Chapter 20: The Discoveries
World Trade Center, 8:00, August 16
The trek from Madison Square Garden to the (now one) World Trade Center, while a long one, went surprisingly fast for Yuji. While he had a bit of trouble finding a road that wasn't buried in rubble or covered in fire, once he did, it was a clear shot all the way to his destination. And what really made the trek go quick was the fact that abandoned at the side of the road, Yuji found a car with the key left in the ignition. Probably having been abandoned by the owner during Gojira's (or Zilla, as he now referred to the creature) initial attack or during the evacuation, Yuji gladly took the car, relieved that he now had a faster mode of transportation. It was a nice car too, long and sleek, painted ruby red, and, as it turned out, quite fast. The only downside was that there wasn't a roof, keeping Yuji in the freezing rain. But, Yuji couldn't complain, since the UFO he was following had vastly outrun him and he needed a way to catch up.
And, eventually, he did. Of course, this was when the UFO had already settled on top of the World Trade Center, but such was better than having the UFO leave the tower before Yuji arrived or, for whatever reason, go somewhere else entirely. But the UFO, as Yuji had guessed, had returned to the World Trade Center, settled down on top of it. And now Yuji was making his way up through the tower, riding on the elevator.
As for why the UFO would land on the World Trade Center, Yuji had a theory. Logically, if you find yourself stuck on an alien world, and forced to live there permanently, naturally you would want to learn about the planet you lived on. Seeing how the alien ship seemed functional, Yuji wasn't sure why the alien couldn't just leave this world. But, whatever the reason, it seemed that the aliens planned to stay. And, it was going to need some information about its new home.
And how would the alien achieve this? Through the computers of the planet's native intelligent inhabitants. The World Trade Centers, being the hub of trade in the United States, the superpower of the world, the building's computers would be high tech and contain a lot of knowledge. In the end, this was just a theory, but Yuji considered it as a logical one. A theory that could just as well be fact. And so, selecting a random floor, Yuji used the elevator to scour the building, searching for a computer that seemed to be in the middle of being hacked.
The search didn't take long.
The first floor that Yuji had randomly picked (which he believed was floor 54) was the floor in which Yuji found what he was looking for. After checking around, he found an office room with a few computers, set on top of a few desks. And these computers weren't just sitting there. They were on. Of course, several computers could have easily been left on during the chaos of the evacuation. However, there was one thing that kept this from being the case.
Not only were the computers on, but there were active. On each screen, files, folders, and world wide web pages were being opened, read, and closed at a furious pace. Windows popped up only to disappear a moment later. The images appeared and disappeared so quickly, that Yuji could barely keep up. But, most of all, the chairs to these computers were empty. Not a person was around. It was almost as if a ghost had taken control of each computer.
Or an alien hacking into them.
Yuji sat down at the closest computer to him and watched with awe as screen after screen went by. The alien seemed to be collecting at a very rapid pace, far faster than what Yuji had thought possible. And that wasn't even considering how many computers the alien was doing this on. With the speed the alien looked through the computers' files, Yuji would not be surprised if the alien was looking through each computer in the building simultaneously.
But Yuji came across a dilemma. How was he going to study this alien? Yuji couldn't really do anything to the alien physically, even with the best equipment available. There wasn't any way to communicate with the alien. The only possible way to even try and do such a thing would be through the computers, and they were in the process of being hacked.
But there was no other way. Yuji had to get in contact with this alien. For science and humanity. Whether this alien is hostile or not, humanity had to learn about it. They had to know its strengths and weaknesses, whether it be to coexist with it or to defeat it. And the only feasible way was through the computers, especially since the alien was hacking into it.
A plan formed in Yuji's mind. Would it be possible to get the alien's attention? Its focus would undoubtedly be on the computers, so making a disturbance there would get its attention, right? Yuji sat back in his chair, pondering the situation. He wasn't going to learn about anything by just staring at the UFO while it was idle. But would his plan really be possible? And if it was, what would stop the alien from just destroying him? They had attacked the alien first, after all. And its attack on the troops in New Jersey definitely proved that it wasn't entirely friendly. But Yuji didn't have any other choice. If this alien was to be their friend, humanity had to know something about its nature and behavior. And if it was to be their enemy, then even more so.
Yuji leaned back forward in his seat, his face about a foot from the screen. His hand hovered delicately over the white mouse, which lay idle on the desk. With as much care as Yuji could muster, he gently set his hand upon the mouse. Of course, his nervousness made the mouse shake slightly, causing the cursor to appear (since it had previously been vacant from the screen). However, this didn't seem to catch the attention of the alien. Even when Yuji purposefully began moving the mouse around, sending the cursor bumping into each side of the screen, there was no apparent reaction.
It seemed that, no matter what Yuji did, the alien would fail to notice it. Before giving up, and removing his hand from the mouse, Yuji decided to try one last thing. He brought the mouse up to the upper right corner of the screen, the cursor hovering of the window's 'x'. If Yuji closed the window, it could interrupt the alien, and draw its attention to Yuji's presence. Yuji wasn't really sure what would happen if this occurred. For all Yuji knew, this could easily end in him getting blown up immediately. But, Yuji had to take the risk. For science, and for humanity.
Taking in a long, deep breath, Yuji rested his hand upon the mouse, let the cursor hover over the 'x,' and clicked.
Flatiron District, Manhattan
It was quite ironic. At about this time the previous night, this area had been the epicenter of the first trap. Where Zilla had been lured into a trap and attacked by the American military. Of course, this ended up being a disaster, but that was beside the point. It was about twenty-four hours since then, but Zilla now found herself in the same location.
Only instead of fighting the military, she was fighting Godzilla.
Godzilla, coincidentally enough, was standing where the Flatiron building had once stood before it had been obliterated by the military. And anything that had remained standing was now crushed under Godzilla's weight. But that wasn't Godzilla's focus. He scanned his surroundings with his fiery orange eyes, looking sharp for his, while smaller, far faster enemy. Zilla, for the duration of the fight, relied on hit-and-run tactics. Jumping onto Godzilla, dealing as much damage possible with her powerful claws and jaws, before leaping off again and avoiding Godzilla's counter. This, while it hasn't brought down the titan, had most definitely pissed him off.
And now Godzilla stood where the Flatiron building once stood, whirling around to try and get a glimpse of his enemy. His tail swung clumsily around as he did so, smashing any surrounding buildings, giving Godzilla a clear view of his initial surroundings.
But, of course, not of the entire city.
When Godzilla was facing south, Zilla began to creep on to the Metropolitan Life Insurance Company Tower, a rectangular building with The New York Edition, a tower that functioned as a hotel built into the north-left corner of the structure. A building that sat behind and to Godzilla's left, just out of his peripheral vision.
