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Description
From the Files of Frank Womack, Kaiju Expert*

MECHA File # 001

UNUK (formerly Negaphopis)

First Seen: Site Duat, Sahara Desert
Last Seen: Site Duat, Sahara Desert

Primary Range: Site Duat, Sahara Desert

Dietary Preference: Unknown

Description: The first of many identified Precursor Mechanoids, Unuk conforms to a highly serpentine, mostly featureless body plan, with a black, glossy outer hull believed to be made from a single mold. Its body, like all precursor models, is composed of unknown, nigh indestructible materials, only unlike most of the piloted mecha, who have a milky, off-white color, Unuk's shell is dark and lacks the capacity for a pilot, instead it is controlled by rudimentary AI commands. Its body is seamless in appearance, but when its coils stretch beyond certain angles, seams of bright purple energy radiate through previously invisible cracks. But what is most interesting is that Unuk's head is capable of splitting into three separate smaller ones, each on their own partitioned, fully independent neck. When connected, they can emit a purple energy shield around its vulnerable central control hub at the base of its necks. This field of energy, whether by design or accident, resembles the iconic hood of a cobra, and it is believed that this automaton is what inspired many ancient serpentine creatures in Mediterranean myths.

Automatous by nature, Unuk seems to exist solely as a threshold guardian of the Precursor ruin Site Duat. Encounters with it have been few in number due to the remote location of said site, but satellite surveillance has been steadily monitoring the area for years, and funny enough, it only seems to appear in highly specific circumstances. Humans passing by the site, even entering its depths, are ignored, but if they attempt to loot the area of the ancient technology, its wrath is swift and without mercy. Honestly, its a little disappointing. If we're going to have ancient giant machines, I would at least have made them able to think and feel for themselves.

Defense Protocols: Unuk is one of the few Precursor relics actually meriting a defense briefing, and as such is apparent that a few core points be covered before we get into specifics. One, the polymers composing a precursor mechanoid are nearly impervious to damage from conventional weapons. Even physical attacks from most kaiju are only capable of doing so much. This means that should Unuk appear in a hostile manner in an urban area, the best one can hope to do it hammer it hard enough to provide a distraction until people can evacuate. Secondly, the mechanoids do not show up on most conventional means of detection. There is little to no warning if one appears, and it is important that people living close to its initial territory be prepared to flee at any time. Jury rigged detectors UNDER procured from Site Xibalba are currently under study, with hopes of providing a means for mass detection of the mechanoid's energy signature long before it should arrive. Thirdly, these machines possess access to energy weapons that we are centuries away from even coming close to, and the damage they can inflict can wipe out entire population centers with no time to prepare.

But, Unuk can be pacified very quickly, provided you have access to one of the devices from Site Xibalba. If it has appeared out of its designated territory, then it means, with no margin of error, that an object was taken from the precursor facility, and should the object be returned or offered to the serpent, it will drop its aggression instantly and return home. That said, it is extremely dangerous and as of yet we have no way to stop it. There are those in the upper tiers of OVER who have speculated using Rigel to attack it and see if that would work, but honestly that amounts to a wasted life for nothing but a guess.

Noteworthy Armaments:

-Pitch Blast: An ability unique to Unuk, and one of the stronger energy weapons known among kaiju-sized organisms or otherwise, the mechanical serpent is able to generate an enormous blob of energy so dark no light reflects from it inside of its energy coil. When sufficiently charged, the heads partially split into a large focusing lens and release the energy in a focused dark beam, which is can use to level entire skylines in one go. This beam rarely lasts more than 4 seconds, but the damages caused can be astronomical.

-Energy Shield: An iconic ability shared by most of the precursor mechs, Unuk is able to generate a powerful shield to defend its body from outside forces. Unuk's mostly is used to protect its energy core, but a more broad one can be erected in front of it as a wall. This barrier can resist attacks from kaiju as powerful as Stormback and can deflect most of the force from a SOL assault.

-Violet Saws: The purple seams running down Unuk's length serve a deadly purpose in close combat with kaijuforms. It has been observed coiling around their bodies and using these seams to emit focused streams of energy, lacerating their bodies and increasing the strength of its grip simultaneously. When used, most kaiju will experience severe skeletal damage, permanently disfiguring them into more misshapen, monstrous forms.

-AI Controlled Tail Orb: The most unusual and difficult to deal with of Unuk's weapons, the tip of its tail is tethered by unknown means to a single violet orb of energy, which appears to have a mind of its own. If ganged up on by multiple monsters, such as Grorn's Midgard Form or a Syyd Germinator, the tail orb can launch itself out with shattering force, and should the battle become more intense, the orb can shape itself into multiple weapon types.

