Chapter 4
Warning: Hitchhikers May Be Escaping Convicts
Adrien's Night
Ahh! Ahh!
We come from the land of the ice and snow,
From the midnight sun where the hot springs flow!
The hammer of the gods,
Will drive our ships to new land.
To fight the horde, sing and cry, Valhalla, I am coming…
"Don't you have something from this century, Captain?" Viper grumbled. The team had stopped for a break and some sustenance. Adrien had caved and put on some music from his phone's speaker for entertainment, even though it risked revealing their location.
"What's wrong with the classics?" Adrien shot back. Hornet appeared to be playing with a butterfly knife and ignoring them while Scarecrow poked a log on the fire.
"It's old rock, that doesn't make it classic. Led Zeppelin sucks just as much now as back then," Viper argued.
"Oh, so sorry, Mr. Music Police," Adrien mocked before turning off his phone and stuffing it away in his pack. "We should get moving anyway."
At that exact moment, there was a loud explosion that nearly knocked them off their feet.
"What the hell was that?!" Viper exclaimed once they had finally oriented themselves.
"The meteor!" Scarecrow answered.
"Get out of the impact area!" Adrien ordered. The group began running, several tiny chunks almost hitting them.
"This isn't good, man!" Hornet exclaimed, just as a soccer-ball sized piece of rock debris landed just a few feet in front of him.
"Overhang!" Adrien announced, pointing to a thick rock overhang jutting out from a hill. They managed to take shelter just as another explosion and shockwave hit, this time knocking them off their feet.
"What the hell are we gonna do now, man? Russians got us out numbered, shit's falling from the sky, and now aliens–" Hornet blabbed as he staggered to his feet.
"Get a grip, Brian. We don't know anything yet. Scarecrow, was that the meteor impacting?" Adrien asked. If it was, it seemed the cataclysmic event was over now.
"It was," Scarecrow confirmed, squinting at the sky.
"Dammit! We were supposed to have the girl before it hit!" Viper yelled, kicking a small rock several yards in frustration.
Adrien took a few deep inhales, but noiselessly, so his men didn't hear. "Calm down, Viper. Scarecrow, did the UAV catch any of that?" he asked as he stepped out and surveyed the area.
"It did, Captain; come have a look." After a rewind and pause, the footage showed several big chunks of the meteor coming in hot; and at least one piece was not too far from their position.
Adrien tapped a knuckle against his chin, deep in thought. Nightfall was almost upon them, and he didn't relish fighting either species of alien in the dark (assuming, of course, they were actually there); but maybe if they met the creatures head-on, they'd have the element of surprise.
"We're only gonna focus on the chunks that are, say, shed-sized or larger. Nearest one hit close by. We'll recon it for our extraterrestrial friends, and go from there," he finally decided, giving the hand signal to regroup on his position.
It was an hour's walk to the closest impact site, and the men were apprehensively quiet. As they approached, the temperature began to steadily rise until it was too hot to get any closer. In the far distance, Adrien could see an orangish glow that he could only assume was a forest fire caused by the airburst.
"Jesus! Nothing could've survived that!" Hornet stated.
Adrien shielded his face from the heat and tried to see the meteor piece from his position, but they were just simply too far away and the smoke was making his eyes water.
"Scarecrow, reroute the drone. See if it can get a closer look. But keep it away from the smoke of whatever's burning out there."
"You got it, Captain." Once in position, the drone lazily circled the site. Scarecrow maximized the camera's zoom to see finer detail. Nothing was there. No signs of anything entering or leaving the crash site. Granted, the picture wasn't perfect resolution; but it didn't need to be to reach that conclusion.
"…Thanks, Bob," Adrien sighed in agitation, rubbing what he could reach of his temples beneath his helmet. He had been right the first time: wild goose chase. Regardless, he tagged the meteor site in his GPS before turning to his men.
"What now?" Viper asked for them.
