Thicker than Blood

I do not own any film in the Alien franchise

Chapter 15

Ed sat at the table, silent. His head was lowered, but he watched the Company soldiers under hooded eyes. He was particularly impressed with Major Tanner. The man was like a volcano. You never knew if his anger was going to erupt until it was too late. For now, Ed knew his commanding officer (temporarily) was keeping his emotions tightly reined in. Everyone at the base knew the last thing anyone needed to do was anger the twins. Despite the time spent amongst humans, they were still considered to be unpredictable.

Colonel Moore waited for Tanner to sit down. "Your human-xeno has quite a temper, hasn't he. You're lucky one of my men didn't shoot him," he said, making a show of straightening his collar. The man had feared for his life when Jonathan had assaulted him. But it solidified his belief that these mutants, along with all the other normal xenos, would make excellent soldiers in the fight against the alien hunters. Then they would be used to fight other...enemies against the Company. Tanner interrupted his thoughts.

"You know, I should have let Jonathan take care of you." He leaned forward over the table, his stare boring a hole in Moore, at least in Tanner's imagination. "You had no right to tag the boy. Never, ever, touch any of my people again, including the twins. If you try, I will personally kill you. And then their parents will eat what's left of you."

Moore involuntarily gulped, even as he tried to act as if he didn't care for the threats. "Don't forget, Tanner, I'm a colonel. You're just a major."

Tanner didn't even bother looking up at Moore. "And your title is complimentary, given to you by some corporate stooge. I was in the military. Colonial Marines. You do know who they are."

Annoyed, Moore wanted to dig at Tanner. "Yes, I know." Knowing the pride the Colonial Marines felt, the man pushed onward. "Wasn't a contingent of Colonial Marines wiped out on LV-426 by xenos? I guess they weren't the best of the best."

That was over the line. Tanner, no longer able to hold in his temper, slammed his hand down on the table. "That's enough!You're on MY turf, Moore. If this is what you call a productive discussion, you can all leave now." He knew any of his men in the room would happily volunteer to show them the way out.

Thinking it over, Moore knew leaving now would leave the mission incomplete. The corporate heads wouldn't be happy if he had to report they were unable to get Tanner interested in working with the Company. Weyland-Yutani wanted those xenomorphs. In a way, another attack by the alien hunters might actually be of help to the cause. If Tanner believed the earth was under siege, he might be willing to convince that xeno queen to bring her children to Earth. After all, she was human, or had been. Surely she would not stand by and watch humans wantonly murdered.

While this battle of words was going on in the conference room, Jonathan had found Jennifer in the weapons locker room, taking count of the hand ordnance. Wanting to be prepared in case they were called to battle, she gained permission to perform this tedious duty. She also expected to avoid the visiting soldiers. "You heard Company men are here?" Jonathan's voice interrupted her focus.

Jennifer jumped. She had been so deep in thought,she hadn't noticed Jonathan entering the locker room. Turning, she faced him. "I heard. Why do you think I'm in here." She grabbed his arm when he started pacing the floor. "Whoa, settle down. Did something happen?" Jenn set down her ipad and sat on the corner of the desk. Jonathan continued to pace.

"Cres'sa found out that when you and I were taken captive by those assholes, they tagged me with a tracking device." Jennifer found it amusing that Jonathan had learned to use expletives. But when he was truly furious, his silence was to be feared more than his words. "It was my fault they found this place. They let us go so we would come back here. When I saw their leader just now, I wanted to kill him. I almost did!" He ran a hand through his dark hair, trying to regain his composure. Jonathan had no wish to frighten his mate.

Jennifer went over to her inhuman lover and embraced him. So that was what happened. At the time, Jennifer had wondered if Jonathan was being subjected to experiments during the several hours they were separated. She had been thinking along the lines of medical studies, taking DNA samples, something like that. But instead, they'd implanted a tracer in him.

Attempting to soothe him, for she could physically sense his anger and confusion, Jennifer hugged him tightly, cooing and shushing him. It seemed to be working. He calmly held her close, kissing her temple. She could only imagine what happened in the conference room, and how Tanner had managed to deescalate the situation. But she had not been invited to sit in on the discussion. Jennifer would look for Ed later. If he was there, he'd be the one to find out what went on.

