Iseijin vs. FireHunter.

Iseijin remained immobile. The armored, streamlined beast was seated right at the other end of the arena, thick forearms – thinner at the upper part of the limb and then growing almost cancerously large below the elbows – planted firmly side by side in front of her with a long tail wrapped twice around her, and hindquarters folded just as neatly so that she was sitting upwards and still. The white, sterile light of the chamber outlined the dangerous silhouette, hardly lessening the feel of her malice. Her long head was tucked perfectly downwards and giving off an appearance as though a black, grotesque statue of worship from some malignant temple. The beast didn’t even look like it was breathing.

A loud hissing filled the chamber the panther-esque xenomorph was located it, but Iseijin’s lips had not moved. The chamber itself was making the noise and soon a semi-transparent, thick mist seeped from the ceiling and permeated the entire cell. The black exoskeleton ended up covered in a moist dew that collected as drops and slid down the smooth chitin over the curve of the musculature it enclosed, some of it collected in the crevices of the armor and pooled. The corners of the upper lips twitched. She growled.

Mechanical whirring drowned the growling, and the wall in front of her lifted to reveal a larger enclosure that hardly welcomed invitation. Just as barren and just as trapped. The creature’s head lifted so lightly that it was almost not noticeable, and her tail unfurled just as she rose with equal composure on all fours, one taloned claw stepping in front of the other as she made her way from one, smaller cavity to another, bigger one; each step calculated almost to precision so that when her long tail was fully stretched most of the body was already out and so the tail never really managed to touch the walls.

Only when the bladed end of the tail passed the exitway of her previous chamber did Iseijin stop, by then already almost half-way into the chamber, and sat again, keeping to the almost ethereal, demonic feel of her movements – more so when she didn’t move.

Sounds. Mechanic sounds and animal sounds of beastial origin blended together, and the mechanic sounds became louder as the wall on the other end of the court lifted and whatever it had been holding – that it could not hold any longer – burst forward.

It was now that Iseijin moved. The female hissed loudly through grit teeth with parted lips, crouched low and back, tail curled tightly to the side. With another hiss she shook her head furiously – but this was not a display of aggresion.

Xenomorphs were generally genderless, drones could not be classified as either male or female, though elder specimens sometimes underwent a series of slight alterations to their physical and genetic structure that was their hideous evolution’s way of ensuring propagation within a hive. Some of these specimens were more akin to female and would grow up to be future Queens of another nest, and the Queen of the main hive herself would evolve to a feared Empress that controlled the domain of her Queen daughters, others could be classified as male due to a dual responsibility they instictually inherited; to breed with future Queens, and to act as primary guardians. Females were not only more sensitive to pheromones, but could produce their own blend that would suit their needs.

Iseijin was creating, and subsequently releasing, pheromones. A signature from her hive that worked to dominate lesser drones of their own or different hives. The pheromone pits were located inside her mouth, and at the sides of her head, shaking the head ensured that the chemicals would be thrust out into the air.

The air itself carried the signature of the other creature. And it was one she did not recognize.

An enemy.

FireHunter's thunderous ululation ceased, it took several slow, threatening steps forward, claws stretching in anticipation, it didn't recognise the smaller being before it, although it looked familiar, and all it wanted to do was tear the smaller creature apart.

Shaking its mighty, armoured head, FireHunter took another step forward, growling, tail up like the stinger of a hellish scorpion. FireHunter bore down on his small, feline opponent, mandibles dripping a bad-smelling liquid onto the floor.

It flexed its massive muscles as it approached, trying to look as intimidating as possible, the set of six blade-like spines rising and falling in a display of aggression, jaws agape, inner jaw stretching, unleashing a small torrent of the foul-odoured liquid to splash to the floor, steaming.

FireHunter stopped, still as a statue for several, tense seconds, before it roared again, and thundered towards Iseijin like a train of chitin, bone and muscle.

