L'âme du guerrier

Quand des Spartiates rencontrent un Yautja (1) et des Xénomorphes (2)...

Nouvelle issue d'un site de fans, et comportant plein de références historiques.

Citation :

Warrior Soul

Southern Greece, 600 BC

A warm breeze traveling in from the Ionian Sea swept across the hilly landscape of the Peloponnese peninsula, bringing with it the crisp scent of the ocean and causing the trees to sway back and forth. At the top of one hill stood a lone woman, the sea wind pulling at her light brown hair as she surveyed the area, her icy blue eyes searching for any hint of danger. She was a tall and robust woman for the time period, standing at 5'7" with a medium-sized frame overlaid in wiry muscle. She was covered in bronze armor, from a specially designed female breastplate that reached from her shoulders down to her stomach to greaves that protected her shins from the knee down to the ankle. A helmet rested upon her head, its cheekplates covering her jaws and a strip of metal over her nose, complete with a crest of crimson dyed horse hair arching over the top of the helmet and down the back of it. Underneath the armor she wore a blood red tunic that reached her midthigh, on her feet she wore sandals that laced up her ankles, and on her arms she wore pteruges, or leather strips, to protect them but allow her free movement at the same time. A xiphos hung at her side, which was a deadly short sword that was slim near the handle but fanned out in a leaf-shape farther down the blade before narrowing back into the point. In one hand she carried her main weapon, a six foot long wooden spear about two inches in diameter with a lethal spearhead on one end and a wicked looking spike on the other. On her opposite arm, she carried a gigantic bronze shield that covered all the way from her eyes down to her knees, protecting most of her body. It bore a red lambda, which resembled an upside down V and represented Lakedaimon, the region of her home city, Sparta.

Seeing no danger but still containing the suspicious feeling that she was being watched, the warrior placed her spear in her shield hand and turned to pet the enormous black stallion grazing behind her. He raised his large head, also adorned with bronze armor along with his chest and rump which was all attached to a harness, and tested the wind, his nostrils flaring and ears swiveling back and forth. With a snort, he stomped a heavy hoof on the ground and tossed his head, his powerful neck muscles quivering as he sensed the danger somewhere nearby. "Woah, Atlas. Be at peace. If an enemy approaches, we will not be helpless. We are Spartans. We will fight.", the warrior whispered soothingly to him, scratching the skin beneath his dark mane before hoisting herself up on his bare back. Checking his side to make sure her javelins and daggers were still secure in the harness he wore, she wheeled him about using only the pressure of her legs on his sides and her hands on his mane.

Enyo, as the woman was called, had traveled to visit her sister, a mighty warrior herself who had fallen in love with a male counterpart in Argos and had chosen to stay there. Enyo was now on her way home, heading south across the hill covered landscape towards her beloved Sparta.

As she guided Atlas down a rolling slope, she heard a sudden noise up in a large tree nearby. Snapping her head in that direction, she scanned for danger while Atlas snorted and tossed his head, his eyes rolling as he sensed another presence. Seeing only a faint glimmer in the air and hearing what sounded like birds trilling, Enyo continued to peer into the branches suspiciously as she urged Atlas forward. Not noticing anything too out of the ordinary but warrior's instinct still telling her something was off, she turned back around and rubbed Atlas's neck soothingly. "Could be nymphs up to their tricks, great one, though I do feel we are not alone."

Nihkou'te, a Yautja warrior, watched the Ooman(3) continue to ride her beast down the hillside, still perched in the branches of the large tree as his cloaking device hid him from sight. Making a series of clicking noises, he tilted his head in curiosity as he studied their heat signatures through the visor of his mask. Recently having become a Young Blood(4), Nihkou'te was out on a lone trip to hunt down a couple of Kainde Amedha (5) that were loose in this region of the planet the Oomans called Earth. Playing back a recording of the Ooman talking to her beast, he tried to decipher the language she spoke. He couldn't really make out any meaning in the words, but he did think he recognized it as a language the Oomans called Greek. Trilling eagerly as he took in her armor and weapons, he leapt from the tree and landed silently on the ground below before following her. She appeared to be a warrior, so she might be worthy prey. Her skull would look nice with his other trophies.

