Chapter 9: Hammer and Anvil:
M113 Armored Personnel Carrier, Part of Landing Beach Omega group:
Despite the fact that the United States was the most advanced nation in the world when it came to developing automobiles and other vehicles, they had not discovered a way to make traveling in their military vehicles any more comfortable. True, they did have shock absorbers but these provided a temporary expedient. After going through the motions usually associated with traveling over rough ground, Kitagawa wished that he had asked either one of the Gotengo class warships to serve as his command center. He turned to Reynolds who seemed to be handling it much better than he did despite the conditions. Feeling a little dizzy, the Japanese general asked his American counterpart, "How the hell you Americans can stand riding in these things".
To his surprise, Reynolds laughed and said, "These vehicles are pretty good in traversing hard ground without too much trouble", "In fact back in Europe, the troops really had no trouble driving our way through to the European countryside". His face then formed a grin as he replied jokingly, "Don't tell me you're already feeling sick sir"?
Kitagawa yelled back somewhat hurt, "I've been in other vehicles like this so this is really not a problem". And indeed riding in the American produced vehicles gave a "smoother" ride than the time he rode in Japanese Type 95 tank during the fighting in Burma. He then added in jokingly himself, "The Russian solider must love riding in this type of weather".
Reynolds nodded and said, "To drive your way through large swamps and enormous icy landscapes in the north must really harden one's body for driving conditions such as this".
He was about to receive a reply from Kitagawa when an aide listening to one of the radios turned and said to the two, "Sir we've just received reports that the forces of Group Alpha are about to make contact with the target", "They're taking up defensive formations and readying from the attack".
Kitagawa whispered to his colleagues, "Now it truly begins". He turned to the communications aide and said, "Signal Group Alpha to hold the monster and signal all other forces to head toward Group Alpha's coordinates". He then turned to Reynolds and told his strategy to the questioning general, "Hopefully by catching Godzilla in a crossfire zone between the five groups, we can widen the chances for survival if something goes wrong". The American nodded and then both held on as the M113 and the vehicles around it started to accelerate through the snow. The other three groups also did the same as they hurried to the assistance of their soon to be beleaguered comrades of Army Group Alpha.
Elements from Landing Beach Alpha:
For the troops in the group, the situation started to become tense as they hurried to form up into defensive formations, the sounds of large footsteps and immense roars spurring them on to hurry. Soon they formed up into groups with the MBTs (main battle tanks) in the lead, APCs (mainly the new BMP-1s and the M113s) armed with anti-tank weapons on the flanks, self-propelled artillery, Type 66 maser tanks and assault guns (Russian SUs and British Charioteers) right behind the tanks, and then the towed artillery and the rocket launchers in the rear. Overhead flew scores of aircraft, their pilots waiting for the signal to attack while trying to keep warm. They barely finished by the time the lead elements spotted Godzilla's immense form over the dark horizon.
Once Godzilla spotted the huge array of firepower blocking his path, he roared an angry challenge before advancing on them, his feet and tail shaking up the icy landscape and sending shivers down the spines of the front line soldiers as they aimed. Seeing that the monster was about to enter the range of the artillery, the senior commander in charge turned to the artillery, "Let's welcome him with a barrage".
That brought a smile to the artillerymen, especially the Russians manning their BM-132 rocket launchers, infamously known throughout the world as the Katsuyha rocket launchers. Though very slow to reload and somewhat inaccurate, to mass a large number of these weapons together was literally bringing hell down on whoever angered the weapon's owners, such as what the former German Whermact endured when it launched the infamous Eastern Front on June 22, 1941. After the beachhead battles as well as the patrols, the men manning the artillery hoped that their weapons would perhaps scare Godzilla off although the cynical veterans reminded them otherwise. Without a second thought, they readied the huge weapons within minutes and as the clock ticked away, the signal flashed and the guns and rocket launchers opened up with a hailstorm of fire.
As if sensing a change in the air, Godzilla sniffed around for a moment before turning back to the opponents in front. Suddenly, explosions occurred all around the kaiju as he struggled to advance, roaring in anger at the stunning mount of firepower thrown up to stop then. Large artillery shells slammed directly into the monster's hide while rocket launchers rained down all around Godzilla.
