EPISODE 14: Second Clash! Kiryu Vs Salunga!

 

                In the confines of the Mu Empire’s throne room, Empress Tao was receiving an incoming communication via the drop-down screen. Once again it was Pegasus.

               “What news have you, Priest?” Tao asked.

               “It’s with great honor, your majesty, to inform you that the new Alpha has emerged.” Pegasus said.

               Tao, who normally had a serious expression, looked pleasantly surprised and responded, “So soon? The gestation period was supposed to be 3 days.”

               Pegasus answered, “It was a pleasant surprise for us as well.”

               “There are no defects?” Tao asked.

               “None, your majesty.” Pegasus answered. “The Ropen’s anxiousness for battle must have influenced their biology that it sped up its gestation.”

               “Fascinating.” Tao said. “Pleasant news though, nonetheless. Continue with our plan. Have our forces head for the surface city of Manilla.”

               “As you wish, your majesty.” Pegasus said, before the transmission ended.

               As the screen rose back into the ceiling, Luna entered the room and humbly bowed to Tao.

               Tao returned the gesture and asked, “Priestess Luna, to what do I owe the grace of your presence?”

               “I have come to inform you that the prisoners my brother captured on the surface have arrived.” Luna said.

               “Very good.” Tao said. “Have the one with the gift brought before me. The others are to be sent to the dungeon.”

               “It will be done, your highness.” Luna said. “May I pose a question, your majesty?”

               “Proceed.” Tao said.

               “I know it is our custom to grant quarter to prisoners of war,” Luna said. “What do you want with the gifted prisoner?”

               “I have a plan in store for the gifted one.” Tao said. “It is my hope that he may be of great use to us in the near future to inflict both insult and injury to the surface dwellers. The same level of injury and insult they inflicted on us and then some.”

               “You mean to say that you intend to release the Forsaken one?” Luna asked with a hint of concern in her voice.

               “Should the time come,” Tao said. “Yes.”

               Luna wanted to continue to question her Empress’s actions further, but before she could, Madam Libra appeared from behind Tao.

Upon seeing the silver clad woman, Luna reluctantly finished with, “Very well, your Majesty. Do you have any further wishes?”

               “No, that will be all.” Tao said. “You may go.”

               Luna respectfully bowed to Tao in the customary farewell. As Luna rose from the bow, she gave a very brief side-eye glance in Libra’s direction before leaving the throne room.

               “She does not like me.” Libra said.

               “She will come around.” Tao said. “My subordinates are immensely loyal to the throne. To see an outsider be given such privilege is not something they are trusting. Their distrust is for the sake of my own safety however.”

               “It is understandable and commendable.” Libra said. “Loyalty on such scale is hard to come by. Though the way she questions you raises concern, does it not?”

               “This campaign is sure to raise such questions. Our people have not taken such action in thousands of years.” Tao said. “Once we have achieved our goals, Mu will have a peace and a new lease on life that it has long deserved. The surface dwellers will also know full well our retribution for all their wrongdoing.”

               “And you will be seen as both savior to those who support you, and destroyer to all those who defy you.” Libra added.

               “Titles I am comfortable with.” Tao said.

               Meanwhile, down at a station in the Empire, the train-like transport that Ken and the others were loaded onto was being unloaded. The prisoners were herded like cattle into another transport. However, Ken was separated from them and taken on board a separate vehicle with two guards. On one of the loading areas, where the crates of supplies were being loaded, a lone Mu worker was looking over the imported supplies when suddenly one of the crates vibrated a little.

               The Mu worker paused for a moment, unsure if he saw the crate move on its own or if at all. After a few seconds he curiously approached and proceeded to unlatch the container. Upon opening it, a pair of hands suddenly burst forth from the container, latched onto both his temples, and banged his head against the lid. Disoriented, the worker stumbled back, giving his attacker a chance to spring forth from the container; Goro. Before the worker had any chance to fight back, Goro quickly dispatched him with a knee to the man’s face.

               A Mu guard, who heard the commotion, suddenly came around the corner and attempted to skewer Goro with his spear. Goro managed to avoid the sharp spear-tip and deliver a powerful right cross to the soldier’s jaw. Before the Guard could call out for help, Goro was able to put him in a head lock and render him unconscious.

