But at Akimi's Estate, the scientist was busy working on research based on Lily and her hybrid form in her lab. Her brother may have given up any hope for her, mostly due to grieving, but Akimi was ever so determined to find a cure. And so far, after plenty of testing, did she seem to have made a breakthrough.

Akimi:"Recent studies of this type of experiment have shown that a reverse mutation is possible, though, without the properly synthesized antigen, it could lead to something worse."

She looked at the little monster hybrid Loud, scurrying around like a lizard the glass spherical capsule they had her. Despite how she was now, Lily was still the same little girl she was before, just a little more energetic and...scaly. Akimi smiled at how wild and carefree Lily was, though her condition wasn't the only thing she was monitoring as she was also looking at a computer showing a sonar map of Japan. Multiple spots on it were blinking red. She didn't have time to talk about that yet as a familiar white-haired boy, Lincoln, had come home after some time at school, passing by the lab.

Akimi:"Hello, Lincoln. How was school?"

Lincoln:"Lousy."

She sighed after seeing that Lincoln's bad mood wasn't getting any better, she decided to try and bring him up by talking about the progress she's made.

Akimi:"Um, I'm sure you'll be happy to know that a cure for your sister is possible. Though, we might need to find the proper ingredients."

That made Lincoln hold a serious expression on his face since he didn't have any hopes of a cure for his sister in the first place. Realizing that was a sore subject to talk about, Akimi changed the subject.

Akimi:"I've...also looked into some...suspicious activity...regarding other Kaiju."

Lincoln:"...Go on."

Akimi:"Well, there has been a lot of underground, seismic activity, deep below Japan, and it's been happening for the past few days now. There haven't been any recent attacks lately, because the Kaiju have been digging."

Lincoln:"Digging for what, exactly?"

Akimi:"I haven't the slightest idea. But what has been monitored, it's bringing in extremely high levels of radiation, practically as hot as the earth's core. And the Kaiju that go looking for it doesn't seem to come back out. And because of how much radiation is leaking to the surface, it causes the floor beneath our feet to get really, REALLY hot."

Lincoln:"...Well, that explains why my shoes nearly melted today."

He brought up his left foot to see that the soles of his shoes were steaming and dripping melted rubber. He then faces Akimi.

Lincoln:"I think we should go check this out."

Akimi:"Agreed. Luckily I have something just for an excavation."

Lincoln:"I'll go get ready then."

He then walked away, not even bothering to see Lily, whom Akimi had turned to face, trying to muster a reassuring look.

Akimi:"Um, we're gonna have to go out for a while, Lily. But, we'll be back."

And with that, Akimi left the lab, leaving the little Kaiju Lily all by her lonesome. Lily herself was honestly tired of being alone and of her brother not wanting to face her. She needed him, and he her, so she decided to go and try to escape. With surprising mutant strength, Lily began to bang against the glass of the capsule she was held in...until it began to crack.

Meanwhile, Lincoln and Akimi were at the hangar, Akimi in her mech piloting suit, but they weren't taking the robot today. Instead, they were gonna be piloting another sort of vehicle for their excavation. Where they stood, a giant high-tech van, or perhaps an APC is a better term for it, stood before them in front of a giant garage door. It had a purple color scheme for its chassis and black for its grill, undercarriage, and tires. There was also a giant satellite dish on top of the vehicle, meant for research purposes, and the vehicle itself was loaded with plenty of defensive weaponry, which are currently hidden. Lincoln stood before the vehicle in awe, surprised to see that Akimi managed to have something like this in their disposal. And as both pilots stood before it, they failed to realize that they were being shadowed by something...or rather someone, that planned on hitching a ride as they two headed inside. Akimi took the driver seat while Lincoln monitored from the passenger seat behind her.

Lincoln:"So...when exactly did you have time to build this?"

Akimi:"I had plenty. You'd be surprised what I am able to do while you're at school."

Lincoln:"I see..."

And with that, Akimi started up the ignition and got the vehicle rolling, taking a trail through the forest behind the estate, up to the mountains where their destination lay.

Back inside the Ichinokawa Mines, the operation that was going on in there was left with some tremendous results. Standing before giant holes that have opened up in the earthly wall, due to the mining activity there, was the one behind this all, the mysterious shadowy benefactor to unhinged pilot McCoy and representative of the Tera Corporation. And as of this moment, was he enjoying the result of this operation going on, the holes they're digging seeming to be getting bigger and glowing brighter. If anyone could see his face, they could see that he was smiling. They were coming close to unearthing the mysterious element of X-34.

?:"Soon. Very soon. All that is needed is for one more Kaiju to make the ultimate sacrifice. Then everything I've hoped for will come to existence."

But that is when one of the human workers came along to confront the boss about all this. It would seem that their soon-to-be accomplishment was not without its faults.

Worker:"Sir, I regret to inform you that we're inducing massive ruptures of seismic activity. If this keeps up, we'll be triggering volcanic activity that could tear apart the country."

