Today is Halloween! Yay! And that means monsters! Or - in this case - aliens! I totally blame my sister for this AU, just fyi. This summer my sister finally convinced me to watch Pacific Rim and - wouldn't you know it? - plot bunnies ensued and before I knew it I had 10 pages filled on a word doc for a first chapter/long ass prologue. After cleaning it up a bit I sent it to my sister as a big "F*** you, look what you've got me writing now," and she actually read it (she never reads ANY of my writing that I send her) and LIKED it, so of course... it sat in my folders all summer collecting dust in my hard-drives, SOMEHOW managed to survive my computer crashing at the beginning of August and wasn't one of of the many files I lost. I've only recently re-found it, cleaned it up a bit more and decided to post it today: Halloween!
I am not going to lie. This is basically Pacific Rim cast with DCMK characters, so if you have seen Pacific Rim, I'm sorry, a lot of the major points in the plot are going to be the same (some of the dialogue out right copied word for word like most of the Prologue) and only fluffy little inserts and maybe some of the casting choices will surprise you. If you haven't seen Pacific Rim, then this whole thing is new to you and I hope you thoroughly enjoy it. I tried to write it in a way that those who have never seen Pacific Rim will understand what is going on. My sister told me that I've succeeded, but what does she know? She's seen the movie.
ANYWAY! Whether or not you've seen Pacific Rim, I do hope you enjoy reading this and let me know if I should continue writing it, if only to see who I cast in what roles. This chapter roughly covers the first 20 minutes of the movie before the title is shown, just fyi to those of you who have seen it.
Chapter 1: The Kaiju Are Coming
KAIJU (怪獣, Kaijū, Japanese) Giant Beast.
JAEGER (yā gar, German) Hunter.
For years the people of earth looked up at the stars and wondered if there was life out there. As it turned out, we'd been looking in the wrong direction. When alien life entered our world it was from deep beneath the Pacific Ocean in the form of a fissure situated between two tectonic plates. It was a portal between dimensions. When our scientists learned of its existence it became known as The Breach.
In 2013 the first Kaiju made landfall in San Francisco. It laid waste to the iconic bridge within seconds of its arrival. Numerous squadrons of U.S. jets and tanks were deployed to take it out. It was a hard and difficult fight, taking six days before the monster finally fell. But by the time the Americans managed to kill it, within a 35-mile long disaster zone three cities were destroyed and tens of thousands of lives were lost. The world mourned the dead, memorialized the attack, and moved on.
Six months later a second attack occurred in Manila and then a third one hit Cabo. And then a fourth, fifth, sixth… And then we learned that this was not going to stop. That it was just the beginning. We were in need of a new weapon, so the world came together, throwing aside old rivalries and pooled together its resources for the sake of the greater good. For the sake of the survival of the human race. To fight these monsters we created monsters of our own. The Jaeger program was initiated. They built colossal robots programmed and engineered with the ability to fight the Kaiju. They were like the battle bots and Transformers shows and toys that children grew up watching and playing with.
There were setbacks at first. In order to run these machines pilots were required to upload their very minds and consciousnesses, and sync their brainwaves up with the system. The neural load to interface with a Jaeger proved to be too much for a single pilot to handle. A two-pilot system was then implemented so that there were left-hemisphere and right-hemisphere pilot controls. With the Jaegers we started winning. But Jaegers were only as good as their pilots, so Jaeger pilots turned into rock stars. Danger turned into propaganda. Kaijus into toys. We got really good at it. At winning.
But then it all changed…
TOKYO, JAPAN – 2020
KAIJU WAR – YEAR 7
"Kaitou Kid report to Bay 14, level K-12," a female voice announced over the PA in the Kuroba barracks room. "Kaiju. Code name: Snakehead. Category 3. 8700 metric tons."
Kaito stirred groggily at first when he heard the message as it came on. Then, as the announcement repeated itself, he launched himself out of bed.
"Oyaji! Wake up!" Kaito shouted excitedly. He scrambled around their room looking for his uniform. "We're being deployed."
"So I've heard," Toichi yawned, watching with fond amusement and some exasperation as his son hurried to get dressed.
