Chapter Ten

At the Observation Deck, General Rhodes spiritlessly paced back and forth along on the catwalk. How long she'd been there, she didn't know but she when she finally stopped and looked down she saw her red suited staff silently, morosely going about their duties below her. She kept thinking about all that had happened over the past year and even asked herself if it was somehow her fault. Yes, she had done everything within her power, but the fact still remained that it had been her duty to keep Earth safe from those threats extraterrestrial and she had failed. When the time came to reward the faith placed on her, when those she had sworn to protect had needed her the most, she had failed them. Despairing, she felt as if the gravity generator had been set to twice its output; she chafed underneath her white turtleneck and open red suit. She then looked up to see Earth.

The Observation Deck had been designed with a huge window to showcase the lunar landscape and the Earth as it rose over it. It was there to always remind the people on Base just what is was they might one day have to fight for. With what was happening, it only served to gall Rhodes. From her place high on the catwalk, she had an unparalleled view of Earth but when she looked up to see it, she saw storm clouds of typhoons and hurricanes covering a quarter of the world and could make out volcanoes spewing fire and brimstone. Worse, on the right of the North American continent she saw that horrendous black and red storm clouds thicker than Skull Island fog were spreading for hundreds of miles in all directions from New York City. On allowing herself a look across the Atlantic she saw Egypt… which was still glowing. Unlike with the American Great Plains, Anti-Nuclear Energy bacteria was far less effective in Cairo because of the nature of the explosion so it was going to glowing for a long time.

The General knew she had to be strong, she had a job to do and regardless of what had passed people were still depending on her… but the pain and guilt she bore were so great. Turning her gaze away from the diamond studded black velvet that was space and the Earth held up in it, she looked down to its satellite on which she was on and saw the UN flag in the distance, planted on Mare Serenitatis, one of the largest of the gray Moon's soft silver plains and the same plain the base was on. It was where men from the planet Earth, first set foot upon the Moon, coming in peace for all mankind. It was when Melissa Rhodes saw that, that she recalled what a stalwart, lunar, friend of hers, Serenity, had said: You know, my granddaughter, Rini, has a friend named Melissa, both of them go to Harbor Elementary over in Crossroads. Things might get tough but that's when I remember what she and my little girl Serena give me; King Ghidorah might be a terrible enemy but we have love on our side, something he will never have.

General Rhodes remembered her friend's words and sighed as she looked to the little blue marble that was Earth. She knew that the solar panels would power their self sufficient Moon Base for as long as the sun shone, that the Base was capable of recycling air and water indefinitely, and that their moon grown crops in the "green house" could provide food enough for years. So yes, even if Earth was destroyed, Rhodes and her team could survive… but would they want to? Some people had deserted and had left in the last shuttle bound for Cape Canaveral to die with their families, the die-hards had given their families tearful goodbyes and vowed to stay at their posts until the end, for their sakes. Leader that she was, the General had stayed as had her friend Serenity—honestly, she thought that Serenity would sooner die and be a ghost on the moon that leave Luna.

She just hoped that whatever it was that Secretary General Santos had planned, he would do it and do it soon.

In the UN military base beneath Manhattan, the men and women of the DFE and G-Force were getting into their positions for a battle mere hours away. Secretary General Santos and Director Goodhue were on the second level of the chief command center, overlooking the workings on the main level below. If anything it was even more advanced, more intimidating than the main G-Force in Japan but the two men were unfazed as they saw the people below working desperately at their various tasks. The urgency of this was seen in the IMAX like main screen at the front that was broadcasting video feeds of five tornadoes destroying the remains of Calgary, Canada; of Moscow, Russia, leveled by 8.9 level earthquake; of Bombay, India, flooded and destroyed by typhoons; and of other natural disasters going around the world.

Though he never forgot his roots the Secretary General was a cosmopolitan man and more so, he had to be with the responsibilities he had. For that, he loved all the peoples of the world as his people, he loved all cultures as his culture, and he loved all whole planet as his planet. So when Santos saw the images on the screen, the Gobi freezing over and the Amazon rain forest in flames from unlimited lightning strikes, and felt himself poisoned with hatred towards King Ghidorah. It was just as the Elias had predicted. Soon enough, the image on the screen turned to one of King Ghidorah whom Secretary General knew was mere miles from where he was. The child of Satan was going to destroy the world unless stopped and the chaos Earth was hemorrhaging was proof of it.

