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Alan suddenly found himself jerking awake, the following morning after the photoshoot at the Panama Canal. He sat upright in the bed in his hotel room in La Correra, panting hard, his face streaked with sweat.
Those dreams were coming back to him; they were so vivid and real that for a moment he forgot where he was. This time, it was truly weird. He'd been hearing garbled voices, a whole variety of them, both men and women. The voices were indistinct, seemingly coming from the mouth of one person rather than individuals. Every now and then he'd thought he could make out some of the voices more distinctly. He was sure he had heard someone speaking in old Shakespearian English, but again the voice was too garbled to be distinct. Not only had what he had heard been indistinct, but what he had seen had been just as unclear. He could remember seeing the surface of water, as if he was viewing it from underneath. He could've sworn he had seen flashes of lightning as well. A thousand other sights and sounds had been present, each as unclear as the last.
It was daylight outside, the soft light filling the room through the plain white curtains. The room started to come into clearer focus as Alan dragged himself further into the waking world. The dresser, a couple of chairs and a TV and VCR gradually became visible, as well as a small bundle of bags and suitcases. Alan was supposed to leave Panama in a couple of days, and start his journey back north to the USA. He had packed early because he had hoped to leave earlier. He quite fancied heading for Florida, especially if Kiryuu was going to be sticking around there.
A smile spread across his face as he thought back to the events of yesterday. Not only had he managed to snap a fantastic portrait of the Utah Foundation's most valued possession, he'd also seen that someone there had a warped sense of humour. News reports had shown Kiryuu to be quite the sun worshipper in Miami Beach. He'd attracted quite a crowd, and had put on a hell of a show. He remembered seeing Kiryuu lying on that beach as if he was going 'babe-spotting', hearing the roar Kiryuu gave that left its mark on the crowd. Alan could remember thinking that he sounded more and more like Godzilla every time he heard him.
Sliding across the double bed and reaching for the remote for the TV, he couldn't help chuckling as he thought about what might happen next time Kiryuu appeared on the news. What was it going to be? He'd got himself a girlfriend? He'd been caught smoking a joint of weed? Well, footballers ended up in the newspapers all the time, and they were all as smart as pig swill, maybe it wasn't so impossible that a mechanical dinosaur could end up on the front pages for anything.
He switched on the TV, the channel set for CNN. As the sound on the TV kicked in, even before the picture came up, Alan at first thought that there was on-the-spot reporting from the so-called 'War on Terror' going on:
"Unbelieveable sights here... It's like a scene from a horror movie... A sudden lightning storm, not forecast... Miami is in ruins... These incredible titans at each other's throats..."
Holy shit... Alan thought as he heard the voices. As the picture came into focus, his mouth fell open at the sights he was seeing. The footage was a live broadcast displaying the events at Ft. Lauderdale, Florida. Only yesterday Alan had seen this area on the news, with its pristine beaches and white hotels lining the boardwalk. Now the place looked like an atomic bomb had hit it; a somewhat ironic allegory, if Godzilla had been responsible. The entire place was in ruins, fires still burning away. It looked like a storm was in the area, as Alan could see lightning flash across the sky in bright, searing bolts.
In the midst of it all, he saw them. Three of them, all standing amidst the ruins of this once peaceful area. Three enormous creatures, two of them seemingly in combat. The gigantic lizard known as Godzilla was stood away, almost as if he himself was too nervous to get into the fight that was now taking place. The camera swerved to fully display Kiryuu, helmetless, engaged with his opponent, a creature that looked to Alan like some kind of bipedal seahorse. The monster was covered in firey red scales, with a huge fin spreading from the top of its head all the way down to over halfway down its back, like some kind of mohican. Alan saw that the seahorse creature had one claw raised to the sky, and that the lightning bolts in the area actually seemed to be striking Kiryuu himself. Alan suddenly imagined that the monster was summoning the lightning bolts, even though he knew how ridiculous that sounded. Monsters couldn't control weather; they didn't need to. They were like forces of nature themselves.
