Episode 1: Awaken! Ultraman!

Twenty years after the apparent death of the Giant of Light and the imprisonment of Mezias, it seemed like everything changed after that. The particles released by the Ultra had scattered all across galaxies, in search of a being worthy of wielding such power.

It wasn't perfect. Throughout the Ultra's entire lifespan, it never was. The potential candidates chosen by the particles were corrupted and malformed into hideous abominations known as 'Seraphics', creatures capable of wiping out planets and solar systems if not stopped. The new universe created was different than the Ultra had expected, and its previous knowledge had ultimately been rendered useless.

Nonetheless, it still continued. The Seraphics were its own mistakes, and it had to pay for what it had done. In the Milky Way galaxy… a planet in the solar system thrived while galaxies around it continued to suffer. Despite humanity's harsh beginning, they had managed to pull through and advance their society with innovations thought impossible.

The rising threat of Seraphics and other potential extraterrestrial beings had resulted in the formation of the UAE (Union Across Earth), a union that expanded all across the globe with the goal of protecting earth from invading species from outer space. While the other branches of the UAE served other primary focuses other than defense, the JEDF (Japan's Extraterrestrial Defense Force) only focused on defending the earth against alien threats, specifically creating new technology and weaponry for this purpose.

And so, with that said… our story begins in one of Kaioya City's most rural districts, the Sairahama district.

"Thirteen… fourteen...!" A young man counted on his third set of a hundred pushups. Sweat dripped from his hair like crazy. If it wasn't for the blistering sun drying up the mess he left beneath him, there would certainly be a puddle there. A woman leaned against a metal pole as she watched him, smirking with intrigue. She wanted to see how much he could do before she had to drag him back to his room.

"Reiji… I still don't get why you're so insistent on trying out for the JEDF. Isn't it a bit dangerous?" Asuna had always known Reiji was a bit too hot-blooded for his own good, insistent on his dreams of becoming a 'true hero' and 'saving the innocent', and all the things a true hero would do.

"I gotta… be a… hero!" He strained his voice as he did one last pushup before his body gave in, as he collapsed face-first into the ground. Reiji's groaning was muffled by the concrete. Asuna, for what seemed to be the fifth time, helped him get back up on his feet

"At least this one wasn't as bad…" She let out a sigh. There would usually be a wound or blood dripping from his nose every time he fell.

"Yeah, th-thank goodness, I suppose." He chuckled, putting his hand over her shoulder for support as the two headed back inside their house.

"Just… rest here, I'll go get us something to drink." She helped him take a seat on a cushioned pillow, before walking over to the kitchen.

"Two hundred and seventeen, not bad at all, me." Reiji amused himself as he took a minute to regain his energy. "I wonder though… is this thing really telling the truth?" He reached into his pockets to pull out a white crystal, which glowed in response to his question. Reiji wasn't exactly sure where it came from or why it was attracted to him specifically, it seemed to only glow when he talked to it.

"Hey, Reiji?" hearing Asuna made Reiji snap out of his thoughts, quickly stuffing the crystal into his pockets as she approached him with a pitcher and two glasses. "I've been thinking… It's been a while since we went on a date, so I figured… 'Why don't we go out later?' I mean, I hear it's the perfect night this month, and I don't want to miss a rare chance like this.

"A date? Well… it is that time I suppose. To be honest, I can't really remember the last time we went on a date." A night alone with Asuna sounded perfect for Reiji. The only thing he was worried about was his own wallet. Considering how much of a shopaholic she was, it was questionable if she could even resist the urge to buy something she fancied.

"Daigo!" A female cadet panted as she eventually managed to catch up with him. He turned around to face the cadet, who rested for a second so she catch her breath after chasing him for so long.

"What is it, Misaki? I'm a bit busy and I need to report back to the captain." He seemed to be in a hurry and clearly didn't want to drag the conversation for too long.

"A.. letter," she panted. "fr-from your mother!" She presented him a white envelope with a JEDF stamp on the top right. Daigo took the letter in between her fingers and considered reading it. His conscience reminded him to continue his task, he could read it later anyways.

"Hey- hey, where are you going? Daigo?!" By then, he had already left her behind. Misaki huffed in disbelief as she corrected herself to stand up straight. "Not even a 'thank you'? That guy... honestly." She put a hand on her hip and watched as Daigo disappeared in a crowd of JEDF members, cadets and soldiers alike. Not like she could do anything about it. Though it wouldn't have hurt to appreciate her doing these for him.

"People are real busy now, duty calls I suppose." A man walked up to her side, before tilting his head towards Misaki.

"Well what can you do about it? Kaiju reports have spiked an all-time high since last month. Usually there'd only be one or two per week, now we're getting six each month." She took out a tablet from inside her coat, swiping up the data records listing all the kaiju they'd encountered. Some were listed as 'Terminated', 'Missing', or 'Alive'. The most distressing part about it, was that there were only seventeen confirmed terminations compared to the list of a hundred and forty-nine.

"This job never gets easier, Misaki. Especially with the long list ahead of us." He swiped a finger across the tablet to scroll down to the very bottom, which stopped at 149. Shou found it strange why there hadn't been any monsters after that and often expressed his doubts about it.