AUTHOR'S NOTES: It all started when an unusually powerful thunderstorm trudged its way across the Sahara desert. No one was sure how it started or sustained itself, in fact meteorologists mostly threw up their arms in disbelief the entire time, but for weeks, one of the driest places on earth was positively bombarded with rainfall. Looking back and knowing what I know, I have a few theories about that storm, but I'll cover that later. The important part is that as the storm cleared, OVER satellites discovered something remarkable that the rains had exposed. Jutting out from the bone-white sands was a sort of inverted, upside-down pyramid, purely black in coloration and bearing architectural similarities to Site Xibalba too great to ignore. But, unlike Xibalba, which was hidden under the Andes, this one was visible for the world to see, and the cat was officially taken out of the bag about that subject.

World authorities grasped at any connection they could, but it would be years before we really discovered the purpose of such places. Not for lack of trying, though.

Enter one of my personal heroes and one of my few childhood crushes, Doctor Hannah Cathcart. An archaeologist known for bringing light to many fringe theories, her discoveries were a big part of my nascent years, and upon the discovery of the monolith, she volunteered her services to see exactly what sort of place it was. A team of caravaneers, scientists and soldiers were assembled by OVER and sent out, and though what they found inside is classified even to my prying eyes (my sources in UNDER don't have much clearance in their sister organization) what happened AFTER the initial dig was most interesting, and moderately terrifying.

A single artifact was removed, a perfectly seamless, angular white tablet that 3 of the 19 team members swore they could see bright blue writing on. It was taken to an OVER facility northwards on the Algerian coast, where it was going to be studied at length. The chance never came, however. The OVER facility was a pile of rubble the next morning. Without warning, an enormous serpentine form burst out of the earth, slicing through millions of dollars of high grade infrastructure like it was wet paper. What footage of the attack that has been released was mostly done by nearby civilians, and let me tell you, it is awe-inspiring. I've seen some powerful monsters, some more powerful than this one I'm sure, but the precision, the calculated quality this mechanical snake had in its blows, it was almost a religious experience for me.

Doctor Cathcart survived the attack, and joined up with UNDER's precursor studies department shortly thereafter. When I last spoke with her, she told me that the serpent had only come to retrieve the tablet, and that her realizing that was the only reason she was still alive. She had attempted to flee by helicopter as the base went down, but as soon as she left the property, the snake dropped its assault and pursued them several miles like a great black river. It struck down the chopper with a surgical blow from its tail, crashing into the sand, but it was temporarily distracted by an OVER amphibious assault craft, a Kelpie, I think they call it. One shot of its Pitch Blast made short work of the weapons platform, and that was when she realized it wasn't trying to kill her outright. It chose to bring the chopper down with a light attack from its tail blade, not the enormous beam of energy, which would have been much easier. Unsure what would happen but eager to end the loss of life, she relinquished the tablet, placing it down on the sand. At once, the serpent stopped, edged so close to her she could see her reflection in its coils, and it disappeared under the sand, the tablet secure in its maw. Whatever is on that device was worth a lot of power to protect, I'll tell you that much.

And so ended our first encounter with the precursor's parting gift to mankind. It was far from the last, or the most personal, but it made a distinct impression on the people up top. All the better, if not for that attack the abuses we potentially could have unleashed would have been legion. You see, in a very short time we would accidentally stumble onto the greatest of the ancient places, Site Naraka, and the treasures there, for better or worse, were unguarded.

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

*These files are in no way representative of nor indicating the opinions and/or facts concerning various government bureaus, including but not limited to: The United Nations, UNDER, etc. These are unofficial productions by a private citizen determined to aid the concerned public in the event of a kaiju or extraterrestrial incursion and are in no way to be considered authoritative reports on the aforementioned dangers.

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

Hello again! Our next file is a bit of a different one from its predecessors, but its no less important to the progression of the Fathom narrative. Meet the first of many mechanical beings left behind on earth by ancient forces of unknown origin.

Unuk is a design many of you, or at least those who have followed me for a while, might recognize. This creature dates back to 2011, an antagonistic mechanical enemy that would battled Grorn in a prior kaiju story. Its name, corny and edgy as it may sound, was Negaphopis, and yes, I thought it was cool back then, sue me.

I brought it back after realizing how well it fit into my plans for the precursors, who you will be hearing more about soon. For now, I hope you enjoy the design and the mysteries the story brings. Drop a comment if you like.

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

UPDATED WITH NEW ART! THE OLD ART WILL BE PLACED IN SCRAPS EVENTUALLY!

