Prologue 3

Prologue 3

Alliances

"In a single day & night of misfortune and betrayal, the island of Atlantis was destroyed by the Shadow of Evil, the remaining landmass vanishing into the Aegean Sea, reducing the size of Crete by half. . ."Plato, 360 B.C

75,000 BC

Aegean Sea, Atlantis

What was once a thriving, highly-advanced civilization has been reduced to chaos and carnage: buildings, markets, & streets in ruins, damaged/destroyed military craft that look like aquatic animals scatter several parts of the kingdom, and the bodies of the Atlanteans litter the ground, most crushed under rubble.

What could've the collapse of such a mighty kingdom?

Every now and then, a red & black blur flies overhead or darts across the fractured streets. Vaguely resembling a type of reptilian bat with glowing red/yellow eyes, black bodies, and red membranous wings. The immense hordes of vampiric creatures fly above like vultures or stalk about on ground, searching for survivors and devouring many of the people whole.

Unknown to the destruction below, a large capsule the size of a house trailer was launched into space near the palace.

Approaching dawn, an Agent of Gaia arrived. . . too late. After massacring the scaly bats, the armored titan vanished as Atlantis sank under the waves, and the island of Crete was reduced to half its size. [1]

XXXXXXXXXX

Mars, 2006

104 million miles from Earth on the planet Mars, war was brewing.

Stationed here, is a massive armada of alien ships. The largest is a massive spherical shape, standing 1,000 meters tall, and resting on three cargo ship-size, diamond-shaped ships for struts. Other ships are a lot smaller and vary in shape & size; some look like real animals, others resemble dragons. 

Built nearby are several structures that house the aliens that rule Mars.

In one meeting room, the leaders of the 7 aliens gather together to discuss their plans.

The first are a pair of siblings, both 1.8 meters tall. The male has a tall oval-shaped head with a thin crest, and ringed with black spikes, like a sideways mohawk. His skin is a metallic grey with visible black veins. His eyes are instead a pair of red pits, similar to snakes, and his mouth has piranha teeth. His muscular frame is covered by a black leather trench coat with spiky shoulder pads and an oval-shaped collar, and equally dark undershirt, skin tight black pants, and heavy black combat boots. This is X1. 

His sister is different: her head has long black hair that trails down to her rear, and her face is covered by a pair of red goggles and a gray scarf around her mouth. Like her brother, her athletic frame is covered in black leather clothing but the way it hugs her body gives her a femme fatale look, especially with her five long sharp claws on her hands and bladed heels. She is X2, and along with X1, they lead the Xiliens.

The third individual is the second shortest, at 5 feet tall. His head looks vaguely like a vulture's but has a row of 5 short, backward-pointing spikes that are the same color as his sickly gray skin. A ring of 22 scales rest above his eyes to form a crest, along with a golden crescent moon-shaped crown. His eyes are bloodshot red with faint golden veins, spreading down from the edges of his eyes to his neck. His mouth is odd: the upper jaw has a hooked beak while the lower jaw has a row of recurved teeth. A black hood rests on his neck, connected to his black robes that cover his body along with a set of chain mail. Sheathed to his waist is a short black rod with a golden gem-like trigger in the center. His arms are sturdy & strong, tipped with 4 sharp claws while his muscular legs have 4 claws: a dewclaw, two claws for walking on, and the middle claw is sickle-shaped and raised off the ground. Dragging behind him is a long flexible tail and the end is tipped with two rows of 4 backward pointing spikes. He is Xif, the leader of the Kilaaks.

The fourth member is among the least human. This is due to the fact that his body is very amorphous and comparable to slime or gelatin. While he is capable of taking on multiple forms, he's currently in his humanoid form at 7 feet tall. His body is a dark blue and he lacks organs, inside and out. A set of vibrant yellow 'dreadlocks' run down the back of his head and his eyes are a dark green. His large arms have multiple sharp claws, with the middle pair being a dark purple. He's Yog, the entire collective of his race.

The fifth would give anyone with entomophobia nightmares: an 8 foot tall humanoid cockroach. However, he has some differences: his secondary set of arms end in large spears that are folded away. On his back are a pair of cybernetic wings that wouldn't be out of place on a dragonfly. But the most striking feature is the face. He wears a single red visor and the mouth is silver and bird-like but with sharp teeth, insect mandibles at the side and a metallic tongue. This is Binsento, ruler of the Nebulans.