As he watched, he saw Kiryuu land a vicious kick at the monster, sending it flying back. The camera quickly moved to keep up with the action, zooming in close to the two combatants. The new monster picked itself up, shaking its head, stunned from the attack. Alan looked back at Kiryuu, to spot him ripping off the plating on his right arm, exposing the synthetic muscle tissue underneath. Alan wondered why Kiryuu would want to expose his workings like that. Then he remembered what he saw in Panama, of how Kiryuu had shaped the bio-syntech into sharp blades, seemingly at will. Was he going to do something similar here? He saw the new monster open its mouth wide, no doubt preparing some kind of weapon of its own.
Except it never got the chance. For Kiryuu picked that moment to force an entire mound of bio-syntech down the creature's throat, as wide as the trunk of an oak tree. Alan involuntarily moved his hand up to his throat. He could probably imagine what the monster was feeling right now, for he had once had the feeling that someone was forcing something down his throat, blocking up any possible means of breathing. It had been one of those weird dreams he'd had a while back, except that things were about to take a new twist. For there was a sudden, loud cracking sound, and the camera hurriedly zoomed in closer to the red monster. As Alan looked closer, he saw something sticking out of the monster's neck, moving in a smooth circular pattern around the neck. It struck Alan that the 'something' was two large blades.
The bio-syntech; it was the only possible explanation. The blades made a complete circle, and Alan soon realised what had just happened, for the monster's head peeled clean away, completely severed from the body. He thought he had seen everything in his G-Chases, but even he had to wince as the monster's head fell away from the body, and landed with a loud crash on the ground, where it rolled slightly before stopping completely.
Kiryuu definitely had a violent streak, to say the least. Perhaps it was for the best that Godzilla had got in his good books for some unfathomable reason. Speaking of which, Godzilla seemed to be holding back, eyes wide with shock. He continued to watch as Kiryuu retracted the bio-syntech from the body, and suddenly fired the weapon known as the Absolute Zero cannon. Until now, this had been assumed to be Kiryuu's deadliest weapon, as Alan watched it freeze the body before it could fall, but now Alan figured that bio-syntech could definitely be the deadliest.
The most bizarre events were yet to come. For Kiryuu suddenly held his throat, seemingly gagging on something. Indeed, it looked like he was going to be sick. Maybe Alan was just imagining it, but he thought he could feel a slight burning sensation in his throat. That wasn't what bothered him though. For suddenly a dazzlingly white blast erupted from Kiryuu's mouth, shooting straight towards the frozen statue. The blast carried on straight through the statue, as the frozen form of the headless monster was disintegrated completely by the searing white fire.
Alan couldn't believe his eyes. It was impossible... Alan thought Kiryuu had maser cannons in the mouth, not full-blown fire breath. Was it atomic fire like Godzilla's, or was it plasma? In either case, he could scarcely believe what he was seeing. The newscaster had gone silent. It seemed for once the reporter was lost for words.
It wasn't going to end there though, for Kiryuu was still clutching his throat, almost as if he had burnt his insides with that blast. Then Alan suddenly heard Kiryuu roar; a roar that was exactly like Godzilla's in every detail. Up until this point, Kiryuu's roar had always had a metallic sound to it, no matter how much it tried to sound like Godzilla. Now, however, this roar had none of the strange, creepy metallic sounds. This was the real deal, a true roar. As Kiryuu sounded the trumpet-like call, Godzilla joined in with his own voice. Alan imagined that the noise would be deafening to anyone nearby; it was extremely loud on the TV as it was.
It was then that he saw Kiryuu gagging again, as he started to tip his snout to the sky. This time, Alan got a good look at the dorsal spines. Now that he was properly looking at them, he realised that they were not covered in metal like they usually were. Instead, they were white, and now glowing very brightly, like Godzilla's did when he was about to release his atomic fire. Even as Alan thought this, he saw Kiryuu release another blast of superheated plasma, seemingly scorching the sky. He saw ringlets form around the plasma blast, as the air around it became superheated itself. The blast then ceased as quickly as it had started, and Kiryuu collapsed onto his knees, coughing and spluttering.
Once again, Alan was taking a good look at the spines. Now that he was getting a better look, they looked to him like they were made of bone.
