8: The Battle for Manehatten
“Let them fight.” -Ishiro Serizawa, Godzilla 2014
All was quiet as a thick fog began to settle in over Manehatten from the east. Then, the silence was broken as the Male MUTO let out a low trumpeting call as he cried for his mate. Then came the answer as the massive female walked into view carrying the Oxygen Destroyer. The Male held the crystals in his mouth, and together the two began exchanging ‘gifts’ of a sort. The female settled herself, and little by little began plopping eggs -each with a baby MUTO of their own inside- into a trench dug underneath Central Park.
The stage was set for a cataclysmic clash of Kaiju proportions and everyone knew after this nothing would ever be the same. The hall was rented, the orchestra was engaged and now the question on everyone in Monarch’s minds was could Mothra dance and could she save them.
Celeano heard the calls from her side of the city, even as she began hurrying ponies onto her newly… shall we say ‘borrowed’ ship, the Warbling Loon. Wasn’t her ideal choice in weather to fly in, but she had a unicorn working on the ship meaning they’d be able to cut through the fog easily enough. The real trouble was outrunning the MUTOs, and Mothra when she presumably got here.
“This city’s about to become a battleground, and I’d rather not be the one to get caught up in the middle of it…” Celeano murmured looking around her to see the crowded interior of the ship. It was jam-packed, filled to bursting and she couldn’t even load a quarter of the city’s population onto it. She was worried she wouldn’t be able to even get it off the ground.
“...Goddamit, wish I wasn’t so bloody useless! ...Picked a fine time to turn hero, Celeano old girl…” she thought to herself. Playing the dashing heroine wasn’t quite as easy as playing pirate as it turned out really.
She had eyed the strange cylinder the larger of the MUTOs was carrying, it looked like a weapon of some sort. Now Celeano wasn’t stupid, far from it. She knew an explosive when she saw it. She didn’t want to know if it was active or if was about to go off. Thinking on either possibility made her only hurry up loading her ship. Gesturing to Mullet to keep everyone calm, she looked out into the fog where she saw movement out in the distance. The MUTOs, she figured.
But she would be mistaken. Instead, it was something soundly different. You see, while Mothra had been resting, and healing from her battle with the Male in Honolulu she had taken the time to lay an egg. This had taken a bit out of her, but the egg had hatched. And it remembered. He remembered who he was and what he was supposed to be. A guardian of the Earth. He was Battra Leo, the Battle Moth as they called him. And now he had been reborn anew. Taking to the seas in the dead of night when nobody -not even his own mother!- was watching he swam all his might gathering up enough strength from any ambient enough radiation to grow and to change. His mother would be along shortly, now he had to hold the tide back long enough for his mother to rest and to recuperate. And then she would deliver her own power to protect this planet.
For now, Battra decided he would have to be enough. ...He didn’t honestly know how he felt about going up against the MUTOs really. It was not because of his young age and strength, as he knew he was strong enough to at least hold them back. He just knew. No, it was simply because why he was going up against the MUTOs in the first place. His mother liked the small ones, he was never sure why. They were near powerless against his might. Why she and the Big One protected these creatures was very strange to him. They could easily crush them underneath. He was a Guardian Moth, a nigh divine creature but he cared for the rocks, trees and the earth. Not the ponies themselves.
But for the sake of his mother, he would protect them if only just this once. Plus, Battra had to admit getting into a scrap with the chief predators of the Big One was a very enticing prospect indeed.
As for Twilight Sparkle, she on board a train trundling into Manehatten. As she neared the city the young Alicorn observed something moving as it crawled out onto the shoreline, a massive wave crashing into the Manehatten waterfront. Her eyes widened in shock and she turned to Fizzlepop -who was now clad in full Royal Guard armor- as the larva-like creature walked onto the streets, the being looking strikingly familiar.
“...Uh, am I seeing what I think I’m seeing?” she whispered as the yellow and black spiked larva thing slowly but surely strode down Main Street, dark red eyes narrowed. Slicing through buildings with the spikes that jutted out of its form, 90 meters and 20,000 metric tons of destruction heading right for the MUTO pair. “...But I thought we… we killed him.”
