seen from China
seen from China
seen from Peru
seen from China
seen from Peru
seen from Malaysia
seen from Russia
seen from Russia
seen from United States
seen from Germany
seen from United States
seen from Malaysia
seen from Malaysia
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seen from Russia
seen from China
seen from United States
AU where Emma, Viviene, and Serizawa didn't die, Alan Jonah died from Ghidorah's Gravity Beams, Mothra never sacrificed herself, Rodan is very loyal to Godzilla after keeping a promise to Anguirus' vow of companionship, and Ghidorah forcing themselves to submit before Godzilla after their battle.
And also, Emma also divorced Mark and disowns and has a second marriage with Ghidorah (Ichi mainly), to be his Queen.
"King of the monsters
What could have been"
Chapter 17
“Holla, Emily Kane. Sure is nice to finally meet the person who keeps breaking through our security system.”
Despite the initial surprise, the woman quickly shook her head, gaining her bearings back. “And you must be Julian Cyan Florès.” She answered back.
“Alright, I’m gonna have to stop you right there chica- it’s just Florès, J.C. if you’re a friend. And if you were trying to be intimidating by using my full name: that is nowhere long enough to be my actual name.” Florès informed her, shaking his head. “Anyway, did you guys know the military thinks you guys are Monarch agents in disguise?”
“What?” The woman on the screen- Emily Kane- asked incredulously. “Well that would explain why no one has come after us- wait a minute, did you just- !?”
“Expose the existence of your group to the military and blow the cover you guys didn’t even know you had?” Florès asked, before smirking. “Sure did, chica.”
Serizawa blinked, before turning toward the younger man. “How did you do that?”
“Serizawa, I’m the one keeping the firewall so solid.” Florès told him, really looking like he wanted to deadpan but restraining himself. “I know every single attempt to breach it, failed and successful alike. By the way,” The younger man turned back to the screen, brows furrowed. “Pretty smart to hack the cameras the one moment I’m not looking at a screen. Too bad the footage you got is basically useless now.”
Kane sighed. “What do you want from me, Florès? And don’t try anything sneaky, I know what you’re capable of.”
“And you think I don’t know about what you’re capable of, Emmy?” Florès started, his teeth flashing almost menacingly as he smiled. “You’re twenty-six years old, an orphan, and you got yourself a master in bioengineering with a minor in programming two years ago. You live alone with three cats- that’s sad- and the reason you decided to join the Titan Liberation Front is because Jonah is the only one who didn’t dismiss your talents because you’re a young black woman in field dominated by white male.”
She seemed surprised at that. “How do you know all that!?”
“Oh, idle snooping around in Jonah’s files. Dude needs a better firewall, and to trust his employees enough to not collect every single bit of info on them: official address, names of loved ones, birthplace, social security number-”
“Florès, we get it. You snoop around.” Emma started, getting up from behind her desk with her husband not far behind her. Until the Ghidorah fiasco was resolved, Monarch had allowed her to stay and help, and this was, in fact, what the earlier argument between Monarch’s head-scientists and the military had started about. “What I want to know is what the Titan Liberation Front thinks it’s doing.”
“Isn’t it obvious?” Kane asked. “We’re saving the world.”
“By releasing the Titans- that doesn’t make sense!” Mark retorqued back, before Emma put a hand on his shoulder.
“Actually, it... does.” She started. “As impossible as it may seems. You know how the planet is slowly being cooked by pollution?” He nodded. “A very possible theory here at Monarch is that the Titans can fix it.”
“Indeed.” Kane started back, taking a deep breath. “Humans... w-we’re a sickness. An infection on the planet. But like all organisms, the planet has unleashed a fever to kill it’s infection. It’s rightful rulers. The Titans.”
“Is that what you actually think, or is that what Alan ‘Eco-fascism is my middle name’ Jonah fed you so he could get you to abandon your ideals and work for him?”
“Florès.“ Serizawa admonished before turning toward the screen.
“Jonah made me see the truth.” Kane snapped back. “If the human infection continues to spread, the planet will perish, and everyone with it. Unless we let the Titans do what they must do.”
