Match 2
GODZILLA VS. KING KONG: REMATCH
Skull Island.
This mysterious, slowly sinking landmass, far west of Sumatra, was practically untouched by the modern world. The only human life on the island was a small tribe of natives, unlike any other people on Earth. Although the island, named for a distinctive rocky knoll shaped like human skull, is home to a fantastic array of incredible creatures, both herbivorous and predatory, there is only one that is worshiped by the islanders. The mightiest beast on the island, this monster-god's name is whispered by the islanders in total reverence-
King Kong.
Yes, the Lord of Skull Island was the world famous beast who had battled Godzilla, King of the Monsters, and actually emerged victorious, a deed accomplished by an elite few. Although Kong was undoubtably a warrior, he hardly lead a warrior's life. At this very moment, the huge ape was sprawled on his back, napping in a large cave carved into the side of Skull Mountain. Kong had lead a peaceful life since his great clash with Godzilla. In fact, the only fight Kong had engaged in since his return to Skull Island was a brief brawl with Gorosaurus. The dinosaur had challenged the great primate for his rule over the island. The overconfident therapod made a hasty retreat after a few powerful blows from Kong. Kong enjoyed a good fight, but he was perfectly happy with the dull life he had. Snorting in his sleep, the enormous gorilla, last of his species, rolled to his side and began to snore. As the powerful vibrations shook Skull Mountain, another giant, one very familiar to Kong, was rapidly approaching his peaceful home.
Far down from the sleeping Kong, on the beaches of Skull Island, the natives were performing their daily dance of worship to their god. As horse voices raised to the sky in praise, something far more sinister was also raising. Several miles out at sea, rough waves gave way to a bulge of water, slowing growing in size. The bulge soon towered over the sea, easily taming its violence. As the great mass of water rushed towards Skull Island, something broken the surface tension of the bulge, causing the mass of seawater to collapse. As the saltwater fell back to sea level, it revealed three rows of huge, ivory spines. Cutting through the waves and thick fog bank, the enamel-cased, bone structures sped towards the cove that acted as the entrance to Skull Island. As the dorsal plates roared towards the beach, the dance and song of the Skull Islanders faded away in horror as the dark-skinned people caught sight of the approaching terror. As the stunned natives watched whatever creature that lay beneath the waves close in on their home, the spines slowly began to dip back into the ocean. As the tip of the very tallest of the organic structures disappeared beneath the surface of the sea, the Skull Islanders stiffened in anticipation of the arrival of the owner of the spines. The island was totally silent for few moments. Even the bird songs and other animal calls were hushed and ceased to fill the air. As wary eyes watched the waves, a long, powerful tail made a broad sweep to push a multi-thousand ton body to the surface.
WHOOSH!
A column of water burst from the flat surface of the ocean. As thousands of gallons of seawater rushed downwards to meet the sea, what it revealed caused the human inhabitants of Skull Island to erupt into screams. The huge creature stood over three-hundred feet tall and held a vague resemblance to the carnivorous bipeds that stalked the interior of the island. But, instead of holding its body parallel to the ground, the beast before them stood straight up, its hips in a very humanoid stance. The dorsal spines they had witnessed rising from the ocean jutted from its back. Powerful muscles were visible under the monster's charcoal-gray scales, a testament to its massive physical strength. An equally muscular tail thrashed behind the creature, kicking up enormous waves. Sharp claws laced the beast's human-like hands giving its long arms a lethal appearance. Twin rows of yellow fangs curved down from the reptile's jaws, flashing as the beast curled its lips in a snarl. Feral, orange eyes were sunken deep into the giant's strangely mammalian face. Although the scattering natives of Skull Island didn't know it, this was the very beast that dueled with their god after he was taken from their home.
It was the living nuclear reactor known as Godzilla.
