VS.
Arena:
Author: UltimateDitto
Word Count: 4,524 words
Posted: March 14th, 2019
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The waters off of Kobe violently churned and bubbled as purple liquid gushed to the top of the waves. A five clawed hand erupted from the water and gripped the dirt, dragging a large reptilian body with it. As brown scales emerged, purple liquid ran down the creature’s body. Adorned with a long nasal horn, and a row of spikes running down the lizard’s back, the wide eyed quadruped, Barugon, waltzed along the city of Kobe, leaving a wake of destruction in its path.
News of Barugon's attack through Kobe quickly spread, and the JSDF got wind of it almost immediately. Tanks and jets proved futile as the beast shrugged off the assault, continuing its trek through Japan. Nearly an hour later of walking, and Barugon was at Osaka. The beast had stopped and began letting out rapid screeches, then opened its jaws and began spraying an icy mist, blanketing Osaka in a light sleet.
The brown lizard chirped happily and began making its way to Osaka Castle. Once at the park, the quadruped carefully maneuvered across the stone bridge connecting the outer city to the park. Once inside, Barugon scaled the rock walls, ascending each level, until it reached the castle. There Barugon clawed at the dirt and laid down in front of the castle, like a dragon guarding a treasure hoard all to itself.
Icy mist escaped the beast’s toothy maw as it rested in front of Osaka Castle. The lizard monster was oblivious to the sharp drop in temperature it had created in its general vicinity. The JSDF were hard at work thinking of solutions to their giant problem.
The JSDF General was growing tired; he needed some idea, anything, consulting with other important figures. Nothing seemed to fit the bill. That was, until a man and woman entered, reaching out to the general. The woman, named Karen, explained that she came from New Guinea, the Homeland of Barugon. She stated that water was Barugon’s weakness. The man accompanying her, Keisuke, explained that Barugon had come from an egg that was smuggled from New Guinea to Japan. He claimed that the monster must have hatched during the trip and escaped, destroying the “Awaji Maru” and its crew in the process.
Karen suggested her own solution to the problem. “If we can lure Barugon to a large enough body of water, then Barugon would dissolve, and thus perish.”
“So the waters around Osaka Park would not be able to do the trick, eh?” The general asked with concern.
“Unfortunately no, we have to lure him to a lake, is there one nearby?” Karen asked politely.
“Well, there is Lake Biwa. Then it is settled, let us lure Barugon to Biwa, and end his reign of terror. Ah, but how will we draw him to the lake?” inquired the general.
“Well, I do have--” before Karen could finish her sentence, a soldier in the room cut her off.
“We can borrow King Kong from Farou Island, sir!” the soldier exclaimed proudly. Everyone gasped, except for Karen who, visibly perturbed, asked what the young man meant. Keisuke then turned to Karen, and explained that Kong was a giant ape discovered three years ago on Farou Island, the natives there revered him as a god! He was then taken to Japan where he eventually did battle with the legendary Godzilla, defeating him, before returning home.
“General, I agree with the soldier, we can have Kong do battle with Barugon. Then, immobilize it and lift it out to Lake Biwa. It should be tired from fighting Kong, too tired to resist.” Keisuke exclaimed.
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A few hours later, night had come. Osaka was dark; no building dared shine a light and risk waking the slumbering giant. In the distance, far from Barugon, nine large balloons, accompanied by three helicopters, carried what seemed to be a large Sasquatch.
Finally, he had arrived, King Kong, the mighty ape god from Farou. The JSDF immediately dispatched soldiers, along with Karen and Keisuke, to Farou and with a bit of smooth talk and convincing from Karen. The natives aided in putting Kong to sleep, to allow for easy transport. Now after hours of flight, Kong was finally here to once again save the people of Japan from sheer destruction.
Kong had awoken, and once again he was in this strange land. He didn't miss it. Kong yawned as he dropped down to the city streets. Immediately, Kong felt the chilly air of Osaka, although it didn't bother him too much. The giant ape broke the wires constricting him, and watched the yellow balloons disappear into the night. Kong chuckled in delight.
The ape had scoured the area, and noticed the brown lizard sleeping, far in the distance. If this was anything like last time, then Kong knew he had to defeat the beast in front of the castle in order to go home. A task Kong was eager to tackle, the giant ape set off to meet the slumbering lizard.
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“Okay, now we wait. King Kong should be able to defeat Barugon, and when that lizard is weak, we drop him into Lake Biwa.” Keisuke stated.
“That is correct, then Japan will be rid of this menace!” The JSDF general confirmed.