The sixth member is the shortest, at 4 feet tall, which is why his chair is raised up. He looked like Megalon due to the head but this was actually the helmet, as his face is barely visible. He has very pale skin, large blue eyes, while his black hair is done up in a braid coming out of a hole in the back of his helmet. His dwarven clothes are colored in yellow & orange and his arms have large gauntlets that are drill-grenade launchers. This is Emperor Sisar, the new ruler of the Subterrans. [2]

The seventh individual is the largest of the gathering at 9 feet tall. He appears to be a human-like chimpanzee but his black fur is offset by his green face and multiple cybernetic parts, as nearly the entire left side of his body is metallic with a red eye and the left hand is a large claw-like wrench. His attire is akin to German WWII officer uniform and his left chest pocket has cigars in them. This is Saludo, leader of the Simians.

The final member of the gathering is the least human. She vaguely resembles an octopus with grayish-green skin, 3 eyes, with a larger one above the primary pair, and an octopus's beak. She's not exactly standing as she is floating above the metal floor. This is Vorticia, queen of the Martians, and the original ruler of Mars.

Time and time again, each of their races tried to conquer Earth: Xiliens began in 1966, Kilaak in 1968, Yog in 1970, Nebulans in 1972, Subterrans in 1973, Simians in 1974 & 75, Martians in 1983, and Xiliens tried again in 2004. Countless other races tried but no matter what, they all failed.

Other races either vanished/collapsed or surrendered/integrated into mankind's society, the seven gathered on Mars with an army of advanced vehicles & Kaiju have come together to unite against the forces of Earth.

Unfortunately, X1 had the foolish idea of mind controlling Ebirah and sending him to attack Seattle, Washington. They all watched as the lobster only managed to do minimal damage to the city's coastline before being killed by an upgraded Jet Jaguar. They observed as the mind control probe installed in Ebirah's brain relayed the video cut to static after Jet impaled the lobster's head.

After a long moment of silence, X1 clenched his fists and walked over to the intercom screen.

Then with a sudden high scream of rage, he drove his fist into the screen, pulling his armored hand out in a shower of glass and sparks.

Xif laughed loudly. "Saw that one coming. You should've used a stronger mutation; instead you chose an overgrown seafood menu!" Xif taunted him.

Binsento chattered in agreement. "I agree with Xif. Why didn't you use one of your own monsters?" He asked.

X1, regaining control of his anger, breathed slowly and calmly before he answered. "If I used one of my own monsters, it would've drawn attention to us! None of us are ready yet to exact our full scale invasion on Earth, especially since some of our monsters rest in bio tubes!" He shouted. [3]

Sisar took a big bite out of some silvery alien fish. "Our Holy Lord of Flesh and Metal is all we need. Megalon's upgrades will grant Him victory. However one thing I believe none of us expected was the one who killed the Ebirah. I expected Gojira to boil him but I never expected to see that cartoonish robot come in and 'save the day'. And it appears Goro Maki has upgraded him considerably. A good thing my father isn't here." The Subterran leader stated, surprised.

Saludo crunched up his cigar in an ashtray, "Agreed. This raises the possibility that the other tin cans the Global Defense Force have are upgraded." The Simian hypothesized.

Yog clacked his claws together, "So what do we do now?" Spoke up.

Vorticia spoke up, "We play the waiting game. The Earthlings will upgrade, but so will we." She said using her telepathy.

A large black furred Simian came in, dressed in scrubs lined with circuitry. He kneeled in front of Saludo. "The interlopers are coming out of their stasis my lord. I have a termination team on standby should they prove to be hostile. What shall we do with them?"

Saludo put his wrench-like claw to his beard and stroked it, "I think it's time we all greeted these people." He suggested.

Xif nodded in agreement. "I agree with you, Saludo. After all, the Ritualist speculates that the pod they crashed in was Atlantean in origin, and we all know how advanced they were with their technology." Xif stated.

"Perhaps we could extend, how the humans say, an olive branch of peace for them to join us." X2 spoke up.

They all nod or mutter a few words in agreement before they left the meeting room and walked to the medical facility.

