The Formation
…
After packing up their modest camp, the group set off again. While Jia looked the most rested of the group—choosing to sleep up against Kong—Ren looked the least. Whyley wasn't far off judging the amount of coffee he consumed before starting to pack his tent.
"I can't believe I didn't bring my sleeping pad," Ilene said as she rubbed her back. "World altering or not, I had one of those rocks in my spine all night."
Amara was walking back with her since Nathan and Ren now walked together to discuss said rocks. Whyley was up in front with Jia in tow.
"At least she's having a good time." Amara gestured to the little girl. "I'm not sure she's even phased."
"This place is remarkably similar to Skull Island. She was at home where most explorers wouldn't step foot."
"She's something else, that's for sure."
"You know, it was her who told Kong to help Godzilla beat the Mecha. I think if she didn't, Kong may have helped it kill him instead."
Amara couldn't help but look behind them at Kong. Her eyes fell to the array of scars on his chest.
So that was it. Jia had saved Godzilla.
"I'll have to thank her."
"I do wish Mark consulted you before we moved Kong. I specifically asked him to, but he insisted as long as we stayed out of Godzilla's territorial routes, he'd leave us alone."
"I thought Mark would know by now that the entire planet is Godzilla's territory. Every Titan has its place, and if it leaves its place, Godzilla will intervene. He's proven no matter where in the world a Titan is, he knows about it."
"If Mark had told you our plan to move Kong, what would you have recommended?"
"I would have told him to postpone moving Kong until we figured out what provoked Godzilla to attack Apex. But that wouldn't have worked anyway, because the two events were connected."
"I am sorry about the position you're in. Even if this place does seem suitable for him, I don't know how we'd ever get him down here. And better yet, keep him here."
Amara shook her head. "We can't. And containing him won't work either. I don't know why we can't just leave him alone. No one will see him again until the next Titan pops up, then he'll fight it and disappear again. People are paranoid for no reason."
"They're paranoid because Titan's have a habit of popping up in major cities."
"They also have a habit of being man made. It's almost like we're making the problem worse. And now that my private research is out, who knows what's going to happen next. At least before people left him alone because they were terrified of him and his radiation. Now he's a blank check to anyone who wants to make a lot of money."
"Maybe not. The rocks here give off the same radiation, right? That's why we're not dead. And they're superconductive on top of that. What ever anyone could use Godzilla's radiation for, they could use the rocks here instead."
"That is true. But what about the Hollow Earth? I'm not sure mining it is a good idea."
"Nuclear power needs a fraction of the fuel that we use now. I don't think we'd even make a dent in this place."
"That's what everyone says."
Ilene frowned and looked ahead. Amara followed her gaze to Jia who seemed to be telling Whyley off in sign language.
"What's the story with him?" Ilene asked.
"Met him years ago when Godzilla came to Vancouver Island. He thought I was trying to get Godzilla killed because he kept finding me where Godzilla was. Eventually, he realized someone else was behind it and that I was trying to help. We worked together after that, but we found out about Destroyer too late. He cares a lot about Godzilla, but I don't think he's as biased as me," she said with a laugh. "Told me I should give Kong a chance."
"You should. He can probably tell you don't like him and that's why he acts aggressively towards you."
"I'm not sure how I would do that though."
Ilene nudged her. "I'd start with Jia."
Nathan abruptly stopped in front of them. He was looking up. "What in the…"
Everyone else looked to the core side above. A crumbling temple loomed above them.
"It looks completely different from Kong's temple," Ilene said. "This one looks man made."
It did. From the onboard HEAV video she'd seen, Kong's temple closely resembled the formation except rock instead of pure crystal. This one looked more like ancient ruins, almost like Inca or Maya. Blue rock carved into patterned cobblestone that peeked out from between fallen walls. Along one side was a massive river, perhaps even bigger than the one they followed. At least two or three kilometers wide, reminiscent of the Amazon River. Along it was lush with life, forming a green and blue snake, coiling through the barren rocky landscape.
Amara followed the temple to the base of the upside down mountain with her eyes. Then down the peak of the mountain they walked beside. She pointed. "Look, stairs!"
"There really were people down here," Nathan said as they began to climb the steep staircase. "The Iwi's ancestors, the first people to ever exist! I bet they lived up until the Titan war."
"You really believe there was a war? What proof do you have?" Ren's voice was venomous as he stumbled on yet another rock.