While Zilla was a large creature, one aspect of her nature was that she was incredibly light. Thus, she was able to climb on to this building without completely destroying it, a feat even Godzilla could not accomplish. And, what's more, she was able to do it silently, keeping Godzilla from hearing Zilla's presence. And while Godzilla could easily smell Zilla, he was unable to pinpoint Zilla's exact location. And thus, even while Godzilla was on alert, Zilla was able to strike him by surprise.
With only a small growl, Zilla lept from her position on the building and towards Godzilla. Godzilla, ears pricked, detected the growl, but did not turn around to face his enemy. This was not because of any hesitation or slowness. This choice was calculated by Godzilla. For while his back may be turned to Zilla, his back happened to have a weapon of its own. Godzilla's large, jagged, and very sharp dorsal plates.
Zilla landed on Godzilla's back with a thud, but rather than immediately digging into Godzilla's flesh, she released a screech of pain. Several of Godzilla's spines were stabbed into Zilla's chest. Several of Godzilla's dorsal spines were so large that they should have easily stabbed straight through Zilla's underbelly and out through her back. However, Zilla was fortunate enough to land to the side rather than directly on Godzilla's back. And thus, while several dorsal spines dug into her flesh, Zilla quickly began clawing and biting Godzilla's neck and left shoulder.
Godzilla, feeling the pain of Zilla's teeth and claws digging into his flesh, began to struggle, shaking his body violently in an attempt to throw Zilla off. This caused his tail to fling about, smacking into other surrounding buildings. When Godzilla, while trying to throw Zilla off, staggered into the wreckage of what was once a condominium complex, swinging around to face northwards. This caused his tail to be whipped straight through a tall, square, glass tower that stood on the other side of the street from the New York Edition. This structure cut in two from the base, the tower falling back and away from the previously mentioned hotel and on to several smaller buildings, shattering into pieces.
Godzilla then, grabbing Zilla's wrist, violently turned in the other direction. At this moment, Zilla finally lost her grip. While she was able to tear several chunks of flesh away from Godzilla, she was flung off him, cutting the New York Edition in half and slamming Zilla into the side of the massive bank directly north of the now destroyed hotel.
Godzilla immediately began charging his atomic breath, and within a few seconds, launched his fiery orange beam at Zilla. However, while stunned, Zilla was also quick. She was able to regain her bearings and escape the path of the beam before she would have been obliterated. Thus, rather than hitting Zilla, the beam hit the bank, blasting a hole straight through it, digging a trench through the top of a slightly smaller building behind the bank, and finally blowing up a market a few blocks away.
During this time, Zilla turned north, ducking under Godzilla's atomic breath before taking a sharp turn right to hide behind a tall, rectangular, glass office building. Godzilla, as soon as he shut off his atomic breath, spotted Zilla duck behind the building and immediately began to charge towards it.
But this was a part of Zilla's plan. As Godzilla charged through Madison Square Park, trampling its trees, fountains, and statues, Zilla began to scale the building. Actually climbing it like a bug would scale a wall, sending glass, steel, and concrete falling to the street below like rain. Of course, even with Zilla's lightweight, the building would not be able to survive long with Zilla climbing it. But this was the plan. Just as Godzilla began to reach the base of the building, it began to topple over under the weight of Zilla's bulk.
Falling down on top of Godzilla.
Godzilla, while realizing the trap, could only give a shocked screech before the building was upon him. The building, bouncing off of the bank Godzilla had previously added a hole to, began to shower tons of rubble onto the leviathan, pushing Godzilla down. And that, added along with the weight of Zilla, who rode the building down, forced Godzilla to the ground, covering him and Madison Square Park in a mound of rubble.
Zilla, despite falling with the building, landed on her feet, jumping back up and tearing down south through Manhattan. Godzilla, while buried in rubble, was quickly able to free himself. And once he spotted Zilla fleeing through the city, the nuclear leviathan quickly gave chase.
From the intersection between 26th Street and 5th Avenue, at the northern-left corner of Madison Square Park, Miyasaka and Katagiri were able to watch the fight between Godzilla and Zilla. And Miyasaka in particular watched it with a sense of awe.
Oh, how amazing these creatures were! Zilla, despite being mortal to conventional weapons and half the size of Godzilla, was fast and agile. She displayed the dexterity of a cat, shocking Miyasaka with her stunt that buried Godzilla in the rubble. Despite being such a large creature, it was clear that Zilla had a very lightweight. She scrambled up the side of that building like a squirrel, and when it fell, landed almost perfectly, taking off down the road almost as soon as she touched the ground.
Miyasaka's head whirled when watching the spectacle. Zilla's bones must be hollow to pull off a stunt like that, as well as having the same balance like a cat. Zilla's hit-and-run tactics were quite effective on Godzilla, dealing a great deal of damage without taking any serious hits. Not one of Godzilla's atomic breaths hit their mark, and each time Godzilla seemed to have Zilla in his grasp, the sly devil seemed to find a way out of the hold.
But, somehow, it didn't seem to be enough. As Miyasaka had watched the fight, he noticed several things about Godzilla. While he failed to get a killing blow on Zilla, he always got back up. Every time they had come into contact, Zilla would always be able to make Godzilla bleed, even just a little bit. And in that struggle in particular several chunks of flesh had been torn from Godzilla's neck and shoulders. And yet, as Miyasaka watched, these wounds didn't seem to affect Godzilla. Not in the slightest. It was almost as if each time Godzilla was injured someone came along and patched the wounds up.
And, perhaps, that was precisely what was going on.
Miyasaka glanced down at his disposable camera. There wasn't any way he could get to see the pictures. However, the camera had a zoom lens. Miyasaka could use that lens to get a closer look at Godzilla's wounds. And, if he spotted a wound from earlier, not one of the fresh ones, Miyasaka would know if his suspicions were correct.
But what wound should he look for? Miyasaka racked his brain. The wounds inflicted by Zilla were relatively new, and thus not good examples to look for if Miyasaka wanted to see if his theory was correct. Besides, they were also greater in number and would be hard to keep track of. Miyasaka needed to find an older wound. One caused by the UFO or the military. But what were they?
And then he remembered.
There were two instances in which a part of Godzilla's dorsal plates had been blown off. Once during his fight with the UFO, and there had been reports of the Battle of Guantanamo Bay that said that one of his dorsal plates had been blown off. However, when Miyasaka looked at Godzilla's dorsal spines through the camera, he found that his dorsal plates seemed to be intact.
Upon this discovery, Miyasaka immediately shared his findings with Katagiri. "Hmm," he said. "Yes, I noticed that too. And I noticed that his teeth seemed to have grown back as well." Miyasaka, remembering how Godzilla lost several of his teeth biting the UFO, realized that, during the fight with Zilla, he seemed to magically have gotten them back. Further evidence of his theory.
