title: Fighting Fire With Fire aliases: [] tags: [FA] author: [RetroInferno] id: [36433879] date: 星期六, 十一月 12日 2022, 5:08:37 下午 modified: 星期六, 十一月 12日 2022, 5:53:35 下午

[TOC]

Fighting Fire With Fire

Author: RetroInferno Source: Fighting Fire With Fire

A company with questionable ethics decides to employ kaiju bioweapons against more feral kaiju attacking human cities.

"Gentlemen… how exactly do you stop a kaiju?"

After asking this, a well dressed human man paced back and forth. He glanced at half a dozen people seated around a conference table. Suddenly, the spokesman stopped in place, pivoted towards the group, then gave them a death stare before raising his voice.

"Well, anyone?"

"Tell them to fuck off." answered a young man wearing sunglasses.

"Cute, but no."

An older man adjusted his platinum watch. "Perhaps they could be bribed, bought, or enticed into leaving us alone?"

The spokesman rolled his eyes. "Again, no. Almost nothing can stop a feral kaiju. However, there has to be a way to prevent them from demolishing our cities, right?"

"Of course!" blurted another man wearing a green uniform. "Traditionally, our tanks and aircraft can fire at them from a safe distance while any infantry either engage them with heavy weapons or set up some specialized traps." He paused and slammed a fist against the table for emphasis. "I like to call it the old fashioned method!"

"But that rarely works." replied the spokesman as he shook his head. "Don't even get me started on the heavy casualties conventional forces can take… even if they're successful."

In response, the general scratched the underside of his chin. "True, but the only alternative is outright nuking the city to kill the damned thing. Even if the ground forces fail, they can buy time for evacuating at the very least. Otherwise, there aren't many other options."

"Which is precisely the problem." said the spokesman as he raised a finger. "It's one that has been plaguing humanity for a while, actually. For Titan Industries, we had to come up with a… unconventional… answer for that particular question."

"And who the hell are you, exactly?" interjected the young man wearing sunglasses. "I don't recognize your face. Are you some sort of researcher, executive, or salesman for this godforsaken company?"

"That doesn't matter." answered the spokesman with a dismissive wave of his hand. "I'm not why you're here. Today, all of you have gathered to see our company's solution to all the kaiju constantly threatening our livelihoods. I want you to meet a living weapon we're simply calling… Nir."

Following these words, the spokesman stepped aside as the lights in the room gradually dimmed. This directed all attention to an electronic monitor mounted against a wall. A simple press of a button on his smartphone allowed the spokesman to play a video, which unraveled before their eyes.

Immediately, footage of a city in flames played.

The recording itself was taken from a bird's eye view thanks to a camera mounted to a helicopter. Nonetheless, the camera panned to the left until it faced a gigantic and draconic creature approaching the edge of the city. Attack helicopters flanked the woman on both sides. Additionally, her sheer size put her on par with the height of several different skyscrapers in the distance. The woman's bipedal form had metal plates and implants embedded into her leathery blue hide, but several massive words etched across her metallic torso stood out from the rest…

NIR-MK1

SECURITY

With a huff, Nir eventually entered the city itself. Smoke rose from several locations. Much smaller civilians panicked upon spotting her, prompting the woman to speak in a soft yet thundering tone.

"Citizens, please stay calm. Everything is under control."

Meanwhile, people within the nearby buildings watched on in awe. Some began pulling out their smartphones to record the bioweapon in action, especially if they were lucky enough to be on eye level with Nir. There, they saw her bright red eyes with black sclera surrounding the iris, not to mention two horns emerging from her skull. The way white fur topped Nir's head almost made her look like she had a mohawk until it descended down her spine and reached the tip of her tail with two fins at the end.

All things considered, Nir resembled an anthropomorphic hybrid between a massive megalodon and a titanic dragon.

"We are currently experiencing a minor kaiju intrusion." continued Nir in a gentle tone. "Please evacuate to your closest emergency shelter, remain clear of any roads, and try to maintain a minimum safe distance away from any and all kaiju."

Despite Nir's warnings, not all were able or willing to heed her words. Her feet outright flattened any vehicles she stepped on, whether they were occupied or not, and her razor-sharp claws partially cleaved concrete roads. It didn't help that the streets were heavily congested with traffic as convoys of vehicles and crowds tried to flee from the city itself. Instead, they ran straight into Nir. They were entirely beneath her notice as she resumed walking along the roads with a certain degree of indifference, compacting people and automobiles alike with every step she took.

"Please stay clear of any roads." repeated Nir in a monotone voice.

