Lessons Learnt
A Midsummer Night’s Dream
Chapter Nine: Lessons Learnt
“”So what do you think?” Twilight asked once she and Luna were back aboard the Alicorn’s personal airship. A wave of joy and relief she’d being holding back since meeting the humans again washed out of her and she had to resist the brief urge to dance on the spot.
“They’re… different.” Luna said quietly, as if that single word summed the two aliens up perfectly. “They are not of this world but seem remarkably comfortable in it.” She noted, stretching her wings out with an audible crick.
“Well, now what?’ Twilight asked, slightly impatient to get started. She’d never thought their plans would go so smoothly and now that the aliens had given their blessings, she was eager to get started straight away. The more rational part of her mind reminded her the Jaeger, now in pieces at the Flash Fields Airfield, wasn’t going to simply run off… well, not yet at least.
“We presume you want to start work straight away.” Luna said with a slight yawn. “Perhaps you should rest first Twilight. Knowing you, you will barely sleep otherwise.”
Twilight grinned sheepishly, Luna was probably right. “And what about you?”
“We shall write to Celestia.” Luna said tiredly. “She must be informed of what happened today.”
Twilight spluttered for a moment, while she appreciated the direction of Luna’s moral compass, she couldn’t help but feel a little snubbed after her teacher’s somewhat dismissive behaviour of them. Luna seemed to understand her frustration though and and shrugged her wings pragmatically, she too it seemed, had been sidelined by Celestia's machinations. .
“We can’t just not inform my sister.” She said pointedly. “Whatever your feelings on the matter may be, it would be…” She searched for the right word before deciding the simplest approach was probably the best. “...Wrong, to not do so. Celestia has the right to know.”
“Very well.” Twilight huffed, her desire to metaphorically flip the sun-goddess off fading away.
The alicorn stifled another yawn. “Inform the captain of where you wish to go, we are tired and must sleep.” She ordered. drawing the curtains of her quarters with a faint trickle of magic and plunging the small space into darkness. Her eyes gleamed in the darkness, a faint hint of excitement visible under her drowsiness.
Twilight nodded respectfully, quietly backing out of Luna’s quarters, leaving the ancient alicorn to her slumber.
***
Celestia watched out one of the many large windows which lined the throne room, feeling slightly impatient. It had been some time since she’d heard from either Luna or Twilight and while she had not expected quick progress, she’d hoped for something from at least one of them by now. She wanted to know what they were doing, preferably before they did something rash or stupid. The exasperation which emanated for her was a curious sensation for the usually patient alicorn.
She hummed quietly to herself, working steadily through a steady stack of audits that had somehow gone unnoticed over the last week. It annoyed her slightly that most of her day was taken up by the monotony of seemingly endless paperwork. She remembered a time, long ago, when she actually had a chance for recreation without falling behind or without some twit shoving something under her nose impatiently the second she returned. Maybe she needed a change...
A loud whip-crack broke the silence and a small scroll appeared in front of her and hung in the air for a moment before gravity reasserted itself. Celestia plucked it out of the air with well-practiced ease and smiled slightly, instantly recognising Luna’s distinctive insignia on the small piece of delicate thread which bound the scroll shut. She slowly unwound the scroll, her grin growing as she beheld the flowing and overly ornate script that her sister favoured. It lasted only a moment though as she started reading, her smile slowly fading as she read her sister’s words. She promptly forgot about the dozens of reports which still sat next to her as she reached the bottom of the page.
Surely this was some sort of joke. Yes, a joke. Luna was known for her jokes, even if she did take them too far sometimes. Celestia’s fore hooves started trembling slightly as she flicked to the second page bound in the roll.
‘This is no joke.’
A wave of anger crashed over Celestia, quickly being replaced by one of disbelief. How could Luna and Twilight do this to her? She continued reading, noting with a slight note of surprise and relief that the aliens had decided to help them after all. Well, that was something at least… she could check Midsummer Night bashing at the gates of Canterlot angrily off her list, for now. Wordlessly, Celestia lowered the scroll and started pondering.
Had she perhaps taken a too draconian approach to the matter? She’d been so sure of herself and now, to see her plans fall apart and be replaced, replaced by a plan she had considered too dangerous, a plan with too many unknowns… and then succeed. She felt a surge of uncertainty overcome her.
It seemed, for once, Luna had played her hand better than she had.
Celestia shook her head clear, her anger being replaced by a strange sense of pride. Maybe Luna’s head was in a better spot than her own, maybe she had been right. Perhaps she was getting too old, too old to change her ways.
She was still staring at the letter, her mind racing twenty minutes later when a loud crash followed by a loud, ear-splitting screech snapped her out of her stupor and back to reality. The scuffle continued for a moment before an uneasy silence descended again over the throne room.
Celestia vanished the scroll and looked up cautiously, that could only mean trouble. Her suspicions were confirmed a moment later as the main doors swung open and an irritated looking pegasus guard entered, a few of his feathers missing and his polished helmet slightly askew.
“Your highness, the Griffon ambassador is demanding to see you.” He said pointedly.
Celestia groaned internally, few things ever prompted the Griffon’s ambassador, a grumpy featherhead named Seered, to seek an audience with her, a fact she was very, very grateful for. She plastered a fake smile on her face.
“Does he have an appointment? “ She asked, her voice taking on an edge of barely withheld frustration. Well, at least this would be an interesting distraction from her paperwork…
“No ma’am.” The guard answered curtly. “He was quite insistent though.” He added, glancing at his ruffled wings and pointing to a pair of new scratches on his otherwise spotless armour.
Celestia cringed, wondering when the grumpy bastard would get out of her mane… if it involved him just rolling over and dying, all the better. “Show him in then.” She said, slightly concerned for the safety of her stoic protectors.
“At once.” The guard said with a thankful bow. He returned to the door and barked a command. A moment later the griffon was thrown into the room, a few patches of ruffled feathers and the scathing look he threw the guard enough for Celestia to tell that the half-dozen guards stationed outside had probably dog piled the griffon after whatever violent outburst he’d made.
“Ambassador Seered, what a pleasure.” Celestia said, her voice dripping with sarcasm. Thankfully though, griffons as a race seemed fairly immune to the subtleties of irony and sarcasm so the already irritated ambassador took it as a genuine greeting.
“Princess Celestia.” He growled, bowing slightly. He looked around the chamber and ruffled his wings, no doubt he subconsciously felt a little vulnerable. The alliance between the Equestrian’s and Griffons was… patchy, at best and as a general rule they stayed out of each other’s business unless it was strictly necessary.
“Now, ambassador, to what pleasure do I owe this visit?” Celestia asked, sure the guards stationed around the throne room would’ve been chortling if they were less disciplined
The griffon bristled slightly. “We have received word that you are harbouring aliens within your borders along with a gigantic machine of war in their possession.” He snapped briskly, getting straight to the point.
“Well we’ve had them for nearly three and a half months, your intelligence is a little slow or lacking.” Celestia said, adopting her best ‘Keep your frakking head out of our business’ smile. “Perhaps both.” She added.
As usual, the griffon ignored this jab, taking it as serious as ever.
“I think not, more recently we have discovered that you have a second of these machines in your possession and that you have reached an accord of types with these aliens to build more.” He said, the black pits of his eyes shining dangerously.
Celestia froze, how could he have known that? She’d only received the message from Luna barely half an hour ago. Treachery no doubt…
“That is indeed the truth.” She admitted, seeing no point in lying and just having the turkey in front of her call her out on it.
“And you did not think it was prudent to tell us? And what of the mysterious destruction in Bolton a few days ago? Hmm? Also not worthy of our knowledge?” He asked accusingly.
“I have my reasons ambassador. They concern neither yourself nor your masters.”
If Seered had teeth, Celestia was sure they would be grinding together audibly by now.
“This is absolutely unacceptable!” The Griffon screeched, pacing back and forth across the throne room like an oversized turkey. The ambassador turned to face Celestia, his thin jet black moustache almost doing a backflip at the sudden movement. “The minister will not be pleased!”
“Do you have to tell him?” Celestia asked wryly, she knew the answer to that already but she couldn’t resist riling up the unhappy griffon which stood before her a little more.
Seered ruffled his feathers in annoyance. “You know the answer to that as well as I do.”
“What is your exactly your point, ambassador?” Celestia asked boredly.
“It is a breach of our trust!” He squawked. “We expect to be informed of world changing events, such as this one, when they happen! It doesn’t just affect your own people you ignorant, arrogant as-.” He cut himself, what manners he had reasserting themselves.
