Well here it is, the next chapter! This one has been a long time coming, so I hope you all enjoy~

"Okay Kirchoff," Ursula shouted. "Now go back about another fifteen feet!"

"Remind me why I'm the one running all the way out here and not Valen?!" He shouted back. Kirchoff was sitting in the dirt about two hundred feet from the entrance of the messy storage unit that Ursula insisted was a lab. Today they'd been testing the range and relative intensity of Valen's telepathy, and for Kirchoff that meant a lot of walking and sweating all day under the artificial sun. But dammit, he was feeling a lot better lately than he had been since before his torture. Like it or not, the physiotherapy was helping.

"Do you want to make him move?"

"...No."

"Then get cracking!"

A twinge ran up his back. "But…"

"Kirchoff!" Ursula's voice snapped. "We don't have all day!"

"Alright, fine!" Kirchoff hauled himself to his feet and dragged his feet over to a spot that he guessed was another fifteen or so feet away.. Valen? Can you hear me?

Nope. He could feel the smug amusement practically radiating off him.

"He says he can't hear me." He shouted back at Ursula.

"Okay, let's try moving back another few yards and trying it again. You're bound to move out of range of his snark eventually."

My snark is infinite, Valen retorted. He was basking on top of a boulder, not a care in the world as he watched Kirchoff haul himself to his feet to walk even further away.

You do have to admit that your range is getting pretty impressive Valen.

So is yours. You could barely hear me from twenty feet away.

Oh yeah, it's my range that you're impressed by. Kirchoff jabbed.

Mine is clearly longer, Valen snarked right back, not missing a beat. But yours isn't bad for a human.

Is that why I caught you spying on me bathing this morning? Were you admiring my range?

I.. you…I wasn't... I didn't… shut up! This time Kirchhoff felt his cheeks heat up as the embarrassment from Valen washed over him. That was new. Of course Valen actually hadn't been spying on him, he always stood watch while Kirchoff took a bath in the river, despite Kirchoff's assurances that he probably wouldn't drown himself. Was the best way to get under Valen's exoskeleton to get flirty with him? Valen could out-sass and out-snark Kirchoff any day of the week, much to his eternal frustration. But that last remark totally threw him off his game. He decided to try it out. You're lucky I already like you, you pervert.

I am not a 'pervert' He huffed. Well that was a start. I'm a Xenomorph, in case you forgot. I was just... observing you.

Right, you were just observing. Completely objectively. While I was washing my naked body.

Before Kirchoff could draw out another flustered outburst from Valen, Ursula interrupted him. "Alright slowpoke, this time try going as far as you can! We'll try to establish a max range, this incremental crap isn't going anywhere quickly!"

Damn her and her unwavering focus. Not that he could really blame her, she was barely able to keep the Board of Directors off her ass. Especially because they thought he and Valen could be put to 'better uses' aside from being her pet project. Just the thought of those 'better uses' sent a shiver down his spine right across to Valen and up his back. With a sigh, he trotted off towards the woods. Hopefully Valen's range wasn't too long, or his legs would be sore tomorrow.

"Hey Ursula, got a minute?" His breath came in gasps and pants as Kirchoff raced to catch up with her. The shutters were closing on the makeshift lab by the time he'd sprinted back across the two hundred meters to the lab. Curse Valen and his stupid range. They'd just finished up for the day and he wanted to get a word in with her before she could disappear for the day.

"I've only got a few spare minutes a day now," She glanced over her shoulder, the bags under her eyes even more prominent than normal. "Please be quick about it."

"Yeah, that's kinda what I wanted to talk about." He lowered his voice to a whisper. "How is the situation with the Board?"

"Same as always. Impatient for results, no matter how many reports and proposals I give them."

"Do you need help?" He leaned in conspiratorially. "You know I'm still a Xenobiologist right? I could help…"

"No, Kirchoff. That's not possible." She cut him off before he could finish his offer. "If I let you help, the Board is going to get real suspicious, real quick. It's such an obvious conflict of interest. There's no way they'd trust anything I'd give them if I let you help write any sort of analysis."

"You don't have to tell them, I could do it in secret. I could analyze the data back at camp. I want to do more than just be a guinea pig."

"Kirchoff I'm sorry, I really am, but I can't risk it. It could jeopardize everything I've... We've worked for."