Years ago no one would have thought of Kaito Kuroba as hero material. He'd always been the Energizer Bunny-esque class clown and knew next to nothing about discipline. His parents had been the heroes in the family up until Chikage Kuroba injured her back in a training accident and was grounded, benched with administrative desk duty. It had forced Toichi into early retirement. He had been without a compatible co-pilot until he had the bright idea to have his son tested. Kaito's seemingly endless energy and scrappy attitude was on par with Toichi's well-tempered, but reckless behavior and they turned out to be Drift compatible. Being Drift compatible meant that Kaito and his father shared a deep personal connection that enabled them to synch their minds together and to act as one and in unison to control the movements of their Jaeger: The Kaitou Kid.
"Ohayou!" Kaito beamed.
"Ohayou," Toichi said, nodding a greeting back.
"Kaiju's a Category 3! That's the biggest one yet! Codename: Snakehead. Who names these things?" Kaito babbled.
"Probably the Americans. What time is it?"
"Two."
"A.M?" Toichi sighed.
"Yup!"
Toichi shook his head, marveling at his son's seemingly boundless energy.
There was a knock at the door and a familiar voice called out, "Come on, Kurobas! Time for the drop."
"We're coming! Keep your pink panties on, Ahoko!" Kaito shouted through the door at his childhood friend.
"Watch your tongue, Bakaito!" came the reply, "or I'll have Tou-san suspend you and send Ran-chan and I instead."
"Ha! Your wimpy Jaeger wouldn't last five minutes against a Category 3," Kaito said, throwing the door open to leer at the pretty petite brunette standing there. "Besides, you and Ran have only been pilots for a few months and have only fought one Kaiju – a Category 1. Leave this to the professionals."
"Four Kaiju kills hardly makes you a professional," Aoko snapped back, sticking her tongue out at him.
"Take it easy you two," Toichi said, coming to the door now that he was fully dressed. "Kaito, save the fighting for the Kaiju."
"Kuroba-san! Ohayou!" Aoko stammered with a blush, bowing quickly in respect.
"Ohayou, Aoko-chan. Tell your father we'll be right there."
Aoko bowed one more time before hurrying away.
"You shouldn't tease her like that, Kaito," his father admonished. "Aoko-chan and Mori-chan are exceptional pilots."
"I know," Kaito sighed. "But she'll worry too much if I don't get her mad at me."
Toichi looked up at the ceiling, wondering what was wrong with his son's generation.
"Kaito?"
"Yeah?"
"Don't get cocky. A Category 3 is no laughing matter."
"Yes, sir."
"That said, let's suit up and send this bastard back to hell."
"Yes, sir!" Kaito grinned, following his father out of their rooms and to the prep area where they promptly put on their Jaeger jumpsuits and were fitted into their white armor and gear. After they were all suited up they entered the control deck inside the head of their Jaeger. While technicians were preparing the Kid for launch, Kaito and Toichi took their positions in the pilots' stands and were hooked up into the mech. Their feet slid in and were secured to the stepping stairs that would allow them to "walk". Their helmets and the spinal plates in their armor were hooked into the stands, and the braces and control guards for the arms latched on. The controls for the hands took the form of two gauntlets that were controlled by the pilot operating that specific limb – Toichi had the right, Kaito the left.
"Ohayou gozaimasu, my good sirs," Konosuke Jii's voice greeted them over the speakers.
"Ohayou, Jii," Toichi answered, smiling as he and Kaito went through their pre-checks. "How are you? And is my lovely wife present?"
"Ohayou, Anata. Ohayou, Kaito," Chikage's voice trilled. "How are my boys?"
"All pumped and ready to go, Kaa-chan," Kaito said, face nearly splitting in two, his smile was so big.
"Your son is far too energetic this morning," Toichi complained good-naturedly.
"Don't blame me. He's your son too."
"Yes, during the day, but before the sun rises, he's your son," Toichi snarked.
"Said son is standing right here, you two," Kaito sighed.
"So you are," Toichi and Chikage replied in unison.
"How's Mori-kun?" Toichi asked, ignoring Kaito's pout and changed the subject. "I heard he won tickets to that concert he wanted to go to and got to spend the night backstage meeting Miss Okino."
"Oh, he loved it! His wife? Not so much."
"The man's going to end up divorced," Toichi sighed, shaking his head.
"The man's going to do what he wants to, but I'm sure that daughter of his will keep him in line if Eri-chan doesn't," Chikage chuckled gaily.