Fizzlepop observed the large larva make its way towards the MUTO duo and felt an oncoming sense of dread. She knew better than anypony what was coming. But at the same time, she noted -for the most part anyways- Battra Fillius as she elected to call him was avoiding the buildings. Well, avoiding them as much if a creature of his size could anyways. Fear if his mother's rage maybe? She couldn't be certain. What worried her more was what was now inside the city primed to blow at any moment. Time was no longer on their side.
“Looks like the Queen of Monsters just became a mommy,” Fizzlepop noted, her dark blue and gold armor shimmering as the early signs of the afternoon sun peeked their way through the clouds. “...Just our luck isn’t it? We thought we would only have to worry about protecting the city and her citizens from three kaiju, now there’s four. Welp, there goes the Big Apple.” she said with a resigned sigh of defeat. She knew exactly what was coming. A battleground. She looked away in shame. She had failed. They all had failed to prevent this.
Twilight saw the look in her friend's eyes. She had similar feelings as well.
“We’ll do what we can, the best we can do is get everyone to the underground shelters while trying to turn off that Destroyer,” Twilight said with a determined look in her eyes.
With her came Serizawa and an armed regiment of Royal Guards. Briefly, her thoughts turned to Hardsteel. Where was he now? After the complete and utter disaster that was the Everfree Pass, he had fallen off the radar. Could he have killed himself in shame? Twilight honestly doubted it. No, he was far too angry at the monsters and at her for that to ever be a thought in his mind. She knew he was out there somewhere. And it was more than likely he'd turn up sometime during the battle. Twilight knew she should have kept a better eye on him.
“Lock and load!” she barked at the guards behind her who primed their surge rifles.
From behind them, Serizawa sighed. “It’s impossible to stop the countdown now,” he said sadly. “Stellar showed me the specs. It was designed in haste, and it’s likely damaged. You couldn’t stop it now even if you wanted to.”
Fizzlepop swore. “Well, isn’t that just lovely. Everything seems to be coming up roses today. Okay, new plan. We get that bomb out of the city, make sure it detonates far from anyone or anything. Twilight, protect the civilians. ...I’m going to-”
“Fizzlepop… you don’t have to…” Twilight whispered. “Please, don’t do this…”
Fizzlepop begged to differ. All her life she'd been nothing but a constant menace to Equestria and her surrounding territories. Now here was a chance to finally do some good and make up for all the pain she'd caused. This would be the one time in her life Tempest Shadow would ever do anything good.
“No, I have to do this. I’ve caused Equestria far too much trouble, from the moment I joined the Storm King to the day I invaded Canterlot. I was born a warrior, and to be honest… I don’t know of anything else but to do but this right now It’s time for me to wipe the red from my ledger, cleanse myself.” Fizzlepop reaffirmed far too stubborn for Twilight at least, to change her mind.
“Fizzlepop…” Twilight whispered looking away to hide her tears. “...I… I…”
Silent words were exchanged. They didn't need to communicate what either of them already knew deep down in their hearts.
“I know,” Fizzlepop smiled as the train pulled to a halt. “Thank you, Princess, for everything.”
Then, a pair of fists slammed into both of them and the two crumpled to the floor unconscious. They’d wake, but not for a good several minutes. Serizawa looked to the guards. “...When they wake, say… Just say I did my part for Equestria and her wellbeing.”
He was tossed a salute by the guards before he took to the skies intent on recovering the Destroyer…
It wasn’t long before Battra Leo was noticed. The Male turned his sights onto him and took flight from atop the Maresler Building only for Battra to burrow underneath the streets. The MUTO looked around in confusion, where exactly had the creature gone? Then, he got his answer as Battra leaped out from behind him, slicing in the Male’s carapace with his horn. The male let out a cry of agony, collapsing to the ground below as his blood drenched the streets beneath. This would not be a quick death for him if Battra had his way. Guardian of the Earth of he may have been but Battra loved to see his enemies squirm.