"But…"

"No buts." Kirchoff opened his mouth to argue, but the words died on his tongue when he saw the look in her eyes. She wasn't budging.

"Alright, alright," He conceded, raising his arms in the air. "But if there's any way that we can help, let us know."

"Please don't do anything stupid to hurt yourself either. Replacing you now would be a total pain in my ass."

Ursula wasn't exactly lying when she told Kirchoff that it would be a pain in her ass. Probably just a few orders of magnitude more painful than he could imagine.

The Board, which was to day Goodwin, had been hovering over her like a vulture. Every report, every graph, every calculation, every scrap of work about Kirchoff and Valen was scrutinized under a microscope. Every piece that Goodwin deemed 'less than satisfactory' was another strike against her, and those strikes were piling up.

Hopefully she could spin something that would keep him satisfied out of this latest experiment. How far Valen could telepathically listen and speak had to be of at least some interest to them. Hopefully enough to keep them off their backs for another few days.

Is it going to be enough? She sighed and buried her head in her hands. Her desk was strewn with so many used paper plates, coffee cups, loose sheets of paper and half eaten lunches it was hard to locate the desk underneath the accumulated layers of mess. She was running on fumes. When was the last time she actually ate? Or had a liquid without caffeine in it? Fuck, when was the last time she actually had a good night's sleep? And where the hell was the report to the Board about Valen that she was supposed to hand in today? Papers shuffled and fell ot the floor as Ursula dug through the mess, trying to find the stack of paper that she knew was there, she'd just put it down for a second.

Fuck, where is it?

"Fuck!" Ursula shrieked in frustration. She swept her arms across her desk, flinging a pile of trash against the wall and onto the floor. A coffee cup, still half full, toppled over and spilled it's contents over the remaining pile on her desk, soaking into the mess of paper and plastic.

"Ffffuck…" This time her voice was barely a whisper. There was no way she could keep going like this. No matter what she promised Kirchoff, she couldn't just burn herself out until there was nothing left. There had to be another way, something else she could do to keep them safe.

"Dr. Nigel, is now a bad time?" Goddamnit. Goodwin was peering around the edge of the door, peering at her with a mix of disdain and amusement on his weasely little face.

"Not at all Goodwin, just letting off some steam." Several strands of her hair were hanging limply across her forehead. She swept them back behind her ears and stood up straight.

"Ah yes. So sorry to interrupt your stress relieving activities, but I've come by to pick up your latest report."

"Goodwin, do you do anything else other than pester me for my reports?"

Not even a hint of a smile formed on his face. "It is my entire job to pester you, Ursula. You haven't been meeting expectations since the board promoted you to Director of Research. Even your little pet project has been suffering. Even with his little… shall we say 'indiscretions', Julius never had any problems keeping up."

"And look where that got him in the end. We both know you couldn't just sweep his 'indiscretions' under the rug forever. What he did to Kirchoff was the final straw."

Goodwin's voice tightened. "Only because you got the Ethics Board involved Ursula. And because we haven't even been able to ship him off-site yet, we're racking up massive fines."

"Oh yes, how dare I report Julius for hijacking my project and torturing one of my best scientists half to death. What a terrible person I must be for objecting to torture and mutilation for the sake 'science'." Her eyes bored into his, "The Ripley Conventions exist for a reason, Goodwin."

He scowled at her, but didn't bother replying. He just held his hand out, and Ursula scooped up a wad of papers from her desk and slapped the report into his open palm. The edges were wrinkled, and one edge was damp with leftover coffee. Goodwin barely skimmed through it, just reading the abstract and quickly shuffling through the rest. His scowl lessened slightly.

"I'll be back at the same time next week." Without another word, he spun on heels and strode out of her office. Of course he didn't shut the door behind him.

"Jackass," She muttered to herself as she closed and securely locked the door. She couldn't keep doing this. Eventually Goodwin would tell her that she was 'performing below expectations' and deliver her notice of termination. Knowing him, he'd have a grin on his smug little face the whole damn time.

She flopped back into her office chair and started at the mess on her desk. "Okay, you've had your little freakout. Now you have to think. What are you going to do?" She asked herself. If things kept going the way they were going, she'd be fired, Kirchoff and Valen would be 'repurposed' and in all likelihood killed shortly thereafter. Maybe they'd kill them right away just to spite her. That sent a shudder running down her spine.