Misaki was just as clueless as he was. She clutched the tablet near her chest and slid it back inside the coat, before the sounds of frantic beeping was heard coming from the device. She immediately pulled it out to see what monster had resurfaced, with Shou leaning over to watch.

It was a LVL 3 class kaiju known as 'Betara', who rampaged across the Bakigumo district before returning to the nearby ocean to recover from the wounds inflicted in its assault. Several underwater vehicles were dispatched to take down the monster once and for all, but it proved to be a meaningless task as the kaiju would always take down the vehicles without them knowing. It hadn't resurfaced in two years, meaning it had enough time to fully grow and evolve. The two looked up from the tablet to see JEDF Fighter Jets flying above them at high speeds. Groups of JEDF soldiers gathered up at tanks and armored trucks, quickly moving and headed to where the monster was spotted.

"Which came first? The chicken or the egg?" The couple walked in sync, swaying their joined hands together. Reiji thought for a moment before answering. "The egg, right? You can't make a chicken if you don't have an egg, not like it appeared out of nowhere."

Asuna snorted at his response, having to cover her mouth to hold back her laughter. While his answer was correct, the explanation was a bit wrong evolution-wise. It seemed like he said it based off reasonable logic. All things considered, it was a pretty good day for the both of them, and she couldn't have asked for more. "Oh? Hold on, I got a notification." Reiji paused to take out his phone. There wouldn't be time to check what it was, however, as the sound of rumbling and explosions could be heard from miles away. The buildings around the two shook like they were about to collapse at any moment, causing the two to take off in a hurry.

Betara roared in pain after its wings were punctured by one of the tank shells. The giant beast quickly plummeted down onto the city outskirts, creating a large path as it skidded across the greenery. It had managed to destroy some tanks that were unfortunate enough to be in the beast's general direction, as JEDF vehicles rained hellfire while it was down. The chance didn't last long, with the creature extending its wings into the air to create powerful gusts of wind to blow the jets away from it. It then used its wings to shield itself from the oncoming tank shells, having managed to grow a resistance to the missiles after it regenerated its wing.

It lunged its claws at one of the tanks, crushing it in its palm before tossing it away as a large chunk of metal. The resulting projectile tore through a building as if it were made out of paper, sending debris flying everywhere in the district. The jets and tanks had only been there to stall and weaken the monster as the JEDF'S mechanical robot 'BEAST NO-1' was being deployed. Unaffected and bored by the vehicles firing at it, Betara rampaged through the district, walking through buildings ang remaining unfazed by the gunfire.

Reiji and Asuna were trying to flee from the area when a collapsing building stopped them short. The kaiju's destruction raged on without any interruptions. The JEDF had sent ground troops to help and rescue any civilians caught in the attack after their weapons had failed to stop the monster. While the two tried to escape, he and Asuna were separated when a pile of rubble fell onto them. Reiji remained unharmed aside from a minor bruise on his arm, but Asuna was completely buried under the pile with only her hand sticking out of the rubble. Two JEDF soldiers had spotted them and quickly rushed over as Reiji attempted to pull away chunks of the rubble, helping him rescue his girlfriend.

"Are you alright?" Reiji checked up on her, noticing a few wounds and bruises across her arms. It didn't matter though, he was more thankful that she was still alive, even if they needed to be treated right away.

"Head to the evacuation vehicles!" Misaki directed the two, pointing around the corner. Shou was helping her with evacuating and rescuing any civilians left remaining in the city. It was a hard task that required a ton of effort, but it needed to be done. That was their mission, after all.

Reiji nodded in response. Asuna was too weak to stand up on her own and needed his assistance to even walk. "Here, let me help!" Misaki approached them from behind, pulling Asuna's hand over her shoulder to assist.

Unbeknownst to all of them, Betara had noticed the group from above. The horns on the creature's snout charged up electricity, collecting them directly from the city's powerline. Once it finally finished charging up, the kaiju released it as a beam of lightning, tearing through the asphalt roads like butter as it headed towards the group. Without even a second thought, Reiji pushed the Asuna and Misaki away. Despite his best efforts to reach the man, Shou was stopped when the beam struck Reiji, forcing him to watch as the man disintegrated before his very eyes.

"Reiji!" Asuna screamed for him.

Slowly opening his eyes, Reiji found himself in an unfamiliar place. No noise, no senses, no feelings, nothing. A white void stretched across the dimension, with the only thing visible being the strange crystal. Unlike before, it glowed a vibrant red and seemed to call him forward. Carefully approaching it with his hand stretched out to reach for it, the crystal spoke.

'Shinomiya... Shinomiya... fight.'

"What?" He recoiled in response. Where exactly did he end up? Was he dead?

'Fight... Shinomiya.'

"What's going on? N-no, where am I?" He was still confused about the strange set of events that led him here. He wasn't anywhere at this point, and things here always felt off.

'Fight...' was the crystal's only response.

"Fight? Fight what?" The room around him suddenly changed to show the outside world, or at least a precognition of it. BEAST NO-1 had arrived to the district to battle the kaiju while Asuna's faint screams called out his name, words choked with tears.