However, while he was willing to fight by any means necessary to protect his world, there was one thing that turned his stomach. Santos leaned over the railing and looked down on his staff; after seeing them in silence, he turned towards his number one fighting man. "Are you sure that there isn't any other way out of this? It not only feels unnecessary but if there's any truth to his being an intelligent being, then this is betrayal of the very worst kind. We promised Segeusa."

Director Goodhue placed his hand on his leader's shoulders. "Sir, the reason UNGCC was formed was to deal with him first and foremost and though he might have been sidetracked by the Monster Wars, he'll just be at it again after this. I've spoken with Aso on this and he's already told our officers in the field. We've told them and our secret weapon. I don't like the idea any more than you do, but this is going to be the very best chance we'll ever have of stopping him once and for all."

The de facto king of the world shook his black and gray, salt and pepper head. Sighing, he said, "If this were up to me and me alone, I'd be against it but this is your field of expertise so I'll trust what you say Director."

At that, a young black woman ran through a pair of doors and looked around the balcony. "Mr. Santos, Mr. Santos!"

The man went up to her and said, "I'm here. What is it?"

With a worried look on her face, the woman looked up the Secretary General. "Sir, President Emmerich wants to speak to you right away and he's not taking no for an answer."

Their owner barely able to keep himself in check, two fists curled so tightly into balls of rock that the nails dug into the palms and made them bleed. "Him, is it? Well then, just tell him to call my secretary and to get in line for an appointment. And meanwhile, tell him to stand outside of White House III so one of the soccer ball sized hailstones that are falling over in Boston can split his fool head open!"

"I don't think so sir. He's not on the phone, he's in the building on the lower floor right below us, right here, right now and he's called your secretary every name in the book."

With a scowl and a growl, Santos slammed his fist so hard on the railing that it bent. "That's it. End of the rope, end of the line, because I've had it up to here! Show me where the imperialist pig is so I can crucify him myself!"

After literally tearing the door off its hinges as he stormed out, the Secretary General stomped out into nearest stairwell and hunted the main floor for his prey. As for the people there, they visibly cringed as they felt their leader's "bad vibes" and immediately turned away and huddled in fear. Soon enough, surrounded by computer stations screens, and workers, Santos found President Emmerich, with an angry faced Vice President Smith and a few others at his side.

Angrily pointing an accusatory finger at the President, Santos said, "What are you doing here you bald-headed buffoon? I thought I told you to never come near me again."

Incensed by that remark, the President retorted, "You have no right to speak to me like that so shut up you left wing wacko! If this were up to you, we'd be having tea parties with that three-headed freak and you're showing that with making your little war zone right here in NYC!"

At that, the Secretary General anger was stilled and the men stopped. "I have no choice Emmerich. He has to be stopped now before it's too late."

The American Emperor rolled his eyes and shouted, "So you say. Once we get that monster out of there, a full nuclear strike would do the job and overload the monster. We just-"

"Shut up! I am sick and tired of your stupid rants. In case you haven't been paying attention there's a global emergency and we have to stop it by whatever means necessary!"

"Santos is right sir." On hearing the bitter edge to a hard voice, both men turned towards the man who said that and were startled to see it was Vice President Smith. Over the course of the Monster Wars it had been rumored that the man was fed up with his job, but an act of outright defiance? "Mr. President, I wish there was some other way to end this but there isn't; if we hesitate, then it will be too late to stop King Ghidorah."

"I don't believe it… This… This is mutiny! If it weren't for me Smith, you'd still be filing paperwork in a backwater Bio-Major office!"

Gritting his teeth, Smith wished he had stayed in that office. "Mr. President," he said, or hissed, exceedingly slowly, "King Ghidorah must be destroyed… no matter what… Please sir… just hear me out."

To his credit, he stayed silent while his subordinate spoke. "There's no risk of civilian casualties since the city has already been evacuated and things like museum artifacts and art works have all been taken to safety. You won't have to worry about backlash from the American public with how people are protesting in favor of New York's sacrifice."

With that everyone grew silent as they waited for the President's reaction but it was slow and forthcoming. Confused he searched for his dyslexicon for the words and found them. "I don't get it… what are you talking about Smith? You can't mean you're against me."

The Vice President snapped at this and yelled, "Won't you understand you idiot? Santos is right and you're wrong, we have to do what he says regardless of what happens to ourselves. Even if we do get thrown out of office… then it will be penance for our sins. You have to go with the plan or else because if you don't, you'll be sorry! King Ghidorah will surely come to get us, he'll completely destroy the Earth!"

