FIVE HOURS BEFORE THE ALIEN INVASION

Desolation slipped through the tunnels, with the stank of the remaining creature in the Refinery and the empty halls of where Suffer had left. Desolation felt a growl slip through his throat. He had been waiting far too long for her to return.

He had been curled up only thirty minutes before, waiting with the rest of the three other Aliens who were in their group who went by the names of Starvation Upbringer, Cold Riser, and Horror Divided. Cold had waited in the end of the tunnel with Starvation while Horror and Desolation crawled forward to investigate.

Horror turned left and Desolation right. It had been darkness, but Desolation could see in the dark, so it mattered not. But everything felt different went you were in a small, confined building with some creature who fancied you as their next meal.

After five minutes of walking in this tunnel, Desolation started to question whether or not this was wasting his time. Or if Suffer had even lived. He was sure she would had telepathically warned him and the rest if she was in any form of danger. Not just disappeared.

After another whole five minutes of walking down the tunnel, he heard a hiss from behind him, a growl. Desolation whirled around, turning to see if it was the creature that was there, ready to tear him apart at the rest of this place's many marine and scientists.

Suffer appeared, walking out from the duct of the right of where Desolation had walked. "Legacy," she said, dipping her head to the younger serpent, who was lashing his tail in alarm. Desolation couldn't keep the surprise back from her using his older name.

"Suffer?" he asked, tumbling forward on all four legs. "I thought that the creature had gotten you. I was worried about you." He shifted. Suffer looked slightly amused if anything, but it would only last mere moments.

"Indeed," she hissed. "Well, I have news to share with all of the Xenomorphs. Come, Desolation, we shall warn all of the news."

Desolation scrambled to his legs after the slightly taller serpent, who's much larger head was easily slipping through the tunnel. Not long after a short walk, just about ten minutes back to their meeting area, Suffer and Desolation slipped into the cranny where Starvation Upbringer and Cold Riser sat.

Starvation peered her head with a hiss. "It's about time the two of you showed up. Horror came back with as little information as ever. Welcome back, Suffer," she growled.

Desolation hissed underneath his breath but watched silently behind Suffer as she lashed her tail multiple times with annoyance. "Yes, yes, I'm back. That doesn't concern me now. We need to head back to the rest of the warriors. Tell Cold to get Horror and then we move."

Starvation dipped her head before she turned back to the Xenomorph who was sitting behind her and nodded her head, before getting up and following Cold into the tunnel to grab Horror, leaving Desolation and Suffer alone in the primary shaft.

"What did you find while you were gone?" asked Desolation, lashing his tail slightly, expanding his dorsal tubes with curiosity. "You made us wait for too long. You could have kept us updated on your survival through telepathy."

Suffer let out a small hiss, not rude, but impatient. "All while be said of my journey when we gather the others from back at the Hive's quarters outside the Refinery. Listen then, for I will only tell the story once." She lashed her tail and shot out her inner jaw. "Here comes the rest."

At the end of the tunnel, Desolation watched Starvation, Horror, and Cold pad back into view. "Alright," said Horror, her voice cold and raspy, but not of age, but her veteran Warrior rank in the Hive. "This is everyone. Let's move."

Suffer growled with the command, but she decided to let it slide. Desolation knew perfectly well why. She didn't want to waste trouble with a serpent, not now, at any rate. She didn't want to make noise and alert the creature who still lurked around as far as Desolation could tell.

The five Xenomorphs raced around the tunnels, shafts, and vents of the Refinery, avoiding all sounds as possible and keeping a low profile behind Suffer as she gracefully made her way over nails in the vents. Desolation growled softly behind Suffer hence Starvation stepped on his tail, but he managed.

It wasn't long before all of the serpents were chasing each other across sandy dunes in front of the Refinery, racing off into the direction they had come. Suffer leaped over a rock and onto a higher platform, followed by the rest of the Xenomorphs.

After a few more minutes of divided running, the five serpents appeared on the cliff where the rest of the Aliens were, sitting and eating the meat Desolation had managed to bring back from his last hunt. Some of them looked up, before continued their feast.

