Author's Note: Since I love this movie so much and have watched it over a hundred times, I managed to update this chapter sooner than usual. The other updates will also be quicker.
In the meantime, I'm contemplating on which film I'll adapt next. I'm gearing towards either a comedy or fantasy flick. The audience will need something more light-hearted after watching this. Any recommendations you have, send them to me via PM. Multiple ideas are welcome, but no more than five at a time for only one genre. I'll be opening a poll for you, my fellow readers, to vote on which type of flick you'd like to see next.
Review Responses
Farmer Abe: That's a good idea. I also feel they killed off Adam way to early. A few flashbacks into his past as a slave for the SDC would have been an excellent opportunity to shed some light on how he became a villain. But alas, that didn't happen. Your idea is also interesting. I'll take it under consideration.
Jlargent: "Kill Bill" would be a great adaptation for the next action movie. Though I think Yang would be a better fit for the bride. It's about time a member of RWBY took on a starring role.
Guest 9/30/22: That's an excellent idea. Honestly, I'm surprised nobody has done a "Harry Potter" multiverse adaptation for RWBY. I apologize for failing to give the main cast starring roles. But I promise, I'll begin with the next adaptation. Either a comedy or fantasy film will be my next choice.
Guest 9/27/22: My thoughts exactly. I can easily picture her and Watts admiring such a terrible creature.
Matt: Right you are, my friend. However, I won't be doing a comedy flick next. I'll be gearing more towards a fantasy film. But It'll definitely be more lighthearted than "Alien".
JC of the Corn: You should really watch the entire flick. It's scary but awesome! And thanks for your continued positive feedback. I appreciate greatly.
Earp fan: Indeed. Ruby and Yang will be cheering Summer on the entire time. And if I get to it, they'll like "Aliens" even more.
StormMarine: I was pondering the same thing. The Ace-Ops would be a perfect stand-in for the colonial marines. Harriet would be perfect to play Vasquez.
GeonteneArgon00: I understand Summer may not seem to be the best choice, but I chose her for a reason: in the event I do a future adaptation of "Aliens". In fact, I chose the cast for "Alien" to have a genuine horror impact on the audience. Nothing against your choice of cast, but I feel it wouldn't have as significant an emotional impact on the audience.
backlash5: Those are some good choices for the cast. Though, I'm kind of lost on who should play Corporal Hicks. If you have any suggestions, I'm always open to them.
Komod0-Sensei: Lol, trust me my friend Judge Tyrion and the opening of the Ark will seem tame once RWBY gets a load of the Xenomorph.
Cooldude101011: Indeed. I had to find some way to buy the RWBY cast extra time to see Gold-Sith's viewings. And while you're correct about other ships investigating SOS's, this one would have been better off left alone forever.
Straw Hat PiratesFan2022: No need to worry, my friend. I've backed up every chapter I've written for this story just in case those rumors are true. And trust me, the RWBY cast will be as terrified of the Xenomorph as the first audiences were back in 1979.
Gamelover41592: Nope. Unfortunately, it won't end well at all. Poor Nora will probably be the most devastated and horrified for obvious reasons.
Inspiration: Alien
Disclaimer: The following is a non-profit story for entertainment purposes only. "RWBY" is the property of director and animator Monty Oum (RIP) and production company Rooster Teeth, and "Alien" is the property of director Ridley Scott, production companies Brandywine Pictures and 20th Century Fox, and distributed by 20th Century Fox.
Outside the Nostromo, harsh winds continued to batter the ship. From outside, the silhouettes of the crewmembers could be seen through the bridge's viewport.
On the bridge, Velvet was smoking a cigarette while deep in thought. As if unsure about the entire mission. Jaune came in with a fresh mug of coffee in hand.
"Any response yet?" Jaune asked Oscar.
"No, absolutely nothing, except the same transmission every 12 seconds. All the other channels are dead," Oscar reported from his station.
Jaune paused for a moment. "Kick on the floods," he ordered.
From outside, the Nostromo's flood lights glowed to life, lighting the entire underside of the vessel. The moon's barren landscape was partially illuminated, revealing the ground to be jagged and rocky.
"What a ghastly looking place," Maria commented on the moon's wasteland-like surface.
"Looks like a place the Grimm would like to inhabit," Oscar claimed.
"Indeed, Salem herself would feel right at home," Ozpin agreed with his host.
Back on the bridge, Jaune and Ren observed Oscar's examination of the moon's climate and terrain on his computer screen.
"We can't go anywhere in this," Ren said, referring to the terrible weather outside.
"Mm-hmm," Jaune hummed in agreement.
"MUTHER says the sun's coming up in 20 minutes," Oscar reported.
"How far to the source of transmission?" Jaune asked.
"Uh…northeast. Just under 2,000 meters," Oscar replied.
"Walking distance?" Ren asked while Jaune chuckled.
"So, they didn't land too far away. They could probably walk there in twenty minutes," Harriet figured from average walking speed.
"That depends on the weather and how rough the terrain is, but it shouldn't take too long," Penny reasoned, knowing the moon's rough landscape would likely slow any progress.
"Can you give me an atmospheric?" Jaune requested.
"Yes," Oscar confirmed as he pressed a few switches on his console. A series of readings scrolled across Oscar's monitor. "Oh. It's almost primordial. Inert nitrogen, a high concentration of carbon dioxide crystals, methane. I'm working on the trace elements..."
Nora blinked. "What does all that mean?" she asked cluelessly.
"I don't know, but it doesn't sound very pleasant," Ren answered Nora.
"Not at all, actually. The air isn't breathable. They'll most likely need space suits," Penny said, understanding the moon's atmosphere was toxic.