XXXXXXXXXX

The Black Simian stood by them, a silver badge denoting his rank as Captain. He snarled out orders to nearby silver suited Simians and Martians as they bustled around a set of silver coffin-like pods glowing with blue light.

Simians clothed head to toe in grey armor with red veins stood in position in front of the coffin with a mixture of thin silvery rifles and heavy box shaped plasma bomb tubes in their paws, ready to fire the moment a superior gave the order.

Sticking to the rafters above, a dozen Martians held onto the ceiling with their tentacles. Glowing green goggles covered their faces as they slowly aimed downwards with scoped silver sniper rifles of Simian design.

Saludo turned to his chief medical officer, "Release them from their slumber. It's time we got answers."

He nodded, "Yes, my Lord." Activating a few switches on a nearby terminal, each of the pods opened up one at a time, the occupants inside stumbling out.

The first was a young adult human male with tanned skin, dark brown short hair, & gray eyes. His clothes over his muscular frame was a dark green jacket with a golden 7-sided star on the back, a black shirt, and black shorts. However, the most striking feature were the bronze metal legs he had in place of normal ones, not unlike some of the Simians.

The second was of similar age but female with brown skin, green hair that had two long strands in the back, red eyes, and a purple veil over her mouth & nose. She wore a green crop top, dark brown bandages around her upper left arm, and odd gloves on her hands. She had the same 7-sided star on her belly and wrapped around her white pants, a belt that had multiple short knives. Her feet had open-toed sandals.

The third was a man who appeared older, 30s at least, and was the most physically imposing of them all, especially with his broad shoulders and scarred hairy arms. He had dark brown short hair with trimmed mutton chops and brown eyes.

He wore attire that wouldn't be out of place in a gladiator ring: heavy green armor over similarly colored shirt & pants, along with large brown boots that go up to his thighs. He had the 7-sided star on his upper left arm.

The fourth was male in his early 40s, judging by the few gray hairs in his black hair and mustache. His eyes are blue. He wore a black long sleeve shirt and his lower body was covered by a dull gold robe, not unlike that of a priest's. He bore the 7-sided star on his upper right arm. Holstered on his right hip appeared to a revolver with multiple barrels.

The final male of the group was in his early 30s and pale-skinned. He had long brown hair that was braided & sickly yellow eyes. He wore large bandages on his upper arms and long brown gloves on his lower arms. On each wrist was a pair of bladed gauntlets. The white jacket he wore on his chest was open, revealing a multitude of scars and the 7-sided star over the largest. He wore white shorts and boots not unlike the big male.

The second female was in her late 20s and almost gave X2 a run for her money with her skintight black bodysuit. However it was different as there were some gold accents and she wore a short cape over her left shoulder. She wore thigh high black boots. Most striking was the face. She had short black hair but only one amber-colored eye. The other was covered up by an eye patch that had the same 7-sided star.

The final member was female and she screamed of death: pale skin that was nearly ghostly white, black robes, and a dark purple cloak, red veins on her arms and around her eyes. Speaking of her eyes, they appeared to be nearly pitch-black, except for faint red pupils. She had the same 7-sided star on her forehead. But the most striking was her hair that was pale white and done up in like a headdress almost with 4 pairs of braided points that have black gems hanging from them. She also wore a large golden crown that resembled a certain Planet Killer's Horns.

Two armored Simians looked to each other, guns on the interlopers. "They look kinda like humans. Do we use the universal greeting?"

"Negative." Was the reply in their helmet's transmitters. "Wait and see what they will do first."

The final member, once she was free from stasis, looked around and realized something, "This. . . THIS ISN'T ATLANTIS! WHERE-GAH!" She stumbled and nearly collapsed, weak, exhausted, and hungry from her slumber. The other members tried to assist her, but they too were in the same state she was.

Xif looked at them and noticed they all had the same 7-sided star. "Wait a moment. It can't be! Impossible!" He turned to his fellow leaders, "My fellow leaders, who we have here is the infamous Kult of Zero, the first people to worship The Golden Demise!" He shouted.

"WHAT?!" X1 shouted, bringing his arms up and throwing them down as he sputtered before grabbing onto Saludo's wrench. "Get them to the cells! I want to know what they know before the night cycle is over!" He roared.

