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Mount Aso,
Aso Island
Princess Azula was well acquainted with staring Death in the face. Often it came in the visage of the greatest threats the Fire Nation ever faced, both from without and within their ranks. Some of them emerged closer to home than she would've hoped and did…"break" her if they wanted to call it that.
Yet the one thing that brought them all together was what she reassured herself every time she wielded her deadly, blue flame: she could fight this. She could stand her ground, take what they brought, and pay it back tenfold. It was a rule she had always abided by since she was little. And even now, she had not lost faith in it.
Looking upon those blazing eyes amidst the fiery smoke of an active volcano though…this was one thing she couldn't fight.
All that she could do was run. And run she did, breaking under Rodan's furious shriek. Azula made a beeline for one of those tunnels, not caring if any of those foul insects were hiding in the shadows. She didn't make it far before one of the oversized pterosaur's hands slammed into the ground right in her path.
Behind her, she heard the other clawed hand cut off the other tunnels. Leaving her penned at Rodan's mercy. The kaiju had none to spare, hacking downwards with his beak aimed right at the Princess.
Azula made a running dive towards the back of the room, barely avoiding being skewered. The thrown rocks from the impact kept her down, lest she get her neck broken by a jagged stone. Hurriedly she picked herself up from the black stone before diving once more to the side, avoiding another jab.
It only bought her some time and she knew it. Trapped between the arms of a kaiju and the ground being ruined with every strike, it would only be a matter of time before she'd find her bones being crunched and flesh torn by those sharp teeth. Yet it wasn't like she could power her way through those giant claws either. She needed to buy herself more time to figure out a plan.
A thought occurred to her. Rolling herself up, she let out a massive burst of blue flame from her fingers. In any other circumstance, it would've been an impressive display by her standards. Here within the heart of a volcano though, it was a mere blue flicker amidst the angry smoke and fire below.
However, it didn't go unnoticed. Rodan paused for but a moment, watching the azure fire burn through the air. Seeing that her gamble was working, Azula held out her palm and brought forth a ball of her flame, holding it high for the titan to see. The One Born of Fire (that's what Maina called him, didn't she?, wondered Azula) observed the display, his muscles slightly relaxing.
She would've smiled if she hadn't known better. Her fire would've held the kaiju at bay for but a moment. It was a calculated risk, but it seemed that these creatures were drawn to her fire if Godzilla was any indication. As for what it meant, she wasn't sure, and she didn't exactly want to hang around for too long lest she find out.
Azula weighed her options. She could've launched a fireball against Rodan's snout, maybe startle him enough to briefly open a way out of the cavern. It was the only idea outside of engaging the monster directly, but that was suicide on her own.
Her mind was about to be made up before the blue fire raged out of control, reaching heights not seen since the comet. Azula's eyes widened. She hadn't paid the fire any less attention than normal. No, it was as if it was taken from her. That her fire responded to the presence of another.
That presence made himself known through the walls of the volcano, a muffled roar that still sent chills down her spine. Rodan knew it as well, looking up high into the overhead funnel of the volcano where it echoed into the chamber.
At once, his attention was drawn to the intruder, digging his claws into the walls of the volcano and beginning to climb himself up. Beneath him, the lava began to ooze from the mountain's heart, rising in his wake.
Hurriedly, Azula darted her way down through the nearest tunnel. She wasn't about to let this chance go. Letting forth bursts of fire from her hands, the Princess propelled herself through the lava tubes. The glow of the coming lava served as a warning to keep moving forward. So she did, rocketing where she figured the surface was. Mainly any tunnel that wasn't being illuminated.
It made things a bit easier, that was for certain. Before long, she burst from the tunnels. Azula felt her breath go wild, but still, she sprinted down the mountain. Better that she made as much distance as possible than wait for her to get her breath back after expending so much fire.
Looking around her, she saw some of those insects emerge from the ground and scramble for the high hills. Clearly, they had the right idea, but her legs began to ache. Azula cursed her tired muscles slowing her down. Of all the times her fatigue had to kick in…
A sharp cry to her right brought her attention to a sight she couldn't believe. Running down the slope towards her was the familiar shape of Flame Runner. Shocked that her Mongoose Dragon had stayed behind, she hurriedly launched herself with one final burst of blue fire into the air aimed toward her mount.
Flame Runner slowed down, allowing the Princess to land on her back. The reptile gave an annoyed look at the rider before sprinting down the side of the mountain. Not a moment too soon either. Lava erupted from the tunnels, cascading down the volcano. It ran down fluidly, though slow enough for the Mongoose Dragon to keep ahead of it.
They were some time into the grassy plains when they saw the sea monster rise from the depths out off the shores of the island. Azula pulled Flame Runner's reigns, taking in the sight.
It was him again.
Even from this distance, Godzilla was enormous. Great torrents of water fell down his scales to the sea below. A good distance away from him, the scout ships hightailed it to safety. Already the kaiju was charging towards the ships that were hanging back a distance away from him.
That awful roar of hatred left his maw, thundering all across the island to hear.
And from the volcano, a shriek answered.