So... if they were all screwed anyways, what was to stop her from screwing the Board right back? Despite how she was treated by the Board, she was still the Director of Research of Bernard Research Station. Every budget approval, every requisition, every large-scale research project, all of them crossed her desk. The Board never bothered reviewing any of the day-to-day bureaucracy that kept the research divisions running. They only seemed interested in her research with Kirchoff and Valen. And the company profits, of course. As long as the budget was in the black, they didn't really care what she did outside of her pet project. That gave her an idea. An idea that would involve even more work for her.

She exhaled a long, weary sigh. This was going to be hard. And risky. If she messed up, then they'd all be screwed even harder than they already were. Still, it was better than the alternative. She plucked a sheaf of papers from the table at random, some budget proposal she was supposed to sign off on. She placed it on a newly empty spot on her desk, and grabbed another. A report from the materials division on the progress of an anti-armor ballistic weapon. She placed that one next to the first, and reached out for more. It was going to be a long night.

How about we go north today? Kirchoff asked him. Valen felt the image of a pond shaded by low hanging pines, the calm water undisturbed save for a lone deer drinking on the far end, the cool air on his skin.

We went that way yesterday, Valen replied. There wouldn't be much wildlife hanging around there after today, even longer if he went hunting up there again.

He and Kirchoff were making their way back home after yet another long, tiring, and in Kirhcoff's case, physically exhausting day of research. They'd settled into a routine over the past few weeks. Get up early, eat breakfast, walk to the hole in the wall that was Dr. Nigel's new laboratory, participate in whatever inane tasks she had planned for them that day, walk home, and do whatever they wanted for the rest of the day. For kirchoff, that meant reading and listening to music. For Valen, that meant hunting and harrassing Kirchoff.

Yeah, but I was thinking we could stay there overnight after, do a little trip. The image of a campfire, the smell of smoke filling his nostrils, the sight of countless stars in the sky. Longing for better days gone by.

Hmmm… Fine. As long as I don't have to watch you eat.

Valen, I watch you eat all the time. I can't possibly be a messier eater than you are.

You clearly haven't watched yourself in a mirror eating a granola bar. If cereal could bleed you'd be imprisoned for crimes against humanity.

Ass. Kirchoff gave him a playful slap, but he could feel his amusement. Lately Kirchoff had begun to accompany him on his hunts. It still made him a bit uncomfortable, but Kirchoff said that going with him was far better than being without him. Also, you're carrying the tent. I'm tired after running around all day.

You're just lazy.

Don't judge me, I can be both.

Fine, but I'm not your packmule.

Of course you're not.

Still, Valen liked the idea of a campout. As much as he liked their little clearing, it was starting to get stale staying in the same place every night, and they had the whole indoor forest to themselves. It would be a waste if they didn't explore a little more while they had the chance.

We should find somewhere new to make camp. The deer around my usual hunting grounds are catching into me, and I want to keep those little hoofed bastards on their toes.

We've gone over quite a few places. Where haven't we gone yet?

Valen thought about it for a minute. There were quite a few ponds that drained into a creek that ran north to south down the artificial incline of the hill, but they'd already explored most of them pretty thoroughly. There was the deep forest, but that was closer to where they had set up their camp, so that was out. The one area they hadn't explored much yet was actually pretty close to Dr. Nigel's research lab. They'd passed through that area quite a bit, but never spent much time in the forest around there. It was far away from where their normal campsite was, and the area was full of shrubs and grass that made it harder to get into the trees. Sometimes he liked to leap and bound through the trees when he was bored and wanted to flex his leg muscles, and he'd spotted a few places that might make a good spot for an overnight campout. He explained his idea to Kirchoff, but he didn't seem as eager as Valen was about the idea. Valen, I can't get through all that foliage. It's way too thick, I'll get scratched all to hell..

In response Valen extended his claws, and in one swift motion uprooted an unfortunate bush that was just minding its own business by the side of the path. He grinned at Kirchoff's startled expression and at the mild intimidation from watching him rip an entire bush out by the roots like a carrot.

Okay, point taken. Kirchoff raised his hands in surrender. Do you have anywhere in mind? You've at least gotten a look around there.

I have a few ideas. I'll tell you once we've loaded you up with all of the books you're going to be reading tonight .

My back aches in anticipation.

