Happy K-day! Somewhere in a parallel universe, San Fransico is being destroyed.
Anyway, sorry this chapter has been delayed, life's been a bitch lately.
To answer a few questions: Arlington is just Arlington, no first or last name. It will be explained later. There is a chunk of OC character development coming so if you like that, yay! If not, sorry?
And this story doesn't have a couple. It's not Raleigh/Mako or Raleigh/OC. There is a chance that may change far down the line but that's a very slim chance. One of the main motivations for writing this story was the strong individuals who aren't defined solely by their relationships within the movie and I want to continue that within the story. Hope that all makes sense!
Thanks to everyone who has reviewed, favorite, and followed! Keep it up and I'll love you forever!
…...
Junk food nights became standard practice for the four when their schedules allowed it. It was a rare time when they could relax without the constant attention of the shatterdome on them. Tendo often worked while the group took over mission control, his ability to multitask a valuable skill. Nikki was the least common member, she disliked leaving the bays unwatched and though her hand kept her from actively working in most areas, she still oversaw almost every element of repairs on Beast and the continuing construction of Gipsy.
Both techs had an uncanny ability for showing up with some of the most heavily rationed items. When Tendo showed up a few nights before with two bars of solid dark chocolate, Mako had almost lost it. It had been adorable.
At the moment though, Raleigh was thinking about coke. Real honest to god Coca Cola from the U.S. Well, technically Russia but it still counted. He hadn't had any in years and Tendo claimed to know someone who had a supply despite the rationing and was willing to sell several cases of it.
Annoyance flashed through the drift and shifted Raleigh's train of thought. "We've got ten minutes to ground Mako. Let me think of junk food."
"I don't care about your thoughts, just the specific subject matter." Her annoyed but amused tone filtered through his helmets.
"Pepsi is not an alternative Mako! Coke always has been and always will be superior!" They were both hanging on to any sense of normalcy for as long as they could. Playful banter was easiest for them under the circumstances, plus they really did disagree on Coke vs. Pepsi. Raleigh would swear it was an important issue.
"Rangers. Focus" The Marshall's irritated voice cut through the conn-pod before Mako could reply. "You are five minutes from New Zealand and Auckland would like to stay intact with your assistance. The Kaiju, code name Ngarara, is currently just outside the Hauraki Gulf and moving slowly for a Category three. You will be dropped in the mouth of the bay and are instructed to hold it. Let's keep the perfect score going."
"Hai Marshall. Ika wa kesshite nani mo." Mako and Raleigh spoke as one as they deepened their Drift connection till it was impossible for them to differentiate one set of thoughts from another, Mako's birth language flowed naturally from both.
"Prepare for deployment." Tendo's tense voice echoed for a heartbeat then they felt weightless, above it all, as the cables detached and before Green Beast freefell into the Gulf. The massive Jaeger performed a perfect three point landing, shaking the ground below and sending a tidal surge in all directions. Since falling from the outer atmosphere after killing Otachi, several hundred yards was nothing to the pilots.
As seconds turned into minutes with no sign of the Kaiju, Raleigh opened a com channel to mission control. "Tendo?"
"Hold. The Kaiju's closing. Satellite imagery is showing similarities to Leatherback. Be careful" The LOCCENT Officer went silent, letting the Rangers immerse themselves into their surroundings as the attack approached.
Sure enough, a gray and black form leapt from the water a moment later, a bellow accompanying it. Nagarara was a longer Kaiju, lower to the ground with a blunt face and skull meant for ramming and a short but muscular tail.
Green Beast planted its feet and turned into the attack, one shoulder going low to catch the Kaiju and throw it over the Jaeger using the creature's forward momentum against it. Raleigh was always impressed with how easily Mako could plot trajectories and speeds of creatures as large as the Kaiju with such precision.
Ngarara twisted in mid air and acid spewed from its mouth at the Jaeger. Mako and Raleigh brought the arms together with an echoing crash, the recently updated, wider shield panels on each arm took the brunt of the attack and shielded the rest of the Jaeger. Raleigh could swear he felt it itching up his arm though; the phantom pain sending small tremors through his bad arm.