?:"Your concern is noted, but that...is what I'm counting on."

This left the worker deeply concerned, but it didn't seem like anyone else was going to do anything about it. They were working out of fear, so they knew not to question what was going on, lest they'd potentially suffer a fate worse than what their boss had planned. For now, the miner returned to work and left the shadowy figure to some other business, as an armed guard was next to come in.

?:"What is it?"

Guard:"An armored vehicle has been spotted coming this way."

And that is when a figure took out a phone in order to make a call...

Lincoln and Akimi arrived at the edge of the mining fields, and the sight of it was quite horrifying to see. It looked like a volcano getting ready to rise and erupt, with open pockets of magma cracking through the surface. Lincoln was in shock by all this, while Akimi was looking at it in anger, seeing that her home was being destroyed. But she held in that anger in order to get on with their own mission.

Akimi:"...We must be getting close. Let's head and do some testing."

She continues to pull the APC forward.

Lincoln:"What kind of testing, exactly?"

Akimi:"There's something in this place. Something, volatile. It has to do with what I've been monitoring and we need to figure out what it is and what purpose does it serve."

Lincoln silently nodded after that. But as they continued to head into the place, there was some kind of...inhuman sound that caught both of their attention, leaving them a bit unnerved as they slowly moved their heads to look up and over their shoulders. Much to their surprise, it was Lily, clinging to the top of Lincoln's seat, making a few cheerful hums as she left the two startled.

Lincoln:"LILY?!"

The sight of her made Akimi put her foot on the brakes as the APC swerved before coming to a stop. With that, their attention was fully on the baby kaiju who managed to hitch a ride.

Lincoln:"Lily, what are you doing?!"

Akimi:"It's not safe for you here!"

Lily:"(growls) Rrrr...haaaa. (Hi.)"

The two sighed at the same time, knowing that there was nothing they could do about it now. Until they could finish their mission, Lily would be safe aboard the vehicle. The continued to drive until they reached a spot where the hot stuff was radiating the most from the open pockets in the ground. At the push of a button, Akimi activated a mechanical arm from the side of the ship, dipping into one of the pockets to try and collect some of the stuff.

Akimi:"Once a sample is collected, we should be able to find out what exactly it is that...whoever's out here is looking for."

Lincoln:"And after that, would we have a chance at stopping what's going on out here?"

Akimi:"That's what I'm hoping for."

But as they were doing that, they heard a loud thud coming from up on the roof, startling the three of them. There was silence for a moment...until the roof was suddenly ripped open from the outside and then an arm came through, grabbing hold of Lincoln before pulling him outside

Akimi:"LINCOLN!"

It was Z-9, the assassin the mysterious figure sent after them both, as she looked the boy in the eyes before through him away, making him skid across the ground and land near an open pocket. The intense heat burned his elbow on contact, which made him get away from it, but not before he could see that Z-9 jumped off the vehicle and was making her way toward him. Acting quickly, Lincoln pulled out a blaster that Akimi designed for a sidearm and wasted no time 5 shots at the mysterious woman, who took them all and was barely phased. Reaching Lincoln, she smacked the blaster out of his hand and tried to attack Lincoln without relenting. But the boy quickly got out of the way before she could grab him.

Akimi:"Lincoln!"

Looking back to the van, Lincoln could see Akimi with her sword, and she threw it down towards him. Realizing that he had to fight, he took the sword and got into a traditional stance, just like Akimi had been teaching him. Z-9 counters this bringing out two blades that were coming out of her forearm, made of bone and curved downward, as Lincoln was shocked by the sight of them, realizing that she was not fully human. With that, she comes over to swing at Lincoln, who does his best to protect himself, blocking and dodging every attack she is making against him. All the while, Akimi watched from the APC.

Akimi:"Come on, Lincoln. You got this, keep it up."

But unfortunately for Lincoln, he couldn't match Z-9's surprising strength as he found himself getting cornered and pinned by her, as she had him leaning back against a pool of Lincoln. He got too close to the point that he could feel his hair getting singed.

Z-9:"You think you have what it takes to face me?"

Lincoln:"(stuggling) Lady, I don't know who you are, but do not underestimate me!"

And that is when, with surprising strength of his own, did Lincoln managed to push her off. Akimi and Z-9 were shocked by this, but the latter of the two was caught off guard as Lincoln managed to land a slice across Z-9's strength. Though, she didn't seem to react in pain; rather, she growled angrily and faced Lincoln with glowing red eyes. This left Lincoln a little scared as Z-9 suddenly got on all fours and charged at the boy. However, before she could get him, Akimi came out of nowhere and tackled Lincoln out of the way, making Z-9 skid across the ground; her hood fell from her ground to show more of her head and pale face. Akimi and Lincoln once more took a stance against the living weapon, who brandished her blades at them. But before she could make another attack, something jumped on her head and started to scratch, and that something happened to have been Lily. But Z-9 grabbed the baby Kaiju and threw her against the vehicle.

