**Chapter 17: Fantastic Newt, & Where to Find Her**

As they broke through the thick clouds surrounding the planet, Ferro maneuvered the dropship toward the colony.

"Locked on to Seven-Zero-Niner! Where's that damn beacon? Oh, I see it!" she exclaimed.

Soon, the massive terraforming complex appeared on the monitors.

"Welcome to Hadley's Hope, boys!" Ferro announced over the comms.

Lieutenant Gorman, seated in the command chair, studied the monitors, trying to assess the colony's situation.

"Okay, Ferro, take us in low over the main colony complex," he ordered.

After scanning the structure, he continued, "Storm shutters are sealed, no visible activity. Alright, hold it at 40, and give me a slow circle around the complex."

Ferro complied, easing the dropship in a slow orbit.

Ripley, glancing at the monitor, remarked, "The structure seems intact."

Hearing this, the Lieutenant nodded. "Alright, everything seems clear! Take us down to the south section, Ferro."

Meanwhile, in the carrier...

"Alright, people! Look alive! Gear up! 2 minutes, people! And somebody wake up Hicks!" Sgt. Apone barked.

Ripley seized the opportunity to ask Burke, "That's the atmosphere processor?"

"Yep, that's it. Remarkable piece of machinery, completely automated. We manufacture those, by the way," Burke replied, receiving only a skeptical look from Ripley.

Ferro's voice crackled through the comms again.

"And touchdown! Ready to deploy the carrier on your orders, Lieutenant."

"Okay, Bishop, take us near the south entrance," Gorman ordered.

"Roger that!" Bishop responded.

The carrier exited the dropship's cargo hold, heading toward the colony's south entrance.

"Alright, Marines! Prepare to land your boots on the ground. I want a tight formation. We're on hostile territory now."

When the carrier stopped a few meters from the entrance, Gorman issued the command to move out.

"Well, you heard the man. Move out!" Apone ordered.

The Colonial Marines filed out of the carrier, Kris and Xuan staying close to the squad. Zheng and Biscuit, lacking experience in such operations, mimicked the others' movements.

The group crouched behind a stack of tall crates, and the Sergeant surveyed the area. Once he deemed it clear, he called for further instructions from the Lieutenant.

"Take a squad and move forward," Gorman ordered.

Sgt. Apone barked his orders. "Vasquez, take point. Hudson, Frost, and Kris, follow up!"

As they approached the doors, the Sergeant turned to Hudson. "Open the doors."

Hudson quickly bypassed the locking mechanisms, and the doors swung open. They moved in, Vasquez leading the way, followed by Frost, who was carrying the life signs detector.

As the rest of the squad filed in, Hicks, now in command of Zheng and the others, entered behind them.

Inside the colony, Burke voiced his confusion. "There were supposed to be 158 people here. Where did they all go?"

The squad swept the complex, finding no signs of life. Instead, they encountered signs of a battle—barricaded corridors and scorch marks from acid burns on the walls.

After a while, the all-clear signal was given. Lieutenant Gorman, Burke, and Ripley entered the complex.

"Hudson, check the colony's database for any clues on the whereabouts of the colonists," Gorman ordered.

The rest of the team began searching through the scattered remnants of the complex. Kris followed Ripley as she made her way to the lab, where the facehuggers were kept in containment. As in the movie, two creatures were still alive.

As they approached, Hicks followed, with Burke already scheming about the potential profits from the alien specimens.

When Burke got too close, one of the facehuggers lunged at him. Fortunately, it was inside a thick glass container, so he only got a scare. The others laughed at his reaction, with Hicks quipping, "I think it likes you, Burke."

Embarrassed, Burke remained silent.

Frost then spoke up. "I found a life sign nearby."

The group fell silent, their expressions turning serious as they prepared to investigate.

As they moved toward the source of the life sign, a little girl suddenly appeared out of nowhere, startling the group.

Hicks tried to grab her, but it was Ripley who caught her first, pulling the girl into a comforting hug to calm her down.

The four players exchanged glances. With both of their mission objectives now in sight, they knew they had to protect Ripley and Newt at all costs, or the consequences would be dire for their team.

As in the movie, events unfolded as Hudson reported finding the missing colonists. The locator implants showed a group huddled together in the basement section of the main terraforming facility.

The team moved out of the complex and headed toward the carrier, now accompanied by the newly found Newt.

J Squad was assigned to stay with the dropship and secure the perimeter. As Zheng was about to try to talk his way onto the away team, Kris placed a hand on his shoulder.

"Remember, this is still the Marines. Insubordination could get us killed. We'll have our chance to act when the aliens come," Kris reminded him.

Zheng, concerned about Ripley and Newt's safety, hesitated but then recalled something. God had been acting strangely since they entered the movie. They hadn't had time to properly orient the newbies, and the players' more detailed backgrounds had been overlooked.

*Things are getting more complicated,* Zheng thought.

Kris saluted the Lieutenant's orders, and Zheng did the same, putting his worries aside for now.

The two paired up and began guarding the dropship. Only Kris, Zheng, Xuan, Biscuit, Ferro, Spunkmeyer, and the android Bishop remained in the sector, with Bishop still studying the facehugger in the lab.

A short time later, the ramp of the dropship opened, and Spunkmeyer emerged, pushing a cart of containers.

"The Lieutenant wanted this delivered to Bishop in the lab to preserve the evidence," Spunkmeyer explained.

Zheng and Xuan volunteered to accompany him into the complex, leaving Kris and Biscuit behind to guard the dropship.

A few minutes later, Biscuit felt a presence—several creatures were trying to flank and surround them.

She warned Kris, who immediately heightened his vigilance, then promptly alerted the others through his comms. "Ferro, you should shut the ramp now. We've got company. We spotted multiple life signs. They might be hostile."

He then called out to Zheng and the others. "They're here! We're surrounded. Be ready to get off the ground and support me."

Kris shouldered his pulse rifle, aiming toward the source of the threatening presence that now radiated danger.

Suddenly, three Xenomorph drones emerged from the shadows, stalking toward the dropship.

He shot Biscuit a side-eyed look and said, "Well, here we go!" A feral grin spread across Kris's face.