"Anything else?" Jaune asked Oscar.
"There's rock, lava base. Deep cold well below the line," Oscar finished his report.
"Mm-hmm," Jaune hummed again in acknowledgement.
"So, it was volcanic once?" Yang asked inquisitively, imagining a hell-like planet full of lava and active volcanoes.
"Apparently. Many young terrestrial planets and moons start out that way after formation," Maria stated, going by her own knowledge of planets and how they were formed.
"I don't know which version of the moon is worse, the past one or the present," Jaune commented with uncertainty.
"I'll volunteer to be in the first group to go out," Ren requested.
"Yeah, that figures," Jaune said before turning to Velvet. "You, too, Velvet,"
Velvet gave a fake smile. "Swell," she said sarcastically.
"You'd better break out the weapons," Jaune told Ren as they and Velvet prepared to venture out.
Elm blinked. "Weapons? I thought they were just commercial workers?" she said in puzzlement.
"They may be licensed to carry weapons by the company in case they run into danger," Weiss reasoned, knowing some SDC workers carried weapons for defense against raiders.
"Hopefully they won't need them, but better safe than sorry," Winter said while sipping a glass of water.
"Don't worry about it. Fearless leader can handle this," Nora assured with a confident smile.
On the bridge, Oscar finished changing into a jumpsuit. He did a little jog in place, as if preparing himself for a strenuous job. Then he sat down at his station.
Down below in the airlock, Jaune, Ren, and Velvet were all wearing space suits, waiting for Oscar to open the outer hatch. They were bulky, partially armored, and fitted with oxygen tanks and helmets with wide visors and built-in headlamps.
"Cool looking spacesuits," Ruby commented with a nod. "I wonder what they feel like?"
"Probably not very comfortable. Judging from the armor playing, they're built for protection against the elements instead of ease of movement," Ironwood deducted, reminded of stuffy hazmat suits used by Atlas military personnel.
"At least it'll keep them safe. Hopefully," Clover said, adding the last word since he had no idea what to expect on the moon.
The lights in the airlock dimmed as the hatch opened. The moons heavy winds rushed inside, blowing dust and bits of rock inside. While carrying a small equipment case, Jaune led Ren and Velvet outside and onto a small lift that lowered them onto the surface.
On the bridge, Oscar's chair shifted over to one of the viewports and observed the trio as they reached the ground. He then rotated to observe an overhanging monitor showing camera footage from the trio's helmets.
Outside, the trio stood under the Nostromo.
"I can't see an Oumdamn thing!" Velvet complained, her voice barely audible over the wind.
"Oscar, are you receiving?" Jaune asked on his helmet radio.
Oscar smiled and gave a little wave from the bridge as he looked up at one of the video feed monitors from Velvet's helmet camera.
"Good contact on my board," Oscar reported.
"Clear and free. Keep the line open. Let's go," Jaune ordered as he, Ren and Velvet started their short but difficult journey towards the distress signal.
"So, Oscar can hear and observe their progress," Nora said with a smile, glad her teammate was watching out for Jaune and Ren.
"That's good, seeing as he's the science officer. He can probably help with any scientific finding," Weiss said.
"Then I'm guessing moms in charge of things until Jaune and Ren return," Ruby guessed correctly.
Back aboard the Nostromo's engineering deck, Sun and Neptune were busy with repressurizing the ships cooling system. Nearby, Summer was inspecting some wall panels.
Neptune lit a cigarette with a welding torch as he and Sun approached Summer.
"Hey, Rose," Sun called, but she couldn't hear him over the loud exhaust. "Hey, Summer, I want to ask you a question."
That time, Summer heard Sun and turned to face him and Neptune.
"If they found what they're looking' for out there, does that mean we get full shares?" Sun asked, not wanting to be left out of any find the Nostromo crew made.
"Don't worry, Sun, yeah. You'll get whatever's coming' to you," Summer replied impatiently with a nod.
Blake sighed at Sun's greedy nature once again.
"For better or worse, money makes the world go round," Weiss said sadly from experience in the SDC.
"In our...father's case, it's definitely for worse," Winter said angrily, hesitating to refer to Jacques as her or Weiss' father.
"Look, I'm not gonna do any more work until we get this straightened out," Neptune said stubbornly.
"Neptune, you're guaranteed by law to get a share," Summer assured.
"What?" Sun asked, knowing Summer couldn't hear him over the loud exhaust.
"Why don't you just fuck off?" Summer dismissed as she turned to leave.
Yang and Ruby giggled at their mother's response to Sun's antics while Qrow smiled wistfully, wishing Taiyang was here to see his beloved wife again.
"What?" Sun asked again with a cheeky grin.
"What'd you say Rose?" Neptune joined in on Sun's gag.
"If you have any trouble, I'll be on the bridge," Summer said as she headed to the upper decks.
"Hey, Rose. Come back here," Sun called jokingly before turning a pipe valve to shut off the vent with a chuckle.
Yang rolled her eyes. "What a troll," she said while shaking her head.
"Your father and I bantered like that with her back at Beacon," Qrow said with sorrow.
"I remember that as well..." Ozpin reminisced sadly.
"Son of a bitch…" Sun grumbled at being stuck with the grunt work.
"What's the matter?" Neptune asked his partner.
Sun didn't respond and turned the valve back on to continue venting out the coolant.
Back to the trio. Jaune led the way as they walked slowly through a ravine cut into the hills between the Nostromo and the distress signal. Around them, geysers expelled clouds of gas and strong howling winds blew dust and bits of rock everywhere.
"I can't see an Oumdamn thing," Velvet complained again.