               Several minutes later Goro emerged from the loading area, now dressed in the soldier’s uniform and began looking around for the prisoners.

               Back on the surface, Bri was standing aboard the Saratoga looking over Kiryu from the aircraft carrier’s tower. There was a calming breeze over the ship as it sailed through the waves in the Indonesian seas.

               “Is everything alright, Lieutenant?” A voice said from behind her.

               Bri turned to see Akane, who proceeded up next to her at the railing.

               “I’m just thinking.” Bri said.

               “Anxiety is with us all.” Akane replied. “This situation is unprecedented for G-Force.”

               “I assumed as much.” Bri said. “This may be new for G-Force, but… it has some familiar beats to me.”

               “America’s second civil war?” Akane asked.

               “Yes.” Bri said. “Even the first one too. The first battles played out similarly. An enemy we should have had a clear advantage over, but instead had the advantage over us. The kaiju thrown into the mix however raise some concerns. Humans are more predictable; we have a tendency to taunt each other and we understand the languages and mindsets of one another that being able to gage each other’s actions is easier.”

               “The kaiju can be the same way once you’ve been around them long enough.” Akane said. “And you forget, we may be fighting Kaiju soldiers, but this battle is still a human threat nonetheless.”

               “Captain!” A voice called from inside.

               “Out here, Peterson.” Akane replied.

               Peterson came out the doorway and said with a slightly urgent tone, “Ma’am we’re wanted in the control room.”

               The two officers followed Peterson into the ship. Down in its control room, they met with Admiral Stanz around a table depicting a digital map of the Indonesian Islands. They were soon joined by the rest of Kiryu Squadron and Colonel Hayashida.

               “We just received word of a Vietnamese maritime radar station picking up a kaiju in the South China Sea heading for Manilla.” The Admiral explained. “Aerial recognizance have confirmed that the target is the terrestrial kaiju designated Salunga.”

               “They’re making their next move already.” Hayama said.

               “What about the Ropen?” Mizaki asked.

               “Still unclear about the location of the Ropen swarm.” Hayashida said. “They were last seen heading east from New Guinea shortly before our arrival outside Port Moresby. Right now our prime focus is to intercept Salunga before it makes landfall in Manilla. Given our current position, we actually have ample time to prepare a plan of attack this time.”

               “This feels off.” Bri said.

               “Off, how Lieutenant?” The Colonel asked.

               “The first time they attacked, Mu successfully ambushed us with Salunga.” Bri said. “Now just having him out in the open with a clear path to Manilla?”

               “I agree with the Lieutenant.” Akane said. “This could be a set-up for another ambush or a diversion.”

               “Well that’s precisely why we’re not scrambling the squadron right away.” The Colonel said. “Given that the Kaiju are under a human influence, we feel that may very well be. However, the odds are a little stacked on both sides. The Gotengo was ordered to return to port as its damages from Salunga were more severe than predicted and Moguera is completely out of action.”

               Admiral Stanz said. “General Kuroki and Major Aso also have the Maser Battalions on standby to be deployed at a moment’s notice. If need be, I can send two destroyers to provide support outside of Manilla as well.”

               “That will provide loads of time then if Mu changes their target destination.” Hayashida said. “Now we just have to worry about the Ropen swarm.”

               “I have an idea, sir.” Akane said.

               “Let’s hear then, Captain.” The Colonel said.

               “Instead of the destroyers, we could have Kiryu be the main line of defense for Manilla; have it just outside of the city limits in the shallow end of the bay to head Salunga off and then we can keep the rest of Kiryu Squadron on standby just outside of Manilla Bay, so if the Ropen Swarm appears we can engage it almost immediately or send it out to intercept the swarm should it appear elsewhere.”

               “Are you ok with that, Lieutenant Johnson?” Hayashida asked.

               Bri felt a little on the spot but responded confidently enough, “I can handle it, sir.”

               “Good.” The Colonel said. “I’ll get in touch with Major Aso to have one of the Maser Battalions deployed to Manilla as well so you can have some additional back-up. Well, you all have your orders. Start hitting the flight deck at 1400.”

               “Yes sir.” Kiryu Squadron collectively said.