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King Kong stomped down the streets of Osaka, taking care in not toppling over buildings. Barugon began stirring, as the sound of large footsteps echoed throughout the dark, frozen city. The sounds of stomping forced Barugon to open its eyes and look for the disturbance.
Barugon rose up, now on all fours, the brown reptilian perked up as it turned its head to face the oncoming footsteps. There it saw the large form of Kong marching towards it. Barugon let out short, quick screeches to ward off the giant ape, but to no avail. Kong was now on the other side of the moat, the water almost frozen solid. This did little to deter the mammal, who simply took a couple of steps back.
The eighth wonder of the world roared as he began sprinting, the massive ape leaping when his feet were at the edge of the outer rim. Barugon watched in amazement as Kong cleared the large gap and landed in the inner rim of the park, barreling on the ground before jumping back to his feet. The mighty ape brushed the dirt off his shoulders, sneering at the horned quadruped.
Barugon rapidly screeched, before waltzing towards its hairy opponent. Kong observed his foe, it vaguely resembled the three horned beasts on his island, but this creature was far larger, nearly larger than himself. Barugon didn't know what to make of the being standing before it either, what it did know was that this upright beast could be a threat to its safety.
The legendary beast of Farou roared as he lunged at the monster from the Valley of Rainbows, the nasal horn of Barugon now clutched in Kong's gray hands. The ape god turned and tossed Barugon overhead with his unmatched might, the icy brown lizard landed on its back with a thud, rolling down as the nearby rock wall, trees, and small structures in the lower level of the park were flattened under Barugon’s weight. Kong grunted as he leapt from the upper level to the bottom, landing near Barugon.
The brown reptile screeched in pain as it carefully got back to its feet, not wanting to slip and fall into the moat below. Kong roared as he ran, trampling trees and small buildings to get to his opponent. Once he was close enough, the mighty ape uppercut the lizard in the jaw, forcing Barugon to stumble back, emitting a screech of pain. Kong was pleased to see immediate bruising.
The New Guinea monster opened its jaws in retaliation and shot forth its chameleon-like tongue, catching Kong off guard as it jabbed the ape in the face. The attack caused Kong to yelp in pain as he clutched his face with his hand.
Barugon retracted its tongue and screeched in glee as it prepared for another attack, opening its mouth wide, shooting the tongue forward again. Kong looked like he was able to take a hit to the gut; but swiftly, Kong used his free hand to grasp the long tongue, catching Barugon off guard. Kong put down his other hand and used it to also grab Barugon's tongue, the giant ape began pulling the giant muscle, dragging Barugon closer to Kong.
In a panic, Barugon began spraying a freezing mist from its tongue, coating the nearby trees and stone wall in sleet. Kong grunted in surprise, the air around him became even colder than when he first arrived. Careful not be drenched by the icy mist, Kong tried bending the tongue backwards. Barugon fought with Kong, trying to aim the tongue at the mammal, but Kong kept it aimed toward the sky, creating an artificial snowfall. Barugon screeched in anger as it tried to reel its tongue back into his maw, which only brought him closer to Kong.
Kong took notice and waited for Barugon to come in range. When Barugon was close enough, eager to bite into Kong's hand, the Faruo champion had a plan. Before Barugon could fully reel in its tongue, Kong tugged on it again and forced Barugon to stumble forward, allowing the ape to kick Barugon's lower jaw, forcing its sharp teeth to dig into the tongue, purple blood oozing from the fresh wound.
The wide eyed reptile screeched in agony as it stopped spewing ice. Barugon flailed in pain before it slipped, tumbling down the rock wall that lead to the moat. King Kong watched as Barugon broke through the thin ice sheet, sinking as the waters viciously churned and bubbled, purple blood contaminating the water surrounding Osaka Park.
Kong roared, believing to have defeated his opponent. However, Barugon was not done just yet. The brown lizard crawled out of the water and onto dry land, its skin peeling, irritated, and bubbling. Barugon cried in anguish as it struggled to move. Kong grunted in annoyance, but was willing to make the jump back and finish the job.
Barugon was ready to flee deep into the city, until it heard the bellowing roar of Kong. Upon hearing that sound, the fear it had was quickly replaced with anger. The quadruped turned and faced the mighty ape. Kong was about to leap when he noticed the bloody tongue extending at a great length and began spewing more frigid air.
Bombarded with cold air, the hair on Kong's body began to glisten and harden, the giant ape shrieked in discomfort as he fumbled backwards. Barugon stopped the assault, the wound on its tongue frozen over, numbing the pain.
