Chapter 21: Old Problems, New Results
Rodan
Thalia
Applejack
Godzilla Junior
Captain Blueberry Frost
Moonbeam Glimmer
Princess Luna
Princess Celestia
Monster X
Grand King Ghidorah
Gigan
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Appleloosa night
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Luna's calm night rolled over the desert plains, a gentle blanket wrapping over the landscape after dusk. Silvery moon beams and starlight trickled down from the astral above, dimly lighting the township below. The settlement was as close to silent as possible, the only noise managing to slither past being a low breeze, hissing as it coiled around the homes and businesses. Rodan silently sat perched atop one of the taller roofs, occasionally swaying his head to and fro to scan the town. Despite some awkwardness with his new body having an extra set of limbs, the sentinel's keen eyesight was still 20/4. Zooming in and out of focus on a clear night, he could see a mouse scurrying amongst some shrubs a half kilometer away as clear as he could his own hand.
The gryphon kept his wings partially held up and away from his body, ready to spring into action at the first sign of a gyaos. True, Braeburn might have said that they all disappeared and word had spread about what happened at Canterlot; but Rodan was taking no chances. Being laid back and being lazy weren't synonyms in his vocabulary. Still, as the hours ticked by and the breezes blew over him, a fact about desert nights became obvious. Rodan's eyes widened and he shuddered as his concentration finally broke, wrapping his wings around himself.
-Good TANAKA this place is cold!-
The pterosaur kaiju hated the cold, it sapped his energy banks just as it did his heat. Usually he was just too big to notice it much unless he decided to crash land into the Antarctic ocean. Bigger bodies retain heat better, and he still wasn't used to being so small. He grumbled as he weighed his options. He could try going inside.
The house he was perched on belonged to a kindly young couple named Thalia and Dallas. He'd been here before and had gotten to know the two well as he helped patch a hole in the roof a gyaos had tried crashing through. Dallas, a gray unicorn, worked as a herder just outside of town and was a local. Thalia, a black earth pony, worked as a bar mare at the local saloon and was originally from Ponyville. While Dallas honestly creeped Rodan out at times with his stonewall expression and perpetually bloodshot right eye, Thalia was a mothering type who could give Lea a run for her money. Old friends of Applejack, they were good folks and probably wouldn't mind him occupying a chair or guest room for a bit to warm up before going back to watch duty. They trusted him and he trusted them back. Helped that they were in on a certain secret. Just as Rodan took a few steps to climb down from the roof and through the door however, a stray thought crossed his mind and halted him.
-Oh wait... I still don't do well in small enclosed spaces-
Plopping back down on the edge of the roof like a cathedral gargoyle, the former kaiju mulled over his options. Go inside and risk a stressed, claustrophobia induced panic attack; or stay outside and shiver till his scales fell out.
-Oh joy...-
Just when he was about to see if his hands were still fireproof enough to spit a pyro sphere into during a last attempt to heat up, a clicking noise against the roof tore Rodan's attention away. He sprang up and turned around like a cat, shooting out his wings and making ready for the worst. A black earth pony mare poked her head up from the edge of the roof with a confused expression. Thalia tilted her head, the white patches on her nose and forehead practically glowing in the night's astral lights.
"Thought that was you up here again. What are you doing still up?", she asked with a moonlight glimmering across her muzzle.
"I'll be f-f-fine. I s-s-s-slept for couple thousand years."
Thalia rolled her eyes and spoke with a mild grumble,
"Fine my hoof, I could hear your beak clacking from the bedroom."
Rodan noticed his shivering face causing said clicking, putting his hands on his beak to halt the racket. His wings and neck lowered.
"smmrry Mss Thmima..."
The dark mare only giggled, climbing up from her ladder and tentatively onto the roof. It was then the gryphon noticed the large sack slung over her back and raised an eyebrow.
"It's perfectly fine, but you seem to be catching a chill."
He released his beak, wrapping his wings around himself to try and stop shivering with minimal success. Now his wing membrane was the part of him going numb.
"No-ot used to a smaller b-ody I guess."
Thalia motioned to the front door below them after walking over.
"You do know you can stay in the guest room for a bit."
Rodan curled his currently fluffy tail around himself and tried to tuck his neck under his wings.
"Eeeeh, thaaanks but I still don't do well indoors. Bigger rooms are okay, but smaller oooones... ehhehe, that's going to take some more time. I think it's best I stay out here."
"I thought you might say that, it's why I brought these."
She slung the sack onto the roof with a gentle thud before unzipping the seam. Turning it over with her snout, several thick blankets and over coats spilled out onto the roof. Thalia briefly closed her eyes.
"This should help out-"
She quickly opened them upon feeling a rapid shifting on the roof through her hooves. What she saw was only recognizable as Rodan by the beak sticking out of the pile-up of fabrics perched on her roof. A quilt covered tail sticking out of the main body was wagging happily. She couldn't help but fail at stifling a giggle.
"So I never asked, aside from hating the indoors more than my husband; why you out here again? Still looking for those bats?"
Rodan shuffled a bit to turn around and face outwards from the rooftop.
"Well Chief took down the main body, but sometimes those buzzards break off so I wanted to just keep a look out for any stragglers. And since your roof is one of the highest and in a good spot, makes for a good perch."
Thalia chuckled, rearing up a little and rubbing Rodan's scalp through several layers of overcoats with a smile.
"Helping patch a roof and now playing neighborhood watch, I see AJ still keeps good company."
She paced over, plopping down next to the cloth blob as her red tipped mane swayed in a nocturnal breeze.
"So, that big one back in Canterlot, one you called 'Chief', he's on your side right?"
"Godzilla? Oh yeah certainly! He might be a bit rough around the edges at times, but means well. This isn't the first time he's pulled a stunt like this if you catch my drift."
Thalia took in a deep breath and slowly sighed away some tension.
"Good to know... I'm, sure you've heard about the mixed reactions he's getting? Wonder how Equestria might react, learning how many of you there are. Guess it's natural some would be afraid."
"Yeah, our types tend to have that effect on folks I suppose. Not like all of us are the nicest lot..."
"Well, just know this. I may be a country mare by marriage, but I've been around these parts long enough to know the ponies of Appleloosa look out for those who look out for them."
She shifted her weight to her side, playfully nudging the quilt covered gryphon on the shoulder before walking back to the ladder to climb down.
"Alien or gryphon, you'll always be welcome around here. Goodnight Rodan."
Rodan poked his head out of his cover, the warm smile across his face evident despite his beak.
"Night Miss Thalia."
He sighed, practically feeling the weight exiting his lungs as he did. House by house, he cast his vision across every single home in Appleloosa. His smile grew with every single count. His creators made him to protect, and he'd done a fairly good job of that in the few years he'd been awake. This world was new, but had its draws. Being able to fly close to someone or some building without any risk of a sonic boom knocking it over was a plus. His cup was half full with an entire faction back on Solgell. But now, with an entire town who didn't want to nor didn't have to dive for cover upon seeing him fly by, that cup was overflowing. Protecting always felt good, but being accepted only bolstered that feeling. He used to just feel that in the presence of titans, now he was getting it from something different all together. Was odd at first, but readily accepted. Now, next to nothing could keep his mood down. Maybe he was an optimist due to being young, maybe naive in some ways; but he'd be damned before someone told him being happy with yourself wasn't good. Nihilism was for fools.
He looked to the sky, brilliant stars and a glowing moon radiating far above. An accident might have brought them here, but he wouldn't let that stop him from seeing the silver lining. Home was where the heart was, and he had an entire town and an island to call home.
-Looks like my flock keeps growing and growing...-
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Appleloosa, morning
=======================
Applejack stretched out on her seat, reclining against the newly resurrected porch to the saloon. It was a calm morning, having woken up as usual at the crack of dawn. The repairs to the town were all but finished. Aside from a few busted up windows and roofing holes, Appleloosa was back to business as usual. The buffalo herd had departed, after taking almost half their weight in apple pies and other goods in grateful compensation. As such, the town was much quieter than it had been in the past few days as the day began to break. The Element of Honesty sighed with a smile. A lot of ponies were still asleep, so no projects had been set down just yet. She could afford to kill a few minutes finishing her breakfast before getting to anything that needed attention.
She reached up, feeling around a bit before snagging an old crank radio. Winding up the groaning crank, she set a channel and dialed up the volume. The radio buzzed for several moments with static before a masculine voice became discernible.
"Welcome dear listeners, this is Horson Welles with Good Morning Equestria. Well mares and gentlecots, the last few days have had quite the excitement. We've had dragons, we've had hydras; we've even had giant cats; but this was a case right out of a science fiction movie. Considering how it's been running nonstop in the news for the last few days, it's not new to anypony at this point as its split public opinion on everything from the creatures themselves to the Princess's actions right down the middle. What is new is the guest on the show this morning-"
Applejack raised an eyebrow and turned the volume up.
"-psychologist and equality activist Moonbeam Glimmer. Miss Glimmer?"
"Salutations Mr. Welles. Many out there have been questioning about this 'Godzilla' character and these 'gyaos' monsters. There is nothing like them in any records from any date, both from Equestria and all neighboring countries. So many are perfectly in the right to ask where they came from and how they suddenly ended up in Canterlot."
"Quite so, though judging from an article you submitted to the Daily Post; you seem to be more focused on this 'Godzilla' himself. Some critics have suggested some fears and disdain towards him is unwarranted because he protected Canterlot. Do you have a comment on that?"
"Multiple. Listen Mr. Welles, I'm not trying to launch any hatred. I value friendship, love, and all those good philosophies. But this 'Godzilla', it may have indeed helped save Canterlot; but the costs and implications about it is what has me worried."
"Cost? Implications? Sounds like some odd words for one some ponies under Celestia's sun are calling a 'Hero of Canterlot'."
There was a silence over the radio for a moment. Had it not been for the small, electrical buzz given off by the background ambiance, Applejack might have worried the radio had died and needed more cranking. Fortunately, a loud shrug followed by it's voice dispelled that mild worry and she put her ear back to the speaker.
