Back in Florida, along the coast, a relief camp from Monarch was set up. And Madison was with her father, Mark is now Director of Monarch.
MONARCH RELIEF CAMP
PENSACOLA, FLORIDA
"Dad, I'm telling you, there's something provoking him that we're not seeing here." Madison said. "Why else would Godzilla flash an intimidation display if there isn't another Titan around?"
"That podcast is filling your head with garbage." Mark said. "You should be in school."
"I am just trying to help." Madison said.
"I don't want your help." Mark said. "I want you to stay safe." They then entered a tent. "We needed a plan to keep peace with these things, and the best one we had just went down in flames. I don't have any more. And the last thing that I need is to be worrying about you."
"Godzilla saved us." Madison reminded. "You were there with Mom. You saw it. How could you doubt him? There has to be a pattern."
"There doesn't." Mark said.
"A reason why he was provoked." Madison said.
"There isn't." Mark said.
"How do you know that?" Madison inquired.
"Because creatures, like people, can change." Mark said. "And right now, Godzilla's out there and he's hurting people, and we don't know why. So cut your pop some slack, would ya?"
Madison soon nodded. "See you at home, Dad."
She turns and heads off.
At home, Madison was listening to some of Bernie's podcasts.
"You wanna know my theory?" Bernie inquired. "I mean, of course you do. That's why you're here. Come on, it's about patterns and variables. Oh, wait, stick with me. I'm gonna take you back to 6th grade with this, okay? Godzilla attacks when provoked, that's the pattern. Pensacola is the only coastal Apex hub with an advanced robotics lab. That's the variable. And add them up and your answer is that Apex is at the heart of the problem."
DENHAM UNIVERSITY
OF THEORETICAL SCIENCE
PHILADELPHIA, PENNSYLVANIA
Elsewhere in the United States, in Philadelphia, at Denham University, a man sat in his office fiddling an astronaut figure in his left hand as a faint beep was heard and a door closed.
Then, Ren came into the room as the man turned revealing to be Nathan Lind with a short beard.
"Can I help you?" Nathan asked.
Ren had a container in his right hand as he looks around.
"If you-If you want you want an appointment, my office hours are 9 to 5." Nathan said.
"Please, Dr. Lind." Walter suddenly said.
"What the f..." Nathan exclaimed.
He sat up and turned seeing Walter looking at a book.
"Guys like you and me, we don't do normal hours, do we?" Walter said.
Walter then placed the book on a desk tilted, "DR. NATHAN LIND HOLLOW EARTH".
"I've been fixed on Hollow Earth for as long as you have." Walter said. "Your theory that's the birthplace of all Titans is fascinating."
"Your book was very impressive." Ren said.
"Oh, yeah?" Nathan said. "Well, I got about 30 unsold boxes in my apartment if you want some."
Walter then chuckled. "Walt Simmons." He extended his right.
Nathan shook his hand. "I know who you are, sir. It's an honor."
"No, the honor is mine." Walter said. "As is the urgency. Godzilla has never attacked us unprovoked before. These are dangerous times, Dr. Lind. Allow me to introduce our Apex chief technology officer, Mr. Ren Serizawa."
Ren bowed to Nathan.
"He has, uh... an interesting thing to show you." Walter said.
Ren placed a tablet on the table and turns it on as it shows a holographic image of the Earth with connecting tunnels leading through the crust, down towards the planet's core to the Hollow Earth.
"Magnetic imaging from one of our new satellites." Walter explained. "You know what this is, right?"
"Hollow Earth." Nathan said.
"An ecosystem as vast as any ocean, right beneath our feet." Walter said.
Nathan looks at what looks like an energy signal reading.
"This energy signal is enormous." Nathan said.
"And almost identical to reading from Gojira." Ren added.
"As our sun fuels the planet's surface, this energy sustains the Hollow Earth, enabling life as powerful as our aggressive Titan friend." Walter said. "If we can harness this life force, we'll have a weapon that can compete with Godzilla. I need your help to find it."
Nathan then chuckled.
"I don't know if I'm the right guy for the job." Nathan said. "Did you read the reviews?" He held his book up. "'A sci-fi quack trading in fringe physics". Look where they put my office. I'm in the basement right across from flute class. Besides, I'm not with Monarch anymore. And Hollow Earth entry is impossible. We tried."
Walter then went up to him.
"I'm sorry about your brother." Walter apologized. "He was a true pioneer."
"Thanks." Nathan said.