Celestia raised an eyebrow dubiously, giving the griffon a look that she might’ve given to a piece of gum stuck to her hoof. “And you would do the same for us?”
“It would depend on the circumstances.” The griffon coughed awkwardly, the tone of his voice hardly convincing anypony.
“Well it was on a matter of good faith that I informed you of the monsters which now seem to be plaguing us.” Celestia reminded him.
The griffon scoffed. “We’ve not seen a trace of these fanciful monsters of yours, Celestia.” He stated arrogantly. Celestia’s brow furrowed, evidently they’d chosen to ignore the large body slowly rotting away in downtown Bolton. Perhaps it was easier for them to cover their ears and shove their heads under the sand rather than accept the truth.
“Something you should be thankful of.” She growled, her hardly amiable mood vanishing under the implications of the griffon’s accusation. “Now unless you have anything other than just accusations and hot air to throw around, I’m going to ask you to leave.”
The griffon seemed quite ready to get into another brawl but held back, an annoyed quark rising behind his beak instead.
“Very well, we will be paying very close attention to you and your friends. If we so much as get the hint that you are using your new-found power as leverage, we will not hesitate rain fire on you.” He warned, turning on his hind paws and strutting out, slamming the massive door shut behind him with an overly theatrical gesture.
Celestia scowled, resisting the urge to order her guards to throw the oversized chicken into one of the castle’s ovens. No, that wouldn’t do… she’d just get sent a new ambassador, probably one who was even more obnoxious.
She let out a quiet sigh of exasperation and added the griffons to her slowly growing list of problems.
***
With the deal struck, Shane and Michael seemed to have a purpose again. Although they were both apprehensive about the prospect of a non-human Jaeger, they both agreed the prospect was actually a little exciting. They were about to witness the birth of another Jaeger program, not exactly a point many people could boast about. It wasn’t just the two humans spurred on by the news, the few ponies who knew of the agreement seemed more lively and enthusiastic, the prospect of them having giant protectors of their own more than enough to fuel their eagerness. The salvage of Brawler Yukon had begun in earnest and a steady trickle of spare parts and junk stripped from the Jaeger started working their way into the repair yard. Within a fortnight of Luna’s unexpected visit, the two humans found themselves heading toward the outskirts of Manehatten on a small courier airship Luna had set aside for them.
When they arrived at the airbase, a pair of armed guards showed them to the hangar the venerable Jaeger had been relocated to.
“Jeez, look at the size of that arm.” Shane muttered as they entered the colossal hangar, still being cautiously watched by the two guards. Unlike any other Jaeger in service, Brawler Yukon had a large armour plate running down its arm, starting from its wrist and carrying on past its elbow until finally stopping near its shoulder. The plates, although heavy, provided excellent protection from almost any Kaiju attack. The other end extended just past the Jaegers thumb, tapering down to a trio of broad, razor sharp claws. While this significantly reduced Brawler’s dexterity it gave the Jaeger a devastating weapon against unarmoured Kaiju.
This of course, meant that Brawler’s arms were massive, almost comically so.
They gazed around the cavernous space usually reserved for the large airships of the Air Force, drinking in the sight of the dark grey Jaeger which occupied it instead. Although in pieces, the once mighty Jaeger still looked a little like a gorilla, its hunched shoulders and its long brawny arms quite unlike anything else made by human hands.
“A thing of beauty.” Michael agreed. He’d seen Brawler many times in the Alaskan Shatterdome of course, but the crude yet brutal look the Jaeger had about it lent it an appearance that never got old.
They walked around the wreck slowly, the voices of hundreds of ponies babbling around them as they worked on the fallen titan. There was loud cheer and Michael turned to see what looked like part of Brawler’s reactor being slowly pulled out of its chest.
“Didn’t expect to see you two here so soon.” A voice said from behind them. They turned in unison to see a euphoric looking Twilight beaming at them.
“Thought we’d check the old girl out.” Michael said, lamely waving a hand at the Jaeger. “How is she?”
The smile on Twilight’s face faded slightly. “In really bad shape. We’ve managed to recover a fair bit though, more than I thought we would’ve actually.”
“I see you’re making off with the reactor.” Shane muttered flatly, watching a work crew make off with the large steel vessel on a large tracked unit. He tore his haze away from it, reminding himself that the Equestrians were their friends… sort of. Maybe colleagues would be better.
She nodded. “It still works, although at somewhat reduced efficiency if the system’s data is to be believed.” Twilight said, leading them over a to a sprawling work station where nearly fifty ponies fussed over the contents of a large armoured box. It took Michael a moment to realise exactly what it was.
“The computer still works?” He asked, slightly incredulous. While the Jaeger’s computers were buried deep within the chest, safe from almost any strike, after months of freezing cold, neglect and general wear and tear, he was surprised that they would’ve been intact at all.
Twilight bobbed her head. “It’s a little beyond me, but we have some of the finest programmers sifting through the system. I have to say though, it’s amazing what you have achieved in the field… we have nothing like it at all.” She said, her eyes gleaming with excitement.
“And the Jaeger’s A.I.?” Michael asked curiously.
“It’s there… barely.” Twilight said slowly. “We were hoping we could compare it to your Jaeger’s system and repair it.”
“That should work, all the Jaegers run similar software for cross-compatibility.Although most of the physical stuff might b a bit out-dated, the software should be fairly up to date..” Michael said with a nod.
“How about the mechanical stuff?” Shane asked, trying to sound friendly.
“Most of the motive systems are shot, we might be able to salvage some of it though. As you can see, the right arm is missing.” She said.
An idea suddenly struck Shane. Crazy… but it might just work. “What about the left one?”
Twilight stared at the massive pieces of arm which littered the hangar and shrugged. “What about it?”
“Could you get it to work?”
The lavander pony shrugged halfheartedly. “Maybe, why?” The young alicorn asked, clearly wondering what Shane’s sudden interest in it was.
Shane smiled darkly. “Well, we just so happen to be missing ours.”
“Hilarious.” Michael interjected, clearly less than pleased with the prospect of having a hybrid Jaeger. It would be like having a prosthetic limb almost, the entire muscle strand system would have to be rebuild, the neural interface remapped and a new socket made for the joint as the existing structure would no doubt be incompatible.
All-in-all, it was a ton of extra work he didn’t really want to have to do.
“Well unless you can do magic voodoo, our other one is scrap.” Shane reminded him.
Michael made an annoyed sound and drummed his fingers against his cheek, wondering how long it would take to fix it. Too long, probably. The next Kaiju attack would come and they’d probably be down an arm… he shuddered, not wanting to think how that fight would end if the next monster was anything like either of the Kaiju they’d recently fought.
“What about your progress on your own Jaeger?” He asked, reminding himself what they were really here for.
Their escort seemed to get a little irritated at the remark, almost as if she was being constantly pestered about it. “We’ve only had a bit over a week to work on this you know.” Twilight complained, leaving the computer scientists behind and trotting into a small enclosure a few metres away. A dozen ponies sat around talking quietly amongst themselves and fussing over several drawings, they looked up at Twilight and the humans as they entered and fell silent.
“We’re still in the very early stages, we still don’t have much to work on….” Twilight admitted.
Michael and Shane leant back against a large desk and folded their arms across their chests. “Alright, how about we ask questions and you answer them to the best of your ability.”
Twilight looked around at the small team nervously, unsure if she’d be able to answer anything they asked. “Okay.”
Michael waved a hand. “Firstly: How big are you going for?”
“Around 70-80 metres high we hope. It won’t be quite as tall as yours when it’s on all fours.”
“Weight?”
“No idea. I’d guess more than yours though.”
Michael nodded, made sense. “Any ideas for armour and hull material?”
“We have talked about it briefly.” Twilight said quickly, paging through a small report she levitated in front of her. She trotted off and returned a minute later with a small metal square. She passed it to Michael. “Titanium-cobalt hardened plate. Strong and very light.”
Michael rubbed the shiny plate with an amused snort. “Stick to iron or low-carbon steel, it’ll be much more effective. Unlike your fancy-schmancy alloys which will probably shatter when they break and become completely worthless, iron is almost always reusable and because you can almost literally bang out the dents, it’s really easy to fix minor damage. Cherno Alpha’s hull was more or less made from melted down Cold-war tank hulls and rarely spent more than a few days in the workshop at a time. Romeo Blue, on the other hand, I think had a titanium alloy hull and spend quite a lot longer in the repair bay after a fight for spot fixes. Not only that, your iron plates will be a lot easier to manufacture.”
“But iron isn’t as strong nor durable.” Twilight pointed out grumpily. “Surely better protection would be more valuable?”
