They were all in shock, eyes wide as you stood before them, Kaiju on either side.
Taylor: Y/N, we thought you were gone. How did you escape the Sisters?
All of a sudden, a screen was displayed in the conn pod. It was from the Predator and depicted you, your veins pulsing with bioluminescent Kaiju blood, and your eyes a bright red. You had no co-pilot, it was only you.
Y/N: Escape? I never escaped. In fact, the Sisters took me in. I am one of them now.
Mei is immediately shocked with fear.
Hayley: Y/N, whatever they told you, they're lying.
Y/N: Ha! Of course you would say that. You haven't seen what I've seen. The Sisters enlightened me. I know the fate of this world. Its destiny.
Taylor: Y/N, this isn't you.
Y/N: Quiet! I've heard enough. If you will not join the Sisterhood, I will give you a choice. Hand over the Messiah, or die.
Mei was speechless, devastated. She had never seen the Sisters do something like this before, and it was horrible.
Hayley: Never.
Boy lets out a loud roar.
Y/N: ...Then you will die.
You slowly lift up your axe, pointing the very tip of it toward Atlas. The Kaiju that had been at your side let out a loud roar and charge toward the Jaeger. The first tries to jump on top of it, but Boy tackles it out of the air before it could make contact. The second however, manages to get through and starts throwing punches at the Jaeger, all while you sit and watch.
Hayley: What's wrong with them.
Taylor: They've been brain washed.
Hayley: We have to help them.
The Kaiju that they had been brawling with manages to find an opening, headbutting them in the abdomen. They stumble backwards and before they can recover, the Kaiju leaps at them again and continues to slash. Meanwhile, Boy was jumping away from the other Kaiju while it continued to try and land a hit. Boy jumps on the Kaiju's back and starts clawing at its back side. It screeches in pain, but is able to throw him off. Boy swiftly recovers and runs back toward the beast. He drives it toward one of the mountain sides where a large stalagmite stands out of the ground. When the Kaiju tries to swipe at Boy, he jumps over and grabs it by the head, pulling it backward and piercing its chest with the stalagmite. Back with Atlas, the Kaiju was evading each of their swings all while it was damaging their mech. They finally connect, sending the Kaiju flying backwards.
Hayley: LOA, Saber Chain.
They launch the chain toward the Kaiju and it hits it in the shoulder. It lets out a roar as Atlas pulls it closer, using the momentum to deliver and devasting punch. It stops for a bit, dazed by the hit while Taylor and Hayley stare it down. It screeches and takes a step to attack, when Boy jumps onto it, pulling it to the ground and starts punching it in the face. After a few, the Kaiju stops moving. Before they can celebrate, a volley of rockets hits Boy in the side.
Hayley: Boy!
The origins of the rockets were from the Predator, who was now menacingly stomping toward Atlas.
Y/N: You asked for this!
You spin your Photon Axe around and hit the side of Atlas who tries to block, but is overwhelmed by the power behind the strike. They stagger to the side as you swing at them, barely missing. They throw a punch and it hits you right in the face, but you stand unmoving, the Kaiju blood making you one of the most enduring Jaeger pilots to ever live. You turn back toward them and deal a blow of your own to the head. This one sends them falling backwards and Atlas hits the ground.
LOA: Sustaining critical damage.
Taylor and Hayley, who were already exhausted from running for so long, were unable to get up after such a hit. You stand over them with your colossal axe in hand.
Y/N: And now, you meet your end.
You raise your axe and prepare to bring it down on the conn pod. Taylor and Hayley close their eyes and brace for the impact.
Mei: Stop!
You freeze and turn to see Mei, who had been silent the entire battle, standing on the scout tank.
Y/N: Mei?
All of sudden, you are hit in the side by Boy who had recovered from the Apex Missiles you had launched. You stumble backwards from the powerful blow and stand stunned.
Taylor: Now's our chance!
Hayley: Boy, run!
Boy and Atlas start running toward the mountain pass.
Taylor: Mei, we have to go now!
Mei was looking over at you still recovering from the hit and standing tall once again. Mei jumps inside the scout tank once again and drives after Atlas. You turn toward them, growl and start chasing after them. As the group is running, Boy looks to the side, concerned.
Hayley: LOA, what's Boy looking at.
A screen appears in the conn pod showing a massive cloud of dust.
Taylor: That dust cloud was probably kicked up by the category VI.
LOA: Continue to run cycle through the mountain pass. Sydney base likely patrols territory beyond.
They continue running as fast as they can through the mountains, your Jaeger hot on their tail. Suddenly, a bunch of new signals appear on Mei's scanners.
Mei: I'm scanning five Jaegers on approach. Probably from Sydney base.
Taylor: Yes!
LOA: Sydney base is now in view.
An image of the massive base appears on the screen.
LOA: You no longer have to imagine what it looks like Taylor.
Taylor: Thank you LOA.