At the height of his petulance, Emmerich frowned and desperately sputtered, "You're crazy, you're a fool! You… Y-You turncoat… I'm your leader! You do what I say! I'm right and nobody else! 'Penance for sins' What sins!"

At that, the Secretary General lost all pretense of self control and angrily threw the man against a support beam. "Listen to me you dirty rotten bastard, and don't you say that I 'misunderestimate' you! You have a moral responsibility and you've been shirking it from the beginning of the Monster Wars. Hell, even before that! Ever since you went saying forget the Kyoto Protocols and saying tax cuts by the dozen for the super rich only and went let's open the meteor with world opinion going straight to hell…"

Dangling from Secretary General's grasp, the President coughed and gasped, "But I am doing something. I'm trying to make things better…"

"No you're not," Santos sneered. "Not only did you open that sphere and free King Ghidorah after everyone warned you not to, not only did you keep Area 51 a secret, but you refuse to take any responsibility. Wartime or not, martial law be damned, Congress has impeached you. That means they're going to put you on trail for what you've done. They're going to fire you for having brought that thing here, do you want me to tell Congress that you kept Area 51 a secret?"

Devlin Emmerich kicked screamed, "Don't you have any respect for nation's rights? I could have you arrested for doing this to me!"

Santos seemingly burned his gaze straight through the man who would be king. "That's if the person doing it is a United States citizen which I am not. Get this through your head… if you want to be a worthless little tin pot dictator, FINE but when it's past your nation it's my job. You lead the United States. I lead the United Nations! Got that! When the world is at stake, I RUN THE SHOW!"

With that, he released his grip on the President and threw the man to the floor. There, Emmerich bent over, gasped for breath, and clutched his throat before being helped to his feet by his Secret Service Agents. (At that, the man noticed that they had done nothing to help him in his recent predicament.) As President of the United States, Devlin Emmerich wielded great power but now, he finally realized that he was up against someone far, far stromger. Cowed by the Secretary General, the man could say no more and went completely silent. He then just unruffled his jacket looked around to see all the people staring at him, and after staring at Santos turned around and walked away. There was no fuss, no muss, he just got up and walked away and as the Secretary General saw this, he was glad of it.

Six eyes opened and three heads rose on three sinuous necks. Six eyes gleamed red with hate and loathing and they scanned the dead city that spread in all directions below one body. Six eyes looked south past the island of Manhattan, past Brooklyn, past Bays and islands, to the Atlantic, the sea from which his enemy would come. King Ghidorah knew not if he would win the battle or if it would be his enemy that would claim victory nor did he care, all he knew was this was to be their last battle for only one would walk away alive.

From his perch on the Empire State Building, beneath a darkened night sky, and surly from ape stink, King Ghidorah arched his back and stretched his golden wings to the utmost. Beneath a darkened night sky whose clouds covered the stars and shot out black lightning, the Star of Doom threw his heads forwards. He let out the Satanic cries of a thing cast out and damned, cries that shattered every window on the island into a thousand shards and that drove those that heard to madness. He cried out because at last, AT LAST it was time!

With that, the black clouds that spat black lightning began swirling around faster and faster as in a roiling cauldron and the black lightning grew in savagery. Around the world, plants withered and died in seconds, people sick in hospitals thrashed in agony before their cardiographs went beeeep, waters were poisoned; it was felt everywhere. Now the end would come and around the world in a single hideous wave of evil.

On Infant Island, where they used a psychic salve to heal their moths, the Elias fell to their knees and screamed in the cool dark volcanic caverns. Trembling in fear and cold, Moll and Lora huddled against Mothra even as Belvera stood before Batttra with a haunted look on her face.

Knuckle walking to the edge of his mountain, the old, battle scarred Kong beheld his island and felt an icy wind blow across the rain forest; if it were King Ghidorah, the simian wasn't sure if he would ever forgive himself for having done so little to help Godzilla.

By Hudson Bay and standing over the mutilated corpse of a dorat, the blood stained Lupis was startled when the dead thing rose up, lungs falling out of the cavity in its chest along with the heart. Panicked and baring his fangs, the silver wolf rushed to the throat and tore against the zombie's neck until the head fell off. Though now the dorat stayed dead, the wolf monster put his tail between his and howled.

In space, the people on the Moon Base and on the space stations remaining in orbit rushed to their windows and saw something that would give them nightmares for the rest of their lives. They saw it, gasped, and spoke to each other in hushed tones. As if the Earth was made like burnt paper, there were gargantuan lines larger than any canyon or river flare around the world all across continents and oceans in the pattern of human veins, flaring white and then fading into the red of congealed blood.

