Author: Landon Soto | Banner: Matthew Williams

Deep within Antarctica, a large facility braved the harsh cold and rough winds from the outside. Humanity had time and time again discovered ways to contain or block out the natural elements. These impressive structures were a small testament to what humanity could accomplish. However, despite how much man craved control, there was always a chance that even the most insignificant of things could cause a massive change.

Created by the secret government organization, Monarch, Outpost 32 was quite an impressive sight on the surface of the snowy ground. The base contained large barracks and hangers that refused to be buried under the ice. Multiple observation decks lined the top of the base despite the frosted windows and seemingly endless barrage of snow and hail that obscured the barren, frozen landscape. The base stood as a means of overcoming the harsh conditions of Antarctica.

Underneath the miles of rock and snow was an enormous, cavernous interior. Massive steel towers and girders supported the icy ceiling to prevent a cave in and maintain a safe workplace. Lengthy walkways stretched across the cave, allowing workers and soldiers to maneuver around. The most prominent feature of this cavern was the colossal wall of ice that seemed to stand over hundreds of meters.

From within the ice, a large silhouette partially obscured by frost and mist could be seen. What appeared to be the shape of a dragon frozen within, with its long serpentine head, a long spiked tail and barely visible wings could be made out. It was clear that this was no ordinary cave, but a containment chamber of sorts. Where natural ice and artificial steel worked hand in hand to subdue the giant dragon.

One Monarch worker sat at one of the various control panels, opening a brown bag. The worker placed an apple and a slightly frozen bottle of water on a flat surface of the panel. Finally, putting a container of hot soup on the surface as well, it was lunch time. A couple minutes passed as the worker finished his meal. Placing his spoon down on the control panel, some soup spilled off the utensil and into a grill.

What seemed like no issue whatsoever would slowly snowball into something greater. That drop of soup slid down a long tube, before it slipped into the nooks and crannies of an electrical outlet. Some sparks and smoke sputtered from the socket for a brief moment before calming down. Unbeknownst to the base, the thermometers regulating the icy tomb were now compromised, displaying the same number even as the truth was different.

Everyone was busy doing their jobs and focusing on mundane tasks, an incongruity with the thermometers sliding under the radar. Soon, however, even within a giant ice cavern, the temperature was noticeably less freezing. Some found it more enjoyable, but others immediately knew something was wrong. But before any attempts to fix the issue could be made, it was already too late. The sounds of ice splintering and cracking filled the air, large chunks breaking off and crashing to the stone floor below.

A loud rumbling could be heard as an ominous golden glow filled the cavern. An intense burst of light, followed by a deafening explosion, caused the ceiling to collapse as machinery and stone broke apart. A colossal mass rose from the icy debris. Not one, but three draconic heads realized what the meaning of this was as they slowly reawakened. Colossal bat-like wings spread open as the being shot from the tons of snow like a rocket towards the sky, disappearing into the gray snowstorm. A terrible cacophony of monstrous shrieks and cries followed suit. Outpost 32 lay in ruin as it began to be reclaimed by the tons of unforgiving ice and snow.

A gargantuan black shadow moved across the white snowy terrain of Antarctica. Snow pelted the massive figure’s body as the sunlight glistened off of its golden scales, the massive creature letting out a chorus of shrieks from its serpentine heads as it soared across the sky. The snowstorm had begun to ease up, allowing the entire form of the giant creature to be visible.

Monster Zero, Titanus Ghidorah, the three-headed dragon was free. The hydra flapped their massive bat-like wings as their twin tails flowed like waves behind them. A large, black storm formed all around the dragon as the winds became more and more violent. Rain fell down in sheets as gallons of water rolled off the Titan’s form. The dragon had already begun to display a portion of their elusive might.

Titanus Ghidorah had been documented in the past to have possessed the unique ability to generate and encase themselves within a massive tropical storm. Now, having recently escaped their icy prison, the hydra was flying to a more comfortable place. Although they had been sealed for years, it only felt like a couple hours of sleep to the beast. Occasionally, one golden head glanced down at the ice below. The icy layer gradually broke apart and revealed the black, frigid water beneath. The left head seemed especially fixated, an occasional whimper escaping the hydra’s razor sharp teeth.

The left head was brought back to reality when a pair of jaws clamped onto his top right cranial horn. The middle head snarled as he jerked the left head upwards, forcing him to look forward. A shrill roar left the middle head’s jaws as he berated the left. The right head meanwhile snickered, like a child watching their sibling be scolded by a parent. The left head let out a succession of grunts and growls as he focused on what was in front of him.

