Part Four: CRITICAL MASS
Godzilla tread the halls of the vast and ancient temple, exploring. Deeper and deeper he went, searching for the power behind the building's strange appearance. Apparitions still haunted the place, drifting here and there across his field of vision. He watched a group of the tiny human echoes as they raced ahead into the darkness. Then the darkness was rent by a brilliant flash of light!
Godzilla roared, blinded by the sudden flare. He lurched onward, as a low chanting began to sound throughout the giant chambers. Ahead, he could just make out the source of the brilliant glow; a monstrous, coiling silhouette that struggled against a slowly closing doorway. Whatever it was, was being trapped inside, behind an enormous golden slab. The slab slammed closed, sealing the doorway and casting the chambers once more into a pure and empty darkness. A darkness broken only by the low, incessant chanting still echoing through the halls.
Godzilla hit the massive vault enraged. He was close to the enemy, to the beast now trapped behind the door. He pounded the slab, pummeling it with his claws, but the vault remained unaffected by the onslaught. It was immovable, inviolate. The spectral chanting grew louder, mocking him, and Godzilla screamed!
Suddenly, the chanting stopped. Godzilla stood before the vault, considering the single hairline crack that now appeared. Then something new called his attention, a scent carried down from the surface. A scent that stirred his instincts, and signaled a challenge. Whatever lay behind the slab would have to wait. There was a new and extant enemy within the temple now, one that Godzilla was compelled to destroy.
*
G-Force Command.
A dim glow rose from the test chamber as the particle accelerator came on line, positioning itself above a small, sealed jar. Within the container stirred a common frog, immersed in a very uncommon liquid. Miname Masada hit a switch, activating the cyclotron buried beneath the complex, and bombarding the small amphibian with a steady surge of atomic force.
The frog struggled against the unseen rays, thrashing wildly as its body slowly changed, breaking down to its component elements, and mixing with the strange fluid that surrounded it. "It is working," said Miname. The frog's struggles ceased, leaving only a foaming, fluid mass. The mass shifted, as if trying to escape.
Miname deactivated the machine, and approached the chamber to observe. "We have done it, gentlemen. The irradiated blood provided the perfect medium for the process to succeed. Do you see? The liquid remains motile. It is alive!"
Tominaga grasped the young woman's shoulder affectionately. "Congratulations, I think."
"The first step is complete," said Iwa. "Now the true work can begin. We must find a way to reverse the process..." Suddenly, the old soldier faltered, and fell grasping for support.
"General!" Cried Tominaga, moving quickly to Iwa's aid. Miname grabbed a chair, sliding it into position as the soldier's legs gave way. "Miname, get a medic in here now!"
"I'm all right!" Iwa shouted, still clinging to the detective's arms. "The need for sleep has increased with age, I fear. I merely need a moment to rest."
"You are exhausted, General," Miname spoke firmly. "And you look it. Let me get one of the doctor's to look at you."
"Domo, Masada San, but no! I must remain here until it is done, until Sato is out of danger!"
"There is nothing more for you to do here, General," said Tominaga. "You must be strong to help your friend, and your strength has reached its limit." The detective forced his gaze to meet the soldier's. "I too am no spring chicken, my friend, and I too am exhausted. Come, let us both get just a few hours sleep. Miname has enough to deal with without worrying about two stubborn old men!"
Iwa rubbed his brow, and nodded assent. "All right, you win. The couches in my office will suffice us both. I wish to remain nearby, in case we are needed."
Just then, the lab doors opened, and in walked Captain Tanaka. Iwa was glad to see the young soldier, as well as the woman who accompanied him. She was mature and very handsome, and held little Mikki in her arms. "General, I bring good news! A partial success in my mission."
"You must be Kenji's mother," Iwa rose shakily and bowed in greeting.
"Anna Bradley desu. I think you already know Mikki," the woman bowed in return.
"Indeed. Captain Tanaka, Mrs. Bradley, my associates; Detective Tominaga and his niece, Miname Masada."
"Pleased to meet you, Bradley San," said Tominaga. "And you as well, Mikki. Please excuse myself and the General. We are both exhausted and are about to retire for a few hours."
"Are you all right, Sir?" Asked Tanaka.
"Nothing a bit of rest won't cure. Have you anything else to report?"
"Only that Anna has journeyed here to find her son and his wife. She is quite determined to help us in our efforts."
"No offense, Mrs. Bradley, but I don't see how you could be of aid here," said Iwa.
"The Captain tells me there is currently no clue as to Kenji and Kyoko's whereabouts. He also mentioned the more immediate problem you now face. Although I am no scientist, I am no stranger to the workings of a laboratory either. I have learned much assisting both my late husband as well as my son, I wonder if I might now be of help in assisting Miss Masada."
Iwa glanced at Tanaka, who nodded his assent. The General could see the deep and pervasive grief that lurked behind the old woman's still pretty smile. That grief may well overtake her, were she not to be kept busy. Iwa knew, because he felt exactly the same way. "I think that is a marvelous idea, do you agree, Miname?" The General asked.
"Hei, I do. Your family name is well known in scientific circles, Bradley San. I am honored," said Miname. "Now if you three handsome gentlemen will excuse us, we have a project to complete."