They continue running toward the base.
Taylor: Hayley, do you want to do the honors.
Hayley: Sydney base, this is Atlas Destroyer, the Kaiju you see with us is not hostile.
No response.
Hayley: Sydney base, do you copy?
Nothing.
Taylor: Maybe their coms are slow.
All of a sudden, they see a volley of missiles fly across the sky.
Mei: Missiles incoming!
The rockets explode just behind Mei's scout tank and it gets propelled and flipped forward. The rest detonate at the feet of Atlas causing them to stop and duck to avoid the others. One missile heads straight for the Jaeger, but is stopped in the air by Boy. Before he can turn it away, the missile explodes, causing Boy to fall unconscious.
Hayley: Boy!
Suddenly, Atlas is hit from behind and sent flying forward. They look behind to see you standing at the edge of the mountain pass.
Y/N: I'm not finished with you yet!
You run over and hit them again across the chest with your axe and in one fluid motion, you bring it down on their shoulder. They yell in pain before they pull it off their shoulder and shove you away. You stumble backwards, slamming your axe in the ground to stop yourself.
Y/N: Why don't you just give up!
Taylor: Sorry Y/N, that's not our style.
Atlas goes for a punch and connects with the Predator's conn pod. You ready your Vice Claw and go for the Jaeger's neck, but catch their arm instead as they raise it to block your attack. They grab the edge of your axe and start to pry open your grip. You quickly release the claw and kick them back, sending them flying backward. They fall on their back and before they can get up, you jump forward, bringing your axe down on them. Hayley and Taylor quickly raise their arms and catch it before it can deal any major damage. You try and push downward using all of your weight, but they are resilient. They manage to lift the Jaeger's legs and kick you back. They get up and you both stare each other down, panting heavily.
Y/N: You know you can't defeat me.
Taylor: Maybe, but that won't stop us from trying.
You sneer and raise your axe, prepared to attack again, when a screen appears in your conn pod.
Mei: Y/N, you have to stop this.
You can only stare.
Mei: This isn't you. Whatever the Sisters did to you, you can fight it, I know you can. You have to remember.
You get a ringing in your ear and you grimace.
Mei: I know you can do it. Because... I love you.
Your eyes go wide as all the memories come flooding back, of when you met Taylor and Hayley. And Mei. You are suddenly bombarded with whispers of the Sisters, trying to cloud your mind again. You hold your head and fall to your knees, trying to fight against them. This goes on for some time, until it stops and you remember everything.
Y/N: Mei...
All of a sudden, you are hit in the side of the head by a powerful fist. The glass before you shatters and you are launched to the side and hit the ground hard. Before you lose consciousness, you hear Mei shout.
Mei: Y/N!
And you black out.
Moments later...
Mei: Y/N! Y/N wake up!
You open your eyes to see Mei leaning over you trying to wake you up. Your head hurts as does the rest of your body from the strain of piloting your Jaeger alone.
Y/N: Mei?
Mei: Oh thank god your alive!
She suddenly wraps her arms around you into a tight hug.
Y/N: What happened?
Mei: The Sisters messed with your head and turned you against us. But you're back.
Y/N: The last thing I remember was getting hit in the head after you said...
You pause.
Y/N: After you said you loved me.
There was silence for bit.
Mei: Yeah, I guess I did say that.
And what happened next was miraculous. You didn't really think about, it just happened. After hearing what she said, you leaned forward and kissed her, right on the lips.
Y/N: I love you too.
You both smile. The moment is suddenly broken when you hear a loud crash. You both look over to see Atlas getting beaten down by a massive Kaiju, way taller than the already colossal Jaeger. You recognize the Kaiju, the size, the shape, the face. Your Kaiju blood boils as you remember. This was the Kaiju that killed your parents. You look around for your Jaeger only to see it trashed on the ground nearby.
Y/N: Shit!
Mei: Y/N look!
You follow Mei's gaze to a pile of rubble and see Boy, in his human form, lying unconscious atop the debris.
Y/N: Let's go.
You stand up awkwardly and limp toward the pile while Mei supports you with her arm around your shoulder. As you approach the pile, you hear a voice.
High Priestess: You're braver than I thought Mei.
You watch as the High Priestess climbs to the top of the hill atop a Ripper. Mei takes out her pistol.
Y/N: You.
You see the High Priestess dismount her Ripper as she begins to speak.
High Priestess: I am disappointed that you chose the wrong side Y/N, even after all we have shown you.
You shrug Mei's arm off your shoulder and take out a pistol of your own.
Y/N: You didn't really give me any choice. You brainwashed me.
High Priestess: We enlightened you. And you Mei, even after all your escapes from the Sister's embrace, you still insist on crossing my path.
Mei: Only because you keep taking things that don't belong to you. And that ends now.
High Priestess: Curious, you left your fellow riders during one of our Bogan raids. You left them to die. Well the men anyway. The women are still with us.
