastrophes, and I think I managed to find my… well, my birthplace, I suppose. It'd be about a four hour detour at most – please, it would mean a lot to me if –"

"Tyler," Jeica cut him off, placing a hand on his shoulder reassuringly. "Don't sweat it. I'll tell the captain we have a new course."