"Engage drop, Kuroba-san. Konosuke-san," a voice barked, effectively ending the chatter.
"Engaging drop, sir," Jii and Chikage answered in unison, all business now.
"Nakamori-Taishō on deck!" Jii announced unnecessarily for the two pilots.
"Securing the Con Pod," Chikage reported. "Getting ready to drop."
"Con Pod door lock secure," a technician reported over the comms.
"Release for drop," Toichi said after he and Kaito finished checking their connections and got the green light from the system's check.
"Kaitou Kid ready for the big drop," Kaito confirmed, grinning over at his father.
"Here we go," Toichi said, letting out a big sigh.
"Oh yeah!" Kaito beamed as the control center for The Kid was suddenly released from its dock and slid down the shaft where it connected with the rest of the Kid's body.
"Coupling confirmed, sir," Jii announced after a minute.
"Engage pilot-to-pilot protocol," Nakamori ordered.
"Engaging now," Chikage said.
"Pilot-to-pilot connection protocol sequence," the Jaeger system's AI announced to the pilots.
Kaito and Toichi waited patiently, running another system's check, their eyes always watching the monitors as the head finished locking in place with the rest of the body.
Once all of the system checks confirmed positive, they were given the green light and The Kaitou Kid was rolled out to the opening bay doors.
"Kid launch, Bay 6."
"Kaitou Kid ready and aligned, sir," Toichi reported.
"This is Nakamori-Taishō," the familiar gruff voice announced over their speakers. "Prepare for neural handshake. Starting in 15 seconds."
While some technician began the countdown Toichi turned to face his son.
"Ready to step into my head, kid?"
"Please, after you. Age before beauty, old man," Kaito smirked.
"Watch yourself, Kaito," Toichi said, "I can still ground you."
"Pilot-to-pilot connection protocol sequence," the AI announced. "Neural handshake initiated."
Toichi and Kaito took deep steadying breaths as the Drift initiated, the neural sensors connected to their minds through their headgear engaging. The Drift was Jaeger tech based on DARPA jet fighter neural systems. Two pilots experienced a mind-meld through memories and with the body of the giant Jaeger machine. The deeper the bond, the better the two pilots were capable of fighting together.
"Neural handshake is strong and holding," Jii's voice reported as Toichi and Kaito eased out of the fog that usually hit pilots during their first moments of drifting while they shared memories and, essentially, each other's minds.
"Right hemisphere is calibrating," Toichi reported once he was free of the Drift fog enough to act on his own.
"Left hemisphere calibrating," Kaito echoed.
The father and son then went through a series of practice movements in unison, making sure that their minds were melded with the robot as well as with each other.
"Proofed and transmitting," the AI announced.
"Gentlemen, your orders are to hold the coast 50 kilometers from the Izu Islands before this thing can get to the mainland. Do you copy?" Nakamori asked.
"Copy that, sir," Toichi said.
"Taishō, there's still a civilian vessel in the peninsula," Kaito reported, frowning when he saw the reading.
"You are protecting a chain of islands home to twenty-four thousand people and preventing an attack on cities that are home to millions on the mainland. You will not risk those lives for a boat that holds ten," Nakamori growled. "Am I clear?"
"Yes, sir," Toichi said.
Kaito pursed his lips into a thin line before a grim smile took over. "You know what I'm thinking, Oyaji?"
"I'm in your brain, kid," Toichi said, rolling his eyes.
"I know," Kaito grinned. "Let's go fishing,"
"Here we go," Toichi sighed, but with a grim smile identical to his son's.
The two of them got into motion, working in sync as they walked their Jaeger out of Tokyo Bay and into the ocean, following the peninsula towards the Izu Islands.
IZU ISLANDS – 10 KM COASTLINE
It was storming outside that night. A small tropical storm had quickly developed into a late season typhoon and was hammering the southern half of Japan. Captain Shoran and his crew had gotten caught up in the storm on their way back to Tokyo.
"How far to the mainland?" Shoran demanded of his helmsman.
"Too far. 40 kilometers at best."
Shoran swore, then looked at the radar. "What about that island three kilometers east?"
"Sir! It's moving," his radar man informed him. "It's two kilometers, sir… One kilometer… It's getting closer!"