Saludo removed X1's hand from his wrench, "Alright then." He turned to his security officers. "I need anti-Mana binders put on each of them and escorted to the brig. They'll be put in the same cell and given food & water. We need them alive and healthy if they tell us what they know." He commanded.

They saluted him, "SIR YES, SIR!" They all approached the Atlanteans and bound their wrists with binders that prevented them from using Mana before they were escorted to the brig.

"It would be wise if me or Saludo spoke to them first. They may freak upon seeing the faces of non-humans." Sisar suggested.

"No." Xif placed a hand on his shoulder, "I'll accompany you both. I recognized who they are and as such, I hold their lives as being very important." Xif suggested.

Vorticia raised a tentacle. "This is a time sink. Why not have Yog enter their bodies and extract all the information for us?"

Yog smirked, "I agree."

"NO! You do that, you could end up leaving them in a vegetative state, rendering them brain-dead!" He squawked, "To speed up the process, perhaps we can revitalize them back to peak physical strength using Dark Mana." He suggested. "You!" He yelled, turning towards a pair of Subterran serfs with "X" tattooed onto their exposed bald heads. "Get the chambers ready for the Rejuvenation process!"

They nodded, "Yes my lord!" They ran off.

XXXXXXXXXX

Later that night, each of the seven Atlanteans were placed in a large pool-like chamber and propped against the back of it.

Xif and many others of his race stood in a 7-point formation. They began chanting in an unknown dialect, Dark Mana coursing through them and then Xif slammed his tail down, the Dark Mana flowing into the 7 Atlanteans. Their eyes opened as their bodies took in the corrupted source of Mana.

The process over, all of them stood up, rejuvenated completely.

Xif decided to defer any potential misunderstandings by raising his scaly paws and speaking the universal greeting in the ancient Atlantean language.

"01010101?"

The lead female's eyes widened before she replied in her own language.*

Translation: "You come in peace, do you. Well you have rejuvenated myself and my followers. But I ask: who are you and what do you want with me, Empress Salem?."

*: Translated from Atlantean.

Xif responded curtly. "We found you floating in space in those Atlantean pods. A very curious sight, considering the extinction of the Atlantean people 75,000 years ago."

Salem's eyes widened with genuine surprise before she smirked, "It has been that long since Atlantis has fallen? Then my creations have completed my goal." She said, full of herself.

"Creations? You mean you created the Shadow of Evil?!" Xif stated, surprised.

She nodded, "They were the first of many creations. I created them, including an Alpha, as a sort of. . . tribute to Monster Zero.; which is why we all bear his sigil." She said, tapping to the 7-sided star tattooed on her forehead and the crown she wore. [4]

Xif fell to his knees, his chanters stepping back as the Kilaak slammed his head into the metal floor.

"I see. The holy time of the prophecy is falling into place."

He then looked up. "No mention of an explicit creator is made in the history of the heretics of Atlantis. The Feast of the Shadows was all consuming, for much of those last days are unknown."

He clasped his hands together in prayer. "The Forgotten and Fallen shall be caught before they reach the floor by the true believers." The alien looked up to Salem's shadowy form. "Our calculations of the prophecy have not been wrong, for this day was foretold since they were first written!"

"What the heck?! Speak normal words, bird-dragon!" The brown-skinned one shouted, aiming her knives at him.

"Silence, Emerald! Empress Salem speaks to someone of great importance" The one with the eye patch spoke to one known as Emerald. "Yes, Lady Cinder." Emerald apologized to Cinder.

Salem approached Xif and stroked her fingers across the veins around his eyes, "You have made a connection with Monster Zero. How?" She asked him.

"One, Monster Zero?"

"The information I gleaned from mining expeditions around the Mediterranean hardly spoke of him, only calling him a Golden Storm or Monster Zero, as if more ancient civilizations feared him. Does he have a true name?" She asked.

Xif whispered into her ear, "King Ghidorah."

Just like that, the room fell silent.

"-Ghidorah? As in the monster that drags kids to the Panthalassal if they don't make their beds? What the Hell does the name of some old fairy tale have to do with-Oof!" The metal legged one began before a knee to the back from his emerald haired compatriot interrupted him, an irate look on her face.

