[IC] The Jaeger Program (Always Open)

[Shadowcatcher]

Throughout Emmett's simulation, Mako had watched with impressed eyes. She could tell he hac that kind of control, fluidity, and agility that a real Ranger had needed. With another five out of five score with a candidate, everyone in the room clapped happily as he finished.

"Well done Mr. Hauser. When your ready, you've earned a trip to the Jaeger Iris assigned to you."

---

Iris pushed Josh's hand away, wanting to stay lying down for a moment longer. She looked at him as he knelt next to her. "I accept your candidacy as a Ranger. Your fighting style is good. You dont give up even in difficult situations...and a deal's a deal." she sat up on her own to see another candidate had come in.

"Lunch is going to have to wait. How about you take me to dinner tonight? I know the best place to get some good dumplings in Hong Kong." she said standing and not waiting for him to respond. "Oh and, your paying." she finished with a smile. "You can either wait until i'm done with this one to do sim, or you can go to Mako and she'll help." Iris turned to speak to the other man in the room. "Hello there. I'm Iris Dvorak. Kindly remove your shoes and jacket then step over here." she pointed to the spot in front of her. Though she was demanding, she said it with a bit more respect than she normally would. She was in a good mood still, rare for her, and upon first glance he seemed to be older as usual.

[Cassowarysaur]

Willem nodded silently and took off his waiscoast quickly, eager to get started. He threw it in the corner of the room, ready to get to work. He was already sweating, though, and was unaware of how this fight was going to turn out. The man bent down and removed each shoe, laying them next to his jacket. While walking over to the opposite position as Iris, he spoke.
"I'm Willem Aliquam. Nice to meet you."
He adopted the battle stance. "What are the rules?"

[Garrison]

Josh smiled at Iris. "No rest for the wicked I see." he said as he left the mat and started to put his shoes back on. He was occasionally looking the new guy up and down, unsure how to read him. His outward appearance suggested that Iris would mop the floor with him, but then again, perhaps he could handle himself. Most think Josh isn't that skilled as a fighter when they first see him but he never liked the idea of being a big brute of a man. More of a tone and fit guy. Josh listened to him ask about the rules and then thought about his advantage. Iris wasn't completely gassed but then again, she wasn't at 100% either. Not to mention, if he payed attention to her fighting style, he'd have an idea of how she fights. "Good luck mate." he chimed in before leaving, tossing a hand up for a short wave over his shoulder. He wanted to go back to his room and cool off for a moment, maybe clean up a little too. Then he'd probably head to the Sim room. "Wonder which Jaeger I'll get. Wonder if I'll have a partner." he thought to himself as he walked.

[Shadowcatcher]

Iris nodded to Willem. "Before we start, i have a few questions to ask you. First one is why do you want to be a Ranger? Other than the extremely legitimate reason for wanting to kick some Kaiju ass, what inspired you to come here to Hong Kong and try to be one of us? Second question is..." she walked up to him and tapped his chest lightly with the back of her hand, signaling him to stand up straight and relax. "...do you think you have what it takes to be a Ranger? The fighting is only a part of it, but what about your mind? Would you be able to handle losing a friend if you were paired with someone, or be willing to sacrafice a few to save a million?" she paused for a moment then and let him think.

"Last question is, what do you eat in a given day? Some candidates come in here and tell me they eat very little. I'f your one of them, you might want to start eating a hell of alot more. It keeps you strong and ready." she smiled at him then. It was odd for her to be so nice around a candidate but, hell she didnt feel like being in badass mode. There would always be time for it. "While you tell me your answers, dont mind my staring at you. I'm simply looking to see your bosy type....so that i may choose the best Jaeger for you." she said, lifting his arm and spreading out his hand.

