//------------------------------// // Chapter 1: Bedtime Story // Story: Beasts from Within // by ThatOneOtherGuy //------------------------------// | Many Years Ago | The night had fallen across the land. The wind howled as it flew through the trees before brushing up against the mountains that stood on the earth. The river was calmly feeding water into the lakes of the valley which reflected the many lights and colors of the moonlit night. The moon shined brightly as it cast its lunar rays, lighting up the world while the sun had lowered to rest. Every star in the sky twinkled and sparkled as each one had their own story to tell, whether it be of warriors, kings, or even gods. It was a beautiful sight for anypony to see. A village deep in the valley was gearing up after another long day. Through all the work of chopping down trees, farming the freshly grown crops, or fishing near the creak, everypony had earned a night of rest and reconciliation with the ones they loved. As each mare and stallion started to head for their homes, one certain pony slowly trotted through the busy streets. His body was covered with a cloak that kept most of his figure hidden as he carried a small bag filled with certain foods and other groceries that swayed side to side as he walked. He looked around the village as he walked and took in the looks of the fellow mares and stallions. There was one thing they all had in common, they looked so happy. Everypony that he walked past seemed so full of positivity, whether from the younglings or even the fully-grown. It gave him this certain sense of warmness as he watched them go about saying goodbye to their fellow companions after a long day of work or tell their fillies and colts to come inside else their dinner would get cold. He walked past the brightly lit houses until he reached one of the houses that stood on the outskirts of the village. It looked to be a bit older than some of the other buildings, but it shined just as bright as the others. Inside of the house were two colts running past chasing each other. They wore pretend armor and held fake wooden swords as they laughed and taunted each other. “You can run for only so long, little equine, for I, Rodeias the grand, the greatest warrior in all of Equestria will have you bow to me”, he said as he flew after his brother who was a normal pony. The pegasus had a light red color scheme along his body, wings, and tail while his mane and eyes were a maroonish and greenish color respectively. “Hahaha, you’re all talk and no tell, come down from there and I’ll show you who to bow down to”, laughed the young pony as he rounded a corner and stopped in the living room. His skin color was a darkish gray while his mane was a light gray and he had amber eyes. Although the pegasus was in the air, it was clear that the colt was taller with his bigger limbs. The pegasus merely scoffed as he stayed in the air. “Why would I do that when I can have my servant do all my dirty work”, he said as he called out to his ‘servant’ in a cocky tone of voice. “Oh dear loyal servant of mine!” The two waited for him, but he never arrived so the pegasus called out again. “He’s just a little shy, oh servant!” Once again, there was nothing which caused the young pegasus to become upset as he called out once more with annoyance in his voice. “Hey, servant, what’s taking you so long?” The young colt, who was also getting impatient, looked behind the doorway to the living room, “Psst, Aang, that’s your cue”, he said. With that said, another pony, this one even younger, slowly stepped out from behind the doorway. He wore a helmet that was way too big for him as it covered his eyes and rested on his nose and he wielded another fake wooden sword that was just as big as he was. His skin color was light brown, he had a chocolate brown mane which was noticeable spikey, and his eyes were similar to his pony brother with them having an amber color. He looked to be confused as he lifted his helmet over his eyes with his hoof. “But I don’t want to be the servant”, he said in a high pitched voice. His two older siblings both groaned. “We told you, you have to be his servant since he’s the only other character in the story”, said the colt. “Unless you want to be the princess”, mocked the pegasus which caused Aang to stick out his tongue. “Eww, no way, that’s a girl's role. I want to be a knight.” “You can’t, I’m already filling the role”, said the gray colt. This caused Aang to cross his forelimbs as he sat on his rear. “Fine, I’ll be the servant”, he pouted. His helmet slipped and covered his eyes, causing him to be unable to see. This caused his siblings to laugh as they resumed their play. “You could have a thousand servants and it still wouldn’t matter, I have been fighting for many years”,said the colt triumphantly. “We’ll just see about that”,said the pegasus as he flew down with his sword in the air. The colt and pegasus charged toward each other and clashed their swords together, causing a hard knocking