Sneaking up behind her, he unsheathed his ki'cti-pa, or wristblades, with a sharp metallic sound. As she turned around in response to the sound, he decloaked, making himself fully visible. After all, if she was to be worthy prey, he wanted this fight to be honorable.

Enyo knew they were being followed, though by who or what she did not know. Atlas could sense it too, for he danced nervously beneath her while tossing his head, his ears turned in the direction they came from and his eyes rolled back looking behind. Hearing a noise like that of metal scraping, she quickly halted Atlas and turned around on his back to look behind them. At first all she could see was an odd shimmering shape in the sunlight, but then out of nowhere a figure appeared in the shimmering's spot. As she gazed in awe of the creature before her, she could only think of the fantastical tales she had heard all of her life about monsters and other beasts set upon men and women by the gods. He stood at least 8 feet tall with broad shoulders and muscles that the mighty Hercules would be envious of. His skin was a mottled green with flecks of brown, almost like that of a snake's, and each of his fingers were tipped with pointed black claws. Long braids of hair flowed down his back, decorated here and there with pieces of metal and bone that clicked together when he moved his head. He appeared to be a warrior as well, she noted as she took in his armor with admiration. He wore a silver-colored chestplate that covered his shoulders and stopped at the top of his stomach, along with what appeared to be silver-colored greaves that went down over metal boots. On his outer thighs he wore leather pteruges, over his skin he wore some kind of netting, and over his manhood he wore a leather loincloth. On one shoulder sat a weird metal oblong shaped contraption that followed the movements of his head. What made him especially fearsome looking was the belt around his waist covered in small skulls and the gray metal mask on his face, a red light shining from a small circle by the red eye plating.

The creature had a metal covering for each arm, and the right one had two wickedly curved blades extended from it, each shining as they caught the sunlight. With an eager smile and a determined nod, Enyo dismounted Atlas and placed her spear in her throwing hand, her other arm holding up her shield. Standing tall, she looked straight into the creature's eye plating. "Monster! Has Hades sent you to claim me? Well, you can tell the god of the dead that I accept his challenge, and that he will not take me so easily. I am Enyo of Sparta, named for the mighty war goddess and sister of Ares. Great warrior, I ask for the name of the one I fight."

Nihkou'te tilted his head and trilled eagerly. This Ooman would indeed be worthy prey. Not really understanding most of what she was saying but getting the main point, he did understand the word name. It too was a custom of the Yautja to exchange names before battling each other, so he had no qualms about giving her his. "Nihkou'te." he growled out, surprised when she was able to pronounce it perfectly. "Nihkou'te, you shall be an honorable opponent." With that, she lunged.

Nihkou'te had just enough time to dodge her spear as it aimed for his midsection, her swift attack unexpected. Swinging his ki'cti-pa down to counterattack, he was surprised when she quickly blocked it with her massive shield. The sound of metal clanging on metal rang across the hills as the offensive and defensive objects bounced off of each other. Wheeling about, he tried to get around behind her shield but the pauking thing was so big and she moved so fast it was impossible to do so. He knew he could easily use his plasmacaster and blast right through it, but in one on one Yautja battles that would be considered dishonorable and he considered it the same in this fight.

Deciding to try and use the shield against her, he placed one foot on it and pushed back. Instead of her falling over like he had expected, she only swayed a little before bracing herself and giving a strong shove back, effectively knocking him off balance. As he stumbled and tried to right himself, she attempted to jab at him again with the spear but he quickly sliced off the spearhead with his ki'cti-pa before she could impale him. Without missing a beat, she whirled the hacked off spear around and threw the spiked end at him. The spike pierced his bicep as he brought it up to block the missile, causing his green blood to seep from his arm. With an angry growl, he yanked out the spear and threw it to the ground before reaching to his side and pulling out a cylinder-shaped piece of metal, his combistick. Pressing a button, two deadly metal points extended from the cylinder, one on each side. Instead of trying to dodge around the shield, this time he gathered his powerful thigh muscles and leapt over the Ooman. As he landed, he only had time to slice at her unprotected back thighs before she was able to swing the shield behind her to block further attacks. His combistick had done its job though, for her scarlet blood ran down the back of her taunt legs and pooled around her feet in the grass below. What surprised Nihkou'te was the fact that apart from a slight narrowing of the eyes and gritting of the teeth she did not show any sign of feeling the pain. In fact, she looked really pissed off. With a fearsome battle cry she charged the Yautja, her xiphos pulled from its place at her side as she rushed forward. He answered her with a roar as he too went forward to meet her when they were both stopped by a bone-chilling screeching sound from nearby. The noise traveled for miles, echoing across the hills as the two warriors silently looked in the direction it came from.