The female did not take her mate being cut open lightly. Amazingly, upon chowing down and soaking up so much magic had bestowed her with a new ability. Her throat and her spinal ridges glowed for a brief second before she fired off a blast of pure magical energy, sending the 20,000-ton larva flying to the other end of the city. She let out a roar of rage and marched after Battra who was struggling to pick himself up from the remains of the building, his horn crackling with a chaotic violet energy.
Then, lightning lit up the skies as Battra let the Female have it, crackling beams of energy slicing and scything through the air like wildfire. He let out a roar, similar to his mother’s own but lower-pitched. Then he crawled towards the Female intent on piercing her with his horn. The Male meanwhile had managed to crawl towards the crystals and bit down on them, his wounds healing and strength returning.
Battra found himself lifted up by the female and was about to be thrown once more before he let loose more energy blasts. The female screeched out in pain as Battra landed on the roads below, nearly caving them in. He picked himself up out of the crater and sliced into the female’s skin. A sea of fire was beginning to engulf Manehatten, looking as if hell itself had come.
In the smoke and shadows, as lightning ripped up the street, a young mother was clutching her children close whispering: “It’s okay, we’ll be with daddy soon…”
A lightning bolt came frighteningly close to them before a dark blue and golden form ran out of the shadows. Fizzlepop charged up her horn and unleashed a blast of lightning of her own splitting the oncoming bolt in two.
Fizzlepop had changed her mind. No, she would be senselessly throwing her life away if she did that. She would be dishonoring Serizawa and his sacrifice. As long as there were ponies to protect she had something to live for.
“Go, get to safety!” she shouted over the roars of the dueling kaiju. The mother and her children were all too happy to comply. Fizzlepop sighed. She'd seen Battra burrowing, it would be any small wonder if any of the underground shelters were still left after this. Looking upwards, she uttered: “How did it come to this? What did we do to deserve this clash of the titans?”
Silently she wondered if Fluttershy's earlier statement was correct. If letting these creatures fight really was the best course of action. But then again it was only bricks and mortar. Those could be replaced, cities could always be rebuilt. She could only hope Twilight's new plan to aid the moth duo would work. Lives depended on it.
Battra meanwhile found himself pushed back by another beam blast from the female, the larva now bleeding. He then noticed something the female hadn’t. He was now near one of the crystals and grabbed it in his mouth charging himself up with energy little by little. Of course, what he didn’t factor in was the male of the species. It picked up and grabbed him, quite intent on moving him out to sea and away from his nest. Battra shrieked and roared in rage feeling the new power coursing through him.
With a wave of energy that sounded like a thunderclap, the Male found himself pushed backward as Battra evolved, massive wings unfurling. The sheer power in those crystals had allowed him to speed up his evolution and the two were now dueling in the rain. You see, the sheer power of Battra’s beams had charged up the clouds above to create a thunderstorm that was now pounding down on Manehatten.
Battra flapped his wings glaring at the insolent young whelp who had dared to attack him. A poisonous powder was released from the flapping wings, making the MUTO cough and burned away at his eyes. He didn’t even get a chance to regain his bearings before Battra’s eyes glowed and he unleashed twin optic blasts, barreling into the MUTO Male with the force of a freight train. Now the tide had been turned however slightly.
It was still far from an even fight but Battra now knew he had a better chance of making it out alive. He grabbed the Male and slammed him into a building, biting and snapping at him with his jaws. It was an eerie reversal of what the MUTO had pulled on his mother not so long ago.
Then Battra felt something grab him from behind and he was thrown into the ground by the Female who looked quite intent on charging up another magical energy blast.
Meanwhile down in the city streets below Serizawa flew between buildings even as the rain pounded down on his wings. He knew where his creation rested. He had to get it and move it out of the city. How he intended to do so was currently a work in progress, he’d just have to figure it out as he went along. What was important now was stopping that thing from detonating and killing everyone in the city. Serizawa allowed himself a pause as he watched the Titans do battle. Never in his wildest dreams had he imagined he would ever be this close to them.
Of course, Serizawa mused to himself as he watched the FeMUTO stagger backwards from an optic blast. That didn’t mean being this close was always advisable really. It would be a wonder if there was any city left at this rate he mused. The Battle Moth indeed.
