The town was being destroyed right in front of Katherine. Running from the invisible hunter with a child in one arm and loaded pistol in the other. The dead bodies, skinned and dangling from trees, the skulls lying on the ground. She hoped she was dreaming. The child in her arms was wailing. Katherine tried her hardest to stop its cries. She didn't see the rock and tripped, falling face down in the grass, her newborn child rolling into a bush. The mottled black and red body of the creature began to come into view as the shimmering invisibility slithered off its body. She quickly cocked her pistol. Point blank at the gun, the creature reached up to his terrifying mask with the one, menacing jaw in the bottom and remove two black, rubber-like tubes from the side of the black second face. As it removed it, Katherine began firing her gun. The creature roared, its mandibles spreading. This one was huge. It showed no reaction to her bullets, but instead, it raised its gauntlet and sliced her throat with ease. The hunt was over. But the lone Hunter was disturbed by the wailing sound. It began tearing through the bushes. The sound was making his weapons malfunction. He reached down and placed his mask back on his head. It, of course, was malfunctioning as well, the view screen covered in static. Through what was left of his functioning infrared vision, he found the newborn child. As he picked it up, it yawned and fell silent. His mask stopped going haywire. Remembering the persistence of its mother, M'Ackiko decided to take it back to the ship. Tal'se, the chief Hunter, was waiting for him. He glanced disapprovingly down at the bundled human. [What's this?] He asked. M'Ackiko bowed his head. [I found a human child in the wastes. We know the humans are weak, but persistent. If we raise it successfully, it can become a powerful ally.] Tal'se looked the child over, and then scowled, but his hardened face softened for a moment as the child grasped his thumb in affection. Shaking it off, Tal'se said, [Fine, raise it. But it will be your responsibility.]
Predator: New Allies
Twelve Years Later
[Why won't you let me go?]
[You wouldn't survive a second out there!]
[Yes, I would!]
[Stop arguing with me!]
[But I want to go!]
[What did I tell you before?]
['It's only hunting to the extremes'. But I can do it!]
[You barely survived your Blooding!]
[Is that it? You're scared I'll die? The Blooding incident was a total accident, and you know that!] M'Ackiko sighed. What was he going to do with this twelve-year-old youngblood? The serpent hunt was too extreme for her. The incident at the Blooding was an accident, yes, but it almost cost Raiven her life. [You're not going, and that's final.] He said, settling the matter. As M'Ackiko climbed off the ship, Raiven told him, [Just do me a favor and try not to die.] She headed back to the Armory, putting on her armor and tested out her new combi stick.
Five Years Later
[M'Ackiko? Wake up!] M'Ackiko's eyes shot open. [What's happening?] He demanded, clearly startled. His graying dreadlocks gave away that it was nearly time for this wise old elder to pass, but his strength was not diminishing. [Tal'se wants you on the upper deck.] Said his surrogate daughter, Raiven. Over the years, she had grown into a fine Hunter. Her orangey brown eyes were big and beautiful, her auburn hair tied into hasty knots to keep it out of her face during battle. She smiled. Her full pink lips would make anyone or anything swoon and her teeth were surprisingly white considering her diet of the strange variety of Hunter foods and consumables. M'Ackiko marveled at her beauty and strength every day, because he knew that every day, he was inching closer to his passing. The upbringing of a human child isn't always that exciting, considering the odd variety of smells that M'Ackiko encountered during it, but her training and skills made it all worth it in the end. He rose from his bed, caressing her cheek, like he did every morning. She rose from her crouch and went to fetch his weapons. When Raiven returned, Tal'se himself was already in M'Ackiko's quarters. She hid in the hallway, eavesdropping, which she hadn't done in a few years. She quickly deployed her cloaking device to hide her body temperature. [M'Ackiko, it's nearly time to send Ku'Rah on her first Lone Hunt.] She heard Tal'se utter. It had been several years since Tal'se and M'Ackiko had discussed her Lone Hunt. The thought was dangerous. [No. Not yet.] She heard M'Ackiko tell the Chief. She gave an inaudible breath of relief. [Why are you so protective of the child?] She took this opportunity and removed her cloaking device. She waltzed in, her movements smooth and agile. [Am I interrupting something?] She asked innocently. Tal'se looked her