"How the hell can it be getting closer?" Shoran demanded, but that was when he heard the loud roar. Looking up out the bridge's windows he saw it. A massive shape was moving against the waves, throwing up spray in its wake. "Kaiju… Harder starboard! Turn her about! Now!" he shouted at his men, knowing deep in his heart that it was no use, but what else could he do? He had to at least try getting out of the hellish thing's way. Maybe it wouldn't notice his small fishing trawler.
The Kaiju reared up out of the water, it's slitted eyes ablaze with an electric blue light that could be seen within its mouth as well. Its head was distinctly reptilian looking, and had a long protruding snout like a spear point. Wicked looking fangs gleamed menacingly when the night sky lit up with lightening. Shoran and his men thought that they were done for when another massive form erupted out of the water on the other side of their boat, standing opposite the Kaiju. But then the crew was relieved, recognizing the newcomer as a white Jaeger.
The Kaitou Kid had arrived.
Inside the control center in the Jaeger's head, Toichi manipulated the right hand with his remote gauntlet that allowed him to use the right arm and hand of The Kid, reaching down to gently scoop up the fishing vessel in front of them. Kaito mirrored the movement as he mentally relayed commands to ready the left hand.
"Ship secure," the AI reported, a holograph of the fishing trawler appearing on Toichi's gauntlet.
"Adjust the torque," Toichi ordered.
"On it," Kaito said, all business. "Torque locked."
Sensing, as well as seeing the Kaiju codenamed Snakehead attack on their monitors, they tucked their right arm in, shielding with their left, as they spun to the right, allowing The Kid's shoulder plating to deflect the blow, and used the momentum of the spin to give the fishing boat a forward momentum, letting it "glide" out of the Kid's hands into the sea and away from the fight. They turned The Kid around in time to see Snakehead rearing for another attack. Kaito and Toichi pulled their right arm back, and slammed a well-timed punch down on the beast's head. Snakehead reared again, roaring with anger. It came at them again with a charge on their left, but they were ready with another punch. While Snakehead was still reeling from the second blow, Kaito and Toichi brought both arms up, fists clenched and waited a moment for the robot to get into position, then brought the two fists crashing down onto the Kaiju's head.
Now Snakehead was really mad. With an outraged shriek it shot straight up out of the water in front of them and locked on, its jaws clamping down viciously on the left arm. Kaito and Toichi grunted as they were thrown back a bit in their pilot stands, Kaito gritting his teeth at the pressure of the Kaiju's jaws that were being relayed to him mentally via The Kid's sensors, warning lights flashing red. Toichi sent his son a mental encouragement and together they lunged forward, using the momentum to throw Snakehead off. The Kaiju fell away, scraping long gouges along the left arm as it went.
As the two reengaged, Kaito reached up with the left hand and found a strong hold on its elongated snout while Toichi charged the canon in the right hand.
"Get him!" Kaito cried, "Come on! Shoot him!"
"I'm on it! I'm on it!" Toichi snapped, waiting until the charge was fully ready before blasting the damned thing twice, point blank in the gut.
The Kurobas both let out sighs of relief before grinning at each other as the creature's massive form sank into the ocean deep beneath the waves.
"Discharge reading, sir," Jii's voice could be heard clearly now over the comms. "Plasma cannon in the shallow shelves… seven kilometers off the coastal line."
"Kid, what the hell is going on?" Nakamori roared.
"Job's done, Taishō," Kaito reported, grinning. "Lit it up twice. Bagged our fifth kill."
"You disobeyed a direct order!" Was the General's angry reply.
"With all due respect, Ginzo-kun," Toichi said calmly, "We intercepted a Kaiju and saved everyone on that boat."
"That's Nakamori-Taishō to you, Kuroba," Nakamori growled, voice dangerously low. "Now get back to your post. Now!"
"Yes, sir," Toichi and Kaito said in unison with identical mischievous grins.
"Kaiju signature rising!" Chikage's voice suddenly announced shrilly. "That thing's still alive."
"Kid!" Nakamori barked. "We're still getting a signature. That Kaiju is still alive. Grab the boat and get out of there. Do you copy? Grab the boat and get out of there now!"
Toichi and Kaito traded wide-eyed looks of fear and surprise. They'd hit that thing at point blank range – twice! – and it was still alive?