Kong struggled to stay upright, his fur now a mix of white and brown, clumps of fur frozen and chipping off with every movement. The ape god wiped the sleet off his face and growled in anger. Luckily, his thick fur still offered him warmth, but now the reptilian monster had done it. Kong wanted to personally kill the lizard himself.
Barugon groaned as his skin began shedding, his wounds slowly healing. The lizard focused on Kong, who was walking along the lower level of the park. Once the ape was a good distance away, he turned to the side and carefully walked down a stone bridge that connected the moat to the city. He had somehow missed this when he had first arrived, but was happy to have it nonetheless.
Barugon screeched as it charged at Kong. The ape growled in annoyance, prepared to defend himself. The brown lizard lunged at the giant simian, but missed its mark as Kong dropped to the ground. Flying past the trees, the icy reptile slammed into a cluster of buildings, flattening them with ease.
The ape god watched as Barugon clawed out of the rubble, small fires ignited under the horned lizard’s feet, illuminating the pitch black city. Barugon turned to face the mammoth mammal, its long tail crashing into multiple buildings in the process. Barugon grunted; it despised the ape, now it would feel its wrath.
Kong's teeth chattered as he tried breathing hot air into his palms, slowly making his way to Barugon, his eyes locked onto the brown lizard. Barugon snickered as it dared Kong to catch it. Feeling like something was up, Kong cautiously moved closer to the New Guinea monster; however, he could never have anticipated what would happen next.
Barugon screeched as the spikes on its back flashed multiple colors, the bright blinking lights caught King Kong by surprise. The shivering ape was suddenly filled with awe as the lights seemed to have practically hypnotized him. With Kong distracted, Barugon growled in contempt, knowing it had Kong right in its clutches.
Suddenly a rainbow shot from the glowing back spines of Barugon, arching towards Kong. The mighty king cocked his head in confusion; he had seen these beautiful colors on rainy days, so why was his foe creating one? Kong's thoughts were interrupted as soon as the rainbow made contact with his body.
Intense heat ravaged Kong's body as the spectrum of colors washed over the ape’s entire body, forcing the Farou god to howl in pure agony. His fur immediately thawed, and burst into flames, his skin blistered and burned as his eyes and mouth dried out. The sudden shift from freezing to burning forced the mighty ape into shock.
Barugon ceased its attack, although it was only roughly ten seconds, to Kong it felt like minutes. Kong stood for a brief moment, his fur black, shriveled, and curled; the smell of burnt flesh mixed with burnt hair, causing any person nearby to puke. Falling to his knees with a thud, Kong's head fell back as he gasped for air, his muscles cramped and spazzed, unable to scream, instead silently suffering.
Barugon chirped in glee. It had finished off that nuisance and made him pay for harming it. The brown quadruped extended its frozen tongue and battered the ape until he tipped to the side, his smoking carcass landed onto the street with a loud thud.
The monster turned around and set its sights on the city, opening its toothy maw, and spraying icy cold mist from its tongue. It blanketed the buildings and roads with frost, freely able to freeze over Osaka unopposed.
Silence washed over everyone in the room. Some hung their heads in sorrow, others were quickly brainstormed a new strategy. Karen gasp as she began to tear up, not wanting to believe what she was seeing. Members of the JSDF paid her no mind, but Keisuke somberly placed a gentle hand on her shoulder. The woman tried to keep her composure, but clearly could not.
Keisuke sighed before speaking. “This is all my fault, if I had never gone on that expedition, Ichiro and Kawajiri might be still be alive, now Kong is gone too.” Karen, who had managed to regain her composure, piped up. “No, even if you didn’t go, Onodera would have most likely killed your brother and friend anyways. We now need to find a way to stop Barugon, at all costs.”
As the duo lamented, a man with well groomed hair, glasses, and gray blazer, entered the room. Keisuke perked up, recognizing him as the medical expert on the “Awaji Maru,” Dr. Sato. It seemed he had successfully escaped the destruction of the ship unharmed.
The general of the JSDF greeted the doctor, before motioning him to large table with many seats, with the doctor sitting at the head of the table. Karen and Keisuke both moved to the larger tablet, interested in what the man had to say. Dr. Sato explained how Barugon was born due to overexposure to Infrared light as an egg, and how it forced Barugon to grow to abnormal size.
When the doctor finished his explanation, the general asked for a new plan of attack, prompting Keisuke to chime in. “There must be some sort of way to keep Barugon from attacking.” Upon hearing that, Karen immediately piped up. “Yes, I believe so! Rain! Rain can easily prevent Barugon from moving. It despises water, so the rain should act as a paralytic.”
