Alarms blared and the metal floor beneath her quaked. Courtney’s vision came back into focus as a dirtied man in tactical gear shook her furiously.

“Wells! Now is not the time to take a fucking nap!” he barked.

Courtney’s eyes widened as she scrambled to her feet. Her rifle fell from her lap and clattered to the ground.

The man jogged across the room. “Grab your shit and get to extraction- we are leaving!”

She wasn’t the type to disobey orders from a superior, no matter how dazed from being knocked unconscious she was. She collected her rifle and slung it back over her shoulder, then followed him. “Sir, what about the watchpoint!?“

He turned on his heel, grabbed her by her vest and yanked her closer. “It’s gone, kid. Stop asking questions and go!”

“Y-yes, sir!” Courtney sprinted out of the burning structure and into the rain. Rain droplets pounded her helmet as she made her way out onto the deck and the coast came into view. The steel fortress isolated in Massachusetts Bay gave a clear view of the destruction that had befallen Boston.

A roar rang out as a two-headed beast’s silhouette was illuminated in the dark as a missile impacted its carapace. A pair of jets bolted through the smoke, but the beast was ready. While one head hopelessly snapped at the first aircraft, the second found its mark- down came the fangs. The jet crumbled to pieces in its jaw, but the kaiju would come to regret its decision as the aircraft’s payload detonated. The creature let out a shrill howl as it fell backwards and crushed an entire city block in an instant.

Courtney shook her head and continued sprinting. The VTOL was about to lift off.

“Come on!” A man from inside called out to her as he extended a hand.

Courtney put everything she had into one final sprint. She had come too far to die like this! She crossed the threshold onto the helipad as she discarded her equipment to lighten her load. The ground was slick from the storm, but no amount of stumbling and slipping could slow her down in this dash of life or death. Her escape was mere meters away when a screech that made Courtney’s ears ring cut through the air.

Titanic talons broke through the clouds above as an avian kaiju swept down and crushed the VTOL in its grip. The gust of wind and the resulting explosion of the vehicle sent Courtney flying across the deck. The woman spun about like a leaf in a hurricane as debris and metal shards tore at her attire and raked across her skin. All she knew at that moment was fear.

Courtney blindly flailed her arms in hopes of gripping something, anything that could spare her! As if the world itself answered her prayers, her grasp found purchase upon a tarp that had gotten trapped amidst the rubble that had once been the Watchpoint’s command center. Courtney felt her shoulder dislocate from the sudden stop, but she wouldn’t let go. She brought her good arm forward and dug her nails into the material.

Courtney’s screams of dread were drowned out by the avian kaiju’s vocalizations as it flew to join in the destruction of the city.

“Courtney? Earth to Courtney!”

She couldn’t let go. She couldn’t! She didn’t want to die! She didn’t want to-

“Courtney!”

Courtney gasped sharply as she sat up straight. Her heart pounded as the screams of kaiju echoed faintly in her ears.

“Hey, hey, it’s me! Shhh, it’s alright,” Monica cooed as she reassured her sister. She took Courtney’s hand and gently squeezed it. “Don’t tell me you’re having those dreams again…”

“…Memories, actually, and I never stopped,” Courtney replied as pulled her hand back and slid off the pile of crates she had been resting atop.

“Seriously, Cici? When are you going to take my advice and go see a therapist.”

Courtney rolled her eyes. “When Pantheon hires one,” she said as she began to walk down the hall. “You know I can’t just go to any old shrink. What if I accidentally blab about classified information? I’d get killed in my sleep. Also- stop calling me that.”

Monica sighed and followed along. “Even so, you should make time for self-care if you can.”

“And what does me sneaking in a few winks where I can look like?”

As much as she wanted to protest, Monica knew it was hopeless to try. Courtney was never the type to listen in situations like this. “Judging by the fact that you were doing some ‘self-care’ in your old hiding spot, they must be overworking you again.”

Courtney crossed her arms behind her head limply and kept her gaze forward. “No more than the usual.”

“Yeah, and the usual is borderline criminal.” Monica looked down at her tablet and tapped away as she spoke. “I don’t care what Project Venator hopes to achieve, if it’s leaving you this haggard and drained, it can’t be worth it.”

Courtney’s brow furrowed. “It will be. Trust me, it will be.” The woman stopped and turned to face her sister. “I wish I could tell you more, but just know that everyone here’s fighting their own fight. You’re a kaijuzoologist-“

“-Macrobiologist,” she corrected.

“-Macrofuckingwhatever, the point is that you’re contributing to the cause in a way that only you can, and Venator is gonna give me the chance to do the same. So…” She put a firm hand on Monica’s shoulder. “…Don’t worry about it.”