Enyo openly gaped at the creature on the hill above them. If she thought Nihkou'te was a monster, then this beast went beyond all meaning of the word, looking as if it had dragged itself from the very bowels of Hades. It was as black as night, standing on all fours with a large smooth head arching over its back. Huge spines extended from its back before narrowing down into a single row following the middle of the back until they reached the blade-like appendage at the end of its extremely long tail. The creature had no eyes and a mouth full of sharp teeth and drool. When it noticed them, it rose up on its back legs and screeched again, standing at least 7" tall. Suddenly, it was not alone. Several more of its kind appeared on the hill beside it, all of them facing the warriors' direction and lashing their tails about.

Glancing over at Nihkou'te, Enyo watched as he tightened his grip on his two-sided spear and turned to face the black creatures. With a nod, Enyo turned and mounted Atlas, who was dancing in place and snorting wildly. She urged him forward until they were beside Nihkou'te, who had turned his head to look at her. "I see we have a common enemy, for these creatures do not seem to want us alive. Looks like we fight together, my friend. Go home with your shield or on it." As the creatures began to run down the side of the hill at an alarming pace, Enyo urged Atlas into a rear. "FOR SPARTA!" she cried, her shield raised high in the air. As Atlas came down, he surged ahead with a scream, his powerful haunch and rump muscles rippling as he propelled them forward. Nihkou'te took a moment to watch the warriors, woman and beast both, in admiration as they charged towards the Kainde Amedha, or Xenomorphs as some races called them. He shook his head, deciding his name for her would be Hulij-bpe, or Crazy, for by Ooman standards she was. Releasing a battle roar of his own, he eagerly rushed into the fight as well, his blood pumping fast through his veins from excitement and adrenaline.

The first drone leapt at Enyo and Atlas, determined to knock the Earth creatures over, but was stopped in midair by a javelin thrown right through a soft spot on her neck, causing her acidic blood to come pouring out of her jugular vein. As she hit the ground rolling, Enyo pulled Atlas up beside her and yanked the javelin out of the dead Xenomorph. Upon seeing it burnt in two, she made a mental note to be wary of their blood and tossed the javelin to one side. Seeing another drone rush forward, Enyo gave Atlas the signal to rear, which he did before bringing his heavy hooves down on the alien's neck, effectively crushing it to death and dancing away before the acid could burn his hooves. Glancing over at Nihkou'te, Enyo nodded approval as she watched the behemoth whirl around the creatures, his wristblades and spear a blur as he sliced through one creature after another. Showing a great deal of strength, he even slammed his fist into one's spine between the spikes, breaking the tough backbone.

Suddenly, one Xenomorph hooked its tail around Enyo, shield and all, and yanked her off of Atlas. As she fell to the ground with a thud, she threw up her shield just in time to block its tail blade from piercing her through. Screeching angrily, the creature grabbed the edge of the shield and pulled back, making enough room for her to lunge her inner mouth at the human below. As the creature's inner mouth tore off a chunk of her chin, Enyo swiftly pulled out her xiphos and cut it off, her helmet become sprayed with acidic blood. As the creature backed off screeching in pain, Enyo quickly yanked off her ruined helmet before the acid could reach her skull and jumped to her feet. When the creature made to jump on her again, Atlas's back hooves flashed out, knocking the alien onto its side. Running to the horse's harness, Enyo grabbed a javelin and turned back to the creature. Bringing it down with a good deal of force, she drove the weapon into a soft spot on its stomach and stepped back quickly before the blood pouring out of its body could burn her. Seeing another one heading for Atlas, Enyo grabbed another javelin and chunked it at its face, piercing it through the mouth and up through the brain.

