James Weddel was a Chief Medical Officer who was part of the crew of the Geryon sent on a 'salvage mission' on the moon LV-223.
Weddel was incinerated by an Engineer after it had 'saved' him and his lover Clara Atkinson from a group of Xenomorphs.
Biography
A few days before the moon landing, Clara Atkinson introduces her recording device to Weddel, who started teasing her, before she briskly cuts of the footage. She then goes to Francis Lane's office to talk to someone "a bit less embarrassing".
On the day of their arrival, Weddel and most of the other crew are in the briefing room listening to one of Chief Security Officer Galgo's stories, until Angela announces three hours until touchdown.
Weddel and the rest of the crew land on the moon and begin exploring the terrain and are met with a lush jungle, bristling with strange alien life. Weddel receives bio-readings and metal detection everywhere on his terminal. They later come across a field of deceased mauled creatures and a lake of black goo. Weddel scans the goo and sights that "this stuff can't make up it's mind what it is. Weddel also finds a small army of ants fighting each other, which he takes a sample of. The prime discovery made by the crew however was an old vessel from the colony Hadley's Hope located on the neighboring moon LV-426 — containing a horde of hostile Xenomorphs which they unwittingly unleash. The Xenos kill and wound multiple crewmembers but James and others manage to escape.
They eventually retreat into the Helios and captain Angela reveals her true intentions in travelling to LV-223 - to find the truth behind Peter Weyland's disappearance and locate the Engineers, much to the crew's shock.
After the crew pick up Francis who had recently injected his construct companion Elden and had also come across a crashed derelict ship the crew returns to the Helios to see it completely overrun by Xenomorphs. The crew manage to retreat into the derelict. Deeper within the interior of the derelict, the crew encounter a still operational laboratory to create life. Clara, fascinated with what she sees wishes to document the chamber and stays behind, the crew unintentionally leaving her. Weddel notices this and returns to the chamber to find her.
Death
Weddel eventually manages to find Clara but both are suddenly cornered by a group of Xenomorphs that had followed them into the derelict. Clara tells Weddel that she loves him and he replies with the same, expecting death. An Engineer suddenly emerges within the chamber holding a rifle-like weapon. The Xenomorphs attack him but are quickly incinerated by the superior being's weaponry. After the battle, Clara expresses her gratitude towards the Engineer and thanks him for saving them. The Engineer replies by pointing his gun at them and incinerating them like the Xenomorphs he had just fought.
Trivia
- Weddel may be a reference to the real life British sailor and navigator of the same name.