[Cassowarysaur]

Willem took a few seconds to absorb the questions, getting ready to deliver an answer. He stood up straight and firm, his expression moulding to neutral.
"Ma'am, I want to become a ranger for two reasons. I want to make sure that humanity gets to live long enough to see past their idiocy, and it would make one hell of a book."
He took a deep breath, contemplating how Iris might react to what he just said. "Do I think I have what it takes to be a ranger? Well, if I did, then I'm sure I wouldn't be asking for this assessment. I'd be so arrogant in my own capabilities that I'd instead probably end up doing more harm than good. What I do have, my fair lady, is creativity. As in, I've always been good at thinking of new ways to defeat an enemy. If I were to lose a friend, sure, I'd be sad, but there'd be nothing I could do about it. Being able to sacrifice a life to save so many others is something I've never been good at, and I'm sure you would know."

Willem took a long deep breath.

"I eat like a pig; lots and lots of meat."

[Shadowcatcher]

Iris listened to his response to her questions. She was actually content with them and thought about her response and she kicked the broken stick out of the way.

"You know i'll be honest. That was probably the best answer anyone's given me the past few days. Let's waste no time in getting this started."

She walked over to her magical box of training wepons and peered inside. She paused and thought about using something different. She moved to a closet that was on the left sode of the room and went in, returning with two giant sticks that resembled Q-tips. "It's been a while since i used these babies." she said, easily tossing him one. "She spun it in her hands a few times to get a feel fot it. Then she looked at Willem.

"You told me you were creative. I happen to like that in a person. So, i'll tell you what, lets get creative and use these. Their slightly heavier than the ones you just saw me use, and their purpose is to throw you off balance. That being said, four strikes or knocking me off my feet marks a win for you and then you can head of to simulation. We waste no time here and if all goes well for you, you'll be assigned your Jaeger by the end of the day. Sound good to you?" she didnt wait for him to respond really, before she took her battle stance.

"Ladies first." she said gesturing for him to move. She had said it playfully, showing Willem that she was just kidding around.

---

Mako got a message through her earpiece that another candidate had arrived at the Shatterdome. She was interested in seeing who it was but was tasked with showing Emmet to his Jaeger. she quietly spoke asking if Raleigh could get him and show him around for her and he accepted it.

"Leo Renton is his name. He will likely be waiting at the entrance. Take the elevator up and you might find him there."

"Alright. I sent Iris another just now. Shouldn't be too long before she's done."

"Okay. Thank you." she answered him and turned off her ear piece.

[philp123]

LI walked from the heli, it had been a long flight form the UK and I was slightly diorentated. Looking around at this huge complex made me feel at ease I picked up my rucksack and made my way of the pad. As soon as the heli took off I was greeted by a man, he yelled
Hey you you new guy! Leo Renton I presume?”
I inspected the man,by the looks he wasn’t the highest of ranks,must be here to collect me I thought, I replied:
“Indeed,just got of the plane.air traffic is a pain nowadays”
“Welcome to Fantasy Island,” he said shaking my hand I’ll take you to where you need to go"
He took me through the doors and into the main building by the looks of things.; Here we are someone will come get you soon, nice to meet you by the way.” he left leaving me leaning up against the wall.

[Garrison]

Josh made his way from his room after cleaning himself up. He considered resting a little more but figured the sooner he knocked this out, the faster he could be sitting in a Jaeger of his own. He whistled an old Aussie tune as he walked, wondering what the Sim would be like. After a few turns and long hall ways, he reached the room he'd been looking for. He saw Emmett through a glass window in the mock cockpit, unsure if he'd just started or just finished. "Hello there mr Stone. Are you here for the test?" asked a slightly familiar voice. It was Mako. "I believe I am." he said, looking at her when he responded but then turning to see the inside of the simulator. "I've waited my whole life to step foot inside a room like that. I can't fail now." he added. Mako walked over to him, jotting some things down on a clip board then holding it to her chest to talk to him. "I'm sure you'll do fine. I'm awaiting Ms Dvorak's assessment on you but if you're standing in this room, it must mean that you passed. We'll get you sized and suited up shortly." she finished up, going back to her clip board and scribbling more notes.

[Cassowarysaur]

Willem was delighted by the trainer's response and immediately took the large stick and swung it a few times, allowing him to judge the weight of such an object. Entering an appropriate battle stance, he held the stick behind his arm and parallel to his right arm, by which he held it, and he threw his left hand in front of him, blocking his face.
"But first, let's be clear of the rules. Would, say, grabbing a cup on top of that nearby chest of drawers and smashing it on your shoulder get me kicked out?" Willem smirked, eager to start this fight.