That was when Snakehead reappeared, clawing across the visor of the helmeted head on the Jaeger, latching on and roaring deafeningly in their faces. The two pilots were shaken around in their suspended pilot harnesses, but were quick to recover.
"Take it, Kaito!" Toichi shouted, his controls over the right hand working to keep that thing's mouth from taking a bite out of them.
"I got it," Kaito said grimly, charging the cannon on the left arm.
But Snakehead wasn't going to fall for the same hit twice. It reared its head back and away from the right hand's grasp and dove forward, forcing it's protruding snout through the left arm. Kaito screamed in pain, clutching at the injured impact point on his own body as The Kid's mental sensors went crazy alerting him to the damage. Toichi also grimaced in pain, but because he was only in control of the right hand's mechanisms, he was only feeling the pain second hand through the Drift link with Kaito and The Kid.
"Jii, we're hit!" he reported grimly as he did a damage assessment.
"Left arm's gone cold, sir," Jii's voice confirmed for Nakamori and those in the command center back in Tokyo.
Snakehead crunched down hard on the arm in its grasp and with a vicious yank, tore the arm clean off, narrowly missing the fishing trawler that was still trying to chug away from the renewed fight. Kaito let out another scream, panting when the painful sensation from the Jaeger's mind-meld went numb because there was no longer a limb to assess damage for. Their system's alerts were still going berserk, informing them that they'd lost the entire limb and had an exposed shoulder socket.
Snakehead wasn't done with them yet, though. It lunged forward, this time clamping its jaws down on the Jaeger's head, one of its fangs puncturing through steel like butter on the right side.
"The hull!" Kaito yelped. "It went through the hull!"
"Kaito!" Toichi shouted, facing his panicking son. "Kaito, listen to me. You need-!"
Toichi was unable to finish his order. At that moment the Kaiju tore out the right side of The Kid's head with its fangs, wrenching Toichi out with it. Kaito stared in horror as his father disappeared, panic and fear racing through their mental link in the Drift, until all of a sudden it was gone. His father's voice, feelings, memories, everything that they shared together while in the Drift was suddenly severed, leaving a gaping chasm of nothingness, echoing numbly through Kaito's entire mind and being.
"No," Kaito whispered at first, but the word kept bubbling up, tearing out of his throat in anguished screams. "NO!"
He was jolted out of his despair when the system started to crash, zapping him with shocks as it informed him that the right hemisphere pilot had disengaged. With an effort, Kaito transferred his control gauntlet to his right hand, switching sides, and uploading himself to the right hand controls his father was no longer there to run. That leveled the system out a bit, but Snakehead was back. The Kaiju rammed into The Kid, and Kaito struggled to exert control over a machine that was meant to be run by two pilots. But with a quarter of the system severely damaged, Kaito wasn't immediately overwhelmed by the neural interface load he now had to carry on his own.
Snakehead, with a triumphant roar, speared the chest of the Kid, further destroying the Jaeger. Kaito was in agonizing pain, mentally, emotionally and physically as half of the systems started to fail. But by some miracle the right arm cannon was still online and functional.
"Loading," the AI informed him as it charged. Kaito struggled to move the arm into position while the Kaiju pulled out of the chest and proceeded to tear out large sections out of the left shoulder. When the charge was complete, Kaito brought the arm around, shoving it up under the Kaiju's face and discharged the blast.
TOKYO – JAEGER PROJECT COMMAND CENTER
Jii, Chikage, and Nakamori's hearts sank as they saw both The Kid and the Kaiju's signals go out.
"That last discharge fried all of the comms, sir," Jii reported numbly. "I'm not getting any signals. No signatures, sir. …What do we do now, sir?"
Jii looked back at Chikage and saw a few tears slip down her face, her shoulders trembling, but she was making a massive effort not to fall apart on the spot. Nakamori cleared his throat, staring at the spot where the Kaitou Kid's signal had been only seconds ago. He looked up from the screen and cast his gaze around the room, unable to look Chikage in the eye. His eyes stopped when he spotted his daughter and niece. Aoko and Ran were standing up on the observation decks that encircled the command center, clutching each other's hands, starring misty eyed at the monitors, waiting, just like Chikage, for something to appear.