The Kaiju landed a few hundred yards away in a rolling mass of limbs and tail, tearing rocks and debris from the sea floor and sending into the air, towards the city.
"Fucking acid." Raleigh didn't know if his thought was spoken out loud or just in the Drift though he knew Mako agreed. Neither saw a visible acid sac that could be destroyed to disarm the Kaiju so they would have to go for the quick kill or risk another acid bath.
Mako triggered the spin blade on her arm and Raleigh felt the entire Jaeger shake as the blade picked up speed. It was a dull roar to the pilots but to anyone outside the Jaeger, the blade was a shrieking whirlwind of heated metal and certain death.
Kaiju met Jaeger and the creature slipped under Mako's first and second slash attempts, using its stockier body to an advantage.
Ngarara spewed acid but Raleigh's fist caught the creature under its extended jaw, snapping its head up. Acid flew into the air and fell as neon rain as Green Beast disengaged from the Kaiju and dove out of the acid's path. Falling acid had the potential to eat through the conn-pod and if it hit neural wiring, there was no way of knowing what would happen to the Drifting pilots or the Jaeger's operating systems.
After another unsuccessful grappling attack with neither behemoth gaining any ground, Raleigh studied the Ngarara as the battling pair broke apart. Any other Kaiju would have rushed towards the civilian population given half a chance but this Kaiju was intent on the Jaeger.
I know. I see. Mako's confirmation of Raleigh's observations flooded the drift for a split second before the Category three Kaiju dove under the water, leaving the Rangers to try to track its movements in the dark water with the aid of the helicopter's beacons.
"Left!" Tendo's warning came a moment too late as Ngarara emerged, its short claws clipping Green Beast's left leg as the Jaeger spun towards the assault.
Mako triggered the spin blade in the same movement and the cauterizing blade caught the Kaiju below its wide neck as it tried to re-submerge and was dragged down its back. Blue blood spilled into the water, reflecting the military spotlights that hovered above the battle, as the heated blade only managed to partially cauterize the wound. Water and Kaiju blood frothed as the creature keened and spasmed.
"Severed spinal column." Mako's harsh voice cut through the silence of the conn-pod.
"Let's put it out of its misery." Raleigh would have nothing better than to have watched the Kaiju die slowly, but they needed a confirmed kill and there was no real reason other than revenge to wait on the dying Kaiju.
Mako's arm dropped and Ngarara twitched once more before it stilled, black water rippling around its bulky form.
"Ngarara confirmed kill." Tendo's voice came through the speakers a few minutes later as the readings came through mission control. "Five out of five Rangers. Not bad." Raleigh could hear the other man's grin. "Not bad at all."
…...
Raleigh leaned against the railing, watching the bay and its workers. It seemed quieter today, he didn't know if it was because he was getting used to the controlled chaos that thrived in the bays or if it was actually quieter. Green Beast had come home almost completely intact last night after all which meant there was less for the support crews to do at the moment.
The crew he had specifically come to watch was on the catwalk that ran parallel to Green Beast's massive body, clearing paint guns and supplies from the work space. Five massive red K's were now drying on the section of plating above and to the left of the reactor. He wasn't sure why he had mentioned the idea to Nikki originally but knowing now that anyone who saw the Jaeger knew its kill count gave the pilot a fierce sense of pride. It wasn't his kill count or Mako's it was Green Beast's.
"Are you still going to the meeting with Herc?" Nikki came along side him and rested her bad hand on the railing. Her first three fingers were taped together while a brace held the joints in her hand and her wrist immobile.
Raleigh found himself nodding. "Yeah. I was heading to the conference room soon."
"It's in five minutes."
Raleigh signed and rolled his eyes before pushing away from the railing. He had lost track of time again. It was so easy to do in the massive bays when you felt inconsequential next to the massive Jaeger forms.
"You really need a watch."
"Apparently. You coming?"
