Chapter Four: The Arena
"Kill them all!" Lar'ja growled as swarms upon swarms of the Hard Meats gathered at their location. The sound of the angered hissing and running was accompanied by the whistle of plasma sailing through the air and finally pieces of meat exploding and acid melting the ground.
The lead Hunter roared a battle cry and leapt into the first Xenomorph that managed to get close enough with his wristblades. The sharpened weapons found their mark and dug in deep, the Hunter's weight assisting in driving the blades deeper. With a display of pure strength, Lar'ja lifted the flailing serpent into the air and held it up for all to see while laughing. Had the Hard Meats not been mindless drones, they would've surely been filled with terror at the sight and panicked. But the stronger willed presence of the hive's Queen occupied each warrior's mind and demanded them to keep up the onslaught.
"There are so many! Our kind will sing many tales of this battle!" Lar'jas second-in-command stated with a hearty chuckle. He too charged into the fray and landed powerful slashes with his wristblades. Even the toughest of the Hard Meat's exoskeletal armor gave way to his brutal force, the Hunter being noticeably more muscular than the other two.
"You guys are savages. Especially you, Rhino." The third and final group member added. He was lingering in the back and using his disc blades to strike at the Xenomorphs from afar. Letting the other two stronger Yautja handle the 'front lines'.
"You are too shy, Crimson! Come here and claim some trophies with us!" The Hunter, Rhino, laughed as he pulled the third Hunter closer and pushed him towards the main battle.
"AH-" Crimson exclaimed as he was thrown into a serpent. With quick thinking he thrust his wristblades forward, ducked to dodge the swipe of a claw, and pierced the Hard Meat's heart. Crimson quickly threw it to the side and backpedaled before another one could get to him, using his disc to clear the area around him.
"You can't do that you fool! I could've gotten injured!" The smaller Yautja growled and shoved Rhino in retaliation. The larger Hunter simply laughed and dismissed the younger Hunter. Crimson huffed angrily and jumped on top of a tall pillar nearby to check his surroundings.
From atop it, he could see the entirety of the chamber. It was a massive maze of pillars, pathways, and tunnels; the pillars obviously a vantage point for the Predators while the tunnels and narrower paths were advantageous for the serpents. The 'arena' was named specifically that for a reason because it was purposefully built to challenge Yautja during their hunts.
"Stay focused, we're not done here yet." Lar'ja ordered. He was scanning the area for more prey but they seemed to stop swarming in. Something was about to happen, he could feel it.
"Prepare yourselves. The real battle commences." Lar'ja told the other two as he adjusted his gear. They checked their equipment and assumed defensive stances, whatever it was that was going on they wanted to be ready.
Not a moment later, screeches echoed off the walls and a group of six Xenomrophs emerged from a hallway. The crowns on their head said it all and they're slow and meticulous steps only further proved their experience. These were Praetorians. The elite members of the Hive, the chosen bodyguards of the Queen.
"Ancestors, I praise you! What a find! This battle will be sung for eons!" Rhino proclaimed, sharpening his blades against each other.
"Indeed, this will be a great fight. But it's the fight after this one, that I crave. So, let's finish this quickly." Lar'ja replied, using the auto-aim feature on his plasma caster. Six Praetorians was a Hunter's dream fight, the skilled Hard Meats made excellent trophies and gave the Hunter a lot to brag about. But not for Lar'ja. He wanted more. He wanted the Queen. And just beyond the hallway, was her chamber.
The following battle was slow to start but quickly became heated when claws met steel blades. Two Praetorians circled each Hunter like vultures to a dying animal, devising a method to take down their prey with a swift and critical effectiveness.
Lar'ja quickly became impatient with their antics and leapt towards one with a powerful lunge. His wirstblades missed its target by millimeters and the two Praetorians instantly converged on him, shooting their bladed tails towards his abdomen as he was mid-lunge. He growled in pain as the tails sliced at his stomach, but fortunately that was all they did in terms of damage. The Hunter landed on the ground with a roll and quick-fired his caster at the closest one which turned the creature's shoulder into a green acidic mist. It screeched in pain while twitching around on the floor and, when Lar'ja went to end it, the other charged him on two feet with claws raised. Lar'ja fell for its feint by challenging its charge and raising his own hands against it, to which it quickly ducked to four feet and spun to whip him with its tail. This action sent Lar'ja skidding back at the force and a large gash to appear on his chest where a metal piece of armor once was. Green blood oozed out and Lar'ja roared in anger. Instead of recoiling and showing weakness, he began pounding the wound with one hand in an intimidation display to the Hard Meats.
The Xenomorph hissed and rushed him on two feet again with its claws raised. Lar'ja once again challenged the charge and, when the creature went down to duck then spin, the Hunter leapt into the air and brought down a combi stick down onto its head. The creature let out a strange gurgle as its head was pinned to the ground by the weapon.
"Hahahahahaha! The same trick does not work twice!" He proclaimed and yanked the combi stick out of the Praetorian. But Lar'ja felt a jolt of pain in his leg a moment later and was quickly pulled to the floor by the fist Praetorian. Despite being injured it still fought by clawing at Lar'jas calf and aiming its tail at the Hunter's head. Lar'ja moved his head out of the way and kicked the Hard Meat, which shot another jolt of pain up his leg but gave him some time to get back up.
The Praetorian proved tough to kill when Lar'ja attacked it with his combi stick, deflecting all his attacks with the bladed tail while maintaining balance with only three limbs. But the Hunter was not amused and backed up, aiming a plasma shot at it.
"No, this Hard Meat is brave enough to fight me while injured. I'll give it an honorable death…" He growled, thinking twice and powering down the caster. He put away the combi stick and activated his wristblades. The battle was quick but honorable as Lar'ja severed its head from its shoulders…
Let's forget it's been three years since I've updated this…
Hello, I'm revisting this because, well, I want to? I'll make sure to start updating at the minimum once a week or two. So, enjoy.