"Quit griping," Ren scolded the navigator.
"I like griping," Velvet said flatly.
Jaune glanced back at the two. "Come on. Knock it off," he ordered with a wave, tired of their bickering.
Clover rolled his eyes. "Reminds me of chastising you guys on missions," he chuckled at his teammates.
"What are you talking about? Harriet is the one who gripes the most," Marrow claimed defensively.
Harriet glared at Marrow. "Quiet you!" she hissed at Marrow, causing a few people to snicker.
On the bridge, Summer gazed at the planet's hellish terrain and nasty weather through the viewport while sipping a cup of coffee.
Summer clicked on the radio. "How's it going?" she asked Oscar.
"All right," Oscar responded while seated at his station.
"Did you put the transmission through ECIU?" Summer asked while taking another sip of coffee.
"No. MOTHER hasn't identified it yet," Oscar replied
"Mind if I give it a shot?"
"Please do."
"Perhaps they should have tried that before heading out to investigate," Penny suggested.
"That would have been wise but it's too late now," Winter sighed.
Summer set her coffee down and sat at a computer station. She turned it on and ran a hand through her hair as a blue screen displaying white binary code scrawled across.
Nearby, Zwei was lying on the deck grooming himself.
Ruby, Weiss, Yang, Elm, and Nora all cooed at Zwei's onscreen feline counterpart cleaning himself.
Blake put a hand to her cheek. "Look at him! He's so cute like this!" she squealed softly (1).
"He's always cute," Weiss defended the Corgi.
As Oscar predicted, the sun had begun to rise over the horizon and the wind died down. But it provided little light to illuminate the moon's barren surface.
Jaune, Ren, and Velvet continued trekking through the ravine, careful to avoid the expelling geysers. It was silent. The only noise came from their helmet respirators. They reached the end of the ravine, stepped out into a clearing, and gazed at something in the distance.
A half-mile away, the trio spotted a large smooth, shape jutting up over the rocky landscape partially hidden in shadow. It appeared to be a structure or a ship.
Everyone stared in wonder at the trio's discovery. It was much greater than they expected. However, it's strange appearance created a sense of unease as well.
"Looks like they just found the source of the signal," Maria assumed.
"Is it just me, or does something feel… off about it?" Ren said with uncertainty.
"You're definitely not the only one," Marrow agreed, not liking the look of the ship.
"Oscar, can you see this?" Jaune asked over the radio.
"Yes, I can. I've never seen anything like it," Oscar replied as he observed and zoomed in on the strange object on his monitor.
A distant shot of the moon's hellish landscape was shown as a fog began to role in. The helmet lights of the trio could be seen glinting in the distance.
"It's very bizarre," Jaune observed on Oscar's monitor as the trio continued towards the ship.
Jaune's helmet camera began to show static.
"All right. Moving onto…second position," Jaune panted.
"What is it?" Velvet asked nervously. "Let's get out of here."
"We've got this far. We must go on. We have to go on," Ren insisted.
"He's right. They can't just turn back at this point," Vine agreed with Ren's statement.
"And Oscar specifically said any transmission of unknown origin must be investigated," Maria added, eager for the crew to explore the derelict.
The camera monitor began to warble more, and the audio was distorted on Oscar's end.
"Say that again?" Oscar requested but received no answer. "Shit..."
Jaune zoomed in even closer onto the alien ship, showing its hull had an odd, almost organic sort of design. It looked relatively intact despite having crashed.
"There's no way that's a human ship," Jaune doubted, noting the unusual shape and surface of the spacecraft.
"It's really creepy. Like a big Grimm lair," Elm remarked as she slowly ate a handful of popcorn.
"Wait. What's happening to the cameras?" Yang inquired about the malfunctioning footage.
"Oscar, as you can see, it's hard to describe," Jaune reported, his transmission barely intelligible.
"I'm going back to the console," Oscar notified Jaune as he adjusted his seat and shifted over to a different monitor station.
Back at the derelict, the fog was growing heavier as the trio drew closer. The lights from their suits were barely visible.
On the bridge, a control panel extended out in front of Oscar as he observed the monitor continuing to show heavily distorted camera footage.
"That interference must be from the planet's terrain or bad weather," Blake assumed.
"Either that, or there could be a jammer on the ship that's disrupting their transmission," Winter added.
"That's not good. If they get cut off out there and something bad happens-" Weiss began, but Ruby cut her off.
"Don't tempt fate, Weiss!" Ruby warned through her teeth.
By the time the trio reached the ship, the fog had settled in, but it was still visible. It was smaller than the Nostromo, but still considerably sized. It was horseshoe shaped with a rounded central part and one prong was a bit shorter than the other. Lights from the spacesuits of the Nostromo trio could just be made out as they approached the left prong of the ship.
"Such a strange design for a ship," Penny commented on the unusual design of the vessel.
"How will they even get inside?" Nora questioned.
"If it crash-landed, there may be a hole in the hull they can enter through," Ironwood assumed as he sipped a glass of scotch.
"I don't think I'd want to enter," Oscar said apprehensively, having no clue what was inside the derelict.
Oscar continued watching the monitor with a concerned look on his face. By now, very little of the transmission could be made out.
The trio approached a series of triangular holes dug into the left prong the ship. They carefully climbed inside to explore the interior.
"Why even risk going inside? Who knows what's in there?" Weiss questioned, remembering the signal could be a call for help.
"She's right. They already found the source of the distress signal. Why not just mark its location to the authorities and call it a day?" Marrow agreed with the former heiress.
Qrow shrugged. "I guess they want to take all the credit for finding it. Like Sun said earlier, there could be a reward in store for anyone who finds it," he assumed as she sipped his flask.
