[i]The sun was high and hot this day, with almost no clouds in the sky to obstruct the scorching veil. A gust of wind would only bring heated air as well as a plume of dust. All of this and it was still early morning. In the distance, very far but with a lacking of clouds it looked near, was a gathering storm. If it were not for the coming storm then it would surely be a hot day. But this was the usual for this part of the world, sweat filled, long, days. What animals were out and about were making their way from one shaded spot to another. There were surely others nearby, but they were concealed by a thick layer of waist high brush and clumps of trees. A recent drought had come to an end, one could see it in the faces of the animals and the look of the vegetation. A new green hue covered the landscape and the look of optimism could almost be mistaken on the faces of the indigenous species'. Storms had been frequent, almost one every week if not bi-weekly. It was as if they were on some sort of schedule and to be late was not an option. It was a gift for the locals, both human and inhuman, for it was saving them.

As the storm neared, a cooler breeze crept forth. Grass, bushes, and smaller vegetation leaned with the breeze. Leaves did as well but the tree trunks stood tall, unwavering. The air had picked up dust, carrying it to the sand of the parked Land Rover. The vehicle was originally white but rust and wear were beginning to show. Blotched stains of mud were above the wheels and painted the bumper and fender. The driver side window was opened slightly, maybe only an inch. A thin, quiet, trail of white smoke flowed like a creek from the inside. The source of the smoke was soon flicked from within the vehicle, a cigarette butt. Another flick, but this time on a lighter. Click. Inhale. Smoke trail. 

"He will not come" a deep, African, voice produced this first sentence, breaking the silence.

"He will. I know he will." an American this time.

"De lion does what he wants, you Americans..." he trailed off.

"Yeah, yeah, Americans this, Americans that. Have some faith Sepou. I know he will be here. Another male intruding on the territory of his pride, and with cubs. We may be lucky enough to see the lionesses, fuck, lucky enough to see his cubs." the taste of optimism dripped on every word. "I am not usually wrong, my friend".

"Mr. Lancaster, you are funny", the sentence was followed by a brief chuckle.

The Land Rover sat idle, still in the serene African bush. Jamie, the driver, had been near this site many times before. Though his actual task was observing the habits and environmental interaction of African buffalo, Jamie wanted to learn more about how they reacted to predators. At first he started by following the herd, he called them the Lexington Herd, named after the street he grew up on. This yielded very little results. Predators often came near, near being a few hundred meters, but they did not often engage. So he shifted his gaze from the herd to a nearby pride of lions. The pride consisted of a male, Charles was his name, and four females with some a pair of cubs in the mix. This pride was of real interest to Jamie. Not long ago, when he first came across them, Charles was actually in a coalition with another male lion. Unfortunately the other male had made a go at the cubs which resulted in Charles removing him by force. Though this was a spectacle to see, it also saddened Jamie as he would have liked to observe male lion coalitions more, but it is nature. 

No more than twenty meters from the Land Rover, the brush split and out came a magnificent golden beast. It was Charles, as Jamie had predicted. And as Jamie predicted, the king of this pride immediately sought out the intruder. Excitement burst from Jamie as he turned the key in the ignition. The rusted Rover roared to life, the lion not even paying any mind as he was completely focused on his adversary. Jamie shifted and the vehicle slowly lurched forward, he kept it at a crawl. As he moved towards the spot where Charles had just crossed, he spotted the other male moving in as well. Not only that, but they were going to meet in an opening in the curtain of vegetation. How lucky, Jamie thought. The two large cats closed distance. Posture changed. Everyone knew what was coming next. 

It started with a roar.
[/i]

[i]Beep, beep, beep, beep[/i]

Jamie, now a few years older and more clean cut, slowly opened his eyes. The fog of sleep took an abnormal amount of time to clear from his eye. The alarm was still crying out to him. Though he knew that it was time to rise and meet his day head on, he liked the sounds of lions roaring more than an electronic system designed to drag him out of bed. Reaching over with his left hand, Jamie placed two fingers on a light blue panel on the wall, silencing the alarm. A bit of sweat had formed just below the hairline, nothing compared to what had been produced that day. He brought the hand back from the panel and brushed the sweat from his forehead, then wiped it on the leg of his pants. The morning had just begun and already Jamie was tired, not very enthusiastic about leaving the comfort of his bed. The night before had been one to remember, though he was struggling with portions of it. After a long day of hard work, he and a few members of the team gathered at the bar for some drinks. Though the night should have ended there, it carried on to a colleague's apartment. Oh, the state that that place must be in. Jamie chuckled a little then rose to his feet. 

Every morning the routine was the same. Identical to the day before. Jamie would pop a pill to relax the muscles in his knee, though it did not pain him to go without the medication, it was just an inconvenience that was easily remedied. Then he would proceed to shower, take care of all of his hygiene related tasks, get dressed, and head to work. Today Jamie decided that he would going to wear a white t-shirt with his outfit. Not much variation there. A bit of sweat was gathering on various parts of his body, the usual when he rushed to get dressed and leave right after a shower. Resting on a table by the door was his Weyland-Yutani identification badge. Rather quickly he clipped it on, gathered his work materials, and departed for the day ahead. 

The walk to work was the same every day, he took the same route. When moving to the colony, from Earth, Jamie had requested an apartment close enough to the labs so that he would not have to venture far and so that he could maximize his time at work. This was really just an excuse to spend more time with animals or working for them, it was his passion and his calling. There was one portion of the walk that Jamie enjoyed most, it was a sky-way between the building his home resided in and the labs. Both sides were paneled with glass windows, Jamie would often spend a few minutes looking out onto the beautifully terraformed world before him. This portion of the colony was exceptionally clean and shiny, the only bits of dirt that Jamie resonated arrived would be from his own boots in the evening or the dried mud in the morning. This was almost certainly true. The sun was shining today, not producing the same heat as Africa, which was a relief. As Jamie crossed from the bridge into the building that housed the labs, he would always take note of the sunlight fading and being replaced by artificial light. He was an outdoorsman at heart.

Very quickly Jamie made his way to the ecological labs. Daily he did his best to be the first one in there, today he did not know if he would on account of the hangover slowing his pace a few steps. Jamie turned down a hallway, at the end of it was a double door with the Weyland-Yutani logo on it, next to it was a scanner for his badge. With a wave of the badge, the doors slid open and Jamie entered. The lab was quite nice, Jamie spent as little time there as he had to. There was a small office located down a hallway that had his name on the door, he made quick work to get there. Once inside he breathed a sigh of relief, sat down onto his chair, and felt as if he was melting into a lazier pose. There were a few folders on the desk, Jamie preferred to take his notes in paper and pen. Each had a different label. The top one being labeled "Phase 1 Prey Introduction", Jamie place his hand atop of it.

"Another day in paradise" he mumbled to himself with a smile.