"Get the girl and get the hell out of here," Adrien stated shortly, being in no mood. Vizhay wasn't far now, but the UAV did spot another town when it was circling the impact site. Night was coming, and between the smokescreen and the rapidly darkening orange sky, Adrien thought it best to seek shelter there rather than make camp out here.
Everyone was too tired and irritated to talk on the way to the town. Running across the whole of Siberia and under the threat of imprisonment or death if caught, only to find it was all just a pointless endeavor, had sapped anyone of small talk.
As they walked into the town, an extremely weathered sign greeted them. "Who's the linguist?"
"Sign is too ruined to tell much, but it does say 'Welcome'," Scarecrow answered. "I can tell you it's not Vizhay."
"I feel welcome," Hornet grumbled. With Scarecrow's help, the men found it was actually an abandoned mining town. Adrien tagged it as 'ghost town' in his GPS. One fact about Siberia he did know was it was littered with these ghost towns.
"Stuff like this always creeped me out, man," Scarecrow whispered loud enough for them to hear.
Nobody responded, but they all silently agreed. Buildings appearing deteriorated, but still lived in, was a strange sight. Like something just snatched the occupants away, never to be seen again. The ambient noises didn't help either, such as the rhythmic creaking of metal – which only reinforced what the man had said.
The fireteam began turning on their weapon and helmet lights as the dark continued to encroach on them.
"Well, looks we got the pick of Siberia's finest living accommodations. Any preference, boss?" Hornet tried to lighten the mood.
Adrien looked around some; in reality, he didn't want to stay in this place any longer than needed, but with no light, they simply had no other option.
"WOAH!" Viper screamed suddenly, shooting the ground near Adrien's feet with his M240B light machine gun.
"Hold fire! What the hell?!" Adrien shouted as his teammate danced around.
"There was a spider!" Viper protested.
Adrien gave him a look before replying. "Are you fer real? There are no spiders in this part of Siberia. It's too cold for them. Not to mention, how would you even see a spider that small on the ground in this low light?"
"It was big! And if not a spider, then that was one messed up dog, Captain!"
"Scarecrow, Hornet, did you guys see this 'dog'?" Both men shook their heads. "You're tired, Viper; your eyes are playing tricks on you."
"No way, I know what I saw! It had eight legs and a tail!"
Adrien stopped at that description. He had been around the world and seen a lot of strange creatures, but no spider fit that profile. At least, none native to Earth.
"How big was it? Color?" Adrien asked, now more serious.
"I don't know, wiener dog-size and tan?" Viper explained. Damn, that sure sounded like one of the creatures described in the Antarctica reports. The hairs on Adrien's neck began to stand on end… and it wasn't because of the cold. They were being stalked.
"NODs on, safeties off!" Adrien ordered. NODs being short for night vision goggles, in this case. The men flipped the devices down to their eyes and turned the safeties off their respective weapons in haste. Infrared laser designators from their weapons' PEQ boxes danced around, now visible in the sickly green vision they currently saw in.
"9 o'clock high!" Hornet called out. Everyone turned as a vaguely humanoid shape jumped down toward them. All the men let loose a burst on it, too high-strung to even consider that it could be a fellow human being. Thankfully, it wasn't.
They didn't get a moment's respite as an inhuman screech ripped across the abandoned town.
"Contact front!" Viper called out.
"Fall back!" Adrien ordered. The men performed a leapfrog retreat where one man would lay down covering fire while the other three retreated a distance before a new man would stop and cover the other three. Eventually, they found themselves in a dead end where the town's well allegedly was, and dug in behind whatever cover they could find.
Adrien scanned the road they had just come from. He could see humanoid forms with tails and elongated skulls darting around. They were fast, so fast he could not get a bead on them. Finally, one charged, and Adrien promptly dropped it with two well placed shots. That seemed to enrage the others as more forms charged in, screeching that unholy noise.
"Weapons free! Open fire!" Adrien ordered. The town's square erupted in gunfire. Adrien was hiding behind a wall section, while Viper used the well as machine gun rest. Hornet was behind a cart, and Scarecrow had maneuvered himself onto a low hanging balcony.