sound from the wooden material of their swords. They banged their swords against each other a couple of times, adding in swooshing and slashing noises as they pretended to sword fight. Aang tried to join in, but with his small size and lack of sight due to his helmet, he ended up knocking into the back of his older pony brother causing them both to fall over. The pegasus merely flew up as the two tripped over themselves. When the older colt tried to stand up, he was met with the pegasus standing over him with his sword out and a cocky smile on his face. “Told you that I would make you bow to me”, he said confidently. “No fair”, said the colt as he stood up. “Aang knocked me over, I want a due over.” Aang, the youngest of the three, was still on the floor trying to stand while also fixing his helmet at the same time. “I was just trying to help Rodey.” “Yeah, and Aang is my servant, which means he helps me, which means that I won”, said the pegasus triumphantly and with a hint of arrogance. The oldest filly got upset and clenched his teeth. “You just needed his help because you know that I could easily beat you in knights”, he said with a bit of anger. “You wanna bet”, said the pegasus, flaring his wings up and getting in the face of his colt brother. The colt stood to his full height. He was obviously taller than the pegasus, but that didn’t cause either of them to back away. “I would, but unfortunately with how poor you are, you don’t have anything that I would want, so I won’t.” The colt gave his brother a cocky smile of his own which he did not appreciate. “Why you little-“, the pegasus tackled his brother and the two of them started to wrestle. Aang laughed at his brothers as they tumbled and rolled on the wooden floor, trying to gain the upper hand. The colt managed to get on top of his brother and pinned him down. However, he used his wings to smack the colt in the head, causing him to lose his grip and back away. The pegasus got up and managed to knock his brother to the ground, pinning him instead. “Guess it was a good thing we didn’t bet”, laughed the pegasus. Before his brother could say anything, their play was interrupted by a loud, stern voice from behind them. “Rodan, stop messing with your brother and get off of him”, exclaimed a deep voice. The pegasus, named Rodan, looked up and was met with an older pony looking down at him. He stood tall with Rodan only reaching below the height of his forelimbs. He had a similar color scheme to the young colt with a dark gray body color, while his mane and tail were black with gray streaks going along it. His hoofs each had black highlights on the end of them. His eyes were similar in that they were amber colored, but more pronounced with red irises. The biggest difference was that on his hind leg was a special symbol, a cutie mark. This one was in the pattern of a dragon with its back covered in blue flames. Rodan stepped off his brother while his wings lowered and folded behind him. “Sorry, dad. We were just playing”, said Rodan in a soft tone of voice. His father gave him a stern look. “I know, but you two need to be less rough when you play. One of you two could’ve been hurt”, he said sternly. The two colts stood next to each other with their ears lowered. “We’re sorry”, they both said. The father, seeing as though they were apologetic, got a cheeky idea. “And besides, when trying to catch someone off guard, you need the element of-“, he lowered his head and grabbed the older colt with his maw and lifted him in the air. “Surprise!” “Hey, put me down!”, laughed the colt as he kicked his legs in the air while trying to break free from his fathers grip. Rodan laughed and spread his wings before flying in the air and landing on his father’s back. “I got you, bro”, he said. Their father stumbled into the living room as he held the weight of two colts which would soon become three. Aang watched his brothers climb on their father and wanted to join in. So he took off his fake helmet and ran over. As their father was distracted, he jumped and grabbed one of his hind legs which were much larger than him. “Surprise!”, he yelled out. The three brother’s father pretended to fall over on his side, letting go of the oldest of the three colts as the three climbed on top of him. “Make sure he can’t get up”, called out Rodan as he hugged his father’s legs. The three of them laughed which was contagious enough for their father to join in. As they played, another pegasus walked in on them playing. Her body was of a white color scheme but with red highlights on her hooves and the ends of her wings. Her mane and tail were a golden brown color which gave a natural beauty that called for attention. She smiled as she watched her spouse play with their children. “Hehe, okay boys, get off your father before you feel his wraith”, she called out in a playful tone. The three colts stopped playing but Rodan let out a snort. “We have him pinned, there’s no way he can get up with all three of us…”, before Rodan could