Wading in the costal water of the island, Godzilla gave the Skull Islanders a mere passing glance as they desperately scrambled for shelter. He was searching for a new home. He once resided on another island, but a cosmic clone of himself had landed there and slaughtered all of his fellow giants. His closest friend among these creatures he had called family had killed this darker version of himself before succumbing to his mortal injuries. That island had too many memories of fallen allies. Godzilla had risked leaving his adopted son back on the island. Although there was no one there to protect him, it was a necessary risk. This would be a long journey and the toddler tired quickly. If this turned out to be a good home, he would have to return to his old home to retrieve the infant dinosaur. As his clawed feet sunk deep into the sands of the beach, the nuclear saurian crushed several primitive huts and other structures as he continued on his bee-line to the islands tropical interior. Smashing the huge, wooden gates that separated the island's coast from its thick jungle, Godzilla's prehistoric eyes scanned his surroundings. The island greatly reminded the titan of his past world, before his mutation. As he shifted his feet, a flurry of motion attracted his attention. Stampeding across a large clearing was a heard of hadrosaurus. Godzilla grumbled in surprise. As he pierced the island environment with his smoldering eyes, the irradiated dinosaurs saw others if his kind. Hard eyes softened as the ancient creature recalled the days before the bomb. Yes, this would do. Eyes growing fierce once again, Godzilla threw back his head and let an unforgettable screech escaped his cracked jaws, announced his ownership of the island.
High on Skull Mountain, two eyes snapped wide open in surprise.
Godzilla marched further inland, now searching for a suitable shelter. The usually destructive creature was actually trying his best not not crush any of the native dinosaurs or their home underfoot. Very few people realized that the King of the Monster had a soft spot for other saurians. By now, the immense reptile had trekked over most of Skull Island and was now standing on the edge of a gradual drop that lead to a small, but broad beach that faced the ocean. With his keen binocular vision, Godzilla spied several large caves in the surrounding mountainsides. There. It was perfect. This would be his new home.
As Godzilla started the descent to the sea and his son, a huge, powerful force slammed into the side of his head.
WHAM!
Screaming in a mix of surprise and pain, Godzilla was sent tumbling down towards the beach. As he finally rolled to a stop, he reared up with a furious roar, burning eyes searching for the being who dare strike him. His angry eyes were met by the sight of King Kong beating his chest triumphantly, answering the dinosaurs call with a bellow of his own. Kong was surprised that the nuclear saurian had the gal to invade his home, the territory of a creature that had already bested him. The giant ape wasn't particularly looking forward to fighting the reptilian juggernaut again, but he was happy to see his blows hadn't lost their strength. Godzilla was similarly surprised to see his old foe again, but he was more than happy to do battle with the mammal again. Though the Monster King had no fondness of any creature stupid enough to attack him, he especially loathed Kong, for the Lord of Skull Island had caused him to suffer the ultimate humiliation- defeat. He had been forced to retreat from the first confrontation between the gorilla and himself, but he wouldn't let that happen again. Years of absorbing further radiation had made Godzilla stronger and the dinosaur was determined to prove it.
Two pairs of eyes met, both fill of hate. After a full minute of staring at each other, the rematch of the century exploded into action.
Kong roared and began to charge down the slope he had knocked Godzilla down earlier. The saurian giant snarled. As Kong rushed towards his enemy, he heard an electric crackling. Godzilla's spines began to glow with pale blue power. The smell of ozone filled the air. Atomic light spilled from the dragon's jaws, threatening to escape. This threat proved true as a beam of superheated plasma erupted from Godzilla's throat and raced straight for Kong. Thinking fast, the ape threw himself to the side. The beam barely brushed his shoulder. The glancing strike send a surge of pain through Kong's body. Rolling to his feet, the great gorilla pawed at his injure shoulder, grumbling in pain. The wound had been cauterized instantly. Fingering the small indent in his shoulder, Kong gritted his teeth in anger. The thing's breath weapon had not been this strong last time they had clashed.
Godzilla roared in satisfaction and began a charge of his own. Thunderous footfall warned Kong of the dinosaur's approach. So the atomic titan wanted to try his clawed hand at close-range combat? Big mistake. Rushing forward to meet the reptile, Kong used his longer arms to deliver a savage right hook to Godzilla's jaw. As the saurian best stumbled back, the enormously strong primate drove his closed fist deep into the dinosaur's gut, then finished with a firm uppercut to the larger creature's chin. As Godzilla fell back down to the beach, Kong roared his dominance of melee fighting to the fallen reptile.