Monica frowned. “I don’t think anything is going to stop me from worrying, but the least I can do is try and trust you, so I will. Just try and take better care of yourself, alright?”

Courtney chuckled and patted Monica’s shoulder a few times. “Heyyy, don’t worry about it! I’ll just see if I can incorporate an afternoon snooze into my daily routine from now on,” she joked. “Why are you up here, anyways? Usually, the nerds stay in the basement.”

The nerd in question clicked her tongue. “I stayed up all night preparing a dossier for the board.”

“All night? You hypocrite,” Courtney quipped. “What about?”

“The kaiju that emerged in Baltimore the other evening,” Monica replied.

Courtney’s expression drained of cheerfulness. She remained silent as Monica continued.

“It’s fascinating, Courtney- surely, you’ve seen footage of it online. It’s not like any other kaiju we’ve documented! The way it behaved demonstrated just how intelligent it is, and it seemed as if it didn’t even want to cause any degree of destruction! I cannot wait to see more of it whenever it emerges next! Who knows, maybe we’ve got the first ever peaceful kaiju on our hands?”

This tale has been unlawfully obtained from Royal Road. If you discover it on Amazon, kindly report it.

“There’s no such thing as a peaceful kaiju, Monica. They’re all monsters hellbent on our destruction,” Courtney replied in a cold tone.

Monica shrunk a bit. “Ah… Uhm. R… Right. I suppose.” While the two of them had both gone into kaiju-related fields under the Pantheon Defense Corps' yoke, Monica’s captivation was in stark contrast to Courtney’s unwavering hatred.

Courtney took a deep breath to calm herself. “Don’t get so lost in your fascination that you forget why we’re here, Moni. It’s to find out ways to kill these things before they kill us. If it seems like it’s trying not to hurt us, odds are it’s just some new tactic to get us to put our guards down. I’m not gonna fall for it.” She turned and began to march off. “I suggest you do the same.” she said, as she tugged on her sleeve.

***

Wayne’s tail swayed in satisfaction as he took another bite of his well-cooked meal. Just as he had predicted, the land of the titans was geologically active. Sure, the meat wasn’t seared like he would’ve liked, but a bit of time in the scorching steam emitted by the geysers he found had at the very least made the meal palatable. Now if only he could find some salt…

He hadn’t even realized it when he was hunting, but the moment he took his first nibble he had been overcome by hunger. Skinning? De-boning? He had already wasted an hour finding the means to cook it, and his stomach had refused to abide further delays. Now that nothing of substance remained, he had the presence of mind to realize this had been his first meal since he had been reborn. His weakness after traveling across the ocean depths with Apocalis made much more sense in that context. Wayne lazed onto his side as he gave the food a moment to settle. He still felt hungry, which wasn’t unexpected. After all, he was massive. How much would he need to stomach to keep his body running at peak performance? Moreover, how long could he go without food and still function properly?

His gaze returned to the sparse remains of the creature in a pile before him. The only thing he couldn’t chew through were the plates along the beast’s back, which he wound up having to pick from his teeth. His arms still couldn’t fully reach his mouth without a good bit of struggle, so he wound up using the spiked tip of his tail to get the job done. The giant green reptile undoubtedly looked silly doing this, but it wasn’t like anyone was watching. Wayne eventually settled on the idea of hunting one more of the creatures he had dubbed ‘Ankon’ before committing to training. Might as well hop to it while he was still motivated.

The crystals above had begun to dim slightly, and the world had begun to be consumed by artificial twilight. Not quite dark enough to simulate night, and not bright enough to be equivalent to daylight. The once plain green forests illuminated as bio-luminescent plants beneath the canopy began to emit colorful lights, transforming the landscape into a beautiful and otherworldly land that made its appearance during the ‘day’ seem vanilla by comparison.

It didn’t take Wayne too long to track the herd down. After all, they were in the middle of a stampede. He slinked around a rocky outcropping as he observed the creatures. They had seemed relatively slow-going until his appearance had stirred them into a panic, so what had spooked them this time?

He scrutinized the creatures until something stood out: A pack of six-legged beasts that he had a hard time classifying. Their anatomy reminded him of wolves, but they were decidedly reptilian. Their legs ended in spiny pads that reminded him of close-up images of insects. It was obvious these creatures were predators. He observed as one picked its target, then leapt high into the air. It landed upon the herbivore’s back and began gnawing. So, these were the predators that these creatures had evolved their spiny plates to protect from! If that were the case, surely, they would be safe, right?

Wrong. The predatory beast hunkered itself down and spread its limbs which sank into small folds between each plate. Once it had found the chinks in its prey’s armor, it began to furiously tear into them with the hooked spines on each foot. Blood spattered across the herbivore’s specially evolved defense, and within a minute, it could carry on no longer. It fell to the ground in a cloud of dust, and as the herd left their companion who had drawn the short straw behind, the predator’s pack gathered for a feast.