               A short while later in the city of Manilla, people were going about their daily lives; cars driving about through the streets, pedestrians walking along its streets, tourists passing through stopping to take pictures on their smart phones of the amazing architecture and other landmarks. At that particular time of day it was busiest especially around its major landmarks.

At its cathedral, one tourist was about to take a few photos of its clock tower. While snapping away at the beautiful, sandstone and limestone architecture of the building, he suddenly noticed a figure on the roof of the main hall; a man. Just as he attempted to zoom in on the man to get a better look, which turned out to be Pegasus, a siren started sounding from the heart of the city. The alarm distracted the tourist from Pegasus. The tourist quickly joined others, as people began to flee the area. Evacuation announcements in multiple languages began to air over speaker systems.

               Pegasus, watching the evacuation begin, observed, “They are taking the bait.”

               At first the evacuation was orderly. Though the people were hurrying there was little sense of urgency. There were times where traffic and evacuation routes became congested and slowed. It was in these slow areas where people began to lose their patience and moved a little more aggressively. Roughly an hour later, with evacuations in full swing, Bri moved Kiryu into position a mile off the coast in the bay where the water level only came up to the middle of the Mech’s thighs.

               “Begin running a continuous scan of the bay, Ollie.” Bri said.

               “Yes ma’am.” Ollie replied.

               Bri began the long wait. She sat with a tense sigh.

Back in the city, while people continued to flee, Pegasus could see Kiryu from his position. Though too far away to see any specific details, he could see the saurian shape of the MechaGodzilla.

               “Interesting.” He said to himself. “A steel dragon. Their ingenuity is impressive.”

               Another hour went by. The sun was starting to move into the western sky. By which time a battalion of tanks from the Philippine military was rolling through the streets where the panicking people once were. There were a few stragglers still rushing out of the city in various places but most of the populace had evacuated inland.

               Another hour went by. As the sun was starting to go down, G-Force’s entire plan was set in place. 30 miles outside the entrance Manilla Bay, the Saratoga was in position with the herons and Super X-3 on the flight deck. Bri sat restless in Kiryu’s cockpit.

               “Is this thing even coming anymore?” Bri said to herself.

               “Scans still coming up negative, ma’am.” Ollie said.

               “Figures.” Bri said.

               Suddenly there was an explosion from the city.

               “What the hell was that?” Bri cursed.

               She turned Kiryu towards the city and saw the silhouette of Salunga towards the city’s outskirts.

               “Kiryu to all!” Bri shouted. “Kiryu to all! The monster is in the city! I repeat! Salunga is in the city already!”

               Akane, waiting on the flight deck in Super X-3 hearing Bri’s broadcast, exclaimed “Nani!?”

               “How the hell did it get past us?” Barnes asked aloud, watching the scene from the command center.

               “Get a drone over that area now!” Aso, sitting next to him, ordered.

               “Heading for the target now!” Bri said as she hit Kiryu’s thrusters and flew towards Salunga.

               In the city, the Filipino tanks moved on Salunga as the monster began swatting at building after building. The thunderous booms of the tanks’ cannons and the impacts of their munitions on and around Salunga began rocking the area. The monster felt the impact of every round fired from the tank but the 120mm shells did no actual damage to the monster’s warty hide. The monster was inland on the edge of the city but was already causing copious amounts of destruction. At one point it became annoyed by the poking-sensation of a tank’s cannon that got in too close and hurled the 50-ton vehicle into a 7-story office building. The structure collapsed in on itself following the impact, turning it into a pile of rubble.

               As the kaiju roared at the puny beings still firing at it, it suddenly caught sight of a strange object flying in from the western sky; Kiryu. Bri brought the mech in for a landing near Salunga’s position; its heavy metal body shaking the ground with a metallic bellow as it came down. Salunga cocked its massive head, curious at the site of the opponent that just arrived as it looked more alive than the previous mechanical titan it battled.

               “Ready Ollie?” Bri asked.

               “Let’s do it, Lieutenant!” Ollie said, giving her a salute on screen.

               “Kiryu, engage!” Bri said.

               Kiryu began the battle in explosive fashion by unleashing a barrage of Rockets at the Kaiju.