Godzilla growled at the sudden resistance and the fact that he couldn't retaliate against those directly blasting away at him. The monster immediately turned and prepared to fire at the forces directly facing him but then the air units made their presence felt. Screaming down from the gray skies, fighter and ground attack aircraft fired at the monster while long-ranged bombers deposited their deadly cargos in the area directly around the monster. Seething in rage, the radioactive kaiju switched his attention back to the sky and started firing several blasts of his atomic ray, more to detonate the munitions exploding all around and forcing the air units to take defensive measures rather than killing anything at the moment.
To those waiting on the front line, the sight of Godzilla engulfed and unable to advance gave hope although the sight of Godzilla's blue energy ray over them and several bombs exploding close by soon started to chill them again. Many prayed to their gods in the hope that they would make it out alive although the statistics they all read back in Japan warned them otherwise.
Although the barrage slowed down Godzilla's advance, it did not stop him from attempting to advance on his foes. The constant bombardment from the air distracted Godzilla and kept his attention focused on the forces in front of him that he didn't sense the reinforcements arriving behind him, including the two remaining Gotengo class battleships. The only question was how long they could hold and how much they would suffer for their bold defiance of the King of the Monsters.
Godzilla roared again in anger before closing in on the ground troops despite the heavy bombardment. The intense movement of his tail and feet as well as the numerous artillery explosions shook the ground even more intensely and some of the inexperienced soldiers started to panic to the point of nearly slamming on the gas or pushing the button to fire their weapons and it took the field commanders to persuade them hold their fire.
In the air, jets from the major military powers of the world continued to batter away at Godzilla. Both the carrier and land based fighters continued to launch low level attacks with machine guns, general purpose bombs and free-flight rockets while the heavy bombers flying in from land bases surrounding the continent continued to drop their loads all over the monster. Unfortunately though they did suffer losses for although Godzilla could not use his atomic breath, his body was also and excellent and the point-blank combat allowed the kaiju to use his hands, feet, and tail to inflict damage, sending fighters spiraling out of control to slam into the glaciers or the ground. It also forced the remaining aircraft to use more caution in attacking the monster head on.
With the aerial and artillery bombardment partially diminished for the moment, Godzilla suddenly increased his speed and closed in on the awaiting front-line forces. Seeing no other option left, Group Alpha's commanders transmitted their orders to all their vehicles, "All units Commence firing".
The ground in front of Godzilla erupted into one enormous roar as the tanks and other AFV began to add their firepower to the field. Guns continued to spit out smoke and flame while thin blue beams from the Type 66 masers scorched the monster's charcoal-grey body.
Godzilla roared in vicious anger at the continuing increase in the resistance that his foe continually threw up. In fact the firepower became so intense that it actually forced him back. Swinging his tail around, the kaiju charged his dorsal fins and fired down at the ground, churning up smoke in all directions. The intense heat also started to melt the icy ground, making the ground become less stable.
Back near the artillery positions, the gunners continued to constant reload their weapons and fire them in support of their comrades, yelling out over the tremendous noise in order to equalize the pressure. Rocket launchers fired en masse although at a slower rate due to the longer reload time while the huge guns continued to add their roars to the combined sounds of battle.
Having enough the resistance the military was throwing up at him, Godzilla suddenly went, as the survivors would latter describe, berserk smashing everything left and right as he closed in even more on the lead armored elements, surprising everyone fighting on the ground. As his huge form towered over his potential victims, the commanders decided to implement their fallback plans, signaling by radio, "First defense line to regroup to the rear, second line, prepare to engage the enemy".
With the SU and Charioteer assault guns providing direct cover fire, the first defense line began to disengage and fall back while shell and energy fire continued to rain overhead. Despite the chaos of battle, the tanks and other AFV managed to transit their way past their colleagues in the snowstorm.
