Raleigh Becket [narrating]
When I was a kid, whenever I'd feel small or lonely, I'd look up at the stars. Wondered if there was life up there. Turns out I was looking in the wrong direction. When alien life entered our world, it was from deep beneath the Pacific Ocean. A fissure between two tectonic plates. A portal between dimensions. The Breach. I was fifteen when the first Kaiju made land in San Francisco. By the time tanks, jets and missiles took it down, six days and 35 miles later, three cities were destroyed. Tens of thousands of lives were lost. We mourned our dead, memorialized the event, and moved on. And then, only six months later, the second attack hit Manila. Then the third one hit Cabo. And then the fourth. And then we learned, that this was not gonna stop. This was just the beginning. We needed a new weapon. The world came together, pooling its resources and throwing aside old rivalries for the sake of the greater good. To fight monsters, we created monsters of our own. The Jaeger program was born. There were setbacks at first - the neural load to interface with the Jaeger proved too much for a single pilot. A two pilot system was implemented, left hemisphere, right hemisphere, pilot-controlled. We started winning, Jaegers stopping Kaijus everywhere. But the Jaegers were only as good as their pilots. So Jaeger pilots turned into rock stars, danger turned into propaganda, Kaijus into toys. We got really good at it... winning. Then... then it all changed.
Raleigh Becket [we see the brothers initiating a neural handshake, effectively stepping into each other's minds]
The drift. Jaeger tech. Based on DARPA jet fighter neural systems. Two pilots, mind-melding through memories, with the body of a giant machine. The deeper the bond, the better you fight.
Good morning, Becket boys!
Raleigh Becket Tendo, what's happenin', my man?
How did that date with Alison go last night, Mr. Choi?
[we see Tendo in the control room as he talks to the brothers]
Oh, she loved me. Her boyfriend, not so much.
Raleigh Becket You're gonna get your ass kicked.
[Tendo chuckles]
A man's gotta do what a man's gotta do, brother.
[at that moment, their commanding officer, Pentecost comes up behind Tendo]
Ready to drop, Mr. Choi?
Ready to drop, sir. Marshall Pentecost on deck. Securing Conn Pod getting ready to drop.
[the Jaeger pod is placed in position ready for the drop]
Ready for the big drop.
Raleigh Becket Ready to go.
Raleigh Becket [Raleigh noticing Geiszler's tattoo's on his arms]
What is that, Yamarashi? [pointing to the tattoo on his arm]
This little Kaiju? Yeah, you got a good eye.
Raleigh Becket My brother and I took him down in 2017.
You know he was one of the biggest Category 3's ever? He was 2,500 tons of awesome. [there's a moment's pause as Raleigh gives him a cold look] Or awful. You know, whatever you wanna call it.
Please excuse him. He's a Kaiju groupie, he loves them.
Shut up, Hermann! I don't love them, okay? I study them. And unlike most people, I wanna see one live and up close one day.
Raleigh Becket Trust me, you don't want to.
Raleigh Becket [Raleigh leads Stacker inside.]
Step into my office, marshal.
Took me a while to find you. Anchorage. Sheldon Point. Nome–
Raleigh Becket Yeah, a man in my position travels with the wall, chasing shifts to make a living. [sits down next to the structure] What do you want?
I've spent the last six months activating everything I can get my hands on. There's an old Jaeger, a Mark 3. You may know it. It needs a pilot.
Raleigh Becket I'm guessing I wasn't your first choice.
You are my first choice. All the other Mark 3 pilots are dead.
Raleigh Becket [stands up and steps towards Stacker]
Look– I can't have anyone else in my head again. I'm done. I was still connected to my brother when he died. I can't go through that again, man. I'm sorry. [starts to walk away]
Haven't you heard, Mr. Becket? [Raleigh stops walking and turns around] The world is coming to an end. So where would you rather die? Here, or in a Jaeger?
[Raleigh stares at Stacker, knowing he has no choice but to go with him to the Shatterdome.]
[Raleigh and Mako are waiting outside Stacker's office.] [from inside the office]
She can't control her Drift, and he went out of phase first!
[from inside the office]
We all know what happened.
[from inside the office]
We can't afford mistakes. The Kaiju keep evolving, they keep kicking our asses! He's a has-been, she's a rookie. I don't want them protecting my bomb run, sir. [opens the door and walks out]
[from inside the office]
You need to watch your tone, Mr. Hansen.
[to his son]
Hey. [Chuck turns to him] Stay there. Give me a moment. [closes the door]
[to Raleigh and Mako]
You two are a goddamn disgrace! You're gonna get us all killed, and here's the thing, Raleigh. I want to come back from this mission, 'cause I quite like my life. So why don't you– [flicks Raleigh in the chest] –just do us all a favor and disappear? It's the only thing you're good at.