He had never been in many fights. However, he had always imagined that. The elegant ways both the duelers danced around each other with their weapons, how they struck and collided, how the greatest man always came up victorious. That, however, wasn't going to happen.

[CallaLily180]

Molly was now in her room, pigging out on cheap Timbits. They tasted nothing like the real one but man were they good. She had managed to blow fifty toonies on pop, fake timbits, and other snacks. That was kind of depressing. "This stuff isn't even good!" She exclaimed as she bit into a pretty looking egg tart, at least she had only gotten one for the trip home.

She waited for a while sprawled out on her bed eating and drinking practically everything unhealthy she could find. At least the pop was good, at least that happened. She got up happy and practically prancing around because of her sugar high.

[Phloem]

As the simulation flickered out, Emmett exhaled deeply, his breath fogging up the visor. Holy shit. He actually did it. He was a Ranger now. Well, technically, at least. He still needed to be assigned to a Jaeger, but that wasn't even on his mind. All he knew was that he passed the simulation. Truth be told, it was pretty surreal. He'd seen Jaeger pilots take down Kaijus against impossible odds on TV, and now, he was going to be one of them? On barely his second day here, no less. It was utterly unreal.

All of a sudden, Emmett was startled out of his daze by Mako Mori's voice echoing through from the intercom. He barely heard her, though, the adrenaline from the fight still hadn't quite worn off, and the sound of blood pounding in his ears drowned out all other noises. He did, however, catch enough of what Mako said to realise that he was going to pay a visit to his assigned Jaeger. Nodding in reply (there were cameras in here, right?), the robotic arms of the Conn-Pod started dismantling the outer shell of his Drivesuit. The high-pitched whining of pneumatics signalled the feet plates' release mechanisms activating, and Emmett soon exited the metal chamber.

Walking out, Emmett could barely keep the shit-eating grin off his face. The high from winning the simulated battle remained a buzzing sensation permeating his entire body, and he had to dig his nails into his palm to keep himself tethered to the situation at hand. He knew he couldn't let this get to his head, though. This was just a simulation, albeit a hyper-realistic one, and fighting Kaijus in the real world was ought to be a lot tougher and unpredictable.

He made his way over to where Mako was, containing his smile the best he could so he didn't look like a complete psycho. "Well, Ms. Mori? Lead the way."

[Shadowcatcher]

Raleigh did a bit of walking before he managed to stumble upon a guy leaning against the wall at the entrance to the facility. He stalked over, waving his hand. "Hey! Leo Renton?" he waited until the man acknowledged him before shaking his hand. "Marshall Raleigh Beckett. Thanks for coming. We've been in the middle of trials today, we've had some old veteran Rangers show up, and we got nearly all our Jaegers going through maintenance." he paused and signaled for Leo to follow him.

"We waste no time here so, we're getting you started right away. I'll take you to a room so you can unpack and in...i'd say a half hour or so, someone will bring you to the training room." He finished speaking then and led the way to the sleeping quarters of the shatterdome. Stopping at room 101 he banged on the door. "Yeah, this one should be free." he said with a smile. "Now i have a bit of work to finish up. Make yourself at home. Be seeing you soon" With that he walked off and around a corner.

---

Mako smiled at Emmett who looked as excited as ever. She was so pleased many candidates were passing the tests. Just as she was about to take Emmett to his Jaeger, she spotted Joshua walking in with a smile. As he approached her she said "I will take Emmett here to his Jaeger and then i will start the simulation with you. We will start as soon as i return."

She nodded to Emmett and led him to the room the Jaegers were held. Walking up to a single Jaeger that stood out among the others, there was no doubt this one was unique. She turned to him. "This is Maximus. Very fast. One of the best built Jaeger's we have. The sturdiest of the singles as well. It has the basic wepons including a resistance coating of a metal that will not be affected by the acid a Kaiju produces." she stopped and noticed he was just looking at the Jaeger and she smiled. "I will leave you alone now. Congratulations Ranger Hauser." she said, shuffling back to the sim room. She saw Joshua was ready to go and she prepared the simulation, resetting it and loading it up.