A male warrior who was named Extinct Blackness, a Warrior Ridged who was missing a dorsal tube and some of the spikes on his tail, turned to face the new arrivals. Suffer had left him in charge while she made her plan before they entered the Refinery.

Extinct nodded his head. "Welcome back," he growled. "There was no trouble caused by the rest of them. They were impatient, yes, but they did as they were told. The Matriarch no doubt watched them as they slept."

Suffer nodded before dismissing him with a slash of her tail. The slightly less ranked serpent just turned away without another word and he slung back to the rest of the serpents who were all sitting there, awaiting their orders.

Suffer gathered all of the Warriors, Warrior Domes, and Warrior Ridged with a wave of her claws. "Come forth," she hissed, lashing her tail. "There is news that must be shared that lies in the Refinery. Dark secrets live behind its long, black walls."

By the time she had finished her sentence, the rest of the Xenomorphs were gathered around her, whispering a few among each other and eagerly listening into the story. Suffer raked her claws into the orange, red colored sand before she withdrew a growl.

"It was while we crawled through one of the outer ducts," she began. "Me, Desolation, Starvation Upbringer, Cold Riser, and Horror Divided had been traveling forward to the Hunter's scent, when we heard an awful rattling, a massive roaring, if you would.

"The first thing we did was run inside of the Refinery and towards another duct that was well hidden and away from the noise. Desolation prompt the place before we settled down. After a while of resting, I decided I needed to explore. I left the rest our team in the tunnels, and decided not to talk to them telepathically, for all would hear. And I didn't want to worry them if I was in some sort of danger.

"I left the group and decided to stay out of any vent ducts other than when trying to get a look around at my surroundings. I could smell something, faintly, in the back of the Refinery, scratching around and digging at things.

"I went to go see what it was doing. I entered a few more rooms, before I could see the creature, standing on a few crates as if it were trying to get a look at all of its surroundings. I could hear something, a small, delicate sound. A whistle.

"The large creature let out another roar, missed by the rest of the Xenomorphs possibly because if they were sleeping during any of this, and then it disappeared. It went to sleep, and I did to after a while. I curled up in a duct and waited for something to happen.

"After a few more minutes, something was being chased by the large creature. I followed it, only to find out that it was the Hunter we have been following to eliminate. I only watched, half-amused as the Hunter fled into a vent.

"It took me only moments to realize that it was the same vent that the rest of the Xenomorphs were in. Seconds later, as I struggled to learn what to do, I heard their hisses in the vent above. Then, after another moment of paused, the vent blasted open, and I was worried about the condition of my team as the Predator used his explosive weapon to open it for freedom.

"After that, I ran up another vent to get a look at my surroundings. The creature couldn't fit much further in the vent, and then he stepped back and he took off after the Hunter again, as soon as the creature had found out where he was.

"Then, the Hunter disappeared into some sort of chamber with a female of his kind. The creature curled up into a bed and then slept. I decided then to head back to my team.

"The creature that haunts the Refinery, it seems to be controlled by a made whistle. It is not free to do whatever it pleases. From what I believe, it is being controlled by someone after being sabotaged to learn the persons trust."

The Xenomorphs lashed their tails with anger. Desolation slid backwards after he heard the story. So that was what she had learned. The nearly eight foot serpent shot out his inner jaw with contempt. Their goal was simple: Kill the Hunter and find out who controls the creature in the Refinery.

It was a few minutes later when the Xenomorphs died back down and continued their dine. Suffer and Desolation had picked a small ridge to watch the Refinery that glowed in the distance, and Suffer lashed her tail.

"I see the Hunter in the distance," she hissed. "Let's move."

Suffer turned back to the rest of the serpents who were silently mingling about their day, and she let out a large hiss to get their attention. Soon enough, a bunch of banana shaped heads had turned to look at her.

"The Hunter makes his move," she growled. "We shall follow behind him. Not to mention, he has a guest. The female I was talking about earlier. We need to see his plans. Come."

Seconds later, Suffer darted across the open fields, leaping down the tall ridge to race across the sandy dunes. She was followed by Desolation, who was quick on his paws despite missing one of his fused fingers, his right hand's furthest right toe.