"Heroes do NOT kill. Not as a first option, nor any option most of the time. I didn't see that thing trying to avoid direct conflict with the gyaos. From what I can infer, the latter are wild animals and certainly dangerous; but surely they could have been warded off? Godzilla was far larger and stronger than they, couldn't it have behaved like any other larger animal and scared off the smaller carnivores? We don't go around killing every bear and manticore in the world just because they are potentially dangerous. But this beast, this 'Godzilla', did not behave like a carnivore. It didn't kill to eat the gyaos it took down. It slaughtered, butchered, and massacred them without taking a nibble."
"Killing in the defense of Canterlot and its citizens according to the citizenry and Princesses."
"No, not in defense. A defender that can be so ready to kill and not be affected is no different from those they kill. A killer of even serial killers is still another serial killer. As a psychologist, I know for a fact that someone who can kill so much and not have harsh side effects has no respect for life to begin with. Who they call a hero, I call a butcher."
"Ooooph, harsh words there. Changing topic slightly, what about the evidence that the Princesses are currently harboring Godzilla in Canterlot Castle? He was last publicly seen being taken inside."
"An ill move by Celestia and Luna in both deploying and harboring it. Equestria has solved plenty of its own problems without turning an ultra violent attack dog on them. If it intends to be so ready to kill, I don't think it should be in any city or town, much less the capital! We know next to nothing about this thing anyways. Who it is exactly, where did it come from, how can it change form? None of this is public knowledge and that arguably makes it even more terrifying. This alien creature seems to have enough power to flatten a city if it wanted and is proven to be a butcher. I honestly don't feel safe with that thing being anywhere, nothing should have any business being that much more powerful than near anyone. It fires out those heat beams and scares us normal ponies. And that's not even counting my theory."
"Theory? Care to elaborate?"
"Princess Celestia has been one of the greatest rulers of all time and Princess Luna has a similar grandeur once she got her hooves on the ground. I don't think the two of them would turn that monstrosity loose willingly. I think it wanted to attack the gyaos because it likes killing. It's clearly quite willing to kill when it's not hungry. Maybe the Princesses can't control it and had to turn it loose somewhere to sate it's thirst for awhile, thus maybe the flock was a convenient opportunity? Come to think of it I'd really like to take a crack at it as a patient, always wanted to review a sociopath. Must have had a very interesting upbringing."
"Well... never let it be said a Glimmer didn't stand by their word. I might not be a psychologist, however I feel this conversation has spun into a bit of unbalance. What about a factor many who were inside the shield during the battle have pointed out, hm? The princesses cast an incredibly powerful barrier spell, one that could weather hours of assault with both of them present. However, we have had reports of the shield cracking during the fight for certain moments due to prolonged gyaos attack. On said occasions, it was Godzilla often going out of his way and removing the gyaos in question that gave the barrier long enough time to mend. All while he was enduring his own injuries from the flock. As such, some have stated we shouldn't be afraid of something that seemed to act on his own accord to protect the city. The princesses did announce during it all that he, and I quote; "Agreed to fight on Canterlot's behalf". If this is all true, wouldn't Godzilla then being responsible for beating back the swarm; be just as much to thank for the survival of Canterlot and her populace as the Princesses and guards?"
"There is no doubt it played a role in Canterlot still standing. That isn't in question for me. I would voice some caution in seeing protection where it may not be present. Many times it attacked a gyaos assaulting the shield, the gyaos in question was the closet one to it. It might have just been going after the nearest target. I do know the gyaos were a threat, I only am less concerned with them because they aren't still breathing. My concern is that the Princesses and Equestria as a whole are being taken as farmers to Godzilla's viper. I am a firm believers in that no one should have so much potential power over others. We have a sociopathic, giant monster who we know nothing about who's proven to be willing to kill as a first option-"
Applejack's brow furrowed and a less than pleasant expression crossed her face. She didn't know Godzilla personally, but she'd been well acquainted with some of the company he kept. And there was no way someone who let himself get dog piled and hog tied by a bunch of kids was chummy with a sociopath. Every word out of this so called psychologist's mouth was spilling off Godzilla and onto Rodan by association. The Element of Honesty did not enjoy the words she was hearing out of the speaker. The more Moonbeam beat around the bush, the more Applejack could hear it in her voice. She wasn't calm, collective, or critical. She was terrified and trying to spread that terror to justifying it. After a bit more listening, Applejack had enough. She put down the radio and reached for the off switch. Some scared silver tongue she didn't even know continued slandering someone on national radio.
"We are in the thrall of a killer. I fear less for what's its done and more what it and others like it might do next..."
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Appleloosa
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"Pleeease?"
"I don't know. The towns almost patched up but I wouldn't want to be pulling stunts if I'm needed."
"Pleeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeaaaase?!"
"Oh please don-"
Rodan frowned and looked to the sky as a trio of wide, saddened eyes hovering above quivering jaws looked up at him. He'd gotten up a bit ago, courtesy of Dallas startling him awake and causing him to fall off the roof after several hours of snoring. After a couple fried eggs from Thalia, the trio split up into the town. Dallas went off to the herd ranges to round up the cattle, Thalia to the Saloon; and Rodan had been moving about between the town to see what all needed doing. Currently on his list it seemed to be entertaining a gaggle of kids who had utterly refused to stop following him since they spotted the gryphon helping patch a roof.
One of them, a tiny filly the kaiju doubted was even a third of the way to double digits wrapped her little hooves around his arm. Her tiny voice could be favorably compared to a squeaker.
"Up up?"
Her eyes sunk down a few millimeters and his heart sunk down several meters.
"Aaaaghh ooookaaaaay...."
Rodan rolled his eyes with a chuckle, spreading his broad wings as the little filly squealed happily.
"Now what do you kids wanna see?"
And like that his small crowd lit up.
"Do a spin!"
"Do a barrel roll!"
"F'wy!"
"Cherry Top he's already gonna fly!"
"F'wy more!"
Rodan shook his head, angling his wings to catch as much of the warm sunlight as possible.
"Alright alright, how about all of the above?"
Five kids, five pairs of dilated eyes; and five smiles. One of the group, an older colt tilted his head curiously upon noticing Rodan matching the sun with his wings.
"What'cha doing there?"
"Sunning. I draw power from heat sources. This being the desert on a clear day, plenty of free flowing solar thermals moving around to absorb."
"What happens when you eat enough?"
"Well for one I can fly a lot faster... Speaking of which I'd say I got enough. You lot might want to back up some."
Cue five grins and five younglings back stepping about a foot. Rodan lowered his eyes with a chuckle, twirling a claw at them.
"Mooore. Keep it going, get under that cover....aaaaand, stop."
The five had backed up several yards and ducked under a bench, tails wagging. Rodan smirked, slowly beginning to flap his wings as energy raced across their surface. Bracing against the ground like a sprinter, the air began to shift with each wing beat. Dust was blown back in a curtain, Rodan tensed up as he raised his wings straight up before snapping them down in one thundering motion. A wave of air shot out in a blast as a red blur darted straight up towards the sun. The gaggle of kids quickly shielded themselves from the oncoming dust cloud, being coated in a dirty tan as it passed by them. Cherry Top was the first to crack a grin, looking up to the sky.
"Wooow!"
Applejack meanwhile had just scratched off the last line of her checklist for the Saloon's repairs, downing a glass of sarsaparilla with a smile before tucking her pencil behind her ear.
"Alrighty then, sure there's nothing left needin' fixin' Thally?"
Thalia chuckled, operating the faucets and kegs to ready up some drinks for the day ahead.
"Not that I know of. Good to not have this place as an outdoor establishment anymore. Thanks for the new roof."
Applejack hopped down from her seat and stepped out the front door. She turned back to wave a hoof goodbye.
"Don't mention it! Celestia gives her regar- WHOA NELLY!"
A sudden gust of wind cut off her sentence and forced the farm mare to grab her hat to keep it from being blown off. The shockwave blew past her and rattled the windows. As soon as the dust cleared, Applejack looked skyward and spotted the culprit. A blurry red object zooming around the airspace above the town. The echoes of hissing air breezed past her as the object turned up at high speed, it and the trail of red forming loops several hundred feet about the sheriff's office. It cut off its loop mid turn, soon zigzagging across the Appleloosan skyline. It had just passed directly overhead, the air giving off a ringing screech when it changed direction and shot straight up. In the split second it was changing direction, Applejack recognized the outline cut into the sunbeams.
Roused by the noise, more and more townsfolk poked their heads out of their homes, businesses, and projects; meandering into the main street. It didn't take long for their eyes to follow the trail of rumbles their ears picked up from high above. The object arced in its rise, rolling over and diving down in a rapid diagonal. It zoomed down to the horizon, before spinning around. For a moment, visual was lost. And then the rumble kicked up. Very small and subtle at first, seeping up from the ground.
In the distance, a conical dust cloud formed out in the desert. The small spec shooting out in front it rapidly grew into a familiar red blur as the object sped towards town at growing speed, the desert floor behind it being kicked up by its charge. Appleloosans looked on, in a mix of confusion and curiosity as they mumbled amongst themselves.
"It's a bullet."
"It's a plane."
"It's comin' right at us!"
The object sped along parallel to the ground. It gained some altitude, the dust storm kicked up in its wake dissipating from the growing distance. By the time it flew over town, Applejack and Thalia noticed two things. One, the white cone briefly visible around it; and two, the enormous crash that followed it. The sonic boom snapped through the air with a deafening snap and rumble, half startling the populace into diving for cover.
After a few moments the rumbles died down and Appleloosa averted its duck and cover routine. Applejack shook her head to clear some of the ringing in her ears, looking up from behind the water trough she'd fallen behind. On the edge of town, the speedster had slowed down enough to no longer be a red blur as it turned back around and headed for town. Applejack and Thalia glanced at one another, before picking themselves up and trotting over to the edge of town behind a group of cheering children as Rodan landed in front of them.
Rodan didn't notice the approaching crowd, being too busy laughing at the giggling Cherry Top hoisting herself onto his shoulders as the other kids surrounded him.
"That was like somethin' outta a Wonderbolts show I read 'bout!"
"Did you see all those turns! He pulled a zigzag!"
"I bet ye' faster than Supermare!"
"Who else got covered in dust?"