X1 suddenly burst into the room, cape flourishing behind him. "An Empress? That isn't in any of our records! How do I know you aren't lying, mutant?!"

Salem looked upon X1, "Rather than pure words, I have a better solution: I'll show you the story of who we are and how we came to be. I'll need a device through which to project the Dark Mana necessary to allow my memories to be seen before you all." She said.

X1 clenched his teeth and fists, but turned to some Martian attendants holding a solution of Yog jelly. "Very well. Do it."

He then activated a surgically implanted transmitter into his head, broadcasting to a silent room miles away.

'If she tries to use any of her species sorcery on us, vent the room with a nerve agent that only affects them.'

Salem raised an eyebrow, "Was expecting something akin to a crystal ball but it should work." She said.

XXXXXXXXXX

Later, the leaders and Atlanteans gathered in the same meeting room once more though this time the alien leaders sat on one side of the table and the Atlanteans on the other.

Using the Yog jelly, Salem began a broadcast of her memories, compiling into three acts: Origin, Creation, & Destruction.

Origin act told how she was a twin along with her sister, both born from the former queen. But her twin sister that was born second became Empress while Salem had to do the more boring task of handling the paperwork. Fed up with this, she along with the priest Watts and the soldiers Hazel & Mercury, fled Atlantis after a failed assassination attempt, stealing blueprints of a massive Atlantean super weapon called the Levytitan and documents about the use of Mana. Retreating to the mainland of Italy, they came across the Arsonist criminal Cinder, the Toxin criminal Tyrian, and the orphaned Emerald.

Creation act told how she mastered Dark Mana by learning the several incantations of how to use Light Mana and twisting it to create Dark Mana. Over time, the overuse of it corrupted her body but she was able to release most of it, birthing black armored beasts with soulless red eyes, The Creatures of Grimm. Many either resembled regular animals, while some appeared prehistoric, and even others that resembled mythological monsters. During an expedition to a volcanic island, she had discovered stone tablets and scrolls that spoke of Monster Zero, complete with crude images of him. With this knowledge, she began to create the Shadows of Evil as tribute, with help from Watts as his science skills were second to none. By this time, they had all tattooed themselves with the 7-sided star and Salem had constructed the Golden Crown, claiming herself to be Empress Salem.

Destruction act detailed the Fall of Atlantis: the invasion of the Creatures of Grimm softened the Atlantean armada and then she sent out her Shadow of Evil to clean up the mess. As she made her way towards the castle, she and her cohorts fell into a trap and were banished from Atlantis. The last image was of Salem glaring death at her former sister. . . before the Alpha Gyaos swooped down on the royal family.

X1 paused at the lengthy display before turning sharply to Salem, his eyes hidden under a new black visor. "You had all that power....AND LOST?!" He turned to the other leaders in disbelief. "What can this Witch offer us?"

Salem glared at him, "Perhaps a show of strength to demonstrate what we are capable of as our final part to earn our place here. One-on-one, each of us, including myself, will face one of your best warriors from each race. What do you say?" She said, placing her trump card down.

X1 was close to frothing. "MUTANT BI-"

Angered by the interruption to a potential valuable exchange, Saludo's silver hand latched onto the controllers throat, lifting him into the air. "Know that you are in a room with leaders equal to your authority!" The simian growled, baring his fangs as armored Xiliens and Simians aimed their guns at one another, the air tense and seething. The other leaders watched with Xif praying on his knees. Megalon's chief worshiper bared his makeshift drill gauntlets.

Vorticia raised a glowing limb, her voice radiating.

"Perhaps our guests would like to learn of what happened in their slumber before any decision is made?" She turned to a smaller attendant of its species. Obediently, seven sparking tentacles rose from behind it, artificial according to their metallic, skeletal design.

"This unit can download information into your organic systems within a minute. It will take time to fully digest the most important events, but it will not take a day. You all look strong." She tilted her bulbous, aquatic head. "Surely those as strong as you need not fear it? Information is a currency more valuable than any other."

Watts spoke up, "Since we exchanged information, it seems only fair that you give us some information in return. What do you think, Empress?"Watts spoke up.

Salem nods, "Very well. Proceed with the information exchange."