Pushing himself up to a kneeling position, Godzilla growled in irritation. Blood was slowly oozing down his forehead. It had been foolish to try fighting the ape up close. For now on, he had to keep the primate at a safe distance until he had an opening. Rising to his feet, the living god of destruction roared his defiance to Kong. Godzilla's spines flashed as a series of powerful chemical reaction took place. Kong had to react quickly. As the atomic dinosaur fired his atomic ray, the oversized ape dove. The beam struck the spot Kong had sat not a second before, blasting it out of existence. As the mighty primate hit the ground, he pulled himself into a ball and began to roll down the slope towards Godzilla. As he neared the heavier reptile, Kong threw himself at Godzilla, arms outstretched. The prehistoric beast reacted with speed that caught the Lord of Skull Island off guard. Ducking under the mammal's airborne tackle, Godzilla swung his long tail in a high arc and slammed it into Kong's side, changing the gorilla's trajectory. As Kong hit the sand, the sound of Godzilla charging his deadly ray meet his ears. The ape grunted in alarm. Kong's long arm shot out and gripped the looming saurian's ankle. With one great heave, the huge primate tore the taloned foot from the beach and high into the air, toppling Godzilla over. Godzilla's beam was fired straight into the air, vaporizing a flock of passing seabirds. Leaping to his feet, Kong jumped atop the fallen dinosaur and promptly began to mercilessly beat Godzilla. The Monster King roared in outrage as dozen of powerful blows were delivered to his bloodied face by closed fists. Leaning down, the great ape bit down on Godzilla's neck with yellowed teeth. Pulling his head back from the saurian's body, Kong spit out a piece of dark-gray flesh. The wound began healing instantly. Kong snorted. Regeneration was a power the primate envied greatly. Grabbing a nearby rock, Kong raised it high above his head and then brought it down on Godzilla's face, shattering the dinosaur's jaw. Hooping in satisfaction, the brutal mammal smashed in the reptile's face in with the rock several more times. The bones in the atomic dragon's maw began knitting themselves back together. Angry that his handiwork was being erased, Kong wrapped strong fingers around Godzilla's throat and began to strangle the struggling dinosaur. The ancient best's fanged mouth began to foam. This only encouraged Kong to squeeze harder. Godzilla's spines flashed. Atomic fire began gathering in the nuclear creature's throat. Kong pressed down even harder on the disgraced titan's throat. The mighty ape managed to hold back Godzilla's nuclear breath. Unfortunately from Kong, the destructive energy had to escape the atomic dragon.
An atomic pulse rocked the whole island.
Kong was violently thrown back by the ring of raw power. The stunned ape slammed into one of the mountain ridges that surrounded the beach. Weakly, the huge gorilla attempted to get up. A recovered Godzilla quickly put a stop to that. The atomic saurian used his sharp claws to slash across Kong's singed chest. Dark blood stained the sand below. Talons were raked across the side of the primate's head. One huge foot was planted deep into Kong's stomach. Every time the gorilla tried to get up, Godzilla immediately beat him back down. With a burst of sudden strength, the Lord of Skull Island managed to pushed the dinosaur back. Kong leapt forward to grapple with Godzilla. Reptilian claws dug into his left arm and a pair of powerful jaws closed on his right. Swinging around, Godzilla used their combined body weight to hurl Kong across the beach, where the ape splashed down in shallow water. Struggling to sit up, Kong grunted in disbelief. He had never known that the nuclear powerhouse had such physical prowess. What remained of the gorilla's fur stood on end. The primate looked up in alarm.
On the other side of the beach, a huge sphere of atomic power gathered in Godzilla's jaws, the bright glow from the reptile's spines silhouetting his fearsome figure. The nuclear giant looked like Death. And for Kong he might as well be. It was now all or nothing for the ape. He had to act now or die.