Only a hissing snarl was spared as the beast thundered forward towards Iseijin before her taut-coiled muscles released and she sprung to the side, tail whipping behind her with an audible sound from the sudden snap of motion.

The pheromones did not work, and her pits were continously assaulted with the reeking scent of her opponent that classified him as one not of her hive – and consequently a threat to her hive that had to be disposed of. Hives rarely coincided on the same planet, less even in a similar territory, but when those chances proved true and two Queens from different hives managed to etch nests close to each other then war was often waged to ensure one hive’s survival over the other. Should one of the Queens fall then her drones would be dominated over and used as pseudo-slaves, or, more likely than not, cannon-fodder. The rest would be exterminated and their hive taken over.

All the xenomorph’s mind was telling her was that this specimen was an enemy to her hive and it must be killed.

Nimble Iseijin easily swept over the perimeter of the court in several long strides, picking up speed even in such an enclosed area to use the accumulated momentum at the last moment. Right when she was behind, almost passing by, the beast’s back she whipped forward right at his direction and leapt, arms forward and claws separated wide, slamming on his back and curling those scythe-like talons down to snag into any fleshy area that permitted. The long tail whipped to and fro in the air to maintain balance as she scampered and twisted to ensure a hold, thrusting her head forward, jaws parted, to bite down on a mouthful of anything her teeth sunk into, shaking her head to maximize the damage caused during this first assault managed.

FireHunter writhed as Iseijin crawled on its armoured back and bit into it, shaking her head in an attempt to tear its flesh apart. FireHunter's back spines flicked up suddenly flipping her into the air, and its tail came lunging forward, but missed, only leaving a gash along her back.

Iseijin latched onto FireHunter's head, and its mandibles scraped uselessly against her chest, FireHunter's arm lunged up to grab the smaller xenomorph but she moved, and its hand came crashing into its own face, and FireHunter staggered backwards. FireHunter spun on the spot, and felt a set of claws rake into its head, out of its reach.

FireHunter thrashed about like a mad bull at a rodeo, shaking its monstrous head in anger, trying to reach the small creature latching itself to its back. Its back spines flicking up and down, desperately trying to get rid of Iseijin, FireHunter backed into the wall with a massive thud, and Iseijin was dislodged. FireHunter turned to faced the small creature that was previously on its back.

FireHunter picked up its foe, ignoring the claws attempting to cut through its arm, and hurled her diagonally, at the reflection of the grisly battle going on between it and Iseijin.
The reflection shattered and Iseijin went through it and into the room beyond.

Sergeant Brownstone yelled in shock as Iseijin came crashing through the window and pretty much onto his desk, then a great terror gripped him as he realised that this would spell death for him and everyone in the facility. Iseijin was between him and the alarm, so he turned and began to run.

Iseijin screeches as she flailed upon the various furnitures piled around and on her, tail whipping wildly that only caused the metal to shatter, cloth rip, and glass spray in the air. Eventually she managed to flip over on her claws and push herself up, shaking her head free of debris, hissing a less than pleased sound. Every sound of a drop was followed by a gurgling hiss as the acid blood from the gash on her back trickled in thin lines down the curvature of her body and dripped to the floor. The gash itself was long and traveled diagonally down her back up to the top of her left hind leg. Other smaller cuts peppered her hide by the shattered glass and metal, but the acid had eaten away the chunks before she even could've felt it.

A startled sound behind Iseijin catches the beast's attention and her head snaps towards it, hissing as the human now becomes the xenomorph's target. Glass clinks as it scatters on the floor and crunches when she steps on it, slowly stalking towards the human that radiated a bioelectrical aura in his fright that attracted Iseijin like a beacon.

Suddenly she stops dead in her tracks. The human does not overstep the opportunity and runs away, but Iseijin does not give chase. With a low growl her head turns towards the shattered window she crashed through and returns to it. If the human's electric aura was as though a bright light to a moth, then the predalien's still wafting pheromones were blinding smoke signals she could not ignore. The xenomorph steps up to the edge and peers over it, locking her direction towards the source of her ire.