Lincoln:"Lily!"

Akimi ran over to comfort the poor baby, while Lincoln had his own anger brewing. Without warning, he started charging and thrusting the sword forward to her. Z-9 was shocked as the blade went through her while Lincoln continued to push her until she was thrown into a lava pool. The fight was done and their foe was defeated. Lincoln breathed heavily as Akimi called him back to the APC. However, they heard some noise coming from the pool they just threw Z-9 and turned to see something emerging.

As it turns out, Z-9 had more than one form; her human form and her Kaiju-hybrid form. Her Kaiju form, the best way to describe it, was like an 8-foot-tall dinosaur with spikes on its back and tanned-blue scaly skin, and an extremely huge jaw with sharp, jagged teeth.

To see her emerging from the pool made the team run back into the vehicle as fast as they could and Akimi punched it to get away from the monster even faster than that. But, in this new form of hers, Z-9 was catching up with them easily and would not stop until she saw them terminated.

Lincoln:"She's on our tails! We need to get rid of her."

Akimi:"Activating our emergency defenses!"

Pressing a few buttons activated the APC's weaponry. Starting with a mechanical arm bringing out a laser beam which starts by blasting the ground and then guiding it to Z-9. Unfortunately, the half-Kaiju wasn't easily deterred by a small weapon like that, dodging it as it came aside. The next defensive weapon was coming out of the sides of the van, two missiles to be exact, and they were fired quickly. Z-9 managed to dodge the first, but the second? Got her straight in the chest. It left a big steaming hole on her right side, one that was starting to glow green as the Kaiju-Hybrid looked even angrier than before. The radiation she was admitting in her current form was causing her to unleash a stream of green atomic breath, spewing like fire towards the vehicle, which Akimi quickly pulled out of the way.

Lincoln:"Get her OFF OF US!"

And that is when Akimi slammed on a big red button and then, on the roof, the satellite dish came down, and up came a giant turret cannon with Lincoln manning the gun. Aiming the weapon, he could Z-9 coming close and he was charging up the shot. Just as Z-9 was close enough to leap toward the vehicle, Lincoln fired a huge shot of a plasma pulse blast, and it knocked Z-9 far away from them. She was left, motionless on the ground, steaming and burnt from the shot as the vehicle's pilots stood by to see their handiwork. Now with that done, Akimi and Lincoln continued to drive uphill, getting closer to the entrance of the mine. They could see the entrance from where their vehicle stood.

Akimi:"The van won't fit inside. We're gonna have to go in on foot."

Lincoln:"Great. Going out seemed like a good idea beforehand."

Akimi rolled her eyes as she got her equipment ready. As Lincoln was ready himself, he was about to head out first when he saw that Lily was curled up and shivering, like she was afraid of something likely in the mine. Before taking off, he decided to at least try and comfort her a little.

Lincoln:"Okay, Lily. We'll be right back. Stay here."

Lily:"(whimpers and nods)"

And with that, both humans exited the APC and headed into the mine. It was dark at the entrance, but the sounds of the activity happening deeper within filled and echoed throughout the tunnel. Embers were flying by both Lincoln and Akimi as she led the way, having her sword ready.

Lincoln:"What is going on here?"

Akimi:"I have no idea. These mines have been inactive for years."

Lincoln:"Well something's causing all this volcanic activity."

How right he was when the two of them found themselves entering the big chamber where all the mining was happening. The very sight of it, the giant holes in the walls, the streams of magma flowing, it was safe to say that Lincoln and Akimi were shocked beyond comprehension. Snapping out of it, Akimi pulled out some kind of detection device and used it to scan the area. The results were not so promising.

Akimi:"Radiation level in here are off the charts."

Lincoln:"And that's bad, right?"

Akimi:"Extremely."

Back to the one behind all this, the mysterious figure had been monitoring Z-9's progress on the elimination of the main threat of their plans, via a small monitoring device...and he saw how quickly they neutralized her. Not that it mattered, as he then switched to a phone and called his scientist on the process of his other project.

?:"Is one of them ready?"

Scientist:"(through the phone) Affirmative. All of the sisters are now disposable, at your command."

?:"Then unleash the red one."

With that, he hung up and waited for the magic to happen. Everybody in the area, within the mines or outside, started to hear loud thumping, booming sounds coming from the surface. Lincoln and Akimi looked at each other before quickly running back outside of the mines. It was there that they saw the emergence of a Kaiju, that looked to have been at least 100 feet high. Its scaly, reptilian skin was a fiery red with a trail of spikes on its back, leading from head to tail. It had a large, front curved horn on top of its head, and similar-looking tusks around her mouth. It had a muscular form, especially around its legs, and had a tail that spanned to at least 50 yards. Lincoln and Akimi were left in shock, as they could see the Kaiju coming their way, towards the mines. It was a race against time now, and they did not want to come up short of the clock...