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"It's Shorty, one of the novices. His height makes him a target for the others in the caste, and he's decided the "token" human should be the whipping boy for his anger."
Machiko Noguchi regarding Shorty (from Aliens vs. Predator: War)

"Shorty", as referred to by the human Machiko Noguchi, was an Un-blooded Yautja and a member of Top-Knot's Clan.

Shorty exchanged a bitter rivalry with Machiko, who had joined Top-Knot's clan to partake with them on hunts. He was eventually killed by the latter during a hunt on the planet Bunda after Machiko betrayed the clan following the revelation that they were killing unarmed humans.

Biography[]

Shorty was a member of Top-Knot's clan aboard the Mother Ship Shell. Shorty was noticeably smaller than typical Yautja, causing him to be bullied by his peers. He would take out his frustrations on the human Machiko Noguchi, someone even smaller than he was, despite her technically outranking him.

Hunting a Queen[]

"He wouldn't laugh at her anymore, but it would be wisest not to let her guard down until Shorty was Blooded and gone. She almost felt bad for him, but reminded herself that if he wasn't such an asshole, she would have let him die; he deserved the dishonor, for being such a goddamn bully."
Machiko regarding Shorty (from Aliens vs. Predator: War)

[1]

Shortykillsteal

Short steals Machiko's kill.

Shorty would partake on a raid of a Xenomorph-infested planet with the goal of capturing a Queen to seed other planets for future hunts. Upon landing on the planet, Shorty took up the rear-guard with Machiko, and would subsequently steal a kill of hers after they infiltrated the hive. Showboating, he dismissed her protests and mockingly mimicked her speech and laughter. However, his gloating would soon come to an end when a Drone suddenly pounced on him. Machiko subsequently saved him by gunning the creature down with her Burner, robbing him of an honorable death and humiliating him in front of his fellow hunters.

Eventually, the hunting party finally managed to bring the Queen aboard their ship and took off. The pack retreated from the Queen, and with Top-Knot looking on, Shorty sealed the bulkhead, with Machiko subsequently trapped inside with the creature. However, she managed to escape and sever several of the Queen's fingers. Despite this triumphant act, Machiko received no praise from the pack, the group silently turning her back on her, much to her frustration.

Duel with Machiko[]

AVPWShorty3

Shorty fights Machiko.

After offending the Leader Light-Stepper, Machiko was placed up against Shorty in a one-on-one match to determine if she were to join their next hunt on the planet Bunda.

Machiko's speed and strategy of using Shorty's weight and temper against him initially paid off, and she temporarily incapacitated him. Before moving in for the kill, however, one of Shorty's peers from the crowd of spectators grabbed Machiko's ankle, giving him the opportunity to beat down Machiko and kick her out of the ring. For this, Shorty was enrolled onto the Bunda hunt, whilst Machiko was forced to stay behind aboard the Shell.

Bunda Hunt[]

Shorty would accompany Top-Knot and his pack on Bunda and engaged in a Xenomorph hunt. Upon noticing a human ship fly over them, Top-Knot's clan would begin attacking the humans. With their distress signal caught on Machiko's radio, she opted to betray Top-Knot, leaving his clan for good after killing two Predators and unleashing the captured Queen within the Shell, before taking a ship to the planet's surface to assist Brian Ellis, Katherine Lara, and Martin Jess.

Second Duel with Machiko and Death[]

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Machiko kills Shorty.

Upon patrolling the jungle, Shorty and four other comrades encountered Machiko and her newfound allies. A brief battle ensued; Shorty and fellow hunter 'Freckles' attacked Machiko, but the latter's superior skills as a warrior resulted in her killing Freckles, leaving her and Shorty in a brief battle.

Without his comrades to assist him, Shorty was powerless against Machiko, and she bisected his left hand with her Wristblades after deeming him a "bully". Shorty called her a "human" in retort, and Machiko admitted that although she was indeed a human and that she would consider it wrong to kill him, the hunter side of her knew it was the only smart thing to do. She then plunged the blades into his chest, killing him.

Aliens vs. Predator: Hunter's Planet[]




Queen Hunt[]

Lar'nix'va[2] was originally a member of Top-Knot's Clan, and had rivalled with Machiko during their hunts. During a Queen hunt where Top-Knot's Clan had managed to subdue a Queen aboard the ship, Shorty had sealed the bulkhead, trapping Machiko within the same room as the creature. Machiko desperately fought for her life, and eventually managed to escape. Impressed by her performance, the pack bowed their heads to Machiko for her valiant display, all but Shorty, who simply stared at her. Knowing that aggravating Machiko now following her bravery would only humiliate him further in front of the clan. He turned his back on her.[3]

Later in his life, after Machiko had been forced to leave the Clan after siding with humans on the planet Gordian, he had since managed to achieve the rank of Blooded, and had become an Adjutant for the Leader Nat'ka'pu, alongside fellow Blooded Bakuub.