---

Iris smiled at Willem's smart remark. "The only thing that will get you kicked out is if you mess up my face. Other than that, anything daring you decide to do is your decision. Though if you piss me off, i might take a cheap shot to your nuts, which im sure you wouldn't like."

She stayed focused on him, still in her battle stance. She hoped he wasent trying to stall her, or diverting her attention. While a good idea in theory, it wasent going to work. She wiggled the fingers on her left hand that gripped the giant Q-tip like training wepon. She felt it was rather heavy for her weakened arm, and thought of ways to counter that feeling as she waited for his move.

[Cassowarysaur]

"I hope you have that window behind us insured," Willem laughed, gesturing to the massive glass window behind him that shrouded the surrounding area. "Other than that, I hope we can get started. By all means, swing at me, but be weary."
His vision was narrowed, focusing and just only focusing on his opponent. Joking was over, battle was about to begin.

[Shadowcatcher]

Iris glanced at the window behimd her and laughed as well. "Lets try our best not to break it."

She noticed he seemed ready to go but was not interested in making the first move, so she figured she'd start off the match. Using her speed to approach him, she quickly spun around to build up momentum for her attack, though at the last minute, she crouched to aim for his feet. This was a test of his speed as well, Iris was hopeful he would dodge this and execute a sucessful counter attack.

[Cassowarysaur]

Expecting a traditionally boring and plain attack, he rather sluggishly moved his weapon to his side, allowing a good block to be made. The force from the blow almost made him fall, and it was unexpected for him to tremble under the first attack. However, quickly tensing up, he thrust his left arm towards Iris' shoulder, as well as moving his entire body forward in a tackling position.

[Shadowcatcher]

"One to zero." she said as her wepon hit him. "Focus." she said to him sternly. Iris raised her wepon up to protect her from Willem's attempt at her shoulder. At the same time, she stood and turned, using the other end of the wepon to aim a blow at his chest.

[Cassowarysaur]

Willem immediately raised his right arm, protecting his chest from the block. Although it shook him, he gained his footing and lifted his right knee fast enough to try and deliver a blow to Iris' knees. At the same time, his punch connected with the blocking weapon, and although it hurt his knuckles, he rearranged his hand and went to grab the weapon instead.

[Shadowcatcher]

She felt her knees get hit by his and her balance wavered slightly, but she quickly regained it. Iris was going to call out the score when Willem made a grab at her wepon. Instead of trying to pull it from his grasp, she pushed it towards him, a giggle escaping when the soft part of it jabbed his head. Afterwards she twisted it, making his hand fall from it before she did a backflip to provide some distance between them.

"Two to one." she said, waiting this time for him to com at her.

[CallaLily180]

Molly was bored. So freaking bored, she didn't know what was the matter. She was still on her sugar high because she kept twitching, but at the same time she had nothing to do, her stomach was stuffed so she couldn't pig out. But what else could she do? "I'm going to go train, yes I am. Perfecto." She hopped up and with a wide smile started on her merry way to the training room. She was very hyper and acted like a child with common sense. "Hello misters! I'm going to go train now!" Her voice was cheery as she hugged some men in he hallway. They reacted with awkward nods and flirty smiles, that she utterly dismissed.

Molly continued on her way until she got over to the training room, then she started to freak out and panic. "KAIJU! A KAIJU IS ATTACKING US!! GO YOU HAVE TO GO IRIS! IT IS WAY TO BIG FOR CANADA! PLEASE!" She was a good liar but even those words were stretched, she had always face the Kaiju no matter what the size.

[Cassowarysaur]

Willem was angry at another failure, and was not going to let it happen again. He got ready for another exchange of blows, his muscles tensing and aching from all the movement. That was until somebody decided to interrupt them. Confused and bewildered, he spoke.
"Kaiju? What the hell do you mean?"

This obviously wasn't the best time the intrude, even if a giant Kaiju was outside the base.