Previously...
Braedey looked around him, noticing the Jaeger's arm above him, shielding him from the falling debris. He then turned to the fallen girl, and he sprinted forth to her, checking to make sure she was alright. After now seeing her pulse was alright, even righting the gurney and putting the bluenette back on the gurney, he could sense something looking at him. He turned back to the Jaeger, and he could see that it was looking back at him, it's blue optics eyeing him like they had some kind of connection. It was almost symbiotic or something.
Braedey got to his feet, then he breathed a sigh. "Fine. I'll do it." He muttered, then he turned to the adults. "I'll be the pilot of Jaeger Prime!" He declared.
~*~*~
After his declaration, everyone soon got to work with prepping Jaeger Unit 0-1 Prime ready for action and deployment. It was going to be a perfect test drive for it and it's pilot. It was going to take a bit of time, but it'll definitely be worth it.
"Cooling cycle complete! Right arm reattachment complete." Technicians began to work around the clock to make sure everything was set. "All gear inside Conn-Pod is in docked position. Hydraulics and pneumatics online. Backup hydraulics on standby. Main electrics online. Operational systems online. Core coolant and rotors operating at 200%, within tolerable levels."
Right now, Braedey was standing inside what was designated as the 'Drivesuit Room', while technicians and mechanics began to attach the armour around the suit, so he'll be ready for deployment. Matilda was there to oversee the suit-up. The suit felt weird for him, since he had to strip to his boxer shorts, and it felt like a second skin to him.
The Drivesuit Room serves as the final preparation for pilots. The polycarbonate shell and circuitry suit are stored in separate cabinets before being removed to outfit the pilots. Pilots are helped into these suits by Drivesuit technicians.
The circuitry suit is a black bodysuit designed to interface with the nervous system of the pilot, based closely on the theory of acupuncture. The circuitry suit is designed or likened to a wetsuit and laced with a type of synaptic processor mesh. The pattern of processor relays are designed to resemble that of a circuitry board on the inside of the computer, sewn into black polymer material. The circuitry suit relays the impulses directly to the Jaeger, as fast as the pilot's brain can generate them; lag time is said to be "close to zero". The circuitry the suit even allows the pilot to feel everything the Mech does.
As Braedey tried to calm himself down and put on the helmet, the battle armour suits were built onto the circuitry suit, and bolted into position, Braedey feeling a little concerned. The second layer of the Drivesuit, the battle armour, is a "precision-engineered" polycarbonate shell that enables the pilot to survive the intense physical requirements of piloting a Jaeger. It contains life support and magnetic interfaces at the spine, feet, and all major limb joints. It relays incoming and outgoing neural signals. The battle armour also includes a "recorder" that automatically preserves sensory impressions. The armour Braedey has on is white with silver highlights, along with some bulk around it, and a few nicks and scratches across it. The helmets are similarity shared between the Drivesuits. When connected to the Jaeger, the helmets provide a layer of defence, and also deploy a visor whenever the Conn-Pod were to sufferer damage, and deliver oxygen to the Rangers and have communicators in the circular point that meets the jaw.
"Data on helmet." A female A.I spoke inside the suit, the amber colour visor of the helmet lowering to reveal Braedey's face, him looking nervous. "Data relay gel dispersing in circuitry suit."
"Okay. Time to get you into your mech." Matilda said to Braedey.
Braedey gave a timid nod, and the two began to leave the Drivesuit Room for Prime's hangar. They made their way onto a gantry, and it was being moved towards a rear hatch door at the back of the head of the mech, which had been designated as the 'Conn-Pod'.
"Pilot about to enter the Conn-Pod." Technicians then spoke out. "Preparing main controls and feedback cradle. Beginning telemetry tracking and stand by for pilot's vitals."
Inside the Conn-Pod, Braedey walked in with some technicians, as he now got hooked up into the harness. He stepped over to a platform for his feet, which locked him into place. Then, two technicians hook the brunette into what can be a rig to hold him in place in the middle of the mech's head.
At the feet of the pilot is the command platform, a platform with geared locks for the Pilot's boots, with the floor as a type of holographic projection to show the area outside the Jaeger around the pilot. The motion rig keeps the pilot locked into the Conn-Pod; below the rig is the hydraulic system which corresponds with the Jaeger's ability to walk or run. At the back of the Conn-Pod, the arm controllers contain wired extensions that are attached to each Drivesuit's gauntlet, and a Jaeger pilot's hand controls, called the "feedback cradle". The feedback cradle interfaces with the back of the Drivesuit around the Spinal Clamp.