Michael shrugged, she wasn’t wrong. “Use it on the conpod and other vital areas then. Most of our hull is about three or four feet of solid iron.”
“It must be very heavy then.” Twilight remarked sourly.
“Quite true. Maybe when you guys another couple of Jaegers up you can experiment a bit… but for the moment, I suggest you keep it simple, stupid.”
Twilight grunted lowly and made a mark on her notes.
“What about weapons?” Shane asked, cracking his knuckles gleefully.
“After consultation, we’ve decided blunt force and concussive weapons are preferable as they reduce the chance of toxic spills.” Twilight said gravely, a large report detailing the extensive Kaiju Blue contamination in Bolton had been enough evidence for her.. “It will have its fists, which if my analysis and calculations of your combat recordings are correct, should be able to deliver blows in the excess of 18 gigajoules. A pair of rocket clusters are slated to be mounted on its back. You’re better off taking to somepony else about them as I know next to nothing about actual weapons.” Twilight admitted sheepishly.
Shane scratched his head. Ponies had hooves, not hands. “Fists?” He asked, curling his fingers up and holding it up for clarification.
“After much debate within the design team, we decided the Jaeger should have fingers not unlike yours on its forelegs. After analysing your combat footage, we decided the ability to grapple and manipulate objects in a fight is an ability that is far too valuable to lose.”
Shane was silent for a moment, wondering how to point out the obvious flaw in their plans. He decided the direct approach was best. “But… uh, you don’t have fingers. How’ll that work?”
Twilight trotted around the enclosure to a large table which held a few components she’d borrowed from Midsummer Night. She lifted one of the drivesuit’s heavy wrist units, the purple field of energy which seemed to affect things she levitated glowing brightly as it always did.
The unit was a ring about 8 inches in diameter with a central padded handle. Designed to be clamped around the pilot’s wrist, the small device was almost essential for precise control over the Jaeger. A built-in gyroscope along with motion trackers told the computer how fast the pilot’s arm was swinging, translating the raw motion into data which was then scaled up and used to determine the amount of force the arm’s motors put into a particular swing. While it was possible to do without the small device, it turned a fairly simple task, such as raising the Jaeger’s hand, into a flat-out dangerous one as the pilot had to keep a steady and focused mind lest a delicate touch turn into a full-blown punch.
Additionally, several auxiliary controls were nestled along the inner edge of the grip, allowing the pilot to activate several of his Jaeger’s ancillary functions without having to reach forward to the control panel. These controls were generally personalised from pilot to pilot but there were a few similar patterns that popped up between crews, most of which seemed to involved the Jaegers horns and the pilot’s middle finger.
“We’re developing our own version of your controls, it’ll be modified to have physical 'fingers' wired directly into the circuitry suit. The software will be a little tricky but we’re confident we will get it to work.” Twilight explained.
This raised more questions in Shane’s mind. How would they connect the fingers? How would they even walk with fingers? He voiced this concerns aloud, a clever grin appearing on Twilight’s face as he did so.
“They will be able to retract into the Jaeger’s hoof. If everything works out as we hope, the Jaeger should be capable of both limited bipedal and full quadrupedal movement, although the later will undoubtedly be more comfortable for the pilots. The fingers themselves will be wired directly into the circuitry suit, they’ll probably take some getting used to but eventually they’ll be second-nature.”
“And you’ll have enough flexibility to throw a punch with your forelegs?” Shane asked sceptically. He’d noticed the Equestrians were a lot more flexible than Earth’s own horses but it was still something he was a little dubious about.
Twilight nodded, it was something the design team had pondered extensively. “The Jaeger itself has fewer limits to its joint mobility than we do, still I’m sure we can manage it.”
“We’ll that’s something I can get the pilots to practice I guess.” Shane remarked.
“You’ve chosen pilots?” Twilight asked excitedly, dropping the wrist unit back onto the table with a heavy thud.
Michael shook his head. “Not yet, we haven’t received anything to base our selections off of.”
“I’ll ask Luna to compile something for you then, I’m sure she will have some ideas of who would be suitable.” She made a small note before pausing. “What traits are you looking for in test pilots?”
“Trust.” Michael answered immediately. “They need to trust each other for anything to be possible.”
Twilight grinned widely, evidently pleased with herself for some reason. “Why?”
Michael thought about it for a moment. “It’s the way the drift works. With the bridging of the minds, trust is critical to the connection. Your psyche doesn’t want to share its secrets. It wants to protect itself. It doesn’t like feeling naked in front of a stranger. It wants to cover itself and push the stranger out. You have to really drop your guard to make the connection. You have to trust the person next to you implicitly.”
“Oh, great.” Twilight said, a pleased grin appearing over her face. “That’s mostly what we guessed.”
Shane and Michael shared a surprised look. “You’ve tried a drift?”
“Yes, it didn’t work though.” Twilight admitted. “Not well at least.”
Michael seemed to deflate a little. “Don’t suppose you still have the Pons?”
“Naturally.” Twilight answered coolly.
Shane smiled thinly. “Don’t suppose we can borrow it, do you?”
***
“Well that’s one problem out of the way at least.” Michael said when they returned to their courier a few hours later. After their interrogation of Twilight they’d made a few more rounds of Brawler Yukon, making the occasional remark about something or other the ponies were doing to the wreck.
They’d returned to the small airship in relatively high spirits, despite Twilight’s insecurities, she seemed to have everyone fairly well on task.
Shane shrugged, slightly put out that one pony had managed to rebuild a working Pons. “Suppose so, now we don’t have to worry about making an actual Pons for our pilots. Can’t believe she made one by herself though…”
“I swear she must be like Einstein, Hawking and Queen Elizabeth all wrapped into one.” Michael joked. Still, If they’d salvaged the drift gear from Brawler, the Jaeger must’ve been in better shape than they were really letting on. Maybe there was some hope for the battered old Jaeger yet…
“What about pilots then?” Shane asked. Despite everything, he hadn’t really considered choosing pilots yet.
“You heard her, she’ll get someone to put something together for us.”
“And how long will that take? Clock is ticking and I’d like to get started before I change my mind.” Shane said boredly.
It seemed though whatever almost unnatural efficiency had overcome the Equestrian’s had also come over their bureaucracy, and when they returned to Midsummer Night, there was a small stack of folders waiting for them. Michael collected them and brought them to a small hab-block which had set aside on the site for them. While he felt more secure in the Jaeger’s conpod, he had to admit after nearly four months of living in the cramped space with his brother, a rock was starting to look more inviting.
“What’s this then?” Shane asked as Michael dumped the stack of nearly fifty cream-coloured folders on the floor. He split the stack in half, dropping half on them neatly next to Shane and taking the others for himself.
“Test pilot candidates.” Michael remarked, sitting cross-legged on the floor and opening the first folder. “One of Luna’s lackeys passed these along for our consideration.”
“There’s not very many.” Shane noted, counting a mere two-dozen folders in his stack. Based on how uncommon a strong drift compatibility was amongst humans, he had hoped for more. Then again, who knew how the ponies would cope in a drift, let alone if they even could?
Michael nodded in agreement, reading a small note which had been attached on top of the files.
“These are the service records of one of their flight teams,” Michael explained, remembering the distinctive uniforms he’d seen when they’d first arrived in Equestria. “The ‘Wonderbolts’ they call them. Luna suggested we start with them as the bonds between the team members are fairly tight and as they are a military unit, there’s a lot of combat training we can skip. Guess that’s why there aren’t that many of them.” He guessed reasonably.
“Fair enough.” Shane said with a shrug. He opened the first folder, surprised to find it in transcribed in somewhat messy English. “How thoughtful.” He remarked. Despite their time in Equestria, the language of the natives was still well and truly beyond them, the series of symbols, squiggles and circles having little more meaning than a mixed bowl of alphabet soup.
“Guess someone told her we don’t read Equestrian.” Michael said with a faint smirk. He busied himself with the first file, a seemingly somewhat sociopathic mare named Surprise.
“How many do you want to take on?” Shane asked, setting the first file aside and quickly flicking through the others, cringing occasionally as his gaze flickered over a name.
“Just the two. No point taking more than we can handle. To be honest, I’m not sure if I can even teach one pair.” Michael answered hesitantly. This was the biggest concern that nagged at him. Would they be able to teach someone how to pilot Jaeger? The amount of physiological and psychological differences between their species was probably vast. How could they teach an alien a process they barely understood themselves?
“Well we have to try or this’ll all be for nothing.” Shane grunted, he glanced at a pair of the files and handed them to Michael. “These two look promising.”
