Warning: Spoilers ahead for What If…? Aliens #4!Alien has officially confirmed that the chestburster form of the Xenomorph life cycle isn’t nearly as weak as fans believed. The Xenomorph has undeniably become one of the most powerful extraterrestrial beings in pop culture. The level of destruction it’s capable of causing is terrifying. Yet with three supposedly weaker forms in its life cycle, it’s been believed for decades that stopping a deadly takeover is easy as long as people act fast. However, a shocking new reveal shows this couldn’t be further from the truth.

In What If…? Aliens #4 by Hans Rodionoff, Brian Volk-Weiss and Guiu Vilanova, a Queen Xenomorph has officially been born following an effort by Carter Burke to make use of the secret benefits of the Xenomorph’s acid blood. With this destructive force on the loose, Burke goes to his daughter and Hiro Yutani for assistance, telling them that his synthetic partner Cygnus was killed by the chestburster. It’s hard to believe that such a tiny force can completely tear Cygnus to shreds and kill him, but Yutani confirms that it’s entirely possible when they return to the hatching site.

Hiro Yutani explains that “Xenomorphs are incredibly powerful bioweapons, even when they’re newborns,” without mentioning Queens specifically. This ultimately confirms that despite its small size, the chestburster is incredibly strong and able to kill just as effectively as its adult form.

Chestbursters Have the Same Strength as Adult Xenomorphs

The Alien Universe Has Less Time to Extinguish a Xenomorph Outbreak than Believed

What’s notable about this major reveal is that the adult form of the Xenomorph isn’t the point of no return for total extraterrestrial domination. Given how strong the chestburster can be and how easily it can tear people apart, there is truly no time to delay when a suspected Xenomorph hive is nearby. Facehuggers tend to erupt whenever a potential host is nearby, and if it hatches early, it will skitter into nearby corners until someone walks by. Adult Xenomorphs are far stronger and can become a real problem when there’s a total infestation of them.

This leaves only one possible option to stop a potential Xenomorph attack: the eggs. This stage in the Xenomorph life cycle is the most docile since they’re developing the Facehuggers that will eventually hatch. Disposing the eggs before one can emerge is the only possible way to prevent any casualties near the nursery, even if Facehuggers aren’t exactly the death sentences fans once believed. This gives people a very tiny window of opportunity to stop a threat to their very existence, much less than originally theorized. However, even this poses a risk when a Queen is involved and guarding the nursery, as Burke and his team quickly discover.

The Chestbursters’ Strength Reveal Confirms Another Creature’s Power Level

The Chestburster Has One Enemy to Fear: Predators

While considered non-canon in the overall Alien universe, one brief scene between the Predator and a chestburster in Alien vs. Predator suggests the Predator is strong enough to dispose of this tiny terror with ease. In this scene, a chestburster launches from a host. Suddenly, the main Predator from the film grabs it and snaps its neck with one hand before moving on. This shows that despite its surprising strength, chestbursters still have a major counter, as the Predator’s strength can easily destroy it without fear of being torn to shreds.

Without Predators around though, the chestburster is a terrifying force to reckon with in the popular franchise. With its tiny stature, it’s essentially a mini-adult Xenomorph that’s capable of causing as much destruction as possible before it molts and quickly evolves into its iconic form. This reveal about chestbursters will undeniably change the Alien franchise forever as these deceptively small Xenomorph forms wreak havoc on the most unsuspecting explorers.