finish his sentence, his father managed to slowly stand up with all three of them still on him. Now it was his mother who let out a small laugh. “You were saying”, she said with an eyebrow raised. Rodan didn’t say anything as his father walked over to his spouse with the three brothers still on him. She stood a bit shorter than him which she took advantage of by nuzzling into his neck. “How was work today, honey”, she asked. “Better now that I’m here with you, Velvet”, he said while looking into her green eyes. Their romantic moment was cut short when they heard a series of groans and disgust sounds. “Eww”, said the oldest colt. “This is so gross”, exclaimed Rodan. Aang stuck out his tongue to show he too was grossed out. Their father merely rolled his eyes as a response while Velvet laughed. “Oh pipe down, someday when you're older you’ll be acting the same way with your own loved ones”, he said. “Not me, I’m never gonna get married”, said the oldest colt who hugged his father’s back. Velvet couldn’t help but chuckle. “Alright you three, how about you climb off your father and come into the kitchen, dinner’s almost ready”, said Velvet in a motherly tone. After hearing that, the three climbed off their father and ran into the kitchen. When they were gone, the father stretched his limbs, especially his back, until he heard a popping sound. “Whew, thought they would never get off. I’m getting too old for this”, he said extracting a chuckle from Velvet. “Well, that’s what happens when you have three boys that love to play knights with their father”, she then gave him half opened eye lids and spoke in his ear. “Besides, I know how much you like to play rough”, the father stuttered as his pupils slightly shrunk. Velvet let out a laugh from this reaction. “I’m sorry, was that a bit much? This headache must be messing with my brain”, she said with a small blush. Her spouse couldn’t help but smile from his wife’s positive attitude. “It was definitely surprising, I’ll give you that”, he said. Velvet chuckled, however it didn’t last long as it was then followed by a series of coughs that got progressively worse. Her husband even showed concern for his wife as she coughed. “That cough is sounding worse”, he said with a look of worry. “We’re gonna have to take you to the hospital someday.” After she finished coughing, Velvet still managed to put a smile on her face. “I’m fine honey, it’s just a cold, it’ll blow over in a few days”, she said. Her husband didn’t seem to agree with this. “That’s what you said a few days ago and nothing much has changed”, he said, showing more worry in his voice. This caused Velvet’s smile to slightly dwindle as she listened to her husband. “I bought some more medicine and fruits to help with your sickness.” “You didn’t need to do that, honey”, said Velvet, trying to play off the situation, but her husband didn’t listen. “It doesn’t matter if I needed to or not, it’s my responsibility. For as long as I live, my family is my number one priority, and that includes taking care of the ones I love”, he said with pride. He stared into her eyes as he said this. Velvet couldn’t help but smile as she again nuzzled into her husband. “Thank you, Dagon”, she said quietly. Her husband smiled. “You’re welcome, Velvet.” Neither of them noticed this, but the oldest colt had been watching them throughout most of their conversation. Although he didn’t entirely understand what was happening, he knew just enough to show concern over his mother, as well as take in what his father had said. Before either of them noticed, he ran back into the kitchen to wait at the table for them. When dinner was finished and the dishes had been cleaned, the three brothers went back to playing with their pretend armor and swords, until their father walked in on them. “Okay you three, it’s time for bed”, he said. He was met with a flurry of disappointed groans. “But dad, can we please have a few more minutes”, asked Rodan. “No, your mother is very tired and it’s more than ten minutes past your bedtime. So come on, put your toys away and get ready for bed”, said Dagon. Sad that they couldn’t play anymore, the three brothers slowly trotted to their bedroom. Their bedroom wasn’t very large with one side having a single bed while the other side had a bunk bed. When they got there, they all jumped on to the lower part of the bunk bed and looked at Dagon in anticipation. He looked in confusion. “Come on boys, get into each one of your beds”, said Dagon. “But we wanna hear a story”, said Rodan with his brothers nodding in agreement. Dagonsighed but decided to roll with it hoping it would get them to sleep sooner. So he sat on his rear in front of the bed. “Alright then, what would you all want to hear”, he asked. The three brothers then started to talk over each other. “Oh, oh, I wanna listen to the story of the Wondercolts”, exclaimed Rodan. “What, no, I wanna listen to stories about warriors”, said the oldest colt. “I wanna hear the three little fillies”, said Aang. With