Fueled by adrenalin, Kong rose up, announcing his newfound strength with a mighty bellow. Plucking a rock from the seabed, the desperate primate beamed it at Godzilla. A split second before he unleashed the ray that would have fried Kong, the rock struck the atomic dragon square in the eye. The blow knocked Godzilla's head back, causing his thermonuclear blast to pull up as he fired it. As the ray seared the air above his head, Kong charged. Tackling Godzilla, the giant ape and the dinosaur smashed into a cliff face. Using his weight to pin the nuclear saurian, Kong took both of Godzilla's wrists in one huge hand to immobilize the beast's arms. With his free arm, the gorilla went to work on the dinosaur's face. Kong pounded the wailing dinosaur with an enormous fist and clawed at the two angry orange orbs that were Godzilla's eyes. A quick flash of atomic energy escaped the giant reptile's jaws, burning Kong's face. The surprised ape leapt back, howling in pain. Godzilla growled. This stupid thing was making a fool of him. Roaring in anger, Godzilla stomped towards the primate. As Kong ambled to meet him, the dinosaur spun quickly. His tail swept the ape's legs out from underneath him. As Godzilla prepared to blast Kong, the cunning animal decided to play dirty. Grabbing a hand full of sand, the gorilla tossed the debris into Godzilla's face. As the saurian grabbed at his eyes, Kong leapt at the temporarily blinded giant. As the mammal struck the reptile, Kong swung over Godzilla's shoulder to sit on the larger beast's back. Gripping the dinosaur's jaws, the ape began to pull. Godzilla gargled in agony as his jaws were pulled apart. A sickening snap announced that the atomic dragon's jaws were broken. Kong howled in victory. As the primate celebrated, Godzilla's spines flashed beneath him, the heat searing his skin and setting his fur alight. Jumping of the nuclear titan, Kong rolled in the sand, trying to smother the fire that was licking up his fur. Whipping around to face the thrashing ape, Godzilla let lose a stream of atomic power from his mangled maw that struck kong in the chest.
Kong was knocked back violently. The blast wasn't particularly powerful, as most of Godzilla's strength had gone into healing his broken jaws, but it had been sufficient enough to knock the gorilla out of his adrenalin rush. Kong was tired. He no longer had the strength to fight. As the ape eyed Godzilla, he saw that the dinosaur shared the same story. And the nuclear dragon was furious about it. He only had enough energy to finnish knitting his jaws back together. As soon as his jaw snapped back into place, his feline lips were pulled into a hideous snarl. This was the second time he had failed to kill the stupid ape! Two bitter enemies stared at each other. Their second duel had ended in a tie. There was no other way of seeing it. One question begged to be asked.
Who owned the island now?
Kong's blood pressure began to drop as the rage of battle left him. As he peered at the glaring Godzilla, something occurred to him. The scent of a child was covering the dinosaur. The King of the Monsters had a son. Kong now realized the atomic dragon reasons for coming here. He was seeking a home for he and his son. Kong grumbled, his hate for the prehistoric beast softening. The ape was a pushover when it came to young ones. There had been many a time where Kong should have slain a challenger to his throne, but had not because his opponent was a father or a mother. Kong looked at the beach around him, thinking. He never came to this beach. In fact, the only part of the island he used constantly were the mountains. Snorting, the ape made a decision. The Lord of Skull Island ambled back up to the incline that lead to the beach, stopping at its peak. Standing tall, Kong gestured to the mountains behind him, then bellowed and beat his chest in a show of dominance. The primate then motioned at the beach, then pointed to Godzilla. The huge reptile grumbled, confused. Was the mammal suggest that they share the island? Kong repeated his action.
Godzilla locked eyes with Kong, wondering if this was another trick. After a few moments, Godzilla roared back to Kong. Turning, the ancient creature marched towards the sea. He had to get his son. As the organic nuclear reactor wading out to sea, Godzilla turned to look at Kong again. The ape was watching him intently. Kong beat his chest. Godzilla used his nuclear breath to carve a semicircle in the sea, vaporizing countless gallons of saltwater. With one last roar, the dinosaur dove into the ocean, powerful tail propelling him towards Monster Island. Kong grunted, then galloped back into the forest of Skull Island on all fours. As the two mortal foes went their separate ways, they were both sure of two things-
Godzilla would return with his son. And then, there would be two kings living on Skull Island.