The enemy of the hive.

With a shrill shriek Iseijin leaps, outright diving to her opponent with claws forward and extended, and teeth bared in malicious greeting.

FireHunter watched as lithe Iseijin leaped towards it, lowering its head, FireHunter jumped towards Iseijin, much less graceful than her, they collided, and FireHunter, weighing much more than Iseijin, took her up in the trajectory of its leap, feeling deadly claws cut a small way into its exoskeleton.

They both flew towards the now-shattered window and Iseijin was thrown through it as FireHunter stopped itself from slamming into the walls by digging its claws into the metal surrounding the window, its weight began tearing through the metal and FireHunter was forced to squeeze through the window.

It got through easier than expected and was soon crouching in the control room, hulking over Iseijin, who was still recovering from the impact. FireHunter's jaws opened wide and it bellowed down upon its foe, mandibles stretched wide.

Iseijin remained crouched, returning the snarl with a beastly, guttural growl of her own, mouth widely opened to better reveal the rows of sharp teeth and the secondary jaws coiled in the back of her throat like a snake ready to strike. Whenever the large predalien got too close a claw swiped at him to keep distance, immediately preceding with a dash to the side to get away. FireHunter was easily twice Iseijin's mass and weight, and if he landed a hold on her not only would the collision of his heavy hand smack her stupid, but would cause some hefty damage. Iseijin's survival had primarily depended on her speed - it was difficult to hurt her because it was difficult to catch her.

The control room was too small to move fast in and oftentimes Iseijin crashed against the corner of the angular chamber in less than two strides, causing the xenomorph to screech in frustration as she flailed up from the floor and attempted to dash to the other end of the room with similar, failed results.

If she could keep at the predalien's back then his bulk would work against him because he'd move slow in such a small space, so Iseijin attempted just that. Whenever FireHunter spun around to face her she dashed - crashed - to the other end to keep at his tail.

Off-Topic: Iseijin, FireHunter easily weights six times as much as Iseijin, it weighs 1200 pounds, think of a creature ten feet tall and with a shoulder width of six feet, solid muscle and a thick exoskeleton, and you have FireHunter, and it's still pretty light for something of its size.
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On-topic:
FireHunter was turning as fast as it could, still unable to keep up with its agile foe, its tail whipped around behind it, but Iseijin was dodging beneath it, so the tail was generally just to keep her off of its back. FireHunter saw the door, and took a step forward, reaching over and tearing it open, attempting to break through to get into the seemingly larger hallway, it felt Iseijin avoid its tail and climb onto its back, claws digging in as best they could on its hard shell. From the hallway, FireHunter heard a shout and a gunshot rang out through the hall, but the human was panicked, and he missed FireHunter completely initially, but the bullet ricocheted and struck it solidly in the ribs.

The gun wasn't very powerful, and the bullet didn't draw any blood, but ricocheted again off of FireHunter's rib and struck the floor, coming to a halt in the floor. There was a moment of silence and the human was shaking, not moving, too scared to fire another shot, he was frozen, steadily, his pants darkened at the crotch as his body's fear mechanism attempted to make him lighter.

FireHunter pushed forwards with great power, and the walls bent outwards with it, before tearing apart and yielding to its massive bulk, Iseijin still clinging to its back. Now in the much larger corridor, FireHunter stood up, and its back spines flicked upwards in an attempt to remove the smaller xenomorph from its body. It still felt the acid dripping from the scores of cuts on its face and back, but suddenly the weight of Iseijin was gone.

FireHunter ignored that, and focussed on the terrified human before it, hulking over the drenched, whimpering man, FireHunter roared and swiped, picking the man up by the leg. He screamed as the monster dangled him above the ground, and began crying uncontrollably. It didn't kill him, though, it was searching for something, and when he saw that something, the man cried even more.