Description
From the Files of Frank Womack, Kaiju Expert*

MECHA File # 001

UNUK (formerly Negaphopis)

First Seen: Site Duat, Sahara Desert
Last Seen: Site Duat, Sahara Desert

Primary Range: Site Duat, Sahara Desert

Dietary Preference: Unknown

Description: The first of many identified Precursor Mechanoids, Unuk conforms to a highly serpentine, mostly featureless body plan, with a black, glossy outer hull believed to be made from a single mold. Its body, like all precursor models, is composed of unknown, nigh indestructible materials, only unlike most of the piloted mecha, who have a milky, off-white color, Unuk's shell is dark and lacks the capacity for a pilot, instead it is controlled by rudimentary AI commands. Its body is seamless in appearance, but when its coils stretch beyond certain angles, seams of bright purple energy radiate through previously invisible cracks. But what is most interesting is that Unuk's head is capable of splitting into three separate smaller ones, each on their own partitioned, fully independent neck. When connected, they can emit a purple energy shield around its vulnerable central control hub at the base of its necks. This field of energy, whether by design or accident, resembles the iconic hood of a cobra, and it is believed that this automaton is what inspired many ancient serpentine creatures in Mediterranean myths.

Automatous by nature, Unuk seems to exist solely as a threshold guardian of the Precursor ruin Site Duat. Encounters with it have been few in number due to the remote location of said site, but satellite surveillance has been steadily monitoring the area for years, and funny enough, it only seems to appear in highly specific circumstances. Humans passing by the site, even entering its depths, are ignored, but if they attempt to loot the area of the ancient technology, its wrath is swift and without mercy. Honestly, its a little disappointing. If we're going to have ancient giant machines, I would at least have made them able to think and feel for themselves.

Defense Protocols: Unuk is one of the few Precursor relics actually meriting a defense briefing, and as such is apparent that a few core points be covered before we get into specifics. One, the polymers composing a precursor mechanoid are nearly impervious to damage from conventional weapons. Even physical attacks from most kaiju are only capable of doing so much. This means that should Unuk appear in a hostile manner in an urban area, the best one can hope to do it hammer it hard enough to provide a distraction until people can evacuate. Secondly, the mechanoids do not show up on most conventional means of detection. There is little to no warning if one appears, and it is important that people living close to its initial territory be prepared to flee at any time. Jury rigged detectors UNDER procured from Site Xibalba are currently under study, with hopes of providing a means for mass detection of the mechanoid's energy signature long before it should arrive. Thirdly, these machines possess access to energy weapons that we are centuries away from even coming close to, and the damage they can inflict can wipe out entire population centers with no time to prepare.

But, Unuk can be pacified very quickly, provided you have access to one of the devices from Site Xibalba. If it has appeared out of its designated territory, then it means, with no margin of error, that an object was taken from the precursor facility, and should the object be returned or offered to the serpent, it will drop its aggression instantly and return home. That said, it is extremely dangerous and as of yet we have no way to stop it. There are those in the upper tiers of OVER who have speculated using Rigel to attack it and see if that would work, but honestly that amounts to a wasted life for nothing but a guess.

Noteworthy Armaments:

-Pitch Blast: An ability unique to Unuk, and one of the stronger energy weapons known among kaiju-sized organisms or otherwise, the mechanical serpent is able to generate an enormous blob of energy so dark no light reflects from it inside of its energy coil. When sufficiently charged, the heads partially split into a large focusing lens and release the energy in a focused dark beam, which is can use to level entire skylines in one go. This beam rarely lasts more than 4 seconds, but the damages caused can be astronomical.

-Energy Shield: An iconic ability shared by most of the precursor mechs, Unuk is able to generate a powerful shield to defend its body from outside forces. Unuk's mostly is used to protect its energy core, but a more broad one can be erected in front of it as a wall. This barrier can resist attacks from kaiju as powerful as Stormback and can deflect most of the force from a SOL assault.

-Violet Saws: The purple seams running down Unuk's length serve a deadly purpose in close combat with kaijuforms. It has been observed coiling around their bodies and using these seams to emit focused streams of energy, lacerating their bodies and increasing the strength of its grip simultaneously. When used, most kaiju will experience severe skeletal damage, permanently disfiguring them into more misshapen, monstrous forms.

-AI Controlled Tail Orb: The most unusual and difficult to deal with of Unuk's weapons, the tip of its tail is tethered by unknown means to a single violet orb of energy, which appears to have a mind of its own. If ganged up on by multiple monsters, such as Grorn's Midgard Form or a Syyd Germinator, the tail orb can launch itself out with shattering force, and should the battle become more intense, the orb can shape itself into multiple weapon types.