"Meee!"
Rodan leaned his neck back and playfully nuzzled the squealing filly before sitting down, some excess thermal energy venting out from his nostrils as steam. He was in a very good mood. If there was something he loved, it was flying. And being able to do it around a town without risk of blowing it over was a good plus. Besides, who couldn't share a smile in front of some happy kids?
"Take it you lot enjoyed the show?"
The resounding yes was loud enough he almost didn't hear the-
"Ah-ehm"
-calling out from behind the kids. Rodan looked up with a raised eyebrow, craning his neck back a bit upon noticing the crowd that had accumulated in front of him. For a split second, the blank, blinking expressions of the townsfolk almost made him worry that 'risk of blowing stuff over' had indeed come true. Rodan shifted back to his feet, chewing on his tongue a bit in silent worry.
"Uuum.... Hi?"
Smiles erupted across Thalia and the other townsfolk's muzzles, before the entire group erupted in applause. Applejack chuckled, shaking her hanged head as she trotted over next to her friend and put a hoof around his shoulders.
"Woooowee! Most ponies 'round these parts never seen a Wonderbolts show and looks like you just brought one to 'em! You sure you ain't kin to a certain blue pegasus? 'Cus I'd gander you'd give Rainbow a run for her money."
"I didn't wreck anything did I?"
"Nope~"
Rodan took in a deep breath and sighed contently, more steam escaping from his nose and mouth as relief washed over him.
-Ooooooh thank Tanaka...-
Applejack looked on to the happy crowd with a smile. Admittedly, that radio broadcast had worried her earlier. A lot of folks were afraid of what's new or unknown. Heck, her home town was running scared of a weirdly behaved Zebra at first. But, high or hay, love and tolerate. And seems like this town had plenty of the first for their newest entertainer. Speckles of hope welled up inside her. Slowly but surely, a sizable smirk formed across her face. She prodded Rodan's shoulder with her free hoof and whispered in his ear.
"Don't suppose ye' could pull an encore presentation now could yah?"
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Canterlot
============
The noon time sun radiated through stained glass windows as Godzilla Junior trod down the long hallway with his training armor on. He'd returned to his quarters the other day, so life seemed back to business as usual for him. Or least as usual as one could have stuck on an alien planet in a new body. Joining the guard taskforce in hindsight was a decent enough move, one he made note to thank the captain for the first chance he could. He'd been playing the guard dog role for most of his life, so being put in a similar role was probably one of his better options to try and get used to this place during his stay. Could likely keep him busy and might as well be one of the few things he knew he was good at. Not everyone can choose their talents.
As he approached the barracks, the noise echoing out of the chamber confirmed some of his suspicions. No one had come to get him this morning, leaving him to oversleep slightly. While it gave him time to absorb enough energy to be back to one hundred percent strength, evident by his regeneration mending the last of his scars; likely meant his new coworkers were unaware of his recovery. Soon as he got to the entry way, seeing the large group inside going about their drills, Junior almost felt a tinge of embarrassment. Looked like almost everyone he'd seen previously was here and he was showing up late.
Just as he stepped through the front door however, one of the guards, whom Junior recognized as his previous training partner Starlight; looked over just in time to notice him. Starlight's eyes widened and he quickly said something to the guards near him that was inaudible for the massive unicorn. Mumbling, whispers, and other forms of hushed speech raced through the barracks in a wave. Soon, every single guardstallion and guardsmare dropped what he or she was doing and looked at the kaiju with a blank expression. Junior halted midstep, cautious instinct flaring up as some of the guards formed lines, standing next to one another and facing him. There was utter silence for several long moments, before an accent that wouldn't be at all out of place in the thickest backwoods called out from beyond the rows of ponies.
"Well well well, look who finally 'cided to show up!"
Junior spied a lance waving above the heads of several guards as they parted formation, a familiar blue and white earth pony mare in royal purple armor calmly striding out into the open center. Captain Blueberry Frost kept a neutral face while advancing, a large pair of saddlebags slung over her back. If the bags and whatever was inside them weighed a lot, her stocky frame didn't show it. Her raised lance, held high in the holster affixed to her side armor, glimmered along its edges as it raked across several sun beams and illuminated patches of ground all around Captain Frost with every motion.
"Startin' to wonder if I had to drag y'er hide outta the Princess's chamber myself."
"Captain, what is going o-"
Captain Frost stopped about two yards in front of Junior, raising her hoof and lowering her head with closed eyes to hush him. Measuring the distance, the kaiju's already tense nerves flared up slightly. He'd been told Captain Frost was apparently far more laid back than her predecessor, but Junior could tell right away from her movements she was no idiot. The distance between them was measured, she halted right where she wanted to. Lea had told him he'd managed to split opinion in the country right down the middle. Many were afraid, a reaction he knew all too well from the humans. Scared humans could make irrational choices. He'd been fired upon a few times in the past by some panicked tank crew or missile platform. True, the assaults never hurt or so much as scratched him, and the attacks on him were very light compared to the kaiju that humanity intentionally attacked full force; but the fact remained. Scared humans occasionally turned into attacking humans. And judging from how all the guards were acting, all standing together and facing the possible threat directly, keeping it in front of them while reinforcing each other's presence, and the captain not getting any closer than her lance's span; it all seemed too familiar. Some of Junior's muscles tensed up, his hooves digging into the floor very slightly as he heated up his internal reactor; making ready just in case.
"-Hush boy... You a boy or an adult? Don't tell me you still growing or else you might give Colonel Dancer a heart attack."
Godzilla had muscle strength strong enough to bend steel, raw power to melt titanium; and a skull thick as a mountain. Needless to say the meaning flew completely over his head. Mildly confused as to what Blade Dancer had to do with anything, other than preference not to be reacquainted any time soon; as well as the captian's choice in topic for a tense situation, Junior held in place and answered bluntly.
"I'm fully grown."
"Eh, never mind the boy part then. You're probably 'bout my age anyways. Point is you gave us quite the show a few days back. Lead to some talks and some decisions."
She reached back, gripping the bags in her teeth and slinging them off of her with ease despite their bulk being comparable to her own. The sacks hit the ground between Junior and herself, almost taking up the full space. Junior leaned forward towards the open top of one of the bags, perplexed about the loud crashing sound given off by the bags when they hit the ground.
-Phew, measured that distance right Frosty. Any closer and I'dda hit him in the face!-
"Got these straight from the smiths this mornin'."
Junior peered into one of the bags as its seam began to open due to content pushing against it. The silvery symbol of a crescent moon radiated with a metallic gleam in the reflected sunlight.
Raising an eyebrow, Junior looked up and instantly noticed a change in the room around him. The guards in attendance still surrounded him, honest smiles of various sizes forming across their faces. Captain Frost smirked, opening up another one of the bags and pulling out a large helmet akin to the type Junior had seen the bat winged guards wearing.
"Yeah, you mighta only been here a bit and laid a whoopin' on some of the force, but I'd say fending off a flock of murder bats qualifies as a good entrance exam score to pass the trainee rank."
Junior held still as she walked around the bags, standing up on her hind legs briefly to reach up and slide the helmet onto his head. It was a tad snug, but fit like a glove. Finally relaxing his body, he did never the less flinch a tid bit at first as she curled her hooves around his left forelimb. Slow and steady, the captain held his arm up to his head in a salute. Smiling, she backed up and returned the gesture.
"As Captain appointed by Princess Celestia and Princess Luna, I extend my official welcome to the force to the newest member of the guard. I think we'll be glad to have you big guy!"
The barracks around them erupted in motion and noise. The guards, Junior's fellow guards, sat up and clapped their hooves together in grinning applause as Captain Frost chuckled under her breath. This was definitely not something Junior had been expecting. This was something almost entirely new, almost as alien as this realm.
That didn't stop the warmth in his chest from ushering a smile.
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Elsewhere in the Castle, several hours before nightfall
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Scanning page after page, Princess Luna went through the stack of papers, scrolls, and manuscripts one by one. She may have gotten up early to work through this load with a smile, but her mood had rapidly sullen under the multitudes. Much had changed in one thousand years. A millennium ago the lion's share of paperwork was flat taxes, some reports, and the occasional census. 1,000 years and incalculable tons of dried pulp later, it seems paperwork had quintupled. Perhaps it was due to some of the old noble positions stepping down over the centuries and Celestia setting up more voted positions, perhaps it was her elder sibling taking a more active role due to shouldering Luna's task for so long; perhaps it was both. Either way the younger immortal was quick to figure out why her sister had become such a busy body after all these years. And it wasn't like the paperwork had slowed down in light of recent events, having grown so much that Luna insisted to handle some of it to give Celestia a much needed break.
The subject matter was as varied as snowflakes in a blizzard. She flipped over to a page from the mayor of Las Pegasus.
-Arrest 'Godzilla the Terror' to Royal Court under charges of animal cruelty, unnecessary assault and battery; and public nudity-
The dark alicorn couldn't hold in a loud grumble, mashing the big red 'Rejected' stamp onto the page several times before tossing it into a small pile. She never had much patience for absurdity, let alone when it was coated in idiocy. The occasional request like that, the fourth so far, was reminding her all too much of a talk Celestia had with her earlier. Unfortunately she was told it was just as illegal to throttle someone over the disgracing of an associate's honor now as it was way back when. Oh the so-called psychologist she'd like to get at right now...
Her temper cooled slightly upon reading the last paper in her work stack. She rested her chin on a hoof and looked it over.
-Mayor Hillary Marelyn of Ponyville recommending 'Godzilla the Monster' for Equestrian citizenship and a royal pardon for all damages associated in the actions undertaken in the defense of Canterlot and its citizenry-
Princess Luna paused and looked at the paper with a smirk. This page might require a bit more thought. Just as she began leaning back in her seat to ponder however, there was a knock on her window. Turning, she soon spotted the culprit in the form of a familiar gray pegasus mare in a mailpony outfit. Luna's horn glimmered and she opened the window.
"Salutations Ms. Hooves, do you have something for us?"
The mailmare nodded with a perky smile, digging through her saddlebag before hoofing over a scroll to the diarch.
"Delivery from Appleloosa!"
"Ah, this must be from Dame Applejack."