Bolts of lightning occasionally struck the Antarctic ice as Ghidorah was nearly obscured by the violent maelstrom of storm clouds, rain, and electricity. The dragon’s heads were thinking to themselves as well as amongst each other. It was the only thing they could do as they traversed the seemingly endless frozen wasteland. Their recent escape from their icy prison made the dragon wonder just how they should go about continuing their conquest of the planet. Perhaps find and kill that wretched lizard and pitiful insect, for starters.

It was those two who had locked them away for who knew how long. They were finally back and this time, things would be different. Three times the pride was swallowed as King Ghidorah collectively decided it would rally up the lesser giants on this rock and tear apart the two that had wronged them, not wanting a repeat of the previous battle. The dragon snickered at the thought of exacting their revenge.

Soon however, Ghidorah’s thoughts were interrupted as the hydra sensed something rapidly approaching. Thousands of meters away in the distance, thick gray clouds from the snowstorm bulged and expanded. It appeared as if something was moving within the clouds, Ghidorah could sense it. Neither side was budging and the gap was closing, soon the thunderstorm and snowstorm would collide.

King Ghidorah squinted as a vague silhouette could be seen within the storm. It appeared to be a pudgy, bumpy beast with outstretched wings that flew through the thick Antarctic clouds. From within the cover of the natural snowstorm, the enigmatic creature saw the thunderstorm before it, however, it refused to yield. The hydra let out a trio of gleeful cackling, this was the stroke of luck they needed. With one subject under their rule, many more would follow.

The golden dragon dove down towards the other monster, the fine details becoming more noticeable as Ghidorah closed in on the beast. Talons stretched out as Ghidorah prepared to sink their claws into the unknown creature, the dragon grinning with anticipation. However, the unknown entity was far faster than expected, easily avoiding the dragon’s talons. The obscured figure flew higher into the sky, and Ghidorah gave chase. Surrounded by the superstorm, both monsters rose higher and higher.

Black clouds from the tropical storm bulged before bursting apart as the golden frame of Monster Zero broke through the storm clouds. All three heads surveyed the area, gray and black puffballs of static electricity alongside rain and hail as far as the triplet’s eyes could see. Sounds of thunder boomed and echoed in the background, snow pelting the scales of the dragon. Suddenly, a portion of storm clouds began to expand and bulge, Ghidorah snarling as they prepared themselves.

Tearing through the puffy storm clouds, a bipedal creature appeared. It stopped a good distance away from the hydra, flapping its wings to stay in place. Likewise, flying in place, Ghidorah was able to examine the monster. The beast stayed aloft with bird-like wings, although the feathers appeared to be more like flaps of skin. A single horn curved down atop the beast’s head with tusks akin to a walrus. Its face was pug-like with lazy eyes that stared back at the three-headed Titan.

Ghidorah was unimpressed, he clearly dwarfed the smaller Titan. Roaring out to the pudgy monster, Ghidorah asserted dominance, hoping to put this titan under their metaphorical thumb right away. The middle head demanded submission, the right expressed consequences, and the left expressed interest in how they themselves would gain from this Titan being under their control.

The tusked airborne snow monster growled. Unknown to Ghidorah, humanity had had an encounter with this Titan before and dubbed him Peguila, named by a Dr. Nomura in the mid sixties. The fairly new secret government organization, Monarch, worked fast to contain the new Titan. He had been reawakened from his hibernation by the cries of Ghidorah, and broke free from his outdated confinement.

After the rapid discovery of more Titans, funding was spread thin to contain the larger, arguably more dangerous creatures. Peguila’s outpost was practically neglected, the dated tech had begun to falter with very few modern upgrades. The location was not optimal either. However, the blubbery monster cared not for containment and technology, he was free and the calls had intrigued him. He decided to head straight to the source.

Peguila responded to Ghidorah by opening his mouth and spewing a stream of thick freezing mist from his maw. King Ghidorah yelped in unison as the chilling mist touched their scales. The cold was noticeably more intense than the surrounding environment. The hydra evaded the beam as the conjoined triplets began to circle above Peguila. The freezing monster ceased fire and flew after Ghidorah, the smaller, yet faster ice Titan moving behind the larger, slower dragon. The left head of the dragon looked back and fired a gravity bolt, however, the walrus-like monster easily evaded.

Ghidorah turned around and spewed three golden gravity bolts at Peguila, who once again dodged. Peguila retaliated with another stream of icy mist, successfully flying over the hydra as he bathed the dragon in freezing gas. The three-headed dragon screeched as they felt their wings stiffen, the frost seeping into their skin, however, the dragon was no stranger to freezing temperatures, they could handle this.