"I don't believe it," Miyasaka said, mostly to himself. "I know that all animals have their wounds naturally healed, but…" Miyasaka couldn't bring himself to say it. He was a scientist, dedicated to logic and discovery. And this theory, while having substantial evidence to back it up, just seemed too crazy to be true. But, of course, so is a giant sea iguana and a giant, fire breathing creature fighting in the Big Apple.
It was Katagiri who filled in the rest. "Godzilla isn't just durable," he said, his face never shifting from his grim expression, "he's practically invincible."
"Regeneration," Miyasaka finally said. "Regeneration at an astounding rate. A rate that neither I nor the world has ever seen."
Katagiri and Miyasaka watched, the former with a face of stone and the latter with a face of shock, as Godzilla released a roar that matched the heavens and continued on his hunt for Zilla. And it became clear that, even with the advantages Zilla had at her disposal, any damage was all for naught. Godzilla could just heal any wounds inflicted upon him, all in a matter of minutes.
He seemed truly unstoppable.
World Trade Center
The result of closing out of the current window occurred instantly.
Really, anything could have occurred, ranging from nothing at all to immediate annihilation. And Yuji had no clue at the time exactly what that result would have been. Yet, Yuji still had to do it. This alien did not seem to have any desires of leaving the planet, and with its prior hostility towards humans, humanity was going to need all the information they could get from this alien. And the only way Yuji could accomplish this, to learn anything about the alien or aliens, was to interact with it directly. To get its attention.
To communicate with it.
And so, he clicked out of the most current window the alien was looking through (the windows were going by so fast Yuji couldn't really tell what the page was about). And the response was instant.
When, not a moment earlier, images had flashed rapidly across the screen, the computer was now still. Images no longer flashed across the screen at breakneck speeds. The computer was now focussed on one image, a file depicting some economic deal or possible trade agreement. Yuji wasn't sure, but the screen didn't change from it. And, looking over at the other computers, Yuji realized that the same thing had happened. Each computer, which had each been highly active a moment ago, were now still. A random file opened on each screen, unchanging.
The alien had stopped its search.
But when Yuji turned back to the computer he sat at, it was clear that the alien wasn't idle. For this was because a new window had appeared, one unrelated to economics. It was a notepad app, opened to a new page, blank except for three words.
"WHAT ARE YOU?"
Yuji stared at the words for a long moment, uncomprehending who or what had created them. It only internalized when the message was repeated, "WHO ARE YOU?" And even then, Yuji didn't believe it. But it was there, clear as day. A message was written for him by an extraterrestrial being.
Yuji had made contact with the alien.
Snapping back to reality, Yuji shot forward in his chair, tapping away at the keyboard. "I am Yuji," he replied. But, checking to be sure that it truly was the alien, Yuji added, "Are you an alien?"
The reply came a moment later. "I AM NOT OF THIS WORLD. WHAT IS A YUJI?"
Yuji sat back with a gasp. It seemed to be true. He was talking to an alien from another world. It could easily just be a prank by some mischievous teenagers, but at a time like this? When there was an actual alien on the roof? All the civilians have been evacuated, so this can't be a hoax.
It had to be the alien.
But Yuji was nervous when considering the alien's question. How would it react to Yuji being a human? It definitely wasn't friendly towards them, so it was highly likely that the alien would just destroy Yuji upon hearing that he was human. So, Yuji decided to dodge the question.
Instead of revealing his species, he replied, "A being of this world." Then, he asked, "What are you?"
There was a moment of idleness, and Yuji wondered for a moment if the alien had lost interest. But, the screens were idle. Nothing happened until, a moment later, the alien gave its reply.
"A MILLENNIAN. OF THE MILLENNIUM EMPIRE."
The Millennium Empire? Yuji thought. He didn't like the sound of that. Typically, empires tried to expand their territory. To conqueror land and colonize territory. This didn't necessarily make this alien bad. Maybe empires were peaceful in this alien's culture. Maybe the alien mistranslated, and it confused a democratic word, like a republic, for the word 'empire.' After all, it must have translated its words into the human language for Yuji to understand.
Yet, Yuji highly doubted that these aliens were entirely peaceful.
And, following that thought, another question popped into Yuji's mind. "How many of you are there in your spaceship?"
It was a simple question, maybe a little suspicious but not entirely complicated. And yet, it took an entire minute for the alien to respond. "I AM ONE," it eventually replied.
Yuji leaned back in confusion. It was one? Did that mean there was only one alien up in that spaceship? That was entirely possible, but why did the alien make it sound like that it was the spaceship? It didn't say, 'I AM THE ONLY ONE HERE." It said, "I AM ONE." Was the UFO also the alien?
This was Yuji's next question. "Are you the spaceship?"
After a moment, the alien replied, "NO SPACESHIP. THIS IS A FORM FOR GALACTIC TRAVEL."
Well, that seemed to confirm it. The UFO wasn't a spaceship at all. It wasn't a bunch of green men from Mars. The UFO was the alien. The object that had fought against Godzilla wasn't a vehicle piloted by aliens. It was a single entity. A living thing.
Fascinating…
Yuji was about to type in another question, but before he could, the alien spoke first. "DO YOU KNOW OF THE LUMO2?"
The question was so surprising to Yuji, this time he was the one who took a minute to reply. The LUMO2? Did this thing want to know about Godzilla? Yuji decided to ask this question. "Do you mean Godzilla? The giant, fire breathing creature."
The response came a moment later. "IS THAT WHAT YUJIS CALL IT? GODZILLA?"
"Yes," Yuji entered, deciding not to reveal that he was human. If this alien knew of Godzilla, it probably would that humans were the ones that attacked it. But, that brought another question to Yuji's mind. "How do you know that its official name is LUMO2?"
The response was, "I CAN OBTAIN INFORMATION FROM HUMAN COMPUTERS WITH MY SENSORS." The alien then, before Yuji could enter anything, asked, "ARE YOU HUMAN?"
Yuji, not entirely sure that he wouldn't die if he answered yes, lied. "No."
However, the alien was smart. It saw through Yuji's lies. Almost instantly, it said, "YOU ARE LYING. YOU CAN READ THE HUMAN LANGUAGE AND KNOW OF HUMAN TERMS. YOU CAN WORK HUMAN COMPUTERS. YOU ARE HUMAN. ARE YOU HUMAN?"
Yuji sighed. He had been caught. The alien knew he was human, so he might as well come clean. "Yes," he typed. "I am human."