Nikki nodded and followed him.
"So why didn't you tell Hansen the real way you broke your hand?" Raleigh asked as they made their way through the halls.
"He worries about everything, the stupid things I do to myself shouldn't be on his list of things to deal with at the moment."
"But he thinks it might have been another sabotage attempt that you dealt with without telling him about."
Nikki nodded. "I know. Mako mentioned it to me. I'm telling him after the meeting today. How are the twins doing?" She asked in a sudden change of topic.
"Good. They're getting along with the other pilots well and they're the best pair in combat at the moment." Raleigh pushed open the door to the conference room and held it for Nikki. They were the first there. "Anything I should know about?"
"Nah. They're just trying to convince me to take them into Hong Kong this weekend and I'm saying no based on their need to train." Nikki told him as she sat.
Raleigh silently agreed. The twins didn't need any distractions at the moment.
Mako came through the door a moment later looking irritated but thoughtful. It was a standard look these days whenever she finished meeting with Newton.
"What's Newt's new miracle plan today?" Raleigh asked his partner with a grin as he spun slightly in his chair.
"We're looking into new weapon ideas and he was in a particularly…creative mood." Mako told him as she took the chair next to him. "His most recent plan involves sound waves."
"Why?" Raleigh asked after several confused minutes trying to understand how sound waves could be used against Kaiju.
"We know there are some similarities between Kaiju and the reptiles of our world. Some of which are disoriented by strong vibrations. I believe he is working off that hypothesis." Mako shrugged. "It is a better plan than last week's."
Tendo and Herc came in a few minutes later during which Nikki and Mako passed the time discussing the validity of Newt's ideas and their small success rate.
"So should we assume that all meeting times are fifteen minutes after we're told to show up?" Nikki immediately asked with a grin. Tendo grinned slightly while Herc didn't even manage that much. Raleigh got the distinct impression that he had missed something since the last official meeting.
"How bad are the crews?" The Marshall asked after a moment of paper shuffling.
Nikki went from joking to serious in a heartbeat. "Bad. I've lost six to the medical center due to high fevers, hallucinations, and needing fluids. Most of the twenty five only have moderate symptoms. There were a few who wanted to try to work through the sickness but a few hours ago, dizziness was added onto the symptom list. Hunter almost fell off the low catwalk so I've started barring anyone with any symptoms from the bays."
"We don't have a diagnosis or source yet?" With the question, Hansen turned his attention to Tendo who shook his head.
"All confirmed cases are within the bay crews except for two within the dining hall staff which gives us a basic area for the contamination and the projections show it beginning between noon yesterday and before Green Beast returned to bay after midnight.
"So we have a twelve hour time period when only Jaeger crew members came in contact with something in the dining hall that made them sick?"
Tendo, Nikki, and Mako all nodded.
"Best case scenario, it was an issue of contaminated food that just got lucky and hit crew members. They eat in groups so it's entirely possible." Tendo fiddled with a pen as he spoke.
"But not probable." Mako seemed to take the negative side. "Considering the average number of individuals who pass through the mess hall during those hours, the odds are that it wasn't chance or accident."
"So we've either got really shitty luck or the saboteurs are back and going after crew? What do they stand to gain?" Herc summarized
"They've done a good job just slowing us down. I've had to completely shut down production on Gipsy Danger and Green Beast's heating element is behind on being updated. Beast is technically combat ready but can't cauterize any of its attacks which means a whole lot more Kaiju blue if we have another attack before I get my full crew back."
"How do we stop this from happening again and insure no further sabotage attempts on any part of the Shatterdome?" The Marshall's question was directed at himself more than the room but Mako and Tendo did have a few proposals.
After almost an hour of discussion they had decided on a set of procedures for locking down the entire Shatterdome in case of another sabotage attempt. Jaeger bays were off limits to everyone but crew members, Corps officers, and pilots and would have better alarm systems installed throughout on all levels.