"Frag out!" Hornet called out. Everyone else joined in, thinking that was good for crowd control. With four fragmentation grenades rolling down the road, the beasts took no notice until they exploded, digging up rubble and debris – and the reward of several new corpses – with it.
"Watch your ammo! Short, controlled bursts!" Adrien warned. Ammo was scant, and they were facing a bigger hoard than he would've ever guessed.
"Watch out! We got crawlers! Aim low!" Scarecrow shouted out. Looking lower, Adrien could see he was right; the 'spiders' Viper had told of were scurrying across the ground. Thankfully, they were also less armored than the serpents.
"Reloading!" Viper advised. Being he had the belt-fed machine gun, the reload speed was not fast at all. One of the creatures broke their line and charged straight for the defenseless gunner. Adrien turned, and time seemed to slow as he took it all in.
Scarecrow was too focused through the scope of his sniper rifle to help.
Hornet was reloading.
That left just him.
Lining up the shot, Adrien was sure to lead the target slightly before firing. There was a spray of puke-green fluid, probably blood, that hit Viper; and the man screamed out in pain.
Spinning to the front once more, Adrien knew he had to secure the area before he could help Viper. Thankfully, it seemed like the monsters were pulling back.
The three of them actually advanced and pressed the attack as the monsters retreated. Adrien even pulled his M45 sidearm and fired that rather than reload his rifle.
"You think they're losing heart?" Hornet asked as he slapped yet another fresh magazine into his rifle.
The cries of Viper reminded them all of the wounded man. As they rushed to him, Adrien could immediately tell it was bad. While not having a real medical background, he had taken a course as a combat lifesaver and had often tried to learn in the field.
Half of Viper looked burned; more than surface skin, too. Adrien remembered reading that the 'blood' of the serpents had acidic qualities to it, and he had killed one very close to Viper, causing arterial spray. Nothing on their person would treat this; either Viper would live, or he wouldn't, and they didn't have a say in the matter. And it made Adrien damn angry. He was just starting to like these guys.
He had to detach from that thought. They needed him to lead as a professional, not get bogged down.
"Captain," Viper mumbled.
"Yeah, what is it?" Adrien asked, already wondering if he should give assurances or tell it to him straight.
But Viper didn't say what he was expecting. "Know I already apologized, but I'm really sorry 'bout earlier. For doubting and ridiculing you about the alien thing."
Taken aback, Adrien still took a moment to clap the man's uninjured shoulder. "You should be, man!" he said as lightly as possible, forcing a smile. "And why'd you remind me? I still gotta kick your ass for that!"
Not that Adrien stood a chance against the big man; but at the very least, that managed to get a pained chuckle from Viper.
As Adrien mulled the next step, he took notice of a shimmer in the moon above, on a building rooftop. "Shit! Get down!" he yelled as he brought his rifle up and fired at the distortion.
"What?! What?!" Hornet asked. Adrien looked, but the distortion was gone now, even when he blinked a few times to try and pick it up again.
He knew what he'd seen.
"Watch yourselves, we got a hunter on the field," the marine advised as he scanned around before making a decision.
"Pick him up, we need to get to cover," he ordered Scarecrow and Hornet, nodding at Viper. Of course the biggest guy would be the one to go down, requiring two people to carry him.
Thinking he had the best chance of spotting the alien hunter, Adrien covered the other two, scanning for the threat.
Only a little bit outside of town, they spotted a barn. Perfect. One way in and one way out, by the looks of it. Once inside, they carefully placed Viper down. Hornet and Scarecrow immediately began closing the doors as Adrien covered them.
Just before they sealed, Adrien ran in – and something followed.
There was a loud smack, like an axe hitting a tree, just as the doors were closed. Looking around in confusion, Hornet and Scarecrow's eyes came to rest on Adrien.