[angrily]
Stop! Now! [Raleigh raises his hand to stop her from arguing further with Chuck]
Yeah, that's right. You just hold back your little girlfriend. One of your bitches needs a leash.
Raleigh Becket [Consumed by far more rage, violence, and aggressiveness than before, Raleigh punches Chuck twice. Chuck punches him back. The two engage in a fistfight, until Raleigh punches Chuck, causing him to spit out blood.]
Apologize to her.
[wipes his mouth]
Screw you.
Raleigh Becket [Raleigh and Chuck keep fighting, until Raleigh throws Chuck against the pipes on the wall, causing Chuck to scream in pain and glare at Raleigh.]
I said, apologize to her.
[Chuck attacks Raleigh again, but Raleigh overpowers him and twists his arm.] [comes out]
Hey, hey! Enough! What's going on? On your feet, both of you!
[Raleigh and Chuck stand up as Stacker comes out.] [to Raleigh and Mako]
Becket, Mori, into my office.
[starts to storm towards Raleigh]
No, we aren't finished!
[grabs his son]
Hey! This is over! You're a ranger for Christ's sake! Why don't you start acting like one?
[Chuck shoves his father off and turns and walks off. Herc turns to look at Stacker.]
Raleigh Becket I'm sorry. I should've warned you. First drifts are rough. But you weren't just tapping into my memories, you tapping into my brother's too. When Yancy was taken, we were still connected. I felt his fear, his pain, his helplessness, and then...he was gone.
Raleigh Becket You know, you live in someone else's head for so long, the hardest part to deal with is the silence. To let someone else in, to really connect, you have to trust them. And today, the drift was strong.
[a metal clank is heard] [turns to Gipsy Danger]
Her heart. When's the last time you saw it?
Raleigh Becket Not in a long time.
They're adapting. This isn't a defense mechanism, it's a weapon!
Nothing, sir. The Mark 5's digital's fried. It'll take me two hours to reroute the auxliary. All the Jaegers, they're digital!
Raleigh Becket [approaches Stacker along with Mako]
Not all of them, marshal. [Stacker turns to him and Mako] Gipsy's analog. Nuclear.
[Stacker stares at his daughter and Raleigh, knowing he has no choice but to send them out in Gipsy Danger to face Leatherback and Otachi.]
Raleigh Becket [Stacker is finishing washing his face when Raleigh enters.]
How sick are you? And why didn't you tell me?
Uh– what's to tell? [takes a cloth and uses it to wipe his hands] You know, them Mark 1s, we scraped them bad boys together in 14 months. Last thing we were thinking about was radiation shielding. [uses the cloth to wipe his face, then throws it away] I ran nearly a dozen missions. I stayed under the medical radar for a while, but– [takes a folded shirt] –the last time I jockeyed was in Tokyo. I finished the fight solo, but for three hours, I burned. They warned me if I ever stepped foot into a Jaeger again, the toll would be too much. You and I are the only two that ever ran solo combat. That's why I brought you here.
[Raleigh and Stacker hear a computer beeping. Stacker gets a call from Tendo.]
What is it?
Sir, it's happening. I just got two signatures with unprecedented dilation, 40-meter strikes.
Checking the ratios, Category 4.
That's the thing, they're not heading anywhere. They're hovering just above the Breach. It's– It's like they're protecting it or something.
Alright, Gipsy, Striker on deck.
Sir, Herc cannot ride. His arm–
You heard me. [heads out]
[Mako swims towards and climbs Raleigh's pod. She opens the hatch to find Raleigh unconscious. Mako removes Raleigh's helmet and checks his pulse.]
I can't find his pulse. I don't think he's breathing.
Mako, listen to me. I think it could be the sensors not working. We can't be sure.
[Mako pulls Raleigh up. She hugs him while sobbing.] [sobbing]
No. No. Don't go. Please.
Raleigh Becket [Mako hears Raleigh's voice.]
You're squeezing me too tight. [Mako lets go of him] I couldn't breathe.
[Mako chuckles. Everyone in the command centre cheers.]
This is Marshal Hercules Hansen. The Breach is sealed. Stop the clock!
[everyone cheers as the war clock is set back to zero.]
Mako, Raleigh, we have your position. The choppers are on their way. Just– just hang on. Are you okay? Do you copy?
[Raleigh and Mako touch their heads intimately.]
Uh, guys?
[Raleigh and Mako embrace as choppers fly above them.]
