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Chapter Text

When I was a little Kaiju, I used to sit outside in my backyard at night, staring up into the stars. I always used to wonder about what was out there, if there was anything like me or my kind, intelligent life. Turns out I was looking in the wrong direction.

When creatures from beyond our world began their invasion of planet Earth, it was through a rift, deep down in the inky black depths of the Pacific Ocean. Two tectonic plates had cracked, creating a rift between them. And from that, a portal emerged to an alien world, one filled with malice and pure animalistic instincts. It’s called the Breach. I was only 15 when the first Jaeger made landfall in San Francisco.

We call the beasts Jaegers because they were built to hunt, to destroy, to consume. Rows upon rows of sharp, jagged teeth fill their mouths, and strange armour-like skin covers their bodies. Except for their heads. The ugly mugs that the Jaegers possess is enough to give even a grown Kaiju nightmares. The ugly skin on their massive heads ranges from a light, pinkish colour to a deep ebony colour. Huge, colourful eyes that stare into your soul. Patches of different coloured fur in different places. They truly are a sight to behold.

I can still remember sitting on my couch in the living room, riveted to the T.V as the massive beast crushed the Golden Gate Bridge, a beautiful piece of architecture, like it was a cracker. Cars toppled off the bridge like dominoes, others crushed under the ebony monster’s claws. The Jaeger’s name was Luna, symbolizing the Jaeger’s eclipse over our society, toppling our cities and destroying lives.

I remember watching fearless pilots bring their jets right up to the beast, only to be sliced in half by the jet wing-like protrusions on her arms. I knew, as I watched those pilots, soldiers, and some civilians stand up to the creature, I knew that I had to do something to stop the beasts ravaging my planet.

As for Luna, tanks, missles, and jets finally took her down six days and thirty-five miles later. Three cities had been destroyed in her wake, killing countless people and leaving more homeless. We mourned them all, memorialized the attack, and went back to normal. During the peaceful time I did my part at home, organizing relief funds for San Francisco and the other cities at my school, and sending letters to displaced families. It was all I could do.

Six months after Luna’s attack, another Jaeger broke through the Breach. It destroyed Manila, leaving behind the beginnings of an awful toxic phenomenon known as Jaeger Oil. Since the beasts kind of resembled machines, the gooey, stinky, toxic red blood they left behind was named Jaeger Oil. It has claimed hundreds of lives as well.

They just kept coming. It seemed like there was no way to stop the Jaegers. So many Kaiju gave into what they thought was going to be their fates. But they didn’t realize that the world had united against the threat, and they were building a new weapon, one that would stop the Jaegers forever. To fight monsters, we created monsters of our own.

The Ritari (Finnish for knight, I think) Program was born. There were setbacks, but we learned to overcome these hurdles and continue on. No single Kaiju could pilot these giant machines, so a two pilot system was created to lessen the neural load on a Kaiju. One pilot was the left hemisphere, while the other was the right. We started winning.

The Ritari seemed unstoppable. They were taking down Jaegers left and right, all around the globe. However, the Ritari were only as good as their pilots, so they became like rock stars. Danger turned into propaganda, silly stories. Jaegers, into toys for children. We got really good at winning. It was like we would never be stopped again. But everything changed.

Chapter Text

February 29th, 2020

I can still remember that alarm blaring through the PA system around the Alaskan Shatterdome, affectionately called the Icebox. I remember being so excited for this Jaeger attack, wanting to add another notch in my belt. I jumped down from my bunk bed in my brother and I’s quarters, talking before my claws had even hit the ground.

I was slapping my brother’s bunk, trying to wake up the heaviest sleeper in the known and unknown universe. “Mutavore! Wake up! We got movement in the Breach!” All I got in reply was a muffled groan and a pillow to the snout. Mutavore had always said that I was like an over energetic puppy, bouncing on my heels and able to snap awake as soon as I heard the call.  He was right, as he always was.

I was at the door to our quarters, dressed and ready to go when my brother finally decided to roll out of bed and pull a shirt on. He still had his pyjama bottoms on, but it was a start. Three minutes later we were strolling down the hallways of the Shatterdome, on our way to the suiting area. We were in our matching bomber jackets, Muta’s straining against the blade-like hump on his back. I poked it with my knife-like snout, teasing him once again. We were a team that was as sharp as a blade. That’s why our Ritari was named Bladehead.

We had always loved the suiting room, it made us feel even more like heroes. Before, when we were younger, no one would have thought that we would be heroes. We were never exceptional in school, we were nice enough, and we got picked on for our blade-like heads. But we could hold our own in a fight, and we had a very special skill. We were drift compatible.

We both loved the feeling of the pilot suits going on over our bodies, starting the process of linking us to our amazing machine, our Ritari, our Bladehead. I was revelling in the feeling of our R-Tech friends suiting us up, when Muta’s voice broke through my thoughts. “So, little bro, what Jaeger are we facing today?” I flashed him a toothy grin. This Jaeger sounded like a challenge. A perfect edition to our kill count.

”The Jaeger’s a massive Cat III, biggest one yet! Codename: Yancy.” I had winked at my brother, who’s six eyes rolled at my enthusiasm as the R-Techs finished up with our suits, passing us our specially designed helmets. “I can see that you think this is going to be easy, bro” Mutavore said “But don’t get too cocky. This Yancy sounds like a tough one.” I scoffed. “No Jaeger is tough compared to Bladehead!” Muta shook his head, bringing his arms up as he placed his helmet on. “See you in the Drift, bro.” 

