This was inspired by my OC submission to SANZOKU-RASSHU for his story; "Pacific rim: the new breach SYOC"
Even if he doesn't use them. I thank him for the inspiration he gave in inspiring me to thinking this up. I have his permission to post this as its sort of a prequel to his.
this story takes place in the time period between Gypsy Dangers encounter with Knifehead, and the closing of the breach.
Hold the line
Location: Los Angeles Shatterdome
Time/date: 0210 8/10/2021
!Kaiju Alert!
Class 3
Height 82m
Weight (est.) 2000tons
!Kaiju Alert!
"Come on' Shorty! Wake up! let's go, Let's Go, LET'S GO!"
The aforementioned 'shorty' provided a death glare as he rotated his feet off the bunk in the room he shared with his copilot. Cracking his neck by method of simply flexing the brown haired mans muscles, he stood and stretched as he continued to give a long suffering look to the ball of fucking energy that bounced around like a golden retriever on a bright sunny day with a stick.
Said ball of energy was a woman by way of voice and long brown hair. And his Fraternal twin.
Grabbing his gear the two got ready and marched out the door. Giving a nudge to the slightly younger female, which pushed her slightly off to the side. He spoke for the first time since waking up, "I am not short."
OOOOO
"You are too! shorter then me!" "By a half inch if that." a new voice with a thick southern Texas accent breaks in as the two don their respective drive suits. "Enough you two." it belongs to an older man with graying hair and if he were in the same room, towers over the two pilots by several inches. They could almost feel the ice blue eyes narrowing on them.
The woman speaks up to the ceiling where the voice came from, "Sorry marshal, just a little fun with shorty." "Enough Nimitz. We've got a Class Three in-coming. Here's the situation…"
OOOOO
As each stepped into their respective stations in the conn. pod the marshals voice rang out again, "You two aren't getting any help from this one. Its moving fast. Rangers! Mission is a go!"
With a final few clicks of locking mechanisms, the two checked their respective connections and called out their readiness. "John Nimitz, ready for handshake." "Jane Nimitz, ready for handshake." a new voice accented slightly with Chinese, "oo-tay then, prepare for nural 'andshake in 15..14..13.." the two fraternal twins relaxed and smiled at each other, "Ready?" asked Jane, looking to the left and John gave his traditional Reply, looking to the right, "I was born Ready." replied her brother with a slight smile.
"..3..2..1..Begin handshake"
Twins having their 13 birthday together with family….
High school prom both have their respective dates at their side….
Graduation from ranger school….introduction to their Jaeger half built…
Ready for this?… I don't know how many times… I was born ready…
"nural 'andshake complete. Drift holding steady at 96.2%… 'ey guys 'at's a record for you two."
Both smiled at each other. Today was a good day to go hunting.
OOOOO
Massive doors groaned as they finished opening, and out into the light steps a massive hulk of steel and titanium. With each trembling footfall, the Jaeger moved out into the morning light. Its slate gray hull and dark viewport, heavy pointed chest and bulky shoulders and waist, Popeye forearms, all gave the impression of an old ship going to war.
In a way, that's exactly what was happening.
When the first Kaiju, Trespasser, had made landfall in San Francisco bay, It had found a monolith of steel in front of it. The Iowa class museum battleship, BB-63 "U.S.S. Missouri" simply stepping on it's stern crushed and wrecked the ship but due to the shallow water it resided in it did not sink.
The ship was salvaged, and her steel given a new life. Re-forged into the chassis of the fourth Jaeger to ever be built, the Missouri's six surviving cannons were mounted to its forearms. A nuclear reactor designated for a submarine was crammed into his chest. With no other weapons but his fists and guns, the Jaeger stepped out to do battle.
The two pilots looked off to the left to see the usual crowd of enthusiasts giving them their sendoff. Banners, Flying the symbol painted on their shoulders, a battleship silhouette on top of the waving American flag on top of a bald eagle in an attack dive.
Banners flying the name of the 63m tall mark one, mod 2 behemoth.
"Dreadnought Freedom, moving out to the Mile."
OOOOO
One issue with the Dreadnought' was his speed. He wasn't the fastest Jaeger out there. "what'ya think Jane?" The woman chuckled, "good enough for me."
The old behemoth came to a halt, looking about in the early morning sunlight.
"Marshal? 'Freedom here" By default since John wasn't the talkative type, Jane handled all comm's messages. "We're at the line. Status?"
The older mans voice came back immediately, " 'Bout time. The beast had slowed down some, you got about 10 minutes before it comes over the horizon. Striker Eureka is on its way ETA 30 minutes. Also, we now have a designation."
Both Rangers looked at each other with near identical expressions of raised eyebrows. Something in the marshals voice told them this was not good.
"Codename: Reaper"
"Your orders: Hold the Line."
OOOOO
Within the massive chest piece of the 'Freedom, control rods withdrew at the pilots commands, winding the reactor up to 120% power. Battle status. With his coolant system going full throttle, guns waiting to be loaded with armor piercing or high explosive rounds. And two Rangers ready for anything.
Watching the water for the telltales of a mass moving underneath. The rangers readied themselves. The beast would stand up soon. "Ten clicks out Rangers." came the voice of their Marshal.
Settling back their left foot, the arms came up and ready. Johns voice came through the conn pods systems. "Load. Armor piercing. Engage Auto Reload."
Within the bulky forearms, the six sixteen-inch naval rifles, only modified for automated use, opened their breaches and received the six heavy armor piercing rounds. 2 tons of destruction each were readied as the breaches closed.