Derpy Hooves nodded before popping a salute and dashing off to finish her route. Luna closed the window and read through the letter. The writing was a bit slurred at places, as to be expected from a rural type writing with their teeth, so it took her a moment to get through it. More good news to lift the alicorn's mood. Repairs for the town were almost done with no sign of any Gyaos, confirmation of no fatalities; and those injured were on the road to recovery. However, it was what followed the "PS:" that caught Luna's attention.
Her eyes widened for a moment as stray thoughts crisscrossed her mind. Thoughts that worked off of another and compounded their effect. Luna snapped up from the letter after reading the last word, a rare grin crossing the nocturnal ruler's muzzle. Rushing past the desk as she snapped up one of her previously signed documents, she levitated it and the latter above her head and bolted out of the room. She had to find Celestia!
The solar princess herself rubbed her temple as she slouched slightly in a staff lounge. Court sessions were always audacious. Some noble trying to make a power grab, some activist calling for woefully unnecessary regulations; or everything in between. Now she had to deal with scared mayors demanding arrest warrants and a particularly annoying pair of brothers demanding disproportionate compensation for an invention of theirs they parked in the Canterlot foothills. According to them it was 'intentionally' stepped on several days ago by a train sized foot. Not even a daffodil sandwich was lifting the alicorn's mood much.
Half the populace was up in a panic, and nothing she'd tried was helping much. She'd tried making public statements and rebutted the detractors, but nothing seemed to work. Some Equestrians just couldn't let go of what they'd seen or read about and simply refused to stop running scared. Seems like even in a world of magic, chaos deities, and hybrids creations; Equestria didn't always have a good weirdness filter.
The newspaper left out by one of the staff wasn't doing much to lift her mood. Plastered right on the front cover and under the headline was the now widely circulated photo of Godzilla in his equine form being carried into the castle, both diarchs in frame. "Princesses harboring 'Godzilla' in Castle?!". Along the side of the picture were numerous quotes from all across the country.
"It's frightening, you know? Being aware something like that is in the castle right behind me. Keeps me up at night and scares the wits out of me."
-Roseluck
"Violence happens I suppose. One way or another this, 'Godzilla' chap helped save Canterlot. Might have been a bit more brutal than some find palatable, but he did what he had to I suppose. One who's risking their life for a whole city must count for something, yes?"
-Francis 'Fancy' Pantero
"Where did these things come from anyways? Nothing like them in Equestrian record. I don't trust anything in this situation. We just don't know that much one way or another."
-Mane Goodall
"Killing is amoral, period. I don't care if a princess or a monster does it. Demons kill, monsters kill, beasts kill; heroes don't. Equestria has solved plenty of its problems with less drastic means, we need to stay civilized with our problems. Not sic some forty story murderer on them!"
-Anonymous
"But, if the gyaos got into the city, they would have probably tried to kill everything in it. So if saving a life is moral, and the only way to save a dozen lives is to take one; wouldn't killing be justified? I don't like death one way or another, but I'd much rather see a hundred dead monsters than a thousand dead innocents."
-Valencia Orange
"I'm honestly trying to worry with morals here. How many fillies and colts you think saw what happened that night, be it by being present during the slaughter or seeing pictures of it? Violent exposure is never good for any upbringing. I'm certain this 'Godzilla' character would agree given his first course of action."
-Anonymous
"Recent polls put approval of Godzilla's actions and the Princesses deploying it at 39% approve, 36% disapprove; and 25% undecided-"
Celestia grumbled and put the paper down. Several days ago it had been 35, 35, 30 percent. All her actions, statements, interviews, and court hearings regarding this subject had only made a slight dent in the direction she wanted to go. And even still, that pesky middle number wasn't shrinking. And she knew why.
The white alicorn sighed, leaning back in her seat. Up until recently with the return of her sister, Equestria had retained a millennium of peace. Sure there were still problems now and then, but under her watch she'd maintained a huge effort to have her beloved ponies live on unmolested. She'd seen children grow into parents, grow into grandparents, grow into great grandparents without the slightest hint of dramatic conflict. Day and night, a thousand years of keeping things placid. In effect, she'd been propping up an entire civilization all this time. Crime low, wars near nonexistent; bellies full. Was nearly never a cake walk for her, but it worked. Now that her sister had returned and the new elements discovered, Celestia had begun to relax slightly. New threats still arose, but her legacy continued and as a whole life was still stable. In effect, outside of a minority, she'd raised an entire civilization in relative peace; without experiencing much violence on a large scale like the days of old. Now that civilization just got a large wake up call, and didn't know how to respond. Celestia looked out the window with a still expression, eyelids hanging low.
-I wanted to protect them, but did I end up coddling them?-
Loud hoofsteps and wing beats ripped her attention away just in time to see her little sister burst into the room. Brushing aside her previous gloom, or least hiding it best she could; Celestia flashed a smile to Luna.
"Ah, Luna; you're up early."
"Was a bit restless despite getting my bed back."
"Well, you were the one to volunteer he have your quarters. And were quite insistent if I may recall. How is our guest? I haven't seen him since yesterday."
Luna smiled, perking her wings up a bit as she walked around the table and sat herself across from her sibling.
"Canterlot's newest hero is fully recovered."
Celestia's expression mellowed slightly. While glad to see her sister so happy, having some inclination why; a stubborn subject refused to leave. It only took Luna a moment to notice the newspaper.
"I wish Equestria shared your enthusiasm for such."
A frown crossed the blue alicorn's face. Horn glimmering, she took the newspaper and tossed it over her shoulder and into a bin.
"This isn't the first time the country was a bit divided about someone's arrival. For all the welcoming parades you threw, it still took about a year and a holiday to convince the young and old the Nightmare wasn't back..."
Celestia dipped her head slightly, reaching her board wings across the table and wrapping them around her sibling slightly. Her voice was low, barely more than a whisper.
"The situation is growing ever darker... Twilight told us about the possibility of more malign kaiju out there. Equestria has its own defenses. But if more threats arise, we may require our guests' help. And for all of that, we need stability."
Luna smiled, nuzzling her sister's wing a bit before it retracted.
"Agreed. Equestria needs to know who's on who's side. We can't force any kai-... anypony to fight for us should another attack happen. But if they share such selflessness as Junior to step up to the challenge, they deserve a supporting nation alongside them. Not one that can't decide if its grateful or terrified."
"Yes indee-.... 'Junior'? I thought his name was Godzilla?"
"It is. He shares his name with his father. However he prefers acquaintances call him Junior."
A smirk slowly crept along Celestia's muzzle, she leaned over the table with a cocked eyebrow.
"Onto a nickname basis eh? What's next, should I tell him to start calling you 'Lulu'?~"
Luna's face scrunched up and her wings popped up slightly, before shooting a glare at her sibling.
"CELLY! You.wouldn't.dare..."
Celestia raised a hoof to her maw to muffle a laugh, one Luna passively joined in on. The tension in the room siphoned away slightly. Felt nice to have someone you could relax around. Princess Luna took a deep breath and slow exhale.
"Alright, but back to the matter at hoof. The populace is scared because they don't understand the full situation or the character. Maybe they should?"
"What are you proposing? A full press conference?"
"Could help, especially if he attended and they heard it straight from his mouth with you around. Could help dispel some rumors. However there is something you've actually done that I think might just work out in our favor."
"Oh? What?"
"Remember how after I turned into... that... Some of the citizens were increasingly wary about you? You never aged, could do the job that used to require a whole city of unicorns; and both figuratively and literally stood taller than anyone else. They were afraid of someone who seemed both timeless and magnitudes more powerful than themselves. Some behaved irrationally, despite your work for them."
Celestia mulled through her reliquary of a memory. When she thought of the few conflicts in the past millennium, these were the ones she remembered.
"Yes... I remember. They'd shudder at my approach, became paranoid about my choices like I was some kind of tyrant. The worst was the Immortalis Defiant and Nights rebels..."
"I... read of them... Your patience is admirable sister. At that age in that situation I doubt I could have handled attempted kidnappings and slander like you did... But, my point is that you overcame them and earned your citizens' trust not by decree, exposure; or force. You defeated the detractors and rebels by undermining their claims and showing the populace just how good a protector they had. And you literally defeated those rebels with laughter."
The elder alicorn raised an eyebrow, figuring out what her sister was getting at.
"You mean 'Chuckle-lot'? That was just a comedy show I did to ease some tensions."
"And it did much more than that! You showed the ponies you were kind, that you could laugh; and you liked spreading the laughter. In essence, you demonstrated to them the great Princess Celestia Alexandria Alicor was exactly the opposite of what the slander tried to make her out to be. A soul can't fear what makes it laugh."
"A good point sister, but I don't think any of the kaiju could repeat it well. They don't seem to be the comedic types."
"It's not just comedy. You did a lot of things for the county. The parades, the Summer Sun Celebration, the galas. All of it to entertain and amaze the populace. With spectacle comes morale. With healthy morale, comes of the end of hysteria. You even denied queenship to appear closer to the populace. And it all worked like a charm! You are history's most beloved ruler for a reason. Why not try and do something similar with the kaiju?"
Celestia let the thought play in her mind for a short time. Hindsight was 20/20. She clearly remembered how much things changed over the first few decades of her solo rule. The children of ponies who called her a tyrant for banishing her sister would come out in droves to attend her celebrations. Even when the correlation between herself and Luna was forgotten, her popularity stayed high. The fact was clear. At one time, even she frightened Equestria; and now she was loved by it. Princess Celestia noticed the smirk on her sibling's face and smiled, reading Luna's body language like a book.
"A fascinating idea dear sister, but that look on your face tells me you have something specific in mind."
"Amazement comes in many forms sister."
The dark blue alicorn levitated a brochure out from her ethereal mane and onto the table, spinning it around to make it legible to Celestia. It was an advertisement for an event Cloudsdale and the Wonderbolts were hosting at Neighagra falls.
"Canterlot hasn't sponsored a team for the show in a long time. Dame Applejack recently wrote us stating the kaiju who accompanied her was an accomplished flyer."
