Part Seven: MELTDOWN





Not far from what had once been a thriving harbor, two modern day titans square off in the waters of Tokyo bay.

The H-Man; A creature born of strange, trans-dimensional energies that man had tried to harness, and failed. Its entire body now transformed into a kind of liquid acid that dissolves organic matter and absorbs it , adding mass and energy to its now gargantuan form.

Godzilla; A Paleolithic survival from the age of dinosaurs, transformed by atomic testing into a hundred meter tall monster with the power of a nuclear reactor burning in its blood, and a will to survive unmatched by any living creature on Earth.

The saurian circles the mutant human and roars its challenge, sparks of Atomfire now coursing across its bony dorsal shields. The H-Man stands ready, bracing itself for the blast, and summoning its own reserves of alien energy to counter the attack.

As one they strike, Nuclear beam against Radion wave, locked in a tug of war of incalculable force! A corona of cosmic energies grows where the beams meet, building into a blinding pocket of power, a point which quickly reaches an overload and bursts. The H-Man staggers, crashing into the waves. Godzilla roars and closes in for the kill...

"No!!" The H-Man screams, tackling his opponent! The impact knocks Godzilla off his feet, and together they fall grappling into the sea. The saurian knows this creature's power could scramble his nuclear energy, given the chance. Godzilla channels his might into a tight field of plasma that surrounds him like a second skin, blocking the H-Man's attempts to use the Radion Wave against him. Sure of his safety within the protective field, Godzilla blasts his adversary with a deadly bolt of atomic force, vaporizing the liquid creature's head. The H-Man is merely shaken by the beam, quickly regenerating itself back into shape.

The waves begin to churn and foam as the monsters struggle in a fight to the death. The souls of two men, and the fate of an entire city now hang in the balance as the H-Man pounds fiercely against the most powerful monster on Earth.

Again Godzilla blasts his foe, vaporizing more and more of the creature's body. Its massive size rapidly diminishing, the H-Man knows, this battle will soon be over, ending only with his own inevitable defeat...



*

"Alright, General, what the hell do we do now?!"

Within the form of the giant H-Man, two minds now grapple against a hopeless cause; How to defeat Godzilla.

"The monster has rendered the Radion beam ineffective, yet this mutant body we now share still has great power, Sato. It also has the consciousness of both a brilliant scientist, as well as a military tactician with nearly a century of battle experience under his belt," said Iwa, not speaking, but sharing his thoughts with his mind-mate.

"Then I hope you've got a tactic for a situation like this, Iwa, or it won't just be our butt getting fried. Something tells me Godzilla isn't going to settle for our defeat alone, he'll destroy the city if we can't stop him, and quick."

"I know, I feel it too. As if the beast has had enough of this war, and wants to end it."

"War? What war? I don't know what you're talking about, and frankly we don't have the time to waste discussing it now. He's killing us, Iwa! What are we going to do?!"

"Something that has saved me from certain death more than once in the past, Sato. An ancient tactic used by nearly every successful soldier in the history of battle," Sato could feel the waves of courage and determination emanating from the General's mind as they shared their thoughts. "We're going to fight dirty."



*

Godzilla howls, reveling in triumph as he burns the very life from his enemy. He rakes his claws through the mutant, scattering its mass even further. The being was less than half his size now, and soon, it would be no more.

Suddenly, a green haze sweeps over Godzilla's eyes, blurring his vision. It was the creature! The being had managed to sluice a portion of itself behind him unseen. Now it flowed over him, covering his head, seeping into his eyes, his ears, his nostrils. The liquid beast was forcing itself into Godzilla's skull.

The King of the Monsters screams again, but this time it is a scream of pain, as the H-Man's slimy essence begins to work its way deeper into the saurian's pate, eating away at the tissues of his mutant brain. The Atomfire dances wildly around the beast, flashing out of control. Instinct takes over as the monster panics, generating a spontaneous and devastating nuclear pulse from the heart of his atomic core. The H-Man seems to explode from the beast, blasting outward along the waves of nuclear force, its liquid mass scattering over the surface of the bay.

Godzilla stood alone then, vapors rising from his singed and burning hide. A harsh rattle escaped his gaping jaws, and he shuddered involuntarily, his paws grasping at the air. The monster slowly realized, he could not see. He could barely move. The liquid beast had hurt him, dissolving some integral part of his primary brain, leaving him helpless, and defeated. With an almost pitiable screech, the mighty Godzilla falls. A dim spark of Atomfire flares briefly from the monster's spines, then finally, is gone.



*

"Sato. Sato San!" called Komai.

The young scientist opened his eyes, and spoke; "Where am I? Oh God, Godzilla...!"

"It's alright, Sato. You stopped the beast. I think you nearly killed it."

Sato raised his hands before his bleary eyes and stared. "I am human again. I am cured!" His gaze continued down, and he realized he was naked. Right then, he really didn't care. "Komai, Tanaka, how did this happen?"