"Look around. The environment is still perfectly habitable. Something big had to have happened to send Kong's species to the surface. And there's no end of proof at Kong's temple. Hell, he found his axe buried in a Godzilla skull. Some big fight took place between their species, and we know something must have made them leave. A war is the most logical answer."
"Then do you know the outcome of the war?"
"That, we don't know. But from what I've seen, there were no survivors on either side besides those who escaped."
"That does seem strange," Whyley said from behind Amara, now at the rear. "Maybe whoever won eventually succumbed to its injuries?"
"Your guess is as good as mine," Nathan said.
Ilene spoke through deep breaths. "I wonder what it would have been like for the people here. If they were a part of the war or just bystanders."
"We can investigate the ruins for a little bit when we get there," Nathan said. "Everyone good with that?"
Everyone made a noise of agreement.
…
The climb up the mountain dragged on. Some parts were especially steep, and the odd area leveled off for a few meters. It was at one of those spots, they rested.
Jia had started out strong but now looked exhausted. Ilene wasn't much different. Amara's knees felt like rubber and would collapse if she were to put any weight on them again.
Everyone sat shoulder to shoulder on the narrow path while their feet dangled over the steep edge of the mountain. They were almost to the top, then it was all downhill from there.
Amara pulled out the small bottle from her pocket and shook two pills from it. She put them in her mouth and took a swig of water.
"Are you addicted or do you have some terminal illness we should know of?" Ren sneered at her. "I've never seen anyone go through an entire bottle in three days."
"I get chronic migraines," Amara said casually. "Maybe it's from years of being exposed to radiation."
Ren stood. "Do not joke about this radiation. If you know of any consequences of us being here, you better tell us now."
"I'm joking. The only thing this radiation will do is heal a sprained ankle in two days and add six years to your life."
"You really were hiding some major stuff."
"Yeah well, some stuff is better off hidden."
By the look on Nathan's face, he knew what she meant.
The mountain shook as Kong climbed back down from the peak. His eyes went from Jia to Amara in a heartbeat. She'd intentionally sat beside Jia. The only way she was ever going to get him to trust her was to befriend her.
Unfortunately, Jia was too busy being enamored by Whyley to notice. Ilene had said he was the first person Jia met who knew sign language. He also liked to draw, so that helped.
Amara weakly waved at the Titan who glared at her. She then leaned to Whyley who sat on Jia's other side. "Tell her to see if Kong will give her a ride to the top," she whispered so Ilene wouldn't hear over her conversation with Nathan.
"You tell her. I don't want to get on Ilene's bad side."
"You've been on my Uncle Gary's bad side for years now, this is nothing."
"Yeah, but I have you to protect me from him."
Jia was looking up at them arguing over her head.
"See how long that lasts."
"Are you threatening me?"
"After all the crap you put me through when we met, you owe me!"
"I saved your life!"
"I saved yours more!"
Jia waved a hand between their faces.
"Do it!" she hissed. "For science."
Whyley rolled his eyes and signed to Jia.
Her eyes lit up and she made similar gestures to Kong.
Kong tilted his head as she did, then he took one hand off the mountain side and held it in front of them, his finger crossing the gap between the path and his open palm.
Jia fearlessly climbed on.
Amara felt another pang in her chest and a wave of nausea as pain radiated from her head. She doubled over, closing her eyes until the pain passed.
Luckily, all eyes were on Kong and Jia. Ilene was shouting for Jia to be careful.
As the mountain trembled under Kong's footfalls, everyone got up around her.
"Come on," Whyley said as he helped her up. "I'm sure Uncle Gary misses you too."
"I think I keep accidentally calling out to him," she looked into his mismatched eyes. "Hurts a lot."
His face was sympathetic. "If it helps, imagine the lecture you're going to get when he finds out what you've been up to."
After what felt like an eternity but was apparently a half hour, they made it to the peak. Not only was the air thin, but gravity itself felt light. Like a strong wind could pick her off her feet and she'd float into the rocky ceiling.
The peak of the upside down mountain was only a couple of meters above the peak they stood on. Everyone stood around, looking at each other, silently trying to figure out who would go first.
Kong, who must have gotten bored of waiting, jumped first. Instead of falling back on the mountain, he levitated upward. His body twisted to the inverted environment as he landed on the mountain on the other side.
Ilene and Amara backed away. It was impossible to resist the urge when it looked like a Titan was about to fall on top of them.
And yet he didn't.
It must have been enough of a confidence boost for Ren. He jumped, reaching up to the peak. Like Kong, he simply floated and landed on the opposite side. Even he couldn't hide his amazement.