Battra let out another roar of rage as he seemed to eye Serizawa before taking to the skies letting the Male give chase. The female was soon to follow knowing that together they stood a better chance of taking down the battle moth. The dark divinity almost seemed to smile, everything was going exactly according to plan.
He then flew around the Maresler Building before letting both MUTOs have it with beam after beam after beam, he didn’t care what he struck as long as it kept the MUTOs on the defensive. Buildings burned and Battra emerged from the flames like a bat out of Tartarus. The MUTOs, so caught off guard by their opponent’s aggressiveness didn’t even see this coming and Battra spun like a drill ramming the Male into the Maresler building. Glass shattered and steel buckled as the top of the building came crashing to the ground. The shockwave reduced buildings for a good block or so to rubble and sent others toppling like massive dominos.
Battra let out a roar that sounded almost like laughter, before lighting up the skies with more optic blasts. The MUTO Male flew like hell himself was after him, as buildings ignited behind him Battra’s beams carving up the skyline. Finally, the Battle Moth had enough of the Male’s cowardice and flew right at him, forelimbs at the ready.
The Male tried to get away but Battra tackled him again slamming him through another building. The Female finally recovered, and as if to say “Hands off my man!” she charged up another energy blast and Battra was sent spiraling to the ground. He struggled to pick himself up off the ground but began to feel himself slipping into unconsciousness.
Meanwhile, Serizawa found himself running down into the little cavern the MUTOs had burrowed for themselves to lay their eggs. His eyes widened in sheer horror as he saw the true expanse of the clutch. Hundreds, if not thousands of eggs each with a little baby MUTO inside. And to make matters worse, the Oxygen Destroyer was in the center of it all. Presumably, the female had mistaken it for magical energy and had placed it here for her babies to feed on.
“Destroyed by my own creation or the MUTOs… what a choice!” Serizawa thought with a bitter chuckle.
He briefly considered the possibility of letting it blow. He would not be around to face the scorn nor would any of the MUTOs survive. Serizawa soon discarded that thought. As a citizen of Equestria, it was his duty to make sure that this city lived to see another day.
“...Or what’s left of it, at least.” Serizawa thought to himself. He then groaned. He knew he wouldn’t be able to lift this thing.
A magical flash was visible out of the corner of his eye.
“You’re not going this alone,” a familiar voice said as she rested a hoof atop his shoulder. Serizawa turned. “I’m with you to the end here. You may have created this abomination, but I was the one who brought it into the fold.”
“...Stellar, you…” Serizawa whispered as his eyes widened. “No, Monarch needs you.”
“Monarch will live on in my stead. You’re not the only one with sins to atone for.” Stellar said as she looked towards the Destroyer. “Now help me lift this son of a bitch…”
Grabbing hold of it with his talons, Serizawa began to slowly but steadily lift the bomb with Stellar helping with her magic.
The two slowly began to move out of the crater, and it was only at this moment did Serizawa notice Stellar had a surge rifle on her back. She fiddled with it making it glow with an ominous hue before giving it a good hard toss towards the nest. Serizawa and Stellar dived for cover as an explosion lit up the night, a fireball rising high into the sky with a violent purple flame.
The MUTOs swiftly took notice and letting out roars they left Battra alone and headed right for what remained of their nest. The female peeked her head in and as soon as she saw what remained of her children she began to howl both in anger and in despair. She searched the smoke and rubble for who was responsible. Eyes darting left and right, she finally spotted them.
She had taken notice of Stellar, pinned under a piece of rubble. Her mechanical leg had been crushed. Serizawa was trying to help her get free but they both then saw the MUTO, who had fairly quickly figured out who exactly was responsible for the deaths of her babies. She leaned her head in and gave them what could only be described as an absolutely venomous death glare reeking of fury. Her ridges and throat were glowing once more ready to let out another beam blast and end their lives.
Energy glowed and both Serizawa and Stellar braced for death.
Then it came.
Battra managing to muster up some of the last of his strength, he fired twin optic blasts at the Female, sending her toppling backward into a building, rubble falling all around her and pinning her underneath. The Male let out a roar but Battra reacted as he came and grabbed hold of him. Biting down hard, he drew blood and transferred a powerful poison into the Male’s bloodstream. The MUTO thrashed and roared for several odd minutes before it finally stopped. One nightmare at least was over.