Yuji closed his eyes, expecting to be blown to smithereens. However, after a moment went by, Yuji realized that nothing had happened. Everything was silent. Opening his eyes, Yuji realized that there were new words on the screen. A question from the alien.
"WHY DID YOUR PEOPLE ATTACK ME?"
Yuji pondered the question for a moment, thinking of an answer that wouldn't result in his termination. Eventually, he answered, "Humans are naturally scared of the unknown. And, to us, you are an unknown. An alien with powers that we don't understand and are very dangerous to us. We attacked you because we were scared that you would harm us." Then, to better their cause, Yuji added. "Please forgive us."
There was a moment of tension, before the alien replied, "I UNDERSTAND."
Yuji, with a sigh, typed "Thank you," into the computer. But before the alien could reply, another question revealed itself to Yuji. It seemed that the alien understood why humans had attacked it, but can't the alien return to its planet? What was its intent? Yuji was quick to type the question, "What is your intent while you are here?" He asked the question assuming that the alien was just visiting and would soon return to his martian home.
But that was far from the truth.
Yuji froze when the alien replied, "TO CONQUER THIS PLANET."
Damn it, Yuji thought. He should have seen this coming. The alien, as it said, was a part of the 'Millennium Empire,' after all. He should have known that the alien would try to conquer Earth as a colony for his nation. But some instinct deep inside wanted to know why the alien wanted to conquer the world, like a young child would question why his toy was taken away after breaking a vase with it. Yuji instinctively typed, "Why?" to the alien, as if some part of him wanted fair justification for this conquest.
And, to Yuji's surprise, he got it.
"MY PLANET IS DESTROYED," the alien replied. "MY CIVILIZATION IS GONE. I AM THE LAST OF MY KIND AND I MUST KEEP MY CIVILIZATION ALIVE."
Another odd quirk. Instead of worrying about the oncoming invasion, Yuji was far more worried - or perhaps curious - on how the alien's planet was destroyed. And so, he asked, "What destroyed your planet."
The reply shook Yuji to his very core. "A TERRIBLE BEAST, CREATED ACCIDENTALLY BY OUR OWN SCIENTISTS USING A SUBSTANCE SIMILAR TO YOUR RADIATION. A DEVIL WHO CRAVES DEATH AND DESTRUCTION. WHO SUCKED THE LIFE OUT OF MY WORLD AND EXTERMINATED MY PEOPLE. I WAS THE ONLY SURVIVOR."
A chill shot up Yuji's spine as he read the response. A terrible beast? One created by radiation? By individuals devoted to science and truth?
Sounds familiar, Yuji thought with a shudder.
But, suddenly, all of the pieces began to fall into place. Millions of years ago, this alien had once been only a member of an entire species. A race who had ruled their planet (if their name had any indication) for millennia. But, one day, the scientists of this race, by accident, created a terrible beast with a substance similar to radiation. A creature that is far more powerful than even the alien's devastating weapons. This creature would continue to exterminate this alien's civilization, committing a global genocide. It was likely that many tried to flee into space, as this alien probably had done, but this beast seemed to have destroyed them. It might be possible that this civilization still survived on some other planet, and that this individual only thought that he was the last of his kind, but either way, the beast destroyed the alien's planet. Destroyed its home. The rest was simple. Eventually, the alien arrived at Earth, crash landing into the depths of the planet's oceans and lacking the energy required to escape. And there it would lay for millions of years until it was finally awakened and sustained with energy by Yuji's own submarine.
How odd it was to feel pity for this creature. An alien millions of years old and even farther away from its home, a home it can never return to due to the destruction of life on its surface. Forced to live the rest of its life on this strange new world or risk the dangers of space travel. If it wasn't for the fact that the alien wanted to take control over the planet and over humanity, he would feel sorry for this creature. Perhaps, deep down inside, Yuji did.
But the alien could not conquer their planet. This planet was already inhabited, owned by a race of animals outnumbering this creature about seven billion to one. It had access to space travel. And with all of the stars in the universe, there had to be one that both had life and lacked a civilization such as humanity. While Yuji pitied this alien's situation, he would not allow this alien to stay. Or, at least not as a conquer.
But, of course, he wasn't about to tell the alien that.
Instead, Yuji decided to say something else. While the alien's origin seemed to have been solved, there was one last thing that didn't make sense. But before Yuji could type anything, the alien asked, "WHAT IS THE CODENAME FOR LUMO1?"
Yuji, though he wasn't sure if it would be a bad idea to do so, answered, "Zilla."
The alien, seemingly noticing the similarities between the two names, said, "AFTER GODZILLA?"
Again, Yuji wasn't sure if answering the alien's question was a good idea. But the question that he wanted to be answered may also be a question the alien was unwilling to answer. It may just make the alien more trusting of him if he indulged the alien in some information - or at least info that couldn't be obtained from the computer. So, Yuji replied, "Yes. The two look similar and come from the same island."
"HOW WERE THEY CREATED?" the alien asked.
Yuji suddenly felt awkward. How was the alien going to react to finding out that, similar to the beast that destroyed its planet, Godzilla was created by radiation? But, perhaps learning of such will make the alien disinterested in conquering this world. Maybe learning that this planet was - well, maybe not necessarily guarded - but inhabited by a creature similar to such a beast, the alien would leave them alone.
So, he answered, "Like with the beast that destroyed your planet, both Godzilla and Zilla are mutations created from radiation, radiation supplied to them by our own kind."
This, as Yuji expected, caused the alien to hesitate, finally allowing Yuji to enter his own question. "Why did you attack Godzilla?"
The moment of idleness continued, and Yuji wondered if the alien had left its position and had fled. However, this wonder, or perhaps hope, dissipated when the alien answered, "BECAUSE, LIKE THE BEAST THAT DESTROYED MY PLANET, GODZILLA POSSESS GREAT POWER. I BELIEVE YOU ARE ALREADY AWARE OF GODZILLA'S ENERGY BEAM AND ITS DURABILITY, BUT THERE IS MORE. GODZILLA POSSESS GREAT REGENERATIVE ABILITIES. HE CAN HEAL ANY WOUNDS IN A MATTER OF MINUTES. A POWERFUL CREATURE INDEED."
Yuji was stunned. Godzilla had such regenerative abilities? Yuji knew that all animals naturally healed their wounds but in a matter of minutes? But, as Yuji considered it, he realized that the alien was right. No matter what hit Godzilla, he always seemed to get up. Always seemed to continue fighting. But, what was more, when he did get up, there weren't many visible signs of damage at all. Even if there were, Yuji realized, these wounds seemed to just disappear a few minutes later. In fact, Yuji now remembered what had bugged his mind when, while he was at CCI's HQ, he watched Godzilla fight the military through the television.