He was up against a wooden support beam in the barn, his legs spread wide in a triangle shape. Just below his groin and buried in the beam was a very alien-looking spear.
Looking up at the other two, Adrien chuckled, finding a sort of manic humor in this, despite their situation. "You missed me, asshole!" he taunted.
Bad move. Another alien weapon came flying through a crack in the barn doors, this time embedding just above his head. He could only describe the new weapon as an oversized throwing star.
"Maybe you shouldn't antagonize it, boss. You just about lost something important," Hornet smiled. Adrien smirked back, but his face fell when he heard the raspy breathing of Viper.
"Cover the door, I'm gonna attempt to stabilize," Adrien stated.
Vai'dqouulth stood outside the barn door, debating his next course of action. The human warriors had barricaded themselves within the deteriorating structure, and there was no way to enter without crippling injury to himself – even if he defeated them. An admirably smart move, really.
But, Vai'dqouulth needed those weapons back. Throwing the combistick at the retreating warrior had been a sound judgement. Throwing the shuriken had been an idiotic move fueled by pride when the lesser species had taunted him. While he didn't speak the language, he understood it fairly well, and it had been insulting.
As he debated what course of action to take, Vai'dqouulth found his mind wandering back to the start of this. The clan had contacted him aboard his private hunting yacht asking him to check on an incoming meteor projected to hit Earth. They were concerned it would contain Hard Meats, similar to another meteor that hit this region many cycles ago, but didn't want to commit a large contingent of warriors in response just yet. It seemed the planet had bad luck, as it was full of the demons, just as the last.
While it would never be admitted openly, Earth and its dominant species were a favorite among the Yautja. The humans and their planet had been and currently were, raised by his kind. They also resided in Yautja-controlled space and were therefore under their protection, including keeping other parties interested in exploitation out – and preventing them from destroying themselves on occasion.
And while they made for a challenging hunt, none of his kind wanted to see the local population rendered extinct. That's why he was here, albeit slightly unwillingly.
Being part of a prideful species, Vai'dqouulth would never admit his apprehension to returning to Earth. The previous time he was here, it was to hunt a criminal of his kind known as a 'bad blood'. Usually the job fell to Arbitrators, but he had volunteered to assist as the Arbitrators were usually spread thin. At the rank of elite, he was more than capable of handling it.
During a fight with the bad blood, his shoulder-mounted plasma caster had been accidentally discharged by the criminal. The astray shot had hit a passing human, nearly vaporizing the being.
The human had been unarmed, and therefore a dishonorable kill. Without question, he would be labeled a bad blood himself for it. When Vai'dqouulth returned with the criminal's head in hand, he hadn't tried to cover up the accidental collateral damage.
After the clan had heard his story and reviewed the footage from his mask, they concluded he had not been at fault. Arbitrator Thell-Thwua'sou was the only dissenting voice, demanding he at least be required to redeem himself. The Arbitrator had even gone as far as insinuating the pardon had been due to Vai'dqouulth's royal bloodline.
Favoritism. A ridiculous accusation. It was just a meaningless title. One he never exercised for gain. He had no desire to rule Yautja Prime, as his sire did; though his sire felt differently, he knew. He chose instead to work from the rank of unblooded to elite in his bearer's clan, like any other male Yautja.
Nonetheless, Vai'dqouulth had been stunned at the ruling. He had been sure he would be branded and excommunicated from the clan unanimously. But no, he didn't even receive so much as a public flogging for it. Maybe it was because of his rank and the respect among the clan; it was hard to say for certain.
Maybe Thell-Thwua'sou was right, and he simply didn't want to acknowledge it.
After the incident, he had avoided Earth, telling himself it was because he found the dominant species hunts boring, and without challenge. The truth was much more… human in alignment.
Like a young human boy hunting for the first time and making a terrible mistake, Vai'dqouulth was afraid to make the mistake again, though his pride would never allow that admission. He clamped his mandibles shut, folding them completely over his mouth.