I swung my head around to face a plasma display, tracking the massive Yancy’s progress as Muta and I stepped into the Conn-Pod. The R-Tech crew followed us, hooking my brother and I up into the feedback cradles. Now we were hooked up to our monster, our Ritari. The crew left, closing the doors to the Conn-Pod, leaving my brother and I alone. Our feet had been clipped in to these pedal-like clamps, making sure that our every step would be translated to Bladehead’s. We were ready.

”Good morning, Blade brothers!” a cheery voice said through Bladehead’s commline. It was Karloff, chief communications officer and good friend to my brother and I. He always made sure we were ready to go, and focused. There was a reason why Mutavore called me a puppy. It wasn’t just because I was a little hyperactive. “How’d that date go with that pretty Kaiju you met?” Mutavore called out, just as I had said hi to Karloff. Karloff snorted on the other end of the commline. “Oh, she loved me! Her boyfriend, not so much!” 

“Enough banter” an imposing voice said, cutting through our conversation with Karloff. I immediately knew who it was. Marshall Slattern was a no-nonsense kind of Kaiju, all business, no fun. “Engage drop, Karloff. Knifehead, Mutavore, prepare for drop” the Marshall boomed. Mutavore, Karloff, and I all responded at the same time, engaging the drop.

The drop always surprised me, even though I had done it countless times before. The feeling of the massive cranial unit of Bladehead falling down a shaft to reach its body was one that thrilled me every time. As we dropped, Mutavore and I whooped, ready for battle against the Jaeger that was threatening our home. A smile split my face as I imagined driving a Plasma Blast right into Yancy’s chest. A new notch on the belt.

Bladehead’s cranial unit slid to a halt, wires and hooks connecting it to the heavily armoured, powerful body of the Ritari. Like usual, I felt unstoppable as we connected, a soft thump announcing our arrival. I heard Bladehead’s nuclear turbine roar as it started up, the Ritari’s floodlights coming to life as it slowly started to move across the Ritari Launch Bay floor, to where the massive doors and the ferocious Pacific Ocean waited.

A sliding platform carried Mutavore, myself, and Bladehead out of the bay doors, dropping us down into the frigid waters of Alaska. We didn’t feel the cold. We were Ritari pilots. Unstoppable. Nothing could bring us down. Marshall Slattern’s voice cut through the commline, warning my brother and I that the neural handshake was about to commence. Mutavore turned to me as Karloff counted down for us, shooting me a wink. Then we exploded into Drift Space.

It was like a warm blanket swaddled around me whenever my brother and I drifted. Watching our memories go by like watching old home movies from the safety of your couch. Some memories were good, others, not so much. But it was still amazing. Then, as suddenly as it had happened, I was yanked back into the present. I was complete. Whole. Mutavore and I were one with our Ritari, with Bladehead. We were ready for the fight.

”Looking good, Bladehead!” Karloff cheered “Neural Handshake nice and secure.” Marshall Slattern’s voice sounded out, ordering Mutavore and I to hold the Miracle Mile, this invisible line that was the last ditch perimeter between a Jaeger and land. “Copy that, Marshall” Mutavore replied, but he hesitated. The display in Bladehead was reading a new signal, a small fishing vessel that was right in the Jaeger’s path. I remember Muta trying to tell the Marshall about the boat, but Slattern told him not to worry about it since they were protecting a city of a few million people. Ten people were just collateral damage.

I knew what Muta was thinking, and he knew what I was thinking. We were going to save the boat and kill the Jaeger. We blasted our warning horn, and off we trudged into the icy waters of Alaska, heading straight towards the boat and the vicious Yancy.

Chapter Text

Seven miles off of the coast of Anchorage, a fishing vessel known as the Saltchuck was tossing and turning in the fierce waves. The waves had been stirred up by the biting wind that accompanied the storm, and the ripples from the Jaeger Yancy, who was swimming his way to the coast of Alaska, blood on his mind. 

The captain of the fishing vessel was talking to his first mate, worry bleeding through his words as the two Kaiju frantically searched for a safe place to ride out the storm, blissfully unaware of the hulking mass of armour and malice making his way towards them. “There’s no place to hide from this storm, cap’n!” the first mate cried “We’re stuck!” “What about that island?” the captain questioned, pointing to a large blip on their ship’s radar. The first mate shot him a pained look. “There’s no way we could make it! It’s two...wait, no, one mile away!” The captain was confused. How could an island be getting closer? ”Wait a minute” the captain thought. Then it hit him. “Mother of God, it’s a Jaeger!”

The captain was right. A huge white hump rose up out of the water, black marks seemingly scratched into the beast’s armour. A ridge of black, diamond-like spines rose up from the hump, glittering from the water. The top of the Jaeger’s short, pointed tail swished back and forth in the raging black water, steering the beast as his huge, powerful arms and legs propelled him through the water like a dog. A huge, scaly, armoured dog with lots of sharp teeth and massive claws.

The crew of the Saltchuck screamed, fearful for their own lives as the Jaeger’s head rose up from the water, icy black liquid pouring out of his blond fur and streaming down his short, fleshy, pinkish nose. His blue eyes glowed with a neon sheen, hissing as he scented the air, finding the smell of the little fishing boat. Water streamed off of the white armour plating that encased the Jaeger, teeth gleaming in the low light. His huge arms pulled out of the ocean, massive claws flexing, ready to crush the fishing boat like a tin can. The Jaeger tipped back his head and roared, saliva flying out of his jaws. The captain couldn’t take his eyes off of the beast, but he hung his head, knowing he was staring death in the face.

