Project Maigo(85)

“Her armor stopped the bullet,” Alessi says, “but she’s pretty sore.”

“I’m fine,” Collins says in the background, her voice barely audible over the chopper’s thrumming rotor blades.

“Where are you?” I ask.

“A mile out from the two bigger Kaiju,” Alessi says. “To the east. We’re within range.”

I glance through the binoculars, looking past the twin titans that are Karkinos and Typhon. Even if I could see past their towering bodies, the smoke, fires and flashing lights of a city gripped by horror make it impossible for me to spot Betty’s running lights in the night sky. “How many shots do we get at this?”

“Two,” she says. “Which one should we target?”

I look at the two approaching Kaiju. Karkinos is a beefier version of Nemesis. It’s a little shorter, but far thicker and more muscular, easily out-weighing Nemesis. It’s also covered in boney spikes, and sports a carapace running down its back, no doubt hiding a pair of reflective wings. I used to think that Nemesis perfectly represented what I thought a monster-god of vengeance would look like, but Karkinos reveals that Nemesis is a more delicate version of what she could have been, probably thanks to Maigo’s DNA.

Typhon is eerily human-like. Very masculine as well. Of all the new Kaiju, he’s the only one I really feel comfortable assigning a sex to. This monster is a dude, hands down, even if he does lack any kind of discernable Kaiju junk. He carries himself with a confidence that is obnoxious. Like he’s actually a god and we’re all ants, barely worth his attention. While the other Kaiju are ruled by emotion, Typhon seems almost cold and calculating. But he’s also far less defended. While he’s got spikes and claws in strategic areas of his body—elbows, knees and forearms, most of him is covered in thick, ropey flesh. The perfect target.

“Typhon,” I say. “Target Typhon.”

“Are you sure?” Endo asks. He’s only heard one side of the conversation, but he knows the plan. “Typhon looks...”

“Smart,” I say. “Yeah, I know. But there’s no way the neural implant is going to get past Karkinos’s armor.”

He thinks on it briefly and then nods, turning back to the impending rumble. I glance up, too, watching as Nemesis turns to fight the two newcomers. For a moment, I think she’s made a mistake, turning her back on Scylla, but she raises that killer tail in the air and slams it down on Scylla’s belly. It doesn’t pierce the skin, but Scylla lurches up, howling in pain.

“Are you ready to go?” I ask into the phone.

“I already adjusted the frequency to match your headset and we’re locked on,” Alessi says.

I put my hand on top of my head, feeling the modified beanie cap. It’s tight and in place, ready to connect my mind to another. If my bucket list included an entry for Most Idiotic Thing Anyone Has Ever Done in the History of the World and Probably the Universe, I could check it off after this. Connecting to Nemesis was one thing. She didn’t resist. But one of these Kaiju? They’re the very definition of hostile. My mental presence isn’t going to be welcome. I could end up in a coma, like Endo, or I could end up lobotomized. “Go ahead. I’m ready.”





44



I’m able to pinpoint Betty’s position when they launch the neural implant. I can’t hear the rocket propelling the device through the night sky, but I can see the plume of fire at its rear. As I watch the projectile’s progress, I’m struck by a realization. Whatever defense force that was assaulting these Kaiju, has stopped or pulled back.

“Endo,” I shout. “Find out where the military is!”

He looks at me, confused for a moment. I probably shouldn’t be focused on such things right before a Kaiju mind-meld. But then I can see he understands the significance. If the military is heading for the hills, maybe I made Beck a little too brave, and he’s willing to drop that nuke on his own head.

And ours.

And Collins’s.

Endo gets on his phone while I continue watching the implant’s progress. It slides through the air, a twinkling light.

Too bright, I think.

While Karkinos starts an emotion-fueled roaring match with Nemesis, the two long-tailed Kaiju squaring off, Typhon stands still, watching. His head is titled slightly, his eyes unwavering. I’m not sure Typhon feels much at all, beyond loathing. As the implant closes the distance toward the side of his head, he glances at it.

I breathe deeply, preparing myself for the connection. I’m not sure what to expect, aside from the agonizing pain Endo described.