After half a minute of silence, the armed and dangerous slowly lowered their guns. Saludo dropped the controller to his feet, slowly stepping back while keeping an eye on the exiles. X1 punched the ape on the chest. Saludo just huffed and got to his large chair, pulling out a cigar that he jammed into his maw.

X1 shook then sat down.

XXXXXXXXXX

A vote was held.

"Do we all concur?"

"We concur."

And that was that. Consensus was achieved through cybernetic agreement, radio waves invisible to those without the leaders implants.

The small martian with the artificial limbs approached the exiles, it's limbs aimed towards their faces, the needle blade pointed at the ends shining and ready to inject the information contained within into their neurons.

Sentenced to acting as a living database decades ago, every mission it did would bring one cycle off of it's punishment.

"Just a simple prick, like getting a shot." Vorticia stated.

The seven needle-tipped tentacles stabbed into the heads of the Atlanteans and they received a flood of information.

Hunger. Fight. Kill.

Evolve. Find. Destroy.

Seek. Terminate. Venus.

Mars. Earth. King

I am terror.

I AM MANY.

XXXXXXXXXX

The Martian retracted the tentacles from them, and the Atlanteans all had to brace themselves, breathing heavily.

"It appears that King Ghidorah is far more powerful than any of us could've realized." Hazel said.

"Indeed. Consider us onboard with your plans. Perhaps with my Dark Mana and knowledge of Atlantean tech, we can strengthen your alien armada by a large margin." Salem said, agreeing to ally with them.

"What can each of you do?" Binsento asked.

They each explained their skill-sets: Salem has mastery over many Dark Mana spells & curses, and has a penchant for using electricity, Cinder is an elemental mage, often using fire to attack, Hazel is the tank of the group, able to block out pain and break crush stone with ease, Watts is highly knowledgeable in genetic engineering, almost as good as the Simians, Tyrian is an assassin who uses toxins to kill, Emerald is an assassin as well, creating illusions/hallucinations before killing with a well-aimed knife, while Mercury was an acrobat, using his metallic legs for powerful kicks.

Emerald's skill caught Xif's eyes. "Can you only affect......humans? Anything bigger than you?" He asked.

Emerald said, "I can only affect the weak-minded. I tried using it on a Gyaos and it worked but it led to a nosebleed."

"Psychic study has advanced considerably since your time. Come child, the great work begins."

She looked at Cinder who nodded, allowing her to leave; and with that, Emerald left with Xif.

"Since you have joined, we should now change the name of our organization." X1 spoke up. The others groaned. "What, it's a great name and now even better:
Inter
Galactic
Supernatural
Space 
Syndicate." He announced.

Saludo groaned and picked at the metal plate embedded into his head with his wrench. "That sounds like something out of one of those old Terran telescreen shows."

Tyrian snickered manically, "Fitting name for such a ragtag bunch of fellows like us." He cackled.

"Ignore him. He's a total kiss-up to Empress Salem." Cinder said.

Saludo, "I see. I am curious regarding this Atlantean vehicle called the Levytitan. Reminds me of a Terran mythology about a giant sea monster."

"Well you are right." Watts pulled out a blueprint of the Levytitan. It resembled a colossal crustacean, several times larger than Ebirah, capable of flight, and equipped with huge claws and a Dark Mana Cannon located in the mouth. [5]

"I want construction started now." X1 growled, smashing his hand through the table. Splinters flew up as he continued. "Ebirah's death is a sin against our entire empire! It is only fitting that the-" Not wanting to say Jet Jaguar's name, he continued, "-piece of rust that iced him gets killed by a machine that looks like the one he destroyed!"

Saludo nods, "Of course." Watts & Saludo left to get started on construction.

Cinder stifled a yawn, "Perhaps you can show us where we'll be staying." She asked.

"We have suites for you available. I can guide you all there." X2 stated. They nodded and they left the room.

X1 paused, glancing at Salem, his eyes narrowing before he walked away with an angry flourish of his cape.

Vorticia was the last to leave, her tentacles undulating in content for a moment.

It had all gone to plan.

X1, the young Controller, provoked the exiles with his bigotry. As a result, the helpful Vorticia was the one they turned to for her to calm down while everyone else had exploded into fury.

