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Description
Global Anomaly Response Assault INtelligence Department (G.A.R.A.N.D.)

File # 17: Stormback

Classification: Kaiju (Leviathan Class)

Abilities: (Cont.)

-Nigh Invulnerable: Most kaiju have an extremely lofty tolerance for pain, at the very least. Many even possess the trademark thick skin that the typical ordnance can't do jack against. But Stormback, Stormback is in a class of its own. I've seen militaries the world over, both public and private, throw everything against it. And what has that done? Just a little shy of zilch. I've seen it bleed almost a dozen times since it's first emergence, but more than three quarters of these were triggered by other kaiju, not humankind. Its heavy armor plating and thick skin, coupled with its regeneration factor (see below) prove a deadly mix for this walking dreadnought.

-Kaiju Senses: An ability long theorized and only recently proven, Stormback possesses something all kaiju, and seemingly most freaks of what we used to call nature, have, the ability to sense the general location of another like itself. This seems to be confined to this planet, as the alien kaiju we've encountered existed before arriving and were not sensed (as far as I can see) until they touched down. This is likely due to the magnetic nature of our atmosphere, but not enough is known to say for sure. This sure comes in handy when shit's going down, though.

-Magnetic Distortion: An ability thus far only Stormback has shown to possess among the kaiju, and possibly its deadliest. Its body functions like an enormous electromagnet, attracting energy from the atmosphere around it in a grand, violent display of hurricane force winds and near consant lightning. It made early tracking of the creature easy, at least, but it sure could cause collateral damage. More than that, it made military engagements almost impossible to organize. Any computerized system would become garbled when in proximity, and even heavier weapons like A.T.L.A.S. could not get clear shots. This ability has seemingly been neutralized since the initial Electre outbreak, but I know better than to assume anything with these giants.

-Particle Blasts: Without doubt the most iconic weapon in its repertoire, Stormback possesses the ability to orally launch massive torrents of ionized particles at whatever it wishes. This blast is bright, beautiful, and exceedingly deadly, and was the first real evidence we had to showcase the kaiju as more than simple biological anomalies. Fortunately, we have a warning for when this happens, but it isn't much. The small blue spheres on its body begin to shine brighter before a blast is loosed, giving any operatives a few precious seconds to seek shelter. It isn't always enough, but its better than nothing. It seems to only have a limited number it can use at a time, and often will disappear under the sea to recharge after an engagement. The exact parameters of this attack are little understood and likely will be for some time.

-Enhanced Regeneration: A typical element of a kaiju, Stormback too possesses the seemingly impossible cellular regeneration levels these titans possess. Though Stormback's armored hide makes injury a rarity, when wounds are achieved they are rarely open for more than a few hours as the monster's cells begin to rebuild. This system is not perfect, but anything from small cuts and scrapes to decapitation can be healed. More awkward ailments, such as dislocation and larger bone breaks, heal much more awkwardly, often leading to a gnarled, disfigured appearance. This is not the greatest danger this ability poses, though. (see Entry # 18: Globbing)

Exposure Level: Known Globally

Danger Level: Catastrophic

Countermeasures: Stormback's emergence is typically regarded as the crossing of an important threshold for human assault measures to be taken. The typical fare won't cut it, to put it bluntly, and the big guns needs to be sent out. S.P.O.O.Ks, the recent ArdenTech brainchild, can make a dent, but they aren't mobile enough to counter the beast's particle breath. The A.T.L.A.S. has proven barely effective, and therefore the only real option is to launch out mechs, more than one if possible. GEORGE has proven to be the most effective when it comes to giving it pause, but TOGOR has proven its mettle against it as well. Outside of that possibility, the only real option is to send out any Scorpio teams that can be mustered. Specifically the snipers, as they can shoot the eyes, one of the few places the creature genuinely seems to immediately react to. Often enough though, this will only succeed in pissing it off.

Suffice to say, this one does not go down easily, if its many years of continued survival are any indication.

History: Stormback, the first kaiju to emerge in the modern day, made a big entrance when it first came ashore on the North American Eastern Seaboard on the 20th of February, 2020. It had been awake for at least two weeks preceding this, believed to have first emerged from deep underneath the Mediterranean Sea. Its inherent magnetic abilities wreaked havoc on the atmosphere, throwing off temperatures and generating what many news programs called 'The Storm of the Century.' Its initial inland march lasted for days, throwing much of the eastern united states into turmoil of many kinds. It was finally stopped in Saint Louis, when a lucky shot to the creature's eye (See Personnel File: Paul Gregory) caused it to stumble into the Mississippi river, where it retreated south into the Gulf of Mexico and disappeared for another three years.