“Misty Fly and Lightning Streak?” Michael asked the room in general. “Siblings… Reasonably similar intellect types… Their behaviour record is less than starry though… says here they don’t really get along with each other though and there occasional issues with following the chain of command.”
“That’s fairly common between siblings.” Shane pointed out.
Michael poured over the file, searching for some other flaw in the duo. “She also has some sort Post Traumatic Stress issues…” Michael trailed off, his mind made up. They had potential but he wasn’t risking their first crew on someone who might crack under pressure. “I’d rather start with someone who won’t fall apart if we poke them too hard.” He tossed the file aside with a grunt. “It’s a possibility though. Consider them second-line for the moment I guess.”
Shane nodded in agreement. “What about these two? Soarin and Spitfire. He is her immediate subordinate, they’ve been serving together for a while and their records seem clean… almost a little too clean if you ask me.” Shane said suspiciously, no doubt suspecting some foul play at hand.
Michael opened their files and whistled lowly. “Well they’d probably be my first choice, I mean look at their remarks on each other… I’m pretty sure they’d be a good drift pair.” He said before grimacing as he paged over to Spitfire’s medical history.
“What?” Shane asked.
“See for yourself.” Michael said, throwing the file back over to Shane.
“Holy shit!” Shane yelped, “So she’s the one who saved our hides against Rasputin!”
“She paid the price for it though, lost a wing and a leg.” Michael noted. “She won’t be fit for service for months at least, if ever.”
“Pity…” Shane said sadly, tossing her file into the discard pile. It would’ve been fitting to train her up as a Ranger but alas, life was a cruel mistress.
“What about this guy?” Michael asked, passing over a file topped with the picture of a dark blue stallion in the top corner. The stallion stared up warmly from his CSV, the small smile he was wearing not too dissimilar from Soarin’s.
“Wave Chill?” Shane asked, raising an eyebrow.
“He could go well with this Soarin character. He’s his wingman in their flight, they have similar intelligence… heck, Soarin even did a lot of this guy’s training when he joined the team!” Michael exclaimed, reading down his copy of Wave Chill’s service report.
Shane grunted, it seemed a little too good to be true. “Any noticeable relationship issues?”
“Not that I can see…” Michael muttered, scrutinising Wave Chill’s CSV closely. “We would have interview them though, just in case.”
“Well, that’s pretty much as good as we’ll get. Unless we find another pair of siblings or a parent/child pair.” Shane said hopefully.
“No joy, only a few of them are really old enough to be having kids… well, at least by our standards anyway. Spitfire’s the oldest and she’s in her early thirties.” Michael said with an annoyed sigh.
“She looks older…” Shane said, picking her dossier up again from the steadily growing discard pile. The fiery mare stared up at him fiercely and a strange sensation to thank her rose up in Shane’s gut. He shuddered and threw the file away with almost indecent haste.
Michael shrugged, a barely imperceptible move as he re-read Soarin’s service record. “Guess these flight teams are a young pony’s game eh?”
“Suppose so. What about any significant others?” Shane asked.
Michael paged quickly through the two dozen dossiers he had; only a handful of them appeared to be in any meaningful relationship. “Not that I can see. I think we should keep to the list, they all have military training and some measure of discipline at least. If we are successful we can broaden our field but now we’re limited by our teaching staff, i.e. us.”
“Fair point.” Shane remarked, looking closely through his folders and adding another two to the discard pile after a moment of consideration. Several of the professional fliers looked promising but they both knew they’d probably find better matches in the general populace.
“I think these two guys are our best bet.” He remarked after going through the records twice more.
Michael nodded his head slowly, putting the two folders next to each other to compare them again. “You’re probably right.”
“And our second choice?” Shane asked, already taking Misty Fly and Lighting Streak’s CSVs out of the discard pile.
“Probably Misty Fly and Lighting Streak. They’re the next most likely to be compatible.” Michael answered.
Shane grinned widely, though whether at the prospect of having someone he trained pilot a Jaeger or at the idea of simply having something to hide behind, he wasn’t sure. He stood up, taking the four dossiers with him. “Alright then, let’s get them in here and get to work.”
Michael grimaced at the prospect. “You make it sound easy.”
***
The hospital was quiet, too quiet almost. It was creepy, Rainbow Dash kept expecting somepony to leap out from behind a door and jump on her. Maybe it was just the time of day or maybe this particular ward was just under capacity, but the entire place seemed deserted. Besides the receptionist she’d sweet-talked into divulging the location of her target, Rainbow Dash had only seen a bored looking janitor mopping an already spotless floor.
Of course, what she was doing visiting Spitfire was another matter altogether. She wasn’t what you would call the fiery mare’s friend… and saying she was a colleague would be a bit of a stretch. Maybe it was answers she was after then. Although the Bolton incursion had been some weeks ago now, the amount of information trickling out of the city was disturbingly small. Information regarding what had happened to the Wonderbolt’s flagship was even more difficult to come across, the monster not leaving many eye witnesses to tell the tale.
She was so wrapped up in her thoughts she almost ran face first into an unarmed guard who was watching dutifully over a corridor. He was wearing an air force uniform, his unit patch identifying him as being part of the Wonderbolt’s ground crew.
‘Guess this is the place.’ Rainbow thought, trying to step past the seemingly uninterested guard.
“I’m sorry ma’am, you can’t come in here.” The guard said, suddenly blocking her path. He stared down at her and the plucky Pegasus finally realised he was probably a good head taller than her. Trying to look unfazed by her burly opponent, Rainbow Dash tried to side-step the guard but he quickly blocked her path again. She glared at him forcefully, hoping her gaze alone would make him back down.
The guard was unperturbed, he’d faced down Spitfire on a bad day and lived to tell the tale. Nothing, other than perhaps a fully grown dragon would cower him. The rainbow-maned mare who stared him down was no more intimidating than a gun that shot medicine. He stared back, an amused smirk forming on his face.
“Stand down, she’s with me.” A voice said from behind them. Rainbow Dash resisted the urge to spin around, instantly recognising the deep tones of the Wonderbolt’s Executive Officer, Soarin, immediately. The smirk seemed to vanish off the guard’s face and hovered in the air a moment before leaping over to Rainbow Dash.
“Of course sir.” The guard said obediently, stepping aside and allowing the duo to pass without any further protest. Rainbow flashed a quick smile at Soarin, surprised to notice the stallion burdened down by almost a dozen books.
“What are they for? Is that Daring Do?” She asked, spying one of the many novels to feature the mustard Pegasus she adored. Surprising, since she’d never recalled hearing or seeing of any of the Wonderbolts being avid readers.
“They’re for Spitfire and yes, that’s a Daring Do book.” Soarin answered. A bemused look sped across his face. “Hello by the way, nice to see you here.”
“Oh!” Rainbow exclaimed pitifully, realising she’d left her manners somewhere back near the guard’s post. She looked away, slightly ashamed.
Soarin laughed heartily. “It’s alright, I’m just messing with ya.” He said cheerfully, readjusting the books he carried on his back slightly. “So what brings you here? Come to try and see Spitfire I guess?
“Yup.” Rainbow answered, again wondering why she had had the urge the see the Wonderbolt’s captain. Soarin didn’t seem that surprised to see her, maybe she had a closer working relationship to the Wonderbolts than she had imagined? She shook her head clear and returned to reality.
“Neat. I remember saying we should try and catch up some time but I didn’t quite expect this.” He grinned, though what for, Rainbow was unsure. He threw a look back at the guard and he adopted an apologetic look. “Sorry about that by the way. We had to put him there after a bunch of fans broke in. With how stoic he is, it’d take an army to get through that door.”
“Seems like it.” Rainbow agreed ruefully. After a moment of painful silence she decided to be blunt.
“How’s Spitfire? I heard she got hurt.” Rainbow Dash asked. Most of the information surrounding the ‘incident’ with Lucky Seven was frustratingly vague, only the Wonderbolts seemed to know the whole story and they weren’t talking.
Soarin’s face darkened. “You can see for yourself.” He said, knocking twice on the door which presumably led to Spitfire’s room.
“Enter.” A rough voice that could only belong to the fiery mare growled.
Soarin pushed the door open and trotted into the still uncomfortably white room. A large unopened bottle of vintage scotch sat to the side, presumably the one aboard Lucky Seven hadn’t survived the crash, and the pair of cupboards in the room were positively covered in books and other assorted detritus the Wonderbolt’s captain had collected.