each one of them talking over each other, naming different stories left and right, it didn’t take long for Dagon to get overwhelmed, though he couldn’t help but laugh. “Okay, calm down boys, one at a time”, he said. As Dagon spoke however, a certain thought came into his mind, one that caused his smile to fade as he thought about it. It wasn’t a pleasant thing to think about, but what made it even worse was who he was gonna have to share it with. He looked at his children, noticed the smiles and laughter across all three of them. He took a deep breath, he had thought of a story to tell them. “Hey, boys, why not I tell you a story of my own.” The three colts stopped talking over each other and looked at their father. “What kind of story”, asked Rodan. “Well, it’s less of a story and more so a legend. A legend that I think is about time you three learned”, said Dagon. The brothers stared at their father with intrigue and curiosity. “It’s time I tell you the legend of the kaiju.” The three brothers looked at each other with puzzled expressions. “What’s a…a Kai-chu”, asked the oldest brother. “It’s pronounced kaiju, and legend has it that millions upon millions of years ago, large creatures walked along what would soon be known as Equestria”, Dagon stated. The three colts looked with awe at what they heard. “You mean like dragons”, asked Aang. His father merely laughed. “These creatures were much larger than dragons, some could stand as tall as skyscrapers or even entire mountains”, said Dagon. Each one of the brothers’ jaws dropped to the floor when they heard that, this caused their father to smile as he continued. “They came in a variety of sizes, shapes, and colors. They could live on the land, in the sky, and even under the sea. Some were even capable of swimming in lava and tunneling through solid ground.” “What did they look like”, asked Rodan who was loving this story. “Well it’s hard to explain, but many resembled animals we have nowadays, such as birds, reptiles, and fish, as well as many creatures you would see here in Equestria such as dragons or griffons”, said Dagon as he continued. The three brothers were each fantasizing about what these creatures looked like, how big they were, how they would interact with other kaiju, or in the case of the oldest brother, what happened to them. Their thoughts were halted when their father started speaking again. “But it didn’t really matter, since their size alone made them be considered gods amongst natives or any species that existed back then”, said Dagon. The brother’s eyes were practically begging their father to continue. “Back then, they were credited for creating this planet which is what gave many of them their names, god of the mountains, god of the sky, and god of the sea. However, there was one kaiju that was the biggest and strongest of them all.” “Who”, asked Aang. “He was given the name, the god of destruction, however he’s mostly known for his nickname, the Alpha”, Dagon stated. The three brothers looked in awe from what they were told. “What did Alpha look like”, asked the oldest colt. His father replied with a shrug. “I’m not certain but he was described as a dragon without any wings, large spikes along his back, and had strong, muscular legs and tail”, Dagon explained. The three brothers tried to come up with a picture of what Alpha looked like, but they each had different images. Their father continued with his story. “As the world evolved, so did the kaiju. As each one of their species started to grow in numbers; the world had to adapt, shrouding most of the planet with luscious forests and large mountain ranges. As you can guess, the world back then was a lot different than what we have nowadays. However, as the planet grew stronger, so did the evil force within the crust that would soon break free of its rocky prison”, he said. The three leaned in as their father paused for dramatic effect. “This creature stood taller than any other titan, had a pair of wings that measured nearly a mile long, and had three long heads that had the combined strength to tear any smaller titan down a size. This monster’s name was Monster Zero”, said Dagon. Though he was whispering, he made sure to emphasize how scary Monster Zero was. Aang started to tremble in fear just thinking about what Monster Zero looked like. His brothers meanwhile were astonished with what they were hearing and practically begged their father to continue. “It seemed as though Monster Zero was unstoppable, with his superior size and power, no other titan could even compete with him. All except for one”, said Dagon. “Oh, oh, was it Alpha?”, interrupted Rodan who hoped in his spot with excitement. “You bet it was. It was stated that Alpha and Monster Zero were destined to fight and the winner would determine the fate of the world. If Alpha won, a new era of life would begin, but if Monster Zero won…” Their father paused as he tried to come up with a light hearted answer. “Let’s just say you wouldn’t want to live on that