There wasn't something missing about Godzilla, it was the fact that there wasn't anything missing. There had been reports that the top-most dorsal plate had been blown from Godzilla's back. And yet, on the television, Godzilla had a complete set of dorsal plates. And now Yuji noticed other signs that this was the case. During the battle, the alien had rammed Godzilla multiple times, hard and fast, an attack that should have led to broken ribs and damaged organs. And, perhaps, there had been. But these had healed in a matter of minutes and, shortly after, Godzilla fought as if nothing had happened.
The alien was telling the truth. Godzilla could heal his wounds in a matter of minutes. He was practically invincible.
As Yuji internalized the information, the alien continued explaining his reason for fighting Godzilla. "THERE IS ONE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN GODZILLA AND THE BEAST THAT HAD DESTROYED MY HOME. THE BEAST, LIKE MY SPECIES, HAS ACCESS TO SPACE TRAVEL. I FEAR THAT, SOMEDAY, THE BEAST WILL FIND THIS WORLD. AND, IF IT DOES, I WILL NEED TO DESTROY IT. GODZILLA'S POWERS MAKE IT THE BEST CHANCE OF DEFEATING THE BEAST. HOWEVER, I CAN'T ALLOW GODZILLA TO ALSO THREATEN MY REIGN OVER THIS WORLD. AND I MUST AVENGE THE DEATH OF MY RACE. I AM NOT JUST GOING TO DEFEAT GODZILLA, I AM GOING TO ABSORB HIM. I AM GOING TO TAKE HIS POWERS. THIS WILL BOTH DESTROY HIM AND GIVE ME THE POWER TO DESTROY THE BEAST. I WILL BE ABLE TO STOP ANY THREATS. I WILL BE UNSTOPPABLE."
A cold sweat formed at the tip of Yuji's brow as he read the alien's words. Such a plan was beyond his imagination. Absorbing Godzilla? Taking his power? It was hard to believe for a mere mortal such as Yuji. But, already a theory was starting to form in Yuji's mind, one that made this claim turn from complex magic to an alien version of biotechnology. The alien, Yuji theorized, would somehow take some of Godzilla's DNA and absorb it into its own. How this would occur Yuji could not fathom. If Godzilla's amazing regenerative abilities even came from his DNA was also in question. But, Yuji began to believe that this was what the alien planned. That this was how it was going to take Godzilla's power and destroy him.
But, there was no harm in asking. After all, Yuji could now communicate with the alien. It could ask it for more of its secrets, perhaps in exchange for some of humanity's own. And, sure, the alien planned to conquer the planet, but perhaps the alien would reveal a way for them to stop it. Or perhaps he could even coerce the alien into joining their side against this great threat it spoke of.
And then Yuji looked back down at the screen.
The alien had entered something new. Something that chilled Yuji to the bone. Something terrifying. The alien said, "I HAVE MADE A MISTAKE. I SHOULD NOT HAVE TOLD YOU MY PLAN. IT IS ILLOGICAL FOR ME TO TELL MY FUTURE ENEMIES MY SECRETS. YOU MUST NOT BE ALLOWED TO SPREAD THE INFORMATION I HAVE GIVEN YOU.
"YOU MUST BE DESTROYED."
Yuji's mouth was ajar with horror. The alien had seen through Yuji and had realized what Yuji was trying to achieve. The alien had given up precious information to Yuji and the alien wasn't about to let Yuji use that information against it.
"FORTUNATELY FOR YOU, I STILL NEED SOME TIME TO GATHER MORE INFORMATION FROM YOUR CITY. HOWEVER, FORTUNATELY FOR ME, I DON'T NEED MUCH MORE. YOU WILL ONLY HAVE FIVE MINUTES BEFORE I AM FINISHED COLLECTING INFORMATION. AND I BELIEVE THAT THIS IS NOT ENOUGH TIME FOR YOU TO ESCAPE THIS BUILDING."
Suddenly, on all of the other computers, the screens began to flicker between images once more, moving through at a blinding pace. On this screen too, the same process was happening, but with the notepad app still open. And, on the notepad, a countdown was beginning.
300… 299… 298…
Yuji, realizing what was happening, leaped from his seat. There was no use trying to persuade the alien to spare him. The alien was set on its decisions. It was going to destroy this tower and then go off to destroy Godzilla. And Yuji had to escape this building alive if he was to warn everyone of the alien's plan.
And that meant escaping this tower alive.
Yuji rushed over to the elevator doors. Taking the stairs was out of the question, but when Yuji arrived at the elevator, he realized that taking the elevator might not be a good option either. The elevator, while faster than taking the stairs, would be too slow. He was fifty-four floors above the ground. There was no way he would get down in time.
So, Yuji then rushed over to the nearest window, only hesitating to glance at the countdown. 283… 282… 281… Deciding to try and hit two birds with one stone, Yuji picked up and threw the nearest computer out of the nearest window, hoping to both disrupt the alien's process and give him a way to escape. However, Yuji knew that he would never survive a fall from the fifty-fourth floor. And, even if he had one, he couldn't parachute down in the middle of a storm. There may be a fire-escape or some kind of ladders that led down the side of the building. But, Yuji didn't think there were any, and even if there was one, it would probably take far too long to get down anyway.
It seemed that he was trapped. That he was doomed.
Yuji glanced back at the countdown. 269… 268… 267… Not a minute had gone by yet, and time seemed to move slowly, but Yuji knew that there wasn't a lot of time available for him to think. However, he needed a plan. He needed to find a way out of this skyscraper.
Yuji glanced around the room once more. Was there anything, anything at all that Yuji could use to escape? Some rope, a helicopter maybe? Anything at all that could help Yuji escape before the entire building was destroyed. Maybe it was worth parachuting out in the storm. Maybe he could even try an umbrella! But, Yuji knew that such hopes were misguided and desperate. If he was to survive, he would need to focus, to calm his mind and think straight.
Yuji was about to try checking some other rooms when, giving the elevator another glance, he had an idea. It was, in any other situation, a bad one. It was probably worse than parachuting out in the middle of the storm. But Yuji didn't have much time to search for anything more practical, safer. It was dangerous, but it seemed to be his only way out of here alive.
Yuji ran up to the elevator, and pressed - not the down button as one may expect - but the up one. His plan was to slide down the cord that the elevator was attached to, sliding down all the way to the bottom. To get to this cord, Yuji would have to send the elevator to a floor above him and, somehow, force the door open. And that was what he did. After a tense moment (which seemed like it took an eternity), the elevator dinged and the doors slid open.
Immediately, Yuji jumped into the elevator and pressed a button that would send the elevator to the top floor. But before the elevator doors closed again, he hopped out, allowing the elevator head up without any passengers. And now, for something to open the doors with.