Merely walking caused more destruction to unfold as Nir's tail brushed against a skyscraper, shattering a multitude of windows. At the same time, more lives ended under her heels. The only survivors were those lucky enough to end up between her toes whenever she stepped somewhere near them, albeit everything around them was compressed and crushed. Most survivors found themselves bewildered as a reptilian foot large enough to cover dozens if not hundreds of people momentarily enveloped their vision, just for the sight to be replaced by the bloody aftermath of Nir's actions as she walked away.

While this mayhem unfolded beneath her feet, Nir focused on her objective in the distance. A titanic creature similar to herself was going on a rampage within the center of the city. Machine guns rattling, tank cannons erupting, and outright roaring echoed around the vicinity as a canine creature cleaved an attack helicopter into several pieces with claws that were more massive than longswords.

"Target spotted." said Nir as a communication device attached to her head glowed blue.

"You have permission to engage." replied a masculine voice on the other end. "Eliminate the feral kaiju by any means you deem necessary."

Nir slightly nodded. "Affirmative."

Without further delay, Nir started sprinting towards her objective. Collateral damage occurred from this maneuver as she charged through a few concrete buildings, creating a shortcut. Nonetheless, any structures in her way disintegrated like sandcastles as she knocked them down, and the resulting debris sifted between her clawed toes like individual grains of sand. Any humans caught during this sudden destruction were reduced to mere ants scurrying among the ruins.

As for the canine, she focused her attention on human military forces. A squad of infantry retreated in the face of her wrath, but ultimately a simple stomp with a black paw followed by several soft crunches marked their demise. Afterward, the hellhound laughed hysterically as she focused her attention on a nearby ground vehicle trying to pull back. She flexed her toes in anticipation. Conventional weapons seemed to do nothing to her body since any injuries she sustained from various projectiles rapidly regenerated until her wounds appeared almost completely cauterized. Unlike Nir, who was more of a force of nature, the demonic canine reveled in her deliberate and malicious acts of destruction… up until Nir tackled her from behind, making her fiery eyes go wide.

From there, the two plummeted to the ground. A small earthquake was the natural result of their descent, and the duo's enormous impact shook the city to its very core. Wasting no time, Nir took advantage of her position on top of the rival kaiju by slashing the canine with her razor-sharp claws, shredding fur, and slicing flesh during the process. In return, the hellhound unleashed another mighty roar before rewarding Nir's efforts with a reverse headbutt and an elbow to the stomach, forcing her to let go.

"Friendly forces are moving in to assist." announced the masculine voice.

Still reeling from the counterattack, Nir stumbled back. She stared at several black attack helicopters adorned with the same emblems decorating both of her shoulders in the form of black tattoos. More specifically, circular logos partially representing crossbows. There wasn't much time for Nir to observe what they were doing as the other kaiju leaped to her feet and immediately charged at Nir's new position.

The living weapon reacted by throwing a clenched fist. It connected with the canine's head, but not before the feral creature returned the favor by kicking Nir in the torso. Once more, Nir staggered away, backing into a skyscraper. This ultimately knocked it over, causing the building to slowly fall to the ground. Screaming and shouting from anyone unfortunate enough to be nearby accompanied the sound of the structure collapsing on itself as countless windows were eviscerated. A mix of concrete, refuse, and other debris littered the surrounding roads. During the aftermath, what remained of the skyscraper leaned against another, and several holes were suddenly created within them as Nir dodged several punches and kicks from the berserk hellhound mindlessly flailing at her.

This all served as a diversion for the attack helicopters.

They approached the canine from behind. Within moments, dozens of Hellfire missiles launched in a slurry, unleashing a deadly payload as they pierced the canine's back before detonating. The resulting explosions triggered white phosphorus, which burst into thick, willowing, hot-white clouds within a split second. Fur only served as tinder for the resulting inferno. Consequently, the canine recoiled, and she faced the attack helicopters in a futile attempt to swat them down as they retreated to the skyline.

Like a shark smelling blood in the water, Nir launched another assault. She rapidly approached and kicked the rival kaiju in the leg, causing the canine to yelp before standing on one digitigrade foot. From there, a simple push caused the canine to fall over. Her rear end demolished several smaller structures as she lost her balance, while the flames blanketing her back spread to several nearby buildings. During the fiery aftermath, the canine attempted to grasp for anyone or anything to use as a weapon. She sunk her fingers into the ground, letting her hurl a mix of concrete rubble and crushed vehicles at Nir, much like trying to throw sand in someone's eyes.

