The Prisoners’ Dilemma (5310 words) by Avelera
Chapters: 1/?
Fandom: Pacific Rim (Movies)
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Relationships: Newton Geiszler/Hermann Gottlieb
Characters: Newton Geiszler, Hermann Gottlieb, Precursors (Pacific Rim), Alice the Kaiju Brain (Pacific Rim)
Additional Tags: Kidnapping, Imprisonment, Mind Control, Possession, Past Relationship(s), Precursor Emissary Newton Geiszler, Implied/Referenced Alcohol Abuse/Alcoholism, Alternate Universe – Canon Divergence, Broken Engagement, Hacking, Engineering, Chains, Angst, Hurt/Comfort, Dark, POV Hermann Gottlieb, BAMF Hermann Gottlieb, Worried Hermann Gottlieb, The Drift (Pacific Rim), Drift Side Effects, Ghost Drifting, Science, Explicit Language, Explicit Sexual Content, Blackmail, Hostage Situations, Pining, Mutual Pining, Love, Romance, Fluff, Domestic, Domestic Fluff, Other Additional Tags to Be Added, Rescue
Summary:
One year after Newt abandoned Hermann to work for Shao Industries, Hermann decides to confront his ex-fiancé. Not with any intention of trying to win Newton back, of course, but only to gain some kind of closure, some answers for why he vanished so suddenly and avoided even speaking to Hermann ever since.
Except when Hermann confronts Newt in his home, he learns that Newt is under the control of the Precursors, and that they have every intention of killing Hermann to keep their secret. Newt strikes a desperate bargain to save Hermann’s life, which the Precursors accept with the condition of Newt’s good behavior, and that Hermann can never be allowed free again.
Now a prisoner, it is up to Hermann to try to free them both, while keeping the secret of his plan to do so from the man who knows him best in the world.
—-
Woo it’s finally up! You may know this story as my “Kidnapping AU” and have already seen the alert, but I wanted to get back into the flow of the chapter headers. Story should be clear from the summary, but in essence this story is canon divergence that asks the question: What if Hermann had confronted Newt about his disappearance waaaay back in Year 2 of the possession? The answer: not what Hermann was expecting.
Hermann becomes the Precursor’s hostage, his safety held against Newt to make him work harder for their plan, while Hermann tries to figure out a way to free them both without being caught (and killed) in the process. Also, whoops, Newt is a direct (unwilling) conduit to the Precursors and knows Hermann better than anyone. But amidst all the darkness and fear, Hermann wouldn’t have it any other way, because at least Newt isn’t alone in this, and slowly they begin to find their way back to one another again. I hope you enjoy!




