Chapter 9: A Strike of Clarity

San watched their newest opponents, two jet black kaiju with veins pulsing a bioluminescent blue. One unveiled its leathery wings, taking to the sky- while the other charged towards the golden dragon. The landbound kaiju beat its chest and leapt towards Ghidorah - one titanic fist winding back and aimed squarely at the middle head. Ichi let out something that San could only describe as a sinister cackle, before blasting their opponent in the face- propelling him backwards.

In one lunge of their mighty legs, Ghidorah had covered the distance between them. The full weight of the dragon pressed on the kaiju's chest. Thunder boomed as they burnt their opponent's flesh, inciting a scream of agony as the beast tried desperately to get them off and end the pain- his fists bouncing off their golden hide. Bones began to break as the dragon pushed onwards, their feat burning in the toxic blood as it began to descend deeper into their foe's insides.

A sudden impact pushed them off, saving the blue one from certain death, and San saw their other foe- biting into Ichi's neck. Before he could intervene, Ni was already there- tearing into the winged one's exposed neck. The kaiju let out a shrill scream- but Ni didn't care- and tossed her aside with one swing. He tried to follow up with another bolt, but the winged one was quick- and the bolt scorched the ground as their foe fled.

Ghidorah let out a roar of rage, and flew up in pursuit with one flap of their mighty wings, Ichi and Ni firing bolts into empty air as they caught up with their foe- colliding in mid air with a bang. The other kaiju let out a shrill shriek, as she was knocked into the forcefield- burning her glowing flesh, before plummeting to the ground.

The left head took one more look at the body of the other foe- his blue blood leaking into the ground as the blood of so many others had done.

Ghidorah's cackles mingled with the chatter of their crowd, electricity crackling from their wingtips as they flew above the carnage below. Bolt after bolt rained down from the heavens, the divine judgement of a god, scorching the insectoid kaiju below. Droves upon droves of the creatures flooded out of open gates, waves upon waves of drones with only one goal in mind.

To kill.

(So hungry-)

San heard Orga's voice whisper in his mind, as Ghidorah continued to rain down pain on the Trilopods, the mutant clearly starting to lose his grip ever so slightly.

Another tremor crashed through the arena as a 'Trilopod' was sent flying into the walls, and subsequently crushed by a pale white hand. The left head didn't know how many matches Orga had gone through between this one and their battle against the two cyborgs, but the fact that the alien had even tried to eat one of the carcasses meant that even he was starting to give into his primal urges.

(FOOD AT LAST)

Orga 's jaw unhinged like a boa constrictor, only for the carcass to explode in his hands from the sheer grip. With a savage cry, Orga lashed out at another nearby Trilopod in frustration- this time setting breaking its exoskeleton. To think that this was the same alien that had offered them a way out, San lamented to himself, not caring if the mutant could hear his thoughts.

Ghidorah landed on the ground with a crash, joining his alien ally on the ground. They trilled wildly as they began to tear at the aliens, chomping and snapping the necks of several of the insectoids like twigs. He blasted another bolt at an unlucky Trilopod that had overestimated its own stealth abilities, the beast screaming shrilly as its flesh sizzled.

As the insectoid convulsed on the ground in its death throes, San couldn't help but grin at his handiwork. But as soon as it came, a wave of disinterest took its place- as another concussive ray from Orga butchered an entire drove of Trilopods in one go. The pale alien dashed over in another attempt to feast, moving like a starved hound, only for ten more Trilopods to latch onto his back. Ichi and Ni were too busy fighting their own sets of enemies, the right head choking the life out of one unfortunate Trilopod who had unwisely gotten too close. A well-placed bolt from San was enough to ease the load on Orga's back, burning the exoskeletons of their numerous foes.

The last Trilopod was squashed under the dragon's feet with a crunch, as Ghidorah trilled victoriously for their adoring fans.

"Brothers, must we do this again?"

San bemoaned as they appeared in the arena once more. They were usually too tired to argue after fighting battle after battle, or just not in the mood to converse. Today was no exception to this trend.

"Beats sitting in the dark." Ni huffed, eyeing the empty arena as if a kaiju was going to spring out from beneath the ground like a sandworm.

"Please give a warm welcome to our new King of the Ring, Ghi-do-rah!"