Instead, the resulting slurry slid down Nir's throat and muscular torso. It did nothing to stop her as she practically pounced on her prey to resume thrashing the canine with her claws. A series of apartment complexes were torn asunder when one swipe missed, while others were torn from their foundations as the canine tried to frantically crawl away. These struggles ended when Nir planted a clawed foot on the hellhound's scorched back, pinning the rival kaiju in place, and allowing her to gradually put the canine in a headlock.

The typical routine commenced from there…

There was snarling. Growling. The canine revealed her sharp chops before attempting to bite her attacker. In response, Nir took advantage of this situation by grabbing both sides of the hellhound's agape maw…

Then she slowly pulled.

Any growls quickly turned into whimpers as Nir forced the canine's jaw apart. She didn't stop applying force and pressure, making the mouth open at an increasingly abnormal angle, and the hellhound began outright screeching. Tears welled up in the canine's previously fiery eyes. Sickening snaps signaled when her jaw snapped into two pieces, followed by Nir raking her claws across her throat to slit it several times over. Once this was accomplished, Nir released the canine, but the hellhound simply remained frozen in place as body fluids surged from her throat. The broken jaw involuntarily wobbled as life slowly departed from the hellhound's eyes... extinguishing the flames once lingering within them.

"Target terminated." said Nir before taking a few steps back.

The bioweapon took several deep breaths as she looked left to right. The camera followed her gaze, revealing that most of the city was in ruins. Demolished structures, crushed vehicles, and some more repulsive viscera scattered across the streets surrounded Nir in all directions. Overwhelmed emergency services worked in a frenzy during this chaos as ambulances retrieved wounded people that somehow survived among the debris, and fire trucks battled several raging infernos engulfing several sections of the city.

Following a few moments, the video slowly faded away until a black mirror replaced it.

The assembled audience looked on in silence as the spokesman strolled to the front and center of the conference table again. His deep and booming voice also filled the air.

"Thanks to Nir, the local military forces didn't need to resort to weapons of mass destruction to eliminate the kaiju threat. Many lives were saved."

The older man fidgeted with his watch. "But… she clearly caused collateral damage."

"That's inevitable." said the spokesman with a scoff. "Even more lives would have been lost if the feral kaiju wasn't eliminated as fast as possible. If people refrain from getting out of her way when she tells them to, that's their problem."

"Well, I think it's brilliant!" exclaimed the young man with sunglasses as he clapped several times. "Counteract a literal giant bitch by introducing a bigger and badder giant bitch to the ecosystem. You know, like Australia. That could never go wrong!"

At his words, the general clenched his fists. "You're joking, right?"

"Partially." answered the young man with a shrug.

"Because I'm pretty sure what we just saw was the second version of this so-called Nir." The general paused to direct his attention to the spokesman. "Why the hell are you calling it mark one or whatever when we had to put down the previous one with a nuke? I mean… for god's sake, we never even found the body!"

The spokesman smiled and seemingly waved this question away. "Regardless, her name is a simple acronym for Non-conventional Intelligent aRmament."

"...That's Nia." muttered a woman with high heels present.

"Her job is quite simple." continued the spokesman. "As you've seen, she can stop a kaiju by acting as a living weapon of mass destruction. But that's not all! Nir can do a large variety of different jobs since she doesn't leave anything along the lines of chemical or radioactive residue."

The screen behind the spokesman flashed back to life as he resumed speaking.

"This includes fighting against conventional military forces."

For a brief moment, a video played where Nir was wreaking havoc on a tank platoon within a desert. An entire column disappeared underneath one of her feet as she stomped on them, and missiles from aircraft didn't seem to faze her as she strolled among the sands.

"Crowd control." continued the spokesman.

The screen transitioned to showcase Nir crouching down and roaring, horrifying a swarm of rioters as they dropped their weapons and fled in the opposite direction. This didn’t stop Nir from literally putting her foot down, instantly crushing dozens of other protestors like insects, and whatever signs they were once holding became decorated with their insides.

"VIP escort and protection."

Once more, the video abruptly changed. A woman wearing a red dress remained petrified as she leaned against one of Nir's horns, which she was strapped to like a mountain climber.

"Birthday parties."

Terrified human children at the very top of a skyscraper stared at Nir as she stoically watched them while wearing oversized birthday hats on both of her horns.

"And lastly, high-value target elimination."

A human man smoking a cigar sat within his office at the top of a large office tower. He looked to his right, where he saw Nir's crimson red eyes. He nearly fell from his chair. His attempts to scurry away like vermin failed when Nir smashed directly through the windows, then she flattened him and the entire office beneath an open palm. Static replaced the video afterward.

"For the low rate of sixty-million US dollars an hour, you can hire her today!"