This only barely affected his climbing skills. He was never a great climber, nor was he the master of stealth, for the most part. He was more expertise at his fighting skills, maybe pulling off a well thought plan or combo. He was also a decently fast runner.

The Xenomorphs all ran across the massive plains, and they lashed their tails out at anything they saw. Soon enough, what they thought to be a minute's travel turned into a few hours. Desolation boredly picked a few things from the ground and lashed a few with his tail.

Suffer didn't seem to lose her pace, and this made Desolation scramble to keep after the much larger Praetorian, the closest thing to a Matriarch a normal Warrior could get to. Desolation flicked his tail and watched Extinct Blackness from the corner of his eye.

The Warrior Dome slipped backwards to talk to the older serpent. Extinct Blackness saw him coming over, and he waved his tail as almost in a greeting to the younger Xenomorph.

"Greetings, Desolation," he said.

Desolation dipped his head. "How are things running for you?"

Extinct shrugged. "Well enough. My picked egg has been growing up well."

Desolation recoiled one of his lips into a slant, a few drops of saliva leaking from his silver teeth. "You have an egg? Picked from the Matriarch's own brood?"

Extinct nodded proudly. "She's a nice one."

"Who… the egg?"

"Indeed."

"Oh…" Desolation snorted. "I didn't know you were planning on raising a family, if only for a few days."

Extinct snorted. "Me and my mate decided to try something. We wondered what it would be like to have an egg to see you as their proud parents. She's still a little wormling, but she seems to find food in a good manner."

Desolation wrapped his claws over his snout. "Content enough." He paused for a moment. "Who's your mate? Forgive my ignorance, I don't spend much of my time talking with the others. Only Suffer seems to stay updated with those things."

Extinct hissed. "Yes, of course, of course. A young Warrior Dome like you wouldn't possibly be worried about carrying out your legacy. But when you age, you start to feel like a doing this is the right thing."

"Oh, really?" asked Desolation, who was padding at a faster rate now.

"Yes. But my mate is named Destruction Imminent. Our picked egg is called Extinct Imminent."

Desolation barely held back his laugh. "You named it after yourself?"

"Not our idea," the elder warrior snapped.

Desolation picked that as a good time to leave him alone.

Suffer, who remained at a high trot compared to the rest of the Hive, led the rest of them after the two Hunters. Desolation grunted. He couldn't recall ever seeing a female Hunter. She seemed… odd. At least to a Xenomorph's description.

It was another hour or so of complete silence within the Hive. Soon enough, they reached some waterfalls that shone high in the sky; it seemed almost mountains tall. Desolation watched as the two Hunters paused, spoke to each other, then a ship arrived.

All of the serpents paused to watch as the Hunters continued to speak to each other. Then, the back of the ship opened. Suffer turned back to look at her friend, and she lashed her tail. "We're sneaking in," she whispered.

"Alright," Desolation growled. "Where should we enter?"

"Towards the front." She motioned to a side vent next to the massive ship's front. "That thing is huge. We'll manage to sneak in before he reached the control panel, I'm sure. Quickly, or we'll be seen!"

After the command, the thousands of feet of little and large Xenomorphs trekked across the sand, and Desolation watched as Extinct Blackness slipped forward and attempted to make a dent in the side of the ship, but Suffer leapt onto her large legs and tossed him back with her forearms, hissing deadly, but silently.

"Someone as clumsy as you will be heard!" she growled. "I'll do it."

She slipped forward and made such a move of perfection with her claws, snagging the vent and silently tearing down the firm metal on the side of the Hunter's ship. Desolation watched with admiration. Nearly no Xenomorph would be able to move with such grace as that.

"Do you see a human?" asked Extinct, tapping Desolation's shoulder with his tail. "You seem to be rather focused."

"I'm paying attention," hissed the younger Xenomorph with a lash of his tail and a sink of his claws into the hard sand. "Maybe to make a vent open like that so silently will be of use to the Hive. Mongrel!"

Extinct hissed with anger, but Suffer shot him a look from over her large head. Extinct, knowing his place in the Hive, stepped back but he continued to glare at the Warrior Dome with such a sneer it nearly replaced itself in the rocks nearby.