Nathan then sniffled and cleared his throat standing up.
"See, all of our forward scans suggest a habitable environment down there." Walter said. "So, what really went wrong on your brother's mission?"
Nathan stared at a model Earth with a light blue sphere within it.
"When we tried to enter, they hit a gravitational inversion." Nathan explained. "A whole planet's worth of gravity reversed in a split second. They were crushed in a instant."
"What if we told you that we, at Apex, have created a phenomenal craft which could sustain such an inversion?" Walter inquired.
The holographic Earth then changed to a vehicle with an aerodynamic shape with 4 turbines and labeled H.E.A.V.
"The Hollow Earth Aerial Vehicle." Walter introduced. "HEAV."
The hologram then showed the HEAV going through a tunnel through the Earth and into the Hollow Earth. It makes a sudden drop but soon flew.
"We can make the journey to Hollow Earth possible, Dr. Lind." Walter said. "But we need you to lead the mission."
Nathan turns to Walter.
"Help me." Walter said. "Help everyone. Finding this needle in a haystack is our best shot against Godzilla."
"Well, I, uh, might have an idea." Nathan said but wasn't completely sure of it. "But it's crazy."
"I love crazy ideas." Walter said. "They made me rich."
"Are you guys familiar with genetic memory?" Nathan inquired heading to a bookshelf.
Walter and Ren turn to each other.
"It's a theory that all Titans share a common impulse to return to their evolutionary source." Nathan explained looking through his desk.
"Like spawning salmon." Ren said familiar with salmon always returning to the place where they hatch.
"E-Exactly." Nathan said. "Or a... Or a Homing Pigeon." He brought out a book. "So if-if this is the Titans' home and this life force sustains them..."
"A Titan could show you the way." Ren said getting the idea.
"Yeah." Nathan nodded. "With a little help of an old colleague."
Walter glanced down seeing a magazine showing Ilene as it was labeled, "Dr. Ilene Andrews THE KONG WHISPER".
At Skull Island, Kong wanders through his contained territory and grunts softly as he looked up, and the biodome's roof now shows 3 holes.
And outside, a helicopter came into landing along with the Wild Kratts Tortuga.
In a room, a photo frame stood with a picture of Ilene and the Iwi girl. Close by it were colorings and other photos.
Then, the Iwi girl hopped onto a bed.
"Ugh, where is it?" Ilene said looking for something.
"Dr. Andrews, you have a visitor waiting for you at security." A receptionist said.
The Iwi girl then reached forward and grabs a journal hidden cover her blanket and held it out. And Ilene soon turns to her and saw the journal.
Ilene then signed, "Thank you".
Ilene then grans her journal and sat down on the bed.
"Okay." Ilene sighed.
The Iwi girl then signed, "You're nervous".
Ilene gave her a look, "Everything's fine".
"You can't lie to me." The Iwi girl signed. "I'm not a kid anymore."
Ilene couldn't help but chuckle softly and shook her head. She then kissed the side of her head as thunder rumbled.
They soon met up with Nathan, Chris, Martin and Aviva while Koki and Jimmy were busy elsewhere.
"A power source in Hollow Earth?" Ilene inquired. "This sounds nuts, Nathan, even for you."
"It's there!" Nathan said. "We just need Kong to bring us to it!"
They then got to a doorway.
"The second you take Kong out of containment, Godzilla's gonna come for him." Ilene said as they went through the doorway.
"With all respect, Ilene, Kong's starting to get irritated in there." Chris said. "At this point, Kong could having phycological stress. Think of a Killer Whale in a waterpark enclosure, to them it's like living in a large tub or swimming pool."
"You said you can't keep him here forever." Nathan said as a doorway opened leading into the biodome.
"No." Ilene said. "Our meddling has already wreaked havoc on Kong's habitat. No way am I letting you drag him halfway across the world to use him as a weapon."
"No, not as a weapon. As an ally." Nathan corrected. "To protect us, lead the way down there."
"What even makes you think that he'll go in?" Ilene asked.
"You always believed that Skull Island was like Hollow Earth come to the surface, right?" Nathan said. "And that's where Kong's ancestors came from."
"Mm-hmm." Ilene replied.
"Through the entrance in Antarctica, we could help him find a new home." Nathan said. "And he could save ours. Hers." He turned to the Iwi girl. "That power source may be our only hope. We gotta stop Godzilla."
"Hey, but, we still don't know what's gotten into him." Aviva said.
"This is our only chance." Nathan said. "We have to take it."