"Come on, Ilene, I'll jump with you." Nathan reached out to her. She visibly swallowed, but a moment later, jumped with Nathan.
Only Amara and Whyley remained. She looked at him only to see an anxious look on his face.
"Not a fan of heights?" she asked.
"Is anyone?"
"Want to go together?"
"Okay."
Amara locked her arm in his. "Three, two, one."
They jumped.
It was a weird feeling. Like jumping upwards into water and getting caught in a gentle tide. Then they were on their feet again. Everything that was once upside down, suddenly made sense.
Amara let go of Whyley. "That wasn't so bad."
They traveled down the mountain. Even going down was difficult on jelly legs. But finally, they made it to the bottom. The base of the staircase led to what used to be the entry into the ruins.
Whyley yelled at Ilene and Nathan as they practically sprinted towards the temple after Kong and Jia. Amara and Ren followed after them, taking a more hesitant approach.
The ruins resembled stone buildings that surrounded a large central temple. While most of the buildings were piles of stone, the temple in the center was mostly intact, minus a large chunk missing from the side.
Kong also looked around curiously, Jia on his shoulder.
To think, humans once lived here. Did Godzilla know? Had he met humans down here when he was young? Did he know about the war?
She found herself following Ilene and Nathan into the temple. Kong wasn't far behind her, so she kept off to the side of him. Nothing was really stopping him from stepping on her at this point.
Following Ilene, she climbed over the rubble. Inside, the stone floor was intricately patterned with the oar containing blue crystal. However, the faint glow the crystal normally produced was dulled by layers of dirt.
In the center of the expansive hall was a Titan-sized throne. Upon closer look, a human-sized throne sat below the arm of the larger one.
Kong rushed ahead at the sight of it. It looked like he was going to the throne, but stopped and began to wipe away the layer of dust off the floor. Nathan and Ilene stood back and watched as Kong reached for the axe strapped to his back by a massive vine.
Was this one of the charging stations they'd mentioned?
Whyley appeared beside her, also watching. She walked forward with him to get a closer look.
Only to stop.
She'd stepped onto the same patterned stone as Kong. The moment her foot touched the crystal, the dull glow grew bright and began to spread outward. She couldn't help but gasp and jump back from the stone.
At the same time, Kong placed his axe into a grove in the floor. From it, the stone began to glow, expanding out in a spiral shape, out to the place she'd just jumped back from.
Whyley ran back to a pile of rubble. He climbed up onto it then looked down from a higher vantage point.
"The rocks are in the shape of Godzilla," he called out.
"Yes," Ilene's voice echoed through the chamber. "We believe these are special areas that draw energy from the core. It reacts to Kong's axe because it's made of the dorsal plate of one of Godzilla's ancestors."
"Using their enemy's power against them. I like these Titans."
"No one asked for your opinion, Ren," Nathan shot back.
Amara brought her hand up to her face as if she would see something different. Yet, it was still her hand. The only way the stones would have reacted to her was because of the amount of radiation she'd absorbed from Godzilla over the years.
But there was still something almost…magical about the place. Magical about being recognized by the earth itself.
At least she could explain it away if the others found out.
"I feel like Godzilla would be super powerful if he came down here."
Amara jolted at Whyley's sudden presence. "He'd heal quickly, at the very least." She looked down at the pattern on the floor. "He's still injured from his last fight. Used up a lot of his remaining excess energy blowing a hole into the Hollow Earth. Five year's worth of solar radiation, completely wasted." She lowered her voice. "As smart as he is, when those instincts kick in, he can't resist doing whatever dumb thing they tell him to do."
Whyley went to speak, but she knew what he was going to say.
"I know, I know. But it is annoying when he just reacts without thinking sometimes."
After Kong charged his axe, the group left the ruins. Now it glowed brightly against the fur on his back.
The formation loomed ahead of them, towering almost as high as Kong was tall. On their left was the wide river, the sound of rushing water punctuated strange animal calls.
Kong had let Jia off his shoulder and took the lead once they left the ruins. His posture changed from his causal stride to one more upright. Whyley had noticed this and took the lead behind the Titan. They walked quickly, Nathan and Ren weren't deterred at all by Kong's demeanor. Jia could barely keep up without jogging. She was trying to get Ilene's attention.
Amara lagged behind. Kong seemed apprehensive of the formation. Or perhaps something that lived in it. Jia's concern wasn't helping. Ilene signed something to her while mouthing words of reassurance.