planet.” The oldest colt looked in awe and astonishment, Rodan looked with excitement with a big grin on his face, and Aang looked with fear after hearing how scary Monster Zero was. “Then what happened, then what happened”, asked Rodan with excitement. “It’s not entirely known but it’s believed that their battle was legendary. Mountains shattered, tidal waves hundreds of feet high, earthquakes powerful enough to cause entire continents to move or even sink into the ocean, the weather was filled with nonstop thunderstorms and hurricanes, the once green and lively land became completely flooded, the whole planet was tearing itself apart from the combined strength of these two titans”, exclaimed Dagon who was speaking a bit louder than normal. “It seemed their battle would last forever, until Alpha, despite being outmatched in terms of power and size, managed to defeat Monster Zero through his determination and way of life which taught him to never stop fighting. He forced Monster Zero back into the center of the planet where he stayed for the rest of his days, never to be seen or heard from again.” Dagon looked back at his children who looked absolutely flabbergasted at what they just heard. Aang especially was fully shaking while Rodan who looked so thrilled from the story. “That. Was. Awesome! What happened next? What happened next”, he said while practically flying in the air from his excitement. “Well… I don’t exactly know”, Dagon stated. The three brothers looked incredibly disappointed and confused after hearing that. Especially Rodan who had landed back on the bed with his wings folded behind him. “What, really”, asked the oldest brother who had stayed mostly silent throughout the story. “No one really knows what happened. Some believe that the battle between Alpha and Monster Zero had caused the extinction of the titans with how much they damaged the planet while others say that they never existed to begin with and that they were nothing more than myths that would be told as an excuse to explain why we’re here in the first place”, said Dagon who seemed a bit upset over that last thought. The three colts were in awe about what they were told, each one of them had different thoughts traveling through their minds. Aang was still mesmerized by the size and scale of the titans, Rodan was imagining just how epic of a fight it must’ve been between Alpha and Monster Zero, the oldest brother however was trying to think of a reasoning as to what caused the disappearance of the kaiju. “That’s the best story I’ve ever heard!”, exclaimed Rodan with excitement. “Yeah, that was an awesome story, and I’m happy that Alpha managed to beat Monster Zero. I don’t think I could’ve slept knowing something like that existed”, said Aang who looked just as excited as his brother. “So they just vanished”, asked the oldest brother who was noticeably confused . His father replied with a nod. “It’s unknown whether they even existed at all. There’s not much evidence to prove their existence since they lived so long ago”, said Dagon. The oldest colt then asked a question that the father wasn’t prepared to answer. “Do you think they existed?”, he asked with genuine curiosity. The father looked his son in the eyes. He had an answer but he didn’t know how to say it, he didn’t even know if it was right or not. He looked at all three of his children, they were waiting in anticipation for his answer. “Some ponies have different beliefs, some may consider the titans as mere legends while others chose to think that they still live even to this very day.” Dagon then gave each of his children a gentle smile. “But I believe in them as much as I believe that it’s time for you three to hit the haystack.” Dagon grabbed Aang and carried him to his own bed which was smaller than his brothers. Rodan meanwhile flew up to the top bunk. “I can’t believe that monsters used to live in Equestria”, said Rodan as he tucked himself into bed. “The kaiju aren’t monsters, Rodan. Just giant creatures that helped with the creation of this planet”, corrected Dagon. “Still though, we’re gonna have to come up with a new game where we act as kaiju and stomp around”, said Aang. His father couldn’t help but chuckle. “Well, you can come up with a game tomorrow, now go to sleep”, he said while tucking Aang into bed. As he started to walk away, the oldest brother spoke up. “Hey dad”, he said. “Do you think there’s ever a chance that the kaiju may return?” Once again, Dagon didn’t know how to answer. “There’s always a possibility that they may rise again, but I wouldn’t hold my breath on it.” He nuzzled the cheek of the oldest brother which caused him to laugh. “Hehe, ok, goodnight dad”, said the oldest brother. His father smiled. “Goodnight, Gojira.” With sleep finally taking the three colts over, their father turned off the lights and slowly closed the door. He wanted to make sure that they each fell asleep before heading back to his room. As he entered, Velvet was already in bed waiting for him. “Are the