History Main / Chestburster

BodyHorror where an alien parasite or a FetusTerrible within someone else decides to it's about time to move out and find a body of its own. Often times, it does this in a fairly messy, painful and ''always'' fatal manner.

* [[ClassicalMythology Athena]] sprang, fully grown and armored, from her father Zeus's forehead. Unlike most of the "mothers" in this trope, Zeus survived with no ill effects. Being the supreme god of the era helped.
** Dionysus also came out of Zeus's leg.

* [[spoiler: Reneesme]] from the ''Literature/{{Twilight}}'' series. An odd version given that she is the [[spoiler:daughter]] of the two lead characters. Yep. [[HighOctaneNightmareFuel Pure. Unadultered. Nightmare. Fuel.]] [[WhatDoYouMeanItsNotForKids Written for teenaged girls.]]
** [[spoiler:Subverted in that the mother survives]]

* [[spoiler: Reneesme]] from the ''{{Twilight}}'' series. An odd version given that she is the [[spoiler:daughter]] of the two lead characters. Yep. [[HighOctaneNightmareFuel Pure. Unadultered. Nightmare. Fuel.]] [[WhatDoYouMeanItsNotForKids Written for teenaged girls.]]

[[caption-width-right:309:Awwww! It's a girl!]]

--> Spawn: [[PreMortemOneLiner Ever see ''Alien''?]]

* When a female Surinam toad lays eggs, the male fertilizes them and presses them into his mate's back. The eggs form pockets under the skin, and when they hatch, the tadpoles develop into mature frogs in these pockets. Eventually, the frogs burst from their mother's back.
** For all of these, WE DEMAND LINKS!!!
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** Subverted in that the mother survives

[[Film/{{Alien}} http://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/alien-chest-burster.jpg]]
[[caption-width:309:Awwww! It's a girl!]]

[[caption-width:309:The TropeNamer.]]

* In ''[[FateStayNight Fate/Stay Night]]'' Heaven's Feel route, True Assassin comes to being by "eating" Assassin from inside.

Related to OrificeEvacuation (where the alien leaves not quite as violently), OrificeInvasion (where any alien wants ''in''), FaceFullOfAlienWingWong (how these alien pregnancies ''start'').

*Several of {{Berserk}}'s nastier monsters are born this way, such as the Trolls of the Qlippoth and the demon soldiers of [[CompleteMonster Emperor Ganishka]].

*Happens to Jesse in ''ANightmareOnElmStreet 2: Freddy's Revenge'', when Freddy cuts his way out of his body.

*One episode of TheXFiles contained a parasitic fungus that made its victim burst open, spreading spores to surrounding people. All the scarier, since because this was an early episode, the concept exists in {{real life}}. Admittedly, it parasitizes ''ants'', but...

*The alien scene is spoofed in {{Warhammer}} adventure Castle Drahenfels.
**''{{Warhammer 40000}}'' had rules in earlier editions that allowed genestealers (think xenomorphs minus the acid blood) to implant eggs into models in close combat. A young genestealer could hatch from the model on later turns, presumably Film/{{Alien}}'s style. There's also a Tyranid HeroUnit, called the Parasite of Mortex. It allows you to replace an enemy model with a ripper swarm.
*In DungeonsAndDragons, one breed of Slaadi reproduces in this way (the adults have eggsacks in their finger and can implant an egg through a successful claw attack. The new slaad then grows inside the victim).

* Chryssalids, in {{XCOM}} Enemy unknown. First, they inject you with an egg, which zombifies you and makes you attack other humans. Once zombie you has been killed, or the Chryssalid inside you matures enough, [[BodyHorror your entire body splits open,]] revealing a Chryssalid. The only way to prevent this is to kill the zombies [[KillItWithFire with fire.]]

*[[http://www.explosm.net/comics/1850/ This]] {{Cyanide And Happiness}} strip. Rather odd example.