Since then we've only just gotten a little bit better at fighting it off. Ancestor Mechs have proven helpful but without the 'aid' of other kaiju we may not have survived this long at all. By the time it emerged again, battling the kaiju Tarshish, we had experienced two other kaiju outbreaks and were more eager to try something new. We managed, for the first and last time, to trap the creature, burying it in a glacier, but this too didn't last. The Electre broke it out in order to wreak further havoc on the world. Fortunately for us, Stormback recognized the greater threat in the ancient intelligence, and joined the rough alliance in bringing it down, which went against expectations to say the least. Since then, relations have been less... heated, but we still aren't exactly friends with the beast.

The current focus of my department is to determine the exact origin of this creature, and other kaiju like it, and what we've found is [WARNING: Information Classified under order of United Nations Defense Council until potential ramifications are prepared for.]

---

Like riding a bike, eh?

I am very pleased to say I've managed to do something I haven't worked up to in almost two years, I've pumped out a finished kaiju file, fully realized and colored and everything. You guys have known about this one since last year, at the very least, but still I'll say a few words for those who may be seeing this big guy for the first time. This is Stormback, a monster I made last year for a novel that's since been moved back into re-development. I've changed a lot of things about my kaiju story ideas in the past couple years, but Stormback has, thankfully, stayed much the same, so it seemed fitting to keep it front and center for this new effort. Though this IS the first time I've colored the creature, and thankfully she turned out alright with what I pictured in my head, and didn't look too much like DPrus' Angelus.

All I can say is I'm surprised my photoshop skills aren't rustier. This came together surprisingly well, all things considered.

As for creative origins, which I've never really gone into, Stormback is, in many ways, two of my former main kaiju combined. I took elements of Sernak, who was a neat idea but really fit into too much of a niche world, and Giganuuk, who was more solid as a kaiju but lacked anything organic about its design, and put them together to make this guy, and since then its hardly changed at all, just the story around it has shifted and become something more refined. The monster's name came to me at work one day when my boss came over to warn us about an approaching stormfront. I'd been thinking about kaiju stuff a lot that day, specifically about an underground kaiju resistance force called Underfoot, (which won't be in this story as far as I can tell) and that got me thinking about similar words. Stormback popped into my head in that brainstorming session, and its never really left.

Anyway, I hope you guys like it, I'm planning on getting more active on here again and this is my real, official start at that.

Oh, and in case you didn't know, I've uploaded this to my Tumblr as well. jthevagrant.tumblr.com/

Description
Global Anomaly Response Assault INtelligence Department (G.A.R.A.N.D.)

File # 17: Stormback

Classification: Kaiju (Leviathan Class)

Abilities: (Cont.)

-Nigh Invulnerable: Most kaiju have an extremely lofty tolerance for pain, at the very least. Many even possess the trademark thick skin that the typical ordnance can't do jack against. But Stormback, Stormback is in a class of its own. I've seen militaries the world over, both public and private, throw everything against it. And what has that done? Just a little shy of zilch. I've seen it bleed almost a dozen times since it's first emergence, but more than three quarters of these were triggered by other kaiju, not humankind. Its heavy armor plating and thick skin, coupled with its regeneration factor (see below) prove a deadly mix for this walking dreadnought.

-Kaiju Senses: An ability long theorized and only recently proven, Stormback possesses something all kaiju, and seemingly most freaks of what we used to call nature, have, the ability to sense the general location of another like itself. This seems to be confined to this planet, as the alien kaiju we've encountered existed before arriving and were not sensed (as far as I can see) until they touched down. This is likely due to the magnetic nature of our atmosphere, but not enough is known to say for sure. This sure comes in handy when shit's going down, though.

-Magnetic Distortion: An ability thus far only Stormback has shown to possess among the kaiju, and possibly its deadliest. Its body functions like an enormous electromagnet, attracting energy from the atmosphere around it in a grand, violent display of hurricane force winds and near consant lightning. It made early tracking of the creature easy, at least, but it sure could cause collateral damage. More than that, it made military engagements almost impossible to organize. Any computerized system would become garbled when in proximity, and even heavier weapons like A.T.L.A.S. could not get clear shots. This ability has seemingly been neutralized since the initial Electre outbreak, but I know better than to assume anything with these giants.

-Particle Blasts: Without doubt the most iconic weapon in its repertoire, Stormback possesses the ability to orally launch massive torrents of ionized particles at whatever it wishes. This blast is bright, beautiful, and exceedingly deadly, and was the first real evidence we had to showcase the kaiju as more than simple biological anomalies. Fortunately, we have a warning for when this happens, but it isn't much. The small blue spheres on its body begin to shine brighter before a blast is loosed, giving any operatives a few precious seconds to seek shelter. It isn't always enough, but its better than nothing. It seems to only have a limited number it can use at a time, and often will disappear under the sea to recharge after an engagement. The exact parameters of this attack are little understood and likely will be for some time.