Before anyone else to could say a word, another man, one with gray hair and glasses, well dressed, chimed in. “If I may, general, I believe now would be a good time to show you the weapon I have been working on?”, The general nodded his head. “Yes, please do, Professor, we need every bit of help we can get.” The professor then prompted everyone at the table to follow him.
Professor Amano explained to everyone what the large, futuristic, white-and-black gun was. Stating that the gun was indeed a ruby death ray, however, the weapon was currently in experimental stages, and would not be ready for another year or so. The Professor then stated, that he had worked tirelessly the last few hours, and had successfully modified the weapon to generate powerful electricity, practically man-made lightning!
Keisuke then stated, “That is right, during his fight with Godzilla three years ago, Kong absorbed the lightning of a storm, giving him the strength to beat Godzilla! I remember now, that is why you modified the death ray, in case of a scenario like this!” Keisuke paused for a brief moment. “Wait, Kong is still alive?”
Professor Amano nodded in agreement. “That is correct, Kong is still alive. Now I ask that we mount this weapon on one of the helicopters, so we may fly in close to Kong, and revive him with the ray gun. Hopefully, he should then have the strength to beat Barugon, like he did to Godzilla in 1962.”
Karen sighed with relief, happy that the giant ape had a chance for survival. The General of the JSDF then exclaimed. “Okay, so it is settled, everyone knows the plan. First we drop artificial rain on Barugon, keeping him immobile long enough for the Professor to activate the ray gun and revive King Kong! Okay everyone, we do not have a moment to waste!” With that said, everyone left the lab and into the upstairs quarters.
---
Barugon continued to waltz around Osaka, knocking over buildings as fire illuminated its scaly frame. Barugon was ready to crumble more buildings, before a familiar sound rang through its ear holes. Barugon cocked its head toward the noise, spotting a fleet of oncoming helicopters.
The leathery lizard chirped as the machines flew overhead, mist emanating from the helicopters. Barugon was about to extend its tongue, until it felt the sensation of cold water on its body. Its body immediately tensed up, unable to move freely, and radiated with a burning sensation as the rain continued to pour.
The brown lizard laid down on its stomach, the monster struggled to keep its eyes opened. Out of the corner of its large eye, Barugon noticed another helicopter hovered atop the slouched ape, curious to its intent.
In the helicopter, Professor Amano aimed to large weapon on the unconscious ape. “Ready to fire in three... Two... One!” The large bulb on the tip of the gun began crackling with blue sparks of energy as it generated electricity. The gun finished warming up and began to shoot a bolt of man-made lighting. The bolt of energy danced around Kong's body, his muscles twitched and fingers curled as they reacted to the lightning.
Electricity continuously pumped through Kong, his body jerked as bolts of lightning darted around his form. Barugon cocked its head, watching in awe as the body of Kong illuminated with a bright blue. The reptilian struggled to crawl along the ground, but took notice of Kong's eyes. They shot open, glowing blue as he sat upright, slowly turning his pupiless eyes towards Barugon, snarling with unbridled fury. Rising to his feet, the ape god began his slow march towards Barugon, the helicopters in the vicinity left due to the electrical disturbance Kong was unknowingly generating.
Karen and Keisuke watched on a large monitor, jaws dropped as they witnessed the revival of King Kong! Karen whispered under her breath, “Get him, Kong.” Everyone in the room held their breath as they watched Kong march onwards.
The rainbow creating lizard shuddered in fear; if it could sweat, it would be drenched in it. Kong puffed up his chest and howled in rage, windows from nearby buildings shattered, cars wailed, as if the whole city trembled before Kong. Barugon screeched as it began to spray icy mist, however the ice collided with the sparks of electricity dancing around Kong's frame, creating small flash bangs before evaporating into smoke.
Kong jumped, closing the distance between him and Barugon. The lizard yelped in surprise as Kong clutched its long horn. King Kong began pumping volts of electricity into Barugon’s horn, sending the blue lightning throughout the rainbow monster's entire body. Barugon screeched in pain as its body twitched and spazzed. Kong eventually let go and uppercut the beast’s lower jaw, flinging the quadruped backwards.
Barugon groaned in pain, its body ached immensely, but, Kong was far from done. Kong leapt once more and slammed his foot into the lizard’s gut, causing Barugon to spit purple liquid from its maw. Kong began furiously stomping the lizard’s stomach, electric charges burned the lizard’s leathery skin, as more purple blood gushed from the beast’s mouth. Barugon gargled in pain as it tried to claw Kong, or hit his back with its own tail, but each counter attack was futile, it did little to deter Kong.
