The One Who Lost His Way

AN: This chapter picks up right where the last one left off with Mark. Maddie does some things. Ghidorah has a talk with the other titans.

Key:

"Titan speak"

"Human speak"

Character's inner thoughts

"Telepathic communication"

Disclaimer: I do not own Godzilla: King of the Monsters or any characters.

As soon as the alarms sounded, Mark tossed his headphones onto the desk and stood, heading for the door. Before he even made it halfway, the ship lurched to the side, making him lose his balance. He was only able to keep his feet by catching the closest wall. Through the incessant, shrill screams of the alarm came another, much more worrying sound.

He all but threw the door open as he sprinted outside, having to dodge military personnel running this way and that as Foster came over the intercom. "All hands to battlestations! This is not a drill! Repeat: this is not a drill!"

Not a drill!? Like anyone would think it was after witnessing a titan flatten an entire town. The ship suddenly accelerated, the g-force making him stumble backwards. He probably would have fallen if one of the soldiers hadn't caught him. "Thanks!" The young man nodded and began sprinting back the way Mark had come.

Right as Mark turned the corner into the bridge, the ship banked hard to the left again, and this time, Mark did hit the ground. "Better find a seat and hang on!" That was Rick, and since the empty seat next to him was the closest to Mark, he climbed into it and buckled up. "That overgrown turkey didn't like us hanging around!"

Almost to punctuate that statement, Rodan screeched again, and when Mark glanced at Rick's console, the video feed showed the titan was gaining on them terrifyingly quickly. "Anyone have a plan?"

"The raptor squadron is trying to lure him off, but it doesn't seem to be working," Rick briefed him. Mark watched as soldier after soldier flatlined on the personnel screen. "So in other words, we're completely screwed!"

Mark glanced around at the others, and each of them wore the same emotion. Fear. Chen's head was bowed, one of her hands clasped around a necklace of some sort like she was praying. Graham was staring at the screen, her hands covering her mouth and nose. Sam was muttering something under his breath, his hands clutching the arms of his chair in a white-knuckle grip. Foster's jaw was clenched, a mix of anger and helplessness in her expression. Serizawa was the only one who seemed to be holding it together, his gaze hard and expression resolute. But Mark knew him well enough to know he was just trying to stay strong for everyone else.

It was a futile effort, though. There was nothing they could do, nowhere they could go. Rodan was gaining on them, and he would smash them out of the sky without mercy. "Ten seconds to impact!" Rick called, the numbers and data the only sort of comfort he had left. Without something to focus on, he probably would have been as terrified as the others.

Mark took that moment before the inevitable end to remember happier times. The video he watched on Emma's computer before they left for Antarctica came to mind, back when his family was whole. When Emma was a good mother instead of an eco-terrorist. When Maddie was so young and innocent. When Andrew was still alive.

"Five!" Mark closed his eyes and rested his forehead on the cold desk in front of him. "Four!" He glanced up one last time to see massive talons closing in on their ship, the video coming from the ship's rear-facing cameras. "Three!" With a sigh, he closed his eyes again. His biggest regret—his only regret, really—was not fighting to keep his family together. Instead of becoming a useless drunk, he should have been the source of support Maddie and Emma needed. Maybe none of this would be happening if he had actually been a good husband and father. "Two!"

A massive shudder rocked the ship, making several of the instruments screech in alarm. But...that was it. There was no rending of metal, no sudden loss of altitude, no fiery explosion. "Well...that was close..." Sam commented, his tone full of disbelief.

Mark sat up and looked around in confusion. "What happened?" Shouldn't they have been dead by now? Instead, the Argo was still flying steadily, and Rodan was completely gone from the visual feeds.

"Your favorite lizard just saved our asses," Rick commented, the only one who wasn't too stunned to speak. "Blew the other guy right out of the sky."

"Head us back to the island," Foster commanded the pilot, who immediately complied. The ship, then, made a hard left, and they were once more headed to Isla de Mara at full speed. "Let's pick up our boys and then get the hell out of here."