Turning in her saddle, Azula watched as the phoenix pulled himself out of the erupting volcano. His claws gripped the sides of the vent, rivers of lava ran down his reddish brown hide, and Rodan hauled himself free. Perching on the ledge, he looked at his counterpart from the sea, tilting his head in curiosity.
Azula suddenly felt very small. The sight of one kaiju was enough to boggle the mind. Two seemed to be something right out of a nightmare. Who would've thought that things like these were just lurking in the darkest corners of the world, and how out of their depth humanity would've been if they decided to wake up? In the corner of her eye was the village in the distance, looking downright fragile amongst the great beasts.
The titan from the mountain let out a series of clicks and calls towards the one from the sea. If their presence shook Azula's constitution, the sounds Rodan was making riveted her in place. They weren't the emanations of some enraged brute. There was a pattern.
For some reason, she recalled an old passage she read in a scroll once. How the dragons of old used to have a language of sorts and were more intelligent than any would-be slayer gave them credit for. Could Rodan's cries be some kind of dialect shared amongst these things? Godzilla was certainly intelligent enough to understand the Avatar and go after specific targets after all.
Whatever he was saying, Godzilla just snarled in response. Another roar left his maw, shutting the other titan up. His intent was clear to Azula. The God of Destruction wanted war.
Rodan paused, before nodding to himself and letting out a war cry of his own. He spread his wings out to their full spread. They were huge. Sure, they were suitably enormous for a creature of that size. But that wingspan had to have been bigger than the rim of the volcano. And the edges of the wings were aglow with lava. With them at full spread, Rodan's spread was cast all over the slope of the volcano.
At once, Azula kicked Flame Runner, urging her onto the shore. With any luck, Maina, Kori, and Kazuma would've gotten everyone to safety. And if she knew men like Ryuui, she also had a good feeling where he'd be. A place where he could see this oncoming battle directly, maybe somewhere he could direct the ships offshore.
She'd have to be quick about it. Both to get to the Commander fast and to get as faaaaar away from the volcano as possible. Sure enough, Rodan snapped his wings and dove from his perch flying straight towards the shore. His wings were so massive, they kicked up a tempest of dust and lava in their wake. Azula was almost torn from her saddle when the kaiju flew over, let alone Flame Runner who had to dig her claws into the earth.
Behind them, the avalanche of dust and lava came right them. Even still, they weren't any match for a Mongoose Dragon at full speed. Evidently, Azula didn't exactly need to urge her any further with such a massive factor right behind her.
The Princess didn't envy the people on the boats though. Hopefully, her orders got through. If they tried anything reckless, things would go from bad to even worse than they already are.
On one of the ships, a captain oversaw the incoming Rodan fly down the mountain. He and his crew couldn't believe it. The Great Phoenix himself. They'd all heard the stories of course, but to behold his appearance was as if Agni herself was blessing them all with her servant.
Didn't mean the sight was any less intimidating. Those great wings dripping with lava, the volcano erupting in the distance. And of course, the opposing dragon wading its way toward them.
"Sir! On the shore! The Admiral's giving the signal!" Following where his subordinate was pointing, the captain did see the signaling flare from one of Admiral Ryuui's adjutants. Ordinarily, this would've been the moment where their own offensive would've begun. His firebenders were manning the catapults, ready to aid their god against Godzilla. Such an honor would've propelled them to the same status of the besiegers of Ba Sing Se. Assuming they also didn't share their fate.
Instead, the captain held out his hand. "Princess's orders. We're to wait until Rodan inflicts a wound or to assist when absolutely needed." Acknowledging his orders, the soldiers relaxed a little. And more than one man felt a little relief. Even from this distance, Godzilla was immense, and that massive tail thrashed through the water. Truth be told, nobody wanted to be on the receiving end of that thing's rage if any of Azula's stories had any truth to them.
Nor did anyone really want to get in the way of Rodan, who skirted the surface of the sea. His mighty wings kicked up plumes and waves of seawater with his passing, his beak releasing one more warcry.
Claws outstretched, Rodan snapped his wings in front of him, creating a huge wave with the air pushed out in front of him. The tempest of water and air slammed into Godzilla, who stood still and took it head-on. With so much seawater displaced, it gave Rodan cover to collide right into the sea monster, his claws pushing into those powerful shoulders.
Godzilla snarled, feeling himself being pushed back from the ram. He lunged forward with his teeth barred, hoping to sink them in one of the pterosaur's wings. Rodan pushed back just in time, launching himself out of the way of those sharp teeth. That sharp beak raked at the side of Godzilla's neck, dislodging a few scales but not doing any lasting damage.
Maneuvering himself to Godzilla's left side, Rodan rammed into his flank, stabbing and tearing at that same spot with both claw and beak. Latching on to the side of a thrashing kaiju though was NOT easy. It didn't take too long before Godzilla suddenly lurched forward and threw the pterosaur off his back.
Rodan twisted himself in mid-air and spread his wings, regaining control of his trajectory. He then snapped his wings and propelled himself higher into the air back towards Godzilla. The crew manning one of the Fire Nation ships found themselves buffeted by high-speed winds from the whiplash. They braced themselves by hanging on to whatever they could, lest they be blown off and sent careening to the waters below.
