A double event.
Even in a war as fantastic and strange as the Kaiju War had been, a double event was something its veterans had never seen before. Sure, Doctor Gottlieb had been predicting one for months now, but many had dismissed his claims… or had just secretly hoped he was wrong. Two Kaiju rising from the breach was a terrible fulfillment to mathematical prophecy, and the Hong Kong Shatterdome could only hope that they could successfully repel the attack.
The tug of the helicopter lines on Cherno's chassis registered as a peculiar tension in Aleksis' shoulders, as if hooks were embedded in the muscles there and were trying to pull him into the air. It wasn't painful, just strange, and he had to resist the urge to try to shrug the feeling off. The last thing the Jumphawk pilots needed was for their two-thousand-ton "passenger" to suddenly start squirming.
Cherno's engines squawked in surprise as his feet cleared the hangar floor, and Aleksis couldn't suppress a slight smile. No matter how many times they were flown to the sight of a battle, going airborne seemed to startle the Mark I every time. Perhaps he was simply amazed that a being as massive as he was could take flight at all. Or perhaps, in the ultimate act of irony, he had developed a fear of heights.
At that, Cherno gave a disgusted snort. Fear of heights, his exhaust vent – he wasn't afraid of anything. A Jaeger who could single-handedly take down a Category III Kaiju had no business being afraid of a little flight.
Over the thumping whirr of helicopter blades and the boom and grind of machinery sounded an eager thrum of engines. Without even looking, Aleksis identified it as Striker Eureka, impatient and spoiling for a fight already. Another deep hum joined Striker's as Crimson Typhoon sounded off, as if making it known that he, too, was ready for battle.
Sasha smirked. "They want revenge. All of them. They want to take victory back from the Kaiju."
Cherno rumbled all around them in agreement.
"Don't get too bold," Aleksis urged. "We have a mission. You must be in one piece for it."
Cherno rumbled again, acknowledging his Ranger's command. He wouldn't fail. He couldn't, not with so much riding on all their shoulders… and not with their numbers down by one.
Far below, Gipsy stood quietly in her hangar, seeming to look on silently as her comrades were airlifted out of the Shatterdome and toward the harbor for battle. Aleksis found himself wondering what the Mark III was thinking, if anything. Did she resent being kept behind while the others moved out to face the Kaiju, or was she secretly relieved? Or, perhaps, was she still too upset over the recent fiasco with her Rangers to be concerned with the upcoming battle? He knew nothing of Gipsy's personality, and couldn't begin to guess.
Neither Sasha nor Aleksis had been able to hide their disappointment when Gipsy's drift had ended in failure… or their surprise at the reason behind said failure. The two would-be Rangers had turned into recluses since the failed drift, with Raleigh's memorable encounter with Chuck being their only interactions with other Shatterdome personnel since. Not that Aleksis could blame them – with everyone from the techs to Pentecost himself blaming the Rangers for that near-disastrous drift, they were probably wise to keep their heads down at the moment.
Knowing the truth behind it improved Aleksis' view of both Rangers – and in his mind, proved that the two of them were a good fit for Gipsy – but it didn't change the fact that they were now down a Jaeger at a time when they could ill-afford it. Pentecost didn't care who had chased the RABIT – he wasn't about to let an unstable team out onto the battlefield. And until the Mark III had a successful drift with a set of suitable Rangers, she was staying put.
Cherno rumbled again, this time nervously. Despite his earlier insistence that he wasn't afraid, the prospect of facing two Kaiju at once was unnerving, even for him.
"You'll do just fine," Aleksis assured him. "And you're not alone. We fight them as a team."
That seemed to settle the Jaeger, and he thrummed in reply. Then he returned his attention to the churning seas before them… and the blue-marked hulks surging through the water, charging toward the city with murder in their eyes. With any luck, this would be their final Kaiju fight before striking out for the Breach… and ending this war once and for all.
Cherno gave a high squeal of delight and clapped his hands, the sound of metal on metal ringing through the sea air like thunder. Again! Have them do it again!
Sasha laughed. "These are not tame animals, Cherno. They do what they please. We cannot order them around."