Godzilla's eyes burned as he spotted his assailants escaping from his grasp and he snarled in his mouth before resuming his pursuit. Despite the superb defense, some squadrons started to slow down and that left them to the mercy of the radioactive saurian as he easily crushed smashed them aside. Roaring in victory at the sight, Godzilla continued his pursuit and immediately charged the dorsal fins on his back but the gunners and tank-men were faster, immediately concentrating their fire on the monster's head the moment they reached their new positions, momentarily blinding him and sending his blast off course to strike at the landscape.
Although they managed to hold on thus far, the commanders on the ground started to note several problems. For one thing, the landscape of Antarctica had already been devastated in the last few days and now the current battle devastated it even more, weakening the ground and creating man made avalanches that buried those unfortunate enough to be in the vicinity.
Most importantly however, the battle ate up ammunition faster than anyone predicted and they weren't doing much against Godzilla's thick hide or the dark powers of his cell regeneration system. Everyone knew that they couldn't keep this up forever and if help didn't arrive soon, they were at the mercy of Godzilla's most powerful weapon. Immediately, the commanders opened up a link to the reinforcements.
Group Omega/Gontengo:
Traveling along the landscape felt endless and soon boredom started to seep in among the armies though they had plenty to muse about as they headed towards the positions of Group Alpha. Soon however, they began to receive the first news about Godzilla engaging their forces. At first the battle seemed to be going well but their more reports came in detailing the seriousness of the firefight. Kitagawa immediately asked, "How far are we now"?
One of the radio operators replied while pointing at a map, "We're about thirty minutes away along with Group Beta", "Groups Charlie and Delta are 50 minutes away".
Kitagawa then grabbed a radio and the Gotengo, "Captain Nakano, this is the general, can you read"?
The captain's voice replied on the other end, "We read you sir and we've already been made aware of the situation". He paused for a moment to look at a map before continuing with confidence in his voice, "At maximum burn, both warships can arrive there in 5-10 minutes".
Kitagawa brooded over the thought he considered his options. One of the things that the Germans and then the Americans had drilled into the heads of everyone else was that in battle, speed is life, a lesson recently learned with the foiling of Godzilla's attempt to break out. Right now, the troops battling the monster were relying on their comrades to bail them out and Kitagawa felt that he had little choice, "Good luck good hunting captain". Nakano nodded before singing off and soon the two huge airships and their air compliment roared ahead of the main forces to the sounds of the guns. Even though he knew that it would do little, Kitagawa turned to one of his radio operators and yelled out, "Signal all forces to make their way to battle site at best speed".
Group Alpha:
The battle between Godzilla and the combined forces in the area turned to chaos as Godzilla soon overtook his foes while attempting to fall back and now it descended into point blank range maneuver combat with two sides: one being composed of many weak foes, and the other an indestructible creature born from mankind's most fearsome weapon.
While assault guns attempted to form a steel circle around Godzilla, mixed battle groups of tanks and APCs conducted slashing attacks, first stopping to fire accurate shots and then resuming their movement before the kaiju spotted them. Knowing full well what was behind them, the gunners on each vehicle swore to make each shot count. They fought savagely hard to buy time for the artillery support to change position since the close range prevented any form of that particular support for the moment.
By this time, Godzilla was in the midst of so much firepower. He angrily opened his mouth and fired without warning a long blast of his atomic ray, killing anything that drove right into the beam blast. When the smoke cleared, Godzilla's sudden use of the atomic breath killed eighteen tanks, 7 APCs and other vehicles. Some crews managed to escape but they suffered horrible burns and died within seconds of stepping out into the harsh Antarctic landscape.
Stunned by the destruction, the survivors attempted to regroup and resume the defense but Godzilla immediately fired several more atomic ray blasts, killing more and sending the rest into states of shock as they surveyed the totality of the destruction. Realizing that the monster was about to break through, the lead commander on the ground yelled out, "All units to break contact, assault guns will support retreat", "Air units are to cover withdrawal".
The huge turret less AFVs roared on ahead past their shocked colleagues while reloading their guns. Once they had the beast in their sights, the guns roared again while the drivers already started to reverse their vehicles backward to keep the range open.
Soon more aircraft arrived at the battle zone and when they observed the horror occurring below them, those aerial squadrons that were on station, dove down to the deck with guns aimed at his body and missiles at the ground around him to block his path.
