WIDF News Special Report Transcript
Title Card: ICE: The Cybernetic Champions
{Audrey is sitting on a chair in a stage set located within the walls of Solstice Technologies. Camera is focused on a close shot of Audrey and slowly pans back to show a large screen behind her, and an adjacent chair with Cameron Winter seated.}
Audrey Timmonds: Hello, I'm Audrey Timmonds here at Solstice Technologies headquarters in New York. We've gained an exclusive insider look at the operations of the new monster-hunting team ICE.
For the past several months, ICE has displayed an impressive track record in locating and responding to mutation incursions. I'm sitting down with Solstice's founder and CEO, Cameron Winter. Now, tell me Mr. Winter-
Cameron Winter: Please, call me Cameron!
Audrey Timmonds: Alright, Cameron. What would you say is the key to your team's success?
Cameron Winter: As the inventor I do tend to favor the advantage to my superior engineering and designs. But a tool is only as good as the user, and as such my Mutant Slayers owe their success to my pilots.
{Winter moves his hand to signal three new people to join them and sit on the empty chairs to his left.}
Piloting Slayer Alpha is Aaron Vaught, the successful candidate from our recruitment trials. Slayer Beta's pilot came from outside recommendation - Captain Brock Roguemore, a transfer from Fort McKinley, Alaska. And finally, Slayer Gamma's pilot was a willing volunteer from among my own within the company: Miss Jill Llewellyn.
We focus their training on working as a team. Cooperation has always been our strength as a species, after all. Piloting the Slayers themselves is the least of their worries, thanks to my very friendly user interface systems. I figured the sooner the pilots could ride their bikes without the training wheels on, the sooner we could focus on coordinating them as an effective unit.
Audrey Timmonds: Perhaps our viewers are curious to hear your pilots' personal perspectives. If the three of you can, tell us why you joined ICE?
Aaron Vaught: Well missy I thought, 'What the heck, why not?' I mean, kids have been dreaming of piloting giant machines and fightin' equally giant monsters for generations. Life doesn't throw me a jackpot like this everyday. I get to be a robot-driving hero! If I'm gonna do some good, I'd do it in style.
Brock Roguemore: It's inspiring to join the forefront of the fight against the mutation menace. These monsters are a threat to our society, and extermination is the most responsible method of dealing with them!
Jill Llewellyn: I already worked at Solstice for over five years because I believe in Cameron Winter's work. To be frank, I didn't think he would have let his own employees sign up when he opened up his tryouts for such a dangerous position. But he was gracious enough to give me the opportunity to have a hand in saving the world.
Audrey Timmonds: "Because the public doesn't have the luxury of seeing your teamwork- I'm referring to your peer-to-peer communication inside the machines, some of them are curious about what happens. How would you describe your own team dynamic?"
Aaron Vaught: "We all have some differences. I'm a man of action while Roguemore is more by-the-book. Jill's the smartest of us three, and has gotten us out of some pretty tight spots!"
Brock Roguemore: "And it's usually because Vaught gets us in those tight spots in the first place."
Jill Llewellyn: Roguemore does have the most military experience between the three of us, so there's this balance of discipline that he brings so that we don't make reckless choices."
Brock Roguemore: Don't sell yourself short, Miss Llewellyn. We'd be dead already without your quick and creative thinking. You have a natural talent for on-the-fly tactics, if only our team leader would listen to you more often.
Aaron Vaught: {Aaron leans towards Audrey} He just can't keep up with me is the truth, hehe." {Roguemore delivers a sharp elbow jab to his arm for that remark.} Ow!
Jill Llewellyn: Brock is usually stiff, but I think that's why Aaron likes to poke at him. It's funny, but having him open up like that is a good sign of our trust in each other.
Audrey Timmonds: Quite inspiring. Let's have a brief review of your track record. You have destroyed nearly a dozen mutations since you have dropped onto the scene. Did you have any particularly noteworthy takeaways or moments that have stuck with you during these missions?
{The large screen behind them displays still photos of their encounters and battles with the following mutations: the Mutant Poison Dart Frog at Rio de Janeiro, the Giant Electric Eel off the coast of Houston, a horde of mutant metal-eating Tiger Beetles at Pittsburgh, two huge Cyclops at Athens, the Deep-Dweller at Cape Town, the King Razorback in Australia, a strange floating Cloud Jellyfish in Los Angeles, four-legged Mutant Hawks at Atlanta, the Carcolh in France, and a mutant Three-Headed Axolotl in Mexico City.
Jill Llewellyn: I think it was our fight against the mutant Tiger Beetles that first gave us some real trouble. We hadn't fought a swarm before so it felt almost overwhelming.
Brock Roguemore: Those bugs really nipped on all of our machines. That was the first time I felt like we really needed the Chameleon with us.
Aaron Vaught: Yeah. Who knew the gecko can munch away like that huh? Oh and the King Razorback, that was one of our toughest fights!