Awww. He whined in disappointment, then squealed again as a dolphin burst from the water, rising a good meter into the air and tossing its head like a spirited horse before diving gracefully beneath the waves again. Other dolphins leaped and swam alongside the ship, trying to keep pace like dogs chasing a truck. The creatures weren't at all deterred by the sight of the Jaeger – if anything, they acted curious, and seemed to be jumping as high as possible to get a good look at the metallic titan.
Why don't we get them around the Shatterdome? Cherno asked, though his Conn Pod remained fixed in the dolphins' direction. They're fun. I'd love to see more of them.
Sasha's smile faded a little. "There used to be dolphins in Hong Kong. White and even pink dolphins, famous all over the world. But the bomb they used to kill Reckoner and the Kaiju Blue left in its wake destroyed them."
…oh. Cherno's glee dimmed at that. The world's lost a lot because of the Kaiju, hasn't it?
"A great deal," she replied softly. "But no good can come from dwelling on what we have lost. We must focus on preserving what remains, and making the world better."
That seemed to mollify the Jaeger, and he continued to watch the dolphins, though more subdued than before.
Before his passing, Pentecost had evidently established connections with the Chinese military – it was the only way Sasha could see that Tendo could arrange for an aircraft carrier to transport Cherno Alpha and a select crew of Shatterdome personnel to Oblivion Bay. While Jumphawks were usually adequate for ferrying a Jaeger to the battlefield, there was no way they could haul Cherno across the Pacific Ocean. The ship, the Ao Kuang, would be slower, but it would make the journey without difficulty.
Cherno's radio crackled as the carrier's commanding officer spoke up. "Ten miles out from Oblivion Bay," he reported, his English a bit stilted but serviceable. "We will be there soon."
"Thank you," she replied. "Let us know when you drop anchor. We can make our way from there."
"We will." He hesitated before going on. "Be careful. There are… stories… about this place."
"We know the stories," she replied. "But that is all they are – stories. We will be fine."
"Copy." He disconnected with a burst of static.
Sasha leaned back against the wall of the Conn Pod, the constant throb and thunder of machinery oddly soothing to her. It felt strange to be inside Cherno's cockpit without being strapped into the controls, riding in the Jaeger as a passenger instead of a pilot. But for now it was necessary to maintain the charade – Tendo wasn't ready to reveal to the world at large that the Jaegers were sentient, and a self-governed mecha boarding an aircraft carrier would have blown that cover in a hurry. For now, they had to maintain the illusion that they were controlling Cherno from within.
Aleksis sat against the wall closest to the emergency flare locker, talking animatedly in Russian on his phone. Sasha had been so preoccupied watching the dolphins with Cherno that she had missed most of the conversation, but now she listened curiously.
"…not sure a visit is a good idea right now. No, Ilya, we are not breeding Kaiju, no matter what the tabloids say! Why would we breed… a conspiracy? It's not enough that you believe all the old fairy tales, now you are into conspiracy theories?"
Sasha couldn't help a bit of a smirk. Aleksis was usually fairly quiet, preferring to let Sasha do most of the talking and speaking in short, spare sentences, as if he had only a finite amount of words and had to be careful how he used them. But his great-uncle was one of the few people who could get him to loosen his tongue, if only because the old man could be quite irritating at times. A good man and quite friendly, but irritating all the same.
"One Kaiju reappears and now the Jaeger program is apparently breeding Kaiju to justify its continued operation," Aleksis grumbled. "Does the media have nothing else to report on and must make up slander? I do not care if you read it from a reputable source… no, you still cannot visit even if we don't have a Kaiju hiding in the Shatterdome. There are reasons… no, I cannot tell you, it is classified."
Who's Papa talking to?
"A relative," Sasha replied. "His name is Ilya. He… he would be your great-great-uncle, I suppose." She chuckled softly. "He used to leave food in your Conn Pod. To appease the domovoi – the house spirit – of the Shatterdome."
Oh, I remember him! I liked him… I would like to see him!
"I'm afraid you can't, Cherno. It is not a good idea to have visitors in the Shatterdome right now."
Awwww.
Aleksis finally said his goodbyes and hung up with a sigh. "Ilya has become a conspiracy lunatic. I think he is losing his mind."
"He is just lonely," Sasha assured him. "Loneliness can make a man do crazy things." She squeezed his shoulder. "As soon as Tendo and Hercules allow it, we should invite him for a visit."