Still this did not deter Godzilla and he used his feet to smash his way through, sending several assault guns to crash onto the landscape, their fuel and ammunition igniting. He also started to inflict more damage on the air fleet by repeatedly firing his radioactive breath into the sky, the line of explosions that followed behind it usually signaling if the blast had (usually) killed anyone. The savage use of his radioactive breath cleared a path for Godzilla and he soon marched into the midst of panicked soldiers attempting to flee from the hellish creature, his immense form towering over them like the grim reaper.
Those that still had some fight left in them continued to blast away at their target but the intensity of the firepower was weak compared to just over an hour ago and all it did was to attract Godzilla's attention to them. He soon silenced them by firing another powerful blast that left destroyed in its wake 14 tanks, 9 APCs, 12 assault guns, and 5 Type 66 Maser tanks.
Many of the survivors who were also veterans of previous wars admitted to themselves after the spectacle that the worst of the previous wars paled in comparison to the horror all around them. They immediately kept it in the back of their minds as they continued to "fall-back" towards the beaches while screaming for help from the other army groups.
Soon the battle pushed the defenders back towards the coast with a few artillery positions nearly in the front line. As the kaiju passed near the mountains and ridges, the crews directed their guns and fired over open sights to pin him down and buy more time for the survivors to regroup and the reinforcements to enter the fighting. Stunned by the firepower impacting on him at point blank range, Godzilla stumbled back for a moment before focusing his eyes on his new targets. Blinking his eyes to clear his vision, the monster fired his atomic ray along the ridgelines, wiping out several of the artillery positions either directly or indirectly when the resulting avalanches crushed them in their positions. As more artillery weapons attempted to engage him over open sights, the monster unleashed his wrath on them. The explosions served as a warning to the stragglers that the sacrifice of their comrades was futile and that they were next.
Godzilla turned his attention back to the fleeing tanks and armored vehicles and was about to fire another blast when an immense amount of firepower strike him from behind. Stunned, he turned around and his blood-red eyes widened at the sight of two large aerial warships and more fighters bearing down on him. Striking his tail on the ground while roaring out in an angry challenge, Godzilla changed course and headed to meet the new attackers.
Bridge of Gotengo:
Nakano and Udea grinned at the monitor as it displayed the Gotengo, her sister ship, and the air fleet battering away at a surprised Godzilla. Their faces turned to looks of concern as Godzilla immediately charged at them head on with his back charged. Udea immediately yelled out, "Take evasive action" while holding on as the ship swerved hard to about Godzilla's attack. Even before the Gotengo steadied herself, her guns opened up again on the monster, scoring hits along the charcoal-grey hide. The other ship performed the same maneuvers and after gaining distance, both circled around the creature while providing cover for the air units as they swooped in to fire their loads.
When the troops of Group Alpha spotted the aerial reinforcements, many of them started to cheer as they knew what that meant. Filled with new vigor, the forces started to reform into some semblance of order before plunging back into the firestorm.
Godzilla's eyes widened in anger as more of his foes started to show up around them. Virtually surrounded, Godzilla lashed out even more dangerously as the bombardment continued unabated. With his main weapon nearly blocked by the constant explosions around his head, the monster smashed his way through, his long tail and enormous feet destroying anything that blocked him, but the ring of steel held.
Knowing that they finally had control over the battlefield, the international forces attempted to drive Godzilla back inland into the waiting arms of the reinforcements. The two huge battleships continued to circle Godzilla while covering for their fighters by exchanging broadsides with the beast. On the ground, the tanks and APCs circled around while the rest of the armored forces attacked Godzilla head on. Eventually the battle started inching back into the interior of the continent.