AUTHOR'S NOTES: It all started when an unusually powerful thunderstorm trudged its way across the Sahara desert. No one was sure how it started or sustained itself, in fact meteorologists mostly threw up their arms in disbelief the entire time, but for weeks, one of the driest places on earth was positively bombarded with rainfall. Looking back and knowing what I know, I have a few theories about that storm, but I'll cover that later. The important part is that as the storm cleared, OVER satellites discovered something remarkable that the rains had exposed. Jutting out from the bone-white sands was a sort of inverted, upside-down pyramid, purely black in coloration and bearing architectural similarities to Site Xibalba too great to ignore. But, unlike Xibalba, which was hidden under the Andes, this one was visible for the world to see, and the cat was officially taken out of the bag about that subject.

World authorities grasped at any connection they could, but it would be years before we really discovered the purpose of such places. Not for lack of trying, though.

Enter one of my personal heroes and one of my few childhood crushes, Doctor Hannah Cathcart. An archaeologist known for bringing light to many fringe theories, her discoveries were a big part of my nascent years, and upon the discovery of the monolith, she volunteered her services to see exactly what sort of place it was. A team of caravaneers, scientists and soldiers were assembled by OVER and sent out, and though what they found inside is classified even to my prying eyes (my sources in UNDER don't have much clearance in their sister organization) what happened AFTER the initial dig was most interesting, and moderately terrifying.

A single artifact was removed, a perfectly seamless, angular white tablet that 3 of the 19 team members swore they could see bright blue writing on. It was taken to an OVER facility northwards on the Algerian coast, where it was going to be studied at length. The chance never came, however. The OVER facility was a pile of rubble the next morning. Without warning, an enormous serpentine form burst out of the earth, slicing through millions of dollars of high grade infrastructure like it was wet paper. What footage of the attack that has been released was mostly done by nearby civilians, and let me tell you, it is awe-inspiring. I've seen some powerful monsters, some more powerful than this one I'm sure, but the precision, the calculated quality this mechanical snake had in its blows, it was almost a religious experience for me.

Doctor Cathcart survived the attack, and joined up with UNDER's precursor studies department shortly thereafter. When I last spoke with her, she told me that the serpent had only come to retrieve the tablet, and that her realizing that was the only reason she was still alive. She had attempted to flee by helicopter as the base went down, but as soon as she left the property, the snake dropped its assault and pursued them several miles like a great black river. It struck down the chopper with a surgical blow from its tail, crashing into the sand, but it was temporarily distracted by an OVER amphibious assault craft, a Kelpie, I think they call it. One shot of its Pitch Blast made short work of the weapons platform, and that was when she realized it wasn't trying to kill her outright. It chose to bring the chopper down with a light attack from its tail blade, not the enormous beam of energy, which would have been much easier. Unsure what would happen but eager to end the loss of life, she relinquished the tablet, placing it down on the sand. At once, the serpent stopped, edged so close to her she could see her reflection in its coils, and it disappeared under the sand, the tablet secure in its maw. Whatever is on that device was worth a lot of power to protect, I'll tell you that much.

And so ended our first encounter with the precursor's parting gift to mankind. It was far from the last, or the most personal, but it made a distinct impression on the people up top. All the better, if not for that attack the abuses we potentially could have unleashed would have been legion. You see, in a very short time we would accidentally stumble onto the greatest of the ancient places, Site Naraka, and the treasures there, for better or worse, were unguarded.

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

*These files are in no way representative of nor indicating the opinions and/or facts concerning various government bureaus, including but not limited to: The United Nations, UNDER, etc. These are unofficial productions by a private citizen determined to aid the concerned public in the event of a kaiju or extraterrestrial incursion and are in no way to be considered authoritative reports on the aforementioned dangers.

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

Hello again! Our next file is a bit of a different one from its predecessors, but its no less important to the progression of the Fathom narrative. Meet the first of many mechanical beings left behind on earth by ancient forces of unknown origin.

Unuk is a design many of you, or at least those who have followed me for a while, might recognize. This creature dates back to 2011, an antagonistic mechanical enemy that would battled Grorn in a prior kaiju story. Its name, corny and edgy as it may sound, was Negaphopis, and yes, I thought it was cool back then, sue me.

I brought it back after realizing how well it fit into my plans for the precursors, who you will be hearing more about soon. For now, I hope you enjoy the design and the mysteries the story brings. Drop a comment if you like.

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

UPDATED WITH NEW ART! THE OLD ART WILL BE PLACED IN SCRAPS EVENTUALLY!