 The incendiary explosive munitions burned Salunga’s skin; they were far more painful than the shells of the tanks. Salunga, annoyed by the attack charged at Kiryu and attempted to pounce on it. Bri, seeing the monster’s charge, moved Kiryu to the right and spun the mech around with the aid of its boosters. As Salunga missed the mark, it was struck by Kiryu’s heavy metal tail.

               The impact from Kiryu’s maneuver knocked Salunga into a building. Though a little disoriented at first it quickly got back up. Bri did not give it a moment to even think as she quickly followed up with a blast of Kiryu’s Maser Cannon. The bright yellow bolts of energy struck the kaiju right in the face. It reeled back and flailed in pain from the attack.

By that time a drone was over the area, providing the Saratoga and G-Force’s HQ with a good view of the battlefield.

               “That was a good move.” Admiral Stanz observed.

               “Damn, she’s kicking its ass.” Barnes said.

               General Kuroki, Colonel Hayashida, Akane and Miki watched with a confident and impressed smirk.

 

               “Yossha!” Akira cheered in the HQ. “Keep it up!”

               After a few seconds of withstanding the Maser, Salunga began to fight through the burning and shocking pain. It then took off running on all fours and out of the Kiryu’s line of fire. The tactic worked, as it was able to free itself of Kiryu’s attack and outran the targeting system. It managed to run around and close in on the MechaGodzilla. Bri, using the boosters to spin around, just barely managed to throw Kiryu’s clawed hand out to catch Salunga by the throat as it tried to pounce once more.

               The monster thrashed and snapped at Kiryu’s face but was just out of reach. The mech, using its boosters once again, proceeded to spin and toss Salunga. The monster landed hard 800 meters away; crashing down into the ground in an explosion of dust and debris.

               “She’s doing an incredible job.” General Kuroki said.

               “What’s that?” Aso suddenly said, drawing everyone’s attention. “Do a fly, over east of their position.”

               The drone’s footage came back around and spotted a trail of destruction that lead to what looked like a sink hole. Several buildings were collapsed around it along with several claw marks, made by Salunga.

               “Holy shit.” Barnes said. “It burrowed into the city?”

               “No.” Aso said. “That looks more like a natural crevice. Look at rock on the inner lining.”

               “You’re right that wasn’t recently dug out.” Barnes said. “That’s been there.”

               Miki then said, “Of Course. The Mu Empire is buried underneath the Earth’s crust. Only makes sense that they must have a network of tunnel systems connecting to various underground caves.”

               “That explains why they’ve been appearing almost out of nowhere.” Sho said. “That would also mean we should be able to track the cave networks back to their home base.”

               “I’ll get a team ready to investigate that cave system once the kaiju’s out of the way.” Aso said.

               “Oh shit.” Barnes said, diverting their attention back to the battle.

               The dust and debris were settling around where Salunga was thrown. The monster was on its feet but visibly mad; rearing its jowls back to show its massive canines in a ferocious looking grimace. Kiryu stood braced and ready in response like a grappler.

               From the cathedral, Pegasus watched the action unfold, he too was impressed with Kiryu’s performance, but he did not seem worried.

               “This one is a true warrior.” He observed.

               One of his men appeared from behind him and asked, “Should we send out the Ropen?”

               “Soon.” Pegasus said. “Salunga deserves the chance at retribution.”

               The Kaiju charged at Kiryu. Instead of attempting another dodge, Bri charged at the monster too. The two clashed and locked hands. The two titans remained locked in a stalemate for a few seconds, until suddenly Salunga fell back and pulled Kiryu forward.

               “Oh shit!” Bri cursed.

               The kaiju managed to put its hind legs against Kiryu’s chest. It proceeded to roll and kick its opponent away in a tremendous display of strength. Bri braced herself as best she could as Kiryu flipped once and landed on its side; shaking the earth and stirring up a cloud of debris and dust.

               “It’s coming again!” Ollie said.

               Salunga charged from behind like a wild boar. Bri hit the boosters at the last instant and managed to rocket out of the way and back into a braced fighting stance. The kaiju pursued her though and attempted to tackle it once more. The two locked hands again. Instead of falling for the same trick, Bri fired Kiryu’s mazer at point blank range at Salunga’s face.