Assuming Leadership and Hunt on Blior[]

"To think that the elders had once considered him unsuitable for breeding, had even considered severing his gonads. It was not just ambition that drove this warrior, but outrage. Soon there would be many yautja a few noks shorter than the norm. But they would be superior warriors and good solid breeders, without question. His name would not just be in history books, but written in the annals of the genome."
Aliens vs. Predator: Hunter's Planet

During a training session, their Mother Ship had picked up presence of a lone Xenomorph on the unexplored planet Blior. Deeming this a convenient opportunity, Nat'ka'pu had the ship land to showcase to his subordinates the methodology of killing a Xeno. However, the demonstration took a grave turn, after the Xenomorph branded a firearm, much to the Leader's shock, and had killed him; the creature was actually a cybernetic Xenomorph hybrid created by multi-billionaire Livermore Evanston.

After Shorty and Bakuub had gunned down the cyborg with their Burners, the former almost immediately assumed Nat'ka'pu's mantle, electing himself as Leader. However, Bakuub and the others had challenged Lar'nix'va's worthiness as a Leader, and he subsequently killed a Xenomorph in a duel to prove himself. Bakuub congratulated him, but attested that in order for him to truly demand respect, he would first have to showcase skill in tutoring the pack.[4] Irritated by this, Lar'nix'va considered challenging Bakuub to a duel himself to settle the matter, but realized that if he killed him, his pack would lose efficiency. Ultimately, Lar'nix'va called to conduct a hunt within Blior, though Bakuub was cautious, as they had not yet known the fauna of the planet.[5]

Unbeknownst to the hunters, Blior was owned by Livermore Evanston, and was used as a hunting colony for rich aristocrats. Machiko Noguchi was also present on the planet, hired by Evanston to quell a recent Xenomorph outbreak. Shorty's pack eventually encountered a group of human game hunter's and slaughtered them, before also coming across a genetically bred Tyrannosaurus Rex, causing them to retreat. Machiko witnessed the event from afar, but was subsequently ambushed by one of the members of Shorty's pack, though she eventually managed to kill him with the assistance of her synthetic companion Atilla the Hun.

Duel with Machiko and Death[]

Eventually, Machiko had uncovered the revelation of Evanston's Xenoborgs, and desired to stop him. As a result, she took a gamble and used a Yautja call to earn the pack's attention. Shorty and his pack revealed themselves, and though Machiko attempted to reason with the Yautja in an attempt to unify, Shorty deemed Machiko a traitor and ordered the others to kill her. Machiko promptly demanded a duel with Shorty to defend her honor. Shorty complied and engaged in a close, back-and-fourth duel to the death with his rival. Though Shorty came incredibly close to killing Machiko, unbeknownst to the others, Atilla had surreptitiously intervened, allowing Machiko to end Shorty.[6]

Bakuub, the only remaining Blooded of the pack, assumed Shorty's short-lived mantle as Leader, and subsequently agreed to a temporary alliance with Machiko and the humans to stop Evanston.

Personality and Traits[]

"Hey, dammit! Hah-Hah-Hah!"
Shorty mocking Machiko Noguchi (from Aliens vs. Predator: War)

Shorty was ill-tempered and impish, a result of being bullied and pushed around by his larger, same-aged peers. In an attempt to feel some superiority, he singled out and tormented Machiko, the only one smaller than him. His bigotry towards Machiko was beyond the clan's typical ambivalence towards her, and he used vindictive and underhanded methods to falter her at any opportunity. Shorty was very easy to anger, impulsive like most young hunters, and this eventually spelt his downfall.

Despite being labelled as "stupid", Shorty was at least smart enough to understand the English language, a feat he revealed only moments before his death.

In Hunter's Planet, Shorty had somewhat developed from his time as an Un-blooded, and his skills had improved immensely - he was now capable of killing Xenomorphs in single duels, and also came exceptionally close to killing Machiko. However, he was still extremely egotistic and arrogant; he was largely driven by an intense napoleonic bitterness to prove himself to others, and he greatly desired status and respect amongst his brethren, even going so far as to wanting a place in Yautja history. Bakuub regarded Shorty as a "fool", and noted that although he tried to hide it, he was clearly troubled.[7]

Equipment[]

Appearances[]

Non-canon[]

Trivia[]

  • Shorty is stated to be a head taller than Machiko, a Japanese human woman said to be of "typical" height. Given that Japanese women average around 5'2" in height[8] and the fact that a head is roughly 9 inches,[9] this would make Shorty around 5'11", more than a full foot shorter than the average Yautja. This difference in size could simply be a case of natural variance, or perhaps even a form of dwarfism, as Shorty is noted as being "distinctly undersized" in comparison to other Yautja.[10]
  • Another abnormally short Predator is Mahnde.
  • Hunter's Planet reveals Shorty's real name to be 'Lar'nix'va'.[2]
  • Hunter's Planet also detailed that a newborn Lar'nix'va was considered for castration due to his height.

Gallery[]

References[]

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