“And what will be left then!?” Mark exclaimed. “A dead, charred world overrun by warring giants-”
“No, actually.” Kane answered, shaking her head. “The Titans- they emit radiations that keeps the planet going. It’d be more like a land buried under the ashes of a volcano bringing life back to the land. And the survivors will be able to reap the rewards.”
“This is a dangerous path.” Serizawa hissed. “You’re all messing with forces beyond our comprehension- gambling with the life of millions!”
“And what are you gambling with?” Kane answered back. “Monarch is on the verge of being overtaken by the military, and all the resources you’ve dedicated to merely studying the Titans will be used to enslave them, destroy them, use them as weapons- if that happens, the planet will die!”
“The planet will die if Ghidorah is allowed to do as he pleases!” Graham started, visibly at the end of her patience. “They’re not from Earth! They are hostile Titans from outer space, who have always been malevolent, and your group forced one of our own to free them!”
“I understand where your intentions come from, miss Kane- I used to think similarly when I first joined Monarch.” Emma started. “But if we let this happen, there will be no going back. Tons of lives will be lost, and what will be left will be plunged into chaos. And that’s only with what we know about Earth’s Titans: Ghidorah isn’t part of the natural order, and they have the potential to disrupt it severely, if not destroy it beyond repair. Do you really want to to risk so much just for a slight chance of the planet healing?”
“... If that’s what it takes, yes.” Kane rubbed her eyes. “I suggest you all take refuge. We know Monarch has built bunkers in case of a mass extinction event caused by the Titans. I suggest you find them before Ghidorah comes out hiding.” Before anyone could say anything, she cut communication, plunging the room into a consterned silence.
You could hear a mutter of “That bitch.” from Dr. Chen,
“Well,” Stenz started. “I’m certainly surprised her message idn’t resonate with you people-”
“You. Shut .Up.” Florès hissed, glaring at a bewildered Stenz through the screen. “As far as I’m concerned, Ghidorah being free is your fault, and I don’t want to hear you tell us how Monarch should do their job, or that they have any affiliations with those madmen from the T.L.F., ever again, got it!? If you do, you’re next on the list of people I have to do some... idle snooping around about.”
“... Got it.” The admiral closed the screen shortly afterwards, a sigh of relief coming from almost everyone at this.
“We need to find a way...” Serizawa muttered under his breath, before turning toward the programmer. “Florès? I’m going to ignore the fact that I should probably fire you for cybercrimes on two conditions: find as much information as you can on the Titan Liberation Front, and use it to make their life a living hell.”
Florès smiled. “Of course, Serizawa.”
“Everyone else: get to work. We have to start preparing for the worst.”
-
Alright, Rodan had been back for a while now. He just needed to walk up to him, give him that stupid stone, and walk away. It was simple. A child could do it. Too bad the literal hundreds of nightmare scenarios going through Ni’s head simultaneously prevented him from moving from the rock he was hiding behind.
He took a peak, looking at Rodan. The bird was currently eating a fish, facing away from Ni’s point of view. He also seemed to be struggling with it, for some reason. Ni took a deep breath through his nose to steady himself, before getting up and walking up to him. “Rodan.”
“Gah!” Rodan exclaimed, turning toward Ni, before deflating a bit. “Don’t scare me like that.” He then turned back toward his fish, taking another bite and pulling a face as he did so. “Urgh, rotting flesh is the worst...”
Ni raised an eyebrow. “What do you usually eat?”
“Roots, nuts, insects, fish but prefer when it’s fresh... sometimes, humans would leave me grain in offerings, always a nice surprise.” Rodan answered. “... kind of palled to when they would kill one of their own in front of me as spectacle, but hey.”
“You don’t know what a sacrifice is?” When Rodan shook his head, Ni sat down. “It’s... an gift mortals give to gods by destroying or abandoning something dear, often the life of the sacrificed.”
“... yeah, sounds like something Quetz would’ve liked.” Rodan muttered, before shaking his head. “Don’t they know I’m not a god? I just... live here.”
“You’re bigger than them, at least one element obeys you, and you pretty much decide whether or not this island explodes.” Ni deadpanned. “To them, that’s enough.”
“... Uh.” Rodan took another bite of his fish, cringing as the flesh hit his tongue.
“If you don’t like it, stop eating it.”
“I can’t just stop eating it, I can’t find any other kind of food around here!”
