Paul sat in his cell.
The bunker was wet, cold and dark, and he was shivering violently. The guards had removed his weapons, not that he could use them anyway, and had pulled him through miles and miles of these old, damp tunnels.
He was scared, he tried to hide it, but obviously they noticed.
They didn't care. One of them had hit him in the ribs, leaving a big bruise behind, and making Paul wince every time he took a deep breath.
They had chucked him into the cell, closed and locked the door, and doused the lights. It left him in utter, complete darkness.
There was not so much as a small glint of light. He was alone, lost and afraid, and even worse, he didn't know if Akkan was still alive.
He had seen the Xenomorph attack the guard that had pulled them out of the ventilation shaft, and had shouted at him to disappear.
But he didn't know if he had managed to escape the barrage of gunfire the guards had unleashed upon him.
Maybe Akkan was already dead, or even worse, dying alone in the dark ventilation shafts, with the sure knowledge that he, Paul, would also die soon.
No! He couldn't allow himself to think something like that. Akkan had to be alive. One bullet wouldn't be enough to fell a xenomorph, not unless it penetrated the brain. Akkan would still be alive, and his kind were able to recover really fast from injuries.
Paul didn't know how much time had passed. He didn't know if it was day or still night. He wasn't tired, but then again there was still adrenaline in his veins.
He had to focus on getting out somehow. He had to help Weyland and Akkan.
Getting up from the floor, he started to feel his way around the cell. It was devoid of furniture, the walls and floor damp and featureless. He touched the low ceiling, barely allowing him to stand upright.
The door was set in the wall, with nothing but a small, closed viewing slit, which resisted every try to open it.
He was locked in, until someone came and freed him, he was out of action.
Growling, Paul sat down on the floor, beating the door with his fists
"LET ME OUT! ANYONE! LET ME OUT!"
His voice faded, leaving nothing but echoes disappearing in the nothingness.
Sobbing, he put his head in his hands. It was all in vain. Schulz had been smarter than them.
Now all of them would die here. He wouldn't get his planet, and Weyland would've been leader of Weyland-Yutani for a few months. They'd disappear, down here, their bodies incinerated.
At the end of the line, only death would wait for them.
Paul did not believe in god. He was a scientist, not a priest.
But now, in these moments of absolute despair, he folded his hands, like he had done in church when he was small.
Whoever is up there, God, if something like you exists, please allow me to find my Akkan again, once both of us have passed the veil...
His prayer was silent, he did not have the courage to speak it out loud, to admit that he had already accepted his demise, and now was praying for an afterlife.
He did not want to fade, without Akkan ever again.
Sobbing, he curled up on the floor, trying to keep as much warmth inside him as possible, and tried to sleep.
"Dr. Schulz, what a … pleasant … surprise!"
Schulz waved his hand to the guards, who let go of Weyland's arms. "Mr. Weyland! I hear you've been doing quite well! And you brought me both Dr. Cromwell and his Xenomorph!"
"You might have Cromwell, but you don't have the xenomorph."
"That doesn't matter. The creature will be found. It may take a few days, but eventually, my staff will find it."
Schulz raised himself from his chair, bringing himself to eye level with Weyland.
"Strange. You aren't afraid of me." The doctor remarked.
"I'm not afraid of you, Schulz. You are a mere human."
"You forget, Weyland. I am more than just a human. I ascended above humanity. I am something better. An improvement, so to say."
"Schulz, did you have a few of your own cocktails too many? I've seen what it did on the Xenomorph. Maybe you shouldn't have taken-"
"You are so wrong on my account, Weyland."
"Enlighten me. Now I'm in you grasp, Dr. Cromwell is, and the xenomorph will be too, soon, you can tell me whatever you want."
"On the contrary, Mr. Weyland. I do not want to kill you. I was more thinking of something along the lines of a … partnership."
Schulz sat down again, offering Weyland a chair. Weyland sat down, crossing his fingers. "Pray tell."
The two men held each other's gaze. In Schulz eyes, Weyland saw nothing. Literally nothing. At least he knew what sort of man the doctor was.
"I want you to lead Weyland-Yutani."
Weyland chuckled. "I am already."
"Yes. I want you to invest large sums into a consortium of interstellar banks. This consortium has founded this research lab."
"Why?"
"There are people in this world who are interested … weapons."
"Weapons from xenomorphs."
"Exactly. And whilst on Sigma-44 we've experimented with giving xenomorphs a consciousness, so to control them like ordinary humans, here we have reached the breakthrough."
"That sounds interesting. Whilst opposing experimentations with xenomorphs, I will not let my ideology get in the way of profit."
"Well, then we might get down to business."
"We could. I will not be investing any money into any banks, though. I can buy your whole research lab here, and sell your weaponry, but I will not let the reins be taken from me."
"Ah, but we cannot permit that."
"We?"
"Like I said, I represent a consortium of interstellar banks."