"Alright. Hang in there, and don't try to freak out." Matilda said to Braedey.
"You're one to talk. You wouldn't say that if you were in this predicament." Braedey countered back nervously.
Matilda shrugged, then she and the technicians stepped out of the Conn-Pod. Once doing so, the hatch was sealed tight, and the gantry slowly moved away. "He's in." Matilda reported on her Bluetooth device to Dr. Ritsuko, who's up in the control room.
"Engage pilot-to-Jaeger protocol." Dr. Ritsuko's voice ordered.
"Engaging now." One technician reported in.
Inside of the Conn-Pod, all that Braedey could see ahead of him was just a blank screen in front of him, almost like a pane of glass from an interrogation room, while there were cables and piping on either side of the Conn-Pod. He looked to the rigging that he was in, as well as his armour, and he was feeling rather uncertain about all of this.
"Pilot to-Jaeger connection protocol sequence." The A.I spoke out in a female voice.
"Initiating level one connection." Technicians continued with their activation protocol, as well as getting the Jaeger ready for action. "Flooding Conn-Pod."
That got Braedey's attention. What did they mean by flooding? He then got his answer when he could see some kind of amber-yellow fluid with the viscosity of water starting to fill the Conn-Pod, much to his shock and fear.
"Wait. What is this stuff?" Braedey asked, realising his helmet's visor wasn't down. He took a deep breath, as he was now submerged into the liquid, the brunette holding his breath, fear in his eyes.
"Braedey, Don't worry. Once your lungs are filled with the LCL, it will feed oxygen directly into your bloodstream. You'll get used to it in no time." Dr. Ritsuko's voice spoke over the Comms.
Braedey wasn't sure whether or not to believe this, but he slowly released his holding breath, the LCL flour now flooding his lungs and body, much to him groaning in disgust. "This is so gross. Horrid." He muttered.
"Deal with it! You're a big boy now." Matilda's voice spoke up, Braedey cringing from the voice.
Just then, the LCL fluid became electrolysed, allowing Braedey to finally see again, but it felt strange. He took note that he wasn't inside of a liquid, and his armour wasn't wet. He wasn't drowning. Suddenly, bright lights appeared on the walls, creating some kind of interface all around him. After that, the lights all faded, and the wall in front of him lit up like some kind of computer screen, revealing the whole hangar outside.
"Whoa..." Braedey muttered in surprise.
~*~*~
Meanwhile, both Dr. Ritsuko and Matilda were up in the main command centre of the base, everyone doing their part for getting the Jaeger online and ready, and also tracking where the Demon might be.
The Command Centre. From here, any and all operations related to the Jaeger units are coordinated. The command centre is a gigantic room dominated by a large stepped tower similar in appearance to the Sumerian ziggurats. One of its levels contains three original MAGI super computers developed by Naoko Akagi. In front of the stepped tower an enormous holographic system imposed that projects a topographic map. In addition, the main wall of the room has a large screen, used to show different types of information, such as the surface situation and the analysis of the pattern of the Demoms. The command centre obtains information from the outside thanks to SHIELD's geosynchronous satellites and the many surveillance observatories distributed throughout the region.
"Main power connection complete! Feeding power to all circuits!" The technicians began going through all the checks and the main Jaeger systems. "Initiating level two contact. A-10 nerve connection, status green. Cognitive configuration base rules set to English. Initial contact shows all green. Opening bilateral circuit. Synchronisation rate at 41.3%."
Dr. Ritsuko took a look at the scans. "Amazing..." She then puts the brain scans onto an iPad she has in hand. "My, what a gorgeous brain. Nice brainwave activity." She commented in curiosity.
"Harmonics are all at normal levels. No signs of a runaway." A female technician reported in. "We're good to go!"
"Prepare for launch!" Matilda announced.
"Release lockdown bolt no. 01!" Another technician called, as the bolts detached from the left shoulder, the arm relaxing.
"Release confirmed! Initiating umbilical bridge retraction!" The technicians continued on, as the walkway gantry began to reel back from the tall mech.