Stopping in mid-air, the hydra stretched out their wings, Ghidorah breaking off the ice that formed on them. The golden dragon scoured the clouds that surrounded them, looking for the tusked Titan. They soon found their adversary when the three felt something quickly stab into their ribs. Ghidorah screeched in pain as they were shoved downwards, then glanced up and saw Peguila with his cranial horn, stained red, fly down after them. Peguila watched in shock as he closed in on his opponent, the stab wound he had just inflicted was practically gone in mere moments. Ghidorah meanwhile struggled briefly to maintain flight, before once again being engulfed in Peguila’s ice mist.

The left head of Ghidorah looked down and noticed that he and his siblings were descending rapidly towards the Antarctic water below. His eyes widened as bad memories reared their heads in not only the left mind, but also creeping into the middle and right as well. The other two tried to focus on the creature in front of them, but could not help but remember.

The mental images of a giant lizard and moth forcing them into the freezing depths were becoming clear as day. Ghidorah remembered how broken and bloodied their once beautiful golden body had become, it was all because of those two and their army. The dragon remembered the cold that enveloped its body, something they could handle, but the darkness was different. Unlike the seemingly infinite black expanse above the planet it once roamed, where stars and other celestial bodies were visible, this was different. They could barely see anything, the pressure felt as if the planet itself was attempting to drag them into the abyss and cage them.

Ghidorah snapped out of it and broke the ice off of their body again. The hydra arched up towards the sky, narrowly avoiding the frigid water below. Massive bat-like wings flapped with pure force as Ghidorah hastily flew up into the sky once more, their golden body littered with patches of white frost. The dragon realized their opponent was much too quick, and had seemingly vanished into the storm. Ghidorah flew in place, concentrating, and golden light crackled around the dragon’s frame.

Electrical energy crawled up to the tips of the serpent’s wings. Ghidorah brought their wings in front of them as the tips glowed a golden hue. The dragon flung its wings outwards as the triplets howled to the heavens, bolts of lightning fired off in almost every direction. The spear-like energy bolts pierced through the storm with ease, and soon enough, a loud shriek emanated from within the storm, the silhouette of a familiar beast dropping through the clouds.

The three heads grinned with a wicked delight, the dragon dove downwards towards their potential subject. Ghidorah saw the smoldering body of Peguila free-falling down towards the Arctic water. The dragon stretched out their feet like an eagle about to snatch up prey. Peguila meanwhile felt as if his whole body was on fire, muscles involuntarily convulsed as the walrus-like Titan fell like a sack of bricks.

The Golden Demise placed its claws down on the barely conscious freezing monster. The conjoined siblings allowed their immense body weight to accelerate their descent. The dragon could feel their heartbeat begin to speed up as they inched ever closer to the water. They hated this feeling, how could they be so afraid of the water beneath them? The once thought invincible Ghidorah shoved those thoughts aside once more.

Using the smoking Peguila as a springboard, Ghidorah leapt up into the air. A sense of relief washed over the hydra who glided a few hundred meters away and onto a large glacier. The giant ice platform rocked under the Titan’s impressive weight. All three heads watched as Peguila slammed into the water. Frigid liquid was sent hundreds of feet into the air, allowing the ice Titan to sink beneath the black waves.

The golden dragon groaned in annoyance, all three heads wondered if they had accidentally killed their potential subject. The trio of draconic heads murmured and growled amongst themselves. There were still more than enough creatures on this pathetic rock, they would simply recruit those all while being more mindful of their power.

As the hydra prepared to leave this frozen wasteland, the water began to bubble and churn unbeknownst to Ghidorah. The water erupted behind them. From the frigid black, Peguila shot out like a torpedo as he roared in rage. The winged, blubbery beast aimed his cranial horn towards Ghidorah. The hydra twisted their body around and gasped, too shocked to move away in time. This brief moment of hesitation was enough for Peguila, who stabbed into the chest of the three-headed dragon. Blood spewed from the puncture wound, the horn coming dangerously close to where Monster Zero’s heart was presumably.

The impact from the gray, pudgy Titan forcefully knocked Ghidorah into the Arctic water. The moment the water touched the golden scales of the hydra, all three siblings cried out in a mix of anguish and rage. The freezing sensation gripped the winged monster like a firm fist. Finally underwater, wild thrashing dislodged Peguila from the dragon. Ghidorah meanwhile was practically upside-down, the trio panicked as they tried to regain equilibrium. Everything was inky black, the triplets cried out in confusion as they looked desperately for the surface. The sound of their heart beating was unbearably loud, it felt like it would burst out of their chest at any moment.