The Jaeger tipped his head down, hungry blue eyes staring down at the frightened Kaiju cowering in the fishing boat. The right hand of the Jaeger, which only had three fingers arranged like a crane’s claw, flexed as the beast raised his arms. A terrible rumble echoed out from the Jaeger’s throat as his tail thrashed through the water, excited at the sight of prey. The Kaiju fishermen cowered on the deck of the boat below, huddled amongst the hundreds of dead fish, one screaming at the others to hold on.

The water behind them buckled and churned up into the air as huge, bright lights shone from the inky liquid, a noisy warning horn going off. It was like a challenge to the fearsome Jaeger standing opposite to the mighty Ritari. The tiny fishing vessel was tossed in the waves of both Jaeger and Ritari, spinning around and around in circles. The crew screamed as the Ritari bent down to scoop up the vessel, cradling it in one massive metallic hand. 

Within the Conn-Pod of the Ritari, Mutavore balanced a holographic image of the boat in his claws. He turned to face Knifehead, who was already falling into a defensive stance. “Ready to do this, little bro?” The six eyed Kaiju said. Knifehead smiled, tail swinging around excitedly. “Yup. Let’s kill this thing!” The brothers ducked as Yancy’s five clawed hand lashed out at them, an angry cry flowing from the Jaeger’s massive jaws. They spun around, depositing the Saltchuck behind them, quickly turning back to face the seething Yancy.

Yancy’s huge, yellowing teeth showed as the Jaeger pulled back his lips in a terrifying snarl, making his anger known. Bladehead, however, delivered rapidfire punches to the monster’s jaw, sending his head snapping to the side, left to right. The Jaeger screeched as he stumbled in the water, tail thrashing to try and keep his balance. Inside Bladehead, Mutavore and Knifehead raised their scaly arms up, feeling the Ritari’s arms do the same. They delivered a crushing blow to the furry top of Yancy’s head, forcing him to fall to his armoured knees

The Jaeger’s nostrils flared as he lunged for Bladehead, jaws wide open as his jagged teeth clamped down on the metallic arm of the Ritari. Pain flared through the left arms of both Mutavore and Knifehead, who had also been thrown back in their harnesses when Yancy had lunged at them. With a guttural cry, the brothers pushed up in their harnesses, showing back against Yancy’s jaws.

Yancy’s arms flung out to gain balance as his head was thrown back, roar echoing out as his claws sliced at the air. Bladehead grabbed the blond fur atop the Jaeger’s head, pulling him back towards the Ritari as it’s Plasma Cannon began to load. Mutavore and Knifehead swung their right arms down, firing a Plasma Blast right into Yancy’s chest. He screeched in pain, arms flailing and tail thrashing as he fell into the icy waters of the Alaskan coast, the only sign that he had been there the massive ripples caused by his fall and the deep red staining the surface of the water.

Mutavore and Knifehead let out a sigh. Yancy had fallen, and the little fishing vessel was safe. “Knifehead, why don’t you fire up the commline and tell Slattern that Yancy is down?” Mutavore asked his brother. Knifehead grinned. “Alright! That old lizard will have to be impressed at our FIFTH Jaeger kill!” Mutavore shot him a stare. “Remember, don’t get too cocky.” Knifehead rolled his eyes at his brother as he radioed LOCCENT. Slattern immediately started yelling at them.

”What the hell is going on?!” the Kaiju commander growled. “Job’s done, sir!” Knifehead crowed “Lit him up twice and bagged our fifth kill!” “You disobeyed direct orders, Ranger!” was Slattern’s angry reply. Mutavore cut in before either Knifehead or Slattern could say anything. “With all due respect, sir, we managed to take down a Jaeger, save some lives, and do it all before the Miracle Mile!” Slattern just rumbled a “get back to your post” before a panicked Karloff interrupted him. “Jaeger signature rising!”

Knifehead and Mutavore swung around, looking for Yancy’s ugly mug as Karloff squeaked “He’s still alive!” The Kaiju brothers couldn’t see anything, all they could see was water, water, and more water. The two fell into a fighting stance, Bladehead mimicking their moves. Slattern yelled at them to leave, to let the boat go on it’s way and retreat before the Jaeger destroyed them. It was too late.

Yancy jumped out of the water with an angry screech, red Jaeger Oil streaming down his face as he lashed out with his five claws, slashing right into Bladehead’s protective plating. The brothers grabbed at the side of the Jaeger’s face, pulling back his lips as his teeth gnashed at Bladehead’s cranial unit. Eventually one tooth caught the edge of the Conn-Pod, caving in Mutavore’s side of the pod slightly. 

“Burn him!!!” Mutavore shouted at his brother, who was already prepping the Plasma Cannon. But Yancy had learned their tricks. He pulled free of Bladehead’s grasp, closing his jaws over the still charging cannon while his arrowhead tail came up around his body, slicing through the right shoulder joint of Bladehead. Mutavore screamed in pain as he gripped his arm, tears running down his scaly face from his six eyes.

”Hold on, Muta!” Knifehead screeched as he watched arcs of electricity dance over his brother’s arm. “The arm’s gone cold...” Mutavore panted, trying to overcome the pain. Yancy tossed the torn arm over his shoulder with a shriek, sending it crashing towards the Saltchuck. Fear returned to the crew’s eyes as they watched Yancy strike yet again at Bladehead, this time his claws hitting home on the Conn-Pod.

