Part IV: Titanosaurus
My name is Wes Atkins and I'm a Mega Zoologist that has a fascination with the largest animals to inhabit the planet… Kaiju! These majestic beasts have been living on Earth longer than us and even the dinosaurs. Despite this, most people know very little about them but that's where I come in. I have the opportunity to document the Kaiju, on Monster Island, and use my experiences to help educate many of you people across the globe. So join me today as we dive into the Wild World of Kaiju.
The camera shot opens on Wes standing in front of a large black screen.
"Why hello there folks, welcome back" He gleefully says to the camera. "I am really excited for tonight's adventure because not only do we get to see one of my favorite Kaiju, but we get to witness an event that only happens every three years. And you heard me right. This adventure is taking place at night which means we get to use some fancy new tools."
The black screen then illuminates in a blue light, revealing it as a large window that appears to be submerged under water.
"Our good friends of the Defense Force have lent us one of their submersible ships and we have the honor of using this observation room. Normally this room is used by the researchers to study and observe aquatic Kaiju. Perfect for what we will be doing tonight. Despite it being pitch black outside, this window can illuminate everything in view without actually projecting any bright lights outside. This allows us to not bother any of the creatures that we'll be seeing. Now I specialize in animals, not machines, so I can't really explain how this observation window exactly works. But it is really cool to see the capabilities of technology these days." Wes says while looking at the ocean outside before snapping his attention back to the camera.
"If you recall back to our adventure with the Kamacuras, there are other species of animals living here on Monster Island. The emergence of Kaiju have also led to the discovery of several new species of animals that have never been seen before. Some of which are being bred on Monster Island and its waters. Tonight these waters will be filled with a new species of shrimp known as Deep Trench Prawns. These prawns are fifty centimeters long and weigh two kilograms, or about twenty inches long and a weight of five pounds for Americans. They usually live in incredibly deep water but once every three years, they will come up near the surface to spawn. This will attract all sorts of creatures to come out and feed on this all you can eat buffet. The prawns should also get the attention of our friend Titanosaurus. The researchers told me that he has appeared in the last couple of migrations so cross our fingers." Wes excitedly says while crossing his fingers in both hands.
"Now Titanosaurus is one of my favorite Kaiju because, for one, he is an absolutely beautiful creature. Secondly I found him to be an incredibly interesting Kaiju to learn about when I was in college. All the information about Titanosaurus has been documented, and published, by one Dr. Katsura Mafune. Her text books on the Kaiju are very informative and I highly recommend them for anyone interested in animals. Titanosaurus himself is really cool, he mostly resembles a plesiosaur but stands at a height of seventy meters which makes him the biggest Kaiju we'll be seeing so far. Even though he's very large, he can swim up to speeds of a hundred and eight knots, or one-hundred and twenty four miles an hour. Titanosaurus has a lot of fascinating traits but that will have to wait because it seems that our guests have arrived."
The camera shifts its view to the window, showing several red dots swirling around in the water. After a few minutes, more and more dots start to fill the window eventually crowding the whole view with hundreds of prawns. The crustaceans are a dark red in color and resemble the common shrimp but are larger and currently very numerous. The prawns, now ranging in what looks like thousands, turn the water a deep red color that fully envelopes the whole window. Suddenly the prawns scatter, freeing up the view for a moment before a large squid quickly zooms by the window to pursue the swarm of prawns.
"Did you see that?!" Wes exclaims
Before Wes could follow up on his comment, several more squid come speeding through the water and into view of the camera.
"These marvelous creatures are Western Pacific Giant Squid, one of the newly discovered species that I mentioned. Unlike other giant squid, these ones don't just hang around in the deep waters. They'll come up to shallower water to hunt prey and in this case, prawns." Wes says as he slightly giggles to himself.
The swarm of prawns are now swimming in different directions with the squid quickly pursuing different areas of the swarm. Some of the squid are successfully catching the prawns with their tentacles while others are swiftly maneuvering through the water.
