Godzilla: God of Destruction Chapter 1

Bikini Atoll, 1954

The year was 1954. The Earth was in the middle of the Atomic Age, and the United States of America was “testing” its most dangerous weapon yet: the hydrogen bomb. In actuality, it was an attempt to kill something. In 1945, the bombing of Hiroshima had awoken something: the planet’s original ruler, the God of Destruction. All that could be seen of it were three rows of dorsal plates with many protrusions rising out of the water. As he began to rise to stand up, the bomb exploded, destroying everything in site.

The fallout rendered much of the Pacific uninhabitable for years to come, mutating its wildlife. One particular iguana was transformed into a nearly unrecognizable creature. Over the years, he grew exponentially, and his diet completely changed to feed on radiation.

New York City, 2019

Sixty-five years later, in his lab, Masashiro Sakurai was doing research. Many American and Russian vessels had been mysteriously destroyed during the Cold War. He looked at a photo of his grandfather, who had died in the bombing of Hiroshima.

In the shallow waters off the coast of New York, something was approaching. An aircraft carrier stationed near the shore detected movement in the water. Lieutenant James Crow was approached by one of his men. “Sir, we’ve detected movement in the water.”

Crow walked out onto the deck to see the water moving. He saw a faint gray outline underwater. “What the Hell?”

***

In the streets of Manhattan, everything seemed normal, until a massive reptilian foot stepped onto the street, causing widespread panic in the traffic. Cars crashed into each other until they were crammed together like sardines in a can. The figure was so tall that people couldn’t see its full body out of their cars.

In his office, Dr. Sakurai was typing on his computer. He stopped when he heard the ground shaking and paused. Slowly, he turned to look outside the window of the skyscraper in which he was working. He saw a strange sight, something that had never been seen before. It looked like a generic theropod with a boxy head, lean frame, and long, four-fingered arms. Small dorsal plates covered its back like osteoderms. The creature didn’t notice Sakurai as it let out an ear-piercing roar and continued walking through the city.

The creature continued wandering around aimlessly, crushing cars beneath its feet and damaging buildings with its thrashing tail. It then felt something hit its side. Looking right, it saw helicopters and jets approaching. Instinct told him to flee, and he began to run away, being surprisingly fast and agile for his size. Lieutenant Crow was on one of the helicopters, commanding the attack. “Lure this thing out of the city.”

The military’s forces were unable to keep up with the monster, who leapt on top of a building, nearly crushing it under his weight. He turned around and fired a green ray of energy, destroying some of the jets. He then continued his escape, ramming through buildings and bellowing as gunfire pelted his hide like rain. One helicopter managed to catch up to him, but the titanic animal grabbed it in his jaws, crushing it.

He then ran and jumped into the ocean, splashing the coast and military ships. Masashiro stepped outside to examine the destruction, his mouth open with utter shock. Crow’s helicopter landed in front of him and the lieutenant stepped out. “Dr. Sakurai.”

Sakurai looked at Crow. “What do you want?”

“We need you to come with us.”

“Why?”

“Turns out your story about giant monsters being real isn’t so crazy after all.”

They took the chopper to the aircraft carrier. As they flew over to the ship, they noticed another creature in the water. It had three rows of large dorsal plates, and it was swimming too. From the sky, all they could see were its plates as it swam. They could tell that it was not the creature that had attacked the city because of its wider and more robust build. James turned to Masashiro. “What’s that thing?”

Sakurai recognized the creature; it was the subject of his research, his father’s obsession. He simply replied, “A God of Destruction.”