Mei: I... I'm not that person anymore.
High Priestess: Yes you are. Leave the child with me. This is not your fight.
Y/N: Enough with the mind games witch.
The High Priestess looks slightly taken aback by your remark.
Y/N: I've seen what you do to people and I've been one of those people. You think you're all righteous and great fighting for the Kaiju, but you're not. You left humankind because you didn't want to lose. Well, look where we are now. We're still alive and we're still fighting. That's why we're different and that's why we're going win.
You see the High Priestess grimace.
High Priestess: Kill them.
The Ripper suddenly leaps toward you but you were prepared. Your Kaiju blood runs as you punch it the snout sending it flying back toward the rubble. Both you and Mei run forward unloading your pistols onto it head. You both look up preparing to fight the High Priestess, but she is nowhere to be seen. Neither is Boy.
Y/N: Damn it!
Mei: Come on, she can't be far.
You both run over the hill of rubble and follow the faint, dusty footsteps. After running for a while you see Boy in the distance.
Y/N: Boy!
As you get closer, you notice his hand is covered in a bioluminescent blue and see the corpse of the High Priestess lying nearby.
Mei: Good riddance.
You suddenly hear the firing of something in the distance. You notice two pods launching from the conn pod of Atlas.
Y/N: Oh no...
Mei: LOA is going to detonate.
You watch as the pods land a safe distance away from the Jaeger as you hear a faint countdown.
Y/N: You wouldn't happen to still have that tank would you?
Mei: Let's go!
All three of you sprint toward the tank and get inside. Mei hits the gas and you race away from the Jaeger, still being clobbered by the category VI Kaiju.
LOA: Six... five... four...
Y/N: See you in hell Breacher.
LOA: One...
The Jaeger explodes into a cloud of fire and dust. The blast propels the tank forward, launching it and causing it to flip. You close your eyes as the tank is thrown around. It's all very loud for a few moments and then suddenly, everything stops. The tank stops moving, the noise goes silent and everything is still. You open your eyes to see that the dust has cleared and where there used to be a Jaeger and Kaiju, there is now nothing but a crater.
Y/N: We did it.
Mei: Yes, we did.
Mei drives over to the crater where you see Taylor and Hayley looking down at the crater and at what little is left of Atlas. You all step out of the tank and once Hayley sees Boy she begins running toward him.
Hayley: Boy!
They both hug each other and you smile. Taylor looks over at you.
Taylor: So, you're not still trying to kill us right?
Y/N: No, not anymore thanks to someone.
You take Mei's hand and she holds it tight as you both look at each other and smile. You suddenly hear the sounds of propellers above you as a fleet of carriers fly toward you.
Y/N: It's finally over.
Taylor: Yeah, I guess it is.
Moments later...
The aircrafts finally land at Sydney base and you disembark to a line of soldiers in uniform led by a more decorated officer.
Taylor: Marshal, my name is Taylor Travis. This is my sister Hayley, Boy, Mei and Y/N.
Marshal Rask: The number of brave souls making through The Black grows fewer every year. Though I believe none have fought harder to get here than you. We have many questions for you all, but until then, welcome home.
Both Taylor and Marshal Rask exchange hand shakes.
Taylor: Thank you sir, but we wouldn't have made it without the sacrifices of much braver souls than us. Including our mother.
Marshal Rask: I'm sorry to hear. But just know that you're safe here.
Hayley: Marshal, about our father, is he here?
At that moment you see a truck quickly drive up next to the line of soldiers and come to an abrupt stop. The door swings open as a man who looks very similar to Taylor steps out.
Taylor: Dad?
Hayley: Dad!
Both Hayley and Taylor run up and hug their father as tears begin to run down their faces.
Ford: I am so sorry. I tried to come back for you but the PPDC wouldn't let anyone out there. It's been so...
You see him struggle to finish his sentence as tears fill his eyes.
Taylor: It's okay dad.
Hayley: We're together now. With some new additions to our family.
They all look toward you, Mei and Boy and you smile at Mei, who smiles back and takes hold of your hand.
Ford: Let's go inside, I have so much to tell you.
Everyone begins to walk inside but you hesitate. Mei turns around.
Mei: Hey, what's wrong.
Y/N: It's just... I've lost so much of my life and the only goal I had was to help Taylor and Hayley reach Sydney, but now that that's done, what do I do now?
Mei takes both of your hands and pulls you in closer.
Mei: We start over, build a new life. What do say?
Y/N: Yeah, I can live with that.
You both kiss each other, a feeling of relief and pure, true love washing over you as you imagine what wonders the future will hold.
THE END
Author's Note: Hello readers! I just wanted to thank you all for your patience and incredible support throughout this story. I greatly apologies for the inconsistency and the long waits between chapters and I'm so glad you all decided to read until the end despite that. Once again thank you so much for your support and I hope you continue to stay tuned for future stories.