Chapter 15: Chapter 15 Exploration
"There's no one here!"
"They couldn't have gone far."
"Find them, find them now!"
Unbeknownst to the gang of ten or so individuals scavenging through the wreckage of the escape pod, they were being quietly watched. They were being watched from the darkness of the night by something completely hidden from their view, one of the most dangerous creatures to ever exist in this universe made even more so by the very mind that controlled its monstrous form.
(It seems that trying to salvage anything from the escape pod is a no go for now.) I hissed as I watched the idiots moving below like skittering ants from within the fifth floor of a run down building.
[True, however you could just kill them and take what you need from their lifeless bodies.] Goldy suggested but I was quick to discard the idea.
(I could, I very much could.) I hummed softly before continuing. (Only one of them has any kind of firearm after all, however if any of them actually manages to slip away and escape from me it'll only end up bringing unneeded attention to myself that I currently can't really afford to deal with.)
(Anyway, let's just head back for now.) I muttered as I turned away and clawed down the wall of the building I was perched upon.
We had landed in the middle of an overgrown and mostly abandoned City, the whole place had a somewhat futuristic look to it but everything was still crumbling to the ground. The whole place was filled with gangs of criminals and psychopaths that had long since overrun the place, thankfully they were all far too busy fighting over the wreckage from the station that had landed in the area to notice our small group for now.
(Still can't get used to how strangely beautiful this place is.) I muttered as my vision lingered momentarily on the surrounding environment.
[This is your first time on a world other then the one you came from, so it does make some sense you'd find it so interesting.] I lightly nodded in agreement to that.
Thanks to the fact that the plants were all a mixture of red, orange and yellow it looked like the entire place was in a constant state of fall, a fact that I kind of loved. The environment was beautiful in a slightly apocalyptic way if you mixed in the broken and worn down buildings that is, however that just added to the intrigue that I felt towards everything in my opinion.
I even ended up noticing several dozen creatures of interesting shapes and appearance that were fascinating to witness, none of them were big enough to become hosts for my future offspring mind you but that was fine by me for the most part. Strange two headed bird like things that were covered in leaf like armoured scales, what appeared to be large almost woodlouse like creatures covered in spikes that rolled up into a ball and bounced around, I swear I even saw a transparent creature which seemed to constantly be shifting in colours that looked kind of like a fusion between a spider and a cobra.
As for what exactly was happening on the planet as a whole, well, things weren't going so great to be honest, mostly because the world was completely overrun by a rather chaotic atmosphere. From what I could tell any survivors that weren't still on the station were scattered around the planet in small clusters that were trying their hardest to survive against everything that was trying their damndest to either kill and eat them or...well, the prisoners here were probably a lot less merciful compared to the wildlife to say the least.
All of this also extended to my thralls who were also scattered and dealing with similar issues as well. There was one group of my thralls that was notable however, three of them that had landed somewhere not far outside the city. They had somehow managed to convince the people that were with them that heading over to the shelter of the buildings and away from the dangerous wildlife was the best idea. They would make good hosts once they arrived.
But anyway, the actual station itself had landed somewhere north west of the city, however it was far enough away that I couldn't even see the smoke it was probably releasing. The debris that had broken off from it had also scattered across the planet in large amounts causing several small battles and wars between the many groups of prisoners to suddenly erupt as they fought for anything that they could possibly find amongst the wreckage.
As for my rivals, well, they were still very much alive and kicking. In fact it was pretty obvious that they were still around mostly because the trial hadn't immediately ended the moment the station crashed into the ground. Sadly the thralls that had remained on the station were all dead, they either died from the impact or from the many xenos that were now loose in the area and so I have absolutely no idea what was actually happening over there.
(It's getting harder and harder to move discreetly.) I hissed while attempting to move as stealthily as possible.
[Your getting closer to fully becoming a praetorian, the process is slower because you have no access to royal jelly but soon your metamorphosis will be complete and then your evolution into a queen will begin]
(I wish I could at least slow it down until I find a better place to lay low.) I sighed while glancing at my reflection in a nearby broken window.
I looked mostly the same, dark violet exoskeleton and your standard xenomorph shape and appearance, however there were definitely some differences. My size had further increased over the past couple of hours, my headcrest had become more pronounced, it still looked somewhat like a normal warrior one but just slightly larger and more eye-catching. Overall I looked like something in the middle, a mixture between a praetorian and a warrior, so it probably wouldn't be long before I started to molt again.
Back to what I was doing anyway. I made my way through the dark streets, moving from building to building until I arrived at the one I was looking for. A crumbling monument to this fallen place, overlooked by most but one that held something very important. Making my way inside the five story building I moved to the back where a partially collapsed wall concealed a staircase leading down into some kind of basement or storage room.
"It is good to see you have returned your majesty." the gruff looking guy muttered the moment I entered the small square room.
"I made sure to keep this trash in line while you were gone my queen." The marine muttered as she jabbed one of the unconscious captives with the end of her gun.
<<V-very good...hummm...>> It was at that moment when I realized that I never actually learnt their names beforehand.
<<What are your names again? It will get really annoying if I don't at least know that much about you.>> I asked mostly because it was getting irritating to just refer to them as gruff guy and female marine.
""To think that you'd actually be willing to take the time to learn our names."" Both of them said at the same time honestly looking genuinely touched.
(God damn it...their odd reverence towards me is honestly starting to freak me out quite a bit.) I groaned while trying to ignore Goldy's amused laughter in the background.
Anyway, both of them were rather quick to answer my question. "I am Ashley, your majesty."
"Conner is the name, your grace."
<<Now then what have you foun-?>> I was about to say but got interrupted by one of the captured individuals that had begun to wake up.
The guy was trying to ask what was going on but Ashley kicked him in the head. "Be silent!" She yelled in rage but he didn't hear her as the kick had knocked him out once again.
(They are definitely going to have head trauma after this...if they manage to survive anyway.) I sighed but quickly turned my attention back to the task at hand.
<<Anyway, what do you have to report?>>
"My queen, I believe I've found something that would be a suitable place for your magnificence to build your hive safely." Ashley answered, looking almost like an excited puppy wanting to be praised.
<<Where?>>
"I believe that it is an old railway system that runs throughout the whole city." That got my interest really quick. "I was able to spot an entrance from the rooftop."
(That could work...) I hummed in thought.
<<Show me>>
Weekly Power Status
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