Find food he can eat to get on his good side. Got it. “Why not just absorb energy, then?” Rodan seemed to freeze at that. “Well?”
“... can’t absorb any if I’m not in lava...” He finally muttered. As Ni opened his mouth, he snapped. “And no, I can’t just live the rest of my life in lava. Sure, it’s warm and I don’t risk ever being hurt in it again, but... I’m the only thing it doesn’t burn to the touch. I can’t see. I can’t hear. I can’t talk with anyone. I’m... I’m all alone.” Rodan shook his head. “That’s no way to live, so I try to stay out of it.”
“... San could teach you how to do it.” Ni finally said, Rodan turning toward him with a perplexed expression. “He’s the more spiritual out of the three of us... and he’s better with words than me... since we’re talking about San-” Ni took a hold of Rodan’s wrist, the bird screeching before realizing he was just putting something in his hand. “He found this, and wanted me to give it to you.”
There, it was done.
Ni closely watched Rodan as he reacted to the gift. After a few seconds of watching him, bewildered, he actually looked at the rock on his hand. After a few seconds of confusion, Rodan’s eyes widened, and his face turned a bright orange. “I- uh- erm-” He put the stone down, doing a strange gesture with his hands as he looked away.
Ni frowned at that. He understood, logically, that Rodan’s blood was lava-like from their fight. But why was it coming to his face? Was he overheating for some reason? Was he dying!? Was that why he couldn’t speak!? No no no no no, they needed him alive to get out of here.
Ni picked up Rodan, the bird squawking as he dragged him up. “I- what are you-” He started trashing in his grip as he realized that he was bringing him to the water, clutching at him with both set of claws. “No, NO- DO NOT FUCKING THROW ME INTO THE WATER-”
“You’re overheating, you need to get cooled down-”
“Overheat- I’M THE FIRE GUARDIAN, I CAN’T OVERHEAT!!!” Rodan finally screeched, freeing himself from Ni’s hold.
Ni’s only reaction was to frown. “Then why was your face turning red?”
“I was flustered! That happens!” Rodan exclaimed. “What, have you never seen someone flustered before!?”
“I have not.” Rodan blinked at Ni, before sighing.
“I’m fine. Your gift just... caught me off-guard.” There was a heavy silence, before Rodan broke it. “Do you have something I could use to wear it, like a thin rope or something?”
“No... wait.” Ni grabbed a few of his hair, tugging them out and braiding them together in a thin rope. “Hand me the stone, sit down, and turn around.” Rodan quickly followed the instructions, Ni wrapping the cord around the stone to make a necklace. “There we go... What was that thing you did with your hands earlier? He asked as he tied the cord around Rodan’s neck.
“Oh, sign words. I was saying thank you.” He answered. Ni made an inquisitive noise. “Basically, you speak with your hands instead of your mouth. Mothra taught me some time after I became the Fire Guardian because my transformation wasn’t finished and I couldn’t speak. I think the monkeys are the ones who invented it to talk with their worshippers.”
“I see... would you... mind teaching me?” Ni asked, trying to make his voice seem softer.
Rodan blinked, before nodding, turning toward Ni and sitting down. “Alright. Let’s start with the basics...”
The "I'm gonna play eco-terrorist hero and get a gazillion people killed in the process while still trying to pin myself as a the good guy until the very end of the movie" duo.
They have the exact same vibe.
Emma Russel
emmaressel.com
via Aint-Bad
@embidedbythesand, your theory on Emma manipulating Madison’s feelings towards her dad was right on the money.
Chapter 6
Emma took a deep breath, fiddling with the can of pepper spray she kept with her in case of self-defense as she eyed the helicopter pilot. It was now or never. Right now, they were on way to San Francisco, Serizawa having given Emma the permission to leave due to her daughter going missing. The plan, of course, was all other.
“Hey.” The scientist started, putting a hand on the pilot’s helmet and getting it off.
The pilot turned toward her, consterned. “Ma’am, I need that- ACK!” Emma sprayed the pepper spray in his face, blinding him before she reversed her grip and hit him as hard as she could in the face with the can.
The pilot fell to the ground, unconscious as Emma took his place. She immediately changed course, heading for Antartica. She took a deep breath. Hang on Madison, I’m coming!