Ilene remained silent as chittering creatures were heard from a distance, and turns to the biodome's ceiling where the tree was still punctured there as an electrical crackle was heard along with humming.
"No animal deserves to spend the rest of it's live in a cage." Martin said. "Not even a Titan."
Ilene then sighed and turns to the Iwi girl as she turns to her. And remained silent for a few moments.
"Okay." She said giving out.
"Yes!" Nathan said.
"But when it comes to Kong, what I say goes." Ilene said.
"You name the terms." Nathan said gratefully. "Thank you."
He then kissed Ilene's cheek.
"Sorry. Thank you." Nathan said and shook her hand and heads off. "You won't regret this."
"Mm, I already regret this." Ilene muttered.
Distant thudding was heard as the Iwi girl turns back to Ilene as she sighed.
"This is his home... ours." The Iwi girl sighed.
"Our home... is together." Ilene signed. "You and me."
The Iwi hung her head down sadly as Ilene sighed, and then exhaled heavily. "Come on."
They then walked off.
"Okay, so, I just have 1 harmless little question." Martin said. "Okay, more like, big question. How exactly are we gonna get Kong off the island?"
Out in the Pacific, a military destroyer ship sails across the water along with a large cargo barge as Kong's enormous right hangs over the side as the water washed over it as he was chained to his neck, wrists and ankles and sedated.
An A119 Koala helicopter with the Apex logo flies over the ocean as it heads to the cargo barge with a military fleet made of several destroyer ships, and 2 aircraft carriers.
The A119 loops around the cargo barge as Kong lays on his right-hand side as indistinct radio chatter occurred. And a young Mexican woman with dark brown hair, dark brown eyes with shades over them, early 30's watches him.
In the captain's quarters of the barge, a door thuds and a buzzer was sounded.
"Whoo! Jeez, I can smell him from up here." Nathan said entering the room.
Ilene turns to him. "Well, he can smell you, too." She added.
Kong moaned as Nathan watched as he had a haircut and clean-shave look now and watch as Kong sat up.
"Still not a fan, huh?" Ilene said.
Nathan stared at Kong as he growled, and The Iwi girl signed, "Coward."
Ilene found that humorous and Chris, Martin and Aviva snickered a bit.
"What's she saying?" Nathan asked.
"Just an Iwi expression." Ilene bluffed. "It means that you're very brave."
"Yeah?" Nathan lightly smiled.
"Mm-hmm." Ilene nodded.
Nathan then looked at a screen showing the sedation level on Kong at 88%.
"Hey, use a light touch on the sedatives." Nathan advised. "He's our escort. We can't have him comatose when we reach Hollow Earth."
"What if Kong doesn't go willingly?" Ilene questioned. "What do you do then?"
A PA chimes. "Dr. Lind, please report to the forward deck. Dr. Lind."
"Excuse me." Nathan said and walks off.
"New arrivals." A man said.
Ilene turns to the Iwi girl and signed, "Coward."
And the Iwi girl nodded in agreement as Chris, Martin and Aviva chuckled.
Outside, Nathan headed down some stairs as a metal creak was heard as Kong grunted.
And Nathan continues on as Kong examines the cuff and chain holding right wrist. And Kong softly growled not looking too please of being chained.
Though nervous of him, Nathan turns to the young Mexican woman.
"Welcome." Nathan greeted.
She turns to him and removes her shades.
"Wow." She said. "Who's the idiot who came up with this idea?"
"Ha-ha." Nathan nervously chuckled.
"I'm Maia Simmons." She introduced herself. "My father sent me. I run point for Apex."
"Nathan Lind, mission chief." Nathan introduced himself.
He went over to her as Kong growled and extend his right hand, and shook her hand.
"Yeah, don't worry." Maia said. "I'm just here to babysit."
She walks off as Kong growled, and a metal clang was heard from a jostled chain. And Nathan soon followed her.
"The Hollow Earth Aerial Vehicles are on their way to Antarctica as we speak." Maia reported. "I know you people think you're cutting-edge, but these prototypes we're loaning you will make what you've been flying look like used Miatas."
"I love Miatas." Nathan said.
"Forget about the price tag, which is obscene, of course." Maia said as they went up a staircase. "The antigravity engines alone produce enough charge to light up Vegas for a week." She then turns to him. "Feel free to impressed."
"Wow." Nathan said impressed.
Later at night, thunder crashed as a storm occurred.
And Kong moaned as he held his left hand over his face trying to block the pouring rain.