"You want me... to fight?" Reiji began to understand what the crystal meant, reaching his hand out to grasp it. Upon coming into contact with it, the crystal glowed a gradient of red and silver, revealing its true form. It was a metallic bracer that wrapped around his right hand, with a jade-colored diamond embedded into the middle.

'Fight... and save the future.' It finished what it had been trying to say. With those words, Reiji made his resolve. Memories, experience, and power flooded into his mind.

"Protect this world, and be its VAN... GUARD!" He chanted, reeling his right arm before lifting it high into the air. A green aura shot out from the Avant-Guarde, releasing vibrant energy that shrouded his body. The room around him warped as the Ultra rose up with its right fist lifted into the air.

"Come on... damn it!" Daigo grunted as he struggled against Betara. BEAST NO-1 was still fairly new and had issues that hadn't yet been resolved thanks to the sudden emergence of the monster. Nonetheless, he still had to persist. It couldn't be allowed to go on any longer!

Behind them appeared a Giant of Light suddenly appeared. A green glow blinded them before dissipating into its color timer. There, it stood tall and mighty with a benevolent aura surrounding it. A long silence passed around the three giants before being broken when the monster growled in response to the Giant's sudden arrival, tossing BEAST NO-1 aside as it charged forward at Vanguard.

"No way... is that?" Misaki reluctantly raised a finger at the giant.

"So it was true. A being of light would one day arrive to save us." Shou sternly spoke. The JEDF had found ancient scrolls describing a prophecy about a giant saving the world. "Ultraman."

"Haaaan... Ghuwah!" He cried, landing a precise punch to the kaiju's scaly chest. It sent the monster stumbling backwards and scrambling to recover, the attack had managed to dent and nearly puncture a hole. It roared in pain, firing a bolt of electricity from its horn towards Vanguard. The Ultra quickly spun around to grab the attack mid-air, redirecting it back to Betara. The bolt was attracted to another source of energy, being the creature's horn. So upon impact, it immediately broke it and sent the monster falling back.

BEAST NO-1 had managed to recover and sent out a thruster-propelled punch at the kaiju's head. This punch was incredibly devastating, pieces of its flesh and bone flying everywhere as a result of the attack. Enraged and overpowered by the two, Betara stood up from the fall with a mighty roar to the skies. It lifted its arms in the air, as the clouds began to darken and rumble with lightning. Sensing imminent danger, the two giants immediately rushed forward to stop the creature from succeeding in its goal. A burst of thunder stopped them short. BEAST NO-1, being fully mechanical, was short-circuited by the sudden stream of electricity coursing through its body. Meanwhile, Vanguard was stunned.

The over-confident and 'victorious' Betara stomped its feet together to taunt the two giants, slowly approaching them with a blast of electricity charging up in its mouth. There it was! An opening for a counterattack! Within reach of the kaiju, Vanguard broke free from the thunder and proceeded to land a charged uppercut with the Avant-Guarde, releasing a burst of green energy into the air as it hit Betara. If the monster's face wasn't already messed up, the attack made sure that it was beyond recovery. Damaged and weakened at this state, Betara tried to fly away and retreat from the fight.

'You're not getting away!' Reiji grit his teeth. Hovering the Avant-Guarde above his Color Timer, the two connected to each other and began charging up energy into the bracer. He put his right hand up vertically with the energy from the Avant-Guarde pulsing rapidly, before placing his left arm vertically, crossing his wrists together. The energy that had been building up in his bracer was released as a powerful beam known as the 'Avasium Kousen', intercepting Betara's flight path and finishing the creature once and for all.

The kaiju let out one last howl of pain before exploding in mid-air. Chunks of its body splashing and sinking into the ocean.

JEDF soldiers and civilians cheered in victory. Maybe there finally was hope for humanity to win against the monsters. Misaki and Shou watched as Vanguard turned around to face them all, giving a simple nod before disappearing into thin-air. Daigo could only look in awe while engineers worked to free him from the mecha, forcing the exit hatch open. Asuna continued to sob at Reiji's 'death' until she felt a hand touch against her shoulder. The simple touch quickly became a firm hug, with Reiji appearing once more and unharmed.

"Idiot! What were you thinking?!" She slammed a fist against his back, too happy and angry at him to even question how he returned from an attack like that. Reiji could only smile as he tried to soothe her, rubbing his hand across her back. "Yeah... I'm sorry for that."

Weeks after his arrival, the Bakigumo district had began working to repair the city and continue searching and rescuing any civilians left behind in the destruction. The JEDF officially issued news about the appearance of the Giant of Light, assuring the public of his allegiance to humanity itself, though some remained skeptical. BEAST NO-1 was checked for any severe damages or malfunctions as a result of the attack.

In the distance, a cloaked man stood on a cliff overseeing the entirety of Kaioya City, alongside him was a woman wearing a dark bridal veil. The cover of night shrouded their features and made it hard to discern their identities.

"So he's returned. Time for a family reunion then..." The man held a bladed-device with a blue glow lining across its edge. The woman at his side only let out a scoff before the two walked away from the cliff, completely disappearing into the shadows.