“More books for you, also a visitor.” Soarin said, his cheer returning as quickly as it had gone, although perhaps a little more forced. He tugged Rainbow Dash into the room behind him and set the books he carried down on Spitfire’s bedside table, adding to the small mountain she had started amassing.
“Ah, Rainbow Dash isn’t it?’ Spitfire asked, waving with her fore hoof in what could be described as a barely pleasant greeting. ‘Her only fore hoof…’Rainbow realised with a thrill of horror.
“That’s me.” She said queasily, suddenly wishing she was somewhere else. Her eyes widened as Spitfire rolled over slightly, revealing a stump where one of her wings had been. Forcing down the bile which had risen in her throat, Rainbow Dash tore her gaze off the Wonderbolt’s injuries and looked at the books piled next to her.
“I didn’t know you liked Daring Do.” She said, trying desperately to ignore Spitfire’s injuries.
“Neither did I. Soarin got me hooked, there isn’t much else to do here other than read.” Spitfire said, a slight edge in her voice. “What about you rookie, you read?”
Rainbow Dash made a gesture somewhere between a halfhearted shrug and a nod.
“Right.” Spitfire said dryly, turning her attention away from Rainbow Dash and back to Soarin “Anything interesting happening while I’m stuck in here, Soarin?”
“Well, you’ll be delighted to hear the Trottingham Thunderhooves kicked the snot out of the Derby Dragons in their final.”
“Thrilled.” Spitfire said in a tone which conveyed quite the opposite.
He hid what could’ve been the slightest trace of a smile. “You might also be interested to know… I’ve been taken off the team.”
Spitfire cocked her head in confusion. “What for?” She asked, clearly wondering what he’d done to deserve such a punishment.
“I’ve been selected as a test pilot in some program.” He seemed to have a brief internal struggle, as if he was deciding to tell the whole truth. “A Jaeger program to be more precise. Our program.” Soarin said finally.
Spitfire and Rainbow Dash stared at him incredulously. “What?” Spitfire asked dumbly. “You, a test pilot for… for one of those alien machines?”
Soarin looked between the two mares, both of which were staring at him like he’d grown a second head. “Uh, yeah. Me and Wave Chill.”
Spitfire snorted, convinced he was pulling their leg. “Bullshit. Since when?”
“Since yesterday, course starts tomorrow.”
“You mean to say that thing we found up north actually worked?” Spitfire asked.
Soarin stared at her for several seconds, figuring out what exactly to say. His debrief of Misty fly and Lightning Streak had been delightfully unpleasant, the two slightly livid at having being left in the Frozen Wastes for three months by themselves. At least they weren’t chewing each other out for once…
“No, we’re building our own.” Soarin replied. “Apparently we might be the right ponies for the job.”
Spitfire seemed remarkably unsurprised by this. “Fair enough, I hope that works out for you. Punch one of the bastards in the face for me.”
“What are you going to call it?” Rainbow Dash asked, her eyes shimmering with excitement. She’d picked up enough from Pinkie and the two humans to know you needed two pilots. Perhaps she could find a partner somewhere… and if this this thing ever got off the ground, maybe she could become a pilot herself.
Soarin raised an eyebrow. “Pardon?”
“Well the alien one is called ’Midsummer Night’ or something. You should come up with a name for your one.” She explained, already wondering what she would call her own Jaeger.
Soarin shrugged, he hadn’t even considered it before. May as well get started…
“I’ll talk with Wave Chill about it I guess.” He said noncommittally.
“What about Wild Mustang?” Spitfire said lowly after a moment of silence. “You two are the most unpredictable stallions I know and well, you’re both guys since last time I checked. Also, isn’t Wave Chill from Mustang?”
Soarin indicated the affirmative. “I like it, I’ll see what Wave Chill thinks.” He said with a small shrug. He looked around uneasily as if remembering something unpleasant. “Also. Uh, Wave Chill also may have found a griffon willing to help you with you… ah, little problem.” Soarin said, stealing a nervous glance at Rainbow Dash and then Spitfire’s missing leg.
“Stop skirting around the issue.” Spitfire growled. “She can see I’m missing a leg you ponce.” She waved the stump morbidly at Rainbow Dash again.
Rainbow smiled awkwardly, clearly wishing she was somewhere else.
“Uh, right. He’s arranged for her to come in some this week and give you a look over.” Soarin said hesitantly. “That works for you?”
The ex-leader of the Wonderbolts stared at him for a few seconds, an unamused look plastered over her face. “Sure, I’ll just rearrange my busy schedule.” Spitfire said snarkily.
“I’ll let him know then. No need to be snappy about it.” Soarin muttered, slightly confused with Spitfire’s attitude. Sure, her being a little cranky wasn’t uncommon… but being flat out obnoxious wasn’t like her at all.
“Snappy? Who says I’m snappy?” Spitfire growled
“Well I couldn’t call your attitude friendly, what’s up?” Soarin asked.
Spitfire shook her head defiantly, clearly nothing seemed wrong to her.
“Spitfire, are you sure you’re alright?” Rainbow Dash asked. When she was off duty the Wonderbolt had always seemed relaxed and carefree. She’d never seen her like this.
Spitfire’s glare rounded on her, the intense stare boring deep into her forehead. “Alright? Of course I’m alright. What’d be wrong with me? It’s not like I lost anything, right?” She said, her voice taking on an edge that Rainbow found disturbingly close to Pinkie’s when she had one of her ‘episodes’.
She quickly back-pedalled. “I get it you’re upset-.”
Spitfire scoffed and glared at Rainbow dash with the heat of a thousand suns. “Sure, sure you get it. It’s not like you’ve ever lost a wing now have you? You wouldn’t know anything about how I feel right now, my entire world has been shattered, torn apart, broken apart by the harsh bitch that is life. And what about you? What have you ever sacrificed, what have you ever lost? Nothing. I lose something worse than my life and what’s my reward? Being hounded by some rabid fan who just wants to give me their sympathy, wants to butter me up? Well I don’t want it!” She yelled, almost rising out of her bed. The silence that followed her angry tirade was absolutely stunning. Rainbow Dash was sure she would’ve heard a sprig of hay hit the floor.
Soarin glanced between the two mares, a worried look plastered on his face. He looked set to jump in between the two hotheads but Rainbow Dash thankfully didn’t let it come to that.
“Well...” She said slowly, turning on the spot and marching out indignantly.
Soarin groaned internally, this would his mess to clean up, he was sure of it. He threw a quick glare at Spitfire, noting the almost disappointed look that was forming on her face, and cantered after Rainbow Dash.
It didn’t take long for Soarin to catch up to her, she’d barely made it past the guard’s post before her finally overtook the indignant mare. He hung his head, slightly ashamed at Spitfire’s attitude.
“Sorry that happened back there… she’s not normally so…” He fumbled for a word but Rainbow Dash knew exactly he meant.
“I get it.” She said grumpily, not quite looking at him.
Soarin nodded appreciatively. “Thanks… look, it’s a big loss for her and well-.”
“She’s not taking it very well is she?” Rainbow said quietly, already knowing the answer.
Soarin shrugged uneasily. “Better than most I guess, but honestly? She seems to be holding it all in. She needs somepony to get it out of her or she’ll just fall apart at the seams and be completely beyond help.”
“And you’re not the one for her?” Rainbow asked, slightly surprised. She’d expected Soarin to be spitfire’s go-to pony for almost anything.
Soarin seemed slightly taken aback. “I don’t know what you read about us in the press but it’s not like that at all. She’s more like my grumpy big sister. Thing is, she won’t confide anything with me about her feelings or just she’ll see herself as weak.”
“Huh. And you can’t think of anypony how could do it?”
The stallion shook his head silently, the look on his face telling her that those that could were few and far between.
“I’m sure you’ll sort something out, even if you have to force it out of her. That’s what friends do.” Rainbow said, daring to lay a gentle hoof on his shoulder. She expected him to rebuke her but was instead rewarded with a flicker of a smile.
“Thanks.” Soarin said quickly.
“No probs.” Rainbow replied shakily. She wasn’t usually one to offer emotional support but even she could see that even her superstars needed somepony to tell them it was okay every now and then. “Hey, good luck with your training. You have no idea how jealous I am.”
“Well if this all pans out fine maybe I can show you the basics eh?” An amused look crossed Soarin’s face and his dark green eyes drifted to her hoof. “You can stop touching me whenever you want y’know.”
“Oh right, sorry!” Rainbow squeaked hastily removing her hoof from Soarin’s shoulder. She looked around awkwardly before deciding that the pattern on the roof was suddenly very interesting. A quiet chuckle of amusement came from her companion.