"Valen, do you have some kind of grudge against shrubs?" Kirchoff asked as Valen ripped another plant out by the roots and tossed it to the side. He'd been tearing a path through the undergrowth like some kind of deranged reverse botanist for the better part of an hour and wasn't showing any signs of stopping.

You were the one who was complaining about getting a little scratch.

Well, I mean yeah, but… Kirchoff glanced over his shoulder at the line of holes and excavated bushes behind him. Don't you think this is a bit overkill?

Kirchoff expected to feel a wave of irritation wash over him, but instead he felt just a bit dejected. His tail drooped, ever so slightly. Ah crap, had he hurt his feelings? Hey look, I appreciate the effort that you're putting into this. Kirchoff scrambled to come up with something to cheer him up. I don't think anyone has ever systematically destroyed part of an ecosystem for me before.

That made Valen perk up a little. We can't have your oh-so delicate skin getting cut up, now can we. He snarked, but Kirchoff could still feel his mood lift as he grabbed another shrub by the roots and violently excavated it. Don't worry, we're almost there.

After only a few more minutes and a dozen more innocent plants slaughtered, they arrived at a shaded clearing. It was surrounded on the dges by the familiar pines of the forest, but the ground was covered in tall grass that reached halfway up Kirchoff's chest. In no time, Valen had trimmed it all down to size with a few swings from his powerful tail.

After you're done being Dr. Nigel's guinea pig, you should consider a career in gardening.

I'd be a much better un-gardener.

Kirchoff snorted and loosened the straps holding the tent and camping gear between Valen's dorsal spines. You should put those un-gardening skills to use and dig us a fire pit. I don't want all this grass catching fire while I'm trying to sleep.

While Valen went to work decimating more of the local flora, Kirchoff went about setting up the tent, only struggling a little to get the poles through the damn holes on the top of the tent. When he had finally finished, he unpacked a sleeping bag, flashlight, a frankly ridiculous number of books, and a set of cooking implements.

What are those for, Valen asked, gesturing to the cooking tools.

That is a surprise, Kirchoff smiled up at him.

You know I can read your mind right?

Exactly, which is why I am doing my best not to think about it.

Valen stared at him, trying to feel what he was thinking. Kirchoff did his very best to only think of irrelevant things. His lunch, how tired his legs were, how he really needed to shave, how badly he wanted to just strip naked and walk into the nice, cool creek and...

Alright, you've made your point, Valen looked away and did his best to suppress the overwhelming embarrassment he was feeling. It didn't work. Kirchoff smirked at Valen's obvious discomfort for a few seconds, then said Why don't you go hunting Valen, there must be all sorts of wildlife around here. You've never really hunted around here before, right?

Not once, Valen replied, grateful at the out Kirchoff had given him. Do you want to come along? It'd be nice having an extra set of eyes.

I'm sure it is, but I've gotta set up your surprise.

Can't you give me a hint? He whined.

Just make sure to bring your kill back before you eat it.

Why? Are you going to eat it? Because I'm not sharing.

Ew no! Just the thought of it made him gag. Look, just go bring a deer or something back and please try not to mutilate it too much before you get it here.

I'm not making any promises.

You'd better if you want your surprise.

Ugggh, fine!

Hunting was a blessing. After being cooped up in the same stale white torture cells his entire life, being fed bland, stale steaks his entire life, hunting gave him a thrill like nothing else. Below him, at the edge of the forest was a small herd of deer, minding their own business as they grazed, not suspecting anything was amiss. His eyes were locked on one in particular, a straggler who had wandered closer to his tree to graze on the foliage. The dense underbrush would make things difficult for him if he didn't get his mark on the first leap however.

And missed. It must have heard him shifting up in the trees. It fled the instant before he made his leap. He hissed in irritation. Whatever surprise Kirchoff has planned had better be worth it.

By the time he made it back to their campsite, his kill clamped in his jaws, Kirchoff had gotten a fire roaring in the pit. He'd also placed a metal grill over the fire, and he was reading from one of the many books that they had packed for the trip.

Hunting for Survival, Valen looked over Kirchoff's shoulder at the book. Inside were diagrams and instructions for skinning and cleaning various animals, including deer. Was your surprise that you're considering becoming a butcher?

No, Kirchoff slammed gestured at the pages in irritation. I have no idea how I'm supposed to do this. I don't even think I brought a big enough knife with me.