kids asleep,” she asked. Dagon nodded. “Did you tell them the story?” Reluctantly, he nodded. “It was best to tell them now than have to wait till they were older”, he said while crawling into bed until he was next to his wife. “Still, I’m not sure we should be doing this, they’re still children after all”, said Velvet. “I know, I’m not a big fan of it either, but if what Caesar says is true, then this will not only ensure the safety of our children, but for all of Equestria”, said Dagon. There was still that sense of fear that Velvet felt, and admittedly, so did Dagon. “But what if he’s not telling the truth, what if he’s wrong about what he says? What would happen then?”, she asked with a bit of anxiety in her voice. Velvet started to cough again which lasted for only a few seconds but forced her to lay her head against her pillow. “I just don’t want to see them get hurt”, said Velvet. Dagon couldn’t help but agree. He scooted over and lifted her head with his hoof until she was looking him right in the eyes. “There’s not a single day that passes where they’re not on my mind. Their priority is only rivaled by your own. But I’ve seen the vision. I’ve known Caesar for several years, and we can’t take the risk of him being wrong. As long as the three stay together, they will be fine. We just have to trust them”, said Dagon trying to comfort his wife. Velvet still didn’t seem convinced. She wanted to trust her husband, but the sense of fear that was ever prevalent kept her from fully believing. She laid her head against the pillow. “I just hope you’re right”, said Velvet. Dagon laid his own head against his pillow. Although his story of the titans went over well with his children, it was only grazing the surface for what was to come. As Velvet started to doze off, so did Dagon as he thought over how he told his story. He had been forced to let out a certain important detail. As the three brothers slept, the story of the kaiju stayed in the minds of all three of them, especially Gojira. He thought about what the titans looked like, where they lived, and what they did. And before he realized it, he was dreaming. He started to visualize the large scale of them, their heavy footsteps pounding against the ground, their loud commanding roars that were louder than any siren. It was astonishing. He then thought of Alpha, he could practically see him perfectly. Gojira saw him looking over the other titans, keeping each one of them in check. He looked to be such a grand and commanding figure, it was beautiful. But then it started to shift. The once blue sky turned dark and gloomy, blocking out the sun. Lighting struck the ground, causing entire trees to incinerate. Every titan that Gojira once saw suddenly vanished into thin air, this happened until only Alpha was standing. And then, he saw it. The dream he had come to be intrigued by had quickly turned into a nightmare. Loud ear-piercing roars could be heard as a large winged figure with three heads appeared out of nowhere. There was no doubt about it, this was Monster Zero. Gojira could see just how terrifying of a creature he was, and he could do nothing. He started to shift and turn in his bed to try and block out his dream. He tried to make himself wake up, but no matter how hard he tried, his eyes stayed closed. He started breathing heavier as the horrible image of Monster Zero was seemingly trapped in his mind and refused to leave. And before he knew it, his mind went blank. The sky returned to normal, the trees and forest had regrown, and any trace of Monster Zero had vanished. Unbeknownst to him, a figure was standing beside his bed. The figure was partially shrouded in a blue mist, however it was clear it wasn’t a pony. It stood in a slouched position with pale eyes, a snout, rows of what appeared to be fins on its back, and what looked like a tail. One of its hands was resting on top of Gojira’s head, rubbing its fingers against his temple and mane. It created a soft, warm feeling that helped calm Gojira down and finally allow him to rest. The figure watched as Gojira finally stopped tossing and turning and his normal breathing pattern returned. It reared its head up at the top bunk where another figure stood, or rather perched. It was in the shape of a bird with a pair of large wings, talons, and had a noticeable beak. It too was covered in mist but this time it was a dark red. Using its beak, it pulled the covers over Rodan who was oblivious to it all. The figures stared at each other and nodded before turning towards the other bed. There was another figure, but this one was covered in a light brown mist and was obviously a quadruped as it stood on four legs. It had a shell on its back, a spiked crest on its head, a tail, and a horn on the end of its snout. It looked over Aang who was fast asleep. It looked at the other two figures and nodded. The three met in the center of the room, blinked, and vanished, with not a single noise made or colt woken. It was almost as if they weren’t even there.