Shaking himself back to reality, Vai'dqouulth's mind shifted elsewhere. This had started out as a simple investigation, but quickly morphed into a dangerous situation. There wasn't just a few Hard Meats running around, there were large numbers. And they were clearly not in the feral stage; they employed tactics against the human warriors, which suggested a queen was in play.
At this point, he should really contact the clan for backup, as well as the Empire's warship stationed in this sector. There was no dishonor in that when this many species were in danger of extinction. The other part of him didn't want to simply because his head hadn't been this clear in a while. Plus, he really needed more information on the unfolding situation first.
With that decided, Vai'dqouulth turned to leave, pulling out a more traditional weapon and one of his favorites. A Yautja Bow. He would be back for his other weapons later. By then, the warriors should have vacated the structure. They were the least of his problems at the moment, anyway.
Nobody slept that night, except Viper. After a little stabilization and a dose of painkillers, he was knocked right out. The howls of animals being attacked – and the screeches of serpents attacking said animals – left the rest of the men too afraid to sleep. The intermittent gunfire and human screams farther away suggested the Russians weren't doing much better.
Meager rations of stimulates such as cold instant coffee, 5-Hour energy, and traditional energy drinks were passed around to stay awake. It reminded him of his last mission, Afghanistan, when his unit had been too paranoid to sleep at night because they were being stalked by a hunter.
Minus a random question from Scarecrow about if Jesse Ventura had really been Governor of Minnesota, to which Adrien pointed out Schwarzenegger had been the Governor of his home state of California, nobody spoke; though there was always the unspoken question coming from all of them. 'Am I going to die?'
Tense moments would come and go, like when shadows outside would seep between the cracks in the barn, moving and darting around. The men would quietly train their guns on whatever was on the other side. But no attack ever came. Thank God Viper didn't snore when he slept.
Were it not for the immediate threat of death, this place would be very beautiful at night. With no light pollution like the cities in America, he could see the brightest stars in the purple-hued sky. The northern lights were also an always welcome phenomenon for Adrien, as well.
When the sun finally began to rise, the activity around them seemed to die down. No more animals howling, no serpents screeching, and no gunfire or screams in the distance. Perhaps they were nocturnal creatures? Made sense, really, when considering the behavior of carnivorous animals on Earth.
Deciding it was time to make a call, Adrien spoke up.
"Ok. We have to move to a more fortified position. We're sitting ducks out here."
"With respect, Captain, I'm not going out there," Hornet stated flatly from where he sat, drawing his knees a bit closer to his chest.
"Not to mention Viper is in no condition to move," Scarecrow added, after a once-over of their injured squadmate.
"Well, guys, we can't stay here. The result will be the same," Adrien prodded.
Still, nobody moved. "I'll go first, cover me," Adrien said, hoping that taking point would inspire them. Good leaders pulled from the front, instead of pushing from the rear. He also hoped this showed he wouldn't expect them to do anything he wouldn't.
The barn doors were unlocked, and easily slid open. Adrien was at the ready for an attack, and his men were off to either side to cover him.
Nothing greeted them. No serpents, no invisible hunters. The sun was up, and the birds chirped. It was like a normal day.
The marine took a few tentative steps out, trying to trigger an ambush, but none came. "What's up, Captain?" one of the men called out.
"Well, nothing's wrong except that nothing is wrong," Adrien answered jokingly before returning to them. Pushing the heavy brim of his helmet up to visually make sure they were paying attention, he laid out the next orders. "Two of us are gonna scout out a more secure and defendable position while someone stays with Viper."
The men nodded in understanding, and Adrien continued. "Alright. Hornet, Scarecrow, you're up. I'll stay with Viper."
"Before we go, maybe we should try to secure these weapons for the CIA," Scarecrow suggested, jabbing his thumb over his shoulder to the alien weapons still in the beam.
What ensued next would have been a funny sight to behold, to an outside observer. All men tried individually and, in a group, to pull the weapons out much like Excalibur or Mjölnir; but they simply could not get them free.