Those who kept on their feet witnessed Rodan climb high into the air before diving right onto Godzilla's head. The pterosaur moved so fast, there was no way for his larger opponent to respond before impact. Rodan's dive forced Godzilla's head down, while his claws raked those hateful eyes.
With the larger kaiju disoriented, Rodan once more aimed downward and attacked the same spot on Godzilla's neck. Every strike chipped more scales and skin off, each one hoping to draw blood.
Godzilla's rage though intensified. He roared before jerking his torso backward, smashing his skull into Rodan. The phoenix found himself thrown off once more. Before he could attempt to regain control, Godzilla's tail lashed up and smashed into his chest, forcing him beneath the sea.
The God of Destruction whipped around and reached out with his claws, curling around Rodan's neck to throttle the life out of him. His strength was so much, that it forced blood up from his rival's beak. He didn't stop there though. His fury reached a new peak, causing his dorsal spines to flash blue, heralding an azure inferno.
Right as fire gathered at the back of his throat, Rodan lunged upward and stabbed his beak into Godzilla's neck right at the weak point he created. The dragon roared with pain, feeling the beak dig into his neck and pierce his throat. Rapidly he forced the fire down, not wanting to take any chances.
Yanking Rodan's bloody beak out of his neck, Godzilla roared in the pterosaur's face and crunched down on one of those huge wings. Now it was Rodan's turn to shriek in agony, feeling those teeth threaten to break his bones and rob him of his biggest advantage. He lashed out with his claws and scored home, raking one of Godzilla's eyes. The great titan roared with fury, freeing Rodan's wing and letting him backpedal.
The two titans tussled with one another, both trying to inflict another injury. Rodan came in again and again at Godzilla's wound but wasn't able to score any direct hits. His flight was hampered by his own injury, meaning he couldn't maneuver as well as he could. And every moment counted. Already he could see Godzilla's wound begin to heal itself. His gambit to nullify that fiery breath would soon be rendered null and void.
Snarling, Rodan backed off and flew back to Mount Aso. Godzilla bellowed in fury, demanding that the Phoenix return to finish the fight. That was until he was abruptly cut off by a barrage to his wound. A number of Fire Nation ships had maneuvered themselves to get a clear shot at the wound and took the chance to open it further.
Godzilla growled with fury, turning toward the ships, intent on dealing with the ones that dared to strike him. Those who incited the rage of the king would feel his wrath.
When she had ridden through the chaotic jungle (it seemed that Rodan's soaring from above had disturbed many of the inhabitants), Azula's eyes widened at the scene.
Godzilla and Rodan were locked in brutal combat, the two trading blows and causing the entire coast to churn with raging, white water. The sight was both astonishing and terrifying at the same time. Not only to think that such mighty beasts walked the earth but at the sheer scale of it. She could see the ships being tossed around like toys even from such a distance away by the waves. Azula had to thank Agni that both sense and her orders kept those sailors from moving head first into certain death.
For the moment anyways. Rodan had retreated with a bloody gash on his shoulder, leaving Godzilla alone in the harbor. The ships began to fire, aiming at a wound gouged into the monster's neck. It was just as she had planned, though she still paled when she saw Godzilla's attention turn towards the ships. Yes, her orders were to exploit any wounds, but not push the assault too far lest his rage would be turned from Rodan to them.
Thankfully the firing ships got the message, maneuvering to get some distance and to get into a better position at Godzilla's wound. What's more, she saw several furious bursts of fire coming from the beach. That could've only been the Commander (she refused to call him "Admiral" anymore) trying to get the situation back on track.
Not if she had anything to say about it. Azula snapped Flame Runner's reigns, urging the Mongoose Dragon to race towards the beach. As she closed in on the men, the Princess heard Ryuui roar, "What are they doing?! Get ALL those ships firing away immediately!"
"I wouldn't bother, Commander," Azula bit out, capturing the attention of the astonished men. Her boots hit the sand, marching right up to Ryuui. "I gave them orders not to engage unless they had an opening. You know, what a competent leader would've done without putting his men at risk."
"Whu-how did-? Well because of YOU, our ships are exposed! If they supported Rodan-"
"Would've had the same result. You honestly believe that your ordinance can hurt that?" Azula cut off, pointing to the raging sea monster. "All you would've done was piss it off even more! Be thankful that Rodan was able to get away with a single bite instead of getting his wings torn off!
"Also, I thank you for your concern for my safety, Ryuui. I am more than capable of handling myself around giant bugs." She flicked away one of her bangs just to punctuate her sarcasm.
Ryuui gaped for a moment, before pointing at her. "Somebody restrain her! She attempted to prevent Rodan's awakening AND confessed to changing the orders! That's treason!"
"...you want us to arrest the Princess sir?" one of his adjutants asked. Indeed, the rest of his personal guard seemed a bit confused.
"Oh for the love of-she's the reason your comrades are in danger!" Ryuii roared, his composure rapidly deteriorating with his loss of control over the whole situation. Again, nobody made a move.
That's when Azula made her play. "What I did was save them. He would've marched you all to your deaths if he could. Which he did with your comrades by the way. I know you have friends on those ships. Are you willing to stand by and let this man who would've thrown their lives away order you around?"