Suffer was the first to engage into the Hunter's ship, and she crawled left into a tunnel that lead further in the ship. Desolation jumped in next, nearly losing his balance thanks to his missing finger, but he managed. Extinct nearly laughed, he could tell.

Soon enough, the rest of the Hive started to crawl into the tunnel and made their way after their leader, Suffer. She picked a large area in the vent that had many pockets for sleeping spots. There were almost nine hundred Xenomorphs in that massive ship.

Desolation padded over to Suffer as she curled up in one of the pockets that she had decided were good for resting. Desolation lashed his tail to get her attention. She looked up, and she shot out her inner jaw.

"What is it?" she hissed.

"I thought maybe I could double check to make sure that the Hunters are not checking the vents," he offered. Suffer silently gazed at him, but she nodded after a moment.

Desolation knew this would only be a moment. He turned around and he dashed in to the empty holes of the ship's vents and he peered outside of one of the vents that had many holes on it. He couldn't see anything, but he could smell what they were doing and where they were.

Both of them were in the main room, but one of them was trying to fall asleep and the male was too busy working on the control panel to even learn of the serpents' presence on their ship. Desolation lashed his tail. This was working well.

With nine hundred Xenomorph firepower, a secret invasion of a massive Yautja ship, Desolation was silently beginning to wonder. What was Suffer planning? He needed to know, so he turned back around and he went to face Suffer for another chat.

"Is there anything that you are trying to do with the Hunters?" he asked her.

She seemed slightly irritated with her bugging him, but she dismissively waved her tail. "Depending on where we are taken, we are going to attack the Hunters in the heart of their base, in the most sacred of places. With this number of Xenomorphs, we shall win."

"Do you mean the Capitol?" he asked, his jaw nearly dropping. "We may have nine hundred Xenomorphs, but they have over six million Hunters! How should we win?"

"Six million, along with children, mothers, and elders. Trust me," she said, lashing her tail and curling her large, toothy mouth back in what almost looked like a grin, "we will not be stopped."

Claw and Dark raced into the open door, using their Plasma Castors to shoot at the guards. The Elite Squadron was taking fire under surprise. Claw lashed his wrist blades at one of them, and they let out a snarl of pain as he was stabbed.

Dark raced in, using his own blades to pierce the head of the guard, who screamed in agony, before falling to the ground, dead. Claw glanced at him, before he sheathed his blades. "Well done, brother," he said, nodding his head with a flick of his dreads.

"You as well," he grinned.

Claw didn't return the gesture. "Hold on," he said, lifting his hand into the air as if detecting something. "I hear someone."

Dark turned back to the door before he tried to peer at a black armored guard in the door, who had dual Plasma Castors, dual wrist blades, and a long Combi-Stick on his back that had etched the faces of many dead Yautja.

Dark nearly gaped.

The Toxic Predator, Infectious' most trusted and most talented Elite member, the most loyal servant of the Ancient. Toxic unsheathed both of his blades, and he aimed both of his Plasma Castors as the two other Predators at the other end of the hall. He also was armed with two dual Plasma Cannons that dangled at his waist.

Claw leapt out of the way when the blue, energized Plasma was fired at him, and Dark did the same. Toxic raced forward, his black visor not reflecting any light in the room whatsoever. He was part of an Elite Squadron, sure, but this Yautja was an Elder.

And pure badass.

Toxic leapt over both of them, curling his legs underneath his body, making onto the chandelier, and then pulling out one of his Plasma Cannons into his hands while he aimed his Plasma Castors at the both of them.

Both of the Predators rolled out of the way, and Toxic growled from above. He leapt off the chandelier, and he landed on the ground with a heavy thump, his immense weight but slender form remaining diligent as he fought.

Claw swore in a language so ancient not even Infectious would be able to tell what he had said. He turned back to Dark, who was leaping all over the place to avoid Toxic's heavy fire. Claw growled at him.

"Idiot, take cover behind the statue!" he called.

Dark turned back to him with a sneer behind his mask, but he did as he was told from the older Predator. He raced behind the Infectious statue, and Toxic stopped firing, but he turned his attention over to the other Yautja.