-
Madison quickly slipped out of her cell, shivering and pulling her sweater closer to her. She had memorized the guard’s rounds, and they hadn’t taken her hairpins out, and she needed to figure out where she was.
She quickly walked across the base, looking around. They were multiple sideway hourglasses symbols stamped across the corridors, the word ‘monarch’ in all caps written underneath it. A few had colorful tags reading ‘Titan Liberation Front’ across them, the paint clearly more recent than the symbols. She just needed to find a map of the place.
She quickly hid as a pair of guards passed by, holding her breath until they were gone. She breathed a sigh of relief, and saw a door hanging half-open. She looked around her, and made a beeline for it.
As Madison hid behind the door, having heard guards coming by, she looked at the inside of the room. And nearly threw up. There was a small mountain of corpses here, most of them starting to freeze over from the cold and decompose from the lack of care. “Oh, god...”
“Well, what are you doing here?” Madison jumped, turning toward the the voice and shrinking in terror at what she saw. A strange, towering golden spirit with three pairs of pitch black eyes and what looked like an upside-down crescent moon on it’s forehead. It towered over her, tendril-like hair moving behind it’s head as if they were underwater.
And looking at it filled Madison with a bone-deep, primal fear. “Wh- What are you?” The spirit’s bell-like giggle did not do anything to assuage that fear.
“Why, I’m Ghidorah, of course!” The spirit informed her, a clawed hand attached to a long arm suddenly manifesting as it did so. The spirit’s claw tilted Madison’s head up, forcing her to make direct eye contact with it as an electric shock ran through her body. “And you would be?”
(Ichi would think about the fact that he could physically interact with this tiny human in his intangible spirit form later. Probably between getting out of here and killing the weak king. For now, he had to play a role, and if he had to defend the only human who had the good sense to fear him from the idiots who did not to play it convincingly, then so be it.)
“I- I’m Madison Russell.”
“Madison Russell...” Ghidorah tilted it’s head, it’s eyes blinking in quick succession. “Interesting. So you’re the human child... I thought you were supposed to be in a cage?”
The girl steeled herself. “I escaped. And I’m not going back until I know what’s going on! For example: what are you!? A ghost?” She whispered-yell.
Ghidorah giggled again. “No, not exactly. You are aware of what astral projection is, yes?” Madison nodded. “As for what I am, I believe the closest word you humans have is ‘god’.”
“... I see. And why are you talking to me?”
(The little human was much more wary and perceptive than the others, but she was also younger. Exploiting that should be easy, he just needed to channel his inner San, maybe cut down on the lying a bit, and think about the deplorable state his brothers’ psyches were in when he re-established the connection-)
“I’m just trying to get out of my icy prison, along with my brothers.” Ghidorah started, its eyes taking a downturned quality to them. Was it... sad? “Other gods, jealous of our power and bond, tricked us, and froze us within the ice of this place. We just want to get out and feel the sun on our face again.” It seemed to cheer up at that. “And that’s where you come in.”
Madison lowered a guard just a little bit. “Okay... how?”
“I asked the humans living here to help me free myself, but I had no idea they would kidnap you! Honest!” Ghidorah reassured her, claws grabbing her wrists and dragging her up. “But one of your parents- the female one- has come here to free you. Come on, let’s go.”
“Wait, my mom’s here!?” Madison exclaimed, baffled. All she knew about her mother’s current job was that it was 1) governmental, and 2) very secret. Did this have something to do with it?
Ghidorah giggled once again. “Yes! And she is waiting for you! Let’s go!” The specter took a wisp like form, some of it’s tendrils wrapped around Madison’s arms, dragging her behind it and outside of that horrible room.
She stumbled a bit, but followed behind it, the two speeding through corridors. Finally, they arrived before a locked door, Ghidorah taking back a more humanoid form and phasing through it. When the door opened a few minutes later, Madison rushed past the man that had opened it, throwing herself at her mother. “Mom!”
“Madison!” Emma exclaimed, hugging her daughter as tightly as she could. “Are you alright? Did they hurt you?”
“I- I’ll be fine, don’t worry.” Madison reassured her mother, sending a doubtful look at Ghidorah, who seemed to be in an argument with the old man that had opened the door, about whether or not it should’ve brought her here. “Do you know what that is?” She asked her mother, pointing at the specter.