The officers and guard looked around both at each other and the ships out at sea. Azula kept her face passive, but she knew from experience what people would do when their friends and loved ones were in danger. The hard way, but at least she learned.
In the silence, Azula heard a piercing shriek from behind. Reflexively she ducked, avoiding the gust of wind that was kicked up as Rodan soared above, returning to the fight. The Commander and his officers weren't so lucky, with some of them being barreled over by the wall of air.
Rodan drove his claws into Godzilla's face, clawing and stabbing at both the saurian's eyes and wounded neck. Looking closely, Azula saw that a layer of lava had been applied to the wound on the pterosaur's shoulder. Clever, she thought. And she was impressed further by the kaiju focusing in on that gash in Godzilla's neck.
In fact, now that she thought of it, wouldn't Godzilla have breathed fire by now? Looking at that wound, she wondered if that was one more measure Rodan had taken to tip the balance of power in his favor. Well, there was a weak point if it ever needed to be exploited.
And a potential bargaining chip, Azula realized. What her brother would give to know a chink in Godzilla's armor.
She'd have to cross that bridge once she got there. Right now, she had other priorities. Pulling herself up, Azula shot a quick burst of flame at the staggering Ryuui. It was only a light strike, the flames not even burning through the outermost layer of his armor. What it did achieve was knocking him down.
Azula raced forward, the other officers either not knowing what to do or still pulling themselves up. She aimed her fist at the downed Ryuui, effectively giving him a warning to stand down. As much as she wanted him to pay for leaving her behind, she knew he would've been more valuable as leverage. Perhaps giving Zuko a prisoner who actually was a high-profile rogue army leader could get him off her back.
Naturally, Ryuui had no intention of being a prisoner. He lashed out, kicking a wheel of flame in Azula's direction. The Princess batted away his attack before having to back off from the burst of flames being thrown in her direction. Azula knew his form was pretty standard for somebody of his rank, and ordinarily would've been able to break his center in no time. If it only weren't for her less-than-desirable condition between having to fight through a horde of insects on top of what she sustained from the asylum.
What she could do was draw his attacks. Block, parry, do anything to goad him into making a mistake. So the two firebenders dueled alongside the warring titans. Ryuui went on the offensive, throwing flame after flame at the one he was supposed to have led to glory. Azula just held her ground, unwilling to lose one more duel. Meanwhile, Godzilla was busy fending off Rodan's strikes, defending his wound and looking to land another punishing blow.
Their warring shadows did not go unnoticed by Azula. Indeed, she tried to pull back towards the jungle, hoping to get herself and everyone else away from the beach. Didn't help that the shadows lengthened as the battle thundered ever closer.
None of this was even acknowledged by Ryuui, who just kept pushing forward with his furious offensive. Azula had to give him credit, it took a certain amount of idiotic bravery to ignore the giant monsters fighting behind him. She, on the other hand, would not give him a duel he craved. One of the things she learned a long time ago was that to play by another's rules was to court failure. Princess Azula was no stranger to failure, but she also knew never to play to your opponent's advantage.
And she read Ryuui like an open book. A man such as him would've craved a glorious victory, something he would tell his fellow nobles about. Why else would he pull together such a suicidal plan to take on Godzilla? It was a trait more than a few would be "war heroes" shared. The best way to beat a man like this would be to deny what he wanted.
Another thing a self-proclaimed "Admiral" wanted would be obedience. That she took care of already. His men watched both their fight and the duel between the titans, unsure of what to do. Finally, Ryuui turned around and snapped "What are you doing?! Somebody take her down!"
Thus, the opening was created. Azula rushed forward, firing a burst of flame right at Ryuui's face. The commander hastily batted away her fire burst, but wasn't able to prevent Azula from lashing out her leg and swiping his foot out from underneath him. Suddenly off balance, Ryuui tried to let forth a fire blast right in the Princess's face.
The Princess just batted his fist aside, letting the flame blast harmlessly past her, before slamming a weak force of fire into the older man's chest. It wasn't enough to burn through his armor, but it was enough to take down the already off-center Commander. Ryuui plummeted onto his back into the sand.
Azula then backed out of the range of his legs, taking a firebending stance. Her body posture made herself clear: stay down or risk getting incinerated.
Ryuui glared both at the Princess and his disobedient officers, who were beginning to back away from him. "You…you'll NEVER get the throne without me," he snarled.
"And you'll never be seen anything more than as a failure, Commander Ryuui. Hope you can live with that," Azula spat back.
She was about to order the adjutants aside her to take him into custody before an enraged roar thundered across the beach. Out in the bay, Rodan had clambered onto Godzilla's head and had his claws dug into the dragon's face. His wings were spread out, practically dragging the larger monster towards the beach.
"GET EVERYONE BACK TO THE VILLAGE! NOW!" Azula ordered, her voice trying to make itself heard over the din of the fighting monsters. She got the message across though. The men scrambled for their Mongoose Dragons, who were tied up to the tree line behind them. Their mounts in turn were panicking from the oncoming titans, who were coming dangerously close to the beach.