Oh God... he thought. The bastards couldn't have... He wanted to believe that his eyes were playing tricks on him. He continued to watch, his eyes wide, as Godzilla ran to Kiryuu, kneeling down next to him, patting the mecha's back. He could hear the two of them seemingly engaged in 'conversation', in their strange animal language. The sounds they were making seemed soft. To Alan, they sounded almost affectionate. Indeed, he saw Kiryuu's claw slowly reach up to touch Godzilla's face, like a father might do with his son. Alan was spellbound. If this was truly what he thought it was, then it would explain everything.
He watched as Godzilla finally stood up, growling sadly, heading back out to sea, Kiryuu watching him go. Alan was silent, incredulous at what he had witnessed. He could not believe what he had seen, and he didn't dare believe the theory that was now running through his head; the only possible explanation he could think of, especially after getting a good look at the spines.
As he saw the White Heron jets pick up the barely-alive Kiryuu and escort him out of the area, the newscaster finally seemed capable of speaking again. His voice was quiet; shocked, stunned. It was rare to see a reporter that was lost for words.
"Incredible scenes here, folks... We'll display these events again, and follow up on this story as and when we have updates. This is Richard Barnadell, CNN, Ft. Lauderdale..."
The report faded back to the newsroom, with one last, lingering shot of the severed head, and Alan, spellbound by what had happened, switched off.
***
Over that day and the next day, Alan still didn't leave La Correra. He was anxious to catch whatever news reports he could find of the bizarre events in Florida, and didn't dare travel in case he missed anything important. He had bought several videotapes, and had picked up any newspapers that had covered the events. He now had taped several hours worth of the frequent news updates as and when they had made mention of Kiryuu and Godzilla, and had sat for hours on end, bearing each report further scrutiny The TV was never switched off, always tuned into one news channel or another. He had become fixated with what had happened, and was determined to see if his theories were true. He almost forgot to eat, even to get dressed.
All this time he had suspected that there was something odd about the Utah Foundation's Mechagodzilla; ever since those events in Yokohama so long ago, where Kiryuu and Godzilla had acted as if they were close friends. Kiryuu had been constructed to kill Godzilla, and yet those scenes alone had proven that to be untrue. Now that Alan thought about it, he should have been suspicious ever since the fight in Tateyama, the moment Godzilla's eyes widened after pulling off Kiryuu's right arm. Alan had just thought that Godzilla had been shocked by his own strength, but now, if what Alan suspected was true and the Utah Foundation really had used that... No wonder Godzilla had been shocked.
The news reports were not overly selective in what footage they used. Only the scenes of the monster's death were removed, and even then they reappeared in news reports after the watershed. This was lucky for Alan, as he could tape the events in their entirety, and examine them all. The more he saw the footage, the more he became convinced that his theories were actually the truth. All Alan wanted now was some kind of confirmation, as all he was hearing were wild theories. He only wished he could hear something to put his mind at rest.
Finally, two days after the events in Ft. Lauderdale, Alan's wish was granted. For the Utah Foundation's owner, Gordon Knight, had called a press conference to explain everything that had happened; or at least his version of what had happened. Alan had doubts about the credibility of the source, but then again he also doubted that Knight would be able to explain all of those events so easily. The whole of the country must have been watching, maybe even the world. No doubt England and Japan had been very interested in what had happened.
Alan started the video recorder to tape the whole conference, since CNN had decided to make the whole thing a live transmission. This way Alan knew he would not miss any details that could be edited out later. As the conference began, Alan took a look at the middle-aged Gordon Knight, dressed in a blazer and tie, his short silvery hair looking slightly haggard. Knight looked like he really didn't want to be there; he seemed to be sweating, even physically shaking, looking like he was awaiting the hangman's noose rather than addressing a group of camera crews. Alan could understand; he would have hated to be in Knight's position right now, knowing that thousands, perhaps millions of people had witnessed Kiryuu contradict everything the Utah Foundation had ever said. Finally, Knight began to speak, and Alan paid close attention.
