?Right.?He turned back to the keyboard, hesitated. ?What do we call it? Just ‘the alien’??

?That’d probably do for the Company. They’d know what you were referring to. Technically it’s a xenomorph.?

?Right.?He hesitated. ?How do you spell it??

?Here.?She elbowed him aside impatiently and leaned over the keyboard. ?With your permission??

?Go ahead,?he said expansively. Impressed, he watched as her fingers flew over the keys.

HAVE TRAPPED XENOMORPH. REQUEST PERMISSION TO TERMINATE.

Aaron frowned up at her as she stood back from the board. ?That was a waste. We can’t kill it. We don’t have any weapons here, remember??

Ripley ignored him, concentrating on the lambent screen. ?We don’t have to tell them that.?

?Then why ask??He was obviously confused, and she was in no hurry to enlighten him. Just then there were more important things on her mind.

Sure enough, letters began to appear on the readout. 167 167

She smiled humorlessly. They weren’t wasting any time replying, no doubt for fear that in the absence of a ready response she might simply proceed.

TO FURY 361-CLASS C PRISON UNIT

FROM NETWORK COMCON WEYLAND-YUTANI

MESSAGE RECEIVED

Aaron leaned back in the chair and rubbed his forehead tiredly. ?See? That’s all they ever tell us. Treat us like shit, like we’re not worth the expense of sending a few extra words.?

?Wait,?she told him.

He blinked. Subsequent to the expected official acknowledgment, letters continued to appear on the screen.

RESCUE UNIT TO ARRIVE YOUR ORBIT 1200 HOURS. STAND BY TO RECEIVE. PERMISSION DENIED TO TERMINATE XENOMORPH. AVOID CONTACT UNTIL RESCUE TEAM ARRIVES. REPEAT

IMPERATIVE-PERMISSION DENIED.

There was more, in the same vein, but Ripley had seen enough. ?Shit.?She turned away, chewing her lower lip thoughtfully. ?I knew it.?

Aaron’s gaze narrowed as he tried to divide his attention between Ripley and the screen. ?What do you mean, you knew it? It doesn’t mean anything. They know we don’t have any weapons.?

?Then why the ‘imperative’? Why the anxious insistence that we don’t do something they must realize we’re not capable of doing??

He shrugged uncomprehendingly. ?I guess they don’t want to take any chances.?

?That’s right,?she murmured tightly. ?They don’t want to take any chances.? 168

Alan Dean Foster

?Hey,?he said, suddenly alarmed, ?you’re not thinking of countermanding Company policy, are you??

Now she did smile. ?Who me? Perish the thought.?

The vestibule outside the toxic storage chamber was dimly illuminated, but he inadequate light did not trouble the three prisoners on duty. There was nothing in the shafts and tunnels that could harm them, and no noise from within. The three dents stood out clearly in the heavy door. They had not been expanded, nor had they been joined by a fourth.