Hi, it has been a long time since I last wrote anything for the site. Unfortunately—especially when writing a thesis—reality has a way of forcing a writer's block on those who particularly love writing fiction. My writing is severely out of practice and it will take some time before it is back up to the standard I prefer.

Pacific Rim is a perfect reason to get back into the saddle…it's the one movie that has pushed me out of that writers block. So please, review, let me know what I need to focus on and I hope you enjoy my story.

Cheers,

Elusive


Chapter One:

Tragedy is always hard to overcome, especially when a person is close to the deceased. It's a physical ache—numb and vicious. Since the arrival of the Kaiju, there was stories of tragedy everywhere.

They were huge beasts, quick and sharp. Scientists argued that they were simply run on instinct, however, many disagreed. The way they hit the cities or anywhere with populace was extraordinary in its terror. It hit fast and it hit hard.

Katie Surgess was fourteen when they first arrived in San Francisco. Her father, a desk jockey for the military, forced her and her mother into one of the bomb bunkers on the base before finding a way to help those who were fighting. While one of the few that survived, Harry had been changed by what he had seen.

With his family close, Harry focused on trying to help those who were coming up with different ways on defeating the giant Kaiju, stumbling across the beginnings of the Jaeger Project. Katie found everything fascinating—her schooling then turned a different route.

The science behind the Jaeger machines were fascinating, especially to a young girl who had been home-schooled all her life. Finding her way into the engineering bay, several of the mechanics began teaching her little things, the basics of how to put a machine together. A lot of it was far beyond her reach, but the basics of it was all she wanted.

There were seven Jaegers being built-in the base where she was with her family. Several set backs with the computer side of things had pilots disappearing left right and centre and by the time Katie was seventeen, the system of the dual pilots began. With the conception of the Drift Protocol, the base was often searching for compatible entries.

Stubborn and at the age where she felt more than a little rebellious, Katie joined the piloting program, her eye set on one of the newer Jaegers, Gypsy Danger. The likelihood of her being able to pilot said jaeger was slim to nil. Instead, she found herself paired with a beautiful South-African woman and given a refurbished old Jaeger, Atlas Sabre.


Mosa Paki smirked at her shorter, American friend. "The way you are drooling over the Gypsy is somewhat alarming, my young one."

Katie was so focused at the completion of the Jaeger, she had missed what Mosa had said. "Isn't she a beautie?" she replied, glancing back. "If only we could get a chance to really connect with her—there would be so much that we could do, that I could discover."

"Are you still on about the machines being part of the Drift? You know the top brass thinks you're already bonkers. If we weren't so compatible with one another, I think they would have picked someone else for me."

Sighing, Katie tugged at her long braid before moving her eyes to the Atlas. "Is it me, or does Sabre look a little worn down?"

Mosa looked down at her shorter friend before taking in the hull of their Jaeger. While they had only piloted against three Kaiju, Atlas Sabre had gone up against seven Kaiju and three sets of pilots. They were the first dual pilots since the new system had gone in. Time had not been kind to Atlas Sabre. While most rents in the metal had been patched and filled in, there were half healed gouges all over the machine. Rust had begun to settle in with its joints and what paint job it had, was long gone.

Yet the scars of battle did nothing to its effectiveness against the giant beasts. He was tough, mean and hardy. Plasma cannons were top notch, checked regularly and maintained at optimum performance, the hull was thick and the physical attacks he could do were vicious and effective. He was a machine that, while not new, was steadfast and well-proven.

"Compared to the new, Sabre is old, but he is tried and proven. Many more fights are definitely in his future," Mosa said in response, her eyes glowing at him. "You are very young, Katie, and impulsive. Once you experience defeat, that cloud will lift from your eyes and you will know how to truly face those beasts and win absolutely."

"We haven't done too bad, Mosa, have we?" Katie frowned, her blue eyes darkening in offense.

"It is not that—" Mosa paused, her brow furrowing as she tried to find the right words…"It is getting harder and harder to defeat these Kaiju, they are learning and we are not. We are simply stuck in the place where we are still winning. Defeat will make us all open our eyes."

Biting a rosy lip, Katie simply turned and continued watching the Gypsy Danger, her mind mulling over her friend's words.


Defeat was sooner than planned.

The heads of the Jaeger program wanted more results, wanted to see if a first strike could place them further ahead in the war against the Kaiju. Plans had been made for a first strike against the Pacific Rim Portal. Mosa was cool and calm, her dark skin betraying no sense of fear or dread. Katie however was a bundle of nerves, jittery and shaking as they connected in the Drift.

It was almost serene, being carted over the ocean by helicopter, without any land nearby. A total juxtaposition compared with the events that would soon follow.

The plan was simple.

Blow the shit out of the portal before the next Kaiju arrived.

It didn't work.

The nuke destroyed more than half the number of Jaegers assigned to the mission, leaving eight standing in various states of disrepair. Atlas Sabre was practically defenceless with her electronics down. Mosa and Katie fought hard to regain the systems—then, the worst happened.

Kaiju—Classification-3

One of the first Classification 3's to ever surface from the sea.

Atlas Sabre was its first target.

As the beast tore apart the Jaeger, Mosa implemented the escape pod system—meant to eject the pilots at the same time. Only, because of the system failure, Katie made it out alive.

The window was clear as the young American was jettisoned out of her Jaeger. She could see clearly the death and destruction of the Atlas Sabre, and the final death of the Kaiju at the hands of three Jaeger. Mosa was lost, presumed dead.