Knifehead and Mutavore reeled in the Conn-Pod, watching Yancy’s obsidian claws tear through the hull of the Conn-Pod. Yancy’s angry cries echoed all throughout as Mutavore turned to his brother, a look of terror on his face. “Knifehead, listen to me! You-“ He was cut off as Yancy’s claws struck home, tearing through the hull and taking Mutavore with him. “NOOOOOOOOOOOOOO” Knifehead screamed as he watched his brother be flung into the stormy air, pain lancing through his body as he willed Bladehead to move.

Yancy lunged with a terrible cry at Bladehead, claws tearing into the hull, blue eyes gleaming with victory as blond fur danced in the wind. His tail whipped around, arrowhead piercing the hull and driving into the connection between Bladehead’s Conn-Pod and its body. Knifehead, through gritted teeth, forced Bladehead’s other Plasma Cannon to charge. Yancy noticed the gleam, and with a roar, brought his head down on the Cannon, teeth tearing into the armoured plating.

He roared, but Knifehead roared back, and fired the Cannon directly into Yancy’s mouth.

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Anchorage shoreline

An old Kaiju stumbled along the beach, wrapped up in every kind of warm clothing imaginable as his grandson toddled after him. His grandson was only twelve years old, but the little Kaiju had seemed excited when his grandpa asked him if he wanted to go for a walk on the beach to find metallic treasure. Now, the young Kaiju was doubting his own excitement. 

His grandfather was sweeping the beach with a metal detector, trying to find anything of value. All of a sudden, the machine went wild, beeping as if an entire reserve of metal ore was located beneath the frozen sand of the beach. The old Kaiju waved it around, trying to pinpoint the location of the metallic object. Surprisingly, the machine beeped the most when it was raised high in the air.

The old Kaiju strained his eyes as a hulking figure stepped out of the fog, a massive machine, broken and battered. The Ritari was stumbling, lights blinking on and off as it dragged its massive legs to the edge of the beach. The old Kaiju and his grandson could only watch as the fearsome Ritari fell to its knees, collapsing onto the cold sand.

The two Kaiju warily approached the metallic monster, and they gasped in shock as a bloodied and battered Knifehead stepped out of the torn open Conn-Pod, gazing at the cloudy skies as if he was seeing the world for the first time. He tripped over his claws, tail limp behind him, but the old Kaiju rushed up to him and caught him as he fell, yelling at his grandson to go get help. There was blood in Knifehead’s eyes, but all he could think was Mutavore. “Muta?” he asked. Then he blacked out again, letting the cold in case him.

Chapter Text

Wind whipped around a battered sign that read ‘Alaskan Anti-Jaeger Barrier: Keeping Our Coasts Safe.’ Like a lurking behemoth, the Wall stood silently behind the sign, keeping the promise as it extended for miles and miles on either side. Knifehead didn’t believe it for a second. He knew what it was like to face a Jaeger, to feel their fury. None of these workers knew what it was like, their faith was in a bunch of steel beams and concrete. It would crumple when a Jaeger decided to smash through it. Of course, no one asked for his opinion.

He could have continued fighting, he could have kept going, but how could he Drift with some random Kaiju that a bunch of nerds decided would match with him when his brother was gone? How could he? No one would match with him, none of them were his brother. 

That’s why Knifehead was standing amidst a bunch of other Wall workers, freezing his tail off as he waited for the daily announcements. Normally the announcements were just about what needed to go where, what thing needed to be fixed, and who was working what part of the Wall. Most of the time Knifehead just tuned it out, but today the foreman of the group decided to change up his regular speech.

”Okay, let’s get down to business, shall we?” The foreman’s voice was like sandpaper. Grating and scratchy. Knifehead hated it. “So, three guys died yesterday at the top of the Wall.” Knifehead let it sink in. He knew what it felt like to lose someone, but the Wall was being built fast, and what were a few casualties when the fate of the Kaiju race depended on the Wall. Another worker scoffed. “What about the good news? Isn’t there some good news?” 

The foreman held up three red ration cards. “I’ve got three openings. Top of the Wall.” Two cards disappeared almost immediately. The worker who had spoken before shrugged as he grasped one in his claws. “Five mouths to feed. Got no choice.” The third ration card didn’t disappear as fast as the other two, the realization that the top of the Wall was the most dangerous job you could have this side of Jaeger wrangling.

Knifehead walked up to the foreman just as he was about to call out again, snatching the red ration card right out of the foreman’s claws. The foreman smiled a shark grin. “Ah, Flyboy. Still kickin’ around, huh? You sure you’re not to scared to go up top?” Knifehead just levelled him with an unconcerned stare. “I’m comfortable around heights.”

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Way up on the top of the Wall, claws digging into the beams below his feet, Knifehead finished up welding an angle brace, kicking it out of superstition as he flipped his welding goggles up. He clipped in his harness, enjoying the view of the cold Alaskan coast before jumping off of the beams, claws gripping two other beams as he slid down the Wall, destined for the bottom. It was the end of his shift, and he couldn’t wait for a not to awful meal.

He finally reached the bottom, claws clinking on the cold concrete floor. He dug the new red ration card out of his coat, making his way over to the food tent. He grabbed his food in his claws before making his way over to the only warm part of the entire Wall, the Mess Hall. It wasn’t really a hall, more of a big open room with some tables and an old T.V. Currently the T.V was on a news station, and the reporter onscreen was chirping about another Jaeger attack in Sydney.

