(( A/N: Well, here it finally is. Took me long enough. I've been trying to write other things in between, but they haven't really worked out well. So I figured I'd give APS another go. Enjoy!))
Chapter One.
"Dad? Are you okay?"
The voice seemed to come from far. Sitting on the stone cold floor, he had been staring at the tomb again. He missed her so much, his heart ached. He spend most of his free time here now. He was glad it was no longer expected of him to run the army. Without her by his side, he couldn't have done it anyway.
The reasons they had done it for were what worried his sons. He would just zone out, no matter the situation, and only snap out of it when he was ready to. It had nearly killed him several times, along with the teams that were with him at those times. So the council had generally taken away his responsibilities. Now he was retired. The only times he fought now was when his sons took him hunting.
It wasn't quite uncommon with Yautja that the remaining partner would simply crumble after their mate had been killed. F'gath still held his responsibilities, but he did take more free time for himself. Sometimes he joined Vi'can here, to simply remember her. Though he had never said it aloud, Vi'can expected he had loved El'is in the same way he had, only he had never gotten her to love him back in the same way.
"We've got to go. Love you dad," the voice said again. Vi'can blinked and slowly snapped out of it. He turned and saw both of his sons standing there. They were nearly warriors now. Despite only being thirteen years old, they had their trials today. They looked and behaved like fully grown adults already. The youth of the two had been anything but ordinary.
Yautja scientists had been startled when the twins grew thrice as fast, but even more so when it turned out they had the genetic memories of their mother. By the age of five, they were able to copy her every move, even though they created their own battle-style. The twins were extremely agile and faster than any Yautja alive. They were ready for the trials when they were eight years old, but weren't allowed as they were simply too young.
But now, despite being only thirteen, they had finally been allowed. They were rather excited, though as always, it saddened them that their father was in the state he was now. He missed their mother they knew and longed to be with her again.
"It's okay, dad," Ci'van said with a slight smile. "We can take care of ourselves. You can go to her."
"After today, we'll be adults. We'll take care of the house and the tomb," Co'vek agreed with a nod. "Go to her. I'm sure she's missed you just as much as you missed her."
Though that was a part the twins had kept hidden, they knew their mother had loved their father extremely much. She had not always made the right decisions, but she cared for him in the most similar way that he cared for her. They went over to their father, reaching down at the same time and gently stroking a tusk against Vi'can's cheek.
Vi'can blinked a moment. The boys rarely showed any emotion except to each other. He slowly rose to his feet and looked at his sons. Though he hadn't voiced it, he knew the boys knew how empty he felt and had felt for the last thirteen years. The twins meant the world to him, but without El'is, his heart just slowly died. He knew what they meant with go to her, but for a Yautja, suicide was about the worst crime one could commit.
"Don't worry about it, dad," Ci'van said with a smile. "Just let go."
Co'vek nodded to show his agreement. Vi'can frowned. Sometimes he had the feeling his sons knew a lot more than he did. He wished he could grasp what it was they saw and what it was they meant, but he had realised years ago that he was just not capable of getting to that level. He wanted to tell them how proud he was of them. It wasn't nothing that they could go on their trials at the age of thirteen.
"I love you," he said instead, blushing lightly. He had never spoken those words to anymore but his dear mate. The boys blinked a moment before grinning widely and pulling their father into a hug with them. On both sides of his head, he could hear an 'I love you too' being whispered. After a few seconds they broke apart again. "Good luck, my sons. I know you'll make me proud."
The twins nodded and backed away, smiling at their father.
"We'll bring back so many skulls, F'gath will need to expand our home to house them all," Ci'van said with a wink, before turning simultaneously with his twin and exiting the room. They grinned at one another as they heard their father chuckle, before turning serious.
"That was the last time we'll see him," Co'vek said quietly. He didn't need to look at his twin to know Ci'van knew it too.
"He won't be happy until he's with her again," Ci'van said.