======
Zenith
======
Monster X stumbled and trudged through the dark halls, still trying to navigate the seemingly endless maze of a temple to make his way back to his cohorts. The temple was an immense sanctum, almost as if it was a hundred times larger on the inside than the already gargantuan outside would imply. He'd been walking back for hours, with little success. He'd sought isolation to meditate, but any chance at calming himself had been an enormous failure. To call his current state disturbed would be an understatement. He was wide awake and still having nightmares.
A nagging sensation clawed at the inside of his skull with every step, the world briefly flashing to realms he did not know. A destroyed city he didn't know why he cared about. An unknowable corpse in his hand he somehow knew the gender of. Blood everywhere, drowning everything; drowning him. And there was constant noise slithering through the corners of his mind. Luciferian whispers and melodious, haunting singing that refused to silence. A golden dragon had whispered to him, resurrecting nightmares. A blue witch had sung to him, exaggerating the terrors. A golden dragon and a blue witch had acted upon him, and woke someone else up. Someone who wanted out.
With each step, the thoughts and visions surged. A chronic, stabbing pain shot out his back with each pulse; soon joined by a similar aching in his shoulders that refused to subside. While he was alone in searching out the chamber his team was in, his conscious had company. The voice from his night terror followed him into the waking world, growling into his ear with each heartbeat.
-King Ghidorah knows something... he did something to us-
Another step, another pulse, another pain; another hate filled growl in his mind.
-He knows who we are, and refuses to tell us...-
X gripped the edge of a obsidian coated wall, digging his claws into it while stumbling around and pulling himself through the turn. He gripped his face with his free hand, shaking it thoroughly to try and clear it.
"Shut... Up!"
-He doesn't deserve to live. He's a threat to us. We don't tolerate threats now do we X?-
The pain and clawing sensation only grew stronger and stronger, forcing X to snarl in an effort to vent it off. He had no such luck as he half stumbled and half crawled into a familiar chamber. His team was there. Irys, hanging down from the ceiling was the first to notice his arrival. Tilting her head slightly to perk her ears upon hearing his footfalls and haggard breath, she turned around and warmed her drowsy expression. The gyaos spread her wings and flipped, hovering down to the ground and getting the attention of Gigan and Megalon. Upon seeing his oldest comrade bracing against the door frame, hoarsely gasping for breath, Gigan knew something wasn't right.
"X are you alright?"
-He's a threat to them too... Let me.... Help... Let me kill everything that causes you pain X...-
Monster X was about to respond to the cyborg when a tidal wave of agony shot through his conscious and physical form, sending the Xilian vanguard crumbling to the ground in a heap. Blurry sights, vertigo, and distorted sounds eradicated the conscious world as he writhed in pain. The armor on his back began to crack slightly, red ichor trickling out.
Megalon hopped up to his feet and quickly began to race past Gigan and over to the Xilian kaiju upon seeing his friend in so much pain.
"Mister X are you alright? Where have you been?"
Irys needed only a mild whiff to smell blood, repressing her strongest predatory and feeding urges as she started to rapidly approach. At this point X was screaming, his tails lashing out frantically as he grabbed at his head.
"He's bleeding! Somethings wrong with him!"
Gigan however froze in place when 'X' stopped writhing and looked up at them. Something about his eyes and expression wasn't right. The black and white kaiju's eyes were pulsing with a flaring red light, the grimace on his fanged jaws that dripped with saliva and blood more closely resembling a snarling beast than anything Gigan had seen his friend wear. His mechanical eye dilated, he recognized it from once before. Sheer terror washed over the elder cyborg.
The inside of X's mind was a blurred cloud. He couldn't see his teammates or hear their words. All he saw was visions and all he heard was his hijacker's repeated, increasingly rabid roars. Golden dracos blotted out the world around him. Pure hatred overpowered all other senses.
-Kill Ghidorah Ki̸l͟l̶ Gh̛i̛dora̵h K̩̪̰͍̞͕ͅi͇̩l̩̥̱͔̮l̥̘̹ G̥̣̟͍̦͕̳hi͈̝̬̝̥͖͟d̟͓̠̲̖̘͉o̬͇̺̞̹̮̱r̵ͅa͇̗͍͉͘h̫̠̫̦̠͈ K͓̠̝͔͌̎̐ͩ̿̀̒͞i̬̞̐ͬͤ̂̌̎ͨͅļ̬̞̖͚̱͉ľ̷̲̊̈ ̩̙̉̎ͮ̐̊͒̅ͅͅG̱͖͇̝̼h̞͖͑ͨ̄̏i̢̥͚̠̖ͤ͌ͭ̆d̗̯̝̥̺̺ͅo̸͈̠̘̣̙̖̝ͦͦ̅̂ͤ̚r͆͜a̙͌ͬͩ̂ͪ͢h͊ͫ̿ͯ̌͝!-
A wave of raging gravitons and psychic energy shot out of X's body as he roared and screamed, throwing both Irys and Megalon backwards. Flashes flared out from behind the two, Gigan teleporting three times in quick succession to catch the two and get back to the ground and on the opposite side of the room from the crazed Xilian kaiju.
"WHERE IS HE?! WHERE IS GHIDORAH!? TELL ME?!
Gigan put his comrades down and flicked on his energy sensors. The readings coming off from Monster X as he rose to his feet were nearly off the charts. Some of the surging psychic energy coiled around their host like an aura, forming an outline behind him that looked nothing like X. Gigan kept his bladed arms low, trying to be as nonthreatening as possible as he took a step closer.
"He's not.. here.. X... You must cal-"
Monster X only heard the first three words and let out an enraged, cackling roar that sounded completely foreign to his normal calls. His eyes flashed and he pointed his head skyward, golden streams of graviton energy firing out of his orbits and blasting the ceiling with several volleys. Lights flashed and obsidian exploded, raining down on the entrance as X jumped back and out of the way, charging down the hallway. Gigan quickly ran forward as the entrance rapidly become blocked with falling debris.
"Megalon! Dig you and Irys a way out of here, I'm going after him!"
"Good luck big brother!"
Glimpsing the outside just as it was about to be blocked by falling stone, Gigan seized his last chance for a line of sight and teleported to the hall outside of the chamber. Reappearing in the hallway, the cyborg skid his metal plated feet across the smooth floor with a shower of sparks. Despite the Xilian kaiju being out of sight, a quick glance at his energy scanners confirmed which way X had left. Not wasting a moment, Gigan ran on his toes several steps before kicking off the ground and igniting his booster rockets. Rapidly flying down the dark halls and teleporting to quickly change direction for sharp turns, Gigan sped along towards the master's throne. His mind remembered pain well, and he was dreading déjà-vu.
-It's happening again... Come on X don't do this...-
Elsewhere in Zenith, Monster X was on a rampage through the temple in his quest to seek out the golden dragon. Making an already bad situation worse, some of Bagan's fellow forces made the mistake of getting in his way. To X, that was equal to attacking him. Electrical energy crackled along a florescent blue and green body as Leatherback, the gorilla-like Anteverse kaiju, threw his full force and weight into Monster X. X grabbed Leatherback's two downward swinging hammer fists by the wrist, snarling as they struggled. Leatherback threw open his jaws into an echoing bellow, putting more force into his attack and slowly beginning to win the strength contest, pushing X down. However, another surge of energy flew out of X's form, some of it even starting to form a visible aura around him. The strength contest shifted in the other direction, Leatherback beginning to be shoved back despite digging his feet into the ground.
"Don't get in my way!"
X jolted forward, ramming his elbow into Leatherback's jaw enough for the loud crack to signal a broken bone. Not wasting a moment as he saw another kaiju advancing, the dragon-like Otachi, X spun around at his hip and threw the stunned Leatherback into her. Monster X snarled with a line of drool leaking out from his fangs, about to advance on the two when two cables tippled in guided weights whirled around him. Wrapping several times around his torso, they pinned his upper arms against his chest before he himself was yanked backwards.
"Run! Get help!"
The Anteverse duo took the advice and fell back to regroup. Feet sliding along the ground, X glared back with enraged eyes to see Gigan standing down the hall. Gigan yanked back on the cables coming out from below his scythe, his motors audibly working overtime to reel them back in.
"You need to Calm. Down!"
Monster X bellowed, grabbing the cables with his free hands and calling out in two voices. The first was his own, abet nearly slurred so much in seething rage it was barely recognizable. But below it was a menacing snarl, a voice few remembered and even fewer lived to remember it.
"And you need to hang on!"
Gigan knew Monster X's strength limit. He knew he could hold off against it with some effort. Unfortunately, the firm yank on his cables far exceeded what he'd recorded of X in even dire circumstances. Monster X threw the cables to the side, ripping Gigan off his feet despite the cyborg putting his thrusters in full reverse and slamming him into a neighboring wall. The cables slacked enough for the black and white kaiju to untie himself, but he didn't let go of the cords. Instead he rapidly reeled them in around his forearm, yanking Gigan off the ground and towards his outstretched arm as he charged forward. Gigan's eye flashed with a fiery light, firing a short burst of his optic blast to sever his cables and teleport away from getting a lariat to the neck. Monster X roared, letting go of the severed cables and digging his hand into the ground to slow down.
-They're getting in our way because they know where he is! They're protecting him!-
Gigan fumbled through the air for a moment after reappearing behind Monster X and flying into a nearby chamber, Bagan's throne. Monster X roared as he trampled after him, a telekinesis boosted hay maker smashing through the wall to make another entrance.
"Where are you going? We aren't finished here!"
Gigan spun around in midair, his visor glowing with a red light.
"X do. not. make. me. do it!"
"Where is he?!"
X trudged into the master chamber and got a face full of red plasma as a reluctant greeting. If the smoking armor and burns caused him any pain, he didn't let it slow him down any. Gigan had to give a thruster assisted dodge to the side to avoid a return fire of graviton beams that caved in the wall behind him. The master's orb began to pulse with purple light, its occupant watching on curiously as Gigan fired volley after volley of explosive optic flares. Monster X, despite incurring more and more damage, wasn't slow down in the slightest as he chased after Gigan. Instead, more and more psychic energy built up the closer her got, until he charged forward with enough speed to catch up to to the cyclops. Gigan reacted fast as he could, blocking a powerful cross punch with the side of his scythe amongst a shower of sparks.