Peguila watched on amused, this dragon that had caused it so much pain was now struggling like a helpless infant. The tusked Titan let out a muffled roar as he swam through the water like a leopard seal stalking its lunch. Ghidorah was soon struck from every side as Peguila rammed his body into the larger Titan repeatedly. Swimming away before circling around again, his body felt like a torpedo crashing into the hydra. Peguila looked lazily at the dragon thrashing about, this time he swam under the hydra and opened his jaws in anticipation.

Tusks plunged into Ghidorah’s right thigh as blood billowed from the wounds. Peguila dug his tusks ever deeper before he clamped his jaws into the flesh of the Golden Demise. The walrus-like Titan began to drag the three-headed dragon deeper into the Arctic abyss, hoping to drown the hydra and feast on a chilled meal. The blubbery beast growled in delight as the dragon’s thrashing continued.

Ghidorah screeched in pain and horror as they felt themselves sinking ever deeper. Monster Zero desperately tried to kick Peguila in the face. Finding their mark, the triplets began to claw the face of the pudgy monster. Peguila eventually relented and forcefully ripped out his tusks from the dragon. Blood spewed from the wounds of both monsters, Peguila now sported a trio of claw marks across the face, his foe meanwhile attempting to heal the deep wounds inflicted onto it. Ghidorah sank deeper as they tried to renew themselves, their vision filled with darkness before a memory from the past flooded all three minds.

The dragon remembered their body was burned and charred, chunks of flesh gouged from their golden body. Holes littered their once immaculate wings as bones were fractured and snapped. In one last ditch effort to preserve themselves, the dragon’s body began to glow a faint golden light. Bones snapped back into place, wings repaired themselves as flesh healed and muscles stitched back together. Minutes passed as Ghidorah appeared flawless once again, the price being they had exhausted all their strength, unable to move as they became consumed by darkness. The last thing the three saw was the armored saurian and that fuzzy moth that perched atop his head looking down upon them as if they were lesser beings.

Rage began to fill all three minds of the hydra, this feeling of fear and inferiority, they hated it. The dragon believed that they deserved to be the strongest, that they were the rightful apex of this mud ball and that all life existed to serve them and them alone. This rush of adrenaline and fury bubbled up from within the Titan. Like a rocket, Ghidorah exploded with raw strength as their wings smashed forcefully against the water. The dragon propelled themselves through the frigid water as their body moved like a serpent, finally seeing the escaping Peguila and the surface.

Muffled cries of anger escaped the triplets’ jaws as bubbles frothed and billowed from all three heads. Anxiety crept into the back of their minds, but it was quickly kept in check by the desire to bring pain upon the ice Titan. From the freezing water, Peguila shot out of the sea like a penguin. He landed on a nearby glacier, the freezing monster snarled, before letting out a deep bellow. Peguila felt the sting of electrical energy radiate throughout his body as well as the fresh wounds on his face. The walrus-like monster had decided to wait for the dragon to drown before feasting on its corpse. The pudgy beast prepared to fly away before he noticed the water behind him bubble and churn.

Peguila’s eyes widened in surprise before he yelped in shock. Golden gravity bolts ripped open the water, gallons of frigid liquid sent rocketing into the gray sky. Ghidorah shot from the waves like a bullet. The hydra landed on another large glacier, shaking off the frost that latched onto their body, gallons of water rolled down their golden frame. Ghidorah turned around to face the shocked Peguila who had noticed the triplets’ wounds had already healed. The golden dragon stared daggers into the gray, pudgy freezing monster.

Snow and hail harmlessly bounced off of Peguila as rain pelted Ghidorah. Lightning struck the waters behind the dragon which prompted Monster Zero to unleash a barrage of gravity bolts towards Peguila. The freezing monster spewed frigid mist from his mouth in response. Golden gravity bolts tore through the thick spray like a hot knife through butter. Peguila went wide eyed, his body soon assaulted with the almighty power of Ghidorah. The smaller Antarctic monster howled in agony as a large explosion pushed him off the iceberg.

Peguila was forcefully bounced atop the water, the momentum causing him to skip like a stone. The blubbery kaiju was forced back for nearly a mile. Ghidorah ceased fire as hot air escaped their jaws, watching as Peguila once again sank underwater. Beneath the waves, the burnt kaiju let out pained gasps as he realized that this dragon far outclassed him. It was time to get away.

Above the water’s surface, Ghidorah prepared itself for any sneak attacks, but none came. Instead, hundreds of meters away, Peguila burst forth from the waves and flew into the sky. The tusked monster flew in the opposite direction of the dragon Titan. All three heads of Ghidorah snarled, all of this trouble, and the Arctic beast thought it could escape so easily? The conjoined trio would not allow it, especially after being humiliated because of this accursed wasteland.