As the Gotengo passed by the wreckage of the previous hours of battle, Nakano knew that their arrival had been a close call. He immediately turned to one of the communications officers and asked, "Can you ascertain the locations of the other forces". The communications officer nodded and hurried as the battle continued all around them and the ship shook from the combination of the fighting and the harsh gale wind. Despite that, the captain remained calm as the battle occurred and soon he received the information everyone desperately wanted to know: The others were all now between ten and twenty minutes away now. Nakano immediately switched to the frequency used by the ground forces directly before him, "This is Captain Nakano to all units, our ground reinforcements are 15 minutes away from us and will rendezvous with us soon", "All forces are to continue their attacks for as long as possible so to drive the bastard into an ambush". He then turned back to directing his own vessel in the fight against Godzilla.
At his control station, Douglas Gordon continued to observe the battle as he dealt with aiming and firing the weapons. He looked at his Japanese colleuges and they all thought the same thing about their chances for survival. So far, their ship had unleashed all of its destructive power on Godzilla and all it did was to make them a juicy target. They had managed to escape the monster's wrath several times but how long would their luck hold before it would be their turn to greet the grim reaper. The alarm shook them all out of their thoughts and they returned to their duties although Gordon remarked to no one in particular after seeing a devastating wave of ammunition slam into the monster's hide, "We throw the kitchen sink at the bastard and he still keeps coming back for more". Then for some odd reason, he turned to the captain and asked, "Sir, what do you have in those shells there that we're using against Godzilla".
The captain turned to him in shock and disbelief at the absurdity of the question before laughing out loud, "Something that you probably wouldn't like". Gordon was about to say more when Udea reminded him harshly of his regular duties. Gordon grumbled and returned to his station to deal with the weapons problem against the monster.
Laterin the evening:
For all involved, the moments of the next few days reminded them all of the horrors they had all witnessed at battlefield all over the world ever since September 1, 1939. After witnessing the combined horrors of the greatest war in human history, the beginnings of the cold war and the constant attacks by Godzilla and monsters, some wondered why they hadn't gone insane as of yet and a few wondered if it was because they already lost their humanity. And yet, there emerged a realization among many of the veterans that despite all of the horrors they witnessed, this was truly a fight worth participating for it was the best way to honor the legacies of those that came before and the one wish they had for their descendents: to never have to participate in a war themselves. That steeled them for the upcoming hailstorm as updates continued to pour in, followed by oppressive sounds of Godzilla's feet smashing the icy ground.
Despite the frigid weather, men walked outside their vehicles as they attempted to dig in. For the generals, it was attempting to make their way to a makeshift forward command post where they discussed current updates. So far it looked grim as the casualties from Group Alpha and the air fleet was astronomical. Everyone could only imagine the casualties that would result here once they all made contact with Godzilla heading their way. In fact, the briefing resembled a funeral as the generals observed each of the myriad the reports, all of them the same grim story.
As Kitagawa looked into the eyes of his fellow commanders, he spotted the exhaustion and horror he saw in his own eyes every time he looked into the mirror. He really had no idea of what to at the moment for his own wish to avenge the massacre of Tokyo drained away after days of continuous battle and the general wanted to finish this and it didn't matter whether he would survive or not.
He took a deep breath before stating, "Gentlemen, though we all come from different backgrounds, it has been a great honor to serve with all of you", "Forgive me for talking in a pessimistic tone but I wanted you all to know that for I fear that not all of us would survive this". His voice then became sterner as he continued his speech while remembering the warrior traditions that were "forbidden" in his country, "This time, we serve all of humanity, no matter where they came from and we are all honored to die in service of the human race". Though they all knew where he drew the inspiration from, it moved them for when they all took the oath to join the service, they hoped that it would be beneficial in terms of prosperity. As one, they all stood up and saluted the Japanese general as he returned it with one of their own before they all left to what could be considered their doom.
As both the American and Japanese general arrived back at the M113 APC, their eyes suddenly spotted the explosions over the horizon. Heading back inside, Kitagawa immediately grabbed hold of a radio and yelled out, "All forces prepare to engage the monster". Meanwhile, Reynolds unveiled a map of the approaching battlefield and made a few measurements before turning to the Japanese general and replying grimly to his comrade's unspoken question, "It won't be long now". Kitagawa nodded and their faces transformed into their poker ones as they and their brothers in arms prepared for death.