Only a few among his audience reeled after seeing and hearing all of this.

"I know that might sound expensive, but keep in mind... a Tomahawk cruise missile costs roughly one and a half million US dollars. Nir can do way more damage in an hour compared to forty of them. She's basically a bargain at that price point!"

The general rolled his eyes. "Yeah, but as I said, what's stopping this version of Nir from going berserk? Like how you lost control over the last one."

"We don't like talking about that..." said the spokesman as he looked away. "Rest assured, the implant that we've provided her can prevent a situation like that from ever happening again. Not to mention enhancing her existing physical capabilities, such as providing protection and communicating with humans effectively."

Without warning, another video began playing behind the spokesman. It featured a more slender version of Nir compared to the more amazonian one. Some key differences included digitigrade feet, white sclera surrounding her red irises, and a complete lack of any metallic implants.

"So fragile…" she said with a sly smile on her face.

A demolished city surrounded her on all sides as she lowered a foot. She took visceral pleasure in watching various things pop, crunch, and snap beneath it. Wiggling her toes only enchanted this effect. She slowly sat down, then used two clawed fingers to pluck a bus away from an adjacent street. After using another claw to pry open the back door, various screams erupted from within it, and she opened her mouth before raising the vehicle above her maw. Shaking the vehicle resulted in people falling from the open door and windows, allowing Nir to softly swallow them like individual grains of rice… up until potential victims stopped falling from it, prompting her to toss the entire bus into her mouth before chewing it up with her sharp fangs.

The previously relaxed spokesman frantically fiddled with his smartphone until the electronic monitor turned off altogether, cutting off the video before it could continue.

"That was just a prototype!" he claimed while others reacted with visible disgust. "I have no idea who put that video in there, but we've taken many other extensive measures besides the implants to stop that sort of situation from occurring again. Consider the new Nir the first official version. With your help, we can create more bioweapons similar to her, alternative versions, or perhaps even new copies altogether!"

The general sneered as he stood up. "This is insane. We don't need to resort to this. I'd rather have a bunch of cruise missiles than her for a few hours."

Alongside him, two others rose from their chairs.

"What a waste of my time." said the man with a platinum watch as he looked at it.

They walked out of the room as the spokesman scratched the back of his head. Despite this, half of his audience remained at the conference table. This included the young man as he lowered his sunglasses and watched people pass by heavily armed bodyguards on their way out.

"I'm game." he said before raising his sunglasses again. "It's risky, but the idea itself isn't bad. Prevent collateral damage by using kaiju against other kaiju, but you gotta break a few eggs to make an omelet and all of that since it's experimental in nature."

"Exactly." said the spokesman with a sigh. "Some don't understand that! Needless to say, someone like Nir requires lots of upkeep, but she can be quite profitable at her current rates." He stopped speaking to pull out his smartphone, which he used to activate the monitor again, and a flowchart appeared similarly to a slide on a PowerPoint presentation. "Ideally, we can have a specialized security team accompanying Nir, proper logistics to feed her on the job, a psychologist to evaluate her mental needs, advertisements… that sort of thing."

From there, the still image changed to another showcasing a diagram of Nir in her entirety.

"Sure…" said the young man, "But what's up with the tattoos on her tail?"

The spokesman looked at the picture, narrowed his eyes, and saw some relatively tiny letters and numbers imprinted into Nir's tail. It had eight digits…

ST3PSUWU

He practically facepalmed at the sight.

"I'm… not sure if that's a joke from one of our scientists working on the project, but we've started embedding our bioweapons with codes to keep track of them. They could be useful if we decide to make multiple copies of Nir, albeit something like that occurring is still up in the air for lack of a better term. We might experiment with new bioweapons depending on whatever proves to be more popular among the public... and of course, profitable."

The young man shrugged. "Whatever. I'm in. I like risky investments!"

"Me too." said the woman with high heels as she crossed her legs.

These words made the spokesman smile in a devious fashion. "Excellent."

And so, the Nir project would only grow from there...

NIR AFTER ACTION REPORT

Version involved: Nir-Mk1

Event: Nir-Mk1’s First Combat Operation

Executive Summary: Nir’s first deployment was an astounding success. Collateral damage was higher than expected, but a feral kaiju that breached the city’s defenses was quickly eliminated. Due to inexperience, Nir struggled, but assistance from accompanying Titan Industry PMCs proved to be instrumental for overcoming her opponent. Nir’s behavior was also stable, albeit emotionless and robotic... a massive improvement compared to the outright devious nature of the previous version. Investors are already making significant contributions to the company in light of our successful demonstration, but they will eventually expect a return on their investment!