Gargantuan bat-like wings spread open as rain rolled off of their magnificent form. Ghidorah let out an ear-piercing shriek that shook the distant Peguila to the core. The pudgy monster felt a chill run up his spine. He had bitten off more than he could chew, and wanted to escape. Every flap of his wings pained the burnt and smoldering monster. Ghidorah meanwhile took off after Peguila, although he was slower, he could still see the flying seal monster through the rain and snow.

Although they had kept a good pace, Ghidorah growled in unison as Peguila frantically twisted his body around. Looking back at the dragon, Peguila began to spew icy mist from his jaws. The mass amount of frigid air allowed the flying walrus-like beast to almost perfectly blend in with the natural Arctic storm clouds. The golden dragon was undeterred by their opponent’s pathetic attempt to flee. The triplets opened their draconic jaws and spewed searing hot gravity bolts towards Peguila.

The freezing monster weaved through the clouds, narrowly avoiding the beams. Peguila was growing tired, his body had taken more than a beating from his brief encounter with the dragon. However, Peguila continued to fly, hoping to shake the slower dragon, but Ghidorah would not make it so easy. More gravity beams fired at Peguila, who was beginning to slow down, struggling to make the necessary moves to evade.

One gravity beam finally found its mark as it lanced across Peguila’s back, scorching the beast’s blubbery hide. The tusked monster screeched in agony as he felt the skin on his back blister and burn. The ice Titan descended down to the snow covered ground below, too weak to keep this up. Peguila struck the white ground as his body kicked up mounds of dirt and snow. His smoldering carcass dragged across the ice before slowing to a halt.

Struggling to rise, Peguila groaned as the snow and rain somewhat eased his wounds. The walrus-like Titan shook his horned head as he began to take off again, but felt the ground tremble. A terrible chorus of cackles rang behind him. The icy beast glanced back towards the source of the sound, but to Peguila’s surprise, there was nothing there. Perhaps he had only imagined that terrifying sound, or it was just the howling winds.

Facing forward now, Peguila began to flap his wings. Perhaps there was time to still slip away. However, as soon as the gray monster finished that thought, something forcefully pushed down on the Titan’s skull. A golden clawed foot smashed Peguila’s face into the ice and snow, carefully placed atop his head to avoid the large cranial horn. The one who was many stretched out their wings and roared to the heavens. Bolts of lightning struck the area around the two titans.

Peguila trembled with fear underfoot, he glanced up at the hydra, able to see all three heads staring maliciously back at him. The left head sneered, finally he had this pinniped right where he belonged. The middle head looked down sternly at the tusked beast, as if looking into his soul. The right head looked like a crazed wolf with his fangs bared, drool dripped from his maw as he snarled at the pudgy disgrace.

The middle head groaned, they needed this scum alive if they wanted to take revenge on their true enemy. The thought was relayed to the right head. It took every ounce of restraint within the right head to not viciously rip the flesh off this bloated piece of excrement’s hide. Slowly his head moved back, still locked onto the horned fool. The left head had no qualms with letting this one live if they truly needed him.

A chilling sensation, different from the ice and wind of Antarctica, permeated within Peguila. As if the tusked Titan knew that death itself was right around the corner. This dragon truly was unlike anything he had ever encountered. Ghidorah let out a multitude of growls and roars, communicating with the walrus-like monster. Their grip on Peguila’s head softened slightly as the pudgy walrus-like beast let out deep and bassy calls in response to the hydra.

Peguila let out a final screech as he gave in to Ghidorah’s one demand. To serve the hydra. All three heads of King Ghidorah gave a twisted grin, taking their foot off of the freezing monster. The golden dragon allowed the blubbery Titan to slowly rise before the triplets flexed their wings and thrust themselves into the air. Peguila’s breath was labored, just what had he gotten himself into? The freezing monster followed suit, trailing behind the hydra. His body ached with every flap of his wings as his back radiated with pain.

The hydra cackled with joy. With one servant under their belt, soon, they could finally begin the process of amassing followers to overthrow the overgrown lizard. They deserved to be the one and only Alpha Titan. The world would soon be remade to their liking. The thought was shared between all three heads, which prompted the trio to cackle in an ominous chorus of sadistic joy. Peguila hung his head low at the sounds as his face appeared somber. Both winged titans flew towards the horizon, eventually disappearing in a superstorm of thunder and ice.

Winner: King Ghidorah (Legendary)