Looks like I was able to upload this sooner than I though. Enjoy!

I was stuck in that box for quite a while, I must've drifted off. I was woken up by light shining on me from the lid being lifted open. I screeched in surprise as I briefly forgotten the events that transpired a moment ago. My gaze met the eyes of the human girl staring from above. I gave her a light hiss to show my discontent with waking me up.

"Oh, sorry about that. But I have a more comfortable home for you." she said as she lifted me from the box and placed me on a soft mattress. "This is my bedroom. You can move around here all you want as long as you don't exit the room." she said, motioning towards the door to my right. I didn't care much for this human at the time, for I was eager to escape. Was she really expecting me to follow her orders for me to stay confined in this room? Not a chance!

I was about to leap off the bed when Rachel turned around and placed a bucket right next to the bed. Whatever was in the bucket, a sweet, delicious aroma dissipated from it and into the air. I felt my sticky saliva flow from my mouth and drip onto the mattress.

"Here, I got you some food. It's ground beef from the storage room. You must be starving. I heard newborn xenomorphs must eat to grow." she said as she nudged the bucket in my direction. Xenomorph? Is that what I was? My stomach was rebelling, and I couldn't help but dive head first into the bucket of meet. I began chomping down on the juicy texture of the beef. The fat and protein from the food was really filling and it made me feel all warm inside. Rachel sat there, amused at how fast I was devouring the food.

"Rachel!" shouted a voice from the door. "Come out, now! We have a call from the commander!"

"Ok, I'll be right out!" said Rachel. She looked down towards me. "I'll be back in a few minutes. Stay out of the sight, okay." she said as she caught up, opened her door, and disappeared behind it. I heard a click, and I assumed she must've locked the door. I continued to chow down on the meat until the bucket was completely empty. I didn't notice until I chomped down on my tail before I realized that I had finished all the food. I let out a loud purr as I was full. I slowly crawled out of the bucket and closely examined the room. The room was gray and covered in metal from the walls to the ceilings. There was a bed adjacent to the mattress I sat on. Perhaps that was where Rachel would sleep? A desk stood on the left side of the room, a blank sheet of paper and a pen laid idly on top. Even though the atmosphere felt stable, I sensed that I was somehow moving; traveling somewhere. This must have been some sort of ship, and it was traveling through space.

I noticed an air vent located at the corner of the room, near the floor. I remembered the human's words: she had told me to stay out of trouble. My curiosity was stronger than my capacity for discipline, so I approached the metal bars that blocked the path to the air duct. I felt a warm breeze surround me, almost as if inviting me to come in. My body was narrow and slender, so I was able to easily slither and slide through the bars and enter the air ducts.

The air ducts were a labyrinth. I made at least ten different turns and I got lost. I let out a growl of dismay as I tried to find my way back to the girl's room. However, a loud hiss caught my attention. It sounded like an animal in deep pain, but something about the hisses felt very familiar. I followed the sound and it led me to an opening on the floor of the air ducts. Looking down, it seems that I was situated right above another room. There was a large humanoid figure strapped to a metal ring. However, I knew this creature I was staring at was not human. Its scent felt familiar to me, and it had a long, carved, carapace with dorsal tubes projecting from its back. Unlike the humans, this creature had claws and a tail, just like me.

I had a feeling that this was my species, but I was confused why that was. It had two legs and two arms while I was a limbless creature with a snake-like body. Nevermind that, I could tell it needed help. The hisses were hisses of agony. Looking around carefully making sure no humans were in the room below, I let out a soft hiss as well. That immediately got the attention of the xenomorph below, as it looked up into the cracks of the air vent. It saw me and it looked at me for quite a while, perhaps surprised to see another fellow xenomorph.

Who are you? It asked. You don't belong to my Queen's hive.

Wait?! THe xenomorph could speak. But, no, something was different about the way it talked. It didn't move its mouth like the humans did. It was as if it spoke directly into my mind. I tried speaking back to it.

I don't know who I am. I said meekly. It was a lame response, but it was the truth. I was just born a few hours ago and I have no idea what my life's purpose was.

The xenomorph stared at me long and hard, and said, Your Queen, she must have been killed along with the rest of your hive. You are alone, aren't you? I didn't know how to respond to that. Nevermind that, kid. Help me get out of here. I'll take you to my Queen.

I've never met this "Queen" before, but I suddenly found myself really excited. Was the Queen's guidance what I was expecting when I first came into the world? Was she the voice that I was waiting for? The purpose for my life?

How do I get you out? I asked it.

The other xeno sighed. You are too young to fight off the humans. Wait until you molt, and then come back. It said to me.

Molt? I wonder what he meant by that. I obeyed its order and I continued down the air ducts. His hissing has seized, perhaps he was hopeful that I might be able to rescue him. It felt good to help another, it really made something inside me tingle.

After slithering along the ducts, I felt myself begin to slow down. I was feeling very sluggish all of a sudden. What was this feeling? I stopped in an area of the air duct where it expanded. This area was probably larger because many other air vents converged at this spot. I lied down on the cold metal surface. I felt my body begin to pulse and my skin grew flakey. I was beginning to molt.

Looks like our little chestburster is finally going to grow up. What will happen to him next? Will he remain innocent like he is now, or will he turn into a killing machine? How will he escape with the other xeno? All these questions may be addressed in the next chapter! Please leave a review or just make a simple comment. I really appreciate any kind of feedback, to let me know that you, the readers, actually exist and are enjoying my story. Thank you in advance.