“I... believe that would be one of the Antartica Titans.” Emma started. “We don’t know a lot about the them, but apparently, they have psychic powers.”
“Is that how you’re calling us, now?” Ghidorah asked, turning toward the two Russell with an inquisitive head tilt.
“I-” Emma turned toward her daughter, who nodded. Madison didn’t know how, but she knew Ghidorah was sincere with at least this question. “Yes. It was the most appropriate word we could find to describe your kind.”
Ghidorah’s eyes narrowed, but the specter otherwise didn’t change. “Where did that word come from?”
“It’s how the parents of the Gods are called, in Greek mythology. It’s also used as an adjective for ‘big’.” Emma explained, the spirit straightening it’s posture and eyes widening into their normal form.
(The predecessors of those who rule the universe? Oh, Ichi liked that one, at least enough to allow the mistake that he and the weak king were of the same breed. He’d have to remember it, his brothers would surely like it too.)
“I see.” The specter finally said, a hint of satisfaction in it’s voice. “Yes, Titan will do nicely.”
“Well,” the old man suddenly started, Emma hugging her daughter just a bit tighter as he spoke. “Now that you have your daughter back, where’s the ORCA? Because I don’t see anything.”
“The ORCA,” Emma started, getting out the device Florès had given her out of her bag “is right here.”
Madison watched as the old man raised an unimpressed eyebrow, while Ghidorah tilted it’s head in confusion. “I thought it was bigger.” The specter commented.
The old man snarled. “Do you think I’m a fool, Dr. Russell?”
“Well, seeing as you’re trying to free three creatures no one knows anything about, and that you had perfectly good hostages you decided to kill before the time was up forcing you to abduct my daughter, yes.” Emma deadpanned, face not showing any emotions. “And- it’s a prototype for the ORCA’s final model I stole from Florès.” She explained. “He created it to make sure he could effectively downsize something as complex as the ORCA.”
“We’ll see about that. You two, follow me.” The old man told Emma and Madison, the three getting out of the room. They quickly made their way to an observation chamber, the window giving them an excellent view on a gigantic, seemingly glowing glacier where three shadows were visible. “Well? What are you waiting for? You want your daughter back, don’t you?”
Emma narrowed her eyes, but turned on the device, and turned the frequency up to the point nothing else could be heard as everyone looked at the glacier. In the suspense of waiting, no one noticed a terrifying smile etching itself onto Ghidorah just as he faded away.
-
A sound burrowed itself deep in the ice, artificial and deafening and awakening the bodies of the three creatures stuck within it.
{Brothers? It’s time.}
Three pairs of red eyes opened.
[Fucking finally.]
Fingers twitched, creating small cracks in the ice.
(Alright! On three?)
Small, microscopic cracks spread, reaching the surface of the glacier.
{[(One...)]}
The microscopic contact with the outside was all they need to start absorbing energy.
{[(Two...)]}
Energy flowed from outside to their heart and to their fingertips.
{[(THREE!)]}
They released the energy, and the ice exploded in a flash of lightning.
Chapter 4
“Human.” Alan Jonah turned toward the voice. Ghidorah was back, the three pair of black eyes and crescent moon marking on his forehead looming over him and contrasting the golden color of the shimmering specter. “I’ve returned to update myself on the situation. When are you going to free I and my servants?”
“Soon enough, we already have a plan made.” Jonah tried reassuring the specter, who tsk-ed.
“Really?” The soul took on a wisp-like form for a moment, getting away from Jonah as he got up only to reform, what the terrorist could only assume to be an imitation of the Titan’s hair floating around him like a halo. “Because it sounds to me like you’re making excuses for not being capable of freeing me.”
(Ichi might be stuck projecting his soul outside of his body to manipulate some lowly humans into helping him, but that didn’t mean he couldn’t have some fun with it. It also meant he had to lie about his brothers being slaves instead of what made two thirds of his being, but it had been San’s idea and Ni had seconded it, their ground being that they didn’t want some human to try and use their bond as a weakness.)
“We do have a plan.” Jonah hissed through gritted teeth, Ghidorah giggling. “It’s just taking us time to put it into motion. If you would please follow me.”
