Chapter 3: It Begins

When they arrived at the site of the accident, it seemed like someone did abstract art all over the walls of the site.

The site was an exhaust shaft, circular, and had an 8 ft diameter. There was a fan in the center of the site, and it was still going, moving at a speed perceived as a blur. The blur however, had a red flair to it at the moment. Jake noticed how the splatter on the walls was.

It appeared that the poor victim had fallen into the fan. Jake was curious about how someone could fall into something like that. "So how was this an accident?" Jake asked the man in the suit.

"The shafts have to be cleaned, and the prisoners here are all custodians to this facility." He answered. "I'm Andrews by the way" he introduced, offering his hand.

Jake accepted, yet instead of shaking Andrews' hand, he shook his wrist. "Interesting." Andrews commented.

"Just a little piece of Archeronian tradition." Jake explained, gripping Andrews' wrist just like a regular handshake.

They let go, and Jake started to look around. Ripley and Hicks were talking, wondering what this meant. He looked down, and saw it.

It was like a cross between a snake's shed-skin, and a molted shell of a crab or lobster. It was flexible like a snake's skin, yet hard and sectioned like a molted shell. Jake recognized at once what it was.

"Hey, look at this!" Jake yelled to the three up front. They walked over as Jake picked it up and showed it to them. "It seems that we have another one of them here."

Clemens looked at them with disbelief. "We have a good many species of arthropod on this planet with very similar molts, it could be any of them." He reasoned.

Jake didn't believe him though. This is a shaft that appears to only be accessible from the inside. No it had to be one of them.

"Well, if it is what we think it is, then you are in for a big problem." Ripley warned. "Come on, let's go back to the infirmary." She said, and with that, they started to walk back.

On the way there though, it seems that the prisoners had other ideas about the new arrivals, and started to crowd around them. It wasn't until they were about to go from one hall to another that the prisoners started blocking their paths.

A good 11 prisoners were standing in front of them, trying to keep them from going through.

Hicks spoke up first "Is there a problem here" He said. For a few moments the prisoners just stood there, until a rather large one answered "You in our house now."

The convicts then started to close in. Jake had an idea of what they were going to do.

He reached in his jacket and wrapped his hand around the hilt of his Katana. "You try something," Jake threatened back "I guarantee that you'll regret it."

The convicts started to laugh. "Whatcha gonna do?" The lead one challenged.

Jake drew the Katana and held it in a one-hand en gard samurai stance "I'll hack you to bits." He replied. "I'll give you a chance to back off, I recommend you use it. And if you want at my mom, then you have to go through me."

The convicts started to reach into their prison clothes and draw makeshift weapons. Jake was starting to wonder if he could take them all on at once. Just as one of the convicts was about to make the first move, a voice spoke to interrupt.

"What's going on here brothers?" a convict spoke. This one was rather short, and when they realized he was there, the others started to draw back. "What is the meaning of this. We should let these people be in peace." He then turned to face Jake "And you young man, why did you draw that weapon. Must you really egg them on?"

Jake was caught off guard for a moment, before he answered "They were trying to gang up on my parents. I think they wanted to rape my mother."

He looked away from Jake to speak to the rest "Now brothers, have you forgotten your vows. We should remember that the weaker man breaks it the easiest, yet the stronger man remembers, and uses it to strengthen his resolve." He paused "Now disperse brothers. Let's not make a scene to where we have the administrator step in."

At that the convicts started to leave, all looking remorseful. The one who broke it up went on to explain "I'm sorry that they've bothered you. They all took vows of celibacy, and should they ever bother you again, just let me know." He paused and offered his hand "I'm Dillon. I am the spiritual leader here." He then shook Hicks' hand and Jake's wrist.

"I'm told that you went to heaven for a short while when we rescued you." Dillon said as he was shaking Jake's wrist. "Did you get to meet him?"

Jake wondered what he meant for a moment, before he realized it was either God or Jesus.

"No," Jake answered "I instead was greeted by my guardian angel. She said that my time was not yet, and sent me back to the physical realm."

Dillon appeared surprised at this. "You have a guardian angel? You must have had someone who loved you go to heaven, because most angels don't get involved."

"Well," Jake answered "I think that if my first love hadn't have died back on Archeron, I would probably have died in that accident."

"Well peace be with you brother." Dillon said, walking away. "That was weird." Ripley commented. "Let's get back to the infirmary." Hicks said.

They walked back to the Infirmary, and found Hudson, Vasquez, and Newt were having a blast. They were all huddled around Jake's old cellular.

"What's so funny?" Ripley asked.

"Well, let's just say the messages Jake sent Roxane were some of funniest stuff." Hudson answered.

Jake didn't think so. "You give me back my phone!" Jake yelled.

"You're gonna have to grab it from me!" Hudson answered, and started to play keep-away with it, passing it between him and Newt.

A good ten minutes passed in this fashion, before Vasquez had had enough. "Just give the kid his phone back Will," she said "It got annoying nine minutes ago."

"Who's gonna make me?" Hudson said, Jake's phone in hand. "I am." Vasquez answered. "You have 'til the count of three to give the phone back."

She started to count. Hudson still wasn't convinced. When She reached three, she got up and said "I'm giving you one last chance Will, give it back to Jake, or you'll be in pain man."

"I don't think so." Hudson answered. At that, Vasquez roundhouse kicked Hudson in the gut, crotch, and face, knocking him out cold.

She then pried the cell phone from Hudson's hand, and handed it back to Jake. "Sorry 'bout that, Will doesn't realize when enough is enough."

"Thanks," Jake replied awkwardly, "What was it that you were laughing at?"

"Just those cheesy love messages you sent to some girl named Roxane." She answered.

"Well, she was my old girlfriend back on Archeron, and as I found out firsthand, she's my guardian angel." Jake explained.

He then got back on the cot, slipped on his headphones and zoned out. Meanwhile, Newt was poking Hudson as he lay there, knocked out.