Azula was about to call for Flame Runner before she heard the shifting sand behind her. Her reflexes kicked in, elbowing Ryuui who attempted to make one last strike before jumping into the air and lashing out a blade of blue fire behind her.
Ryuui cried out as he was knocked back, while Azula ran for cover, running as far to the side as she could.
The so-called "Admiral" Ryuui's last thoughts were that of the towering shadow from above. Looking up, he went pale as Rodan let go of Godzilla's head, causing the titan to plummet. All that could've been heard was a bloodcurdling scream before it was crushed by the enormous reptile.
Azula ducked, feeling the sand wash over her from the impact. It all happened so fast, but that scream still played out in her mind. Truth be told, a part of her still wanted to believe Ryuui's promise. Or maybe that was the part that couldn't help but shudder at being crushed by a titanic beast such as Godzilla. All in all, she couldn't help but feel empty at Ryuui's death.
Her attention turned to the giant monster pulling himself to his feet. Specifically, how close Azula was. She backed away slowly, hoping not to catch Godzilla's attention with rapid movement. To keep herself reasonably collected, the Princess focused on that ragged wound on the right side of his neck. Once again, she noticed how the flesh was regenerating, trying to cover over and heal the wound.
It was such an ability to heal without the use of waterbending. How could any creature be capable of such power? A strange sensation of warmth coming from the wound gave her a hint. Azula blinked, feeling what could only be described as fire running through the monster's powerful veins, being funneled into the wound. She didn't understand it. Did the same fire Godzilla wielded also heal his wounds?
If she got out of this alive, it would have to be something to look into. For now, a tremor from Rodan landing some distance away caused Azula to involuntarily freeze. She now found herself close to TWO massive kaiju. Luckily, Rodan seemed more interested in giving off a series of calls and clicks, but she didn't count on having this reprieve for too long.
She couldn't help but listen. Now that she was close, she heard that the calls, bizarrely enough, didn't seem too aggressive. High pitched and frantic, sure, but it didn't sound inherently threatening. Rodan choosing not to take the opportunity to attack and letting Godzilla drag himself up confused her more. What was that oversized bird trying to achieve? Get himself killed?
It certainly seemed to be the case as Godzilla rose to his full height and roared with fury. His rival seemed to take the hint, with Rodan charging forward. Shaken out of her stupor from seeing those massive talons dig into the sand, Azula sprinted away just as Godzilla lashed out with one of his arms. Rodan stopped midway, the claws of the dragon meeting nothing but air. That massive beak of the One Born of Fire stabbed forward, aiming right for Godzilla's wound.
What Rodan got was the other powerful arm smashing into his head, batting him away. Before Godzilla could lunge forward to crunch his teeth into that injured arm though, the pterosaur launched himself backward using the momentum of the strike. His great wings let forth huge gusts of wind with each wingbeat. They were so powerful, it was enough to hold back even the mighty God of Destruction.
As such, Azula didn't have much chance out in the open. She felt herself being blown away by the gale, her arms and legs flailing helplessly in the tempest. The Princess panicked, almost envisioning her limbs being held by watery tendrils, or being frozen. Didn't help the ocean lay right behind her.
All of a sudden, she felt herself crash into the sand, the gusts suddenly cut off. Looking up, she saw Godzilla marching against the wind. His left leg must've stomped in front of her, inadvertently providing a shield. Against all reason, Azula got up to her feet and followed with the massive leg.
Peering through her fingers, she saw the jungle right ahead. If she could only just reach it…
Her hopes got dashed when Rodan suddenly dove right at Godzilla. This time though, the dragon was ready. He grabbed his counterpart in mid-air, crunching down on Rodan's throat. With one swift motion, Godzilla whipped around and threw the pterosaur out to the sea.
He also dragged his massive tail along, with Azula right in its path. Despite her muscles' protests, the Princess sprinted up the beach and headed for the cover of the trees. She reached the treeline just in time for Godzilla's tail to breach the jungle. Azula got lucky that a thrown-up log sent her sprawling to the ground instead of being crushed.
Groggily pulling herself up against a tree, Azula was about to limp further into the forest before the sound of a barrage caught her attention. Looking back out into the bay, she saw several Fiery Raptor ships unload their payload against the mountain. Godzilla roared with anger, his ire being drawn towards the soldiers who'd dared to raise their fire against him.
The barrage also gave Rodan cover, allowing him to right his flight path over the bay. He made another charge at Godzilla, this time his claws digging into the sea monster's scaly hide. The larger kaiju stood his ground, the thick scales preventing the talons from sinking in too deep. Snarling with nothing less but contempt, Godzilla grabbed Rodan's foot and hurled him to the ground. Interestingly, Azula noticed that he turned his body to the right during his toss, preventing the ships from getting a shot at his wound.
Then she realized that she was in the middle of a literal war zone. Azula grit her teeth and tried to power her way through the ruined jungle by sheer force alone. It got her a few steps before she collapsed into the foliage. The pain from getting hit by that log was too much. All she could manage was crawl behind the broken stump of a tree and watch the warring giants not too far away.