"What about physical attacks within Dome? We know now that the crews are a vague target, pilots are the next logical step if they want to cripple the PPDC's defense efforts." Tendo asked Herc after noting the resources needed for the alarms in his tablet.
"We'll be rerunning background checks on personnel working in any area within the Shatterdome, anyone who doesn't meet the new standards will be compensated for their time and offered a job elsewehere. The United Nations will be sending guards with the knowledge and training necessary to protect the dome and everyone within it. The specific unit has been stationed in Europe for several years and has been screened for anyone with ties to Kaiju worship communities or other potential saboteurs."
"Aren't the U.N. police a little more into peace-keeping than protection?" Raleigh interrupted the Marshall who glared at him for a brief moment.
"They are specialists with thorough military training from various nations. As a subsidiary of the United Nations Defense Coalition, the PPDC uses their defense personnel. We can't afford private contractors."
Mako elbowed Raleigh under the table. She apparently agreed with Herc's decision to bring in the U.N. guards or just disproved of his interruption.
"Lethal force as a defense will only be authorized by in absolutely necessary circumstances however, the U.N force and Rangers will have the authority to diagnose and address the circumstances personally if necessary. Make sure the new class of Rangers understands that responsibility. You are a line of defense in the war and in the Shatterdome." Hansen's voice was deadly serious. "I'm not telling you to put yourself in front of a gun, but you have the training to deal with deadly force attacks. If necessary use whatever means necessary to protect yourself and the Jaegers. Rangers and Jaegers are our best assets. They must be protected."
Raleigh could almost feel the physical pressure of this responsibility, added on to everything he and Mako were already responsible for. He knew he was capable of protecting himself and his team, but to be given that authority was still burdensome. It didn't help that every situation that was being discussed was hypothetical. It was difficult to plan for an attack if you didn't know what it was or if it was even coming. Despite the vague nature of potential attacks, they had managed to put the groundwork in to ensure the continuing safety of the Jaegers and their teams.
By the end of the meeting, Raleigh decided he liked fighting Kaiju better. It was much more straight forward.
Hansen adjourned the meeting when he realized he was late for a U.N. Conference that had been scheduled to update the various government officials on everything occurring in the Shatterdome.
"Is it really too much for us to have three days without something going horrifically wrong?" Tendo asked the room at large with a frustrated sigh as he slid a stack of papers over to Mako. "New design plans from Newt and verified by Hermann, I need your input on the wave frequency generation."
He pulled another stack from under his tablet and handed it to Nikki. "And for you Angel, we need to check the power distribution grid within the projected Jaegers for their weapon systems. I've got another meeting to get to with the other mission control officers. I'll find both of you tomorrow if I don't see you tonight."
"I'll review it and have it ready." Mako told Tendo evenly as he stood and gathered everything. Nikki settled for a nod, already scanning through the paperwork, her brows knit in concentration.
"You got time for lunch?" Raleigh asked his co-pilot as she stood to follow Tendo. She nodded and he glanced at Nikki. "You too? The twins are running a Green Beast simulation after lunch. You could come watch them."
"Can't. I've got a conference call with the main Jaeger armor plating production facility in ten minutes. We've got to go over the alloy percentages for 381. I'm sure I'll hear all about the sim eventually." Nikki never looked up from the paperwork. Raleigh shrugged and the Rangers left her to the solitude of the conference room.
…...
"Hey Tendo?" Xander's calm voice came from the doorway causing the tech and two Rangers to turn. Mission ops was empty except for the trio and their pizza boxes and apparently now the twins. Raleigh was surprised to see them, after the Green Beast sim they had mentioned sleep then food, neither of which would bring them to the control room.
"What's up? Tendo put the circuit board he had been soldiering down carefully and brushed off his hands.
"Nikki grabbed us before we went to dinner. She said we needed to see you?" Mia's voice was curious, asking for answers. Her twin's face matched her tone.
Tendo just sighed, a long suffering sound. "Your sister is incredibly overprotective." Raleigh struggled to stop a grin at Nikki's maneuvering to keep the twins out of the dining hall. He didn't know if her idea or Tendo's face was funnier. From across him, he could see Mako's smile before she went back to her food.
