by Nick Hill

Haneda, a city that once was calm, active with life, but now a ghost town due to the radioactive fallout caused by the still burning corpse of Japan's nemesis, Godzilla. Everything has been cut off from the city, people, traffic, power, life in general. It was a dead city, one that lays there still intact, but has no being. Though it's dead, it's still a historical metropolis, one that held a battle of the ages, one that held the battle between Godzilla and Destroyah. A fight that had no loser or victor. But some say that Destroyah still lives.

Sunlight fell over the silent city of Haneda; the buildings' windows shined with the fake glow of life. The daylight slowly made its way to the center of the city as the sun rose higher over the horizon, making its way to the burnt ruins where the battle took place, to the few scattered remains of Godzilla. Something moved in the pile of melted and charred bones and flesh, springing up from its post.

"Hey, Shou don't look so frightend. Nothing is going to get you out here. Well, maybe Godzilla's ghost." Taki said, his voice heavy as he talked through the bulky gasmask.

"Nah, I wasn't scared, you just surprised me." Shou with a strained hand waved away Taki's irritable laughing. His eyes stared down the trained solider, looking over his dirty biohazard-suit, his Kevlar vest already torn, his black gasmask dusted with a blanket of ash, their only safeguard in this radioactive graveyard. Shou looked away as Taki got back to work, digging through the piles of burning rumble and debris. His darkened eyes gazed over the still smoldering remains, the pain hit him again, and his heart sank again. It was a horrible thing, but again it had some good to it. With the loss of a city, Japan had rid itself of a greater threat, one that had haunted them for what felt like centuries. This was the last city it had destroyed; now it was the time to rebuild.

Shou stumbled in the garbage of Godzilla, looking, searching through the layers of concrete, to find some active cells, some that held the fierce energy that Godzilla unleashed. The military wanted them, wanted them to use for their own good. They yearned for them, energy they could be put to something good, to something that would benefit everyone.

They were risking radiation poison from the high levels that still hung around the city, but they were trained for that type of stuff. It was their job as a biohazard team to go into places with these types of risks, but never like this one. It wasn't an easy job or even a safe job. There was always the risk of radiation, but there was something much worse they feared.

Something glimmered in the high sun, catching the attention of Shou. It sat there attached to a melted support beam, glistering in its own vial liquid. Shou moved in, his free hand open, ready to grasp it. His gloved fingers wrapped around the blackened piece of wet flesh, it jumped, as if it was alive. Shou peeled it off slowly, the scab laid in his hand limp. He looked down at it, watching it, watching the blood that flowed out of it and over his palm.

"Captain, I found some." Shou called out, his raspy voice echoing off the dead walls.

"Good. Contain them and watch them with your life, these may be the only ones we find out here." Captain Yuken screamed over from his standing point. Shou grabbed the glass jar off his utility belt and opened the tightly sealed lid. The oozing flesh slid in evenly, lying at the bottom limp. Shou placed the containment jar back on his belt and continued looking through the trash of the silent city.

Taki walked towards Shou, his face hidden by the black gasmask, but Shou knew he had a smile under it.

"It looks like those rumors about Destroyah surviving are not true. We have been out here for hours and still nothing. I am surprised anything is even left out here." Taki said, his head turning around in disgust for the destruction of the city.

"All this death, caused by just two monsters. But in a weird way it's better, the world has been rid of Godzilla and Destroyah, monsters that could have killed everyone, if they had the chance." Taki continued with his emotional babble, telling all of his pent up feelings about the issue.

"Well it's over, we can get out of here since we have found some Godzilla cells. We can clear this out, mourn it as it lays, a wasteland of man's stupidity." Shou stated, not knowing the true nightmare was just beginning.

Twilight had fallen over them, shading the dark structures in a shadow of itself. Shou walked on around the junkyard once known as Haneda and watched the fires that still burned within it. The others still rummaged through it, trying to locate more Godzilla cells.

"I found some more!" Taki screamed loud and clear.

"Good. We can use spares." Commander Yuken shouted back at him.

Taki palmed the hunk of tattered flesh. He looked around confused, noticing he had lost his containment jar. Taki spun around, staring; his eyes met with Shou, his legs received the signal and began to pump.

"Hey, Shou I need to use your containment jar!" Taki yelled.