But another had just begun as the female had witnessed this and pulled herself out of the rubble making a beeline right for her mate’s killer. Eyes glowing with a fire of fury she raised one forelimb poised to strike.
Then a massive shape dived out of the clouds unleashing a triumphant roar. Wings glowing with blue energy and eyes narrowed, the Queen of the Monsters dived in…
Mothra knew by this point the MUTOs were beyond reasoning with. In hindsight, she supposed she shouldn’t have been that surprised really. They worked on basic primal animalistic instincts, even more so than any of the other kaiju Mothra knew except for perhaps the Golden One. Their thought process was food, fight, and then breed. Rinse, wash and then repeat as the small ones put it. Even as she slammed her full body weight into the female of the species, she took note of the male laying dead. She allowed herself a moment of brief relaxation, this was good news.
Although she was indeed angry with her son, she was also proud of him. He had managed to take down one of the most dangerous kaiju currently active. However, she did not know if her spawn was dead or alive at the moment nor did she know if the MUTOs themselves had managed to spawn.
That could be all dealt with later. Right now Mothra was certain of only one thing even as she struck as the MUTO with her raptorial-like talons. This thing needed to die.
Her eyes widened in shock when she saw the female’s spines and throat glowing before it unleashed a powerful blast of pure hot blazing magical fire. Mothra only barely managed to dodge before she rolled out of the way to avoid another blast. She swore in the Titan language. Of course, she was such a fool. This thing would have soaked up so much magical energy that of course, it would have gained this ability. It needed to let off this much magic periodically otherwise it would explode. Simply put, a MUTO body was not designed to handle that much magic. Well, that couldn’t be allowed, could it? Yes, these beam blasts were a danger but Mothra was far more concerned with the little ones below. They would not be able to escape the blast.
Flying skywards, she allowed the MUTO to fire off more torrents of magical fire, some cinging her wings slightly. A poor knockoff of her King’s own breath weapon but still dangerous nonetheless. Flapping her wings, she met an anti mana pulse with her own abilities, the wave being powerful enough to dispel the surrounding clouds.
Another pulse came and Mothra was sent tumbling backwards into what remained of the Maresler building, quickly regaining her bearings and perching herself atop the rubble. Wings glowing with energy, she fired off a massive blast that sent the MUTO staggering backwards.
Beneath the streets of Manehatten, ponies gathered and quivered from the battle that continued to rage. They wondered when this nightmare would end, and whether they'd live to see the next morning. A piece of the ceiling broke off and even as Royal Guards rushed pass, Twilight’s eyes widened as ponies screamed. She couldn’t grab it in time. But there was to be no lives lost.
To everyone’s shock and surprise, the Shobijin stood humming a little tune and keeping the ceiling from caving in any further.
“...By Celestia…” Twilight breathed.
“Well, we could not let our Goddess come and not give support to you, could we?” the Shobijin chorused. “No no! Even as benevolent as the Giver of Life is, even she understands that destruction is sadly an inherent part of her battles. So she sends us along to help prevent as much loss of life as we can!”
“...Well, to be fair to Mothra it was actually Battra who caused most of the damage…” Twilight muttered but the Shobijin overheard her and their eyes widened in shock.
“Battra has returned? Battra has returned to save this city?” they asked. “The two sides of our Goddess fighting together? My my, what a glorious day this is!”
“...Not exactly sure if that’s the word I’d use but… Whatever works for you I guess…” Twilight muttered even as she headed up to the surface. All around her in very specific locations, Royal Guards had stationed themselves around the FeMUTO. Twilight’s horn glowed and her voice went out. “NOW! ON 3! 1, 2, 3!”
She as well had noticed how the female MUTO had sucked up excess magic and had enacted a plan to help ease the battle for Mothra. While she was not aware of what would happen if the MUTO didn’t let off her magic, if she was she would have quickened her pace.
As her horn glowed, Twilight slammed a hoof into the ground. All around her, her regiment did the same as well. A massive purple pentagonal rune of magic now surrounded the MUTO, and it shrieked out in pain even as she felt her powers began to lose her. Mothra pressed her advantage and used her ‘God Rays’ once more but the MUTO was having none of it. She raised a forelimb and Twilight knew what was coming.