Here, let me take a look.

Drop the deer first, you're bleeding all over my shirt.

Valen dropped the deer carcass behind him and Kirchoff turned his attention back to the book. Almost instantly, he felt the familiar flood of images and words, immersing him in the technical world of muscles, hide, organs, and the disassembly of all of them in a neat, almost clinical manner. Kirchoff read the passages over and over, letting the details wash over Valen like the tide of a yet-unseen ocean.

Once he felt like he understood the concept, Valen drew back. He extended his claws, and began to dissect the deer, following the procedures from the book as exactly as he could. It was still rough, he had never done this before and his claws weren't designed for this kind of delicate work, but soon enough he had stripped off enough slabs of meat.

Kirchoff took the meat, covered all of them in salt that he had brought in his pack.

I hope you don't mind the taste of salt, it seems bland enough for your weird tastes.

I can taste just fine, thank you.

So you say, Kirchoff snarked. You eat raw meat most of the time.

And you eat granola, but I don't judge you for that. Kirchoff shot him a look. Okay, maybe a little, teeny, tiny bit.

Ass, Kirchoff swatted him across the leg and laid the stripes of meat over the grill. The aroma of cooking meat was so intense that Valen almost couldn't stop himself from salivating. You did this, for me?

Yeah. He poked at the meat sizzling on the grill. You probably didn't get any cooked food growing up, so I thought I'd made something nice for you. I'm not sure if you'll like it, but at least it'll be fun to try it.

Kirchoff…

What is it Valen?

Valen took a deep breath.

Kirchoff, I love you.

"W… What?" Kirchoff seemed... confused. Startled. Like he hadn't been expecting it. That wasn't the reaction he was expecting at all. What do you mean…

I mean I love you. I love you so much it... I can't even… I just love you.

Valen... This… This is happening too fast. I just need to think. An image of a gruff, stern man, screaming at him. The impact across his face. Falling to the floor.

Valen stepped closer, wrapping Kirchoff in an embrace. Please, Kirchoff, please just listen to me.

Please Valen, just give me a bit of time… I need to think. Images from that night in the alley, the drunken stench of the two men.

What do you mean? We've known each other for so long. Silvia, laying on the floor. The coppery smell of blood. The horror of it...

Valen, I've known you for less than a year. This is just happening so fast. Kirchoff tried to step out of Valen's embrace. That just made Valen squeeze Kirchoff tighter, refusing to believe what he was hearing. Valen, let go.

Please Kirchoff. Please!

Valen, you're hurting me! The panic. He was being restrained. He was on his knees, his ribs aching, and he was...

Please...

"LET GO!" A sharp, slicing pain. Warm blood, running down his forearms. The tight, constricting grip around his chest, digging claws into his arm. Valen let go, his arm tingling with the pain. But his arm was unmarked, as smooth and black as it had always been. That meant…

He looked up at Kirchoff. He was clutching his arm to his chest, hunched over on the ground. Blood ran down from a line of cuts on his forearm, oozing out between his fingers and dripped onto the ground.

Kirchoff.. I… I'm sorry. He reached out to Kirchoff.

"Don't touch me!" Kirchoff shrank away, pulling his arm in even closer. His legs were trembling so much he couldn't stand. Kirchoff was afraid. No, terrified.

Of him.

Anger, frustration, irritation, amusement, concern, worry, comfort, contentment, happiness. Valen had felt all of the emotions that Kirchoff had held towards him.

But never before had he been so afraid of him.

Valen slowly backed away from Kirchoff. Likewise, Kirchoff backed away from him, too scared to run, too scared to stand, too scared to look away. That look in his eyes burned a bitter hole in his heart. Before he could do or say anything else that would hurt Kirchoff, Valen turned tail and fled into the forest.

Kirchoff stumbled down the path Valen had carved through the undergrowth, the only light guiding him the flashlight he had packed for the trip. He'd left everything at the campsite. Once he could stand he had snatched it from the bag and fled, not even bothering to extinguish the campfire.

He had to get back, somewhere safe. He needed to think, he needed to talk to someone, he needed to fix his still bleeding arm. Eventually, after what seemed like an endless amount of running, he stumbled free from the bush lined path and back onto the open grass at the base of the hill near the lab. It wasn't too far from here. He took off again, panting and wheezing, towards the shuttered gates.