AUTHOR'S NOTE: This is a sequel to Domovoi, my first Pacific Rim fanfic. It is strongly recommended that you read that fic before you read this one, otherwise you'll have no idea what's going on.
Finally, three-and-a-half years after the end of Domovoi... the sequel, Doppelganger! Took me long enough to get around to penning this. I know I ended the first fic on a terrible sequel hook, so hopefully this rectifies the situation. Plus, I know some people have just wanted more Jaeger action/cuteness, so hopefully this satisfies that itch...
The events of Pacific Rim: Uprising do not occur in this AU, and will not impact this fic. Any similarities between this fic and Uprising are completely accidental. (Seriously, I haven't even seen the film save a single trailer, and after reading the plot summary on Wikipedia I have no desire to do so...)
EVENT LOG FROM PAN-PACIFIC DEFENSE CORPS ARCHIVES
MEDIA TYPE: Digital video footage
SOURCE: Personal video camera of Phoebe Banner, civilian American citizen
DATE RECORDED: June 24, 2027
LOCATION RECORDED: Pacific Ocean, approximately 500 kilometers off coast of Hawaii
"Hey, guys, this is Phoebe Banner, and welcome to Day Twelve of my trip around the world. Not that anyone's going to watch this until I reach dock, but… you know, gotta keep a log of events. Even if they're boring events."
The subject of the video - a 20-year-old woman, Caucasian, red hair, gray eyes - smiles at the camera and flashes a peace sign. The video is taken in the cabin of a sailboat, identified as the September.
"Anyhow, keeping this video diary was Dad's idea, so… thank you, Dad. You're smarter than you look. *laughs* Keeping this log has kept me sane, really - I mean, who else am I gonna talk to? Except maybe Romeo. Say hi, Romeo!"
Phoebe reaches towards the camera, which turns to focus on a black-and-white "tuxedo" cat in a fluorescent yellow life vest. The cat lays on a sleeping bunk, looking alertly at the camera.
"So I'm not gonna set any records for being the youngest person to sail around the world, or even the youngest girl, but at least I'll be the first person to sail alone with a cat, I guess. Though is it really alone if you have a cat… okay, I'm rambling, let's go topside."
A hand reaches out to scratch the cat's head, then the camera lurches as Phoebe picks it up and makes her way through the ship. All signs point toward a craft well-stocked for a long journey, albeit with some personal touches on the sailor's part - painted artwork on most interior surfaces, charms and crystals hung from ribbons on the ceiling, etc. Occasional meows can be heard.
"So we're making decent time… we should make it to Hawaii in the next day or two to resupply. Guess I should brush up on my Hawaiian, huh? My parents say Hawaii actually used to be a hot vacation spot back before K-Day - they even spent their honeymoon there. Wild, huh? But the tourists and all the haoles evacuated when the Kaiju War started and it belongs to the natives now. I guess they're not complaining, they got their land back, right?"
The camera jerks, dipping down to show Phoebe's feet as she climbs the stairs to the deck of the September. The cat, Romeo, can be seen in flashes at her feet, keeping pace and meowing for attention.
"Hi boy! Hi Romeo! For prosperity's sake, this is Romeo Blue, and yes, he's named after one of the original Jaegers. Except he's much cuter than a giant robot. No offense to anyone watching this who's a Jaeger fan. Jaegers are awesome, they saved the world, they're just not that cute. Except Cherno, he's the adorable exception. Speaking of which, must check if there's an Internet cafe in Hawaii. I wanna see if the Kaidonovskys have updated their blog. And of course post two weeks' worth of videos to my vlog…"
The camera emerges into near-blinding daylight - the sky is a clear, brilliant blue, the sea mostly calm. The camera pans to take in the seascape, which stretches to the horizon in every direction. There are no signs of other ships, land, or aquatic or aerial life to be seen.