Brock Roguemore: {Roguemore pinches the bridge of his nose, shakes his head and leans forward past Vaught and Winter to speak to Audrey directly.} Our fearless leader was quite insistent on wrestling the creature solo, costing an unnecessary amount of damage to his machine.
Aaron Vaught: And I still gave it the whole hog knuckle sandwich without letting it touch the town, thank you very much!
Cameron Winter: Every little critter does something new to push the limits of my technology, and that includes Aaron. {Jill visibly chuckles.} But jokes aside, each battle only makes ICE stronger.
Audrey Timmonds: Your comments do much to paint a face to your heroics, especially to those who can only see you on TV and the papers. Our studio's reports show that since ICE has begun its operations, Solstice Technologies' stock has rocketed upwards by 55%, and ICE is number one on the public popularity polls for news regarding mutation incursions.
Aaron Vaught: Aw yeah that's what I'm talkin' about! See? We are heroes!
Cameron Winter: What can I say? We're just doing our part to make sure we can still have our apple pies and late-night comedies by tomorrow.
Audrey Timmonds: One last question Cameron. With your soaring success record, what does the future of ICE look like?
Cameron Winter: You and the audience will find out at the World Robotics Summit and Tech Expo in September. And while you all wait, we're announcing our new line of action figures so kids can take the fight against the mutant menace to your living rooms. Solstice Technologies, there is no substitute!
Audrey Timmonds: I'm sure our viewers are excited to know as well. The American public is very thankful for all your efforts. I'm Audrey Timmonds for WIDF News.
BBC International News Transcript
Deborah Carter: "On international news, the city of Osaka was attacked by a giant mutant isopod. Fortunately, the island nation rallied their anti-mutation defense force, the Robo-Yeti, to save them from devastation."
{News footage shows the giant mutant isopod, dubbed Hagane-kyu, bulldozing its way through the city of Osaka as a gigantic curled-up ball. Smaller structures are obliterated in its path before it bounces off one of the larger and more robust buildings, landing elsewhere in the city to continue its rampage. The Robo-Yeti climbs on the side of skyscrapers and swings into action. As the rolling mutation looks to slam into the robot ape, the machine holds its arms up and catches the armored ball in its hands. Before the isopod could uncurl itself, the Robo-Yeti hurls it away. The giant isopod recovers and emerges from its shell just as the Robo-Yeti fired arm and chest-missiles against it. The creature easily endures with its armor as it rushes forward to grapple the machine. The Robo-Yeti uses a martial arts maneuver to use the beast's forward momentum against it, raising it overhead before slamming it face-first into the pavement. The Robo-Yeti then grabs it by is tails and spins it around, tossing the creature into the water.}
Deborah Carter (V/O): "It was chaos on the streets of Osaka today as the mutation's destructive rampage was poised to reduce the bustling city to rubble. This is the third monster to menace Japan, and the JSDF has shown a growing efficiency in responding to this type of disaster. We join our Japanese correspondent Junji Tange on the streets of Osaka with Doctor Ifukube."
{Feed changes to reporter Junji standing with Dr. Ifukube just outside her command trailer.}
Junji Tange: "Dr. Ifukube, this has been the fourth time your Robo-Yeti has seen combat. Do you think your performance is improving?"
Yukiko Ifukube: "Absolutely. Goeihei's reactiveness and precision improve the more we use him. This is the result of my neural matrix building for itself a cognitive response framework so that it can intuit during combat and rely less on voice commands over time. You may have witnessed the first execution of its new Sanzaru technique in the field."
{More news footage is shown as Dr. Ifukube speaks- depicting the Hagane-kyu returning to the fray for a second round. The Robo-Yeti takes up position as the creature charges headlong for an attack. The Robo-Yeti fires ocular laser blasts from its eyes, targeting the isopod's face to blind it temporarily. With the creature's attack nullified, the machine follows up by striking its face with a clap of its huge hands, discombobulating the mutant even further. Finally, the isopod's face is ensnared by the robot's capture cables, delivering powerful shocks that the creature's armor was defenseless against. Defeated, Hagane-kyu falls limp as JSDF forces congregate around it to capture it, a fresh inmate for Monster Island. The feed switches back to Junji and Yukiko.}
Yukiko Ifukube: "I'm quite proud of having to rely less on our standard munitions and develop Goehei's reflexes and physical combat. Training an artificial intelligence in our most esteemed forms of martial arts and applying it on the field feels tense yet exhilarating. I look forward to presenting more of our findings with the advancement of the neural matrix at the upcoming Robotics Summit."
Junji Tange: "The Robotics Summit and Tech Expo in Seattle? Aren't you concerned about the possibility of a mutant incursion during your absence?"
Yukiko Ifukube: "Not at all. I have faith in my fellow countrymen to defend Japan in my absence. I am pleased to know that given the success of Goeihei Robotto, our government has become more accepting of developing additional defense programs to deal with mutations."