“SHIELDS!” she shouted and although she and her regiment were protected Mothra was not and she was sent flying backward into what remained of a building. Mothra had decidedly had enough of this creature’s antics and took to the skies before flying back down towards the MUTO and grabbing it via a divebomb maneuver. With all of her strength, she managed to actually lift it up and slowly start dragging it towards the shoreline.
Twilight and her regiment changed positions as necessary. The MUTO meanwhile used another mana pulse making freeing herself from Mothra’s grasp. Another beam attack came and this time Mothra changed tactics. The scales on her wings glistened and she folded them in front of her like a shield. Twilight was stunned, was Mothra giving up.
Then to her surprise, Mothra actually managed to deflect the attack sending it curving upwards into the stratosphere. Another beam attack came, and Mothra met it with her ‘god rays’. The two attacks struggled for dominance before finally fizzling out in midair. Mothra’s movements were slower, it was obvious she still had yet to regain her full strength. And the MUTO clearly knew this as well by her advances toward the Queen of the Monsters.
Twilight let out a small snarl. “Oh no she doesn’t!” she thought as once more the runes took light. The MUTO found herself losing more and more of her energy before her eyes widened almost comically so as she saw Mothra coming right at her talons at the ready. She was thrown back into a nearby mountainside and Mothra soon got out of firing range as another beam was tossed. Yes, this one was clearly weaker than any of the others but there was only so much punishment Mothra could take.
Landing on the side of the Mare of Liberty’s head, Mothra let out another roar even as the MUTO regained her strength for what presumably was going to be another attack. But Twilight had thought ahead. Another magical spell seal went up.
During all of this, Hardsteel had been lurking. He saw Twilight, and his eyes saw red. Here was the mare who was responsible for getting his men killed on the Pass, now leading another regiment. With a roar, he leaped out of the shadows pinning her to the ground with placing a ring around her horn. Her magic bound, Twilight looked at Hardsteel in shock even as she began picking herself up off the ground.
“Hardsteel?” Twilight asked. “Have you lost your mind?”
“No, I’m just relieving you of command ma’am,” Hardsteel said. “With all due respect, you are a danger to those around you. You lead Mothra here to this city, and you screwed up on the train. Now there’s a bomb about to blow and wipe us all out!”
“And… and the more time we waste the less likely we can get it out of the city!” Twilight said. “Did you not hear about the two-mile radius? Lives will be lost! So for Celestia’s sakes, put your goddess-damned revenge aside and listen to me!” she shouted.
“I’m sorry ma’am, I truly am,” Hardsteel whispered unable to meet her eyes. “But… but this is my job, my duty to my country. I have to kill both of these creatures, and I’ll be damned if I let you stand in my way. So for Celestia’s sakes please stand aside Princess. I don’t want to have to hurt you…”
“What you should think about Hardsteel…” Twilight whispered as her eyes began to glow a bright white and the restraining ring shattered. “...Is how much I could hurt you. But I won’t. I’ll get you the help you need, I promise you th-AAAAAAGGGHHHHHH!!!” she suddenly screamed.
Hardsteel had pulled out a whip of pure magic and lashed.
“You… you don’t deserve to lead these men, these are my troops! Mine!” he bellowed. Twilight’s eyes widened. Madness had overtaken the stallion. Even as she advanced under the lashes, this temporary distraction allowed the MUTO to regain her upper hand. She fired once more, and Mothra’s eyes widened before she took flight. As for the Mare of Liberty, she lost half of her head. Mothra swooped around taking in what was going on below. Even as small as she was, she could see Twilight under attack. Swooping in towards Hardsteel, she let out a roar knocking him off his hooves. But this was a costly mistake and Mothra was sent flying into the sea by the MUTO shoulder charging her with the force of a freight train.
Twilight tried to get up, to order her men to start the spell again but was knocked out via a punch to the face by Hardsteel. “FIRE!” he bellowed. His men looked confused. “FIRE FOR CELESTIA’S SAKE!” he bellowed. “Or I’ll see you all court-martialed!”