Rodan was sprawled on the ground, watching as Godzilla stomped towards him. He took a deep breath, rising just as his opponent lifted a massive foot to crush his skull. At the very last moment, the pterosaur breathed out a massive funnel of wind right in Godzilla's face. The winds rivaled that of a tornado, something that even the mighty dragon found himself blinded by.
It was exactly the opening the pterosaur was looking for. Spreading his wings, Rodan took to the air, slamming his spiked chest into Godzilla's head on the way up.
Azula's eyes went wide as dinner plates upon seeing Godzilla stumbling back towards her. Thankfully for her, the kaiju stopped himself before he got too close, but she started to sweat a bit. So much for running to safety. Her exhaustion and injury would've made it difficult for her to make a clean getaway without getting stepped on or blown to pieces by the high winds.
While looking for some way out of this, she noticed the wound on Godzilla's neck. Or rather, the glow that was coming from it. At first, it almost seemed to be the same glow that came from that waterbender's bending when she healed her brother. Yet she also sensed a fire behind the glow. She wondered if Godzilla was trying to breathe fire once more, but his dorsal spines remained dull.
At the same time, the healing around the wound was being accelerated. Was…was Godzilla using his fire to speed up the healing? How was that even possible?
She made a mental note to think about this once she wasn't in immediate danger. Azula looked at the two combatants, trying to figure out which presented the most imminent threat. Godzilla seemed to be staggering from the sudden counterattack. Rodan on the other hand was soaring to the far side of the beach. He had his wings spread out and took aim at Godzilla's now-exposed wound. Racing right above the treeline, Rodan kicked up a hurricane of sand, dirt, and trees as he passed over.
Azula decided that the incoming hurricane was the most immediate threat. More distressingly, she couldn't outrun winds those fast even without already being hobbled. The Princess gathered her wits and sprinted as fast as her hurt legs could carry her. It throbbed with each step, but at least nothing was broken. Thank Agni she had her armor back.
Unfortunately for her, the only cover in sight was Godzilla. Grimacing, Azula hobbled over by the staggering titan, praying that he wouldn't step right on top of her. At least she had a chance of surviving in cover rather than out in the open against a huge windstorm.
Said windstorm howled louder as it closed in, Rodan letting out a ferocious warcry to add to the din.
Godzilla just snorted at the crescendo. At the very last moment, the dragon snapped his body around and brought his massive tail swinging right at Rodan. Azula realized that he had deliberately exposed his wound to bring the faster kaiju in. No doubt he played up his staggered state to make the opening even more tempting.
The trap was sprung so suddenly, that the Princess was practically waiting for that titanic tail to come crashing down and break Rodan's back. Instead, the pterosaur flapped his wings and pulled up high at the last possible moment, letting the tail clobber nothing but empty air. Before Godzilla could react, the heavy winds slammed into his body, causing him to stagger. Azula had to dive to the sand away from the kaiju before one of his heavy feet came crashing down where she once took shelter.
A thunderous shaking of the earth kept her down. For the tail had come crashing down and sent shockwaves throughout the beach. Clouds of sand washed over her prone form, both her body and mind reeling from Rodan's gambit.
She was not the only one staggering. Buffeted by the high winds, Godzilla was now truly stunned. What's worse for him, his wound was exposed to the other side. Right in view of Rodan who was making a banking turn out at sea and turning back right towards the dragon. Once more, he glided along the beach, kicking up another hurricane of sand and wind.
Azula was just able to propel herself into the cover using her firebending behind the beleaguered kaiju before the winds howled past. This time, however, the great tail lay motionless. All Godzilla was able to do was thrust out his arm and bat away Rodan's sharp beak. Even then though, the Phoenix tasted flesh, bringing out a spurt of blood from the wound as he flew past.
Buffeted from both sides by high winds and his wound opened back up, Godzilla had trouble keeping his balance. He teetered dangerously, his shaky legs having problems keeping that massive bulk up. Azula saw what was coming and sprinted into the jungle as hard as she could. She wasn't able to make it to the treeline before exhaustion took over, bringing her crashing to the sand.
Just as Godzilla plummeted to the earth himself, collapsing on the ruined sand. Azula struggled to stay conscious amidst the turmoil, for the force of the impact was that great. The only thing that kept her somewhat awake was her mother's voice, screaming for her daughter's safety.
By the time Azula shook herself awake and clambered to her unsteady feet, the beach had turned into a warzone. Trees were strewn all over the place with their roots exposed to the air. Sand had been disheveled, with sea water pooling in to fill empty holes.
And Godzilla, God of Destruction, had fallen. Motionless.
Azula struggled to regain her breath, keeping herself on her two feet through sheer willpower. Looking around at the devastation, she realized how lucky she was to be alive. Nothing that Father had ever taught prepared her for such carnage. At least there were no strewn corpses this time. She couldn't even see Ryuui's body, which must've been crushed into oblivion amidst the fighting. It was a small comfort, knowing that more people had been able to survive.
Not that it brought her relief. Rodan descended from above, kicking up sand and blowing the unsteady Princess over from his descent. Cautiously walking over, the pterosaur observed the motionless kaiju. Only the steady rhythm of Godzilla's chest rising and falling was the only sign of life.