"Thank you for coming," Gordon said to the press. "The reason why I brought you all here is to answer your questions about what had happened in Ft. Lauderdale. What you saw-what everyone saw. We are working with the Florida state government and the National Guard to help rebuild what was damaged in Ft. Lauderdale. We had received reports about a monster causing strange-disturbances around the coast of Florida, Bermuda, and most of the Caribbean. We discovered that this monster was a-dinosaur called Titanosaurus. Titanosaurus was discovered by Dr. Akira Mafune in 1977. Dr. Mafune is a Japanese marine biologist whose theories on Titanosaurus made him appear as a mad man to the Japanese scientific community. The Utah Foundation has put that to rest in the confirmation of Titanosaurus' existence. Titanosaurus is proof that there could be more monsters out there besides Godzilla, which is why we have Kiryuu Mechagodzilla on our side. We must be ready."
Titanosaurus... Interesting name, Alan thought. He wondered if Shinoda had ever heard of Dr. Mafune. He had to remember to ask him. Alan also found some irony that people considered Mafune a madman, considering Godzilla had well and truly made his mark on Japanese life by that time.
"You are saying that monster fighting should solely be the Foundation's responsibility?" began one of the other reporters present.
"Well, unless someone else has a few
billion dollars to spend on building another giant robot capable of
fighting these monstrosities…" Gordon began. "I mean,
that is what we built Kiryuu for." "You built Kiryuu only
for the extermination of Godzilla,"
Gordon swallowed, now looking visibly shaken by that remark. "Well-Godzilla is a very difficult monster to destroy. I mean, all of the others are easy pickings for Kiryuu. But Godzilla is different."
Too bloody right he's different, Alan thought bitterly. If what I'm thinking's true, then it's no wonder Kiryuu has never done what he was built to do.
"How can you explain about the spines?" the reporter continued his question. "They weren't metallic like we've seen several times in photographs from your company, and from the Internet."
A-ha... Now Knight had to explain a few things. For the spines had been bothering Alan all over these last couple of days. He figured he knew what they were by now, after all those viewings of the footage taken from Ft. Lauderdale, but he wanted to hear it 'from the horse's mouth'. As he watched, he heard Knight mutter something, before giving a brief glance to somebody off-camera. Alan assumed he was looking for the go-ahead from his investors, meaning that what was coming up had to be important.
"That is why I have this to show you," Knight said to the gathered reporters. "Uh-Mr. Penter…"
Penter... Alan remembered that name. He remembered trying to follow a 'William Penter' in the Yokohama office of the Utah Foundation. It was safe to assume that Penter was right in there with Knight. He now deeply regretted not getting a chance to question him that day.
Behind Knight, a large screen lowered, Knight moving out of the way to give the audience a clear view. A movie started playing as the lights began to dim. As the first scene appeared, Alan could hear several shocked gasps from the reporters at what was being displayed.
At last, Alan had the proof he needed to confirm everything he suspected about Kiryuu. This proved that what he was thinking was true. The film showed a gigantic skeleton laid out on the floor of a huge empty hangar. Alan recognised it instantly, making out the classic dorsal spikes that could only belong to one creature... Godzilla.
"Ladies
and gentlemen," began Knight. "Godzilla's skeleton. In
1952, the biggest H-bomb the US ever tested exploded over the Bikini
Atoll. It was codenamed Mike. Near the Bikinis was an island
inhabited by a dinosaur who awoke from a 130 million year suspended
animation. The fallout from that H-bomb mutated it, making it grow
large-to about 200-feet tall, giving it the plasma breath. And so,
Godzilla was born. In 1954, this monster called Gojira by islanders
from Odo Island came to Tokyo and completely decimated it. It was
later killed by an unknown, experimental chemical created by a
Japanese scientist. Only its skeleton remained. But in 1966, another
Godzilla showed up-this Godzilla was probably the first one's
relative. From our samples, we have theorized that it was the
offspring of the first one." Gordon cleared his throat. He was
visibly sweating. "When Japan contracted the Utah Foundation, a
sub-contractor of the industrial company Lockheed-now Lockheed
Martin, we were asked to build them a weapon that could destroy
Godzilla-the current one. Godzilla had at that time raided much of
Japan, and parts of the US in search for its food-which was
discovered to be plasma. Because of our success with bio-syntech used
in prosthesis and partly in robotics-we were asked to build them a
Godzilla fighting robot. We decided-as irony would put it-that
sometimes one's on worst enemy is one's self. So, we built a
Mechagodzilla, getting the idea off of another one that existed in
the 1970s. They built theirs first, I built one better. So, using the
technology available to us, we built Mechagodzilla. We contracted
Robo-Tech to build us a proper frame support for Mechagodzilla-a
metallic skeleton. When we added everything to the metallic
skeleton-it fell apart. We tried everything, titanium, steel, a few
mixtures. But we wanted performance as well as strength. We needed
something that was lightweight, but also durable, and strong-able to
hold up nearly 40,000 tons of weight. "We had already taken
a sample of the skeleton from the original Godzilla to create our
syntech muscle system. We used fragmented bone marrow in order to
create it. Reptiles, unlike humans, have their genetic code stored
within their red blood cells. So it was easy to do and we had enough.