The roar of the crowd was no longer mind-numbingly loud, and San had long gotten used to it. He no longer paid any heed to the announcer, San having nearly memorized the man's entire limited vocabulary at this point, the only 'new' word being something like 'Hedrah'. Whatever that one meant.

A sudden smell of refuse assaulted all three of their nostrils, and Ghidorah couldn't help but gag in disgust. Sewage began to leak in from vents in the arena walls, the gray-black sludge noxious and most definitely corrosive. Ghidorah flew up into the sky, as the sludge began to cover the entirety of the ground and eat at the arena walls.

"We won't have any place to land, so be ready with your bolts." Ichi said to the two of them. Their jaws crackled with lightning, as the three of them eyes every inch of the sea of gray muck- half expecting something to burst from within.

It was only after San heard the unmistakable noise of something being teleported nearby did he think to look up.

For a split second, the dragon saw what appeared to be a benign gray cloud, and San brushed it off as much- until it fell on them with the weight of a kaiju. Ghidorah roared in protest as the living muck began to envelop their entire body, the weight of the kaiju pushing them to the ground. Their scales sizzled as the corrosive substance began to tear at their armor, each second in the creature's grasp painful and tortuous. Pure lightning crackled in their veins as Ghidorah let out a cackle, and blasted their opponent off with a pulse of electrical energy- and then fired off several lethal beams of thunder onto the now fleeing cloud of muck.

So this was Hedrah.

"Is this really what we're fighting?" Ni commented, the right head chuckling at the smaller size of their opponent.

"Be careful," Ichi warned, "For all we know it could be-"

And, as per usual, Ni interrupted the middle head's words with a blast of lightning- nailing the toxic cloud in the chest and blasting it into smithereens.

"And that's done."

But, to the right head's shock, the creature quickly grew back any damage they did to it, smoke billowing from the ground to reform its own body. 'Hedrah' was clearly not happy with being attacked, its two beady red eyes staring at them with murder on its mind. With a surprisingly intimidating gurgle, the blob launched several globs of sludge at the dragon from vents in its back, but Ghidorah dodged them- the air was their domain after all. Ni and San quickly retaliated with another pair of bolts, and that quickly sent the blob spiralling to the ground- avoiding the blast by inches. It disappeared into the muck- swimming in the toxic sludge as if it were water.

The arena grew still, as all three heads scanned the arena- waiting for a sign of movement. Their scales still smoked from the residue from the blob's initial landing on their back, and it made Ghidorah look even more like the embodiment of the storm.

"Brothers," San whispered, gesturing towards a bubbling patch of the refuse below. A leviathan rising from the depths, Hedrah reconstructed itself out of the trash- absorbing the surrounding muck into itself like a vacuum cleaner. It grew larger with every second, and soon the sludge monster had already surpassed Ghidorah in size, something not many kaiju could brag about.

"It can't get us up here right?"

As if in answer to his question, several columns of sludge, controlled by Hedrah's power, exploded out of the sea of muck. They surged towards them, each one soot black and probably every bit as corrosive as Hedrah was. Thunder and tentacles clashed in the skies as Hedrah sent pillar after pillar of sludge, each one either being broken down by lightning or harmlessly splattering onto the forcefield above.

But as quickly as they came, the tentacles quickly receded back into the sea of muck, as Hedrah watched the dragon above, as still as stone. It became clear to the dragon that the sludge monster had changed its tactics, as a foul-smelling smoke began to seep from the sea of muck. Ghidroah tried to fly up to avoid it, but was quickly halted by the forcefield. The entire arena swiftly became one gray cloud- a malodorous smog that obscured all light. Ghidorah could barely see their own wingtips, much less fight in these conditions. Their bioluminescence didn't help much, the yellow glow quickly enveloped by the overbearing monotone of grays and blacks.

"Does anybody see that stupid little-"

"Quiet Ni," Ichi hissed, "We may not be able to see him- but he cannot find us either."

"If we can find him before he finds us, we could potentially turn the tables and-"

"Oh I'm not so sure about that one brother."