Still, Rodan placed a foot on Godzilla's neck, his claws pinning it down. He made a series of chirps and calls to the fallen titan, which suited Azula just fine. She scrambled for safety, not counting on the brief lull in combat to last. Once Rodan saw her, she doubted she'd be able to pull another stunt to save her a couple more precious seconds.
Turns out, she wouldn't need to.
For Godzilla's eyes snapped open, his dorsal spines coming to life with blue light.
Before Rodan could pull back from the ominous glow, Godzilla's tail shot from the sand and slammed him in the back. This forced the pterosaur to lunge forward, right as Godzilla swung his head around and opened his maw.
A torrent of azure flame was unleashed, washing over and consuming the Phoenix. Rodan was forced back from the sheer force, allowing Godzilla to rise up and tower over the beach. Beneath the torrents of sand that were cascading down the kaiju's hide, the wound that before had prevented him from unleashing his fiery breath had fully healed.
The sight of all his efforts having gone in vain caused Rodan to backpedal, but not enough for him to back down. He shrieked in defiance at the charging sea monster. While his hide was scorched, it didn't suffer any serious burns. A testament to the One Born of Fire's affinity with the flame.
Godzilla didn't care though. He unleashed another fiery breath, wanting nothing more to reduce Rodan to cinders. The pterosaur simply spread out his wings and took to the air, dodging the flames and charging right towards the other kaiju. Yet Godzilla had become well aware of this now desperate maneuver. He reached out with his arms and clutched the talons of Rodan with his claws, before spinning around and slamming them into the jungle.
Rodan landed hard on his back, yet he didn't cry out. He simply took a deep breath as he crawled away, hoping to get away from the raging mad monster. Godzilla though just whipped around and slammed his tail right into the spiked chest, forcing the built-up air right out of Rodan's beak.
With blood dripping down his beak, the Phoenix crawled onto his belly and tried to take to the air. Panic had set in, with the battle spiraling out of his control. Great swathes of jungle had been flattened by their war, leaving Aso Village visible amongst the ruined vegetation.
Hunkering down by a fallen log, the cowering Princess Azula cursed her luck seeing the village. So close, and yet so far. Granted, nowhere was safe at this point, but she'd rather hunker down in one of the shelters than be in the middle of all this chaos. At least she would've have a sliver of a chance.
Now she just watched as Rodan took to the air, only for Godzilla to lunge forward to crunch down on his foot. The firebird cried out in shock as he was dragged to the earth, then cried out again in pain when Godzilla stomped on his back. Reaching down, the dragon mercilessly pulled on one of Rodan's wings before a very audible SNAP! was heard.
The wing of the once mighty Rodan fell limply at his side, dislocated and useless. Godzilla's rage was not sated by just crippling his rival. He reached down and yanked Rodan up with his arms, curling his claws around the throat of the thrashing pterosaur. Even with the odds against him, the One Born of Fire refused to give up, trying to skewer one of Godzilla's eyes out.
A crescendo of firebombs would come to his aid. From the bay, the ships fired their payload into the air with a thunderous boom. Godzilla just turned around and held Rodan in front of him almost like a shield. All that firepower was able to accomplish was bombarding the one they were supposed to help.
Amidst the chaos, Godzilla and Rodan locked eyes once last time. Down below, Azula saw what she could've only described as a pleading look in the Phoenix's eyes.
Godzilla had no mercy though. His dorsal spines burning blue, he crunched down on Rodan's throat. Flames erupted from his mouth, threatening to scorch right through even the hardened skin. Rodan struggled, raking deep, bloody scratches in Godzilla's hide, and tried to pierce one of those hateful eyes.
There was little he could do though. All he could do was choke out the last few breaths before the air in his throat was consumed by fire.
Azula couldn't watch. The carnage and screams were horrible. She tried to cover her ears to block out the choking and the burning. It was all too familiar…
And suddenly…it was over.
Nervously, Azula drew her gaze upward, expecting to see the charred corpse of Rodan plummeting to the ground.
She did see the bird fall to the sand, with a nasty burn on his throat. Yet to her surprise, Rodan weakly crawled away. Beyond all reason, he was still alive. Wounded and visibly shaken, but still alive.
The Princess couldn't understand it. When she looked towards Godzilla, all she saw was the fire on his dorsal spines dying out. His eyes were wide, and his claws shook. He took a few steps backward, his breath coming out rapidly.
Slowly, Rodan crawled up to his feet, gazing at the other kaiju. Both didn't make a move. They just watched one another. Once it was clear that Godzilla wouldn't go back on the attack, the Phoenix's muscles relaxed a little. Reaching over to his dislocated wing, Rodan cried out in pain as he snapped it back into position.
Still, Godzilla did not move. Azula looked between the two, wondering what was happening. Since when did this remorseless monster spare somebody? The Avatar was one thing, but even he talked Godzilla out of his rage. She figured he would've torn another monster to pieces.
Instead, when he had Rodan at his mercy…she didn't understand what was going on.
A revelation alighted in her mind. Turning around, she hurriedly fired the signal for STOP! to the ships offshore. She didn't know what was going on, but neither did she want the sailors to potentially restart this conflict all over again if it could be avoided.