"I know that, but all the lives…" Co'vek said with a sigh.
"It needs to be done. He won't do it himself. Besides, it will be needed if we ever want to avenge mother," Ci'van said, glancing sideways at his twin. "It's only roughly thirty Yautja. Aside from dad, they're all insignificant. A small price to pay for revenge."
"You know it won't just stay at that, Civ," Co'vek said. "Many more lives will be lost."
"But then we'll have a very long time of peace and glory. We've seen the same thing, brother," Ci'van said, waiting for a nod of his brother before looking forward again.
"I just don't know if we're ready for war yet," Co'vek admitted softly.
--
Standing in front of the window, the twins looked down on the planet where their trials would be. It was a warm planet, filled with jungles. The pyramid was positioned on top of a mountain, where the air was somewhat cooler. Though Yautja were known for their love of warm climates, the twins liked the cold. They remembered snowball-fights and snowmen being build, despite never having played in the snow. For the first time since this had been coming at them, they were nervous.
F'gath had told them that if they really wanted to prove themselves, they would have to do this on their own. Though they knew they were strong enough to make their kill with ease, they weren't comfortable leaving each other alone. Separating them had always been a disaster since they were babies. They would only be calm with each other.
"We'll be fine," Co'vek said, trying to sound braver than he felt. "We'll get our kill and join up again. Twenty minutes, tops."
Ci'van nodded slowly. They both knew it was going to take longer than that, but the idea that the time apart would be short was comforting to them both. Looking at his twin, it was easy to see the similarities. They were both tall for Yautja, despite not being fully grown yet. They were slender build, but stronger than most. Their dreads had the black colour of their fathers, but they had inherited their mothers blue eyes.
As children, they had often frightened the other children with those and been called demons. Though it made them feel alone back then, they found it amusing now. Demons would be the term humans would use for them, with their powers and everything. No one knew they spoke human fluently, and that they had inherited more than just their mothers agility. It was something they weren't going to share unless it was absolutely needed.
Is'lon is looking at us again, Co'vek said to his brother, though his tusks didn't make a sound. Though at first the transmission of thoughts and words had been random, they had slowly learned to control it. The further they were from each other though, the harder it became.
Ci'van looked at the window, noticing the reflection of Is'lon behind them. The youngster had been the one screaming loudest for the twins to be rejected. The boys agreed that he must be just afraid to be bested by thirteen years old. The twins didn't like the way he was looking at them though. It spelled trouble. Perhaps not now, but later.
Should we tell him he's going to fail? Ci'van said, starting to grin. Co'vek tilted his head and turned slightly to look at his brother. Then his vision whirled and he saw what his brother had seen moments ago. He started to laugh, soon being joined by his brother. To Yautja, there were only few disgraces bigger than not making your kill in the Trials and still coming out alive. It meant you were a coward.
Though the twins knew it would not really be Is'lon's fault, if anything, it would be their fault, they still found it fun to know that the one that had been proclaiming his fantastic victory over all the xenomorphs would be the only one that failed. The irony of that did not escape them.
Their laughter died down when they started to descend towards the planets surface. Separation was at hand. Ci'van sighed, gently placing his hand on his brothers shoulder and giving it a squeeze. Co'vek mimicked him moments later.
"We had better get ready," he said. They turned and walked away from each other, all the while ignoring Is'lon. The youngster went over to the window and looked outside, trying to find what had been so amusing to the two. They were freaks, that was for sure. But if they made the Trials at this age with a greater kill than him, he would be disgraced. He needed to find a bigger kill in the pyramid than just a regular xenomorph.
Then it slowly dawned on him. He needed to capture the queen. But in order to do that, the queen would have to be set free first. He slowly started to grin. That was an easy enough task. Kill a xenomorph, acid the chains, let the queen run free and then capture her again. Why didn't he think of that before? It was so simple! He'd show those freaks. He's show them all that children should not be allowed in the Trials.