To everyone’s surprise, except for Knifehead, the Jaeger burst through the Wall surrounding Sydney Harbour like it was made of paper, roaring as it did. Shaky cell phone camera footage depicted the Jaeger stomping through downtown Sydney, sending Kaiju running for their lives. It was just like Slattern had said before. The Wall was useless. 

Knifehead pushed Slattern out of his mind. He lived in the moment. The past was filled with mourning. The future, a Wall. The reporter kept chattering on, saying how two Ritari were destroyed by the Cat III, and how it was finally brought down by the heroic Wyvern, the latest and greatest Ritari, piloted by the legendary Otachi and her son, Tach. 

Rage flared through Knifehead. If he’d only had a Ritari like Wyvern, Yancy wouldn’t have lasted a minute, and Mutavore would still be alive. He and Mutavore had fought with Wyvern once, both of them beating on a particularly nasty Cat III in Manila. Knifehead couldn’t help but be awed by the ferocious power of Wyvern.

The T.V showed Wyvern laying into the Jaeger, Acid Cannons shooting concentrated beams of acid at the Jaeger from close range, melting its armour plating and allowing Wyvern to stab through its heart using its Wing Blades. The Jaeger staggered before it fell to the ground, dying as the acid now in its systems ate it from the inside out.

Knifehead watched as a swarm of reporters clustered around Otachi and her son, both talking to other reporters. Tach snatched a microphone from a nearby reporter, staring into the camera with his intense blue eyes. A smirk split his face as his mother turned to glare at him. “That’s Wyvern’s tenth kill to date!” he crowed “That’s a new record.” 

Knifehead turned from the T.V, pushing his way through the crowd of workers that had gathered around the screen. He was disgusted. How far had Ritari pilots fallen that they acted like that brat? At least his mother was a good soldier, respectful and proper. She would never do something as stupid as her son had. 

The whirring of rotor blades interrupted his thoughts as a small helicopter set down where he had been standing that morning, listening to the foreman ramble about rations and beams. It had been a while since he had been in a helicopter. Five years and four months to be exact. And who should appear from the helicopter but another thing he hadn’t seen in five years and four months. Marshall Slattern.

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The hammer-headed Kaiju strolled towards Knifehead like the world wasn’t ending all around them, even calling out a greeting to Knifehead. Knifehead nodded. “Marshall. Looking sharp I see.” It was true. Slattern was dressed in a fine-looking topcoat, a suit laying just underneath that. “Enough pleasantries. May we talk?” Knifehead could only snort softly. Looks like the Marshal’s people skills hadn’t improved one bit over the years. Knifehead nodded. It wasn’t like he had anything else better to do.

The two Kaiju walked through the snow, claws crunching in the frozen stuff. “You know, it took me a while to find you, Mr. Knifehead” Slattern said. “I move with the Wall. I go where they need me to” Knifehead replied. “I’ve spent a lot of my time trying to reactivate anything I could, and there’s an old Ritari who could use a pilot. She’s a Mark III.” 

Knifehead shook his long snout, memories he had buried long ago pushing to the forefront of his mind. Mutavore, tangled in the wreckage of Bladehead’s Conn-Pod. Mutavore, crying out as he was ripped to shreds. “No, I just can’t. I can’t have anyone in my head. My brother was part of me, no one else could do that.” Slattern huffed. “Oh well. Haven’t you heard? The world is ending, and where would you rather die? Here, or in a Ritari?”

Knifehead pondered this for a moment. He wasn’t quite sure, but he swore he could hear a faint echo of Mutavore’s voice, telling him to save the world, save every innocent life on the planet. He looked up at Slattern, gazing into his neon blue eyes. “It’s been five years, four months. An extra five minutes wouldn’t hurt.” Just like that, Knifehead was a Ranger again.

Chapter Text

The Hong Kong Shatterdome appeared through a hole in the stormy sky, lurking like a metal behemoth below the clouds. Memories flooded through Knifehead like a river at the sight of the Shatterdome, but he pushed them out of his mind. No need for those thoughts now. The helicopter he was riding in set down on a helipad that was adjacent to the Shatterdome, rotors stirring up the rain that was steadily falling down.

The pilot hopped out of the helicopter as the blades began to slow, pulling down the ramp that was situated on the side of the helicopter. Slattern stepped out of the helicopter first, quickly followed by Knifehead. Of course, Slattern didn’t say a thing for the entire ride from Alaska to Hong Kong. Knifehead snorted to himself. It was nice to see that some things never changed. 

He couldn’t help but look around, and something that sloshed around in a tank caught his eye. It was a piece of a Jaeger’s brain. Running around the tank, along with all of its other Jaeger part bretheren, were two Kaiju, one who looked like a crab and one who had stuffed massive, furry ears into the hood of an equally massive jacket.

Knifehead couldn’t help but chuckle as the two Kaiju squabbled with eachother like an old married couple. But his eyes were torn away at the sight of a lithe, scaly Kaiju making her way across the tarmac, shielded by a jet black umbrella. Slattern striped over to her, taking an offered umbrella from her claws. She held a data pad in her claws, and she looked on at Knifehead with visible curiousity.

”Mr. Knifehead” Slattern rumbled as he passed the umbrella to Knifehead “This is Raiju. She’s one of our brightest, and she’s in charge of the Mark III restoration program. She has personally handpicked your copilot candidates.” Knifehead stared at the crocodilian Kaiju, and Raiju stared right back at him. They held the stare for a while, it seemed like both of them didn’t want to give up, but finally Raiju backed off, turning to Slattern and speaking in Japanese. “I imagined him differently.” Knifehead smiled. Two could play at that game.

