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Description
From the Desk of Frank Womack

Kaiju File # 022

Crunchausen

First and Last Seen: Site Eden, Beneath Appalachia
Primary Range: Kaiju Habitation Zone, Papua New Guinea

Dietary Preference: Thermal Energy

Description: Crunchausen is perhaps one of the most straightforward kaiju in terms of body plan that we've yet to behold, built in the vein of the most familiar monster we've ever known, the dinosaur. In truth, its just as much a genetic anomaly as any other, but it's retains the familiar silhouette of a Theropod all the same. Crunchausen is of modest built, neither topping nor bottoming out the ranks of known kaiju in terms of mass, but his hide is craggy and rich with heavy mineralization, as found with most kaiju in Site . The head is thick and well armored, with modest teeth and sharp crystalline tusks on the chin, which can also be found lining the back, the head, the outer edges of each arm and the club at the tail. These crystals are especially unusual as they possess properties of many different known minerals, but also some unique properties like the ability to suppress kaiju radiation.

And with this skillset comes the temperament of a crafty, experienced warrior that's been trained to deal with near to any situation and scenario. Crunchausen's sturdy, sluggish outward appearance deceives, it's exceptionally clever and engages in high level problem solving both in and out of combat. It's even capable of distinguishing between individual humans and has been shown to engage in surprisingly protective behavior towards them if they don't engage in violence. Usually, though, it prefers to be left alone in solitude. And after likely millions of years of having to fight each day, it's not something I blame it for.

Defense Protocols: Crunchausen, after it's discovery, was deemed as non-dangerous and placed very low on the risk charts. That said, as all kaiju have the potential to become a threat to human populations, so it bears to mention what measures can be taken. Crunchausen is primarily a physical fighter, preferring to get up close and personal with enemies, and be it larger or a swarm of smaller enemies, he has a strategy for all of them. For now, however, this does not include modern ballistic munitions fire, which while not fatally harmful, is still something he more often than not can't dodge. Theoretically, one could pepper him with enough munitions to drive him away. But... it would probably only work a few times before he figured out a way around it. All honesty, though, that's a bit optimistic. Most likely it'd just be once.

Noteworthy Abilities:

-Genetic Retention: Crunchausen's purpose, we believe, was to serve as a test dummy/drill sergeant for genetic experiments performed by precursors at Site G, testing their abilities and mutations for whatever cruel purposes they had in mind. Most of the time, it seems he won, but given how long the Site has operated in their absence, most likely it has lost as well, with likely fatal results. As the expeditionary team discovered in the alien facility, Crunchausen's genome was in a constant state of analysis and flux, and when he perished saving Doctor Rosalind McClean from a rockslide, we saw a new, much larger version of him emerge from the lab to do battle with the rapidly mutating Bayronos. And the funny thing was, it remembered the team. The implications here, the thought of this creature living out a constant cycle of fully remembered death and rebirth, is rather... quieting. But it makes Crunchausen a lethal protector all the same, high price or not.

-Nullifying Spines: A unique ability found only in Crunchausen thus far, the kaiju's azure spines can generate an undocumented type of radiation that can nullify the kaiju's greatest weapon at their disposal, the ability to regenerate from wounds. Its unknown what triggers it, only that when it does, a kaiju's wounds will stick, but unfortunately this includes Crunchausen in the equation as well. It forces an ultimatum onto the battle not every opponent wishes for, and often results either in retreat, submission, or death.

AUTHOR'S NOTES: The years following the battle in Amsterdam were relatively peaceful ones. Kaiju attacks dropped in frequency, populations began to rebuild, and the most exciting part, knowledge of Gath technology was beginning to spread. Much like Doctor Okiura, we began to experiment with it, and in just a few years our technology leapt forward in a measure of decades, maybe even centuries. We'd sent a space probe beyond the reaches of the solar system in a measure of seconds through faster than light travel, and there were preparations being made for martian terraforming and even manned missions to the other planets. And that was just astronomy, describing all the advancements in medicine and military technology would take actual days.

But all that said, many still felt there were too many mysteries surrounding the Gath to celebrate their technology without caution. We knew next to nothing about them beyond what was learned in Site Duat, and the fact that they made or at least created the conditions most kaiju hail from spoke volumes about what kind of people they were. It was a complex time, geopolitically speaking. But it turned out plenty of mysteries were going to be solved.