They had been able to see what had happened since their fall. Well, mainly what Vorticia wanted them to see.

The mental "Insurance" she had planted with the tentacles in case of later betrayal didn't hurt either.

Satisfied, the Martian ruler slithered out of the room.

And so a new sinister alliance was born. But not without others knowing about it.

XXXXXXXXXX

2006

Infant Island, East of the Philippines

We begin with both Shobijin having a dream/nightmare/vision of what's to come: Return of the Shadow Queen, Planet Killer, Monsters emerging from portals: ones under the sea and ones from Death Valley, a demonic shaman-like kaiju raises hundreds of kaiju from a graveyard, and finally, 8 eight pairs of glowing red eyes. [6]

The pair awaken, trembling.

"What was what?" Liana asked her sister, startled. While both have the same monarch butterfly wings & antennae, same style of clothes, Liana has her white hair down to her shoulders and blue facial paint.

"A vision. It appears the 2nd Kaiju War is coming, just as the Warriors of Light predicted." Molana said, realizing what had happened. In contrast, Molana has her white hair in a ponytail and red facial paint.

Molana went to the nearby Spring, soaking her face in the cool water. "We need to tell the others. Now."

Liana nods and rang the bell at their temple, gathering their people together.

While they all wore similar attire and had white hair, each had different style of wings & antennae: the hunters had dragonfly wings, warriors had wasp wings, healers had bee wings, and lower ranking priests/priestesses had butterfly or moth wings.

"Why have you gathered us, Voices of Mothra?" Elder Clerica, the 2nd-in-command of the Houtua asked the Shobijin.

Both of them explained their vision, while priests & priestesses inscribed the information on pads using colored chalk and stone, both word format and images.

"Destiny willl arrive soon. We must contact our allies and begin the preparations for the end." a Priest with long white hair, both on his head and chin, replied.

"Me and my sister will travel to Monster Island. We'll speak with the Wise One. It is very likely that he had the same vision too."Molana suggested.

"I'll do my best to lead our people in your absence, Voices of Mothra." Clerica said, taking up the mantle of leader.

Both sisters nodded and left to pack the essentials and fly to Monster Island on Tiny Mothra.

With a flourish, a small insectoid with multicolored wings landed on the island.

Tiny Mothra has arrived.  She very much resembled Mothra but much smaller body, bright pink eyes instead of blue ones, and had hearts on her wings instead of a halo. 

She chirped, announcing her presence. Molana & Liana, both carrying small bags that contained food, water, medical supplies, & equipment to set up shelters. Additionally, both have their rapiers sheathed on their waists.

The jumped onto Tiny Mothra's back and waved goodbye to their people as they took flight.

And so began their trek from Infant Island to Monster Island, located between the Japanese archipelago and Bikini Atoll.

The winds were cool and the sky blue.

But they knew that in the distance, there was a bad moon on the rise.

XXXXXXXXXX

The trio arrived at Monster Island.

A stark contrast to Infant Island, Monster Island was one single island in the shape of a slightly rounded square, rather a collection of rocky outcrops surrounding their cross-shaped island one. The island itself also had sheer cliff faces on the edges, leaving little to no beaches and the inland environment was coniferous forests, grasslands, and a large marshy swamp instead of a lush tropical paradise. [7]

It was time to touch down on one of the least hostile parts of the Island.

They flew into a tunnel and arrived at a large cave where Tyluan perched.

Small for a kaiju, 60 meters tall, he was a large bird that had the colors of a Barn Owl but with white feathers on his head, a long crane-like neck and body, large wings, & stilt-like legs that end in four sharp talons that are in a zygodactyl position.

He opened his large golden eyes, "Come to see me, you have." He greets the Shobijin. [8]

The pair bow before him,

"We have, Sensei. We have seen a vision of end times approaching." Molana stated. Once again both recount the vision to the wise Kaiju. He listens intently.

"The same vision you have seen, I have. Preparations, we will take." He said, acknowledging their fears and glad to assist his allies.

He turned, his feathers ruffling like hundreds of blades. "Begin, the gathering shall."

"What must we do, Master?" Liana asked.

"Go to the center of the island, you must. A chamber with 7 diamonds, you will find. Strong they are with Mana and ideal for storing, they are. Guidance on how to perform the ceremony, the location will provide." He instructed.