"That's not the worst idea," he couldn't help but mutter. Mark watched through the feed as Rodan fell to the ocean, seemingly unconscious. Below, Godzilla was approaching the other titan. To kill or save, Mark didn't know. He hoped it was the former, but he highly doubted the others would approve of that way of thinking.

"It looks like he's trying to save Rodan," Chen observed. Mark glanced back at the screen and glared at Godzilla's attempts to save that monster. He should have known they wouldn't be so lucky.

"And bringing him right back to the island, too." Sure enough, Rick was correct. Rodan's beak was just above water, so he wouldn't drown, and Godzilla was dragging the fiery titan back to where they had originally come from. "Let's make sure we're out of there before they arrive, yeah?"

They Argo made it back to the island within minutes, the ship hovering over what was left of the town. Other than a few husks here or there, most of the buildings were either ash or dust. Fires still raged in some parts of the town while others looked blasted apart as if an EF-5 tornado had ripped through them. "How many do you think survived?" Sam asked quietly to the silent room.

"Not enough," was Mark's bitter reply. And it was all because of the thing he helped build nearly a decade ago, the thing that was still being broadcast over the Monarch outpost's surviving speakers. And this would keep happening as long as there were titans out there. Jonah and Emma may have been the ones to trick Rodan into attacking, but in his opinion, they were just proving him right. They were too dangerous to let live.

A flare off in the distance grabbed everyone's attention. "Send rescue birds," Foster ordered. Minutes later, two ospreys were headed to where they spotted the flare, That's also when the ORCA stopped broadcasting.

"About time. Thing was starting to get annoying," Rick mumbled. Mark glared at the man for a split second before sighing. There were better things to be angry about than an inappropriate comment.

Monarch bunker outside Boston:

Maddie could do nothing but hold her breath as they watched Rodan close in on the Argo, the airship her dad was on. She had no idea how they were able to get these videos real-time like this, but one of Jonah's tech specialists must have put a backdoor of some sort in Monarch's systems. That's what she assumed, anyway. She didn't really know how all that stuff worked, and she couldn't exactly ask.

For a moment, she thought she was about to witness her dad's death. Then, however, Rodan was blasted out of the sky, and the amount of relief she felt was enough to make her slump against the wall. Even her mother, as far gone as she seemed to be, seemed to breathe a small sigh of relief when the Argo and everyone aboard was spared.

"What a shame..." Maddie glared hatefully at the old man when she heard his clear disappointment. "Still...I'd say that was a successful test of the ORCA's full capabilities. Monarch will have their hands full with the fallout. Meanwhile, we can begin preparations for the next phase of our plan." He looked to her mother and nodded. "Shut it off for now. We'll call it a day, for now."

His men took that as their cue to shut down their workstations and file out. Jonah, after glancing at them one last time, left, as well. Her mother was still watching the video feed of Godzilla dragging Rodan onto the island, though they were on a part of the island that looked more or less uninhabited. The town, however—what was left of it—was still visible to the side. "All those people..." Maddie whispered in horror. Her voice seemed to shake her mom out of whatever spell she was under, and she turned to her daughter. At least she seemed as upset about the loss of life as Maddie herself was. "You killed them...and you almost killed dad!"

Her mom recoiled as if struck. "I killed them!?" she asked incredulously. "I didn't—"

"Yes, you did! Who else was working the ORCA!?" On the verge of tears, Maddie shook her head. "This isn't what you promised me."

Guilt made its way onto her mom's face. Unfortunately, she still wasn't going to listen, it seemed. "Sometimes bad things have to happen before the good can shine through, Maddie. I know it all looks bad now, but things will get better soon. Trust me on that."

After what she just witnessed, Maddie doubted she would ever trust her mom again. Instead of replying, she turned and ran, Godzilla's roar echoing down the hall after her. Her mom called for her to come back, but Maddie didn't.

She had to get out of here. She needed to contact her dad. The question was: How?

Yunnan Rainforest, China:

Ichi was in the middle of pondering Mothra's suggestion, his brothers having differing opinions about it—San liked the idea while Ni was opposed—when she interrupted their thoughts. "Oh! Do you hear that?" It took a few seconds of focus, but they found that, yes, they did hear it. It was really faint, but they could hear the faint alpha roar coming from the other side of the planet. And the human computers, as Ni observed. "Godzilla is calling for me. Maybe you should come with me to see what he wants."