"But is it worth risking all of their lives for?" Blake asked while munching on a tuna sandwich.
At this point, the camera showed nothing but static and warbled footage and there was no comprehensible audio.
"Jaune? Jaune...?" Oscar said in a low, worried tone, but received no response, realizing the trio was now out of contact.
"It looks like they're cut off out there," Nora said out of concern for Jaune and Ren.
"Unfortunately, we all go through situations like that," Qrow said, knowing all warriors had to be able to handle themselves.
"Indeed. You must always be prepared to be on your own," Clover advised, having played the lone wolf role a few times.
Inside the derelict, the trio slowly walked down a dark, narrow corridor. Save their respirators, it was dead silent inside. The walls were lined with strange looking beams. They almost looked like ribs. In fact, the entire ship seemed to have an organic design, inside and out.
Everyone was rigid and nervous as they witnessed the trio traversing through the dark, silent ship. The bizarre structure of the interior didn't do any favors.
"That ship just keeps getting creepier and creepier," Yang said, finding the organic build of the vessel skin-crawling.
"It feels like something is suddenly going to jump out at them," Nora said in a soft wary tone.
"I know that feeling," Elm shared Nora's sentiment, having watched her share of horror films with jump scares.
Jaune and Velvet examined the bizarre structure of the walls and began to collect samples while Ren moved ahead. He stopped and turned to his left as he spotted something above.
"Come on down here. Something different down here," Ren called to Jaune and Velvet. "I don't know what it is but...see if we can get up that wall."
Ren grabbed onto the ledge he found and hoisted himself half-way up into a new room, then paused to gaze at something offscreen. He pulled himself up into a large circular chamber. Possibly the ship's bridge. The camera slowly zoomed out to reveal a giant chair and sitting in it was the skeleton of some kind of alien. It was huge, easily three times as big as a human. It was peering through what appeared to be an instrument.
Everyone stared in amazement at the trio's discovery. A few wondered if the film's title was referring to the onscreen creature.
"Look at that. It's an actual alien!" Marrow said excitedly, feeling a bit jealous that the crew had made such a find.
"It must have been dead for years. Decades even," Maria observed, noting the alien's skeletal nature.
"Look how big it is. Like some kind of space giant," Nora remarked, imagining the creature was immensely strong.
"What is that thing it's looking through? A telescope?" Ruby asked as she ate from a cup of strawberries.
"Possibly. Or perhaps it's a transmitter sending out the SOS signal," Penny gave her own theory. (2)
Jaune and Velvet entered the chamber, while Ren gazed up at their discovery. "Amazing," he muttered.
"Alien life form," Jaune surmised. "Looks like it's been dead a long time. Fossilized. Looks like it's grown out of the chair."
Jaune and Velvet climbed up the chair to inspect the alien skeleton more closely. Its skull was as bizarrely structured as it's ship. They noticed a strange hole in the right side of the creature's ribcage with the bones were twisted outwards.
"Bones are bent outward. Like he exploded from the inside," Jaune commented as he carefully touched the bent, jagged rib.
"That's strange. What could have caused it?" Oscar wondered aloud as he scratched his chin.
"Who knows? It's a mystery. But whatever happened, they must have missed it a lifetime ago," Ozpin guessed judging from the alien's skeletal remains.
"I guess that's how the ship crashed. It must have happened in mid-flight," Vine deducted.
"I wonder what happened to the rest of the crew?" Velvet questioned softly.
"Good question. Assuming it wasn't the only crewmember," Elm said judging from the alien's size, the derelict may have only been a single-seat craft.
"Maybe they abandoned ship after the crash," Winter guessed with a shrug.
"Let's get the hell out of here," Velvet said nervously, having seen enough.
"Hey Jaune, Velvet, come on over here," Ren beckoned from off-screen.
"What do you got?" Jaune asked as he and Velvet climbed down from the alien's chair.
Ren was kneeling next to a hole in the corner of the room. It looked as though a small section of the floor had been melted, leaving a hole that led deeper into the bowels of the ship.
"See what you make of this?" Ren said as he shined his flashlight at the hole.
"Now what caused that?" Ren wondered aloud while pointing at the screen.
"Looks like something burnt straight through it," Blake noted the blackened burn marks around the hole's rim.
"Maybe it was whatever killed that alien," Vine theorized.
On the Nostromo's bridge, Summer was still carefully deciphering the alien distress code.
Summer switched on her radio. "Oscar. That transmission. MUTHER's deciphered part of it. It doesn't look like an SOS," she reported.
"What is it, then?" Oscar asked from his station elsewhere.
"Well, I... It looks like a warning," Summer replied, a hint of worry in her voice.
Summer's discovery piqued the audience's curiosity but also exacerbated their worry for the trio at the derelict.
Yang blinked. "A warning? For what?" she asked in a low tone.
"Something tells me it's about what happened to that big alien," Jaune guessed, creating a sense of unease in the rest of the audience.
"This is getting worse by the minute," Marrow muttered, having a very bad feeling about the films near future.
"I'm gonna go out after them," Summer declared, having a bad feeling about the mission.
"What's the point? I mean, by the time it takes to get there, they'll know if it's a warning or not. Yes?" Oscar reasoned.
Summer was displeased, but gave up as she switched off the radio, got up from her seat and picked up Zwei.
"Oscar is right. It would take too long for her to venture out there and warn them," Winter agreed with Oscar.
"That, and more than half the crew will be stuck out there with no communication with the Nostromo," Penny added as she sipped a soda.
Cut back to the derelict. Ren was being slowly rappelled down the shaft via a cable and a small crane. As he descended, he held a flashlight in his right hand.