"Schulz, we cannot do business that way. I will-"
"Weyland, it's not a business proposal. We aren't doing business here, you and me. You came here, no doubt to kill me. Well, seems like you haven't done very well, so far." Schulz chuckled. "You will accept this deal. You will swallow each part of it. Because if you don't, I will kill you."
"Would you do that?"
"I would, and I will. Either you are an asset to me, or you are just plain useless."
"There's another thing about human nature you will never understand, Schulz."
"And that would be?"
"If you force us to do something, we will backstab you at the first possible time."
Schulz' brow furrowed. "Possible."
"If you give me a reason to work with you, and advantage over the other options, then we could build a long-lasting partnership. Maybe lead Weyland-Yutani together."
"It seems like a good idea, if only I didn't know I was responsible for your father's death. You will never forgive me for that."
Weyland stared blankly at Schulz "You just saved me some trouble of getting rid of the old man in a more peaceful way."
"What? Don't you hold a grudge? Don't you hate me for it?"
"No, Schulz. I don't care. I won't stand in the way of profit. If it increases my wealth, I'm with it."
"Well then, Mr Weyland. I need money. This lab always needs money."
"What do I get for investing?"
Schulz put a gun with an audible clang on the table. It ruptured the silence. "I won't shoot you."
"Will I get out?"
"Weyland, don't take me for an idiot. I won't let you out. I will let you communicate with your firm, but until I know you can be trusted, you won't be let out."
"I wouldn't do that if I were you."
"Why?" Schulz laughed. "You are powerless, unarmed, and you can't escape. What do you want to do?"
"There's a ship waiting in low orbit. It got us here, and it will wait to get us back."
"So?"
"It's got a Weyland-Yutani type 777 nuclear missile trained on us."
"Even a type 777 isn't enough to pierce these bunker walls."
"A bunker-breaking type 777 is. We call it the type 777-2."
"How is it triggered?"
"I won't tell you."
"Suit yourself, Weyland. You will die in the blast as well."
"SO will you, Schulz. None of us will survive it."
"That is your weapon? A warhead, capable of blowing up the whole complex?"
"Exactly. And if I don't blow it off, it will incinerate us in… maybe 15 hours?"
"You should know exactly when. You ordered it."
"I do know when, but I'm not going to tell." Weyland leaned back, crossing his hands behind his head.
Schulz grimaced. "You wouldn't kill yourself just to harm me. You love your life too much."
"But I will never let you have power over me. Not in life, and not in death."
Akkan scrabbled through the tunnels. He kept sniffing the air for one scent of Paul, but never smelled anything.
There were other Xenomorphs here, more than just one, and their strong scent was drowning the human's out between it.
He had passed their holding pens silently, seeing his kin squabble for chunks of meat the guards threw to them.
He smelled their anger, felt their rage, and their fear.
But also something else crept to his mind, as he saw them. He had tried to communicate with them, but there was never an answer. Only a questioning feeling inside him. As if they didn't know who he was. They recognized him as one of their own, but never fully understood him. There was admiration in their minds as they felt each other. As he passed over one cell filled with three xenomorphs, he managed to still their screeching just by stretching his mind out to them, touching his with theirs.
Their anger subsided, and Akkan felt their awe in his mind.
It chilled him, somehow. He crawled on, sniffing the air for scents, scents that would lead him to his lover.
He crawled deeper into the bunker's tunnels. The network was vast, deep and damp, but he didn't mind. The tunnels were appearing in his mind like a map, he memorized every junction and passage, every exit he could find.
And every level he crawled deeper, the air got damper and warmer.
Paul was not on the laboratory-level, and the lower one was filled with xenomorph holding pens.
He was crawling along a passage leading over the sewage pipe, when suddenly a voice ruptured his mind.
Hello, Child.
Paul had slept, and awful nightmares had haunted him. He'd rather stay awake now, listening intently to the noises around him.
Footsteps lead up to his cell, and he heard the bolt sliding back. It was a well-oiled bolt, not making much noise.
A light blared into Paul's face, and rough hands reached for him, twisting his arms behind his back, and pulling him out.
"Where are you taking me?! Stop! Let me go!"
The guard flashed his light into Paul's face again. "Shut up, you maggot. Stop squealing, and we might not actually harm you."
With a click, handcuffs closed around his hands, and he was pushed on through the passages.
The walls were bare concrete, and there were featureless and bland.
There were other holding cells lined up as far as he could see in the dim light of the passage.
The guards were dragging him along, pulling him into a rickety elevator. One put his hand to a biometrical scanner, and the elevator started to climb.
On the next floor, the door sprang open again, and the guards pushed Paul out into a big, empty room.
"Go to the door at the far end. And hurry. The Dr. is waiting for you."
Paul stumbled on. He would meet Dr. Schulz and question him about why he had done this, and maybe be able to put some reason into the man. Maybe be able to do this without the violence Weyland and Akkan would use.
But he knew it would be useless.
Paul stopped in front of the door, and it swung open.
Involuntarily he took a step back.
"YOU?"
"Hello, Paul."
Sorry for not being able to update yesterday, but i just didn't manage to write anything due to personal reasons.