1 HOUR LATER – IZUO ISLAND
2 KILOMETERS SOUTH OF SENZU VILLAGE
It was early dawn when Kikyo Manama and her grandson, Tarou, awoke and began their morning chores. They lived in one of the houses situated on the outskirts of the village in the woods near the Shiofuki-Zaki cliffs by the sea. She stared out the kitchen window for a few minutes while she made tea, watching Tarou cut up the fresh firewood from the lean-to that had kept their stores dry during typhoons. She was looking forward to lighting a fire in their stove. The damp drafty condition of their old house didn't help her old aching joints any. She shuffled around the kitchen, pulling out her rice cooker and a frying pan. Eggs, fish and rice sounded like a good breakfast.
"Baa-chan! Obaa-chan!"
Kikyo looked out the window again and saw that her grandson was staring wide-eyed towards the sea. He shouted for her again, pointing at something she couldn't see from inside the house. She hurried outside and looked in the direction he was pointing.
"Gods help us," she whispered when she saw the looming figure of a Jaeger trudging towards Shiofuki-Zaki cliffs. It was in bad shape. She could see the small flashes of light as wires sparked from its chest and shoulder socket where it was missing its left arm. The white armor was scored with great black and grey gashes, and blue Kaiju blood was splattered all over the top half of it. The Jaeger teetered as its bulk rose up out of the water, towering over the cliffs. There was a loud creaking moan from the robot before it tilted forward and crashed into the cliffside, its top half snapping at the waist, and fell onto the forest.
"Get the car," she told Tarou, pushing him towards the shed they stored their bikes and vehicles. "Hurry! Hayaku!"
Minutes later Tarou was driving them up to the cliff. They were joined on the road by a few of their neighbors who'd also seen the Jaeger crash, including Hiro Yamada and his wife, Mimi. Kikyo was glad to see Mimi in the passenger's seat of the Yamada truck clutching her medical kit. She was a nurse and worked at the local clinic.
When their convoy of cars and trucks reached the end of the dirt road, they proceeded on foot. As they reached the Jaeger's head, Kikyo and many others in their group gasped when they saw that half of it was in shreds. Large sections of it were missing. The machine was whining as it powered down and sparks rained down from severed and frayed wires.
Hiro Yamada made his way towards the hole in the robot's head. Tarou and a couple of the other strong young men in their group went with him, carrying pliers, wrenches, and other tools in case they were needed. Kikyo waited outside the robot with the others. Some of the younger women were creating a stretcher under Mimi Yamada's instructions.
A commotion started within the robot's head and a few minutes later Hiro, Tarou and the two other lads returned, carrying a limp white armored figure between them all. They placed him on the makeshift stretcher, and Mimi got to work, carefully examining the Jaeger pilot's left arm, tutting with sympathy as she did her best to avoid over handling the obviously broken limb. She instead moved to stop the bleeding coming from a gash in the exposed left shoulder. The shoulder armor and the jumpsuit fabric beneath were charred and melted, the skin around that area suffering from some burns, but with the armor in the way, Mimi had no way of knowing how severe those burns were. There also appeared to be a wound in the pilot's right side where a large smear of fresh blood was leaking through the armor plating. They couldn't remove the armor on the man's torso with their limited supplies and tools, but they did manage to pry the cracked helmet off so that Mimi could check the pilot for any head trauma and clean the blood off of his face. The blood seemed to be coming from a cut on the man's right temple and a worrisome looking nosebleed. Kikyo was surprised to see that the pilot was so young. He didn't look that much older than Tarou, her 16-year-old grandson.
"He's out cold. His body's been through too much trauma. We need to get him to a hospital. What about the other pilot?" Mimi asked, looking up at her husband.
"There was no other pilot," Hiro answered. "It looks like he was torn out with the missing half of the Jaeger's head."
"You mean this young man piloted that Jaeger here all on his own?" Someone asked, and a buzz of conversation filled the air as everyone tried to get a good look at the pilot as he was moved down the slope back to the awaiting vehicles.
And that is the first chapter of my DCMK Pacific Rim AU. Happy Halloween everybody!
I have plans for the rest of the story (got everyone cast and everything), but I haven't gotten around to writing more than a page for two for chapter 2. It all really depends on you guys. If this a story that you guys would be interested in reading more of, please favorite, follow, or (better yet) leave a review even if it only says: Write more please.