Claw raced across the clearing, before he took the time to aim his Plasma Castor at the taller Yautja, before he fired. Toxic managed to struggle out of the way, but the chandelier he sat upon snapped from the ceiling, and plummeted to the ground.

Toxic growled with agony as he was impaled into the floor, and Claw attempted to fire at him, but he leapt out of the way and over to the wall behind Dark. Dark turned with his wrist blades and attempted to hit the Elder, but Toxic blocked, and Dark's wrist blades bounced against the metal, stunning him.

Toxic attempted to upper-cut the much younger Predator in the chin with his right wrist blade, but Claw fired an un-aimed shot at Toxic with his Plasma Castor, making the Elder turn around with a roar before leaping across the room behind a pillar keeping the wall up.

Dark, angrier than before, used his Plasma Castor to shoot at the Toxic Predator, and the pillar in which he hid behind broke free, making part of the wall crumble. Both Toxic and Claw growled in alarm, and Toxic rolled out of the way as the chunks of wall came crashing down on where he used to be.

Claw spun around to glare at Dark behind his mask. "You moron!" he hissed, nearly shoving his own wrist blades in Dark's face while Toxic remained stunned from the fall. "You'll bring the whole place down on top of us!"

Dark breathed out. "It was only one pillar!"

"Doesn't matter!"

A Combi-Stick flew by their heads, and both of them turned around to see Toxic pulling another off his back and aiming at them. Claw shoved Dark out of the way while another was launched, and Claw got speared through the leg.

He roared in agonizing pain, and Dark did the same in a rampaging fury. He raced at the Elder Yautja and attempted to slash and stab at his chest and unexposed torso with light, fast attacks, but Toxic blocked them and slashed the younger Yautja in the face, making him growl with rage.

Toxic looked alarmed behind the mask as Dark used a slower, more powerful attack against the Elder, and Toxic got bowelled backwards, his dreads falling after his tumbling body when he hit the debris made in the room, and he screamed in pain.

Claw was busy removing the Combi-Stick from his leg, and he finally pulled it out with a spurt of green blood. Claw silently screeched in his head, and then he turned to look as his friend and Toxic were battling in the other side of the room.

Claw lifted the Combi-Stick and he flung it at Toxic, hitting the Predator in the arm, and forced the Elder to drop his Plasma Cannon that he held in his hands. Dark pulled out his own Combi-Stick, and tossed it at Toxic, hitting the Predator in the leg.

Toxic growled with untampered rage, before he pulled the Combi-Stick out of his arm and he hauled it at Dark, also making the younger Yautja fall back as he was hit in his side. Claw growled with fury, trying to stand but failing with his injured leg.

Despite his leg injury, Toxic pulled the bloody Combi-Stick from his leg, and he used another one to hit Dark in the other leg, and made the Yautja scream with pain. Toxic let out unearthly laughs from behind his mask.

Claw did all he could to stand to his legs, and he pulled his Smart-Disk from his side and he unleashed it with a lash of his fingers. While Toxic approached the dying Yautja on the other side of the room, Claw used his Smart-Disk and flung it at the Elder Predator, lashing him across his unexposed torso and making the Predator look his way.

Claw tried to dash behind one of the pillars, but Toxic was racing his way. Both of the younger Yautja were struggling against just one Yautja, but none of them were giving up. Not yet.

Claw pulled out another Smart-Disk, since his other was stuck in the wall on the other side of the room, and he tossed it at Toxic, making the disk fly around the room and strike the Predator several more times across the cheek and chest.

Dark was gasping for breath behind all of them, looking down as green blood tumbled from his side and his leg, and he hissed with pain. He could see Claw fighting with Toxic on the other side of the room, but Toxic just wouldn't die. Dark looked down, and he aimed his Plasma Castor, weakly, at the Elder and fired at the unsuspecting Predator.

Toxic turned around, before getting blasted backwards in another white wall, hitting a pillar and then crashing backwards into another door, before finally hitting the earth with his chest.

Dark looked to Claw, who was now standing on both of his legs once more, dusty and green with blood and debris, and then Claw turned back to Dark, who was stuck to the floor with two Combi-Stick stuck both ways through him.