"Thanks to these specimens, marine biologists have a better understanding as to how Giant Squid live and behave. As you see, they are incredibly fast hunters for their size. They are also quite… intelligent."
Wes loses his train of thought, sighting the arrival of another creature. Some areas of the swarm begin to part, revealing numerous hammerhead sharks swimming among the prawns. However, these hammerhead sharks appear to be the same size as the squids that they are currently sharing the waters with.
"Phenomenal! Yet another new species has joined the feeding frenzy. These are known as Mega Hammerhead Sharks and they can grow up to fourteen meters, much larger than the Great Hammerhead Sharks. They are a very common sight here and many of the Kaiju actually depend on them as food, but tonight they are the hunters. These sharks are well built to hunt in the dark because, like all hammerheads, they have special electrical receptors that allow them to detect the electric signals that living things emit. Meaning that they can easily hunt in the pitch black of the waters."
The clouds of prawns are now being pushed and pulled by the various predators that are inhabiting the water. The Sharks are quickly whipping their bodies around, snapping their jaws at the crustaceans while the Squids continue to zip around them at lightning fast speeds, occasionally shooting out their tentacles to catch their prey. The waters are stirred up even more with the arrival of yet another group of predators. Large eels, with gaping mouths, ascend from the depths below and begin swallowing groups of prawns in an instant.
"It seems that a new set of hunters has joined the fray. These are Swallower Eels and they are perhaps the strangest looking creature to arrive.
Faint snickering can be heard behind the camera making Wes a bit confused as to what his cameraman is laughing at. It only takes him a moment to figure it out but Wes wasn't amused.
"Oh grow up Shawn" Wes says with a slightly annoyed tone. "Did you get it all out of your system? Good, now can we please continue?" He asks as he regains his composure.
"Swallower Eels are related to the Pelican Eel which are deep sea dwellers that have incredibly large mouths that allow them to swallow prey much larger than themselves. Swallower Eels also live in deep waters but it looks like they have followed the prawns to seize this opportunity as well. Swallower Eels are also much larger, as you can see, at a length of eighteen meters but their mouths are twice as big as their bodies and make up most of the animal's weight. As their name implies, they can swallow most prey with those mouths but they can also use them like a big net to take in large amounts of prawns."
The eels begin trailing the colony of prawns alongside the squids and hammerhead sharks. The ocean waters are now in disarray with the various predators all converging on the swarm. Each of the species are hunting in different ways that give opportunity for one another. A pair of hammerhead sharks pursue a group of prawns only to be herded into the gaping maw of one of the eels, followed by three squid quickly snatching up the prawns that didn't get swallowed. The squid are then joined by several others that start to swiftly dart into a cloud of prawns. Their speedy attacks force the cloud into smaller groups that are immediately ambushed by the hammerhead sharks.
"It is truly magnificent to see so many different creatures working towards a common goal. Now it may seem brutal to you folks but in reality only a small fraction of the prawn population will get eaten. The rest will successfully make it to the surface to spawn the next generation that will repeat this cycle of life in the next three years."
The predators continue hunting the colony of crustaceans until a mysterious cry resonates through the water that causes some of the sharks to swim away. The sound was even able to be picked up by the mic, even inside of the observation room. Without warning, the water begins flowing in one direction. The flow then narrows to form a more circular shape. The current is weak at first but in a matter of minutes it becomes strong enough to move the large aquatic predators, separating them from the prawns. The flowing water is now a swirling whirlpool that has the predators caught in an inescapable current while trapping the prawns in the middle. The current is so strong that it starts to slightly shift the metal room that Wes is in. In an instant, the vortex collapses and sends the predators flying in all directions. The cluster of prawns then disperse and begin swimming up to the surface of the water.