"You okay down there?" Jaune asked. "Can you see anything?"
"I don't know-a cave!" Ren replied uncertainly. "A ca-a cave of some sort. I don't know but it's like the Menagerie jungle in here."
"He's going down there by himself?" Elm questioned Ren's recklessness.
"That sounds unwise of me. For all they know, whatever killed the pilot could be down there," Ren said in disapproval of his counterpart.
"But that was years ago. Whatever caused it must be long dead as well," Ruby reminded, hoping it was relatively safe for Ren to explore.
"Even so, they have no idea what's down there," Clover said, feeling he'd personally call it quits if he were in Jaune's shoes.
The camera zoomed out to reveal a cavernous chamber. It was almost pitch dark inside, Ren's flashlight could be seen glinting the distance as he rappelled down, showing the sheer size of the area.
"What the hell is this?" Ren whispered in marvel as he touched down on the cavern floor.
"Where is he now?" Harriet said curiously as she snacked on a candy bar.
"Maybe it's one of those prongs that make up the ship. It could be a storage area of some kind," Vine guessed given the vast expense of the chamber.
Ren shined his flashlight around the massive room as he began to explore. He walked along a short platform. On either side, he discovered small pits full of egg-shaped pods. Each one about two feet high.
"It is completely enclosed and full of leathery objects like…eggs or something," Ren reported over his radio.
It was indeed an egg chamber he was standing in, full of hundreds if not thousands of eggs encased in bluish mist-shrouded pits. As Ren drew closer to one cluster of eggs, an electrical buzzing sound could be heard.
"Huh. They do look like eggs," Blake noted as her night vision allowed her to examine the objects closely even in the dim light.
"I wonder what's inside them," Nora questioned as she munched on a mini-pancake snack.
"Whatever they contained, they must have died by now," Maria presumed as she sipped a cup of tea. (3)
"Maybe I'll bring one back to the ship for study," Ren guessed, knowing Oscar's counterpart would be interested.
Ren knelt to examine the mist and slowly put his hand through it, triggering a high-pitched sound. Almost like an alarm of some sort.
"There's a layer of mist that reacts when broken," Ren reported.
"That sounds like some kind of alarm system," Ironwood realized, wondering why such a precaution was installed.
"An alarm? I don't like the sound of that," Qrow said, feeling it was connected to the warning the alien ship was giving off.
Suddenly, Ren lost his balance and fell awkwardly into the egg pit.
Nora gasped sharply. "Ren!" she cried out and reached towards the screen.
Ren put his hand on Nora's arm. "Nora, it's okay. I think I just fell in," he assured, withdrawing his hand once she calmed down.
"Ren? Are you all right?" Jaune asked over the radio in Ren's helmet.
Ren got to his feet. "I'm all right. I'm okay, I just slipped," he answered.
Nora exhaled in relief, having thought something in the pit grabbed Ren and yanked him into the pit.
Ren walked in a half-crouch as he approached one of the eggs. Up close, it was revealed that the eggs had four-lobed openings at the top.
"It appears to be completely sealed," Ren said softly as he reached to examine the egg.
Suddenly, the egg gave off a sharp hissing sound, causing a startled Ren to withdraw his hand.
The equally startled audience jumped or recoiled in their seats from the sudden noise coming from the egg. Their angst was increasing steadily.
"I'm really starting to think he should just get out of there," Jaune muttered in concern for his teammate while Ren and Nora both nodded.
"You're right. If the signal was a warning, they should definitely heed it," Clover agreed.
Curiously, Ren shined his flashlight at the base of the egg. Strangely, the egg seemed to be translucent. Something fluttered inside, pulsating with life.
Ren drew a pistol from his hip and did a quick scan around him just to be on the safe side. He turned his flashlight back onto the egg. It seemed to glow in reaction to the light. It was still hard to make out the organism inside, but it seemed to resemble a fluttering pair of hands.
"Something alive is inside. Even after all this time?" Weiss said in disbelief.
"It looks like it's been awoken by the light," Penny pointed out, believing the egg's organisms were hibernating until coming into contact with something.
"What is it? It kind of looks like...a pair of hands or something," Elm said, feeling uneasy as the organism twitched inside the egg.
"Wait a minute, there's movement," Ren reported. "It seems to have life. Organic life."
With a wet, creaking sound, the egg peeled open, startling Ren. Bits of space dust fell from the open flaps. More wet, squishing sounds emanated from inside the egg.
"Ugh! That sounds nasty," Yang said with a grimace.
"I have a very bad feeling about this," Blake said just above a whisper, no doubt voicing what everyone else was thinking.
"If that were me, I'd be out of there," Oscar said, prompting a few nods from the others.
Repulsed yet still fascinated, Ren drew closer to peer inside the egg. Inside was a lump of pink, veiny flesh. It was pulsing. Moving.
Still curious, Ren drew even closer and began to reach inside the egg to examine whatever was inside.
Everyone leaned back in their seats. A few even clasped their armrests or broke into a nervous sweat as they expected something bad to happen.
"What the hell is he doing?!" Marrow muttered through grit teeth.
"No Ren! Get away from it!" Nora shouted at the screen.
Then, all in a split second, something sprang out of the egg with a screech, attached itself to Ren's visor with a burning, sizzling sound and knocked him backwards.
Ruby, Elm, and Weiss all shrieked and covered their eyes. Nora gasped and covered her mouth with her hands, her eyes widening in horror as her partner was attacked. The others gasped sharply or jumped in their seats. A few even spilled or dropped their drinks and beverages. Qrow in particular spilled a bit of his whiskey on Ironwood's pants, much to the latter's annoyance as he scowled at the former.