"So this pod of dolphins was following us for the past few hours, and I was hoping to get a shot of them for you guys, but… it looks like they ditched us. Hopefully they come back soon. I've seen a couple whales too, but of course it's always when I'm busy wrangling the sails and not when I actually have the camera handy - hey!"
A loud yowl from Romeo interrupts Phoebe. The camera pans over to show the cat perched on the bow of the ship, back arched, making low threatening meows. Fur not pinned beneath the life vest is standing on end, and his ears are pinned back in an expression of displeasure.
"Romeo, what's wrong? Do you smell something? We're hundreds of miles from the nearest dog, so we know it's not that… Guess I should shut this off and go furl the sails. Last time he started doing this a storm blew in. Animals really do have a sixth-sense about this kind of thing, it turns out… oh whoa."
The camera stills, focusing on a seemingly random spot in the ocean. Bubbles froth on the surface, and more rise every second, as if the water were inexplicably boiling in one tiny part of the ocean.
"What IS that? That's not a whale… is that sharks? That better not be sharks…"
Romeo's distressed meows are nearly constant now. The water churns with bubbles, then begins to bulge upwards as if something was trying to breach the surface.
"Oh my god… OH MY GOD!"
The camera jigs wildly from side to side as Phoebe backpedals and falls, and as the September heaves from side to side in a suddenly violent ocean. Water crashes down on the camera, and Romeo's cries are barely heard over the sound of spray and oceanic eruption. Phoebe screams, and there are several lines of unintelligible speech drowned out by a loud, guttural snarl.
"Oh my god this can't be [unintelligible]"
The camera finally settles on the source of the disturbance - a massive gray-skinned head looming out of the ocean, dripping seawater and tangles of kelp hanging from projections on its chin and neck. The head is X-shaped and bony-looking, with two sets of eyes spaced wide apart and a split, pronged chin. Blue light filters out from between its teeth, as if illuminated from within, and scrawled lines of bright cyan pattern its hide.
"That's a Kaiju! That's a KAIJU! They're supposed to be extinct, what the hell!"
The Kaiju remains still, its eyes fixed on the boat. The camera holds mostly steady, quite at odds with the hysterical nature of the camera-holder. Romeo continues to yowl, and the camera briefly jerks to one side to show the cat, soaked to the skin but unhurt and still displaying anger towards the Kaiju.
"Oh my god, we're dead, we're dead, we're dead… it's gonna kill us, oh god… Mom, Dad, if you ever see this, I love you so much, please hug Wayde and tell him his big sister loves him…"
The Kaiju opens its mouth slightly and growls. Then it sinks slowly beneath the surface, the waves generated by its movements drenching the September. Romeo continues to yowl for several minutes after the Kaiju vanishes from sight.
"...holy shit. I gotta find the radio. There's got to be Coast Guard or something around here, they need to know about this…"
NOTES FROM MARSHAL TENDO CHOI
This videorecording marks the first documented contact with a Kaiju since the sealing of the second Breach in 2025, commonly called the Battle of Koko Guyot. The Kaiju in question - classified by Pan-Pacific Defense Corps archives as Slattern, a Category-5 Kaiju first identified at Operation Pitfall - inflicted no damage on the sailing sloop September save some moderate swamping, and no injury on its operator or her companion save giving both a good fright and soaking. This is surprisingly not unusual, as individual boats and ships were not common targets for Kaiju attacks unless they were in their direct path to a coastal city.
The reappearance of Slattern confirms what the PPDC has suspected - another Breach has opened, and more Kaiju have entered our waters. The number of Kaiju at large, and which types, are currently unknown.
All Jaegers will be recalled to whichever operational Shatterdome is closest to their place of residence, and prepared for immediate action. No Kaiju has made landfall yet, but we have received a rare and valuable advance warning. And this time around, we will not be caught by surprise. The humans and mechanisms of the Pan-Pacific Defense Corps will protect our shores from these monsters at all costs.