Looking out to sea, she saw the ships' catapults begin to go into an idle stance. The firebenders stood down, for her message came in loud and clear. Azula let herself breathe in relief, fatigue finally beginning to settle in.
Before it rose in panic she turned around to see Rodan and Godzilla staring at her. Some primal instinct buried deep down flared up once again seeing two gigantic creatures giving her their full attention. Rodan was the first to move towards her, but Godzilla gave a short snort, causing the bird to halt. Turning around, he let out a series of clicks and calls to the other kaiju.
Azula felt her blood run cold when Godzilla turned towards her with an intense look. At first, she thought she was dead. And yet…something about that gaze didn't seem to be directed at her.
Indeed, she felt another presence at the back of her mind glare back. It made her head pound, feeling as though she was found in the middle of some much greater conflict. The pressure was enough to make her hold her head.
She would've chalked it up to her madness if she didn't know that Rodan was able to hear the voices as well.
Godzilla growled menacingly at her, or rather at the presence looking through her. And suddenly, the pressure receded. The pain in Azula's head vanished, leaving her alone with the two kaiju. Both the monsters turned towards each other and gave a look that screamed they had some idea of what that presence was.
At once, Rodan nodded before spreading his wings. The Phoenix took to the air, leaving a gust of air in his wake. Azula rose her arm to keep the sand from getting into her eyes, watching as the kaiju rose into the sky and flew away into the eastern skies.
With the sun alighting his red hide, Rodan called out once last time before soaring into the clouds and out of sight.
Leaving Godzilla and Azula on the beach. The sea monster leaned down towards her, his breath nearly causing her to barrel over. Instinct kicked in, with Azula falling into a firebending stance. With her exhaustion and pain, a fight like this could go only one way.
Yet Godzilla just stared at her. "Come on. What are you waiting for?" Azula hissed, waiting for the dragon to reach out and try to crush her.
Instead…nothing. Godzilla just nodded and rose back up. He took a thunderous step past her, all thoughts and notions of the Princess fading with his lack of interest. All at once, Azula toppled over. Exhaustion, pain, and shock finally took their toll.
The last thing she saw before going under was Godzilla wading back out to sea, knowing that somehow, she'd have to chase after him. What other choice did she have?
A/N: Hehe. Sorry for the hiatus. Life's a pain sometimes you know? Also in other unrelated news, started the Live Action series and dropped it. Wasn't worth the trouble.
Thanks again to Selpharia for proofreading.
So we come to the climax of the second arc and roughly the midpoint of our fic. Again, Rodan is one of the most popular monsters in the series, so I hope I did him justice here.
I sort of based his strength off both the Monsterverse AND the Showa era where he could go toe to toe with Godzilla himself. Even managed to tank his atomic breath in Ghidorah the Three-Headed Monster.
Now his funnel breath, that was actually taken from his original debut film. Rodan actually breathed a funnel of wind that blew away several tanks and leveled a number of blocks. It never showed up again, though a fiery variant was brought back for Godzilla vs Mechagodzilla II. Naturally, I wanted to bring it back here as one more nod to that film which you should totally watch by this point if my writing is any hint.
Speaking of Godzilla vs Mechagodzilla II, I based Godzilla's strangling of Rodan off of their fight from that film where he did basically the same thing Homer Simpson-style. For Godzilla, I wanted to showcase his intelligence a bit. His baiting of Rodan with his wound came directly from Godzilla 2014 where he did the same thing with the male MUTO. And his playing possum multiple times comes from the Kiryu duology where he blindsided Kiyru a few times by feigning being knocked out. The plot point of a neck wound also came from GMK where him breathing fire through a wound in his neck caused his death. Naturally, he doesn't do so here.
Finally, I sort of leaned into the early Showa films with Rodan's and Godzilla's intelligence and being able to communicate with one another. In Ghidorah, the Three-Headed Monster, it was revealed that the two were more sentient by having a conversation with Mothra, both of them having their own motives for hating humans. Which is something that's a recurring thing in the films overall with the monsters being more intelligent than they appear, even back to the first film given that Godzilla goes out of his way to wreak havoc on Tokyo as opposed to some mindless animal. Even Godzilla sparing Rodan was a reference to them becoming allies multiple times throughout the series, and the scene in Godzilla: Final Wars where he spares Rodan, Anguirus, and King Caesar.
With that out of the way, here comes Azula's role in the chapter. Poor thing's basically caught in the middle of two warring kaiju. That being said, her plan comes to fruition, effectively wrestling control from Ryuui and preventing any needless deaths. I wouldn't call it entirely altruistic as we'll see in the next chapter, but it's certainly a lot better than sending them all to their deaths. Plus the disease of character development is kicking in.
And we get more development of what her firebending is capable of with Godzilla's usage of healing. His regenerative abilities in the films were tied with his radioactivity along with his atomic breath, so I wanted to tie those in with each other. It's also to give Azula some ideas in regard to her own firebending…
Anyways, thank you all for being so patient. Next chapter, we deal with the aftermath of the battle. Feel free to leave a comment and share your thoughts. Leave a like and follow if you want to see more. And as always, I'll see you all next time. Apologies again for the delay, and have a great day!