"Whoops...sorry Jimmy," Qrow apologized sheepishly as he wiped the spilt whiskey off with a rag from his pocket.
"Monty! I hate it when that happens!" Jaune panted with a hand to his chest his heart rate returned to normal.
"What the hell was that thing?!" Marrow loudly asked the big question.
"I only saw it for a split second. I kind of looked like a... a skeletal hand," Blake said shakily, prompting everyone to shiver at the description.
Outside the derelict, the wind started to pick up again as the camera slowly zoomed out.
Cut back to the Nostromo. Oscar was waiting patiently at his station when he spotted Jaune and Velvet rushing back to the ship while carrying Ren.
"Oh no..." Nora whispered with wide eyes, hoping he wasn't dead.
Ren put his hand over Nora's to calm her. "It's okay Nora, I'm right here," he assured his partner.
"But what about that thing that attacked him?" Oscar questioned, hoping it didn't go after Jaune and Velvet next.
"Let's hope they lost it. Brothers only know what it was," Ozpin said, knowing the creature that attacked Ren was bad news judging from the warning that was transmitted.
Summer heard an alarm go off as the trio returned, set Zwei down, and returned to her station.
Jaune and Velvet set Ren down on the lift and began to ascend.
"Are you there, Rose?" Jaune asked over the radio
"I'm right here," Summer confirmed from her station.
Inside the airlock, Jaune and Velvet set Ren down and shut the outer hatch.
Oscar arrived at the inner hatch and peered inside at the trio. "Okay, Rose. I'm at the inner lock hatch now," he reported.
"Right," Summer confirmed.
Jaune and Velvet stood still and spread their arms out as the hatches' decontamination gas expelled onto them, as per protocol.
"Okay, Rose," Jaune beckoned over the radio as the gas dissipated.
"Right here," Summer responded.
"We're clean, let us in."
"What happened to Ren?" Summer asked from the bridge.
"Something has attached itself to him. We need to get him to the infirmary right away," Jaune reported.
"Wait...that thing is attached to him?!" Yang asked in disgust.
"And they brought him back to the ship?" Harriet questioned Jaune and Velvet's action.
"Of course! They couldn't just leave him out there," Nora said, getting even more worried for her partner.
"What kind of thing? I need a clear definition," Summer inquired.
"An organism! Open the hatch!" Jaune said desperately.
"Wait a minute. If we let it in, the ship could be infected," Summer cautioned. "You know the quarantine procedure. Twenty-four hours for decontamination."
Most of the audience was taken aback by Summer refusing to let the trio back onboard, even if it was for the right reasons.
Nora stood up in outrage. "Decontamination?! To hell with that! Ren needs help!" she yelled at the screen while Ren gently sat her back down.
"He could die in twenty-four hours, open the hatch!" Jaune demanded.
"Listen to me, if we break quarantine, we could all die," Summer warned.
Ruby looked saddened that her mother would possibly allow Ren to die, even if it was to protect the rest of the crew.
"She's got a point," Ironwood reluctantly while everyone else shot him aghast looks. "They have no idea what that thing could be carrying."
"But what about Ren?! He needs medical attention!" Nora said angrily.
"It's not always easy making a choice like that. Either you do the right thing or the smart thing," Harriet reasoned, knowing she'd do the same if she were in Summer's shoes.
"Look, could you open the Oumdamn hatch! We have to get him inside!" Velvet shouted urgently.
Summer licked her lip in hesitation. "No. I can't do that and if you were in my position, you'd do the same," she said calmly.
Nora was on the verge of tears. "Please don't do this," she softly begged Summer's counterpart.
"Dad told me mom was like this. She was a stickler for the rules to keep the rest of the team out of trouble at Beacon," Ruby noted, but she knew Summer would never leave her teammates in such a situation.
"Yeah. But she'd never go this far," Qrow, knowing Summer better than anyone else in the theater.
"Indeed. Summer was well-behaved, but I highly doubt she'd obey the rules at the expense of her teammates," Ozpin agreed inside Oscar's mind.
Down at the main hatch, Oscar shot an indignant backwards glance at Summer's refusal to let the trio back onboard.
"Rose, this is an order. Open that hatch right now, do you hear me?" Jaune said firmly.
"Yes," Summer replied simply over the radio.
"Rose, this is an order! Do you hear me?!" Jaune repeated angrily on the radio.
Oscar stood by the hatch listening to the argument. He seemed to ponder what to do.
"Yes. I read you. The answer is negative," Summer said in a final tone.
"Since Jaune is the captain, wouldn't this count as insubordination?" Yang asked General Ironwood.
"Not if he's issuing an illegal order," Ironwood countered, though he wasn't happy with the circumstances of Ren being left to die.
Ruby crossed her arms. "Even so, leaving him to die out there is terrible," she shot back at her mother's refusal.
"Better just him than the entire crew," Harriet justified, earning a few angry looks from the rest of the audience, especially Nora.
Jaune angrily punched the wall at Summers stubbornness.
Oscar then hit a switch to open the inner hatch and backed away from it. "Inner hatch open," he said.
Clover, Ironwood, and Winter gaped in surprise at Oscar violating quarantine while everyone else either sighed in relief for Ren's safety or looked on in uncertainty. Oscar himself was surprised by his counterpart's risky action.
"Did he just deliberately break quarantine?" Clover questioned incredulously.
"Yes. Summer is in charge while Jaune and Ren are off the ship," Maria reminded from what Gold-Sith said earlier.
Harriet shook her head slowly. "Great. If that thing is carrying a disease, then everyone is at risk now," she sighed.