Cherno bobbed in eager agreement.
"We will see," Aleksis replied.
The radio crackled to life again. "Dropping anchor! We're here! Good luck to you, Rangers."
Sasha nodded and helped Aleksis to his feet. The ship was coming to a stop, and from here on out Cherno would continue on foot, carrying his Rangers and the other Shatterdome crew members that had been sent to harvest Jaeger parts. With any luck, they would return with the components they needed to restore Gipsy.
Once the carrier had finally slid to a halt, Cherno eased himself to his feet, his movements slow and careful. The carrier was massive enough that Sasha doubted even a Jaeger could capsize it, but all the same, she appreciated Cherno's caution. He wasn't willfully destructive, and once the inevitable news that the Jaegers were sentient moved beyond the Shatterdome, she hoped the general populace would understand that.
Cherno steadied himself, arms spread to maintain his balance, then crouched down and lowered his cupped hands. A half-dozen mechanics and technicians were gathered on the deck, and they began climbing into the Jaeger's hands, settling themselves on his palms as best they could. Quiet threads of conversation drifted upward, picked up by Cherno's audial receptors and transmitted to speakers within the Conn Pod for his Rangers to hear.
"Knew workin' for the Shatterdome was gonna be weird," a mechanic – Janson, Sasha recognized – grumbled, sitting down at the base of Cherno's thumb. "Just never figured it'd entail hitchin' a ride with a Jaeger."
Sasha only smiled. This war had resulted in many unexpected discoveries and events – and while many had been terrible, some were for the better in her opinion.
Once his passengers were secure, Cherno cupped his hands close to his chest. Then he crouched, tensed, and leaped over the side of the Ao Kuang. There was a heartstopping moment of weightlessness, then a shuddering THUD as his feet impacted against the sea floor, the ocean water surging around his waist. Then he began to make his way to shore, every step taken with exaggerated care to avoid rocking his passengers around.
"For being so big, he's surprisingly gentle," another mechanic noted, looking up at the amber-glassed Conn Pod that loomed over them.
"Don't get too comfortable 'round 'im, Hideaki," Janson grumbled. "He's still way too big."
"And this is Cherno's fault how?" Hideaki demanded.
"Didn't say it was his fault," Janson retorted. "Just sayin' the Jaegers are way too big. Shouldn't have been experimenting with them, playin' Frankenstein."
"What's Frankenstein?"
"Never mind. My point's that they brought these things to life without thinkin' about what we're gonna do with them afterwards. What happens when we've closed the new Breach, eh? Whadda we do with the Jaegers then? Can't just shut 'em off and decommission 'em."
"Presumably we find a place for them to live…"
"How's THAT going to work out? No place is big enough for 'em! They'd wreck any city we put 'em in!"
"You make them sound like Kaiju." Hideaki sounded disgusted. "They have always protected us. They wouldn't hurt us now."
"Maybe not on purpose. But you got your arm busted by Striker, remember? And that was BEFORE the Jaegers started comin' to life right an' left. They might not mean to step on us or wreck our cities, but that doesn't mean it won't happen regardless."
Hideaki paused at that. "There are places in this world where people don't live. Perhaps we can find one of those to serve as a home for the Jaegers. It is only fair."
"Yeah, well, I like leavin' 'em to their own devices even less. Who's to say they won't decide that we owe 'em for savin' the world, and they decide to take over? Not like we could stop 'em."
"This is a fine way to talk about the one who is carrying you even now…"
The bickering faded as Cherno turned off his audial receptors. Mama, Papa… do people really hate us? Even after all we did?
Sasha wanted to assure him no, that wasn't the case, the Jaegers were beloved by the world, but she didn't have the heart to lie to him. "Many love the Jaegers, little one. But… some resent your kind. They think you were a waste of resources, that building a wall to hide behind would have been a better choice. And some are simply afraid of what they do not understand."
Cherno seemed to accept that answer. Is that why I can't go outside the Shatterdome unless Tendo says it's okay? I've wanted to explore, but he says no every time, that the world isn't ready for me.