With a massive swirl of water two klicks out, it became obvious why Reaper was named such. Seawater dripping off it in heavy streams, the black beast noted the armored titan facing it, and raised the long scythe-like right claw on its somewhat thin looking frame that inspired its name. Then it roared, a sound like rending metal and tearing flesh. Its eyes glowing a bright blue reminiscent of electricity as it sounded its challenge. Its long teeth sharp and black, set in a triangular jaw on a skull-like head, multiple pairs of horns giving a demonic look.
The twins answered by extending their arms to full length and bracing the back foot. Cannons slid forward slightly as they readied, targeting systems reached out and tracked the beast.
John and Jane spoke at the same time, targeting systems locked on the Kaiju. "Salvo all! Fire!"
With a thunderous blast all six cannons fired their payload. Crossing the distance to the Kaiju in a little less then a second. All six rounds impacted upon the beast rocking it backwards and making it roar in pain.
Within the conn pod the AI voice sounded as the twins advanced towards the Kaiju. "Automated reload engaged. Warning armor piercing rounds depleted. Next reload high explosive."
With the Kaiju taller then them, it did lack one thing Dreadnought Freedom had in abundance. Throwing the first punch the twins put all the weight of their 5.5k ton Jaeger into the strike. The heavy impact of the slightly rising upper body blow knocked the Kaiju off its feet and into the water, raising a massive wave as it disappeared.
"Shit, where did it go?" the tenseness in both flooded back and forth along the drift, as the Dreadnought' looked around for its enemy with Jane's words. John's word after would be prophetic "Around." Yeah they knocked it back into the water, but where the fuck did it go? Both immediately thought of the same thing.
Gypsy Danger/Knifehead.
Turning around and looking for any sign, the sudden blow to the back staggered them forward, twisting about they went for a left backhand, only for that massive blade to come up and shear deep into the waist.
In the drift, when control systems severed. You. Felt. It.
Both pilots cried out as they felt the Reaper's jaws close on their left fist, John could feel the teeth biting through him, the blade in his guts.. But in his pain, their Drift was more solid then ever. "Salvo Left! Fire!" John grated out. Jane brought around the right arm to grab the Kaiju's stumpy left arm in a vise like grip.
With all three guns at point blank. The rounds tore into the Kaiju head. But did not penetrate the skull.
Releasing the hand to roar in anger and pain, Reaper ripped out the blade and in one swift movement sheared into the left arm.
Jane felt her twins pain at the moment it happened, releasing her grip as warnings sounded about the left arms damage, she punched with the right slamming the fist home into the chest of the beast, shouting for the guns to fire.
This time they got lucky, at point blank range, the guns fired, and one round slammed deep into the Kaiju's form. Tearing into the insides of the beast. With a roar it head butted the Jaeger, and with a screech of tearing metal and crack of breaking glass one of the horns on the beasts skull hammered the conn. pod. Tearing into the left side and exposing John to daylight for the first time.
John was shaken out of his pain from the massive shake to the head 'Freedom took. And with a yell from both siblings the damaged left arm came up to slam into the beasts face.
Unknown to both rangers, the rightmost, inner rifle was loaded.
The sheer shock of the contact triggered the firing mechanism.
The sixteen inch round, left the tube with a muzzle velocity in excess of 20 meters a second.
By sheer luck the round entered the eye, and detonated.
Searing hot shrapnel pinged off the ragged opening, one piece slamming into Johns helm and shattering his visor.
A splash of liquid followed. Bright bioluminescent blue. Kaiju Blue.
Jane felt it burn into her, "John! John!" her cries went unanswered as for the first time in the Drift, she felt her siblings personal pain. It was white hot, searing, blinding pain. But in that moment her brother fought through it.
Reeling back the Jaeger staggered. Somehow a kick from the Kaiju had rent one of their legs, their balance thrown off.
But that last shot had done enough.
Blinded, disoriented, and now with a massive head wound, the twins looked on as one, with the drift for them as deep as it was, they could barely feel the motion as the right arm cam up, and Aimed. From 400 meters away, pointed at the roaring Kaiju as time slowed down.
Jane spoke her voice rough and cold, her arm extended to the hated beast, fist closed and gun ready, "Center rifle right. Fire."
In that moment they felt no Pain. Felt no Fear. And felt no Remorse.
Launched from the rifle the round embedded itself into the wound. And with a cracking detonation blew the head apart.
Jane looked on in satisfaction as the corpse fell backwards into the sea.
Then the pain came again. And went away, as the Drift ripped apart.
"Shatterdome! Conn pod breached! Johns hit and needs immediate medical evac!"
OOOOO
Lying in a bed, the man felt like he had been thrown in a cement mixer with a pile of rocks. Everything hurt. Turning his head slowly to the side he could see the sleeping form of his sister, holding his hand. He squeezed and with a startled jump the younger by 13 minutes woman shook herself awake. He could feel the bandages on his face and neck, but in that moment. He smiled for his sister, and squeezed her hand.
Medical report:
John Nimitz A.
Kaiju Blue toxicology clean. Scarring to face, throat and chest. patient has severe damage to throat but is able to talk. Though it is painful. Subject expected to make full recovery though lingering damage to voice is expected.
End report.
Damage report:
Dreadnought Freedom
Sir he's a wreck. it's a bloody miracle 'Freedom took a hit like that without being sheared in half. Left arms a mess, need a complete rebuild. Conn pods the same. And don't get me started on the reactor. Right leg is buckled like a cheap card table. And if these rumors about the program are true, he goes to the Bay. Damn shame if ye ask me.