Qrow shrugged. "What's done is done. Oscar was looking out for his crewmates," he said, even though he felt Oscar just made a mistake.
"I understand your reason, but that was irresponsible of you," Ozpin scolded his current host, who nervously twiddled his thumbs.
Cut to the infirmary. Ren was lying on an operating table with his suit removed. His helmet was still on, however, and the visor was partially melted. There was something inside. Oscar had just finishing using a mechanical saw to dissect the helmet while Jaune held the sides. With a wet crunch, Jaune pried the two halves of the helmet apart.
"Look at that. It broke though the helmet," Elm observed, noticing the creature's spine sticking out of the hole in the visor.
"So, it's attached to his face?" Blake asked in disgust.
"Ughhh!" Yang, Weiss, Ruby, Nora, and Jaune all groaned together.
Oscar and Jaune, now wearing surgical garbs and masks, both stared in at what was attached to Ren.
"My Oum," Jaune whispered in horror.
Clamped to Ren's face was a pale-yellow parasitic organism. It was almost spider-like in appearance. Its body was made up of eight skeletal digits all clamped around the sides of Ren's head, as well as two small expanding air sacs. Fusing its body together was a long, spine like tail coiled around Ren's neck.
"What the hell is that?" Jaune asked softly.
The entire audience gaped or cringed in disgust at the facehugger. They'd never seen anything like it before. Nora was especially frightened and worried for Ren.
"Ick! It's disgusting!" Weiss gagged at the creature onscreen.
"It kind of looks like a…space spider," Ruby said with a shudder.
"At least it didn't kill Ren," Vine noted the bright side, noting that he was still breathing slowly.
"Then what is it doing to him...besides hugging his face?" Elm questioned awkwardly.
Maria held her chin in thought. "Hugging...face...hugger...I suppose we could call it that," she murmured with a nod. (4)
"How is he?" Summer asked as she entered the hallway and peered through the window.
"How are we gonna get that off of him?" Jaune asked, but Oscar didn't answer. "How are we gonna get it off?!"
"Just a minute! I'll get some instruments," Oscar said as he stepped away to retrieve some surgical tools from a nearby cabinet.
"Right. Now, if I make an incision here to try and remove one of the digits from his face," Oscar said as he grabbed a pair of tongs.
"You're gonna do what?" Jaune asked, confused.
"Finger. I'll try and get this finger off," Oscar explained as he clamped the tongs onto one of the facehuggers digits. "Get this cleating on there..."
"Hopefully Oscar can get that ugly bugger off," Qrow said, though she had some doubt it wouldn't be so simple.
"I can try," Oscar said with a shrug, hoping his counterpart could pull it off (5).
The creature tightened its grip on Ren's head as Oscar tried to pry it off, refusing to budge.
"No that's not…it's tearing his scalp!" Jaune said in shock.
"I know!" Oscar replied in frustration as he set down the tongs.
"Damn. That thing is stubborn, isn't it?" Harriet said in surprise at the facehugger's tenacity.
Penny scratched her chin. "Hmmm, perhaps they could try cutting it off instead," she suggested.
"It's not coming off without tearing his face off with it," Jaune said in realization.
"We'll have to take a look at him inside," Oscar suggested as he approached a nearby machine and began to start it up.
The rest of the crew watched apprehensively through the window.
"How come they don't freeze him?" Sun questioned.
"That's a good point. Why not just put him back into cryosleep and head back to Remnant?" Ruby questioned.
"Bad idea," Ironwood refuted with a shake of his head. "Who knows what the facehugger will do to him in the meantime."
"And if it's carrying some kind of disease, they could risk spreading it even further if they make it to Remnant," Winter added.
"How come you guys don't freeze him?" Sun shouted through the observation window, but Jaune and Oscar didn't answer.
Oscar finished activating the machine. Ren's surgical bed, which was attached, shifted into the machine. A panel then closed, sealing him inside.
"You can take your mask off," Oscar informed as he took off his surgical mask and Jaune followed suit.
Inside the machine, a scanner ran back and forth over Ren's body. A nearby screen showed the scanner's projection of Ren's insides.
"What's it got down his throat?" Jaune asked, pointing at the monitor noting the facehugger had inserted some kind of appendage down Ren's esophagus.
"I would suggest it's feeding him oxygen," Oscar presumed.
"Paralyses him, puts him in a coma, then keeps him alive," Jaune said, not comprehending. "What the hell is that?"
"That doesn't make any sense. Why would it keep him alive?" Elm questioned the facehugger's purpose.
"Perhaps it's a parasite of some kind. It could be feeding off nutrients from Ren's body," Penny presumed, eliciting disgusted looks from the rest of the audience.
"That's gross!" Ruby said with a hint of nausea.
"We've got to get it off him," Jaune said urgently.
"Just a minute. Let's not be too hasty. We don't know anything about…it," Oscar said cautiously. "We're assuming it's feeding him oxygen. If we remove it…it could kill him."
Team ORNJ all expressed looks of fear that removing the facehugger could potentially kill Ren, especially Nora.
Jaune paused. "I'll take that chance. Let's cut it off him now," he answered simply.
"You'll take responsibility?" Oscar asked.
"Yes, yes. Get him out of there," Jaune ordered as he and Oscar put their masks back on.
"I wouldn't take that risk," Jaune said while shaking his head at his counterpart while Ren and Nora smiled in appreciation.
"It's a hard decision to make, but they should nip this problem in the bud while they still can," Clover advised.
Cut to Ren lying outside of the scanning machine again.
"Where do you want to do this?" Jaune asked as Oscar prepared his surgical tools.
