The gentle drumming of rain on the APC's armored hull lulls me into a restful stupor. Absentmindedly I scratch at my uniform, still unfamiliar with its feel. My hand brushes the insignia, and I pause to look at the callsign written on it: Falco. Never in all my years did I imagine I'd have a callsign. But if the Hell's Hounds want to call Yamilia Falciono "Falco", so be it.
That's another thing I never thought would have happened: being part of a military outfit. The Hounds' commander, a powerfully built man of African descent named Brackenwood, had contacted me several months ago at Calesky University. He had apparently heard of my theories on xenomorphs and wanted to know more. At the time I was just a twenty-two year old college girl, and when the offer came up to actually put some of my theories into action I jumped at the opportunity. Sure, it could be dangerous, but I had an entire squad of trained soldiers to back me up, plus all I had to do was monitor their progress from the APC.
"Which reminds me..." I mutter as I sit upright and check out the monitors.
"What?" Dogsen says from his chair, turning away from the monitors to hear my reply. Dogsen was unusually short for a man, with a rather out-of-shape build. Add in the bushy red mustache that stood out starkly from his pale white face and you've got the epitome of goofiness. However, Dogsen was not only responsible for manning the APC and directing the troops, but also for protecting me. Therefore I had to put up with him; I shake my head and wave it off with my hand, and Dogsen just shrugs and returns to his job. Of the dozen monitors in front of me, I focus on the one with Brackenwood taped underneath the screen.
From what I can tell they've just entered the main complex of Hecta. Hecta was a deep space mining colony on the planet Saphrone 9, inhabited by the kind of people who see if there's anything under the surface worth colonizing for. So they dug down real deep... right into a hive. Couple hundred miners are now either dead or dying, a demonic jack in the box implanted in their chests. According to Brackenwood their orders are to wipe out the whole hive but leave the complex intact. Apparently the miners actually struck something valuable before bumping into the bugs, so nuking the place from space was out of the question. That meant going in on foot, a very dangerous assignment, which is exactly why Brackenwood wanted me to help tip the odds in their favor.
Back on the monitors the squad has reached the hallway that leads to the main hole. "Alright Falco, let's see if your little theory holds. Light 'em up, boys!" Brackenwood shouts. Glancing at the monitor entitled Stevens I can see the rest of the squad flipping on my custom shoulder lights. The custom part about them is that they project ultraviolet light instead of the normal kind. The squad spreads out evenly and slowly begins to advance, the point man Jackson keeping an eye on the motion sensor while keeping his flamer pointed forward. A high pitched beep sounds. "Two readings, thirty meters out!" he yells. While Jackson falls back the rest of the squad advances with pulse rifles and smartguns.
Suddenly, out of the blackness, one of the ultraviolet lights hits something. Instantly the bug glows purple, just as a scorpion does when it's struck by ultraviolet light. A burst of fire from someone's smartgun and the alien is cut in half at chest level, the two halves thrashing about on the ground. "One left!" Jackson shouts again. The squad sweeps the area with the lights, and the other bug is quickly rooted out, betrayed by her own skin. "Mine!" yells Brackenwood, nailing the bug at the waist and blowing the legs clean off. Yet still the bug comes forward, pulling itself with its arms and leaving a caustic trail of blood behind. Brackenwood takes very careful aim at the bug's head, and taps the trigger once. Instantly the xenomorph's head explodes, showering the surrounding area in acid.
"Ha ha ha! Got the mother! Did you see that shot? Yeah!" Brackenwood runs over to Stevens and high fives him. I shudder. Before Brackenwood was very professional, but now he seems like nothing more than some kid who stole his dad's gun and shot a bird. Suddenly I feel very uncomfortable about being here. I look at Dogsen and see him in a different light, too. His face looks almost ecstatic at Brackenwood's actions. He looks at me as he speaks into the mike, his face eerily awash in the glow of the screens. "Well, well, well, looks like Falco was right. Congrats kid." He pats me on the shoulder and I almost pull away in revulsion. I realize I am way in over my head, but decide to just play it cool until I can get out of here.