Yuji glanced around. There had to be some sort of fire extinguisher or something here, though Yuji would have preferred a crowbar. In fact, Yuji wasn't sure if a blunt object could open the doors. What Yuji would need was something that could slide between the doors and pry them open. Something like a crowbar.
Or, Yuji thought with a smile, a fire escape hatchet.
Rushing over, with only slight hesitation, Yuji raised his foot and kicked through the glass of the plastic box that separated Yuji from the ax. His shoe punched right through, and though a few shards of glass bit at his leg, Yuji ignored the pain. Grabbing the ax, and ignoring the pain of glass catching in his arm, Yuji rushed over to the elevator and slammed the ax at the slit between the two doors. To Yuji's dismay, the ax bounced off with a loud, metallic thud. But, he couldn't give up. He had to escape. He had to survive.
So, he began repeatedly swinging his ax at the slit between the elevator doors. It took only a short while before the doors began getting covered in white scars, inflicted by Yuji's ax. But actually getting the ax between the slits took far longer. Each time the ax would bounce back and away from the elevator, leaving a scar and a loud metallic thud. And as time ticked away, Yuji began to become desperate and to panic. His aim began to get sloppy and the scars began to spread further away from the doors.
With a glance back, Yuji released a gasp of horror when he saw that the countdown had ticked away to under a minute! 56… 55… 54… Yuji quickly whirled back to the elevator. He needed to get the doors opened now. He would need time to prepare himself for the fall and his hands for the harsh metal wire that would be sure to scar it. But panicking would lead to his death, and that was not an option.
Yuji took in a great breath and lifted the ax high into the air. He held it there for several valuable seconds, concentrating on sending the head straight through the door. Yuji breathed in and out, inhaled and exhaled, for several moments. And then, with a yell, Yuji brought the ax down. There was a metallic screech and, opening his eyes, Yuji saw…
Yuji saw that the ax head was wedged between the two elevator doors. Yuji smiled and gave a sigh of relief. He had done it! Yuji glanced at the countdown. 29… 28… 27… Yuji had to get these doors open now.
Fortunately, getting the doors open, with the help of the ax, was far easier. But it still took some time, the countdown having gone under twenty seconds by the time Yuji finally threw the elevator doors open.
Yuji glanced down into the elevator shaft, looking down at the bottom which seemed so far below. Yuji wasn't really scared of heights but, with the bottom so far away, Yuji began to feel lightheaded. But he quickly shook the feeling away. This was no time to get nervous. He had to take the metal wire all the way down to the bottom. Then, he would either have to make a run for the outside or tuck into the fetal position at the bottom of the elevator shaft and hope that the explosion won't reach him.
But, first, his hands would need protection. He couldn't just slide down there like it was a fireman's pole. His hands would be annihilated by the ugly metal wire. Yuji needed something that would protect his hands, at least long enough so that his hands wouldn't get too disfigured. But the countdown was approaching the ten-second mark. He didn't have time to search around for any rubber gloves. Yuji needed to find something… closer.
Looking down, Yuji realized that, while most certainly not the perfect item, his rain jacket may just survive long enough for him to reach the bottom without serious injury. Of course, there were probably only ten seconds left so he couldn't exactly shimmy down, so the landing will be rough.
But it will be better than exploding.
12… 11… 10…
Yuji yanked his jacket off as fast as he could and wrapped it around both his hands.
After making sure that his hands were well wrapped but still flexible, Yuji tentatively reached out and grabbed the metal wire. Even though the jacket, it felt rough in Yuji's hands. Admittedly, he was kind of scared. Actually, more like absolutely terrified. He did not want to die but he feared the pain he would face if he did this. But Yuji knew that he had to.
Or else he would die for sure.
9… 8… 7…
With a leap of faith, Yuji jumped onto the metal wire and began to slide down like a firefighter. He tried to keep his legs and body from touching the wire since they weren't protected, but it didn't take long for sharp burns to burst out onto his legs and chest. Yuji's boots were slowly melting away and Yuji could feel the heat rising up through the rain jacket and into his hands. Yuji let out a scream when he felt the wire cut through the rain jacket around his right hand and begin eating at it. His hands and legs burned, burned as if Godzilla himself had roasted them. The raincoat around his left hand was cut away soon after and Yuji screamed again. He screamed as loud as he could as the fierce burning fire began to eat him away. Eating Yuji alive.
6… 5… 4…
It didn't take long for Yuji to have enough of the pain and, without a thought, he let go of the terrible wire. He fell, holding his bleeding hands close to his torso. Yuji curled himself into a ball, into the fetal position, as he fell the rest of the way down the elevator shaft. Yuji hit the bottom with a heavy thud, the air fleeing from his lungs instantly.
3… 2… 1…
Yuji's head hit hard against the concrete floor. His head reeled at the impact but, oddly enough, the pain seemed to disappear. Yuji's surroundings were beginning to melt away and he began to feel a sensation… a peaceful sensation. Like nothing in the world mattered. Like science, pain, living, dying, and everything else just did not matter.
That was the sense of things, anyway, but they didn't last long. For, not even a second later, Yuji let out another breath as the colors faded and the world faded to black.
Only a few seconds were allowed to persist so the Millennian could disconnect itself from the computers. It couldn't help but feel silly for letting a lowly human being get so much information from it. But, to the Millennian, it didn't matter. There was no way that little human - Yuji if it remembered correctly - would be able to escape in time. The Millennian's sensors detected the human at the fifty-fourth floor of the building, which was much too far up in the air for the human to escape fast enough.
It did feel a little sorry for having to destroy the human. The Millennian had gotten some information from the human. It had learned of the human codenames for LUMO1 and LUMO2. Zilla and Godzilla. While a bit cheesy, the Millennian considered them to be simpler and better names than some acronyms. And it had also learned that, like the devil that had destroyed its world, Godzilla and Zilla were created through radiation by humans.
But, most of all, it had learned all of the information it could get from the city's computers. He now knew pretty much everything about this world. About human history, human politics, human economics. It learned about human nature and human folly. With this and the power gained from Godzilla, there was nothing that could stop the Millennian. Perhaps not even the Destroyer of Worlds itself.
Godzilla was quite powerful, especially with his atomic breath and regenerative abilities. But with their previous fight and Godzilla's current fight with Zilla, the Millennian was confident that Godzilla wouldn't have the energy to face him. And, while it couldn't absorb the sun's energy at night, it knew how to properly store and reserve energy for emergencies.
And, once Godzilla was defeated, conquering the humans for the new Millennium Empire.