It was another xenomorph, much smaller and clearly much lighter than the one holding him, scuttling along the ceiling, more like a panther from hell than the rendition of Satan which had his leg. The blood was rushing to his head and it felt like he was going to vomit.

Then there was a growl as FireHunter saw Iseijin, and a loud scream as the man was flung effortlessly in that direction, FireHunter's throw was inaccurate, and the man flew further than required, splattering on the far end of the corridor, offal and blood spilled bright against the shiny steel walls.

FireHunter growled in ceaseless fury and began sprinting from one end of the corridor to another, back spines raised to catch Iseijin in its charge.
The lights shattered as the spines hit them, leaving a trail of darkness behind it as it ran.

The scythe-curved talons kept and her relative light weight kept Iseijin clinging onto the ceiling with ease, moving with similar fluidity as though the beast were on land even in the upside-down environment; a dash to the left corner that was met with a similar sharp movement to the right as the predalien continued its assault and flung the hapless human towards her - more so against the hard surface it splattered against. Iseijin hissed to FireHunter almost with a mocking undertone.

But the bravado was short-lived. Her beastial opponent flung himself towards her in the form of dashing down the hallway with its spins rigid and strong enough to not only dig into the ceiling, but cut a path as it ran, lights bursting into darkness as glass shattered and electricity crackled, illuminating his silhouette in a singular second before enveloping his form in shadow once more with every step. Iseijin screeched and skuttled along the ceiling, tail whipping behind her, until reaching a T-section whereupon she flung herself to the ground - curling her body in the air in the same manner as a cat would to land on their feet - and, without pause, turned to the left. There seemed to be no apparent reason as to why left; perhaps because it was where she had landed closest to, or because there may be a natural inclination for left, but left is where she had turned to and left is where she ran.

The fact that Iseijin lacked an exoskeleton along her dorsal meant that her spine could curl inwards, bend, at a near impossible that would spring forward angle that allowed each stride to cover at least her entire body length - though it meant sacrificing protection. Her back was exposed; as the gash on her back would confirm of that.

The smooth floor made each stride an exercise in precision, where she had to land on the fleshy pads of her feet just so, keeping the weight off the talons themselves, or risk slipping. If there were humans along the way they either flung themselves into the nearest room and shut the door or ran, and if the latter then Iseijin soon passed them, snapping her teeth at them though lacking any true interest at the moment.

Suddenly, silence.

The hall seemed empty save for the few humans that were left running, or curled against the wall, whimpering. Many of the metallic doors were shut along the corridor's length. Except for one, one with an agape opening and lights off, and within its shadowy interior a soft rasping was heard.

FireHunter continued his charge, and when its prey turned a sudden left at the T-Junction, it had picked up too much speed to stop, tucking its head in and hunching to bear the brunt of the imminent impact, it slowed itself down as much as it could, crashed into the door frame, tearing it open, and slammed into the wall, leaving a huge dent.

FireHunter turned to its left and ran down the hall, but again skidded to a halt when it was faced with a series of doors on either side, only one which was open. Humans were curled up, crying, holding each other in fear of the two monsters that were set loose in the facility in the corners. FireHunter grinned as much as a xenomorph could, and turned right, towards a pair of humans who screamed their final breath as FireHunter lifted them by their torsos. Long black claws going over their shoulders and around their waist, one was tossed into the air and sliced clean in half by FireHunter's blade-like tail, intestines spilled out like grotesque christmas decorations. The other was pulled apart by the two huge hands that now wrapped around his left leg and right arm, blood sprayed out as if launched from fire-hose.

FireHunter continued on in this fashion, until all of the previously whimpering humans were either dead or making a bee-line for the open door, preferring to take their chances with the hell-panther instead of the embodiment of violence and anger behind them. FireHunter tore down the closed doors, and peered inside each room, all of the rooms held nothing but more humans, but they weren't its target, the others were killed for amusement.

Finally it came to the open doorway, there was naught but darkness inside, and FireHunter's mighty shadow blocked out what little light came in. Iseijin was in here, it could sense her presence.