hell yeah

[autopilots]

[ He's sitting on a piece of concrete that's been cut away from a larger slab of concrete. It was probably part of a wall before; now it's only good for sitting on, and Raleigh doesn't mind it. It's as good a place to sit on as any.

Raleigh's picking at the dirt on his hardhat, when he looks over and sees someone loitering at the construction area. He knows it's been clearly marked as a dangerous area. ]

You're not supposed to be here without at least a hat on, you know.

Comments

[notacaptain]

Get told your head is hard enough times and you eventually start to believe it.

[She makes no indication that she's likely to move or address the hardhat situation. It's clear that she's much more interested in assessing the location than she is putting on some silly hat.]

[autopilots]

A concussion's still a concussion, on the other hand.

[ Raleigh gets up and walks over. ] You could take a better look somewhere safer, too.

[notacaptain]

Wouldn't be the first time. Or the last for that matter.

Safer doesn't always mean better. [She looks at the construction, eyes narrowing slightly.] Sometimes it doesn't even mean safer.

[She turns around then, shifting her attention from the construction to him.]

Maybe I'm not a fancy politician, but this looks like a waste of money. [She takes a step closer to him, one step closer to being out of the danger zone.] Do you really think this is going to work?

[autopilots]

[ It's a small thing, but it gives him a lot of relief. Ranger instincts die hard, Raleigh guesses, and the instinct to protect people is difficult to ignore for guys like him.

Hero types, some might say. Raleigh thinks it's just good old good conscience. ]

I won't get paid for thinking. Or for being honest. [ He's dodging the question, but he moves aside a bit, apologizing for the slight rudeness with body language. ]

[notacaptain]

But you're okay with getting paid to waste your time?

[Shepard's eyes are dark,s shrewd and focused completely on him now. She's seen enough of this stupid wall.]

Bland reassurance from blander politicians. How long do you think it'll take one to break through? Days? Hours? Minutes?

[She scoffs, scuffing at the ground with one boot in annoyance.]

Damned wall couldn't keep a jaeger out let alone a kaiju.

[If she notices the silent apology she makes no mention of it, at least not for the moment.]

[autopilots]

You're not the only one who thinks that.

[ He answers with no small amount of bitterness seeping through his tone. He knows how quickly it'll fall; Raleigh's father constructed dams much stronger than this, to face the forces of nature greater than a jaeger's fist. The wall's gonna come down like paper. Raleigh helps to build it anyway; it's the only way he knows he can help, now that he's left the PPDC.

He meets her gaze headlong. ]

What's got you riled up about the wall, anyway? I've never seen you around here before. You're a reporter?

[notacaptain]

What? That you're wasting your time or that the wall won't last? Because I think I've heard enough about both to last me for a couple of lifetimes.

Me? A reporter? I think they'd kick me out if I even dared try. [While she doesn't outright laugh at the very suggestion she could be a reporter, it certainly perks her mood up.] Punched a reporter once who was spouting off at me about how PPDC was a waste of resources and how rangers were dangerous and couldn't be trusted with the world's safety.

[She rocks back on her heels slightly, clearly reliving the moment. She'd gotten hell for it, but it'd been worth it just to see the look on that reporter's sanctimonious face.]

Probably not my smartest idea, she took it as proof she was right.

[autopilots]

Well, people tend to get really defensive when you punch them in the face, but yeah. [ Raleigh's expression changes into a proper grin, then. He knows about reporters; he's dealt with enough of them back when he was still piloting. ]

I wouldn't have even gone that far, honestly. [ Not true. He might have, while Yancy was still alive. But not anymore. ] — She wasn't hurt too bad, though, right?

[notacaptain]

Explains why she made sure to keep out of arms reach next time I ran into her. [She shrugs her shoulders loosely, not particularly repentant.] I don't make a habit of hitting reports, you could say this was a special occasion.

[No one wants to deal with yappy reporters right after losing someone, it'd been a bad time for Shepard. Ash had been a good friend, practically a sister, and she'd yet to ever really get over the loss.]

Of course she's fine, was only a tap. Have you seen how squishy reporters are? If I'd hit her properly she'd be dead.

[hulkish]

[ a wan smile. ] I think I'll be alright. Mind if I...? [ he gestures at the block. ]

[autopilots]

[ Raleigh takes a moment to shuffle over, saying: ] Yeah, it's cool.

I don't think I've seen you around the site before. You're one of the surveyors? From the union?

[hulkish]

[ bruce sits as delicately as he can. ]

Uh, no. No, I'm just here to work. [ wryly: ] Why, do I look official?

[autopilots]

It's more that you look like you're more used to handling things with a little less roughness, is all.

[ It's the way the guy moves; small, compact actions like he's tucking his elbows in to not hit something breakable. He could be wrong, of course. Construction draws in all sorts of people. ]

Wouldn't have been surprised if you were from union.

[hulkish]

[ nods slowly, that same smile still fixed on his face. ]

I used to be a researcher. Lab work-- not exactly heavy lifting. [ hums thoughtfully. ] We could've used a union.

[autopilots]

Lab work, [ he repeats, a little incredulity visible on his face. ] You're way out of a lab, man. How'd that happen?