Claw raced over, staring down at his friend as green, neon blood spurt from his mouth. "You fool," he scolded.

"I'll live," Dark growled. "Barely, but go kill that bastard."

Claw wheeled around, but when he looked to the wall where the Elder Yautja had been tossed to the ground, he was gone.

Dark grunted. "Or not."

Claw spun back to his friend. "I'll need to get these out of you," he whispered, softly. "Try not to scream."

Dark could only growl as his friend wrapped his fingers tightly across the Combi-Stick that went through Dark's thigh, and he tugged it out, but Dark held his screams, keeping his mandibles closed.

Claw then turned to the other, before he tore that one from Dark's stomach, making the Predator gasp in pain, but he indeed, just as he said, kept silent.

Both of the Yautja started at each other before Claw knelt over and he pulled out some bandaging from his Wrist Gauntlet's first-aid pouch, and he started to wrap Dark's leg after putting some white gel on the wound.

He repeated the same for Dark's side, and he gave some strengthening shots into Dark's arm, before he extended his hand to help his friend to his feet. Dark took the clawed hand, and he wobbled to his legs.

"There," Claw said, dusting himself off and then using some of the gel on his own leg wound and wrapping it in the bandage. "The trackers are in the next room."

Dark nodded, and using Claw as a supporting crutch across the room and into the next door, they hobbled into Infectious' office, and Dark took a seat on the floor.

"Go ahead and open it," he growled. "I need to rest. That bastard will go run out and tell Infectious, you know."

Claw nodded. "I know."

"What should we do about it?" Dark asked.

Claw shrugged. "We wait."

Dark hardly seemed satisfied with that answer, but he growled underneath his breath and remained on the floor while Claw aimed his Plasma Castor at the lock where the trackers were, and he cracked it open, before he started to look around for Wolf's.

Soon enough, after minutes of piling through each of them, he pulled up the one that was labeled with his friend's name. "Here we are."

Dark turned back to look at him, before he gently leapt to his legs and he walked over, before he nodded his head in approval. "How do we use it?"

"We should connect it to the computer over there," Claw responded, walking across the room and placing the tracker into the computer, with an added snort. Dark paced over as well while Claw sat down on the chair next to the computer and waited for the tracker to respond.

After a second, Claw could barely believe his eyes.

"He is in the Capitol!" he exclaimed.

"What?" Dark asked, peering down at the screen. "That cannot be right! Wolf would have messaged us and the rest of the Council if he was on his way back! Try again!"

Claw snapped his head to the younger Predator. "This is accurate," he hissed. "Wolf is home."

Dark barely believed his eyes. "We need to go find him this instant. Dark things are stirring here, and I don't like it."

Claw nodded as he disconnected the tracker from the computer and stuffed the item into his pack. "We need to move and go find him."

Both of the Yautja left the door to the office and they trudged across the debris filled clearing, and they took the nearest window from the Capitol and began walking across the third story of the building.

"Did it say where?" Dark asked.

Claw shook his head. "It only said a mile range. He seems to be at the loading bay."

Dark growled. "Then we go there!" he hissed.

"No!" roared Claw. "We need to lose our trail, and then we will go find him. Let's go back to the alley and wait for a few more hours."

Dark groaned. "A few hours?" he asked. "It seems a little long for my taste."

Claw growled at his younger friend. "Make do," he retorted, stubbornly.

The two Yautja leaped across building and made their way across the many buildings before finally dropping down into the alley where they were lastly at before they finally found the tracker that they needed.

Claw plopped down and he dug at some dirt with a bored look on his face after he removed his mask and placed it down next to him. He was cut and bloody, that was for sure, and Dark, no better.

Dark straightened up the place before he landed down on a homemade bed that he created with some pillows and trash and he curled up. Claw barely laughed. "You're going to sleep?" he asked.

Dark grunted. "We both could use the rest, you know."

Claw only sighed. "Very well. I hope your wounds heal well, brother."

Dark nodded his head. "And you the same."

After walking about the alley and finding garbage and pillows, Claw made his own bed and then he nestled in, making sure his helmet and armor was safe before he closed his eyes. He could barely think. The only thing on his mind:

Was Infectious now looking for them?