"He's right," Sasha replied. "No one outside the Shatterdome knows the truth about your kind. He fears if the truth came out now, it could cause problems." She didn't add that if the PPDC found out the Jaegers were living beings, they would order their immediate destruction. Cherno had been terrified of being considered obsolete and decommissioned, and she had no desire to add to that fear, especially when they were so close to Oblivion Bay.
Cherno raised one foot to step over a dead reef. Mama… where will the Jaegers go when the war is over? Will there be a home for us?
She didn't know what to say to that. Janson, as cantankerous as he was, had raised a good point. The Shatterdome couldn't hold the three Jaegers forever, but where else could they go? Was there a place in this world for three metal giants to call home? Or were they doomed by their size to never find a home of their own?
"We will find a place," Aleksis vowed. "Even if we must go far from civilization to find it. But for now, do not worry. Until that time, the Shatterdome is home."
Cherno didn't seem satisfied with that answer, but he didn't question it for now. Instead he pressed on, making for land… and the tangle of twisted metal that lay barely half a mile inland.
Sasha felt her gut clench at the sight. Just past a strip of rocky shore lay a fence topped with razor wire… and beyond that lay a wasteland, hazy with dust and smog and barely illuminated by pole-mounted floodlights. Most of the lights had been broken by vandals, or had simply burnt out and never replaced, giving Oblivion Bay the eerie feel of a horror movie. Metallic scraps, severed cables, and other small pieces littered the hard-packed dirt, while towering piles of limbs and larger components stood in neat stacks, almost like cairns. Several of the piles were topped with a cracked and empty Conn Pod, like the helmet of a warrior left atop his tomb in honor of the fallen.
Something traced a path down her cheek, and she realized she was silently weeping. Others might only see a junkyard, heaps of rusted metal going to waste, but she saw a mass grave.
Cherno gave a trembling moan at the sight. Dead… so many… He knelt just before the razor-wire fence, a tremor passing through his frame. Eden… Nova… Warlock… Hydra… Ronin… Coyote… all destroyed…
"I know," Sasha murmured, her own voice rough with emotion. She didn't dare speak the terrible thought that had just crossed her mind – how many Jaegers had been dumped here with sentience still burning in their cores? How many had been left here to die, crying for their Rangers, until they finally simply faded away for good?
And worse… were there still living Jaegers here, mourning their Rangers, longing for a rescue that would never come?
Aleksis' hand tightened on her shoulder. "If there are living Jaegers here, we will bring them back as intact as possible. Tendo saved Cherno, Crimson, and Gipsy… he will save any others."
Sasha nodded. "Cherno, take us inside."
Cherno shook again, fear ringing through the drift. But he stepped effortlessly over the fence and crouched to lower his passengers to the ground.
"All right, listen up!" barked the lead mechanic as soon as he'd set foot on solid ground. "We need parts from Mark III Jaegers, as new as possible! If we can't find those, Mark II or IV will do in a pinch, but Tendo prefers III if at all possible. We need an arm, two legs, a power core, as many diesel-engine muscle strands as you can find…"
Cherno ignored the humans and moved to the nearest cairn. This Jaeger's chassis had been disassembled at some point, presumably for easier transport, and its limbs had been stacked in a tidy pile before the mangled chassis, ripped open by claws or an explosion, had been set on top. There was no Conn Pod… but even without it, there was no mistaking the tarnished-gold alloy of its plating, or the tiger's-head emblem adorning its shoulder pauldron.
Nova. Cherno reached out and rested his hand on the cairn. Nova Hyperion.
Sasha swallowed, forcing herself to not weep, to be strong for her son. "I am sorry, Cherno."
It isn't your fault, he insisted. I just… remember her too strongly. This is harder than I thought it would be. He leaned forward to touch his reactor tower to the cairn, keening softly.
"We are here for you, Cherno," Aleksis assured him. He looked to be keeping his composure well, but his voice was still thick with emotion.
Cherno remained kneeling before Nova's remains for a long while, his entire chassis vibrating as he keened his grief. No one dared approach him, and the Kaidonovskys remained respectfully silent. For the first time, Cherno could properly mourn his fallen comrades, and they had no right to take that from him now.
You fought well, Nova, he told her. I'm honored to have fought beside you. You… you can rest now. Just rest. He shifted forward to lightly bump his Conn Pod against her torso, making Sasha and Aleksis stagger.