It started when we cracked the system at Site Xibalba, home to the kaiju T'zakka and Doradon . It was barely functional, but it did show an antiquated world map of Oligocene earth, with several other precursor sites showing up alongside this one. Duat in the Sahara, Naraka beneath the Himalayas, Asgard in the Arctic Ocean, Site Ame in Japan... the list goes on. But there were other sites we weren't aware of. Lots of them. And one in particular was glowing brighter than the rest. And it wasn't somewhere a lot of people would call remote or exotic. It was beneath a place millions called home. The Appalachian mountains of North America. Which I suppose makes sense, those mountains are one of the oldest landmarks still standing on earth, they got their start in the Pre-Cambrian and had long since passed their prime even before the dinosaurs came around. Or at least that's what we thought.

UNDER, elevated to a much higher position of power for their actions in the Invasion, had a much higher number of specialists at their disposal than before. They could hardly be considered the same covert global black ops squadron of old, so much so there was talk of even changing the acronym to something a bit more palatable. Commander Horvath insisted it had to 'still be badass' though.

Either way, an expeditionary force was launched to find this undiscovered site. A small team of soldiers and scientists, equipped to deal with any threats they could potentially encounter. There was a solid chance that, unlike other sites full of death and dust, there were active precusors there. And we had no idea what that could lead to.

The descent into the caves, thanks to Gath technology, was surprisingly easy. But what they found was something that would change the world forever. Beneath these ancient, forested peaks ravaged by time and all manner of history, was a massive hollow full of life. A forgotten underground forest, somehow kept alive by artificial light and a deluge of groundwater, with life unlike any documented on earth. There were massive insects, prehistoric species ranging from the Carboniferous all the way to the Pleistocene, and perhaps most exciting, more dinosaurs. And unlike Qinguan , these weren't sustained by kaiju cells, they were fully natural species. Many of the species found, however, were quite obviously mutated. And most were dangerous.

At the very center of the cavern, another precursor base could be found, a massive ivory spire overgrown and relinquished to nature. There were no Gath to be found strutting about, which was slightly disappointing to some of the team. But that's not to say they weren't greeted. The group survived their first day with little incident, but to their surprise, the lighting of the cavern mirrored the natural light above and dimmed with the sunset. And when that happened, they learned that the place was more than just a neglected husk. There were predators that stalked the darkness. Fearsome creatures, skeletal hominids that seemed to never tire and constantly hungered for flesh. Later analysis would show hominid DNA in these creatures, even human. But their attack was ceased by a deafening roar, and the emergence of a creature mankind would all come to know. The kaiju called Crunchausen...

---------------------------------

Well, it's good to be back! More to come!

Description
From the Desk of Frank Womack

Kaiju File # 022

Crunchausen

First and Last Seen: Site Eden, Beneath Appalachia
Primary Range: Kaiju Habitation Zone, Papua New Guinea

Dietary Preference: Thermal Energy

Description: Crunchausen is perhaps one of the most straightforward kaiju in terms of body plan that we've yet to behold, built in the vein of the most familiar monster we've ever known, the dinosaur. In truth, its just as much a genetic anomaly as any other, but it's retains the familiar silhouette of a Theropod all the same. Crunchausen is of modest built, neither topping nor bottoming out the ranks of known kaiju in terms of mass, but his hide is craggy and rich with heavy mineralization, as found with most kaiju in Site . The head is thick and well armored, with modest teeth and sharp crystalline tusks on the chin, which can also be found lining the back, the head, the outer edges of each arm and the club at the tail. These crystals are especially unusual as they possess properties of many different known minerals, but also some unique properties like the ability to suppress kaiju radiation.

And with this skillset comes the temperament of a crafty, experienced warrior that's been trained to deal with near to any situation and scenario. Crunchausen's sturdy, sluggish outward appearance deceives, it's exceptionally clever and engages in high level problem solving both in and out of combat. It's even capable of distinguishing between individual humans and has been shown to engage in surprisingly protective behavior towards them if they don't engage in violence. Usually, though, it prefers to be left alone in solitude. And after likely millions of years of having to fight each day, it's not something I blame it for.

Defense Protocols: Crunchausen, after it's discovery, was deemed as non-dangerous and placed very low on the risk charts. That said, as all kaiju have the potential to become a threat to human populations, so it bears to mention what measures can be taken. Crunchausen is primarily a physical fighter, preferring to get up close and personal with enemies, and be it larger or a swarm of smaller enemies, he has a strategy for all of them. For now, however, this does not include modern ballistic munitions fire, which while not fatally harmful, is still something he more often than not can't dodge. Theoretically, one could pepper him with enough munitions to drive him away. But... it would probably only work a few times before he figured out a way around it. All honesty, though, that's a bit optimistic. Most likely it'd just be once.