“I should probably go now, lots of things to do!” Rainbow excused herself, feeling as embarrassed as a Minotaur in tight spandex. “Busy, busy, busy!” She said trotting away before Soarin could even hope to stop her.
The confused stallion blinked slowly, unsure of whether he should laugh or cry at her rampant display of emotion. After a moment of consideration he smirked confidently.
“She’s totally into me.”
***
The next day Soarin and Wave Chill found themselves in a long, mostly empty hall which until now, had been a warehouse along the edge of the repair yard. Without the stacks of crates and pallets the place almost seemed deserted. In place of the usual clutter was a large five metre mat and a collection of objects which to the untrained eye looked like nothing more than junk.
The two aliens stood in the centre talking lowly, they hadn’t seemed to notice either Wave Chill or Soarin’s arrival. If they had, they paid neither of the ponies any attention, too focused on whatever conversation they were having.
After several long minutes Soarin cleared his throat, attracting their attention. He hadn’t seen either of the curious creatures in the flesh yet and he had to admit, their appearance wasn’t anything like he’d expected. He’d imagined them… taller.
“Ah, you’re here.” One of them said with something that could possible resemble cheer. He extended one of his limbs, a gesture Soarin responded to with some confusion. “I’m Michael, this is my brother Shane.” He said, withdrawing his hand quickly as he noticed Wave Chill moving in to sniff it.
“Soarin, Wave Chill.” Soarin said, gesturing to the two of them unnecessary, no doubt they’d already know their names.
“A pleasure.” Michael said in a voice which left Soarin questioning his seriousness. “Now, I’m sure you two both know why you’re here?”
They nodded in unison.
“Good, now ditch whatever rank or position you previously held, you’re cadets now. Fresh meat. Equals. Follow me and we’ll get started.” He said, leading them over to the padded mat in the centre of the building.
“It’s really good you’re doing this.” Wave Chill said, peering around the small warehouse cheerfully, he looked the collection of junk over but found nothing of interest and returned his gaze to their new instructors.
The two humans spun around slightly, the younger looking one cracking his knuckles absently. “Yeah, maybe. But we’re not doing this out of the kindness of our hearts.” He said.
Wave Chill slowly digested this fact. “Then why are you doing this?” He asked.
“Because we’re well and truly sick of holding the line. Now shut up and we’ll get started.”
Wave Chill immediately fell silent, exchanging a sidelong glance with Soarin.This was nothing like they’d expected.
Michael nodded and took a step forward. “Well then, first off… we’re going to be determining your drift compatibility. We've read through your files and while youlook promising, we need to do some actual hands on work before we shove you into a pons.”
Soarin raised a hoof. “What’s a ‘drift’?”
Michael nodded his head. “When we talk about a drift, or drifting, we’re talking about the process by which we mind-meld to control our Jaeger.” He gestured to Soarin. “Basically, you and Wave Chill here will be sharing memories, emotions and feelings through the body of a Jaeger. I’m not sure how exactly it works beyond that but I’m sure someone smarter than me could explain it if you really want to know.”
“Alright, and a pons?” Wave Chill asked, exchanging another nervous glance with Soarin.
“We’ll get to that later, for the moment we just want to see if you two match up well enough.” Michael explained.
“And how do we do that?”
“Normally, drift compatibility is tested in a place called the Kwoon Room… but since we don’t; have one of those, this place will have to do.” He gestured to the long hall.
Wave Chill looked around the hall again, slightly disappointed. “So we’re not driving a big robot yet?”
“Look chump, there’s no point showing you how to drive a Jaeger if you two don’t match up.” Shane said dryly. The way he was leaning back gave Wave Chill the impression he thought he could be doing much better things with his time than explaining the finer details of piloting a Jaeger.
Michael took over again. “Thank you Shane. Now, we’re going to start with a sparring session so we can see for ourselves how you two link up. While you should be putting your all into it, it’s more about trying to figure each other out than winning.”
Soarin cocked an eyebrow. “If this is all about getting in each other’s heads and all, how is fighting going to help?”
Michael shrugged. “Back in the early days of the Ranger academy, some bright spark figured that seeing how two people fought was a good way to determine drift compatibility. Firstly, the better you’re able to anticipate each other’s moves and styles is a good indicator of how well you’ll be able to anticipate each other’s thoughts… which in turn strengthens the neural bond.”
“Second, watching a fight allows us to determine your temperament and your personal style, they’re important in finding a pair that’ll match up. Lastly, if you can kick his ass in a fight without breaking a sweat, are you really going to take him seriously? You have to share your most precious thoughts and feelings with this guy, your life depends on him. Will you really respect him if you can floor him with barely a flick of your wrist?”
“Makes sense.” Soarin said, honestly not quite grasping the logic behind it. Still, if they reckoned it worked, it worked.
Michael grinned thinly “Good, have you ever fought with hanbō?”
‘Sure, expect us to know your language.’ Soarin thought irately. He forced a pleasant tone. “A what?”
“A short staff.” He said, procuring a roughly carved stick he’d been working on. It was nothing like the precision made hanbō he’d find in a real Kwoon Room but it would have to do. It was roughly three feet long and half and inch wide, light but sturdy. In the hands of a trained fighter, there wasn’t much you couldn’t do with one.
“We have trained with pole-arms, mostly learning how to counter them though.” Soarin said, wondering why the human hadn’t just called the glorified stick a stick and be done with it. “On account of not having hands or claws, we prefer unarmed combat. Unicorns are much more dexterous.”
“Well that’ll have to do.” Michael said with a shrug. He tuned to Shane and took another pair of shorter sticks his brother had been holding. He tossed them to the ground in front of Wave Chill and Soarin. “Whenever you’re ready.”
The two ponies exchanged another nervous glance before clumsily picking, or more accurately, cradling the sticks in their forearms. They used their wings to balance themselves, an occasional flutter preventing them from crashing face-first into the floor.
“There’s five rounds. A strike anywhere on the body counts as one point.” Shane explained, pointing Wave Chill to one end of the mat and Soarin to the other. He watched them curiously, the way they held their sticks made their bodies look like marshmallows. Whatever doubts he’d had about the flexibility of Equestrian’s anatomy vanished, they seemed surprisingly comfortable on their hind legs, even if their mobility was somewhat impaired.
“A bit odd, isn’t it?” Michael agreed, implicitly understanding the thought that was running through Shane’s mind. He cleared his throat and addressed the two pegasi again.
“Remember it’s not just about martial prowess. This whole exercise is all about compatibility.” Michael reminded the two ponies as he walked slowly around the ring. “You want to be anticipating your opponent, knowing exactly what he’s going to do.”
“And how are we supposed to do that?” Wave Chill asked, calmly bouncing the stick up and down with his forelegs.
“By watching, learning… feeling. Study him, know everything there is to know about him. Know his styles, his strengths, his weaknesses; by doing this you’ll know exactly what he’s going to do. Make sense?”
The two Wonderbolts nodded hesitantly.
“Well considering your line of work you should already have a fairly good start. You should be able to anticipate each other fairly well...” his voice dropped so only Shane could hear him. “I hope.” He made a subtle gesture. “Uh, when you’re ready I guess?”
***
A thin sheen of sweat covered Soarin. Panting slightly, he brought his hanbō back up to the ready position. Three metres across from him, Wave Chill made a similar motion. He was pleased to see his old subordinate in a similar state. Neither were giving any quarter, a fierce instruction that Shane had given them after their first bout had ended. Soarin had clipped Wave Chill twice now, once behind the knee and the other across the ribs. Wave Chill had also struck him twice, once across the leg and another time across the neck, a blow that would probably rise up as an ugly bruise tomorrow. They were fairly well matched, Wave chill’s slightly better agility an equal match for Soarin’s slightly bulkier build.
Wave Chill glared at him, not exactly angry with Soarin but a little more irritated with himself, Soarin guessed. The last spar had been close, almost devolving to fisticuffs. Soarin had jabbed his opponent in the ribs after anticipating a downward feint and slipping past his guard, leaving a small mark where the end of his stick had rapped against Wave Chill’s ribcage.
Soarin put the last fight behind him and scrutinised Wave Chill again. He’d opened aggressively previously but now he seemed to be sizing Soarin up, looking for an opening, looking for a way past the thin stick Soarin had clumsily balanced in his hooves. He had to admit, after a few rounds he’d started to see the alien’s logic. It was uncanny how well he and Wave Chill matched up. They seemed to flow from parry to counter, each one performing the perfect response to the others move, almost as if they implicitly knew what the other would do. They weren’t perfect, the large mark of Soarin’s neck was testament to that, but they seemed to be pleasing the humans. He wiped a bead of sweat out of his eye and stared at Wave chill again.