Once the Millennian had disconnected itself, it began sending waves of energy through the tower's structure. This would appear to humans as waves of light shimmering down the sides of the building. A magnificent, if not terrifying, scene. But the Millennian didn't care for the scene's magnificence. Even in its true form, in which it could actually see, it would not care for the energy's destructive beauty. After all, the beauty it sought after was the beautiful cities that had once reigned across its planetary home.
A city that will soon be replicated here, on Earth.
Being true to its word, the Millennian, after only a few seconds after the countdown ended, sent a sudden and violent wave of pure energy rush down through the tower in a torrent. As the wave sped down the building, everything above it was annihilated into oblivion. Small chunks of glass and concrete flew away and fell into the streets with the surrounding rain. And then, after only a few moments, the wave of energy finally reached the bottom of the tower, destroying the last remnants of what the humans called the World Trade Center.
The Millennian hovered there a few moments, sensing its work with its sensors. Of course, there was no way that the human could have survived, so it didn't bother with scanning for it. It merely did so it confirmed that the building was destroyed. And, a few seconds later, such was confirmed.
The Millennian, satisfied, turned slowly north, towards where Godzilla and Zilla were having their brawl. It began to fly in their direction. The fight would be rough, especially if Zilla decided to fight against it. But all it needed was a little of Godzilla's DNA. Then it could turn into its new form. A form only differing from its last by its ability to survive in Earth's atmosphere and by the powers it has gained from Godzilla. Then, Godzilla would die, along with Zilla, who was mortal to even the inferior humans.
The Millennian was confident - no - certain of victory.
Madison Square Garden
Nick stood in what seemed to be the basement of Madison Square Garden. But he was certain that he wouldn't be there for long.
A reptilian creature, a spawn of Gojira, stood less than a foot away from him, its snout dangerously close to his face. It seemed that this creature was, like several of its siblings, dangerous to humans. Nick had no clue how or why, but the creature had immediately begun stalking him and Audrey.
Now, Nick was about to die to the creature's jaws. And all Nick could think was that he was glad to have gotten Audrey to safety. They have had their differences and arguments. Audrey has made her mistakes, but Nick was glad that she would survive. Only the worst human beings in history, like Hitler or Stalin, would deserve to suffer the same fate that Nick was about to meet. Certainly not Audrey, who simply made a few mistakes.
Nick closed his eyes, took in his final breath, and waited to die…
Only to find a warm, slimy substance slide across his cheek.
Nick snapped his eyes open with surprise. The creature, which practically had Nick pinned against the wall, wasn't biting him. Tearing his flesh from his bones and devouring it. No. It was licking him. Nick wondered if this creature was checking to see if he tasted good. Seeing if he was food. But no, that didn't seem to be it. The animal had a glint in its emerald eyes. A sort of happy, friendly gleam. It wasn't licking him to taste him, the animal licked Nick out of joy, like that of a dog greeting his owner. Nick saw that there was also a sort of amusement in the animal's eyes, and Nick quickly came to the realization of what was happening.
This animal wasn't eating Nick. It was playing with him.
"The hell?" he said aloud. The animal took a step back, looking at Nick expectantly. Nick, spotting a few fish lying around nearby, decided to perform a test. Bending down slowly, Nick carefully grabbed a nearby tuna. The animal, spotting Nick's movements, immediately perked up with excitement. The animal had a smile a sort scribbled on its face, or at least as best of a smile a creature like itself could make. Its tail was even swinging back and forth, like that of an excited dog.
Slowly standing back up, Nick, as carefully as he could, extending the fish forward. Nick knew that this could be a very dangerous move. Divers swimming with sharks have been known to get their hands bitten while trying to feed the sharks fish. And this animal was far different from a shark. This animal was new and unpredictable. If Nick wasn't careful, the animal could easily mistake Nick's hand for being a part of the fish and, even if unintentional, the situation could still take a dark turn.
Nick held the fish by the tail, and only enough of it so that it didn't slide out from Nick's grasp. The tuna hung loosely before the animal, who gave it an inquisitive sniff. Then, with the speed of the viper, it lunged forward. Before Nick knew it, the fish was gone, his hand still extended away from his body. It was only when Nick spotted the fish slide down the animal's gullet did he realize that the animal had taken the bait, and he withdrew his hand.
Amazing, Nick thought. This baby Gojira, instead of confusing Nick for food like some of its siblings had done, had taken the fish and only the fish. It didn't attack him, or accidentally bite his hand off (though that last part may have just been luck). Nick's mind whirled with theories. This animal might have been simply able to recognize that Nick wasn't food. After all, even covered with the smell of fish, the human scent would still be there. And these creatures seemed to have a good sense of smell. Perhaps the ones that had confused humans for food simply didn't have as great a sense of smell, or that they didn't decipher the difference between the two smells.
But that still left the mystery of why this animal was so… playful with Nick. If this animal had simply realized that Nick wasn't food, why didn't it wander away? The first lick could have been testing Nick to see if he was food, but after that, the animal should have just wandered off. Was this animal smart enough to know that Nick would feed it? But why would it rely on him when there were plenty of fish around to eat? And what was with that playful look in its eyes?
As Nick watched the animal (which had returned to giving Nick it's joyful and playful gaze) a theory suddenly entered his mind. Glancing down at the goo on his shirt, Nick realized that this theory was a pretty sound one. It just might be the answer.
But first, another test. One far more dangerous than the last.
Carefully, and this time without a fish, Nick extended his hand again, towards the animal. The animal gave Nick's hand a curious look, but it didn't move. It didn't run away, nor bite it off. It just stood there, watching Nick. Watching as his hand got closer to its snout. Closer and closer…
"Nick!"
The shout caught Nick off guard, making him instinctively pull his arm back. The animal also heard the commotion and turned its head to view the cause of it. If this animal had truly been dangerous to Nick and had truly wanted to eat him, then the sight before Nick would be the most welcome sight he could ever see.
But, with the circumstances, it was a sight that, while not welcome, could most definitely complicate things.
There stood Audrey, gazing at him, face plagued with worry and shock (the shock presumably being of his survival unscathed). But, to her right, stood Roache, gun aimed at Nick's right. Aiming right at the animal.
Instinctively, Nick acted. "WAIT!" he yelled, jumping in front of the animal. It was a stupid thing to do. Roache, if he had been younger, inexperienced, and trigger happy, probably would have shot Nick. Killing him during the effort of saving him. But, fortunately, Roache was old, wise, and experienced. He was not trigger happy. He definitely would have killed the creature if it was attacking Nick, but he must have noticed the animal's idleness, and his patience allowed him to search for an answer to this odd behavior before simply putting the animal down. It was because of this that Roache did not fire his gun. Did not shoot Nick, nor either scare or kill the amazing creature before him.
Instead, though the gun was still aimed, Roache did not fire, and asked, "What's going on, Nick?"