Oscar pointed at one of the facehugger's digits. "Well make an incision, just below the knuckle there," he replied as he prepared a cutting-laser tool.
"Looks like you were on the right track, Maria," Qrow pointed out.
Maria nodded. "At the very least, they can get that thing's main body off his face," she assumed.
Nora crossed her fingers and prayed for the best-case scenario of Ren surviving the procedure. Ren himself held Nora's hand for emotional support.
Jaune held a small cloth with a pair of tongs against the knuckle Oscar planned to cut. Oscar slowly ran the surgical laser over the facehugger's digit. A short stream of sicky yellow blood spilled out of the cut.
"Good Oum!" Oscar said in surprise as the cloth and tongs smoldered as it made contact with the alien blood.
The stream of blood landed on the floor right next to Jaune's foot. It hissed and sizzled as it began to burn through the floor like acid. Oscar backed away with a dumbfounded look as the cloth and instrument began to burn as well.
"What the hell is that? Acid?!" Yang said in a perplexed voice.
"For blood?! That's insane!" Marrow shouted in disbelief.
"Monty Oum. It could burn a hole straight through the ship," Vine said in realization, the implication terrifying.
"Uh-oh…" half the audience said in unison at Vine's statement.
Jaune gazed at the hole being burnt in the floor. "That craps gonna eat through the hull," he muttered in shock.
Jaune rushed out of the infirmary. "That things gonna eat through the Oumdamn hull! Come on!" he shouted to the others as he made his way towards B deck.
"What's going on?" Neptune asked as he and the others followed the captain.
Jaune slid down a ladder to B-Deck. "This way," he urged the crew to follow.
Everyone followed Jaune down a hallway into another room. They looked down and saw the corrosive blood had already spilled onto the boot of a spacesuit, eaten through it, and burned through the floor beneath it.
"Next deck," Jaune said as he hurried off.
"Jeez. Does that stuff ever stop burning?" Oscar asked in shock at how quickly the acidic blood burnt through the ship's decks.
"If it doesn't, they won't be able to take off if the hull is breached," Ozpin said, knowing the Nostromo crew would be stranded.
Finally, the crew arrived on C deck and began frantically searching for the corrosive blood before it burned through the hull.
Jaune spotted the acid first. "There it is," he pointed out quickly at a burning hole in the ceiling.
"Don't get under it! Don't get under it!" Sun cautioned Summer as she and Jaune both maneuvered around the still dripping acid.
"Looks like it's stopping," Summer said with relief as the blood seemed to be slowing down.
Sighs and looks of relief filled the theater. If they couldn't remove the facehugger from Ren, they could at least get off the moon.
"Take a look at this, man," Sun said as he stepped aside to let Neptune pass.
"Neptune, give me your pen. Give it to me, quick," Jaune commanded while Neptune fumbled for the object. "Come on, come on!"
"Don't get any on your arm," Neptune warned
Jaune reached up and poked the pen into the hole in the ceiling. It made contact with a soft, burning, hiss.
Jaune then withdrew the pen, the tip of it partially melted and smoking. "It's stopped. I haven't seen anything like that, except uh…molecular acid," he said as he gazed at the hole in bewilderment.
"It must be using it for blood," Neptune said as he stared at the hole.
"It's got a wonderful defense mechanism. You don't dare kill it," Sun remarked in an impressed tone.
"He's right. Any melee weapon that struck it would be ruined and bullets would just spray that stuff everywhere," Ruby realized, dreading what kind of damage the acid blood would do to Crescent Rose's blade.
"And anyone without aura would be dissolved if they were too close," Weiss added, shivering at the mere thought of being doused by the facehugger's corrosive blood.
"Worst of all, the ship's sustained enough damage as it is. They can't risk the acid causing anymore," Clover finalized, knowing that being stranded on the moon was probably a death sentence via starvation for the crew.
"What about Ren?" Summer asked with worry.
Jaune didn't answer and handed the pen back to Neptune. "Here's your pen back."
"What do we do now?" Neptune asked as he held the burnt pen.
"Leave Ren to Oscar. You get back to work," Jaune ordered the two engineers as he head back up with Summer following.
"So, they can't get that thing off without killing Ren or damaging the ship," Winter realized the Nostromo crew's predicament.
"The only option they have now is putting him into cryosleep. After that, all we can do is wait and see what happens," Vine reasoned, knowing there were no other options.
Author's Note: I know some of you are disappointed in my decision on casting Summer Rose as Ripley. But please bear with me. The reason I chose her was because it would be unexpected for her to be the main character and only survivor. Plus, it would be refreshing for Ruby and Yang to see their mother again. Granted, I've yet to cast a member of RWBY in a starring role so far, but with Gold-Sith's time dilation abilities buying extra time and plenty more movie ideas, I promise I'll give each of them a chance to shine.
Anyway, that horrible, horrible scene you all know only too well will be in the next update. It'll make Judge Doom and the spirits of the Ark seem as frightening as puppies.
(1)- I figured Blake would find a cat version of Zwei adorable.
(2)- While little is known about the Space Jockey, Penny's assumption is probably the closest in regard to whatever that instrument is.
(3)- Unfortunately, Maria is wrong. Assuming the facehuggers are biomechanical like the Xenomorphs, they can probably remain alive inside their eggs for years or even decades.
(4)- Ding! Ding! Ding! That's right, Maria. Lol. I figured the cast guessing the facehuggers name would be a nice touch.
(5)- No pun intended. I toyed with the idea of Yang making a similar pun, but as she said in "Volume 2, episode 4: Painting the Town", there's a time and place for jokes and this isn't it.