"Forget it, leave them. We don't have time for this," Adrien stated at last in exasperation. The men again nodded. Adrien suspected they were still somewhat in shock at last night's events, hence the lack of speech. But there wasn't anything he could do about it right now.
Slowly, Hornet and Scarecrow ventured out into the wilderness.
It took some time – during which Adrien couldn't do much but listen to the unfortunate sound of Viper's ragged, weak breaths – but the other men did eventually return with a viable suggestion.
"Apartment complex. High rise and easy to fortify, beds and even some nonperishable food supplies," Hornet explained in short fashion.
"Alright. Hornet, help me grab Viper. Scarecrow, you cover us," Adrien ordered with accompanying hand signals.
The trek to the apartment was unnerving, as Adrien expected one of two species to ambush them on the way. No attack ever came, however; the hunter must have had better things to kill, and the serpents were probably bedded down during the day.
Once inside the complex, they took a room on the top floor, laying the still-sleeping Viper down on one of the beds. They all silently took him in. Adrien knew he didn't want to have to call next of kin should he die.
He had done that too many times.
"Gentlemen, here's the game plan: you two are going to stay here with Viper, and fortify your position. Seal windows, doors, vents, everything. The more layers they have to get through, the less likely they are to find you. Get some sleep, but one of you is always on watch," Adrien explained, breaking their trance.
"And what about you?" Hornet asked.
"Vizhay is not far–" Adrien began.
Scarecrow slammed the butt of his gun to the floor, sending a short wave of echoes and a cloud of dust around the room. "Oh, forget the mission, boss! We need to get the hell outta here! The girl's probably dead, anyway; you heard them last night."
Adrien gave him a look. "Don't screw up your weapon, hear me? We're in a bad enough situation as it is. And it isn't about the mission. The Russian government needs to know about this before it overruns here and spills into the Middle East, Europe, Asia, and probably the rest of the world. Plus, I'm hoping to rally whatever soldiers that survived the night and either evac with them – or get them to help us evac." Deep down, he wasn't sure he completely trusted Bob to send the evac if they couldn't find the girl.
"What makes you think they won't shoot you on sight?" Hornet questioned. He was leaning against the room's window – one of the building's few unbroken ones – and staring anxiously out at the landscape, unconsciously scratching at the dirty wood of the pane. Situation must've gotten to him, because Hornet seemed like a relaxed guy.
"Because I am human, and what they have been seeing is not. I would be a friendly face by comparison," Adrien smiled as he began to leave.
"What happened to 'nobody goes anywhere alone'?" Scarecrow asked, still not happy with the situation.
"I won't be alone; I'll have the Russian army! Twenty-four hours max, you'll see!" Adrien answered back cheerily.
Hornet shook his head. "That man is gonna die…"
As Adrien stepped into the street once more, he noted the carnage from last night was gone. No blood, no bodies; he couldn't even collect a sample of salvia. Clearly, the hunter had cleaned up after them in an attempt to cover up evidence of his species' existence. Same thing that was reported in Colorado.
The creature there had used some sort of dissolving fluid; and if Adrien had to guess, the same thing happened here.
A disturbing thought occurred that he and his men were now 'evidence' too. It was just a matter of when the hunter decided he wanted to 'clean' them up.
Exhaling deeply, Adrien prepared to run a fair distance with heavy gear and no sleep in a hostile environment.
Wouldn't be the first time.
And here we meet our 'Predtagonist'! And that is the best way to describe him. Neither a morally good nor a bad character.
Vai'dqouulth was an interesting character to create. The idea was to take Scar's personality and Wolf's skill and merge them into one. We certainly hope he aligns with what a Yautja is, while giving depth of character.
Final aspect: Gun battles are hard to write. We gave it our best go.
Plot-wise, we have covered Adrien's night! This same, initial, crazy night of Xenomorph invasion will be told from the point of view of all three 'mains' over the next chapters. Next up, Katja's night.