It was almost like he was fighting himself.
With a grunt Soarin lunged forward, aiming for a small spot on Wave chill’s foreleg which was barely exposed. The other Pegasus parried and soon they were back in their convoluted dance, their wings fluttering erratically to keep them balanced and occasionally, leaving the floor entirely. They covered every inch of the mat, their sticks flashing through the air with grunts and yells, barely missing the space occupied by their opponent moments ago. They fought for what seemed for several long minutes before Michael called out.
“Enough!” He waved them down. “That’s enough, we’ve seen what we need to see.” He glanced sidewards, receiving a barely imperceptible nod from his brother.
“And?” Soarin panted, letting the irritating stick fall to the ground. He glared at it, clearly wishing it would burst into flames.
“You two are good. Crazy good.” Michael remarked. “For beginners at least.” He glanced at the stick on the ground and without warning, swept his own hanbō at Soarin’s legs, tripping the stallion up and knocking him to the ground with a single movement. “Never let your guard down. You won’t get a second against the Kaiju so you won’t get one from us.” He barked, cutting off Soarin’s angry response. He resumed his relaxed stance, a thin smirk appearing on his face. “Still, good work.”
Soarin grinned stupidly, feeling immensely proud of himself and Wave Chill despite the humiliating position he was in..
“Take a short break, maybe a shower and we’ll start classes.” Michael said, waving the two ponies away. He sat cross-legged on the sparing mat and motioned for Shane to sit next to him.
“So, what do you think?” He asked. Although Shane would never admit it, Michael could tell he was more impressed than he was letting on. Although they had a lot to improve on, the duo seemed fairly well matched.
He twirled a hanbō dexterously between his fingers, slowly collecting his thoughts. After a moment he nodded. “They’ll do.” Shane agreed.
***
Twenty minutes later they were back in the hall, a holoprojector salvaged from Brawler Yukon in hand along with several fat files filled with information from their Jaeger’s databanks.
Wave Chill glanced at the files with something approaching annoyance. “Don’t tell me that’s homework.”
“A bit of light reading.” Michael said with a pleasant smile. “Alright, today we’ll be discussing Kaiju. Since fighting them is the whole point of this joint venture, I think we should start there.”
“And not with how to pilot the big robot?” Wave Chill asked again.
“Please, give me your big robot and I’ll show you how to drive it. Until then, shut it.” Shane snapped. “You’re sure as hell not using Midsummer Night.”
“Anyway…” Michael said, reigning them in before the conversation drifted too far from the subject. He thumbed the battered projector, bringing up a slowly revolving and slightly grainy image of a Category II Kaiju, Reckoner, if he remembered correctly. The beast snarled at him from its virtual prison, the long gator-like snout splitting in a way which he found slightly unsettling. “This, is a Kaiju. Only a small one. CAT II. This little guy attacked a place we call Hong Kong in 2016.”
“Bitch is ugly.” Wave Chill remarked, trotting around the two metre high projection with an air of awe. He stared at the large metal plate the image was projecting from, clearly wondering how it worked.
“What’s a CAT II?” Soarin asked, recoiling slightly as the Kaiju lunged at him. While it was only an image, the Kaiju was still larger than he was.
“It’s a system we use to classify the Kaiju. Generally, the larger they are the more dangerous they become.” Shane explained. “The system runs from Category one through to five.”
“And how do you assign a Category to a Kaiju?” Soarin asked, slightly mispronouncing the foreign word.
“Its weight, size and toxicity are the major factors. We’ll mostly use weight though as some higher level Kaiju aren’t as toxic or are rather squat.” Michael said, bringing a new Kaiju, a CAT I called Hardship, to life on the projector. “This is a CAT I. About 1400 tons if I remember correctly. Little guy but still very dangerous. Romeo Blue killed him in Seattle.”
He brought Reckoner back up again. “Category IIs start at 1500 tons and go up to 2500 tons. They seem to be fairly run of the mill Kaiju, most Jaegers can take the smaller ones on without too many problems.” He said, remember how hard of a fight Rasputin had put up. To be fair though, he had almost been a CAT III… He shuddered and suppressed the thought.
He switched the display again, bringing a snarling CAT III into focus. This one had a large knife-like protrusion out of his head. It growled silently and leapt at Soarin, the slightly transparent image stopping a metre away from him with a seemingly annoyed snarl. The Kaiju flicked in an out of focus, a well-placed blow to the fickle machine from Shane’s foot finally snapping it back into focus.
“Let me guess, you called him Knifehead.” Soarin remarked dryly, edging away cautiously from the still growling Kaiju.
“Yup. Biggest CAT III on record. He was around 3800 tons. Killed a Jaeger too,” He added softly. “CAT IIIs top out at 4000 tons, anything heavier is a CAT IV.” He image changed again to show a hulking lizard-like monster which darted around like a child on a caffeine drip.
“Who’s this?”
“Rapture. First Category IV. He attacked Manila in 2019. Took a team of three Jaegers to bring him down. Make no mistake, if you’re fighting one of these guys, you really want some backup or to have one hell of a Jaeger.”
“What about Category V’s?” Soarin asked, almost a little worried about what he’d hear.
“Anything over 6000 tons.” Michael said quietly, thankful that the system had no listed CAT V’s. “We haven’t encountered one yet, so at the moment they’re entirely hypothetical.” He paged back to Rapture and let the three metre high Kaiju run around the room. Its barbed tail whipping in frustration as it fought an imaginary foe.
“There’s also a measure of toxicity. Almost all Kaiju are incredibly toxic, their flesh… bones… even their blood. That’s something to keep in mind, especially when fighting in an urban environment.” He widened the scale on the holoprojector and bringing a trio of Jaegers, Striker Eureka, Gipsy Danger and Horizon Brave, onto the field. Horizon was the closest to the Kaiju and despite being outweighed and outsized by the massive Kaiju several times over, launched its attack mercilessly. The old Chinese Jaeger advanced quickly, spraying the massive Kaiju down with its cryo cannons and freezing the Kaiju’s barbed tail in place in a concentrated burst of liquid nitrogen. With a massive downward sweep, the Jaeger’s massive fists shattered it into a thousand pieces.
“When we fight a Kaiju, we try to minimise the amount of blood that gets spilt.” Shane explained lowly, now watching Horizon pound the Kaiju’s face with its hammy fists. The Kaiju squirmed uncomfortably as its jawbone snapped under the rain of blows. “Minimize collateral damage.” He said as the Chinese Jaeger wrapped its burly hands around Rapture’s forearms and hurled the Kaiju out into the bay with a wide swing. Rapture regained its wits quickly though and within moments was harassing the venerable Jaeger again, using it to block Striker and Gipsy’s line of advance. Another cryo burst came from Horizon Brave and engulfed the charging Kaiju, slowing its frenzied movements down considerably and freezing patches of its leathery skin. It wasn’t enough though and the Chinese Jaeger’s leg buckled as the Kaiju’s claws tore through its knee in a massive shower of sparks and torn metal. The Kaiju pounced on the crippled Jaeger, tearing its chest open in the blink of an eye. A meaty claw wrapped around the right shoulder’s cryo cannon, shattering the delicate structure with a loud crack and forcing a massive cloud of liquid nitrogen into the air. The Kaiju’s movements slowed even more as the cannon emptied until finally, one of the other Jaegers pulled it off the now critically damaged Horizon Brave. Shane stared at the broken Jaeger sadly, watching the fire which licked greedily inside the Jaeger’s chest slowly die out as the cloud of supercooled nitrogen reached it.
“And don’t die.”
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The first post of this wonderful new chapter in this story. Nice man.
Still, I'm wondering what kind of Jaegers the ponies have. For the Apple family, because they use brute strength, their Jaeger is somewhat comparable to Cherno Alpha, while the three-pilot system of the Wonderbolts' Jaeger is comparable to that of Crimson Typhoon. In fact, I could imagine the Wonderbolts' Thundercloud Formation.
For the Twilight Family, using mind and skill, is comparable to that of Gipsy Danger, while the other one(in which we don't know yet) is comparable to that of Striker Eureka.
Oky, no lying.
Who laughed when they were talking about the hand controls with the horn and middle fingers?
Jäger training has now officially begun. All that is missing is a working Jäger.
Also, I see Griphon Jägers in the future. Its inevitable.
3568255 I sure did.
Um hello? Iron, not steel? Just a question of why would you use that instead?