But then, we saw that because our metallic skeleton could not
withstand the weight we applied as well as the maneuvers we wanted,
we had to look elsewhere for a way to get a skeleton strong enough to
do it. Godzilla's skeleton seemed perfect for the job."
Alan already knew about the fate of the original Godzilla; the one that had attacked and died in 1954. He didn't know what had killed the first Godzilla; even Shinoda didn't know, even though he'd asked him several times. Now he knew. The spines had looked skeletal all the time he'd been viewing them. He hadn't wanted to believe it, but now he knew for certain that the Utah Foundation consisted of a bunch of graverobbers. They had opened the forbidden door.
Alan was spellbound, both by the sight of the bones and of all of the thoughts running through his head. Alan now knew though that the Utah Foundation had done more than just use the bones. He snapped himself back to reality for a moment to catch the next part of the conference, as another reporter spoke up.
"You mean to tell us," began the reporter. "That Godzilla's skeleton is inside that machine's armor?"
"We had it slightly reinforced with some titanium," said Knight. "Mostly around the joint areas. But, yes-under the armor and the syntech lies the skeleton of the first Godzilla. The teeth, skull, ribcage, thigh-bones, back-bones, spines, tail-bones, forearm bones, arm bones, pelvis, fingers, toes-Kiryuu now possesses. The current Godzilla ripped the right arm off of Kiryuu, so he no longer possesses that part of the skeleton. But the rest of the first Godzilla's skeleton is still very much inside of Kiryuu. Which comes to the other problem. Because the bones of the father are inside Kiryuu, Godzilla feels a slight connection to Kiryuu. Godzilla knows and respects his predecessor-so, recently, instead of being a hindrance, Godzilla has proven to be a rather useful ally. Which could be used to our advantage. Also, because of this, we have surmounted tests on Godzilla that we could never have been able to do without Kiryuu. From these tests we've even discovered that both Godzilla and Kiryuu possess a regenerative property within their cells. An amino acid that allows for full cell reconstruction. Which is why Godzilla is hard to kill. He's-invincible. The syntech has heightened this ability for Kiryuu though-which is apparent in his ability to create the famous bio-syntech blades. So, basically, Godzilla and Kiryuu are equally the same. They cancel each other out. But because of their connection, Godzilla has rarely been seen now. He knows that Kiryuu can kill him at any time. The technique used on Titanosaurus was once tested on Godzilla, only-because of certain malfunctions, it was not fully utilized. It was not fully tested. Godzilla knows that Kiryuu can kill him, and in a way he fears that."
Alan knew instantly that Knight was talking about Organiser G-1. After all, how many times had he heard Shinoda talk about it? He suddenly remembered something that Knight had mentioned, about how they had used samples of the skeleton to create the bio-syntech. Alan could take it as granted that Organiser G-1 had been used. So that was how he had been able to create those blades with the bio-syntech; Shinoda had often theorised that, with Organiser G-1, it was possible to create something out of nothing. He remembered something Shinoda once said, something he'd blurted out during talks about the G-Chases:
"Gojira is a part of us, in everyone's mind."
Shinoda had explained that he'd been referring to Japan's collective conscience. Godzilla was a product of human recklessness and their savage nature, and through Godzilla the Japanese were now forever paying the price for such greed and recklessness. Alan idly wondered how Shinoda would react, knowing that, given what the bio-syntech was made of he may have to start taking that statement literally. Once again, humanity's own recklessness had driven them to mess around with what shouldn't be tampered with. Their own folly had driven them to raise the dead.