Xander shrugged and walked into the room with Mia a step behind, her hands behind her back. "Tell us something we don't know. Why exactly is she being overprotective this time? There have been a bunch of rumors the last few days but no one knows what's going on."
"Pizza then I'll explain. If I don't feed you now, I'll never hear the end of it." The tech told the twins as he gestured towards the mostly full boxes. The pair grinned and went straight for the food.
As she walked past, Mia dropped a box on the desk next to Raleigh. Red with faded white cursive lettering. He could hear glass clink as it shifted around. "Nikki told me to give it to you."
"Yes!"Raleigh grabbed the box and tore off the cardboard lid, fishing out one of the iconic bottles, opened it on the corner of the desk, and slid it across to Mako before grabbing his own. He decided he didn't mind the interruption of the twins tonight.
"What have you heard?" The LOCCENT Officer questioned the twins evenly as they split half of one of the remaining pizzas.
"The recent accidents haven't been actual accidents." Mia summed it up quickly.
"But no one knows who is doing it or why." Xander added, pulling pepperoni off his pieces and tossing it on Mia's plate.
"That's pretty much all we know. I think the Marshall's planning to do a official debriefing with the pilot class soon." Tendo told the twins before returning to the circuitry he had been working on. It apparently had to be done by tomorrow for Gipsy Danger's new control system.
"So is your sister always this overprotective?" Raleigh asked as he went to get another piece.
"Yes." He was surprised when confirmation came from everyone in the room rather than just the twins.
"Her over protectiveness is widely know. It's hard not to notice when she argued with Marshall Pentecost in the full dining hall." Tendo elaborated for the Ranger.
"In her defense, we didn't exactly make it easy on her. Especially after Dad…." Mia broke off at Xander's protesting laugh.
"I don't know what this 'we' is. I'm the easy going one." He added air quotes to the statement.
"Liar! You tried to stow away in Vulcan Specter!"
"Did not!"
"I'm sorry what?" Raleigh couldn't stop himself from asking.
"Xander tried to stowaway on Vulcan Specter when we lived in Sydney a few years ago." Mia explained helpfully.
Her twin just slid lower in his seat."I was nine and didn't even make in through the main entrance to the bays so it didn't actually happen."
"You were very proud of your plan though." Mako's amused smile seemed to stop any further arguments between the twins as Xander struggled for a response and Mia laughed at her twin.
The night devolved from there as the twins told stories from their days growing up in the Sydney and Los Angeles Shatterdomes while Mako added her own from the Tokyo Shatterdome and her travels with Pentecost. Tendo spent half the time working silently, the other half giving Raleigh context for the stories which mostly occurred during his time away from the Corps.
As the twins left, Raleigh realized how therapeutic talking was for them and for him and Mako. The few short hours had given him a better understanding of the twins and had served to ground him after the last few days of meetings and fighting Ngarara. It was easier to fight when you had a reminder of what waited afterwards, what normalcy felt like.
"We should do something like that with the other trainees. It might help them connect better as pairs and as a larger group." Raleigh suggested to Mako as they walked through the quiet halls of the dome.
She nodded. "I'll take care of it."
"You're the best Mako."
"Don't forget it."
…...
Hours later, Raleigh stared at his ceiling. His bed was empty, all blankets and pillows had been thrown to the floor as he thrashed.
He couldn't close his eyes; the strange world he had glimpsed through Gipsy's broken conn-pod rose up every time he tried. His worst memories ate at the corners of his mind, fighting for attention as he tried to push them away. He didn't know why the nightmares were so bad tonight but they left him tense and sweating. He traced the seam between two metal plates in the ceiling above his bed, counting the rivets holding them together slowly.
All he knew was that the good and the bad were fighting for dominance within his memories. Yancy's ghost floated just beyond his reach, trying to tell him something, while the sounds of death and the bellows of Kaiju echoed in his head.
…...
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