They could tell it was a simple request. She would be fine with whatever answer they gave, yet from what they could tell, she would rather he go with. They had promised aid to Godzilla if he needed it, but if he was calling specifically for Mothra, should they still go? "I think we should," was San's opinion."If we're staying, we should try to be on good terms, right?"

Ichi studied his youngest brother for a few moments before glancing at Ni, who reluctantly agreed with a small, annoyed huff. "Very well, Mothra, we shall go." They could feel her happiness at his acceptance. With their decision made, they carefully stood, minding the humans filming them. A few had been brave enough to approach while their attention was on Mothra, and they had to run away to prevent themselves from being stepped on accidentally.

That would be an unfortunate pall on their desire to make nice with the locals. And seeing as how these humans' tents bore the same symbol that the facility they emerged from had, they were probably an important group. A government or clandestine organization, perhaps. Or maybe a group that specialized in studying lifeforms like them. Other civilizations had created such groups to study and communicate with them before.

"They call themselves Monarch," Mothra informed them. Now that they were upright and waiting, her cocoon began glowing. Within minutes, she would hatch. "They study us. So yes, being on their good side would be beneficial to you three."

Good to know. Ichi would keep that little nugget of information in mind. Perhaps they would attempt contact with this 'Monarch' after relearning how to speak.

The three brothers watched with some amount of amusement and mild annoyance as the humans gathered outside to watch Mothra hatch. It was almost like a massive, three-headed dragon was no longer relevant once the pretty insect started to hatch. Mothra gave them a good show, spreading her wings and letting out a cry when she emerged for their enjoyment. The awe on all of their faces made Ichi snort in mild indignation. They were much more regal and awe-inspiring than her.

"Oh, worry not, Ghidorah. They will come to love you in time." Sometimes, they hated how easily she could read their minds. She was probably the only being they had ever encountered who could do so. At least, they could not remember another ever doing so.

"Of course they will," Ichi boasted, a teasing lilt to his voice. "What is there to not love about us?" She didn't answer, merely flying away with a giggle. Ichi huffed before following behind her, their powerful wings launching them into the air with a single beat.

They followed Mothra across the same massive ocean they had already crossed, though their heading was a bit different. They were going almost directly east this time. She didn't really talk to them all that much, which they were glad for. They had already shared much with her about their past, and while they were willing to share more, they would prefer to do so later. Sharing so much about themselves in such a short time seemed awkward.

During the flight, Ichi tasked San with rediscovering their vocal cords. Once one of them figured it out, the other two would be able to easily, and since San was both the most curious and most patient of them, he was the best choice. Some of the sounds that came out of his maw were as humorous as they were embarrassing. To put it plainly, they didn't sound like words.

"It almost sounds as if you are choking yourself, San," Ichi commented, teasing his youngest brother for a bit of innocent fun. San sighed and allowed his neck to slump. "But I am sure you will get it eventually." Perhaps some encouragement would help?

Sure enough, San went right back to his experiments with even greater determination. They all knew the theoreticals on how to talk. They possessed two separate vocal organs, one for their natural, animalistic sounds and the other for actual speech. Most of the time, the air from their lungs went through the former. They needed that airflow to switch to the latter, which happened as a result of special muscles that separated the two like a valve. The hard part was remembering how to control those muscles.

Hench, why San sounded like he was choking himself.

"Ugh! How long must we listen to him make a fool of himself?" San quietened once more at Ni's annoyance.

"Feel free to help if you believe you can do better," Ichi snapped back. Ni glared at Ichi, but the oldest turned to address San. "Keep going, San. You are doing great." San's eyes lit up with joy at Ichi's praise, and he went right back to work.

The rest of the flight was much the same, with San struggling to figure out how to talk, NI grumbling because of the annoying sounds, and Ichi being stuck between the two. Mothra either couldn't fly as fast as them or she just wasn't. Either way, it took them until the next morning to arrive at a small island with a destroyed town on one side of it and a volcano dominating the rest.