Oh! Sorry!
"No, we are fine," Sasha assured him. "Just do what you need to do."
He pushed himself to his feet. I think… I think I'm done. I just needed to see her one more time. To say goodbye. He turned and walked toward another cairn. Who is this? I don't know this one.
"Matador Fury," Aleksis replied. "He… or she… was a Western Jaeger, from Mexico. A Mark III."
Oh. He reached out and let the tips of his fingers brush across the coppery-red metal and green-tinted glass of Matador's Conn Pod. Mark III… perhaps we can use him to repair Gipsy?
"If his parts are in good shape. And… and if he is truly dead."
I don't sense life in him. It should be safe. He hesitated. You think Matador would be okay with this?
Sasha thought on that a moment. What they were doing was essentially grave-robbing… and yet did they have much of a choice? It was either this or let Gipsy lie in agony on the floor of the Jaeger bay, or put her out of her misery. Besides, though the Jaegers she had met so far had a variety of personalities, none of them seemed cruel or disdainful of their fellow Jaegers. She knew little about Matador Fury and nothing about his personality, but some part of her thought that he wouldn't have denied Gipsy his components. Not when it meant saving her life.
"He would be," she said at last. "I do not think he would have objected."
Cherno nodded, and he leaned down to lift the massive torso. His pistons strained with the effort of trying to shift the heavy body, and metal groaned in protest all around them.
I only see one leg… the other must have been destroyed.
"We will find another," Sasha assured him. "For now, get his other limbs…"
A high, howling cry split the air. Cherno yelped and dropped the chassis, making the approaching mechanics and technicians stagger.
What was that?!
Sasha couldn't answer – she had no clue. Another weird cry rang through the oncoming dusk, seeming to vibrate every strut in Cherno's chassis and setting her teeth on edge. That cry was followed up by a series of sharp shrieks that stabbed through her head like knives, and she clapped her hands to her ears to try to muffle the sound.
A shout drifted up from the humans below, barely captured by the Jaeger's audials – "Oh my GOD!"
Aleksis' hand tightened on Sasha's shoulder. "Look!"
Sasha peered out of the Conn Pod… and felt as if she had been punched in the stomach. Something was rising out of a heap of miscellaneous scrap about two hundred meters away, like a zombie emerging from the grave in a bad horror movie. It reared up on two legs, listing to one side and swaying as if drunk or injured, junk falling away from it in a metallic rain. It was nearly as tall as Cherno, perhaps slightly taller with the twin projections rising off its shoulders, and though it was hard to make out its details in the hazy air, the silhouette of the thing was enough to strike terror in the hearts of the Shatterdome crew.
"Kaiju," Sasha murmured, feeling a flash of anger slash through her horror. It wasn't enough for the Precursors to defile Gipsy Danger, now they had to send their attack hounds to desecrate the fallen…
"Not a Kaiju," Aleksis replied. "Sasha… that is a Jaeger."
She turned to stare at him. "Impossible!"
He's right… it's another Jaeger! His "voice" trembled with wild joy. A survivor! Others are coming fully to life!
The revived Jaeger uttered another series of shrieks and lurched toward them, limping badly on a right leg that terminated in a stump rather than a proper foot. Claw marks riddled its plating, some actually piercing the metal to expose internal workings, and rust and dirt caked its wounds. Cracks marred the blue glass of its Conn Pod, and while its arms and hands looked intact, one was held at an awkward angle as if broken. The twin cannons jutting from its shoulders looked warped and twisted, as if they had been chewed on.
Sasha sucked in a breath of recognition. She knew this Jaeger! It was one of Cherno's generation, a Mark I, one of the most famous Jaegers in the program…
The Jaeger shrieked again and lunged, but Cherno sidestepped the punch easily. Coyote Tango gave another feral howl and wheeled about, groping like a blind man, its cries continuing to rip through the air like the cries of a wild animal. Like the others upon their "birth," it was blind… but that didn't seem to stop it from trying to rip them apart.
"Cherno, you have to stop him!" Aleksis ordered. "He has gone mad!"
She, Cherno replied. Coyote's a she. And she has not gone mad. He stepped back to avoid another lunge. Papa… she's trying to defend the Jaegers. She doesn't want us taking their parts.