"Come on X! You're not thinking straight, snap out of it!"
X roared, spinning on his heel for a round kick that forced Gigan to teleport in order to dodge him. His antimatter drives were working overtime from having to warp so frequently.
"Damn it xilian! Wake up! It's me, Gigan!"
He was unable to teleport out of the way when X's tails caught him by surprise, slamming into his chest and shoulders, and toppling the cyborg. Gigan quickly crossed his arms in front of him to block a stomp aimed at his neck, but was clearly struggling as X ground the base of his heel against the flats of his scythes.
"We met about 200 orbits ago remember?! We had an exhibition match in front of the Controller and Queen!"
X briefly showed pause, the vertigo inside his mind shifting momentarily, but soon broke into a feral hiss. Growling, he leaned down and swung his shoulder in a punch. Had Gigan not ignited his thrusters and dived out from beneath his attacker, X's fist would have shattered something else instead of the floor. Gigan backed up, having noticed the slight pause in his attacker's movements. Hoping and praying, he recalled more and more from his memory banks.
"You met my baby brother 20 orbits ago. He botched so much on the job you found it hilarious. That was the first time I ever heard you laugh!"
X snarled, briefly stopping and shaking his head in clear confusion but still enraged. Gigan held his breath. He had to try and get through to his comrade, or else this was about to become a really bad day. The static inside the Xilian kaiju's mind flickered on and off at the familiar voice. It remembered an old mission. It remembered seeing a rookie cyborg accidentally setting his foot on fire and panicking despite it being harmless. He remembered laughing. But the static and shade started to flicker back in. When X reopened his eyes there was a brief moment where his expression was calmed, before it sunk right back into a wrathful beast. The haze eclipsed Monster X's vision and someone else was still talking with him.
"SILENCE! TELL ME WHERE GHIDORAH IS! DON'T INTERFERE!"
He lurched forward before Gigan could fly back, grabbing the cyborg's arms under his blades. Gigan's arms began to spark as he pushed his machinery to its limit to counter the Xilian Vanguard's brute force. The cyborg reeled back in panic, his visor igniting with a red light as he aimed at X's chest, planning on a plasma flare to try and force his deranged friend back. Except X didn't give him the chance. The Xilian kaiju bellowed before crashing his horned forehead into Gigan's visor just as the cyborg tried to fire again. Flashes of light, an explosion, smoke, and sparks flew everywhere from the misfire, taking several moments to clear.
When visibility returns, both friends were in bad shape. X's helmet was riddled with burns and cracks, some of the bony shell falling away like shed feathers. Gigan's left mandible had been blown off in the explosion and his visor half shattered; exposing his cycloptic, mechanical eye. Despite the damage, the cyborg didn't give up.
"You always played the knight role X, always looking out for your team. Even the new ones! You beat the tar out of Gaira when he tried to take a bite out of Irys a few days ago."
Gigan didn't care as much that the world was no longer seen through a red filter. He instead was too fixed on what was made visible as parts of Monster X's armor fell away. Lodged under the pale ivory and erupting from the black skin were scales. Scute-like, dull gold scales; ones Gigan dreaded ever seeing again. His arms sparking as the servos locked to try and keep X from pushing down and crushing him, Gigan called out in a panic.
"You're one of the best of us. You would never act like this!"
The Xilian kaiju didn't verbally respond, only snarling with curled lips under the mental strain. His eyes began to hum with an all too familiar yellow glow. Muscle force was overpowering Gigan's machinery, forcing the cyborg to the ground on his knee. His outer plating was beginning to be dented in by the Xilian kaiju's iron crushing grip.
"I know you can hear me X, so remember and wake the hell up!"
The glow on X's eyes subsided and his face frozen, his eyes slamming shut as he painfully grimaced. After several tense moments and harsh breathing, the kaiju snapped his head back up to a neutral expression. Through all the haze and the static, he'd recognized an ally's voice. The visions had subsided, he could see and hear again. Monster X looked around with a clear look of confusion on his face as he stopped pushing against his friend.
"... Gigan? What's, what's going on? There was this voice and-"
His eyes widened as Gigan spied a yellow glow crossing his face. Without warning, X gripped Gigan's forearms and threw his weight to the side, tossing the cyborg out of the way. The Xilin kaiju didn't have time to dodge for himself.
"Watch out!"
Triple, lightning like beams of gravitons slammed into Monster X and threw him across the chamber and against the wall in a loud crash, as Gigan tumbled across the floor. Mist spewing out from his maws, Grand King Ghidorah's uttered a low chuckle through the frigid air. Stepping over and crushing some rubble dislodged from the wall during the fight underfoot, Ghidorah cocked an eyebrow as the smoke kicked up by X's impact began to clear.
"So, I sensed you called for me whelp?..."
The smoke and rubble cleared, Monster X fell out of the imprint he'd made on the wall as more shards of his armor was shed. Blood dripping from his maw like drool, surging pain ripped through his back. Something was trying to force its way out of his torso armor. He clenched his hands against the floor, claws visibly growing in size and stabbing into the obsidian as the muscles powering through their stressed with tightened veins. Tails lashing like whips, he glared at the golden dragon with blazing eyes, while climbing to his feet. X had completely lost it. A roar not of his own shook the temple.
"Ghidoooooraaaaaaaah!"
Psychic and gravitational energy strangled the entire chamber as it coursed out of the berserk kaiju like an explosion. The walls began to rumble and crack, as visible strands of energy coiled around the bleeding X. Many pieces of debris were blown away by gale force winds, sent flying in all directions. King Ghidorah sneered, energy crackling in one of his maws before firing another barrage of graviton beams. The energy around X magnified just before impact. Snarling, he threw a viscous, energy charged back hand and deflected the attack into a nearby wall. Despite his hand smoking, X showed no sign of pain as he kicked off the ground and sprinted forward towards a surprised Ghidorah. The golden drake recognized the shape X's aura was forming, smelling its dark power, and remembered. How could he forget? He fought that shape over three centuries ago. An apocalyptic clash almost split a continent apart with no clear winner. But of anything in the millions of eons King Ghidorah had encountered, that shape was one of only two that nearly killed him.
When he failed to sense it during the Final War, Ghidorah had believed it to be gone. He feared he'd be unable to seek revenge without a real opponent arising. He was wrong. And somewhere in the black pit the golden dragon had for a soul, amidst torrents of rage and loathing he bore for what monstrosity was rapidly approaching its advent, Grand King Ghidorah was afraid of it. Eyes widened, King Ghidorah flapped his broad wings to try and back up as the black and pale kaiju closed in. Energy flared across Monster X's eyes and Ghidorah's maws before a flash of purple light blinded the hall.
In that split second, Monster X, and what he was becoming; were gone. A purple and black swirling vortex of a portal stood in his place. Bagan's cocoon pulsed with identically colored light, dimly illuminating the chamber as Irys and Megalon rushed in. Gigan and Ghidorah never took their eyes off the portal, as Megalon and Irys helped the former up to his feet. Dark energy slithered through the chamber, fallen debris levitating up and returning to its housings and causing the walls to repair themselves. After several pulses, the throne room was completely repaired and Bagan's cocoon dimmed. The portal withered away into wisps of shadow blown away by a chilled breeze. The master's command was blunt and commanding.
"Return to your quarters, the issue has been dealt with..."
Gigan jolted up a bit, stumbling from the rapid motion before Irys and Megalon propped him up. His body was damaged from the battle, his voice box occasionally glitching despite his strong tone.
"Whe-Whe-Where!? Where di-di-di-did you send-t-nd him!?"
The glow across Bagan's throne subsided completely, the hum dying down.
"Do not pay any heed. He is still alive and well. I have sent him where he will do no harm. He will be retrieved when he has calmed... Now, return."
Bagan ignored the now muffled words of his forces; Irys and Megalon in particular all bombarding him with question after question. They demanded a lot. They demanded Monster X be returned. They demanded to know where specifically he'd sent their teammate. They demanded and volunteered to go in after him. Demands were to be ignored. It took quite some time for his silence to spread to them. Slowly, the kaiju departed from chamber according to their group, some on saddened, trudging feet. Irys braced her hand against the newly reformed wall as she slung Gigan's arm over her shoulders. Considering all that had just transpired, her mild shock was forgivable. She kept her voice low, glancing back to the throne room.
"...We're still going after him right?"
Megalon was the first to enthusiastically reply.
"Darn tootin'! No one is getting left behind!.... Brother?"
Megalon noticed his siblings lack of enthusiasm and response. Gigan limped along with them, still sparking ever so often from his joints or wrists. The elder cyborg kept his head low, a broken visor barely illuminated by a dim eye. He said nothing. The two looked to him for a time, before slowly looking ahead. They walked in silence for a time, approaching their quarters. Stepping inside, the two younger kaiju helped to set Gigan down; his sails retracting as he leaned against it. Small wisps of dark energy trickled up from the ground and slithered onto the Nebulan kaiju's body. Dented metal was flipped back out into the proper alignment, loose wires were tucked back under his shell; and his visor slowly began to reconstruct itself. The master had made a promise of repairs, and so long as Gigan dwelt in the temple, he and his sibling would get such. Irys looked over the slowly retreating wounds and damage.
"Ghidorah roughed you up that badly?
She clenched her jaw. She had felt the energy coming off the golden hydra earlier. It was quite possibly the second most heinous signature she'd detected in all her days and years; right after her master. She understood why X told their group to stay clear of him. Sparks pinged against the wall as Gigan looked up slightly, a new mandible forming out from his cheek.
"Ghido-dor-dorah didn't do this to me... X did."
"WHAT?!"
"That's why for now, he's safe but best left alone."
Megalon threw his arms up in the air, his horn crackling with electricity while he stomped his feet in a tantrum.
"What are you talking about?! We can't just leave him! We don't even know where Boss Ball sent him! We just need to calm him down and get him back! And why would he attack you?!"