"What we saw on the beach didn't look like fear," said another reporter from one of the other stations. "More like Godzilla was concerned for Kiryuu's well being."
"Well, his father's skeleton is inside Kiryuu…" Knight shrugged. "The dumb animal sometimes mistakes Kiryuu for his real father. I don't think that Godzilla knows his father is really dead."
Gotcha! Alan thought. Knight had practically admitted to what Alan suspected. So even the Foundation's own higher-ups were admitting to such impossible-sounding ideas. It was all true; everything he suspected. He didn't catch most of what was said for a few minutes afterwards, he was so deep in thought; there was something about a joke referring to Star Wars, but that was it.
"At least that's the theory going around the base as to why Godzilla acts like that when Kiryuu is around," Alan managed to bring himself round in time to hear. "But again, it is very hard to prove this. We, at this time, do not have the scientific proof to back it up. It is a joke among my staff and I." Well, Alan figured he had seen more than enough to say otherwise.
"What about that plasma blast that came out of Mechagodzilla's mouth?" began another reporter. "How do you explain that?"
"That was a malfunction do to many lightning strikes hitting Kiryuu," said Knight. "Also, do to the fact that Kiryuu really isn't all that seaworthy. We were in a rush to make him seaworthy, and didn't have time to test it. My Dr. Vasquez, who was the head of our underwater bio-syntech research project to create an aqualung from syntech, used an experimental program to try and make Kiryuu more seaworthy."
What utter bollocks, Alan thought. He'd been around Godzilla long enough to know that when the spines lit up, you'd better get out of the way sharpish. Thinking back over the footage he had seen of Ft. Lauderdale, when Kiryuu had fired that plasma blast, his spines had been lit up like a Christmas tree. It had nothing to do with malfunctions or the lightning or the syntech; that had been a true, Godzilla-style blast of fire.
It all fitted together now. The fire breath, the roar, the way Godzilla acted around him... All of them were a result of the bones used in the machine's very construction. However, Alan was certain that the Utah Foundation had ended up doing far more than perhaps even they could've anticipated by using those bones. He finally decided to say the one answer that was going through his mind. He was intensely weary, drained in both mind and body. Perhaps it would be some comfort to his mind to say out loud what he now knew, if only to put his own mind at ease.
"Kiryuu is-"
As he said this, he was interrupted by the shrill ringing coming from his cellphone. Alan jumped as he heard it; he had been so engrossed in the press conference and all of the truths he had learned that such a sound seemed to bring him back to his senses.
He picked up his mobile from the bedside table and answered. He didn't even get to answer when he heard Shinoda's excited voice on the other end. Indeed, Shinoda sounded like Christmas had come early.
"Alan! Are you seeing the Utah Foundation press conference?! I don't believe it! That plasma breath and the spines!"
"Shinoda-" Alan tried to say, but his voice was drowned out by Shinoda's ravings.
"Alan!" he continued, "It's the original!!! The Utah Foundation didn't just use the bones! Kiryuu isn't just a mech that uses the bones of the original Gojira! He is the original Gojira! The spines lit up and he breathed plasma! You know as well as I do that only happens with a genuine fire blast! He's the original Gojira, Alan! He just has to be!"
"Shinoda-" Alan said, now starting to get increasingly annoyed with Shinoda just stating what he knew.
"I mean," Shinoda continued in that same over-excited tone, "I'd heard from you of all the strange things he did, and of all the photos you showed me! Now we know the whole truth! Kiryuu's the original Gojira! That's why the current Gojira acts strangely around him! It's the only possible explanation! Kiryuu is Gojira's real father-"
"I know, Shinoda!" Alan yelled down the phone. He'd had enough of Shinoda's ramblings. This wasn't wonderful, or even pleasant; it was horrible. The Utah Foundation had gone and done the unthinkable with what they had done to Kiryuu, and right now Shinoda was talking about it like a kid that had found its dad's gun.
"I know..." he said, trying to calm down, but his voice still shaking with unfathomable anger, "I don't want to believe it, but I know. Now do me a favour and don't phone me for a while!"