"We were hoping you could tell us," said the captain.

"I don't know exactly. I remember fighting the beast, losing. Then I was no longer alone. Iwa was there, with me in my mind. It was he who defeated Godzilla, and cured me as well. Oh my..."

"What is it, Sato? What's wrong?" Asked Komai.

"Nothing," he replied. "For a moment, I could feel his presence. Like his spirit is still with me." Sato looked at his companions, searching for reassurance in their eyes. "That's crazy, isn't it?"

"No crazier than a man transformed into a walking tower of slime, or a beast breathing radioactive fire," said Komai.

"Or a dog with a tricameral brain," said Tanaka.

"Excuse me?" Asked Komai.

"Look," Shiro pointed to a tiny form sitting alone, some few meters down the shoreline.

"Mikki! Mikki!" Came the voice of Anna Bradley, her old frame moving quickly toward the dog. Behind her, Tominaga and Miname came running toward the men.

"Captain! We came as quick as we could. Your man Munabe has managed to stir up a real hornet's nest back at G-Command," said Miname. "Oh my goodness!" She blushed, averting her gaze from the naked man lying before her. "You must be Maki Sato. I've heard a lot about you."

"Pleased to meet you. Uncle Komai, would you mind lending me your jacket...?"

"Oh, of course! My apologies, Miss Masada."

"That's alright, Chief. Captain, I suggest you get away from here now. The Defense Force has been alerted, and military police are on their way to arrest you for the murder of General Iwa."

"What? But you know that's not true, Munabe knows it as well!"

"We know, Captain. They would not listen," said Tominaga. "We were nearly arrested ourselves, luckily Mikki had other ideas. That dog was like a kamikaze! She managed to slow the soldiers down while we made our escape."

"I'm sure she did!" Said Shiro, as Fujiko and Kazuki came running to join them.

"Captain, something strange is happening," said Fuji. "My battlesuit's systems have locked up. Tracker, weapons, everything."

"Mine too," said Kazuki.

Shiro checked his own instruments and found they too were dead. "Same here."

"Excuse me, Captain, but did I hear you say something about a 'tricameral brain' a moment ago?" Asked Sato, Komai's jacket now tied about his waist.

"Help me!" From down the shoreline they heard Anna scream.

"Oh what now?" Spat Shiro, signaling his men to join him as he raced toward Mrs. Bradley and her strange little dog. "Anna, what's wrong?"

"It's Mikki, I can't seem to move her. She won't respond to me at all!"

Shiro crept closer to the little terrier, and watched. She seemed to be focused on something beyond the horizon. Her sea green eyes now lit with a subtle luminance as she stared unblinkingly past the form of the fallen Godzilla, and out across the bay.

Then they saw it; a massive stormfront was forming at the edge of the ocean. A band of clouds so black and thick they seemed to swallow the very light that struck them. The wind began to rise, whipping at the small group, as the sky shifted from blue, to violet, to a deep blood red.

"Captain, it looks like the end of the world out there," said Fujiko.

"What's happening to the sky?!" Asked Sato.

"It's the dog," said Tanaka. "They examined her back at G-Command. They said her brain was operating on levels unmatched by anything on the planet."

"What do we do, Captain?" Asked Kazuki. "We don't have to shoot her, do we?"

"I wouldn't try that, soldier," said Anna. "Something tells me you'd regret it."

"And what about the M.P.'s? They're bound to be here soon," said Tominaga.

"I know, damn it! I know!" Cried Shiro. Things were happening too fast! Godzilla had been dealt with, for now. Sato had been saved, but the General was gone. Now it was up to him to lead this ragtag group safely through the situation. Only, he was not sure exactly how...

"I'm staying here," said Anna. "I have to stay with Mikki. If that unholy storm out there is her doing, then you can bet there's a good reason for it."

"I agree with Anna," said Miname. "I mean, she did find the way to change Sato back, and I think she's right about the dog as well. Besides, there's no way I could leave her here alone."

For a moment, there was silence, and then in turn each of them spoke.

"I'll stay here, and look after the ladies," said Tominaga. "As usual."

"You'll need some back-up, detective," said Chief Komai, moving to join him.

"The plasma throwers are down, Captain," said Kazuki.

"But our revolvers still work," Fuji added. "You should leave now. We can stay here and..."

"No," Shiro cut off Fujiko's speech. "Im staying too." He stated flatly, keeping his reasons his own. "Well, Sato San?" He asked the last of them.

"Well I wish I had my pants," said the former H-Man. "But I think it's best we stick together."

A slight smile cast over Tanaka's scarred features. "All right," he said. "Together then."

Above them, the sky grew darker. The wind became a gale, screaming high above their heads. Lightning struck far across the sea, lighting the clouds with an elemental fire. A fire that also burned within the eyes of the strange little dog called Mikki, igniting the storm, and gathering its forces for the final battle. The Great Storm was growing, and drawing closer. And closer...