Junji Tange: "Are you able to give any further comments on the nature or progress of these new defense programs?"
Yukiko Ifukube: "I am not at liberty to say at this moment. Sumimasen, sore ja, shitsurei shimasu."
{Ifukube bows politely and leaves to oversee the handling of the captured mutation. The camera continues to show footage of the creature being wrapped up in large nets as helicopters prepare to airlift it out of the city.}
Deborah Carter (V/O): "Japan is reportedly spending 2 billion yen on the continuation of counter-mutation forces, but time will tell if their investments prove effective in the absence of Dr. Ifukube's tremendous robot protector. Deborah Carter, BBC News."
{End of broadcast}
Jonathan Insley's Journal
July 29
S.C.A.L.E. has kept me occupied with the proliferation of their hand-crafted menagerie. I don't even have time to log my thoughts into this journal, as I spend my hours examining the growing batches of creatures that Springer intends to build her mutation army. These are larger and more complex creations, requiring time to grow outside of their birthing pods before they are ready to be deployed.
I spoke to Springer about the need to accommodate additional resources for these entities, and made it clear that these changes are non-negotiable to meet her demands. To this end she introduced me to the owner of this island, her correspondent Vivian Fleurie. I recognized the name instantly, for her father was Anton Fleurie, one of France's top geneticists. His research into the manipulation of DNA was a cornerstone resource in my pursuit of the D.R.A.G.M.A. project. I was wholly unaware that the doctor himself was now imprisoned for his unethical experiments, or that his own daughter had disowned him and spent the fortune he built devoting herself to humbler fields of biology, such as conservation.
This inevitably led the two to make contact, and Springer must have possessed quite a silver tongue to convince her that S.C.A.L.E. was a worthwhile investment, for she too spoke fervently about how mutations were the future of this world. Something feels off, however. The way they spoke reminded me of religious clergy rather than scientists or activists, as if Nature was their god. All they needed was a proper sermon and it would be complete.
But instead of such proselytizing, Springer spent her time pragmatically. She trains her followers in guerilla tactics, covert ops, combat (both hand-to-hand and marksmanship), and instructing them on the use of various military apparatus. What was most surprising to me was that, now that she had introduced me to Miss Fleurie, the two women would bring their discussions on topics such as ecology, evolution and mutation to my laboratory. Such fields were not my forte but they always spent time to rope me into their chatter. It felt intellectually stimulating and greatly shifted my perception of Alexandra.
For the past few weeks I only regarded her as a misguided militant fanatic, but the more I spoke with her and Fleurie, the more it became clear that there was a thinker under the fighter. Alexandra did not think solely in terms of strategy and ideology, she was open-minded in her approach to realizing her goal. All of these factors continue to build the case that Alexandra has a high chance of achieving success, and I feel a strange sense of inspiration from it. Perhaps I have a morbid curiosity to see this revolution through to whatever end it leads.
Speaking of her goals, she relayed to me her next target. In less than two months, the World Robotics Summit and Tech Expo would begin. The world's leading experts in mechanical and cybernetic engineering would be there, and this year the summit was going to highlight the enormous war machines of Cameron Winter and Yukiko Ifukube. No doubt they will pridefully boast of their advancements with their exorbitant cybernetic indulgences while raising public support in the cause of monster containment and eradication.
Springer saw this as a perfect opportunity for another 'demonstration'. She wanted to punish Winter, Ifukube and any who support them for their animal cruelty in destroying mutations. Here was my best chance to prove to mankind the immense dangers of their reliance on computer technology! And so we shook hands. She offered to help produce a new mutation to attack the Expo, but I disagreed. Enough resources have been taxed on the Vanguards and the developing second wave of creatures. Instead, I suggested another, more cost-effective proposal - one to disillusion the masses from their dependence on technology.
It's time I dig up an old project of mine. I had shelved it a decade ago, but even I could take advantage of our reckless technological progress to fashion together a weapon to turn their vaunted machines against them. Soon, humanity will learn their lesson, for the consequences of the atomic age have been a disaster for the human race.
A/N:
As you can see, new major characters are being introduced. The eagle-eyed Godzilla fans among the audience might recognize some of the names as having been borrowed from the cancelled Godzilla 1994 script. Why make a new name when I can take one already, right?
Speaking of characters, I am curious how much of my readers recognize my efforts in recycling into the story names and people from the cartoon. That is because the well of the first two seasons isn't particularly deep, yet I suspect most people don't recognize the minor characters by name. I'm a little concerned that readers think that I've been pulling these characters out of thin air when in reality I'm doing my best to tie things in from previous seasons.
The list of monsters on ICE's kill list had some creatures that I was thinking of devoting episodes/chapters to but ultimately could not implement, like the Giant Electric Eel and the three-headed Axolotl.