Jonah started walking down a corridor of the hijacked Monarch base, the specter following him in his wisp form, apparently to avoid being seen by people he had no business with. They arrived in a room full of computers, the only person here a dark-skinned woman with her hair in a bun as Ghidorah switched back to something more humanoid.
“Kane?” The woman turned toward them, gasping in surprise when she saw Ghidorah, who’s only reaction was to tilt his head to the side inquisitively. “This is King Ghidorah. It turns out that Titans can project themselves outside of their bodies, and this is Titan we’re attempting to free.”
Upon seeing the golden specter’s inquisitive head tilt, Emily got up, back straight and shoulders squared, and bowed her head. “M- My name is Emily Kane. I am a hacker of the Titan Liberation Front, as well as one of it’s spies and biological engineers. It’s an honor to meet you, King Ghidorah.”
Ghidorah straightened his head, one hand reaching out to make Emily stand straight again. “You can rise, and the information is appreciated. Now, I believe your king wanted you to show me how you were going to free my body from it’s icy prison?”
(Ichi hadn’t tilted his head in confusion to know who the human woman was. He had because he thought the bugs valued kindness in a leader. Emotionally speaking, this Emily radiated warmth, while the king of this little group was as cold as the ice his brothers and he were imprisoned in.)
“That is right!” Emily declared, sitting bakck down and starting to type on her computers. “Now, I think Monarch got themselves a new chief programmer because I kept bumping into firewalls and redirections and passwords demands at some point we got a virus that would make the Power Rangers theme song play over the speakers non-stop-”
“Get to the point, Kane.”
“While I appreciate your efforts to explain modern human technology, it’s ultimately irrelevant to me.”
“... right. We eventually got some footage of yesterday.” She explained. “Monarch’s most recent addition, and I have reasons to believe he’s also the most dangerous, Julian Cyan Florès, finished the ORCA prototype yesterday. Here’s the footage.”
-
“- and if you turn the dial here-” Florès pointed at a dial with numbers circling it. “-you can either amplify or diminish the Titans bioacoustic’s imitations. Which is good, because the only sound the prototype can make is one that essentially means ‘stand down, I’m in charge here’, and the louder it gets, the more forceful it is.”
“On which Titan are you guys going to test it?” A soldier stationed at Castle Bravo asked from the back of the control room.
“Hopefully, with one that’s benevolent, like the Infant Titan, and not a bitch like the Mara Titan.” Florès deadpanned. “He might be the shortest of the documented Titans, but that motherfucker is still four and a half meters tall and filled with impotent rage, and he can fly and takes baths in lava.”
“For the Americans in here, that’s roughly a little under fifteen feet tall.” Coleman informed them, getting up as Florès sat back down. “Just with this, we have a tool that will allow us to keep the Titans away from major cities when they start awakening en masse. Any questions?” A beat, then someone raised their hand. “Emma?”
“What are the future plans for the ORCA?” Dr Russell asked, tilting her head in interest.
“Well, firstly: a widespread security system tailored for cities to keep the Titans from rampaging through them, with enough options to keep them at bay.” Coleman started. “This system will use a sound bank that means ‘our territory’. Hopefully, it’ll be enough until a more concrete anti-Titan security system can be found.”
“We’re considering electro-magnetism shields.” Florès added from his seat, Coleman nodding.
“What about communication with the Titans?” Dr Graham asked.
“Excellent question; Florès, I’m letting you take the helm again.”
“Thank you, Coleman.” The younger man stated as he got back up. “My current plan for now is that, once we have more material to work with, to create an audio-helmet with a microphone.” Florès started. “After that, I would create a rudimentary translation program that should, at least, allow us to communicate back and fort knowing the other’s intent using the final. That would be the final ORCA.”
“That doesn’t seem very ideal-”
“Ideally, however,” Florès snapped at Stanton, his tone clearly getting the ‘I wasn’t finished’ message across. “I would scrap the ORCA all together and create a new form of Titan communication called the All-Speak, which would allow us to have direct and concise discussions with Titans, amongst other thing!”
“And how much,” Colonel Foster started, her hand going back down, “would both of these projects cost?”