I wonder what's going on with Cherno Alpha while all this is going on...
3568255 Also, yes. Yes I did, and the mental image of a Jaeger flipping the bird at a Kaiju is GLORIOUS!
3568384
First year engineer here!
Steel is an metal made of an iron-carbon blend. Now, the more carbon you add, the stronger the iron gets due to the way to molecular bonds are laid out and because carbon is pretty damn strong (Diamonds are carbon). Problem is, carbon is also a ceramic, which means while it is strong, it shatters easily. Steel of different blends (different mixes of carbon, iron and other elements) are used for a whole range of purposes.
Low carbon steel/solid iron is pretty easy to fix up, iron more so as it can literally be bashed back into shape with little loss of durability. What you lose in strength, you make up for in ease of maintenance. True, iron oxidises easily (i.e. rusts) but that's an easily avoidable problem by using things such as sacrificial anodes, paint and regular maintenance. Basic chemistry!
By comparison, once steel shatters, its lost some of its tensile strength (suffered plastic deformation I think) and will have to be replaced to be as effective.
(I'm also trying to justify why say, Gipsy Danger would use a solid iron hull rather than a steel one.)
Wow, Shane and Michael summed up everything they need to know in just one chapter… now why do I keep on seeing Michael as a Pokémon fan before the Kaiju?
3568255 Now I want to see a Jaegar flip a Kaiju the bird, AND THEN KICK ITS ASS!
You know what I would like to see in the Pony Jaeger? A triple-pilot system that requires a pegasus, a unicorn, and an earth pony. After all, we know what can happen when the three tribes are in Harmony, at least according to the Hearth Warming Pageant. ("Cutie Mark Crusader Jaeger Pilots, YAY!"
)
Has Twilight considered magical equivalents to some of the Jaeger systems? A Jaeger powered by the Elements of Harmony or the Crystal Heart would be pretty nasty.
Well, looks like we have some developments both in the political front(Something tells me that the griffons will go so far as try to sabotage the project) and military(first pony Jaeger coming!).
3568393
Probably teaming up with Crimson Typhoon to kick some kaiju ass.
3568563
Interesting, never though that good old iron could be so useful.
And looks like someone has read the novelization of the movie.
Well I guess it was just a CAT V...
In the making.
Obligatory.
I know exactly what Twilight's thinking: Have the Elements of Harmony be pilots! I wonder if the actual Elements could grow to Jaeger size and fit on them?
need i even say it?
Hopefully they'll realize that they don't exactly need pilots with previous military experience to work the Jaegar. I mean it's best to look there first but they should try other ponies as well. Like Cadence/Twilight and Twilight/Shining Armor, Applejack and Big Mac, or some of the Mane Six. Probably not Fluttershy or Rarity considering their personalities.
3569544
Like I said, have some of the mane 6 pilot some!
main issue with this chapter is that you used the wrong word to describe where the Jeager is being kept. You meant to use the word HANGAR, the word you used is the word meant for hanging your coat up
You should fix that "cyro" into "cryo", 'm just saiyan.
Above that, great chapter, and great story! Keep it up!
3570241
I'll be completely honest, I use to word so infrequently I didn't actually realise... derp.
fixed
3568768
Yeah, I've got a heap of pilots from non-military backgrounds.
3568393
At this point in time, Glorius Cherno Alpha is destroying Kaiju for the glory of Mother Russia. Soon all Kaiju will fear their Ukranian Hardhouse beat, giant metal hat and mighty Tesla piston fists.
3570365
Cheers, I've fixed that up.
3568563
What kind of engineer?
3570742
I was studying to be a civil engineer, my course has changed since then.
3568608 Could Equestria Even survive the CMC Piloting a Giant Robotic alicorn built for combat?
No better way of bonding than whacking each other on the head with a stick.
3571669
Yes, but it would somehow be covered in tree sap.
3571797 It fell right in the Maple syrup reserves sir.
Nice chapter again.
Extra credit for being sciencey in the comments 
Perfect amount of description in the fight scene, good job
Loved how you managed to so concisely describe why they do everything they do , from the metal to the sparing you've got it covered
Have the ponies considered putting any ranged weapons on their Jaeger? With 4 legged stability and a long torso you could fit some SERIOUS artillery onto one of those things
Also curious if you plan on having Michael question Celestia about the whole "She moves a truly massive heavenly body through the sky every day" thing
3568608 The CMC need better emotes, Sweetie Belle and Apple Bloom look like they have serious reservations about the idea.
Looking forward to more!
I dig giant robots...
3573026 We dig giant robots....
Just yes. Can't wait til the first kaiju that attacks the gryphons, that shit will be fun, and I surely hope that happens.
Now that I think of it... aren't we being very racist towards gryphons? We've seen only ONE act like an asshole and suddenly the common stereotype in most stories is that they're pretty much all assholes ._.
Is this like a super secret refrence or is it just a coincidence?
Im an artist who has a thing for drawing robots and I belive that transforming equine to become biped would involve turning its entire upper body around. Like crimson typhoon.
To keep balance that is. Running might be an issue.
3573930
CHICKS DIG GIANT ROBOTS!
3577463 NICE!
666 likes!
THIS MEANS SOMETHING!
Keep up the good work!
3582186
Something something Kaiju's number something something
The AppleDasher in me wants to vouch for Applejack and Rainbow Dash's compability. They're good friends and they're usually the two most willing to fight. But then again, if something happened to them, I'd just die.
Good work man, can't wait for the next chapter.
For those who are still unsure of the Jaeger's appearances.
Midsummer Night
static1.wikia.nocookie.net/__cb20130730075348/pacificrim/images/a/ac/Coyote_Tango_Concept_Art_01.png
Brawler Yukon
images2.wikia.nocookie.net/__cb20130730071518/pacificrim/images/3/3e/Brawler_Yukon_Concept.jpg
Romeo Blue
static4.wikia.nocookie.net/__cb20131201195333/pacificrim/images/4/4e/Romeo_Final_Concept.jpg
Horizon Brave
static3.wikia.nocookie.net/__cb20131120025644/pacificrim/images/6/65/Jaeger-02.jpg
Am I the only one who thinks that twins, especially identical, would be awesome at piloting a Jaeger?
3569176 I feel bad for the Kaiju if they did.
3602413 I do
3568255 I did as well
3599514
Thank you good sir :D
I been having problem trying imagine these Jaegers :D
3602413 The only Pony twins i can think of are Flim and Flam
Suddenly imagining a pony Jeager in a striped vest and straw hat singing and dancing
3621698
There's also the spa twins.
And you could always just use OC's.
3621781 I forgot about them
3627467
In before 'Xenomorph in Equestria'
3629237
Okay.
http://www.fimfiction.net/story/38478/the-creature-that-came-to-ponyville
3636186
Of course that crossover exists.
3637865 you thought otherwise?
Also, I say again... Mirror Pool ala "Too many pinkies."
drift with perfect copy of self, kick all butts.
3641675
Mighty red stallion covers mirror pool with glorious rock of the people to keep out intruders! Not even crazy-pink one can breach impenetrable stone!
Now please look into the light.
emotibot.net/pix/4048.gif
(FYI: I would be much more imaginative with the mirror pool, push worst pony (Say Diamond Tiara) in a few thousand times and cover Kaiju in thousands of bitchy-rich ponies. I'm sure the Kaiju would break its own spine in frustration to save itself from the torture of listening to so many annoying bitchy-rich ponies before the weight of thousands of bitchy-rich brought it down.)
Was that a TF2 reference. Her stare was like trying to hurt the guard with a gun that healed. Medi-Gun?
Now that I look back, are they going to talk about the fact that Kaiju have random mutations and varying weaponry? Seeing a Kaiju with a really random mutation should spice things up a little…
Another thing… you shouldn't have a large amount of Kaiju pour in. It should be, say… a least one every five-six months at first. because, as I stated earlier, this world isn't as industrialized as Earth. The atmospheric conditions aren't close enough to Earth's for the aliens to take that much of an interest in it. And the bridge is still fairly new, which means only lighter Kaiju can fit through at first. CAT I's and II's initially, and we bring in the CAT III's when shit gets real.
3661861
Yeah, keep an eye on 'em because some of the stuff they throw out is pretty much... well... I'll let you see for yourself.
Don't worry, I (hope I) know what I'm doing. But I will just bring up a point.
We've seen one nation, one nation of magic users. I'm not going to suggest its as carbon spewing as Earth is but i may be more than you think. (That or you know, an alien planet has a different atmospheric composition to our own planet, not that much of a stretch really.)