I look back at the monitors and see that the squad has reached the main hole. From Jackson's point of view I can see that the hole is so deep it leads into nothingness. But just before the light gives out I can see the alien excrements on the walls, the beginning of the hive. I can also see the still living human hosts attached to the walls. I nearly vomit. Brackenwood takes another of my inventions, an ultraviolet flare, and drops it into the hole. Down it goes, floating forever it seems, until suddenly a glowing alien appears on the wall. Then another. And another, and another. Further and further the flare falls, and now all I can see are hundreds of dots of light, thousands even. The hive is huge! Unfazed Brackenwood takes out a large metal can, as does the rest of the squad. I look to Dogsen for information, but he's glued to the screens.
I turn back just in time to see the squad drop the cans over the edge. For what seems like hours, but was probably only a minute, there is silence. Then a staccato of explosions, so powerful that I feel them in the APC, shatter the silence. Down in the hole is fire, an enormous ball of it, rising upward at tremendous velocity. It flows up the walls, incinerating everything it touches. I hear the screams of aliens... and of humans. The ball dissipates as it nears the squad, who seem totally indifferent to the humans they have just killed. I grab the mike, "Brackenwood. You just killed people, HUNDREDS of people. How could you do that?!" Stevens responds before Brackenwood can, "Oh poor baby, didn't you like the show? Besides, we ain't here for the people. We's here for the jelly."
"But how's that possible? You've got orders!" I respond in desperation.
"We ain't got shit, baby doll," sneers Stevens. "Or didn't Brack tell ya? Did he feed you some of his patented bull? Like we're military or something? Hell no, we's mercs baby, and thanks to you we've got one big score to make."
I sit in shock. Mercenaries. No orders to destroy the hive, they just want the royal jelly, the queen's special brew. Jelly sells for top dollar on the drug market these days, but that's because it's so hard to get. They've been using me to make their job easier, and who knows what they've got planned for me now that I now.
Throughout Stevens' rant, Blackenwood had remained silet. But now he spoke, "Way to go Stevens. There goes are cover story, now we'll just have to kill her..." I look at Dogsen, a demented grin filling his lips as he pulls out a pistol, and I look back at the monitors in a silent plead. Brackenwood just looks up at the giant drill and takes in a satisfied breath of air... then freezes. Covering the drill, now illuminated by Brackenwood's lights, are dozens of aliens. "Clever girls..." Suddenly the aliens drop down on the squad and all hell breaks loose. As Dogsen turns to the monitor and mumbles, "What the...?", I grab him by the wrist and turn the gun inwards. A boom, deafening in the tight quaters of the APC, forever wipes the smile off of Dogsen's face. He slips out of his chair, and I turn back to the monitors as the firing stops.
All of the heartbeat monitors have flatlined, all except Brackenwoods. He's rappelling down to hole to the bottom, being chased by several aliens. He quickly descends to the floor, and the visage of the alien queen fills the monitor. Reaching for the last of my creations, Brackenwood pulls out a pair of phermone grenades. He throws one at the queen and one at his feet, both detontating with a whoosh. The aliens chasing Brackenwood freeze, their heads panning back and forth, trying to pick up his scent. The queen too stops, puzzeled by Brackenwood's disappearance. "He he. Still might pull this off," he chuckles, pulling the trigger on his smartgun and spraying the queen with bullets.
I may be doomed, but I'm not about to let him get away with this. Leaping to the controls for the APC I steer towards the compound and smash through the outer wall. I quickly exit the vehicle, a plan forming in my mind as I go, and head for the control room. Acting fast I find the main controls and start the drill, sending it downward. I run back to the APC and check the monitors. All fighting has stopped. Brackenwood is staring up at the drill, muttering, "No, it can't be..." His mutterings end when he forgets to replenish his phermone cloak and the queen runs him through with her tail. I proceed to back the APC out of the drilling complex, then begin to cruise the rest of the compound in search of the communications building so I can contact help. From the back of the APC the alien queen's scream pierces the silence as the drill begins to shred her body. Shortly thereafter the final monitor, Brackenwood's, goes dead. "Right beats might, Brackenwood," I say to myself as I pull up in front of the comm building. "And right now, 'right' is going to go home."
-Doc Brown