Irys dipped her head down slightly, closing her eyes and sifting through her thoughts. She'd lost an abusive, cannibalistic, murderous flock more akin to a locust horde than any flock. In the past few days though, she caught a taste of what having a real flock was like. A bit uneven, at times chaotic, and maybe a bit small; but still good. Her first 'good'. Losing a horde nearly broke her, a chance at losing a potential family, a real family, was a one risk she was never taking laying down.
"Look, I'm the new one here. I may not get why X flipped out, why he attacked you; or even most of what's going on... But I'm still going after him. I'm not losing anything else this year."
Surprisingly, Gigan actually nodded to her; sitting himself down cross-legged before motioning for the other two to hunker down.
"We are going for him, first chance we get. But for now, trust me, I think it's best the Xilian be left alone to calm down. We can't risk bringing him back so soon, not with Ghidorah around. I almost managed to get through to him, but with that hydra walking about he'll just go berserk again. Then we all risk losing something Irys."
Irys crouched down across from Gigan, tilting her head slightly. Some bits of information repeatedly made no sense to the gyaos.
"So, do you know why he went berserk?"
"It's not a memory I ever wanted to tell... But given current circumstance, breaking that embargo. Stay put you two, story time."
Meglon plopped down next to Irys with a loud thud reverberating through the floor, bracing his chin against the tips of his drills with gleaming eyes. The younger cyborg was surprisingly quiet. Gigan held his jaws firm for a moment, testing his new mandible before speaking. None of the three were aware that the dark wisps trickling away from Gigan's repairing body heard everything.
"It was about one hundred orbits, about 100 Terran years ago. Megalon hadn't been constructed yet. A few Xilian outposts on some scattered asteroids and dwarf planets had been destroyed. The fleet grew suspicious and they along with the allied Nebulan forces took off after the cause of the destruction. X and I were both deployed when they tracked it down to a large planet the Xilians used to have an outpost on."
Gigan paused briefly, remembering landing upon a frozen wasteland that had once been a mining facility; his feet stomping down and launching tons of snow into the air upon touch down. The winds were churning, shards of ice and frost bouncing off his metal and shell. He remembered his old friend at the time setting down beside him. Then above the screeching winds, a cackling roar accompanied by lightning rang out.
"...That when we both encountered the bringer of the destruction for the first time, King Ghidorah."
"And, what happened? Did you beat him back?"
"The fight lasted hours, but we weren't winning. Maybe it was because X was fresh off deployment elsewhere and hadn't rested, maybe something else was messing with his head; maybe it was because I hadn't been upgraded in awhile. Any or either way, we were losing...."
"And then?"
"... And then something happened to X. Imagine what happened today, but even worse. He turned into something I knew nothing of... H-... It, nearly killed Ghidorah, who then retreated...."
Gigan could practically feel the numbing cold of the blizzard as he struggled to stand. Sparks were flying everywhere due to one of his arms having been blown off at the shoulder. An echoing, bellowing roar drowned out the gale force winds. A massive, triple necked form approached him from the snow's shadows. There was a yellow glow from its fanged maws as Gigan tried to focus enough to teleport to safety.
"Understand this... I'm telling you now because it almost happened again today, we were seconds away from the event horizon. After it mauled King Ghidorah, it nearly killed me..."
"I-it?"
"That, Thing, it was not X.... It was not X..."
Elsewhere, the dark deity waited for isolation to set in, before he shifted inside his cocoon. The outer shell reigniting with malefic energies, a swirling portal was opened before the throne. The floor at the chamber's entrance rose and sealed it off from the rest of the temple. He was completely alone now. Perfect.
Closing his multiple sets of eyes, Bagan opened a small hole in his cocoon. Instantly the chamber's already cold temperature plummeted, ice crystals and frost forming on the floors and statues as the lanterns were snuffed out. Lips curled back, a cloud of obsidian black and blood red energy vomited out of his maw and into the room. The orb resealed itself as the glowing mass of energy began to take shape. Multiple sets of glowing red orbs shown through the dark haze. Spiked knuckles and feet scraped the black ground, a vaguely simian form taking its full shape. Extinction had summoned one of it's Aspects, and the opened portal across the room gave it its path. The Xilian creature was a good asset, but it's recent outburst of power spoke of something even more mighty. Housing such a monstrosity in Zenith would only complicate matters, necessitating the portal. But, if he couldn't direct such power; he could absorb it. Calling forth an aspect was draining, but the possible reward outweigh the risk a dozen fold. The risk was manageable. After all, Monster X was vulnerable now. Bagan's cocoon pulsed with his words.
-"Enjin, acquire the kaiser energy... Leave the body when you are done..."-
The oni-like Aspect let out a whooping howl, homing in on his target's life force like a bloodhound on a scent, and rushing through the portal as it closed behind him.
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Oh boy! New chapter! ^_^
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Just because it's my birthday doesn't mean no one else gets presents! Enjoy!
That is awesome. And I have to say, Jr looks good in the blue armor.
HAPPY BIRTHDAY!
so....i can tell who the first death will be....
anyway, keep up the good work
Merrow?
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I find this incredibly heart warming.
Again, heart warming. Now that helmet better grow with him the next time he bulks up, seeing him with a Nightguard helmet would probably put lots of ponies at ease.
GO GET HIM X!!!!
Megalon's nickname of Boss Ball for Bagan is hilarious!
But now I want to see Junior and X tag teaming King Ghidorah. Or all of X's new family backing him up so he can put his demons to rest.
Is Gigan taking about Keizer Ghidorah?
5788637
Seriously? Well then, this looks like a job for President Kougami:
data.archive.moe/board/m/image/1289/77/1289775521638.jpg
Meanwhile, things only continue to get worse for our favorite Xilian (seriously, X needs a hug. Badly). Let's hope that the rest of the Hunters can get to him before Enjin does.
...Speaking of which, it occurs to me that I've never actually heard the word "Xilian" spoken aloud. I've been pronouncing it Zill-ian for a while (mainly because it rolls off the tongue easily), but how do you pronounce it? Is there an agreed-upon pronunciation for it?
5788734 Monster X...
5788830
Kaiser (or Keizer) Ghidorah refers to Monster X's transformed state. It's a different character than King Ghidorah.
5788858
it has FOUR legs instead of two!
5788860
Indeed it does. Incidentally, Desghidorah was also a quadruped.
So for those keeping count, there's a total of three different Ghidorahs so far:
The classic, instantly recognizable King Ghidorah,
image2.chaobuoisang.net/2014/07/27/godzilla-doi-dau-ba-quai-vat-huyen-thoai-trong-phim-moi-2.jpg
The more obscure Desghidorah, villain of the Rebirth of Mothra series,
kaijubattle.net/uploads/2/9/5/7/29570123/332863078_orig.jpg
And the most mysterious of them all, Kaiser Ghidorah, alter-ego of Monster X.
geekedoutnation.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/06/Godzilla.jp_-_Keizer_Ghidorah.jpg
I. Just. Wow this is amazing
Oh man, I really needed a new chapter of this.
First off I was going to go all out on that "Heroes don't kill" comment but no, I think Beatrice got that covered. At least someone isn't blind. Though I think it was out of fear but eh, points still there.
And X... well shit. I wasn't expecting it to be so soon. Though the nightmare with the wings coming out was probably a very clear indication that it was going to happen.
I got to say, is Ghidorah some kind of stupid? Before hand, he was egging X into a fight or something but now when Kaiser starts emerging, apparently he's afraid of it. Like what, were you expecting to fight just X even though it would likely set off what's inside?! Ya just a dumb. With that in mind, I get the feeling if X some how ends up back in EG verse, he's going to go ballistic on Sonata since she's also a factor in waking Kaiser. Which would be interesting to see how it looks in that verse.
One last thing... I really do like Thalia's design. Maybe it's the mane, but regardless she looks awesome.
Happy birthday. I enjoyed watching Rodan's bonding with the children and Junior getting into the Night Guard (and his confusion about why Blade Dancer would be disturbed if he was a growing boy). Your reinterpretation about the importance of Chuckle-Lot and some backstory if Celestia's rule was great and I liked that nod to Season 5 by making Moonbeam a sister to Sunlight Glimmer. The confrontation between Ghidorah and X was awesome and the future conflict between X and Enjin is exciting. Thanks for the great chapter.
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Merrow is Irish for mermaid or siren. I think a return to Equestria Girls is coming.
WOOOOOOO
"Do a barrel roll!"
STARFOX!!!!
Happy Birthday!
Well, happy birthday to you. I hope you like a funny video. Happy Birthday.
5789122
I was going to mention why in a future chapter, but I'll just throw it in now. The last time King Ghidorah met X in person, it was during Final Wars. There, he sensed X was distressed by his presence, but detected not a whiff of who was 'sitting in the passenger seat'. Seeing X repeatedly in stressful situation with no sign of his alter ego and knowing X was meant to be controlled kaiju, it made Ghidorah believe something had happened to remove the transformation. So there wasn't an issue any more of thinking Kaiser was going to pop up. And to Ghidorah's credit, for X not to transform during Final Wars or during the first time he tried invading X's mind (it was to check and see if anyone else was awake in their); seemed like a clear sign Kaiser Ghidorah was gone.
He didn't know X had been exposed to Siren magic, which unlocked the beast's cage.
PS: Faithy did a great job drawling her! If you want to see my friend Jerga's (her creator) efforts, here's a link
http://tgbjerga.deviantart.com/art/New-Thalia-Reference-Sheet-EDIT-455825591
Happy birthday and great chapter!
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Awww thanks guys and gals!
5788673
Who?
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"Try a somersault!"
5789153
Yah I didn't want to use Starlight outright given
1. Don't know much of her backstory at the moment
2. Might mess up canon
So I took the relation card. As for Celestia, I'll at admit this was a minor jab at the 'Tyranestia' and 'NLR' crowd. So I put it that in the past, some of the populace might have seen her as exactly that and things might have gotten ugly, but she was clearly a benign ruler and found some clever ways to prove that to the populace, thus undermining the detractor's accusations. And heck, I had to find SOMEWAY to explain why she was a Princess and not a Queen.
5788813
Depends on the dub I think. I'll have to rewatch the dub or sub of 'Monster Zero' or 'Final Wars' to check but I think it's pronounced 'Zil-lien'. Spelling wise I've seen it spelled both Xilien and Xilian.