San couldn't help but internally say his prayers at the sight of now titanic Hedrah, whose burning red gaze lit up in the smoke. Hedrah's deep gurgles reverberated in the arena walls, and it crashed onto them like a tidal wave. Ghidorah couldn't even scream as they hit the ground, as the sludge quickly began to envelop them. It was like drowning, the slowly tightening pressure building on their entire body. The sludge ate at their skin, their scales giving way to their muscles. Ni and Ichi both tried to call upon their bolts, but the latter paused - of Hedrah's sludge entering his mouth and dissolving his insides dissuaded them from doing so. Ni had not realised it until it was too late, and had to learn the hard way. The dragon could only struggle in vain, as they slowly perished in the darkness.

San had been trapped in the dark for his entire life-

But he decided that he would be trapped no more.

His jaws found their grip, and the left head bit down in one last desperate bid to free themselves. With a crunch, something broke- and Hedrah's cries of pain were a sign that whatever San had done had worked. The sludge surrounding them rapidly receded as Ghidorah stumbled back onto their feet- the smell of rot mingling with the already noxious smog that Hedrah had made. San had never been happier to see the light of the arena, the smoke having been funneled out of the vents and finally allowing him to see once again.

Ni was busy gasping for breath, his earlier stunt having nearly cost him his airways. Ichi had survived relatively unscathed, his insides mostly intact thanks to his quick thinking- and was busy attempting to peel off some of the scabs caused by the acidic sludge.

"What in the stars is that?" Ni asked after catching his breath.

The left head was holding up what looked like a deep-red heart, still beating. Black oil-like blood poured out of it, as the various networks of luminescent white nerves that connected to it tried desperately to reach the sludge below. San held it higher, keeping the organ away from its lifeblood- and preventing Hedrah from regaining his full might.

A sudden splat from Hedrah caught their attention, its head somehow still alive despite the removal of its vital organ. The blob didn't move upon being seen; it only watched the dragon with wide eyes. Although they couldn't quite understand its pleading gurgling, the message was clear enough. Ghidorah's heads all looked at one another, debating on their options.

"Burn it." Ni sneezed out another piece of sludge, his words carrying their usual amount of viciousness. Ichi meanwhile was looking up into the crowd, as if he couldn't care less about their opponent- who was still pathetically flailing in a desperate attempt to reach its heart.

The left head, who was still holding the heart, didn't seem to share the right head's sentiments. San didnt say anything as he dropped the heart onto the ground with a splat, much to his brother's infuriation and Hedrah's delight. As the blob stretched one tentacle to it, Ni immediately turned towards the left head- but before the words could even leave his mouth, Ichi spoke.

"Not now Ni."

"But-"

"Not. Now."

Ichi looked just as disgruntled with the left head's choice as Ni, but he did a better job of hiding it. The right head growled, before turning his attention to the slowly reforming blob. Hedrah, despite being much smaller than the gargantuan form it was before, continued to stare at them- disappearing into the muck in an almost lazy manner. The blob waved at Ghidorah, and nodded approvingly at the left head, before completely disappearing back into the muck.

The arena, for once, was silent as Ghidorah was teleported away.

"Remind me again why you spared that literal trash heap?"

Ni glared daggers at his companion, and despite his courteous tone- the frustration in his words were clear. It had only been a few minutes after their battle against Hedrah, and Ni still had some fight left.

But little did the right head know, so did San-

And he was not content being the peacemaker any longer.

"Don't you two get what they are doing to us?!"

San shot back with the force of a cannon, his words bitter and resentful - causing the other two heads to reel back in shock. Ni silently made a mental note to not mess with San ever again. Ichi followed suit.

"How long until our crown is taken, and we are cast aside like an old toy,"

"The only reason they are keeping us alive is because we can fight- how long until that isn't true anymore?!"

"We could have been so much more, something so much greater-"

The questioning and almost pessimistic tone in the left head's tone was a punch in the gut for the other two.

"And yet we've been held prisoner in our own bodies, unable to see the stars or the sky or anything outside of the same four goddamn walls-"

"Is this really how we let them treat us?!"

His words had rung true, and the other two felt a growing sense of realization-

"WE ARE A KING FOR GOD'S SAKE, NOT SOME ALIEN PET!" San spat, a hint of lightning crackling at his jaws.

The two other heads watched, stunned, as the left head slunk back under their wing.

"San-"

When the left head didn't reply, Ichi turned back towards the right head- who looked like he had swallowed a bucket of sewage. The right head coughed, and that managed to cause the left head to retreat out of his hiding pot- his single visible ruby eye filled with a mixture of emotions.