The creatures snapped and clawed at each other. Their behavior was reminiscent of a wolf-pack, and with food on the table, it was time for those on top to eat their fill while those below them waited for their turn to come. One particularly small and scrawny beast was prevented from eating so much as a bite. It would be made to pick over the scraps.

If Wayne didn’t get to work fast, that outcast was going to be him. Hell, at present, it practically was. While the others were out there undertaking tasks to further their agenda, he was down here hunting wild game. Not that he wanted to aid in the downfall of humanity of course, but the fact that he was told to stay down here rather than grace the surface was telling as to where he stood among his peers. Wayne skulked through the shadows as he headed in the direction that the herd had gone.

The dejected beast was made to be the lookout while his betters feasted. It panned the cliffs with his gaze, and just barely caught sight of a plated tail as it disappeared behind a ridge. It tilted its head in curiosity and rose to its feet.

***

Wayne let out a bellowing roar as he chased the herd down. With this being the third attack of the day, the Ankon were weary, but also on high alert. They had caught sight of Wayne much earlier than he had anticipated, and as such, they had gotten quite a head start on him. Wayne figured that it was now or never, and he had opted for the same hunting tactic as before: a mad dash after the weakest link.

Even with the distance they had made, he was gaining on them. There was no way they could outrun a kaiju of his stature, but what they could do was hide from it. The herd took a turn towards a maze of rocky crevices and caves, and within moments, every Ankon was completely hidden.

Wayne skidded to a halt. There was no way he would be able to fit in there! These creatures were smarter than he had given them credit for. His size and speed had been an advantage in the chase, but if they managed to squeeze into a place that he couldn’t, it would turn into a hindrance. One change in tactics had completely beaten him.

The Kaiju snarled in frustration as he prowled around the outside of the creatures’ rocky haven. If he couldn’t fit, then he could simply tear their safeguards down! He got a running start and charged into the wall. He hit it head on, and a crack ran through the stone, but at the cost of a good deal of pain and a ringing in his ears. He stumbled back, gathered his bearings, and charged again. After ten or so agonizing charges, he had just barely broken through one of the major rocky formations. Everything above his shoulders burned and his head was spinning. Clearly brute force wasn’t the answer here.

Wayne observed the rubble from what little he had managed to destroy in his frustration. A small leg stuck out from the pile. He used his tail to brush the rocks free and was greeted with the corpse of a young Ankon. He let out a sigh and collected the dust-covered body in his jaws. It was only a baby- more of a snack than a meal, but at least his efforts weren’t completely in vain. He offered the herd’s hiding place one final glance of defeat before he began to lumber back towards the geysers to begrudgingly prepare his spoils.

When Wayne reached the site of the geysers once more, he set the carcass down and plopped down beside it. He was a new element in these creatures’ lives, and already, they had adapted to his presence. The smartest among them would stay close to the safety of the narrow ridges, and in time, all in the herd would learn, or die. Apocalis was right about two things: ‘titans’ were ever-changing, and his wits would need to be what carried him above his peers.

“Think, Wayne, think…” he mumbled to himself as he tapped his claws on his knees. He couldn’t solve this problem by brute forcing it; he quite literally tried that already. So how-

The sounds of tearing flesh roused him from his thoughts. He turned his attention to the Ankon carcass, and feasting upon it was one of the predators from before. With a bit more scrutiny, he realized that this was the individual that had been forced to wait until the others were through. Had it been following him?

Wayne’s gaze did not go unnoticed. The creature was on high alert, so once it sensed it had been seen, it bolted.

He watched it go, but he was able to tell that it had not gone completely. It was lingering, waiting for him to let his guard down so it could run in and continue to take as much as it could. At this moment, Wayne was struck with inspiration. He reached down to the Ankon and tore it in half with a sickening crunch and a spatter of gore. Then, he waited.

After a time, the creature began to creep in, just as Wayne had predicted. When it did, Wayne slowly reached for the front half of the corpse. He gently tossed it in the direction of the predator and glanced over to see its reaction. The sudden movement startled it, and it fled for the safety of the shadows once more. Unlike before, however, it did not take nearly as long for it to return. It approached the portion Wayne had tossed it and hesitantly began to eat.

A smile dominated Wayne’s features as he collected the other half and hoisted it into the steam of one of the Geysers. If he could teach these lesser predators to see him as an ally, they could work together to have their fill. He was large enough to herd the Ankon into a place where they couldn’t run, and these beasts were just the right size to flush them out. Not quite domestication, but perhaps a symbiotic relationship.

It wasn’t just his intellect that would propel him forward. His perspective as a former human was what would give him an edge over his peers.