*
Ogasawara.
A bolt of burning nuclear force burst from Godzilla's maw. Sato moved fast, shifting to liquid and sluicing quickly away. He turned, and saw the spot where he had stood only seconds before was incinerated. He couldn't help thinking, he should have listened to his father.
The saurian roared, and renewed the assault. Atomfire flared along his dorsal plates, and the beam blasted forth. Again, Sato moved, his fluid mass shifting out of the path of the ray. The monster compensated for the mutant's flight, trailing the glowing figure with a sustained and lethal blast.
Finally, the beam stopped, and Sato reacted. Instinctively, he thrust two clenched fists before him and focused, sending waves of Radionic force slicing through the air, and into Godzilla. The beast paused, watching as the energy poured from the strange human, to form a growing field of power around his chest. The nuclear force that surrounded Godzilla reacted to the Radion charge and detonated, liquefying a layer of scales from his hide. A minor effect, but more than enough to annoy and enrage him.
"Not enough power," thought Sato, as the beast advanced. Now he was certain, the time had come to flee this mad battle. He ran from the temple, flowing through the burning magma, a blast of Atomfire chasing his wake. Sato dragged himself onto the slope, realizing he could feel the heat of the lava now. The Radion discharge had been too much for his body to regenerate, leaving him more human, and more vulnerable.
Across the valley, Sato saw Godzilla wading into the lava in pursuit. The beast is relentless, he thought, crawling painfully up the rise. Tears flowed from his green, inhuman eyes, as he realized he no longer wished for death, and that death was right behind him.
The mutant clawed his way across the ground, into the cover of the surrounding jungle as the monster reached the base of the slope. Sato cringed in terror as the beast's enormous head rose before him, emitting a deafening roar. Sato screamed as well, as an uncontrollable panic seized his mind and stripped him of all control. All that remained was a vague awareness as his body began to spasm and shake, his consciousness now somehow detached from his form. These were the symptoms that had ultimately led to his present condition, and he realized he must be mutating again, transforming into something else.
Around him, the jungle blurred into a liquid haze as the foliage began to foam and dissolve. Sato felt his own form expanding, absorbing the organic matter. The liquid spread through the tangled growth, eating at the jungle like an enzyme, adding mass as well as energy to his colloidal form. The form began to build, to rise, driven by some buried human instinct that now controlled it. Higher and higher the creature rose, until the now massive mutant faced Godzilla, glowing with renewed power. The lingering thread of awareness that was Maki Sato finally snapped, and the H-Man screamed, and attacked!!
*
G-Force Command.
Miname studied the spectrographs intently, looking for some trace of a change. Time after time, the readings were the same, nothing affected the liquid life form. It had, so far, absorbed everything, assimilating the various elements and chemical compounds with an almost impudent ease. Now she knew why she hadn't pursued this work sooner; failure was pissing her off!
"Anna, have you found anything in my father's journals that may be of help?" She asked, still watching her monitor. Behind her, Anna sat stone still, staring at the large open volume. "Anna?"
"Nani? Oh, I'm sorry my dear. I am still somewhat distracted by my own affairs," Anna replied. "This research is incredible, although there is nothing that points to a way to reverse the condition. Not directly anyway."
"And what of indirectly? You sound as if you may have found a clue."
"Perhaps. Once more, Masada chan; we are working on the assumption that although the catalysts were different, the results are so similar that what affects our test subject, should also affect the creature still at large."
"That is right, Bradley chan."
"Then I have a suggestion. The original H-Man was killed by fire. Oxidation. I believe a metabolic oxidizer, injected into the test subject, should result in a 'resolidification' of the creature without killing it."
"A metabolic oxidizer?" Miname asked. "You mean, like iron?"
"Hei, iron. One of the main components of my late husband's original desalinization compound. I am familiar with the formulae, as well as my son's more recent refinements to it. I may be able to synthesize a version that could restore the balance of liquid to solid at the cellular level. I think."
"Even so, wouldn't the restored integrity break down rapidly?"
"Not necessarily. Radiation seems to have an alchemical effect on the compound, something my family's research has as yet been unable to explain. I am confident it will produce some result in the subject, hopefully a full remission," said Anna.
"Bradley San, it sounds like a good idea. Theoretically, the process might even perpetuate itself, regenerating new matter using the radioactivity as the fuel to do it!" Miname smiled, intrigued by the woman's hypothesis. "I am going to need more supplies for this, I..."
Miname looked at Anna, the old woman had begun to weep, lost again in the turnings of her own tragic circumstances. Her heart sank at the sight, and she moved to comfort her.
"Anna, I know you are very worried. I know neither your son nor his wife, but finding them has been a priority at G-Command since before I arrived. The General believes they still live, and that it is his job to find them."
"I know, Miname. Tanaka too has promised me he will do all he can to locate them. I just feel so helpless!" Anna's fist slammed hard upon the counter. "I think I could use some fresh air."
"Of course," the young woman replied, watching as Anna quickly left the lab. Miname felt awful for her, but what else could she do other than offer her a kind word? The woman may have just helped save Japan, but grieves now because she could not save her own son.