The ape god then stopped its assault, and stepped backwards, eying the flailing tail of Barugon. The giant ape grabbed the tail and began spinning, dragging Barugon along the ground, crashing into buildings and rubble. Kong kept up the attack for a bit, letting Barugon rise up into the air before finally letting go. Barugon screeched as it practically sailed across the city, crashing into more buildings. Its body flailed uncontrollably as it skid and tumbled across the dark city.
Kong roared before fumbling forward, the electrical charge beginning to falter. Barugon lazily rose to its feet, all four limbs wobbly, as it struggled to stay up. The lizard grunted as it began drooling at the mouth, focusing all its energy into its back.
The Farou champion noticed the flickering lights on the beast’s back and prepared for evasive maneuvers, having learned from his grave mistake last time. Barugon screeched as the rainbow death ray arched towards Kong, the ape grunted and lunged to the side, landing on his stomach. The lizard grunted as it turned slowly, aiming towards Kong.
Noticing the rainbow inching closer, Kong hopped to his feet and limped away, gritting his teeth, his whole body felt like it would fall apart. Barugon continued to turn, trying to completely incinerate the singed ape; however, its left foreleg gave out as it collapsed under its own weight. Immediately, Barugon tipped over and landed hard on its left shoulder, screeching in pain.
The tipped over Barugon meant that the rainbow death ray also tipped over, picking up speed and nearly falling on Kong, who again, leapt out of the way, his soles almost caught in the ray. The arched spectrum of colorful light faded away, leaving Barugon helpless.
Kong lifted himself up and limped at the downed lizard, who clawed at the dirt, struggling to rise. Once Kong was close, Barugon screeched as it lunged forward, one last stand. But Kong side stepped, and clawed at the beast, leaving four deep gashes along the face and ribs.
Barugon cried in agony, the left side of its body bled profusely, as purple blood stained the pavement below. Kong turned and grabbed the monster’s tail once more, using his last bit of strength to lift Barugon high in the sky and slamming the rainbow lizard into the asphalt. He repeated the action once more, and again for a third time. Barugon laid nearly motionless on the ground.
The reptile groaned as it struggled to stay awake. Its vision was foggy, wobbly, practically seeing double. It then felt two hand grasp it lower and upper jaws, Kong was about to perform his trademark finisher.
Kong, the mighty ape of Farou, used the last drops of energy to pry open Barugon's mouth. Purple blood leaked as the corners of the mouth ripped apart, foam spewing from the lizard’s throat. With one final push, Kong heard the sweet sound of broken jaw, the sound that let him know his victory was secured, the cracking noise echoed throughout the city. Kong smashed the limp Barugon's head into pavement, no reaction, aside from the occasional post-mortem twitch.
Kong snorted and stood up; he tilted his head and roared into the night sky, beating his chest. The giant ape stood tall, before tipping backwards, landing on his back, legs kicked into the air before lazily smacking the ground. Kong stretched his arms out as he breathed heavily, his fight was over, and it was no doubt one of the most grueling fights of his life.
His vision blurred, but he felt ropes wrap around his arms and legs, before feeling an almost weightless sensation. Before he knew it, he was overlooking the indistinct image of the snowy city of Osaka. Kong turned his head lazily as he barely noticed Barugon was also roped up by his legs, and carried in the opposite direction. Not really caring what had happened to the lizard, lost in thought, Kong felt the warmth of sunshine on his face, taking notice of the morning sun, beginning to rise, Kong took in the sight, before succumbing to exhaustion.
---
Kong groggily opened his eyes. It seemed to be the evening. For a moment, Kong believed the whole thing was a dream, but that idea was immediately discarded when his whole body radiated with soreness. Kong grunted as he propped himself up, feeling his rough singed fur.
Unknown to Kong, the ape had been treated by both the natives and medical specialists from Japan, aside from some minor scars. Kong was expected to make a full recovery in the coming months. The JSDF realized they could not always count on Kong to save them, but were very grateful for his assistance. Should another threat ever emerge, Japan would have to be clever and stop it by themselves.
---
Barugon was dropped into the lake, and was never surfaced. The JSDF would have to work tirelessly to clean the lake of Barugon's blood, but nevertheless it was a sign that the lizard had truly fallen. Karen and Keisuke both left to New Guinea, Keisuke realizing there wasn't much left for him in Japan now that his brother was gone. Barugon soon became a memory, a reminder that the world was chock full of bizarre and enigmatic things. Kong was also one of those entities, but one of good, willing to be a protector and not a destroyer.
Everyone in Japan prayed that King Kong would continue to live a long, peaceful life.
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