               Bri let out an angry war cry as she continued firing the mazer. Salunga flailed its head about in pain. It attempted to free itself of the lock, but Kiryu kept its hold on the monsters hands. Salunga was stuck before the onslaught of Kiryu’s mazer cannon.

               “You got him!” Akira said excitedly. “Keep on going!”

               Just when it seemed Kiryu had gained the upper hand, it was suddenly struck from behind by something plowing into it; knocking both over but giving Salunga the chance to break free and pull away.

               Bri, rattled by the sudden hit, shouted, “What the hell was that!?”

               “Another Kaiju has appeared.” Ollie said. “Getting a visual now.”

               To Bri and the High Command’s shock, the new contender was revealed to be the new Alpha Ropen. They watched as the monster soared through the air and came around behind Salunga to land on a building’s roof.

               “Well, this is just great.” Bri said.

               Hayashida, watching the whole thing in the Saratoga’s tower with Admiral Stanz, ordered, “The rest of Kiryu squadron, begin launching!”

               “Ryokai!” Akane said. “Begin launching!”

               The three aircraft began moving to the base of the flight deck on the Saratoga. Within minutes, Heron 1 ignited its thrusters and was about to take off.

               On the battlefield, Kiryu stood alone; braced in a fighting stance staring down the same situation that Moguera was in a few days prior. Bri was on edge, tightly gripping the control sticks.

               “Ollie.” She said. “Any suggestions?”

               “If you can get in a good enough shot, Absolute Zero could incapacitate both.” Ollie said. “We also still have the six cruise missiles.”

               “Lock missiles onto the Alpha Ropen.” Bri said. “I’ll take Salunga. Whenever the Alpha attempts to move in and interfere, fire a missile. That should buy us enough time until the rest of the squadron arrives.”

               “Will do, ma’am!” Ollie said.

               At that moment the two kaiju charged at Kiryu. Bri charged at them as well. The Mecha-Godzilla delivered a kick to the jaw of Salunga, while firing a cruise missile from the launch ports on the back of its rocket booster pack. The missile struck the Alpha Ropen with such force that it was knocked back into an office building. Salunga quickly retaliated by biting down onto Kiryu’s right arm just above the wrist. The monster’s powerful jaws began to collapse the armor plating; setting off an alarm in the cockpit.

               “Bad decompressions forming in the right arm, ma’am!” Ollie said.

               Bri quickly responded by flicking a yellow switch to her right. Suddenly a large titanium blade shot out of a slot in Kiryu’s right forearm. The mounted blade slid right into Salunga’s collar. Releasing its clamp on the Mech’s arm the monster let out a pain-stricken howl-like roar and pulled away. At that moment, the Alpha got back to its feet then took to the air.

               Just as the Ropen dove down towards Kiryu as it stood with its arm-blade at the ready, it fired off another cruise missile at the Alpha. This time the monster did a barrel roll and effectively dodged it and then flew up in the air just as a third missile launched. To avoid that one, it did a backwards summersault just before it impacted. However, both missiles remained locked onto the Alpha and gradually came back around in the air after the kaiju as it continued to come down at Kiryu. Just as it looked like the Alpha was about to plow into Kiryu, it suddenly flapped its wings and shot up above it.

               Bri, seeing the two missiles now coming at her, took quick action and fired the mazer at them. The force of both missiles exploding was enough to make Salunga and Kiryu brace themselves. For a few seconds all that could be heard was a loud roaring series of booms. Even Pegasus and his men got down and shielded themselves despite being nearly two kilometers away. Though the explosions were powerful enough to destroy a whole city block, they were high enough in the air to avoid any damage to the buildings below.

               “Jeez that was close.” Bri said with relief.

               Once the explosions settled and the plumes of smoke blew away, Kiryu got back into its ready stance. To Bri’s added relief she could see the rest of Kiryu Squadron flying in from the east.

               She started to say, “Calvary is-” when suddenly Kiryu was violently hit from behind.

               The Alpha had struck the Mech with its wing as it flew by, hard enough to make it topple over onto its side. Seeing its chance to attack, Salunga charged in from out of her view. Just when it seemed like the monster was about to take off the Mech’s head with its powerful jaws, Kiryu’s right arm rose up and skewered the monster’s shoulder with the arm blade. The monster let out its pain-stricken howl as the mech used its momentum to hurl it over and away; tossing it into a nearby building.