In front of Group Omega:
For five continuous hours of combat, the military forces directly blocking Godzilla's path had been steadily pushing the monster back at an ugly cost. The air units had suffered upwards to fifty percent losses and the ground units suffered much worse with some losing up to seventy or eighty percent. Clearly if they fought any longer, Godzilla would have rendered them hours de combat. As it was though, the ground troops could soon break off for they were closing in on their allies who had already dug in and waiting to greet the king of the monsters with guns loaded.
Godzilla continued to exchange long-range fire with his foes although it really didn't create enough damage for the pilots and ship drivers had learned several hard lessons and kept their distance. They mainly concentrated their attacks from behind to keep forcing the monster further back while those stuck in the front suddenly reduced their volume of fire to several sniper style shots.
Although the kaiju sensed something, he continued to attack his assailants in his line of sight. Waving his arms around, swinging his tail back and forth and shaking the ground with his feet, the monster still proved his destructive capabilities even though his couldn't bring his main weapon to bear most of the time.
Covered by the ground units that managed to get behind him, their colleagues attempted to slip by Godzilla before reuniting with the reinforcements. It proved difficult for the endless smoke and dust thrown up by the fighting made visibility virtually zero. Collisions occurred either between friendly forces, the landscape, or the monster but eventually a good portion managed to slip by the monster's blood-red eyes. When they arrived at the lines, they took a deep breath of release as they saw what awaited the enemy as he approached.
For the enemy in question, he still lashed out at his seemingly numerous foes but then suddenly they disappeared into the winds leaving a surprised radioactive saurian. The monster growled at the sudden disappearance of his foes before turning around to see if anything was behind him. He soon picked up the sounds of jet engines circling right behind him and prepared a defensive stance but to his surprise, they continued to hover while edging closer. Taking advantage of the sudden silence, he fired several blasts of his radioactive ray but the aircraft skillfully dodged the attack and continued to hover until eventually Godzilla started to follow them, his footsteps the only other sound now being heard along with the usual windstorms of the Antarctic.
For the newly arrived reinforcements, the footsteps sounded like the clock ticking off to their execution and many shivered at the grim view in front of them. When they saw Godzilla emerge from the snowstorm, many mouths stood open at the size of their opponent and the fact he seemed unharmed by the pounding endured earlier at the hands of their fellow soldiers. Despite the increasing depression of the place, they aimed all of their weapons at the creature, prepared to fight to the death.
Kitagawa also felt the same as he peaked through the windshield and spotted Godzilla over the horizon. Taking a radio in his right hand, the supreme commander whispered a few small prayers before yelling out, what many believed to be his last orders, "All forces fire at will".
As he unwittingly closed in on his hidden foes, Godzilla suddenly twisted his head as his ears picked up the sounds of hundreds of vehicles. He started to really look through the harsh winds and his red eyes widened his shock as he spotted an endless wave of tanks and other AFVs charging at him at full speed with guns blazing. Overhead, the two Gotengo class battleships lead the air fleet as they attacked the stunned monster with every weapon at their disposal.
Angered at being taken by surprised, Godzilla let out a bone chilling roar of challenge before heading straight at his numerous foes, eager for blood, while explosions occurred all over his body by the score.
This "unkown" battle would rival the scale of intensity of all future wars even fought with the most modern of technology. It would also be one of the most horrific ever imagined in modern warfare.
Author's notes:
I really had to draw on a lot of information to flesh out the battle scenes so they would comprise a mix of historical battles fought long ago and those still to come (in relation to the time period of the story).
For those who know a little about history and culture, you'll see references of it here as the military forces prepare for the all out attack.
As for the Godzilla aspects of the story, I had to check on different websites dealing with the monster of which I'm in full gratitude for the information they displayed.
I will put up more notes later.
Authors questions:
I really worked hard on getting this battle right and from my point of view, this has been the most longest that I've ever written for a Godzilla story in a long time. I hope that I did very well by all of your standards but it is all up to you to decide. So I hope that I did my best in this case especially?
How did I structure everything here and did I make it somewhat believable for you all?
How bad do you all want the horror to really be?
For those who have listened to music from the Godzilla series, what scenes remind you of what particular scores done by any composer?
As always, please read and review.