"All right, we'll be at the Antarctica entry in 48 hours." Nathan reported. "This path will get us into Hollow Earth." She showed a tunnel leading to the Hollow Earth from Antarctica. "Once we're inside, Kong should lead us to the power source. Now, the gravitational inversion will be quite intense. Our best guess is that on that entry, it'll feel like bungee jumping... with the cord tied to your lower intestine."
Ilene arched a brow.
"But if your helicopters are as good as you say..." Nathan said turning to Maia.
"HEAVs." Maia corrected.
"If your HEAVs are as good as you say they are, I believe we can do this." Nathan said.
"They'll do the job." Maia assured. "You just gotta do yours."
"Excellent." Nathan said.
Ilene stares out the window at Kong.
"Dr. Andrews." Admiral Wilcox African America, short black hair, brown eyes said. "We've avoided all of Godzilla's known territorial waters according to your guidelines."
"Good." Ilene nodded.
"Do I need to be concerned?" Wilcox asked.
"Yes. They do have a way of sensing threats." Ilene said. "And we believe that they had an ancient rivalry. The myths say that their ancestors fought each other in a great war."
"Almost similar between Godzilla and Ghidorah." Chris said.
"So if they meet again, who bows to who, is that it?" Wilcox asked.
Ilene scoffed. "No, I spent 10 years on that island studying him. I know this for sure." She then turns to him. "Kong bows to no one." She then heads off.
"Yeah, well, neither does Godzilla." Chris said.
"And he wouldn't give up his title without a fight." Martin added.
Meanwhile, in a room, The Iwi girl was sleeping on a bed as she then woke up.
She then sat up and turned to a window as faint muffled moaning was heard.
She then got off the bed and with a red cloak on, she heads outside as muffled pulsing occurred. And she went over near the pouring water as she watches through the water as the pulsing quickens.
She then walks out into the rain.
In the captain's quarters, Maia was looking through the map on the tablet as the rain patters on the windows.
And then a loud thud shook the ship.
"Whoa!" Aviva exclaimed.
Maia then looked outside, and saw Kong struggling against his chains, but then noticed the Iwi girl on the deck.
"Is she supposed to be out there?" Maia asked.
"What?" Chris frowned.
Ilene looked through the window and saw her as the thudding continues and a metallic whining was heard. Ilene then rushed off.
Outside, The Iwi girl continues to walk towards Kong as he struggled against his chains and pulls them.
He then roars pulling on the chain holding his left wrist, and the girl took a few mores and stared at him and lightly smiled.
Kong faintly and roared muffled roared as he fights the chains, and then turns to the little girl as she held her left index finger out. Kong then made a faint, muffled grunt as he then brought his right arm out and gently extends it forward.
Ilene, Chris and Martin approached them and watched as Kong slowly and gently nears his index finger near the little girl. And soon, she was able to touch Kong's fingertip and lays her hand on it. And Kong softly grunts as he pulls his arm back and sat down causing the ship to jostle a bit.
Ilene then heads to the Iwi girl as Chris and Martin followed as Kong moaned. And Ilene went over to her.
"Jia, come on." Ilene said. "Come on." She then kneels down. "What are you doing?" She signed. "It's not safe out here."
Jia then gestured to Kong as he huffs.
"Kong is sad." Jia signed. "And angry."
"That's because he doesn't understand." Ilene signed. "We want to help him."
Kong moaned as he watched them as he had a lower expression.
"He doesn't believe that." Jia signed.
"How do you know?" Ilene signed.
"He told me." Jia signed.
"Huh?" Martin frowned.
A chain was then pulled as they turn to Kong, and he lifted his right hand up and grunted softly and made a sign gesture. "Home."
Ilene then stood up completely jaw-dropped stunned of what she was seeing, even Chris and Martin were shocked of this. They have heard of some great apes able to make sign gestures, but this was something completely of a different scale.
Kong made the sign gesture again. "Home." And he groaned as he held his right hand over his eyes.
Still shocked, Ilene turns to Jia.
In the captain's quarters, Maia, Nathan and Aviva saw the whole thing.
"Did the monkey just talk?" Maia asked.
"Ape, and yes." Aviva said completely speechless.
Even Nathan was stunned of what he saw as he remained silent.
Author's Note:
When I first saw Kong able to sign on a TV spot, I was not expecting that at all.
Oh, and did I forget to mention that I saw JungleCruise last Sunday? Great by the way, and not expecting of Frank having a Jaguar companion.