[ He was a ranger; it's different in his mind's eye, to go from lab to labor and from cockpit to construction. ]

[hulkish]

I, uh. Needed a change. [ bruce has never been a very good liar, and seems to know it. ] There were some things I needed distance from. And I... hah. I couldn't get much further than this.

[autopilots]

[ Raleigh notices the avoidance, but decides not to push. It's none of his business what a man's doing in a dump like this wall; Raleigh wouldn't like having someone try to look into his own head himself, after all. ]

Distance is good. It helps with a lot of things.

[ He quietly offers a salute, feeling a bit cheeky now. ] I bet you miss the lab coat.

[hulkish]

[ he nods in the man's direction, deferential. ] It does.

[ a quiet huff of laughter. ] Oh no, I definitely prefer the permanent cover of dirt.

[ a beat. ] What about you? This can't be anyone's first choice.

[autopilots]

My dad built dams.

[ Among the few things his father had left him, an appreciation for construction is one of them. Dams were like man-made mountains, and even as a boy Raleigh had marveled at the power they held. It's just a wall holding back water, but the audacity of it... ]

I didn't go to college, so. [ What can you do? he implies. ]

[hulkish]

Hm. A lot of complicated engineering behind dams. Trapping all that power— harnessing it...

[ he trails off as he looks away, trying not to examine the aptness of that metaphor too closely. his gaze sweeps over the scene around them. ]

I guess that's the theory behind this wall.

[retributively]

[ Mako Mori looks up and fixes her gaze on him, pointedly annoyed. ]

I know. I'm looking for someone.

[ a beat, as she studies him. Sensei said Mister Becket was here, doing construction. ]

...Perhaps you can help me.

[autopilots]

[ He gets up, dusting the seat of his trousers as he straightens up. ]

I'll see what I can do if you step back a little further, how's that sound. Who are you looking for?

[retributively]

[ A small price to pay, stepping back, for his assistance; Mako steps cautiously back until she's sheltered again underneath the outcropping of the adjacent building next to the construction site.

This man looks familiar somehow, but she's nowhere near certain if it's him, or not — he's got a layer of soot coating his face, and the pictures she's seen of Raleigh Becket are five years old, if not older. It's hard to tell. ]

He's military. Former military, [ she corrects herself. ] An ex-Jaeger pilot, to be specific.

[ she cocks her head. ] His name is Raleigh Becket. Do you know him?

[autopilots]

[ He's looking out at the sea when she says "former military", and he nearly fumbles when he puts a hand into a pocket to root for something to work on in his hands. It's a tell on his nerves, that it's spiking from a flat line to a sudden steep climb, because he's not sure if he's just being paranoid or being right in assuming he's the one being asked after.

"Ex-Jaeger pilot" kind of seals the deal, on the other hand. He's proud of himself that his fingers don't stutter when he twists a short length of wire into a crudely-shaped ring. ]

Who's looking for him?

[retributively]

[ She doesn't notice his near-fumble, but she does notice the rest of his body language — particularly how he looks out toward the sea, anywhere but at her.

She hugs her tablet closer to her chest at his question, and fixes him with a sturdy look. ]

The Pan-Pacific Defense Corps.

[autopilots]

And you think he's gonna be at this wall?

[ He looks at her now, and there's an open honesty to his expression. ]

[retributively]

[ A curt nod. ] I have been told so.

[oceanfloor]

What's going to happen, someone going to drop a piece of wall on me?

[ somewhere deep down, chuck hansen knows that she is not invincible. but it doesn't really pay to let that show, does it? ]

[autopilots]

They might, with an attitude like that.

You really should get back — those signs aren't for show. [ The attitude, Raleigh can deal with. The blatant flaunting of attitude in the face of actual danger? Not so much. ]

[oceanfloor]

Don't think the wall's gonna care about my attitude, mate. So unless you're planning on dropping shit on me, I don't see what that's got to do with anything.

[ blah blah signs blah blah who cares? not chuck. cheers. ]

[autopilots]

I'm gonna care if someone dies and I could've prevented it. [ He answers her plainly, feeling no amount of embarrassment in the honesty of his answer. ] I won't feel guilty dragging you back out, is what I'm saying.

[oceanfloor]

I'd like to see you try.

[ he could probably manage it — for all the years of training, this version of chuck isn't all that tall or broadly built. ]

[autopilots]

[ And Raleigh wouldn't think twice dragging her back; they don't even have a union, after all. ]

I'm not going to try, I will, if you don't at least step back.

[oceanfloor]

[ she's rolling her eyes and scowling, but she is taking a (small) step back. ]

Happy now?

[autopilots]

Nope.

[ But he's frowning a bit less, now. ]

Signs say at least eight feet.

[oceanfloor]

Funny, I don't remember you following orders that well, Becket.

[ because of course she recognises him. ]

[autopilots]

[ Wow, sudden mood drop coming in at mach 5 speed. ]

Right.

How about you just leave, then.

[oceanfloor]

How about I don't.

[ aren't you glad she decided to pay you a visit, becket ]

[autopilots]

How about you leave right now.

[ I already left, he thinks angrily. What do you want? ]

[oceanfloor]

No.

[ there are a lot of things chuck wants, but in the end, it boils down to ending the war and kicking kaiju arse.

( and having her mum back, but that's never going to happen. ) ]