A loud blasting sound ripped through the air, causing Atlas to rear and scream in fright. Reaching up and grabbing the big horse's mane and speaking soothingly to him, Enyo turned just in time to see Nihkou'te's cylinder shoulder contraption firing blue light at one of the creatures. The light burnt huge holes through it, sending it flying backwards and landing in a black heap. 'He must have truly been sent by the gods.' Enyo thought to herself as she turned back into the battle, her xiphos flashing as she charged another creature.

A half-hour later, Enyo stood beside Atlas among a pile of dead Xenomorphs. Her chest rose and fell behind her armor as she took deep breaths, her wild hair blowing about her in the wind and her eyes hinting at her exhaustion. Several gashes covered her face, arms, and legs, all dripping crimson blood down her body. Atlas had a few lacerations himself here and there as he stood beside her, his whole body covered in white sweat foam and his muscles twitching nervously. Seeing Nihkou'te coming towards her, who also appeared to a have a few injuries, Enyo straightened her weary body and tensed herself, ready for a fight and looking him in the eye plates as he stopped in front of her. Instead of attacking though, he simply tilted his head to the side and trilled at her.

Nihkou'te studied the Ooman as she watched him suspiciously. She was very brave and a true warrior, which really surprised him. He hadn't expected a member of her race to join him in the hunt, and with a proficient amount of skill at that. The hunt, that's right! Yautja law spoke clearly on this manner. Those who joined in the hunt and killed were to become blooded members of the clan. Reaching down and snapping off the clawed-finger of a Kainde Amedha she had slain, he then reached up with his empty hand and pulled off his mask.

Watching him warily as he broke off one of the black creature's fingers, Enyo looked at him in surprise as he pulled off his mask. He had a rather large head with a high forehead marked with a curving symbol in his green flesh. He had no nose and had mouth flaps surrounded by four tusks that opened up to reveal rows of sharp pointed teeth. Intelligent golden eyes studied her thoughtfully as he pointed at the curving symbol on his head before reaching towards her face with the taloned finger. Realizing what he was doing, Enyo stood still and didn't even flinch when he carved the same curving symbol into her cheek using the acid blood dripping from the finger.

As Nihkou'te finished carving his clan's symbol, which he did on her cheek because he was afraid that the acid would have eat through her skull and into her brain for Oomans had thinner skulls than Yautja, he handed her the finger as a trophy and stepped back, trilling his approval at the female. Her eyes held no pain or fear as she looked up at him and smiled. "I consider you my brother, Warrior of Hades." Leaping up onto Atlas, who had by now had enough time to cool off some and was ready to go, she raised her shield in Nihkou'te's direction. "Go with courage, and bow before no man. I will see you again, when I have died in battle and my soul has crossed the river Styx."
Nihkou'te gave her a one-armed salute across his chest and roared as the Spartan and her horse galloped off into the South. Watching them disappear in the distance, he turned and collected his own trophies before getting rid of the remaining bodies by pouring a blue acid from a silver flask that would turn the bodies into nutrients for the soil. With Kainde Amedha skulls, teeth, and tail blades in tow, he left for his ship that was waiting for him in the nearby forest.

Years later, a grandchild of Enyo went to Africa on a trading visit and ended up staying with a Kenyan tribe. He took with him the story of his grandmother and passed it on to his children and grandchildren, and they passed it down and so on. For generation upon generation and through the centuries the clawed finger and the story of the Spartan ancestor and the Warrior of Hades was passed down, even when they crossed the ocean and entered America, where both eventually reached a certain descendant by the name of Alexa Woods (6).

Notes :

(1) "Yautja" = Predator dans sa propre langue.
(2) Xénomorphe : que la taxinomie désigne sous le terme de Internecivus raptus, ou encore Linguafoeda Archeronsis. Plus connue sous le nom de Alien.
(3) "ooman" = humain en langue Yautja
(4) "Young Blood" = Jeune Yautja venant tout juste d'acquérir son statut de chasseur en tuant sa première proie au rituel d'initiation, en général, un xénomorphe
(5) "Kainde Amedha" : épreuve de passage à l'âge adulte chez les Yautja, consistant au rite d'initiation à la chasse, en l'occurence chasser des xénomorphes
(6) Alexa Woods : le personnage principal d'Aliens vs Predator (2004)