There was nothing but awkward silence after that. Alan had cut Shinoda deep, and he knew it. Right at this minute though, he didn't care. He wanted to set Shinoda straight, stop him from becoming one of those reckless scientists, like at the Utah Foundation. On the TV, the press conference had stopped shortly; there was a notice stating 'Technical difficulties. Please stand by."
"I..." Shinoda stammered, now knocked out of his frenzied high. "I'm sorry... I called at a bad time... I'll talk to you when you get back to Japan..."
With that, he hung up. Alan slammed his phone down onto the bed, he was so angry. The phone bounced off the bed and fell onto the floor.
Alan held his head in his hands. What had he done? Shinoda hadn't asked for that, and right now he was the only person Alan could trust. How could he just throw that trust away like that?! He doubted Shinoda would want to speak to him again without risking making him this mad. Alan was now physically shaking. All that he had learned about Kiryuu was now buzzing through his head. Shinoda was right, and Alan forced himself to admit it.
Kiryuu was the original Godzilla; the one who had died back in 1954, the father of the current Godzilla. There was no possible doubt. The very moment Kiryuu had fired that plasma breath, or perhaps even long before then, perhaps even the moment the bones had been used as the frame to support the cybernetic shell, the first Godzilla had truly been reborn. Alan could scarcely believe his own mind, and the evidence right before his eyes.
On the TV screen, the press conference was now being displayed again.
"Mr. Knight," began another reporter. "What are your views about the Monster Zero attack on London?"
Alan jumped slightly. A reporter from the BBC! Nobody else could possibly have mentioned the Monster Zero attack without mentioning the word 'hoax'. Alan knew he could place a bet on Knight's reply though, and he was proven right.
"No monster attacked London," replied Gordon. "It was terrorists. You were trying to use a monster attack as an escape goat for getting caught with your pants down. Everybody knows that."
"That is what the United States' government keeps telling the world," the reporter protested. "But a monster did attack England. If Monster Zero returns, will your Kiryuu fight it?"
"If Monster Zero exists," shrugged Gordon. "Yeah, Kiryuu would give it a good beating."
That's what Alan thought he would say. It made his blood boil, all of the lies the American government had given to cover up the horrifying events that had come so close to completely destroying England two years ago. Using monsters as a scapegoat indeed... The rest of the world had quarantined England on that day, left them all to die, all because they were too spineless to do anything to try to help without alerting the public to the presence of monsters other than Godzilla. They wanted to destroy Godzilla only, and England, a country that until that point had not paid much attention to Godzilla at all, had very nearly paid the ultimate price for such near-sightedness. Even if Kiryuu had been completed in time for the attack, would the Americans really have let him go after the three-headed dragon that the press had called Monster Zero? Alan highly doubted it.
Alan snarled under his breath. The conference ended shortly after that, so he stopped the tape recorder and switched off the TV. He felt he had more than enough footage archived, especially now that he knew the truth about the machine that had haunted his thoughts and dreams for months. He sat, quiet for a long time after that, only glancing out of the window occasionally. He hardly moved, even until the sun started to sink over the horizon. He had been turning over so many things in his head; the truth about Kiryuu, the lies the Americans were using to cover up the Monster Zero attack... He was sick of it all. Tired of all the lies and deceit that he had to face all the time. Tomorrow he'd be starting his journey back up north.
He pulled out his camera, and brought up the photo of Kiryuu that he had taken at the Panama Canal only three days ago. Kiryuu's face stared out of the screen at him, the bio-syntech 'hair' flapping about in the wind, the eyes; the very same eyes Alan had in his own head, staring out with a resolute expression. It was a rather sinister expression, now that he thought about it.
Alan closed his eyes. All this time he had hated Kiryuu, seen him as nothing more than an amalgamation of everything he hated about the American government and their deceitfulness. Now though, how could he possibly hate a creature that was just as much a victim of that recklessness and deceit as he was? He slowly turned his head to look back out of the window, as the room grew dark around him as the sun set. His eyes were narrowed, the slit pupils of his gold eyes now seemingly burning with a new rage; a new mania.
He had made his mind up. It was time that the Utah Foundation were made aware that someone knew the truth about Kiryuu, that someone had seen through the deceptions and lies. It was time to send them a message.