Godzilla and the Fire Demon—"Rodan," Mothra helpfully interjected—were standing on one of the beaches. Godzilla looked utterly ticked off, and Rodan seemed completely dejected. Occasionally, he would glance at the ruined town and sigh. "Hello, Godzilla! You called for me?"

"Yeah, I did." She landed on his back and nuzzled into his neck a few times as Ghidorah landed a respectful distance away. Rodan was eyeing them suspiciously, shuffling closer to the other two. "What're they doing here?"

"They came to see me, if you can believe it! And we had a delightful conversation before we left." It was clear that Godzilla was skeptical, but Mothra stood up for them. "I trust them."

"You trust everybody," was Godzilla's immediate reply. Ichi, however, could not mask his surprise. "And what's wrong with him?"

At first, Ichi had no idea what he was talking about. But then he realized San was still trying his experiments. He'd tuned out the relentless gibbering too well, it seemed. "San, quit! You can try some more later." San stopped, though he seemed a bit frustrated that he had to quit.

"Aww...but I was getting close!" Ichi doubted that, but he wouldn't say as much. He didn't want to make San feel bad.

"What was he even doing?" Even Mothra and Rodan, who hadn't said anything yet, seemed interested.

"Trying to relearn how to speak," Ichi answered.

"And giving us a headache in the process," Ni grumbled.

Based on their expressions, Ichi could tell they were quite confused. They'd already heard San speak, but none of them knew what Ichi really meant. "The other kind of speech. The kind the humans do."

Godzilla and Rodan glanced at each other skeptically, but Mothra seemed genuinely excited. "You can talk like them?"

"We used to, but...we forgot," San nodded. "It's harder than I remember."

"Oh, I would just love to talk to the humans directly," Mothra gushed. "Would you translate for me once you figure it out?"

Ichi looked between the three titans, clearly confused by the ask. "Uh...sure?" It's not like it would be difficult to do, but Ichi hoped it wouldn't be a regular, all day, every day thing. They had other things they wanted to do than constantly translate for three other titans and however many humans. "But why are you so upset?" Rodan flinched at the question and glanced back at the ruined town.

"He attacked the humans without provocation," Godzilla answered, making Mothra gasp in horror. "He told me some story about how I was ordering him to do it through the speakers. It sounded so ridiculous that I wanted to get your opinion before deciding what to do with him."

Mothra seemed equally as flabbergasted as Godzilla by the strange recounting, but to them, it sounded familiar. "Did it sound wrong. Like him but strange?" Rodan probably hadn't expected anyone to believe him, so he was understandably shocked that Ghidorah of all beings were. "And it kept saying the same thing over and over?"

"Y-Yes! How did you know?" They were all equally dumbfounded that their old enemy somehow knew what was going on. Yet here they were, helping without even being asked to.

"Some humans had a device that did as I described. They used it to wake us from our hibernation when we were freed. Then, they tried to use it make us bow." Ni growled, and Ichi scoffed. "They left when they realized we wouldn't be controlled so easily."

"Sounds sketchy to me," Godzilla huffed. Perhaps the story was just so outlandish he couldn't believe it. Or, more likely, he just wasn't trusting Ghidorah at their word.

"No, they are correct." Both Rodan and Godzilla stared at Mothra in shock. Ghidorah just nodded, smugness radiating from all three of them. "Monarch had such a device when I first hatched from my egg. It, and two humans, were taken by a group of bad humans."

"That narrows it down," Godzilla huffed. "How are we supposed to find out where they are until they activate it again and some other titan goes bonkers?"

"I'm sure the humans will know," Mothra gently patted his cheek to placate him. "We just need to ask them." Godzilla glanced at her before looking at Ghidorah thoughtfully. Rodan just seemed relieved that his King wasn't blaming him anymore.

"San...get back to it." Once more, the strange noises started up, making Ni groan in exasperation. If they needed to talk to the good humans to stop the bad humans, then they needed to figure out how to talk as soon as possible.

Preferably before another attack.

AN: This is about the point where canon will start to diverge. If there's any sort of scene anyone wants to see in particular or any other ideas, let me know in a review. I read and appreciate all of them.

Until Next Time

AdmiralCole22