“The ORCA would just require an increase in resources and maybe some additional staff.” Florès started. “The biggest setback will be getting all of the Titans sound to put into it, but once the first official model is complete, we should be able to mass-produce it. As for the All-Speak...” the latino laughed nervously. “Let’s just say the first draft was ‘small computer that connects to your brain’ and it got more complicated from here.”
Everyone turned toward Serizawa, who seemed deep in thought. “For now,” Monarch’s scientist started. “Focus on perfecting the ORCA. If it’s a success, we’ll consider whether or not to start work on the All-Speak.”
“That’s reasonable.” Foster approved, nodding her head as Florès sighed in relief.
“In the meantime, Florès? If you wish to work on the All-Speak as a personal project, feel free to-”
“DR. SERIZAWA!” A scientist that had stayed at their post suddenly exclaimed, interrupting the man. “THE TITAN ON IWATO ISLAND IS WAKING UP-”
-
“Turn it off.” Ghidorah told Emily, who just acquiesced and proceeded to do so. It wouldn’t do to anger a god, after all.
Jonah turned toward Ghidorah’s specter, gesturing at the screen. “This is how we’re planning to free you: one of scientists in Monarch has a daughter. We kidnap and hold the daughter for ransom, and force the scientist to steal the ORCA and bring it here. We’ll then use the ORCA to send a wake up call to your body.”
“Yes, that would work.” Ghidorah said after a short moment of thinking. “If there is something I hate above all else, it’s receiving orders. Make sure the sound is loud to pierce through the ice.”
“And when that happens,” Jonah started, chuckling, “You will get rid of the Titans that have imprisoned you, and existence will bow down at our feet.”
(Our? Ichi Ghidorah would’ve scoffed at the insinuation that he and this lowly human were equals if it wasn’t so amusing. These humans, who seemed convinced he and his brothers were benevolent and wanted to help them, would find out soon enough just why their ancestors where too scared to even speak the name of the Golden Demise.)
“Oh, don’t worry.” Ghidorah started in a voice Emily could recognize as ‘forced neutrality’ “Humanity will get everything that’s coming to it.”
-
Rodan woke up in a startle, his eyes staring up at the starry skies. He slowly sat up at the edge of his nest, frowning in a deeply-seated worry he couldn’t explain.
His chest was aching, especially the lightning scar one the Death Song of the Three Storms left him a few thousands of years ago right where is heart was, back when he was still just a regular earth Fowl and not the Fire Demon.
Not as a warning, but as a reminder.
You’re centuries too early for us. Come back when you’re worth looking at.
He shook off the impression that something was terribly, terribly wrong, and went back to sleep.
Chapter 23
“Ishiro, do you know where-” Vivienne entered the head scientist’s office, frowning when she saw him hunched over his notes. “Ishiro?”
He raised his head. “Oh, Vivienne. Can I help you with something?” When it was just the two of them, using each other’s first name was acceptable.
“Do you have the files on the ‘Adam’ specimen? They’re not in my office, and I’m pretty sure you’re the last one I showed them to. Chen thinks he might be related to Godzilla in some form, and we want to check if their bone structures are similar.”
Ishiro nodded, getting up from his desk and opening a drawer, the one where he kept miscellaneous files. He picked one up, opening it to make sure before nodding and handing it to his friend. “There you go. What does Chen mean by ‘related in some form’?”
“If they have the same attributes, if not outright related by blood.” She answered, looking through the file herself. She then raised her head. “And you’ve been ruminating in your notes again, haven’t you?”
“Ever so perceptive...” He sighed wearily. “I know you don’t think the same, but... I can’t help but feel I should’ve never started those researches in the first place.
Vivienne immediately shook her head, grabbing Ishiro by the shoulders and turning him toward her. “No, no- you started those researches in hopes of finding a way to get rid of radioactive waste and harmful radiations- do not blame yourself for discovering something else entirely!”
“It’s my fault if Godzilla is dead. I should’ve never brought it with us to Isla de Mara-”
“You brought it in hope that it would kill Ghidorah. It’s not your fault that soldier disobeyed you and launched the bomb.”
“But I’m the one who created it.” Ishiro answered. “They would’ve never been able to kill Godzilla if it hadn’t been for me. Let’s face the facts, Vivienne: I tried to create a way to get rid of radioactive waste, and I ended up creating... this.” He despaired, turning to his notes. “An oxygen destroyer.”