”Hey!” he said “Better or worse?” Raiju’s entire scaly face flushed. Well, as well as the thick scales could. Knifehead knew that Raiju wasn’t showing her real face, that was hidden beneath three scaly folds, but the blush showed well enough. Raiju quickly apologized to Knifehead, telling him how much she had heard about him. Knifehead just smiled, nodding at her explanation. It was kind of cute, watching her get all flustered. She nodded back at him.

Slattern and a Raiju stepped into the Shatterdome, Knifehead quickly following behind. Raiju had taken his umbrella along with her own, and she folded them back down as they stepped inside what seemed to be a massive elevator. Guards stood beside the control panels, ready to bring the elevators down into the heart of the Shatterdome. Inside the elevator, however, were the tanks Knifehead had seen before, including the one with the piece of Jaeger brain floating around inside it. He couldn’t help but stare at the strange things.

The piece of Jaeger brain looked nothing like a Kaiju brain. It was smooth, almost round, but full of lines and subsections. It was, however, just a piece. Knifehead couldn’t even imagine what a full brain looked like. He was dragged out of his thoughts by a chorus of ‘wait!’ He turned from his pondering if the Jaeger brain and saw the two scientists he had seen before run into the closing doors of the elevator. The one with the huge ears was hurrying along with a cane, who’s purposed was announced by the prominent limo the Kaiju possessed. The other scientist seemed to look like a crab, along with a grade A nerd. The big eared one did thank the elevator operator though.

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The elevator began its slow descent into the Shatterdome, not even making a sound as it slid down the shaft. Inside the elevator, the crab like scientist, who had just gotten everyone else wet by taking his coat off and shaking it around like a dig would shake off its fur, loudly proclaimed to everyone that they should stay well back from the tanks, citing how they contained Jaeger specimens and how they were very rare. “You can look, but don’t touch please!” the crab squeaked.

”Mr. Knifehead” rumbled Slattern “This is our Jaeger research team. Doctor Scissure and Doctor Onibaba.” The crab like one turned around. “Please, just call me Onibaba. Or Oni. Just don’t call me doctor, only my mom calls me that.” He laughed. Knifehead didn’t even crack a smile. Onibaba spun around on his many legs, turning to the big eared Kaiju, who had flipped down the hood of his coat, letting his big furry ears go free. “Scissure! These are actual living, breathing Kaiju, so why don’t you say hello!”

The big eared one, Scissure, growled at Onibaba, telling him to never just call him Scissure, but to call him Dr. Scissure. He then proceeded to list all of his degrees, which Onibaba happily imitated, only serving to infuriate Scissure even more. Yup, they were just like an old married couple. Squabbling about anything and everything.

Knifehead, however, was more focused on Onibaba’s arms, which had just been exposed by the rolling up of his shirtsleeves. His arms were covered in tattoos depicting all kinds of Jaegers. Big ones, small ones, you name it. If it was a devastating Jaeger, then it was somewhere on Onibaba’s arms. Knifehead was focused on a particular one though. His mane of bright blond fur and face covered by thick black fur was hard to miss. He should know, he took down that Jaeger.

Aleksis was ravaging the coast of California, right in LA. His massive bulk crushed everything in his path, leaving nothing behind but dust. Knifehead and Mutavore had closed in on the beast, fighting him on the waterfront of LA until the brothers had grabbed a cargo crane and driven it through the Jaeger’s neck, killing him instantly. Knifehead remembered watching a Aleksis go down, crane still lodged in his neck, and feeling exhilarated. Now all he felt was pain and sadness.

”Who’s that? Aleksis?” he questioned, pointing at the Jaeger’s very detailed face, even though Knifehead already knew who it was. Onibaba beamed. “Oh, this little Jaeger? You got a good eye!” Knifehead proceeded to tell Onibaba about how he and his brother had killed the beast. Onibaba’s eyes lit up. “Y’know” Onibaba drawled “He was one of the biggest Category III’s ever recorded. He was two thousand five hundred tons of awesome!”

Raiju, Slattern, and Knifehead levelled the little scientist with icy stares that could freeze the sun. No one ever called the Jaegers awesome. Only the religious fanatics who believed that the Jaegers were a gift from God, angels come to punish the sinful and save the righteous. “Or awful” Onibaba croaked. At that moment, Scissure decided to cut into the conversation. “Please excuse him, he’s a Jaeger Groupie” the Kaiju growled.

Onibaba spun around, glaring at Scissure as he explained to the German Kaiju that he was, in fact, NOT a Jaeger Groupie and that he didn’t love them, he just studied them. “Unlike most Kaiju” Onibaba crowed “I actually want to see a Jaeger alive and up close!” Raiju and Slattern exited the elevator as it ground to a halt, leaving Knifehead and the scientists inside. Knifehead gripped Onibaba’s shoulder, staring right into his eyes. “Trust me” he growled “You don’t.”

Knifehead swaggered down a hall, approaching a set of massive doors. Raiju was already punching in an access code as Slattern stood beside her, waiting for Knifehead to reach them. “That’s your research division?” Knifehead scoffed. They didn’t seem much like one. At least, they were nothing compared to the research divisions that came before them. “Things have changed, Mr. Knifehead” Slattern growled “We’re no longer an army. We’re the resistance. Welcome to the Shatterdome.”