-Enhanced Regeneration: A typical element of a kaiju, Stormback too possesses the seemingly impossible cellular regeneration levels these titans possess. Though Stormback's armored hide makes injury a rarity, when wounds are achieved they are rarely open for more than a few hours as the monster's cells begin to rebuild. This system is not perfect, but anything from small cuts and scrapes to decapitation can be healed. More awkward ailments, such as dislocation and larger bone breaks, heal much more awkwardly, often leading to a gnarled, disfigured appearance. This is not the greatest danger this ability poses, though. (see Entry # 18: Globbing)

Exposure Level: Known Globally

Danger Level: Catastrophic

Countermeasures: Stormback's emergence is typically regarded as the crossing of an important threshold for human assault measures to be taken. The typical fare won't cut it, to put it bluntly, and the big guns needs to be sent out. S.P.O.O.Ks, the recent ArdenTech brainchild, can make a dent, but they aren't mobile enough to counter the beast's particle breath. The A.T.L.A.S. has proven barely effective, and therefore the only real option is to launch out mechs, more than one if possible. GEORGE has proven to be the most effective when it comes to giving it pause, but TOGOR has proven its mettle against it as well. Outside of that possibility, the only real option is to send out any Scorpio teams that can be mustered. Specifically the snipers, as they can shoot the eyes, one of the few places the creature genuinely seems to immediately react to. Often enough though, this will only succeed in pissing it off.

Suffice to say, this one does not go down easily, if its many years of continued survival are any indication.

History: Stormback, the first kaiju to emerge in the modern day, made a big entrance when it first came ashore on the North American Eastern Seaboard on the 20th of February, 2020. It had been awake for at least two weeks preceding this, believed to have first emerged from deep underneath the Mediterranean Sea. Its inherent magnetic abilities wreaked havoc on the atmosphere, throwing off temperatures and generating what many news programs called 'The Storm of the Century.' Its initial inland march lasted for days, throwing much of the eastern united states into turmoil of many kinds. It was finally stopped in Saint Louis, when a lucky shot to the creature's eye (See Personnel File: Paul Gregory) caused it to stumble into the Mississippi river, where it retreated south into the Gulf of Mexico and disappeared for another three years.

Since then we've only just gotten a little bit better at fighting it off. Ancestor Mechs have proven helpful but without the 'aid' of other kaiju we may not have survived this long at all. By the time it emerged again, battling the kaiju Tarshish, we had experienced two other kaiju outbreaks and were more eager to try something new. We managed, for the first and last time, to trap the creature, burying it in a glacier, but this too didn't last. The Electre broke it out in order to wreak further havoc on the world. Fortunately for us, Stormback recognized the greater threat in the ancient intelligence, and joined the rough alliance in bringing it down, which went against expectations to say the least. Since then, relations have been less... heated, but we still aren't exactly friends with the beast.

The current focus of my department is to determine the exact origin of this creature, and other kaiju like it, and what we've found is [WARNING: Information Classified under order of United Nations Defense Council until potential ramifications are prepared for.]

---

Like riding a bike, eh?

I am very pleased to say I've managed to do something I haven't worked up to in almost two years, I've pumped out a finished kaiju file, fully realized and colored and everything. You guys have known about this one since last year, at the very least, but still I'll say a few words for those who may be seeing this big guy for the first time. This is Stormback, a monster I made last year for a novel that's since been moved back into re-development. I've changed a lot of things about my kaiju story ideas in the past couple years, but Stormback has, thankfully, stayed much the same, so it seemed fitting to keep it front and center for this new effort. Though this IS the first time I've colored the creature, and thankfully she turned out alright with what I pictured in my head, and didn't look too much like DPrus' Angelus.

All I can say is I'm surprised my photoshop skills aren't rustier. This came together surprisingly well, all things considered.

As for creative origins, which I've never really gone into, Stormback is, in many ways, two of my former main kaiju combined. I took elements of Sernak, who was a neat idea but really fit into too much of a niche world, and Giganuuk, who was more solid as a kaiju but lacked anything organic about its design, and put them together to make this guy, and since then its hardly changed at all, just the story around it has shifted and become something more refined. The monster's name came to me at work one day when my boss came over to warn us about an approaching stormfront. I'd been thinking about kaiju stuff a lot that day, specifically about an underground kaiju resistance force called Underfoot, (which won't be in this story as far as I can tell) and that got me thinking about similar words. Stormback popped into my head in that brainstorming session, and its never really left.

Anyway, I hope you guys like it, I'm planning on getting more active on here again and this is my real, official start at that.

Oh, and in case you didn't know, I've uploaded this to my Tumblr as well. jthevagrant.tumblr.com/