"Release lockdown bolt no. 02!" Another technician called, as the bolts detached from the right shoulder, the arm relaxing.
"Retracting primary restraining frame." As this happened, the walls on either side of the mech began to open up and slowly move away. "Removing secondary restraining frame."
"Disengaging safety systems one through 15." The female technician reported in. "Internal power source, fully charged. "Fusion core turbine shows green."
"Roger. Transport Jaeger 0-1 Prime to launch bay." Matilda ordered at once.
Immediately, the crawler platform that Jaeger Prime stood on started to move slowly backwards, carrying the red/blue Titan along a set of tracks upwards, slowly approaching what could be a launch platform of sorts, the launch platform locking onto the tracks leading up. A second later, a series of doors opened up above, which lead straight up towards the surface.
"Launch path clear! All stations green! Launch preparations complete!" The technicians reported in. "Operation: Hidden Manhattan is also in full effect." This operation was set to make sure that none of the iconic landmarks of the Big Apple were either damaged or destroyed during these Demon incursions.
"Roger that!" Matilda looked behind to see James in his chair. "Do we have a go, sir?" She asked.
"Absolutely. Unless we defeat the Angels, humanity has no future." James muttered to himself.
"James, you're really sure about this?" Morato asked to his partner.
"Launch the Jaeger!" Matilda ordered.
~*~*~
At once, Jaeger Prime was launched straight up through the launch tunnel on what could be magnetic rails, heading up to the surface. Braedey felt like he weighed ten times more than he did, his body shuddering underneath his armour, while the feedback cradle and harness held him in place. As he reached the surface, a section of the road in part of the city opened up, as the Jaeger rose up to the surface, standing tall and mighty. As that happened, Braedey noticed the Empire State Building, Chrysler Building, One World Trade Center, Flatiron, Central Park Tower, Rockefeller Plaza, and St. Patrick's Cathedral, as well as Grand Central Station have all but vanished from the surface. Then, he noticed on the front screen many readings and scans, along with what could be a timer of sorts, which looked to be locked, as well as a lot of other readings such as core levels, hydraulics and electrics, as well as weapons and any detected damage.
"Okay, Braedey. The Jaeger has a fusion-core turbine reactor inside to give it power." Dr. Ritsuko said to Braedey. "That means you'll be able to fight for a long time. However, if the core is damaged, you'll have up to about 2 hours before the core goes into overheat, and be forced into shutdown."
"I... I hear you." Braedey replied timidly.
"Launch the final safety and preparation." Matilda ordered. "Remove the final safety lock! Jaeger Unit 0-1 Prime, lift off!"
At once, the final safety locks and cables detached from the back of the Jaeger, the optics glowing blue, as the mech simply stood, with no sign of movement. Inside of the Conn-Pod, a holographic version of the city appeared around Braedey, the brunette taking note of what was around him now.
"Braedey, think only of walking now." Dr. Ritsuko said to the brunette on Comms. "Start off slowly."
"Right. Start off... Slowly..." Braedey moved his left leg forward. At the same time, the Jaeger began to move forward, its metal foot slamming to the ground, making cracks race across the asphalt. "Whoa..." He muttered, then he takes another step, the Jaeger staying upright. "Okay. Slowly but surely..." He slowly took another step, and he then started to slowly take faster steps, the Jaeger going along at speed. "I think I got it."
"Good work, Braedey." Matilda said on Comms to Braedey. "Now, keep an eye out. The Demon should be at your 9 o' clock from your position. Be careful."
Braedey brought them Jaeger to a stop, now turning to look down the street to his left. His eyes widened once he saw the Demon standing there, wings and claws out and ready to strike. However, instead of barely being as tall as the beast's ankle, he's now eye-level with the creature, but it doesn't change the fact that he was still feeling terrified.
"Braedey, come on! Hurry and get into the fight." Matilda called out on the Comms, but Braedey didn't respond. It was like he was frozen in a state of fear, unable to move forward or even try to manipulate the arms or legs of the Jaeger.
The Demon lets out a sudden snarling roar, and it began to charge forward, Braedey still frozen in place with horror in his eyes, his hands trembling. But then, the Demon slammed into the Jaeger, the two towering beings slamming into one or two buildings, Braedey now grabbing at the Demon's chest, trying to keep it away from him, while the beast gripped at the Jaeger's shoulders, the pain being transmitted to Braedey's Drivesuit, making him clench his teeth in agony.