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Even though Knifehead had been in many a Shatterdome before, they never ceased to amaze him. The ceiling was like a cathedral’s, high above like another sky made of metal. Seven tracks that dug deep into the floor led to six Ritari bays, while the seventh one led to Scramble Alley. Scramble Alley was where the Ritari met with the harsh, unforgiving waters of the Pacific Ocean and the monsters that she contained.

The Shatterdome was bustling with activity, with everything from soldiers stalking through the hangars, guns at the ready, to R-Techs with tools in hand, working on the last functioning Ritari. It was like a whole other world inside the walls of the Shatterdome. Knifehead swung his muzzle around, trying to take it all in, but the thing that caught his eye was the massive old flip clock on the wall above the door he had just walked through. 

It didn’t seem to actually be telling time, which was a little confusing. Luckily, Slattern decided to clear things up for Knifehead as he strolled into the hangar with Raiju right on his tails. “It’s a war clock. It restarts whenever a Jaeger attacks. The frequency of the attacks is accelerating.” “How long until the next attack?” Knifehead questioned. “A week, if we’re lucky” Slattern growled “My experts believe that there will be another Jaeger attack even before that!” 

Knifehead didn’t like the sound of that. The Jaegers were only getting stronger, and now there were less Ritari to deal with the beasts. “This building used to house up to 30 Ritari in bays just like these ones, but now we only have four Ritari left. Knifehead sighed. He had no idea that things were this bad. Slattern pointed to one of the bays with a claw, gesturing to the metal monster inside of it.

”Chimera. Out of China. One of the greatest.” Slattern proceeded to list off a bunch of stats about the Ritari, but Knifehead wasn’t listening. The dark gold, almost tan Ritari was a sight to behold, three different arms adorning it’s body. One arm was the same colour as the rest of the Ritari, tannish with five huge claws on the end. The next arm was whitish-grey with only three claws on it, but two were much longer than the other. Finally, the last arm looked like the head of a viper, complete with green paint and fangs. Whoever had designed Chimera sure liked to stick to the legends.

”Chimera is piloted by the Scunner triplets. From Shanghai, but this Shatterdome was Chimera’s home base from the start” Slattern said. “The triplets use the Thundercloud formation, a deadly three-armed technique, which is very affective. They’ve successfully defended Hong Kong seven times.” 

Knifehead turned to find the triplets playing a game of basketball underneath the shadow of their Ritari. Knifehead couldn’t help but be amazed at the grace of their movements, especially with the massive crown of horns that adorned the triplets’ heads. It didn’t seem to bother them, however, as they all moved with the grace of a gazelle.

Slattern’s voice interrupted Knifehead’s thoughts as he introduced Grizzly, the last of the T-90s. It was built like a tank, a huge cylindrical head covering the reactor that powered the Ritari. “Grizzly is the heaviest and oldest Ritari in the service. It’s the last Mark I as well, but don’t be fooled. It’s a brutal war machine. It’s piloted by Hardship and Trespasser.”

Knifehead had heard of the fearsome Russians and their Ritari, who had defended the Siberian coast for six years without a single Jaeger getting through. Six. Years. That was unheard of, unless you were Hardship and Trespasser. Speaking of the devils, the two massive slabs of Kaiju walked out of their bay, drivesuits on and seemingly permanent scowls etched into their snouts. Behind them rolled Grizzly, painted bear face snarling at everything in its way. 

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“Otachi! Tach! Lady and gentleman, welcome to Hong Kong!” Slattern called to the two Kaiju standing beside a Ritari’s massive foot. For the first time since Knifehead arrived at the Shatterdome, words came out of Raiju’s mouth. She called to the slobbering lizard that was straining against the leash that Otachi was holding. Speaking of Otachi, the greatest pilot in the history of the Ritari Program strolled over to them, letting the lizard run towards the now kneeling Raiju. “Max!” Otachi growled “Don’t drool all over Raiju!” 

Otachi came to a halt in front of them, hardened eyes staring at Knifehead with a bit of mirth in them. “Mr. Knifehead” Slattern rumbled “This is Otachi, an old friend from the glory days.” Otachi extended a hand, and Knifehead took it, pumping it up and down. Otachi smiled a half smile. “You’ve got a good handshake, Knifehead.” When it came to Otachi, who wasn’t very touchy-feely, that was a high honour. Otachi grew serious again for a moment, before telling Knifehead that she was sorry about his brother.

What was he supposed to say? There really was no way to respond to that without biting Otachi’s head off, so Knifehead just decided to keep his trap shut. Slattern spoke up again, interrupting the awkwardness that had settled over the conversation. “Otachi and her son Tach are going to be running point in Wyvern, the fastest and newest Ritari in the world.”

Wyvern truly was a sight to behold. It was all sharp angles and jet wing blades, black and blue colouring perfectly mirrored its pilots. It even had web like ‘wings’ on its back. Knifehead knew they actually weren’t wings, they were stabilizers for when the Ritari ran, but it was kind of cool to imagine it having wings. It’s acid shooters were being reloaded, blue liquid sloshing around in its containers.

Then it hit Knifehead. What was Otachi and Tach running point on? He piped up, asking Slattern about it. “We’re going for the Breach, Mr. Knifehead” he responded “A thermonuclear warhead will be strapped to Wyvern’s back and taken to the Breach. You and the other two Ritari are going to run defense.” Knifehead was stumped. How did they get a thermonuclear warhead? “Russians” Slattern said, seeming to read Knifehead’s mind “They can get you anything.”

