Halo: Xenomorphs Return

Chapter 1 - Unforgotten

Quinn sprinted as fast as his legs could carry him. He was breathing heavily, and the alien in his chest wasn't helping. Xenomorphs were chasing him through the forest. There it was; the Pelican. He leaped for it, just managing to catch the edge of the ramp. He looked up to see his brother, Fergus, kneeling, offering Quinn his hand. Quinn reached up to take it, but suddenly there was a gun in his brother's hand.

"I'm sorry," Fergus whispered, and shot Quinn straight in the head.

Quinn snapped awake among his sweat-soaked, tangled sheets. He calmed down when he remembered where he was. His heart was still racing in his chest as he changed into his officer's uniform. He had acquired the rank of Sergeant after his encounter with Xenomorphs five days earlier. He wandered to the Dark Saviour's observation deck, knowing he would be unable to fall asleep again. He just stood and stared at the stars until the lights turned on, signalling artificial morning. He sighed warily and headed for the mess hall.

"Is all well Quinn?" Relu asked. Quinn looked up from his cereal. He looked at her nervously. "You have not been eating well for the past few days," she observed bluntly. "You do know I am here for you if you need someone to talk to." Quinn nodded, trying his best to look at ease.

"I know, I'm fine. Really." She continued to stare at him for a moment, hoping for the truth but respecting his privacy. "So ah... How have you been?" He inquired, trying to change the subject. She saw her opportunity.

"Worried. About you Quinn." Quinn gaped at her for a second, trying to come up with a response. Luckily, they were interrupted by a passing officer, much to Relu's annoyance.

"Quinn, Relu!" He exclaimed. "I have something for you." The young officer placed a stack of papers on the table in front of them. "Those things you saw. The 'Ancestors', they're a race we call 'Predators'. They've been causing trouble all over the galaxy. Bastards have taken out three frigates and two Super Carriers so far." Quinn cocked his head, both glad for the interruption and genuinely interested.

"Anything we can use against them?" He questioned. The officer shrugged.

"They're like the Covenant. Superior in technology, but now that we're aware, we can prevail. No offence ma'am." Relu signalled him that she wasn't going to take offense from it, hoping he would go away so she could talk to Quinn. However, her human companion continued to discuss the 'Predators' with her until they were called away for their duties. Relu consoled to talk about his odd behaviour later, and Quinn knew he couldn't dodge her forever. The truth was, he felt like he was going insane. He was trapped between his feelings for his Sangheili friend and the trauma he had experienced. It didn't help that he had an uneasy feeling that he hadn't seen the last of the Flood or the Xenomorphs, and most certainly not the Predators. His only comfort was that the UNSC now had the Sangheili on their side.

Today in his recount of the events that had transpired on the planet, he was telling the Commanding Officers about his narrow escape from the Taste of Hope after raiding the cafeteria. The constant questioning prevented Quinn from leaving out details that might have saved Relu’s dignity, but the members of the room had already agreed not to share any information that could potentially harm one of them in any way. For this, Quinn was grateful. Relu would hate him forever if word of her... ‘Incident’ spread through the ship. He got up to the part where they decided to make a home out of the crashed life pod before the Commanding Officers alerted him that they had other things to do. Quinn politely left and headed for his quarters, hoping that Relu wasn’t going to be waiting for him. He still hadn’t come up with a cover-up for breakfast.