               “What the hell was that?” Bri asked in confusion.

               “That was me.” Ollie said. “You have us on sentry-defense.”

               “Oh.” Bri said a little embarrassed. “Well thanks for that.”

               “No problem, Ma’am.” Ollie replied.

               Kiryu got back to its feet just as Akane said over the radio, “We’re almost on station Kiryu.”

               “Thank God for that.” Bri said.

               Just as the rest of the squadron were closing in, suddenly Nakajima shouted, “Kuso! Everyone pull right now!”

               The squadron did just that, just as the Ropen swarm suddenly erupted from below. The Swarm was flying out by the thousands from the sink-hole that Salunga used.

               “Holy shit.” Peterson said. “There must be a million of them!”

               At HQ, the high command watched from the drone footage as the cloud of giant bats materialized onto the screen.

               “There’s even more than from before.” Miki said.

               “Colonel Aso, Maser Battalion move in!” Kuroki ordered.

               Colonel Aso replied, “the masers are moving into range as fast as they can, sir.”

               “There’s no way the maser battalion can handle that many…” Akira observed.

               From the Super X-3 Akane said, “They’re blocking our advance. Come around and see if we can shoot through a smaller patch of them.”

               Mazaki suddenly said, “Senchou! They’re coming after us!”

               Akane saw as the giant living black cloud began to move as one towards the 3 aircraft.

               “There’s too many for us, Captain.” Pero-2 said. “Locking systems can’t track them.”

               “All craft pull away!” Akane said.

               The three aircraft banked around but another part of the swarm was already flying up from underneath to intersect them. On the ground, Kiryu was blocked by both Salunga and the Alpha.

               “Damn it!” Bri shouted in panic. “They’re going to get wiped out! We have to blow right by them somehow!”

               Just as it seemed like the swarm was about to engulf the three aircraft there was a flash of light from a cloud bank over them. The flash was bright enough that it caught the attention of the two kaiju on the ground, Bri, and Pegasus. For the swarm, the bright light caused them to disengage their pursuit while the pilots in the squadron was confused by the flash as they couldn’t see the source.

               “Nani?” Akane asked.

               “Scanners detecting something in the cloud bank above us.” Pero-2 said. “It’s moving fast.”

               Akane angled the Super X so she could see what it was. When she did, all that she could see was a large wide wake in the clouds. Suddenly the clouds began to churn into one big funnel and appeared to descend on the swarm. Those at HQ watched with wide eyes as the funnel started to engulf most of the swarm.

               From his vantage point, Pegasus said, “No… It can’t be…”

               The Funnel descended down and swept up most of the swarm. Then suddenly a burst of lightning bolts erupted from the funnel and incinerated the swarm in a bright and loud display of energy. The electricity scattered from bat to bat until none were left alive. Most of their bodies were turned to ember-ridden cinders floating against the winds of the funnel.

               Watching the whole thing, Miki suddenly sat forward in her chair with her hand planted on the table; silently hoping to herself that what she sensed was true. It was at that moment that the high command was surprised to see that they had two unexpected guests standing before them on Miki’s desk; the Shobijin.

               Miki looked down at the two small fairies as they quietly greeted her in their customary way. She then looked back up to the screen with hopeful eyes. Akira was almost on the verge of tears when he put the pieces together.

               The giant funnel retreated back into the clouds and a brightly lit figure suddenly swooped down with great speed to the battlefield. It came to rest several hundred feet above the ground between Kiryu and the two kaiju. The bright light it gave off gradually dimmed to reveal the giant butterfly form. Two sets of massive wings on either side of a thin body. The wings were mostly a bright blue with black, yellow, and orange marble patterns covering them; two candle-flame like designs at the corner of the large upper wings. The thin body then materialized out of the light; black and white fur covering a torso, abdomen, six legs, and a head that was framed with two large blue eyes.

               Akira, letting out a single tear of joy at the sight of the large creature said with disbelief and cheer in his hesitating voice, “Mosura…”

               Mothra had arrived.