Noteworthy Abilities:

-Genetic Retention: Crunchausen's purpose, we believe, was to serve as a test dummy/drill sergeant for genetic experiments performed by precursors at Site G, testing their abilities and mutations for whatever cruel purposes they had in mind. Most of the time, it seems he won, but given how long the Site has operated in their absence, most likely it has lost as well, with likely fatal results. As the expeditionary team discovered in the alien facility, Crunchausen's genome was in a constant state of analysis and flux, and when he perished saving Doctor Rosalind McClean from a rockslide, we saw a new, much larger version of him emerge from the lab to do battle with the rapidly mutating Bayronos. And the funny thing was, it remembered the team. The implications here, the thought of this creature living out a constant cycle of fully remembered death and rebirth, is rather... quieting. But it makes Crunchausen a lethal protector all the same, high price or not.

-Nullifying Spines: A unique ability found only in Crunchausen thus far, the kaiju's azure spines can generate an undocumented type of radiation that can nullify the kaiju's greatest weapon at their disposal, the ability to regenerate from wounds. Its unknown what triggers it, only that when it does, a kaiju's wounds will stick, but unfortunately this includes Crunchausen in the equation as well. It forces an ultimatum onto the battle not every opponent wishes for, and often results either in retreat, submission, or death.

AUTHOR'S NOTES: The years following the battle in Amsterdam were relatively peaceful ones. Kaiju attacks dropped in frequency, populations began to rebuild, and the most exciting part, knowledge of Gath technology was beginning to spread. Much like Doctor Okiura, we began to experiment with it, and in just a few years our technology leapt forward in a measure of decades, maybe even centuries. We'd sent a space probe beyond the reaches of the solar system in a measure of seconds through faster than light travel, and there were preparations being made for martian terraforming and even manned missions to the other planets. And that was just astronomy, describing all the advancements in medicine and military technology would take actual days.

But all that said, many still felt there were too many mysteries surrounding the Gath to celebrate their technology without caution. We knew next to nothing about them beyond what was learned in Site Duat, and the fact that they made or at least created the conditions most kaiju hail from spoke volumes about what kind of people they were. It was a complex time, geopolitically speaking. But it turned out plenty of mysteries were going to be solved.

It started when we cracked the system at Site Xibalba, home to the kaiju T'zakka and Doradon . It was barely functional, but it did show an antiquated world map of Oligocene earth, with several other precursor sites showing up alongside this one. Duat in the Sahara, Naraka beneath the Himalayas, Asgard in the Arctic Ocean, Site Ame in Japan... the list goes on. But there were other sites we weren't aware of. Lots of them. And one in particular was glowing brighter than the rest. And it wasn't somewhere a lot of people would call remote or exotic. It was beneath a place millions called home. The Appalachian mountains of North America. Which I suppose makes sense, those mountains are one of the oldest landmarks still standing on earth, they got their start in the Pre-Cambrian and had long since passed their prime even before the dinosaurs came around. Or at least that's what we thought.

UNDER, elevated to a much higher position of power for their actions in the Invasion, had a much higher number of specialists at their disposal than before. They could hardly be considered the same covert global black ops squadron of old, so much so there was talk of even changing the acronym to something a bit more palatable. Commander Horvath insisted it had to 'still be badass' though.

Either way, an expeditionary force was launched to find this undiscovered site. A small team of soldiers and scientists, equipped to deal with any threats they could potentially encounter. There was a solid chance that, unlike other sites full of death and dust, there were active precusors there. And we had no idea what that could lead to.

The descent into the caves, thanks to Gath technology, was surprisingly easy. But what they found was something that would change the world forever. Beneath these ancient, forested peaks ravaged by time and all manner of history, was a massive hollow full of life. A forgotten underground forest, somehow kept alive by artificial light and a deluge of groundwater, with life unlike any documented on earth. There were massive insects, prehistoric species ranging from the Carboniferous all the way to the Pleistocene, and perhaps most exciting, more dinosaurs. And unlike Qinguan , these weren't sustained by kaiju cells, they were fully natural species. Many of the species found, however, were quite obviously mutated. And most were dangerous.

At the very center of the cavern, another precursor base could be found, a massive ivory spire overgrown and relinquished to nature. There were no Gath to be found strutting about, which was slightly disappointing to some of the team. But that's not to say they weren't greeted. The group survived their first day with little incident, but to their surprise, the lighting of the cavern mirrored the natural light above and dimmed with the sunset. And when that happened, they learned that the place was more than just a neglected husk. There were predators that stalked the darkness. Fearsome creatures, skeletal hominids that seemed to never tire and constantly hungered for flesh. Later analysis would show hominid DNA in these creatures, even human. But their attack was ceased by a deafening roar, and the emergence of a creature mankind would all come to know. The kaiju called Crunchausen...

---------------------------------

Well, it's good to be back! More to come!