Vivienne was about to say something, trying to reassure him, when the door suddenly slammed opened. The two turned toward a panting, frazzled Coleman. He looked like he had ran there. She frowned. “What is it?”
He raised his eyes toward them, still breathing frantically. “You two need to come down to the control room now.”
-
“Okay, so.” Emma started, turned toward her husband. “Monarch is willing to provide me a lawyer for the upcoming trial, Florès is willing to act as a witness, and Madison is probably going to be called as one too. Now, I just need to find a reason that the judge would be willing to listen to...”
“You could plead for guilty under momentary insanity.” Mark proposed. “Your daughter was in active danger, you’re stuck in the middle of nowhere, you stole something from a colleague who would’ve given the thing to you if you had asked, and you knocked out a helicopter pilot. All of this could be used to show you weren’t in your right state of mind.”
“Yes, that could work...” Emma took a deep breath. “You’re sure you’re going to be able to handle everything with my sentence?”
“Please stop being so pessimistic, we’ll figure it out-”
“Mark,” Emma cut him off. “I actively helped in freeing a potential world-ending threat, and the American government is in a hurry to find a scapegoat for the T.L.F. disaster. Even if I get a not guilty verdict, I’m not getting out of this without at least being neck deep in debt, and I might not be able to help with Madison for a while.”
“Yeah, it’s not like you were helping much to begin with.” Mark muttered under his breath, catching his wife off-guard.
“What’s that supposed to mean!?”
“That you’ve let this job consume your entire life!” Mark snapped back. “Ever since you started working for Monarch five years ago, I’ve practically had to raise Madison by myself-”
“I’m not working at Castle Bravo every single hour of my life!”
“You work in the middle of the Bermuda, and we live in San Francisco! The closest we get to enjoying your company on your off-days is you giving us a video-call-”
ALL MONARCH PERSONNEL IS ASKED TO THE CONTROL ROOM: WE HAVE A CODE TITANOMACHY. I REPEAT, WE HAVE A CODE TITANOMACHY.
Emma and Mark paused, the intercom’s interruption killing the momentum of their argument, Emma in horror, Mark in cautious confusion. She sighed, heading out of the room. “We’ll talk about this later.”
-
Madison turned away from her sketch, raising an eyebrow at the creepy chuckle that left Florès. “What are you doing?”
“Serizawa told me to make the T.L.F.’s life a living hell if I want to keep my paycheck, so I’m hard at work cooking up a lovely virus for them.” He answered with a smile. “I’m also trying to turn my ‘esteemed’ rival to our side over emails, and she’s reacting by calling me a hack.”
“Aren’t you?”
“There’s a difference between being a hack and being a hacker, Russellita.” There was a pause as he momentarily turned away from his computer. “And what’re you doing?”
She smiled, turning her sketchbook toward Florès. A drawing of Godzilla resting on Mothra’s lap faced him “Sketching some Titans.”
He aww-ed. “Are they a couple? I didn’t know they were a couple.”
“Yeah, I think they might be.” Madison answered, putting her sketchbook down. “I’m trying to use my dreams to find them, but all I can get is that they’re in some kind of underground temple...”
“I have to go tell Coleman latter today that I’m pretty much finished with the current ORCA model.” Florès informed her, jerking his thumb toward the small, laptop-like device. “I could relay the info, if you want. That and that Godzilla is still alive.” Madison nodded, the two returning to their respective activities.
He quickly checked his emails to check if Kane had answered his latest taunt, only to narrow his eyes as he saw that a certain very dangerous person had answered something he had sent last night. He opened the email, sighing in relief when he saw his proposal had been accepted. He just needed to send them more information on the assignment and they’d come right over-
A deafening, shrill sound filled the room, forcing Florès to cover his ears in shock. As he uncovered his ears, looking around the room as wondered where the sound came from, he saw Madison’s body on the ground. “Russellita!” He rushed to her side, checking for her pulse (and sighing in relief when he did) when he realized she was the one that had screamed.
He picked her up, rushing outside of his office, when the intercom turned on. He initially groaned in annoyance, before remembering what Code Titanomachy stood for.
Titans were up, and they were mad.