"Jenn, they used us, and now want my brothers and sisters to fight for them." Jonathan's black eyes narrowed. "I know the Yautja have been enemies of my people for ages, but is that any reason to have us fight them for your people?"

The female took a step back, slipping from her lover's arms. "You wouldn't fight for us if this base were attacked by the hunters? No, that's not a fair question. Of course you would, but I understand your position. I suppose I would feel the same way if the roles were reversed. Besides, humans have been the enemies of your people since we first encountered them. They may not want to help us in any war against the Yautja." Yautja, hunters, aliens, or predators. Names meaning the same thing...killers. Jennifer involuntarily shivered.

Jonathan suddenly felt an inner feeling of protectiveness toward the human female. Jennifer was already his mate in his mind. He would never let any harm befall her. Cupping her cheeks, he pulled her close and leaned in to kiss her. Then hugging her, he whispered. "I will do whatever Mother asks of me, h'sta-ess."

Jennifer looked up at Jonathan, her hands taking his "I know what that means now." She smiled and nodded at the man with the black eyes, knowing they belonged together. "Come on, let's get to sick bay. The doc might be able to find and remove that tracer."

In another section of the base, Cres'sa paced. She hissed, then keened. Her frustration only grew. Ed was with the other humans. Jonathan had left angry and in a killing mood. She hoped her brother did not get into trouble, knowing the new arrivals were not friends.

Wandering back to the flight bay, Cres'sa didn't notice the man standing near the entrance of the lift. He had been told by Colonel Moore to wait there until the meeting was over, with Tanner's permission. Cres'sa made note of a formidable weapon at his hip. Then she noticed he was smoking. She ran at him, thin pale arms waving, her mouth open as she scree-ed a warning.

The startled soldier about fainted, seeing the xenomorph coming straight for him. He held his ground, but was shaking as he fumbled for his gun. He still hadn't managed to unclip his weapon, when the creature was upon him. It hissed at him as it knocked the cigarette from his trembling lips.

"Noooo sssssssmoke!"

Back in the conference room, tensions ran high. An argument had broken out, Moore and his soldiers attempting to make a plea for Tanner and his people returning to Co-04 to retrieve the xenomorphs. Once on Earth, Moore said his people would take over, training them to fight the alien hunters. Already, the Company was readying to begin a worldwide search for the hunters. It could be agreed that Tanner and their queen would oversee the xenos, so surely he would understand the need for this proven biological weapon.

Tanner, on the other hand, didn't want to commit Annalise and her children to warfare. He had pledged to protect them ever since their first meeting, and he wasn't going back on his word. "It's easy for you to assign anyone to confront these Yautja hunters when you have no other vested interest. And honestly, Moore, I don't think Weyland-Yutani would allow the xenomorphs to leave once the hunters were defeated." He gave the colonel a steady gaze, a challenge really. "Do you?"

The door to the conference room suddenly swung open. Everyone in the room turned to see a woman standing in the doorway. She glared at the faces she didn't recognize, knowing instantly who they were. Colonel Moore's mouth gaped open. So that was the human female who had become part xeno, and was now queen of the nest on Co-04. He looked her up and down, memorizing her appearance so that he could take the information back to the company heads. They had so little data on this woman. How he wished he could take her back to headquarters to be studied. But he knew Tanner would never allow it.

"Richard," Annalise began, her eyes taking in the group sitting around the table. "You're discussing the future of my people, and I wasn't even invited. I'm sure it was just an oversight." Her expression was vague, her words held a touch of reproach. She felt it better not giving the strange group of soldiers any idea about what was going on in her mind. Appear non-threatening, and merely debate the reason for their arrival.

Moore smiled, nodding as he stood. "Of course, you should have been asked to sit in on the meeting. After all, we do need your help, if you're agreeable." As he tried to ingratiate himself to Annalise, a shadow fell over her. The smile disappeared from the colonel's expression when Sul'ss came to stand behind Annalise, his clawed hands resting on her shoulders protectively. He seemed to be looking at Moore, his black lips pulled back over sharp teeth. Even crouching, all of the humans in the room instantly felt intimidated at the xenomorph's size.

"You don't mind if my mate sits in on the meeting with us, do you?" Annalise gave the opposition's commander a smile. It was a clear warning.