I'll make a note for someone to give X a hug in the future.
5789473 No prob.
You have a rockin' birthday.
Happy birthday, Tarbtano. another great chapter. I bow to you
Happy birthday man, thanks for the chapter.
I'd usually write a lngthy critique now, but I need to finish some work first, so hopefully that will follow soon, or I'll save it for when the story is finished.
A great chapter, really, loved it, the only thing that I didn't like, that really ruffled me wrong was the overuse of the over-long triple barrelled names. 'Rose Desert Luck', 'Francis 'Fancy' Oliver Pantero', and that ridiculously overbearing lung full you saddled Celestia and Luna with, they were completely unnecessary, and dragged my enjoyment level of the story down. I see my reaction as a bit over the top, but it REALLY bothered me, and soured an otherwise great chapter, ponies don't have names like humans, in Equestria it's not a strange thing to have a name like Roseluck, or Luna, and then not only did you show the names in a newspaper article, (newspapers which often over exaggerate, and in Equestria why wouldn't they expand a name to make it look more official) but you then had Luna refer to Celestia with that name, giving off the impression that now that you'd done it, you wouldn't let it go.
Sorry, ranted a bit there, but things like that really bother me.
Great chapter, can't wait to see what X does when the Oni catches up to him.
Keep up the good work and happy birthday again
Critique to follow soon
Honora Imperator
Liked how Luna got the idea from AJ's letter to try and quell the fears of those who are afraid of the six main Kaiju by having Rodan put on an air show. X's rampage while Kaiser Ghidorah was attempting to gain control was something I thought would come later in the story. Btw, happy birthday, Tarbtano.
5789645
Sorry it ruined the chapter for you. But I think you are overthinking it a bit. Because in both the show and Expanded Universe have had characters call by long names before, Pinkamina Diane Pie being most notable. And I figured that since the sisters come from an ancient time, they would naturally have names like the way they do. It was also a tribute to another fan work I liked, and to the credit most of the names made sense (Valencia Orange is actually a type of citrus breed for instance, and Alexandria means 'Defender of the People', fitting for Tia; and I actually did know a Francis who went by 'Fancy')
Still if it bothered anyone else I will go back and remove it. I already went back and toned it down some.
Well now we understand. Yokai includes tengu, of which Enjin is. He is the hunter who is going after Monster X/Kaiser Ghidorah. I wonder how this will affect his human form. You know this is also the beginning of the rift between X's group and the Lord of Extinction. After all they look after their own and this betrayal is just what Harmony needs to bring them to her side.
5789473 It's your birthday?? Happy birthday!
Great
5789710 Great chapter, HAPPY BIRTHDAY
, and what fan work would you be referring to?
5790016
Seen the names in several stories or pictures. Earliest source I could find was these ID cards made by a DoctorXFizzle on DeviantArt. Sadly the DA account that made them is down now but I found them again on Pinterest.
https://www.pinterest.com/MeganAFreelove/pony-lisences/
...HAAHAHAHAHAH!
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qI0RoJz7Tno
my lord this is so hilarious! so let me get this straight: killing = BAD making horrible, slow and torturing punishment, for all eternity = GOOD
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lhckuhUxcgA
This was awesome, except now I wan't to know what happens next, DAMNIT! The setup's are so great.
Well then . . . I think I'll keep this short and simple.
The entire scenes with Rodan are heartwarming and nice to see after everything we've been through in the recent chapters- what with Sombra and the gyaos attack on Canterlot. I also like that both sides are being represented equally here. Not everyone is saying exactly why they do or don't trust Junior, but are merely stating their opinions out of fear or admiration.
Heartwarming scene of Junior becoming an official guard is heartwarming.
I liked that you include Derpy without stating her name in the list of characters who appear. Nice surprise.
DO A BARREL ROLL! Good job, always funny.
The Superman bit, not so much . . .
While I was reading this chapter I actually came to the conclusion that Luna did, though not the same exact solution. I figured that the best way to show that the kaiju were not evil monstrosities was to expose them enough to the public that they'd see their opinions were wrong- though, granted, that would require some time that they may not have. But Luna's plan might work to some degree and I like that it was inspired by Celestia's actions in the past.
Now for the name. Alexandria Celestia Alicor. A twelve-beat, even numbered, name that does in fact mean "protector of the people". I like that, though would've put it as Celestia Alexandria Alicor to keep in line with the common theme of having the "human"-like part of the name being in the middle. Pinkamina Diane Pie, best example; second example I can think of, Rainbow Jennifer Dash.
The entire thing with X might have been better to wait for, as we're still recovering from the events of the Crystal Empire, by at least another chapter. But that's just my opinion. All in all it's nothing I didn't expect, but it is nice to see that Bagan's attempt or procuring of the kaiser energy will be the cause of Team X's, as I am now officially dubbing them, defaction.
Only one problem with this chapter. Needs more Anguirus.
Okay joking but seriously you could've traded out the Monster X drama for catching up with both Rodan and Anguirus.
Happy birthday! And as always, the list chapter leaves me eagerly awaiting the next
Happy birthday and Great chapter, looking forward next time.
Quick question, is the next chapter going to be big or beyond medium?
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on my phone at the moment so I'll type out a full response when I get to a computer. sorryifbthe X part seem out of place but it was the best I could do. I have to put it in soon or else the plot arc for it would have been very rushed, so it was a case of either I put it in now, or wait until we're in the middle of Roda, Any, and Des's parts. So I put it in before the ball got fully rolling with those three, so could set up a status quo for it and then come back to it later
Man I'm such a sucker for the Anteverse Kaiju, or well anything Pacific Rim related for that matter. So it was nice to see them get some screen time, even if it was just being in the way of X for a moment.
I also really enjoyed the debate between Moonbeam Glimmer and Horson Wells (icwudt). Overall the scene was a creative way to give the reader an idea of the repercussions of the gyaos incident, without any jarring transitions or pure exposition dumps. An impressive feat in it of itself.
You know, I thought I'd recognize Thalia and Dallas the moment I read those names in the story.
5790413
Darn, I like reading novels
(just kidding)
Glad you like the idea I had Luna come up with, as well as a bit of history on Celestia's rule. I figured that right after Nightmare Moon's banishment, before history forgot the connection between her and Celestia, there may have been some fear or chaos. Some would see it as Celestia trying a power grab and take up arms in Luna's name, and others would just see the whole situation with am immortal, demi-god sitting on a throne with fear. People (and ponies for that matter) often first react to something far more powerful than themselves.
I will agree on the name part, that organization must have skipped my mind. I'll switch the middle and first name around.
And don't worry, Anguirus, Destroyah, Rodan, and some of our favorite Mane 6 are going to appear plenty in the upcoming chapters. I have some humerus, heartwarming, and hopefully a few thoughtful scenes in mind with them. The reason X popped up was both because it be much easier to get his mini-arc's ball rolling now rather than later; least it occur in the middle of the current arc and risk muddying the plot (which it would have done if I waited too long). I actually would have held it off for one more chapter, however I did have another purpose for it. One theme in this chapter is how both the Kaiju themselves and how Equestria reacts to them. Currently, Equestria is split right down the middle, with some saying the Kaiju should be feared, and some saying they shouldn't be judged so quickly and can do good. Rodan and Junior certain displayed that some Kaiju are good and moral beings who don't deserve as much fear as they sometimes get. However, by showing X's rampage, it does show the fearful Equestrians do have a point. Even as a fairly moral antagonist, certain circumstances (one named Kaiser Ghidorah) can make X very dangerous and should be feared.
So basically I was trying to show both sides of the coin.
First, I would like to wish you a happy birthday.
I read this chapter just before going to work this morning. It is now 13 hours later, and I have had proper time to consider my responce.
The writing, paceing and charaterizations are up to your usual high standard. My only complaint would be the sudden cut off. Since this is your normal writing style, there is little that need be said there.
Reguarding the teasers and build up, however... That my interpretation was slightly off is no surprise. I am tempted to interprete the fact that only the first trailer's quote applied to this chapter as an indication that each trailer quote will be first delt with in seperate chapters, but time will tell.
What anoyed me, however, was the realization that the reflection hinted at by the reversed spelling hapened in Unbekannte Soldat and was referenced solely by the interaction between X and Grand King Ghidorah. For this, I name you Grendleson, for only Beowolf's foe could beget such an epic troll.
Now, on to a question. Kaiju are typicly reduced to be in scale with typical Equestrians. However, it could be said that the various Ghidorahs resemble the unholy offsping of an Equestrian Dragon and an Equestrian Hydra. So, when not powered up, just how big would Kaiser Ghidora be? Three meters? Ten? Fourty-five? Eighty?
If Harmony were to see that Gigan cares about X despite having badly beaten once before when Kaiser Ghidorah managed to get loose and he's willing to go against Bagan's orders to try and save X, I can see her as viewing him capable of redemption.
Happy Birthday to you sir. And I hope its a good one.
Okay, first of all, loved the part with Rodan. Very warming to read and fun to imagine. Second, Godzilla's armor was frickin awesome. Third, HELL YES! Keizer Ghidorah is one of my favorite Godzilla monsters. Absolutely loved the part with Gigan vs X part. Also, King Ghidorah being terrified by Keizer was funny to me. I sure hope Keizer comes out fully and goes on a massive killing spree! HAHAHAHAHAHAHA!!!!!
....Ya...I'm weird.
That picture? WHY?!! Godzilla's cute! *HNNNG!* I think I can survi- *sees the cute filly from before* DED!
Still, it seems that the populace is rather naïve about things, but given how their problems are usually solved by a few heroes, and the fact that they are herbivorous animals and it's only natural for them to fear predators, it's understandable. Makes me wonder what plan Luna's concocting.
That's certainly something with X.............Calling it, he's back in the Equestria Girls world. He's a normal human there...for the most part. I'm sure a certain siren will appreciate it.........Curse my need to ship Aria/X, but darn it Tarb, you got me to ship it!
Great chapter overall and please keep up the marvelous work.
Dang. Things are getting awesome.
OMG Luna is falling for Junior Please Please Have them Kiss once before you end this series just once on the lips with passion just once will be good enough for me