"Braedey, calm down. It's not your real shoulders." Matilda spoke on Comms, but the message didn't get through. Braedey was frozen in fear, his body rigid. He could not move. "Braedey? Braedey, respond!"
~*~*~
In the Command Centre, everyone was working as fast as they can to try and assist Jaeger Prime against the Demon. They noticed that Braedey wasn't responding, and they were trying to find out anything they can.
"How's the Jaeger's Defence systems?" Matilda asked.
"The signal isn't working." The technician replied.
"It's not working?!" Dr. Ritsuko asked in worry.
"Left shoulder armour damaged!" A female technician called in. "The Demon has got him pinned."
"Braedey, get out of there!" Matilda cried out, but she couldn't seemed to get through to him. "Braedey!" She yelled out, but yet again, she got no response.
Then, everyone looked to the main screens to see that the Jaeger Prime was still pinned down by the Demon, not moving at all, and the beast kept the Jaeger in place. It was getting really bad.
"The armour plating around the body might not stand anymore." The female technician spoke up, then looked to the main connections within the machine. "The nerves for control are snapping one after another."
"What about Braedey?" Dr. Ritsuko asked to the technician.
"No response from the monitoring system. We can't tell if he's alive! No response from the pilot!" The woman reported in, looking to the screen showing the wavering vitals present, much "Having trouble keeping it activated! Synchrograph has reversed. Pulses are flowing backward!" She added in.
"Cut the circuits! Stop them!" Dr. Ritsuko ordered.
"We can't. The signal is refused. It can't be received." The technicians reported in with worry. "Jaeger Prime is totally silent."
"Abort the operation now! Pilot's protection is top priority! Eject the Evac-Pod by force!" Matilda ordered in.
"We can't! We've lost all signal contact with the Jaeger." The female technician called in. "We can't get through to Braedey! Who knows what's going on!"
Matilda looked to the screen with concern and worry on her face, while Dr. Ritsuko looked to the screens to see if there's anything she can do. James, meanwhile, he asked to sigh at such a disappointing failure, and on top of that, the failure of the Jaeger.
But then, Jaeger Prime lifted its right leg, putting it up against the Demon's abdomen, and it suddenly pushed with so much force, the beast was thrown off the red/blue Titan, the Demon flying through the air, and crashed to the ground with a thud. Jaeger Prime then slowly began to rise to its feet, as two pieces of metal formed over the face, forming a kind of battle mask, as the mech then got into a boxer's fighting stance.
"What? I thought..." Dr. Ritsuko was bewildered by what she was seeing. "The connections were all taken out. The Jaeger shouldn't even be-"
"Doctor! Pulse rate and brainwave activity are spiking like mad!" One technician reported in, pointing to the screen next to her. "Braedey seems to be back in control."
"What is going on inside that Jaeger?" Matilda asked in confusion.
~*~*~
Braedey was taking some deep breaths, his eyes closed, while he stood in his boxing stance. His chest rose and fell with each breath, as he was collecting his thoughts. He then opened his eyes, but they seemed to be glazed over like he's become someone else, his focus now locked onto the Demon, as it rose up onto its feet, now thrashing its head back and forth, its tail flailing about from behind it in anger.
Braedey growled darkly to himself. "Fear is weakness. Fear is weakness. Show no weakness..." He said to himself, then clenched his fists. "Show your FURY!" With that, he charged forward, Jaeger Prime stomping forward at speed.
The Demon snarled, and it began to charge forward as well. As both demonic beast and Jaeger Prime closed their distance, the Jaeger suddenly jumped up into the air, two rockets firing from its feet, then brought down his left fist, slamming it down on the Demon's head with enough force to crack through 50ft of concrete, disorientating it, and making it fall into the ground.
Jaeger Prime, now up on his two feet, grabbed the Demon by one of its horns, next brought his right fist down on its head, making it groan, then he delivered an uppercut to its jaw.
"Elbow Rocket!" Braedey called out, him bringing back Prime's right arm.
A rocket booster deployed from the elbow, with a blue jet exhaust. A moment later, the arm launched forward, striking the Demon in the face, disorientating the beast. The force from that punch would've been like that of getting hit with a Boeing 747 going at up to 60mph.