With that, Slattern gestured to Otachi, and the two left. Raiju slid in beside Knifehead. “I’ll show you to your Ritari.” Knifehead knew if he tried to ask Slattern about it, he’d just stare at him. Knifehead turned to Raiju, ready to go, but he felt eyes boring into his back. It was Tach. Knifehead turned away from him, following Raiju to his Ritari.

Chapter Text

The only sound that was echoing around the lab was the sound of chalk screeching on a blackboard, accompanied by Scissure’s mumbling. On the other side of the lab, Onibaba was elbows deep in a Jaeger organ, headlight shining into the horrendous thing. He did, however, swivel his head to see what Scissure was mumbling about. He was actually talking to Slattern and Otachi, who had both just arrived in the J-Science lab.

”In the beginning, the Jaeger attacks were spaced out by 24 weeks, then 12, then 6, then every week.” Scissure had hopped off of his library-like ladder, using his cane to pull back another section of chalkboard for the Marshal and Otachi to see. Like the other chalkboards, this one was covered in numbers and random words that would mean nothing to anyone else but Scissure. “The last Jaeger attack, in Sydney, was a week. In four days” Scissure said, tapping the board with his cane for dramatic effect “We could be seeing a Jaeger every eight hours until they’re coming every four minutes. Marshal, we should witness a double event in seven days.”

Slattern and Otachi shot eachother glances. That sounded absolutely insane. “Mr. Scissure” Slattern rumbled “I’m to drop a two thousand four hundred pound thermonuclear bomb, I need more than just predictions.” Onibaba then decided to pipe up, pincers full of gooey red Jaeger guts. “Well, uh, that’s a problem then.” Slattern and Otachi swivelled to face Onibaba, looks saying to continue on.

”See, he actually CAN’T give you anything more than just predictions.” With that, the Jaeger organ went flying, right over a yellow caution line that had been placed on the floor. As soon as the offending organ touched the ground, Scissure immediately growled at Onibaba about how there were to be no Jaeger entrails on his side of the room, emphasizing his point by kicking the entrail back over to Onibaba’s side of the room.

Scissure was still growling when Otachi growled at him to shut up, her blue eyes boring into the peeved scientist. “Marshal, Otachi, numbers do not lie. Politics and poetry, these are lies. Numbers are the closest we get to the handwriting of God.” In the background, Onibaba snickered. “Would you give me a moment?!” Scissure snapped at the crab before he turned back to Slattern and Otachi. “There will be a double event, and then shortly thereafter three, then four, and-“ Slattern cut him off, saying that after that, they’d all be dead. 

Scissure hurried over to his holocomputer, drawing a circle on top of the hologram that represented their universe and the Jaeger’s universe. Then he drew the Throat, a passageway between universes that was atomic in nature. “I predict that the increased traffic is going to force the Breach to stabilize, allowing the bomb to go safely through and destroy the Throat” Scissure said. Onibaba piped up yet again, causing Slattern and Otachi to turn.

”Yeah, and that’s where I gotta chime in. I mean, I wouldn’t want to go in there with that limited amount of info..” Scissure and Onibaba immediately started arguing, but Onibaba managed to convince Slattern and Otachi to hear him out for a second. Scissure shut down his computer with a stare that could unfreeze Antarctica, but Onibaba didn’t even notice.

”Why do we judge the Jaegers on a category system? It’s because each one is completely different from the next, right?” Onibaba said “You see what I’m saying, y’know, one has blond fur and pinkish skin, another one has black fur and brown skin-“ “Alright” Slattern snapped “Just get to the point.” Scissure shot Onibaba a glare, a soft ‘yes’ hissing out. “The point is, I don’t think they’re completely different after all! Here are some samples I collected.”

Onibaba pushed two trays over, both holding pieces of Jaeger organs. He pointed to one, saying how that one had been harvested in Sydney only a few days ago. He then pointed to the other one, saying how it was harvested in Manila six years ago. “They have very close DNA, only certain little strands which determine how they look. They’re clones!” Scissure snuck in beside Slattern and Otachi, saying how this was the point when Onibaba would go completely crazy.

Onibaba led the small group over to where a tank stood, filled with a yellowish-green liquid. However, that wasn’t the interesting part. The tank held a piece of Jaeger brain, the same one that had been rolling in from a helicopter just a few minutes ago. It now had wires attached to it, monitoring its brain waves since it seemed to be still alive. “ We’ve only scratched the surface when it comes to the Jaegers” Onibaba said “This is a piece of a Jaeger’s brain! Sadly it’s damaged, which makes it kind of weak, but still alive. I think I can tap into it using Drift technology. Think about that! I could tell you exactly how to get through the Breach!” 

“Are you suggesting that we initiate a Drift, with a Jaeger?” Otachi growled, disbelief creeping into her voice. “Not like a whole Jaeger, just a tiny piece of its brain!” Otachi scoffed. “The neural surge would be too much to handle!” Slattern agreed, nodding his great muzzle. Onibaba stuttered, but Slattern interrupted him, telling Scissure to have his data on Slattern’s desk ASAP. Onibaba stuttered again, trying to convince Slattern to stay, but Slattern silenced him with a stare.

Onibaba shouted after the Marshal and Otachi, but they were already gone. “I told you you shouldn’t have wasted your life being a Jaeger Groupie. It’s not going to work” Scissure growled. “It is going to work, Scissure, and I’ll tell you something else. Fortune favours the brave, dude!” Onibaba shot back. “They’ll never give you the equipment, and even if they did, you’d kill yourself!” Scissure snarled in reply. “Or I’d be a rockstar!”