And so they did, unloading their surge rifles into the MUTO. Whether it was in fear of Hardsteel’s madness or some form of loyalty to the Queen of Monsters and an urge to protect her was uncertain. In any case, the MUTO did not look pleased as she reared on them. Spellfire hit her, bombarding her with small explosions and the MUTO shrieked out in rage. But just as she was about to bite down on what remained of the platoon… Twilight reacted, and time slowed down long enough for some of them to run. Some would be safe, if not all. But what she didn't expect was what happened next.
“CHEEEEERRRRRRRRRNNNNNNTTTTT!”
Mothra had emerged from the waves and flew towards the MUTO unleashing a blast from her wings. All of her power had been poured into this one last blast. This time the MUTO had no time to react and was incinerated, with what little remained crashing onto the waterfront. Mothra herself was soon to follow, collapsing from the sheer exhaustion of it all. Twilight supposed she deserved the nap, it had been a very long week for the Queen of the Monsters.
As for Hardsteel, Fizzlepop had arrived and had just cuffed him before knocking him out with a punch, another guard helping Twilight up.
But what of the Oxygen Destroyer? Now that is another story entirely really. Amazingly throughout all this chaos both Serizawa and Stellar had managed to make their way to a boat. They were now on their way out to sea with only the ticking of the Destroyer’s countdown as a companion.
Stellar laughed. “...You, you remember how we met right? You and your college courses. Sunburst, bless him, had just gone off to magic school. And you were in town going on a lecture for… Oh, I don’t suppose it really matters now does it?”
“Lepidopterans. Moths,” Serizawa laughed. “Born entomologist. You know, I really have to thank you for all these years of companionship.”
“No, I have to thank you really. When my husband died, you were…”
Serizawa looked at the timer. Just a few seconds left. “It was the only thing I could do. For a friend.”
“For what it’s worth? I’m sorry. For dragging you into all of this.”
“So am I. Saraba tomoyo.”
And then their whole world went white.
When the dust finally cleared everyone emerged from their shelters even as the sun began to set over the ruins of Manehatten. The Shobijin’s eyes widened and one of the twins buried her muzzle into her sister’s shoulder upon seeing the fallen divine moths. Nobody was sure if they were alive or dead.
Then Fizzlepop let out a sharp gasp. “...Oh by the Goddesses…”
Twilight was soon to follow as she looked out into the bay and was greeted with a truly horrific sight. The bay was now full of floating dead fish, evidence of a much greater tragedy. She knew what had happened, and lowered her head in mourning.
“Serizawa…” she thought as a tear dripped from her eyes. Fizzlepop let her cry into her shoulder, close to tears herself. She hadn’t known the old griffon long but he had certainly left his impression.
Then she let out another gasp albeit for entirely different reasons. Sharp maple leaf style spines cut through the water and a massive form rose up out of the bay. Truly ancient and indescribable, the beast reached out towards Mothra. He sniffed her, hoping to arise a reaction. At first, it looked as if the Queen of the Monsters was well and truly gone along with her spawn. But then twin sets of eyes slowly fluttered open and a chorus of cheers rose up from the populace.
A chant rose up.”Mothra! Mothra! Mothra! Mothra!” they called even as the Queen slowly climbed up onto her King’s back with Battra slowly taking to the skies. The King looked towards the growing crowd and eyed them seemingly studying them. He then turned his head skywards, -the maple-leaf spines on his back glowing- and fired a blast of pure blue energy into the sky letting the ponies know the true King of the Monsters had returned.
Slowly but surely, he turned and made his way back out to sea, sinking back beneath the waves with his Queen on his back. Fizzlepop and Twilight shared a look, it could be none other.
“My God…” Twilight started with Fizzlepop finishing for her.
“...Zilla.”
The times had definitely changed. But they knew who they stood with, and who was on their side. The Age of Monsters had come but Monarch would weather it and rebuild. They had to. For all of ponykind. Would this be the last they saw of the King and his Queen? They didn’t know. But they did know this, whatever came next they would face it together.