Worse still, the fading continued when the Sol itself turned to darkness as if in an eclipse. People on the ground saw the black sun and ran in terror through the streets, trampling others beneath them in maddened mobs. It was like an eclipse yet it was not because the sun turned to pitch where day shone and where it was night, the pearl of the moon became obsidian. Scientists would theorize that the corrupted energy field was reflecting solar energy away into space but all who saw it knew that darkness had come to cover the whole of the Earth like a pall. With the sun gone black and the globe infected with the power of darkness, the world was poised at the very brink of total oblivion.

On Earth, in North America, in the United States, in New York, in Manhattan, King Ghidorah looked out to the waters of the Atlantic and saw a ripple, a speck but the Prince of Skyllans smiled for he knew what that speck was: Godzilla.

Miki was walking silently down a dirty darkened alleyway when a hideous look came across her face leaving her to fall to her hands and knees in the cold, concrete, ground and go into convulsions. Shocked, Kyle went down and tried to hold her still but she uncharacteristically, tossed his hand aside and let herself tremble on her hands and knees. After a time, she accepted Kyle's hand and got back up. This was all done in silence and it was seen that to keep it so, she had bitten her lips down so hard that it bled. On seeing his love deathly pale and gasping for air, Martin looked into her ringed eyes and whispered, "What happened?"

"What happened?" Miki hissed. "You can't mean to say that you didn't feel it! Wait, you have no empathy, of course you couldn't feel it. King Ghidorah's is going to use World Extinction in a matter of hours, he's already begun the process. That's what I felt. If you want proof, just look up."

The reporter's grandson looked up and saw that the black lightning was increasing ten fold and that roiling, black and red were swirling around the raving three-headed monster. Most frighteningly of all, there was a huge black sphere in the sky directly above where King Ghidorah was perched from which darkness seemed to bleed out and that seemingly swallowed into itself all the storm clouds that surrounded it. At that, Kyle closed his eyes and fell against the warehouse wall, feeling freezing wind blast past him. "Oh no… Then that means we have got to get in right now. Have they seen us?"

From behind a warehouse, Miki peeked around the corner and saw armed soldiers on patrol. Searchlights scanned to and fro and armored vehicles drove on. "No, they haven't seen us Kyle and they won't see us at all."

With that, her eyes shone gold just before she shut them and she sprinted past the warehouse into plain view where she began shouting. Kyle saw that and ran after her in panic. On grabbing her, he shook her violently. "Miki what are you doing! Are you… crazy?"

He stopped and looked around; despite Miss Segeusa's outburst, there was absolutely no reaction on part of anyone. Confused, he whispered, "What do you mean Miki? Did you use your powers or something?"

Not turning around to face Kyle Martin, she said, "The clouded mind sees nothing, it's a trick Princess Salno taught me. They can't see or hear us."

The reporter's grandson smirked as a soldier walked straight past him. "Like the Shadow, eh?" On turning around he saw that the soldier stopped on seeing a shadow that came from no source. Definitely like Shadow, he thought.

"Maybe so but we got to get past them right now," said the psychic. The kaijuologist knew she was right and the pair slipped furtively from shade to shade, not wanting to risk overtaxing Miki's powers. As they did so, they inched ever closer to the Jersey City docks and hopefully a ship to take them back to Manhattan.

After she had come back with Kyle from the Museum and Steven Martin where he was hiding in a subway station, it had caused quite an uproar; people were of course glad to see that both men were alive but they were slightly distrustful of the young lady. With that UNGCC high command had given direct orders for her not to go to Manhattan to be there for Godzilla when he came for King Ghidorah. She had told them that he would need her for the plan but they had just said no. Aside from that it was for her own safety, there hadn't been any explanation but to Miki that just meant that she wouldn't have to give an explanation when she went in.

When they slipped behind a large building and looked back to see if they had left anything that might give them away, Miki turned to Kyle and, out of habit, whispered, "Kyle, I appreciate your coming with me, but why? If they find me, they might go easy on me with how they need me for Godzilla but with you record being what it is, they'll lock you up and throw away the key… Provided that we all don't get killed."

Kyle grew silent before speaking up. "Where you go, I go Miki. Besides, I talked with my grandpa and he reminded me that I'm sticking with Godzilla until the end."

Segeusa smiled and gave him a peck on the cheek. "C'mon then."