Next up, Jaeger Prime picked up what were two abandoned fuel tanker trucks in his hands, then swung his right hand around, smacking the Demon in the face when it tried to get him in the back, making fuel spill onto the face of the Demon, then the Jaeger brought both hands together, smacking the Demon either side of its head, creating an explosion from both tankers, making the beast groan, only for Jaeger Prime to shove his fist right into the Demon's head, making it stumble back and fall to its hands and knees.
Jaeger Prime suddenly tackled the Demon from behind, grabbing onto one of its horns. In defence, the Demon wrapped its tail around Prime's left arm, constricting it, and trying to reach over and crush the Conn-Pod with its spiked tip on the end of its tail.
"Vent the coolant on the left flank!" Braedey yelled out next.
At a section of Prime's underarm, three vents open up, and a white cloud-like substance shoots out, covering the Demon's tail structure, as the sharp tip continued to try and stab at the Conn-Pod. For a few seconds, the tail started to slow down, then froze up like an ice block, only for it to shatter when Prime flexed his arm, breaking the Kaiju tail off his arm.
Then, Prime grabbed the Demon by its underarms, lifting it above his head, then he threw the Demon into the ground, causing some damage to the area. The Demon slammed its fists into the ground, snarling and roaring out loudly, then it charged at Prime, pushing the Jaeger toward the bay, but the mech stayed upright, trying to push back at the Demon, all the while with the steel feet digging through the ground.
'I need a weapon to take this thing out, and fast.' Braedey thought quickly, looking left and right, trying to think of a way to take this thing out. Then, he had a thought. "Plasma cannon! Now!" He yelled out.
At that second, Prime's right arm now began to change shape and form, becoming some kind of long-range weapon. The end result was a long-range long barrel particle dispersal cannon, one with a smaller barrel underneath it.
At once, Jaeger Prime opened fire, shooting multiple rounds at the Demon, causing massive and deadly wounds to the targeted Demon's left arm. The beam also cauterised the wounds it inflicted. The Demon now screeched in pain, stumbling back as Jaeger Prime fired multiple rounds at the beast, blasting off its left arm and claws, which crashed to the ground, only to vanish in a black mist down below.
Braedey then has the main HUD do a scan of the Demon before him, trying to find a weak spot on the beast. The anatomy of the Demon is rather unique in some ways, despite the fact they look human in shape and form: for instance, the organs are mismatched and maybe more or less of one particular organ, the eyes actually being much sharper and clearer than a human eye, with the brain cavity actually containing the heart of the beast, the Demon actually having two hearts, while the brain of the creature was hidden within the supposedly indestructible ribcage. So, the art of taking out the Demon was a direct shot from above to below, but you only take out one heart, it'll leave the beast still alive to attack.
After a few nanoseconds, Braedey saw a battle tactic that'll supposedly work. Thinking fast, Braedey began to charge up the cannon to its highest setting, as he began to sprint forward at speed. The Demon saw this, and raised its wings and right arm, ready to strike the mech down. However, Jaeger Prime leapt up into the air, jumping onto a nearby hotel building, then jumped high into the air, until he was 300ft up. Just as the mech had his target set, Braedey aimed the now fully-charged cannon right above the head of the Demon, and pulled the trigger, firing a concussive blast right through the head of the Demon, taking out both the hearts, and the blast going through the brain, while also incinerating the organs and bones, the Demon letting out a final screech, just as it now turned into a black mist, while Jaeger Prime landed on the ground in a heroic pose, retracting the plasma Cannon.
Braedey showed a smile to himself, feeling like he's done something amazing, and he felt like he could now take on the whole world. But then, his eyes rolled into the back of his head, and his body now fell limp in the feedback cradle, letting out a small groan, bubbles forming in the LCL, while all the systems shut down and the power goes out.
"Braedey?" Matilda's voice spoke up on the Comms, but she can't get any reply. "Braedey, do you read? Braedey, please respond. Do you copy?"
~*~*~
A/N: there we go. The first fight of Jaeger Prime and a Demon. Could you tell the references that were there during the fight? If you can, then you've got a good eye. Anyway, if you did enjoy the fight, then that is good to hear.
There'll be more to come later on in the story, as well as the introduction of new characters and Jaegers, as well as more fights to come along later on.