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Can I just say, I really want to thank you all for your support on this story? Seriously, without your help it never would have gotten off the ground or gone anywhere. You guys and the Bridge? You're the best, and I love y'all. Also, this story ain't over yet. May have marked it 'complete', but keep it on tracking. I do have an epilogue planned...
By the Emperor...
Damn it Hard Steel, you just screwed yourself big time!
As for the chapter itself? Very well done!
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Funny thing, I debated on if he should go out like Packard, killed in by the very object of his revenge but then I thought that was far too good for him. A soldier wants to die with the enemy at the gates and all that, so him being arrested and put on trial, with his pride stripped from him? Much, much more befitting really.
And you really think the battle was that good? I thought it had issues, especially when Mothra joined in at last and it just became a beam-o-war.
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Considering that's pretty much what a lot of the Godzilla movies devolved to, it's fine.
Is there a sequel?
9735294
...Not sure if I should feel insulted or not, I was aiming for something sorta different.
9735305
I have a few ideas in the works, but nothing... definitive yet. Nothing you could really call a story really. Have a cute Titanosaurus instead! images-wixmp-ed30a86b8c4ca887773594c2.wixmp.com/f/2db04e96-33d6-44a8-958e-6df385b8884b/dd2nupo-ce22739a-7568-425c-a288-93b8c9d536b5.png?token=eyJ0eXAiOiJKV1QiLCJhbGciOiJIUzI1NiJ9.eyJzdWIiOiJ1cm46YXBwOjdlMGQxODg5ODIyNjQzNzNhNWYwZDQxNWVhMGQyNmUwIiwiaXNzIjoidXJuOmFwcDo3ZTBkMTg4OTgyMjY0MzczYTVmMGQ0MTVlYTBkMjZlMCIsIm9iaiI6W1t7InBhdGgiOiJcL2ZcLzJkYjA0ZTk2LTMzZDYtNDRhOC05NThlLTZkZjM4NWI4ODg0YlwvZGQybnVwby1jZTIyNzM5YS03NTY4LTQyNWMtYTI4OC05M2I4YzlkNTM2YjUucG5nIn1dXSwiYXVkIjpbInVybjpzZXJ2aWNlOmZpbGUuZG93bmxvYWQiXX0.v5NZgjP3VlyDQr4GL4WivAEZV0U0Ax6EJO4NY-dOZ7I
(Source)
Will there be a sequel! If there is, I like to help you on that. And I have the perfect idea for it.
Well I think Celestia is going to be having a very bad day as she deals with Hardsteel and those who listened to him. I hope she places all the blame for the loss of sea life on him.
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That's the thing. I've actually kept Celestia out of this story for the same reason Luna hasn't appeared. I don't know what'll become of them yet come the series finale. They could retire permanently, they could stay on as the Princesses of the Sun and Moon or they could be killed off. Okay, the last one's not likely, but it would be a good lesson to teach. Saying goodbye.
And technically the loss of the sea life was Stellar and Serizawa's fault. Mostly Stellar's for introducing the Destroyer onto the battlefield, to begin with, but Serizawa shares some of the blame for even creating it.
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The problem is that they where ordered to deploy it. It was also pointed out that due to the quick deployment that once the system was primed it couldn’t be stopped. Yes those two share some of the blame but they paid the price. I think that heads should be rolling for not only forcing the issue but recklessly using it and not having a way to stop it if conditions changed.
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Okay, fair, so Hardsteel must face some punishment for this amongst many other things but Twilight also agreed to use the Destroyer... what could you possibly punish her with? Can't exactly strip her of her titles... Granted, knowing she in part is responsible for Serizawa's death is one thing...
Goodbye, Serizawa.
Wasn't expecting Battra to show up.
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Saraba tomoyo once more...
But yeah, Battra Leo showing up? I did it as an apology for him getting killed in the first act of the story, and had him return just so he could kick a little bit of ass, and help make this chapter a bit different from the finale of Godzilla 2014. FeMUTO threatening to explode, and the whole Hardsteel subplot were the other contributors.
Better late than never, eh, Godzilla?
*whistles* Dang. Great work on the big finale, in particular with a lot of the monster action! And that ending was very nicely done too.