way, and then glared at M'Ackiko. [Ku'Rah, find your Hunt Brother, Chicu. You have been given an assignment on Earth.] At this, Raiven dropped her father's weapons. [E-Earth?] She stuttered. [I… I'll find him.] Earth? What was Tal'se thinking? Raven, or Ku'Rah in the Hunter language, had been forbidden to ever visit Earth. M'Ackiko had told her constantly that the humans on that planet would want her organs for dissection. All she knew was that if she were to ever come into contact with one, kill it or disable it. She threw on her mask and trophy belts while trying to locate Chicu's comlink. Chicu had been a friend of hers. His father hadn't let him go on the youngblood serpent hunt either, and they had bonded over that. Most of the elders on the ship thought that she and Chicu would someday mate, but she and Chicu didn't think it was likely. All in all, Chicu had become her Hunt Brother, and had traveled to many planets on many hunts, but the mission Tal'se had given her might be the death of both of them. When she finally found his comlink, Raiven called up Chicu on her mask's communicator. [This better be good.] She heard his gruff voice say over the link. [Chicu, it's me, Raiven.] She heard silence for a split second. Chicu worked hard on his trophy collection and it often took a lot to tear him away from his work. [Tal'se wants us to go to Earth for a Human Hunt.] That caught his attention. [Human Hunt? Is Tal'se crazy?] Raiven cringed at the word "crazy". Who knew who was listening to the comlinks? [Will you keep quiet? I was surprised too, but Tal'se is clan leader. We can't decline this.] There was another small span of silence. [Meet me in the lower decks, alright?] He finally said.
Lower Decks
[Okay, what the hell was Tal'se thinking? You know that we aren't cut out for this!] Chicu yelled. Before Raiven could answer, her wrist bracer began to beep. [No time.] She told him. That alert meant that the ship was approaching Earth. [Are we ready for this?] She asked him. He sighed. [Yes. I think we are.] Suddenly, a red light above them began flashing. [Oh, no!] Raiven and Chicu began running towards the upper decks where the break out must have happened. The live serpents that the ship was carrying had broken from their restraints. The restraints were destroyed. A roar from the hallway gave way where they were. As they stepped into the hallway, they saw Tal'se struggling with one of the serpents. Raiven began to aim her plasma caster at it, but Chicu placed a hand on her shoulder. [No. Don't shoot it.] The serpent opened it's mouth and shot out it's Death Clamp into Tal'se's face. Tal'se fell to the ground, dead. [NO!] Raiven shrieked. She ran up to the creature and sliced it's head off with her gauntlet. Her only objective now was protecting her father, who would now be the next Clan Leader. Her comlink turned on. It was M'Ackiko. [Father!] She yelled into the com. [I'm trapped with them!] He called. If he died, Raiven would take on the position. She wasn't ready for that. She had no mate, no Lone hunting experience as a fighter. [Get to Earth! Now! Don't worry about me anymore. My time has come.] His deafening roar told Raiven what had happened. [Father! No!] She fell to the floor, her knees buckling. [Raiven, I know it hurts, but we have to get out of here, now!] She stood, shakily, and said, [Of course.] The small town of Forks, Washington awaited them.
Forks, Washington
Billie, Sue, and Ann were walking along the nature trail, when a huge ship landed only yards away from them. Even at a distance, the intense heat radiated against their skin. Even in the cool winter temperatures, it felt like summer in California. There was a clang inside its hull that made them all flinch. Billie, the youngest, perked his head up. "They're in there…" he whispered. Billie had a gift, one that his sisters weren't about to doubt. The bottom of the ship slid open and two humanoid figures walked out, one with agile movements, as if it were dancing as opposed to walking. They turned around almost instantly, as the dancing one fired a laser on its shoulder. A sickening squeal came from inside the ship and the two ran off. When they were out of sight, three serpent-like creatures crawled out and jumped into the trees. Billie smiled. "I told you they were in there."
Twelve Miles Down the Nature Trail
[Chicu! I got readings twelve miles back. Slight heat interference. There were three humans near the ship!] Raiven called to her Hunt Brother. [I know I picked it up too. They were aged from eight years to sixteen years. Unarmed. Not worth it anyway.] Raiven nodded. There was nothing more to say. Three unarmed children weren't likely to pick up any weapons and pursue them. Their biggest problem now were the serpents.