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CHAPTER 161 : A New Control System ( PLAT )
🕑 Added 2025-09-25 15:14:32 +0000 UTC"Approval!" The word came through official channels within 48 hours. All the materials and funding from Aidan's comprehensive proposal had been reported accurately up the chain of command, and now they just had to wait for the bureaucratic machinery to process everything. After spending another hour in Thompson's office going over detailed specifications for the Crimson Typhoon modifications, Aidan returned to his laboratory with a sense of genuine anticipation.
The Shatterdome housed six massive Jaeger bays, but only two were currently occupied: Crimson Typhoon and the still-inactive Gipsy Danger. The facility had once been fuller - Japan's "Tacit Ronin" had been stationed here before getting destroyed by the Category-2 Kaiju "Ragnarok" during a support mission, making it the first Jaeger lost in combat. China's "Shaolin Rogue" had met a similar fate against "Onibaba," the first flying Kaiju humanity had encountered.
But now one of those empty bays belonged to Aidan for his experimental work, which felt like having access to a cathedral-sized workshop.
With funding approval still pending, he had time to focus on physical training and the evolutionary equation practices that were steadily improving Ryan's body and brain function. However, his routine was interrupted when the Wei Tang triplets came knocking at his door.
Apparently word had spread about the planned Crimson Typhoon upgrades, and the pilots wanted answers.
When Aidan opened his quarters, he found himself looking at three virtually identical men with serious expressions. "Uh... Cheung Wei, Jin Wei, and Hu Wei," he said, calling out their names while studying their faces. "Sorry, guys, but I still can't tell you apart to save my life."
It was genuinely difficult. All three had short-cropped black hair, similar builds, and were wearing matching red work coveralls that made distinguishing between them nearly impossible.
"No worries. I'm the eldest, Cheung Wei," the man in the middle said, stepping forward with a slight wave. "Mind if we come in?"
"Second brother Jin Wei," the slightly shorter of the three introduced himself as they filed into the cramped quarters.
"And I guess that makes me obvious," the third brother, Hu Wei, said with a shrug.
Aidan closed the door behind them and gestured for them to sit wherever they could find space. As the chief maintenance engineer for their Jaeger, he'd worked closely with the triplets for months, but mostly on technical issues rather than personal conversations.
"You're here about the Crimson Typhoon modifications," Aidan said, getting straight to the point.
"Yeah," Cheung Wei nodded. "We heard you're planning to replace the entire power core. We're wondering how that's gonna affect our ability to pilot the thing."
Aidan considered the question carefully. "It'll definitely have some impact, since changing the power delivery system will alter the Jaeger's response characteristics. But it should only take a few days to adjust to the new feel. And once we switch to nuclear power, you won't have to worry about energy management during combat anymore."
He paused, then added with growing enthusiasm, "I'm also planning to add limited flight capability."
"Flight? Seriously?" Hu Wei leaned forward, his eyes lighting up. The other two brothers showed similar excitement.
"That's the plan, though the final implementation depends on how the modifications go," Aidan replied, trying to manage expectations while sharing their enthusiasm. "But yeah, if everything works out, you won't have to worry about flying Kaiju attacking from unexpected angles."
"That would be incredible," Jin Wei said, clenching his fist. "We've always been vulnerable to aerial attacks."
"But two months isn't very long to adapt to major changes," Cheung Wei pointed out, his expression more cautious than his brothers'. "If we're not fully comfortable with the new systems when the next Kaiju hits..."
The concern was valid, and Aidan realized he'd been so focused on the technical challenges that he hadn't properly considered the human element. The triplets would need time to retrain their muscle memory and neural pathways to work with completely different control systems.
He sat quietly for a moment, thinking through the problem, while the three brothers exchanged worried glances.
"Wait, I've got an idea!" Aidan suddenly looked up with renewed energy. "There's a simulation testing facility here on base, right? What if I program a modified Crimson Typhoon neural link and control system for training purposes?"
The brothers looked intrigued but uncertain.
"I could write the new control software in advance and load it into the sim pods. That way, you can start adapting to the changes while I'm still working on the hardware modifications. Even if the final tech is slightly different from the simulation, the overall learning curve should be much smoother."
The triplets looked at each other with that wordless communication that seemed to exist between siblings who'd spent their entire lives together.
"Simulation tests are usually for screening new pilot candidates," Jin Wei pointed out. "Are we allowed to use them for training?"
"I can handle the authorization," Aidan said confidently. "And think about it - after the modifications are done, you won't just be faster and stronger. You'll be able to engage flying Kaiju on equal terms. Doesn't that sound worth a little extra training time?"
Cheung Wei spread his hands in a gesture of acceptance. "Alright, what do we need to do?"
"Let's head over to the simulation center right now. I want to test the current systems before I start programming the new ones."
The Jaeger simulation facility was located in one of the Shatterdome's technical sections, a room filled with testing pods that looked like high-tech gaming chairs connected to massive computer arrays. Each pod contained a neural interface helmet designed to replicate the mental load of piloting a 250-foot-tall war machine.
The technology was necessary because of the sheer complexity involved in Jaeger operation. The robots were essentially mobile cities full of sensors, weapons systems, hydraulics, and structural components, all of which needed to be monitored and controlled simultaneously. A single human brain couldn't process that much information without suffering severe neurological damage - hence the dual-pilot system and neural bridge technology that allowed two minds to share the load.
The sim pods could approximate that experience safely, though the mental strain was still considerable.
Aidan approached one of the empty testing stations and picked up the neural interface helmet, examining its array of sensors and contact points. "This is what nearly killed Ryan in the first place," he thought grimly, remembering the weeks of simulation abuse that had left the previous occupant of this body exhausted and sick.
But his enhanced brain function and improved physical condition should handle the load much better.
Without waiting for the triplets to object, Aidan settled into the pilot seat and activated the neural interface. The helmet's systems came online with a soft hum, and immediately the world around him shifted.
Instead of the testing facility, he found himself standing in a virtual cockpit surrounded by holographic displays showing tactical information, structural readouts, and targeting data. In front of him, a Category-3 Kaiju with a hammerhead-shaped skull was approaching through simulated urban terrain.
The mental load was significant but manageable - like trying to conduct an orchestra while solving complex math problems. Aidan quickly familiarized himself with the control systems, feeling the virtual Jaeger respond to his thoughts and movements with satisfying precision.
He raised the mech's massive fist and charged toward the simulated monster.
Five minutes later, Aidan removed the helmet with a relaxed expression. The main display screen showed a bright "VICTORY" message along with detailed combat statistics.
The Wei Tang triplets were staring at him with expressions of complete shock. Even experienced Jaeger pilots typically needed fifteen to twenty minutes to complete a simulation kill, and most first-time users couldn't even establish a stable neural connection.
"The new control system should be ready in about two days," Aidan said casually, stepping down from the testing platform and heading toward the main computer terminal to begin programming modifications. "I'll catch up with you guys later."
The three brothers remained frozen in place, mouths slightly open, trying to process what they'd just witnessed. Finally, Cheung Wei found his voice.
"Ryan... how did you do that?"
But Aidan was already deep in conversation with the facility's computer systems, his fingers flying over holographic interfaces as he began coding the neural patterns and control algorithms that would prepare the triplets for their upgraded Jaeger.
"Just natural talent, I guess," he called back without looking up from his work.
Behind him, the three most experienced Jaeger pilots in the facility exchanged looks that suggested they weren't entirely convinced by that explanation.
But as long as the modifications worked and helped them protect humanity from the Kaiju threat, they were willing to accept a little mystery from their enigmatic maintenance engineer.