He ran the distance of the junkyard, his legs pumping hard with excitement and bliss for what he had found. Taki's foot caught something, his body flattened in the air, tumbling to the ground like a sac of spilled potatoes. The earth moved, soil shifting around, spreading across the small rim circle it had just formed. A head popped out from the ground where Taki tripped. It was bright red illuminated by two glowing yellow eyes. The rest of its body followed, crawling out of the ground from where it laid. It was what they feared, one of the deadliest things known to man. Destroyah had survived.

The Destroyah crustacean stood over the wounded Taki, its spider like legs surrounding him in every way. Taki screamed, but his cries of help were muffled by the hulking gasmask that was on his face. The creature's head rounded around, looking over its fallen prey. Its neck cracked as it whipped back its large crested head. Shou watched on as the giant monster dug its second pair of jaws into his friend's chest. The Destroyah pulled back its dripping jaws and reared its ugly head back, letting out a scream of bloodlust, of power, of death.

Shou looked at the horrible sight that had befallen Taki. The Destroyah still stood over him, watching Taki struggle to hold on to his life. Taki's body rippled violently, his gapping wound foamed with micro oxygen. His body shuddered, bubbling as the micro oxygen flowed through him, burning his flesh from his bones. The area opened with the clatter of gunfire, 9mm bullets flew through the air, burning bright in the night. Shou lifted the mp-5A submachine gun up, his body trembled with fright, but anger soon took over his actions.

The night air exploded with the crackle of gunfire. The team had opened fire on the lone Destroyah, trying their best to avenge their fallen comrade. The Destroyah's hard exoskeleton absorbed most of the brutal attack, but its body couldn't hold out against the heavy pressure that bore down on it. Its skin began to burst, pouring out its sinister blood. The evil creature screamed in dreadful pain as its body fell to the piercing bullets. A single grenade soared from the barrel of the 40mm grenade launcher. It made its path known, leaving a line of moving smoke. The grenade hit, exploding itself in order to do its job. The Destroyah minion's body broke under the power of the grenade, its body falling to the ground in pieces. The team let out their victories in the form of yells and screams of pride, but their victory would soon be over.

The ground rumbled, shaking itself apart as other Destroyah minions pulled themselves out of their resting spots and awoke to the world. They stood in a group of about twelve of them, the only surviving parts of Destroyah, molded in the form of death. The area once again exploded with gunfire and screams. The two parties attacked each other. One, evil and aggressive, the other just doing what they were told, listening to their higher ups. They engaged in a fierce battle. The Destroyahs charged forth, tackling the standing soldiers. They fought bravely, doing everything in their power to stop the angered kaijus. Shou stood on the sidelines, too shocked to do anything, it was like nothing he had ever witnessed. His hand trembled with heavy fright, his mind frozen, his eyes locked. His teammates, his friends being slaughtered by the ravenous monsters.

Shou's mind screamed, screamed the words for him to fire, releasing him from its grasp. Shou grabbed the mp-5 and held it tight. His finger fell over the trigger, slowly pulling it back. The submachine gun exploded with life, bullets storming the group of Destroyahs. The rounds had no effect, just angering the swarm even more. The gun stopped, kicking forward, clicking with emptiness. Shou turned, knowing he couldn't do anything in his power to stop them or save his friends, all he knew was to follow his orders and get the cells back.

The frightened soldier ran, trying his hardest to find a place to hide and rest. He fled, running past several iron warriors that witnessed the battle between the two beasts. He laid his tired back on the battered maser cannon, feeling security under its power. He pulled out the spent clip from his submachine gun and replaced it with a fresh one. He sighed deep, breathing in the moist air that grew around him. Some hit his eye visor, slowly running down, leaving a clear trail. He angled his head upward, watching the strange rolling clouds that filtered the sky. The rain came down slowly, coming in small sheets and gradually increasing in size. Shou watched the rain clouds, which took on a blood red color due to the high levels of radiation. The maser cannon moved, shifted under the weight of some unknown object. Shou turned his head, coming face to face with a pair of yellow eyes.

The Destroyah stared at Shou, watching him as he trembled in fear of it. Its lips flickered, soon expelling out its second jaw. Shou ducked, the dual pair of mouths collided with the side of the maser. Shou jumped up, his legs taking him away from the creature as fast as they would go. The gruesome creature pulled its stuck jaws out and chased after Shou, along with the other Destroyahs. Shou turned around, facing the wild swarm of crustaceans. His gun spat its fire, storming down on the horde, some bullets bouncing off, some breaking through the Destroyahs' exoskeleton. Shou continued to shot, not knowing what else to do to stop the bloodthirsty monsters.

