And now for the final chapter of this story. Straight after this, I'll be posting the first part of Episode 3, "Death from Above". You may be happy to know that "The Nightmare Serpent" is in fact planned for a little further down the line.

To Infinite Freedom, who inquired as to the fate of the Red Bamboo guys; y'know how there were those inside-out silhouette marks in Hiroshima? That's what they look like now.

Godzilla is © Toho


RECOVERY

Colonel Gordon stepped forward, the image of the snarling Godzilla, exhaling a stream of blue flame onto the burning warehouse, remained for only a second before he turned off the screen.

"It's all over the damn news," He announced, "'Gigantic creature attacks Tokyo Bay' is the headline of the week. It's just lucky as hell the place was abandoned."

"At least that's all the damage he did," Osaki answered, "And besides, it's not like this was unprovoked."

"What about that hot secret agent lady?" Kazama asked.

"Gone without a trace," Gordon answered, "And all we've got to go on is her word: The Red Bamboo infiltrated this base, kidnapped Miki, and thereby provoked Godzilla into setting a warehouse on fire. Didn't even leave us any corpses; just a mess of ash. And anyway, our problem right now is that yesterday, only handful of people knew Godzilla even existed. Now the thing's on the front page of every newspaper in the world."

"Near as we can tell, he's not far from here," Miyuki explained, "And it doesn't look like he'll be leaving any time soon after what happened to Miki."

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Infirmary

"How're you holding up, kid?" Kazama asked as the door into the infirmary swung open.

"Like I've been hit by a lightening bolt," Miki groaned, "Repeatedly."

A white headband of bandages was strapped tightly around her forehead, and her right arm was held up in a white cast supported by a metal framework.

"I guess my new baby brother's become a celebrity, huh?" She asked meekly, nodding to the folded-up newspaper on the seat behind the desk.

"We'll sort this out," Osaki reassured her. "For now, you just rest up."

"You have to go after him, don't you?" Miki asked of the Colonel.

Douglas Gordon gave a stifled sigh, looking away from her and out of the window.

"Anyone mind if I talk to the kid in private for a moment?" He asked.

With silent nods, the others left the room, clicking the door shut behind them.

"So that's a 'yes'." Miki sighed.

"Miki, he blew up a warehouse," Gordon answered, "He damaged two JSDF bases and burned down a building within a week."

Miki didn't answer.

"Look, Miki, I don't want to have to take him down. Honest to God, after seeing him shrug off those missiles and the way he and Anguirus…"

"Anguirus?" Miki asked.

"The thing on Odo Island; he and Godzilla were knocking seven kinds of crap out of each other when you got snatched. Anyway, after seeing that, I honestly don't think we could take him down."

"So what are you going to do?" Miki asked.

"I've been authorised to form a specialist team to find a solution to the problem," Gordon explained, "I've chosen Osaki, Kazama, Miyuki and Takuya."

Miki looked down in disappointment.

"My hands are tied here, Miki." Gordon insisted, "You need to look at this from their angle; they can't just pretend that all of this never happened."

"So in short, you're going to kill him."

"Or find a way to contain him. The scientific committee's still got some input on this. They tried to shut them up about the risks, but- small miracle- the only people he's actually killed have been those three mercs."

"Colonel," Miki started, "I don't think they knew about my powers."

"Doubtful that whoever hired them would've informed them."

"But they would have known, right?"

"Yes," Gordon answered with growing dread.

"And they knew the place would be unguarded…"

"And they wanted security left to a minimum," Gordon answered, "As well as wanting you left behind…"

"So… you think?" Miki asked, "I mean, it's possible."

"Red Bamboo agents inside the JSDF," Gordon mused, "It's a disturbing possibility, but a possibility can't be anything else."

A brief silence followed, neither of them able to think of anything to say.

"We'll deal with this, kid," Gordon finally reassured her, "You get some rest."

He walked out and closed the door, leaving Miki alone with her thoughts as, in the waters rolling in the dock outside, the dark shape of Godzilla moved under the waves.


Short, I know, but this was really just a wrap-up/lead-in chapter. "Death from Above" is now also available for reading. Hey, I not only finished the rewrite, but its sequel too. Looks like I finally got this thin right! (Crosses fingers)

All Reviews Welcome!