"Did you catch that Shawn?! That means that—"
Before Wes could complete his sentence, he was taken aback by the large body that was slowly swimming by the observation window. The camera focuses on the creature's long neck and the fin that lines the middle of it. It then focuses on a separate fin that lines the back of the creature, leading to a fan-like tail that it is using to propel itself through the water. The body of the creature is bright red, even in the dark water, with small patches of yellow and black dots covering most of its skin.
The submersible moves the observation room in view of the Kaiju's underside which appeared to be a very smooth texture and beige in color. The creature had four appendages, two arms and two legs that each had three digits, which it kept tucked in close to its body to give it a streamline shape as it swam. The camera then finally focuses on the face of the Kaiju, which was very dinosaur-like in appearance. It sported a fin on top of its head, with two antennae and two smaller fins on the sides of its face. Its eyes were small and below them was an elongated snout with a mouth lined with sharp teeth.
"Ladies and gentleman, this is Titanosaurus and he is much more impressive than the pictures in my textbooks. What makes Titanosaurus one of the most fascinating Kaiju is its amazing ability to effectively live in the water as well as the land. Now this is referred to as Amphibiousness and you're probably thinking that it isn't all that impressive because many Kaiju can do that. However, Titanosaurus has developed an ingenious and effective way of doing this. Those black spots you see all over his body are actually patches of permeable skin that allow water and gases to easily pass through it. This gives Titanosaurus the ability to live underwater without having the need to come up for air. This is partly how amphibians, like frogs and salamanders, are able to get oxygen in their bodies. But the downside is that their skin is delicate and has to be kept moist, which is the reason that they live in water. Titanosaurus doesn't have this problem because only those spots are permeable skin. The rest of his skin is actually incredibly thick and tough. This combination allows Titanosaurus to be out of the water for longer periods of time than typical amphibians. Along with his muscular body, and appendages, he can easily traverse the land just as effectively as he can swim.
"And I thought that the explanation of how the Kamacuras hunt was long; well anyway. The popular theory as to why Titanosaurus evolved this trait is so it could hunt for prey both in the water and on land. If food was scarce in the ocean then it could easily go on land to look for food and vice versa. This has allowed Titanosaurus to survive well into the present day where he now lives."
Just as Wes was talking, a giant squid suddenly latches itself onto the observation window knocking Wes, and the camera, back. The window was now buried under a flurry of moving tentacles. Under the squid's tentacles was a sharp beak that began snapping its mouthparts at the glass. The beak was quickly chipping away the glass, cracking it in multiple areas. Wes didn't comment on the situation but remained calm as the camera was kept on him.
But just as abruptly as the squid attacked, the creature mysteriously lets go of the window. Wes was bewildered by the squid's actions until getting a better look through the cracked window. Around the top part of the squid was a hand firmly gripping it. As the submersible gains some distance, it shows the hand belonging to Titanosaurus who releases the squid and allows the creature to quickly swim away. The Kaiju shifts its attention to the submersible and swims closer, curiously inspecting the hull of the ship. Titanosaurus stumbles upon the observation room, peering into the window with a giant yellow eye. Wes was completely speechless and slowly approached the glass. As he did so, the large eye fixated on Wes which briefly startled him.
"I guess that means he can see us." he says off to the camera as he gets closer to the window.
Wes then places his right hand on the glass with Titanosaurus still focusing its gaze on him. The Kaiju just stares at Wes for a brief moment before breaking off its gaze. Titanosaurus then pulls its head away from the ship and swims off into the pitch black ocean.
"What a majestic animal," Wes says to the camera. "This is as good of a time as any to mention that Titanosaurus is a gentle giant. He is among the few Kaiju that shows benevolence to not only humans but to other wildlife as well. Titanosaurus maintains balance down here and is practically essential in preserving the deep sea ecosystem of Monster Island. This shows that Kaiju have a place in our world and can change it for the better, if allowed to do so. With all that said, it's time for us to start heading back up to the surface. Thank you to all you folks for joining me again on this very eventful evening. I hope you had as much fun as I did and I look forward to our next adventure together in the Wild World of Kaiju."