So the legends were true… Oblivion Bay was haunted, but not by ghosts. Coyote Tango had somehow come to life on her own, and appointed herself the guardian of her fallen comrades. How had she escaped detection all these years?
Coyote made a final lunge, but this time Cherno was ready for her. He grabbed her wrists, hanging on gamely as she thrashed to break free, howling her rage.
Coyote, it's me! It's Cherno Alpha! I'm a Mark I like you!
An angry voice cut into all their minds, sharp and harsh like a serrated blade. Thief!
Coyote, stop this! I'm not going to hurt you!
Thief! Coyote insisted, engines snarling in rage. Intruder! Take – violate – desecrate – Matador – fallen – thief! Her thoughts were disjointed, almost animalistic, single words punctuated by crazed growls. Cherno – leave!
Coyote… we need these parts. Please, there are other Jaegers like us… other living Jaegers! But one of them is hurt badly, and if we don't get these parts, we can't fix her!
NO! Thief! Desecrate! Go – not – yours! Coyote arched her back and let out a roar of anger, her thoughts blazing with righteous rage. It didn't matter to her that Cherno was another of her kind, or that he was on a mission to save a comrade. She wasn't about to let him defile the graves of their dead.
Sasha knew she should be terrified by this feral Jaeger… but her heart ached for Coyote. Had her time in Oblivion Bay done this to her? Or had losing her Rangers damaged her beyond repair? Unlike the others, her Rangers were dead… had that left a hole in the drift that had consumed her sanity?
Cherno tightened his grip on Coyote's wrists. Please… Matador would want this. All of them would want this. They would want to help our kind. Coyote, please… don't let Gipsy join the others here. Let us help her… let us help you. Come back with us.
She shuddered and shrieked again. No! Here… needed… protect… obey…
Obey? Obey who?
Her answer shocked them all – Stacker. Stacker Pentecost.
Herc had taken a break from supervising Gipsy's repairs to feed Max and Bruno, and he was enjoying a rare peaceful moment with the dogs when his phone went off. He gave a deep sigh and forced himself to ignore it, rubbing Max's head as the bulldog slobbered over his meal and pushing Bruno lightly over to scratch his belly. Whoever it was, they could bloody well call back. Even the Marshal of the Shatterdome deserved a break every so often, right?
The phone quieted a moment as it went to voice mail… then started right back up.
"Goddammit," he grumbled, fishing the device out of his pocket. "Marshal Hansen here. This better be important."
"Ranger Kaidonovsky," Aleksis replied. "You are on speaker. We need your words."
"What the bleedin' hell are you talking about?"
"We need your words. Marshal Pentecost delivered an order, and we need you to countermand it."
"What order?"
"The order to guard Oblivion Bay. We need you to release someone from their duty to guard the Jaeger graveyard."
Herc snorted. "Ain't my job. Just tell whatever rent-a-cop they've got there to shove aside. You've got Cherno, he can just step over the fence, can't he?"
"She will not back down unless the Marshal tells her so. Tell her you release her from the duties Marshal Pentecost gave her."
"Why's this so all-fired important anyhow?"
"Marshal Hansen… it is Coyote Tango. Another Jaeger."
Herc had to sit down at that. "You gotta be kiddin' me."
"You know I have no sense of humor, Hercules," Aleksis replied, though he swore he could hear a snicker in the Ranger's voice. "Tell Coyote Tango you release her from her duty. You are on Cherno's loudspeaker, so speak clearly."
Herc shook his head, still dazed by the news. Another live Jaeger? One that had long been sent to Oblivion Bay as defunct and outdated? Here he thought he couldn't be surprised anymore…
"Coyote Tango… I… I guess I release you from your duties. You don't need to guard Oblivion Bay anymore. You've done your job. Thank you." He waited a moment before speaking up again. "That do it?"
"Well enough. She is standing down. And tell Tendo we will be bringing components from Matador Fury and Solar Prophet when we come back… as well as Coyote. With luck, she will have calmed down by the time we return."
Herc waited until Aleksis hung up, then tossed the phone onto his berth with a groan. Dammit, why couldn't Pentecost have gotten the weirdness instead of him? Or was this the universe's way of making sure his tenure as Marshal was just as strange and stressful as Pentecost's?