Soon enough they left the last warehouses behind them and reached the waterfront. There were fall less soldiers there than they had expected but you have no need of a blockade when you own the port. After looking around and seeing that there were no soldiers there and double checking with a psychic scan, Miki dropped her field of invisibility. Confident that neither Miki nor himself would be seen, Kyle smiled and checked his backpack; the contents were still there and at that he frowned.

"Hi!"

At that, the pair fearfully turned around and looked to see who said that. They saw someone climb up from beneath the docks and say, "You're Kyle Martin and Miki Segeusa aren't you?"

The blonde kaijuologist looked to the sheepish psychic who merely shrugged her shoulders. She later said that she had been scanning for a soldier's thoughts, she had no reason to expect anyone else in the area.

After stepping into the light, an Asian woman with short cropped hair appeared. The reporter's grandson saw her and said, "Yeah and you're, you're Connie Matsu… The men behind you must be Ronald Brown."

Coming from behind her a burley man with a camera on his shoulder stepped into view. "Guilty as charged. Call me Ronnie." He shook their hands.

Confused, Miki looked at them and said, "But, why are you here?"

Connie Matsu smirked. "Same reason you're here I suppose, to get ringside seats for the battle of the millennium and I think that you, like us, aren't supposed to be here." She saw Miki smile. "Don't worry Miss Segeusa, I won't tell if you won't, but I'm guessing that you're looking for a way in too." She saw Miki and Kyle nod. "Come with me."

As she and Ronnie led the two down the ladder towards the lower docks amidst the gale, they smelled the sharp, cold, salty air. They felt the lower dock move slightly with the water and right in front of them they saw a mid sized boat. Ronnie shouted over the thunder, "After using our press passes to get past GI Joe there we made our way to the Jersey docks. Since the bridges and tunnels had been cut off, we then went looking around for a way to cross the Hudson into Manhattan and we saw this beauty."

Segeusa looked the boat over and saw that it was an outboard cruiser boat. Not bothering to look up, she ran her hand across it and said, "Miss Connie Matsu, I'm sure you and Ronnie know that there is a complete news blackout and, since New York is a now a restricted military area, you're facing ten to twenty years in prison if you go in."

Mulling over Miki's words, Matsu climbed into the boat and even tried to hotwire it. Looking up from her efforts, she said, "I know that and that since you're a UNGCC employee, who knows what they'd do to you. Besides, we know Godzilla's going to win, he's got to, and I'm going to make sure that the entire world is there to see it."

Miss Segeusa whispered, "He has to win. World Extinction has already begun." She saw Ronnie and Connie freeze at that. "Yes, it's started. The next few hours will mean everything."

"Oh…" After hearing it, the reporter lady swallowed and numbly struggled to start the engine. "So, ugh, you coming?"

Miki offered a weak smile. "Let me help. My father was a ferryman back on Odo Island, he taught me all about boats like these."

Segeusa climbed into the boat and went to work trying to start the vessel and soon enough, it sputtered to life. As the boat went on its way, Kyle and Ronnie jumped in and took their positions, Ronnie with his camera ready to film anything and Kyle at Miki's side. Segeusa was steering the boat along with a desperate look on her face but on Martin's face there was only apprehension. He knew that his girlfriend was too trusting of him—and of Aso—to read his mind, why she hadn't even bothered to ask him about his backpack, but he was still hesitant about what Aso had said. Kyle looked to Miki as she steered the boat across the heaving waves of the Hudson, through thunder and lightning and gale, and sighed, his breath visible in the cold, night air. With a heavy heart that he knew would break, he knew that despite their spats, Miki loved him, she trusted him with all her heart, she believed in him so much… and he was going to betray that trust by killing Godzilla.

[At the start of the chapter, I mention a UN Moon Base. In our world there is, of course, no Moon Base on the lunar plain Mare Serenatatis, or Sea of Serenity, nor is a UN flag on the Moon . The true lunar landing of 1969 took place in Mare Tranquillitatis and left an American flag. In this story's context, I justify the difference on grounds that, after the Mysterian invasion (as seen in the 1957 Toho film, Mysterians) which I have included, the nations of the world banded together and began to think of themselves as one planet. It was then as one planet that the lunar landing took place under the UN—thus truly coming in peace for all mankind—, which is shown to be far more powerful than it is on our world as a result of alien invasions and other global crises. The Moon Base was inspired by the Moon Base in Destroy All Monsters. As for the different landing place in particular, if you know your anime and you know my favorite anime then you know which Serenity I'm talking about.]