After burning the Xenomorph corpses to ash, William cautiously used his mental power to probe the remaining blood. Once he confirmed it had no adverse effects, he levitated the Xenomorph blood into the air and brought it into the real world by breaking the mirrored space.
He retrieved the Yautja's collapsible spear from his waist and dipped it into the floating Xenomorph blood.
The spear quickly began to corrode.
"Roar!"
Seeing this, the Yautja warriors erupted in a collective roar.
William initially thought they were angry, but he soon realized that these creatures weren't enraged—they were excited. The Yautja leader fiddled with his wrist computer before nodding to the others.
Twenty-odd Yautja, leaving three behind to guard the leader, checked their shoulder cannons and extended their wrist blades. Activating their cloaking devices, they leaped into the ice tunnel and headed toward the pyramid.
Seeing this, William's expression darkened as he asked directly, "Are you planning to hunt the Queen or control her?"
"Don't worry," the Yautja leader said without turning his head, his eyes fixed on the tunnel. "Based on the evolutionary history of these creatures, while the Queen can produce new Xenomorphs, her genes are still of the previous generation. She's no longer valuable.
It's the offspring that carry the new genetic traits. I've sent my warriors to kill the Queen and capture a few of the young."
"But you don't need so many people just to capture a few juveniles, do you?"
William had initially thought they intended to capture the Queen, but he hadn't expected this level of Xenomorph evolution.
"Besides, if you want the juveniles, the six warriors inside could just capture them, and then you could use the spaceship to obliterate the Queen and this entire area. Why take the risk of sending more people in?"
"Thanks for your advice," the Yautja leader said with a shake of his head and a smile. "But you don't understand our traditions. In our lifetimes, not everyone has the chance to encounter a Queen.
Killing her elevates the warrior to the most respected status in our clan. For all I know, whoever kills her could become the next leader after I'm gone."
William shook his head. These creatures apparently determined their hierarchy through feats of bravery. "So, I guess you were once the fiercest warrior in the clan?"
As nearly 30 Yautja warriors entered the pyramid, William considered sharing the intel gathered by his drones, spiders, and Black Blade units.
But then he reconsidered. If the Yautja began valuing detection technology and leveraged their interstellar trade networks, they'd only grow stronger and harder to deal with in the future.
Abandoning the idea, he reminded himself that these creatures took pride in hunting. Death was a common occurrence among them, and he wasn't their leader. Why should he care about their survival?
Donning his battle helmet, William watched the pyramid's combat through his virtual display. After a few minutes of observation, he noted that the adult Yautja fought better than their younger counterparts, but not by much.
Their strength lay in caution and teamwork. Grouped into three- or four-member squads, they formed eight battle teams that systematically cleared the pyramid as they advanced.
After losing seven or eight Xenomorphs, a piercing roar echoed through the pyramid. The remaining 15 Xenomorphs immediately turned and retreated toward the lower levels.
Seeing this, William chuckled at the Yautja leader. "Looks like I'll win our little wager."
The leader tapped furiously on his wrist computer, prompting the six Yautja warriors already inside to pick up the pace.
Taking advantage of the Xenomorphs' retreat, they followed closely and entered the vast chamber where the Queen was imprisoned.
Feigning concern, William said, "I advise caution. You wouldn't want unnecessary casualties."
"Hmph," the Yautja leader snorted. He seemed either unwilling to lose face or genuinely indifferent to the fate of his warriors.
Inside the chamber, the six Yautja formed two three-man squads, standing back-to-back and using their shoulder cannons to suppress the Xenomorphs. They failed to notice the tide of Facehuggers swarming toward them along the platforms and columns.
By the time they spotted the Facehuggers, over a hundred were already within 20 to 30 meters.
"Danger!" one Yautja shouted, warning his companions.
As the other five turned to look, gaps appeared in their defensive formation, exposing them to the Xenomorphs.
Taking advantage of the chaos, two wounded Xenomorphs leapt onto the Queen. With her enraged screeches filling the chamber, the Xenomorphs sprayed their acidic blood onto the chains binding her arms, legs, and back.
The sound of corrosion echoed loudly. Two Yautja exchanged glances and, ignoring the Facehuggers and Xenomorphs, fired their shoulder cannons directly at the Queen.
Twin energy blasts struck her head, targeting the fan-shaped chitinous crest.
The Queen let out a howl of pain and fury. Had she not lowered her head upon seeing the energy blasts, she would have been decapitated.
But the loss of two fire support points caused the Yautja formation to collapse entirely. They scattered in disarray, trying to dodge attacks.
One Yautja, still firing his cannon, was impaled through the chest by a Xenomorph's tail blade and flung over ten meters away.
Fortunately, reinforcements arrived just in time.
A barrage of energy blasts tore through the Facehugger swarm at the chamber's entrance, leaving the floor pockmarked with acidic craters.
After exchanging a few words, the reinforcements tossed two Yautja over the corroded area, sending them rolling into the chamber.
But instead of aiding their struggling comrades, the two newcomers immediately targeted the Queen, firing their shoulder cannons.
The blasts hit the Queen, but the already-weakened chains, corroded by the Xenomorphs' blood and the earlier energy strikes, finally snapped.
The Queen staggered forward five or six steps before two more Yautja were hurled into the chamber and delivered the killing blow with their cannons.
"Roar!"
Outside the chamber, the Yautja leader's second-in-command punched a celebrating warrior and angrily berated him.
If William understood their language, he would've realized the second-in-command was cursing his comrade as a fool and an incompetent.
"Heh, it seems I've won, don't you think?"
William grinned at the Yautja leader, whose mandibles twitched in irritation. "I'll trouble you to translate the micro-ship data into English, thank you."
"Hmph," the Yautja leader glared at William, his expression darkening as William's grin faded into a frown.
Reluctantly, the leader shook his head. He knew full well that in a ground battle, they couldn't defeat William. And destroying Earth wasn't an option he dared to consider.
But giving space-jump technology to a human? That was a bitter pill to swallow.
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