Nick glanced at the animal, which was giving its visitors a curious but cheerful gaze. "Honestly, I'm not really sure," he responded after a moment. "All I know is that this creature isn't aggressive. It's quite docile." Nick turned back to Roache and Audrey. "It didn't attack me. It began licking me."
"Licking?" Roache asked, confused.
Nick returned his gaze to the animal, which had returned its gaze to Nick. "Ya. And I was able to feed it too. It seems that, for some reason, this animal likes me."
"Well, it's not killing you," Roache observed, slowly aiming the gun away from the animal.
"But…" Audrey asked, "why?"
Nick glanced several times between the creature and the embryonic fluid that was glued to his shirt. The theory returned and, the more Nick thought about it, the more it made sense. "I think…" Nick began, nervous at the response he would receive. His theory wasn't exactly a logical one. "I think that this animal smelled the embryonic fluid that is on my shirt and… and mistook me for its mother."
Audrey's mouth dropped open and even Roache seemed shocked. "Mon Dieu," he muttered.
The animal had returned its gaze to Nick and, as Nick stared into its deep, green eyes, he suddenly gained the confidence to continue his previous test. He was quite sure that he would be able to pull it off. Not only would the animal allow Nick to pet it, but it may also even like it.
So, tentatively, Nick extended his hand towards the animal once more. "Nick?" Audrey said, nervously. Roache, meanwhile, raised his gun once more, ready to put the animal down if Nick's test went bad. However, Nick was suddenly sure that things would be fine. This animal wouldn't hurt him. If Nick was right, then this animal considered Nick as a parental figure and would allow Nick to pet him. That didn't make Nick any less nervous, but his anxiety was buried by Nick's sense of wonder, and the desire to discover.
His hand hovered closer and closer to the animal's snout. Nick saw that the nostrils were flaring, and that animal seemed quite passive. Nick watched as his hand inched closer… and closer… Five inches… four inches… Nick watched the animal cautiously, but nonetheless with growing his excitement as his hand got closer to the animal's snout. Three inches… two inches… one inch…
And then… contact!
Nick both watched and felt as his hand gently landed on the tip of the creature's snout. The animal made a noise, which sounded like a growly purr. And, sliding his hand forward across the rough scales of the creature's snout, Nick began to pet the animal. It was warm, and Nick guessed that the animal was warm-blooded. Nick couldn't help but smile. He was actually petting a baby Gojira! The offspring of a creature born from radiation! And it wasn't eating him. In fact, the animal seemed quite content with snuggling with Nick rather than eating any of the surrounding fish.
"Wow…" Audrey said, "amazing…"
"Quite fascinating…" Roache muttered.
Glancing at the two, Nick saw that Audrey had now begun reaching her hand forward in an attempt to pet the creature. However, the animal wasn't as accepting of her as it was of Nick, taking a few steps back and maneuvering behind Nick.
"Interesting," Nick said as he saw this. "I think that proves it. If this animal simply had a strange fondness for humans, it wouldn't have stepped away like that. It sees me as its parent. No one else."
"But why?" Audrey asked. "I was there too."
"But you didn't get any embryonic fluid on you," Nick explained. "And I sent you away to get Roache, leaving it - or him, I guess - alone with me."
Audrey withdrew her hand and, sure enough, the animal stepped out from behind Nick. Roache, meanwhile, cleared his throat. "That's fine and all, but we need to get to that broadcasting station."
Audrey turned to follow Roache but Nick didn't move. "Wait," he said, "what about the animal?"
Roache glanced back towards Nick. "Leave him."
"I'm afraid it won't be that simple," Nick said. "This animal thinks that I'm his mother. It's going to take a lot to chase him away."
"Well we can't bring him with us," Roache pointed out. "Our entire mission is destroying the animals, not keeping them as pets. Just step away from it and I will scare it away with my gun."
Nick was already shaking his head before Roache had even finished his sentence, but before either of them could make their argument, Audrey came up with an idea. "Maybe we can bring him," she said. "The aggressive ones probably won't attack him and the embryonic fluid should mask the scent of fish. Maybe we can use him to get to the broadcasting station without the risk of being attacked."
Nick glanced at Audrey. It was a solid plan for sure. There were only about a dozen animals that actually considered humans as food, and they could be avoided if they used this animal and the embryonic fluid on Nick's chest to hide their scent. Of course, there was the risk of the animals taking greater notice of them if they, like this animal, confuse Nick for their mother. However, it was their best shot at getting to the broadcasting room safely. And besides, Nick would rather the animals consider them as parents than prey.
Roache seemed to agree, giving a nod in acceptance. However, he then gave a warning glance to Nick and said, "Fine, we can bring him. But just so you know, we can't keep him forever. We will have to leave him behind eventually."
Nick glanced at the animal, suddenly aware of the fact that this may not be what he truly wanted.
"What should we name him?" Audrey asked suddenly, drawing Nick and Roache's attention. The two of them gave her odd looks and, with a shrug, Audrey said, "Well we have to give him a name, right? He will be tagging along with us, even if it is only for now. It's kind of weird to just refer to him as 'animal,' especially when that's Victor's nickname."
Roache, after a moment, suddenly gave a laugh. "I guess it would be weird." The agent then turned to Nick. "He thinks you're his mother, so you should be the one to name him."
Nick glanced down at the animal, looking into its deep, emerald green eyes. It looked so much like its mother - it's true mother. And Nick wasn't exactly the greatest at naming things. However, while simple in concept, Nick thought that it was a good name nonetheless.
With a smile, Nick said, "How about we name him… Junior."
A/N - And that was the twentieth chapter! As you just read, a lot happened in this chapter. We got our first POV of Miyasaka, who noticed Godzilla's regenerative abilities, we got that scene from Godzilla: 2000 with Yuji in the tower, but with the added twist in that he actually communicates with the Millennian, and we finally get to meet Zilla Junior! Please don't be afraid to leave a review or PM me on how you liked the chapter. Oh, and before I forget, I would like to say that I am not going to be keeping to my weekly schedule anymore. There isn't really any serious reason behind it, and I am still going to try and write a chapter each week, but that is now simply a goal, not a deadline. I have started to become busier lately and I don't want to make any mistakes rushing these last few chapters. So, instead of one chapter per week, I will simply be posting the chapter whenever I finish it (unless it's late at night, in which case I will wait until the following morning). But don't worry! I won't be disappearing for a few years or anything. I probably won't even disappear for a month! Most likely, the chapters will still be coming out once a week, or perhaps slightly later. But, anyway, I hope that you've enjoyed this chapter of Mutants and Monsters, have a great day, and that I will see you guys whenever the next chapter comes out (probably next week).