Shou stopped shooting, knowing it was not enough to kill off the demons that chased him. He pulled a grenade off his belt and threw it into the crowd of monsters. It went off, exploding into a ball of bright light. In the confusion Shou ran again, trying his best to get as far away as he could. Shou stopped once again, regaining his breath and a plan of attack. He had to find someway to either kill them all or buy enough time for the helicopter to come in and get him. He had to buy enough time for the extraction helicopter to get him out. It was all he could do, there was no way he could beat them with the little ammo he had left. He would have to hide for the time being, he had to outsmart them, so that he could complete his mission and be the soldier that he was. Shou ripped the flare from his belt, aiming high into the air. The signal flare shot off, exploding into a ball of glowing light.

"Won't be long for the copter to get here, better make use of my time." Shou thought calmly to himself. Shou nervously walked through the scrap yard of burnt and scarred metal, iron giants that fought against the darkness. Something creaked, a sound like scarping metal. Something moved, stalking in the jungle of death, hunting down its prey. Shou's mind seeped deep into his soldier training, bringing out the warrior in him. He steadied himself, moving quietly between the maser cannons. Something flickered in the distance, leaving a red blur in Shou's eyes. He moved carefully towards it, he slowly rounded the bend of the maser tank. A long, windy tail lashed out of no where, smashing hard in the face of Shou, knocking him fast to the ground. Shou hit the cold pavement, not knowing what had just happened to him. The Destroyah crab stood over him, Shou helpless shook off the pain that had flowed through his face. The spawn of the Oxygen Destroyer looked over the downed soldier, ready to strike, ready to kill.

Shou acted quick, letting a burst of rounds out of the barrel of the mp-5 and into the eyes of the Destroyah. The creature reeled back, blinded by the clatter of bullets. Shou shoved himself off the ground, running away from the screaming monster. He ran through the hall of maser tanks, watching as the Destroyahs crawled over them, reaching to get to him. Shou turned around, estimating the distance between him and death. He felt like a sacred, timid mouse running from the hungry cat, but he knew there was nothing he could do. Shou ran, ran back to the only place he knew, he had to get something to defend himself better with.

The still burning fires illuminated the area with an even glow of flickering orange. Shou looked wildly around, searching for the corpses of his teammates, searching for something to help him survive. He spotted the fluttering suits that sat by the burning rumble. Shou cautiously walked over, a part of him not wanting to see. Shou slowly stared into the visor of one of the member's gasmask. The cold, blank eye sockets stared back at him from the pale, white skull. Shou turned sharply away, the pain slowly crept up on him, then it hit him hard, tearing him away from the world. His eyes burned, but no tears came out. His heart sank, but no pain followed. He didn't understand, he didn't understand, why they had to die. It was maddening; it felt like someone was pulling him apart from the inside. The bellow of foul death rode the dead wind. It carried itself to Shou's ears, filling him with the energy and strength of his friends.

Shou's dead eyes locked on the cold, black grenade launcher that stared back at him from the deathly hands of friend. He grabbed it, letting go of his useless mp-5. Shou turned around, the power coursing down his veins. His finger rested lightly on the trigger, waiting for death to show itself. It came, in its red shell, cowering behind its power. Shou let loose of his emotions, only keeping one, the one that he needed, survival. The grenades pumped out one after another, storming over the crowd of Destroyahs. Explosions scattered the area, flames of hell fire roamed free. The Destroyahs' hard exoskeletons melted under the heat and pressure of it all. Slowly giving in to it, slowly dying. The gun stopped, Shou stopped. The remaining Destroyahs huddled in, cornering Shou in a ring of death. It was over; all that Shou did meant his death. Something came down from the sky, swinging violently in the circle of wild air. With defeat in his eyes, Shou looked up. The gleaming light from the helicopter shined down on him, the rope leader continued to rub against him. He grabbed on to it, watching as he lifted high into the air. He climbed into the cabin, his body sore and tired from the hard journey. He laid his back against the metal wall, feeling its cold air that circulated through it. Shou pulled off his helmet, his sweat-filled hair following with it. Shou un-strapped the heavy gasmask, letting it fall carelessly to the ground. Shou reached down for what he was fighting for, for what he risked his life for. The containment jar sat diligently in Shou's palm. He watched the lump piece of skin wading in its own blood, like a boat lost in a sea of red. Shou leaned back; his face broke with a smile of joy as he thought vigilantly.

"Not even Godzilla survived Destroyah's power like I did. I am better than I thought." Shou thoughts gradually disappeared as he sank into a deep sleep.