There was no stopping Ren and Nathan from investigating massive crystals. There was no point even trying to stop them. Like most conversations, it would end in more conflict. If there was a Titan living in the formation, they had Kong to defend them.
Still, it really felt like they should turn around.
Kong stopped, Whyley and the others as well. As she caught up, the obstacle came into view. A massive trench maybe five meters wide and two meters deep, carved into sand and stone. A shallow stream of water flowed along the bottom, originating from the river that intersected the trench.
On the other side, the ground shone with crystal veins. Like lightning, it branched out from the formation, tips stretching towards them.
"This must be where the ancient civilization mined the crystal for the temple," Nathan said.
Ilene put her hand above her eyes. "It's strange though, it looks like this trench circles around the formation."
"Maybe it's sacred?"
Ilene nodded at Whyley. "I'm inclined to agree."
Nathan took out his compass. Amara peeked over his shoulder at the needle that pendulumed from one side of the formation to the other.
"I'm just going to take a couple of samples of the formation crystals. Ren said his tests will only take a minute. We'll be in and out, minimal disturbance."
Whyley dropped into the trench. He held out his hand for Ilene, helping her across. Then Jia hesitantly approached and Whyley picked her up and passed her to Nathan who crossed with Ren.
Amara climbed down as Whyley turned back for her. "I don't like that Kong doesn't want to cross," she whispered to him.
"Me neither, but we have to trust Kong. He'll protect us."
"Just have your gun ready."
Before he could offer to help her up, she climbed out. The rest of the group was already headed forward. Ilene was holding Jia's hand, the little girl turned and beckoned Kong. There was an anxious expression on her face.
Amara helped Whyley out of the trench. They both looked up at Kong who huffed and paced. His foot would get close, but then he'd immediately jump back.
"I don't think this is a good—"
But she was cut off by Kong's roar. Then he jumped.
The crystal veins crackled under his weight as he landed on the other side. As if the entire Earth was rumbling.
No…
It was rumbling.
Even after Kong landed, the ground quaked.
The others stopped in their tracks. They looked around. Jia wrenched her hand from Ilene and ran towards Kong. Ilene chased after her.
"Earthquake!" Nathan shouted.
Kong roared again and pounded his chest.
Nathan was wrong. This wasn't an earthquake.
"Shit," Whyley hissed beside her. He was holding his rifle, eyes searching.
Where would the Titan be?
The tremors increased. Fissures opened, sending everyone running. Kong held up his axe. Still, no Titan appeared.
Then the entire Earth began to shift. The formation began to crumble.
Then grow.
Taller it rose from the ground. The ground cracked near her feet. She could barely keep her balance as it shook. Whyley let go of his gun, letting it dangle from the strap. He pulled her away from the fissure and held on to her, combining their balance.
"I knew it!" she hollered over Kong's bellows. "I knew this was a bad idea!"
The earth groaned. Low and…familiar. It wasn't the earth, it was the Titan.
Crystal broke free from the ground. First a head, then arms and a tail. Higher it rose. Higher and higher. Taller than Kong. What was the formation was now the spins of a Titan. Bigger than any that she'd seen before.
It ripped its body from the earth. The only thing keeping her up was Whyley's grip on her arm. All she could do was stare.
Stare at the other Godzilla that rose from the core itself.
Why?
Why did it have to be like this?
Why did she come here?
Why did she ever leave Godzilla?
Why? Why? Why?
The migraine came back in full force. She heaved at threw up. She would have screamed at the pain, but her lungs gave out.
"Amara? Amara!" Whyley held her upright against the shaking earth.
She put a hand to her chest and wheezed. "I—I can't breathe!"
…
A/N I would just like to mention that my Titan's design was inspired by Space Godzilla and Godzilla Earth. I was not expecting the new 2024 Godzilla to also have crystal dorsal plates lol Our big G in this story will continue to look like his previous gorgeous blue scaley boi self. I've had this story planned for a few years and I'm not making any changes based on the trailer or leaked images/etc.
Also this will be uploaded to Ao3 under my same username. All of GV is already there.
Also wow, what a disappointment the Monarch series is. I skipped through the entirety of the most recent episode. If you don't have apple TV, just watch the Godzilla clips on youtube. The plot is not worth it and outside of G showing up, there's very little talk of him. Just teen drama. Maybe I'm just old lol. I think the series would have been better if it followed Dr. Serizawa throughout the years or something. Anyways, it's past my bedtime. Goodnight! Love you!