"Storing what?" Molana asked.

"Patience, you must have. The answer you seek soon to be revealed, it will be." He added.

The titan sat down in the middle of a shadowy pool of water in the room.

He knelt, spreading his legs and holding his claws to his haunches as if meditating.

"Our allies, I contact. Reach the center, you must."

They nod, "Yes, Sensei."
Both took flight on Tiny Mothra and flew in a tunnel that led to the center of the island.

XXXXXXXXXX

There they found the chamber Tyluan spoke of.

It reminded them of their ritual chamber back on Infant Island, but slightly smaller. 7 pillars stood over a heptagon etched into the center of the chamber. Each had a different symbol carved into them: Radiation, Defense, Sky, a Cross, Water, Earth, and a Sharp Tooth. Right in the middle was an altar with the 7 gems. Each of them shaped like a regular diamond, size of a quarter and lacked color.

The ceiling had the incantation necessary for the ritual.

Both glanced at one another before taking out their rapiers.

The sisters walked to the center of the room, holding their hands out to the blades.

One slick moment later, the symbols began to glow as they held each other's hand on the cuts. It was time to begin the incantation.

Clasping hands together, looking to the ceiling, they recited the incantation in their singing voice, not unlike whey they summon Mothra.
As they did so, different beams of light traveled into the gems from the symbols: Black, Brown, Orange, White, Sea Green, Purple, & Blue. They could also hear the signature calls of various kaiju, but seven stood out: Godzilla, Anguirus, Rodan, Mothra, Manda, Baragon, & Gorosaurus.

The Titan-call coming to them meant that the Seven Titan Kings were aware of the coming war too.

More proof of the coming time they had feared.

Once it was over, both collapsed to their knees before resuming their stance.
They looked at the seven gems and each glowed with different colors: Black, Brown, Orange, White,  Sea Green,  Purple & Blue.
"What do we do now?" Liana asked her sister.

Suddenly, they heard bird-like shrieks and insect chattering in a nearby tunnel.

XXXXXXXXXX

Flying to the source, they saw the man-sized kaiju Godzuki battling a normal variant of Shockirus.

Godzuki resembles a large feathered Troodont but with several different features: He has a pseudo-beak with teeth, dark green feathers covering his body except the head, hands, and feet while underside is a lighter shade and a series of blue horizontal stripes ran across his sides. He has five Godzilla-esque dorsal plates on his neck before they transition to quills on his back. He has four claws on his hands, though one is vestigial and arms have large green-yellow feathered wings for flight. His powerful legs have traditional theropod feet, though his second toe/killing claw is more for walking than slashing. He also has a long tail that comes to a tapering end.

The Shockirus is a meter long radiation mutant version of sea lice that originally inhabited on the skin of various aquatic kaiju. With the disappearance of the kaiju, they, and many other non-kaiju mutants, have colonized Monster Island and evolved into multiple forms. The normal variant has a dark black exoskeleton and large mandibles and claws, and a tail like a silverfish.

The louse reared up on it's legs before lunching forwards with it's clacking claws.

Godzuki evaded the lunging parasite by flying up before landing on top of the insect and began to peck and claw away at the exoskeleton, searching for the softer innards.

The louse mutant shrieked and began stabbing into his hide with it's barbed legs.

Godzuki shrieked in pain and fell off.
Just before the parasite could siphon the small Kaiju's blood, it was suddenly lifted off the ground before it was crumpled up into a ball, green ichor and bits of armor raining down. Godzuki looked and saw Molana unclench a fist,

"Lousy parasite." She said, wiping some green blood from her cheek.

Liana approached Godzuki and her hands glowed as she healed him of his wounds. Godzuki tilted his head to the side, lapping up what was left of the parasite as Liana did her work. Once she was finished, he stood up and began to clean his feathers of any remaining ichor.

"Why are you here, Godzuki?" Liana asked. "Protect. Chamber." He said in broken English, pointing at the tunnel leading to the chamber the Shobijin were in. [9]

"Who told you to do that?" Liana asked. He made owl hoots, indicating that Tyluan had sent him.

Molana looked at him carefully. "Are you aware of what is coming?" "Danger. War. Hope." He said.